The York Revolution sent pitcher Mike Benacka and utility infielder David Espinosa back to their previous respective American Association clubs earlier this week. The Revs traded Espinosa to the Lincoln Saltdogs and Benacka to the Laredo Lemurs.

York had acquired both players late in the season from those clubs, Espinosa from Lincoln in exchange for future considerations and Benacka from Laredo for a player to be named later. This week’s deals seal up those earlier trades.

Benacka picked up a win and a save and posted a 3.00 ERA in six regular season relief appearances, striking out six and walking three in six innings. In his only appearance in the Atlantic League Freedom Division Championship Series against Lancaster, Benacka got tagged for four runs on one hit – Blake Gailen’s three run jack – and two walks and a hit by pitch.

Greenberg/Gathright: It’s unfortunate these two have to be lumped into the same sentence but the Bridgeport Bluefish had a pair of opposite stories Tuesday. On the same night former Bluefish player Adam Greenberg got his one at-bat in the big leagues with the Marlins, Bluefish outfielder Joey Gathright got tagged with a 50-game suspension by MLB’s Minor League Baseball.

In his first and only major league at-bat with the Chicago Cubs in 2005, Greenberg got drilled in the head on the first pitch he saw. This seven-minute Youtube clip with Greenberg recently on The Today Show explains it all. The Marlins gave Greenberg a one-day contract and his moment in the spotlight Tuesday night, bringing him as a pinch-hitter. Unfortunately for Greenberg, he went down on strikes on three pitches from Mets’ ace R.A. Dickey (yes I’m calling Dickey an ace). Check out video of the moment here. Greenberg played in a combined 354 games with the Bridgeport Bluefish from 2008 to 2011.

Gathright, meanwhile, will have to sit out 50 games after testing positive for an amphetamine, a performance-enhancing substance in violation of the Minor League Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. He’ll begin serving the suspension upon signing with a Major League club. How and when this positive test came about is still unclear.

Although Gathright has 452 games of big league experience under his belt, it was still a little surprising when the Cincinnati Reds picked him up off the Bridgeport roster on May 24. At the time, the 30-year-old was batting just .240 for the Bluefish with two homers, 13 RBIs, 20 runs scored and nine stolen bases in 23 games. The Reds had assigned Gathright to Class AAA Louisville, where he batted .299 with nine runs scored and 16 RBIs over the course of 40 games. The Reds released the left-handed batter on July 11. Gathright then returned to the Bluefish and finished the year with a .242 average, two homers, 22 RBIs and 46 runs scored.

According to a story on Bleacerreport.com, Gathright tested positive while a member of the Bluefish. I can’t believe that’s accurate considering two things – the Atlantic League doesn’t test for performance enhancing drugs and why would the Reds test Gathright if he’s not playing for them? Either way, this doesn’t make the Atlantic League look good. What if this news came out, say, two weeks ago? When Gathright was trying to help Bridgeport qualify for the playoffs? And while we’re on that topic, why is this suspension coming out now when Gathright hasn’t played for Louisville since July? It just feels sticky all around.

I just hope the Bluefish, or any Atlantic League club for that matter, doesn’t welcome back Gathright in 2013.

Barnstormers take Game One: Lancaster took Game One of the Atlantic League Championship Series over Long Island on Wednesday night by a final score of 5-1. Barnstormers’ starting pitcher Dwayne Pollok (2-0) picked up the win by holding the Ducks (3-3) scoreless in six innings of work. The right-hander struck out five and walked two.

Lancaster, competing for its second league title, took an early lead in the second inning when Travis Denker scored a run on a Long Island error. Barnstormers’ infielder Kody Kirkland made it 2-0 in the bottom of the sixth inning with a solo homer off of Ducks’ starter Randy Keisler (0-1). Lancaster (4-0) busted the game open in the bottom of the seventh inning with a three-run homer from Ryan Harvey.

Long Island, also competing for its second league title, got its lone run in the top of the seventh inning when Dan Lyons scored on an RBI single from Kraig Binick.

The Barnstormers will host Game Two on Thursday night before the best-of-five series shifts to Long Island.

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At the start: York’s infield at the start of the year had Chris Nowak at first base, Andres Perez at second, Danny Gonzalez at short stop and Ramon Castro at third with depth coming from back-ups in utlity man Joe Spiers and player-coach Liu Rodriguez.

With so many infielders, York soon shipped Spiers to Lincoln (American Association) on May 21 for a player to be named later – opting to give him an opportunity to play more often with the Salt Dogs instead of sitting on the bench in York. Spiers, who York acquired from Lancaster in an off-season trade for a player to be named later,  played in just three games for the Revs, batting 2-for-7 at the plate (.286) with a double, RBI and one run scored. He went on to bat a collective .305 with two homers, 29 RBIs 53 runs scored and 33 stolen bases in 86 games split between Lincoln St. Paul (American Association).

