Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx promoted to AAA

It has been quite a couple of weeks for former-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx. First he was named to the Southern League (AA) All-Star team. Then he was named the Southern League Pitcher of the Week for June 28th to July 4th, his second such award this season. Then on July 8th, the Cubs promoted Bibens-Dirkx to AAA Iowa of the Pacific Coast League.  The promotion has been expected here at the VSBB for a number of weeks and it's great to see Bibens-Dirkx rewarded for his efforts.

In 2009, Austin had a 2-2 record with a 3.70 ERA for the Victoria Seals. He was also leading the Golden League in strikeouts with 54 in 48 2/3 innings when he was plucked from the Victoria roster by the Cubbies. This season, Bibens-Dirkx went 5-3 with a 3.27 ERA for the (AA) Tennessee Smokies. While in AA, he held opponents to a .196 batting average and had a stunning 1.01 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched).

Bibens-Dirkx made his AAA debut on Friday night and he did not disappoint, earning the win in a 6-1 victory over the New Orleans Zephyrs. He gave up only one earned run in five innings and held New Orleans to only four hits. If Bibens-Dirkx can stay hot, it's not outside the realm of possibility that the Cubs would make him a September call-up. If he were to get the call, Bibens-Dirkx would be the first Victoria Seal to ever go on to appear in the major leagues.

Seal Blubber Bits

• The Seals finished the first half of the season on Sunday with a 21-23 record (.477 winning percentage). That's a significant improvement (so far) over their showing in 2009 (32-50, .390) and it looks like the Seals could be in a pennant race in the second half.
• The Seals start the second half of the season on Thursday night in Chico in the first of a three-game set against the Outlaws. Chico won the first-half title in the North Division with a 33-12 record. Maui won the South Division first-half crown with a 26-17 record.
• The Golden League is set to face the Northern League All Stars on Wednesday night in Tucson. Josh Arhart and Brian Rios will represent the Seals.

Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx to make the Cubs in 2011?

Former Victoria Seals pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx continued his ascent to the big leagues by pitching in the Venezuelan Winter League this off-season. In fact, a Chicago Cubs blogger is touting Bibens-Dirkx as a candidate for the Cubs' bullpen in 2011.

Bibens-Dirkx played for Águilas del Zulia until his contract ran out on November 20th. In seven starts for Zulia, he posted a 2-2 record with a sparkling 1.60 ERA and 1.01 WHIP. Those are very impressive numbers considering the quality of hitters in the Venezuelan Winter League.

Austin played this past season for the Tennessee Smokies (AA) and the Iowa Cubs (AAA) and had a combined 10-7 record with a 3.78 ERA and 1.17 WHIP. He also held opponents to a .224 batting average and had 2.1 strikeouts for every walk surrendered.

You may remember that the Cubs signed Bibens-Dirkx when he was with the Seals on July 3, 2009. At the time of his signing, he was leading the Golden Baseball League with 54 strikeouts in 48 2/3 innings pitched.

Perhaps the biggest obstacle to Bibens-Dirkx suiting up with the Chicago Cubs next year might be looming in the next week, since the Cubbies left him unprotected for the Rule V Draft. This draft of veteran minor-leaguers takes place at the upcoming Baseball Winter Meetings in Orlando, Florida (December 6th to 9th). The smart money is on Bibens-Dirkx becoming the first ex-Seal to appear at the MLB level. In about a week's time we should know the organization with which he'll continue the journey.

See more of our past coverage of Austin Bibens-Dirkx.

Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx promoted to AA

Former Victoria Seals pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx will start the 2010 campaign with the Tennessee Smokies of the AA Southern League. The Smokies will kick off their season on Thursday against the Mississippi Braves.

You may remember that Bibens-Dirkx had an impressive start to the 2009 season with the Seals. After posting a 2-2 record with a 3.70 ERA and 54 strikeouts in 48 2/3 innings, he was signed by the Chicago Cubs on July 3rd and assigned to their A ball affiliate in Peoria.

Bibens-Dirkx quickly established himself as the ace of the Peoria Chiefs' staff as he put up some impressive numbers: a 7-2 record and a miserly 2.04 ERA. His strikeouts fell to only 50 in 70 2/3 innings, but his control was off the charts -- he averaged only 1.1 free passes per nine innings. Bibens-Dirkx led the Chiefs to the playoffs and he earned the start in Game 1 of the Western Division Championship Series.

