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**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 02:59 PM

Northern League

RailCats Sign Rookie Infielder, Announce Staff Promotions

Gary, Ind.-The 2007 Northern League Champion Gary SouthShore RailCats Professional Baseball Club announced today that rookie infielder Omar Padilla has been signed as a free agent. RailCats manager Greg Tagert made the announcement.

Padilla completed his college career at Southeast Missouri State University in the spring of 2007. In two seasons there, he appeared in 110 games, batting .333 with 30 doubles, 12 home runs, 61 runs batted in, and 19 stolen bases. He was a solid contact hitter, striking out just 34 times in 415 at bats. A hard-nosed second baseman, he also tied the school record for number of times hit by pitch with 27.

Padilla was a 1st Team All-Ohio Valley Conference selection as a junior in 2006. He led Southeast Missouri State in batting average, runs, hits, doubles, and total bases in both of his seasons there.

Padilla, 24, transferred to Southeast Missouri State from Santa Rosa Junior College in California, where he helped his team to the 2005 California JUCO State Championship.

Padilla is the first free agent signing by the RailCats since the conclusion of the 2007 baseball season.

STAFF PROMOTIONS ANNOUNCED

The RailCats also announced the following staff promotions.

Mike Smith, formerly the RailCats Director of Group Sales, has been promoted to Assistant General Manager/Sales & Marketing. Smith will enter his fifth season with the RailCats in 2008 and has built the RailCats highly-successful group sales department, working with area companies, church groups, youth baseball/softball organizations, and civic groups.

Becky Kremer, formerly the RailCats Director of Business and Ticket Operations, has been promoted to Assistant General Manager/Business Operations. Ms. Kremer will enter her fourth season with the RailCats in 2008 after starting with the club as an intern.

Jim Rice, formerly serving as a Ticket Sales Specialist, has been promoted to Group Sales Manager. Rice joined the RailCats prior to the 2007 season after working with the Binghamton Mets of the Eastern League.

Aaron Pineda, formerly serving as a Ticket Sales Specialist, has been promoted to Ticket Sales/Media Relations Assistant. Pineda has worked with the RailCats in a variety roles after starting with the team as an usher in 2003. He has assisted in the media relations department for the past two seasons.

More Info: The Gary SouthShore RailCats are a Professional Minor League Baseball Team serving Northwest Indiana and Chicago's south suburbs. The RailCats won the Northern League championship in 2005 and 2007 and for each of the last four years, they have been chosen "Best Local Spectator Sport" by Northwest Indiana Business Quarterly. Their 96 game schedule includes 48 home games at beautiful U. S. Steel Yard, an award-winning 6,000 seat state-of-the-art facility located next to the Indiana Toll Road (I-90) with easy access to I-65.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:00 PM

Montgomery Re-signs As Pitching Coach

FARGO, N.D. - The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks have taken the first steps to building the 2008 version of the team, re-signing pitching coach Steve Montgomery to a contract and renewing the contract options of 21 players, the Northern League club announced.

Montgomery enters his fifth season as the RedHawks pitching coach in 2008. In his first four seasons as the pitching coach, Montgomery's staffs have led the Northern League in ERA twice (2005, 2006) and finished second twice (2004, 2007). In those four years, the RedHawks cumulative team ERA is 3.94 while the club has posted a league-best 243-139 record.

A former RedHawks pitcher, Montgomery played for Fargo-Moorhead from 2001-2003 and is the RedHawks all-time leader in saves with 47. He also serves at the pitching coach for the North Dakota State University baseball team.

Players who had their options renewed include: OF Richard Austin, RHP Nate Cotton, RHP Todd George, RHP Brandon Goltz, RHP Brandon Harmsen, 2B Mike Just, RHP Brett Lawson, OF Joe Mathis, OF Daniel Maycock, OF Tydus Meadows, RHP Mark Michael, LHP Mike Peschel, RHP Dane Renkert, LHP Adam Rowe, 3B Ruben Salazar, RHP Jason Schutt, LHP Joe Sergent, C Adam Shorsher, RHP Gerrit Simpson, SS Kory Wayment and RHP Doug Young.

The RedHawks declined to renew the options on the contracts of C Casey Haugen and 1B Billy Munoz. Both players will become free agents next week.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:01 PM

The Golden Baseball League announced today that former Major League Umpire Ron Barnes has been named as the league's Supervisor of Officials for the 2008 season. As part of his responsibilities, Barnes will also run the umpire development program at the Arizona Winter League this coming February as well.

"We have been very impressed with Ron's officiating over the last three years as one of the top umpires in the league," said GBL Commissioner Kevin Outcalt. "We are very fortunate that he has the time and interest to move into the Umpire-In-Chief role to organize and supervisor the umpires in both the GBL and the Arizona Winter League for us."

Barnes has 21 years of professional baseball experience as an umpire, including over 700 Major League games and a year as a Major League Umpire Supervisor as well. He also has many years in the minor leagues, including 15 seasons as one of the top rated umpires in the AAA Pacific Coast League. He is also well known during the collegiate season as a leading umpire in Division 1, Division 3, and Junior College leagues throughout the western United States.

