Irvine’s dream of repeating fell short last season when Plymouth eliminated them in 6 games in the playoffs. The team is struggling to meet the budget and is over budget at the moment which sadly did not allow the team to really compete in free agency nor in International free agency which was annoying. Team management hopes to avoid this scenario in future years but as player demands rise, financial decisions become more challenging (at least in most cases – Campos’ demand of 24 mil per season over 5 seasons was clearly out of whack and so he sits in free agency at a bargain rate of 6 mil for a season).
Announcing your 2028 Irvine Gang Green Starting 25!
PITCHING ROTATION:
- Koyama – Nothing needs to be said. Hell, he won Cy Young with a record under .500 last season. The team obviously hopes the offense does a better job supporting him this season.
- Chwa – Another homegrown talent, Chwa has been with Irvine his whole career where he’s been a solid #2 with a propensity to give up the long ball which hurt us last year in the playoffs. Baffin still hates him for his 10 inning no hitter a couple seasons ago in the playoffs.
- Ono – Ono was out for much of the season last year and only came back to start a couple games before the playoffs. In a controversial move, he started and lost game 6 against Plymouth last season when Irvine chose not to start Koyama who was at 75%. Honestly, the offense didn’t do much that game anyways, so its not like Koyama would have won the game for Irvine. He’s not who he once was before his injury, but still looks to be a solid #3.
- Marrero – The One that Got Away from Vista. Marrero was a Rule V pick up from Vista a couple seasons ago when I was able to hide him on my pro roster and spot start him. Now, he’s looking like a future #2 or 3 and was solid sliding into a permanent spot in the rotation halfway through last season and into the playoffs.
- Machine Gun Curtis – This rookie starts the season in the #5 spot. Performance will determine if he remains in this spot or if he is challenged by this year’s Rule V pick up Alfredo Montalvo who was selected from division rival Southern Cal. Neither pitcher really took this challenge on during Spring Training as both posted horrendous ERAs. However, Curtis is a lefty and pitched somewhat well in a short window in Aug/Sep last season.
BULLPEN:
Fisher – Remains the venerated and proven closer in Irvine since he was acquired from SCal several seasons ago. The team hopes to see him post 40+ saves this season. He has lost a wee bit of velocity in the last couple seasons, but remains one of the most proven and dependable in the game as long as the game state is a save opportunity.
Gonzalez – Will be the set up man for Fisher in Irvine. He was very inconsistent last year after being acquired from then LCC and disappointed in the playoffs as well. The team has noticed that new acquisitions sometimes take a year to gel in Irvine and hopefully that is the case here and he will be the 11 mil dependable setup man instead of the situational 11 mil man.
Montalvo – Long Relief and emergency starter as a Rule V pick. Developed nicely in Spring Training even if his stats have yet to show this. The team is quite curious to see how he does in his role and spot starts. He and Curtis will be partnering on the 5th starter role unless a starter goes down again this year.
Saltines – Saltines is the primary guy out of the bullpen in the middle innings and remains somewhat and enigma. He can be lights out and strike out the side one moment and lose focus and give up a bunch of runs the next. Overall, he’s been quite good for Irvine and team is happy to have him on the team as he’s been given more responsibility each season.
Kong – He will serve as the primary situational lefty out of the pen this year. Still has some talent although he was not as dependable last season as the previous year.
Jackson – Another long man and situational starter in the pen who is a lefty. He’s not going to strike out a lot of guys, but he just finds ways to get guys out and win. If neither Curtis nor Montalvo claim the #5 spot, Jackson will be the man to take on the role. He’s been a proven starting pitcher in the past.
Wilson – Joe was another Rule V pickup a couple seasons ago but suffered a season long injury last season. The team will give him a chance to win a spot in the bullpen this season but he will not be given a long leash and could be sent down/waived/traded. He pitched well in 2026 and looked to be on the way to winning a spot on the team in 2027 before being derailed by injury.
STARTING LINEUP:
C – Doherty continues to backstop the team. His ability to hit for contact and get on base as well as playing solid behind the plate has made him a reliable starter for IRV the last few years despite his proclivity hitting into double plays.
1B – Quinones returns and looks to find his swing after a horrendous 2027 season where he struggled to hit the Mendoza line and barely led the team in homeruns until a late push in Aug/Sep. The team hopes to see him return to his MVP form or thereabouts in order for the team to be truly competitive. He was looking like he had found his stroke against Plymouth until he was taken out by one of their thugs.
2B – Jorge Martinez returns for another year but not at the bargain rate of last season. The team needs him to be getting on base and hitting for power with the loss of Campos. He’ll be starting at 2B this season since last year’s free agent acquisition Sanchez disappointed and then got himself hurt.
SS – Ronnie Brown, acquired from BOS last season will start the season at SS assuming he’s healthy. He’s currently on the DL and Aaron Wilson will cover for him during the recovery. Brown did a great job getting on base last season and setting the table and the team looks for him to do much the same again this season at the top of the order while playing excellent defense.
3B – Jose Salazar sometimes feels like Irvine’s best kept secret at 3B. He never has high power numbers so he doesn’t get the acclaim other 3B do, but he’s grown into a very competent hitter and on base machine along with Gold Glove defense. He had a rough playoffs last season but has shown continued growth otherwise the last few seasons and was signed to a extension reflective of his ability.
LF – Yamamoto earned a starting spot in the outfield late last season and will finally start the season penciled in as a starter this season. Due to his contract demands, this could well be his final season in Irvine as well but the team hopes he can provide some of the offense to cover the loss of Campos.
CF – Tony Tavarez is known to be a speed demon and have a great glove. His hitting, on the other hand, is quite streaky and never consistent. Don’t be surprised if Wagner takes over this spot or they platoon once he returns from the DL.
RF – Buck Jones is still a player the team is waiting to break out and define himself as a star. He’s been brilliant at times and then injury strikes and there is a set back. Is this the year? Jones is really the best offensive threat on the team based on potential…
DH – Medina had a career year a couple seasons ago as a leadoff hitter and the front office foolishly signed him to a long term contract at a salary rate that is no longer commiserate of his ability. He showed flashes of returning to being a solid hitter late last season and the team hopes he finds himself again.
BENCH:
C – Salas returns for another season as backup. This might be his last season in that role depending on how the season goes as he hits free agency.
2B – Jose Sanchez returns from injury and is backing up Martinez. He hasn’t fully gotten back into baseball form and playing time for him looks limited at the moment. He might be given opportunity as DH from time to time as well as spelling Martinez. However, if he hits .230 again with less than stellar D, he will be viewed as a disappointment again.
SS – Aaron Wilson is starting the season as the SS but is really only there for his glove. His offensive abilities are quite limited although he does come up with a big hit from time to time.
3B – Don Hooper breaks camp with the Gang Green but will likely be the first man sent down once Ronnie Brown is ready to return. Hooper had a solid camp but is a 27 year old career minor leaguer to this point with limited ability. In a reserve role, he might be just fine.
OF – Tom Baker is the reserve outfielder for the time being and will be seeing time all over the field. A former Rule V pick, he hasn’t quite developed as the team hoped, but he has been more than serviceable as a utility role player.
DISABLED LIST:
Ronnie Brown will be returning shortly to take over at SS assuming no setbacks.
Tyler Wagner will also return to the outfield in a week or two assuming on setbacks.
German Perez won ROY last season as a Rule V pickup from Greenville and might not have a spot in the rotation when he recovers. Life is tough sometimes.
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