Five for Friday: KeysFest, potential Keys, 25th season gear and more
We’re seven days away from opening the 2013 season at Harry Grove Stadium, four days from the first Keys player and coach arrivals and less than a day from KeysFest and single-game tickets going on sale.
Here are five things you should know heading into the weekend.
1. KeysFest
The Keys’ annual fanfest event takes place tomorrow from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. at Harry Grove Stadium. The event is free and will also include the fourth annual Tots2Tweens.com Egg Hunt. There will be free food samples, free games and activities for kids, including a baseball card station and the chance to play catch in right field. Tours will also be available at no cost, along with other activities to get you primed for Keys baseball in 2013.
Single-game tickets will go on sale at frederickkeys.com at 12:01 a.m. tonight and at the stadium box office at 11 a.m. on Saturday. Be sure to secure your seats for opening weekend.
Tim Berry started 13 games for the Keys last season and may be back for more in 2013.
2. The Fredrick 40 Countdown: Parts VII and VIII
Check out the final 10 players on our list of potential Keys for the 2013 season here. That group includes:
Tim Berry - He’s ranked the 11th-best prospect in the Orioles system by Baseball America and the 12th-best O’s farmhand by MLB.com. A slender southpaw, look for him in Frederick’s rotation this season.
Jesse Beal – This right-hander missed all of 2011 after having shoulder surgery, but began his comeback in the bullpen with Delmarva in 2012. In 2013, he could be an important piece of the ‘pen in Frederick.
Jason Esposito – He struggled in Delmarva last season, but hit .340 with 22 doubles, nine homers and 59 RBIs in 66 games in college the year prior. Steve Melewski of MASN wrote that the Shorebirds’ third baseman might be moving across the diamond to first this season.
Connor Narron – His father Jerry managed the Keys in the team’s first season and 25 years later, Connor might wear a Keys uniform. A player with the ability to play multiple positions, Narron’s more likely to be promoted to Frederick than start the season here.
Read about those four and the rest of the final 10 here.
Jeremy Nowak led the Keys in batting average in 2012. He was released by the Orioles on Friday.
3. More roster cuts from spring training
At one point, the Orioles had about 200 minor league players in camp this spring. As a result, the paring down of that bunch to fit regular season rosters has been in full effect over the last week or so. Since March 22, The O’s have released 21 players, according to this Steve Melewski tweet, which came before word of two more releases today.
Among those that have been released are several former Keys and several players that could have landed in Frederick this season, including:
Jeremy Nowak - He led the Keys in batting average and hits last year and was a Carolina League All-Star. Odds are he’ll be picked up by another team.
Joe Oliveira – A Key in 2011 and 2012, Frederick’s catcher hit .209 in 72 games last season.
Buddy Sosnoskie - He has the best name on our list of potential Keys for 2013, but, sadly, it looks as if it name won’t be crammed on the back of a Keys jersey this season. Despite being released, the independent league outfielder was very gracious with his tweets following the bad news.
Other cuts include independent SS Chris Wade, former Keys first baseman Tyler Townsend (retired), former Keys reliever Matt Bywater and independent pitchers Kyle Mertins and Mike Recchia.
4. Keys 25th season gear
2013 marks Frederick’s 25th season of baseball since the Keys inception in 1989. With that silver anniversary comes lots of commemorative swag. A sneak peak of throwback jerseys to be worn on Thursday home games and a 25th season pin is below:
5. A few links
*I blogged about it in Wednesday’s post and Steve Melewski wrote about it today — a six-man rotation in Frederick. Read Melewski’s story here.
*Some notes from Melewski on potential Keys Jesse Beal and Connor Narron.
*It looks as if 2000 Key Brian Roberts will move from the top of the O’s lineup to the bottom to start the season, according to Roch Kubatko’s story.
*ESPN’s Tim Kurkjian has love for 2011 Key Manny Machado.
*Watch 2012 Key Johnny Ruettiger lay out and make a nice grab against the Phillies.
Shake your Keys.
Townsend retires, Urrutia and projecting the Keys’ rotation
Tyler Townsend, a Key in 2010, ’11 and ’12, retired yesterday.
A Key for the last three seasons, Tyler Townsend retired yesterday. A third-round pick by the Orioles in 2009, the left-handed hitting first baseman produced well when he was on the field, hitting .295 with 19 homers and 82 RBIs in his Keys career.
Injuries, however, plagued Townsend, 24, and his career lasted just four seasons. Townsend’s best season came in 2011, when he played 67 games for Frederick, batting .317, slugging 24 doubles and 13 homers while driving in 50 RBIs. For his career, he hit .272 with 36 home runs, 64 doubles and 158 RBIs.
MASN’s Steve Melewski wrote a short story about Townsend retiring, which you can read here.
Cuban outfielder Henry Urrutia could start the 2013 season in Frederick.
