Blue Crabs ink two; Nettles returns to Patriots

In addition to the news out of York, the Somerset Patriots and Southern Maryland Blue Crabs announced signings on Monday, Feb. 13.

The Patriots are bringing back All-star third baseman Jeff Nettles, while the Blue Crabs will see the return of catcher Christian Lopez and infielder Bridger Hunt.

BLUE CRABS: Lopez, 27, is a former Tampa Bay Rays prospect who has spent each of the last two seasons playing for Southern Maryland. In 2011, he hit .258 with nine homers and 42 RBIs in 105 games.

The Florida native could also be considered a bit of a celebrity. During the duration of the off-season, Lopez has been competing on the CMT reality series, “Sweet Home Alabama.”

I have to admit, I’ve never watched or heard of this show, but by all accounts it brings together “city” bachelors and “country” bachelors all with hopes of earning the affections of one woman.

While I’m not sure if Lopez is considered “city” or “country”, he is described as “confident, affectionate and charming” on the show’s profile page. He was recently knocked out in the fifth episode of the show, according to the Blue Crabs press release. In case you’re interested, here’s a funny Youtube video I found in which Lopez and another contestant made a spoof of a LMFAO song.

Now back to baseball…

Hunt, 26, is a former Los Angeles Dodgers prospect who split last season between the Blue Crabs and the Rockland Boulders, of the independent Can-Am League.

With Rockland, Hunt batted .237 (14-for-59) with an RBI in 18 games. Hunt batted .281 (27-for-96) with two homers and 15 RBIs in 30 games for Southern Maryland.

The Blue Crabs now have 10 players under contract for 2012. To view the Southern Maryland roster, click here.

 

PATRIOTS: Since joining Somerset in 2003, Nettles has been one of the top players in Patriots and Atlantic League history. Nettles is the Atlantic League all-time career leader in RBI (594) and doubles (197), is second all-time in hits (928), home runs (145), at bats (3,218), and is third all-time in games (868) and runs (535). He is in line to become the career leader in each of those categories this season. He has helped the Patriots win three championships and is a two-time MVP of the Championship Series.

Nettles, 33, finished the 2011 season with a .266 average, 115 hits, 24 doubles, 15 home runs, and 72 RBI in 120 games played.

With the inking of Nettles, the Patriots now have three players under contract for 2012, joining infielder Daniel DeGeorge and pitcher Joe Augustine. To check out the Patriots roster, click here.

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