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August 2, 2004 |
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The DMBL's coveted Rookie of the
Year Award is
named after Pat Listach, who hit .315 with 212
hits as a rookie with the Columbia Crusaders in 1993. But despite being
named after a batter, just
two position players have won the award in its
five-year existence: Phoenix's Nomar
Garciaparra in 1998, and Vancouver's Homer
Bush in 2000. The award went to Arkansas RP John
Rocker in 1999 and has gone to starters
for three straight years: Carolina's Barry Zito
in
2001, Hoboken's Joel Pineiro in 2002 and
Phoenix's John Lackey last year. What is a rookie?
By league
rule, a rookie is a player in his first
year of DMBL eligibility (for pitchers, that's 10 starts for a starting
pitcher, or 30 appearances, with at least 10 in relief, for relief
pitchers). That can produce some unusual results. For
example, 35-year-old middle reliever Brian Shouse
has been in the majors since 1993, but he's a DMBL
rookie this season because 2003 was the first in
which he was eligible for an
active roster. By the same token, Rafael Soriano
is a rookie -- even though the Sharks drafted him last year. Honolulu
protected the young reliever after drafting him in the 9th round (#120
overall) of the 2003
draft, but this is his first season where he's eligible for DMBL play.
On the other hand, Hoboken starter Darrell May
is not a rookie, even though he's never pitched in the DMBL
before this season. May was eligible for DMBL play
last year, but spent the year with the Cutters' farm team. There are a total of 120 rookies this
season, 64 pitchers and 56 batters. To read more about this year's
freshman class, check out our previous
editions. Batters
So, now let's just give the ROY to
Giles and... not so fast! With about 20 percent of the season still
ahead of us, a number of players still have a chance to pass Giles in
several categories, especially with Marcus on the shelf until
mid-August after getting suspended by the league in an unfortunate road rage
incident. Another rookie voted onto this year's All-Star team,
Tijuana 3B Hank Blalock, could have the best
shot of overtaking Giles down the home stretch. Blalock, 23, was
drafted in the sixth round (#76) overall -- in 2002. Tijuana kept him
stashed away on their farm team for two seasons before finally
unleashing him on the DMBL this year. Blalock ranks second, behind only
Giles, in several offensive categories: batting average (.313), hits
(143), runs created (77.5), OPS (.866), secondary average (.271), total
bases (231) and extra base hits (49). He also is tied for second in
RBIs (65) and ranks third in doubles (29), homers (19) and OBP (.360);
fourth in walks (34); and is tied for fourth in runs (60). Listach was a shortstop, and he would
be pleased to see this year's freshman class has produced a trio of
exceptional hitters at his position. Carolina's Angel
Berroa ranks second among rookies in HBP (15); third in stolen
bases (11), triples (6) and extra base hits (37); The Phoenix farm system has a long history of churning out young speed demons, from Roger Cedeno to Rafael Furcal to Ichiro Suzuki to Jason Tyner, who all broke into double-digits in steals as Dragon rookies. Add to that list Scott Podsednik, their second-round pick (#18 overall), who leads all rookies with 17 steals this season. Podsednik also is second in OBP (.370) and walks (45); fourth in batting average (.291) and is tied for fourth in runs scored (60). Put me in, coach! These rookies have made the msot of their limited playing time so far this season, but likely won't have enough plate appearances to make an impression on the voters by the end of the season. Newark's Hideki Matsui, despite having just 315 plate appearances so far, is second among rookies with 32 doubles, and ranks fifth in runs created (52.2) and RBIs (56), and is hitting .322 with an .860 OPS. Teammate Jeff DaVanon gets even less playing time (232 PA), despite hitting an impressive .340 (.915 OPS). DaVanon also ranks fifth among rookies in stolen bases (7)... Hoboken's Miguel Cabrera is the league's second-youngest rookie -- just two months older than Reyes -- and appears to have a long and lucrative DMBL career ahead of him. The 21-year-old third baseman/outfielder is hitting .305 (.915 OPS), and despite having just 287 plate appearances ranks fourth among rookies in triples (4)... Hillsborough's Marlon Byrd, making his debut after being drafted in the 9th round (#123 overall) of last year's draft, is being broken in slowly, hitting .285 (.714 OPS) with 11 2B, 3 3B and 3 HR in 269 PA... Arkansas's Sean Burroughs (.278, .739 OPS, 17 2B, 44 RBI in 403 PA) and Adam Everett (.292, .733 OPS, 11 2B, 34 R in 235 PA) are playing key part-time roles for the Golden Falcons, as is Columbia's Rocco Baldelli (.276, .747 OPS, 2 3B, 27 R in 185 PA).
