Silver & Gold Exhibition Game - South Bend SilverHawks vs. Notre Dame Fighting Irish / Picture Dump

My Opening Day wasn't quite as exciting as many 'Pitters who could watch/attend the big-league game at Chase to see our Snakes smack around Jon Garland, but, for the awful Diamondbacks coverage that South Bend offers (the annoying fact behind my 'Pit-name, as a matter of fact - that and the weather are really the only sources of disdain I have for the city), I did get to see some baseball to keep the withdrawal shakes away.  That was because our lovely student government provided us with free tickets (to the first 200 students to go, and fewer than 200 students went...) and bus to Coveleski Stadium to watch the cheekily-named third annual Silver & Gold Exhibition game.  I was especially excited to go to this game after reading up on the SilverHawks' roster to find top prospects Bobby Borchering, Chris Owings, Mike Belfiore, David Nick, Keon Broxton, Dan Taylor, and Chase Anderson on the squad, and even more excited to see that only Taylor and Belfiore were starting the exhibition.  Photos, recap, and some observations after the break.

I suppose I ought to begin by actually giving you the results of the game - it was a lopsided affair from the start, and although I arrived two innings late, having missed the 5:00 bus returning from Spring Break in D.C. and thus being forced to take the 5:45 bus to the 5:30 game, the only real action I missed was a solo home run from Alberto Diaz in the bottom of the second and two innings of Chase Anderson domination.  The SilverHawks won the game 4-0 as the Notre Dame players, none of whom looked particularly impressive, looked simply over-matched, especially at the plate.

Coveleski Stadium in beautiful, sunny, comfortably warm yet drizzly South Bend.  Unfortunate Dodgers fan also made an appearance.

There were a ton of recognizable names for even the most minor league-indifferent of SnakePit followers, headlined by Bobby Borchering, hitting third and manning third base.  I missed Borchering's first at-bat, a hit of some sort according to the game recap,  but arrived in time to see his second at-bat, hitting from the right side.  The results were unimpressive, as Borchering took a couple of very awkward swings and was K'd.  He redeemed himself later, though, smacking a double from the left side of the plate to finish a strong A-ball debut.  Sadly, he didn't really have to make any really challenging defensive plays, as the Notre Dame hitters were too busy hitting bloopers and striking out, so I didn't get to see him try flash any leather (supposedly his biggest flaw).

Borchering Hitting from the Right Side

Borchering Hitting from the Left Side

Next on the trip down the '09 draft order is Matt Davidson, who started the game as the Designated Hitter batting fifth.  Clearly, there's a jam of corner infielders on this roster between Borchering, Davidson, and Bobby Stone, all of whom most think will end up at first base (though the D'backs seem set to give Borchering every chance to stick at third).  IIRC, he ended up with just one hit for the day, so nothing spectacular, especially given the opponent.  This is a huge year for Davidson, but with the team slotting him fifth behind some big bats in Borchering and Keon Broxton, it looks as if he'll definitely get his chances to see some good pitches.

Matt Davidson Batting

Next is Chris Owings, taken 41st in the '09 draft, who led off for the SilverHawks.  Owings smacked an RBI single in the third inning to bring the score to 2-0, and looked good at the plate.  However, I can certainly see why many wonder if he'll stick at shortstop.  The first throw he made, on a fairly routine play, sailed to the left of first-baseman Bobby Stone, who needed to jump off of the bag and pull off a very nifty mid-air tag to still get the runner out.  Then, later in the game, he made another equally-mediocre throw over to first, and it seemed that despite having plenty of strength in his arm, he simply didn't have the accuracy to make the throws.  Then again, this is a kid who was a senior in high school a year ago, so we can cut him a little slack for now.

Chris Owings at the Plate

Now dropping all the way back to the third round, we find Keon Broxton, the fast, slugging center-fielder.  He hit fourth for South Bend today, a testament to the ridiculous raw power he has with the stick, and looked pretty bad at the dish, striking out looking once and failing to get a hit in the time I was at the game.  He did cover a ton of ground in center field though, so it looks as if the "raw and toolsy" label remains a near-perfect fit for Broxton.  Heaven forbid what happens if this kid ever figures it out though.

Keon Broxton in his Stance

Keon Broxton in the Field

The following round, the Snakes picked David Nick, who started at second base for the D'backs today, hitting second (yes, hitters 1-5 were from the '09 draft).  Nick didn't really leave much of an impression today, either because I wasn't paying much attention, or he simply lived up to his good-but-not-great at everything scouting report.

David Nick at the Dish

Bobby Stone & David Nick in the Field

 Though he spent last year starting for South Bend, sixth-round pick Bradin Hagens made an unusual relief appearance in today's game, throwing a solid inning (1-2-3 IIRC).  It'll be interesting to see if Hagens is a guy who winds up being forced to the bullpen on a South Bend team loaded with a bunch of guys who the organization seems to want to start.  However, his relatively high draft position could mean that this was simply a temporary assignment to ease him into the season.

Bradin Hagens Warming Up

While the sixth-round pick Hagens came out of the bullpen, a 2009 ninth-round pick, Chase Anderson, started for the SilverHawks.  Though I missed his first two innings of shutout work, if they were anything like his last two innings he put up a dominating performance.  The Irish hitters couldn't get to Anderson and his low- to mid-90's heat, and it seemed like Anderson was through with each inning in under 15 pitches.  If you ask me, he could easily have gotten through the entire shortened (7-inning) game with little effort.

Chase Anderson & Bobby Borchering

One more SilverHawk was noteworthy to me, despite being in professional baseball since 2005 (in the Dominican Summer League).  Yonata Ortega looked disgustingly good in his one inning of work, with his one walk being the only hiccup in his outing, with the runner advancing to second on a botched double-play.  Ortega was throwing mid- to high-90's smoke, and was seemed to be locating his pitches better than last year's BB/9 rate of over 5 would indicate.  Perhaps it was the lack of competition that was able to catch up to mid-90's smoke, but Ortega looked like K-Rod out there today, and if he really reins in his control this year, he'll be a guy who could really shoot up through the minors with his electric arm.  Age is a concern, especially after already missing all of 2008 after having surgery.

Yonata Ortega Throws a Pitch

That's pretty much it from here.  Other noteables include Alberto Diaz (the actual top-performer of the game, despite not being a huge prospect) and Bobby Stone (big, powerful, & slow bat who made a surprisingly slick defensive play).