Here is my last report card of the offseason, detailing of course, the catcher’s that played in Brooklyn this season.

Jordan Abruzzo- The team’s leader in the clubhouse and the calming factor behind the plate. Simply put, Abruzzo didn’t have to be in Brooklyn. He hit over .300 in St. Lucie and Savannah and is excellent at managing a staff. While it was obvious he wasn’t exactly thrilled to be in Brooklyn, he played his heart out and was a driving force in their success. Struggling at times, Abruzzo eventually proved why he was so successful at higher levels and even flashing some serious power from both sides of the plate as well. Combined with his other stops in the organization, Abruzzo hit .290 with 14 homers, 131 hits and 59 RBI in 122 games and 451 at-bats. Next season, he’s a guy that I see starting in High-A and ending up in Double-A. When it’s all said and done, he’s got the drive and tenacity to be a success wherever he plays. Now in winter ball with the Honolulu Sharks, it’s obvious this kid wants to play in the bigs.

Final Grade- A

Luis Alen- Another guy with a ton of desire, but unlike Abruzzo, his bat never materialized and was forced to deal with a variety of injuries. Making stops in New Orleans and St. Lucie by season’s end, Alen is someone that will benefit immensely from time off to heal. Nevertheless, his solid game-calling abilities aside, Alen wasn’t very impressive in Brooklyn this season.

Final Grade- D

Caesar Cordido- He was a pleasant surprise after being called up from Kingsport last season and while his defense was especially solid most of the season, his bat was often sporadic. He did hit .320 over his last 10 games to somewhat solidify his presence in the organization, but I truly believe that Cordido is someone that has to start everyday to see what he’s truly capable of. 74 at bats is just not enough for him. He’s pushing 24 and needs more playing time.

Final Grade B-

Ralph Henriquez- Another guy that needed more playing time. Much like Abruzzo though, Henriquez showed some pop from both sides of the plate, but never got enough of an opportunity. Traded for Josh Appell before the season started, many saw Henriquez, a former second round pick, as the team’s starting catcher this season. That obviously didn’t happen. However, after leaving Brooklyn, he hit .273 with Savannah, but in the end, only accumulated 95 AB’s by the end of the season. If this guy is going to move up in the organization, that’s going to have to change fast.

Final Grade- D+

Photos by Ron Hatcher

Sean Williams- When he was called up earlier in the season, Williams seemed lost in the shuffle and was over-matched at the plate. However, after the All-Star break, Williams was a different a player and showed solid contact to all fields. His defensive ability was far from those of his counterparts, but his solid work ethic and grit, combined with his ability at the plate make him an interesting prospect to watch.

Grade- B-

Will Vogl- Before being released in July, Vogl was serving as the team’s fifth outfielder and despite not getting much playing time, was solid on defense and produced at the plate when he had to. Getting on in years, the former St. John’s star lost his starting spot and never seemed to recover from a late August slump in 2007. A good clubhouse guy and a hard-nosed player, Vogl may be able to catch on somewhere else if he can bounce back.

Grade- D

Sean Ratliff- The team’s right fielder for most of the season, Ratliff moved to center field and showed he had the range, speed and arm to be a great outfielder at any level he plays at. Nonetheless, great defense all season long is one thing, but a ton of strikeouts hurt his overall stock. He did develop some power as the season went along however, which was definitely encouraging, but he still has a long way to go offensively before he can be a legitimate blue-chip prospect.

Grade- C+

John Servidio- Leading the team in RBI most of the season, Servidio was a leader in the locker room and on the field. That doesn’t mean his play was exemplary however, as his play at the plate was mediocre. In spite of that though, his defense was extremely solid and combined with Ratliff and Nieuwenhuis, gave the Cyclones one of the best defensive outfields in the NY-Penn League. However, a hand injury ended his season prematurely, limiting his offensive production.

Grade- C+

Kirk Nieuwenhuis- Easily the Clones best offensive player, Nieuwenhuis was also something to behold on defense as well, making spectacular plays at both center and right field. Offensively consistent most of the season, Nieuwenhuis really started to come into his own after the all-star break and there it was he solidified his role as a catalyst at the plate and someone the tam could really depend on. His strikeout totals were a bit alarming, but considering the fact that he tied the team’s single season record with 79 hits, you’d be out of your mind to ask for any more from the youngster.

Grade- A

Photos by Ron Hatcher.

Carl Erskine was just a wide-eyed 21-year-old from Indiana when he made his major league debut with the Brooklyn Dodgers on Jul. 25, 1948.