Other notable rookies: Philly's Matt LeCroy (.265, .722 OPS, 23 2B, 56 RBI in 409 PA) joined Giles and Blalock at the All-Star Game... Larry Bigbie couldn't break into Stanhope's loaded outfield, but after being traded to Hoboken has proved to be a solid, if inconsistent, player. Overall this season, Bigbie is hitting .292 (.726 OPS) with 11 2B, 5 HR and 37 RBI in 356 PA... Vancouver released Aaron Guiel despite a promising start to his career (.273, .804 OPS, 10 HR, 37 RBI in 255 PA). Starters
Another rookie in Newark's rotation
could provide DuBose's stiffest competition. Scot
Shields, the first player drafted by Newark this season (2nd round,
#27 overall), leads rookie starters in K:BB ratio (2.76); is second in
winning percentage (.600), BR/9 (13.5), strikeouts (116), innings
(157.0), K/9 (6.6) and BB/9 (2.4); tied for second in starts (24); and
is third in wins (9), ERA (4.82), quality starts (11) and quality start
percentage (.458). The third rookie in Newark's starting rotation, Jerome Williams, lasted just 3.1 innings into his first start with the Sugar Bears after being acquired a day before the trading deadline from Harrison. The Rats took Williams in the first round of this year's draft (#12 overall), but his stock dropped after he started getting hit hard the second time around the league (10-4, 4.11 ERA, 1.22 WHIP in his first 14 starts; 2-5, 8.77 ERA, 2.23 WHIP in his next nine), and were happy to give him up for an 8th rounder. Despite his recent struggles, Williams' hot start leaves him with some impressive numbers: He leads all rookies in complete games (4) and is tied for the lead in wins (12). He's also tied for second in starts (24) and ranks third in fewest H/9 (9.6). But for Williams to figure in the Listach balloting, he'd have to finish the season even stronger than he started it.
Busts: It's not easy to be a
starting pitcher in the DMBL, especially if you've never tried it
before! But while you can't expect too much of a rookie starter, surely
better things were expected of the first player taken in this year's
draft, Tijuana's Dontrelle
Willis. The 21-year-old lefty is 3-12 with a 5.22 ERA and 15.1 R/9
in 131.0 IP, ranking him as one of the worst starters in baseball.
Willis has the stuff to be a future ace, but right now he's just trying
to survive... Vancouver's Rich Harden, taken
in the 2nd round (#22), is the only other rookie starter who doesn't
have a losing record -- he's 6-6. But he still qualifies as a bust
after posting a 6.03 ERA,
17.7 R/9 in 106.0 IP this season... Phoenix's Horacio
Ramirez, a third-round pick (#32), is 4-14 with a
6.67 ERA and 16.2 R/9 in 139.0 IP. His 14 losses are tied for
third-most in the league, and his K:BB ratio has to be measured in
decimals: He's walked 57 and struck out just 55 this season...
