Bears Trade For Jackals Starter
Credit: Newark Bears
The Newark Bears completed their first trade ever with their friendly local rivals, the New Jersey Jackals, earlier in the week when the Bears acquired starting pitcher Ryan Lobban in exchange for a player to be named later. Lobbon has shown potential to be an above-average pitcher in the Can-Am League.
In 2008 as a member of the Worcester Tornadoes, Lobban went 5-1 with a 3.11 ERA as a reliever. The following season in Worcester, Lobban converted to a starter and pitched quite well going 10-7 with a 3.56 ERA. He also struck out 74 batters in 121.1 innings pitched. Last season with the Jackals he regressed a bit and his ERA rose considerably to 5.56 in 18 starts.
You can never have enough pitching so if Lobbon can slot in as a middle of the rotation starter and put up numbers similar to like he did in 2008 and 2009, the Bears should be in pretty good shape in the starting pitcher category. Ryan Lobban is scheduled to make his season debut this Saturday in the series finale against the Rockland Boulders.
Little Known Fact: Ryan Lobban, a native of Saddle River, was recognized nationally in 2003 by Sports Illustrated as an up-and-coming sports star. Check it out here.
Exhibition Game Recap: Hank’s Yanks at Newark Bears
Burt Reynolds takes a big swing against Hank's Yanks. Credit: Phil Hoops
Gray skies loomed over the city of Newark all day long. The temperatures were rather chilly, yet there was still a baseball game to be played -- one that was for an especially good cause. Prior to the game, just about every Bears player on the roster (managers and coaching staff included) made themselves available for autographs around the stadium's main concourse.
Fans gathered on the infield to release over 450 balloons to commemorate the fight against Pancreatic cancer. On hand to participate was famed actor Danny Aiello and Essex County Executive Joseph DiVincenzo.
Now on to the in-game action. Pitcher Anthony Puta took the mound for the Bears and pitched a scoreless first inning against the Hank's Yanks batters. Early on the young Yankees hopefuls looked over-matched at the plate, but it didn't stay that way for long (more on that later). Centerfielder Kyle LaMotta led off the game for the Bears with a double. Former big leaguers Tim Raines Jr. and Ramon Nivar walked soon after to make things interesting.
First baseman Brian Nichols came up to the plate next and subsequently popped out. Danny Santiesteban proceeded to ground-out, however a run crossed the plate to get the Bears on the board. Third baseman Todd Gossage, the youngest son of the legendary Goose Gossage, stepped up to the plate and promptly walked. Designated hitter and Newark local Burt Reynolds really got things going with a Hollywood style two-run double to fire up the crowd.
Catcher Eric McGee kept the rally going with an RBI double of his own. Hank's Yanks would ultimately battle back with some offense of their own and came within one run of tying things up. However, the Bears managed to stay on top throughout the latter innings of the game and pickup the exhibition win by a score of 9-to-7.
Overall, it was enjoyable game although the Bears did let the game get a little bit too close for comfort at the end. Although I wasn't really a huge fan of Newark's new jerseys at first, I have to admit they look pretty cool in person. I was told by a staffer that the new Newark Bears jerseys would eventually go on-sale at the team store, which opens this Thursday for Opening Day.
That's all for now -- stay tuned later this week as we count down the days until Opening Day at Riverfront Stadium this Thursday against the Rockland Boulders.
Fans release over 450 ballons into the air prior to Sunday's Newark Bears game to support the fight against Pancreatic Cancer. Credit: Phil Hoops
The entire Bears roster signed autographs for fans prior to the start of the game. Credit: Phil Hoops
A rare Tim Raines autographed baseball. Credit: Phil Hoops
Paddy Matera returns to Newark for the 2011 season. Credit: Phil Hoops
Newark starter Anthony Pluta throws a warm-up pitch. Credit: Phil Hoops
The Hank's Yanks starter fires off a pitch. Credit: Phil Hoops
Danny Santiesteban dashes out of the box down the first base line. Credit: Phil Hoops
Jim Leyritz makes his first visit to the mound as Newark Bears pitching coach. Credit: Phil Hoops
Press Release: Jackals Defeat Bears In Rain-Delayed Exhibition Contest
Kyle LaMotta drove in one of the two Newark runs on Saturday night. Credit: Phil Hoops
Little Falls, NJ – Little Falls, NJ – The New Jersey Jackals scored the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning on a throwing error by the Newark Bears’ catcher to edge their in-state rivals, 3-2 ,in an exhibition game on a damp Saturday night at Yogi Berra Stadium.
