Noticeably absent from the current year's Jersey Shore team is the smiling face of 2 time MVP Mike Bryant who retired this past off-season. Bryant spent his entire career with Jersey Shore after becoming their 1st amateur draft pick at 21st overall in the 2010 season. The slugger played in the World Series 3 times, was only the 2nd player in BSA history to win the Triple Crown and finishes his career in the Top 10 of most offensive categories. On Friday, May 26th when the D-Bags take on rival Greenville, the number 42 will be hoisted into the Jersey Shore ring of honor.
Bryant grew up in Beach Haven West, New Jersey, just 50 miles where the future franchise of the Jersey Shore D-Bags would play their home games. A natural athlete, Bryant would excel in baseball and football as well as academics in High School. A heavily sought after recruit, Bryant would decide to go cross country for college and attend the prestigious Stanford University. Bryant would drop football to put his full attention on baseball and it would show. He would start from Day 1 and man 2nd base for all 4 seasons playing for the Cardinal. In 187 college games, Bryant would slash .328/.389/.613 while hitting 53 HR, knocking in 154 runs and scoring 153 times.
Twenty teams would pass on Bryant before Jersey Shore would select him with 21st overall pick. Bryant would sign right away and spend 3 years between AA Gainsville and AAA Tuscaloosa before making his major league debut in June 2013. He would take over at 2B and not look back for the next 13 seasons. During those 13 seasons, he would have a 10 year streak of 35+ home runs and 100+ RBI. He would win the CL MVP in 2016 and 2017, and have only the 2nd Triple Crown season in BSA history in 2016 where he would hit .347 with 40 HR and 158 RBI. He would lead Jersey Shore to their 1st playoff appearance and 1st World Series appearance in 2015 where the D-Bags would fall in 7 games to Hendersonville.
Bryant's number will be the 1st number to be retired by the Jersey Shore franchise. The first 20,000 fans to the game will receive a commemorative pin and Mike Bryant bobble-head. Several former D-Bags will be in attendance and will be signing autographs before and after the game.
GO D-BAGS
Thursday, May 11, 2017
Thursday, January 12, 2017
Miguel Serna; Jersey Shore's Next Big Thing
With the bandbox that is the Ballpark at the Shore, hitters will most always take center stage on the D-Bags roster. With Mikey Bryant on his last leg and Dave Dodd turning 33 this year we look towards a 26 year old and former 1st round pick who burst onto the national scene last season.
Background
The Florida born, Canadian educated Serna as the 21st overall pick out of Madawaska Valley High School In Barry's Bay, Ontario in the 2020 1st year player draft. A 2-year starter in HS, he had his best season as a Junior where he hit .394/.518/.651 with 6 HR and 21 RBI. Serna opted to sign for $3.85M, well above slot, to skip college and join the D-Bags organization. Serna would report to A ball in Manhattan where he would struggle mightily all year long. In 66 games his slash line looked like .152/.184/.187 with 102 strike outs and only 35 hits in 230 AB. Even with his struggles, he was still named the 11th best prospect in baseball by the OSA going into the 2021 season.
Improvement
Serna's 2021 season was much improved but the 20 year old still showed glaring holes in his game. While he would raise his triple slash to .268/.334/.389, he would strike out 207 times in 634 AB, which would be 2nd in league history for K's in a season trailing the leader by a single K. Serna would only hit 7 HR all season, but what encouraged scouts were the 42 doubles he hit. Scouts hoped that those doubles would some day turn to HR, so they stayed optimistic. Serna would return to Manhatten as a 21 year old for 2022 season. Playing in 152 games, he would improve again, this time bringing his average up to .300 and his slugging up to .435. He would still strikeout 182 times but take more walks, hit more homers as he was ranked the 16th best prospect in baseball. After only 16 games in 2023, Serna would suffer a broken kneecap at a collision at homeplate that would cost him the entire of the season.
Breakout
2024 would be the year for Serna that he finally put things together. He would go to Manhattan for the 4th time, but only stay for 16 games before being called up to AA Gainesville. Miguel would only spend just over a month in his home state as he crushed AA pitching to the tune of .384/.452/.500 with 2 HR and 17 RBI in 28 games. He would be bumped up to AAA Tuscaloosa where his bat would continue to turn heads. It was here where Serna finally found his power stroke. In 127 games for the Trout Slayers he would smash a career high of 19 HR and 73 RBI on his way to 2.6 WAR. He would have probably gotten a cup of coffee in the bigs but was blocked by Gerardo Escobedo who was on his way to a 3.0 WAR season for Jersey.
Escobedo was still the D-Bags in 2025 and was the Opening Day starter at 3B. Serna would spend the first 45 games in AAA where he hit .319 to add to his 9 HR and 40 RBI. A fractured foot suffered by Escobedo meant that Serna would finally get his shot in the bigs. He would struggle as rookie, but would go on to start 96 games at the hot corner where he would amass 0.5 WAR. Serna would even start all 7 games for Jersey Shore in the playoffs where they eventually swept out by rival Greenville in the Divisional Round of the CL Playoffs.
Stardom
With Escobedo leaving as a free agent, Serna was the heir apparent to the 3B and was only 1 of 2 players who played there during Spring Training. After a slow start to the season, Miguel would turn it in the dog days of summer. He would eventually start 158 games for the D-Bags and have a monster season offensively. His 38 home runs would only trail the 44 of CL MVP Dave Dodd meanwhile finished 3rd on the team in RBI with 109 and WAR with 4.2 as well leading the team in SB with 27. Jersey Shore would win the division in a playoff game and eventually lose the World Series in 7 games to the Irvine Green Gang. Despite missing the All-Star game due to his breakout coming later in the season, Serna was award with the 2026 Platinum Stick for 3B in the CL.
