First, the stats…
BATTERS
| PLAYER | G | AB | R | H | 2B | 3B | HR | RBI | BB | SO | AVG | OBP | SLG | SB |
| Lombardozzi | 21 | 82 | 16 | 24 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 8 | .293 | .385 | .439 | 2 |
| Burgess | 18 | 65 | 8 | 16 | 3 | 3 | 2 | 20 | 4 | 20 | .246 | .286 | .477 | 1 |
| Norris | 16 | 54 | 10 | 15 | 5 | 2 | 4 | 19 | 11 | 18 | .278 | .403 | .667 | 2 |
| Harper | 9 | 35 | 6 | 12 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 4 | 11 | .343 | .410 | .629 | 1 |
PITCHERS
| PLAYER | W | L | SV | ERA | G | IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | WHIP | HLD | GF |
| Solis | 1 | 0 | 0 | 3.80 | 6 | 23⅔ | 22 | 13 | 10 | 7 | 12 | 1.225 | 0 | 0 |
| Carr | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2.08 | 10 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 8 | 0.692 | 1 | 4 |
| Peacock | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4.50 | 9 | 12 | 10 | 6 | 6 | 3 | 17 | 1.083 | 2 | 1 |
| Kimball | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0.82 | 11 | 12 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 15 | 0.833 | 0 | 11 |
Now, the thoughts…
- Bryce Harper managed to make his mark despite only playing twice a week. Now, we will wonder for the next four and a half months where Rizzo will have him start. Hagerstown is the official word, but I can’t see him starting there unless he has a terrible spring, or unless the plan is to have Harper make a tour of the full-season minors no matter what.
- Lombardozzi did nothing to dissuade our opinion of him, but now we’ll have to wait until the prospect guides to come out whether or not he changed anyone else’s minds. I suspect not because even in our own Natmosphere his game-winning double in the AFL title game was barely mentioned.
- Derek Norris has shown that much of his “struggles” this season were because he was hurting, finishing the AFL with the third-highest slugging pct. and the fourth-highest OPS. His defensive deficiencies were also displayed but a full season under the tutelage of Randy Knorr in Harrisburg ought to help immensely.
- Michael Burgess also did nothing to dissuade the growing perception that his prospect days are behind him. He’ll start as the Harrisburg RF in 2011, but how long he’ll stay is the question. The signal may just be when he starts playing LF and DH more often than RF.
- Brad Peacock showed flashes of brilliance as a reliever, leading to some speculation that he was auditioning for a midseason ’11 callup, but by the end of the AFL season it was clear that this was done to limit his innings. Possible Opening Day starter for the Senators.
- Sammy Solis got a baptism by fire, but nothing that one couldn’t attribute to his lack of pro experience or the long layoffs between the draft and after the end of the regular season. Some question as to whether he’ll start in Hagerstown or Potomac, but given Rizzo’s track record, I’d bet on Potomac until late June, then Harrisburg through late August.
- Cole Kimball is probably the biggest surprise of the AFL, at least relative to the success shown in twelve appearances. I’m not entirely sold that he’s for real, but hopeful that he can continue to contribute and assist the parent club in its quest to build middle relievers from within and not overpay for FA relievers. Could make the parent club with a strong spring.
- Adam Carr has come a long way in just a year. In November ’09, he was finishing up his first season as a starting pitcher, including an August in which he posted a 7.34ERA and walked more batters than he struck out. He returned to Senator ‘pen and found his niche as the two-inning man, then had success as a closer for Syracuse. Like Kimball, he’s a dark horse to make 25-man roster by March 31, the day before his 27th birthday.
