5 YEARS IN THE PROSPECT LEAGUE: TOP PAINTS PLAYERS
The Chillicothe Paints just finished their fifth season in the collegiate wooden bat Prospect
League. The Paints are 166-122 in five years and have been in the playoffs in 4 of the 5 seasons
for the Prospect League. The only negative blemish for the Chillicothe franchise is their playoff
record which now stands at 2-5. The only playoff wins were in the championship season of
2010.
As the broadcaster for Paints baseball, I have witnessed nearly all of the 295 games played by
various collegiate players who have worn the navy and red of the Paints. Here are my picks for
an All Paints team of the past 5 seasons.
Catcher: James Miglin of Toledo. “Migs” was here for 2 full seasons and caught 68 games.
Hit .301 in 2012 and .281 in 2013 and defensively was as good as anyone who has put on the
shin guards.
Brandon White of Akron gets a nod as Honorable Mention and was probably one of
the best utility players in the past 5 seasons.
First Base: Giancarlo Brugnoni of Grand Valley State. 28 Home Runs and 86 RBI's in less
than 2 seasons have made “G” one of the best power hitters in Prospect League history.
Brugnoni has also drawn 77 walks. Brugnoni struggled a little this season, but still was one of
the most feared hitters in the Prospect League. Add to these numbers Brugnoni's defensive
abilities with the glove and this selection is easy.
Ian Nielsen should get a mention. The Ball State product hit 15 home runs in 2
seasons with 74 RBI's. Nielsen also hit the most dramatic of all Paints' hits in 2010, a walk off
2 run homer in the 10th inning of the championship game.
Second Base: The toughest choice of all spots! Torsten Boss of Michigan State...Tim
Krofcheck of Toledo...Ryan Cypret of Ohio State. Boss hit .306 but also played SS and 3B
for the Paints. Krofcheck was one of my favorites and was simply a “ballplayer” who hit
nearly .300. Cypret was one of the most consistent players the Paints have had and hit .345
with power. Ryan didn't have quite as many games and probably is a close second here.
Kevin Zak of Grand Valley State. Zak played all over like Boss but his numbers
of .344 with 9 home runs and 61 RBI's were unbelievable! Zak is our second baseman.
Short Stop: Ben Allen of Bucknell is the pick hands down. One of the smoothest shortstops
I have ever seen. He played in year one for the Paints and hit .313 with only 6 errors all year.
Greg VanHorn of Wooster is a close second and VanHorn would have to be on
my team. Stuart Eisler of Grand Valley State had a nice 2013 season with a nice glove as
well.
Third Base: Nick Lombardi of Dartmouth is the top choice. Lombardi and Allen are two of
the best and most consistent defensive players we have had! Lombardi committed only 11
errors in 100 games for the Paints at the hot corner. Lombardi hit 14 homers in his 2 seasons
with over 70 RBI's.
Definite addition here is Drew Doesch of Youngstown State. One of the most
consistent hitters the Paints have had, he hit .303 in his one season as a 3B and 1B.
Left Field: Steve Anderson of Grand Valley State. An All Star outfielder who hit .380 for
the summer, which is one of the top batting average numbers in 5 seasons. Very consistent with
making contact and a solid outfielder.
Center Field: Cody Elliott of Ball State. One of the best arms I have ever seen (Pitched out
of the bull pen at times). Very fast and had as many tools as any Paints player in five years.
Hit .260 with 3 homers and had a 0.64 ERA in 14 innings of relief.
Right Field: Jeff Holm of Michigan State. Slam Dunk choice. Had the best season ever in
five years of the Paints and in the Prospect League with .359 avg. 11 Home Runs and 60 RBI's.
Designated Hitter: Dan Zuchowski of Toledo. Two solid seasons, despite Tommy John
surgery and missing one full collegiate season. Hit .340 in 2012, had 14 home runs in 2
summers and 79 RBI's, second only to Brugnoni.
Pitchers: Tough choices here but let's go with 3 starters, a middle guy, and 2 relievers.
Clayton Schultz of North Florida is at the top. Two seasons with a combined record
of 11-4 and ERA of about 1.50. Clayton threw 116 innings with 97 strikeouts before signing
with the Kansas City Royals.
Steve Laudicina of Western Michigan had as a consistent year as anyone. 7 wins
matches Chris Thomas' total for one season. Probably would have won 9 games if the Paints
could have scored runs behind him. ERA of 1.98.
Chris Thomas of Heidelberg. Not as flashy but simply got the job done. Had a two
year record of 9-0 for Chillicothe while throwing 80 innings. ERA of 2.34 and 1.60.
Honorable mentions:
A J Achter of Michigan State and Nick Jensen-Clagg of Kent State.
Middle guy is Blake Mascarello of Purdue. Threw 100 innings in 2 seasons for the Paints and
wound up with a 12-4 record (Most wins by a pitcher). ERA of 2.86 and 2.89. A lefty who
could start or eat up innings.
Honorable Mention: Jack Quigley of Northwestern and Greg Greve of Ohio State.
Quigley was one of the most improved players the Paints have had with a 0.95 ERA in his
second year of 2013.
Reliever/Closer: 3 Easy Choices....Kyle Lindquist of Marietta....Trace Dempsey of Ohio
State and Andrew Marra of Toledo.
Lindquist might be my choice because he threw 37 bullpen innings in his season and had the
best ERA at 1.22. Lindquist had 10 saves.
Dempsey could be as dominating as anyone and had 8 saves and 34 K's in just 27 innings. One
of my favorite personalities in 5 seasons.
Marra has the record for saves at 13. Marra's ERA was a nifty 1.87. In my eyes, Marra may
have the most upside by only being a sophomore next year.
In summary, my 5 year Prospect League All Paints Team:
C:
1B:
2B:
SS:
3B:
LF:
CF:
RF:
DH:
James Miglin
Giancarlo Brugnoni
Kevin Zak
Ben Allen
Nick Lombardi
Steve Anderson
Cody Elliot
Jeff Holm
Dan Zuchowski
Bench: Greg Van Horn (Tough as nails)
Brandon White (Can play anywhere)
Drew Doesch (Pure Hitter)
Ryan Cypret (Talented and very smart player)
SP: Clayton Schultz
Where to find Players:
1) Grand Valley State (Anderson. Brugnoni, Zak, Eisler, Nadratowski, Schepel, Gendron,
MaGuire and on and on. )
2) Toledo: Marra, Miglin, Zuchowski, Corfman, Leonard...Toledo has been solid.
Best D 3 Schools to find gems:
1)
Wooster: Zac Mathie and Greg Van Horn have been as good as any D 1 players.
Keenan White was solid as a starter.
2)
Marietta: Lindquist was maybe the best reliever and Aaron Hopper was as good a
hitter as the Paints have had.
3)
HM...DePauw...Lefties Miller and Peck were solid additions.
Go ahead and have at it! This is meant for discussion and reviewing some of the great young
players who have come through Chillicothe as collegiate players. Maybe next time I will pick
an all opponent team!