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Knights bring lots of prospects to
Richmond for game againt Braves Razor Shines led the International League playoff bound Charlotte Knights into Richmond last night to face the Braves. The Knights are leading the South Division with a 75-56 record. Charlotte is definitely a team to be reckoned with this year. The Knights feature a roster which is a nice combination of youth and veterans. White Sox prospects Ryan Sweeney, Josh Fields, Lance Broadway and Casey Rogowski are the young guns in the lineup. They are complimented by the more experienced Ernie Young, who at 37 years old is still playing solid baseball, batting an even .300 with 12 home runs and 64 RBIs. Other veterans include former Giants first round pick and prospect Tony Torcato, Ruben Rivera, Jorge Velandia (involved in a deal for David Newhan in 1997), Tim Redding and Andrew Lorraine. Josh Fields may be the best prospect in AAA baseball this year. The former Oklahoma State quarterback has a nice talent package that includes the ability to hit for both power and average. Though still learning to play third base, the former Cotton Bowler is gaining experience as he plays his way through the minors. Fields strikes out more than once a game, and he walks at a rate of one time every other game, yet he sports a respectable OBP of .383. He is batting .310 with 18 home runs and 66 RBIs. Fields was the Southsider's first round pick in the 2004 draft. Last night, Fields smoked a Brian O’Connnor fastball to the deepest part of the Diamond, only to have center fielder Gregor Blanco catch the ball with his back against the wall. Although he disappointed the Richmond autograph seekers, Fields went 1-4 last night with a single to right, a stolen base and a run scored. He also played a nice defense at third. Sweeney is a 21-year-old outfielder who it seems has always played against older competition as a professional. So far this year he is batting .302 with 12 home runs. The development of his power is nice for the Sox. In three previous professional seasons, he has hit a total of 10 home runs. Last night he manned center field for the Knights. Rogowski is a giant first baseman who has exhibited sporadic power. Standing 6-4, Rogowski is listed as weighing in at 234. But he has tremendous arms and a barrel chest. The Braves roster included current Braves prospect Scott Thorman who recently returned to Richmond from Atlanta. Thorman is primarily a first baseman but he has been playing quite a bit in left field since his return to AAA. A native of Canada, he was chosen in the first round of the 2000 draft by Atlanta. Considered to be a power hitting prospect, Thorman stroked 15 home runs while batting .324 for the R-Braves in his earlier tour through AAA. Richmond’s starting second baseman last night was Cesar Crespo, who held out for and received first round money from the Mets when he was selected by them in the 3rd round of the 1997 draft. Crespo was traded to the Marlins and also has the distinction of being packaged with Mark Kotsay in the 2001 deal which sent Matt Clement, Eric Owens and Omar Ortiz to the Padres. Crespo is a true utility man; so far this year, I have seen him start in center field, third base and second base for the Braves. He is hitting .240 and shows excellent defensive ability as well as a very strong throwing arm. Earlier this year I saw him make a throw from the center field wall to almost nail Andy Marte at third base. The game seemed like a pitchers duel, although it really wasn’t. O’Connor started for the Braves and worked 5.2 innings, giving up six hits while striking out only one Knight and walking two. In a typical game for him, he was near the plate all night and gave up 12 flyouts as opposed to three ground ball outs. O’Connor throws a fastball in the high 80s and occasionally touches 90 mph. Last night Razor Shines worked to exploit O’Connor’s slow delivery to the plate by playing little ball for a good bit of the evening. The Knights stole two bases in three attempts. Only Young was caught when he attempted to score on a botched suicide squeeze in the sixth inning. Angel Gonzalez couldn’t get the bunt down on a high fastball from O’Connor, and catcher Dax Norris put the tag on the lumbering Young. New Knight Lance Broadway struck out six Braves in six innings pitched. He left after giving up two earned runs. Broadway exhibited a nice fastball, power curve and showed the ability to move his fastball around in the strike zone. Norris punched an RBI single in the 7th inning, driving in Crespo who had led off the inning with a double to put the Braves on top 3-2. Three batters later, Matt Skrmetta uncorked a wild pitch with Thorman batting which allowed Norris to score Richmond’s 4th and final run. The Braves attack was paced by James Jurries, Blanco and Wes Timmons, who had two hits apiece. The Knights offense was led by the veterans Young and Rivera, both of whom had two hits. Jonathan Johnson took the win for the home team by pitching 2.1 innings of solid relief. Arizona fans will be able to see Johnson this fall when he comes to the Phoenix area for the Fall League. Manny Acosta was credited with the save. Skrmetta took the loss for the visiting team. --- John
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