"I am very excited to put the best possible umpires on the GBL fields for this coming season," said Barnes. "I am already getting tremendous response from many outstanding professional and collegiate Division 1 experienced umpires that I will bring to the staff for 2008. I am also looking forward to developing a new pool of umpires through evaluation and instruction during the Arizona Winter League."

Umpires interested in eithe the Golden Baseball League or Arizona Winter League programs can contact Ron Barnes at rbpcl33@sbcglobal.net

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:03 PM

Butch Hobson To Leave The Nashua Pride

Nashua Pride manager, Butch Hobson, made it official today, announcing that he will not return to Holman stadium as the Pride's field manager for the 2008 season. Hobson leaves the Pride to pursue a managerial post in the Atlantic League. An official announcement by the Atlantic League team is expected sometime this week.

"I would like to thank the people of Nashua and the state of New Hampshire for eight of the best years of my life. You adopted Krystine, K.C., Hank, Noah, Olivia and I as one of your own and for that I am truly grateful. It's time for me to move on. From day one, we strove to put a winning product on the field and I hope that these past eight years have brought you and your family enjoyment while at Historic Holman Stadium. I pray that we have represented you with class and I will always be proud to say that I was a resident of Nashua, NH, " said Hobson through a statement.

"Today is a sad day for the Nashua Pride, but also a day of new beginnings," said owner John Stabile. "Butch has been the face of the Pride franchise for the last 8 years, and on top of being one of the best managers in the game, he has always been a consummate class act. We wish Butch and his family the best of luck in the future and appreciate everything he's done to keep baseball alive and well in Nashua."

Butch Hobson managed the Pride from 2000 through the 2007 season. He leaves as the Pride's all-time wins leader as a manager with a 514-458 record and a .529 winning percentage. In his eight seasons as the manager Butch led the Pride into the postseason six times (2000, '01, '03, '04, '05, and '07), to the championship series four times (2000, '03, '05, '07), and won two championships (2000 and 2007). Butch was a fixture in the Nashua community, working tirelessly to help improve the community and build good will within local neighborhoods.

The Nashua Pride Professional Baseball Club, entering its eleventh season, provides a fun, affordable, community-based and fan-friendly source of sports entertainment. The 2007 Can-Am League Champions will be participating in its third year of play in the Canadian American Association of Professional Baseball.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:04 PM

Colabello to host "SportsNight"

Worcester, MA -- Worcester Tornadoes First Baseman Chris Colabello will join host Mike Messina on AM 580 WTAG's "SportsNight" from 6-8pm tonight, Monday, November 19.

Colabello re-joined the Tornadoes last week after spending the second half of the '07 season with the Nashua Pride, following a mid-season trade from Worcester. WTAG is the exclusive radio carrier of all 94 regular season Tornadoes games, as well as any pre-season and post-season games that might occur.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:12 PM

Saints 2008 schedule jam-packed with 22 weekend dates & All-Star game

ST. PAUL, MN (November 19, 2007) - The St. Paul Saints, Monday, announced their 2008 regular season schedule. The team will open its 16th season at home on Thusday, May 8 against one of the two new teams in the American Association, the Grand Prairie Airhogs.

The 2008 schedule features 48 regular season home dates plus the American Association All-Star Game, Tuesday, July 22 at Midway Stadium.

The Saints longest homestand is seven games from, May 19-25, and the team will play four, six-game homestands. The longest roadtrip is a nine-game jaunt which will take them to El Paso, TX, Shreveport, LA, and Lincoln, NE, May 27-June 5.

The Saints get a rematch of the 2007 American Association Championship Series when they host the Fort Worth Cats May 23-25. They will play their Northern Division rival Lincoln Saltdogs 19 times, including their first meeting at Midway Stadium June 23-25. The Saints swept Lincoln in the best-of-five Division Series last season.

The schedule is highlighted by three fireworks shows: Sunday, May 25, Friday, July 4 and Wednesday, August 20. The remainder of the promotional schedule will be released at a later date.

Season tickets and mini-plans are on sale now by calling 651-644-6659 or visiting saintsbaseball.com. The full regular season schedule is listed below.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:13 PM

Lancaster set to lead X's in 2008

Sioux City, IA - The Sioux City Explorers announced today that former major league pitcher; Les Lancaster has been named field manager of the Sioux City Explorers. Lancaster is the 5th manager in team history and replaces Ed Nottle who stepped down following the 2007 season. He will assume the team's managerial duties immediately and will be in charge of all player development.

"When we started the process of searching for our new field manager back in September, we were looking for someone that has had proven success at this level or higher as a manger and as a player and someone that puts a high priority on assuring himself, coaches, and his players take an active role in the community," comments X's General Manager Shane Tritz. "The amount of interest for the position was tremendous, as we received interest from a total of 18 candidates that wanted the opportunity to come to Siouxland and guide the X's to the next level and we are confident that we have landed the ideal candidate in Les."

