Baseball in Fort Wayne

Posts Tagged ‘Chad Moeller’

Here’s a brief roundup of some Fort Wayne and Northeast Indiana player movement (or transactions) since the end of the season:

Veteran catcher, Chad Moeller has resigned with the Orioles.

The last player form the Wizards association with the Twins that is still associated with the Twins, Michael Cuddyer has had his option picked up by Minnesota.

The Milwaukee Brewers have claimed Luis Cruz off waivers from the Pittsburgh Pirates. The Brew-Crew also claimed former Wizards catcher, George Kottaras, who was released from the Red Sox.

Possibly in preparation for the Rule 5 Draft, the Padres made some 40-Man roster changes, adding three. Among those is former Fort Wayne Wizard and this year’s Triple-A Home Run Derby champ, Chad Huffman.

Former Wizard outfielder Robert Perry has jumped from the independant Frontier League’s Windy City Thunderbolts to Minor League Baseball. He was signed by the Colorado Rockies.

The Atlanta Braves have resigned free-agent former Wizards pitcher, John Huber.

Former Wizards Pitcher, Jon Huber has signed a deal with the Atlanta Braves and will report to Triple-A Gwinnett County. Huber has some limited Major League experience and had been pitching with the Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League prior to the signing.

Former Wizards right-hander, Cory Doyne has signed with the Nationals and joins Triple-A Syracuse. Doyne has spent the past two seasons in the Baltimore Orioles organization.

Former Wizards outfielder, Will Venable has returned to the Padres after starting the season at Triple-A Portland. I recently got Will’s autograph. Glad to see him back in the big leagues.

As expected, former Wizards catcher, Chad Moeller was designated for assignment when Matt Wieters was called up. He cleared waivers and was assigned to Triple-A norfolk.

The TinCaps will have four representatives at this year’s Midwest League All Star game. Congratz to INF James Darnell, OF Sawyer Carroll, and right-handers, Brad Brach and Anthony Bass. If you’d like to help former Wizard Kyle Balnks make the Triple-A All-Star game, you can cast a ballot similar to the MLB version.

It’s getting that time of spring, position battles are being won and lost. Here’s a look at four former Fort Wayne Wizards:

Josh Barfield dedicated himself to regaining a big league roster spot this offseason and into spring. In doing so, he developed skills at new positions, which may have been the deciding factor in giving him a spot on the roster. Barfield will be used as a late-inning pinch-runner, and will start at second base, in the outfield and at third. Until this year, he was exclusively a second baseman.

“I like his versatility, speed and how good he is on the bases,” Indians manager Eric Wedge said of Barfield. “I trust him late in the ballgame to do those things . . . I still feel the bat’s coming. The work he’s done has yet to translate into the games, but I think it will.”

I guess his extra work this spring paid off. Congrats Josh. Hope it’s the first step toward great things!

George Kottaras appears to have also locked up a spot with Boston. His ability to catch Tim Wakefield impressed:

“He’s not been thrown into just a normal backup situation,” said the manager. “Again, nobody has made our team yet. But he’s catching Wake right now, so he’s got that added responsibility. He’s a good receiver. He’s been throwing real well. He’s had a good camp.”

…

He knows Kottaras possesses some power in his bat; in 395 at-bats with Pawtucket last season, Kottaras hit 22 home runs.

In Orioles camp, the out-of-options David Pauley cleared waivers and is being outrighted to AAA Norfolk. Pauley came to Baltimore from Boston in a trade a few months back. He was first expected to contend for place in the rotation, but that was ruled out last week.

Veteran and well-traveled Chad Moeller remains in Baltimore’s camp as he fights for a spot as backup catcher. Yet, even if he wins the gig, it’s liekly to be short-lived:

“I think it’s pretty clear,” said Trembley. “Hammock provides offense. Moeller provides experience calling the game and working with the staff. That’s a decision where we will decide on what’s more important.”

One complication for the Orioles is that their backup catcher is likely a temporary posting. Baltimore expects to promote top prospect Matt Wieters to the parent club at some point before the All-Star break, and once that happens, it will shift initial starter Gregg Zaun into a backup and mentor role.

