As part of a three-team trade that happened on Tuesday, March 13, the York Revolution acquired left-hander Yunior Novoa.

The Revs sent short stop Eric Eymann to Southern Maryland in return for infielder Cody Kirkland. York then shipped Kirkland to Lancaster for Novoa.

The 27-year-old Novoa went 5-5 with a 5.33 ERA for the Barnstormers last season while making 13 starts in addition to 20 appearances in relief. The 6-foot, 4-inch lefty enjoyed a strong stretch from June 18 through July 19 where he allowed two earned runs in 212/3 innings, and finished the season with 76 strikeouts and 24 walks in 82 2/3 innings. He was particularly tough against the team that he’ll now be joining, going 1-0 with a 2.70 ERA in four appearances against York.

“I like the fact that he can pitch as a starter or a reliever,” Revs’ manager Andy Etchebarren said in press release. “He had some success doing both and was very tough against us last year. He’s also a good control guy with pretty good stuff.”

Novoa now gives York three left-handers in the bullpen, joining Ian Thomas and Kris Rgas. Overall, York has 13 players signed on for the 2012 campaign. For more details on the trade, click here. To check out the Revolution roster, click here.

Aspito returning to Sovereign Bank Stadium: The Revs recently announced that the franchie’s all-time home run leader, Jason Aspito, will join the team’s Fan Fest celebration on Saturday, April 21 to help raise money for the Penn State York baseball team.

Aspito, who is entering his second second as head coach at Penn State York, will hold a special pre-game home run derby before the Revolution take on an All-Star team of Susquehanna and Central League players at 1 p.m.  The gates at Sovereign Bank Stadium will open at Noon, with the home run derby at 12:30.

Aspito will take 30 swings, and fans will be able to pledge whichever amount they wish upon arrival, per home run he hits.  All the proceeds will go to the Penn State York baseball program.

Playing for the Revolution from the inaugural season in 2007 through 2009, Aspito established the franchise record for home runs, both career and single season, with 42 in a Revs uniform and 24 in the first playoff season of  2008.  Aspito was also named the team’s most valuable player that year.

In his first year as head coach in 2011, Aspito led Penn State York to a 7-12 record. The Lions kick-off of PSY’s 2012 season is slated for next week, when the Lions travel to Gettysburg College on Tuesday, March 20. PSY will start off the season with nine road games before its home opener on April 1 against Penn State Mont Alto.

Freedom Division getting new member: It was also announced Wednesday that the expansion Sugar Land (Tex) Skeeters will replace the Road Warriors in the Freedom Division, joining York, Lancaster and Somerset. The Liberty Division will remain the same with Bridgeport, Camden, Long Island and Southern Maryland. Read more about the move here, on the York Revolution blogtoblogchamps blog.

More updates on former Revs: Former Revolution infielders Tanner Townsend and Juan Martinez recently signed deals with other independent ball clubs. Townsend, 31, has signed with the St. Paul (MN) Saints, of the American Association. Last season, York released Townsend after he batted just .209 with a homer and four RBIs in 12 games. Townsend later signed with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs, where he batted .256 with 10 homers and 38 RBIs in 81 games.

The Revs brought in Martinez, 25, in late April last season. The former San Francisco Giants prospect served mainly as a backup infielder off the bench for York. He played in just 12 games, going 6-for-31 (.194) at the plate. The brother of former Revs’ catcher Octavio Martinez, Juan got his lone RBI in a Revs uniform came in a 7-3 victory over the Bridgeport Bluefish on May 11, when he drove in a tack-on run in the ninth inning with a sac fly to right. Interestingly enough, Octavio also double earlier in that inning to get his 100th double of his pro career. Juan Martinez later joined Newark, of the independent Can-Am League, and batted .318 with eight homers and 26 RBIs in 44 games.

 

 

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OK. So, lets recap the moves made by the York Revolution in recent weeks. Gone is relief pitcher J.J. Pacella and infielders Mark Ori and Juan Martinez. Added are relief pitchers Geoff Geary and Ricardo Gomez and infielders Ramon Castro and Jose Herrera.

And while we’re at it, lets throw in the release of shortstop Tanner Townsend and the signing of shortstop Eric Eymann back in early June.

The moves have turned out to be big upgrades for York.

Short stop: Lets start with shortstop. Townsend batted .209 with a home run and four RBIs in 12 games for the Revs. Eymann, meanwhile, has gathered a .299 batting average (through Wednesday) with three home runs and 16 RBIs in 19 games.