Serna hasn't slowed in 2027 as he is the offensively leader on May 10th and on pace to hit 59 HR, drive in 135 runs and 10.4 WAR. At 26 years old, we are probably looking at the future star and building block of this Jersey franchise. Before the season Jersey locked up Serna to a 9 year deal so he isn't going anywhere soon so get use to seeing #18 rounding the basepaths for the D-Bags.
GO D-BAGS
Friday, November 11, 2016
Jersey Shore Ousts Pocatello and Springfield to Reach 4th World Series
The ride here has been anything except boring for the boys of the Jersey Shore D-Bags. After leading the CL East for most of the season, it took winning 5 of their last 7 games, including a sweep of Greenville just to reach a 1 game playoff for the 84's. Late home runs by Boyd and Doyle lifted the Bags to their 1st division title in 6 years and a chance to host Pocatello, a team in the playoffs for the 1st time in 15 years, in the division round.
Jersey Shore quickly found themselves down 3-1 in the series with Boccabellas facing elimination on the road. But the team wouldn't let that happen. An 8-2 win fueled by 12 hits and a gritty 6 inning outing by Sergio Martinez on 3-day's rest sent the D-Bags back home, where they had to win both games, including beating the reigning 3-time Cy Young award winner Kevin Bush. Cristobal Santos would match Bush for 7 innings before handing things off the bullpen and a walk-off RBI double from Pat Zimmerman off of All-Star closer Adrian Martinez would send us to Game 7. Call it a high, momentum or just plain confidence but Jersey Shore would dominate Game 7, led by Roland Martin's 7 shutout innings and emerging star catcher Luis Rios with 3 hits out of the 9 hole as well seldom used 4th outfielder Wilson Martinez who doubled twice and knocked in 2 runs. A final score of 8 to nothing couldn't even be celebrated as the D-Bags loaded up and flew to Springfield that same night to face the Stars in Game 1 of the CLCS the very next day.
The Stars finished with the best record in the CL as well as best record in team history at 111-51. It was the Springfield's franchise 1st playoff appearance since 2011 when they were known as the Kansas City Cougars. That 2011 team was led by some names you might have heard of. They include the great Jean-Thomas Francoeur, John Garrett and John Crowe. The 2026 Stars might not have the HOF names yet, but they are loaded with talent. Trotting out the most productive outfield the BSA has ever seen in Derek Davidson, Calvin Bennett and Felipe Guerrero. Trotting out other bats that include Elliot Newell and Juan Rodriguez, the Stars led the BSA in runs with 1006. They became just the 2nd CL team in history to cross the 1000 run threshold, as the only other team to do so were the 2022 Greenville 84's. BTW....the 2022 Springfield Stars? A CL record of just 555 runs scored. What a difference 5 seasons can make.
The Stars strolled into the postseason with the #1 seed and looked part in beating the powerhouse Greenville team by scoring 28 runs in 5 games and finishing off the 84's with a shutout in a Game 5, 3-0 win on the road. They would get 3 days off to rest before Jersey Shore would come to town for the CLCS. Maybe the off days got them out of a rhythm or a funk, but the offense never came for the Stars. Jersey would take the first two games of the series in Springfield. Game 1 a close 4-3 contest, as the D-Bag bats put up 4 runs on Kyu-Pyeong Pak with the go ahead runs coming in the 6th inning off of the bat of Pat Zimmerman by way of a 2-run HR. Game 2 saw a slugfest in the 1st 3 innings, as Jersey came out in the 4th inning up 6-5. Jesse Green would pitch out of trouble multiple times in the next 3 innings before handing things off to the bullpen who tossed 3 nearly perfect innings leading to a 7-5 Jersey win to take a firm grip on the series, which was heading to Jersey Shore for the next 3 games.
Game 3 saw an early rain delay knock both starters out before the 6th inning while the Stars took advantage of 2 Jersey errors for 3 unearned runs. The score of 4-3 after 4 innings wouldn't change as both bullpens were dynamite. The bullpens combined for to throw 9 innings, giving up 5 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB and 6 strikeouts. Springfield would avoid going down 3-0 and breathed new life going into Game 4. The Stars would send Pak back to the mound and would face Roland Martin, the Jersey ace for the 1st time in the series. Pak would go on to toss a gem, allowing just 2 singles in 7 shutout innings and would get help with a 3 run 3rd inning fueled by a Derek Davidson 2-run HR as the Stars would go onto win the game 4-2 and even the series at 2 games apiece. The pressure would move to Game 5 with the winner getting a clear cut 3-2 advantage. We would see Sergio Martinez take on Long Haul Lopez. The Bags would get the scoring started right away with home runs by Boyd and Doyle in the 1st innings as well as a solo HR by Serna in the 4th. The Stars would cut into the 4-0 in the 7th with back to back homers from Davidson and Guerrero, but give them right back in the bottom half with a 2-RBI double from Doyle. Davidson would again homer in the 8th, but the Stars just started scoring too late and the boys from Jersey would win the contest 7-4 and go back to Springfield with the series lead.
With the series on the line, Springfield would go to Game 5 hero of the CLDS Hyo-Chin Ch'oe to try and send this series to a deciding Game 7. Cristobal Santos would take the mound on 3 days rest for Jersey. It was smooth sailing for both pitchers through 2 innings until Jersey would appease the hometown crowd with 4, third inning runs coming off the bats of Dodd and Doyle. The Bags would add 2 more runs in the 4th to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Ch'oe would be knocked out in the 5th inning, but that didn't stop the D-Bags from adding on runs. After 6 innings, the lead was 10-2 and would stay like that. Springfield would load the bases with no outs in the 7th, but would fail to score. With the Irvine-Baffin Island series still going on, Jersey Shore would finally get to celebrate the victory with cases of champagne in their own clubhouse taking their 1st CL Pennant since the 2022 team did.
