Frontier League: Opening Day Preview — May 27, 2021
This is it. Over 600 days have passed since we last saw Frontier League action and today we begin we a new slate. Hope springs eternal for all 14 teams and players wish to either win it all or distinguish themselves from the pack.
There will be joy, disappointments and everything in between. The Frontier League Journal will be there to tell the story in its own distinctive way. As you’ll quickly realize in the next two weeks or so, I’ll be getting very familiar with the rosters, something I’m not yet totally comfortable with, although I’ve made incredible progress since the site was established two months ago. That’s when things will get very interesting.
On top of the daily coverage, I’ll also be introducing a weekly column on Mondays, “The Frontier League Beat”, to recap the action of the last 7 days and just talk baseball in general. It will be a slugfest of notes and observations about what I’ve been hearing / reading / watching about the league.
With that said, let’s dive into what the seven games on the schedule have in store for us. The probable starters are the ones available on Pointstreak at the moment and I’ll be updating this post with the lineups as they become available throughout the day, so be sure to check back often, as I’ll be also adding notes depending on the various news / developments for every team.
Evansville vs Schaumburg
The Otters have a brand new look and they are “fresh” of a West Division title in the last configuration of the Frontier League, ending 2019 with a 57–39 record. I’m still making my mind up, with the information I have, about their chances for the season. Something is sure, Andy McCauley is a great manager that gets the most out of his players.
The Boomers finished the last season of play with a 47–49 record, 7 games behind the East Division winner, the Lake Erie Crushers. They have 10 returning players, including Quincy Nieporte, always a huge threat offensively. In 2019, he got the Frontier League record for the most RBIs in a game: 10!
Probable pitchers:
Evansville: LHP Dalton Stambaugh
The southpaw was a 30th round selection of the Baltimore Orioles in 2019 and was released after only 21 innings pitched in affiliated ball and mainly as a reliever. He’s going back to the rotation in 2021 and getting the Opening Day nod. Since 2017 in the NCAA and affiliated ball, he’s produced this: 8.6 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and 1.6 HR/9
Schaumburg: RHP Kyle Arjona
The right-hander was previously in the Phillies organization for two seasons before being released and, just like Stambaugh, was a relief pitcher for them. Since 2016 in affiliated ball, summer leagues and the NCAA, he’s posted these respectable ratios: 7.3 K/9, 3.0 BB/9 and 0.7 HR/9.
Washington Wild Things vs Florence Y’alls
The Wild Things are coming off a very disappointing 2019 season (37–59) that saw them finish dead last in the East Division. Their GM, Tony Buccilli, used pod play in 2020 to really focus on which player he was going to sign and completely revamped the roster to give them one of the best teams in the league.
Florence has a new name and uniform since they last saw field action: Y’alls (previously Freedom). They lost to the River City Rascals in the fifth and last game of the Championship Series of 2019. They’ve got a dynamic lineup and a very good bullpen that should keep the team in every game.
Washington: RHP Daren Osby
Osby was previously with the Joliet Slammers for two seasons and has thrown 177.2 innings in the Frontier League, becoming a very reliable starter with these ratios to show for it: 8.9 K/9, 2.5 BB/9 and 0.6 HR/9
CF — Derek Reddy
C — Trevor Casanova
DH — Bralin Jackson
LF — Grant Heyman
RF — Hector Roa
1B — Andrew Czech
SS — John Sansone
3B — Brian Sharp
2B — Andrew Penner
Florence: Jared Cheek
Here’s what Pitching Strategist Chad Rhoades had to say about his starter, truly amazing stuff:
Jared “MacGyver” Cheek is the most fascinating pitcher I’ve worked with. Computer Science major, created his own VR simulation that our guys will use to track pitches. He has his own wood working trailer that he makes bats out of and is our resident handyman. No one more that I trust to hand the ball to, he knows how to pitch and has ice in his veins. 91–94 with really good command and a second gear, can control the top of the zone very well but not abuse it. Reads hitters and adapts quickly mid AB to foul ball ID. Will wipe you out with a split, uses it to hitters on both sides. Works very efficiently and seeks the quickest out, he’s gonna make you prove it.
