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Boys back up and moving
Because I am very interested myself and felt sure many of you might be interested as well I thought I would take a little time this week finding out where each of them are as the season begins and what their current status is. Corwin Malone, who was considered one of the White Sox top prospects in 2002 and 2003 before an elbow injury and subsequent Tommy John surgery sidelined him, spent last season at the White Sox Double A affiliate Birmingham Barons. This year he has moved up to the Triple A Charlotte Knights located in Charlotte, North Carolina where at this point he is slated to be a part of the Knights' bullpen staff with the potential later in the season to log some time as a starter. He spent most of spring training this year at the big league camp in Arizona. Josh Morgan who spent most of last season at the White Sox Class A affiliate in Bristol, Tennessee is currently in extended spring training at Tucson, Arizona recovering from off season shoulder surgery. Although he is progressing well in his rehabilitation of his arm and shoulder the White Sox did not want to rush him and risk further injury. It is anticipated that he will be at or near full recovery by the middle or end of May and will probably be assigned to a team then. He has already noticed a positive change in his hitting as the power at the plate he has been known for, seems to be returning to the level it was before the injury. Nick McCurdy, who had a short stint at Triple-A Ottawa last season spent the balance of the year at Double -A Bowie, Maryland where he put together a solid year out of the bullpen including posting an era of 2.37. This season he has moved up in the organization to the Triple-A Norfolk Tides located in Norfolk, Virginia. At Norfolk he is projected to be a member of the Tides' bullpen staff with the capacity to pitch in short relief, long relief and close as the circumstances dictate. Hunter Vick, who had a late season call up to High -A Vista, California, spent the bulk of last summer in Battle Creek, Michigan at the Devil Rays' Low-A affiliate. This year he is starting out at the team's High- A affiliate which has been relocated from California to Vero Beach, Florida. As a member of the Vero Beach Devil Rays he is one of six infielders listed on the roster. With the ability to play several positions in the infield and professional experience at three of them his versatility will be a valued commodity that should garner him playing time with his new team. The old saying" it's a small world we live in" has application in at least three of these young men's lives this summer. Corwin Malone and Nick McCurdy once teammates for the Thomasville Tigers will find themselves competing against each other this summer as the respective teams they play for are both part of the International League and will be matched up against each other on several occasions over the course of the summer. Hunter Vick playing for Vero Beach in the Florida State League will cross paths with Reid Cornelius also a former Thomasville Tiger (Class of 1988) and Major League pitcher with the Montreal Expos, the New York Mets and the Florida Marlins. Cornelius is the pitching coach for the Marlins High- A affiliate Jupiter Hammerheads located in Jupiter, Florida. Although there is no way to absolutely say what the future holds for any of these young men, one thing is for certain, right now each of them have what appears to be a bright future ahead of them doing what they enjoy doing and all of them are making progress toward that ultimate goal of some day making it to 'The Show'. For Malone and McCurdy they are literally one call away while Morgan and Vick have a few more steps to take on the ladder.
Until next time .......be safe!
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