…of Spring Training, that is. We enter the last week of games and here are some notes from today’s action, starting with the “BlueClaws,” in quotes because of course these results are in reality just a snapshot of the potential rosters, and don’t really indicate much one way or another. That said, logically you would think that as we get closer to roster day at the end of the week, each day would be a better indicator than the one before. Lakewood…

• Tied Yankees prospects 1-1
• Yohan Flande threw four shutout innings. Speculation: He is on track to throw on Saturday and then next Thursday’s opener at FirstEnergy Park. That would be his normal rest.
• 2nd round pick Anthony Gose led off and went 2-4.
• Travis Mattair, a potential returnee, added a hit and well regarded catcher Sebastian Valle hit cleanup.
• Noteworty: SS Troy Hanzawa played his first game with “Lakewood” this spring. He had been with Hi-A and Double-A.

Triple-A Lehigh Valley lost 11-5 to Yankees prospects…

• Cole Hamels gave up three runs on 10 (!) hits over four innings. He said he won’t be ready for Opening Day and will likely start game four for the Philles on April 9th.
• Jason Donald went 2-4 and Jeremy Slayden had a two-run double.
• Freddy Galvis played here today, though he is basically a lock for either Clearwater or Lakewood.

Double-A Reading lost to Yankees prospects 3-1…

• Andrew Carpenter gave up one run over five innings.
• The team only had three hits, including one by Quintin Berry and Mike Spidale, who scored the run.
• Michael Taylor hit third, going 0-2.

Hi-A Clearwater tied Yankees prospects 5-5…

• Chance Chapman threw 2.1 shutout innings in relief.
• Yonderman Rodriguez and Arlon Quiroz, who have been with Lo-A most of the spring, both played here, with Rodriguez going 2-4.

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Tomorrow Josh Ellis and I will try to predict the BlueClaws 25-man roster. We’ll put it up here in late afternoon. It will not be easy. If we go 15-25, that might not be that bad.

Just 19 days to go until the BlueClaws opener. Let’s go back and take a look at #19 on the 2003 BlueClaws, Mr. Cole Hamels, who had about as good of a run with Lakewood as you could possibly have.

Here are Hamels’ career statistics, and here is a 2003 game log. Note that opponents only hit .136 off the lefty and he had 10+ strikeouts in five of his 13 starts with the BlueClaws.

Further, he was just 19 at the time, one of the youngest players in the South Atlantic League.

Hamels signed a contract extenion, 3 years, $20.5 million, in the offseason to avoid arbitration.

“To see the whole process, it can cause a big distraction,” Hamels said, citing the attention paid to Ryan Howard’s arbitration hearing last February. “The business side of baseball, it’s so confusing and it can be very stressful. That’s not what I want. I know what I can do on the baseball field, and that’s all I want to do.”

Favorite Cole Hamels moment from his time in Lakewood?

Just 48 days, less that seven weeks, to go until the BlueClaws 2009 opener on April 9th.

Today we look at the BlueClaws autograph signers. You can see the entire list at this link. Four on the list (Steve Carlton, Bob Feller, Jim Rice, and Goose Gossage) are in the Baseball Hall of Fame, or in Rice’s case, will be inducted this year.

Last month, the BlueClaws invited four potential Hall of Famers (Jack Morris, Bert Blyleven, Lee Smith, and Andre Dawson) out to the ballpark to sign autographs. Both Gossage and Rice were inducted after signing here in Lakewood.

This year’s signers include Hacksaw Jim Duggan on June 20th (County Line Hardware) and Darryl Strawberry on August 1st, which is Autism Awareness Night.

Our 70 in 70 countdown to Opening Day continues. Just 51 days to go until the BlueClaws opener, and here’s a great chance to talk about the BlueClaws BluePen, our answer to the Monster Seats, Dawg Pound, or Cameron Crazies.

51 seats in the first three rows of the BluePen, which is located down the right field line in section 101, right behind the BlueClaws bullpen. Each BluePen seat, which will have a special seatback, can be ordered individually or as part of a group. The package comes with the following:

• Seat just behind the BlueClaws bullpen
• $10 gift card, for use anywhere in ballpark
• Special BluePen rally towel
• Chance to participate in BluePen-only promotions
• Chance to win a BluePen-only prize each night

For more information or to order today, call the BlueClaws Ticket Office at 732-901-7000 and press option 3.

Note: This was NOT the big news we referenced in the previous post. Stay tuned for that later.

Our 70 in 70 countdown rolls on. 55 days to go until Opening Day. Here’s our first chance to talk about one of our favorite programs, the Most Improved Student nights. This year, they will be held on April 20th, 22nd, and 23rd, with about 55 kids or so, hence our numerical designation as part of 70 in 70.

