Category Archives: DiPro’s Dish

Pigs Fly – Richie T Flies and a foul ball takes @PigsRadio off the air. What a night!

Lehigh Valley scored their only run on a suicide squeeze bunt  an improvised bunt by Tim “I come from a land down under” Kennelly.

IronPigs pitchers have held the opponents to 27 scoreless innings and set a franchise record 3rd shut-out in a row.

Richie T gets his first MLB start, first hit, 2 SB, and an RBI for good measure. Click for video.

“How do you like all that?” – ALOT!

Dishing 3 shut-outs

Glad to hear Kram’s kids took the trade well – I know they were huge fans. I too had a proverbial tear in one eye with a smile in the other as I heard the Rays PA Announcer call out Rich Thompson as a pinch runner.

Kram certainly makes a good point about Rich’s on field play. I think those of us who saw it every game came to expect it. You just knew when Richie was on first he would most likely make it to third without any bat impact to advance him. You just knew he would track down that long fly ball to left center field. So while we may have taken his play for granted at times it certainly won’t be forgotten. Jimmy T said it best on the air with Dobber (@Dobber_IronPigs) when he mentioned Rich played the game the we were taught growing up and witnessing that in this day is the best part of Richie T – the player.

During the somewhat shocking haze of the Thompson trade, I neglected to mention that he was my first official player interview at the Phillies Winter Banquet. In fact, he was my second interview at this year’s media day. As an (untrained) “blogger/fan” it was a bit overwhelming and he couldn’t have made it more comfortable – it’s something I’ll always remember.

Here’s a snippet of that interview when I asked Rich what his plans are post baseball.

One could imagine sometime in the future Rich Thompson exchanging line-up cards at home plate in Coca-Cola Park. After all, he couldn’t have had a better mentor.  We can always hope. In the mean time Go Richie T!

Pig Out!

Dishing with a smile.

(click to enlarge)

Great news from the IronPigs today who have announced a new bidding system for this year’s Jersey Auctions. The aggressive bidders who in the past have elbowed small children to get at the bidding clip boards will now have to register their smart-phones. Hee Haw – thank you IronPigs!

Here’s the official release courtesy of Jon Schaeffer.

OFFICIAL IRONPIGS NEWS
For Immediate Release
May 17, 2012

JERSEY AUCTIONS TO FEATURE REVOLUTIONARY BIDDING SYSTEM

Fans Can Now Bid from Anywhere in the U.S. on their Favorite Player’s Jerseys

(Allentown, Pa.) – IronPigs fans can now bid on their favorite player’s jerseys from anywhere with the brand-new and easy-to-use Qtego service that allows fans to place bids, receive notifications when outbid and check the status of their item via text messages on their mobile phones.  Fans without texting access can even call in their bid after registering their phone at Coca-Cola Park.

Qtego will be used for each of the club’s six jersey auctions benefiting local charities this season, including Sunday’s “A League of their Own” throwback jersey auction benefiting the Women’s 5K Classic.  The proceeds support all women’s cancers and all of the money raised remains in the Lehigh Valley region.  The Women’s 5K Classic is celebrating their 20^th anniversary and has donated 1.8-million dollars through their annual race.

Register your phone from anywhere in the U.S. by texting “Pigs” to 79230.  The bidding begins on Saturday at 1:35 p.m. and ends promptly at the end of 7^th inning on Sunday, May 20.  Detailed instructions on how to place your bid will be made available at ironpigsbaseball.com on Saturday.

As in years past, winning bidders will have the opportunity to go on the field immediately following the game to have their jersey autographed. Bidders not in attendance at Coca-Cola Park can either pick up their signed jersey at a later date or have it mailed directly to them.

In addition to Sunday’s throwback jersey auction, five other auctions are planned for the 2012 season, as detailed below.  All proceeds are evenly split between IronPigs Charities and the benefactor’s listed below.

• ·         Miracle League jersey auction (Monday, June 4) with proceeds benefitting the Miracle League of the Lehigh Valley.  The Miracle League of the Lehigh Valley was founded in 2006, dedicated to providing children with special needs and other developmental disabilities an opportunity to play baseball.
• ·         Create-a-Jersey auction (Sunday, June 17) with proceeds benefitting Communities in Schools of the Lehigh Valley. Communities In Schools (CIS) is dedicated to empowering kids to stay in school and achieve in life.  Just as there are many issues that contribute to students dropping out, they proudly offer a multitude of solutions driven by the CIS model and integrated service approach.
• ·         Camouflage jersey auction (Wednesday, July 4) with proceeds benefitting the Keystone Wounded Warriors.  Keystone Wounded Warriors is a Eastern Pennsylvania based 501 (c)(3) non-profit corporation that seeks to honor the daily sacrifices made by the brave men and women in all branches of the United States Military, but specifically those wounded on or after September 11, 2001. Keystone Wounded Warriors aids Wounded Warriors by raising public awareness and seeking the public’s support for programs and services that assist Wounded Warriors. Funds donated to Keystone Wounded Warriors are used to support local post-9/11 veterans and their families located in or with ties to Pennsylvania.
• ·         Christmas in July jersey auction (Wednesday, July 25) with proceeds benefitting Dream Come True.  Dream Come True’s mission is to promote and enrich the lives of children who are seriously, chronically or terminally ill.  They offer children with life threatening illnesses the chance to hope, dream and live their fantasies.
• ·         What Could Have Been – Lehigh Valley Woodchucks jersey auction (Saturday, August 11) with proceeds benefitting the Pediatric Cancer Foundation of the Lehigh Valley.  PCFLV is a local nonprofit organization which supports children with cancer and their families, enabling them to live their lives to the fullest.  They focus on quality of life and long-term survivorship programs, educational and therapeutic based workshops, resources and support services, including a support group run by a professional facilitator from Stepping Forward.