The Jackals utilized six pitchers, who combined to surrender just two unearned runs. Offensively for New Jersey, left fielder Ryan Royster went 2-for-4 with a triple.
Royster led off the ninth inning with a single. The next batter, right fielder Jeremy Slayden, was hit by a pitch. Shortly after, a wild pitch allowed both runners to advance and on the same play the Newark error allowed the winning run to score.
After a one hour, 15 minute rain delay, Jackals’ starter James Leverton retired the Newark side on six pitches in the top of the first innings. The Jackals used a trio of errors by Bears’ shortstop Paddy Matera to move two runners into scoring position in the bottom of the first, but Newark starter Jacob Wild struck out a pair of batters to escape the jam unscathed.
Newark opened the scoring in the top of the third inning with a pair of unearned runs against right-hander Phil Bartleski. After catcher Billy Alvino reached on a throwing error by Mike DeJesus to open the frame, RBI doubles by center fielder Kyle LaMotta and second baseman Ramon Nivar gave the bears a 2-0 lead.
The Jackals broke through with a run in the bottom of the sixth inning when Royster ripped an RBI triple past third base, plating first baseman Kris Sanchez, who had reached on a two-out walk.
New Jersey evened the score at 2-2 in the bottom of the eighth. Second baseman Argenis Reyes led off with a double down the right field line, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scampered home when first baseman Mike Jones lifted a sacrifice fly to center.
Link: Former Mariners Pitching Prospect Joins Bears
Jacob Wild pitching for the University of the Pacific. Credit: University of the Pacific
Paul over at Paul's Random Baseball Stuff brings us up to date on the latest Bears signing, right-handed pitcher Jacob Wild who hails from Kingsburg, California. Prior to signing with the Bears, Wild had spent his entire career in the lower levels of the Seattle Mariners farm system after he was drafted by the organization in the 26th round of the 2007 Draft. Soon after signing in 2007, the pitcher made an immediate impact with the Rookie League Mariners in Peoria by posting an ERA of 1.88 in 48 innings pitched. His strong rookie performance earned him the honor of being named the 2007 Peoria Most Valuable Pitcher. In 2008, Wild advanced to the Mariners' Class A affiliate, the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (try saying that three times fast!) where he made 9 starts and pitched to an ERA of 3.67.
As a result of solid numbers at the higher level Wild was promoted again mid-season; this time to the Class A+ High Desert Mavericks of the California League for the second half of the season. It is there where things began to unravel. In 26.1 innings, the 6'5" pitcher allowed 23 runs, which resulted in a ballooned ERA of 7.18. Wild remained with the Mavericks and had a much better time on the mound going (6-8), primarily as a starter, with a 4.09 ERA in 132 innings pitched.
Last year, Wild logged 117 innings between Seattle's Class A+ and Class AA affiliates while still struggling to be effective before his departure from the ball club.
I have no idea how his numbers will translate over in the Can-Am League, which some say is similar to the level of play in the affiliated Class AA league (i.e. Trenton Thunder and Binghamton Mets). If that's the case, it's really an unknown because Wild has only pitched in 4.2 innings to date, all of which came last season.
While his stats sheet isn't all that flashy, with the exception of his rookie season of course, I do feel that Wild has a shot to play an important role with this year's Bears ball club. Like teammate, Burt Reynolds, who I profiled earlier in the week, Wild is still relatively young at 26 years of age so the developmental process is still ongoing.
Throughout his career Wild has worked as both a starter and a reliever so he could really slot into either role with Newark. To me, it appears that Wild has had more success pitching out of the bullpen so perhaps he could be the late inning swing-man / spot-start option for the Bears, similar to the role that D.J. Carrasco was supposed to fill this year in Queens when he signed a two-year deal with the Mets.