Hoboken's Jae Weong Seo, a fourth-round pick
(#52), is 6-11 with a 5.35 ERA and 13.9 R/9 in 119.1 IP. Limited duty: These rookies
don't have enough starts to qualify for serious consideration, not that
their numbers warrant it: Hoboken's Kurt Ainsworth
(3-3,
7.05 ERA, 16.1 R/9 in 37.0 IP), Westwood's Jason
Davis (1-1, 4.50 ERA, 14.8 R/9 in 14.0 IP), Hillsborough's Jeriome Robertson (0-2, 12.79 ERA, 21.8 R/9 in
19.0 IP), Tijuana's Claudio Vargas (1-0, 6.00
ERA, 13.5 R/9 in 6.0 IP) and Carolina's Jake
Westbrook (2-0, 4.42 ER, 11.3 R/9 in 18.1 IP). Relief Pitchers Earl Weaver
preached that the best place to break in a rookie was through the
bullpen, which is the route being taken by 15 of the 23 rookie pitchers
who have been in 10 or more games this season. And just one of those
relievers has been given the high-pressure job of closing games.
Without a lot of wins or saves on the resume, you might think it would
be impossible for someone pitching in the relative anonymity of middle
relief to win the There certainly wouldn't be much
controversy this season if the award went to Honolulu's Rafael Soriano. The 23-year-old setup man was
drafted by Honolulu last year in the 9th round (#120) and stashed away
in their farm system before making his debut this season. Soriano is
7-1 with 4 saves and 9 holds this season, and his peripheral numbers
are eye-popping: 2.29 ERA, 7.7 BR/9, 12.1 K/9, and a 5.9 K:BB ratio!
Soriano ranks first among rookie relievers in those four categories, as
well as in strikeouts (106), and is second in saves and relief points
(18), third in wins, and tied for third in holds.
Westwood has two rookies in their
'pen having solid seasons, though neither is on the same level as
Soriano or Rodriguez. Oscar Villarreal, a
third-round pick (#35), is 4-1 with 2 saves and 8 holds for the Ducks,
with a 3.41 ERA, 11.6 R/9 and .174 IR% in 74.0 IP; lefty Jason Kershner, a sixth-round pick (#77), leads
all rookies with 12 holds, ranks second in innings (106.2) and fourth
in appearances (60). He ranks dead last in K/9 (3.5), and he's allowed
too many baserunners (13.0 R/9), but he's somehow found a way to keep
those runners from scoring (3.29 ERA, .283 IR%)... Another southpaw,
Philly's Ron Mahay, is making his long-awaited
DMBL debut at the age of 32. Mahay, drafted in the 9th round (#118), is
one of this year's biggest rookie bargains, posting a 3.19 ERA, 9.6 R/9
and .227 IR% in 90.1 IP... Compare that to the performance of the first
rookie reliever drafted this year, Tijuana's Jose
Valverde. Drafted 103 players before Mahay's name came up, Valverde
has been solid but unremarkable, going 6-4 with 5 holds (5 blown
saves), with a 3.84 ERA, 11.4 R/9 and .304 IR%. The only true
closer among this year's freshman class is Hillsborough's Luis Ayala,
but he's unlikely to garner much attention from Listach voters. While
the fifth-round pick (#65) leads the rookie field in saves (21) and
relief points (28), he
also leads in losses (10) and blown saves (10). His .323 BS% is the
worst of any closer. Ayala's 4.30 ERA, 14.5 R/9
and .412 IR% in 60.2 IP are also unimpressive. Other notable
relievers: Arkansas's Brad Lidge, a
7th-round pick (#98), is having a solid but unspectacular year; he's a
perfect 5-0 with 3 saves and 1 hold, but he has also blown 3 saves; he
ranks seconnd in ERA (2.42) and third in K/9 (10.1), but he also has
allowed 12.8 R/9, thanks to a very generous 27 BB in 48.1 IP (5.0
BB/9)... Phoenix has three rookie relievers in their 'pen, but Rafael Betancourt is the only one having a decent
year. Betancourt, a sixth-round pick (#74), is tied for the rookie lead
in vulture wins with 8, and he's also picked up 6 holds, despite
blowing 5 saves. His other numbers (3.91 ERA, 12.9 R/9, .314 IR%) are
nothing special, but they're a lot more impressive than the work turned