Eymann’s production hasn’t gone unnoticed by Revs manager Andy Etchebarren, either.

“Not taking anything away from Tanner (Townsend), but (Eymann) has played in Triple-A for a little bit. Tanner never even played affiliate. Taking nothing away from Tanner (Townsend), but (Eymann) is just a higher caliber player,” Etchebarren said after Wednesday’s 8-1 win over the Road Warriors.

Second base: Next, lets take a look at second base, where Castro has started since Sunday. Liu Rodriguez had been York’s everyday second baseman for most of the year until Castro arrived, but he’s struggled at the plate, batting just .254 with eight RBIs in 42 games.

Castro has collected a .400 batting average in five games (through Wednesday), seemingly picking up where he left off from last year when he set Revolution records with a .339 batting average, a .437 on-base percentage and 37 doubles, ranking second in the Atlantic League in all three categories.

Designated hitter: Like Castro, Herrera is also putting up solid numbers just like he did for York a year ago, when he batted .337 with 10 home runs and 87 RBIs.

Herrera joined York on June 10 just days after being released from Southern Maryland, where he struggled at the plate with a .239 batting average in 29 games.

Herrera has returned to his 2010 form with York, though, batting .382 (13-34) in his last eight games in the designated hitter spot for the Revs.

And Etchebarren believes the combination of Herrera and Castro has had an impact on the rest of the lineup.

“We’re starting to hit the ball a little bit. I really believe having Herrera and Castro makes guys relax. That’s what I think. I can see it. I feel it,” Etchebarren said Wednesday. “Guys aren’t going out there saying ‘I gotta do it. I gotta do it.’ They’re getting five, six hits in a game. Everybody wants to do it.”

Since June 14 the Revs have won seven of nine games (through Wednesday), averaging just over 10 hits and nearly six runs in those nine contests.

Pitching: York got two solid right-handed relievers with the addition of Geary and Gomez to the bullpen. Gomez made his debut for York on Wednesday night, and pitched two scoreless innings in relief, collecting four strikeouts along the way.

Etchebarren said he will look to use Gomez this season as a multiple-inning relief pitcher.

Geary, a former major league reliever with the Philadelphia Phillies and Houston Astros, arrived in York on Thursday. Last year, he pitched in a total of 31 games at Class AAA last year at Oklahoma City and Albuquerque, going 4-6 with a 5.32 ERA. Geary, 35, has pitched in total of 287 games in the majors with the Phillies and the Astros.

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In less than a week, the York Revolution have lost two of their best relief pitchers. Six-foot, seven-inch left-hander Scott Rice was signed by the Los Angeles Dodgers on Monday. It’s unclear which minor league club Rice has been assigned to.

Rice becomes the fifth Revs player to be signed by a major league organization since the start of Atlantic League spring training, a total that leads the Atlantic League. Rice went 1-0 with one save and a 2.46 ERA in 15 games out of the Revolution bullpen. He allowed just nine hits in 14.2 innings, holding opponents to a .170 average. He walked only four and struck out 15. Rice opened the season on 12-game and 12.2-inning scoreless streaks, Revs records to begin a career in York.

Rice’s signing comes just a few days after the contract of right-handed reliever Mike DeMark was picked up from York by the Arizona Diamondbacks. DeMark posted a 2.61 ERA with one save in 13 appearances with York. The 28-year-old allowed just three runs and eight hits in 10.1 innings with the Revs, while walking four and striking out 17. He was assigned to Class AA Corpus Christi.

Rice and DeMark join shortstop Andy Gonzalez (Milwaukee Brewers), lefty reliever Chad Thall (Tampa Bay Rays), and first baseman Jason Botts (New York Mets) as the five Revs players to have been signed by a major league organization already in 2011.

Along with the losses of Rice and DeMark, the York Revolution roster has seen quite a lot of changes over the past week or so.

York added six-foot, six-inch righty J.J. Pacella to the bullpen over the weekend. The 27-year-old is in his fifth pro season, and owns 30 career saves and a 3.89 ERA. He spent most of the last two seasons in the Frontier League with Lake Erie, with ERAs of 2.63 and 3.62.

The infield has also changed a little bit. The Revs released infielder Tanner Townsend on June 2 and signed infielder Eric Eymann the next day. Townsend batted .209 in 12 games with York, with a homer and four RBIs. Townsend signed with the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs on June 2.

