Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013.  We are currently in our 13th week of the contest. The latest former key to be selected was right handed pitcher, Dalton Maine.

It took a while on Facebook for Maine to be guessed, which isn’t surprising, considering this bushy-browed right hander only saw time in Frederick for 19 games out of his total 93 in his minor league career. His baseball career began in the independent league, with the Mason City Bats in 1994. His 1-6 record and 4.93 ERA wasn’t anything superior, but none the less, the Orioles picked him up as an undrafted free agent in ’95 and he didn’t disappoint in his first season in the system.

After a one game stint with this Bluefield O’s, the University of Richmond alumni found himself with the GCL Orioles. In 18 games, he showed that he may have been worth the pickup after all. In 18 games, he was 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA. That was enough for him to skip low ‘A’ and head to Frederick to finish out his 1995 season. He didn’t do too badly with the Keys either, pitching 22 innings, compiling a 3.68 ERA and 1-1 record.

In 1996, he found himself in the California League with the Orioles minor league team at the time, the High Desert Mavericks. After posting a 1.50 ERA over 12 innings, he was moved to the Bakersfield Blaze, a Co-Op team at the time. He pitched 47.1 innings with Bakersfield before being moved to Bowie, where he posted a 5.06 ERA in 21+ innings to finish off the ’96 campaign.

His minor league career ended after just 11 games in ’97 between the GCL Orioles and the Baysox.

Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013.  We are currently in our sixth week of the contest. The latest former key to be selected was right handed Pitcher Allen Plaster.

Allen was born on August 13, 1970 in Kernersville, North Carolina.  Plaster attended the University of North Carolina- Charlotte until he was drafted in the 20^th round by the Orioles in the 1991 draft. He started his career within the Orioles farm system with Bluefield where he pitched in 10 games and accrued a 2.44 ERA. He was then promoted to Frederick where he appeared in only 4 games and had a 11.0 ERA. Allen spent all of 1992 with the Frederick Keys and had a much better pitching performance. He ended the year with a 2.87 ERA in 150.1 innings pitched and a 9-12 win – loss record.

After a solid year in Frederick, Plaster spent 1993 and 1994 in Modesto, California. 1994 seemed to be Allen’s best performing year. He was able to obtain a 1.93 ERA in 51.1 innings pitched. Ultimately, Plaster ended his career after the 1996 season in Double A with the Bowie Baysox where he had a less than stellar year.

His career numbers as a member of the minor league system for seven seasons was a 24-22 record with a 3.39 ERA in 151 games and 428.0 innings pitched.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday, which will take place on December 21st!

Former Frederick Friday Players

November 2nd: Ron Kitchen

November 9th: Scott Conner

November 16th: Mark Gibbs

November 30th: Chris Lemp

December 7th: Feliciano Mercedes

December 14th: Allen Plaster

Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013. The fifth week into the contest wasn’t too much of a stumper, as it took just two guesses on Facebook for someone to get the right guy. Infielder Feliciano Mercedes, who also pitched in his MiLB career, was the former Key  selected from archives last week, so let’s find out some more about him…

Born in the Dominican Republic in 1973, Mercedes, 39, was signed in 1991 as an undrafted free agent by the Orioles. The switch-hitting infielder began his pro career with the Gulf Coast League Orioles, where he managed an average of just .227 om 185 at-bats. In ’92, he spent time with the Bluefield Orioles (Rookie League), where he hit much better at .272 and stole 14 bases while seeing time at shortstop and third base. After 43 games with Bluefield, Feliciano saw himself finishing the season with the Class ’A’ Kane County Cougars. In the remaining 53 games of 1992, he hit .241 with 10 RBI.

Although his numbers to that point were nothing to brag about, Mercedes spent all of 1993 within the friendly confines of Harry Grove Stadium. As a member of the Keys, he primarily played shortstop. Over 123 games, he hit 17 doubles, stole 17 bases, knocked in 35 runs and hit .227. He found himself starting the ’94 season back with the GCL Orioles, where he hit .300 through three games before returning to Frederick for 43 games. He hit just .237 and knocked in 19 runs in his second stint with the Keys.

1995 marked the final year of Mercedes’  career in baseball. He spent time with the Advanced ‘A’ High Desert Mavericks to begin the year before getting promoted to Bowie. He hit just .150 in Double-A. His career numbers as a member of the O’s minor league system for five seasons was .232 average, 111 RBI, .312 OBP, .299 SLG. Mercedes was speedy, as he swiped 63 bases throughout those five seasons.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday, which will take place on December 7th!

