The St. Paul Saints lost two more key components of the 2008 team which won the first seven games of the season, as Marcel Longmire, who had broken his hand, was released, and Luis Villarreal signed with Saltillo of the Mexican League. The following is from the Saints’ press release:
The Saints released Longmire, who broke his hand on Wednesday afternoon after being hit by a pitch. Longmire was hitting .268 with six homers and 33 RBI in 40 games. In 153 at bats he scored 27 runs, had 11 doubles with a .458 slugging percentage and a .364 on base percentage.
Villarreal, a key component in the Saints starting rotation, signed with Saltillo of the Mexican League. He was 3-3 with a 3.03 ERA in 10 games (all starts). In 59.1 innings pitched he walked 25 and struck out 41 while the opposition hit .267 against him.
…this is becoming unfair. the saints lost their top power hitter and RBI threat in longmire on the same day that their ace leaves them for the mexican league. if there were ever a team that needed to re-tool for the second half, it’s these 2008 st. paul saints. on the flip side, george tsamis must be feeling pretty good about his last two acquisitions given the current state of the team. heath keel, who homered last night, can fill in for marcel longmire until pichi balet comes back, and mark romanczuk, the ace for stanford in 2005, could slot into the #5 starter’s spot if dustin bolton isn’t quite ready yet. this team will be fine, but look for them to add a couple of pieces to their 20-man roster…
Tags: Injuries, Luis Villarreal, Marcel Longmire, Signings
June 27, 2008 2:59 pm at 2:59 pm
I’m confused – why did the Saints release Longmire? Are they planning to re-sign him when his hand heals?
June 28, 2008 2:53 pm at 2:53 pm
Jon, that’s a very good question. Longmire’s release is part of the numbers game in this league — there’s a cap on the number of players you can have on the inactive list in this league, and wiith Scooter Jordan and Pichi Balet on the list already combined with the uncertainty surrounding Longmire’s injury, I think the Saints believed it would be beneficial to release him and take a wait and see approach. I’m sure that if Longmire heals before the season ends, he’s still a free agent, and the Saints have a roster spot available, they’ll attempt to re-sign him.
June 28, 2008 6:14 pm at 6:14 pm
Wow, that’s tough on Longmire, who’s been a key component for the Saints. Here’s hoping they can find a way to bring him back.