Baseball in Fort Wayne

Posts Tagged ‘Rob-Bowen’

Join us Saturday morning at 9:20 for Talkin’ Sports, immediately following Fighting Irish Preview. This week I’ll be joined by guest co-host Blake Sebring of the News-Sentinel.

Blake and I will be talkin’ sports with Trine University head football coach Matt Land as he prepares his Thunder team for an NCAA Division III round 2 game Saturday against Wittenberg. We’ll be talking with former Fort Wayne resident and major league catcher Rob Bowen as he launches a new business venture. We’ll check in with Komets President Michael Franke for our weekly Komets update and Phil Houk, host of Fighting Irish preview will fill us in on the latest news in the world of Notre Dame football.

We’ll have scores and highlights from the Luers/Monrovia 2A High School football State Championship game at Lucas Oil Stadium as well as Komets and Mad Ants scores from Friday night.

We’ll be naming our Co- PSI/One Eleven Design Athletes of the Week in the 4th Quarter of the show.

Any athlete (youth, adult, high school, collegiate, neighbor) can be a PSI/One Eleven Design Athlete of the Week. Nominations for the PSI/One Eleven Design Athlete of the Week can be submitted to this e-mail address or: jim@wowo.com.

Kyler Burke was selected by the San Diego Padres in the supplemental first round of the 2006 First Year Player Draft (35th overall). As a senior at Ooltewah High School in Tennessee he batted .459 with 20 homers and 58 RBIs in 45 games. While in Fort Wayne with the Wizards in 2007, Burke hit .211 with 45 hits and 1 home run in 213 at-bats.
Then he was traded to the Chicago Cubs with Fort Wayne native, Rob Bowen, in return for Michael Barrett. Interestingly, Burke is the only one of the three to still be with the organization he was traded to as a result of that trade.

But the stay has not been easy for Burke.

The 21-year-old Burke endured a disappointing 2008 season that saw his confidence drop and his status with Baseball America ’s prospect ratings basically fall off.

“Every guy is different. How they learn and how they develop and the pace they learn is very unpredictable,” Chicago Cubs minor-league hitting coordinator Dave Keller said. “The things he went through, being in (the Hawaiian Winter League) and going through that and some of the adversity he went through the last couple of years, he’s learning from all that and applying it in a game” [PJStar.com]

Through his first 50 games with Peoria in 2009, Burke is hitting .282 with 50 hits, 27 runs and a league leaging 22 doubles. He’s hit 4 homers with 25 runs batted in and 5 stolen bases. It’s a perfomance that is good enough to earn him a Midwest League All-Star Selection.  

Photo: Kyler Burke during an at-bat at Memorial Stadium – by Chad Gramling

The final game at Memorial Stadium saw local standout, Jarrod Parker take the mound. It was one of the few times that a local product played on the field (Rob Bowen being the only other I know of, but I think there was one or two others). As Parkview Field is christened, it will be done with a local standout on the roster of the visiting Dayton Dragons.

Kyle Day grew up in Fort Wayne. A Snider High School product, he was a three-year letter winner. In his senior season, he hit .510 with eight home runs, seven triples and 12 doubles and 49 runs batted in. When he graduated, he was the school’s career and single-season record holder in all four of those categories.

He took his college game to Michigan State, where he took on catching duties and quickly provided massive offense with the bat. As a freshman, he started all 56 games, splitting time between catcher, outfield and DH. He ranked sixth on the team and 30th in the Big Ten with a .315 batting average while pacing the team (fifth in the Big Ten) with 52 runs. As a sophomore, he started 50 games, where he batted .295 with 16 extra-base hits and a team-leading 33 walks. He also led team with a .438 on-base percentage and was second in stolen bases with 14.

He was drafted by the Chicago Cubs in the 19th round (577th overall) following the 2007 season, but returned to Michigan State for his Junior year. That year, he appeared in 53 games, where he hit .320 with 56 hits, 41 runs, eight doubles, nine home runs, 48 runs batted in and 39 walks.

In the 2008 player draft, Day was selected by the Cincinnati Reds in the 12th round with the 359th pick. He signed and joined the Billings Mustangs of the Pioneer (rookie) League. In 31 games, he hit .268 with 30 hits, a home run and 11 RBI’s.

