Notebook: Playoffs, etc.

So there’s some pretty good baseball being played these days, huh?

Wait for it.

Wait.

Yeah, it’s Cape League connection time.

Why not? Here’s who we’ve got on the four teams still alive and kicking.

Angels
Joe Saunders – Harwich ’01
Robb Quinlan – Cotuit ’97

Yankees
David Robertson – Y-D ’06
Jerry Hairston – Bourne ’96/Wareham ’97
Mark Teixeira – Orleans ’99
Nick Swisher – Wareham ’00

Dodgers
Casey Blake – Haynnis ’93
Mark Loretta – Falmouth ’92

Phillies
Joe Blanton – Bourne ’01
J.A. Happ – Harwich ’03
Paul Bako – Wareham ’92
Eric Bruntlett – Cotuit ’97
Chase Utley – Brewster ’98/Cotuit ’99

Robertson is the most recent alum and he’s having a big impact in the Yankee bullpen. So far these playoffs, he has two wins and he hasn’t allowed a run. Playoff success is nothing new. For Y-D back in ’06, Robertson had four saves in five playoff appearances and was named the Cape League’s playoff MVP. For the year, he had a 2.79 ERA with 46 strikeouts in 29 innings.

Major League teams that aren’t still alive are turning their attention to the future, and plenty of eyes are trained on the Arizona Fall League. Stephen Strasburg made his long-awaited debut on Friday. The next day, Cape League alum James Simmons followed Strasburg with a strong performance. Simmons, an Oakland prospect who’s in his second AFL tour, tossed three shutout innings on Saturday. Simmons, from UC Riverside, was an all-league pick for Cotuit in 2006. He had a 1.18 ERA for the Kettleers with a ridiculous 44-to-5 strikeout-to-walk ratio. He was drafted in the first round in 2007.

Also of note in Arizona, Drew Storen (Cotuit ’08) has already made three relief appearances. He hasn’t allowed an earned run and has struck out four.

The Orioles’ web site has a look back at Matt Wieters’ rookie season. Wieters (Orleans ’06) hit .288 in his much-anticipated debut season.

In terms of prospect status, Ryan Wheeler was a little under the radar when he played for Brewster in 2008. The Loyola Marymount slugger hit .285 with five home runs that summer, but didn’t seem to be an upper-echelon type prospect. Baseball America had him rated 29th on a list of the top 30 Cape League prospects. Wheeler got drafted in the fifth round this June by the Diamondbacks and wasted no time making a huge impression. Playing for the short-season Yakima Bears and the Low-A South Bend Silverhawks, Wheeler logged the best batting average and on-base percentage in Arizona’s entire system. Not surprisingly, Wheeler was named the organization’s top position player on Monday. Said Yakima general manager K.L. Wombacher: “Ryan Wheeler is the best player I have seen come through Yakima.”

Still only two 2010 rosters out. I’m thinking Cotuit will be next.

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