With the 2017 pre season just hours away, the city of Boise and the entire state of Idaho is brimming with excitement. The Idaho Steelheads debut in the AFBL this season.
The Steelheads invited 37 players to the big league camp. Two have been traded, SP - Dave Hilliard and C - Rod Olson. We hardly got to know ya. So there are 35 players vying for 25 spots.
Let's take a look at the spring training roster and the project the opening day team for the 2017 season:
Starting Pitching
There are 9 starters battling it out for 5 spots. The favorites are Baca, Edwards, MIller, Valdes, and MacDonald. Cahill, Gil, Fromm and Rivera will battle for a starting role,
but are more likely to be in the bullpen or in AAA come April.
Bullpen
Jones is a the closer, Roberts and Camacho are the setup guys. Who fills out the rest of the BP, tough to say right now. The smart money is on Gordon and O'Brian being joined by
2 of the starters who did not make the rotation.
Catcher
As mentioned, Rod Olson was traded for the 2017 3rd round pick, so he is no longer in the picture. The two catchers on the roster are veteran Joel Evans and youngster Alex Perry. The club
has high hopes for Perry, but he will likely be eased into the starting role. Barring injury, these are the opening day catchers for the Steelheads.
First Base
Arguable the weakest and certainly the biggest unknown is at 1B. Two young players with some power, Urbina and GOnzales are going to battle it out for the opening day starter. The loser of
this race will likely end up in AAA for more seasoning.
Second Base
The projected starter is Ira MacPherson, a strong defensive player who probably is slotted in the 8th spot in the batting order. Depth at 2B is solid with defensive stalwarts Harvey and
Clark available to play 2B, SS, 3B on a moments notice. SHould 3B Steve Carr lose the 3B job, he may factor in as a lefty bat at 2B.
Short Stop
The starting shortstop is young veteran Jim Quirk. Quirk is a 3 year veteran, close to a .300 hitter, but not a strong defender up the middle. He projects to bat second in the order.
Harvey and Clark serve as defensive backups.
Third Base
The third base battle is perhaps the most interesting between late bloomer Alohinani and Steve Carr. Alohinani has more power and is a strong defender at the hot corner.
Outfield
Eight outfielders will duke it out for 5 roster spots. Bartlett, Riggs, and Childress are the favorites to start the season, but they will face stiff competition from Davis, Peterson,
Dugles, Banks, and GOnzales.
Projected 25 man roster:
12 pitchers: Baca, Edwards, Miller, Rivera, Valdes, Cross, Gordon, Jones, MacDonald, Camacho, ROberts, Wilson.
13 players: Evans, Perry, Urbina, MacPherson, Clark, Alohinani, QUirk, Harvey,Riggs, Dugles, Bartless, Childress, Peterson.
Fans, management, and players are excited to start the inaugural season for the Steelheads. 'We are in it for the long haul.' Said GM LT. 'We understand it is a process and building from the
ground up is a difficult challenge.' 'We think we have drafted a young squad with several players who are poised to develop into very good players over the next
few seasons. Sprinkle in a few trades and some strong drafting and we hope to make some noise in the AFBL for a long time.'
