The Eugene Emeralds finished the first half of their short season as the leaders of the Northwest division, although they tied Vancouver with identical win/loss records, because of a winning head to head battle. Their 24-14 record was a first for Eugene and they were paced by the outstanding performance of first round draft pick Cory Spangenberg, their second baseman.

Spangenberg posted a .384/.545/.535 line with ten doubles, a homerun and twenty RBI with 31 BB and 15 SO. He also succeeded in 10 of 14 stolen base attempts and had only four errors.

He was promoted to Fort Wayne after the break.

Zach Kometani, the first baseman for Eugene and the 21^st round pick for the Padres, also had a good first half and is currently the team leader with a .264/.344/.373 line with nine doubles, a homerun and 23 RBI.

Press Release Provided by the Eugene Emeralds Media Department

Eugene, OR – The Eugene Emeralds continue on their hot streak winning a 14th time in a row with a 9-3 victory over the Vancouver Canadians.  The Eugene Emeralds now go down in the Northwest League record books for most consecutive games won with 14 wins.  They replace the 1969 Rogue Valley team and the 1973 Walla Walla team who previously held the record with 13 consecutive wins.

Tonight's win was partially due to the Ems hot bats.  In the fourth inning, OF Lee Orr hit the first grand slam of the season, his second home run in consecutive games.  Then DH Jose Dore smacked another homer in the fifth inning, sealing the Canadians fate.

Additionally, four Ems 2B Cory Spangenberg, SS Jace Peterson, OF Kyle Gaedele and 1B Zach Kometani all hit doubles.

Vancouver tried for a comeback in the ninth, scoring one run to add to their other two.

With a 17-2 record, the Ems are now six games ahead of second place Vancouver.  The Ems face the Canadians one last time this series, looking for a second sweep of the team, fourth sweep in a row.  First pitch is 7:05 pm at PK Park: the Emeralds will bring RHP James Needy to the mound to face Canadians RHP Taylor Cole.

Lastly, the Ems set a new attendance record for PK Park with 4,601 fans.

The short season Eugene Emeralds began their season on June 17 with the first game of a five game series with Boise Hawks winning three of the first four games. The Padres signed several of their 2011 picks very quickly, including the first pick of the draft, and they are currently playing their first professional ball.

The following players are members of the season opening roster. The roster will be a fluid situation as more players sign and as the Arizona Rookie league begins. Not every player is from this years’ draft and the exceptions will be noted. The daily farm update, written by Matt Baker, will update on both the Ems and the rookie league teams as their seasons continue. We will also have a periodic review of the progress of the players and the leagues as their season progresses and other players sign with the Padres.

The starting pitchers are:

Matt Andriese: Selected in the 3^rd round of the 2011 draft.  6-3, 210 lbs   RHP from UC Riverside.  A 90-93 mph fastball and a power curve with an occasional splitter/change. Should be a durable middle of the rotation pitcher but needs to improve his command.

Johnny Barbato : Selected in the 6^th rnd of the 2010 draft. RHP  6-2, 185 lbs. Drafted at 17 yr old out of Felix Varela HS in Florida, Barbato was committed to the Univ. of Florida and was not thought to be signable. He did sign, late, and spent very little time on the field last year. He has been in extended spring training up to now and will be brought along slowly. He already has a low 90’s fastball, that touches 94, with a plus curve and good change. He is a good athlete, as well. Thought to be a 2^nd round talent, he fell to the Padres due to the signability concerns.

Leonel Campos: A 23 yr old Venezuelan who is 6-3 and 185 lbs. RHP that has no previous stats or information available.

Juan Herrera: A product of the DSL system. 19 yr old, 6-0  179 lbs. Spent 2008-2009 with the DSL Padres and 2010 with the AZL. Concerns regarding his mental approach are foremost. Has major league stuff with a mid-90’s fastball and quality secondary pitches but does not repeat his delivery well and makes lots of mistakes.

Colin Rea: Selected in the 12^th rnd of the 2011 draft.  6-5  210 lbs out of Indiana St. Univ.  RHP.  Mid 90’s fastball with low 90’s sinker and mid 80’s slider plus a cutter, a curveball and change. Repeatable delivery and strong arm.