Your All-Time Jersey Shore Team

I thought this seemed like a fun idea.  To find the best team I could from former Jersey Shore teams.  Rules: You can only use a player once, regardless if he played another position.  Some decisions were tough, some were easy, but here you have it:  

SP: 2019 Jose Ramos.  23-6, 2.76 ERA, 2.88 FIP, 1.05 WHIP, 8.2 WAR

SP: 2014 Dan Macias. 20-8, 2.82 ERA, 2.81 FIP, 1.16 WHIP, 8.9 WAR

SP: 2015 Art Ellis. 13-8, 2.94 ERA, 3.73 FIP, 1.20 WHIP, 5.0 WAR

SP: 2019 Sergio Martinez. 17-3, 3.08 ERA, 1.28 WHIP, 4.5 WAR

SP: 2017 Greg Schaefer. 18-3, 3.82 ERA, 1.15 WHIP, 3.9 WAR

MR: 2016 Jose Gomes. 10-1, 4 saves. 1.31 ERA, 2.05 FIP, 1.02 WHIP, 3.6 WAR

MR: 2014 Daniel Morris. 6-5, 31 saves.  1.52 ERA, 1.94 FIP, 1.03 WHIP, 2.0 WAR

MR: 2013 Lucio Tapia. 8-1, 2 saves.  2.19 ERA, 1.77 FIP, 1.21 WHIP, 3.0 WAR

MR: 2019 Jose Ruiz.  6-3, 40 saves. 2.83 ERA, 2.92 FIP, 1.09 WHIP, 1.3 WAR

MR: 2013 Ciro Roghi. 1-0, 0 saves. 1.95 ERA, 2.15 FIP, 1.30 WHIP, 1.2 WAR

CL: 2017 Jaime Saenz. 8-2, 49 saves.  1.94 ERA, 1.96 FIP,  0.99 WHIP, 2.8 WAR

C: 2013 Jorge Lozano. .303/.388/.511.  36 2B, 24 HR, 107 RBI, 5.1 WAR

C: 2017 Warren Goyer. .257/.329/.541. 20 2B, 42 HR, 116 RBI, 3.4 WAR

1B: 2015 Matt Doyle. .302/.386/.572.  25 2B, 44 HR, 147 RBI, 5.7 WAR

1B: 2021 Tadahisa Kisuki.  .366/.424/.560.  32 2B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 5.7 WAR

2B: 2016 Mike Bryant.  .347/.407/.618.  48 2B, 40 HR, 158 RBI, 9.6 WAR

3B: 2015 Adam Morrow. .282/.402/.360.  31 2B, 4 HR, 61 RBI, 3.9 WAR

3B: 2012 Parker Morrow. .313/.390/.418.  29 2B, 10 HR, 62 RBI. 3.6 WAR

SS: 2020 Lawrence Schroeder.  .306/.341/.542.  27 2B, 19 HR, 74 RBI, 4.7 WAR

SS: 2011 Jerome Lindsey.  .343/.427/.480.  23 2B, 9 HR, 56 RBI, 4.2 WAR

UTIL: 2020 Fabrice Brodeur.  .325/.365/.465.  29 2B, 10 HR, 61 RBI, 3.4 WAR

OF: 2021 Dave Dodd.  .388/.455/.799.  46 HR, 119 RBI, 9.7 WAR

OF: 2011 Mason Bonniface. .328/.433/.556.  23 HR, 78 RBI, 6.1 WAR

OF: 2010 William Hinson.  .308/.404/.538.  23 HR, 91 RBI, 4.3 WAR

OF: 2013 Leon Foster.  .272/.338/.567.  33 HR, 105 RBI, 3.7 WAR

Starting Lineup:

SP: 2014 Dan Macias. 20-8, 2.82 ERA, 2.81 FIP, 1.16 WHIP, 8.9 WAR

1.  SS 2011 Jerome Lindsey

2. DH 2021 Tadahisa Kisuki

3. 2B 2016 Mike Bryant

4. RF 2021 Dave Dodd

5. 1B 2015 Matt Doyle

6. C 2013 Jorge Lozano

7. LF 2011 Mason Bonniface

8. CF 2013 Leon Foster

9. 3B 2015 Adam Morrow

How does your team stack up?

