Delmarva Shorebirds roster update

Here is an update on the Single-A Delmarva Shorebirds roster, courtesy of Shorebirds public relations. The Delmarva Shorebirds, the Class-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles, are excited to unveil the 2011 "Break Camp Roster" highlighted by Orioles first-round draft pick Manny Machado. The prospect-laden roster features four players among the farm system's top 30 prospects according to Baseball America; Machado (No. 1), Mychal Givens (7), Jonathan Schoop (10) and Trent Mummey (16). The Shorebirds open the season against the Greensboro Grasshoppers on Thursday, April 6 at 7:05 p.m. The current roster totals 28 players, three over the South Atlantic League maximum of 25. The opening day roster will be released later today. The 2011 roster features 15 players that have played for the Shorebirds in past seasons. "I think we have a nice mixture of experience and youth," said Shorebirds skipper Ryan Minor. "Fans will certainly enjoy watching the 2011 club compete on a night-in and night-out basis." INFIELD Machado, the third overall pick in the 2010 First Year Player Draft, is expected to captain the Shorebirds infield this season. He is rated as the top prospect in the Orioles chain by Baseball America. The Hialeah, Florida native is the highest overall draft pick to ever play for the Delmarva Shorebirds. He surpasses Adam Loewen, who was selected with the fourth overall pick in the 2002 draft and then played on Delmarva in 2004. As a senior at Brito High School in Miami, Machado batted .639 with 12 home runs and 17 stolen bases. The 18-year old batted .367 this past summer to lead the 18-and-under USA National Team to a gold medal at the Pan American Junior Championship. The Shorebirds infield will be full of young prospects in addition to Machado. Mychal Givens, who played seven games with the Shorebirds last season, is back with the club to start the 2011 season. He is the seventh best prospect in the system according to Baseball America. Givens was the Orioles second round selection in the 2009 draft out of Tampa, Florida. The 20-year old showed promise towards the end of the 2010 season when he batted .364 (12-33) with three home runs in eight games with the Aberdeen Ironbirds. The third young prospect in the infield will be Jonathan Schoop, the 10th best prospect in the system according to Baseball America. The 19-year old played over three levels last season including 39 games with the Bluefield Orioles. He batted .316 with 16 RBIs in the Appalachian League. The rest of the Shorebirds infield includes Mike Flacco, the younger brother of Baltimore Ravens quarterback Joe Flacco, Ty Kelly, who returns for a second season with the Shorebirds and Adam Gaylord, who played his college baseball at Stanford. Kelly was a key contributor for the Shorebirds in 2010. He batted .259 with a team high 126 hits and 68 runs scored. The Tracy, California native also led the club with 58 RBIs and finished second on the team with 30 doubles. OUTFIELD The Shorebirds outfield will feature a mixture of youth and experience in 2011. Trent Mummey, who played in 13 games for the Shorebirds at the tail-end of the 2010 season, will anchor the outfield. Mummey is the #16 rated prospect in the Orioles system according to Baseball America. He was selected in the fourth round of the 2010 First Year Player Draft. The 22-year old hit .366 with 17 home runs in his senior season at Auburn. Two familiar faces return to the Shorebirds outfield. Brian Conley, who has played in 127 games for the Shorebirds over two seasons, returns to Delmarva. The former Towson University star was a South Atlantic League All-Star last season. Conley hit .298 with 15 RBIs before the all-star break. The 24-year old was promoted to Frederick late in the 2010 season and played in 16 games in the Carolina League. The other veteran in the outfield will be Kieron Pope, who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2005 First Year Player Draft. Pope hit 12 home runs for the Shorebirds in 2008 and batted .250 with six home runs for the club in 2010. The other two outfielders will be newcomers Kipp Schutz and Brenden Webb. Schutz, a 19th round selection out of the University of Indiana, was a New York-Penn League All-Star last season for the Aberdeen Ironbirds. He batted .313 with four home runs and 42 RBIs. Webb was a 30th round selection in 2009 out of Palomar JC. The 21-year old batted .227 with five home runs last season in Bluefield. CATCHERS All three Shorebirds catchers on the 2011 "Preseason Workout Roster" played in Delmarva last season. Justin Dalles, a 6th round selection in 2009, played in 48 games for the Shorebirds last season. He batted .208 with four home runs and 14 RBIs. The 22-year old played his college baseball for South Carolina. Michael Ohlman, who played in 34 games for the Shorebirds last season, returns for his third season in the Orioles organization. The 20-year old batted .174 for the Shorebirds in the first half of the season before being transferred to Bluefield, where he hit .233 in 50 games to close the season. Ohlman was selected in the 11th round of the 2009 First Year Player Draft. The third catcher is Kyle Moore, who played in 16 games for the Shorebirds towards the end of 2010. The former University of Alabama catcher batted .213 in 47 at-bats for the Shorebirds. PITCHERS The "Preseason Workout Roster" features 14 pitchers, six of which saw action for the Shorebirds last season. The returning pitchers include: Scott Copeland, Luis Noel, Ryan Palsha, Clay Schrader, Aaron Swenson and David Walters. Amongst the returnees, Noel has the most impressive resume with the Shorebirds. In 2008, he posted a 10-8 record with a 3.96 ERA in 27 starts for the Shorebirds. Last season, he went 4-2 with 2.59 ERA before earning a promotion to Frederick. The newcomers to the Shorebirds pitching staff are: Tim Adleman, Tim Berry, Jason Gurka, Brandon Holloway, Jarret Martin, Chris Petrini, Jacob Pettit and Cameron Roth. The Shorebirds open the South Atlantic League portion of the schedule on Thursday, April 7 against the Greensboro Grasshoppers. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium. Former Orioles catcher Chris Hoiles will be in attendance for a special meet and greet in the Executive Club. For tickets and more information, call the Shorebirds Box Office at 410-219-3112.