Oilers bring back Barraclough, Pilots reveal pitching coach

Barraclough is a legit prospect and will
likely return for the Oilers in 2010.
Photo Credit: OilersBaseball.com

Two transactions of note were made early this week: the Peninsula Oilers have signed Kyle Barraclough for his second year with the team, and the Anchorage Glacier Pilots announced Tom Davis as their pitching coach for 2010.

Barraclough's return is a good sign for the Oilers, as he was one of the studs of their very talented pitching staff in 2009. On the year he posted a 1.42 ERA and held opposing batters to an absolutely tiny .178 average against. The right-handed sophomore out of St. Mary's College made nine starts, threw 57 innings, and posted a .930 WHIP.

Barraclough was rated as the #9 prospect in the ABL last season by Baseball America. He'll be a real draft prospect in 2011 as he has already put together a solid foundation. He compliments his 90-ish fastball with a change-up and curve for which he has a great feel. We'll have to wait until we see more of the Oilers roster this year, but he's definitely on the short list to be a Player to Watch.


The Glacier Pilots' new coach Tom Davis was once a pitching prospect himself, until his career as a player ended before it started when he blew out his shoulder. Since then, Davis has made a career for himself as a paramedic -- which is a very noble and terribly under-compensated job, if you want my opinion, but that has nothing to do with baseball -- while coaching pitching to teams and individuals on the side. Davis is a good friend of new Pilots manager Yogi Cox and according to the Pilots' bio is a good teacher of pitching mechanics.

As I write this, I've noticed that the Goldpanners have made a flurry of moves. But we'll take a look at that more later this week. Keep your eyes peeled for that, and the latest preseason wrap, in the coming days.