Baltimore Sun blogger/Journalist Peter Schmuck is reporting that the Baltimore Orioles will bring former Wizards catcher, Chad Moeller to Spring Training camp:

…we’re hearing that one of the catchers the Orioles will bring to camp this spring is 33-year-old journeyman Chad Moeller, who appeared in 41 games for the Yankees last season. According to a club source, he has agreed to terms on a minor league contract.

Orioles president of baseball operations Andy MacPhail said at the winter meetings that he’s looking for a couple of veteran catchers to add to the list of catching prospects that will be in major league camp.

Moeller was a Wizard during the team’s days as a Minnesota Twins affiliate. Personally, I thought Moeller would have been a good fit as the veteran backstop the Padres are rumored to be seeking as a mentor to the up and coming former Wizards Nick Hundley and Luke Carlin.

Speaking of Hundley, MadFriars recently posted an interview with the catcher (subscription required).

Related BBIFW Chad Moeller posts:

• September Callups Feature Former Wizards
• Could Moeller be on the Move?
• Yanks’ Backstop Injuries Could Bring Moeller Call-up

Free agency season is officially open and there are 171 players who have filed. Check that; 170 (reliever, Jeremy Affeldt just signed with the SanFrancisco Giants). I got to wondering about former Wizards who might be looking for new MLB homes. So I hoped over to ESPN’s Free Agent Tracker and dug a little bit. Here’s what I came up with:

• Chad Moeller; Catcher – Moeller is the classic veteran catcher. Due to several injuries throughout the Yankees catching corps., Moeller got the opportunity to play a lot in 2008.  Over 41 games (91 at-bats), Moeller hit .221 with one home run and 9 RBI’s. He’d be a good fit for a team looking to add a veteran presence to back-up an emerging young backstop. Methinks: San Diego Padres.
   
• Oliver Perez; Starting Pitcher – Perez has shown flashes of brilliance at times in his career, but has never been able to be anywhere near consistent. In 2008, he put together a 10-7 record and a .422 ERA with the Mets over 34 games. He led the league in bases on balls (105) and struck out 180 in just under 200 innings pitched. He is likely to be the most sought after former Wizard on the free agent list but I am not sure many teams are going to want to pay his likely asking price (he made $6.5 million in 2008 and is a Scott Boras client). Methinks: Texas Rangers.
   
• Juan Rincon; Relief Pitcher – Rincon was one of the last remaining Twins from their affiliation with the Wizards (Michael Cuddyer is the only remaining). The team cut ties with him during the middle of the 2008 season and he signed a minor league contract with the Indians and was promoted in July. He earned $2.475 million last year. The 29 year-old has 7 years of Major League experience and woudl serve a bullpen well. Methinks: Staying with the Indians.
   
• Luis Rivas; Shortstop – At one point in his career, Luis Rivas was a highly touted prospect of the Minnesota Twins. But injuries and bad luck brought him to Pittsburgh, where he battled for a roster spot, earning $525,000 which is quite a drop from the $1.6 millon he once earned. Whiles it’s a feelgood story of 2008, Rivas hit just .218 over 79 games with the Pirates in 2008, which isn’t going to position him well for future considerations. However, his varsatility in the infield does make him a little more marketable. Methinks: Minor League deal with the Nationals.
   
• Javier Valentin; Catcher – At 33 years of age, the reality is that the veteran catcher who has 9 years of MLB experience, is not going to have many more contract years ahead of him. Like Moeller, he makes a solid veteran presence in a situation where the every-day catcher is just coming of age. Methinks: Minor League deal with the Red Sox.

Note: LaTroy Hawkins would have been a free agent had he not reached an agreement with the Houston Astros.

