Do you C what the Defensive Specialist C's?

Continued from:

http://deepinthehole.blogspot.com/2009/12/pool-on-high-cs.html

Ok, the Defensive Specialist and the Deep in the Hole travel secretary have determined the next series that fits into the schedule will be NSW vs SA at Blacktown Olympic Park. While the quest to find Australia’s best major Leaguer has been enjoyable and reader feedback has been unbelievable, the Defensive Specialist enjoys nothing more than getting amongst it and bringing the action directly to the loyal readers.

Anyway, that’s about 2 weeks away and the Defensive Specialist has a job at hand – completing Pool C.

Craig Shipley

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/shiplcr01.shtml

Shipley saw action in the big leagues over 11 seasons, playing for 5 Major League teams. He signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers as an amateur free agent in 1984 and made his debut in the show in 1986.  In 12 games he hit .111 over 27 at bats. 1987 saw Shipley appear in 26 games, hitting .257. Primarily a shortstop, Shipley also saw some time as a 3^rd baseman.

In 1988 he was traded to the New York Mets for John Gibbons and did not see big league action again until 1989 when he received 7 at bats for the Mets and hit a buck and change. Shipley was drafted by the Padres in 1990 in a minor league draft and next saw major league time in 1991. Playing in 37 games, Shipley hit .275 and his first career home run. In 1992 he participated in 52 games, hit .248 and played shortstop, second and third.

Shipley posted his career high in games in 1993 with 105. He filled a utility role and hit .235 with 4 homeruns and scored 25 runs. Shipley played in 81 games in 1994, and posted a career high .333 with 4 bombs, 30 RBI’s, 32 runs and 12 stolen bases while playing every infield position and in centre and left.

At the end of 1994 Shipley was part of a monster trade with the Houston Astros (featuring Steve Finley). He played 92 games for the Astros in 1995, once again as a utility and hit .263, scoring 23 runs and driving in 24. He was granted free agency at the conclusion of the season and signed as a free agent with the Padres.

In 1996 Shipley took part in 33 games hitting .315 with the Padres and in 1997 he played 63 games , posted a .273 average while hitting 5 homeruns. In both the 96 & 97 season he served as a utility player again.

In 98 Shipley signed with the Cardinals as a free agent only to be traded before the season to the Anahiem Angels. He once again filled a utility role playing all across the infield and appearing in the outfield over 77 games. Shipley hit .259 with 2 home runs, 17 RBI’s and 18 runs scored. His professional career concluded at the end of this season giving him careers numbers of .271 batting average, 20 homeruns, 138 RBI’s and 155 runs scored.

Shipley has gone on to become the Senior Vice President responsible for International Scouting with the Boston Red Sox.

Chris Oxspring

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/o/oxsprch01.shtml

Ipswich-born Chris Oxspring was signed by the San Diego Padres in 2000. He toiled in the minor leagues for 5 seasons before getting his shot in 2005 appearing in 5 games and working 12 innings. He pitched as a reliever and posted an ERA of 3.75 while striking out 11. 2005 was his only year in the Major Leagues. Oxspring continued working in the US minor leagues until his contract was sold to the LG Twins in the Korean league in 2007. 

Brad Thomas

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/t/thomabr01.shtml

Signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers in 1995, Thomas made his MLB debut in 2001 with the Minnesota Twins. He started 5 games going 0-2 and posting an ERA of 9.37. Thomas reappeared in the big leagues in 2003, working in 4.2 innings while losing 1 game and generating an ERA of 7.71. His final season in the major leagues was 2004 with the Twins where he played in 3 games and submitted a stink bomb of a performance, yielding 5 earned runs in 2.2 innings.

Thomas signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters in 2005 and went on to win a championship in 2006. He posted a 2.90 ERA in his 2 years there. In 2008 he signed with the Hanwha Eagles in South Korea where he recorded 31 saves.

John Stephens

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/stephjo03.shtml

Stephens was a 10 year minor leaguer who posted impressive numbers with limited velocity but brilliant control – being recognized as the best pitcher in the Oriole organization 3 times. He was signed as a free agent by the Baltimore Orioles in 1996 and made his major league debut with the club in 2002. Appearing in 12 games (11 as a starter) he went 2-5 with an ERA of 6.09. Stephens did not see action in the big leagues again and concluded his professional career in 2006.

So there you have it, Pool C is in the bag. Make sure you reach out and vote for someone in the poll at the top right hand corner of the page. If you have any questions or concerns, hit the Defensive Specialist at thedefensivespecialist@gmail.com. The poll will be up until next Tuesday when Pool D will debut.