Essentially, teachers around the area can nominate students they think are worthy of being a Most Improved Student. Those nominated will get a to come out to FirstEnergy Park before one of those three games, get a parade on the field, and announce their name and school to all the fans at the ballpark.

For more information, call the BlueClaws Ticket Sales Department at 732-901-7000 and press option 3.

What time is first pitch tonight? For our out of area readers it’s supposed to get up to about 60 degrees today here in Lakewood. Let’s continue 70 in 70 with just 57 days to go until Opening Day, we look at the enormous video scoreboard in left-center field.

Why today? Well, the video scoreboard in left-center field is 57 feet wide and 56 feet high (we’ll have a new item tomorrow, don’t worry). The centerpiece of FirstEnergy Park, the video portion of the video scoreboard, which is 19 feet by 23 feet, was re-installed in 2005 and has the ability to show 4.4 trillion (with a t) shades of color in high-definition.

The video scoreboard rises up above the center-field picnic area and is a major focal point for all fans throughout the game. By the way, the entire scoreboard is 3,192 square feet, if you were wondering about such things. That’s number 57. Tomorrow, number 56 as 70 in 70 continues.

We’ll talk to a trio of 2007 BlueClaws players, Quintin Berry, Jason Donald, and Kyle Drabek, over the next few days. Any questions for the players, send them over to ggiombarrese@blueclaws.com or just leave them in the comments.

Merry Christmas from the Lakewood BruceClaws.

Where can I get that hat Stevie is wearing?

We’ll be doing another Q&A, this time with 2006 BlueClaws pitcher Mike Zagurski, who had the fastest run from the BlueClaws to the majors in team history. Having wrapped up the 2006 SAL Championship season with Lakewood, Zagurski began 2007 with Clearwater, then went to Reading, and then was promoted to Ottawa (then the Phillies Triple-A affiliate, which is now Lehigh Valley). By May 25, 2007, the left-hander, drafted out of the University of Kansas in the 12th round of the 2005 draft, was on the Major League roster.

Any questions for Mike, email me at ggiombarrese@blueclaws.com. Please give us your first name and hometown (Joe from Lakewood, for example). Please note that not all questions will be asked.

Happy Thanksgiving everyone, from your friends at the Lakewood BlueClaws.

Just a quick reminder, Friday and Saturday, 10a – 3p, it’s our big BlueFriday Sale. Up to 50% off items all over the ClawsCove. Some hats and t-shirts will be available for just $10 as well.

For more information click here. Have a great holiday.

PISCATAWAY, NJ – Known best for his prowess on a baseball diamond, Buster showed on Sunday that he’s more than just a one-sport sensation. The Lakewood BlueClaws mascot unanimously earned MVP honors in his second sport, basketball, in a mascot game at the Rutgers Athletic Center.

The yellow furry creature led the way with four points, though Buster and his teammate, IronDog of the New Jersey Ironmen, fell to the New Jersey Devil and Trenton Devil 6-5, in front of 4,018. Buster was named MVP in a poll conducted by the players and the referee, Boomer of the Trenton Thunder.

For some pictures of the event, click here.

Welcome back everybody to the BlueClaws Blog here at BlueClaws.com. I’m Greg Giombarrese, and beginning with this post, I’ll be taking you through everything you need to know about the Lakewood BlueClaws.

You may have heard by now that Brendan Burke, the voice of the BlueClaws for the last two seasons, has moved on, and is now the Director of Communications and play-by-play voice of the Peoria Rivermen of the American Hockey League. We wish Brendan the best, but the show must go on.

We’re revamping the BlueClaws blog, and promise to update it more frequently, so check back here as often as you’d like.

Make this your number one source for information about BlueClaws players and coaches, current and former, looks at the Phillies minor league system, interviews with industry personnel, trivia contests, where you can win fabulous prizes, and so much more.

A little about me…I went to Fordham (in the Bronx) where I broadcast Fordham athletics on WFUV, the school’s NPR-affiliate station. This is actually my second stint with the BlueClaws, having worked as Brendan’s assistant during the 2007 season. I’ve covered the Yankees, Jets, Nets, horse racing, and golf tournaments, and most recently broacast the US Open Tennis Championships on USOpen.org. Now I’m back in Lakewood, I’m looking forward to it, and I’m looking forward to keeping all of you up to date on the latest happenings here at BlueClaws Blog.

By the way, just because it’s baseball’s offseason doesn’t mean it’s the offseason here at BlueClaws Blog. We’ll be back with much more throughout the week.

Hey BlueClaws fans, it is Alex Gyr, back after a thrilling home stand. The BlueClaws have improbably pulled themselves back into the playoff chase and find themselves just two games behind Lake County with eight games to go here in the first half.

