Based on the lineup released by Omaha today, the chase appears to be over. Omaha is going to entertain Twin City fans with a lineup consisting of very few, very few, everyday starters for the club. Even the starting pitching that Omaha has announced for the series are players that aren’t Omaha’s typical starters.
As shown below, Omaha is going to plan to play Virgil Shafer in LF all 3 days to wrap up the season, and also play Emilio Morales at 3rd for the final 3 games. Newcomer Brett White, who was acquired at the deadline and is starting to heat up does find himself in the lineup against right-handed pitchers. Other than that, Omaha is running out a squad where rule 5 selection Tony Perez will cover center field, Sloan Daniel is getting the nod at 1st, Jake Williams is playing second base, and Jose Montano is going to give shortstop another try. Behind the plate, Conner Hamilton appears done for the regular season as his name isn’t listed on the lineup at the catcher position.
As for the starters, Jake Garcia & Juan Garcia are both getting the nod to start games 1 and 2. Jake Garcia started for the club last season as a rule 5 draft pick but has been pitching out of the pen with little success this season. Juan Garcia was acquired in the off-season from Yellow Springs and did pitch briefly while Stephen Clulow was down with an injury but was pretty unsuccessful. For the season finale, the club is giving the mound to Thomas Rodriguez. Rodriguez has been used as a stopper this season after being called up on July 15th. He has posted a 1.4 WAR and 2.62 ERA in 34 appearances this season after running up a 7.34 ERA and negative 1.1 WAR last season.