He started 2009 with the Red’s Midwest League affiliate, the Dayton Dragons. Through Wednesday, he had appeared in four games. He’s hitting .333 with a double and two triples.

Dayton, here’s my plea: KYLE DAY TO LEAD OFF!

Despite denying a rumor that they had placed Fort Wayne native, Rob Bowen, on waivers; the Oakland A’s have officially released the catcher (hat tip to Cathy D for the link).

Bowen broke into the Major Leagues with the Minnesota Twins in 2003. He worked his way through the Twins’ farm sstem after being drafted in the second round (56th overall) of the 1999 amateur draft. In 2006, the Detroit Tigers claimed him after being placed on waivers by the Twins. A month later, the Tigers placed him on waivers and Bowen was claimed by the San Diego Padres. In 2007, the Padres traded him to the Chicago Cubs for Michael Barrett and then-current Wizard, Kyler Burke. A month later, the Cubs traded Bowen with Jerry Blevins to Oakland for Jason Kendall and cash considerations.

Other Rob Bowen posts at BBIFW:

Here’s a look at early spring performances from some former Wizards who are in Padres camp this Spring:

• Kyle Blanks: In 15 games (40 at-bats), he’s hitting .325 with a .429 OBP, 3 home runs and 9 RBIs
• Will Venable: In 12 games (37 at-bats), he’s hitting .297 with a .333 OBP
• Drew Macias: In 15 games (36 at-bats), he’s hitting .278 with a  .350 OBP and a home run
• Chase Headley: In 10 games (30 at-bats), he’s hitting .267 with a .313 OBP, a home run and 8 RBIs
• Matt Antonelli: In 14 games (25 at-bats), he’s hitting .320 with a .433 OBP
• Cedric Hunter: In 15 games (22 at-bats), he’s hitting .227 with a .308 OBP
• Chad Huffman: In 14 games (21 at-bats), he’s hitting .333 with a .517 OBP, 2 home runs and 6 RBIs
• Nick Hundley: In 8 games (19 at-bats), he’s hitting .316 with a .350 OBP
• Brett Dowdy:  In 10 games (13 at-bats), he’s hitting .462 with a .500 OBP
• Mitch Canham: In 10 games (11 at-bats), he’s hitting .273 with a .500 OBP
• Colt Morton: In 7 games (10 at-bats), he’s hitting .300 with a .417 OBP
• Greg Burke: In 5 games (5.2 innings pitched), he has a 4.76 ERA with 6 K’s and a walk
• Mike Ekstron: In 4 games (3.2 innings pitched), he has a 14.73 ERA with 1 K and a walk
• Cesar Ramos:  In 4 games (5.2 innings pitched), he has a 9.53 ERA with 3 K’3 and 3 walks
• Nick Schmidt: In 4 games (4 innings pitched), he has an 11.25 ERA with 1 K and 3 walks
• Josh Geer:  In 3 games (7 innings pitched), he has a 6.43 ERA with 4 K’s and a walks
• Wade LeBlanc:  In 3 games (6 innings pitched), he has a 10.53 ERA with 6 K’s and 5 walks

In related Wizards and Fort Wayne ties:

• Dale Thayer (optioned to the Rays’ Triple-A Durham)
• J.J. Furmaniak (assigned to Phillies’ Minor League Camp)
• Freddy Guzman (assigned to Mariners’ Minor League Camp)
• Rob Bowen – Rumors are posted here and here as well as elsewhere that the Fort Wayne native has been placed on waivers by Oakland. The A’s assistant general manager, David Forst, disputed the report: “Don’t you think we’d put out a release on that?” Forst said. “That’s absolutely not true.”

Local native, Rob Bowen has signed a one-year contract to remain wiht the Oakland A’s organization:

The A’s avoided arbitration with catcher Rob Bowen by agreeing to a one-year contract Friday while tendering contracts to all players on their 40-man roster not yet under contract for 2009.

That includes right-hander Justin Duchscherer and outfielder/DH Jack Cust, the other two arbitration-eligible players the A’s had aside from Bowen.