With the BlueClaws recent success it is easy to forget that just three weeks ago Lakewood was reeling after dropping six straight games. On May 18, the BlueClaws were 19-23 and 7.5 games behind the Captains. Yet here we are with a week to go to the All Star Break and Lakewood is just two games behind and seven games above .500.

Speaking of All Stars, Lakewood saw four players named to the North Division team, the second most in team history. In all honesty though, it could have been more. Dominic Brown and Derrick Mitchell were both left off the squad despite crushing the ball down the stretch and Jared Simon was out, even with 10 saves and five wins.

But congratulations do go out to Michael Taylor, the league MVP at this point in the season, Drew Naylor, Joel Naughton and Mike Durant for their selections. Taylor has been a beast with the bat and a pretty solid argument could be made for Drew Naylor as the top pitcher in the league. There is no one better defensively than Joel Naughton behind the dish and Mike Durant, when healthy, strikes fear in every pitcher in the league. Well deserved for all four.

It is hard to believe that we are already nearing the midway point to the 2008 season, but here we are. The BlueClaws have 34 home games in the books (one home game will be played in Hagerstown this Tuesday), marking the mid-point of the home schedule. So there is no better time than now to count down the top five baseball moments at FirstEnergy Park this season.

5. BlueClaws comeback from four-runs down, May 19 vs. West Virginia: The BlueClaws were in desperate need of some wins after dropping six of their last seven games. Things were looking bleak after the seventh-place Power jumped out to a 5-1 lead off of Jacob Diekman. But Lakewood rallied thanks to a Mike Durant home run and three hits, all extra-bases, for Karl Bolt to come from behind and take a 10-5 win. The victory was the start of a seven-game BlueClaws winning streak.

4. Durant and Taylor put on a show, May 5 vs. Lexington: The BlueClaws big hitters put on a long-ball display on late in an 11-7 victory over the Legends. Durant was first to go deep, putting a monster home run into the centerfield picnic area in the seventh. Taylor put the game out of reach one inning later, crushing a three-run home run to deep centerfield. It was hard to tell which ball was hit harder, but they were both impressive and both were critical to the BlueClaws win.

3. Taylor caps ninth-inning comeback, April 29 vs. Kannapolis: Trailing the Intimidators 4-1 entering the ninth inning, there seemed to be little hope for the BlueClaws in their series opener with Kannapolis. But Wander Perez and Santo Luis could not find the strike zone and the BlueClaws took advantage, to the tune of four runs and a walk-off win. Perez put the first three hitters on base with the free pass before Derrick Mitchell tied the game with a double to leftfield. The Intimidators walked Dominic Brown to get to Taylor, who was 0-for-4 to that point. He needed just one pitch to end the game, scoring Mitchell from second base to earn a 5-4 win.

2. Walk-off wild pitch sinks Shorebirds, June 7 vs. Delmarva: Lakewood had lost a game early in the season to the Shorebirds on a walk-off wild pitch, so it seemed only fitting that the BlueClaws returned the favor. With the bases loaded and two outs in a 4-4 game, Shane Matthews threw one to the backstop, scoring D’Arby Myers from third to end the game. The victory was the first for the BlueClaws in a game in which they were outhit and was essential in keeping the first half hopes alive.

1. Drew Naylor mows them down, June 5 vs. Delmarva: Drew Naylor had been a legitimate ace since Opening Night, but the Australian right-hander put his best stuff on display in a critical matchup with the Shorebirds. Naylor struck out five over the first two innings on his way to a complete-game, 13-strikeout performance. Only Robinson Tejeda, who struck out 14 in 2001, has fanned more in a game. The importance of the game, combined with the absolutely dominating stuff made this a performance that will be remembered at FirstEnergy Park for a long time.

I hope you have enjoyed the first half as much as I have. The BlueClaws will be back at home on June 19 in a potentially meaningful game with the Captains to start the second half. In the event that the teams tie for the first half championship, that game will serve as a one game playoff to determine who punches their ticket to the South Atlantic League playoffs. You can catch all the action from Hagerstown and Delmarva this week on the Shore Sports Network or online at BlueClaws.com.

Did you know that your BlueClaws are on a 7 game winning streak!?  That makes them the hottest team in all of Minor League Baseball with the longest current streak.  Speaking of success stories in Lakewood, outfielder Michael Taylor is leading the South Atlantic League in batting average by about 20 points.

This current win streak places Lakewood 4 1/2 games out of first behind the Lake County Captains who just keep winning baseball games.  However, if the Captains are defeated in today’s contest, that would put us 4 games behind with 4 games against them starting tomorrow.

It’s an exciting time to be a BlueClaws fan!