-Since going 8-6 in June, Tri-City went on a tear in the month of July, going 19-11. Tri-City played 16 games at home and 14 on the road, including their longest road trip (eight games) and home stand (eight games) of the season. The positive play came at just the right time, with the first half ending on July 25, as the Dust Devils rode their hot play to the playoffs.

-When scoring first, the Dust Devils are 19-10 this season, with those 19 wins being the most in the league. Being able to score first and hold on to win is not only good for the team’s record, but good for their mentality as well. When the 2011 NWL playoffs come around in September, being able to get on the board first and know that you can keep that lead becomes a big advantage in a best-of-5 or best-of-3 series. Also, the fact that the Dust Devils have scored first in 29 of their 45 games is a good sign that when the game starts the team is ready, rather than coming out slow or unprepared.

-When leading after six innings this season, Tri-City is 25-1. That is the most wins in the league when leading after six and is a good reflection of how solid the Dust Devils’ bullpen is as well as their ability to close out games. Sometimes good teams aren’t able to capitalize on their talent because they can’t put teams away and win games without a struggle in the later innings, which leads to surprise losses. Being able to lose one out of 26 games in which they’ve led after the sixth inning is yet another good sign that come September the Dust Devils can close games out and secure a few playoff wins. 

-On defense, a place that is often forgotten when looking at a team’s rise or fall from success, the Dust Devils are at the top of the NWL. Tri-City has a .973 team fielding percentage, .002 points higher than second place Eugene. The Dust Devils have made the second fewest errors (49) in their 45 games thus far and made just one error over their final 10 games in July. During that stretch the team went 9-1. Individually, Tri-City has a few players yet to make an error this season, with outfielders Leo Reyes and Jared Simon as well as first baseman Jordan Ribera all perfect in the field this year.  

-The well-rounded offensive attack of the Dust Devils has put up impressive numbers as well. As a team Tri-City is third in batting average (.264), runs batted in (221), runs (249) as well as fourth in on-base percentage (.341) and has not been shut out once this season. With a pitching staff throwing as well as theirs is, being in the top half of most major batting statistics is more than enough support for a solid season. Different players have stepped up at different times, with first baseman Jordan Ribera getting off to a spectacular start in his first professional season, before going down with an injury. After Ribera went on the disabled list, Jared Simon and Tyler Massey took the torch and took over the cleanup spot in the Dust Devils’ order. In the month of July, Simon hit two home runs and drove in 19 runs while Massey hit four home runs and drove in 27 runs. Infielders Tim Smalling and David Hernandez have done well at the plate as well, batting .304 and .322 respectively.

-Although all of these numbers are good, it is the pitching staff of the Dust Devils which has been great. Tri-City has four pitchers (Nelson Gonzalez, Vianney Mayo, Tyler Gagnon and Christian Bergman) in the NWL League Leaders pitching top 10, all of which, except Gonzalez, have been regular starters in the Tri-City rotation all season.  As a team the pitching staff has the lowest earned run average (3.19) in the league and the fewest runs (180), earned runs (144) and second fewest walks (142) allowed. Also, after shutting out the talented Vancouver Canadians three times in their five game series, the Dust Devils have the most shutouts in the NWL with five. The pitching staff is the anchor of the Dust Devils and the team will go as far as the staff takes them, which could be quite a ways this season.

All of these statistics make the Dust Devils turnaround from last season and even earlier this season that much more impressive. They show that the secret to their success is that they have no secret. Good pitching, solid and timely hitting as well as good defense all creates an obvious recipe for success at any level and the 2011 Dust Devils seem to have all of the right ingredients.

The past two times the Dust Devils have made the playoffs, in 2007 and 2009, the format was different, with the two division winners of the full season facing off in a one round best-of-five championship series.  In those series the format was predetermined and the strategy of choosing your own path was non-existent.

So, here are some stats on the Dust Devils performances against East Division opponents, one of which they will face in the first round of the NWL playoffs this season.

