Georgia Native Wheeler Headlines 2010 GreenJackets Roster
April 5, 2010 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Augusta GreenJackets News Release
Augusta, GA - The San Francisco Giants have assigned 28 players, manager Dave Machemer, pitching coach Steve Kline, hitting coach Lipso Nava, athletic trainer David Getsoff and strength and conditioning coordinator Yousef Zamat to Augusta to make up the Opening Day roster of the 2010 Augusta GreenJackets.
The players and coaches broke camp at the Giants spring training complex in Arizona this morning and will arrive tonight in Augusta tonight. They'll hold workouts at Lake Olmstead Stadium on Tuesday night and Wednesday afternoon before opening the season on Thursday in Greensboro.
"I like our chances for this season because we're coming into the year with the top three draft picks in the 2009 class on our team," said Machemer. "This is a young and talented team and even though the South Atlantic League is a tough league for guys playing in their first full season of professional baseball, the league will be a good test of their skills. This is a group of kids we believe in."
The roster is headlined by the Giants' 2009 1st round draft pick, Zack Wheeler, a 20-year old native of Dallas, Georgia. Including Wheeler, the 2010 GreenJackets will open play with ten of the Giants' top-15 picks from the 2009 draft.
Wheeler is one of six that will make up the GreenJackets starting rotation this season. The rest of the rotation includes Chris Heston, Jorge Bucardo, Bryan Salsbury, Hector Correa and Jeremy Toole. Heston will get the ball for the GreenJackets in their opener on Thursday night in Greensboro.
Prospects are also abundant within the everyday lineup as the Giants second-round pick, Thomas Joseph, will share the catching duties with Hector Sanchez. Eliezer Zambrano - the only member of the 2010 Opening Day roster to spend any time with Augusta last year - will serve as the third catcher.
Chris Dominguez, a third-round pick out of Louisville, anchors the infield at third base. Double plays will be the business of the duo of John Eshleman and Ryan Cavan who will be the starting shortstop and second baseman respectively. Luke Anders figures to be the everyday option at first base for the GreenJackets.
In the outfield, Daniel Cook will start in left field with ninth-rounder Evan Crawford in center and Ryan Lollis earning everyday duties in right.
The bullpen will feature Jason Jarvis getting a look early in the season as the team's closer with Jose Casilla serving as another option in late inning situations. The rest of the bullpen will be comprised of Chris Gloor, Brian Irving, Devan Kline, Jose Valdez and Kyle Vazquez.
In the bench mix will be catcher Jesse Shriner, infielders Kyle Mach and Juan Martinez and outfielders Nick Liles and Jose Medina. Shriner, Mach and Toole will start the season on the disabled list, but will see time in the coming weeks.
"All in all, we should have more power and speed on this team than we did last year," said Machemer. "I feel we have a really exciting mix of players this year."
The GreenJackets open the 2010 season on Thursday night with a 7:05 p.m. contest in Greensboro against the Grasshoppers in game one of an eight-game road trip to start the year. Fans locally can get their first taste of action in the GreenJackets home opener on Friday April 16th as the ballclub returns home to host the Charleston RiverDogs.
The April 16th contest will begin at a special 7:35 p.m. start time and tickets currently are available for each and every game on a single-game basis. Season tickets can also currently be obtained by calling 706-922-WINS or online at www.greenjacketsbaseball.com.
South Atlantic League Stories from April 5, 2010
- Crawdads Announce 2010 Opening Day Roster - Hickory Crawdads
- Georgia Native Wheeler Headlines 2010 GreenJackets Roster - Augusta GreenJackets
- Charlie T. RiverDog To Appear At The Buccaneer Restaurant - Charleston RiverDogs
- Shorebirds Break Camp Ready To Open 2010 Season - Delmarva Shorebirds
- BlueClaws Unveil 2010 Opening Day Roster - Jersey Shore BlueClaws
- Suns 2010 Roster Announced - Hagerstown Suns
- Power Announce Initial 2010 Roster - Charleston Dirty Birds
- 2010 Opening Day Roster Announced - Greenville Drive
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