*The plan when the Orioles signed Cuban outfielder Henry Urrutia was to have him start the season in double-A Bowie and then quickly make his way to the majors. But visa issues delayed his arrival at spring training, which came on Feb. 28, and reports are that he may start his American baseball career at a lower level — Frederick or low-A Delmarva.
Urrutia, 26, defected from Cuba to the Dominican Republic in 2011, but hasn’t been able to play since 2010, when Cuba suspended him from baseball for attempting to defect. This Baltimore Sun article written by Dan Connolly gives some good background on Urrutia and how he ended up with the O’s.
O’s director of player development Brian Graham told Melewski that Urrutia could start with the Keys or the Shorebirds in this story.
*In another Melewski story, Graham said the O’s could employ six-man rotations with some of their minor league clubs. Given that possibility, let’s try and project the Keys 2013 rotation come opening night.
Potential Keys starters include Eduardo Rodriguez, Branden Kline, Tim Berry, Parker Bridwell, Zach Davies, Tyler Wilson, Miguel Chalas, Trent Howard and Devin Jones.
2012 Delmarva Shorebirds Rodriguez and Bridwell, though both young, seem fairly certain to move up to Frederick this season. Kline, a Frederick native, pitched briefly for short-season-A Aberdeen last season after being drafted out of Virginia and seems like a prime candidate to start the season in his hometown, though he could start the year as a Shorebird.
Berry, Wilson, Howard and Jones all pitched for Frederick last season and all could move up to Bowie. Davies is just 20 years old, but pitched in Delmarva all of last season, his first as a professional, and performed pretty well. Chalas has a little more professional baseball experience, but is also just 20 years old.
My guess for the Keys’ rotation on opening day, in no particular order:
- Rodriguez
- Kline
- Berry
- Bridwell
- Howard
- Davies
Who do you think will wind up in the rotation this season?
*KeysFest is Saturday at 11 a.m. Single-game tickets go on sale at the event at Harry Grove Stadium, which is free. The Tots2Tweens.com Egg Hunt will be held during the event and there will also be free food samples. More info here.
Shake your Keys.
Remembering Welty’s 2010 season
A Key in 2010 and 2012, Ronnie Welty was traded to Philadelphia over the weekend.
In 2010, Keys outfielder Ronnie Welty finished among Carolina League leaders in home runs, RBIs, hits, extra-base hits, slugging percentage, runs and total bases. His 32 doubles, 86 runs and 142 hits that year all rank in the top six in Keys single-season records.
Sunday, word came down that Welty, who spent the majority of 2012 in double-A Bowie, had been traded to the Phillies for minor league pitcher Julio Rodriguez. To give Welty a proper send-off, let’s briefly revisit his 2010 season.
In 130 games, Welty hit .282, homered 18 times, drove in 82 runs, stole 11 bases and struck out a whopping 159 times. He led the Keys in hits, runs, doubles, triples (3), extra-base hits (53), homers, RBIs, total bases (234), strikeouts, slugging (.814) and OPS (.814). The Keys’ everyday right fielder finished fifth in the Carolina League in hits, extra-base hits, total bases, slugging percentage and games played (130), fourth in homers, third in RBI and second in runs. He also dubiously led the league in strikeouts.
From June 24 to July 9, Welty put together a 14-game hit streak, during which he batted .410, racked up 25 hits and drove in 12 runs. He also had a streak of 15 consecutive away games in which he reached base, hitting .385 over that span. Welty was named a mid-season and postseason Carolina League All-Star.
Welty played 13 games in Frederick last season and hit .415 with three home runs and 17 RBIs. For his Keys career, Welty hit .294 with 21 home runs, 99 RBIs, 98 runs scored and 169 strikeouts in 143 games.
Rodriguez, who has been optioned to Bowie, went 7-7 with a 4.29 ERA last season for double-A Reading
*Welty’s not the only former Key whose baseball career will not be continuing with the Orioles organization. Among the minor league cuts made at spring training this season are 2012 Key Matt Bywater and independent players Kyle Mertins and Mike Recchia, all three of whom have been or were to be featured in our countdown of potential Keys for 2013.
Here’s Bywater in Part II of the countdown, and Mertins in Part IV. Recchia has been removed from the countdown. Farewell, friends.
*MASN’s Steve Melewski sat down with O’s Director of Player Development Brian Graham. There are some interesting bits of information in here, including how the Orioles will handle their minor league pitchers.
*KeysFest is Saturday. Buy your single-game tickets when the gates open at 11 a.m. More info here.
* The Grove’s looking frosty this morning:
*11 days until the season starts. Opening Day is almost here.
Shake Your Keys.
Five more potential Keys and a lot of links
Nick Delmonico could be Frederick’s starting third baseman in 2013.
Believe it or not, we’re just 16 days from opening night at the Grove. That means no time for chit-chat — let’s get right into it.