in by teammates Scott Linebrink (6.46 ERA,
17.4 R/9 in 93.1 IP) and Javier Lopez (6.16
ERA, 16.4 R/9 in 64.1 IP)... Vancouver's Julio
Mateo (8-3, 1 save, 3 holds) somehow has a 3.27 ERA despite
allowing an astonishing 23 HRs in 56 G (1.9 HR/9), by far the most of
any rookie reliever... Honolulu's Erasmo Ramirez
(4.78 ERA, 12.1 R/9 in 69.2 IP) and Harrison's Mike
Gallo (5.52 ERA, 15.4 R/9 in 31.0 IP), both lefties, aren't going
to factor into the voting... Aquilino Lopez
got off to an awful start in Vancouver (6.39 ERA, 17.1 R/9, .600 IR%)
and was released. He recently resurfaced with Hoboken, where he was of
some use in his only appearance so far (3.1 IP, 0 R, 2 H, 1 BB, 3 K). Phil Plantier, one of the top prospects of the last decade, was picked by baseball guru Bill James in 1991 as the player most likely to lead the majors in HRs during the 1990s. In 1994, at age 24, he hit 47 round-trippers with 118 RBIs for the Charleston Chiefs, his first and last DMBL season. He's currently an analyst for Fox Sports Net. Click Here for past articles. |
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One rookie leads the freshman class
in just about every offensive category: Newark's Marcus
Giles. The diminutive 25-year-old second baseman, taken by Newark
with the 264th pick of the 2003 draft, paid his dues at Triple-A last
season and then exploded onto the DMBL this season. Brian's little
brother leads all rookies in batting average (.327), on-base percentage
(.389), slugging percentage (.535), OPS (.924), runs created (108.8),
runs created per 27 outs (7.8), hits (171), doubles (44), extra base
hits (66), runs (94), RBIs (85), walks (48), total bases (280), total
average (.940), secondary average (.319) and stolen base percentage
(.857); he also ranks second in home runs (23) and stolen bases (12).
Among all DMBL batters, Giles is first in doubles, third in hits and
stolen base percentage, fourth in batting average, sixth in runs
created, seventh in extra base hits and total bases, tied for eighth in
runs and stolen bases, and ninth in runs created per 27 outs and total
average. Add to those offensive numbers the fact that he has the
league's second-highest fielding percentage at second base (.988) and
was voted into the starting lineup for Hanover in this year's 
and is tied for
fourth in doubles (23). Not bad if you can overlook his .246 BA, .667
OPS in 513 PA... Vancouver's Alex Cintron
ranks second in runs (68); is tied for second in RBIs (65); is third in
batting average (.294), OPS (.768), runs created (68.4) and total bases
(209); tied for third in hits (141); and tied for fourth in home runs
(15). And Westwood's Jose Reyes, the league's
youngest rookie at 21, leads the class in triples (8) and singles
(106), and ranks third in runs (65); tied for third in hits (141); is
fourth in runs created (63.7), total bases (200) and stolen bases (10);
and ranks fifth in batting average (.282).
Disappointments: These
highly touted rookies have found it tough going in their first DMBL
campaigns. Carolina's Bo Hart, taken in the
first round (#10), has the lowest OPS of any qualifying rookie (.614).
He's also hitting just .235 and ranks fourth with 93 Ks. But he does
have 7 triples, second-most among rookies... Harrison's Mark Teixeria is having an all-or-nothing rookie
campaign. While he does lead rookies in home runs (23) and is tied for
second in RBIs (65), he's also leads all rookies in lowest batting
average (.222) and strikeouts (109), with a .701 OPS in 463 PA...
Hoboken's Morgan Ensberg, taken with the fifth
pick of this year's draft, is having similar problems: He's tied for
fourth with 15 HRs despite having the second-worst batting average
(.227) and OPS (.644) of any rookie, and ranks third with 95 Ks. But he
does find other ways to contribute, ranking third in walks (44)...
