Results tagged ‘ Baseball ’
Breaking down the Dash…on Twitter
After a successful homestand, the Dash are enjoying an off day today before going on the road for a six-game trip to square off with division rivals Salem and Carolina.
Because today is an off day, we wanted to have some fun. Plenty of Dash players are on Twitter, and we found five players who tweeted some, well, interesting things, such as Duck Dynasty, Happy Feet and huge televisions. We’ll let them explain what they mean here:
Hope you enjoy!
- Erika
Snow at BB&T Ballpark
This is not an original idea, but it is a great one: pictures of snowfall inside baseball stadiums! After last night’s snowstorm, BB&T Ballpark looked very different than it does during the season.
Before the pictures, though, I want to congratulate one of my best friends, Aaron Goldsmith, on becoming the new radio broadcaster for the Seattle Mariners. Aaron and I worked together with the Frisco RoughRiders in 2011, and we have developed a tremendous friendship. He is one of baseball’s nicest people, and I couldn’t be happier for him.
He was with the Pawtucket Red Sox last season, and he did a similar blog post a few days ago when snow moved through Rhode Island. So, congratulate him by giving his blog a few more clicks before he turns it over to a new broadcast team in Pawtucket.
Without further ado, here are some pictures of snow at BB&T Ballpark:
The view from the Womble Carlyle Club.
The warning track around the ballpark looked ready for a game…a hockey game.
Seats in the shade this morning still had plenty of snow on them.
The berm looks a bit different.
There was plenty of ice around the park, too.
Only 84 days until the home opener, even if it doesn’t look like it.
Drive safely today, and enjoy the rare chance to see snow!
- Brian
Thursday News And Notes
Bobby Thigpen spent three years in Winston-Salem before his recent promotion to the White Sox coaching staff (Brian Westerholt/Sports on Film).
December is almost here, so the Dash front office is busy spreading holiday joy, hanging out with Santa and gearing up for the holiday season. With 2013 approaching, big league organizations are making some important decisions for the upcoming season. Here are a few notes to quench your baseball thirst on a Thursday afternoon:
- Congrats to Bobby Thigpen, who will join the White Sox staff as the bullpen coach. Thiggy was the Dash’s pitching coach from 2009-11 before spending this season with Double-A Birmingham in the same role. Thigpen was certainly a fan favorite here in Winston-Salem, and Chicago skipper Robin Ventura has known him for his entire career.
- The Sox also announced that Daryl Boston, who spent 12 seasons as the organization’s outfield instructor, will join the big league staff in 2013 as the first base coach. Boston made a handful of stops in Winston-Salem this season, and it was good to occasionally chat with him. Congrats to him, too.
- The only Carolina League team to announce its field staff for 2013 is the Carolina Mudcats, who will have a new look when the Dash open the campaign in Zebulon April 5. David Wallace becomes the Muddies’ manager after guiding Lake County, the Indians’ Low-A affiliate, to the playoffs this season. Hitting coach Rouglas Odor and pitching coach Jeff Harris will accompany Wallace, who replaces 2012 skipper Edwin Rodriguez. The former Marlins boss will lead Cleveland’s Double-A affiliate in Akron.
- The White Sox have yet to announce their minor league staff assignments for 2013, but this news should be released soon. Last year, Dash fans learned that Tommy Thompson was Winston-Salem’s 2012 manager in mid-November, while the 2011 staff decisions were made public a few days before Christmas.
- Earlier this week, the BBWAA released the 37-man ballot for induction into the Baseball Hall of Fame. More than 600 voters have until December 31 to submit their vote, and some notable (and controversial) names are on the list. A few players linked to performance-enhancing drugs (Barry Bonds, Roger Clemens, Sammy Sosa) will prompt many debates on the standards to reach the Hall of Fame. It should be fascinating to watch.
The Dash’s season opener is only 127 days away. We can’t wait!
- Brian
MiLBY Voting Is In
The Dash finished sixth in voting for the 2012 “Team of the Year” MiLBY award, Minor League Baseball announced this morning.
Winston-Salem received eight percent of the votes and finished ahead of Elizabethton, Vancouver, St. Lucie, Wisconsin, Akron and Springfield. All of these teams except for St. Lucie won their league’s championship in September.
The Hudson Valley Renegades, Tampa Bay’s short-season A affiliate and the New York-Penn League’s champion, won the Fans’ Choice MiLBY by mustering an impressive 29 percent of the votes. The Asheville Tourists, Colorado’s Low-A unit, finished second in the voting but claimed the Staff’s Choice MiLBY after winning the South Atlantic League crown and finishing behind only Winston-Salem for the top regular season mark in full-season minor league baseball.
The Dash also fell just short of besting three Triple-A clubs–Reno, Pawtucket and Indianapolis–in the vote. That trio finished third, fourth and fifth, respectively.
Winston’s 87-51 record was the best in full-season baseball, and the Dash also finished with a minor league-best 48 victories at home. The Dash’s playoff run fell short in the Mills Cup Finals, though, when Lynchburg won the best-of-five set in four games.
