Winter League Notebook

By John Manuel
December 3, 2004

Power arms win championships in the major leagues.

Whether or not it holds true in the Dominican Winter League remains to be seen. Escogido has as many power arms, if not more, than the average big league staff, yet it remains in the middle of the pack in the Dominican standings.

Led in the starting staff by righthanders Jose Capellan (Braves), Ezequiel Astacio (Astros) and Merkin Valdez (Giants) and in the bullpen by Ramon Colon (Braves), Jairo Garcia (Athletics) and Jose Veras (Rangers), the Lions had allowed just 253 hits in their first 289 innings, holding opponents to a .233 batting average.

The pitching staff had not been good enough to keep Escogido from a poor 14-18 start, fourth in the league behind Aguilas. Escogido’s staff leans to the right, but even their lefthanders throw hard. Starter Francisco Liriano (Twins) and reliever Franklin Gracesqui (Devil Rays) both reach the mid-90s as well.

“Every big Latin arm seems to pitch for Escogido,” said one scout with an American League organization, just back from a trip to the Dominican. “I think I saw seven guys throw 95 for that team in a span of about two days.

“Capellan was the most impressive. His arm action is outstanding, his velocity is easy, and while his fastball is a little straight, it’s 96 and he puts it where he wants to.”

Astacio may not quite have Capellan’s prospect cachet, but he’s been the best starter on the team. Formerly known more for his split-finger fastball and slider, Astacio ratcheted up the velocity on his fastball in 2004, first at Double-A Round Rock and now in the Dominican. After pitching in the 91-93 mph range during the season, Astacio sat consistently at 94 in a recent Dominican start, according to a scout with a National League club in attendance.

Despite all its pitching, Escogido was still chasing Aguilas (23-9), which was the class of the league in the early going. The veteran Eagles team was led by 40-year-old outfielder Luis Polonia, who was hitting .315 as the top-of-the-order catalyst. Outfielders Alex Fernandez (six-year free agent) and Willy Mo Pena (Reds) were providing the power, with Fernandez leading the team in batting (.323) and RBIs (18).

The team’s top young player has been third baseman Edwin Encarnacion (Reds), who has played flashy defense at the hot corner while also hitting three homers and showing patience at the plate. He’s hitting just .248 but his 10 walks boost his on-base percentage to .333.

“He’s one of the best prospects there, no question,” another American League scout said. “He’s very good defensively, and I like his bat. You can say he doesn’t fit the profile for third base in terms of power, but you tell me how many big league third basemen do right now. I think he can hit .280 with 20 or 25 homers, and that’s an all-star third baseman.”

Maniacal Winter

Winter ball for J.J. Furmaniak might as well have been instructional league.

Only in Mexico, instead of facing inexperienced pitchers working on honing mechanics or working on one pitch, he was more liable to face a 40-something pitcher throwing six different varieties of breaking balls.

“The games here are really intense, way more intense than any minor league game I've played,” said the Padres farmhand, who spent November playing for Los Mochis in the Mexican Pacific League. “There are a lot of pitching changes during the game, and the games take three to four hours. It’s like each game is a playoff game, but that makes it fun also.

“The pitching has also been really good here too. I was surprised to hear that a lot of the guys down here don't play in the States. The competition is definitely comparable.”

Furmaniak got off to a good start in Mexico before cooling off; he was hitting .234-4-23 in 141 at-bats. However, hitting isn’t why Furmaniak went to Mexico. He’s shown he can hit in the minors, capping his career to date with his best year in 2004. He hit a career-best 18 home runs in 476 at-bats, 17 of them coming with Portland in his first Triple-A stint.

Furmaniak went to Mexico, though, to work on his defense. An adequate defender at short who played primarily third base in 2002, Furmaniak wanted to get more familiar with the right side of the diamond to get ready for 2005. Blocked by Rookie of the Year Khalil Greene at short, and with all-star Mark Loretta and 23-year-old Sean Burroughs ensconced at second and third in San Diego, Furmaniak knows a utility role is his quickest route to the major leagues.

“I’ve always been a guy who never worries about who’s in front of me or behind me,” said Furmaniak, 25. “I’ve always said I have to play my best and good things will happen. I know Greene is the future of the Padres and will probably anchor at short for a long time. My only goal at this time is, I want to contribute to the Padres somehow in the future at any position. That’s why I wanted to come to Mexico and get some experience at second and third.

“I’ve always prided myself on being a good defensive player and that is always my focus. I always thought I could play defense in the big leagues but just needed to become a more consistent hitter.”

The organization noticed his improvement and effort. A fast start in Mexico and his play in the field, on top of his regular season, convinced the Padres to put Furmaniak on the 40-man roster for the first time.

“I really thought that if we didn't add J.J. to the 40-man that we'd lose him in the Rule 5 draft," farm director Tye Waller said. “He has the ability to step up to the big leagues. He has become a more consistent offensive player with some power for a middle-infield guy. And he's a good defensive shortstop.

