Talent-rich Baysox ready to start season

Former Orioles star McGregor set to guide Bowie’s young pitching staff

Thursday, April 6, 2006

by Ted Black

Staff Writer

While the major league baseball schedule got under way earlier this week, the Bowie Baysox, the Class AA minor league affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, starts its season this evening at Prince George’s Stadium.

While the Orioles were fortunate to stay out of the cellar in the American League East last season, the Baysox enjoyed a winning record (74-68) under manager Don Werner, who returns to the helm this season. Werner, who is 503-510 in 10 seasons as a manager in the minor leagues, spoke optimistically about every phase of the team Tuesday afternoon at media day.

‘‘From where I’m sitting, without having seen a single game this season, I think we look very good on paper,” Werner said. ‘‘Our hitting is a good mix of power hitters, contact hitters and guys who can create things with their speed. Defensively, we’re very strong at second and shortstop and at the corners and our outfielders are not going to let many balls drop in. Our pitching staff is filled with live arms.”

Werner noted that outfielder Jeff Fiorentino will bat in the leadoff spot, after spending much of last season at Class A Frederick where he hit .286 with 22 home runs and 66 runs batted in. Fiorentino also had the proverbial ‘cup of coffee’ with the Orioles last September, hitting .250 with one homer and five RBI.

‘‘Jeff might be our leadoff batter, but he has some pop in his bat,” Werner said. ‘‘We have some other guys in the lineup with plenty of power.

Indeed, Bowie has lots of longball potential, led by Noah Hall (26 homers, 92 RBI at Class A Winston-Salem last season), Leo Daigle (29 homers, 112 RBI at Winston-Salem last year) and Mario Delgado (26 HR, 86 RBI at Frederick).

Werner noted that the Baysox five-man rotation would consist of James Johnson, Adam Loewen, Brian Finch, Richard Stahl and Craig Anderson. Johnson, Loewen and Finch are on the Orioles’ 40-man roster. Loewen, the Orioles’ top pick in the 2002 draft was 10-8 at Frederick last season and pitched 3.2 shutout innings for Canada against a star-studded U.S. lineup in the World Baseball Classic. Johnson was 12-9 and Finch was 10-10 at Frederick last season.

Calvin Maduro, who came up through the minor league system 10 years ago and will turn 32 this summer, returns to the Baysox after getting some time at the major league level. Maduro, who is 75-73 as a minor league pitcher, went 10-19 during his brief stay in the big leagues with Baltimore and Philadelphia.

Bowie has had several good pitching coaches in the past, but none enjoyed the major league career of Scott McGregor, who joins the Baysox coaching staff this season. During his 13 seasons with the Baltimore Orioles, McGregor went 138-108 with a 3.99 earned run average. He tossed 23 shutouts in his big league career, was a 20-game winner in 1980 and threw a shutout in the fifth and deciding game of the 1983 World Series against Philadelphia.

‘‘One thing that I try to tell these young pitchers is that one game, one month or even one season is not going to make or break you,” McGregor said. ‘‘I spent four-and-one-half seasons in the minor leagues and there was a time there when I thought I would never make it to the big leagues. But back then you were in the minors for three or four years, regardless of how well you threw. That’s just how it was.”

McGregor has been pleased with the Baysox staff through spring training and expects several of his pitchers to get a chance at the next level. Several members of staff, including Maduro, Jason Pearson and Craig Anderson, have already been there.

‘‘We have some really good arms,” McGregor said. ‘‘The key for me is teaching these guys to do the same thing over and over again. The guys who will make it to the next level can throw fastballs for strikes and have a second pitch that they can throw for a strike in fastball counts. My changeup was my bread and butter, so these guys have to learn how to throw breaking pitches for strikes.”

E-mail Ted Black at tblack@gazette.net.