Southern Maryland Blue Crabs Manager Butch Hobson has announced significant additions to the team’s pitching staff, adding starter Craig Anderson, as well as relievers Gerry Dunn and Jeff Williams. A catcher, Christian Lopez, has also been added to the roster.
Anderson, a lefty, is a native of Australia with significant Triple-A time in the Seattle Mariners and Baltimore Orioles organizations. The southpaw also has a decorated international career as one of his country’s top hurlers, suiting up for the Australian national team in the 2004 Olympics, and the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classic Tournaments. An 11-year veteran, Anderson had his rights acquired this offseason from the Brockton Rox of the Can-Am League where he played last season, for future considerations. All told for Anderson’s career, he is an impressive 94-65 with a 3.87 ERA in 260 professional games (238 starts) in nearly 1,500 innings pitched.
Also acquired from Brockton this winter for future considerations was right-handed reliever Gerry Dunn, who has also officially signed. Dunn, who had 24 saves each of the last two seasons in Brockton, is entering his eighth professional season after being originally drafted by the Detroit Tigers in 2000.
Joining Dunn in the bullpen is righty Jeff Williams, who has also excelled as a closer during his career. Making his professional debut with the Traverse City Beach Bums of the Frontier League the past three seasons, Williams accumulated 28 saves. After parlaying that effort into a contract with the New York Yankees, he finished last season at Class A Charleston (SC) where he picked up three more saves, and also had a brief stint in Triple-A with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre with the Yankees.
Even as early as February the Blue Crabs bullpen is looking very deep to begin the season, boasting three arms with significant closing experience. With the return of right-handed closer Jim Ed Warden (46 professional saves), Dunn (50 pro saves) and Williams (31 career saves), the bullpen already boasts a total of 127 career saves, giving Butch Hobson a multitude of late-inning options.
The team has also announced the signing of right-handed catcher Christian Lopez, who is entering his seventh professional season. Originally selected in the sixth round of the 2003 draft by the Tampa Bay Rays, Lopez has advanced as far as Triple-A Durham in his career and has 366 professional games of experience behind the plate. He finished the 2009 season with the Joliet Jackhammers of the Northern League.