Bowen, who will make $535,000 in 2009 according to The Associated Press, appeared in just 37 games as the team’s backup to Kurt Suzuki in 2008. Bowen, 27, batted .176 with a home run and nine RBIs and started 25 games at catcher [mlb.com]

Oakland is Bowen’s fourth MLB team. He was previously with the Twins, Padres and Cubs.

Other BBIFW Rob Bowen Related posts:

• Bowen Traded to A’s; Wedge Staying Put
• Rob Bowen and Kyler Burke Traded to Chicago Cubs
• Bowen Enjoys Being a Padre

Last time out, we looked at a Mid-Season report of former Wizards who have been cast out of the Padres’ system for one reason or another. Today, we take a look at the local times across Minor League and Major League Baseball:

• Rob Bowen (Homestead): Bowen hasn’t seen a whole lot of action this year, which is his first with the Oakland A’s, but the rigors of the season look promising that he’ll get to take in a few more games in the second half. On the season, he’s been in 16 games and gotten 45 at-bats (through July 6). He’s sporting a .222 average with 10 hits, 2 doubles and a triple.
• Kyle Day (Snider):  Day was drafted by the Cincinnati Reds this year (after passing up the Cubs last year). He’s currently playing with the Billings Mustangs; the Reds entry of the Rookie Pioneer League. In 6 games with 19 at-bats, Day is hitting 2.63 with 5 hits and 4 runs and an RBI. In addition to his 5 hits, he’s drawn 3 walks to life his on-base percentage to .417 (through July 3).
• Dustin Glant (Wayne): Glant has seen 26 games in relief action for the Triple-A Tucson Sidewinders of the Arizona Diamondbacks organization. He’s got a 1-2 record with a 6.75 ERA with 33 strikeouts and 21 walks over 45.1 innings pitched. 
• Jarrett Grube (DeKalb): Grube has pitched in 28 games for the Tulsa Drillers; a Double-A affiliate of the Colorado Rockies. All his action has been in releif, where he has a 2-1 record with a 5.68 ERA. He’s got 27 strikeouts while allowing 21 walks over 38 innings pitched.
  
• Josh Judy (Indiana Tech): In his first season as a pro, Jush Judy has seen 25 games with the Lake County Captains of the South Atlantic League (Class-A). Over 25 games, pitching all of them in relief, Judy has a 7-0 record with 1 save and a 3.52 ERA. His has an impressive 59 strikeouts and just 19 walks over 55.2 innings pitched.
• Simon Klink (Canterbury): Klink is playing with the Double-A Connecticut Defenders in the San Francisco Giants organization. Over 67 games, he has a .212 average with 1 home run and 20 RBI’s. 
• Jarrod Parker (Norwell): A first round pick in last year’s MLB draft, Parker has spent the season in the Midwest League with the South Bend Silverhawks of the Arizona Diamondbacks’ organization. In starting all 14 games he’s appeared in, Parker has a 7-3 record with a 3.25 ERA. He’s struck out 58 hitters and walked just 19 over 63.2 innings pirched (though July 3). Parker was also named to the MWL All-Star team. 
• Justin Parker: Jarrod’s older brother was drafted by the Arizona Diamondbacks in this year’s draft after putting together another solid season at Wright State University. He’s signed and playing with the D-back’s Class A Short-Season team, the Yakima Bears of the Northwest League. In 12 games, he’s hitting .190 with 8 hits, a double and two triples while driving in four.
  

South Bend visits the Castle August 25-28. Wouldn’t it be a nice homecoming if both the Parker brothers were on the team to take on the Wizards?

Fort Wayne native and current Oakland A’s catcher Rob Bowen, posted a double to deep center field and guided Canadian-born Rich Harden through a dominant start in his 10th start of the season. With fewer days off in the second half, Bowen looks to get more playing time according to Oakland manager Bob Geren.

Bowen joked about his role in Harden’s success Thursday, saying, “I get along real well with Canadians.”

Bowen went on to explain that after being drafted by the Twins in 1999, he lived with Minnesota’s Canada-born 2006 American League MVP, Justin Morneau, for several years in the Minors.

“It was awesome . . . [a]ll our furniture — couches, beds — was inflatable so we’d have more room to play floor hockey. If we weren’t at the yard, we were playing hockey in our apartment” [source: MLB.com]