The Cubs were wise to start Bibens-Dirkx in A ball last season. Slightly older than the competition, he was able to have some success and build his confidence. He'll definitely be challenged this year with the promotion to the AA Southern League. The 24-year-old will be of average age in the league and he'll face much more experienced hitters. But with another solid season, Bibens-Dirkx can put himself into contention for a big-league job. Of this you can be sure: It's just a matter of time before an ex-Seal is in the majors.

Bibens-Dirkx Signed by Chicago Cubs

Seals starter Austin Bibens-Dirkx was signed by the Chicago Cubs on Friday and will be assigned to their Peoria (Ill.) Chiefs farm team in the Class A Midwest League. He'll be a teammate of major leaguers Aramis Ramirez and Reed Johnson in a matter of hours, as both Cubs will be on a rehab assignment in Peoria this weekend. Bibens-Dirkx had only 8 appearances with the Seals, but he caught the eye of more than one major-league scout. He was 2-2 with a 3.70 ERA and was leading the Golden League in strikeouts with 54 in 48 2/3 innings.

Our post on June 3rd ("M's May Have Given Up Too Early on Bibens-Dirkx") was perhaps right on the mark. The Seals will definitely miss Bibens-Dirkx, but it's great to see him get another shot at making the big leagues. Best of luck, Austin!

Taking Bibens-Dirkx's roster spot was Eziequiel Ruvalcaba, who was re-signed after being released on June 20th. Ruvalcaba was 0-1 with a 12.60 ERA in 9 relief appearances. Apparently, he has been working on his mechanics and his velocity is back up into the low 90's.

The other most likely Seal to get signed by a major-league organization would be Isaac Hess, but a big-league team's legal and medical departments will have to sign off on that one before it can happen. Hess was signed by the Padres for a few hours this spring until the medical report on his artificial hip was delivered to the team. Hess has plenty of talent to get signed and hopefully it will happen for him. Until that time, be sure to get out and see him pitch while we are lucky enough to have him take to the hill at Royal Athletic Park.

Bibens-Dirkx Saves Ted Lilly

Seals alumnus Austin Bibens-Dirkx picked up a four-inning save on Wednesday night, preserving the win for Ted Lilly who was making a rehab start for the Peoria Chiefs. Bibens-Dirkx held the Burlington Bees to one earned run and four hits in his four innings on the mound. He walked one and struck out four, while his ERA remained a sparkling 2.18 in class "A" ball.

Since leaving Victoria in early July, Bibens-Dirkx has been keeping some pretty impressive company. In addition to Lilly, Bibens Dirkx has been sharing the Peoria clubhouse with Aramis Ramirez and Reed Johnson of the Chicago Cubs. Both Ramirez and Johnson were rehabbing injuries shortly after Bibens-Dirkx's arrival in the Midwest League.

Seal Blubber Bits

• The Seals will not be making the playoffs in their inaugural season. Their second-half record is 10-18, leaving them 7 1/2 games behind the Calgary after being swept at home by the Vipers.


• Has Isaac Hess checked out? Since having his heart broken for the second time this year, Hess has really struggled on the mound. In the spring, he was signed by the San Diego Padres until the team doctor raised medical concerns regarding his artificial hip. He was then signed by the Boston Red Sox after the Golden League All Star Game in July, only to suffer the same fate. At the All Star break, Hess was 8-0 with a 2.47 ERA. Since returning to the Seals, he has posted a 7.22 ERA in 28 2/3 innings, raising his season ERA to 3.86. Most alarming is his loss of control: Hess has uncharacteristically walked 17 batters in those 28 2/3 innings. My guess is that Hess is just playing out the string and will hang 'em up for good after the season. It has been a sad story to watch play out...

Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx has setback on way to big leagues

Photo courtesy Christian Stewart

At the start of 2011 it looked like Austin Bibens-Dirkx was on track to be the first (only?) former Victoria Seal to go on to make the major leagues. Given the troubles that the Chicago Cubs have had this year, all he had to do was duplicate his fine 2010 minor-league season to get a call-up. But things have not gone quite according to plan for Bibens-Dirkx.