For more information about Qtego and its services, visit QtegoAuction.com.

The 2012 jersey auctions at Coca-Cola Park are organized by IronPigs Charities, a non-profit organization striving to provide educational and recreational opportunities for children in the Greater Lehigh Valley area.  Since its inception in 2007, IronPigs Charities has made more than $435,000 in monetary contributions – including more than $110,000 in 2011.

The Lehigh Valley IronPigs are dedicated to providing family-friendly entertainment and are the only Minor League team to offer bubbles to fans entering the AT&T Plaza and balloons for all children exiting Coca-Cola Park.

— pig out —

Click it.

Love it.

Dish it.

Rays add outfield depth, deal for Thompson

“Rich is a guy whose key attribute is his speed, and he uses [his speed] extremely well, both offensively and defensively,” said Rays executive vice president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman. “We felt like profile-wise he fit in really well with us.”

Thompson, who had not arrived to Tropicana Field by game time, will be added to the Rays’ active roster immediately upon his arrival.

Rich Thompson has not appeared in the Major Leagues since 2004. (Kevin Pataky/MiLB.com)

To make room on the active roster, outfielder Brandon Guyer was placed on the 15-day disabled list, retroactive to Sunday, with a left-shoulder strain. To accommodate Thompson’s addition to the 40-man roster, right-hander Jeff Niemann was transferred from the 15-day disabled list to the 60-day DL.

“With where we’re at right now with our second-string, third-string and fourth-string center fielders being on the DL, we felt it was really important to get someone we felt really comfortable with in center field,” Friedman said.

Friedman said that in the event something happened to starting center field B.J. Upton, or if he needed a day off, Tampa Bay felt more comfortable looking outside the organization than switching Ben Zobrist or Elliot Johnson from their positions to play center field.

The Rays currently have nine players on the disabled list.

“We spent a lot of time in the offseason going through different scenarios and trying to insure that we have the requisite amount of depth in-house,” Friedman said. “I think one of the things we overlooked was what if all of these things happened at one time, such a concentration of injuries in a short period of time. We needed to go outside the organization to fill this profile.”

Thompson, 33, has spent 13 seasons in the Minor Leagues and has not appeared in the Major Leagues since 2004, when he played in six games for the Royals.

Thompson was hitting .307 with no home runs, 11 RBIs and seven stolen bases in 29 games for Triple-A Lehigh Valley, where he has spent the majority of the past five seasons.

He has amassed 442 stolen bases in his Minor League career, including seven seasons of 40 or more steals, and an International League-leading 48 in 2011.

The left-handed-hitting Thompson has played all three outfield positions in the Minors, but he has played primarily center field.

Thompson made the Royals’ Opening Day roster in 2004 and was used primarily as a pinch-runner and defensive replacement. He went 0-for-1 with one run scored and a stolen base. He was designated for assignment on April 24 that season and has not played in the Major Leagues since.

Guyer, 25, becomes the ninth Rays player on the disabled list. Since being recalled from Triple-A Durham on May 9, he appeared in three games, batting .143 with one home run and one RBI.

Guyer hurt himself while taking batting practice in Baltimore over the weekend. The Rays gave him a few days to see how well he felt before deciding to make a move.

“It became pretty clear he was going to need some time off,” Friedman said, “so we started going through external players [to consider trading for].”

Niemann, 29, was placed on the 15-day disabled list Tuesday due to a fractured right fibula, an injury he sustained in Monday’s game in Toronto. He is 2-3 with a 3.38 ERA in seven starts this season.

Bill Chastain is a reporter for MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs.

Erik Kratz has been optioned to LHV and Scott Podsednik was acquired by the Boston Red Sox and will be assigned to Pawtucket.

It’s going to be an interesting year….

OinK!

The IronPigs began their scoring in the 3^rd with a lead off walk to Michael Spidale. Andres Blanco singled and with two out Kevin Frandsen doubled plating Spidale and Blanco. Pigs up 2-0

Lehigh Valley would score another in the 7^th after Andres Blanco doubled and scored when Richie T tripled to center. Pigs 3 -0

Derrick Mitchell would blast his team leading 4th HR, a solo shot deep out of the park for the ‘Pigs 4^th run of the game. Pigs 4-0

Louisville would get one of a meaningless solo job off relief pitcher Joe Savery. Pigs 4-1

The ‘Pigs would take full advantage of the recent roster moves using Joe Savery who got the hold and The Phro who struck out the side to end the game and got the save.

Lehigh Valley pitching held the Bats to 1 run on 3 hits and LHV hitters went 3-7 with RISP and stranded 6.

Pigs FLY!