*Part VI of our Frederick 40 Countdown is up. A preview:
Nick Delmonico – The son of a college coach and brother of a Dodgers farmhand, this 2011 draft pick of the Orioles collected 88 hits last season, 33 of which went for extra bases.
Wynston Sawyer – This catcher reached Delmarva last season at age 20 and drove in 49 runs in 81 games.
Chase Johnson – A 6-5, 245-pound righthander, he was drafted by the Phillies and spent last season playing independent ball in Pensacola, Fla.
Matt Price – He shut the door for South Carolina on back-to-back College World Series titles and led the Gamecocks to the championship series for the third straight year as a senior in 2012. In 2013, he could be closing games in Frederick.
Jerome Pena – A former TCU Horned Frog, this second baseman was promoted three times in 2012, finishing the season with the Keys and hitting .308 in 20 games.
Read The Frederick 40 Countdown: Part VI here.
*The 2013 Keys won’t arrive in Frederick until the start of April, but MASN’s Steve Melewski provided us with a couple of ideas regarding the Keys’ rosters. Here’s his story from Tuesday, in which he writes Nick Delmonico will move to third this season – he played first and second in 2012 – and likely start with the Keys. Also, Jason Esposito, who played third base at Vanderbilt, is expected to start at first in Frederick this year, according to Melewski. Former Keys Aaron Baker and Tyler Townsend and potential 2013 Key Wynston Sawyer are hurt, he writes.
*2012 Key Dylan Bundy was optioned to Bowie over the weekend, while Kevin Gausman, also a 2012 Key, remains with the Orioles. Gausman is sixth in the AL in strikeouts (14 in 12.1 innings) in spring training.
*The O’s have 20 or so independent players in minor league spring training, which is a rather high number. The blog Seamheads.com has taken notice.
*Melewski caught up with 2011 Key Manny Machado as he heads into his first full season in the majors. Read that story here.
*Former Key Jonathan Schoop is back in O’s camp after his World Baseball Classic stint with the Netherlands. He hit .246 with two homers and six RBIs, helping the Dutch to the semifinals. MASN’s Roch Kubatko talked with him at O’s spring training.
*Orioles hall-of-famer bobbleheads. Check it out.
*Join our ‘Beat the GM’ bracket challenge on Yahoo! for a chance to win free tickets to a Keys game. If you top Keys General Manager Dave Ziedelis, a pair of tickets are yours. First, second and third place will also receive additional prizes.
To join, first go to http://tournament.fantasysports.yahoo.com/t1. Then create your bracket and join our group. The Group ID is 56475 and the password is keyote.
*Single-game tickets go on sale at KeysFest on March 30. Festivities, which begin at 11 a.m. and end at 2 p.m., include the Tots2Tweens Egg Hunt. All the info you need is here.
Keys release weekly promotions for 2013
Get excited! The weekly promos have been released. Check out the release below.
Frederick Keys News Release
For Immediate Release: March 15, 2013
KEYS WEEKLY PROMOTIONS RELEASED
Throwback Thursdays pay tribute to early seasons of Keys baseball
FREDERICK, Md. – The Frederick Keys have announced their weekly promotions for the 2013 season, which include Thursday night deals that pay tribute to the Keys’ first season.
Special for Frederick’s 25th anniversary season, Throwback Thursdays presented by 106.9 The Eagle hearken all the way back to the 1989 season at McCurdy Field, featuring rollback prices on food and drinks. Only on Thursdays, the Keys will offer the McCurdy Field Star Dog for $2 in homage to the White Star Hot Dog, the frankfurter from a Frederick culinary institution that filled the bellies of Keys fans 25 years ago. Peanuts will cost just $2 and domestic beers just $3 on Throwback Thursdays.
Promotions returning this season include Kids Eat Free Mondays, Guaranteed Win Tuesdays, Belly Buster Wednesdays, Thirsty Thursdays and Sunday Funday, each daily deal designed to offer fans a great ballpark experience without breaking budgets. On Kids Eat Free Mondays presented by Key 103, Youths 12 and under receive a voucher for a free hot dog, chips and a beverage upon entering the gate.
For another season, Keys fans can’t lose on Guaranteed Win Tuesdays. If the Keys win, fans will revel in victory. If the Keys lose, each fan’s ticket stub is redeemable for a free ticket to any Monday-Thursday regular season home game for the remainder of the season. The All-You-Can-Eat Belly Buster Picnics return on Wednesdays in June, July and August. For two and a half hours, paying adults and children can chow down on an assortment of ballpark favorites. Tickets for the Belly Buster Picnic cost just $21 for adults and $18 for children.
