Five Players Added to 40-man Roster For First Time
Catcher Mike McKenry, starting pitchers Chaz Roe and Juan Nicasio and relievers Edgmer Escalona and Alberto Alburquerque were added to the Rockies 40-man roster for the first time on Friday.
There are 38 players on the roster, which still includes third baseman Garrett Atkins, whom the Rockies are expected not to tender a contract on Dec. 12 if they are unable to trade him.
McKenry, 24, hit .279 last season at Double-A Tulsa with a .376 on-base percentage, .455 slugging percentage and 12 homers and 50 RBI in 102 games. He’s currently playing winter ball in the Dominican Republic for Escogido where he’s 7-for-39 (.179) in 15 games with three RBI.
Roe, 23, went 7-3 with a 3.15 ERA in 20 starts this year for Tulsa, missing six weeks in May and June with a left oblique strain. Roe just finished play in the Arizona Fall League where he pitched 12 innings and went 0-2 with a 4.50 ERA in five starts.
Nicasio, 23, began the season in extended spring training but after joining low Class A Asheville, he went 9-3 with a 2.41 ERA for the Tourists, walking 23 and striking out 115 in 112 innings.
Escalona, 23, was at high Class A Modesto to begin the season before being promoted to Tulsa where he went 1-2 with four saves and a 2.45 ERA in 31 games. Overall in 2009, Escalona went 3-2 with a 2.47 ERA in 59 games with 18 walks and 66 strikeouts in 69 1/3 innings.
Alburquerque, 23, who was acquired from the Cubs organization on July 2 for infielder Jeff Baker, went 1-3 with a 3.76 ERA in 23 games for Tulsa with 13 walks and 31 strikeouts in 26 1/3 innings. This winter, Alburquerque is pitching in his native Dominican Republic for Aguilas and is 0-0 with a 2.57 ERA in seven games.
College players drafted in 2006 or high school players drafted in 2005 have to be added to the 40-man roster or can be taken Dec. 10 in the Rule 5 draft. Last year, the Rockies lost shortstop Everth Cabrera in that draft to the Padres. He made the San Diego team in spring training and more than held his own in the majors last year despite playing in 2007 for Asheville.
The Rockies don’t appear to be at risk for a loss of that magnitude among the players not protected on the 40-man roster and eligible for the Rule 5 draft. That group includes two closers who led their league in saves in 2009. Andrew Johnston went 2-4 with a 3.69 ERA and 31 saves in 56 games for Tulsa, and Craig Baker went 4-2 with a 2.30 ERA and 33 saves in 62 games for Modesto. Both Johnston and Baker played in the Arizona Fall League this year.
Other unprotected players include left-hander Keith Weiser, the Rockies third-round pick in 2006 who went 9-15 with a 5.23 ERA this year at Tulsa, outfielder Scott Beerer, who made a successful conversion from pitching this year and hit .346 with seven homers and 40 RBI in 52 games for Modesto but turned 27 on July 4, and outfielder Cole Garner, a high school teammate of third baseman Ian Stewart’s, who hit .288 with 16 homers and 64 RBI in 112 games at Tulsa, his second-highest total of games played in five professional seasons.
Jack, is there a typo in McKenry’s winter ball stats? A 7-for-19 start would put him at .368, and would be an awfully low number of ABs for 15 games. Could it be he’s 7-for-39?
These 5 players took the place of those who were declared FA?
I’m glad to see Escalona among these players.
Jeff S.
You are correct _ McKenry started 7-for-39 in winter ball. Thanks for being a careful reader.
The tricky thing about Cabrera (for the fan) was that he wasn’t drafted, and doesn’t seem to have a minor league record prior to 2006 (I assume he was playing in an academy prior to that), so it was hard to tell when he was signed.
Are there any players in that category? Does Rosario have another year before he’s eligible for the Rule 5?
I wonder if some team will take a shot at Craig Baker. It’s hard to tell how he did in the AFL based on 11.2 innings of stats, but he had a strong 2009 at Modesto.
Reader FKA Mike,
Rosario is safe until the next draft. He was drafted at 18, so he gets an extra year before Rule 5 eligibility.
It does seem that Craig Baker is the greatest concern of the players who are not currently on the 40 man roster. Can the Rockies still add him to the 40 man roster before the Rule 5 draft?
Are there any notable players whom the Rockies picked up in the past in the Rule 5 draft?
The only notable Rule 5 player acquired by the Rockies was infielder Luis Gonzalez in 2003. He was the regular second baseman in 2004 and 2005, played sparingly in ‘06 and went to Japan for two seasons before appearing in Spring Training with the Rox last year.
Thank you, Leo.
Maybe O’Dowd can do as well this year and find a backup first baseman and/or third baseman or a reliever.
There was also reliever Marcos Carvajal. The Brewers actually drafted him, and the Rockies then traded for him (I think). He had his moments (he played for the Rockies in 2005). I had to look up what happened to him after that season–he ended up being traded for Torrealba. Not bad…
Not sure the Rockies would protect both shortstops H Gomez and C Nelson on the forty man roster over E Cabrera, if they had it to do over again from last year?
My prediction is that the Rockies will lose both C Baker and C Garner tomorrow from the unprotected list above.
Maybe the Rockies can acquire a Rule 5 right handed hitting outfielder (free agents seem to be too expensive for the Rockies budget) to replace Matt Murton. With just Spilly and Fowler out there now, it would be great to have another right handed power bat in the outfield against the opponets lefty starters.
Although I like Torrealba, I would like to see the Rockies acquire a left handed hitting catcher (J Bard would be an example). That way Iannetta doesn’t have to face some of the opponents tougher right handed starting pitching.
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