As a matter of fact, he was younger than many of the players that currently play in the borough today with the Mets Single-A affiliate, the Cyclones.

Despite his rural upbringing, Erskine quickly found a home in Brooklyn and carved out a successful 12-year, 122-win tenure with the Dodgers, helping them win the World Series in 1955, where he went 11-8 with a 3.79 ERA in 194 innings of work. A few years later in 1957, he and his teammates were shipped off to Los Angeles, where he played the final two years of his All-Star career, but it was never the same for hard-throwing righty, as he won only four games in his final two seasons.

During his time in Brooklyn, the borough became his second home and his second family, the players he shared a clubhouse with in Ebbets Field for ten years, slowly left the team once they got to Los Angeles via trade or retirement.

“The Brooklyn team that I came up with in 1948, basically stayed together until 1958,” said Erskine. “It wasn’t until we moved to Los Angeles that they started making changes. On our off days, the whole team would go on picnics together and our children were raised together. In the Ebbets Field clubhouse, before every game, Roy Campanella would stand up and say ‘The same team that won yesterday is the same team that’s going to win today,’ He put that in our minds and we knew that’s what we had to do.”

Coming back to Brooklyn on Aug.17 to have his number 17 honored by the Cyclones, Erskine, now 81, was thrilled to be back where his major league career began over 60 years ago.

The Brooklyn fans turned out for the occasion as well, as a standing-room only crowd of nearly 8,000 filled with many of whom grew up watching Erskine hand-cuff hitters as children, stood and watched their childhood idol talk about his playing days in Brooklyn.

“Even with all the World Series experience and playing on all those great teams, I think this is probably the cream on the top of everything,” Erskine, who had a street named after him in Brooklyn in 2002, said. “To be back on Brooklyn soil after all these years and in a ballpark in Brooklyn is very meaningful to me. It’s almost like a fantasy.”

Spending time with some of the Cyclones before the game started, the two-time author shared some of his knowledge of the game with them as well. Considering them “his grandchildren,” Erskine was happy to give advice to the youngsters and “continue the bloodline of Brooklyn baseball.”

“There are two things we don’t know about life,” he said. “One is when we are going to die, which is a good thing. The other thing is we never know what we can really accomplish in life if everything went right and we push ourselves as hard as we can. Look at me, I got more out of this skinny little body because I played on a great team and no one tried to change who I was. You have to believe who you are is better than something you read about or something you’ve seen somewhere else.”

Looking back on his career, Erskine couldn’t help but smile when remembering how he felt when he first found out he was coming to Brooklyn.

Originally worried that he’d have a hard time adjusting to life in the borough after growing up in Anderson, Indiana, Erskine was surprised at how accommodating the place really was.

“I was a skinny kid from Indiana, who could throw hard. But to be picked out of the Midwestern culture and placed in a big city like Brooklyn was unbelievable,” Erskine, who also threw two no-hitters during his career, said. “Only to find out that Bay Ridge, Brooklyn was exactly like my hometown. I knew the barber and the butcher and everyone knew me. If I pitched a good game, I’d come home from Ebbets Field and be in the middle of a street party, with balloons in the trees and the whole nine yards. It was amazing.”

Like all good things in life though, Erskine’s playing days had to come to an end, as arm troubles plagued an otherwise solid major league career.

Ironically however, his playing days also played a big part in his life after baseball as well, as his natural abilities as a leader played a big part in his future success as a college coach at Anderson College, where he won four championships in 12 years and several successful business ventures in his home state of Indiana.

Because of that, Erskine has no regrets and is grateful for the opportunities playing in Brooklyn has afforded him.

“It would be unreal for me to say there was something I didn’t get to do,” he said with a smile. “I stayed in the big leagues for 12 years and even though I didn’t get into Cooperstown, how many guys have a street named after them in Brooklyn? I guess a lot of people in the safety department are still Dodgers fans. How could you wish for anything other than that?”

Photos by Patrick Hickey Jr., Ron Hatcher and Jim Dolan

After a week in Brooklyn, Jason Jacobs was headed back to last Friday St. Lucie a different player.

Subbing for injured first baseman Ike Davis who injured his foot a few days earlier, Jacobs was brought to Brooklyn to provide a jolt to an offense in desperate need of one and the leadership that comes with being a two-time New York Penn-League All Star. Hitting just .176 with three hits in four games with his former team, Jacobs’ time in Brooklyn didn’t go exactly as planned, but it did serve a purpose.