Now comes Irvine. The wire-to-wire best team in the BSA all season long. The team with the best staff in the league. Their 477 runs given up rank 2nd all time, only behind the epic staff of the 2015 Hendersonville Hitmen. Their ace Masutaro with a historic 13.8 WAR season which shattered Scott Hill's previous record. They led the NL in OBP and finished 3rd in runs scored. The BSA will have a new champion this year. Either way, I think we are in for a great series. Congrats Larry and good luck!
GO D-BAGS
Jersey Shore quickly found themselves down 3-1 in the series with Boccabellas facing elimination on the road. But the team wouldn't let that happen. An 8-2 win fueled by 12 hits and a gritty 6 inning outing by Sergio Martinez on 3-day's rest sent the D-Bags back home, where they had to win both games, including beating the reigning 3-time Cy Young award winner Kevin Bush. Cristobal Santos would match Bush for 7 innings before handing things off the bullpen and a walk-off RBI double from Pat Zimmerman off of All-Star closer Adrian Martinez would send us to Game 7. Call it a high, momentum or just plain confidence but Jersey Shore would dominate Game 7, led by Roland Martin's 7 shutout innings and emerging star catcher Luis Rios with 3 hits out of the 9 hole as well seldom used 4th outfielder Wilson Martinez who doubled twice and knocked in 2 runs. A final score of 8 to nothing couldn't even be celebrated as the D-Bags loaded up and flew to Springfield that same night to face the Stars in Game 1 of the CLCS the very next day.
The Stars finished with the best record in the CL as well as best record in team history at 111-51. It was the Springfield's franchise 1st playoff appearance since 2011 when they were known as the Kansas City Cougars. That 2011 team was led by some names you might have heard of. They include the great Jean-Thomas Francoeur, John Garrett and John Crowe. The 2026 Stars might not have the HOF names yet, but they are loaded with talent. Trotting out the most productive outfield the BSA has ever seen in Derek Davidson, Calvin Bennett and Felipe Guerrero. Trotting out other bats that include Elliot Newell and Juan Rodriguez, the Stars led the BSA in runs with 1006. They became just the 2nd CL team in history to cross the 1000 run threshold, as the only other team to do so were the 2022 Greenville 84's. BTW....the 2022 Springfield Stars? A CL record of just 555 runs scored. What a difference 5 seasons can make.
The Stars strolled into the postseason with the #1 seed and looked part in beating the powerhouse Greenville team by scoring 28 runs in 5 games and finishing off the 84's with a shutout in a Game 5, 3-0 win on the road. They would get 3 days off to rest before Jersey Shore would come to town for the CLCS. Maybe the off days got them out of a rhythm or a funk, but the offense never came for the Stars. Jersey would take the first two games of the series in Springfield. Game 1 a close 4-3 contest, as the D-Bag bats put up 4 runs on Kyu-Pyeong Pak with the go ahead runs coming in the 6th inning off of the bat of Pat Zimmerman by way of a 2-run HR. Game 2 saw a slugfest in the 1st 3 innings, as Jersey came out in the 4th inning up 6-5. Jesse Green would pitch out of trouble multiple times in the next 3 innings before handing things off to the bullpen who tossed 3 nearly perfect innings leading to a 7-5 Jersey win to take a firm grip on the series, which was heading to Jersey Shore for the next 3 games.
Game 3 saw an early rain delay knock both starters out before the 6th inning while the Stars took advantage of 2 Jersey errors for 3 unearned runs. The score of 4-3 after 4 innings wouldn't change as both bullpens were dynamite. The bullpens combined for to throw 9 innings, giving up 5 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB and 6 strikeouts. Springfield would avoid going down 3-0 and breathed new life going into Game 4. The Stars would send Pak back to the mound and would face Roland Martin, the Jersey ace for the 1st time in the series. Pak would go on to toss a gem, allowing just 2 singles in 7 shutout innings and would get help with a 3 run 3rd inning fueled by a Derek Davidson 2-run HR as the Stars would go onto win the game 4-2 and even the series at 2 games apiece. The pressure would move to Game 5 with the winner getting a clear cut 3-2 advantage. We would see Sergio Martinez take on Long Haul Lopez. The Bags would get the scoring started right away with home runs by Boyd and Doyle in the 1st innings as well as a solo HR by Serna in the 4th. The Stars would cut into the 4-0 in the 7th with back to back homers from Davidson and Guerrero, but give them right back in the bottom half with a 2-RBI double from Doyle. Davidson would again homer in the 8th, but the Stars just started scoring too late and the boys from Jersey would win the contest 7-4 and go back to Springfield with the series lead.
With the series on the line, Springfield would go to Game 5 hero of the CLDS Hyo-Chin Ch'oe to try and send this series to a deciding Game 7. Cristobal Santos would take the mound on 3 days rest for Jersey. It was smooth sailing for both pitchers through 2 innings until Jersey would appease the hometown crowd with 4, third inning runs coming off the bats of Dodd and Doyle. The Bags would add 2 more runs in the 4th to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Ch'oe would be knocked out in the 5th inning, but that didn't stop the D-Bags from adding on runs. After 6 innings, the lead was 10-2 and would stay like that. Springfield would load the bases with no outs in the 7th, but would fail to score. With the Irvine-Baffin Island series still going on, Jersey Shore would finally get to celebrate the victory with cases of champagne in their own clubhouse taking their 1st CL Pennant since the 2022 team did.
