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NL Gary SouthShore Railcats

Several RailCats Rank Among League's Statistical Champions

September 1, 2009 - Northern League (NL)
Gary SouthShore Railcats News Release


GARY, Ind. - The Gary SouthShore RailCats begin their quest for a third Northern League Championship Wednesday night in Kansas City, Kan. as the top overall seed in the playoffs with a 57-39 record. With the regular season now complete, a number of RailCats finished the year ranked among the league's top players.

Left-handed starting pitcher Tony Cogan rebounded from a tough first half to post arguably the most impressive season of his nine-year professional career. Cogan led the Northern League with 105 strikeouts, ranked third with eight wins, posted the fourth-lowest ERA (3.60) on the circuit and was the most durable pitcher in the league, leading all hurlers in starts (22), innings pitched (150.0) and shutouts (2).

Over the last two months of the season, Cogan went 5-2 with a 2.62 ERA in 12 starts that included a franchise-record 28.2 inning scoreless streak. The Northern League Pitcher of the Month in July and a two-time Northern League Pitcher of the Week, Cogan was also named to his second Northern League Midseason All-Star Team this summer.

As good as Cogan finished out of the starting rotation, closer Andy Shipman was just as good out of the bullpen and led the Northern League with 14 saves. Picked up off waivers from the Kansas City T-Bones on June 3, Shipman pitched in only five games in Kansas City before joining the 'Cats and was named the team's Pitcher of the Year in a ceremony before Monday's regular season finale at U. S. Steel Yard.

Shipman pitched in 36 games for the RailCats in the regular season and went 4-3 with a 1.85 ERA, surrendering only 29 hits and 11 walks in 39.0 innings pitched (good for a miniscule 1.03 WHIP). Opposing batters hit only .210 off Shipman, who also notched 34 strikeouts. A two-time All-Star in the affiliated minor leagues, Shipman made his first Northern League All-Star Game appearance in 2009.

Other RailCats among the league's statistical pitching leaders included Chris Jones (3.75 ERA, 6th), Tom Thornton (8 wins, 3rd) and Eddie De la Cruz (41 appearances, 3rd). The RailCats posted the league's second-lowest cumulative ERA (4.34) and boasted an impressive 1.84:1 strikeout-to-walk ratio as a staff.

On the offensive side, the RailCats could not match a dominant 2008 when the 'Cats collected a Northern League record 1,057 hits and batted over .300 as a team, but still carried a potent offensive punch. While no hitter ranked in the top 10 in the league in batting average, team Most Valuable Player Mike Massaro was just fractions of a point out of the top 10 with a .302 average. Jeff Beachum, meanwhile, hit .309 in his rookie Northern League season which would have ranked ninth, but Beachum finished four plate appearances short of the 259 required to qualify. The RailCats also led the league in triples for the second straight year, notching 30 three-base hits. Mike Rohde and Rob Marconi tied for third in the league with six triples each.

Massaro enjoyed an all-time great season as the RailCats leadoff man, finishing second in the league with 27 doubles and first on the team in hits (108), runs (69) and on-base percentage (.390), while ranking second in walks (54), RBI (53) and slugging percentage (.425). Massaro's 108 hits are the fifth-most ever by a RailCat, and his 27 doubles matched Tanner Townsend's single-season record, set in 2007.

Cleanup hitter Steve Haake played in 92 games to lead the team and mark the fourth straight season of at least 90 games played for the versatile fifth-year RailCat. Haake set career bests in RBI (67) and home runs (10) while still banging out 92 hits, his fourth-straight 90-plus hit campaign. A model of consistency, Haake posted at least 20 doubles (23) for the sixth straight season and 20-plus stolen bases (21) for the fourth year in a row.

The RailCats begin the Northern League Playoffs Wednesday night at 7:05 p.m. at CommunityAmerica Ballpark against the defending league champion Kansas City T-Bones. The RailCats will play Wednesday and Thursday night in Kansas City before wrapping up the series with three games this weekend (Friday, Saturday and Sunday) at U. S. Steel Yard. Tickets to see the RailCats this postseason are on sale now at www.railcatsbaseball.com.

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