Casper Rockies

[Durango53]

Well it is now time for the Casper Rockies to start to get fired up. In a few days the Casper Rox will be here and start the games up for the Rookie league. In the past few years I have seen some guys I think will be some great players in the bigs some day...

Jayson Nix a good glove with a bat that will be very good for a 2nd baseman (where I think he will end up playing but a SS right now0

Ching-Lung Lo a very young fireballer that the Rox got at the age of 16 and they should be able to mold him the way they need to.

Ryan Shealy just to see this guy you think Big Mac.6' 5" and 240 pounds this kid can flat out hit a long ball. Weak on a slider but that is why they go though the minors... This kid could do what Todd Helton did when he made everyone forget about the Big Cat... Helton who? He is why I feel that they could trade Helton and get some players that will fill places they need and this kid could step up in a couple years...

Ian Stewart the first round draft pick last year who made Walker and Helton watch in ah of the HR he was hitting in Coors field. Walker told Helton that he just saw his replacement but I am hoping it is the other way around. Stewart can play some outfield and I feel he should be the RF of the future with 1st base being filled up with some good players in the minor league system right now. But Stewart played 3rd all season last year.


I dont care to much now about Rockies baseball to much right now with the moves that the GM and Manager have done so I was a bit more excited about the Casper Rox a bit more until the draft... I feel the Rox should have drafted diffenet players instead of who they did get.

But here is my Casper Rockies thread where I will keep people that care informed about the young guys at Casper...

[Durango53]

Baseball America, a highly regarded professional baseball publication, recently released its list of the top ten prospects in the Colorado Rockies organization, and Casper Rockies fans might just recognize a few of the names. Five of the top ten prospects have played in Casper in the last three years, including Ian Stewart, Colorado’s #1 pick in last year’s draft. Stewart, who joined the Casper Rockies midway through the 2003 season and had an immediate impact, sits near the top of the list as the second highest prospect in Colorado’s entire minor league organization. Joining Stewart is Ubaldo Jimenez (‘02) at #4, Jayson Nix (‘01) at #5, Zack Parker (‘01) at #8, and Ching-Lung Lo (‘02) at #10.

Ian Stewart (3B) arrived in Casper last year with a hefty signing bonus and even loftier expectations. However, he quickly quieted any of the critics with his solid defense at third base and monster home-run shots over right field. Stewart ended the season hitting .317, with 10 homers and a .401 on-base percentage. According to Tracy Ringolsby, a writer for Baseball America and the Rocky Mountain News, “[Ian] will be on a fast track because of his aptitude and attitude and ability. It wouldn't be a surprise to see him in the big league leagues late in 2005.”

The #4 prospect, Ubaldo Jimenez (RHP) is a potentially dominant pitcher. After playing for Casper in 2002, he went to Asheville (Single A) and earned a 10-6 record with a 3.46 ERA. Jimenez was moved up to Visalia (High Single A) and threw a shutout in his only start. He is said to have the best curveball in the system, which breaks big and sharp.

Jayson Nix (2B) rounds out the top five prospects. Nix was converted from a shortstop to a second baseman after his 2001 campaign in Casper, and is still adjusting to the position. However, he had a breakout season last year, hitting .281 with 21 homers, 24 stolen bases, and 86 RBIs for Visalia. To go along with these solid numbers, he also led the league in doubles (46) and runs scored (107).

Eighth on the list is Zack Parker (LHP), who began his professional career in Casper in 2001. Parker spent last season in Visalia where he tallied a 5-5 record and a respectable 3.69 ERA., as well as 52 strikeouts.

At #10 is Ching-Lung Lo (RHP), a Taiwanese pitcher who played for Casper in 2002. Although Lo only went 3-7 in 2003 for Tri-City (Short Season Single A), he still ended the year with a 2.85 ERA and is considered by Colorado to have a tremendous upside. At 18, Lo still has some time to develop and is expected to increase his pitch speed as his body matures.

[Durango53]

Opening with a 5 game home stand.
Upcoming Games
June 18th - Provo 7:05pm
June 19th - Provo 7:05pm
June 20th - Provo 5:05pm
June 21st - Provo 7:05pm
June 22nd - Provo 7:05pm

[Durango53]

The Casper Rockies Professional Baseball Club announced today that P.J. Carey will return as manager of the Casper Rockies, the Pioneer League Advanced Rookie affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. Carey guided the Rockies in both 2001 and 2003, and has become an endeared member of the Casper community.

[Durango53]

NEW YORK -- Last time Eric Young Jr. wore Colorado Rockies gear on the field, he was a batboy while his father played for the club.

