Youngest player back with team

By David Dorsey
Fort Myers News Press

The Fort Myers Miracle have made a flurry of roster moves this week, bringing back some familiar faces and bringing in a new catcher who set a Miracle milestone two years ago.

Allen De San Miguel, a native of Success, Australia, became the youngest player to wear a uniform for the Miracle at the age of 17 in 2005.

Now 19, De San Miguel has been promoted from low-Class A Beloit to the Miracle. Unfortunately for the Miracle and De San Miguel, he suffered a broken pinky on his left, catching hand on Sunday and will be put on the disabled list.

"He's going to be out for awhile," Miracle manager Kevin Boles said. "He jammed his glove down. His finger was black and blue."

Alexander Soto has been summoned from the Gulf Coast League to fill in for De San Miguel at catcher.

De San Miguel was called up to take the place of Caleb Moore, who was hitting .244 with one home run and 10 RBI in 49 games. Moore was sent to low-Class A Elizabethton, where he will learn to be a pitcher.

"He had pitched in college," Boles said of Moore. "We always knew he had a real good arm. We had him throw a couple of bullpens in our workouts."

Starting pitcher Kyle Waldrop, a first-round draft pick in 2004 out of Farragut (Tenn.) High School, has rejoined the Miracle. He had spent 11 games with Double-A New Britain, where he compiled a 5-6 record and a 5.34 ERA. He posted a 4-2 record and a 2.86 ERA before being promoted to New Britain.

Miracle pitchers Oswaldo Sosa and Yohan Pino were promoted to New Britain.

Their departures mean the pitching rotation in Fort Myers will be comprised of Waldrop, Jay Rainville, Jeff Manship, Zach Ward and Errol Simonitsch, who is recovering from an injury. Simonitsch is the only Miracle player on the Minnesota Twins 40-man roster.

PLAYER OF THE WEEK

The Twins named Miracle infielder Brian Dinkelman their minor league player of the week for July 14-20. Dinkelman, 23, hit .407 in six games with two home runs and six RBI. The eighth-round draft pick in 2006 out of McKendree College in Illinois was promoted from low-Class A Beloit on June 23. He's hitting .330 in 26 games with four homers and 14 RBI.

STAYING ALERT

The death of Tulsa Drillers coach Mike Coolbaugh on Sunday after being hit by a line drive has been the talk of minor league baseball, Boles said. Coolbaugh, whose brother, Scott, played against the Miracle while in the minors in the mid-1990s, was struck in the head by a line drive as he stood in the first-base coach's box according to Associated Press reports. "It's scary, because we're out on the field, and we're unprotected," said Boles, who coaches third base for the Miracle. "Baseballs are coming at you at a high velocity, from pitchers and from the bat. It's a serious business, and it's scary. I feel very sad that that happened. I can't imagine what that was like, witnessing that. You're alert every pitch, but there are some times when you just can't get out of the way. I've been hit a few times. I've been very fortunate so far. You're coaching with no protection. You are exposed.

"It's saddening. It hurts to see a coach and his family to go through that."

Coolbaugh was 35. He is survived by his wife, Mandy, and two young sons, Joseph and Jacob. Mandy Coolbaugh is expecting another child in October.