Now comes Irvine. The wire-to-wire best team in the BSA all season long. The team with the best staff in the league. Their 477 runs given up rank 2nd all time, only behind the epic staff of the 2015 Hendersonville Hitmen. Their ace Masutaro with a historic 13.8 WAR season which shattered Scott Hill's previous record. They led the NL in OBP and finished 3rd in runs scored. The BSA will have a new champion this year. Either way, I think we are in for a great series. Congrats Larry and good luck!
GO D-BAGS
Jersey Shore Ousts Pocatello and Springfield to Reach 4th World Series
The ride here has been anything except boring for the boys of the Jersey Shore D-Bags. After leading the CL East for most of the season, it took winning 5 of their last 7 games, including a sweep of Greenville just to reach a 1 game playoff for the 84's. Late home runs by Boyd and Doyle lifted the Bags to their 1st division title in 6 years and a chance to host Pocatello, a team in the playoffs for the 1st time in 15 years, in the division round.
Jersey Shore quickly found themselves down 3-1 in the series with Boccabellas facing elimination on the road. But the team wouldn't let that happen. An 8-2 win fueled by 12 hits and a gritty 6 inning outing by Sergio Martinez on 3-day's rest sent the D-Bags back home, where they had to win both games, including beating the reigning 3-time Cy Young award winner Kevin Bush. Cristobal Santos would match Bush for 7 innings before handing things off the bullpen and a walk-off RBI double from Pat Zimmerman off of All-Star closer Adrian Martinez would send us to Game 7. Call it a high, momentum or just plain confidence but Jersey Shore would dominate Game 7, led by Roland Martin's 7 shutout innings and emerging star catcher Luis Rios with 3 hits out of the 9 hole as well seldom used 4th outfielder Wilson Martinez who doubled twice and knocked in 2 runs. A final score of 8 to nothing couldn't even be celebrated as the D-Bags loaded up and flew to Springfield that same night to face the Stars in Game 1 of the CLCS the very next day.
The Stars finished with the best record in the CL as well as best record in team history at 111-51. It was the Springfield's franchise 1st playoff appearance since 2011 when they were known as the Kansas City Cougars. That 2011 team was led by some names you might have heard of. They include the great Jean-Thomas Francoeur, John Garrett and John Crowe. The 2026 Stars might not have the HOF names yet, but they are loaded with talent. Trotting out the most productive outfield the BSA has ever seen in Derek Davidson, Calvin Bennett and Felipe Guerrero. Trotting out other bats that include Elliot Newell and Juan Rodriguez, the Stars led the BSA in runs with 1006. They became just the 2nd CL team in history to cross the 1000 run threshold, as the only other team to do so were the 2022 Greenville 84's. BTW....the 2022 Springfield Stars? A CL record of just 555 runs scored. What a difference 5 seasons can make.
The Stars strolled into the postseason with the #1 seed and looked part in beating the powerhouse Greenville team by scoring 28 runs in 5 games and finishing off the 84's with a shutout in a Game 5, 3-0 win on the road. They would get 3 days off to rest before Jersey Shore would come to town for the CLCS. Maybe the off days got them out of a rhythm or a funk, but the offense never came for the Stars. Jersey would take the first two games of the series in Springfield. Game 1 a close 4-3 contest, as the D-Bag bats put up 4 runs on Kyu-Pyeong Pak with the go ahead runs coming in the 6th inning off of the bat of Pat Zimmerman by way of a 2-run HR. Game 2 saw a slugfest in the 1st 3 innings, as Jersey came out in the 4th inning up 6-5. Jesse Green would pitch out of trouble multiple times in the next 3 innings before handing things off to the bullpen who tossed 3 nearly perfect innings leading to a 7-5 Jersey win to take a firm grip on the series, which was heading to Jersey Shore for the next 3 games.
Game 3 saw an early rain delay knock both starters out before the 6th inning while the Stars took advantage of 2 Jersey errors for 3 unearned runs. The score of 4-3 after 4 innings wouldn't change as both bullpens were dynamite. The bullpens combined for to throw 9 innings, giving up 5 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB and 6 strikeouts. Springfield would avoid going down 3-0 and breathed new life going into Game 4. The Stars would send Pak back to the mound and would face Roland Martin, the Jersey ace for the 1st time in the series. Pak would go on to toss a gem, allowing just 2 singles in 7 shutout innings and would get help with a 3 run 3rd inning fueled by a Derek Davidson 2-run HR as the Stars would go onto win the game 4-2 and even the series at 2 games apiece. The pressure would move to Game 5 with the winner getting a clear cut 3-2 advantage. We would see Sergio Martinez take on Long Haul Lopez. The Bags would get the scoring started right away with home runs by Boyd and Doyle in the 1st innings as well as a solo HR by Serna in the 4th. The Stars would cut into the 4-0 in the 7th with back to back homers from Davidson and Guerrero, but give them right back in the bottom half with a 2-RBI double from Doyle. Davidson would again homer in the 8th, but the Stars just started scoring too late and the boys from Jersey would win the contest 7-4 and go back to Springfield with the series lead.
With the series on the line, Springfield would go to Game 5 hero of the CLDS Hyo-Chin Ch'oe to try and send this series to a deciding Game 7. Cristobal Santos would take the mound on 3 days rest for Jersey. It was smooth sailing for both pitchers through 2 innings until Jersey would appease the hometown crowd with 4, third inning runs coming off the bats of Dodd and Doyle. The Bags would add 2 more runs in the 4th to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Ch'oe would be knocked out in the 5th inning, but that didn't stop the D-Bags from adding on runs. After 6 innings, the lead was 10-2 and would stay like that. Springfield would load the bases with no outs in the 7th, but would fail to score. With the Irvine-Baffin Island series still going on, Jersey Shore would finally get to celebrate the victory with cases of champagne in their own clubhouse taking their 1st CL Pennant since the 2022 team did.
