August 24, 2007

Dorn is doing his part at Chattanooga
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 Southern
By Bob Cuomo, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer

The Cincinnati Reds may have themselves quite a prospect in Danny Dorn, an outfielder from Cal State Fullerton who was their 32nd-round pick in the 2006 draft. At the very least, he is proving to be quite a bargain.

Dorn was so impressive at Sarasota of the Class-A Florida State League, where he batted .281 with 12 home runs, 66 RBIs and a slugging percentage of .456, that on Aug. 2 the Reds promoted him to Chattanooga.

In Dorn's first 10 games with the Lookouts, the 6-foot-2, 190-pound outfielder hit six home runs and drove in 12 runs. During a seven-game stretch from Aug. 5-15, he hit five homers and drove in 11 runs.

On Aug. 12, his two-run homer in the ninth inning gave the Lookouts a 9-8 victory over the Montgomery Biscuits. On Aug. 14, he hit a solo homer in the third inning and a go-ahead RBI double in the seventh to help beat the Tennessee Smokies, 9-5.

Dorn, who bats fourth and plays left field, has not homered since Aug. 15, but he has hit safely in 12 of his 15 games with the Lookouts, going 14 for 56 (.250) with six homers and 13 RBIs. His slugging percentage is .625. And he has yet to commit an error.

In 2006, Dorn played at Billings of the rookie Pioneer League. He led the league in hitting (.354) and slugging percentage (.573) and finished second in on-base percentage (.457). He hit eight home runs and drove in 40 runs in 60 games.

One of Dorn's teammates at Chattanooga is pitcher Josh Roenicke, the Reds' 10th-round pick in 2006 from UCLA.

Roenicke, a right-hander who is being groomed to be a closer, has made 16 appearances with the Lookouts since being promoted from Sarasota. He is 1-1 with six saves and a 1.13 earned-run average. In 16 innings he has yielded 10 hits while striking out 14 and walking three. Opponents are batting only .179 against him. He has not given up a run in his last eight outings, a span of eight innings.

He earned his promotion by going 2-1 with 16 saves and a 3.25 ERA at Sarasota. In 27 appearances covering 27 2/3 innings, he yielded 23 hits, struck out 41 and walked 15. Opponents batted .225 against him. He was named a mid-season All-Star.

Roenicke, one of 12 Bruins drafted in 2006 -- an NCAA record for players picked -- started the 2006 season with the Gulf Coast League Reds, where he went 1-0 with a 1.17 ERA and nine strikeouts over seven appearances covering 7 2/3 innings.

He was promoted to Billings of the Pioneer League, where he went 1-0 with six saves and a 6.32 ERA in 14 appearances. He had 24 strikeouts in 15 2/3 innings.

Catcher Brad Davis, the Florida Marlins' fifth-round pick in 2004 from Long Beach State, is batting .284 with three homers and 20 RBIs in 39 games for the Carolina Mudcats. He splits time with Brett Hayes of Nevada, one of the Marlins' second-round picks in 2005.

Davis, who has committed only three errors, had a brief promotion to triple-A Albuquerque of the Pacific Coast League. He played in one game, hitting a run-scoring double in two at-bats to help the Isotopes beat the Portland Beavers, 8-4, in the second game of a doubleheader May 9.

Davis, who caught Jered Weaver, the Angels' first-round pick in 2004, while they were 49ers, spent part of June at Jupiter of the Florida State League. He played 14 games with the Hammerheads and batted .163 (seven for 43).

Update Dept.:

Third baseman Evan Longoria, the third overall pick in the 2006 draft by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, was having such a productive season for the Montgomery Biscuits that the Devil Rays promoted him to the Durham Bulls of the International League on Aug. 1. Longoria, the former Long Beach State star, was batting .307 and led the league with 76 RBIs and 78 runs. He was also second with 117 hits, third in slugging percentage (.528) and fifth in on-base percentage (.403). He still ranks second in runs, homers, RBIs and slugging percentage. In 16 games with the Bulls, he is batting .286 (16 for 56) with three homers and 10 RBIs.

Steve Hammond, the Milwaukee Brewers' fifth-round pick in 2005 from Long Beach State (he and Longoria were teammates on the 49ers), is 7-8 with a 4.64 ERA for the Huntsville Stars. In probably his best outing of the season, the left-hander pitched seven scoreless innings as the Stars beat the Tennessee Smokies, 4-1, on July 20. He yielded six hits and did not walk a batter in winning his third consecutive start. That performance extended his string of scoreless innings to 15. In all, he has made 26 appearances -- 23 starts. He has given up 148 hits in 128 innings while striking out 96 and walking 35.

Wes Whisler, a 6-5, 240-pound left-hander from UCLA who was the second-round pick of the Chicago White Sox in 2004, pitched perhaps his best game of the season on July 28, going 7 2/3 innings as the Birmingham Barons beat the Montgomery Biscuits, 2-0. He gave up seven hits, struck out five and didn't walk a batter for his first win in eight starts. Overall, he is 6-12 with a 5.19 ERA in 26 games, all but two starts.

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