Former Frederick Friday Players

November 2nd: Ron Kitchen

November 9th: Scott Conner

November 16th: Mark Gibbs

November 30th: Chris Lemp

December 7th: Feliciano Mercedes

Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013. The fourth week into the contest wasn’t too much of a stumper, as it took just one guess on Facebook for someone to get the right guy. Pitcher Chris Lemp was the former Key  selected from archives last week, so let’s find out some more about him…

Selected in the 9th round of the 1991 draft by the O’s, Lemp was taken out of Sacramento City College. Currently 41 years old, Lemp saw time during three seasons as a Key. After going 2-4 in his first two season in the Orioles system between Bluefield and Kane County, Chris started the ’93 season as a Key and would stay there for that season and the next. In ’93, he posted a 4-1 record but his ERA was nothing too impressive at 3.56. 1994 showed improvement in that area, as Lemp lowered his line to 2.71 over 52 games. Chris tallied 21 saves for the Keys in 1994, eight in ’93 and 19 in 1995 before getting promoted to Bowie in the later part of ’95. Lemp is the Keys all-time leader in saves with 48. The next player closest to that is Francisco Hernandez with 38 from 1995-98.

Double-A didn’t go too well for Lemp during the 18 games he appeared in during the end of the 1995 season. He was 2-4 with a 5.40 ERA and four saves. He did see limited time in Triple-A Rochester, where he posted an 11.25 ERA over three games. Lemp split time between the Independent League Goldeyes in Winnipeg and Double-A Bowie in ’96, but his ERA was above four with both squads.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday, which will take place on December 7th!

Former Frederick Friday Players

November 2nd: Ron Kitchen

November 9th: Scott Conner

November 16th: Mark Gibbs

November 30th: Chris Lemp

Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013. The third week into the contest was a tough-y, as shown by the 18 guesses it took Facebook for someone to get the right guy. That is not including two clues either! Mark Gibbs was the lucky guy selected from the Keys photo archives last week, so let’s find out some more about this Keys infielder!

Named as one of the Top 100 high school players after a great career at St. Johns College High School, Gibbs was signed by the Orioles after being the starting short stop for four years at George Mason University. In his time at Mason, Gibbs finished in the top ten in many categories, including hits and games played.

Mark made his organizational debut with the GCL Orioles in 2000, where he played both second base and shortstop. His average was nothing to brag about at .259. That was enough to earn him a trip to Frederick to begin the 2001 season. He played only 42 games in a Keys uniform and hit just .207. None the less, he found himself in Bowie after his time with the Keys, where he hit .228 through 32 games. He saw time at the hot corner with the Baysox as well.

Gibbs began 2002 with the Shorebirds in Low ‘A’ before seeing some time with the Baysox again in Double ‘A’. His stats were not too impressive, hitting .180 in Delmarva and .167 in Bowie. That was his final year in professional baseball.

Currently, Mark Gibbs works at his high school alma mater, St. Johns College HS as the head baseball coach. Although he didn’t get higher than Double ‘A’ in the O’s organization, he endured plenty of success in high school and college baseball and is now giving his knowledge to the players he coaches.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday, which will take place on November 30th! Have a safe and happy Thanksgiving, Keys fans!

Former Frederick Friday Players

November 2nd: Ron Kitchen

November 9th: Scott Conner

November 16th: Mark Gibbs

Welcome to the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013. The second week was another hard one, even though it only took 10 guesses on Facebook for someone to get the right guy. Scott Conner was the mystery man this week, let’s find out some more about this Keys pitcher.

This right-hander, drafted in the 34th round of the 1991 draft by the O’s out of New Mexico Junior College, spent 10 seasons in between the minors and independents. Currently 40 years old, Conner spent his first two season with the Gulf Coast League Orioles, where he went a combined 5-9 with a 3.34 ERAin 24 games (18 starts). After spending all of 1993 with the Orioles Low ‘A’ Albany Polecats, Conner made his Keys debut in 1994. Frederick utilized Conner as a reliever, where he appeared in 53 games, posting a 2-1 record and a solid 3.56 ERA. During his time with the Keys in ’94, Conner also recorded eight saves.

His performance in Frederick was good enough to warrant a promotion to Double-A in 1995, where he spent his whole season with the Baysox. He pitched in 41 games and went 5-1 but held an ERA of 4.17, which wasn’t too great. He spent time with both Frederick and Bowie in 1996, his final season in affiliated baseball.

Conner was injured for the entire 1997 season but returned to the diamond in 1998 to spend four seasons in the independent league. In 1998-99, he pitched for the Bridgeport Bluefish in Connecticut, where he posted a 24-10 record through two seasons as a starter. He moved on to the Winnipeg Goldeyes for 2000-01, which was the end of the road for Conner.

Overall, Scott Conner went 3-3 with a 3.60 ERA in 65 games for the Keys, ten of which he started. His career stats, including his time in the independents, have him at 51-41 and a 4.27 ERA.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday!

