Tag / Ramon Castro

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#120 – Tyler Flowers

tyler-flowers

Name: Tyler Flowers

Rank: 120

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 2009-2015

Tyler Flowers came to the White Sox following the 2008 season, acquired from the Braves, along with Jon Gilmore, Santos Rodriguez, and Brent Lillibridge, for Javier Vazquez and Boone Logan.  Flowers performed well in 2009, splitting time between Double A Birmingham and Triple A Charlotte, hitting .297 with 15 home runs.  He earned a call-up to the big leagues when rosters expanded on September 1, but his hot hitting did not follow.  He appeared in 10 games for the White Sox, hitting .188 without driving in a run.

Flowers opened the 2010 season back in Charlotte, where, unfortunately, his hitting woes continued.  Despite a .220 average, he got another late season call-up, this time garnering only 1 hit in 11 at bats.

Flowers returned to Charlotte to start the 2011 season, but returned to the big leagues in July when Ramon Castro went down with an injury.  Flowers got a chance to start every day in August when A.J. Pierzynski got hurt, enabling him to garner both his first home run and, later in the month, his first grand slam.

2012 saw Flowers break camp with the White Sox for the first time, becoming the backup to Pierzynski.  Appearing in 52 games, he managed to “raise” his average to .213, but saw his on base percentage fall below .300 for the first time in his short career.  Despite the troubling offensive performance he had put up to date, the White Sox decided it was time to let Flowers take control behind the plate and they allowed A.J. Pierzynski to leave as a free agent following the season.

As the starter in 2013, Flowers continued to struggle offensively, finishing with a batting average below .200, though a shoulder injury ended his season early, limiting him to 84 games.  With his shoulder recovered, he returned behind the plate as the primary receiver in 2014, appearing in 127 games and rebounding to a .241 average, though his OPS failed to break .700.

2015 was more of the same for Flowers, appearing in 112 games and struggling offensively, finishing with a .239 average and a weak .652 OPS.  Following the season, the White Sox decided not to tender him a contract for 2016, and his tenure on the south side came to an end one month ago.

Flowers’ numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#163 – Ramon Castro

castroName: Ramon Castro

Rank: 163

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 2009-2011

Ramon Castro came to the White Sox from the Mets via a May 30, 2009 trade for Lance Broadway, replacing Corky Miller as the backup to AJ Pierzynski.  A little less than 2 months later, on July 23, Castro was behind the plate for Mark Buehrle’s perfect game against the Rays.  After the game, Buehrle credited Castro, saying he did not shake him off during the entire game.

Castro resigned with the White Sox for the 2010 season, remaining as the backup catcher.  He appeared in 37 games and finished the year with .278 average and 8 home runs.

The 2011 season saw Castro’s production regress, as his average dropped back down to .235.  A broken hand suffered in July limited him to only 23 games and 68 at bats.  Following the season, he became a free agent and never played in the major leagues again.

Castro’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#200 – Corky Miller

corkymillerName: Corky Miller

Rank: 200

Position: C

Year With White Sox: 2009

Journeyman catcher Corky Miller signed a minor league deal with the White Sox following the 2008 season, with an invite to spring training.  Miller impressed during the spring and earned a job with the big league club as backup to starter A.J. Pierzynski.

Miller went 2-4 with 2 RBI in his first game of the season, but struggled offensively after that.  In 14 games, he hit just .205 with 5 RBI and had thrown out just 1 of the 9 runners attempting to steal against him.

On May 31, Miller was designated for assignment after the White Sox acquired catcher Ramon Castro in a trade with the Mets.  “Corky Miller was outstanding from the first day of Spring Training to today,” manager Ozzie Guillen said at the time.  “Corky did a tremendous job for us and I was very happy with him, but we made a decision that we had to get better there.”  Miller was assigned to Triple A, where he appeared in 4 games before the June 26 trade that sent him back to the Reds in exchange for Norris Hopper.

Miller’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were:

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#243 – Donny Lucy

dlucyName: Donny Lucy

Rank: 243

Position: C

Years With White Sox: 2007, 2010-2011

Donny Lucy joined the White Sox organization after being selected in the second round of the 2004 draft.  He made his major league debut for the White Sox on September 5, 2007 against the Tigers, getting his first major league hit against Kenny Rogers.  Lucy made his way into 8 games as the White Sox played out the string in what was a lost and disappointing season.

Lucy returned to the minor leagues until 2010, when he broke camp with the White Sox due to backup catcher Ramón Castro heading to the DL with a bruised heel.  Lucy hit his first big league home run and notched his first RBI against the Blue Jays on April 15.  When Castro was ready to return on May 3, Lucy was returned to Triple A.

Lucy returned to the White Sox in August of 2011 when AJ Pierzynski went down with a broken wrist.  He managed to appear in 6 games this time, with his final appearance coming in the Sox 3-2 loss to the Blue Jays on September 28.

On December 16, Lucy announced his retirement from baseball.

Lucy’s numbers in a White Sox uniform were:

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#355 – Lance Broadway

Name: Lance Broadway

Rank: 355

Position: P

Years With White Sox: 2007-2009

Lance Broadway was the White Sox first round pick in the 2005 draft and worked his way to the big leagues 2 years later.  A starter by trade, Broadway worked mostly out of the bullpen for the Sox, making only 2 starts in his time on the south side.  When the opportunity presented itself early in the 2009 season to make an upgrade at backup catcher, Broadway was (fittingly) traded to the New York Mets for Ramon Castro.

Broadway’s numbers in a White Sox uniform, both for games I attended and overall, were: Continue reading →

by jim

The Robin Ventura Era Begins

After playing alongside Ozzie Guillen on the left side of the White Sox infield for years, Robin Ventura now follows him in the dugout as skipper, starting with today’s contest against the defending American League champion Rangers.  Here’s a look at the roster with which he’ll be starting the 162 game grind.

Starting Pitchers

John Danks, Jake Peavy, Gavin Floyd, Chris Sale, Phil Humber

With Mark Buehrle gone, John Danks moves up to the top of the rotation, getting his first Opening Day start today.  Peavy looks to have his first injury-free season on the south side.  Chris Sale attempts to move from the bullpen to the rotation and fulfill the promise he showed in college.  Humber was a surprise success last season and hopefully can continue that success.

Relief Pitchers

Matt Thornton, Jesse Crain, Will Ohman, Addison Reed, Hector Santiago, Zach Stewart, Nate Jones

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by jim

2011 Opening Day Roster – White Sox

Starting Pitchers

Mark Buehrle, Edwin Jackson, John Danks, Gavin Floyd, Phil Humber

Buehrle, Danks, and Floyd have been stalwarts for 4 seasons now.  Hopefully Jackson can build upon the success he had after coming over in a trade with Arizona last summer.  Humbler fills in for the injured Jake Peavy.

Relief Pitchers

Matt Thornton, Jesse Crain, Chris Sale, Will Ohman, Sergio Santos and Tony Pena

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