Yakima Bears

Tri-City has had more success against the Bears than any other division opponent this season, going 6-2 in their first eight games with four of those wins coming on the road. At Gesa Stadium Tri-City has faced Yakima in one three game series, winning two of three. However, it is unlikely the Bears will make the playoffs, considering they finished the first half with the Northwest League’s worst record at 13-25 and the league’s lowest team batting average (.229). The final regular season series between the Bears and Dust Devils is August 18-20 as Tri-City looks to make it a 4-0 series season sweep of Yakima.

Boise Hawks

The Dust Devils have faced the Hawks the least of any of their East Division rivals this season, playing them six times while they’ve played Spokane nine times and Yakima eight, with the ninth game against the Bears coming tonight. In those six games, a home and away series, the Dust Devils are even at 3-3 as each team won their home series two games to one.

The Hawks, along with the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, are the only teams that, so far this season, the Dust Devils don’t have a winning record against. But, the stats against Boise may be the least valuable, because all six of the games between the two took place in the month of June. At that time Tri-City and Boise were 8-6 and since that time, the landscape of the division and the two teams have changed drastically. They will face each other six times in 11 days in August between the 7^th and 17^th to end their regular season scheduled games.

Spokane Indians

Spokane and Tri-City battled to the end of the first half in close contention for much of the 38 games, each team interchanging atop the division multiple times in June and July. They’ve played each other nine times with the Dust Devils winning five games and going 3-3 on the road at Avista Stadium. At home Tri-City is 2-1 against Spokane, winning their series from July 1-3 earlier this season.

The Dust Devils’ two biggest wins over the Indians came in their last series, with the first half division crown and a playoff appearance on the line. Spokane took the series opener at home, giving them a one game lead over the Dust Devils with four games to play, but Tri-City won the last two and went on to win the first half title. Winning those two games under those circumstances would give any team confidence to play there again this season and should do so if Spokane ends up being the other East Division team in the playoffs this season. The two Highway 395 rivals will face each other three more times this year, August 21-23 at Gesa Stadium.

Other Notes

Overall at home this year Tri-City is 13-6 at home and 9-10 on the road. Although, considering that the Dust Devils will face only an East Division opponent in the first round of the playoffs, their home record against East Division teams this season may be more important. So far they are 6-3 at home against East teams, winning a series against each other team two games to one. On the road against East Division teams Tri-City is a surprising 8-6, with Boise being the only team they have a losing record against.

In series against division opponents this year the Dust Devils are 5-2, going 3-0 in home series and 1-2 in road series with the two losses coming to Boise and Spokane in late June and early July respectively.

So far this season Tri-City is 15-14 in games in which they face a right-handed starter and are 7-2 in games in which they face a left-handed starter. The Yakima Bears lead the Dust Devils’ division opponents with the most left-handed starts this season with 13. Spokane comes in a close second with 12 and Boise is third with just seven left-handed starts this season. The Dust Devils have not started a lefty all season.

You can catch the 2011 Northwest League East Division first-half champion Dust Devils return to Gesa Stadium Wednesday night July 27 as they take on the Vancouver Candadians. The Canadians battled back against the Eugene Emeralds in the West Division to take it to the final day yesterday, but lost the tie-breaker between the two as each team finished at 24-14. The visit will be the lone home series against Vancouver this season for Tri-City as they look to rebound from going 1-9 against the Canadians last season.

The system that has given the Dust Devils the division championship and a playoff spot already was new in 2010, and here is how it works.

-          First half winners will have 7 days (Monday, August 1) to decide if they would like to host game 1 or games 2 and 3.

-          If one team wins both the first and second half of the season then the team with the next best winning percentage for the entire season will get into the playoffs. If there is a tie for the next best winning percentage then the second half tiebreakers come into play.

