Montreal 2010 Season Preview

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wualumni
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Montreal 2010 Season Preview

Post by wualumni » Thu Apr 18, 2013 10:59 pm

The Montreal Blazers are going into the 2010 season with high hopes after surprising most experts and finishing the season 83-79 and just one game away from tying for the division title. The emergence of several top prospects highlighted a very nice season for the Blazers. Look for the Blazers to make a valiant effort at a division title again this season with the continued growth of the young talent.

Off-Season Moves

Key Losses - DH/OF Julio Martinez
Key Additions - P David Schuster, OF Storm Kandarr

Offense
Catcher - It looks like the catching duties will be be mainly handled by veteran Rafael Rivera who started 115 games at catcher last season. Rivera is an excellent receiver behind the dish and had a solid year at the plate hitting .275 with a .769 OPS. He only hit one HR last season, but should be able to hold down the fort until the Blazers decide to go with either of their catching prospects in Clark Foster or Jim Dunn. It appears both need a little more seasoning at AAA Fort Wayne, but with the recent trade of Dave Parker to Las Vegas the Blazers may be required to go ahead with one of the youngsters or find a veteran to backup Rivera.

First Base - Duane Whitley returns for his tenth season with the Blazers, and had another great season hitting .300 with 30 HRs and 130 RBI while posting a .870 OPS. The six-time All-Star looks to continue to lead the Blazers offensive attack.

Second Base - Rookie of the Year Ernie Stauffer returns for his sophomore campaign at 2B for the Blazers. Stauffer had a phenomenal rookie season batting .332 with 12 HRs and 95 RBI while posting a .836 OPS.

Third Base - Yves Riviere looks to get most of the playing time at 3B in 2010 after starting 149 games for the Blazers last season. Riviere had a decent rookie campaing hitting .284 with 1 HR and 52 RBI while posting a .714 OPS. He struggled as expected in the field last season posting a -7.3 ZR at 3B. It appears veteran offseason free agent pickup Cody Chamberlain will be Riviere's backup and possibly get a lot of the starts against left-handed pitching.

Shortstop - It appears that several players may get a crack at playing at SS for the Blazers in 2010, but Jose Cortez claimed off waivers last June from Washington looks to get most of the starts at SS. Cortez started 95 games at SS last season posting a solid +5.3 ZR while hitting .268 for Montreal with 1 HR and 37 RBI while posting a .661 OPS. Veteran Ron Evans is back again and could see some playing time if Cortez struggles.

Outfield - The Blazers sport one of the best OF combinations in the league. With the acquisition of Storm Kandarr from the EBA it allows the Blazers to strengthen their defense by moving defensively challenged Bart Hood (-20.0 ZR in RF last season) from the OF to DH. It would appear that the slugging Billy Beauford will be back in LF after posting a great +14.1 ZR last season. Beauford also had his best season offensively hitting .343 with 20 HRs and 81 RBI while posting a .904 OPS. CF will be manned by Bob White who had an excellent rookie campaign batting .313 with 9 HRs and 64 RBI while posting a .817 OPS.

Designated Hitter - The DH spot should be manned most of the time in 2010 by Bart Hood who can finally can stop playing what he called "defense" in LF. However, when it comes to hitting Hood can stroke it. Last season he batted .328 with 20 HRs and 104 RBI while posting a .889 OPS.

Starting Pitching - The 2009 season saw the emergence of top prospects Moses Tallchief and Martin Huigens who are back for their sophomore seasons. Both had solid rookie campaigns with Tallchief going 14-10 with a 4.06 ERA and a 1.31 WHIP. Huigens finished 16-9 with a 4.38 ERA and a 1.35 WHIP. In addition to these exciting youngsters, the Blazers added veteran David Schuster who should fit in to one of the top three spots in the rotation. The 39 year-old only started 10 games for Greenville last season after recovering from a season ending injury in 2008. Schuster brings a career record 127-102 with a 4.23 ERA and should eat a lot of innings for the Blazers barring any injury. The 4th and 5th spots in the rotation look to be a competition between Donald Bergeron, Jose Bruno, and top prospect Jack Hanski, Jr.. Last season Bergeron struggled going 7-12 with a 6.12 ERA and a 1.77 WHIP. Bruno pitched mostly out of the bullpen, but did get 13 starts and finished the season 9-7 with a 4.06 ERA and a 1.28 WHIP. Hanski, Jr. had a bit of a disappointing season in AAA only being able to start 20 games due to some injuries and finished 5-8 with a 4.58 ERA and a 1.36 WHIP.

Bullpen - Montreal welcomes back former Blazer Michael McNeill who should fill in a prominent role for the Blazers in 2010. Cuban defector Fernando Garcia is back after a disappointing season and has great "stuff", but couldn't put it together in 2009. Jeff Long looks to fill the long relief role and could possibly be an option as a starter after starting 27 games for the Blazers last season. Will Lamkin was signed to a one-year contract and will fill the middle relief role for Montreal in 2010. Other bullpen pieces are Pat Hughes, Theron Ratzlaff, and Sixto Serrano.

Closer - Marc Jutras is back as the Blazers closer after a great 2009. Jutras who is known for some of the nastiest "heat" in the league went 3-4 with 36 saves, a 2.15 ERA and a "lights-out" WHIP of 0.97. If the Blazers starters and bullpen can get it to Jutras they will be in good hands.

Prediction - 2010 definitely should be a positive season for Montreal. If Tallchief and Huigens continue to improve and if the additions of Schuster and Kandarr pan out the Blazers could be in the playoffs for the first time since 2006.

2010 Predicted Record - 88-74
Jason Martin
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JohnC
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Re: Montreal 2010 Season Preview

Post by JohnC » Fri Apr 19, 2013 6:44 am

Nice job as usual Jason. Bart Hood is sad that you are not a fan of his defense.. :cry:
Montreal Blazers 2002 - present
Atlantic Div Champs '02,'05,'06,'11,'12,'13,'14,'19,'21,'27,'30'33
Wild Card '04,'10,'20,'28,'29,'31,'32,'34

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wualumni
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Re: Montreal 2010 Season Preview

Post by wualumni » Fri Apr 19, 2013 7:43 am

I will say he's all about putting up big numbers whether it be positive (offense) or negative (defense). :)


Jason Martin
GM - California Crusaders
Jason Martin
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Twitter: MBWBA_Crusaders

Cliche
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Re: Montreal 2010 Season Preview

Post by Cliche » Fri Apr 19, 2013 1:21 pm

Looks like I need to win more games if I want to be in this race this season...
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Atlantic City Gamblers, 2010-2030. 2022 MBWBA Champions. '10, '15, '22, '23, '25, '28 FLA Champions. 2010, 2024 FL Cartwright Cup Winners.
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