Thanks to all the fans who supported the Dash by voting online! Winston-Salem could still take home a MiLBY when the “Home Run of the Year” is announced Friday. Keenyn Walker’s homer against highly-touted prospect Dylan Bundy from July 20 is one of 12 nominees.
Here is a full list of the nominees and winners.
- Brian
World Series With The Dash
The Dash hosted a World Series Game 1 party for season ticket holders Wednesday night in the Womble Carlyle Club. Thanks to everyone who joined us for a great event. If you are interested in taking advantage of these types of opportunities by securing season tickets, call the Dash at (336) 714-2287 today!
Here are a few pictures from the fun Wednesday night (thanks to Kayla Sherrill for the photographic mastery):
Have a great weekend!
- Brian
Thanks For The Help, Winston-Salem
The Dash have done plenty of high-fiving after games at BB&T Ballpark (Steve Orcutt/W-S Dash).
The offseason brings with it a chance to reflect on the Dash’s season and recent history. With that as the motivation, I explored Winston-Salem’s successes both at home and overall, and some tremendous facts came from this research.
First off, the Dash boast the best home record in full-season minor league baseball since 2010, the debut season at BB&T Ballpark.
In other words, BB&T Ballpark is the toughest place to play in the minor leagues since its opening April 13, 2010.
Winston posted a 48-23 mark at home this season, which was tops among the 120 full-season clubs. The Dash also thrived at home in their debut season at BB&T Ballpark in 2010 (47-22) before following up with a solid 2011 showing in the Triad (39-32).
Also, the Dash’s drive to the top mark in the minors this season propelled Winston-Salem into the conversation for best minor league team since 2010.
The franchise is 237-180-1 (.568) over the last three seasons, which is the third-best overall record in the minors during that span.
Only the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees (244-177; .580) and San Jose Giants (241-179; .574) have been better than the Dash in the last three seasons.
The Dash have had some great players come through Winston-Salem, but fan support helps a ton, too. You, the fans, have brought almost one million fans to BB&T Ballpark since its opening, and this support, the best in the Carolina League, has aided the Dash’s incredible three-year run.
Thanks, fans!
- Brian
Playoff Predictions Sure To Be Wrong
Welcome to October baseball. Sure, the regular season spilled over to the month’s first few days, but the next four weeks of action is truly October baseball.
Many in the Dash’s front office are excited about the postseason, too. Here are 10 playoff predictions from those of us brave enough to publicly make them.
First, some trends:
- Detroit (tied for the worst record among playoff participants) and Atlanta (could be eliminated as early as tonight) both received three votes for the World Series title.
- Baltimore, Oakland, San Francisco, St. Louis and Texas will not win it all according to all 10 voters, while Baltimore, St. Louis and Texas did not even reach anyone’s Fall Classic prediction.
- Only one person (me) predicted the Rangers, who have won 18 playoff games over the last two years, to reach the ALCS.
- Six people picked Detroit to reach the World Series, while five pegged Atlanta as the pennant winners on the Senior Circuit. Detroit v. Atlanta represents the most popular World Series prediction.
Here are all of the individual predictions. Give us your picks in the comments!
The majority of our voters think Miguel Cabrera and the Tigers will reach the World Series (Orlin Wagner/AP).
Sarah Baumann (Group Sales Representative):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Oakland
NLDS: Atlanta and Cincinnati
LCS: New York and Atlanta
World Series: New York
Brian Boesch (Guy Who Writes This Blog):
Wild Card: Texas and St. Louis
ALDS: Texas and Detroit
NLDS: Washington and San Francisco
LCS: Detroit and San Francisco
World Series: Detroit
Nikki Caldwell (Associate Director of Events & Marketing):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Detroit
NLDS: Atlanta and Cincinnati
LCS: Detroit and Atlanta
World Series: Atlanta
Brandon Cathey (Director of Marketing and Communications):
Wild Card: Texas and St. Louis
ALDS: New York and Detroit
NLDS: Washington and San Francisco
LCS: Detroit and San Francisco
World Series: Detroit
C.J. Johnson (Vice President, Ticket Sales):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Oakland
NLDS: Washington and San Francisco
LCS: New York and Washington
World Series: Washington
Chipper Jones is aiming for one more run in the playoffs with the Braves (AP).
Trey Kalny (Director of Game Entertainment):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Oakland
NLDS: Washington and Cincinnati
LCS: Oakland and Cincinnati
World Series: Cincinnati
Caleb Pardick (Associate Director of Creative Services):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Detroit
NLDS: Atlanta and Cincinnati
LCS: Detroit and Atlanta
World Series: Detroit
Russell Parmele (Group Ticket Sales Manager):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Oakland
NLDS: Atlanta and San Francisco
LCS: Oakland and Atlanta
World Series: Atlanta
Kayla Sherrill (Sales Coordinator):
Wild Card: Texas and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Detroit
NLDS: Washington and Cincinnati
LCS: Detroit and Cincinnati
World Series: Cincinnati
Brandon Stump (Business Development Representative):
Wild Card: Baltimore and Atlanta
ALDS: New York and Detroit
NLDS: Atlanta and Cincinnati
LCS: Detroit and Atlanta
World Series: Atlanta
No matter what happens, playoff baseball is here! What a great time of the year.