GO D-BAGS

Bags Make Deal; Ship Roghi Off to Vista

In 2010 Jersey scouts searching through Europe came across young men on a semi-pro Italian team warming up and saw a big kid who threw hard.  They decided to stay and watch as the 6'3" dark haired Italian kid marvel the opponents with a fastball that touched 97 and devastating, yet a tab uncontrollable sinker.  Not 3 weeks later the Jersey Shore D-Bags had signed the kid and he was pitching in A ball affiliate Gainesville.  His name was Ciro Roghi, a left handed reliever from Rome. It only took 2 years for the kid to find his way to the Jersey Shore and insert himself as a main cog in the Jersey bullpen.  An ERA of 2.90 in his rookie season in 77 innings turned some heads, but it really was the 1.95 ERA and 61 K's in 55 IP that got peoples attention.  

Roghi

This current season, the now 26 year old, had lofty expectations. He struggled out of the gate and never really turned in around.  Through the middle of June he had an ERA of 4.56 and had walked batters at a much higher rate than previously.  The team announced on 6/15 that Roghi had been traded to Vista.

This is when the reports started to come out.  Many players mentioned he had been sluggish in many appearances this year.  Not all there.  Tired.  Words like this being thrown around.  After Jersey personnel looked into this more, they found out why.  On night's after many home games, Roghi was seen jumping into his sports car and racing up the coast, through the Holland Tunnel into Manhatten, NY, then all the way into Little Italy.  Usually staying late and coming home in the wee hours of the morning, even on game days.  

When confronted, Roghi denied at first, but when photos were shown he came clean.  In a quote, "I miss my home cooking!  Jersey food is terrible, I want an Italian meal!!!!"  On Roghi's player card, his weight is listed at 225, which teammates think is laughable.  According to them he comes in AT LEAST 240.  I guess that chicken parm does add weight huh?  Roghi wasn't too pleased with his new destination of Vista, quoting California pizza is the biggest sham out there, but Jersey brass thinks it will work well for them and a Vista team in need of a hard throwing lefty in their pen.

In exchange for Roghi the Bags picked up some quality pieces. The first peice being OF Ken Taylor. Taylor is a 26 year old power hitting left hander with limited time in the big leagues. Last season combined in AA and AAA he hit 40 HR and drove in 98.  He won't hit for average, but loves pounding balls to the gap and over the fence.  This season in 27 games for Vista, he has 8 2B and 4 HR.  GM Josh Swain says he has had his eye on Taylor for awhile, and even acknowledged having conversations about him with GM Travis Hayes in the off season.  He plans to get AB's against RHP for a Jersey OF that has been less than spectacular.

Taylor

Also coming over in the trade is 19 year old MR Luis "Bugs" Cortez.  Cortez was found in Chile last season when scouts noticed a 6'7" kid pound the strike zone over and over.  Ticket to the BSA.  Cortez is a hard worker and was known by his HS coach as a true team leader.  Pitching in Chula Vista this year in 19 games, Cortez has a 1.66 ERA. 0.69 WHIP, only allowing 11 hits in 21+ innings.  Though he is young, he does have a nice upside.  He will report to Gainsville where he should move into the closers spot.  

Cortez

GM Josh Swain wants it to be noted that this trade is in no way "conceding," even though the Bags sit back almost 10 games in the division.  

Here's to Taylor bombing some into the Ocean and Cortez working his way through the system and one day being part of the lethal Jersey bullpen

GO D-BAGS

Jersey Shore - September 2012

Even though with the end of September we saw our D-Bags fall short of their first playoff spot, we did see another good month in September.  After a rocky start the D-Bags went on a middle of the month run and finished up with a 16-11 record for the month.  This marked their 4th straight winning month and in those months they played at a clip of .630.  If they would have played that well in April and May this team would have won 102 games.  Disappointing end to a magical run, but encouraging moving forward.

