Sluggo Starter for May
Abe Colbert
Experienced thirty-two year-old knuckleballer Abe Colbert, has recovered form the slow start to his Louisville career, and posted a May record of 2-2 over 5 starts with 38.1 IP. Thats over 7 innings a start! His May ERA of 3.29 in the lowest of any Slugger starter and his strikeout number of 42 also leads the Slugger staff for May, despite Colbert earning one less start than his rotation mates.
Colbert joined the Louisville Sluggers off of waivers from Phoenix in April 2009. He has compiled a 2-3 record over 7 starts since the waiver claim.
Sluggo Reliever for May
Enrique Escues
Thirty year-old bullpen linchpin, Enrique Escues made no excuses for his poor April, and reeled off 17.1 excellent innings in May for the Sluggers. Escues earned a 2.04 ERA for the month, and mowed down 13 opponents while only giving 6 a free pass.
Escues came to the Sluggers as part of the 2007 traded deadline deal for experienced Slugger starter Russell Vaness. Escues has played in 148.2 innings and 115 games for the Sluggers since the deal, posting a 5-8 record with a 4.23 ERA and a cumulative 1.1 WAR (24.5 VORP) with 107 K against 64 BB.
Slugger for May
Pat Park
Thirty year-old center-fielder Pat Park was electric in May, posting a statline of .292/.390/.453/.843 while hitting 9 doubles, for 14 runs and 17 RBI and stealing 5 bases. Park has also been exceedingly competent in CF for the Sluggers, posting a season ZR of 4.5 with no errors.
Park joined the Sluggers as 26 year-old in 2005, coming over from Marquette with a season and a half of experience, in the big Hotstove winter deal for SP Michael Strathallan. Park has been entrenched in the Slugger outfield ever since, posting a cumulative 8.5 WAR over his three seasons and two months with a 63.7 VORP.(season averages - 2.55 WAR, 19.11 VORP)
Slugger Rookie for May
Jorge Diaz
Twenty-five year-old backstop Jorge Diaz wins his second Sluggers rookie of the month award with a .317/.352/.416/.768 statline with 2 homeruns and 13 RBI. While his offence may have been pedestrian, Diaz sparkeld with the glove, earning a 2.3 ZR so far in 2009, while nailing 37.8% of would-be base-stealers.
Diaz was the first pick of the second round in the 2006 amateur draft by the Louisville Sluggers out of Sherwin Williams College. It took Diaz only three years to work himself up four levels of the minor leagues to reach the MBBA.
