Diamondbacks invite 18 to Spring Training

[KingLouieLouie]

http://arizona.diamondbacks.mlb.com...50128&content_id=936582&vkey=pr_ari&fext=.jsp

PHOENIX -- The Arizona Diamondbacks today announced the non-roster invitations to their eighth spring session that will begin in Tucson, AZ, when pitchers and catchers report on February 16. The breakdown of invitees includes seven pitchers, five catchers, two infielders and four outfielders. The first workout for pitchers and catchers will be on Thursday, February 17, with the remainder of the squad scheduled to report on February 21 and workout the following morning, Tuesday, February 22.

The 2005 invitees include:

PITCHERS:

Jon Cannon, 30, was 9-8 with a 4.29 ERA in 33 games (19 starts) for Tucson (AAA) last season.

Casey Daigle, 23, opened the 2004 season on the Diamondbacks' big league roster and went 2-3 with a 7.16 ERA in 10 starts. He was optioned to Tucson, where he closed out the season by going 4-9 with a 6.88 ERA in 18 outings (15 starts).

Jose Jimenez, 31, spent last year in the Cleveland Indians' organization, pitching 31 times in relief for the big league club and owning a 1-7 record with an 8.40 ERA. He also made a pair of injury rehab appearances for the Indians' AAA affiliate in Buffalo. Jimenez owns a lifetime 24-44 record with 102 saves in 329 major-league outings.

Brandon Medders celebrated his 25th birthday on Wednesday. He pitched 11 times for Tucson before a right shoulder injury ended his season. He had surgery in June to repair the labrum in the shoulder. Medders was 0-0 with a 4.26 ERA and 17 strikeouts in 12.2 innings prior to the injury.

Shane Nance, 27, is the lone lefthanded hurler among the non-roster invitees. He was 1-1 with a 5.84 ERA in 19 outings for the Diamondbacks a year ago. He also pitched 46 times (2 starts) for Tucson, posting a 2-4 mark with a 6.15 ERA. Nance also made 30 relief appearances for the Milwaukee Brewers from 2002-2003.

Phil Stockman pitched at a pair of stops in the Diamondback's minor-league system last year. He owned a 3-2 record and a 5.75 ERA in 12 starting assignments for Tucson, and then went 1-3 with a 2.67 ERA in 6 starts for El Paso (AA). Stockman marked his 25th birthday on Tuesday.

Kevin Tolar celebrates his 24th birthday today. He spent the 2004 campaign with Iowa (AAA) in the Chicago Cubs chain, posting a perfect 4-0 record with a 3.45 ERA in 51 relief appearances. He pitched in 20 big league games for Detroit and Boston from 2000-2003.

CATCHERS:

Craig Ansman, 26, led the Tucson Sidewinders with 19 home runs last year and tied for second with 58 RBI while batting .254.

Juan Brito, 25, opened the 2004 season with Tucson, hitting .314 with 3 home runs and 16 RBI in 34 contests. He was summoned to the big leagues on June 9 and appeared in 54 games with Arizona, batting .205 with 3 home runs and 12 RBI.

Corey Myers, 24, was originally drafted by Arizona in the first round of the 1999 draft. He underwent a position change during the 2004 season, getting his first extended work at catcher. After opening the year on the disabled list, he played in 10 games for Lancaster (A), hitting .410 with 2 home runs and 9 RBI. He was then promoted to Tucson, where he posted a .289 average with 7 home runs and 25 RBI in 57 contests. Following the regular season, Myers participated in the Arizona Fall League and hit .400, second in the league.

Kelly Stinnett, 34, played in only 20 games last year for the Kansas City Royals due to an injured right elbow. He hit .305 with 3 home runs and 7 RBI before landing on the disabled list. This is Stinnett's second stint with the Diamondbacks' organization. He was a third-round selection in the 1997 Expansion Draft and participated in 256 games for Arizona from 1998-2000. Stinnett owns a lifetime .238 batting average in 608 major-league games.

Alan Zinter, 36, began the 2004 season with Tucson, hitting .335 with 7 home runs and 39 RBI in 54 games. He was called to the big leagues in June and batted .208 with a home run and 6 RBI in 28 games, 17 of them as a pinch hitter.

INFIELDERS:

Andy Green, 27, continued his climb up the organization ladder in 2004, culminating in his first taste of the big leagues. He hit .327 with 31 doubles, 9 home runs and 45 RBI in 77 games for Tucson. He appeared in 46 games for the Diamondbacks and posted a .202 average with a home run and 6 RBI.