Players of the Month:

SP Jose Reyes: 3-2, 1.75 ERA, 1.18 WHIP, 30 K's.  The season will be marred with "what-if's" for Reyes.  After suffering an injury last season which kept him out until the middle of June he rejoined the rotation and was the staff's best pitcher.  After 3 sub-par starts at the end of August, Reyes re found the magic in September winning 3 of his 5 starts and lasting into the 7th inning 4 times out of 5 tries.  A little more run support and help from the bullpen and he could have been 5-0.  Regardless he is a big reason that Jersey came so close this year to their first playoff berth.

MR Ciro Roghi: 1-0, 1.08 ERA, 8.1 IP.  Though 8 innings in a month is a small sample size, 1 ER in relief for the month is why he has a role on this team. Roghi finished up a fabulous rookie year with 2nd straight POTM award.  He allowed 1 ER in his last 17.2 IP.  Look for this lefty to be a staple in the pen for years to come.

MR Alonso Jiminez: 0.00 ERA, 9 IP, 6 H, 0 BB, 7 K:  Where did this kid come from??  Jiminez was Jersey's 2010 3rd round draft pick out of Michigan, and just two years later he was an intricate piece of the D-Bags late season bullpen.  He started the year dominating AA ball, moved to AAA Tuscaloosa posting big numbers and earned a September call up.  He racked up a 5.5 VORP in just 9 outings and it's looking like he could add to Jersey's already lethal bullpen.

3B Parker Morrow: .326/.391/.484. 4 HR, 13 RBI, 16 R, 2 SB.  Morrow capped his best season as a D-Bag with his 2nd best month and 2nd POTM award of the 2012 season.  This month included 7 multi-hit games including 4 with at least 3 hits.  He also had his first multi-HR game of the season on the 4th against Regina.  Morrow also picked up his 1000th VBL6 hit this month.  He finished the season with 1037 hits and only turns 28 this upcoming January.

LF Mason Bonniface: .313/.451/.438.  1 HR, 10 RBI, 18 BB.  Yes, that's right his OBP was higher than his SLG in the month of Sept. Bonniface's bat regressed this year and he had his worst season since his rookie year as a pro, but clogged the basepaths all month long.  Became the 25th player in league history to draw at least 104 BB's in a season.  Really bounced back after the beginning of the season saw him moved down in the lineup and had people questioning his talent.

2B Fred Ross: .378/.489/.595.  8 RBI, 9 BB, 1K, 4 SB.  Sure this screams small sample size considering he only played in 12 games, but filled a much needed void.  After trading 2B Nunez at the trade deadline to make way for uber prospect Antonio Ruiz, Ross was the fill in if needed and PR.  Antionio Ruiz gets injured and thrusted Ross into the starting position where he couldn't have done much better.  He hit the cover off the ball, hitting in 11 of the 12 games he played in Sept, and scoring in 7 of the 12. 

Roster Changes, Questions and Answers:

As always in September we see different new faces, some make a difference and some do not.  Alonso Jiminez stepped up from AAA to dominate out of the pen.  The loss of Antonio Ruiz allowed Fred Ross to step off and hit the cover off the ball.  Alex Torrez suffered a season ending injury mid-month and Rob Goodship jumped in to make two spot starts against Greenville and pitched brilliantly.  The kind of pitching that this team's front office thinks he can do in the future.

As always when a season ends means roster changes.  The team as a whole has 4 players whose contracts are ending and another 8 players who will be arbitration eligible when the season is over.  It will raise some interesting questions the team must make, especially considering the amount of talent this club has waiting in AAA this season.  This will be talked more in depth in the first off season report.  This wraps up the last monthly report for the 2012 season.  Look for our season in review report which will be out next month.

GO D-BAGS

Jersey Shore - August 2012

AUGUST!  What's there to say, except the Bags kicked some ass!  The D-Bags had a VBL best 21-7 record for the month August, which is the franchise's first 20 win month in it's history.  They went from being a seller at the deadline to thick in the mix of the playoff picture in just a month.  This record was helped by good starting pitching and phenomenal job by the bullpen.  Jersey went 10-2 in 1-run games during the month of August, while the bullpen only allowed 15 ER all month long.  The Bags end August with a record of 74-61 and trail Pittsburgh by 2 in the division and Greenville by 2 games for the WC.  There are 26 games left in the regular season and 7 of them will be against Greenville.

