Knights In the Midst of a Slump on the Field

[Chisoxfn]

Knights In the Midst of a Slump on the Field

By Andrew Dunn

April 26, 2004

FutureSox.com

 

Near the end of the first month of the 2004 season, the Charlotte Knights find themselves in the midst of a 5 game losing streak. Currently they are 7-10, but, they are only 3 games behind the International League South leading Durham and Richmond.

 

Despite their lack of success on the field at this present time, there have been many positives from players early in the season. Offensively, Jeremy Reed has been leading the way. Jeremy is leading the team in batting average (.349) and stolen bases (5). Reed has recently been moved to the leadoff spot for the Knights, and with the lack of production from Willie Harris in Chicago, Reed could find himself leading off for the Sox and playing centerfield.

 

The big surprise so far for Charlotte has been the stellar play of Bryant Nelson, who was signed to a minor league deal after spending the previous year in Japan. Nelson has been moved from the leadoff spot to the number 3 spot in the lineup to take advantage of his surprising power. He leads the team in home runs (3), runs (12), runs batted in (12), hits (23) and slugging percentage (.529). Nelson is emulating the season of last year’s second baseman Aaron Miles who finds himself competing for the second base job with Luis Gonzalez in Colorado.

 

The Knights offense, minus Reed and Nelson has struggled to muster up any consistent attack. Former star prospect Joe Borchard has had another disappointing start. He is hitting .238 with 2 home runs and a 7/14 BB/K ratio. Joe’s play has picked up in the last few games and hopefully he can continue it for the rest of the season. Jamie Burke who was very unlucky not to be part of the 25 man roster in Chicago is hitting .250. Many of the Knights infielders are having trouble getting on base; especially Bobby Smith and Mike Bell who have 17 K’s and 12 K’s respectively and both are hitting below .235.

 

Charlotte’s starting rotation has been the most impressive aspect of the Knights play so far, with Felix Diaz the stand out. Diaz is undefeated with a 3-0 record and a 2.59 ERA. He also leads Charlotte with 21 strikeouts and innings pitched with 24.1 in 4 appearances. If Felix continues to pitch well, he will put a lot of pressure on the White Sox hierarchy to promote him, possibly as the 5th starter where Dan Wright hasn’t had the best start. Jon Rauch and Jason Grilli have also been impressive with their strikeouts (19 and 17), although both have fairly high ERA’s over 4. Ryan Kohleimer has been the surprise starter in the Knights rotation with a 2.76 ERA in 3 appearances.

 

Jose Santiago has been leading the way in the bullpen with a team low ERA of 1.64 in 6 games. He also shares the team high in saves of 2 with Gary Majewski, who has been roughed up early on. Kelly Wunsch, who is scheduled to complete a 30 day rehabilitation assignment with the Knights, has pitched in 3 games with an ERA of 6.75. Vic Darensbourg leads the Knights bullpen in appearances with 9, and former Cub Courtney Duncan is the only reliever to pick up a win.

 

Charlotte may have had a disappointing start to the season, but they will be looking to force their way back up to the top of the division In order to do this, the Knights need to hit better and give support to Jeremy Reed and Bryant Nelson who are playing lone hands so far. Joe Borchard and Jamie Burke are 2 players who should improve as the season continues. The Knights also lost one of their better hitters from a season ago, Mike Rivera, to the Oakland A’s. He was claimed when the Sox removed Rivera from the 40 man roster. The starting rotation has pitched well enough and should only get better, but it will have to carry the team.

 

Upcoming Schedule:

April 26-27 vs Norfolk

April 28-29 vs Richmond

April 30 – May 3 vs Louisville

May 4 – 7 vs Indianapolis

[danman31]

Good stuff other than the fact that Reed at leadoff and Nelson at 3 appears to be a one time occurence. Don't bet on it happening too often.

[DBAHO]

Just found this little snippet on Reed,

 

Charlotte, NC

Few players generated more buzz this spring than Jeremy Reed. Popular opinion was that if he didn't make the White Sox roster out of camp, then whoever started in center field on opening day would just be keeping the position warm for him. He was sent down, but a trip to the minors has done little to silence his bat or the hype.

 

Through 14 games at Triple-A Charlotte, Reed is hitting .373 with five stolen bases in as many tries. Last year at Double-A Birmingham he hit .409 with 18 stolen bases. With Aaron Rowland stuck on three RBIs and nobody else producing at that position for Chicago, Reed's much-anticipated debut may not be far off. AL-only owners should keep a close eye on his progress.

[SoxAce]

Just found this little snippet on Reed,

 

Charlotte, NC

Few players generated more buzz this spring than Jeremy Reed. Popular opinion was that if he didn't make the White Sox roster out of camp, then whoever started in center field on opening day would just be keeping the position warm for him. He was sent down, but a trip to the minors has done little to silence his bat or the hype.

 

Through 14 games at Triple-A Charlotte, Reed is hitting .373 with five stolen bases in as many tries. Last year at Double-A Birmingham he hit .409 with 18 stolen bases. With Aaron Rowland stuck on three RBIs and nobody else producing at that position for Chicago, Reed's much-anticipated debut may not be far off. AL-only owners should keep a close eye on his progress.

Thanx for posting that DBAHO. It's a shame that they can't even spell Aaron Rowland's name right...