Charm City 2057.5 - Odds and Ends

[DaveB]

Welcome Charm City fans and welcome to another team news.

Welcome to the show:

Since our last news we've had a couple of players enjoy their first cup of team in the BBA. Those two players being C: Jamie Behnke and P: Blaine Worthington III. I'm going to start with Behnke first. We originally acquired him as a minor league free agent in January 9, 2054. Benke has really worked hard progressing through our system. He started off as an after thought depth piece when we signed him, but he became a decent looking prospect. While I don't feel he's going be a starting catcher, I do believe he'll be a decent enough backup catcher. To give him some more roster flexibility we've been working him on the corner outfield spots in AAA. I think he's going to be challenging Will Bennett as our backup catcher possibly later this year or next spring.

Blaine Worthington III was the 8th overall selection by San Antonio in 2053. Thankfully for us Worthington III and San Antonio were unable to come to an agreement and we signed him as a minor league free agent to a 4.5 million dollar signing bonus. I was hoping to see Worthington III be a starting pitcher, but I feel that his lack of stamina (4) limits his ceiling as a starting pitching option. With that in mind I decided to try him in the pen this year in AAA and he's been very good. He posted a 1.50 ERA in 18 innings with a 265 ERA+. He got a cup of coffee earlier this year when he appeared in 5 games while working 13 innings. He struck out 13 batters and had a 3.46 ERA in the sip of coffee. With some free agents on the active roster Worthington III should be challenging for a roster spot next year and will be our first person in mind with a call up due to injury later this year.

Dealin':

I like depth on my roster. I wasn't happy with the job Shirai Matsumoto was doing as the backup corner outfielder. We released the veteran and added Ted 'Long Ball' Benson on a small deal from Phoenix (Matsumoto signed with Phoenix for those wondering). We're hopeful for Benson to provide some pop off the bench and add a dynamic hitter into the mix if anyone falters or gets injured.

That's it for today. Someone tell Montreal to back to back off.