LF — Rodney Tennie
SS — Luis Pintor
3B — Chad Sedio
C — Trevor Craport
RF — Jose Brizuela
2B — Harrison DiNicola
1B — Connor Crane
DH — Jordan Brower
CF — Will Baker
Équipe Québec vs Gateway Grizzlies
*****GAME CANCELLED — RAIN*****
*****DOUBLEHEADER on Friday*****
Québec goes to Gateway as a travel team for the first part of the 2021 season, but might see a lot of time at home if the border is open on July 23rd. That makes everything extra complicated for manager Patrick Scalabrini, but it will also be fascinating to see how this talented roster will cope with the obstacles thrown their way.
The Grizzlies have a new manager, Cameron Roth, who was Manager of the Year in 2019 in Lake Erie. The roster has been revamped and includes some very good and intriguing guys. I’ll be able to present them to you (as I’ve done for the past two months) in the coming weeks.
Québec: RHP Nick Economos
The 6'6" is their most experienced starter and has also been the most effective during camp, according to manager Scalabrini. He is a former farmhand of the Pittsburgh Pirates, recording a 3.96 ERA, 8.5 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and 0.9 HR/9 in five seasons.
Gateway: LHP Sebastian Kessay
The southpaw is a couple of weeks removed from his 28th birthday and has pitched the last two seasons in the independent American Association with Fargo-Moorhead. He can definitely strike batters out and keep the ball in the park, but controlling the strike zone has always been a struggle: 4.19 ERA, 10.1 K/9, 5.0 BB/9 and 0.6 HR/9 since 2013 in affiliated and indy ball.
New Jersey Jackals vs New York Boulders
The Jackals won the last Can-Am Championship and also last year’s crown in pod play. Manager Brooks Carey and his staff will have to work around new roster rules, but they always seem to put a competitive roster on the field.
The Boulders are now representing New York and not “just” Rockland in their name, but they also have a new manager, T.J. Stanton. He knows baseball and is very competitive, which bodes well for the Atlantic Division battle coming up in 2021! They went and got players with experience in affiliated ball, a group of guys I’m very high on if they stay healthy and don’t all get signed by major league organizations.
New Jersey: RHP Jose Almonte
Coming out of the Dominican Republic, Almonte has been with the Red Sox and Diamondbacks since 2013 and there’s a reason for that: he knows what he’s doing out there on the mound and the Frontier League could really be an impressive stepping stone for him to get back in affiliated ball (421 IP, 3.39 ERA, 8.9 K/9, 3.9 BB/9 and 0.5 HR/9).
New York: LHP Danny Wirchansky
He has never played pro ball (10.4 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and 0.3 HR/9 in NCAA), but Stanton is high on him:
Drafted in 2019 by the Milwaukee Brewers, Wirchansky, who resides in Stony Point, has also been the property of the Texas Rangers, but was released by both teams late that year with an arm injury and underwent Tommy John surgery.
“Danny was an absolute legend for Pace,” Stanton said. “He has been all over MLB radars, including drafted. He is finally fully healthy following TJ surgery. He has shown extremely good stuff.”
CF — Milton Smith
3B — Tucker Nathans
2B — Zach Kirtley
LF — Kevonte Mitchell
DH — Ryan Ramiz
SS — Zach Penprase
RF — Jack Sundberg
1B — Ray Hernandez
C — Phil Capra
Tri-City ValleyCats vs Sussex County Miners
The ValleyCats are introducing themselves to independent baseball after losing their affiliation to the Houston Astros. Manager Pete Incaviglia has been brought in to give the organization a chance to compete and they have two of the best hitters in the league in 1B/DH Dennis Phipps and 3B Juan Silverio. The main area of concern to me is the pitching staff, so let’s give them the time to compete a little and then make a report.
