Rays 2008 Minor League Awards

From the press release: The Tampa Bay Rays today named outfielder Fernando Perez Minor League Player of the Year and left-handed pitcher David Price Minor League Pitcher of the Year. The Rays also announced the 2008 players and pitchers of the year for each of their eight minor league affiliates.

By affiliate, with details on the DSL and VSL guys you may not know much about:

Durham Bulls
Player of the Year: INF Dan Johnson
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Mitch Talbot

Montgomery Biscuits
Player of the Year: INF Chris Nowak
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Wade Davis

Vero Beach Devil Rays
Player of the Year: OF Ryan Royster
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Jeremy Hellickson

Columbus Catfish
Player of the Year: OF Reid Fronk
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Jesse Darcy

Hudson Valley Renegades
Player of the Year: OF Kyeong Kang
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Nick Barnese

Princeton Rays
Player of the Year: INF Elias Otero
Pitcher of the Year: LHP Matt Moore

Dominican Summer League
Player of the Year: OF Cesar Guillen
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Juan Wilsino

Cesar Guillen, 19, led the Rays Dominican team with a .343 batting average (3rd in the DSL) and led the league with 70 hits. He led his team in almost every other offensive category including slugging (.461), on-base percentage (.407), doubles (14), and RBI (36). He stole 14 bases which was 3rd best on the team and was tied for 3rd with two home runs.

Juan Wilsino, 19, went 3-1 with a team-leading 2.04 ERA for the Rays DSL squad. His three wins tied him for 2nd best on the team. In his 11 starts he pitched a team-high 57.1 innings while striking out 38 (T-2nd on team) and walked 11.

Venezuelan Summer League
Player of the Year: C Alejandro Torres
Pitcher of the Year: RHP Deivis Mavares

Alejandro Torres, 19, led the Rays Venezuelan team with a .316 average (5th in the VSL), 83 hits (2nd in VSL), and 43 RBI (2nd in VSL). He was 2nd on the team with 14 doubles and 3rd on the team with five home runs and a .359 on-base pct.

Deivis Mavares, 22, made 27 appearances out of the bullpen for the Rays Venezuelan Summer League team. He went 5-2 with a 1.48 ERA. His five wins were tied for the team-high. He struck out 62 and walked 17 in 48.2 innings (11.5 SO/9 IP). He allowed 30 hits and only 11 runs (eight earned) in the season. He went 6-for-9 in save opportunities.

And finally, Montgomery's Matt Spring (pictured after late-season promotion) has been named the winner of the second annual Erik Walker Community Champion Award. The award recognizes a Rays minor league player who exemplifies teamwork, sportsmanship and community involvement, attributes exhibited by Rays minor league pitcher Erik Walker, who died tragically in October 2006 in a canoeing accident.

Each of the Rays six minor league affiliates nominated a candidate for the award. Nominees embodied the qualities of Erik, recognized as someone who was a great teammate, a caring person and who enriched the lives of people in need and inspired others to do the same. The other five finalists were: Josh Johnson (Durham), Chuck Tiffany (Vero Beach), Stephen Vogt (Columbus), Tyler Hauschild (Hudson Valley) and Joey Dettrich (Princeton).