Boulders Shake Up Team Roster

Before the start of the third Rockland Boulders home game tonight, the team shook things up by releasing four players and adding four new players to the roster.

After Friday night’s 7-3 loss in the fog at Provident Bank Park in Pomona to the New Jersey Jackals, the Boulders released first baseman Norm Hutchins — who scored the first run at the new stadium on opening night Thursday — infielder Bridger Hunt, infielder Dustin Smith and relief pitcher Justin Ottman.

The Boulders have in their place added infielder Cristobal Santana, middle infielder Ray Stokes, pitcher Drew Coffey and infielder Deybis Benitez.

Cristobal Santana most recently played for the Tucson Toros of the Golden Baseball League. The Dominican native began his professional baseball career as an 18-year old in the Chicago White Sox minor league system in 2000, playing rookie ball for the Bristol White Sox. In the 2010 season with the Toros, Santana batted .359 with six home runs, 61 RBIs and 50 runs scored in 79 games. He is known for flashing a phenomenal glove at the corner infield positions. He has also played in the Arizona Diamondbacks, Oakland Athletics and Cleveland Indians organizations during his career.

Ray Stokes comes to the Boulders from the Fort Wayne Wizards of the Midwest League, an A-league affiliate of the San Diego Padres. Stokes was drafted by the Houston Astros in the 41^st round of the 2003 MLB Amateur Draft, but decided to attend California State University, East Bay. He was drafted again by the San Diego Padres in the 16^th round of the 2006 MLB Amateur Draft. He most recently played professional baseball with the Wizards in 2008, when he played just six games, but batted .357. Stokes is a speedy player and could be a base stealing threat for the Boulders.

Drew Coffey pitched for the Boulders’ Can-Am League rival, the Newark Bears, last season when they played in the Atlantic League. The lefty was originally drafted by the Kansas City Royals in 18^th round of the 2004 MLB Amateur Draft out of high school. After two years in the Royals farm system, Coffey jumped around between independent baseball and low A ball, playing in the Colorado Rockies system for two seasons. He spent time with the Yuma Scorpions of the Golden League and the Bears in 2010. He pitched a combined 44.0 innings with both teams, racking up a 4.91 ERA in 26 games striking out 29 batters and finishing with a record of 1-1.

Deybis Benitez hails from Venezuela, where he started his professional baseball career with the Seattle Mariners’ Venezuelan Summer League affiliate team. He has a professional career batting average of .240 with five home runs and 70 RBIs in 207 games. He has reached as high as the Tacoma Rainiers, the Mariners’ AAA ball club, back in 2008. Benitez adds depth to the infield, has also played some outfield throughout his career, and even pitched once for Seattle’s High-A team, the High Desert Mavericks.