-          First Round in East and West

-          Game 1: Monday, September 5
Game 2: Tuesday, September 6
Game 3: Wednesday, September 7

-          Championship Round – Starting in the East (depending on stadium availability this schedule may change)

-          Game 1: East hosting on Friday, September 9
Game 2: West hosting on Saturday, September 10
Game 3: West hosting on Sunday, September 11

This format means that, regardless of how the second half plays out, the Dust Devils will be in the playoffs come September. The Spokane Indians would be the early favorite to be the second team from the East to make the playoffs in the second half, as they will finish in second place in the East after battling the Dust Devils for the top spot. The Boise Hawks were in the hunt as well, but struggled down the stretch and will finish a few games back of first place. Also, should the Dust Devils win the second half East Division title as well, overall winning percentage throughout the entire season is the tie-breaker, giving the Indians an advantage over Boise and Yakima.

As of now, Tri-City is the only team in the 2011 NWL Playoffs. The Eugene Emeralds, who broke the NWL record for consecutive wins and looked assured of a playoff spot weeks ago, is now in a tie with the red-hot Vancouver Canadians atop the West Division.  Tonight Eugene will take on the Everett AquaSox at home while the Canadians will host the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes.

Also, today Dust Devils outfielder Jared Simon was named Northwest League Offensive Player of the Week by MiLB for the week of July 18-24. During that stretch, during which Dust Devils offensive leader Jordan Ribera went on the disabled list, Simon stepped up his play at the plate and gave the team much-needed momentum. He went 10-for-26 with one home run, seven runs batted in, three doubles and had an on-base percentage of .538.

Former Dust Devils pitcher Josh Slaats also took home honors for his play last week, being named South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week by MiLB. Slaats went 2-0 in two starts and 13 innings pitched in which he allowed one run while striking out 13. He is now 6-1 on the year with Colorado Rockies single-A affiliate Asheville Tourists.

The Dust Devils needed to take advantage of their longest home stand of the season, following the series lost to Salem-Keizer, to get back on the winning track and that is exactly what they did. Tri-City defeated the Eugene Emeralds, who at the time were 21-4 and running away with the NWL West Division title, four of five games then took two of three games against the Yakima Bears at Gesa Stadium. The 6-2 stretch put the Dust Devils into a tie atop the East Division with the Spokane Indians as Tri-City headed to Spokane for a crucial three game series. In that series the Dust Devils won two of three, including an immensely important rubber match 3-1 on Saturday evening at Avista Stadium to give Tri-City the upper hand with two games remaining.

In order to clinch the division in those final two games the Dust Devils had to win just one of the two on the road against the Yakima Bears, which they did in comfortable fashion Sunday night, 10-4. Tri-City now has seven days, until Monday August 1, to decide whether they would like to host game one, or games two and three in the first round of the Northwest League Playoffs, which take place September 5-7. The Dust Devils will face the winner of the NWL East Division second half in the first round of the playoffs, unless they win it, in which case the team with the next best winning percentage over the entirety of the season in the division will face Tri-City.

After closing out the first half of the season Tri-City will start the second half with a road game against the Yakima Bears followed by a five-game home stand versus the Vancouver Canadians which starts on Wednesday, July 27.

Yakima Bears (7-18, Fourth Place):

This season is shaping up to be one to forget for the Yakima Bears, whose play on the field hasn’t helped the rumors of the team’s proposed move away from their home for the last 22 years. Apart from the play of relievers Kable Hogben and Evan Marshall, the numbers don’t paint a pretty picture of the 2011 Bears.

Yakima didn’t win a series in the month of June and have won just one series, July 1-3 when they took two of three at home against the Boise Hawks, while losing six series. Offensive production has been the biggest struggle for the Bears. They have the lowest team batting average (.212) and on-base percentage (.279) as well as the least amount of team runs scored (78) and runs batted in (68) in the Northwest League.

Currently sitting at 7-18 on the year at the bottom of the NWL East Division, the Bears have struggled in most circumstances. Yakima is 5-10 against the East Division, 2-8 against the West Division, 4-5 at home and 3-13 on the road. Although they’ve played the least amount of home games of any team in their division, being seven games back of division leader Boise with 13 games remaining in the first half of play this season will likely be too big of a hill to climb for the Bears.

Spokane Indians (13-12, Second Place):

Sitting in second place and just one game back of the division lead is a scenario the Indians would likely have taken at the beginning of the season and is where they are at now. After an up and down start to the year, Spokane, like much of the East Division, has leveled out of late and is in contention for the first half East Division title.