Now comes Irvine. The wire-to-wire best team in the BSA all season long. The team with the best staff in the league. Their 477 runs given up rank 2nd all time, only behind the epic staff of the 2015 Hendersonville Hitmen. Their ace Masutaro with a historic 13.8 WAR season which shattered Scott Hill's previous record. They led the NL in OBP and finished 3rd in runs scored. The BSA will have a new champion this year. Either way, I think we are in for a great series. Congrats Larry and good luck!
GO D-BAGS
Jersey Shore quickly found themselves down 3-1 in the series with Boccabellas facing elimination on the road. But the team wouldn't let that happen. An 8-2 win fueled by 12 hits and a gritty 6 inning outing by Sergio Martinez on 3-day's rest sent the D-Bags back home, where they had to win both games, including beating the reigning 3-time Cy Young award winner Kevin Bush. Cristobal Santos would match Bush for 7 innings before handing things off the bullpen and a walk-off RBI double from Pat Zimmerman off of All-Star closer Adrian Martinez would send us to Game 7. Call it a high, momentum or just plain confidence but Jersey Shore would dominate Game 7, led by Roland Martin's 7 shutout innings and emerging star catcher Luis Rios with 3 hits out of the 9 hole as well seldom used 4th outfielder Wilson Martinez who doubled twice and knocked in 2 runs. A final score of 8 to nothing couldn't even be celebrated as the D-Bags loaded up and flew to Springfield that same night to face the Stars in Game 1 of the CLCS the very next day.
The Stars finished with the best record in the CL as well as best record in team history at 111-51. It was the Springfield's franchise 1st playoff appearance since 2011 when they were known as the Kansas City Cougars. That 2011 team was led by some names you might have heard of. They include the great Jean-Thomas Francoeur, John Garrett and John Crowe. The 2026 Stars might not have the HOF names yet, but they are loaded with talent. Trotting out the most productive outfield the BSA has ever seen in Derek Davidson, Calvin Bennett and Felipe Guerrero. Trotting out other bats that include Elliot Newell and Juan Rodriguez, the Stars led the BSA in runs with 1006. They became just the 2nd CL team in history to cross the 1000 run threshold, as the only other team to do so were the 2022 Greenville 84's. BTW....the 2022 Springfield Stars? A CL record of just 555 runs scored. What a difference 5 seasons can make.
The Stars strolled into the postseason with the #1 seed and looked part in beating the powerhouse Greenville team by scoring 28 runs in 5 games and finishing off the 84's with a shutout in a Game 5, 3-0 win on the road. They would get 3 days off to rest before Jersey Shore would come to town for the CLCS. Maybe the off days got them out of a rhythm or a funk, but the offense never came for the Stars. Jersey would take the first two games of the series in Springfield. Game 1 a close 4-3 contest, as the D-Bag bats put up 4 runs on Kyu-Pyeong Pak with the go ahead runs coming in the 6th inning off of the bat of Pat Zimmerman by way of a 2-run HR. Game 2 saw a slugfest in the 1st 3 innings, as Jersey came out in the 4th inning up 6-5. Jesse Green would pitch out of trouble multiple times in the next 3 innings before handing things off to the bullpen who tossed 3 nearly perfect innings leading to a 7-5 Jersey win to take a firm grip on the series, which was heading to Jersey Shore for the next 3 games.
Game 3 saw an early rain delay knock both starters out before the 6th inning while the Stars took advantage of 2 Jersey errors for 3 unearned runs. The score of 4-3 after 4 innings wouldn't change as both bullpens were dynamite. The bullpens combined for to throw 9 innings, giving up 5 hits, 0 runs, 1 BB and 6 strikeouts. Springfield would avoid going down 3-0 and breathed new life going into Game 4. The Stars would send Pak back to the mound and would face Roland Martin, the Jersey ace for the 1st time in the series. Pak would go on to toss a gem, allowing just 2 singles in 7 shutout innings and would get help with a 3 run 3rd inning fueled by a Derek Davidson 2-run HR as the Stars would go onto win the game 4-2 and even the series at 2 games apiece. The pressure would move to Game 5 with the winner getting a clear cut 3-2 advantage. We would see Sergio Martinez take on Long Haul Lopez. The Bags would get the scoring started right away with home runs by Boyd and Doyle in the 1st innings as well as a solo HR by Serna in the 4th. The Stars would cut into the 4-0 in the 7th with back to back homers from Davidson and Guerrero, but give them right back in the bottom half with a 2-RBI double from Doyle. Davidson would again homer in the 8th, but the Stars just started scoring too late and the boys from Jersey would win the contest 7-4 and go back to Springfield with the series lead.
With the series on the line, Springfield would go to Game 5 hero of the CLDS Hyo-Chin Ch'oe to try and send this series to a deciding Game 7. Cristobal Santos would take the mound on 3 days rest for Jersey. It was smooth sailing for both pitchers through 2 innings until Jersey would appease the hometown crowd with 4, third inning runs coming off the bats of Dodd and Doyle. The Bags would add 2 more runs in the 4th to take a commanding 6-0 lead. Ch'oe would be knocked out in the 5th inning, but that didn't stop the D-Bags from adding on runs. After 6 innings, the lead was 10-2 and would stay like that. Springfield would load the bases with no outs in the 7th, but would fail to score. With the Irvine-Baffin Island series still going on, Jersey Shore would finally get to celebrate the victory with cases of champagne in their own clubhouse taking their 1st CL Pennant since the 2022 team did.
