July 20, 2007

It's been a tough road for Romero at New Hampshire
Southern California has produced more than its share of major league players. In this space, we'll take a look at how Southland players are faring in the minors. This week: the double-A Eastern League
By Bob Cuomo, Times Staff Writer

Ricky Romero of the New Hampshire Fisher Cats certainly didn't figure to still be looking for his first victory at this stage of the season, but extenuating circumstances have contributed to the situation.

Romero, a left-hander from Cal State Fullerton who was the sixth overall pick in the 2005 draft by the Toronto Blue Jays, is 0-3 with a 5.26 earned-run average.

Those aren't exactly the numbers you'd expect from a player rated the third-best prospect in the Blue Jays organization by Baseball America

Romero has made only nine starts, and therein lies part of the problem. In the third inning of his fourth start, on May 3 against the Trenton Thunder, he suffered a shoulder injury, and the Fisher Cats put him on the disabled list.

As a result, Romero missed at least eight starts. After a rehabilitation stint at Dunedin of the Class-A Florida State League, where he made one start, the Fisher Cats activated him on June 25.

Romero has since made five starts, going 0-2 with a 6.13 ERA. In 19 1/3 innings, he has yielded 19 hits and 13 earned runs and walked 19 while striking out 23. In his last outing, Tuesday night against the Portland Sea Dogs, he lasted only 2 1/3 innings, giving up nine hits and five runs in a 13-1 loss.

Romero started the 2006 season at Dunedin. He made 10 starts and was 2-1 with a 2.47 ERA. In 58 1/3 innings, he yielded 48 hits, walked 14 and struck out 61.

That performance earned him a promotion to New Hampshire. He lost his first six decisions before beating the Reading Phillies on Aug. 21. He made 12 starts for the Fisher Cats, going 2-7 with a 5.08 ERA.

As is the case with Romero, it hasn't exactly been the best of seasons for first baseman Mike Carp of the Binghamton Mets.

Carp, the New York Mets' ninth-round pick in the 2004 draft from Lakewood High, was coming off a big year at St. Lucie of the Florida State League. He batted .287 with 17 homers and 88 RBIs, numbers that earned him a promotion to Binghamton.

Carp was batting .267 with two homers and seven RBIs after 20 games. But he broke the ring finger of his right hand while breaking up a double play against the New Britain Rock Cats on May 3, forcing the Mets to put him in the disabled list.

He was activated on June 18 and sent to St. Lucie on a rehab assignment. He played one game, going 1 for 4.

Carp is back in the Mets' lineup — he bats fourth — and is hitting .276 in 49 games, but he has only five homers — two in his last 18 games — and 27 RBIs. He had a productive game on Sunday, driving in all the runs in the Mets' 3-1 victory over the Connecticut Defenders.

Taylor Wilding was so impressive during the first half of the season at San Jose of the California League that the San Francisco Giants promoted him to Connecticut.

Wilding, the Giants' 13th-round pick in 2005 from Cal Poly Pomona, appeared in 26 games in the high Class-A league and was 4-0 with 11 saves and a 1.52 ERA. He had 49 strikeouts and walked only 12 in 41 1/3 innings. Opponents batted only .150 against him.

Wilding, a right-hander, is learning that pitching to double-A hitters is a bit tougher than facing those at the Class-A level. He has made nine appearances for the Defenders and is 1-1 with a 5.73 ERA. In 11 innings, he has given up 14 hits and walked five while striking out eight.

Update Dept.:

Right fielder Greg Jacobs of the Reading Phillies ranks among the league leaders in several key offensive categories. He's second in RBIs (64), third in homers (16) and third in batting average (.324). He also leads the league in total bases (180) and slugging percentage (.571). Jacobs, who pitched and was a designated hitter at Cal State Fullerton in 1998, had a 12-game hitting streak from June 27 to July 9, during which he was 20 for 41 (.488) with 11 RBIs.

First baseman Josh Whitesell of the Harrisburg Senators ranks fourth in the league with a .415 on-base percentage. In 81 games, Whitesell, who was drafted in the sixth round in 2003 by the Montreal Expos from Loyola Marymount, has hit safely in nine consecutive games, during which he is 11 for 34 (.324) with four home runs and eight RBIs. In 81 games, he's batting .285 with a team-leading 75 hits, including 14 homers.

"Minor League Spotlight" is a weekly web-exclusive feature that appears Fridays.