In addition to ballpark-wide Throwback Thursdays, Thirsty Thursdays in the Mattress Warehouse Club include a game ticket and a spread of food and beer for only $35. Sunday Funday presented by Fun Bus offers fans the chance to play catch in the outfield and meet Keys players on the concourse an hour before first pitch. Player autographs will also be available in the Giant Eagle Fun Zone.
In continuation of long-standing Frederick Keys traditions, kids can run the bases after every home game and kids who come to Harry Grove Stadium in their sports uniform will receive free admission to any Sunday-Thursday regular season game with the purchase of an adult ticket. Kids Run the Bases is presented by Complete Chiropractic and Kids Courtesy Admission is presented by Weinberg Center for the Arts and The Gazette.
On Mondays, the Mattress Warehouse Club will be open to all fans. This weekly special, Monday Madness, allows every fan in Harry Grove Stadium the opportunity to experience the game from the suite level if they so choose. Food and drink will be available for purchase. This season’s recurring menus in the Mattress Warehouse Club include Taco Tuesday, Burger Madness on Wednesdays, Thirsty Thursday and Gone Fishin’ Fridays.
-http://www.frederickkeys.com-
Preparations for the 2013 season are underway and it’s never too early to book your partial and full season ticket plans for the upcoming year at Harry Grove Stadium. For information on ticket plans contact the Keys Group Offices at 301-815-9900 or via the web at frederickkeys.com.
Contact: Mike Mueller, 301-815-9915
O’s Minor League spring training schedule starts today
Orioles minor league players start their spring training games this afternoon at 1 p.m. against Tampa Bay and Atlanta. Our man in Florida sent us a picture of the schedule, Sundays, however, did not make the photo.
So until we get a new one, here’s the minor league schedule, Monday-Saturday:
*Believe it or not, the Keys’ opening day is just 23 days away. And Keyote is getting restless.
*For those of you who like numbers, equations, advanced statistics and things of that nature, it’s worth taking a look at this milb.com article on Minor League park factors and run environments written by Ashley Marshall. Essentially, the article takes a look at how conducive each Minor League park and league is to offense.
Based on Marshall’s findings, Harry Grove Stadium is the most neutral ballpark in the fairly low-scoring Carolina League. Since 2008, the Carolina League has averaged 4.5 runs per game, which ranks 15th among 21 leagues. Using the equation listed in the story — ((Runs scored at home + runs allowed at home)/(Home games)) / ((Runs scored on the road + runs allowed on the road)/(Road games)) — Harry Grove Stadium’s park factor based on runs scored is 1.002. A neutral park factor is 1.000, representing “an equal number of runs/homers/hits at home as on the road,” according to the story. Factors over 1.000 favor hitters and factors under 1.000 favor pitchers.
While the Grove is neutral when it comes to runs scored, its home run factor is the highest in the Carolina League at 1.689. Winston-Salem is second at 1.189. While the Grove is favorable to dingers, its overall hit rate is just .967. Read the full article here.
*The Orioles held an intrasquad game at spring training yesterday and filled out the lineups with some minor leaguers. Here’s Roch Kubatko’s notes from the game.
*In case you missed it, we released our 2013 promotional schedule yesterday. A taste: Cowboy Monkeys, Peter Bondra, Tim Kurkjian bobblehead, Man on Fire, 50-cent hot dog night. View the schedule on the Keys’ website.
*KeysFest is March 30 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Single game tickets go on sale at Keys Fest, which is just 17 days from now. All the info on the fan event, which will host the Tots2Tweens egg hunt and national anthem auditions, is here.
Shake your Keys.
Keys Full Promotional Schedule for 2013
You’ve seen the Keys’ top 10 promotions for the upcoming season, now see the rest of the giveaways, appearances, performances and other promotional happenings slated to take place at the Grove this year. The promotional schedule release is below and can also be read here. A cleaner version of the schedule by date is here on the Keys’ website.
Enjoy.
Frederick Keys News Release
For Immediate Release: March 12, 2013
KEYS RELEASE PROMOTIONAL SCHEDULE FOR 2013
Unique performances, theme nights, appearances and giveaways on tap for 25th season
FREDERICK, Md. – The Frederick Keys have released their promotional schedule for 2013, their 25th season in Frederick.
The Keys will celebrate their silver anniversary with the city of Frederick all season long, the 25th season celebration reaching its climax on Friday, June 28 at Harry Grove Stadium. Former Keys players, coaches and staffers will be honored in an on-field ceremony, as will long-time season ticket holders. Also, the first 1,000 fans in the gate for the 7 p.m. game against Winston-Salem will receive a 25th season baseball card set presented by Keeney & Basford Funeral Home. The set is comprised of one Keys player from every season, 1989-2013.
After receiving rave reviews in 2012, the Cowboy Monkey Rodeo returns to Harry Grove Stadium on Saturday, Aug. 17. Tim “Wild Thang” Lepard and his dog-riding band of primates will entertain fans during and after the 6 p.m. game against Winston-Salem.