Now comes Irvine. The wire-to-wire best team in the BSA all season long. The team with the best staff in the league. Their 477 runs given up rank 2nd all time, only behind the epic staff of the 2015 Hendersonville Hitmen. Their ace Masutaro with a historic 13.8 WAR season which shattered Scott Hill's previous record. They led the NL in OBP and finished 3rd in runs scored. The BSA will have a new champion this year. Either way, I think we are in for a great series. Congrats Larry and good luck!
GO D-BAGS
Saturday, November 5, 2016
Jersey Clinches Playoff Spot Despite Decimated Starting Rotation
Jose Ramos, Roland Martin, Ramon Ruiz, Sergio Martinez and Stephen Puckett. The forceful rotation that was set to lead the Jersey Shore D-Bags to the playoffs and contend for their first BSA title. That's what many of fans and management alike saw heading into Spring Training for the 2026 BSA season. Fast forward to today, just 7 days left in the regular season and the D-Bags have clinched a playoff spot, but the starting rotation wasn't how they got there.
The injuries started on April 27th, when 5th starter and former Vista Panther, Cristobal Santos would leave a home game in the 2nd inning against Chicago with immense pain his shoulder. Jersey trainers were hoping it was a sprain, but news quickly came that he had a partially torn labrum which would require surgery and keep Santos out of action up to 4 months. To the DL goes Santos.
The D-Bags would promote super prospect Stephen Puckett to take his place and hopefully cement his place in the rotation for years to come. Everything was going smoothly especially with Jersey Shore up in 1st place in the CL East until June 6th when Puckett left a contest against the Madison Bombers with discomfort in his elbow. A worst case scenario was soon found out as Puckett would need surgery to remove bone spur from the elbow on his pitching arm. Best case scenario following surgery was a 4-5 month time frame, which would put Puckett out for the rest of the season.
Before the D-Bags had time to re-group, just 4 days later, 15 game winner from 2025 Ramon Ruiz would be pulled after 2 innings against Chicago and not return. Similar results would come back and Ruiz would require surgery to remove bone chips from his pitching elbow and would miss the rest of the season and could possibly push into Spring Training. What now?
With AAA also having a few injuries and the talent level barren, the D-Bags looked outside the organization and quickly sparked up a trade with the Vista Panthers. Jersey would bring in veteran starting pitchers Jesse Green and Jose Zamora looking to patch the rotation. To Vista went promising former 1st round pitching prospect Sloan Sanders, who at the time was dominating single-A pitching. Though neither were world beaters, Green and Zamora slotted into the 4th and 5th rotation slots.
With a strong bullpen and very strong offense, the D-Bags would trudge on through the summer months with the CL East lead in hand. On August 17th, Santos was sent to AAA for rehab and was recalled to the big club on September 7th. He was slotted back into the rotation and Zamora would head to the bullpen, though this wouldn't last long.
Just 10 days later staff ace and one of the team captains, 3 time 20 game winner Jose Ramos would leave a game with the Kings in the 2nd inning. Jersey brass feared the worst and soon received news that Ramos would be on the shelf for 3 months with bad elbow inflammation, effective ending his season. Since then the D-Bags have gone 3-7, coughing up the division lead.
With a week to play, the D-Bags who have clinched a playoff spot, trail their arch rival Greenville 84er's by 2 games and eye the playoffs down their top 2 starters and their ace young gun who they had such high hopes for. If the season ended today Jersey would host division rival St. Louis in the best of 3 Wild Card round with a win pitting them against the best team and a similiar built team in the Springfield Stars. For the D-Bags to advance deep into the playoffs, they must have Roland Martin and Sergio Martinez step up and lead this staff as winning slugfests in the playoffs are not how you win ballgames.
Can the D-Bags do it? Of course. Is the road a tough and very uncertain one? Very much so.
GO D-BAGS
The injuries started on April 27th, when 5th starter and former Vista Panther, Cristobal Santos would leave a home game in the 2nd inning against Chicago with immense pain his shoulder. Jersey trainers were hoping it was a sprain, but news quickly came that he had a partially torn labrum which would require surgery and keep Santos out of action up to 4 months. To the DL goes Santos.
The D-Bags would promote super prospect Stephen Puckett to take his place and hopefully cement his place in the rotation for years to come. Everything was going smoothly especially with Jersey Shore up in 1st place in the CL East until June 6th when Puckett left a contest against the Madison Bombers with discomfort in his elbow. A worst case scenario was soon found out as Puckett would need surgery to remove bone spur from the elbow on his pitching arm. Best case scenario following surgery was a 4-5 month time frame, which would put Puckett out for the rest of the season.
Before the D-Bags had time to re-group, just 4 days later, 15 game winner from 2025 Ramon Ruiz would be pulled after 2 innings against Chicago and not return. Similar results would come back and Ruiz would require surgery to remove bone chips from his pitching elbow and would miss the rest of the season and could possibly push into Spring Training. What now?
With AAA also having a few injuries and the talent level barren, the D-Bags looked outside the organization and quickly sparked up a trade with the Vista Panthers. Jersey would bring in veteran starting pitchers Jesse Green and Jose Zamora looking to patch the rotation. To Vista went promising former 1st round pitching prospect Sloan Sanders, who at the time was dominating single-A pitching. Though neither were world beaters, Green and Zamora slotted into the 4th and 5th rotation slots.