On Wednesday afternoon, however, Junior was in a Rockies-issued T-shirt and shorts, taking batting practice cuts against manager Clint Hurdle. But this wasn't a favor to his dad. Young, 19, was drafted by the Rockies last year in the 30th round, and he signed a contract just before this year's draft. He'll soon begin his minor league career.

Dad was preparing for Texas' game against Pittsburgh on Wednesday night, but he was more excited about his son's day. The father noted that the Rockies will send his son to Rookie-level Casper on June 17, and the plan is for him to room with the team's top draft pick this year, shortstop Chris Nelson. If all goes well, they can advance through the minors together.

[Durango53]

Bill I know you said that the Rox shouldnt trade Helton but I am going to post some stuff on some guys that played in Casper that I saw and are coming up. and the first guy is the reason I think they should trade Helton next year.

RYAN SHEALY, FIRST BASEMAN

The '02 Pioneer League MVP has a problem.

A rather large one at that.

While the former University of Florida slugger continues to put up impressive numbers for Colorado's farm teams, Shealy's path to the majors has one major roadblock: Todd Helton.

"Shealy is going to be a major league player, but I don't know who with," Colorado's assistant director of player development Marc Gustafson said. "Obviously, Todd Helton is here now. We've just have to keep working very hard with him and keep developing him as a prospect.

"If he plays for us, that's great. If he plays for someone else, you know what, good for him. Maybe we'll get something in return. I'm not saying that that's going to happen, but we've got to be very proud of what we have."

-- When in Casper: 2002

-- Where is he now? Class-AA Tulsa (Texas League).

-- How is he doing? Well. He's hitting .302 with 10 home runs and 37 RBI.

-- Coming to Coors Field in... Maybe never. If he continues to produce, he'll likely be traded to an organization that doesn't have a perennial MVP candidate at first base. Should that happen, Shealy could make his big league debut some time during the '05 season.

[Durango53]

CHING-LUNG LO

Of all the players who've worn a Casper uniform, Lo's signing bonus of $1.4 million trails only the $1.95 million Colorado doled out to Ian Stewart.

Obviously, the Rockies hope the greenbacks they deposited in Lo's account pay dividends, and that won't happen unless the tall right-hander reaches the big leagues.

So far, Colorado has been exceedingly patient with Lo. Remember, he was only 16 when he pitched in Casper, and even then, Colorado had Lo skip every other turn in the rotation as a precaution against injury trouble.

-- When in Casper: 2002

-- Where is he now? Class-A Asheville (South Atlantic League).

-- How is he doing? Well. Has only pitched 16.1 innings but has 3.86 ERA with 14 strikeouts.

-- Coming to Coors Field in... Not any time soon. The Rockies will be more than content to let fellow Taiwanese pitcher Chin-Hui Tsao star in Colorado will Lo takes his time developing in the minors. 2007 is a good guess.

[Durango53]

JAYSON NIX, SECOND BASEMAN

All three times Colorado has taken a high school prospect in the first round, the Rockies have shipped that player to Casper for his professional debut.

Two years before Stewart clobbered PBL pitching and three years before Chris Nelson debuts, Nix had a standout premier season, hitting .294 and racking up 24 RBI.

This year, he played a spring training game with the big boys to get a taste of things to come. In Colorado's infield of the future, Nix is supposed to occupy the dirt about 90 feet to Stewart's left.

"I'd certainly say with guys like that that they're well on their way," said Bill Geivett, Colorado's director of player personnel, sizing up the fortunes of both Nix and fellow prospect Ryan Shealy. "Both of them have to prove what they can do at Double-A. Once you get there, just a matter of performance and how you do."

-- When in Casper: 2001

-- Where is he now? Class-AA Tulsa (Texas League).

-- How is he doing? Ok. He's hitting .222 with eight home runs and 25 RBI.

-- Coming to Coors Field in...: Could be the first former Casper player to make it to the major leagues. Look for him to be called up at some point during the '05 campaign.

[Durango53]

IAN STEWART, THIRD BASEMAN

Colorado's first pick in the 2003 draft (10th overall) is one of the best offensive prospects in baseball.

After hitting .317 and slugging 10 home runs in his stint in Casper, Baseball America named Stewart the top player in the Pioneer Baseball League for the '03 season.

"I'll tell you, he's going to be a hell of a hitter," said manager P.J. Carey last September, sizing up Stewart's potential. "But his defense at third base has been outstanding for an 18-year-old kid.

"For me, I know he's going to hit. Usually No. 1 draft picks are signed for that bat potential that he's shown all year. But I've been most happy about his instincts and the way he's approached his defensive responsibilities, the improvement he's made with his arm, his mechanics, his ability to make plays in big situations. They are signs of great things to come."

-- When in Casper: 2003

-- Where is he now? Class-A Asheville (South Atlantic League).

