So, here we are. Another winter is behind us and it’s time for the 5th season of Southern Illinois Miners baseball. For those of you who don’t know me, I’m Ashley Foxx. I will be taking over Riding the Pine and doing a weekly blog on the Miners. You might have heard me on the air with Murph and Scott on Sports Voice or on our sister station New Country Z100. I am really excited about covering the Miners this season. If you have any topics you are curious about or want to hear my take on things email me at ashleyg@riverradio.net. Tune in to Riding the Pine on Friday nights at 5:30 starting on May 20th!
It is fair to say that the Miners finished last season with a bitter taste in their mouth. After a season with a 20 game winning streak, hosting the all-star game, having a team high number of all-stars, and a multitude of post season accolades, they fell short of a storybook season in the semi-finals. Ryan Bird pitched an unbelievable seven and two thirds innings in the game, but left with a no decision. The ten inning battle was scoreless until River City’s Caleb Curry singled off of Jake McMurran in the top of the tenth with two outs to drive home Chris McClendon. Later in the inning, another Rascal crossed the plate when a ball Jereme Milons catches 99 times out of a 100 bounced under his glove in center field. One more run would cross the plate putting the Miners down 3-0 going into the bottom of the tenth. During their final at bat, the Miners just couldn’t get it going and they ended the season 32 games over .500, the second most wins in Frontier League history.
It is also fair to say the Miners have been busy in the offseason. If you look at the roster today you will see roughly a dozen familiar names. Mike Pinto lost a lot of “franchise players” to the real world and some to MLB organizations. Rebuilding a starting pitching rotation might sound like a difficult task with former pitching coach, Bart Zeller, now holding the reins for the Joliet Slammers. However, the Miners scored a huge piece of the puzzle in hiring current pitching coach, Justin Lord. I had the chance to talk to coach Lord before spring training started and to say he might be the perfect man for the job is an understatement. Lord approaches the game with an aggressive/attack early philosophy. There is no secret behind his mantra. He expects his pitchers to pitch to contact and throw strikes. Finding a team of starters to live up to these expectations will be the most crucial point of Miners’ spring training. Right now, the heartbeat of this rotation begins with Joe Augustine. The even-keeled, disciplined all star is back with a vengeance and has high hopes for this season. The closing role belongs to Cal State- Bakersfield product Erik Draxton who came to us in August, but quickly made his presence known. The in between is where the questions lie, but with a good blend of arms to choose from in spring training, hopefully the rest of this rotation will reveal itself.
Check back on Mondays for a new blog!
Until next time…
