Tuesday, October 13, 2009

MACON, Ga. - As the Major League Baseball regular season wraps up, A-Sun Insider takes a minute to look at the former members of the A-Sun that continue to perform well for their minor and major league squads.

Former FGCU Eagle Casey Coleman picked up Chicago Cubs’ Minor League Pitcher of the Year honor as he finished the year with a record of 14-6 for the Cubs Double A affiliate, the Tennessee Smokies. Coleman, in his second season in the Cubs system, posted a 3.68 earned-run average in 27 starts while recording 84 strikeouts.

Daniel Murphy, a Jacksonville baseball product, posted solid numbers in his first full season with the New York Mets. Murphy led the Mets in home runs, 12, and games played, 155. He hit .266 with 38 doubles, second to David Wright and tied for 12th in the National League.

Murphy Highlights

http://newyork.mets.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=502517

Murphy also showed his skills in the field in one of the best defensive plays of 2009

http://mlb.mlb.com/media/video.jsp?content_id=5485207

Former Stetson outfield standout, Chris Johnson spent most of 2009 with the Astros’ Triple-A affiliate Round Rock. While with the Express, Johnson posted a .281 batting average with 13 home runs and 42 RBIs. Johnson picked up his first major hit against the Atlanta Braves on Sept. 10.

Johnson Highlights

http://houston.astros.mlb.com/team/player.jsp?player_id=453400

Caleb Joseph, a former catcher for Lipscomb, spent 2009 with the Frederick Keys posting a .284 batting average with 12 home runs and 60 RBI. Joseph, the MVP of the 2008 Atlantic Sun Championships, posted 37 extra-base hits and a .450 slugging percentage. Joseph’s accomplishments were not just on the field as he also accepted the Elrod Hendricks Community Service Award on behalf of Orioles’ minor league system. Joseph also recently received an invitation to the Orioles’ Major League camp in Feburary.

After being drafted in the first-round (34th overall) of the 2009 Amateur Entry Draft, former Lipscomb left hander Rex Brothers split time between the Asheville Tourists and Tri-City in the Colorado Rockies organization. The Shelbyville, Tenn. native appeared in 17 games between the two teams posting a 2-0 record with a 3.38 ERA all in relief appearances. Brothers, who led the A-Sun in strikeouts in 2009 with 132, continued to rack up the “K’s” fanning 28 in 21.1 innings.