-- How is he doing? Extremely well. He's currently hitting .297 with 15 home runs and 43 RBI.

-- Coming to Coors Field in... Could be as early as late 2005, should Stewart continue to mash the ball. But the best guess is probably sometime during the '06 season. Once Stewart makes it to Denver, he figures to be a fixture on the hot corner for a long, long time.

[Durango53]

UBALDO JIMENEZ, PITCHER

Before suffering a minor back injury in June, the hard-throwing right-hander topped Baseball America's "prospect hot sheet" three times, beating out every other minor leaguer in the game.

That doesn't mean he's baseball's -- or Colorado's -- best prospect, just that he's having the best start to the season.

Jimenez wasn't overly impressive in his time in Casper, posting a 6.53 ERA in 62 innings, but since then, he's taken advantage of his mid-90s fastball and struck out 201 batters in 203 innings in Asheville and Visalia.

-- When in Casper: 2002

-- Where is he now? Class-A Visalia (California League).

-- How is he doing? Extremely well. He has a 4-1 record with a 2.23 ERA.

-- Coming to Coors Field in...: Still a ways off. Should the right-hander continue to dominate in high Class-A, he could be called up to Double-A Tulsa by the end of the year. But it's a stretch to think he'll be pitching for the parent club before the '06 season.

[Durango53]

NEIL WILSON, CATCHER

The soft-spoken Wilson was a shortstop until his senior year in high school, so this is only his fourth season behind the plate. He spent two summers in Casper learning the position from managers Darron Cox and P.J. Carey, both of whom were catchers in their playing days.

Defense is Wilson's forte, but he got off to a strong start offensively this year in Asheville. He also hit .295 for Casper last year.

The Rockies are high on Wilson and figure to wait on him.

"Neil Wilson is a big league player," Gustafson said.

-- When in Casper: 2002-03.

-- Where is he now? Class-A Asheville (South Atlantic League).

-- How is he doing? Ok. He has a .231 average with four home runs and 21 RBI.

-- Coming to Coors Field in... It depends on how fast he learns and how well his bat develops, but should Wilson make it to the majors, it would probably be in late '06 or early '07.

[Durango53]

The Provo Angels ruined the Rockies' opener with a chippy 2-1 win in front of 1,218 fans at Lansing Field. Casper displayed some gritty defense and pitching, but couldn't muster enough offense to match the Angels.

The Rockies hitters managed just four hits in the game, all singles, and struck out nine times. But the Casper pitchers turned that right around on the Angels, who managed only five hits, only one double, and struck out 10 times.

[Durango53]

Sunday a double header the Rox beat the Angels 5 to 4 both games...

Game #1 of Dbl Header - Ryan Fox: 2 for 3, 3 RBIs, HR
Game #2 of Dbl Header - Samuel Deduno: 5 innings, 1 hit, 10 Ks, 0 ER

[Durango53]

CASPER ROCKIES 2004 TEAM ROSTER

No. Pos. Name
\ \ PITCHERS (18)
46 RHP Angelo Manzueta
44 RHP Chris Buechner
29 LHP Franklin Morales
18 RHP George Delgado
50 LHP Jay Metzger
53 LHP Jeremey White
45 RHP Josh Merino
54 LHP Josh Newman
20 RHP Matt Daley
27 RHP Pat Stanley
28 RHP Pedro Chivilli
51 RHP Rafael Sanchez
31 RHP Samuel Deduno
36 RHP Sandy Nin
39 RHP Shane Lindsey
7 RHP Alberto Mosqueda
41 RHP Ryan Mattheus
19 RHP David Patton
/ / /
/ / CATCHERS (3)
21 C Ryan Fox
3 C Luke Sargeant
24 C Ramon Rodriquez
/ / /
/ / INFIELD (6)
23 3B Dustin Hahn
2 2B Eric Young
11 2B Fernando Veracierto
12 SS Jeff Dragicevich
17 1B Mike Davies
5 SS Sandy Almonte
/ / /
/ / OUTFIELD (2)
8 OF Rob Hosgood
1 OF Steven Boggs
/ / * Rehab Players
/ / /
/ / DRAFT PICKS
/ SS Chris Nelson
/ OF Justin Nelson
/ C Kyle Wilson
/ OF Seth Smith

FIELD STAFF
10 PJ Carey Manager
72 Richard Palacios Pitching Coach
56 Tony Diaz Hitting Coach
\ Austin O'Shea Trainer
\ Ryan Carroll Strength and Conditioning Coach
\ Dennis Publow Clubhouse Manager

[Durango53]

The Casper Rockies win their third in a row against Provo Monday night thanks to Rob Hosgood's Grand Slam!!!