Eymann, a Nebraska native, was drafted in 2005 in the 19th round by the Cincinnati Reds out of Kansas State University. Eymann has played at Triple-A Louisville for parts of the last three seasons, including 16 games this year. Last year, the 27-year-old Eymann batted .294 in 18 games at the Triple-A level. He has seen significant time at every infield position over the course of his seven-year pro career, spent entirely in the Reds farm system. Through Monday, Eymann is batting .333 in four games with York. He is 6-for-18 at the plate with two RBIs.

York also recently announced the return of infielder Ramon Castro. The team announced on June 3 that Castro’s work visa has been approved. Castro, a Venezuelan native, started the season playing in the Mexican League.

Castro set Revolution records last season with a .339 batting average, a .437 on-base percentage and 37 doubles. He went on to bat .375 in the postseason, with his final highlight being a championship-clinching run on a sacrifice fly in the 10th inning of Game 3 of the Atlantic League Championship Series at Bridgeport.

Revs manager Andy Etchebarren said Castro will be put in the lineup as soon as he arrives in York.

Meanwhile, infielder Chuck Jeroloman will be not joining the club after all. The infielder played in 135 games for the Revs last season, batting .249 with 66 RBIs and 14 homers. Jeroloman was expected to join the club this month, but Etchebarren said Sunday that Jeroloman is considering an assistant coaching position with a college ballclub. Reached by phone on Monday, Jeroloman said Western Kentucky is among the schools he is considering coaching at.

OTHER HAPPENINGS ACROSS THE ATLANTIC LEAGUE:

Rice’s signing is the most recent of signings of Atlantic League players to affiliated ball clubs this season. The following is a list of other signings that occurred across the Atlantic League over the past week.
—SOUTHERN MARYLAND:  The Southern Maryland Blue Crabs saw their first player signed to an affiliated team this season as the Atlanta Braves purchased the contract of right-handed reliever Eduardo Morlan and assigned him to Class AA Pearl (MS) on June 2. Morlan had an impressive 1.39 ERA in 12 relief appearances with Southern Maryland this season. In 13 innings, he had allowed 10 hits and two runs while striking out 15.

—LANCASTER: The Barnstormers saw the contracts of catcher Emerson Frostad and closer Tim Hamulack signed by affiliated clubs over the past week. Frostad was signed by Houston Astros and assigned to Class AA Corpus Christi on June 1. Hamulack was signed by the Cincinnati Red and assigned to Class AA North Carolina. Frostad was batting .280 with two homers and 11 RBI in 15 games with the Barnstormers. Prior to coming to Lancaster, Frostad spent seven years in the Texas Rangers organization, peaking at Class AAA. He had a .258 career average with 63 home runs.

Hamulack, 34, was nearly perfect going 1-0 with seven saves and a 0.00 ERA in 11 appearances with the Barnstormers. The left-hander yielded only five singles in 11.1 innings without allowing a walk. Along the way, he had struck out 14, including seven in his last three innings. It was Hamulack’s second tour of duty with the Barnstormers. In 2010, the York resident appeared in 55 games, posting a 6-5 record with 11 saves and a 2.35 ERA. Hamulack was signed originally by the Houston Astros in 1996 but did not reach the Major Leagues until his fifth Major League organization and tenth pro season, earning a call-up with the New York Mets in 2005. He also appeared in 33 games for the Dodgers in 2006. Three Barnstormers have been acquired by Major League clubs thus far. Left-handed pitcher Les Walrond was purchased by the Philadelphia Phillies on May 27.

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The shortstop situation for the York Revolution this season has been a story in itself.

The Revs came into spring training believing former major leaguer Andy Gonzalez would be the everyday shortstop. But then the Milwaukee Brewers organization came in and signed the 29-year-old.

No problem. York could turn to utility infielder Tanner Townsend, who was acquired by a trade earlier this spring from the Gary South Shore Railcats of the independent Northern League.

However, a Townsend physical revealed that he was still recovering from concussion symptoms sustained a couple months before in a car accident. The Revs released him.

To fill the gap at short, York acquired infielder Van Pope from the Lancaster Barnstormers in a trade for future considerations.

Pope went on to start 10 games for York, nine of them at short. An infielder who played most of his career at third base, Pope struggled defensively, committing four errors. A career .246 hitter in the minors, Pope didn’t fare well at the plate, either, batting just .206 for the Revs.

It was clear the team needed a change at short. Oddly enough, York turned again to Townsend. The Revs signed him last week, while also trading away Pope to the Alpine Cowboys of the independent Pecos League.