"He was drawing a lot of interest from other clubs. It's really hard to let good middle-infield prospects slip away. And guys who can play shortstop can turn into valuable utility men."

Most players want to make it to the major leagues with the club that drafted them. That’s especially true for Furmaniak, a 22nd-round pick in 2000 out of Division II Lewis (Ill.). He credits the organization’s coaches, such as roving hitting coordinator Rob Deer, Portland hitting coach Tommy Sandt and Beavers manager Craig Colbert, for his breakout season. And he reveled playing on a Beavers team that led the Pacific Coast League with 84 victories and featured many of the organization’s top prospects, such as John Knott, Tagg Bozied, Jake Gautreau, Xavier Nady, and Justin Germano, guys he has played with since he signed.

“The players made it a great experience,” he said. “I mean we pretty much had some of best minor league players the Padres had on one team. It always seemed that someone stepped up at a big time with a big hit or pitched a gem of a game. All the guys went on with their business in a very professional manner. Everyone always tried to get better but we did it together, as hitters. I was always picking the mind of hitters such as Knott and Nady. Plus me and Goat (Gautreau) always talked about hitting situations. There was no jealously or animosity towards each other. It was a lot of fun, especially winning a lot.”

Now Furmaniak wants to continue the winning—in San Diego.

WINTER WONDERS

• Dominican outfielder Nelson Cruz (Athletics) took a circuitous route to playing in his homeland’s Winter League. Gigantes had dropped him from its roster during the summer, unaware of the progress Cruz was making in the A’s system (he hit a career-high 26 home runs and reached Triple-A in 2004). A’s officials lobbied for his return after the season had started, and he’s been Gigantes’ best hitter. He was batting .372-2-16 in 13 games.

• Giants' righthander Jesse Foppert had thrown just eight innings for Manati in the Puerto Rican League, but was putting up good numbers over his first two outings. Foppert, continuing his return from Tommy John surgery in 2003, struck out nine and walked two during that span.

• Cardinals' lefty Rick Ankiel is continuing his comeback from control problems and Tommy John surgery in Puerto Rico. He’s shown better command for Carolina, with 18 strikeouts and just three walks over 13 innings, but he’s given up 19 hits thus far and has a 4.05 ERA in his first three starts.

• Indians center fielder Juan Valdes was struggling in his first 12 at-bats for Santurce in Puerto Rico, hitting just .167. Valdes skipped short-season Mahoning Valley last season and is slated to begin the 2005 campaign at high Class A Kinston. The switch-hitting center fielder and cousin of Carlos Beltran hit .255-2-15 between Rookie-level Burlington and low Class A Lake County last season.

• Ponce first baseman Carlos Rivera, who was released by the Pirates in early December, was hitting .273-1-10 in 44 at-bats in Puerto Rico. Rivera spent all of 2004 at Triple-A Nashville, where he batted .292-17-50 in 312 at-bats. The Pirates also released outfielder Tony Alvarez, who was raking for La Guaira in the Venezuelan League. Through 104 at-bats, Alvarez was hitting .298-5-20 with 12 walks and 13 strikeouts.

• Caribes was in first place in Venezuela’s Eastern division thanks in part to the hitting of David Kelton (Cubs). His two-run ninth-inning double capped a three-run rally in a 7-6 victory against Pastora. Kelton was off to a .318-8-29 start, ranking fourth in homers and seventh in RBIs, though he had 45 strikeouts in 129 at-bats.

• Twins third baseman Terry Tiffee was off to a solid start playing for Aragua in the Venezuelan League. Tiffee, who played at Triple-A Rochester last season, was hitting .293-2-3 in his first 41 at-bats.

• Big Walter Young (Orioles) continued to put up big numbers for La Guaira in his first season playing in Venezuela. Young ranked 10th in the league in hitting at a .327-6-23 clip in 113 at-bats.

• Occidente shortstop Maicer Izturis, who was recently dealt from Washington to the Angels in the Jose Guillen deal, was hitting .279-0-4 in 68 at-bats. Outstanding plate discipline remains Izturis' forte, with 11 walks and only four strikeouts.

• Red Sox righthander Anibal Sanchez was 1-3, 5.40 with 29 strikeouts over his first 35 innings for Magallanes. Sanchez was getting hit hard, allowing 35 hits in his first eight starts. The 21-year-old ranks as the No. 5 prospect in the Red Sox system. He went 3-4, 1.77 in 76 innings at short-season Lowell last year.

• Venezuela’s pitching doesn’t compare with the arms in the Dominican, and righthander Yusmeiro Petit (Mets) appears to be the class of the league. He ranked second in the league in ERA and strikeouts with a 3-3, 1.96 start, and had 38 whiffs and just five walks in 37 innings.

• Shortstop Gregorio Petit (A’s) damaged his left shoulder diving for a ball in the Venezuela Winter League and will miss much of the winter. The A’s expect him to be ready for spring training.

Contributing: Chris Kline, Casey Tefertiller.