Austin has posted a 3-5 record and a nasty 7.16 ERA with the AAA Iowa Cubs in 2011 after having a respectable 4.61 ERA at that level in the latter part of last season. Although his ERA has taken a big hit this year, many of Bibens-Dirkx's underlying AAA numbers have actually improved:

Year	IP	ERA	BB/9	K/9	K/BB
2010	52 2/3	4.61	3.6	5.8	2.1
2011	81 2/3	7.16	2.6	6.2	2.3

It's fair to chalk up his struggles to a run of bad luck and a few horrendous starts like the one on June 18th against the Albuquerque Isotopes in which he gave up 11 earned runs in only one inning of work. Thankfully the Cubs have done their homework and instead of releasing Bibens-Dirkx, they sent him back down to AA yesterday. Given that his confidence has probably taken a big hit, it's likely that he'll benefit from a stint back down with the Tennessee Smokies. In the first part of the 2010 season, Bibens-Dirkx put up stellar numbers with the Smokies: a 3.27 ERA and a 1.01 WHIP. Let's hope he can regroup in AA and eventually resume his trek to the big leagues.

M's May Have Given Up Too Early on Bibens-Dirkx

Victoria's struggling pitching staff looks like it has been given a giant boost by the recent decision by the Seattle Mariners to release 24 year-old righty Austin Bibens-Dirkx. The 16th round selection in the 2006 amateur draft was released in March by the M's and subsequently signed by the Seals on May 25th. Based on his impressive start against Orange County on Tuesday night (5 1/3 IP, 3 ER, 1 BB, 9 K's), the Seals may have themselves a third reliable starter alongside Isaac Hess and Eduardo Baeza.

Austin spent most of his 2006 season in "A" ball as a reliever with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers. A rash of injuries with their "AAA" affiliate later that year caused the Mariners to use him in one game with the Tacoma Rainiers. Clearly, the Mariners thought highly of the (then) 21-year-old to use him at such an advanced level. His next year (2007) was spent with the High Desert Mavericks in advanced "A" ball, but his season was plagued by control problems. Bibens-Dirkx still managed to rack up eight saves and a 4.42 ERA in 31 appearances.

Seattle attempted to turn him into a starter by sending him down to the Arizona rookie league level. He then returned to High Desert as a reliever where he managed to cut down on his walks and increase his strikeouts but the opposition hammered him to a tune of a 7.95 ERA. At 23 years of age, he was released. His career numbers in the minors are fairly decent, so I'm not so sure the Mariners made the right decision. Bibens-Dirkx averaged 6.5 strikeouts and 3.3 walks per nine innings in his three seasons and he is still young enough to improve.

If he's not already nicknamed "Austin Powers", he likely will be soon. One can only hope that we'll regularly hear the sound of Mike Myers' "Yeah, baby!" emanating from the loudspeakers at RAP this summer after a Bibens-Dirkx strikeout.

Two former Victoria Seals still pitching in AAA

Ex-Victoria Seals pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx is continuing his journey towards the big leagues this summer.  Now 27 years old, the big right-hander is pitching for the Syracuse Chiefs, the AAA affiliate of the Washington Nationals in the International League. Die-hard Seals fans will remember the dominant half-season that Bibens-Dirkx put together in 2009 for the Victoria squad before he was signed by the Chicago Cubs.

After stagnating as a starter in the Cubs' organization, the Nationals moved Bibens-Dirkx back into the bullpen this year. So far, Bibens-Dirkx has had mixed results. In 16 appearances, he has a 0-1 record and a 4.76 ERA. However, in his 22 2/3 innings pitched, he has only walked five batters and has registered an impressive 27 strikeouts. If Bibens-Dirkx can lower that ERA, he'll have a decent chance of getting called up by the Nationals later this season.

Another former Victoria Seal is trying to claw his way back to the majors in the International League. You may remember that Dane De La Rosa became the first former Victoria Seal to make it to the bigs when he was called up by the Tampa Bay Rays in July of 2011. Unfortunately, his initial "cup of coffee" only lasted three days, but he was promoted to the Rays again on September 11th and then spent the rest of 2011 on the big-league roster. This spring, the Rays returned De La Rosa to their AAA affiliate in Durham -- only to recall him on April 14th. Unfortunately, a disastrous outing against the Boston Red Sox that day (five earned runs in one inning of work) resulted in an immediate demotion back to AAA.

In 22 games with the Durham Bulls this season,  De La Rosa has an 0-2 record with 6 saves and a 3.77 ERA. But those numbers mask his dominance -- De La Rosa has racked up a whopping 41 strikeouts in only 28 2/3 innings on the hill and opponents are only batting .170 against him. Unfortunately, his control has been a big issue: He's averaging 5.7 walks per nine innings, a figure that must come down if he is to earn a fourth promotion to "The Show". If he can cut down on his walk rate, don't be surprised if both of these ex-Seals get the call before the year is out.

Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx in spring camp with Nationals

Photo courtesy of Christian Stewart

After declaring free agency and turning a few heads with a dominant performance in the Venezuelan Winter League, former Victoria Seals pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx was signed to a minor-league contract by the Washington Nationals in January. The Nationals then rewarded his efforts by inviting him to attend spring training with the club in Viera, Florida as a non-roster invitee.

Over the winter, Bibens-Dirkx led the Venezuelan Winter League in wins (7) and posted a sparkling 2.19 ERA. He also struck out 51 batters and only walked 22 in 78 innings pitched, while holding opponents to a paltry .201 batting average.

Bibens-Dirkx had been part of the Chicago Cubs systems since he was signed in July 2009 after mowing down Golden Baseball League hitters while a member of the Victoria Seals. If all goes well, Bibens-Dirkx could become the second ex-Seal to make the big leagues (Dane De La Rosa was the first). The Nationals are set to start their exhibition schedule tomorrow afternoon with a game against Georgetown University. Best of luck in spring training, Austin!

Ex-Seal Bibens-Dirkx finishes season strong

When we last reported on the progress of former Victoria Seal pitcher Austin Bibens-Dirkx, he had been struggling mightily with the Iowa Cubs and had just been demoted to AA. Although he showed only marginal improvement with the Tennessee Smokies, Bibens-Dirkx got the call back up to AAA when the Cubs promoted Casey Coleman to the big club.

Photo courtesy Christian Stewart

After Austin's return to the Iowa Cubs, he reverted back to his dominant 2010 form and gave up a mere six earned runs in 23 2/3 innings pitched, while walking only 7 and striking out out 19 batters. The turnaround has him once again poised to possibly snag a spot as a reliever with the Chicago Cubs out of spring training. To get ready for the upcoming year, Bibens-Dirkx will once again play winter ball in Venezuela for Águilas del Zulia.

The Cubs appear to think highly of the former Seal.  "He's a grinder, a strike-thrower," AAA pitching coach Mike Mason said of the right-hander. "He's not going to overpower you. He fits in the Casey Coleman-Randy Wells mold." Let's hope that Bibens-Dirkx becomes the second ex-Seal to make the major leagues, following in the footsteps of Dane De La Rosa.

Bibens-Dirkx a Step Closer to a Promotion

Ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx continued to make his case that he doesn't belong in "A" ball on Saturday night by dominating the South Bend Silver Hawks in a 3-2 victory. Bibens-Dirkx (3-1) allowed four hits and two earned runs in eight innings of work. He struck out five and walked one Silver Hawks batter. After allowing a two-run homer to Isaias Asencio with two outs in the fifth inning, Bibens-Dirkx retired the last 10 batters that he faced on the night. He now sports a nifty 2.36 ERA for the Peoria Chiefs.

Bibens-Dirkx is the oldest player on the Chiefs roster and has been dominating the less experienced hitters in the Midwest League (opponents are hitting .207 in his 34 1/3 innings pitched). It's time for the Cubs to challenge him by promoting him to Advanced "A" or "AA" ball.

Spahn and Sain and Pray for Rain

Have you ever heard the baseball expression “Spahn and Sain and Pray for Rain”? The rhyme was popularized in 1948 and refers to the starting rotation of the Boston Braves, which included Warren Spahn, Johnny Sain and then an allegedly big drop-off in production from the rest of the rotation. If one considers the Victoria Seals starting rotation right now, the saying “Bibens-Dirkx and Hess and Forget the Rest” might be worth consideration.

Bibens-Dirkx got his third start of the season on Saturday night against the Chico Outlaws and it was his best so far. He threw seven scoreless innings and only gave up five hits to raise his record to 2-0. Most impressively, Bibens-Dirkx walked only one while striking out nine – identical numbers as his previous start.