Alone in the Cyclones clubhouse after a 9-4 loss against Staten Island on Sept. 4, the shaggy haired catcher packed his bags and talked about his season with the same reporters that watched him slug 12 home runs and 46 RBI last season.

“I’m not hitting the ball as good as I was last year, but I’ve learned a lot,” Jacobs said. “The game is simpler and even though I still make mistakes all the time, I know what they are now and it’s much easier to fix them than it was before. It’s a slow process, but I feel like I’m learning and that’s what being in the minors is all about.”

Spending a week in Brooklyn has afforded the slugger the opportunity to work on his game and continue that process. Quickly becoming one of the boys, Jacobs grew a mustache because every one else on the team had been doing so for about two weeks in a ritualistic effort to get the offense rolling. While Jacobs insists he won’t let his wife see it when he gets home, he proved in a short time that he’s still the same leader in clubhouse he was last season and the year before.

His play on the field isn’t exactly what it was last season however. Before being sent to Brooklyn, Jacobs, In spite of a solid .380 on-base percentage and 20 walks, was hitting .223 with 14 RBI in 38 games with St. Lucie,. Because of those struggles, Jacobs relished the chance to get to work with a coaching staff that watched him flourish last season.

“My swing is not the same as it was last year at all,” said Jacobs. “The coaches here, [Edgar] Alfonzo and [Guadalupe] Jabalera know me better than anyone. The coaches in St. Lucie are just starting to know what to expect from me. Over the past week, I’ve worked really hard and I feel a lot better about my game and I’m looking forward to going back to work.”

Despite heading back to St. Lucie, Jacobs wasn’t about to dismiss his week back in Brooklyn or the two All-Star years that preceded it.

Instead, he deflected the attention to his now former teammates, believing that they have what it takes to do something the teams he was an instrumental part of didn’t- win a NYPL championship.

“It was nice to be back. I missed you all,” he said to the handful of reporters surrounding him. “This a great place to play and winning matters a lot here. Most of the time in the minors, it’s about development, so it’s fun to have that type of competition, it takes you back in college. But being back here for a few days, I’ve gotten an opportunity to play with some great guys that I’ve seen develop in just the week that I’ve been here. I’m looking forward to hearing about this guys taking it home this season.”

Links-

Box Score to last night’s 5-2 Cyclones win.

Photos by Ron Hatcher and Jim Dolan

As sort of recognition of Daniel Murphy’s call-up to the Mets this past weekend, I’d like to share with you all this Q & A I did with him way back in September of 2006.

Enjoy!

BTW, expect something similar tomorrow on Eddie Kunz!

DemBrooklynBums.com: Heading into the offseason, what do you need to work on the most to be ready for next season and what will you be doing to work on it?

Daniel Murphy: First, I’m heading down to the instructional league to heal up a little bit more and keep on working; heal my knee and arm up and put myself in a situation where I come back bigger, stronger and faster so I can come into spring training and really help the organization.

DBB: What would you say is your biggest strength as a ball player? What do you bring to the field and to your team?

Murphy: Hitting. I think I also help in the clubhouse because I’m a happy go lucky kind of guy and I keep things light. Things can get pretty tense around a baseball team, so I think my attitude helps my teammates. When it’s time to play, we play, but when it’s time to have fun, we have fun too.

DBB: What did you think of your season this year? How do you think it went for you?

Murphy: I tore my PCL and strained my hamstring three weeks after my college season ended, so there are still things that I can’t do that I usually do, like read a ball hit to third or get an extra base on a base hit. If I’m struggling, I like to lay down a bunt from time to time and I can’t do that right now either. I played a little in the Gulf Coast League and Kingsport this year, I’m just trying to prepare myself for the future at this point and help my team anyway I can.

DBB: To give our fans a better idea of the type of player you are, who would you compare your game to at the Major League level and why?

Murphy: Growing up, I was a huge Tony Gwynn fan, I loved watching him hit. Some people compare me to Pete Rose because of the way I get down at the plate and because I hustle. He hits the ball a little better than I do though [laughing]. I just try and play the game as hard as I can, but I’m a little hampered right now, so I’m doing the best I can with what I have.

Notes-

New Podcast is up on I-Tunes as well, featuring an interview I did with Murphy on June 29. I didn’t think I was going to use the audio originally, but I still wanted to talk to him considering I remembered him from 2006 and how well he’s been doing. Happy I did now. Enjoy!

Click here to listen and download the interview on I-Tunes!

or stream it on the web here!

Photo by Ron Hatcher