AtL Lancaster Stormers

Johnson, Denker Return to Barnstormers

Published on March 11, 2013 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Lancaster Stormers News Release


Right-hander Alan Johnson, one of Lancaster's three 14-game winners in 2012, and playoff star Travis Denker will both return to the Barnstormers in 2013, it was announced today by manager Butch Hobson.

Johnson, 29, survived a rocky start to his 2012 season and went on to become a part of the history-making rotation that produced four pitchers with 13 or more wins for the first time in the 15 years of the Atlantic League.

He finished the season with a 14-6 record and 4.57 ERA, winning 11 of 12 decisions from June 21 to September 6. The Alabama native fired his best game of the season on August 5, going the distance against Somerset on a seven-hitter as Lancaster won, 7-1.

Prior to coming to Lancaster, Johnson spent seven seasons in the Colorado Rockies system, the last three with Class AAA Colorado Springs. He won 10 or more games four different seasons, including a 16-win campaign in 2007. The former Mississippi State Bulldog made one appearance in the Majors, making one start for Colorado against the Chicago Cubs on April 17, 2011.

"(Johnson) had a pretty good year in the Atlantic League," said Hobson. "The guy gives me six or seven good innings when he goes out there."

Denker, 27, was signed in early August to replace corner infielder Terry Tiffee, who was acquired by the Atlanta Braves organization just prior to the 2012 Atlantic League All-Star Game. In 48 games for the Barnstormers during the regular season, the California native batted .297 with 11 homers and 35 RBI. He followed that with an incredible playoff performance, hitting .515 with four homers and tied a league post-season record with 12 RBI. Denker had two or more hits in seven of the eight post-season contests.

The right-handed batter signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2003 and moved over to the San Francisco Giants system in 2007.

He spent six weeks in the Majors with the Giants in 2008, batting .243 with one home run. After spending time with the Boston Red Sox and Seattle Mariners' minor league systems, Denker returned to the Dodgers in 2010. Denker had opened the 2012 season with Class AA Chattanooga after belting 25 homers and driving in 81 in the Dodgers organization the previous year.

"(Travis) can swing the bat and solidifies third base for us," said Hobson. "The numbers he put up in a short period of time last year were certainly impressive."

These signings give the Barnstormers 13 players on their active roster for the 2013 season.

The Lancaster Barnstormers are entering their ninth season as a member of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball. Home games are played at Clipper Magazine Stadium in downtown Lancaster, Pennsylvania. Please call 717.509.HITS (4487) or visit LancasterBarnstormers.com for more information.

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