I suppose we'll get a better idea of Wild's role with the team once Spring Training begins in just a few short weeks. In the meantime, check out Jacob Wild's career stats courtesy of Baseball Reference:
| Year | Age | Tm | Lg | Lev | Aff | W | L | G | GS | GF | CG | SV | IP | H | R | ER | HR | BB | SO | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007 | 22 | Mariners | ARIZ | Rk | SEA | 3 | 1 | .750 | 1.88 | 17 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 48.0 | 33 | 11 | 10 | 2 | 14 | 62 | 0.979 | 11.6 |
| 2008 | 23 | 2 Teams | 2 Lgs | A-A+ | SEA | 6 | 11 | .353 | 4.59 | 30 | 15 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 100.0 | 114 | 57 | 51 | 10 | 40 | 94 | 1.540 | 8.5 |
| 2008 | 23 | Wisconsin | MIDW | A | SEA | 5 | 6 | .455 | 3.67 | 24 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 73.2 | 75 | 34 | 30 | 4 | 24 | 70 | 1.344 | 8.6 |
| 2008 | 23 | High Desert | CALL | A+ | SEA | 1 | 5 | .167 | 7.18 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 26.1 | 39 | 23 | 21 | 6 | 16 | 24 | 2.089 | 8.2 |
| 2009 | 24 | High Desert | CALL | A+ | SEA | 6 | 8 | .429 | 4.09 | 34 | 20 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 132.0 | 146 | 75 | 60 | 10 | 37 | 116 | 1.386 | 7.9 |
| 2010 | 25 | 2 Teams | 2 Lgs | A+-AA | SEA | 6 | 6 | .500 | 5.52 | 30 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 117.1 | 143 | 79 | 72 | 19 | 38 | 95 | 1.543 | 7.3 |
| 2010 | 25 | High Desert | CALL | A+ | SEA | 6 | 5 | .545 | 5.35 | 29 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 112.2 | 136 | 74 | 67 | 19 | 36 | 92 | 1.527 | 7.3 |
| 2010 | 25 | West Tenn | SOUL | AA | SEA | 0 | 1 | .000 | 9.64 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.2 | 7 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 1.929 | 5.8 |
The Longest Yard: Burt Reynolds To Play For Bears
Burt Reynolds bats for the Princeton Rays. Credit NJ.com
Recently the Newark Bears asked fans who their favorite ball player on the club was dating back to the Rick Cerrone era. While many fans may have choosen popular names like Rickey Henderson, Jose Canseco or even Armando Benitez; mine was a little bit off the wall. My favorite Newark Bears star of all time? Burt Reynolds. That's right, Burt Reynolds (name sound familiar?), an outfielder signed by the Bears earlier in the off-season that has yet to even play for the team.
While I do love the name, there is a lot more to like about Reynolds coming to the Bears. As Bruno Tedeschi points out in a 2009 article for the Newark Live blog on NJ.com, Reynolds actually came to Newark when he was a child from his native Dominican Republic and got his start on the baseball diamond playing at the North Ward Center Academy and Rick Cerrone's Little League right here in the Brick City.
Flash forward to 2006 when Reynolds was originally selected in the 30th round of the MLB Draft by the Washington Nationals but opted to go to college for one year and did not sign. As a result, he eventually ended up in the talent rich Tampa Bay Rays organization in 2008 were he has spent his entire professional baseball career.
Not much has been written about the 22 year-old, as he was never considered a top-tiered prospect like Bryce Harper or Mike Trout. However, in December of 2008 RaysDigest profiled the third baseman. Here's what they had to say:
Burt Reynolds—no, this is not a joke that it is really his name—rounds out the top five. Reynolds, drafted by the Washington Nationals back in 2006, signed a minor league contract with the Rays in spring training after spending the last two seasons at Okaloosa-Walton Community College in Florida. A third baseman by trade, the Dominican native has a big-time arm, according to reports, and power potential.
Reynolds put up a solid line in his debut at Rookie Level Princeton, batting .289/.344/.444 with six home runs and 37 RBIs. His approach left a bit to be desired, though, as he produced rates of 6.8 BB% and 30.2 K% (70 Ks in 58 games). He is still raw at this point and it will be interesting to see how he handles more advanced pitching, but the 20-year-old infielder has some solid skills and is a prospect to watch as he continues to develop. It should not be all that difficult to remember his name, at least.
His career totals spanning time in the lower levels of the Rays farm system aren't very impressive. In 678 plate appearances, spanning three seasons, Reynolds hit for a .248 batting average with 10 home runs and 79 RBIs. Still though, if Reynolds can find his power swing that scouts were talking about earlier in his career there's a shot he could be quite productive for Newark this year, after all he still is only just 22 years of age. If not, Reynolds can always moonlight as an actor, right?
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