In a similar, off-the-wall vein, the Frederick Keys will host Ted Batchelor, better known as Man on Fire, on Saturday, May 25. In a first for Frederick, Batchelor will set himself on fire and run the bases following the 6 p.m. game against Salem.
Sgt. Slaughter continues a wrestling tradition at Harry Grove Stadium on Friday, June 21, the Keys’ Fredneck Night presented by YellowCab. Jerry “The King” Lawler and “Hacksaw” Jim Duggan visited the Grove the last two seasons and this year Sgt. Slaughter will run a Fredneck Boot Camp during the 7 p.m. game against Myrtle Beach, which includes fan-favorite event toilet-seat horseshoes.
The Keys will have three bobblehead giveaways this season, handing out the collectibles to the first 1,000 fans in Harry Grove Stadium before each game. 2011 Frederick Key Manny Machado bobbles presented by BayRunner Shuttle will be given out Saturday, May 11 when the Keys host Wilmington at 6 p.m. 2012 Key Dylan Bundy bobbles presented by Frederick Radiology will be given away on Saturday, July 13, Superhero night, before a 6 p.m. game against Carolina. A bobblehead of ESPN baseball analyst and Maryland native Tim Kurkjian presented by Saint John’s Catholic Prep will be handed out Friday, Aug. 23, when the Keys host Wilmington at 7 p.m.
Former Washington Capitals great Peter Bondra and Caps mascot Slapshot will be at Harry Grove Stadium for NHL Day on Saturday, April 6, when the Keys continue their season-opening series with Salem in a 6 p.m. game. Fans can bring their dogs to the Grove twice this season during the Dog Days of Summer presented by Crossroads Animal and Referral Emergency, Thursday, June 6 and Thursday, Aug. 22.
On Saturday, Aug. 10, the women of Key City Roller Derby will hold a match in the parking lot before the Keys’ 6 p.m. game with Carolina. Keys baseball camps will be held July 1-3 and July 29-31.
One lucky fan will win a three-night vacation to Walt Disney World on the Keys’ Disney Night, Saturday, June 29, presented by Frederick Cruise Holidays and mystery will engulf the stadium on Clue Night, Wednesday, July 17. On Wednesday, July 3, fans 21 and over can party like its 1865 on Taste of History Night presented by Brewer’s Alley and the National Civil War Medicine Museum, which will feature the premiere of the beer Gettysburg Wheat and an assortment of other Civil War era libations.
The weekly promotion schedule at Harry Grove Stadium, which includes season-long food, drink and ticket specials, will be released later this week.
The Keys’ full promotional schedule is below:
April 5 – Opening night, Keys Calendar giveaway presented by H.N. Funkhouser, Keys Magnet Schedule giveaway presented by Kaplan University, Fireworks presented by Frederick Magazine and TransIT, Fun Bus, Keys For Reading (Montgomery and Howard Counties), Boys & Girls Club fundraiser
April 6 – NHL Day, Peter Bondra and Slapshot appearance, MS Walk at Harry Grove Stadium, Keys Calendar giveaway presented by H.N. Funkhouser, Keys Magnet Schedule giveaway presented by Kaplan University, Keys for Reading (Montgomery and Howard Counties)
April 7 – Argo Day, Meet the Team, Keys Calendar giveaway presented by H.N. Funkhouser, Keys Magnet Schedule giveaway presented by Kaplan University, Kids Club Kickoff Picnic, Keys for Reading (Montgomery and Howard Counties)
April 17 – Hispanic Celebration Night
April 26 – Fireworks presented by Amanda Addington RE/MAX Results, Family Fitness Weekend, Youth T-shirt giveaway (ages 12 & under) presented by Amanda Addington RE/MAX Results, American Heart Association fundraiser, Fun Bus
April 27 – Youth water bottle giveaway (ages 12 & under) presented by Amanda Addington RE/MAX Results, Fun Bus, Postgame 1K Fun Run, Family Fitness weekend
April 28 – Zoo and Wildlife Education Day presented by Catoctin Zoo, Fun Bus, Family Fitness weekend, Face Paint by Vicki, Postgame Zumba presented by Fitness First, Catoctin Zoo fundraiser
May 1 – Deaf and Hard of Hearing Night presented by Maryland School of the Deaf, Sign Language Tutorial
May 2 – Senior Day presented by MMI (Mid-Maryland Musculoskeletal Institute)
May 10 – Casino Night, Soolah Hoops, GEICO Gecko appearance, Fireworks presented by Heartfields of Frederick, Keys for Reading (assorted counties), RBBA fundraiser
May 11 – Manny Machado bobblehead giveaway presented by BayRunner Shuttle, Fireworks presented by BayRunner Shuttle, Keys for Reading (assorted counties)
