Story about Twister awards

Story about Twister awards from Aug. 12:

In spite of a trying year on the field, several Torrington Twisters were recognized by their general manager and coaches for their performances on and off the field.

Torrington General Manager Kirk Fredriksson and the coaching staff voted on four awards, which are given out each year. The award winners are Robert Chimpky, Brian Baudinet, Corey Huffine, Andrew Triggs and Chase Austin. Huffine and Triggs shared the same award.

Chimpky was chosen for this year's Ryan Kearney Award, which is given to the most outstanding pitcher on the team. Kearney was a lights-out pitcher on the inaugural Twisters team in 1997. Kearney won the league's top pitcher award that season.

"(Chimpky) wasn't afraid to take the ball, no matter what the situation was," Fredriksson said.

Chimpky began the season as the team's set-up man, but quickly shifted into the closer's role after Steve Geltz was signed by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim. Though he did not get many chances, Chimpky made the most of them, saving five games in five attempts. Chimpky went 2-1 with a 3.63 ERA in 16 appearances, according to the NECBL's Web site. In 17 1-3 innings, he gave up 11 runs (seven earned) on 20 hits, striking out 24, while walking four. Chimpky made the Southern Division All-Star team.

"A good guy," Fredriksson said. "What he lacks in stature he makes up for in determination."

Brian Baudinet, a Watertown resident, was chosen as the team's most valuable player, the honor for which is the David Benham Award, named after a star player on the 1997 team.

"The kid got better as the season went on," Fredriksson said.
Fredriksson said Baudinet was a fun player to have on the team and added that Baudinet's appearance on the all-star team should be credited to his hard work.Baudinet started every game (37) he played in, hitting .256 with a home run and 14 runs batted in. Though his hitting took a while to come around, Baudinet was a threat on defense, recording six outfield assists and keeping many runners from trying to advance on him as the season wore on.

"We hope to have him back next year," Fredriksson said.

Two players on the team were the recipient of the Jeff Hourigan Sportsmanship Award. Hourigan played in Torrington for three years, making the All-Star team in all three years. But Hourigan was just as valuable off the field, Fredriksson said. Hourigan won the league sportsmanship award in 2004.

"Jeff Hourigan's one of the most outstanding individuals to play for us," Fredriksson said. "Even if he wasn't that kind of player, you want him on your team, because of the way he treats people and the way he treats the team."

The winners are Corey Huffine and Andrew Triggs. Huffine continued to improve in the field at third base and at the plate.

"Corey came in here as a replacement (for another player)," Fredriksson said. "He worked hard every day. He played hard every day."

Fredriksson said Huffine was a great kid.

"He was a real pleasure to have on the team," Fredriksson said. "He's a coach's dream."

Another hard worker was Triggs. Pitching for the first time in two years because of Tommy John surgery, Triggs played hard and took the ball when asked, even if his numbers did not always back up his effort.

"He was one guy who showed up every day," Fredriksson said. "I hope we have him back next year. Just a great kid."

Both Huffine and Triggs got the award because of the sportsmanship, professionalism and attitude that they each exhibited.

Winning the team's batting award was Chase Austin. The award was named after Jimmy Deschaine, who set the league record for batting average in Torrington's first season, hitting .429 in 1997. Austin hit .313 this season with four homers and 22 runs batted in.

"Chase was probably our best hitter this year," Fredriksson said. "He hit for power at times when we needed it. He hit to all fields later in the year."

Recap of Wadsworth and Hubner's first season

Recap of Robin Wadsworth and Rita Hubner's first season as co-owners of the Torrington Twisters from Aug. 7:

A tough year on the field for the Torrington Twisters had a silver lining as it was a year of progress off the field, the team's owner said Wednesday.

Robin Wadsworth and Rita Hubner, both of whom live outside of Boston, took over ownership of the Torrington Twisters in April, just two months before the 2008 season was set to begin.

"I think it was a successful experience," Wadsworth, the team's chairman, said Wednesday. "It was more than anticipated from just a sheer amount of effort that it takes to put it together."

As for rumors about the team's move, Wadsworth and Twisters General Manager Kirk Fredriksson said the team is not going anywhere.

"That's never been a question," Fredriksson said. "That's never even been a question. It's not even an issue. They (the owners) plan on doing everything they can to be here not only this year, but for years to come."

Wadsworth said fans approached her at the end of the season and told her they looked forward to seeing them and coming back next season.

"The facts are that back in July, I personally reached out to (Mayor Ryan Bingham's) office," Wadsworth said.