Here’s a look at the numbers for Seals starters (WHIP = Walks plus Hits per Innings Pitched):

• Isaac Hess (1-0) 2.37 ERA 1.05 WHIP
• Austin “Powers” Bibens-Dirkx (2-0) 3.86 ERA 1.47 WHIP
• Eduardo Baeza (1-2) 4.74 ERA 1.16 WHIP
• Travis Wade (0-2) 6.75 ERA 1.50 WHIP
• Josh Karp (0-1) 19.29 ERA 3.14 WHIP - released
• Roberto Sotolongo (0-1) 27.00 ERA 3.00 WHIP

The Seals really need Baeza and Wade to get into the win column more often. Baeza’s minor league numbers lead one to believe that he should see some success at this level of ball. One concern in his current numbers is the lack of strikeouts: only 9 in 19 innings. He averaged 8.5 strikeouts per nine innings in three minor-league seasons, so there is room for improvement here. Another positive indicator is his low WHIP -- lower than Bibens-Dirkx's in fact. That tells me that Baeza could have just run into a streak of bad luck and is due for a rebound.

Travis Wade, who has played independent ball for the last six seasons, has struggled somewhat in the last three years. But if the Seals are to play over .500 baseball this season, they'll need more help from Eduardo Baeza and Travis Wade.

Bibens-Dirkx Likely to Start Game 1 for Peoria

On Friday night, Ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx had his first bad outing since joining the Peoria Chiefs in early July. Bibens-Dirkx gave up 4 earned runs in 5 2/3 innings and took the loss against the Kane County Cougars. His ERA "rose" to 2.04 on the season, while his record fell to 7-2.

In his 70 2/3 innings since joining the Midwest League ("A" ball) team, Bibens-Dirkx has struck out 50 and only walked 9 batters. Opponents are hitting a paltry .215 against him.

Bibens-Dirkx will likely start Game 1 of the Western Division Championship Series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels on Wednesday September 9th.

Bibens-Dirkx Continues to Roll for Peoria

Austin Bibens-Dirkx had a second consecutive strong outing for the Class 'A' Peoria Chiefs on Friday night. The ex-Seals pitched 5 1/3 innings of scoreless baseball and only gave up three hits. He walked none and struck out two to lower his ERA to 0.96 in his two relief outings.

If Bibens-Dirkx keeps this up, he'll be in 'AA' ball by the beginning of August at the latest. He is old for the Midwest League, but the Cubs were smart to put him at a level where he would have initial success to allow him to build confidence in affiliated professional baseball. In an interview before he left Victoria to join the Chiefs, Bibens-Dirkx noted that he was trying to get out of 'A' ball as quickly as possible. That just might happen.

Sergio Pedroza's Monster Season Continues

Seals rightfielder Sergio Pedroza continues to post monster offensive numbers this season. On Friday night, Pedroza went two-for-three with a three-run homer and a run-scoring double to lead Victoria to a 10-2 victory over the Chico Outlaws at RAP.

Pedroza is now batting .335 on the season. His 410-foot home run to straight-away centre in the third inning was his 14th of the season, moving him into a tie for the league lead with teammate Jamar Hill and AJ Valentine of the St. George Roadrunners. Pedroza has also moved into fourth place in the league for RBIs, with 58.

Sergio has been solid at the plate all year long. Earlier in the season, he was drawing a ton of walks and scoring lots of runs, but his power output has ramped up of late. In his last 19 games, Pedroza is hitting .408 with 8 homers and a jaw-dropping 36 RBIs.

Seal Blubber Bits

• Wilver Perez's hustle electrified the crowd a number of times on Friday night. He stole a pair of bases and scored a run on a delayed tag-up from third base on a fly ball into shallow right-centre field. The run was made possible by a beautiful hook slide at the plate that eluded the tag from the Chico catcher. Perez also made a highlight-reel play in the field, diving to his left to scoop up a ground ball and throw out the runner at first. Wilver also won the award for having the dirtiest uniform on either squad.
• Jonny Ash of the Chico Outlaws fouled a ball off the ground and back up into his face on Friday night. The game was delayed for close to 10 minutes so the Seals trainer could attend to Ash. He remained in the game and received a nice round of applause from the classy fans at RAP when he continued his at-bat.
• The new scoreboard has received rave reviews from fans at the ballpark. The scoreboard operator is still getting used to the setup, but it's great for the atmosphere at RAP. Hopefully the team will start posting some of the information on the board that we're use to seeing at other ballparks. For example, showing home run, RBI and stolen base totals instead of just the player's batting average. An indication of what the player has done at the plate in previous at-bats that game would also be of interest.
• Ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx pitched another great game for the class "A" Peoria Chiefs on Thursday night. He gave up only one run in seven innings of work. Bibens-Dirkx also struck out eight and walked only one batter while raising his record to 4-1.
  