With a strong bullpen and very strong offense, the D-Bags would trudge on through the summer months with the CL East lead in hand. On August 17th, Santos was sent to AAA for rehab and was recalled to the big club on September 7th. He was slotted back into the rotation and Zamora would head to the bullpen, though this wouldn't last long.
Just 10 days later staff ace and one of the team captains, 3 time 20 game winner Jose Ramos would leave a game with the Kings in the 2nd inning. Jersey brass feared the worst and soon received news that Ramos would be on the shelf for 3 months with bad elbow inflammation, effective ending his season. Since then the D-Bags have gone 3-7, coughing up the division lead.
With a week to play, the D-Bags who have clinched a playoff spot, trail their arch rival Greenville 84er's by 2 games and eye the playoffs down their top 2 starters and their ace young gun who they had such high hopes for. If the season ended today Jersey would host division rival St. Louis in the best of 3 Wild Card round with a win pitting them against the best team and a similiar built team in the Springfield Stars. For the D-Bags to advance deep into the playoffs, they must have Roland Martin and Sergio Martinez step up and lead this staff as winning slugfests in the playoffs are not how you win ballgames.
Can the D-Bags do it? Of course. Is the road a tough and very uncertain one? Very much so.
GO D-BAGS
Wednesday, September 14, 2016
Trio For the Ages
You have to go back almost a decade to the year 2017 to find a lineup that featured Mike Bryant, Matt Doyle and Dave Dodd. That Jersey Shore team would win a CL record of 119 games that still stands today. In a huge upset, the Austin River Sharks would bounce them in 7 games in the 1st round of the playoffs and immediately after the season ended GM Josh Swain shipped out slugger Matt Doyle to Toronto to try and stabilize the rotation. Doyle was coming off of a 32 HR, 124 RBI season. He hit clean up behind league MVP and Triple Crown winner Mike Bryant and ahead of 23 year old up and coming sophmore sensation Dave Dad. That year the three of them combined for 99 2B, 109 HR, and 375 RBI. Doyle would go on to play the next 7 season in Toronto and 1 season in LA, winning two titles along the way.
After letting 1B Tadahisa Kisuki walk to free agency, Jersey Shore was in need of a 1B, and they went looking Doyle's way. At 36 years of age, he is not the same player he once was, but still managed to hit 17 homers last year with the Bruins. At about the same time, Jersey Shore decided to bring back Mike Bryant seemingly for 1 more year after after having by far the worst season of his career at age 37. With Dave Dodd in the 2nd year of his 7-year, $175M dollar contract, the trio would be re-united for one last season.
Wearing a D-Bag uniform, the three have combined for 995 home runs and sit 1st, 2nd and 4th in D-Bags history. Doyle would need 20 home runs to pass Kisuki and take over 3rd on the list. What's even more interesting is the trio sits 3rd, 4th and 5th on the all time HR list, which historically speaking is something we have never seen before. 1282 career HR out of just the 3 of them.
We are into May and they haven't been in the same lineup yet. An early season fractured finger from Doyle kept him out of the lineup for the first couple weeks. When he was able to come back, Bryant was stuck on the shelf with a hamstring strain. They were finally all healthy for 1 game when Dodd missed a week with neck spasms. Now they are all healthy again, Manager Carlos Uribe has said he would like to see them all starting for at least a game.
While Dodd is still in his prime but starting to age at 32, this is almost the end of an era for Jersey Shore. Bryant has been a staple in the lineup for 12+ years. Doyle a top prospect and a star with a late homecoming. The future pieces are already in Jersey, but for fans this year represents one last chance for the old crew to make a run. They are still chasing that elusive 1st title. While Bryant and Doyle probably won't have nearly the impact they once had, it should be a fun summer for fans and a last chance to see these stars play together.
GO D-BAGS
Tuesday, May 24, 2016
How Much are Titles Worth? Breaking Down the German Rivas Trade.
On June 5th, 2015 one of the biggest trades in BSA history took place. German "Golden" Rivas, the face of the Orlando franchise, was sent to the Toronto Titans for a staggering 14 players. Playing in a contract year with the Calrissian who were on pace to lose 100+ games, Jason Goldberg and James Patterson struck a monumental deal which would change both franchises. 3 years short of the 10 year anniversary of this trade, how did both teams fare? Who got the better end? Let's break it down.
To TORONTO:
OF German Rivas. The then 29 year old Rivas would sign a 6 year deal worth $88.5M and would spend the entire length of the contract with the Titans, giving him 6.5 seasons in a Toronto uniform. Over that time period, Rivas would put up 30.7 WAR, a triple slash line of .299/.393/.530 to go with 192 HR, 201 2B, 652 RBI and 141 SB. He would make the CL All Star team 4 times in those 6 years following the trade and was an instrumental part of a lineup that would go onto win back-to-back BSA Championships in 2018 and 2019.
Totals: 30.7 WAR, 4 AS games, 2 titles.
To ORLANDO:
SP Reagen Wear. One of two crown jewels of the deal. The 33rd ranked prospect before the 2015 season. Wear has been everything that he was projected to be and then some. The 30 year old SP has a career record of 126-95 with a 3,46 ERA, 1.15 WHIP and a career WAR of 49.7. His 2021 season in which he won the NL Cy Young was one of the best seasons in BSA history for a starting pitcher where he posed a BSA record 1.22 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and 10.7 WAR. Wear is under contract with Orlando for next 4 seasons as well.
