Roster Moves

The Sea Dogs made a couple of roster moves yesterday. Infielder Chad Spann and outfielder Matt Van Der Bosch were promoted to AA, while outfielder Sheldon Fulse was put on the D/L and third baseman Bret LeVier was returned to Wilmington.

Van Der Bosch (or "VDB", as he is referred to in my notes) has raced through the system this year. He batted 290/427/427-1-13 in 35 games at low-A Greenville and 283/347/404-5-28 in 69 games at high-A Wilmington. He has 24 steals between the two stops. He's got decent discipline (56 walks, including one last night), but strikes out a lot for a table setter (101 K's in 105 games). He's another little guy (5'9", 190 lbs, though he doesn't look as big as Dustin Pedroia who is listed at the same height but 10 pounds lighter), scrappy and quick, and he should become a fan favorite quickly. As noted below, VDB made his Portland debut last night and reached base three times, including one walk and a bunt single.

Spann, who at 21 is a year younger than VDB, hasn't met with as much success. He's a bigger guy with more power, but his numbers (248/322/423-13-48 with 106 K's in 111 games with Wilmington) haven't developed quite the way the Sox might have expected when he batted .312 as a 19-year-old in the Sally League two years ago. His peripherals aren't too bad, but he's got to turn some of those whiffs into hits to be a real productive batter.