Season in Review - Position Players

Though the Tampa Bay Seminoles season ended sooner than fans had hoped there is reason to believe the success can be duplicated next season.

The Catcher position saw split duty between two players, but overall was more productive than last season. Between Harrison and Fernandez the C position hit 26 HRs and had 114 RBIs. Fernandez hits for better average but Harrison provides more pop. Defensively the two players are about the same. There are no changes anticipated at this position for the coming season.

C - Sean Harrison - Hit 17 HRs, 67 RBIs and hit .245
C - Jimmie Fernandez - Hit 9 HRs, 47 RBIs and hit .353

The 1B position was once again manned by Willie Guapo. The second year pro didn't win the gold glove this season but only committed 4 errors during the course of the season. Guapo's numbers were comparable to last season and in most categories he improved. There are no changes anticipated at this position for the coming season. The thing to keep in mind is that Guapo is arbitration eligible this coming season.

1B - Willie Guapo - Hit 7 HRs, 72 RBIs, and hit .314

The 2B position was once again manned by Willie Sodowsky. Sodowsky was having a terrific season and was on pace to steal another 100 bases this season until he broke his leg late in the season. While Sodowsky made it back for part of the series with Durham in the play offs his long term health and recovery are question marks. The has caused Tampa Bay to take a wait and see approach before resigning the first year All-Start since he is a FA this coming season. This is a position that could change in the offseason.

2B - Willie Sodowsky - Hit .289, 89 Stolen Bases

The 3B position saw Glenn Sabel move over from short stop before the season started. He showed a marked improvement in fielding at 3B as he only committed 8 errors during the course of the season. Sabel saw his batting average drop almost 30 points between last season and this season. The question the front office has to ask themselves is whether or not Sabel is the future of this position. At this point Sabel will be back unless the front office comes up with an alternative via Free Agency or Trade.

3B - Glenn Sabel - Hit .256, 8 HR, 45 RBIs.

The SS position saw a last minute change when the Seminoles picked up Steven Walsh off the waiver wire before the season started. Walsh started off the season on fire at one point hitting over .350, which helped him make the All-Start team, before coming back down to Earth and finishing with a respectable .316 average due to a late season slump. The Seminoles gave Walsh a 3 year contract extension so there is no reason to think he will not be back next season as the starting SS. The one thing the team needs to ensure is that they have an able back up for the days Walsh needs to be rested.

SS - Steven Walsh - Hit .316, 8 HR, 44 RBIs.

The LF position saw Mariano Guerrero take over. The first year MLer played well in his first full season though he had the misfortune of hitting behind Pat Brantley but Guerrero provided great insurance for Brantley. Guerrero appears to be a fixture out in LF for years to come so we see no change at this position.

LF - Mariano Guerrero - Hit .283, 26 HRs, 71 RBIs, SLG% .515

The CF position was manned by Jose Martin, the man who keeps finding a way to be valuable to the team. This is the 2nd year in a row that Martin did not start out as the starter in CF but the team had enough faith in him to trade away the starter. Martin appears to be the front runner to start in CF this coming season though this is the last season of his contract so depending on his demands may determine if this is the last season we see him in a Seminoles uniform.

CF - Jose Martin - Hit .279, 23 HRs, 83 RBIs

The RF position was manned by Pat Brantley. If there was a franchise player, Brantley would be it. How he didn't make the All-Star team is still a mystery but that will only serve to fuel his fire to become an even better player. RF is not a position that the Seminoles will have to worry about for years. The only worry the front office has is whether or not to give him a long term contract this season or next season since he is arbitration eligible again this coming offseason.

RF - Pat Brantley - Hit .295, 30 HRs, 119 RBIs

Players to keep an eye on:

Chuck Wall - 1B AAA - the man can hit the ball a long way and hit a little over .300 but can he translate that success at the ML level? At 23 the Seminoles can afford to wait and see but don't be surprised when he's at Spring Training which could determine his future since the position is currently manned by Willie Guapo.

Anthony Hughes - RF AA - Hit an impressive .338 in lead off duty for the AA team club. He has all the tools to be an everyday RF but lacks the speed to be a consistently good lead off man at the ML level and doesn't have a lot of power. So as the team moves forward it will have to see what other positions he can play since Pat Brantley has the RF position locked up at the ML level.

Ralph Bravo - 2B High A - Hit .336 leading off for the High A club. The club is still considering whether or not he can play 2B well enough to play it at the ML level but he could be a viable replacement for Sodowsky down the road, assuming Sodowsky resigns wwith the team this coming offseason.

Pete Maddox - LF Low A - Only had 94 ABs at the Low A level but earned a promotion after hitting .327 in Rookie league. Maddox was the 1st round draft pick and the team has high hopes for Maddox. While he may be a few seasons away from playing at the ML level he does give the team some options going down the road.