Regina Pirates
Division Last Season: 1st
Wins Last Season: 98
Batting
Regina were the best team in a bad league and as such their batting was middle of the pack last season. Take out the big retirement of Johnathen Sarrett along with Dutch Hines and you'd most likely expect a difficult season ahead. This is somewhat true but overall the batting looks more stable and has a couple of great additions. The first of these is the 5th overall selection in the 2016 draft, catcher Kevin Biesch. After an age at Thunder Bay he finally gets the call. His ability behind the plate has been his major stumbling block so he may start at DH. Left fielder Michael Nussli is the other addition who, like Biesch, is in the team for his batting. Nussli could be considered a steal after being picked up with the 47th overall pick in the 2019 draft.
Pitching
The pitching staff continues to be one of the better ones in the Farmers East despite the retirement of reliever Carlos Fry, but it remains to be seen whether southpaw Kevin Eadie can replace him. Evergreen starter, Guy Gosling, looked good in spring training and should hit the running in 2022.
Overall
It's mixed bag here as despite improving in batting and pitching compared to the other Farmers league teams, they're actually falling behind in their own division. Regina does have an experienced team that'll keep their division rivals honest in the division title race however and could yet find themselves in the playoffs.
Transactions
Hines, Dutch, 3rd Base - retired
Keefe, Masato, Short Stop - sent to AAA
Coughlan, Charlie, Left Field - sent to AAA
Bournigal, Albie, Centre Field - sent to AAA
Sarrett, Johnathen, Centre Field - retired
Biesh, Kevin, Catcher - called up from LOW
Nussli, Michael, Left Field - called up from LOW
Fry, Carlos, Middle Reliever - retired
Eadie, Kevin, Middle Reliever - called up from LOW
Prediction
Division Place: 2nd
Wins: 76
Grand Rapids Red Dogs
Division Last Season: 2nd
Wins Last Season: 82
Batting
You can expect more of the same from Grand Rapids this season which is a solid batting lineup that’s been bolstered by their major off season trade. In comes Archibald Langer from Quebec who is looking to reignite his career that’s floundered after a promising start. Causing plenty of talk on the radios is return to the low minors of Danny Cairnes, his potential is such that we’re likely see him up in the majors again before the season’s out. Kevin Emmons kept well behind home plate when he got the chance in spring training. He was often called upon when Felix Sweazea took the mound.
Pitching
The best pitching staff in the Farmers East looked better throughout spring. Kewaun Twigg kept the batters off guard by mixing up his pitches well along with Felix Sweazea. Paul Garett gets another chance in the majors at the expense of Jarrod Hauck and should guarantee more innings.
Overall
Grand Rapids is a solid ball club and possibly the best the Framers East has to offer. With their good depth in batting and pitching they’ll be able to survive injuries. They’re our top bet to take the division title.
Transactions
Beletic, Jamie, Left Field - sent to LOW
Cairnes, Danny, Centre Field - sent to LOW
Langer, Archibald, Left Field - traded from Quebec Bulldogs
McClain, Buddy, Centre Field - called up from AAA
Hauck, Jarrod, Middle Reliever - sent to AAA
Garett, Paul, Long Reliever - called up from LOW
Prediction
Division Place: 1st
Wins: 90
Moose Jaw Dragons
Division Last Season: 3rd
Wins Last Season: 63
Batting
The Moose Jaw bats are rapidly becoming something for the top teams to be concerned about, certainly the rest of their division should be worried. Gavin Felsenau, the 4th pick of the 2021 draft, is another player by passing AAA and going straight into the majors. He looked the part in spring training and this St Francis product deserves his shot. 2nd baseman Brendon Eliesser, who was drafted 10th in the 2022 supplemental draft, has been called up to the majors but will struggle to secure a spot in this lineup.
Pitching
Moose Jaw’s pitching however is a work in progress and 2022 looks like it’ll be a year where we get to see some of their future stars. Kalen Parkman, Josias Harve, Fusaburou Shirai and Slade Thomas all showed they’ve made strides over the spring with the 22 year old Kalen Parkman standing out. The 5th pick from the 2018 draft will be looking to tie down the 4th or 5th spot in the starting rotation.
Overall
With one of the youngest teams in Farmers league Moose Jaw will be relying on their ominous batting lineup to hide the inexperience of some of their pitching. They’re probably not ready to take the division title but more often than not they’ll make other teams aware of their credentials.