As opposed to Yakima, Spokane is one of the top hitting teams in the league, with the second highest NWL team average (.276). With five regular players each batting .321 or higher, the Indians have one of the tougher lineups in the league. The offense is led by catcher and first baseman Brett Nicholas, who leads the team in average (.361), home runs (4), runs batted in (22) and doubles (9).

The bulk of the Indians’ struggles have come on the road, where they are 3-6 and have won just one of their three series. At home, on the other hand, they have played well, going 10-6 and losing just one of their four series at Avista Stadium.  Should their strong offensive performances continue, nobody will be surprised to see Spokane return to the NWL playoffs for the second consecutive season.

Boise Hawks (14-11, First Place):

The Boise Hawks are alone atop the East Division despite, like Tri-City and Spokane, having some very inconsistent play this season. The fact that the Hawks are in first seems a bit strange when you look into the numbers a little bit deeper.

The Hawks have yet to win a series on the road, tallying a 4-7 record away from Boise, and have won just three of their seven series this season. You wouldn’t expect a team that has lost more series than it has won to be leading their division. But, it isn’t how many they’ve won, but who they’ve beat that has put the Hawks in prime position. Boise is 10-5 against the East Division, giving them the best intra-division record of any East Division team.

Statistically, Boise doesn’t jump off of the page when you look at their team as a whole. They are in the bottom half of the NWL in the majority of the team batting statistics and have just one player, Pin-Chieh Chen who is batting over .300 at .319. Although their pitching statistics are better, they are somewhat underwhelming. Boise has the third lowest team earned run average (4.08) and the second least runs allowed (118). But, they’ve also surrendered the second most walks (105) and have the league’s second highest WHIP (Walks-Hits per Inning Pitched) at 1.48.

The East Division first half crown race will likely stay tight until the July 26 end date, and one would think that if the Hawks are going to stay in the top spot that either their hitting or pitching will have to become more consistent. Although, if they continue to beat up on their division rivals as they have thus far this season, they may not need to be.

Tri-City Dust Devils (12-13, Third Place):

In third place and just two games back of the division lead, the Tri-City Dust Devils are in as good a spot they could hope for as they are 12-13 on the year.

On July 4, as they started an eight game road trip, Tri-City was in first place in the East with a 10-7 record. After the trip the Dust Devils slid down to third, going 2-6 away from home, losing two of three in Spokane and four of five against Salem-Keizer. Leading up to the road trip the Dust Devils hadn’t lost back-to-back games all season, but they had to win the series finale with the Volcanoes to end their longest losing streak of the season at four games.

Solid pitching and timely hitting have often been the Dust Devils’ recipe for success, playing half of their games at pitcher-friendly Gesa Stadium, but this season power offense has found its way to Pasco. The Dust Devils are third in the NWL in home runs (18) and lead the East Division in that category as well. They’re also second in the league in runs batted in (135) and third in the NWL in doubles (51).

Leading this power surge are first baseman Jordan Ribera and outfielder Tyler Massey.  The duo has combined for nine of the Dust Devils’ 18 home runs and 44 of their 135 runs batted in. They are each also batting over .300 on the year and are among the Northwest League’s top hitters in the majority of offensive statistics. Although these numbers are great, they don’t reflect the inconsistency with which the Dust Devils’ lineup performs. Tri-City has scored in double-digits an impressive four times this season, but has also scored two or less runs five times.

Pitching has also been somewhat of a guessing game for the Dust Devils. As a team they have the second lowest earned run average (3.60), tied for second lowest amount of runs allowed (118), second lowest walks allowed (82) and the third lowest WHIP (1.36).

Yet, despite having good numbers in these key pitching categories, Tri-City is under .500. Much like hitting, the inconsistency tells the story for the Dust Devils’ pitching staff. On the year they have allowed six or more runs seven times, while allowing three or less runs 13 times. In those 13 games in which they’ve allowed three runs or less Tri-City has a 10-3 record. Where they play also seems to be having an effect as well, as the Dust Devils have a team earned run average of 3.45 at home and a 5.71 team earned run average on the road.