The 30-year-old Townsend had signed with the Barnstormers on May 14. He played in one game with Lancaster, but didn’t get an at-bat.

The Barnstormers released Townsend later that week, and the Revs signed him shortly thereafter. (The league has clarified an original report that said the Revs acquired Townsend with a trade. The league said he was first released by Lancaster and then signed by York.)

Townsend started all three games at short for York this past weekend. He went 1-for-10 at the plate and committed two errors. But Townsend admitted last week it will take some time for him to get going since he missed all of spring training.

“I’m more of an aggressive hitter where I’m looking to hit the first pitch. But I think, to start off, I’m gonna try and see as many pitches as I can,” he said.

This isn’t the first time he’s come back from an injury, either. The Ohio native missed the entire 2009 season after getting surgery to repair a herniated disc in his back.

When he returned to baseball in 2010 with the Railcats, Townsend said he needed about 100 plate appearances until he felt comfortable at the plate. He also missed some time last year after sustaining a concussion during a game while fielding a ground ball.

“I ran into the base runner when I was trying to field the ball. It was an idiot thing, it was my fault,” he said.

He finished the season with a .278 batting average with 16 doubles and six homers. A career independent league player who was undrafted out of Western Kentucky, Townsend said he’s just trying to return to his 2008 form, when he led the Northern League in RBIs (84), while batting a team-high .371 with 14 home runs and 26 doubles.

Although he missed spring training this year, he’s hoping it doesn’t take him as long to get going as it did in 2010.

“Last year I came in having missed the whole previous summer. It took me a while,” Townsend said. “I feel like with that experience, having missed a lot of time is going to help me right now. I know what it’s like to struggle at first and I know what it takes to get ready.”

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It was a gloomy day for the York Revolution on Thursday, but not just in the weather sense.

Thursday night’s game against the Road Warriors was postponed because of rain. And York also lost power-hitter Jason Botts, who was signed by the New York Mets and assigned to Class AAA Buffalo.

In 14 games with York, the 6-foot, 6-inch, 245-pound Botts ranked second on the team in batting average (.370), on-base percentage (.419), RBIs (13), runs scored (13) and hits (20). He also led York in home runs (four) and total bases (36).

Revs manager Andy Etchebarren knew there was a good chance Botts would be signed by an affiliated club, but said that’s the risk you take when bringing in a player with Major League experience.

“You might think it (will happen), but you don’t know. And that’s what this league is about, is getting a guy a chance to get to the big leagues,” Etchebarren said.

The former major leaguer became the third Revs’ player signed by an affiliated club this season, which leads all Atlantic League teams.

A 30-year-old switch-hitter, Botts played in stints in the major leagues with the Texas Rangers from 2005 through 2008. During that span, Botts played in 93 games, batting .230 in 282 plate appearances with 28 RBIs and five home runs.

And if he puts up the numbers at Buffalo like he did in York, Etchebarren thinks there’s a good chance Botts could return to the big leagues this season.

In the meantime, Etchebarren said he won’t look to make any immediate moves to replace Botts. Rather, he wants to wait and see if the group of Val Majewski, Scott Grimes, James Shanks, Chris Walker and Mark Ori can step up.

“I’m gonna let these five guys play everyday, let them get at-bats, and see where I’m at two weeks from now,” he said.

Townsend back with Revs, Pope released: While York will lose Botts’ pop in the lineup, it should get some improved production from the shortstop position after the club acquired infielder Tanner Townsend by trade from Lancaster for future considerations.

In a related move, York released infielder Van Pope, who saw 10 starts at short but was batting just .206.

Townsend, 30, has been playing independent baseball since leaving Western Kentucky University in 2002. His best season came in 2008 with the Gary South Shore Railcats, when he led the independent Northern League in RBIs (84) while batting a team-high .371 with 14 home runs and 26 doubles.

Last season with the Railcats, Townsend posted a .278 batting average with 16 doubles and six homers.

Townsend was actually set to play for York in spring training after the Revs acquired him by trade from the Railcats.

But York released Townsend in mid-April because he was not medically cleared to play. Townsend said Thursday that at the time of the physical with York in April, he was still recovering from concussion symptoms he sustained about two months earlier in a car accident.

Townsend, who said he’s fully recovered now, was signed and activated by Lancaster last week. He would have started for York at shortstop on Thursday had the game been played.

No makeup date has been set for Thursday’s postponement.

The Revs will return to action on Friday to open a three-game home-stand against Long Island. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at Sovereign Bank Stadium.

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