Pool on the high C's

The voting in this little breakdown has been ridiculous with readers repeatedly emailing the Defensive Specialist to find out when the next pool is being posted. Well guess what, here it is. The Defensive Specialist has to admit that Joe Quinn’s people were really getting his goat so it is good to have them on side and now contributing financially to Deep in the Hole in an effort to assist the promotion of the game in Australia. Enough of the funny business, let's dive straight into the 3rd round of Aussies who have played in the Major Leagues:

Pool C

Chris Snelling

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/s/snellch02.shtml?redir

Snelling signed as an amateur free agent in 1999 and made his debut with the Seattle Mariners in 2002.  In what would become an all too common theme in his career, he shredded his ACL while running the bases (originally thought to be a sniper), ending his season. In the 2002 campaign he appeared in 8 games, hitting his first big league homerun and posting a .148 average.

If the Defensive Specialist was running a competition to determine ‘Australia’s best big leaguer likely to injure himself sneezing’ then Snelling would be the guy. Due to his consistent injuries, a Mariner fan blog started referring to Snelling as ‘Doyle’ (his middle name) in the hope of changing his fortunes (http://ussmariner.com/index.php?s=chris+snelling).

Snelling next saw the big leagues in 2005, picking up 29 at bats over 15 games. He hit .276 with an OBP of .382. In 2006 he appeared in 36 games hitting .250, with 3 homeruns, 6 doubles and 14 runs. His OBP was a solid .360.

Traded to the Washington Nationals after the 2006 season for the corpse of Jose Vidro, he played in 24 games hitting .204 in 49 at bats, once again displaying a keen eye at the plate by posting a .360 OBP. Snelling was traded midseason to the Oakland A’s where he saw action in 6 games and hit .350 before injury junked his season again.

Snelling was signed off waivers by the Tampa Bay Rays who traded him to the Phillies for a bag of baseballs. He saw his last Major League action in the 2007 season getting 4 Abs with 2 hits and a homerun.  He signed a minor league deal with the Padres after the 2009 World Baseball Classic and was traded to the Pirates where he played AAA baseball before being released.

Over 5 seasons to date, Snelling has a career batting average of .244 and an OBP of .360. With his advancing age and history of injuries, the chance of seeing Major League action is slim.

Mark Ettles

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/e/ettlema01.shtml

No, that is not a prison mug shot of Ettles.

Ettles was drafted by the Detroit Tigers in the 33^rd round of the 1989 amateur draft. He was released from the Detroit organisation in 1991 and signed as a free agent by the San Diego Padres. He spent 6 years in their system before making his big league debut in 1993, where he appeared in 14 games, earning his only career victory and posting a 6.50 ERA.  He did not play another season in the Major Leagues and completed his professional career in 2000 after a stint in independent baseball.

David Nilsson

 http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/n/nilssda01.shtml

Nilsson is arguably Australia’s best known baseball import. He signed with the Milwaukee Brewers in 1987 and made his first appearance in the major leagues in 1992 at age 22.  Playing in 51 games, Nilsson hit .232 with 4 homeruns and 25 RBI’s. He became the catcher of choice in 1993 although battled injuries, which cut into his playing time. Nilsson saw action in 100 games, popping 7 home runs and driving in 40. He raised his batting average to .257.

In 1994 Nilsson teamed with Graeme Lloyd to form the first ever all-Australian battery. He continued to improve offensively, raising his average to .275, hitting 12 homeruns and knocking in 69 runs. The 1995 season saw Nilsson get stung by a pesky mosquito and contract Ross River Virus restricting him to only 81 games. He matched his homerun totals from the year before, hitting 12 and driving in 57 while batting .278.

The 1996 season was one of, if not, the best of Nilsson’s big league career. He saw action in 123 games, drove in 84, scored 81 runs, hit 17 homeruns and batted .331. His OBP was .407. in 1997 he played in a career high 156 games, racking up 554 at bats, belting 20 homeruns, driving in 81 and hitting .278.

Nilsson played in 102 games in 1998 with a .269 average, 12 homeruns and 56 RBI’s. 1999 was the season that saw Nilsson named to the All Star team – the first Aussie to be afforded that honour. He saw action in 115 games, hit at a .309 clip, had a career high 21 homeruns and drove in 62. Nilsson was a free agent at the conclusion of the season but chose not to sign another major league deal, preferring to remain unsigned so that he could play in the 2000 Olympics.

After the Olympics, Nilsson was offered a deal by the Boston Red Sox but he failed a medical and the contract was withdrawn. Nilsson has not played Major League baseball since the 1999 season as a 29 year old. His career numbers over 8 seasons include a .284 average, 105 homeruns, 470 RBI’s and 389 runs scored.

Nilsson’s professional career concluded after a brief stint in the Braves organisation. He played in 16 games at the AAA level before calling it a career.

The Defensive Specialist has to go and consult with the Deep in the Hole travel secretary to determine when he can bring the loyal readers another comprehensive series recap. Stay tuned for dates. The remainder of Pool C will appear on Thursday morning.