- Brian
Playoff Perspective – Game 4
It’s a day late, but here is our final analysis of the Dash’s Game 4 loss to Lynchburg last night.
PLAYOFF PERSPECTIVE:
- First off, congratulations to the Lynchburg Hillcats. Over the last four days, Lynchburg was the better team after the Dash posted an incredible regular season. All the fans in attendance were treated to one heck of a championship-clinching victory.
- Also, big time props must go out to the 50-plus Dash fans who made the trip to Lynchburg and added to the atmosphere. It was a great minor league baseball game yesterday, even if the result did not go the way of Winston-Salem.
- There were so many twists and turns during last night’s game, and I’m not going to go through all of them. However, it is never easy to lose a game when your opposition loads the bases with an infield single, an error and a bunt single in the deciding inning. Winston would love to have the 11th inning back.
- You have to feel for Taylor Thompson, who was the Carolina League’s best reliever during the second half of the season. He didn’t have his best stuff in the ninth inning, and Lynchburg took advantage to tie the game. That will likely be Thompson’s final High-A appearance because he is overdue for a trip to Double-A Birmingham.
- If the Dash could have forced a Game 5, especially based on the way last night’s game played out, I would have felt really good about their chances. Alas, Lynchburg closed the deal with a dramatic win.
- This is my fifth season of calling baseball, and this Dash team was, by far, my favorite team to deal with. It was such a privilege to get to know these guys as baseball players and human beings. The White Sox run their minor league system very well, and fans in Winston-Salem, Chicago and across the country should be proud of these players. This team accomplished so much, and it was an incredible journey.
- Finally, Daniel Wagner summed it up perfectly last night on Twitter: “What a year. Proud to say I was apart of the 2012 @WSDashBaseball team. Great run boys. Got nothing to hang our heads about.”
Thanks for following along all season long. We will continue our coverage throughout the offseason. It has been an honor. Go Dash!
- Brian
Game 4 Starting Lineups And Intro
It’s simple for the Dash: win or go home. Check out tonight’s broadcast intro and starting lineups:
WINSTON-SALEM:
CF – Keenyn Walker
2B – Daniel Wagner
SS – Marcus Semien
1B – Dan Black
DH – Kevan Smith
RF – Michael Earley
DH – Mike Blanke
LF – Courtney Hawkins
3B – David Herbek
LHP – Scott Snodgress
LYNCHBURG:
LF – Dan Brewer
SS – Nick Ahmed
2B – Tommy La Stella
1B – Chris Garcia
3B – Edward Salcedo
DH – Michael Spina
C – Braeden Schlehuber
CF – Mycal Jones
RF – David Rohm
RHP – Aaron Northcraft
- Brian
Playoff Perspective – Game 1
Steve McCray kept the Dash in Saturday’s game, but he and Winston-Salem ultimately lost (Jody Stewart/W-S Dash).
One night after an incredible SDCS finale, the Dash stumbled in Game 1 of the Mills Cup Championship Series. Lynchburg led the entire way in a 3-1 win over the Dash Saturday at BB&T Ballpark. Here are a few thoughts before the quick turnaround for Game 2 Sunday at 2 p.m.
PLAYOFF PERSPECTIVE:
- Big league rehab assignments are always touchy subjects during the playoffs, but I have absolutely no problem with them. If Paul Konerko needed to work back from an injury, and the Dash were the only minor league affiliate playing, you better believe he would be in Winston-Salem. Sure, Andrelton Simmons was a big part of Lynchburg’s win tonight, but he is here to prepare for a return to the big leagues.
- For the first time this season, Michael Lee did not allow a run in a start with the Hillcats. His off-speed stuff befuddled the Dash over six and a third innings. Lee was the difference in the game.
- Even though Dash starter Steve McCray did not post his best start of the season, he kept Winston-Salem in the game. The former Tennessee Volunteer stranded seven runners and only allowed two runs in five innings, with one being Simmons’ leadoff homer. It could have been much worse for McCray, but the righty battled to keep his club in the contest.
- The Dash struggled offensively for seven innings, but this offense has a special aura to it. When Michael Earley, Mike Blanke and Courtney Hawkins strung together three straight hits, it felt like the Dash were going to battle back. Obviously, it didn’t happen, but this is an offense that can strike in a hurry, and I’m guessing it will before this series concludes.
- Speaking of Hawkins, the 18-year-old has driven in a run in all four playoff games, which is incredible considering the Dash only scored one run in both series openers. This youngster is the real deal.
- Tomorrow is the 77th and final minor league baseball game at BB&T Ballpark in 2012. This facility has hosted 50 Dash victories, three walk-off wins, an incredible All-Star game and much more. It will be bittersweet to wrap up the home slate, but it is fitting that the Dash are playing in a meaningful game after an incredibly great 2012 campaign here in the Triad.
Keep the faith. The Dash go for a series-tying win tomorrow. Already can’t wait.
- Brian
