Hitter of the Month
Ted Sale
For the 2nd straight month, the 28 year old 1b takes home the Long Beach Player of the Month award though he did have some pretty tough competition this month. Sale hit .324/.378/.524 with 4 homeruns and 13 rbis. Sale led the team in average, OPS, doubles (7), and hits (34) for the month. He narrowly edged O'Shea Jackson who had a monster month at 2b for the Surfers in May.
Pitcher of the Month
Rob "Nasty Boy" Dibble
I normally don't like to give my pitcher award to a reliever, but I couldn't ignore the month that the "Nasty Boy" had in May. Dibble took the mound in 13 games in May, logged 12 innings, saved 11 games, and did not allow a single run. So Dibble's stat line looks like this: 0-0; 11saves; 12.0 IP; 5H; 1BB; 14 Ks. 0.00 ERA and a WHIP of 0.50. That should make the sting of that Ichiro tattoo on his ass feel a little bit better.
AAA Player of the Month
Wilson Calderon
May wasn't exactly a great month for our AAA affiliate in Santa Fe. Caleron had a solid month, but not a spectacular one. In May, Wilson hit .250/.298/.483 with 6 homeruns and 26 runs batted in. Despite a par average and a below average on-base percentage, Calderon made up for it by pounding 6 homerund and driving in 26 rbis, both team highs for the month of May.
AA Player of the Month
Ramon Ayala
Expect Ramon to receive a call-up to at least Triple-A prior to the next sim. Ayala was originally slated to be on the Surfers staff, but the front office opted not to start the season with a 19-year old in the rotation. Instead, Ayala was shipped to Double-A Florence where he has been outstanding. In May, Ayala went 6-0 in 9 starts, posting a 1.93 ERA in 60.2 innings. He struck out 48 and walked only 7 for the month. He is 9-0 on the year with a 1.55 ERA and 0.85 WHIP.
A Player of the Month
Jim Twistleton
For the 2nd straight month, our Single-A award is given to a non-prospect. Twisleton will likely never rise above the lower levels of the minors. In May, Jim hit .347/.417/.505 with 3 homeruns, 7 doubles, and 20 runs batted in. He also drew 13 walks compared to just 4 strikeouts for the month.