Former Frederick Friday Players

November 2nd: Ron Kitchen

November 9th: Scott Conner

November 2nd kicked off the Keys 2nd annual Former Frederick Friday contest. Throughout the offseason on specific Friday’s, a picture of a former Key is posted. The first person to guess it right will get their name in the running for a Keys Luxury Suite during a game in 2013. The first week was a tough one, as it took over 25 guesses on Facebook for someone to get the right guy. Ron Kitchen was the first player pulled out of the archives, and here is some information on this former Keys farmhand.

Currently 41 years old, Kitchen is a native of Pittsburgh, PA. He went to Bethel Park High School before attending Youngstown State University. Listed at 6-1 and a few pounds under 220, Ron was picked up by the Orioles as an undrafted free agent in 1993. He spent his entire first season in the Appalachian League with the Bluefield O’s and the Gulf Coast League O’s. He spent 16 of his 18 games that year in Bluefield, where he posted a 1-2 record and a 5.18 ERA. He began 1994 with the Orioles Low ‘A’ Affiliate at the time, the Albany Polecats. In 18 games there that season, he was much more impressive, going 1-1 with a 0.23 ERA over 38.2 innings. Before joining the Keys in 1995, Kitchen pitched in 14 games for the independent team, the Long Beach Barracudas. While with the Keys in 1995, he appeared in 30 games, going 2-2. He sported an ERA of 7.23.

After 1995, Kitchen found himself pitching for another independent team in Tyler, TX called the Tyler Wildcatters. He appeared in 28 games between 1996-97 for the Wildcatters, going a combined 9-6 with an ERA of 3.82.

Make sure to “Like” Us on Facebook to have your chance at the next Former Frederick Friday!

Although the Minor League Baseball season has been over for a few weeks now, some young players were selected by their big league squad to participate in the Arizona Fall League.

For those of you who have never heard of this, the Arizona Fall League is an off-season league owned and operated by Major League Baseball which operates during the fall in Arizona at five spring training venues. The season runs from early October until the middle of November. It consists of six teams, each of which has prospects from five MLB teams.  Each Major League team provides seven players who team up to fill the 35-man roster of each team. For example, the Mesa Solar Sox have young players that come from the Orioles system along with the Cubs, Astros, Dodgers and Tigers. The Phoenix Desert Dogs, Scottsdale Scorpions, Peoria Javelinas, Salt River Rafters and the Surprise Saguaros comprise the rest of the teams.

Yesterday, we looked at the pitcher’s representing the O’s, so today we look at the two hitters for the Solar Sox that both saw time in Frederick during the 2011 season.

Part of the 2011 Keys Championship team, O’s #3 prospect Jonathan Schoop, spent his entire 2012 season with the Double-A Bowie Baysox after helping Frederick raise the Mills Cup. His .290 average in 2011 between Delmarva and Frederick was enough to warrant a promotion to Bowie for the now 21-year old phenom. Schoop spent plenty of the season playing second base while his teammate Manny Machado was at shortstop. Schoop hit .245 in his first Double-A season, with 14 homers and 56 RBI. Although he saw most of his reps at 2B, once Machado got the call, he saw time at short as well, which could benefit him in the long run with Manny playing 3B for the O’s. In the Fall League, Schoop is second on the team in batting average at .333 with three doubles, a homer and four RBI. Schoop won the 2011 Brooks Robinson Award as the Baltimore Orioles’ Minor League Player of the Year and was signed as a non-drafted free agent in 2008.

Schoop may have been the 2011 recipient of the Brooks Robinson Minor League Player of the Year award, but the 2012 winner also finds himself in the Fall League. Called up to the Orioles after a great year in the minors, #12 O’s prospect LJ Hoes only saw one at-bat and after his promotion on September 11th. He saw minimal pinch-running opportunities as well, but that doesn’t take away from what he did in 2012. After spending 2011 split between Frederick and Bowie, Hoes began 2012 with the Baysox, where he posted a solid .265 average over 51 games. He was promoted to Norfolk, where he found more success. In 82 games with the Tides, LJ hit an even .300 with three homers and 38 RBI. He was riding a 20-game hitting streak with Norfolk at one point at well. Despite his great season in Triple-A, he is struggling to find his stroke in the Fall League. Hitting just .130 in 23 at-bats, Hoes has registered just three RBI over six games. It is a small sample size, so there is plenty of time for him to start hitting. Hoes is a local guy, selected by the Baltimore Orioles in the third round of the 2008 First-Year Player Draft out of St. John’s High School in Washington, D.C.

To follow the Orioles prospects on the Mesa Solar Sox throughout the Arizona Fall League, click here.

To see profiles on the Orioles pitching prospects in the AFL, click here.