May 12 – Mother’s Day, Brunch in Mattress Warehouse Club, Keys for Reading (assorted counties)
May 22 – $2 Pepsi Bottle Night
May 23 – History Day
May 24 – Fireworks, New Life Christian School fundraiser
May 25 – Man on Fire, Soolah Hoops, Fireworks
May 26 – Girls Night Out presented by Gold Thumb Jewelry, Postgame Diamond Dig, Fun Bus, Fireworks
June 5 – Celtic Night, Pregame bagpipers and dancers
June 6 – Dog Days of Summer presented by CARE (Crossroads Animal and Referral Emergency)
June 13 – Peanut Free Night
June 14 – Going Green Night, Fun Bus, Fireworks, Keys for Reading (Frederick County), LOUYAA fundraiser
June 15 – Jimmy Buffett Night, Soolah Hoops, Fireworks presented by New Life Chiropractic Center, Keys for Reading (Frederick County), Semper Fi fundraiser
June 16 – Father’s Day ticket package, Brunch in Mattress Warehouse Club, Keys for Reading (Frederick County)
June 21 – Sgt. Slaughter appearance, Fredneck Night presented by YellowCab, Fireworks presented by YellowCab
June 22 – Scout Night, Fireworks presented by Wegmans, Big Brothers Big Sisters fundraiser
June 23 – Pajama Night, Soolah Hoops, Meet the Team, Fun Bus, Fireworks
June 28 – 25th Season Night, 25th Season Card Set giveaway presented by Keeney & Basford Funeral Home, Fireworks presented by Keeney & Basford Funeral Home, GEICO Gecko appearance, Heartly House fundraiser, Hat Auction to benefit Heartly House
June 29 – Disney Night presented by Cruise Holidays of Frederick, Fireworks presented by Cruise Holidays of Frederick Keys, Face Paint by Vicki, Seed of Life fundraiser
June 30 – Faith Night, Fun Bus, Fireworks
July 1 – Baseball Camp
July 2 – Around the World Night, Baseball Camp
July 3 – Taste of History Night presented by Brewer’s Alley and the National Civil War Medicine Museum, Fireworks by Mattress Warehouse, Baseball Camp
July 12 – Hot Tub giveaway presented by Browning Pool & Spa, Hollywood Stars Night, Fireworks presented by Browning Pool & Spa, GEICO Gecko appearance, Wags to Hope fundraiser
July 13 – Dylan Bundy bobblehead giveaway presented by Frederick Radiology, Superhero night, Face Paint by Vicki, Fireworks presented by Frederick Radiology
July 14 – Fireworks, Fun Bus
July 17 – Clue Night, $2 Pepsi Bottle Night
July 18 – Super Splash Day
July 19 – Christmas in July, Fireworks
July 20 – Salute to the Orioles, Soolah Hoops, Fireworks presented by Rentals Unlimited
July 31 – Military and Civilians Night presented by En-NET Services, $2 ticket for active or retired military
August 8 – 50-Cent Hot Dog Night
August 9 – Daddy-Daughter Date Night, Fireworks, Soolah Hoops, GEICO Gecko appearance
August 10 – Key City Roller Derby pregame match in parking lot, Cancer Awareness Night, Fireworks presented by Community Radiology Associates, American Cancer Society fundraiser
August 11 – Summer Reading program
August 17 – Cowboy Monkey Rodeo, Rubber Ducky giveaway presented by Precision Heating and Cooling, Fireworks presented by PHC, Soolah Hoops
August 18 – Keyote’s Birthday, Face Paint by Vicki, Meet the Team, Summer Reading program
August 21 – Pirate Night
August 22 – Dogs Days of Summer presented by CARE
August 23 – Tim Kurkjian bobblehead giveaway presented by Saint John’s Catholic Prep, Art in the Park, Jersey Auction to benefit Frederick Arts Council, Frederick Arts Council fundraiser, Face Paint by Vicki, Fireworks presented by Saint John’s Catholic Prep
August 31 – Salute to the Gridiron Night, Fireworks, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation fundraiser
September 1 – Guns and Hoses Softball Game, PAL (Police Athletic Activities League) fundraiser Fireworks
September 2 – Fan Appreciation Day
-http://www.frederickkeys.com-
Preparations for the 2013 season are underway and it’s never too early to book your partial and full season ticket plans for the upcoming year at Harry Grove Stadium. For information on ticket plans contact the Keys Group Offices at 301-815-9900 or via the web at frederickkeys.com.
Contact: Mike Mueller, 301-815-9915
Tracking former Keys in the WBC
Former Key Jonathan Schoop gets congratulated by his Dutch teammates after a going deep against Cuba.
With the first round of the World Baseball Classic complete and the second round underway, let’s revisit the list of former Keys playing in the international tournament.