Lancaster comes to the X's with some impressive credentials after spending the past three seasons in the Golden Baseball League. While in the Golden League, Lancaster made the playoffs two out the three seasons and won a league championship in 2006 with the Reno Silver Sox. Prior to the Golden League, Les managed Adirondack (1999 & 2000) and Lincoln (2001 & 2002) of the Northern League and Coastal Bend (2003) from the Central League. In addition to his championship in 2006, Lancaster also led Adirondack to a championship in 2000 and has made the playoffs in 6 of the 8 seasons he has been a field manager. Les also received managerial honors by being named Independent League Manager of the Year in 2000 and Golden League Manager of the Year in 2006.

"It's an honor to be associated with the Sioux City Explorers," comments Lancaster. "They have a long history of baseball tradition and I'm here to help them get back on a winning track the way it was in earlier years. I look forward to the opportunity of helping bring a championship to Sioux City."

A prep star in Nimitz High School in Irving, TX in the early '80's, Lancaster played one year at Dallas Baptist College before transferring to the University of Arkansas where he spent three seasons with the Razorbacks. The Chicago Cubs signed Lancaster in 1985 and it took less than three seasons before he landed a spot on the big-league roster. Les was both a starting pitcher and reliever for the Cubs from 1987 to 1991 and shared the team's mound chores with greats like Greg Maddux, "Goose" Gossage, Rick Sutcliffe and Mitch "Wild Thing" Williams.

Les enjoyed his best season in 1989, making 42 relief appearances and posting a 4-2 record with 8 saves and a miniscule 1.36 ERA. He helped lead the Cubs to the National League East Division title and was named a post-season all-star. After two more years in Chicago, Lancaster moved onto Detroit in 1992 and then onto St. Louis in 1993. As a major leaguer, Les accumulated a 41-28 Major league record with a career 4.05 ERA while also recording 22 saves. He appeared in 323 Major League games and struck out 408 batters while walking only 261. He continued to pitch following his major league time with various independent teams and overseas in Taiwan, Mexico and Italy.

"We feel the future of Explorers baseball in Siouxland is bright as ever and will continue to grow at a rapid pace under the direction of Les," says Tritz. "Les is a perfect fit for our organization as he is a true professional on and off the field and has proven over his managerial career that he has the ability to lead this team to the next level. We are very confident in his ability to recruit and bring some of the top free agents available to the fans here in Siouxland and is also someone that gains instant respect from his players and everyone around him."

Les will immediately jump into assembling the Explorers 2008 roster in an attempt to continue his streak and guide the 2008 Explorers to the next level. He is committed to putting together a championship caliber team and will start to prepare for the season opener that is slated for May 7th in Wichita, KS with the home opener set for May 10th versus the Wingnuts.

###

Your hometown Sioux City Explorers will kick off the 2008 season on May 7th in Wichita, KS against the Wichita Wingnuts. Following three games with the "Wingnuts", the Explorers will travel home to open Lewis & Clark Park for the 2008 season on May 10th with a two game set against the Wingnuts, with the first pitch set for 7:05 PM.

**truebluefan** · 11-20-2007, 03:14 PM

Honu Declared Champion in Washed Out Title Game

The Hawaii Winter Baseball championship game was cancelled due to heavy rain, and as a result of its superior record, North Shore was declared the 2007 HWB Champion.

"Our goal was going out and winning a ballgame every night, and I think our record indicates that," said North Shore Manager Kevin Bradshaw. "They did everything we asked them to do, we did a little early work and hit, had some days off, and I never heard them complain about anything. From a manager's standpoint, all you can hope for is to have some good players with great attitudes come to the ballpark every day."

The Honu were scheduled to face the Waikiki BeachBoys this evening, but the conditions at Waipahu's Hans L'Orange Park were deemed unplayable as much of the playing surface was covered by ponds of water resulting from a continuous, heavy downpour. North Shore (26-12-1) claimed the HWB West title and Waikiki (19-19-1) was in the title game as HWB East champions.

"We played together as a team the whole time," said Mat Gamel, HWB's Most Valuable Player. "The pitchers pitched well and we played good defense, we piled on hits and never really stopped. It was never just one person, it was a team effort.

"A lot of us are ready to get home, we're tired, we've been out playing since February," Gamel added. "It's the championship game, everyone's itching to play. A lot of fans came out, and it's bad for them. It's bad for (the BeachBoys) because they didn't have a shot to win (the championship). But in the same breath, the field wasn't really playable so you can't come out here and get anybody hurt."

This marks the second consecutive year in which the Honu has claimed the HWB championship. The Honu downed the BeachBoys last season, 5-1, before 3,783 in attendance at Les Murakami Stadium in Manoa, Oahu.

"The talent level is better, we have better pitching, and better hitters," said Duane Kurisu, Hawaii Winter Baseball Chairman and CEO as he reflected upon the league's seventh year in existence. "What started out being an issue, where we couldn't play at Les Murakami Stadium, actually turned out to be a positive. We learned to overcome adversities and play at Hans L'Orange, and we know we can do it on one field, but we plan to go back to Murakami (Stadium) next year."

The last notable minor league to decide its champion based due to unsuitable weather conditions was the Southern League in 2004 after the effects of Hurricane Ivan. Mobile and Tennessee were declared co-champions as a result.

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