Arkansas's first-round pick (#14 overall), Jason
Phillips, was expected to fill the shoes of long-time Golden Falcon
Dan Wilson as the team's
starting catcher. So far he's done exactly that, ranking as one of the
league's top defensive catchers while contributing almost nothing on
offense (.238 BA, .647 OPS in 358 PA). But you can't fault Phillips for
not being a team player: He leads all rookies, and ranks second in the
DMBL, with 18 HBP... Carolina's Jody Gerut is
only hitting .234 (.704 OPS) in 355 PA;
nevertheless, opposing pitchers are treating him with the respect due a
second-round pick (#25 overall), as he leads all rookies with six
intentional passes. 
Most pitching coaches hate to bring a
kid up from the minors and throw him right into the starting rotation,
and few teams can be competitive with more than one rookie starting
every fifth day. But somehow, the team with the best record in baseball
is getting it done with three freshmen taking a regular turn. And Eric DuBose, drafted in the 3rd round (#41) this
year, stands head and shoulders above all other rookie starters this
season. He leads all rookie starters in baserunners per 9 innings
(12.8), starts (26), winning percentage (.706),
quality starts (14),
quality start percentage (.538) and innings (167.0), is tied for the
rookie lead in wins (12), and ranks second in ERA (4.37). Among all
DMBL starters, DuBose is tied for 7th in wins, tied for 8th in winning
percentage and tied for 3rd in starts. He's also tied for the league
lead with two Pitcher of the Week Awards this season.
The only other rookie starter who
appears on the leaderboard anywhere near as often as DuBose or Shields
is Phoenix's Brandon Webb, the second pick in
this year's
draft. Webb leads all rookie starters in ERA (3.72), fewest H/9 (8.4)
and fewest HR/9 (0.8), and is second in quality start percentage
(.522). He also ranks third in R/9 (13.5), innings pitched (139.2) and
K/9 (6.3). Webb is third among rookies in winning percentage (.583),
which is 141 points better than his team's winning percentage (.442),
the top "performance gap" among rookie starters. By contrast, DuBose's
rookie-leading .706 winning percentage is only 88 points better than
Newark's overall record (.618). Webb has slowed down considerably after
joining Shields and Williams at the All-Star Game, however; after
starting the year at 7-3, Webb's had no wins -- two losses and eight
no-decisions -- in his next 10 starts. Another knock against Webb is
his
4.5 BB/9, which is the second-worst of any rookie with at least 10
starts.
award -- but then, that was the role assigned
to John Rocker in 1999 when he became the
first (and, to date, the only) reliever to win the award. By the way,
how the heck did that happen? Rocker was a rather ordinary 7-3 with 4
saves and a 3.06 ERA, 1.40 WHIP. He only allowed 47 hits and struck out
84 in 79.1 innings, but he also gave up 64 walks! Rocker shockingly
beat out Toledo SP Rolando Arrojo, who went
16-6 with a 3.28 ERA, 1.12 WHIP (156 K, 65 BB) in 236.1 IP. In fact,
Rocker wasn't even the best rookie reliever that season, as Phoenix's
Ranking right behind Soriano in most
categories is 21-year-old fireballer Francisco
Rodriguez, who joined Soriano as the only rookie relievers to make
the All-Star Game this season. The Endzone Animals drafted "K-Rod" with
a 2nd round pick (#20) and he's lived up to the hype, going 3-4 with 3
saves and 7 holds in 45 appearances. Rodriguez leads rookie relievers
in H/9 (4.7), is second in R/9 (9.2) and K/9 (10.8), and is third in
ERA (2.85). And he leads all rookies in what may be the most important
facet of a reliever's job: Stranding inherited runners. Rodriguez has
allowed just 5 out of 31 inherited runners to score (.161 IR%), good
enough to rank seventh among all relievers in baseball. However, while
he does have incredible stuff, as evidenced by his 87 Ks and 38 H in
72.2 IP, he also has little control of it at this stage in his career,
having allowed 4.7 BB/9. And when it comes in fast, it goes out just as
quick: 11 of Rodriguez's 38 hits allowed have been home runs, which
ties him for second-worst among relievers in HR/9 (1.4).