Leading up to the end of the first half of the season Tri-City has 14 more games, eight at home and six on the road. While their ending stretch to the first half starts tough, with five games against the NWL leading Eugene Emeralds, who are 21-4 this season, the final nine games should give them a solid chance to take the division. In those nine games the Dust Devils take on the last place Bears for six games, three at home and three away, and the Indians for three games in Spokane as well.

                This season seems to be a little bit different. Although we are less than a month into the season, the Dust Devils are among the leaders in team home runs, with a good portion of those coming at home. Thus far Tri-City has his 14 home runs, seven of which coming at Gesa Stadium, and trail only the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes (15) for the league lead. Those 14 round-trippers give them as many as division rivals Boise (6) and Spokane (8) combined. As a team last season the Dust Devils hit 42 total home runs over their 76 game season and, this season, are on pace to destroy that number and hit an impressive 56.

                Leading the power surge for Tri-City is 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft pick Jordan Ribera. The first baseman from Fresno State was taken in the 21^st round by the Colorado Rockies and is proving his power-hitting history is no joke. Ribera led the NCAA in home runs in his junior season, hitting 27 bombs while batting .343 and driving in 69 runs over 63 games. However, his senior season with the Bulldogs saw a statistical drop, as he hit just eight home runs and batted .240 in 56 games.

The drop in hitting corresponded with the NCAA changing its bat rules, where the “ping” sounding aluminum bats were no longer allowed. The new composite bats have been tested, at nearby Washington State University, and are said to be 5-6 percent less effective than their preceding counterparts.

This likely attributed to Ribera’s drop to the 21^st round of the draft, but has seemed to work in the Rockies’, and Dust Devils’, favor. He currently leads the Northwest League (NWL) in home runs with four while driving in 16 runs, third most in the NWL. The solid numbers don’t stop there, as he’s also third in the NWL in slugging-percentage (.567), tied for first in total bases (38) and is hitting a very respectable .313.

Playing in 17 of the 19 Dust Devil games in 2011, it is safe to say Ribera has secured his spot as the clean-up hitter in the Tri-City lineup. Were he to play as many games as current Dust Devils single-season home run record holders Darin Holcomb (74, 2007) and Joe Koshansky (66, 2004), who each hit 12 home runs, Ribera is on pace to break the team record with ease, hitting 17 or 15 home runs respectively.

You can catch Ribera and the rest of the Dust Devils out at Gesa Stadium next week as they return for an eight game home stand in Pasco. They will first take on the Eugene Emeralds in a five game series. The short-season A affiliate of the Padres, the Emeralds are having an outstanding 2011 campaign and leading the Northwest League West Division with a 17-2 record and have won their last 14 consecutive games, a NWL record. Following Eugene the Yakima Bears will make their first trip to Pasco this season for a three game series against the Dust Devils. Tri-City took two of three in Yakima earlier this season against the Bears, who are last in the East Division with a 6-13 record.

1. The Average Margin of Each Dust Devils Defeat

In their two losses this season against Everett, the Dust Devils lost 5-4 and lead at various points of each game. Being in games and staying focused throughout the entirety of the game is something that is sometimes lost and could give the Dust Devils a winning edge before the game even starts.

In the first loss, the season opening game, the Dust Devils blew a 3-0 first inning lead by allowing five runs in the fifth. They then battled back for a run in the ninth and had the tying run in scoring position but failed to bring him home.

In the second loss, Tri-City trailed 2-1 for a large majority of the game and had just three hits going into the ninth inning. They then battled to tie the game to send it into extra innings where they would once again make a comeback attempt, but come up short in a 5-4 loss.

The Dust Devils continued to show that they can stay in games in the series opener with Boise as well on Wednesday night. In their first road game of the season Tri-City fell 3-2 to the Hawks in what was also each team’s first division game of the season. Although the Dust Devils are now just 1-3 in these one-run games, the advantages of gaining this experience early in the season will, hopefully, come to fruition come August and September.

