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Christopher Fee

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Blog Entries posted by Christopher Fee

  1. Christopher Fee
    After two weather related cancelations, the Red Wings finished the week by playing a double header against the Syracuse Chiefs. Rochester had been on the road for the past two weeks, sweeping Scranton then being swept by Pawtucket and finishing by taking two of three against Syracuse.
     
    Rochester’s biggest struggle so far this season has been their offense, currently ranking in the bottom half in the league in runs (9th), hits (11th), home runs (8th), RBI’s (8th) & 13th in stolen bases in the International League. With Josmil Pinto leading the team in batting average at .325 entering Saturday’s game and second on the team with eight RBI’s, only Reynaldo Rodriguez is hitting above .300 for Rochester.
     
    When talking about the Red Wings offense, manager Mike Quade said “Ortiz (Danny), is swinging the bat great, we are getting contributions from Rodriguez, Martinez (Jose) has been good, Bernier (Doug) is starting to hit well, so there’s a lot of things offensively that are going well”. While the numbers are not there, the optimism is there that things will turn around soon.
     
    So if the bats are struggling, then the pitching must be doing well, right?
     
    Unfortunately that hasn’t been the case for Rochester either. The Wings currently rank 12th in the IL in team ERA, 1st in HR allowed with 15, 4th in walks allowed with 55, and 12th in WHIP. Pat Dean has been the surprise of the season in the Red Wings rotation, currently 1-0 with a 0.75 ERA in 12 innings pitched. Originally Dean was not in Rochester’s rotation, but with the promotion of Trevor May to Minnesota, the opportunity was there for Dean and he’s run with it.
     
    Probably the biggest surprise & disappointment so far has been Alex Meyer’s start to the 2015 season. Meyer had a very good season with the Wings in 2014, but so far walks have been his Achilles heel with 14 walks in 14 2/3rd innings pitched. Through three starts overall Meyer is 1-0 with a 4.91 ERA, he has struck out 20 batters in the 14.2 innings, but control has to drastically improve if he hopes to join the Twins rotation, or bullpen in 2015.
    Rochester is going to finish the week by starting a 10 game home stand against Syracuse, Columbus and then Norfolk before heading back on the road May 5th.
  7. Christopher Fee
    http://cdn4.sportngin.com/attachments/text_block/1859/3878/RichardsonAntoan091912SWa_003_medium.JPG
     
    After spending 8 seasons, playing for four different major league organizations, as well as two independent teams, Antoan Richardson may be racing his way back to the major leagues. In AA-New Britain, Richardson showcased his speed and ability to get on base hitting .336, with 14 steals and a .456 OBP in 33 games. Since being called up to the AAA- Rochester Red Wings, the numbers have been just as impressive, hitting .306 with 13 steals, and a .466 OBP in 35 games. During the Red Wings last home stand, I had the chance to talk to Richardson about his college days, baseball in the Bahamas, and what he looks for when getting ready to steal a base.
     
    Chris Fee (CF) - What has your time in Rochester been like since you were called up?
    Antoan Richardson (AR) – It’s been fun man, the guys here are really, really laid back. Coming from the Bahamas that’s the culture down there, so I’ve been able to fit right in with the club. The coaches have made it easy as well to make it a smooth transition from Double-A as well.

    CF – You have 24 steals (He now has 27 steals) between Double-A and Triple-A, compare that to the 27 total that you had all of last year, what’s the difference between this year and last year with base stealing?
     
    AR – I’m just trying to get back to my younger days, back when I was a little more aggressive on the base paths. This year I told myself that I was going to be a little more aggressive, but at the same time be smart and pick my opportunities to run.
     
    CF – When you’re standing at first base, what are you looking for from the pitcher and the defense before you take off?
     
    AR – Honestly, it starts in the dugout. I’m looking at the pitcher from when he’s throwing his warm-up pitches, and when other guys get on base so that I can get as much information as I can before I get to first base. Once I get over there, I’m going to use all the information that I’ve collected to use it to my advantage. Whether it’s him turning his shoulders a little bit early, or picking up his head before he goes to the plate. It can be anything; every pitcher has a different tell.

    CF – How did your time playing in the SEC for Vanderbilt prepare you for becoming a professional baseball player?
     
    AR – Other than playing professional baseball in the minor leagues, it was the biggest stepping-stone. Playing in the SEC, which I believe is the toughest conference in America, and the coaching staff there at the time, Tim Corbin, Erik Bakich, and Derek Johnson, they just did a really good job at preparing you mentally for this game. The physical things are always going to be there, but they prepared you for the things off the field, like dealing with failure and things like that. I think going to college, allowed me to handle the downs which baseball was going to bring to me in my professional career.
     