Players of the Month:

SP Hector Hernandez: 4-1, 3.19 ERA, 1.18 WHIP.  In his first month as a D-Bag, Hernandez thrived.  He pitched 4 quality starts, winning 4 of his first 6 starts with his new ballclub.  The same amount of wins he had in 13 starts with Orlando while pitching with almost half of the ERA.  

MR Jamie "Mungo" Saenz: 1-1, 2 Saves, 1.66 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, 21.2 IP, 24K.  Mungo continued his spectacular season with a great August.  The bullpen really came through and Saenz was a big reason why.  Pitching in the setup role with Dog Pound, the two made the road to CL Morris as easy one stopping several rallies.  He even contributed by going 2+ innings 5 times during the month.  Jersey will need him to come up big down the stretch run with Lucas, Huerta and Roghi all battling injuries.

MR Jose "Dog Pound" Gomes: 4-0, 1 Save, 1.38 ERA, 1.08 WHIP.  For the 3rd month in a row Dog Pound receives a POTM award. He tied with Hernandez for the team lead in wins with 4, he allowed 1 ER in 14 appearances and lowered his season ERA to 1.98 on the season.  If Daniel Morris wasn't on the team he would be the closer no doubt, but with Morris, these two make one of the, if not the best 1-2 bullpen punch in baseball.

1B David Pena: .292/.341/.496  6HR 19 RBI. After winning a POTM award in June, Pena slumped in July and finished with only .202 BA and 9 RBI.  He bounced back in a big way in August leading the team in HR with 6, bringing his season total to a team leading 25.  He has also been tremendous in the field at 1B.  In 1060 chances he has yet to commit an error.

OF Ramon Taverez: .288/.351/.500 4 HR 21 RBI 17 R.  This shouldn't come as a surprise after hearing about him so much this month.  He earlier won the TL POTW award and didn't stop hitting after that.  Even after being moved from 1st to 4th to 5th in the lineup order his bat never cooled down.  He led the team in RBI for the month with 21 and 2nd on the team in runs for the month.  In Jersey's big win against Oklahoma on the 23rd he hit a go-ahead and eventually game winning 3-run homer in the 14th inning.  Finishing 4-7 with 4 RBI.

Roster Changes, Questions and Answers:

As we enter September the rosters are expanded from 25 to 40 men which will lead to some interesting roster changes.  There is no doubt a few arms will be called up.  Injuries have Carl Lucas out for the remainder of the season and German Huerta will miss the first 2-3 weeks.  In the first game of September Ciro Roghi felt soreness in his wrist and is listed as day-to-day, but an injury like this could linger for up to 2 weeks.  Look for names such as Gabriel Barrentez, Marv Williams and maybe Alonso Jimenez, the former 3rd round pick, to get a shot, as he has shot up from AA and looked amazing. 

Antonio Ruiz still has 11 days left on the DL with his wrist injury so look for Fred Ross to get more time at 2nd, and there has been rumors that Mike "Coffin" Bryant could possibly get a call up, but he is currently not even on the 40 man roster.  Stay tuned.  Other batters we could and will probably see up are OF Michael Lee, would bring great defense and speed to the bench.  We might even get to see the VBL debut of Derrick Wright who is hitting the cover off the ball in AAA.  He came over in the William Hinson trade this past winter.  He is on pace to shatter the ITL record for RBI which is currently 145.  Wright sits at 141.

 

The big question remains can this team stay hot?  I don't think anyone expects them to stay as hot as they have been, but they do have 3 winning months in a row.  The pitching for once this month was phenomenal.  In 28 games, the staff gave up 4 runs or less 23 times, this is how you win ballgames.  Can this team complete the ridiculous comeback and make the playoffs for the first time?  Being 2 games out of the WC leading Greenville with 7 games left against them will lead to an exciting August.  Come out the ballpark and root on your D-Bags!

GO D-BAGS