Best of the West – May 30-31
This is the ninth in a series of team profiles for teams competing in this year’s Best of the West tournament.
Thanks to Fred Hanker for this information:
The Black Sox currently first in the SCIFL will bring a majority of their players to The Best of the West. Team ace Ron Rupp with a 14-3 record and a 2.22 ERA leads the pitching staff. Rupp also has an impressive 90 strikeouts and 13 walks in 110 innings.Rupp can also hit showing an .356 average. Todd Budke recognized as one of the best hitters in the world is hitting .408 with 3 HR and 18 RBI. Budke also post a 4.55 ERA as a pitcher with a 1-1 record. Sox owner Fred Hanker leads the team in hitting with a .464 average with 4 HR and 41 RBI. Jason Obregon has been the Sox catalyst all year in the leadoff spot. Obregon is hitting .427 with 3 HR and 21 RBI. Chris Paiva has been a pleasant surprise for Long Beach. More known for his defense Paiva is hitting .373 with 24 RBI. Steady veteran Dave Demaio is batting .340 and on his way to his best year as a Sox player. Two veteran players from The Panteras join Long Beach this weekend. Eli Salazar and Jimmy Buentello will help bolster the Sox offense and defense. Salazar joins Long Beach for the third time after 2 impressive performances in Beaumont and The Best of the West last year. Buentello is a respected hitter and noted as one of the best in Southern California. Sox all time winning pitcher Randy Clay brings a 4-2 record into Santa Barbara. He is in the top 5 in every career Sox pitching category. Sox veteran Chris Minogue is off to a slow start but is one of the best hitters in Sox history. He is in the top 5 of every major hitting category.
Sox Roster
Manager Fred Hanker
Catcher Fred Hanker
Pitcher/Inf Ron Rupp
Pitcher Randy Clay
Inf/Pitcher Todd Budke
Inf Chris Paiva
Inf Jason Obregon
Inf Jimmy Buentello
Of Dave Demaio
Of Eli Salazar
Of Chris Minogue
Click here to view other team profiles for the 2009 Best of the West tournament.