RailCats Begin Building Roster for 2005 Season
March 18, 2005 - Northern League (NL)
Gary SouthShore Railcats News Release
New RailCats Manger Greg Tagert has signed several players in recent weeks in preparation for the start of the 2005 season on May 20 at Joliet.
The RailCats have acquired four players who played for Tagert in 2004 with Springfield-Ozark of the Frontier League. They include left-handed starting pitcher Jamie Bennett, right-handed reliever Mike Schaefer, third baseman Tanner Townsend, and outfielder Steve Haake.
Bennett, who still holds the University of Tennessee school record for most innings pitched in a single-season, was a 10 game winner last year and a Frontier League all-star in 2003.
Haake batted .290 with 10 home runs, 53 runs batted in, and 16 stolen bases with Springfield-Ozark last season and is a product of Northwestern University. He stole 73 bases during his four year college career including the 2001-02 seasons at Northwestern.
Townsend batted .252 with 12 home runs, 61 RBI, and 15 stolen bases last season and played college baseball at the University of Western Kentucky before spending the 2002 season in the San Diego Padres organization. He earned All-Sun Belt Conference and academic All-District honors at Western Kentucky.
Schaefer started 19 games and posted a record of 4-9 with a 4.85 earned run average in his first year of professional baseball in 2004. He completed his college career in 2003 at the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, where he was named Horizon League Pitcher of the Year, posting a record of 7-2 with a 2.77 ERA. He also played college ball at the University of Iowa.
Three other players who were Frontier League rivals to Tagert in 2004 have also been acquired. They include shortstop Rafael Lara, right-handed pitcher Adam Palmer, and outfielder Terrance McClain.
Lara, a switch-hitter, batted .258 with two home runs and 31 runs batted in while playing in 73 games in the Frontier League in 2004, spitting the season between Mid-Missouri and Richmond. He also stole 19 bases.
Lara spent one season in the St. Louis Cardinals organization with their affiliate in the Venezuelan Summer League in 1998. He is 24 years old and played college baseball at Warner Southern College in Lake Wales, Florida. Lara is a native of Venezuela.
Palmer, 26, is a product of Naperville North High School and Illinois Wesleyan University. He is the career leader in victories, innings pitched, and shutouts at Illinois Wesleyan. He was a 2000 1st Team All-Conference and All-Region selection and led Illinois Wesleyan to a berth in the 2001 NCAA Division III College World Series.
Palmer, a right-hander, has spent the last three seasons in the Frontier League. He pitched for Cook County (now known as Windy City) in 2002 and 03 before splitting the 2004 season between Rockford and Washington.
Palmer threw a no-hitter on August 5, 2004 in his first start with Washington vs. Windy City. Overall, he posted a record of 5-5 with a 3.38 earned run average in 2004. He made 15 starts and two relief appearances.
McClain spent the 2004 season with Evansville and batted .262 with five home runs and 40 runs batted in. He also played for Evansville in 2003 and spent one year in the Los Angeles Dodgers organization.
Additionally, two players have been signed out of the college ranks. They include pitcher Jeff Mault and outfielder David Weiner.
Mault was the 2004 Ohio Valley Conference Pitcher of the Year with Austin Peay University, where he posted a record of 11-4 with a 3.69 earned run average, primarily as a starting pitcher. Mault was also an Ohio Valley 1st Team All-Conference choice as a junior in 2003 when he worked as a reliever and posted a school record 10 saves.
Weiner, a center fielder, was a 2004 Honorable Mention All-Pacific 10 Conference selection with the University of California. Weiner batted .338 with a team leading nine home runs and 43 runs batted in as a senior in 2004. Weiner, the nephew of Olympic Gold Medalist Mark Spitz, enjoyed a huge high school career in Santa Monica, California. He set school records at Crossroads High School in single-season batting average (.578) and career batting average (.518).
2004 RailCats pitchers Chris Andel, Kory Bell, Travis Kerber, Derek Lopez, Tom MacLane, Tony ODonnell, Quintin Oldenburg, and Matt Skyles; infielders Curt Lee, Brandon ONeal, and Brian Rios; and outfielders Anthony Iapoce and Scott Samuels are all on the current RailCats roster. Pitcher Dan Soria is also on the roster but has announced intentions to retire to pursue a career in law enforcement.
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Northern League Stories from March 18, 2005
- RailCats Begin Building Roster for 2005 Season - Gary SouthShore Railcats
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