In the middle: York took a big blow to its lineup when Nowak got picked up June 22 by the Mexican League’s Mexico City club. Outfielder Michael Hernandez would end up playing first during Nowak’s brief absence. The Revs also signed Kyle Haines to provide some depth in the infield. However, Nowak soon returned July 2 after being cut by Mexico City – the team apparently needed to trim its roster for the playoffs and decided between Nowak and Johan Limonta (more on him later).

York released Haines a couple weeks later. He held a .217 average with a double, two RBIs and two runs scored in the eight games he played for the Revs. Haines soon found work with Lancaster and finished the year batting .239 with a homer, eight RBIs and 12 runs scored 42 games for the Barnstormers. He also had two at-bats in the Freedom Division Championship Series against York.

Anyway, the Revs ended up making a huge upgrade at short stop (and no, I’m not talking about the size of the players involved) by signing Joe Thurston and trading away Danny Gonzalez to Lancaster.

Gonzalez hit a disappointing .249 in 75 games for York. For what it’s worth, he also had three homers, 20 RBIs  and 39 runs scored. He didn’t have a great glove, either. Perhaps that’s why Thurston looked so good at short. Or perhaps it’s because he’s arguably the best short stop York has had at the position. Outside of four games at Class AA Reading in 2007, Thurston hasn’t played below the Class AAA level since 2001. The former big leaguer – mainly with the St. Louis Cardinals -  owns a career .291 average in more than 1,100 games at the Class AAA level. He went on to collect a .314 average, eight homers, 28 RBIs and 46 runs scored in 58 games for the Revs. In addition, consider that he put up those numbers after sitting out the previous couple months since the Minnesota Twins released him from Class AAA Rochester in mid-May.

The Revs also added infielder Johan Limonta (remember him?) in early August. He came up from the Mexican League’s Mexico City ballclub, where he batted an astounding .384 in 27 games. The Cuban defector wound up .277 with one homer and 15 RBIs in 39 games for the Revs.

Saying goodbye: Ramon Castro entered the 2012 season on thin ice with Andy Etchebarren. Sure, the infielder had put up good numbers since coming to York in 2010 and helping the ball club win back-to-back league titles. But at times during those two seasons, Etch’ would have appreciated a little more hustle from Castro. So, Castro was already on a short leash when he did something Etch’ didn’t approve of during a game Aug. 29 at Southern Maryland. Etch’ soon suspended Castro for what he called an “on-the-field incident.” The team would cut release him just a few days later. There could have been other factors into his release as well, like his 10 errors at third base or his .288 average in 105 games (a good average, but off from the .323 average he had in 2011 and .339 average he had in 2010).

In the end: By the of the end of the year, York’s infield consisted of Thurston at short stop and Perez at second base. With the departure of Castro, Limonta moved to first base while Nowak moved from first to third.

Nowak and Perez clearly had the the best seasons of any Revs players in 2012. Nowak became the club’s all-time leader in homers (59) and set York’s single-season home run mark with  34 dingers, which led the league. A clear candidate for the league’s MVP honor, Nowak was also the league’s highest home run total since 2005. His 107 RBIs were also tops in the league and the most since 2005. Twenty-one of his 34 homers came at Sovereign Bank Stadium, which set a club record for homers hit by a Revs’ player at home in a single season. He also holds the all-time stadium record (30). Though Nowak fnished with a .285 average, he did bat an impressive .320 in the final 67 games.

Perez, meanwhile, just had career-highs in homers (23) and RBIs (85). He ranked fourth in the league in homers and fifth in RBIs. He scored 86 times. In addition, Perez made quite an improvement moving from the outfield, a position he had played most of his career, to second base. Player-coach Liu Rodriguez can be credited with a nice job teaching Perez the tricks of the trade at second base.

Who should stay/go: I guess I should always preface this by saying if the team can afford the player then he should return. It’s recommended Atlantic League clubs pay out a maximum to a player of $3,000 a month. And after the years Nowak and Perez had, one can imagine they’ll be asking for raises.

With that being said, Nowak and Perez should be brought back. As should Thurston.  Nowak and Perez and still young enough to draw interest from major league clubs in the future (remember, that’s what the Atlantic League is here for, to send guys to the bigs). I hesitated on Thurston a little bit considering his age (32). I get the fact that he’s put up good numbers and consistently made dazzling plays at short. But there comes a point when Atlantic League clubs should cut ties with a player when he becomes older and not just keep him around because he puts up good numbers while scouts have very little interest of him because of his age. However, Thurston was last in the majors in 2011 at the age of 31. And he’s put up good numbers everywhere he’s been. So, I imagine there are still some scouts out there who are still interested in his services.

Limonta, meanwhile, is a different story. Don’t get me wrong, I like the guy. He seemed like he is good for the clubhouse and he was always respectful with the media. This is moreso because of the defense. Should Nowak return, I’d rather see him back at his normal position at first base. As much as Nowak improved through the season at third, he did end the year with a team-high 18 errors, which  tied for seventh in the league. So, put Nowak at first and find a solid defender at third who can match or do better than Limonta’s .277 average.

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The York Revolution announced mid-way through Tuesday’s game the signing of utility infielder David Espinosa.