The purpose of the conversation was a lease for the 2009 season, which Wadsworth wants to be see completed by the end of August. Wadsworth said she wants the development of the lease done in concert with the related organizations in the city, including the Parks and Recreation Commission, the City Council, the Fuessenich Park Steering Committee and the Mayor's Office.

Wadsworth said the rumors about issues with the team or about them moving away are disconcerting.

"It's deflating and it's disheartening because you're trying to do something that you have such incredible passion about," Wadsworth said. "You're trying to do the right thing."

Wadsworth said some of the rumors have come from people who have never taken the time to meet with her.

"They don't know what our long-term plans, strategies or desires are," Wadsworth said.

Wadsworth said there was not much difference between the work she did in Torrington compared to her stint with the Double-AA minor league affiliate of the Chicago Cubs from 1985-87. Looking back on her first season with the Twisters, she said she would not have done anything differently.

"I'm not sure that there is," Wadsworth said. "We really didn't have enough time to do everything that we needed to do."

There are some things that she will do differently next year, Wadsworth said without going into detail. With the new ownership in place, the team is expected to lose $12,000 to $13,000, a major change over 2007, when it lost $70,000, Wadsworth said.

"We saw some incredible growth in 2008," she said.

On the field was a different story, where the Twisters finished 14-27 and missed the playoffs.

"I think that from the most holistic perspective, the guys that were here were a great group of guys," Wadsworth said. "I was disappointed with what happened on the field. You get disappointed when you don't make the playoffs and you finish out of contention."

Wadsworth, without naming players, said she was concerned with the effort on display during some games, especially considering some of them have visions of playing in the major leagues.

"You're not going to get there if you're not giving 100 percent 100 percent of the time," she said.

Wadsworth praised the die-hard fans who came to every game.

"There's not a doubt in my mind that they welcomed us with open arms," she said.

The raising of ticket prices from $3 to $6 for general admission and $5 to $8 for box seats did not hurt the team's attendance, Wadsworth said.

"Do I think ticket prices hurt it? Absolutely not," she said.

Wadsworth pointed to special nights such as the Dominican all-star team game, the NECBL All-Star Game and United Way's Night at the Twisters as success stories. She said that all of the exhibition games and other items, including the team's financial system, were set up in a short amount of time.

"We should not lose money next year," Wadsworth said. "There would be no excuse for it."

She said the team would not have lost money had the new ownership come sooner than two months before the season began.

"In two short months, we did it all from scratch," Wadsworth said.

Fredriksson has already been looking at players for next season, he said, while organization of other events is also beginning.

"He's got a pretty strong bead on a bunch of guys," Wadsworth said.

Wadsworth and Fredriksson are working on getting international teams to come to Torrington for an exhibition series.

"I personally am working directly with Major League Baseball," Wadsworth said. "Kirk is working with other countries. We're looking to put together a series that makes this year pale in comparison."

Wadsworth and Hubner brought in David and Paula Tedham of Vancouver, British Columbia, as minority owners in late July. The Tedhams will bring in further organizational experience, Wadsworth said.

Recap of Twister season

Twisters recap story from Aug. 5:

The wheels are already turning for the Torrington Twisters after finishing a frustrating season with a tough 1-0, 10-inning loss to the North Shore Navigators on Thursday.

General Manager Kirk Fredriksson is already looking at players for next season, including some in Connecticut.

A difficult 14-27 season ended with Torrington dropping 18 of its final 23 games after being tied for first place with a 9-9 record on July 6.

"We were 9-9 and were in first place," Twisters coach Gregg Hunt said. "We knew that wasn't going to continue. We thought we had a legitimate shot to get on the right track."

Torrington got to .500 at 9-9 with a 3-2, 11-inning win over in North Adams against the SteepleCats. A Jaren Mathews homer in the 11th won the game.

The euphoria was shortlived, as the Twisters made another trip to North Adams the next night. Torrington made eight errors and lost 13-3.

"Everything seemed to go downhill after that game," Hunt said.

Players forced to play out of position in the field and in the batting order due to a host of injuries and players leaving early for different reasons contributed to the Twisters' slide, Hunt said.

"(The roster) never gelled and we had some guys that we were depending on coming here," Hunt said. "We probably passed on some guys that in hindsight maybe we should have gone after."

It didn't help that Torrington was rained out 14 times this season.

"With the number of rainouts we had, we didn't have any rhythm," Fredriksson said.

Fredriksson said it was hard to lose the players that the Twisters lost early in the season.

"Baseball's a game of exposure," he said. "To the kids' credit, most of them dealt with it well."

