AtL Southern Maryland Blue Crabs

Lupton Named General Manager of the Year

Published on October 10, 2011 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Southern Maryland Blue Crabs News Release


Waldorf, MD - Southern Maryland Blue Crabs General Manager Keith Lupton was honored as the Atlantic League's 2011 General Manager of the Year on Monday after helping lead the Blue Crabs to their third-consecutive playoff appearance last season. Lupton was one of six Blue Crabs who were honored on Monday as the League announced its 2011 Post-Season All-Star Team.

The Atlantic League is the fourth different league with which Lupton has garnered Executive of the Year accolades. He also won awards in the Carolina, South Atlantic, and Eastern Leagues. 2011 was Lupton's first season with Southern Maryland after building the Lancaster Barnstormers into one of the league's top draws upon the club's inception in 2002. He has also spent time with Bowie (Eastern), Delmarva (South Atlantic), Frederick (Carolina), and Hagerstown (South Atlantic).

Under Lupton's watch, the Blue Crabs went 65-57 in 2011 while garnering the league's wild-card berth with a win over Bridgeport in a one-game playoff on September 20th. In addition to his role as Southern Maryland's General Manager, Lupton is also the Executive Vice President for Baseball Operations of Southern Maryland's ownership group Opening Day Partners.

In addition to Lupton's award, Southern Maryland also saw five of their players named to the post-season All-Star Team.

Closer Jim Ed Warden was the only first-team selection as the 6'7" righty led the league with 28 saves in 31 opportunities while compiling a 2.76 ERA in 50 relief appearances. Warden is also the Blue Crabs' all-time saves leader with 71 and also owns Southern Maryland's single-season saves mark with 30. The Murfreesboro, TN native began the season by not allowing a run in his first 15 appearances. He was also 14-14 in save opportunities over that span.

Garnering second-team selections were catcher Christian Lopez, third baseman Travis Garcia, designated hitter Brian Barton, and outfielder Adam Godwin.

After a slow start to the season, Lopez came on strong in the middle months of the 2011 season. Lopez hit .319 for the month of June with three homers and 17 RBI, which was followed by a .303 effort in August. For the season, Lopez batted .258 with nine dingers and 42 RBI. Lopez was also strong in the playoffs after hitting .357 in the four-game series loss to Long Island.

Garcia started the season with a literal bang as belted 10 homers just a month in to the season, a league lead, to go along with a .292 batting average. After spending the next two months playing in the Mexican League, Garcia returned to the Blue Crabs and returned to form by hitting .308 over the season's final 1.5 months with eight homers and 33 RBI. The Bronx, NY native had a penchant for coming through in the big games as he went 3-5 with two doubles, three RBI and a run scored in the Blue Crabs' one-game playoff victory at Bridgeport. He also went 4-4 in the deciding Game Four playoff loss to Long Island with a homer, double, three RBI and a run scored.

Barton became one of Southern Maryland's most consistent performers after joining the team in early June. He exploded in July to the tune of a .347 average with five homeruns and 14 runs driven in. He followed that up with a .316 August with five homers and 15 RBI. For the season, Barton hit .304 with 12 homers and 42 RBI, garnering Team MVP honors.

Godwin rounded out the accolades for Southern Maryland after the speedy outfielder finished the season hitting .326 in 72 games for the Blue Crabs, including a .341 clip in June. Despite starting the season in Lancaster and spending four weeks on the disabled list with a sprained thumb, Godwin was traded to the Blue Crabs from the Barnstormers on June 3rd and proceeded to register a base hit in 25 of his first 27 games as a Blue Crab. He also set a new Southern Maryland single season stolen base record by swiping 38 bases in 44 attempts.

The Blue Crabs wrapped up their fourth season of play by garnering the club's third consecutive playoff appearance. Preparations are already being made for 2012 as the team will open up next season at home against the Lancaster Barnstormers on April 26th from Regency Furniture Stadium. For more information you can visit the team's website a www.somdbluecrabs.com or by calling the front office at (301) 638-9788.

Check out the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs Statistics

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Atlantic League Stories from October 10, 2011


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