The club acquired him from the Lincoln Saltdogs (American Association) in exchange for future considerations.

The switch-hitter is expected to be uniform Thursday for the Revs. York skipper Andy Etchebarren had said Monday night that Espinosa will provide depth to the Revs’ infield, but he will not take a starting spot from current infield lineup of Chris Nowak (third), Joe Thurston (short stop), Andres Perez (second) and Johan Limonta (first).

Espinosa comes back to the Atlantic League for the third straight season and fourth overall after spending the last two years playing in a combined 21 games for Southern Maryland. He has spent his time in the American Association and the Atlantic League since 2010. He batted a combined .327 in his previous two years between the leagues.

He comes over to York after batting .313 with seven homers and 35 RBIs in 68 games for Lincoln. He also had 12 stolen bases.

The move now gives York 24 players on the active roster, one below the Atlantic League maximum.

The Revs brought Espinosa on board after releasing long-time York infielder Ramon Castro on Sunday. The release stemmed from an on-the-field incident Aug. 29 at Southern Maryland.

Espinosa, who is also from Venezuela like Castro, is a former first-round pick of the Cincinnati Reds in 2000. The switch-hitter played 224 combined games at the Class AAA Toledo from 2005 to 2007, batting .251.

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The Lancaster Barnstormers and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs announced signings on Monday, Feb. 20. Lancaster has welcomed back left-hander Yunior Novoa, while Southern Maryland brought back infielder David Espinosa and signed Atlantic League newcomer Mike Daniel.

LANCASTER – Novoa, 27, was 5-5 with a 5.33 ERA in a variety of roles for the Barnstormers in 2011. The former Chicago White Sox and Washington Nationals prospect from the Dominican Republic made 13 starts along with 20 relief appearances and posted a stellar ratio of 76 strikeouts to just 24 walks in his 82 2/3 innings of work.

His most notable outing came on July 9 in the first game of a day-night doubleheader at York. Novoa, making a spot start, fired five shutout innings on just three hits helping the Barnstormers clinch the first half Freedom Division title with a 4-3 victory over the Revolution that afternoon.

To read more about the signing, check out the story on the Barnstormers’ website. Lancaster now has six players under contract for the 2012 campaign. To check out the Barnstormers’ roster, click here.

SOUTHERN MARYLAND -Daniel, 27, is a speedy outfielder with a good glove but has struggled to produce at the plate in his seven years in the minors. The left-handed batter topped out at Class AAA with the Washington Nationals in 2009 and 2010. A career .257 hitter, Daniel batted .258 with a homer and eight RBIs in 26 games with the Colorado Rockies’ Class AA affiliate Tulsa in 2011. He played for the Class AA Harrisburg Senators all of 2008 and in parts of seasons in 2009 and 2010.

Southern Maryland had acquired the rights to switch-hitter Espinosa, 30, on Feb. 6 in a trade with the Grand Prairie Air Hogs (American Association) for a player to be named before May 1.

A former first round draft pick of the Cincinnati Reds, Espinosa batted .324 in 100 games for Grand Prairie last season before the Blue Crabs acquired him in mid-September. He went on to bat a collective .333 in seven regular season games and four playoff games for Southern Maryland, going 15-for-45 at the plate with 10 RBIs.

To read more about the signings, check out the story on the Blue Crabs’ website. Overall, the Blue Crabs have 14 players under contract through Feb. 20. To check out the Southern Maryland roster, click here.

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The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs recently acquired the rights to veteran infielder David Espinosa.

Southern Maryland acquired Espinosa in a trade with the Grand Prairie Air Hogs, of the independent American Association, for a player to be named before May 1.

The trade was listed on the transactions page of the Atlantic League website on Monday, Feb. 6.

Though the trade might not be too eye-popping for a guy who played in just 11 games for the Blue Crabs last season, Espinosa has been putting up solid numbers in recent seasons.

A former first round draft pick by the Cincinnati Reds, Espinosa batted .324 in 100 games for Grand Prairie last season before the Blue Crabs acquired him in mid-September. He went on to bat a collective .333 in seven regular season games and four playoff games for Southern Maryland, going 15-for-45 at the plate with 10 RBIs.

Espinosa split time between Grand Prairie and Southern Maryland in 2010, too. That year, he hit .351 in 95 games for the Air Hogs and .340 in 14 games for the Blue Crabs.

Espinosa, 30, is a former Reds, Seattle Mariners and Detroit Tigers prospect who topped out at Class AAA Toledo with the Tigers in 2007. He hit .204 in 111 games for Toledo that season.
Espinosa first played in the Atlantic League in 2008 with the Camden Riversharks. He last played affiliated ball in 2009 with the Seattle Mariners Class AA West Tennessee team, batting .212 in 60 games.

The Florida native has played at second base and short stop in recent years, but he also played in the outfield for five seasons as a Tigers prospect from 2003 to 2007.
It remains to be seen whether Espinosa will sign with Southern Maryland. So far, the Blue Crabs have three position players under contract for 2012. All three are outfielders.

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