Torrington had a 19-player turnover for the season, Hunt said. It started before the season ever began.

Catcher Kevin Silvett of San Diego State, Southern California pitcher Ryan Cabral, pitcher Michael Dixon of San Diego State, Central Michigan infielder Billy Anderson and Arizona shortstop Bryce Ortega could not make it due to injuries. Brigham Young's Steve Parker, a good player for the Twisters last season, went to summer school. James Teas of Central Michigan also did not make it. Chris Epps of Clemson had offseason surgery and was unable to join the team. Others that did not play a game in Torrington included Ryan Wilkins of Lipscomb and Kory Twede of Wright State.

Other players who left for various reasons included Aaron Barrows, Goshen's Andrew Rocco, Kevin Mager, Scott Shuman and Clay Caulfield.

Blake Silguero, a player who hit for power at Cisco Junior College in Texas, played just four games and was sent home because of a back injury. USC's Jordan Hershiser, son of former major league pitcher Orel Hershiser, left because of an arm injury. Robert Papenhause, an infielder from Brown, played in one game, breaking his wrist on a swing.

Steve Geltz, who was slated to be Torrington's closer, was signed by the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim after pitching in three games for the Twisters.

Turnover is not unusual in summer leagues, but Torrington got bit by it early and often this season.

The statistical bottom line for the Twisters is not pretty.

Offensively, Torrington was tied for last in the NECBL in team batting average (.218), second to last in runs batted in (129), second to last in slugging percentage (.309), second to last in runs scored (146), second to last in on-base percentage (.300) and second to last in sacrifice hits (7). When the Twisters did get on base, they made life tough on opposing catchers, finishing fifth in the league in stolen bases (62).

The offensive woes did not make life easy for Torrington's pitching staff.

"Our pitchers are thinking, 'I got to hold teams to three runs or less or we have no chance to win,'" Hunt said.

Another problem was the Twisters had a hard time holding down their opponents in the first few innings of a game. Torrington was outscored by its opponents 38-24 in the first inning, 26-15 in the second, 29-13 in the third and 30-6 in the fourth. For an offense that had trouble scoring runs, being put behind the 8-ball early did not help. Torrington was 2-13 when opponents scored in the first inning and was 1-15 when its opponent scored first in a game. Comebacks were also not in the cards for the Twisters. Torrington was 3-24 when trailing after six innings, and that record slipped to 1-19 when trailing after seven and 1-21 when trailing after eight.

"We had games where we would not do well in the beginning and we were out of it," Fredriksson said.

The pitching staff was hurt by injuries and inconsistency. Several pitchers had good performances at the end of the year, but were hurt by a lack of run support.

Overall, the Twisters finished third to last in team earned run average (4.44), fourth in most hits allowed (350), second in most runs allowed (232), third in most walks allowed (183), tied for fourth in most triples allowed (8), fourth in most hit batters (40), tied for first in most wild pitches (37) and for second in most balks (6). On the positive side, Torrington pitchers finished tied for third in most strikeouts (346). Twisters hurlers also had the second most strikeouts where batters were called out looking with 105.

Torrington will not change how it recruits despite its worst record in its 12th season, Fredriksson said."We'll recruit the same," Fredriksson said. "You can't have that bad a luck every year. You can't lose 19 players every year."Baseball is a game of adjustments, Hunt said, and everyone from owners to general managers to coaches will make the necessary changes."

Injuries continue to pile up for Torrington

Injuries continue to be a problem for the Twisters. Pitcher Jordan Hershisher and first baseman/outfielder Blake Silguero will be heading home due to injuries, according to Torrington General Manager Kirk Fredriksson. Hershiser has an elbow injury that will be examined and Silguero has a back injury, Fredriksson said after Thursday’s game.
"It’s two things that we don’t want to take chances with," Fredriksson said. "They are both freshmen (in college)."
Hershiser had a chance to be one of the team’s best pitchers while Silguero would have provided another threat with the bat.
"It’s a shame because they’re two of the nicest kids I’ve ever met in my life," Fredriksson said. "There’s no doubt they would have helped us this summer."
Fredriksson said he is looking to bring other players in to replace Hershiser and Silguero.
Torrington lost some players before the season began. Kevin Silvett, a catcher from San Diego State University, went to summer school. University of Southern California pitcher Ryan Cabral stayed home for the summer due to an illness in the family. San Diego State pitcher Michael Dixon had a wrist injury and Central Michigan University infielder Billy Anderson broke his elbow. Bryce Ortega, a shortstop at the University of Arizona, also did not make it due to injury.