As evidenced by the recent call-ups of Antonelli and LaBlanc and some other recent player additions, the September callup period is in full swing. Thought I would take a moment to look into those with Fort Wayne Wizards ties:

• P Dirk Hayhurst (SD) – Has made two starts since being called up. Is 0-1.
• P Josh Geer (SD) – Made his debut on 8/31/08 – Got the win.
• 3B Matt Antonelli (SD) – Made his debut on 9/1/08
• P Wade LeBlanc (SD) – Set to start (MLB Debut) on Wednesday 9/3/08
• SS Luis Cruz (PIT) – Made his Debut on 9/2/08 (4-1)
• P Jack Cassel (HOU) -Returns for another round with the big club
• 2B Josh Barfield (CLE) – Returns after a real up-and-down season. This might be a final shot.
• P Jared Wells (SEA) – Called up yet again. Is there an All-Star roster they can cheat him out of this time?
• P David Pauley (BOS) – Called up on 8/24. Had a chance to start, but they called up Michael Bowden instead and put Pauley int he pen. Finally pitched on 9/2. Pitched two innings. Gave up one run on two hits.
• C Luke Carlin (SD) – Called up for his third stint with the Friars this season.
• C Chad Moeller (NYY) -Adding depth to their catching corp.
• Portland Manager Randy Ready – The rest of the team is there, and it’s starting to fill with former Wizards, so I guess you might as well call up the skipper who last got the Wizards into the playoffs.

As expected, Chad Moeller was sent back to Triple-A after filling in for Posada and Molina while they were injured. But that’s not to indicate he didn’t show the team – and other teams – something during his brief stay.

In fact, was impressive. Over his six games this season, he’s hitting well over his career .226 average at .350. He’s produced 5 runs on 7 hits and 3 walks while driving in 3 runs. He even hit a home run and had a .425 OBP during his stint.

True, one week does not a season make, but Moeller flashed some signs that he can get the job done given the right situation. They Yankees may have even kept him up for a longer stint if their bullpen wasn’t in dire need of help. With the pressing need for extra relievers, there was no longer a spot for Moeller.

However, Moeller is out of minor league options so another team can claim him off waivers. I don’t know that there are many teams out there that would provide a more ideal situation than where he currently is, but I gotta think there are some who are at least considering it.

All that said, Moeller has said he would accept an assignment back to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Pa.) if he clears waivers. “They’ve treated me way to well here to go somewhere else,” Moeller said [source: NJ.com].

The New York Yankees saw their primary backup catcher, Jose Molina injure his left hamstring during last night’s game. Molina had been filling in for starting catcher, Jorge Posada who is dealing with injury woes of his own. The two injuries could land a call-up for former Wizards catcher, Chad Moeller.

Molina had to come out of the game in the eighth inning for pinch-runner Wilson Betemit as the Yanks’ tried to mount a rally against the rival Boston Red Sox.

The Yankees will make a roster move to bring in another catcher for Monday’s game at Tampa Bay — likely Triple-A backstop Chad Moeller — but have not yet decided if Molina will need to go on the 15-day disabled list [Souorce: MLB.com].

Moeller, 33, was the subject of a handful of similar stories this spring that praised him as the classic veteran catcher who is content to fill the desired role.

Moeller has been in this situation before. He’s not going to be a starter in New York, but the Yankees want him around to fill in if need be . . . It means I’ve been doing it a while,” Moeller said. “For me it’s a good thing. It means they haven’t told me to go home yet. Situations are always out there and you have to find the one that fits. This one, it seems to fit so far. I don’t know how it’s going to play out and I don’t have to. I don’t know where I’ll be at the end of the season . . . you just don’t know where you’re going to be and you just go out and try to do the best you can.” [source: The Citizens Voice]

Moeller, the eight-year major league veteran has a .224 career average, but a .282 average in the minors.

Moeller was selected by Minnesota Twins in the 7th Round (187 overall) of the 1996 draft. While in Fort Wayne during the Wizards 1997 season, the backstop hit .289 with a .386 on base percentage. He scored 58 runs with 111 hits in 384 at-bats. He also had 9 home runs and 39 runs batted in while swiping 11 bases and drawing 48 walks.

He’s spent time in the big leagues every year since his debut in 2000, including time with the Dodgers and Reds last season. He has also been on the Major League roster of the Diamondbacks and Brewers.

UPDATE: As expected, the Yankees called up Moeller, who was inserted in the Yankees’ lineup on Monday, making his New York Yankees debut. “I just never know,” Moeller said. “I just thank the Lord every day that I get to do something I enjoy and as long as he wants me to keep doing it, I’m just going to keep going. When my body says stop, it’ll probably be a clear answer.” In four at-bats, he had a hit, a run and two strike-outs.