2. Bullpen Pitching

The Dust Devils’ pitching staff, overall, did a great job in the season opening series.  The staff has the second lowest earned run average (2.73) in the Northwest League, allowing 17 earned runs in their first six games. The trio of lefty relievers in Kenneth Roberts, Stephen Head and Craig Bennigson were the bullpen stalwarts of the opening series. They combined for 10.1 shutout innings and allowed four hits while striking out nine and walking just one. Fellow left-hander Isaiah Froneberger has also got off to a good start, earning two saves in his two appearances this season.

While the bullpen has been great, the starting pitching hasn’t been too shabby either. Specifically starters Nelson Gonzalez, Tyler Gagnon and Vianney Mayo all have earned run averages below 2.50 after their first starts and have given up just three earned runs combined in their 15.1 total innings pitched.

3. Solid Hitting from Returning Players

In the initial roster for the 2011 season the Dust Devils had eight players return that played for Tri-City in the 2010 season. Of those players infielder David Hernandez and outfielders Jared Simon and Leo Reyes have garnered most of the playing time and have shown improvement over their 2010 performances.

Playing in right field for the majority of the time, 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft sixth round pick of the Rockies Jared Simon has held down the cleanup spot in the lineup for the Dust Devils pretty well this season. He’s played in all six games in 2011, leading the team with 23 at-bats, and has a .304 batting average with a .385 on-base percentage and two runs batted in.

Fellow Tri-City “veteran” outfielder Leo Reyes has also stepped up his production at the plate in his first five games of the 2011 season. After starting the year hitless in his first six at-bats, Reyes has a modest three game hit streak and has boosted his average to .316. He is also tied for second on the team in runs batted in with three.

Despite the superb play of the two players mentioned above, middle-infielder David Hernandez, who had a short 18 game stint in Tri-City last season, has gotten off to the hottest start of any Dust Devil. He’s played in four of the Dust Devils’ six games this season and has hit safely in each game, including a 3-for-4 game against Everett on June 20. His fantastic start has him batting a team-high .538 with three runs batted in. He’s also stolen a team-high two bases and has yet to commit an error this season.

These initial signs are positive notes to take in when trying to figure out what type of team the 2011 Tri-City Dust Devils will be. Although the wins and losses are what matters, finding out how the team works and looking for positive, or negative, trends are often what dictates how their season goes. These signs show that, while 3-3 on the year, the Dust Devils could be headed for a playoff spot come September.

1. Jeffrey Squier #3 – SS
2. Tyler Massey #5 – LF
3. Leo Reyes #33 – CF
4. Jared Simon #22 – RF
5. Jordan Ribera #50 – DH
6. Ryan Casteel #7 – C
7. Blake McDade #24 – 1B
8. Jayson Langfels #43 – 3B
9. David Hernandez #6 – 2b

SP: Christian Bergman #21 – RHP

The opening lineup of 2011 features some familiar faces from 2010, such as outfielders Jared Simon and Leo Reyes, as well as infielders David Hernandez and Jayson Langfels. Of the group only Hernandez appeared in less than 40 games last season.

Joining those former Dust Devils in the starting lineup will be new additions from Casper Jeffrey Squier, Ryan Casteel and Blake McDade. The trio of former Ghosts all played significantly in 2010, combining to feature in 154 games last season. McDade led those three in batting average (.327) and runs batted in (40) while Squier hit the most home runs (6) and all three had on-base percentages over .300.

The lone 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft pick of the Colorado Rockies to start the season in the Dust Devils starting lineup is former Fresno State first baseman Jordan Ribera. Ribera led the nation in home runs in 2010 (27) and compiled an impressive power hitting resume in his four years of collegiate baseball. Batting fifth in his Gesa Stadium debut, behind relative veterans in Simon and Reyes, should give him the opportunity to showcase his talents.