    CF – Can you talk about being a lead off hitter versus being in another spot in the lineup? Is there more pressure to get on base, does it test your patience at the plate?
    AR – I only lead off to start the games usually, but I know what my role is. My role is to get on base, and to score runs. I think once you have an identity and you know what your role is, it makes it easier for you to try to accomplish that. Where as hitting down in the order your job may be to score runs, you’re not going to be as patient, and take as many pitches.
     
    CF – You spent a little bit of time in the Indy leagues, can you compare the quality of baseball versus playing in affiliated leagues?
    AR – I think it does have some similarities, but at the same time affiliated ball is focused on gearing guys to play in the Major Leagues. It’s more about development, as oppose to the Independent leagues it’s all about winning. I think that both are very important, so if you have a team in affiliated ball that can blend both together you usually have a successful team. I think that’s the difference, affiliated ball is about development and independent ball is just about winning. I had a great time in independent ball, and I think it played a really big role in my success as a baseball player, after leaving independent ball.
     
    CF – Growing up in the Bahamas, who were some of the guys that you looked up to playing baseball? There were only seven guys who have played in the major leagues.
     
    AR – When I got called up, I was the first guy to get called up in 28 years. We had a guy, his name was Angelo Burrows, he was a minor leaguer, and he was kind of my role model in terms of baseball. When he, broke that barrier for Bahamians again, I kind of looked at myself and said, “If he can do it, it’s possible for other Bahamians to do it as well.” It’s a sport that’s growing down there, we just had a Bahamian get drafted in the 6th round in this past draft with the New York Mets (Jervis Champ Stuart), I was kind of excited and hopefully it’s a trend that will continue to happen.
     
    CF – What are your goals for the rest of this season for yourself as well as for the team?
    AR – I mean if your goal is not to play in the major leagues than you shouldn’t want to be here. But I mean my goal ultimately is to get to Minnesota and help them win some baseball games. My goal while I’m here in Rochester is to help Rochester win as many games as possible, it’s important to know how to win and to be a winning baseball player.
     
    CF – Do you feel that there’s added pressure being this close to the Majors, especially seeing some of your teammates getting the call this season, knowing opportunities may be there?
     
    AR – I think it’s important that you just go with it, it’s important that you take care of your business here, and you treat this season here as your major league season until you get promoted. I think if you come to the ballpark with that attitude every day, you put yourself in a great situation to succeed.
  25. Christopher Fee
    To say that Rochester Red Wings pitcher Scott Diamond has had a tough start to the 2014 season,would be putting it nicely.
     
    Diamond, Rochester’s opening day starter, is 0-2 on the season with an International League worse 15.58 ERA. If that large number wasn’t enough, through just nine innings pitched in three starts, Diamond has allowed an IL worse 25 hits and walked seven batters as well.
     
     
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    After his last start against the Pawtucket Red Sox, where he pitched four innings, gave up seven runs and 11 hits, catcher Dan Rohlfing said about his performance, “It was a little bit of command issues, got squeezed a little bit but threw some balls over the plate and Scott will be the first one to tell you that he didn’t have his best stuff, but I thought he threw pretty well and went out there and battled.”
     
    Just 21 days ago Scott Diamond was released by the Minnesota Twins, he later accepted his outright assignment to Rochester, but it poses the question, what did the Twins releasing Diamond do to his psyche? Last season Diamond was sent down to the Red Wings, and was a big reason why the team made the postseason push that they did. In seven starts he went 4-0 with a 2.93 ERA, while walking nine batters in 41 innings pitched, a huge difference in comparison to what he's done so far this year.
     
     
    So I think the big questions are, how much longer should Rochester give Diamond to figure things out, and are there guys in New Britain that should be called up to take his spot in the rotation?
     
     
    To answer the first question, the Red Wings should give him a few more starts to see how they go. Although statistically he's one of the worst pitchers in the International League, since going 4-14 with the Wings in 2011, he's gone 8-1 with a 2.77 ERA in 13 starts coming into this season. Based on those numbers, it would be wise for Rochester to give Diamond sometime solely based on the fact that he could become one of the premier pitchers in the International League once again.
     
    What about guys like Pat Dean and Sean Gilmartin, should they get the chance to pitch in Rochester with Diamond struggling?
     
    In a word, yes, but not yet. Pat Dean pitched briefly in Rochester last season going 2-0 with a 2.03 ERA in six starts before being sent back to New Britain. While there's no doubt that the sample size is small, why not give the 25 year old lefty a chance to show what he has to offer at the next level? Sean Gilmartin is another name to consider calling up as well. Gilmartin, a top five Braves prospect just one year ago,struggled in his first full season in AAA. However he had skipped over the Eastern League, and went from the SAL to the IL, a jump not many pitchers make successfully.
     
    It's only the middle of April, but anytime you have a veteran pitcher struggling to this severity, it's just a matter of time before a change has to be made.
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