  He has been pitching better in affiliated ball than he did in independent baseball this season, backing up the notion that the Golden League has "AA" hitters but only "A" ball pitchers. Bibens-Dirkx had a 3.70 ERA with Victoria, but he now holds a miserly 2.18 ERA with Peoria. Also, opponents hit .260 against him in Golden League, but they're only hitting .218 against him in the Midwest League.
  
  There are just over four weeks left in the (affiliated) baseball season, so time is running out for a 2009 Bibens-Dirkx promotion to a higher level. However, Peoria is currently tied for first place in the second-half standings with Cedar Rapids, so there is a chance that he could see some playoff action.
• Today is the 21st anniversary of the first night game ever at Wrigley Field. Incidentally, Wayne Gretzky was also traded by the Oilers to the Los Angeles Kings on the same day.

Carlos Duncan Leads Caps Over Victoria

Eight days after being traded from Victoria to the Edmonton Capitals, Carlos Duncan returned to Royal Athletic Park on Tuesday night and stuck it to his old team. Duncan hit a homer and a double in five at-bats and knocked in three runs to help the Capitals trounce the Seals 11-4. Luckily for Victoria, the Calgary Vipers lost 3-2 to the Tucson Toros, so the Seals didn't fall any further back out of first place in the second-half standings. Victoria, now 5-9 since the start of the new season, remains five games back of the Vipers.

Seal Blubber Bits

• Good news: the new scoreboard at RAP was up and running on Tuesday!!
• Sergio Pedroza continued his red-hot hitting on Tuesday night. He hit his 11th home run of the year to put him one behind Jamar Hill for the team lead. Over his last 10 games, Pedroza is hitting .429 with 5 homers and 19 RBI. His 41 RBIs on the season puts him into a tie for the team lead with Hill. By the way, Pedroza has a better batting average (.326 vs .280) and slugging percentage (.578 vs .498) than Hill.
• Brian Rios was able to return to action on Tuesday night. His ankle wasn't strong enough to allow him to play third base, but he DH'd and went 1-for-3 on the night. Terry Mermer played third base in Rios' place and he did not have any balls hit his way.
• OF Billy Krause has been riding the pine since his shaky professional debut. He went 0-for-7 with 4 strikeouts in his first two games with the Seals.
• Isaac Hess is expected to take to the mound on Wednesday night in his first RAP start since he was signed by the Red Sox and then returned to the Seals due to medical concerns about his artificial hip.
• On Monday night, ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx had his most impressive performance since joining the Peoria Chiefs of the Midwest League. Bibens-Dirkx pitched the first 9-inning complete game for the Chiefs since 2006 and raised his record to 2-1 with his new team. He gave up one earned run and only allowed five hits while lowering his ERA to a sparkling 2.39. Bibens-Dirkx didn't walk a batter and struck out seven Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on the night. In spite of the fact that Peoria had 12 hits during the game, it was played in a brisk one hour and fifty-two minutes. One or two more impressive outings like this and Bibens-Dirkx will be promoted to Advanced A (Daytona Cubs) or AA (Tennessee Smokies).

Seals outfield gets more crowded

Yesterday, there were six remaining outfielders fighting for four jobs with the Victoria Seals. That picture just got even more crowded after the team announced that they have signed 27-year-old centre fielder Sean Smith. This could end up being bad news for Chris VanRossum.

To the best of my knowledge, Smith is the first player signed through Bret Boone's personal connections. Smith played the last two seasons with the Somerset Patriots of the Atlantic League, but he was signed this past winter by the Washington Nationals. Unfortunately for Smith, he wasn't assigned to any of Washington's minor-league affiliates at the completion of spring training, but he comes to the Seals on a recommendation by Bret Boone's father, Bob Boone. The elder Boone is Assistant GM and VP of Player Development for the Nationals.

Smith is a speedy outfielder who is solid defensively and has a good arm. In the last two seasons, he stole an impressive 80 bases with the Patriots. He also has a bit of pop in his bat and is capable of hitting 10-15 homers. He hit .292 and .262 in the Atlantic League in the last two years, so he would probably hit over .300 in the Golden League. Smith also has good plate discipline and he draws more than his share of walks. He sounds like Bret Boone's kind of ballplayer.

The last round of cuts should be made by the end of the day on Wednesday. The roster currently stands at 29 players, so seven players will need to be let go. As I have said before, the Seals coaching staff will likely be leaning towards guys who can play more than one position to give them maximum flexibility with the small 22-man roster that they have to work with until August 15th. I'm betting on a surprise or two in the list of players that are released, but we'll know for sure in the very near future. Stay tuned.