Sergio Santos, 21, was limited to 89 games for El Paso last season due to a partially dislocated left shoulder. Prior to the injury, he hit .282 with 11 home runs and 52 RBI.

OUTFIELDERS:

Doug DeVore, 27, began the 2004 campaign with Tucson but got his first call to the majors, appearing in 50 contests for the Diamondbacks. He batted .269 with 14 home runs and 43 RBI in 61 games for the Sidewinders, then posted a .224 average with 3 home runs and 13 RBI for Arizona.

Conor Jackson, 22, was a 1st-round pick by Arizona in 2003 and split last season between Lancaster (A) and El Paso. He was batting .345 with 19 doubles, 11 home runs and 54 RBI in 67 games for Lancaster before a mid-season promotion to AA where he hit .301 in 60 contests with 6 home runs and 37 RBI. He paced the farm system with 157 hits, 91 RBI and 69 walks.

Quinton McCracken, 34, began the 2004 season with Seattle, batting .150 in 19 contests. He was released by the Mariners on June 7 and soon inked a minor-league contract with the D'Backs. He hit .328 in 15 games for Tucson, then re-joined Arizona at the end of June and batted .288 in 55 contests over the remainder of the year. McCracken also played for the Diamondbacks during the 2002 and 2003 campaigns.

Carlos Quentin, 22, made his pro debut last year and was selected as the organization's minor-league Player-of-the-Year. He split the season between Lancaster and El Paso and led D'Back minor leaguers with an overall .332 average while tying for the top spot with 21 home runs. Quentin totaled 33 doubles and 89 RBI on the year and also established a minor-league single-season record by being hit by a pitch 43 times. He, like Jackson, was selected in the first round of the 2003 draft. Quentin, however, missed the 2003 season while recovering from right elbow surgery.

 

[AZZenny]

Alan Zinter? Doug DeVore?! Brito? Green? Rather odd invites. If we've improved as much as the ptb say we have, none of these guys should even be sniffing our ST fumes.

Glad to see Daigle, Ansman, and Myers get invites. I think Daigle got fed to a log shredder last year and he was just starting to recover a tiny bit by the late season in AAA. Ansman has looked pretty sound at times, and Corey Myers opened my eyes in AZFL. I'd like to see either of them push Stinnett aside. Kelly Stinnett! My God.

And of course. Conor and Carlos. Guess I better start organizing my March calendar. Getting excited, Connie?

 

[Moose Lady]

Alan Zinter? Doug DeVore?! Brito? Green? Rather odd invites. If we've improved as much as the ptb say we have, none of these guys should even be sniffing our ST fumes.

Glad to see Daigle, Ansman, and Myers get invites. I think Daigle got fed to a log shredder last year and he was just starting to recover a tiny bit by the late season in AAA. Ansman has looked pretty sound at times, and Corey Myers opened my eyes in AZFL. I'd like to see either of them push Stinnett aside. Kelly Stinnett! My God.

And of course. Conor and Carlos. Guess I better start organizing my March calendar. Getting excited, Connie?

I'm with you on this one Zen. I couldn't believe anyone would still want Stinnett. I didn't like the guy the first time we had him. And yeah, all those other ones, I guess all they ever will get is invites to ST. And most of them will probably just end up being lifetime AAA players.

 

[schillingfan]

And of course. Conor and Carlos. Guess I better start organizing my March calendar. Getting excited, Connie?

Well, I will be getting excited once I come down from my Super Bowl high. That's a new experience for me.

Definitely looking forward to Conor and Carlos.

You know both Conor and Carlos have names with two first names. They could easily by Jackson Conor and Quentin Carlos?

You need warm bodies for early spring training and split squad games. Juan Brito is only 25? That's young enough to be interesting for a catchers. An awful lot of catchers don't even make it to the majors until 26 or 27.

 

[FORKTUNG]

Woohoo Spring training! My favorite time of year sans tax time heh.

Can you believe it boys and girls only a couple weeks to go.

Gonna have to play hookie from work and get out to a few games. Anybody have the schedule yet so I can order up my tix?

 

[BC867]

Anybody have the schedule yet so I can order up my tix?

Spring Training tickets for TEP went on sale later than those in the Valley, but that was a week ago.

http://diamondbacks.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/ari/ticketing/springtraining.jsp

 

[FORKTUNG]

Thanks!