A late addition to the Tri-City roster and lineup is left-fielder Tyler Massey. Massey was drafted in the 14^th round of the 2008 MLB First-Year Player Draft and has been playing in the Rockies’ single-A affiliate, the Asheville Tourists, since 2009. He joins the Dust Devils this season after struggling to begin 2011 in Asheville, batting .200 in 20 games with 10 runs batted in.

Getting the start on the mound for the Dust Devils, in their first home season opener since 2005, is former Casper starter Christian Bergman. Bergman was drafted in the 24^th round of the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft by the Rockies and went 1-4 with a 5.96 earned run average last season for Casper. Word is that he has been doing very well in extended spring training in Arizona and, pitching in notoriously pitcher-friendly Gesa Stadium, his numbers should improve.

Happy Opening Day! Go Dust Devils!

The highest of the Rockies’ draft picks that has signed and made it into Pasco is Virginia Tech shortstop Timothy Smalling. Smalling was taken in the 15^th round, 468^th overall, by Colorado and was the third shortstop they selected in the draft. The 6-foot-3 and 207 pound 23-year-old was drafted in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft as well by the Washington Nationals.

The Clifton, New Jersey, native originally went to University of Arkansas but transferred after two seasons. His statistics improved after his transfer where he batted .331 in 105 starts for the Hokies in 2010 and 2011. He ended his collegiate career at Virginia Tech with 16 home runs, 79 runs batted in, 90 runs scored and an on-base percentage of .388.

In the 17th round with the 528^th pick overall the Rockies took right-hander William Rankin out of Southern Polytechnic State in Marietta, Georgia. At 6-foot and 192 pounds Rankin dominated for SPSU. In 14 games he had a stellar 1.94 earned run average with a 9-2 record in 83.2 total innings pitched.

In the following round with the 558^th pick Colorado drafted righty pitcher Ben Alsup out of Louisiana State. As a regular member of the LSU rotation Alsup went 6-5 last season in 12 starts. In his 65.2 total innings pitched he had an earned run average of 4.66 with a .278 batting average against. Alsup was the first of the Rockies’ draft picks to sign and join the Dust Devils this season.

A few rounds later, in the 21^st, the Rockies picked big first base bat Jordan Ribera out of Fresno State. At 5-foot-11 and 230 pounds, Ribera offers a lot of potential power at a traditionally powerful position. In 2010 he led the nation in home runs with 27 while hitting .343 with a team-high 20 doubles and 69 runs batted in. But, with the new bat rule introduced into college baseball in 2011, Ribera’s numbers slumped. In 56 games last season he batted just .240 with eight home runs and 45 runs batted in. The Rockies, and Dust Devils, are hoping that the Ribera that torched the WAC in 2010 and led the NCAA in home runs will arrive in Pasco this summer.

Adding a tinge of “local” flavor to the Tri-City roster will be right-handed pitcher Chris Dennis. Dennis attended the University of Portland after growing up in Bothell, Wash., about three hours from Pasco. Taken in the 34^th round, Dennis led the Pilots relievers in appearances with 28 last season and had an earned run average of 2.29. Going 3-2, Dennis recorded a team-high 10 saves in 39.1 innings and had a solid .173 batting average against.

The latest pick to join the Dust Devils thus far is catcher Richard Pirkle, who was taken in the 35^th round, 1068^th Overall. Pirkle played at Georgia College and State in the Division-2 Peach Belt Conference. There he provided the power in the Bobcats lineup, hitting a team-high 12 home runs in his 52 starts. He also batted .301 with 37 runs batted in and drew a team-high 45 walks. Pirkle also showed his versatility, stealing 13 bases and having a .985 fielding percentage.

You can follow who else joins the Dust Devils in 2011 by checking out the team Facebook and Twitter (@TC_DustDevils) accounts as well as checking out the team website at dustdevilsbaseball.com.

The first thing that jumps out when looking at the initial squad is the returners. While each season some guys return for another year (or two) in short-season ball, some of the guys coming back to Tri-City were a bit of a surprise.