Seal Blubber Bits

• Ex-Seal Jamar Hill was involved in an embarrassing incident with the York Revolution of the Atlantic League on Sunday afternoon. The Revolution took a 4-2 lead into the top of the ninth, but things quickly unraveled. After a pair of runs tied the score 4-4, Nook Logan of the Newark Bears hit a fly ball to Hill. Unfortunately, Jamar lost the ball in the sun and it dropped in for a base hit -- but that's not the embarrassing part. His sunglasses were resting on the top of his hat. Scott Spiezio followed with the eventual game-winning RBI and a cascade of boos rained down from the 4,312 in attendance.
• Seals alumnus Austin Bibens-Dirkx is almost unhittable in 2010. You may remember that Bibens-Dirkx was signed by the Chicago Cubs in July of last year.  He has started the year pitching for the Tennessee Smokies of the (AA) Southern League, but he may not be in AA for much longer.  Bibens-Dirkx pitched another gem on May 15th and he now sports a sparkling 2.19 ERA and a stunning 0.86 WHIP. Opponents are hitting .178 against him, so look for Bibens-Dirkx to be promoted to the AAA Iowa Cubs in the near future.
• Former Seal Isaac Hess is back in the starting rotation for the Guerreros de Oaxaca of the Mexican (AAA). He now has a respectable 3-1 record and a 3.58 ERA.
• Outfielder Terrence McClain was seen taking ground balls at first base during a recent visit to Royal Athletic Park.

Vipers Take Opener of GBL Championship Series

It wasn't pretty, but Ex-Seal and current Viper Isaac Hess picked up the win in the opening game of the Golden Baseball League Championship Series, as the Calgary Vipers defeated the Toros 9-8. Hess gave up 4 earned runs and 8 hits in 5 2/3 innings pitched. He walked four and struck out four while raising his post-season record to 2-0.

The Vipers were led offensively by Wilver Perez. Perez scored three runs and went three-for-five with a pair of RBIs. Sergio Pedroza went two-for-four with a stolen base and a run scored. Pedroza's post-season average is .364, while Perez is hitting .333.

Game two of the best-of-five series will be played Thursday night in Tucson.

Ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx took a no-decision in Game 1 of the Western Division Semifinals in the Midwest League playoffs. His Peoria Chiefs fell 6-4 to the Cedar Rapids Kernels in extra innings to drop the opener of their best-of-three series. Bibens-Dirkx left after 6 innings on the mound trailing 4-2. The Chiefs rallied to knot the game at 6-6 in the bottom of the ninth, only to lose in heartbreaking fashion in the tenth inning. Bibens-Dirkx gave up 4 earned runs in 6 innings of work. He gave up 7 hits and uncharacteristically walked more batters than he struck out (two BB's versus only one K). The Chiefs must now win the next two games in Iowa (Thursday and Friday night) to advance. If they fail to do so, Austin Bibens-Dirkx's season will come to an end.

Sotolongo Providing Bullpen Stability

The Seals lost to the Vipers on Thursday 7-5 and fell to 12-19 on the season. Starting pitcher Travis Wade struggled again, giving up seven earned runs in 3 1/3 innings. His ERA ballooned to 6.88, while his record is now a dismal 1-5.

The silver lining in this latest cloud was the performance of the Victoria bullpen. Even though Calgary put up six runs in the bottom of the second and one in the fourth to pull ahead 7-0, the Seals bullpen shut the door through the final 4 2/3 innings and gave the team a chance to come back. Unfortunately, the rally fell a little short and Seals-killer and ex-Mariner Mac Suzuki picked up his first save of the season.

Havana native Roberto Sotolongo pitched 3 2/3 innings of scoreless, one-hit baseball to register his best outing of the season. He also struck out three batters. Sotolongo started in his first two appearances of the season and gave up 9 hits and three walks in a total of four innings. However, he has now pitched 6 2/3 innings of scoreless baseball since moving into the bullpen. The Seals have been searching for a bridge between their starters and closer extraordinaire Javier Garcia all season long, so Sotolongo's emergence is an extremely positive development. Let's hope he can keep it up.

