The Clearwater Threshers have continued to experience success this season, and we’ve gotten to see some solid talent in the Clearwater lineup for the first time in what seems like forever. The team is currently in third place in their division 3.5 games behind the Tampa Yankees with 28 games remaining on the team’s schedule for 2007.

Since my last Clearwater update center fielder Greg Golson has been promoted to Reading along with left handed pitcher Josh Outman. Meanwhile Alex Concepcion, Andrew Cruse and Ben Pfinsgraff have been added to the Threshers rotation from Lakewood.

THE PITCHERS:

The starting line up:
Alex Concepcion has struggled in his transition to the FSL and after eight starts has record of 2-3 with an ERA of 7.20 allowing opponents to hit .282 against him. He has had some flashes of greatness but has only made it to the seventh inning or deeper twice in his eight trips to the mound.

Ben Pfinsgraff joined Clearwater at about the same time as Concepcion from Lakewood. After two terrific starts Pfinsgraff struggled in his next two outings as his ERA ballooned to 8.35 and he was put on the DL. Ben hasn’t pitched since early June for the Threshers, and there is no word yet whether he will return to the line up or not before the season is over.

Andrew Cruse is the newest addition to the Threshers roster from Lakewood, and so far in his first two starts he has been solid for the team. He has a 2-0 record in those two starts with an ERA of 3.77 and 10K v 4BB with 14.1 innings pitched.

The lone starter left in Clearwater since the beginning of the season is Andrew Carpenter. In his first full season of pro baseball Andrew has shown himself to be an effective pitcher for the team. Andrew became the first ever Threshers pitcher to reach 10 wins in a season when he won his tenth game back on July 2nd. That win began a four game winning streak as he won his next three outings, with the streak ending with a no-decision on August 4th where he allowed just one run over seven innings of work, but lost the decision as the Threshers bullpen gave up some late runs. Andrew leads the team in innings pitched (132.0) and in starts with 20. He currently has a record of 13-5 in those 20 starts and is on-track to break the all-time Clearwater record of 15 wins in a season if he can keep up the terrific work.

Dan Brauer who started out the season on fire for the Threshers continues to be on the DL. Dan was shut down by the Threshers in early June, and tests to diagnose the exact cause of his arm pain have been inconclusive. He pitched one game with the GCL Phillies in a comeback attempt, but was shut down again, and it appears he will sit out the rest of this season in an attempt to heal and come back stronger next season.

The bullpen:
The bullpen this season has been lead primarily by Will Savage, Ron “Bear” Hill, and Cory Willey. Brett Harker started the season strong out of the bullpen for the Threshers picking up eleven saves in the first three months of the season, but he hasn’t pitched since July 2nd, and it is unclear whether he will return this season or not.

Will Savage has pitched more innings and appeared in more game than any other pitcher out of the pen this year. He owns a 3.26 ERA wioth 42K v 15BB in 49.2 innings of work. Second to Savage in games and innings is Cory Willey. Willey owns an ERA of 2.44 with 39K v 13BB in 48 innings of work. The lowest ERA out of the pen belongs to “Bear” Hill. Bear began the season in Lakewood appearing in 12 games before coming to Clearwater. In his 19 games since arriving he owns an impressive 1.74 ERA and a WHIP of just 0.94 with 22K v 8BB in his 31.0 innings of work.

THE POSITION PLAYERS:

OF Jeremy Slayden, C Lou Marson, SS Jason Donald and 2B Brad Harman have been the brightest stars for the Threshers this season. Both Slayden and Marson were selected to the FSL All-Star game, and Slayden was extra impressive there by winning the HR Derby in the pre-game festivities. Jason Donald started the year at Lakewood, but has been more than impressive since his move to Clearwater, and he currently leads the team in several statistical categories. Brad Harman has been the pleasant surprise of the year. After struggling in 2006 it seemed he was destined to be on the same path in 2007, but his batting average has gone up each month of the season and he could just be positioning himself for a late season promotion to AA Reading.

Jeremy Slayden -OF: Slayden has been a steady contributor to the team’s success from the beginning of the season. He leads the team in RBIs (57), runs (58), home runs (12), and hits (96). He currently owns a .287 BA which is down from his early season numbers. He was placed on the DL for a couple of weeks with an arm injury in July and hit just .222 for the month as he came back from that injury. So far in August he seems to be fully recovered as he is hitting .400 for the month. He is just coming off of a 10-game hitting streak that included a dramatic ninth inning grand slam that helped lift the Threshers to a 9-8 win over the Vero Beach Devil Rays.

Lou Marson – C: Lou has been a solid contributor since day one of the 2007 season. Lou leads the team in doubles with 21, and trails only Jeremy Slayden in hits (92) and runs(57). He coupled with Slayden, in the Threshers dramatic ninth inning win over the Rays by immediately following Jeremy’s grand slam that tied the game, with a home run of his own to give the team a 9-8 lead and the win. In addition to his offensive prowess Lou’s defense has been solid. Though fielding stats are hard to come by for minor league players, I can tell you from watching as many games as I do each year, that he has definitely thrown out more stolen base attempts than any other catcher I have seen in Clearwater in many years.

Jason Donald – SS: Jason has been impressive in Clearwater ever since his early June arrival from Lakewood. He currently leads the team in batting average at .320 which ranks him fifth highest in the entire FSL. He also leads the team in SLG at .545 OBP at .398 and OPS at .943. He has garnered more triples (5) than any other Threshers player, and is third in doubles behind Jeremy Slayden and Lou Marson by just 2 and 4 respectively despite playing in nearly 40 less games than either of them.

Brad Harman – 2B: After struggling in 2006 Brad seemed to be in the same boat to start the 2007 season. He was transitioned this year from SS to 2B to help his defense, but his offense still lagged with numbers. Fortunately his offensive production has increased steadily as the season has gone on. He has more games under his belt this year than any other active player on the roster, and just finished the month of July with a .313 batting average a .598 SLG and a .989 OPS. He is second on the team in triples and home runs and looks poised to possibly get a late season promotion to Reading if he can maintain his rise the rest of the year.