The Dust Devils single-season record-holder for wins (8 in 2009), Craig Bennigson is making his third stint with the Dust Devils after starting 2011 in Single-A Asheville. Last season Bennigson had good numbers, a 2.51 earned run average and team-high seven saves in 15 appearances, but had a 0-2 record. Thus far in 2011, with Asheville, Bennigson is struggling, with an 8.16 earned run average in nine appearances with a .323 batting average against. Hopefully some time in a place he’s comfortable pitching and has shown some promise will get him back on track.

Infielder Dominic Altobelli will start his third professional season with the Dust Devils, his second straight with Tri-City. Last season the versatile infielder batted .244 in 39 games and stole eight bases. He, like last season, will likely be battling for the starting spot at third with second-year pro Jayson Langfels. The Rockies drafted Langfels in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of Eastern Kentucky in the 16^th round. He played in 44 games for Tri-City in his rookie campaign and hit four home runs.

Outfielders Leonardo Reyes and Jared Simon also return to the Mid-Columbia as starters who featured often for the 2010 Dust Devils. Reyes played in a team-high 70 games in 2010 and 2011 will mark his fourth season as a Dust Devil. Last year was his best as a professional, batting .268 with three home runs and 29 runs batted in.

Simon, a second-year pro who was drafted in the 6^th round of the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft out of the University of Tampa, will likely be the team’s starting left fielder. He played in 62 games in the outfield for the Dust Devils last season and committed just two errors while batting .226 and driving in 19 runs.

Players from Casper, 13 in all, will join these returners as Dust Devils this season. Eight of those 13 are pitchers including Ghosts 2010 starter Tyler Gagnon. Gagnon started 15 times for Casper last season and went 5-3 with a 3.89 earned run average. He threw 76.1 total innings and struck out 63 opponents while walking just 17.

Also coming from Casper is lefty Kenneth Roberts. Roberts made 16 appearances, two of which starts, last season and had a 3-1 record. Pitching 36.1 innings, he had an earned run average of 3.22 and a WHIP (Walks-Hit per Inning Pitched) of 1.24.

Position players that jump off of the roster who featured for Casper last season and will be in Tri-City this season include first baseman Blake McDade, catcher Ryan Casteel and outfielder Juan Crousset. McDade had the highest batting average of former Ghosts who are joining the Dust Devils this season, batting .327 last season. He also hit three home runs and drove in 40 runs while earning an on-base percentage of .391.

Casteel, a 17^th round pick in the 2010 MLB First-Year Player Draft, batted a solid .305 in 43 games in his rookie season last year. He also hit three home runs, eight doubles and drove home 22 runs in his first year as a professional. 

Crousset, who played for Casper in 2009 and 2010, provided some left-handed pop for the Ghosts last season. The outfielder from the Dominican Republic hit a personal single-season high five home runs and drove in 28 runs, both fifth highest on the Ghosts last season.

The first 2011 MLB First-Year Player Draft pick of the Rockies to sign and be assigned to the Dust Devils was right-handed pitcher Ben Alsup. The Louisiana State alum started 12 games and had 14 appearances for the Tigers last season and went 6-5. He had an earned run average of 4.66 in 65.2 innings pitched and a .278 batting average against.

Also new to the Dust Devils is pitching coach Dave Burba. Burba spent 19 seasons in professional baseball, including 15 seasons in the Major Leagues with Seattle (1990-91), San Francisco (1992-95, 2004), Cincinnati (1995-97), Cleveland (1998-2001, 2002), Texas (2002) and Milwaukee (2003-04). Burba compiled a career record of 115-87 with a 4.49 ERA, 762 walks and 1,398 strikeouts in 511 Major League games. He replaces Joey Eischen, who was promoted to Asheville (low-A), while Eischen replaces Dave Schuler, the Dust Devils’ pitching coach in 2009, who was promoted to double-A Tulsa (double-A).

The Dust Devlis have a solid and versatile roster thus far that will hopefully improve as rookies who were drafted in the 2011 MLB-First Year Player Draft sign and the season starts. Here’s hoping to the addition of another odd-numbered year title to the Northwest League East Division title haul the Dust Devils have from the past few seasons (2007, 2009).