The former Key with the most impressive line so far belongs to Netherlands second baseman Jonathan Schoop. The Orioles’ top positional prospect and a Curacao native, Schoop, a Key in 2010 and 2011, started slow but has helped power the Dutch to a WBC semifinal berth. The Netherlands stunned Cuba for the second time in the second round this morning, winning 7-6 on a walk-off sacrifice fly in the bottom of the ninth and eliminating Cuba.
Schoop went 1-for-3 in the Dutch victory today — he singled and then was caught stealing second base– but went 3-for-6 with a homer, a double and 4 RBIs in the Netherlands’ 6-2 defeat of the Cubans earlier in the second round.
Entering today’s game, Schoop was hitting .235 with two home runs, six RBIs and a slugging percentage of .647. He started the competition 0-for-6 in the Dutch’s first two games, but then went on a power surge against Australia and Cuba. Schoop and the Netherlands will play Japan (which beat the Dutch 16-4 over the weekend) tomorrow at 6 a.m. to determine the winner of their four-team pool and their semifinal seeding.
The rest of the former Keys:
Allan de San Miguel, C (AUS) – The Australians went winless and were eliminated in the first round and de San Miguel, a 2012 Key, went 0-for-4 in two games. He was also reassigned to minor league spring training last week.
Paco Figueroa, 2B (ESP) – Spain’s second baseman went 1-for-12 with a walk in Spain’s three games, all losses. Now in the Philadelphia organization, Figueroa played 90 games in Frederick in 2006. The Spanish have been eliminated.
Danny Figueroa, OF (ESP) – Paco’s twin brother went 1-for-5 for Spain with a walk and a run. He patrolled center field for the Keys in 2008.
Richard Salazar, P (ESP) – Spain’s southpaw pitched once during Spain’s WBC run, throwing five scoreless innings, allowing two hits and striking out two. Salazar pitched in 100 games with the Keys over the 2003, 2005, 2006 and 2007 seasons.
John Mariotti, P (ITA) –Mariotti got throttled in his start against Mexico, but bounced back to pitch a scoreless inning of relief against the U.S. on Saturday. Against the Mexicans on Thursday, a game the Italians won 6-5, Mariotti lasted 1.2 innings, allowing four runs, three earned, on four hits and two walks. Of the five outs he recorded, three came via strikeout. Italy advanced to the second round and plays the Dominican Republic tomorrow at 1 p.m.
Adam Loewen, OF (CAN) – The Canadians were eliminated by the U.S. Sunday, ending Loewen’s WBC experience. Now an outfielder in the Blue Jays’ organization, Canada’s left fielder went 2-for-4 with two RBIs Sunday. Loewen went hitless in Canada’s previous games and finished with a .200 average and three RBIs. A former Keys pitcher in 2004, 2005 and 2008, a stress fracture in his left (pitching) elbow ended his career on the mound.
David Hernandez, P (USA) – A 2007 Frederick Key, Hernandez made his lone WBC appearance for the U.S. so far against Canada, pitching two-thirds of an inning while allowing three hits and a run. The U.S. opens second-round play against Puerto Rico tomorrow at 8 p.m.
*Since we’ve started updating this blog more frequently in mid-February, we’ve noticed quite the uptick in readership. The proof, as they say, is in the pudding: after being unranked among the top 50 MLB pro blogs, Unlocking the Keys finished 31st in page views for February. More proof we have arrived: we beat out a blog devoted to the Philadelphia Phillies’ ball girls by three spots.
Thank you guys for reading!
*Former Key Xavier Avery was optioned to triple-A Norfolk along with two others, according to MASN’s Roch Kubatko. X-man was a Key in 2010 and will move from big league camp to the minor league side for the remainder of spring training.
*More love for Schoop, courtesy of MASN’s Steve Melewski.
*25 days until opening night at the Grove.
Shake your Keys.
From independent ball to Frederick?
We got snowed out at the Grove yesterday. Time for a little post-snow-day catch-up:
*It’s that time of the week again: Let’s look at five more potential 2013 Keys.
The players that make up Part V of our Frederick 40 Countdown have at least one thing in common — they spent 2012 playing independent baseball. Highlighted this week on the blog might be the best of that bunch, Buddy Sosnoskie.
Buddy Sosnoskie spent 2012 with the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. His debut in affiliated baseball could come with the Keys.
Named preseason Division II Player of the Year by Baseball America before his senior season at Francis Marion, Sosnoskie played for the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks last season after going undrafted following his senior season, in which he hit .391 with 25 doubles, three triples, two home runs, 56 RBIs and 51 runs scored in 58 games.
His season with the RedHawks wasn’t too bad either, batting .339 with 18 doubles, two triples, two home runs, 31 RBIs, 35 runs scored and nine stolen bases in 53 games. That campaign led to Baseball America naming him the seventh-best prospect in independent baseball.
The O’s signed Sosnoskie, a left-handed outfielder, in November.
