FL Joliet Slammers

May 17 Joliet Slammers Game Notes

May 17, 2013 - Frontier League (FL)
Joliet Slammers News Release


JOLIET SLAMMERS 37-58 (2012) vs. TRAVERSE CITY BEACH BUMS 64-32 (2012) Friday, May 17 - 7:05 p.m. CT Silver Cross Field - Joliet, IL Game #1 - Home Game #1 (0-0), (0-0)

RHP #31 Evan Anundsen (0-0) vs. RHP #25 Jacob Clem (0-0)

A brief look back at 2012

The Slammers struggled in 2012 as they finished the season with a record of 37-58. However, there were a number of notable individual accomplishments as the team had four players signed to affiliated baseball last season. RHP Gaby Hernandez got signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks, RHP Daniel Carela, RHP Amalio Diaz and LHP Geoff Brown all got signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers. Abel Nieves hit .320, good for the highest batting average in the Slammers' short history. Meanwhile RHP Jacob Sanchez emerged as the staff ace after signing midway through the season. INF Kyle Maunus finished the season on a tear as he hit four home runs in the team's final six games. The 2012 season also featured the longest game in terms of innings (13) and time (5:34) as the Slammers defeated the London Rippers in London, Ontario.

For Starters...

RHP Evan Anundsen earns the Opening Night start for Joliet in 2013. The 24-year old from Littleton, Colorado was a fourth round selection of the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2006 draft out of Columbine High School. He spent the past seven seasons pitching in the Milwaukee organization and started 24 games for the Double-A Huntsville Stars in 2012. Anundsen's best season as a professional came in 2009 when he posted a 2.69 ERA in 23 starts for the High Single-A Brevard County Manatees.

A new era...

The Slammers enter the 2013 campaign with an entirely new coaching staff and an almost completely new roster. Manager Mike Breyman enters his first year as the team's skipper while Eric Coleman and Dave Garcia will serve as the team's new pitching and hitting coaches respectively. All three have experience coaching in the Frontier League and Breyman is a former Frontier League Coach of the Year. Coleman has managerial experience in the league with Oakland County. Meanwhile, only six players remain from the 2012 team (Ben Hewett, who played the first part of the year with Joliet, Kyle Maunus, Chase Doremus, Jacob Sanchez, Mike Barsotti and David Christensen). Only Maunus and Hewett remain from the 2011 championship squad.

Affiliated Experience...

The Slammers have 15 players who bring affiliated baseball experience to the squad. They also boast two former second round draft picks in RHP Seth Lintz and OF David Christensen. Their starting rotation is made up of four guys with affiliated experience and three who have at least Double-A experience (RHP Evan Anundsen, LHP Chuck Lofgren (Triple-A), RHP Brett Zawacki).

Preseason woes...

Joliet is trying to bounce back from a bit of a rough preseason as they were shut out in their final two exhibition games.

Trouble at the Beach...

The Beach Bums posted a 9-3 record last year against Joliet and the Slammers only beat them once here at Silver Cross Field.

Illinois ties...

The Slammers boast a number of players from the Land of Lincoln. RHP Brett Zawacki has Double-A experience with the Cardinals and is from LaSalle-Peru. LHP Corey Kimes is the team's fifth starter and is from Ottawa. OF Seth Schwindenhammer is a former 5 th round pick of the Red Sox and hails from Bartonville.

Injury Report...

OF David Christensen (groin) and LHP David Jensen (shoulder) are currently on the Injured List for Joliet.

Transaction Wire...

The Slammers signed RHP Justin Erasmus on Wednesday and placed Christensen on the DL.

Check out the Joliet Slammers Statistics



Frontier League Stories from May 17, 2013


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.

OurSports Central