Tri-City: RHP Carlos Sano
The starting options for Incaviglia are thin and he’s going with a righty with affiliated ball experience to get the ball rolling in 2021, coming out of the Giants system with 13 of his 39 games as starter: 9.2 K/9, 3.9 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9. It will be interesting to see if the ValleyCats offense will be able to support the shaky pitching staff (at least on paper, Incaviglia knows his stuff).
3B — Juan Silverio
DH — Dennis Phipps
1B — Francis Martinez
SS — Carson Maxwell
RF — Avery Tuck
C — Daniel Angulo
CF — Brandt Broussard
2B — Keaton Weiscz
Sussex County: LHP Tyler Alexander
The veteran left-hander has pitched all over the place (affiliated and independent baseball), amassing close to one thousand innings pitched along the way: 3.61 ERA, 9.6 K/9, 3.4 BB/9 and 0.8 HR/9. He is part of a very good starting rotation, so let’s see what kind of outing he’ll give his manager Bobby Jones.
Southern Illinois Miners vs Lake Erie Crushers
The Miners are a very good organization that should definitely keep winning this year with the impressive group of guys that manager Mike Pinto has assembled, even picking Brandon Pugh yesterday after being released. They plan on putting the focus on making contact with the ball, even if that means less home runs in the end. This should make the whole lineup electric!
The Crushers are under a new manager, Dan Rohn, but also a new image after changing their logo and uniforms, going 54–42 in 2019 and winning the East Division. From what I’ve seen, they have a very balanced and experienced roster that could really give opposing teams trouble this season.
Southern Illinois: RHP Zac Westcott
Westcott has played in all the four major independent leagues (including the Can-Am) and he fits right in that great Miners rotation. He keeps the ball in the park, doesn’t get himself in trouble with walks and keeps batters honest: 3.92 ERA, 7.5 K/9, 2.7 BB/9 and 0.7 HR/9 since 2013 across many levels of baseball.
2B — Craig Massey
LF — Anthony Brocato
RF — Nolan Earley
DH — Gianfranco Wawoe
1B — Luke Mangieri
SS — Jarrod Watkins
C — Marshall Rich
CF — Brandon Pugh
3B — Spencer Henn
Lake Erie: RHP Ryan Feierabend
The former major leaguer has played all over the world and against the best competition, so he comes to the rotation with his knuckleball and a lot of knowledge about how to get batters out.
CF — Shawon Dunston
2B — Javier Betancourt
RF — Dylan Jones
SS — Trevor Achenbach
1B — Bryan Delarosa
LF — Connor Oliver
3B — Steve Passatempo
DH — Brody Wofford
C — Karl Ellison
Joliet Slammers vs Windy City Thunderbolts
The Slammers won it all in 2018, but had a down year in 2019 with a 40–56 record. This is one of the team I’m the most excited to get to know, because so far they are a mystery to me and I’m eager to see the new players at work. Now healthy, look for C/1B Brian Parreira to have a big season from the left side of the plate.
Manager Brian Smith was honest in his assessment of the 2019 season, mentioning that the year did not go as planned (42–54) with a lot of returning players from 2018 and a new general philosophy that took time to get implemented. 2021 should offer a brand new way of playing baseball, being more athletic with versatile players and the return of their former ace, Jake Fisher.
Joliet: LHP Steve Moyers
The left-hander has been in the Seattle Mariners organization since 2016 (4.13 ERA, 7.3 K/9, 1.8 BB/9 and 0.7 HR/9) and can be relied upon to eat up a lot of innings (164 IP in 2019 alone). He has one aspect going for him that I really like: he doesn’t allow a lot of walks. That alone should make him a friend of the manager, Jamie Bennett.
Windy City: RHP Tyler Thornton
The 6'4" right-hander has been extremely effective since 2018 in independent baseball: 3.48 ERA, 9.1 K/9, 3.1 BB/9 and 0.3 HR. An impressive presence on the mound, knows how to pitch effectively and has stamina.