Victoria's starting rotation continues to be a case of "Bibens-Dirkx, Hess and Forget the Rest". Here are the stats for Victoria's four regular starters:

• Isaac Hess 4-0, 2.84 ERA
• Austin Bibens-Dirkx 2-1, 3.67 ERA
• Eduardo Baeza 1-5, 6.59 ERA
• Travis Wade 1-5, 6.88 ERA

Needless to say, the team could really use a third reliable starter. Unfortunately, those don't exactly grow on trees, especially in the Golden League.

Seal Blubber Bits

• Wilver Perez had his worst offensive game of the season on Thursday night, as he picked up the Golden Sombrero (4 strikeouts) on his way to an 0-5.
• Chris VanRossum started in CF and led off, while Trevor Davidson spent the game riding the pine. VanRossum went 2-5 on the night. Advantage VanRossum.
• Seals' play-by-play man Mike Walker quipped that VanRossum is playing so well right now that he should be called Chris Van Awesome.
• Victoria pitchers Isaac Hess and Austin Bibens-Dirkx took turns doing colour commentary for Walker on Wednesday night. The change of pace added a nice bit of spice to the broadcast.
• Given the Golden League's shortage of quality pitchers, it makes one wonder why they use a DH. It's not like the league needs the offense with many games providing football-style final scores.

Seal Blubber Bits - Heat wave edition

We offer up these tasty Seal blubber bits to gnaw on while you sip a cold beverage and stay out of the heat:

The newest Seal, Joe Sergent

• How unlikely was today's thrilling come-from-behind 4-3 victory by the Seals? The Chico Outlaws brought in ace reliever Justin Segal to pitch the bottom of the ninth inning and try to protect their 3-2 lead. Coming into the game, Segal had only allowed 3 earned runs all season, spanning 32 appearances and 41 2/3 innings pitched. Of course, Segal gave up two earned runs on another clutch hit by Brian Rios and the Seals pulled victory from the jaws of defeat.
• Reality Bites: If the Vipers play .500 baseball for the rest of the season, the Seals will have to go 13-3 in their last 16 games to tie the Snakes and force a one-game playoff or 14-2 to win the North Division second-half title outright. Put another way, if the Vipers go 13-5 in their final 18 games, the Seals won't be able to catch them even if they win all 16 of their remaining games. The  two teams face each other four times in Calgary August 26-29, so the Seals will have to win at least three out of those four games.
• Victoria has acquired pitcher Joe Sergent from the Calgary Vipers. Sergent helped lead the Vipers to the GBL Championship last season, posting a 7-3 record and a 3.88 ERA. However, he has struggled this season and he only has a 3-2 record with an 8.47 ERA. Sergent is normally a starter, but his arm is not 100% healthy, so he has been mainly limited to relief duties in 2010. He threw on the side today and says he is ready for game action in the near future. The Seals do not have to release a player to activate Sergent, since rosters can expand from 22 to 25 men on August 15th.
• Ex-Seal Austin Bibens-Dirkx is getting closer to completing his journey from Royal Athletic Park to Wrigley Field based on his performance since his promotion to the AAA Iowa Cubs on July 8th. Although he was shifted to the bullpen after his first AAA appearance with Iowa, he was moved back into the starting rotation on August 2nd and has won his last three starts. Bibens-Dirkx now has a 5-0 record with a sparkling 1.97 ERA and 1.09 WHIP (walks plus hits per innings pitched) in AAA. It's starting to look likely that he will become the first Victoria Seal to go on to make the big leagues -- perhaps as early as September 1st when major-league rosters expand. Bibens-Dirkx could help Chicago right now, especially since current Cubs reliever Andrew Cashner has a 5.68 ERA and 1.71 WHIP.
• The Vancouver Canadians honoured recent Hall of Fame inductee Andre Dawson at Nat Bailey Stadium last week. This was a classy move by the Canadians and apparently there were a great many Expos fans in attendance.
• ESPN senior writer Jim Caple was in Victoria this weekend to do research for a piece on the Victoria Seals. Unfortunately he witnessed the ugliest game of the season on Saturday night, so let's hope the article portrays the GBL and the Seals in a positive light. Look for the piece to appear on the ESPN web site in the near future.
• Tom Hawthorn wrote a fascinating article recently in The Tyee on the history of women in professional baseball with a focus on British Columbia. I found the story of Mamie Johnson, a woman who pitched in the Negro Leagues for three seasons and posted a 33-8 record, to be particularly noteworthy. I also took great joy in reading about one of my favourite pint-sized ballplayers of all time, Casey Candaele of the Montreal Expos. Candaele's mother and aunt both played in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League and both are originally from Vancouver.