126-95 record, 49.7 WAR, 1 Cy Young, 6 AS games
1B/DH Santiago Marquez. The 2nd of crown jewel prospects found in the trade. Marquez was ranked the 85th prospect before the season in 2015. Known simply as Q in Orlando, Marquez was 18 when the trade happened and though probably rushed, he played 85 games with Orlando that season. The now 28 year old is under contract with the Calrissian for the next 4 seasons as well. In his career thus far, Q has put up 35.1 WAR, 321 HR, 301 2B, 1032 RBI as well as winning the 2024 NL MVP award. He is a fan favorite and is probably heading towards 3000 hits and 500 HR.
35.1 WAR, 6 AS games, 1 MVP
CF Bryce Hopkins. The 28 year old Hopkins came over in the trade to be a replacement for Rivas in CF. He won the 2014 gold glove the year before and while he only would spend the remainder of 2015 in Orlando and the next 3 years, he would have 3 of his top 5 overall seasons there. Hopkins played in 576 games over 3.5 seasons putting up 21.1 WAR with a triple slash line of .280/.343/.438 with 134 doubles, 28 triples and 58 HR. He would make one all star team before leaving the team via free agency in 2019.
21.1 WAR, 1 AS game.
MR Max Jones. A 29 year old reliever at the time of trade, Jones would be a staple in the Orlando bullpen from 2015-2018 before bouncing around the minors for a few years and retiring in 2021. Jones pitched in 209 games over a 4 year span with a 3.27 ERA, striking out 216 batters in 242 innings and produced a 2.3 WAR/
2.3 WAR.
MR Randolph Plante. A 28 year old reliever who put up a 2.81 ERA in Toronto in 16 innings in 2014. He would throw in 94 games over the next 2 years for Orlando, including a league high 91 appearances in 2016. In 2 seasons he put a 4.72 ERA, striking out 94 batters in 108.2 IP, which was good for a 1.7 WAR,
1.7 WAR
MR Jorge Ibarra. A 28 year old reliever at the time of trade, Ibarra had a spectacular 2014 in the Toronto pen, which ended with a 0.43 ERA, 0.79 WHIP and completely aided by a .155 BABIP. He would pitch for the Calrissian for 2.5 seasons before leaving for Irvine in free agency and ultimately retiring in 2023. He would pitch in 76 games, including 34 starts for Orlando. He would end his time in Orlando pitching 214 innings of 4.91 ERA ball, good for 1.4 WAR.
1.4 WAR
MR Michael Taylor. A 32 year old reliever who was a big part of the Titans bullpen in 2014. He would pitch in the Orlando pen for remainder of 2015 and parts of the next 4 years before becoming a free agent and eventually retiring in 2019. His time in Orlando saw him pitch in 198 games, 210 innings with a 3.34 ERA and contributing 1.3 WAR
1.3 WAR.
OF Salvador Gonzales. A 19 year old and ranked 67th best prospect before the 2015 season who showed a lot of promise in AA after coming over in the trade. He would be called up in 2016 at the age of 20 and would struggled in 68 games. Over the next 2 seasons he would generally play in AAA and would look major league ready mid-way through the 2018 season where he would put up his best season in 130 games. He would eventually be claimed off of waivers by Reno in 2020. He played in 372 games for the Calrissian, putting up a line of .264/.313/.408 with 28 HR and 167 RBI. Good for a WAR of 0.3.
0.3 WAR
MR Tetsunori Okamoto. A 35 year old throw in who would start 3 games in Orlando before being released just over a month after the trade. He went 1-2 in his 3 starts with an ERA of 9.82 and WHIP of 2.25, where he walked 6.8 batters per 9 and had a .368 BABIP. His time in Orlando would be the last he would see of the bigs and he retired in 2017.
0 WAR
SS Michael Cooke. At the time of trade, Cooke was your glove first utility infielder. He would play the next season with Orlando, playing excellent 2B and SS and struggling at the plate. He would become a free agent and sign with Seattle in 2017 before eventually retiring in 2019. in 106 games with the Calrissian, Cooke would put up a triple slash line of .226/.274/.276 with a ZR of +8.3 at 2 posititions.
-0.1 WAR
MR Kenneth Duncan. A 33 year old journeyman reliever at the time, would get 2 starts in Orlando during the 2015 season, neither of which went well. He gave up 12 runs in 11.2 innings pitched and was released shortly after. He would sign back with Toronto after the season and appear in 30 games with the Titans over the next 2 years.
-0.2 WAR.
MR Bill Boland. At the time the 30 year old reliever was bouncing between AAA and the big league club. He would pitch 2 seasons for Orlando appearing in 55 games. His overall stat line was a 5.23 ERA and a -0.2 WAR. After becoming a free agent following the 2016 season he would fail to pitch in the majors again, finally retiring in 2022.
-0.2 WAR.
MR Juan Reyes. A 26 year old reliever who had never seen the majors before coming to Orlando in 2015. He would struggle in 2 seasons before being claimed off the waiver wire by Irvine in 2017. He would go on to have some decent seasons in Los Cabos and is one of the only players still active in the trade, as he was recently signed to a minor league contract by the Cartel. He appeared in 103 games for Orlando, putting up a 5.56 ERA as control has never been his forte.
-0.4 WAR
2B Vicente Morales. A toss in who would never see a game in an Orlando uniform and also would never find his way back to the big leagues who eventually retired in 2022.
Total for Orlando: 112 WAR, 13 AS games, 1 Cy Young, 1 MVP
Once broken down, the 14 players to Orlando turned out to be 3 good prospects, 1 ML player and generally a group of middling veterans who wouldn't produce much. Wear is still an ace, Marquez is a monster and both are locked up for the next 4 years. Rivas helped Toronto to two banners and Toronto went to the playoffs in 6 of the 7 seasons he was there.
So what's your opinion? Who's side do you want?
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