Transactions
Reynolds, Andres, Catcher - sent to AAA
Robinson, Kinnis, Catcher - sent to AAA
Mereck, Byung-Hyun, 2nd Base - sent to AAA
Johnson, Kid, 3rd Base - sent to AAA
Ammons, Terrance, Short Stop - Retired
TWallace, Reid, Centre Field - sent to AAA
Grilli, David, Right Field - sent to AAA
Sweeten, Clint, Catcher - called up from AAA
Felsenau, Gavin, 2nd Base - called up from AAA
Eliesser, Brendon, 2nd Base - 2022 supplemental draft 10th pick
Hayworth, Johan, Centre Field - called up from LOW
King, Nolan, Centre Field - called up from LOW
Raleigh, Andrew, Centre Field - called up from LOW
Smith, Jose, Centre Field - called up from LOW
Mires, Andrew, Right Field - called up from LOW
Cushilly, Mark, Setup - sent to AAA
Green, Wilbur, Starter - sent to AAA
I'anson, Eric, Bullpen - sent to AAA
Kindell, Charbaseya, Bullpen - sent to AAA
Konerko, Mandy, Long Reliever - sent to AAA
Mitterwald, Bill, Setup - sent to AAA
Harve, Josias, Closer - called up from AAA
Parkman, Kalen, Starter - called up from LOW
Shirai, Fusaburou, Starter - called up from AAA
Thomas, Slade, Setup - called up from AAA
Prediction
Division Place: 3rd
Wins: 74
Sask Yellow Jackets
Division Last Season: 4th
Wins Last Season: 47
Batting
You can feel the vibes coming out of Saskatoon from here in the Sound such is the crop of young players getting their chance with the Yellow Jackets. With the convenient retirements of Dick Morgan and Eldridge Fidsky, Barron Cochrane, 2021’s 1st overall pick, and Avery Caig, 2019’s 4th overall pick, get to terrorise the opposition. Joining them will be 2019’s 4th overall pick, Jory Bawen. The performance of these three, along with left fielder Junior Zellmann, during spring training is only heightening the expectation. Sask also picked up Eitenne Ellis with the 1st pick in this year’s supplemental draft who further increases their depth.
Pitching
While most of the Sask’s pitchers benefited from another year in the majors, they still have some way to go before they’re the draw card at Swarm Park. Sask lost a lot of innings with the retirement of Campbell Braund and it’s Chris Rikitson they’ll turn to for them. Rikitson has an outstanding slider and was clocking 100 mph on his fast ball, he should pitch 200 or so innings this year and improve on his 6 wins and 15 loss 2021 season. Greg Cavanagh is another one to watch as he gets another chance in the closer role. He’s made big improvements since 2020 and we think he may be a surprise success.
Overall
Much like Moose Jaw this is a very young club with batting stronger than pitching. Sask’s batting probably won’t be consistent enough to hide the pitching so this will be a much improved but still a losing season. Plenty to look out for here though.
Transactions
Eiland, Masao, Catcher - sent to AAA
Tetzloff, Cliff, 1st Base - sent to AAA
Morgan, Dick, 1st Base - retired
Alcala, Garth, 2nd Base - sent to AAA
Fidsky, Eldridge, 3rd Base - retired
Cochrane, Barron, 1st Base - called up from LOW
Ellis, Eitenne, 1st Base - 2022 supplemental draft 1st pick
Bawen, Jory, 2nd Base - called up from LOW
Caig, Avery, 3rd Base - called up from LOW
Braund, Campbell, Starter - retired
Gorbous, Roy, Long Reliever - retired
Reaver, Russell, Long Reliever - called up from LOW
Bourne, Rasmus, Long Reliever - called up from AAA
Cavanagh, Greg, Closer - called up from AAA
Prediction
Division Place: 4th
Wins: 65
Yellowknife Bluenotes
Division Last Season: Last (don’t ask how BBPro determines that!)
Wins Last Season: 47
Batting
There's been big changes at Yellowknife during spring training and their batting looks a lot better for it. They’re younger, very young, and a lot better for it. In fact they’re right up there with Sask and Moose Jaw. A big loss from 2021 is right fielder Jim Rock but that gives Fernando Iwuoma another opportunity. He's been banging on the door for a while now. Kirk Swihart, the 5th overall pick from last year’s draft, gets the call up. His ability with the bat was clear to all during spring training but his work behind the catcher’s mask isn't as flash. This will be a similar dilemma to Quebec ... we’ll be keeping a close eye on both these clubs and their choice of catcher. And not to be outdone, Yellowknife also have their next batting sensation coming into the show. Sarnat Dalton, 2020’s 3rd overall pick, starts his major league career. His work at left field is a little sloppy but if continues his spring training form during the regular season we think the crowd will forgive him.
Pitching
We’ve cast our eye over some fine pitching rosters so far and this isn’t one of them. It’s terrible. But to their credit they’re a little better than last season. 2020’s Terry Barrich starting experiment didn’t work so Yellowknife will definitely pick up some wins on the back of his replacement, Sam Williams, in 2022. After a long wait, John Hakim, the 2014 2nd draft pick, gets his chance and he looks like he’ll do a lot better than Enrique Anteliz. He just needs to forget about that fast ball.
Overall
Yellowknife’s batting is going in the right direction while their pitching is a headache. They do however have the best minor league pitching in the Farmers league and so we expect some of these young guys to get their chance during the season. If they did that early enough we could see them climb out of the cellar.
Transactions
Dilcher, Rhett, Catcher - retired
DeJean, Sol, 2nd Base - sent to AAA
Paul, Clinton, 2nd Base - sent to AAA
Baumbeck, Iestyn, Left Field - sent to AAA
Bray, Mike, Centre Field - retired
Finlayson, Gary, Right Field - sent to AAA
Rock, Jim, Right Field - retired
Swihart, Kirk, Catcher - called up from AAA
Belinsky, Earl, 2nd Base - called up from AAA
Flagg, David, 3rd Base - called up from AAA
Dalton, Sarnat, Left Field - called up from AAA
Tabara, Lathan, Left Field - called up from AAA
Iwuoma, Fernando, Right Field - called up from AAA
Anteliz, Enrique, Closer - sent to AAA
Barrich, Terry, Starter - sent to AAA
Hakim, John, Closer - called up from AAA
Hendricks, George, Starter - called up from AAA
Neater, Winston, Closer - called up from AAA
Williams, Sam, Starter - called up from AAA
Prediction
Division Place: Last (don’t ask how I determine that!)
Wins: 54
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