The rest of this week’s bunch:
Kyle Mertins – A former Sioux Falls Pheasant, he pitched one season at Cal State Fullerton, recording scoreless appearances in 21 of 25 games.
Chris Wade – This Windy City Thunderbolt shortstop reached advanced-A Jupiter with the Marlins’ organization in 2010.
Luis Pardo – He was the ace of the Trinidad Triggers’ staff, but a horrific start on his birthday (he allowed 14 earned runs in 2.1 innings) inflated his 7.81 ERA.
Marcel Prado – He worked out of the bullpen for the El Paso Diablos last season after being out of baseball in 2011. The big right-hander spent his winter pitching for the Bravos de Margarita in the Venezuelan Winter League, posting a 3.58 ERA in 27.2 innings pitched.
The full edition of The Frederick 40 Countdown: Part V is on the Keys’ website.
*Former Keys pitcher Richard Salazar had a rough go of it in Spain’s Wednesday exhibition with the Orioles. His line: 1.1 IP, 6 H, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 SO, 1 HR.
*Another former Keys pitcher, John Mariotti, will start Italy’s WBC opener against Mexico at 3 p.m. Follow the game here. Read more about Salazar and Mariotti in Monday’s blog post.
*Here’s a story about 2011 Keys pitcher Oliver Drake working back from the shoulder surgery that ended his season in 2012.
*Dylan Bundy and Kevin Gausman are slated to pitch Saturday for the O’s. Bundy is going to start and Gausman will relieve him, according to Britt Ghiroli.
*Be sure to check back later today for our No. 2 promotion in our Top 10 countdown.
I will be on a plane to Memphis tomorrow. So, until next week, Shake your Keys.
Mahoney mashing for Marlins
Currently in Miami Marlins spring training, Joe Mahoney played in parts of three season for the Keys.
In a perfect world, every Frederick Key that makes it to the major leagues would make it as an Oriole. Homegrown talent, from Harry Grove Stadium to Camden Yards.
But, an imperfect game by nature, baseball does not work that way.
A former Key now outside the organization, Joe Mahoney is making his case for an everyday job with the Marlins.
Mahoney, a Key for parts of three seasons, was claimed off waivers by Miami in November, and the former sixth-round pick of the O’s is already justifying that move. In five spring training games, Mahoney is 5-for-14 — that’s a .357 batting average — with two homers, a double and 5 RBIs.
Mahoney did most of his damage Saturday against the Mets, going deep twice and driving in four runs. Here’s video of his second home run, a three-run dinger:
http://mlb.mlb.com/video/play.jsp?content_id=25649891
Mahoney spent parts of three seasons with the Keys, playing 72 of his 82 games with Frederick in 2010. He hit nine home runs with the Keys that season, batted .299 and drove in 49 runs. Add his numbers with Double-A Bowie that season to those with the Keys and Mahoney slugged 18 homers, batted .307 and drove in 82 runs in 124 games.
That’s the type of power the Marlins hope Mahoney can rediscover after hitting just 21 home runs over the last two seasons with double-A Bowie and triple-A Norfolk. With Miami’s few options at first base, Mahoney could win himself a big-league job if he shows enough pop.
In fact, here’s a Miami Herald story saying just that. From the story by Manny Navarro:
Now 26, Mahoney feels like he’s starting to mature as a hitter. He said he learned a lot from former Orioles teammates Derrek Lee, Nick Johnson and Chris Davis in his three previous springs with Baltimore and has learned quite a bit now working with new Marlins hitting coach Tino Martinez.
“I’ve always kind of had it,” Mahoney said of the power. “But now is when I’m really starting to learn pitch selection and letting it translate into games. I’m trying to be an all-around player, be a good hitter who hits for average, drive runners in.”
A 2007 draft pick, Mahoney was called up to the Orioles briefly in 2012, going 0-for-4 in two games. Whether he gets a chance to improve on his major-league numbers to start this season will likely depend on how he finishes spring training following his hot start.
A sign that Mahoney’s opportunity is real — the fantasy baseball community is talking about him.
*2010 and 2011 Key Jonathan Schoop has one hit in the World Baseball Classic — a line-drive home run that almost ended the life of a woman knitting in the left-field stands. He recorded it yesterday against Australia. Watch:
*That bomb helped eliminate Australia and former Key Allan de San Miguel from the WBC in a 4-1 Netherlands victory.
*Richard Salazar, a four-season former Key, will start for Spain in tomorrow’s exhibition against the Orioles, according to MASN’s Roch Kubatko.
*Read about all of the former Keys in the WBC in yesterday’s blog post.
*Some notes from Roch Kubatko on O’s minor laegue camp.
*A nice gesture to the troops by the BayBears.
*Looks like we’re going to get snowquestered tonight and tomorrow.
*Just one month before opening night at the Grove.
Shake your Keys.
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