The Padres rookie league team finished their season on August 29 with a loss to the AZL Mariners. That gave them an overall record of 20-35 for the short rookie league season and gave them a 3^rd place out of 4 finish in the Rookie League West.

Can anything be concluded from a 55 game season? A few highlights are obvious from a review of the stats from the season. There was a lot of movement (as expected) throughout the season as players showed their ability and many were moved around through the organization. The league is more an evaluation tool than anything else as the Padre organization uses it to evaluate rehabbing players, assess rookie skills and teach professional baseball basics to a group of raw players right from the draft. A losing season is not a catastrophe as the lineup shifted dramatically from day to day and pitchers innings were drawn out or limited as the need dictated.

Here are some highlights and players to keep an eye on as they go forward thru the system. Some will be invited to instructional league for further evaluation and teaching. Instructional league begins Sept 16 so there will be a break before we resume coverage of these players. Look for an announcement on the Friarhood site when Instructs begin.

3B Daniel Garce- 21 yr old product of the Dominican Republic. Acquired by the Padres in 2006 and playing with the DSL Padres until 2009. Last season he played 29 games with the AZL Padres. In 26 games and 96 AB this year he scored 13 runs, had 31 hits with 6 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR and 16 RBI. His .323/.363/.438 was tops on the team.

SS Jorge Minyeti- signed in 2008 into the Dominican Summer League, the 20 yr old switch hitter played for three teams during the season. Playing 22 games in San Antonio, 21 games in Eugene and 18 games in AZ, Jorge finished his season with the AZL Padres. In those 18 games he had 62 AB, 11 R, 20 hits, 3 2B, 7 RBI and 2 SB for a .323/.408/.371 avg. He also committed 14 errors at shortstop.

BJ Guinn- Drafted as a 2B but quickly converted to SS, the switch hitting 21 yr old came to the Padres from the 11^th round of the 2010 draft out of UC Berkeley. In 31 games and 125 AB the athletic infielder had 39 hits, 5 2B, 2 3B, and 8 RBI. Fleet of foot, he stole 14 bases with 3 CS. BJ is the son of former major leaguer Brian Guinn Sr.

OF Corey Adamson- 18 yr old left handed hitting outfielder from Australia was a free agent signing last year and played for the 2009 AZL Padres but struggled. He was back this season, a year older and now 6-2, 185. Corey made some great adjustments from his season last year and in 36 games and 138 AB he scored 18 runs with 39 hits, 7 2B, 2 3B, 19 RBI and 2 SB. His .283/.359/.362 line earned him a late season promotion to the Eugene Emeralds.

OF Mykal Stokes got the most AB’s with 200 in 48 games played. He had 24 runs, 46 H, 6 2B, 1 HR, 18 RBI with 6 BB and 38 SO. He also stole 6 bases with 1 CS. His line was .230/.262/.275 for the season.

The most HR’s hit was a tie between 1B Carlos Garcia and OF Yair Lopez, each with 4. Ironically, they also tied for most RBI with 26. Their respective season lines:

Garcia - .263/.331/.445 with 11 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 26 RBI 13 BB/43SO and 2 SB.

Lopez - .250/.293/.378 with 7 2B, 1 3B, 4 HR, 26 RBI, 4 B/ 56 SO and 5 SB.

In the pitching department we find the biggest reason for the poor season record. It is very true that it is the most difficult for pitchers to adjust to professional ball. With few exceptions, young pitchers struggle initially and this group had few exceptions. The two standouts earned late season promotions to higher levels. It is also true that there was a lot of movement among the pitching ranks through the season, just like the position players.

RHSP Adam Schrader- 23 yr old drafted in the 39^th round of the 2010 draft. His 4-0, 2.45 ERA in 51.1 IP over 8 GS and giving up 0 HR with 10 BB with 48 SO got him a promotion to Lake Elsinore in August.

RHSP Rob Gariano- 22 yr old drafted in the 36^th round of the 2010 draft. This shorter (5-10) than avg starting pitcher showed well enough to get a late season promotion to the Eugene Emeralds. He pitched 46.2 innings giving up 1 HR with 13 BB to 32 SO in 8 GS. He also had a few relief appearances. This gave him a 4.24 ERA and a 3-3 record.

A big success story so far has been 43^rd pick Mark Hardy, a LHSP that began the season with LE and was sent to AZ to work on some things and then took off. His record with AZ, 3-2, 3.06 ERA in 6 G and 5 GS , 32.1 IP with 4 BB and 31 SO got him a promotion to Eugene. His 5 GS in Eugene with a 3.0 ERA and 10 BB with 28 SO got him promoted to SA, where he has currently made 1 start. It will be interesting to see where he ends up next season.

RHRP Jeury Castillo- 21 yr old from the Dominican Republic pitched in 17 games and 24.1 innings. He allowed 1 HR with 13 BB and 29 SO to give him a 0-1 record and 2.96 ERA. He pitched 45.2 innings with the DSL Padres this season before being promoted stateside. His 2-1 record and 3.15 ERA with the DSL team was in 6 starts. He has not started any games here.

That raps up the 2010 season for the AZL Padres and Friarhood’s coverage of the rookie league team. As noted before, coverage of the Instructional League team will take its place.