Coyotes looking to replace 2007 star

EDINBURG - Even without watching one Edinburg Coyotes game during the 2007 season, looking at the statistics shows the impact of shortstop Nelson Teilon.

Teilon led United League Baseball with a .364 batting average, 95 RBIs, 136 hits and a league-best .620 slugging percentage. His OPS (on-base percentage plus slugging) was 1.016, which is especially impressive since anything above .850 is considered good production.

For those reasons, replacing Teilon, who signed in February with Fort Worth of the American Association, is a priority for manager Vince Moore and the Coyotes.

The problem is, Moore knows replacing a player like Teilon and his production is next to impossible.

"That's a hard bat to replace. The only thing you can do is just hope for somebody to maintain a little bit," Moore said. "That's a great bat. He had a tremendous year last year for us, but you know those things come and go. We're just going to go out there and try to fill the hole. Like I said, trying to replace him and fill those shoes is going to be kind of hard to do.

"But you never know. Just put those guys out there and hope that someone can fill those shoes. Those are big shoes. Hope somebody can fill them, but if not hope that somebody can go out there and do well."

One of the players the Coyotes are counting on is 26-year-old infielder Mayobanex Santana, who has spent time in four major league organizations and should start the season at third base.

Despite his thin 6-foot-3 frame, which is generously listed as lifting 180 pounds, Santana has the potential to at least somewhat offset the loss of Teilon.

During spring training, Santana has shown the kind of power that explains why those four MLB organizations (Arizona, Oakland, Cleveland and the Chicago White Sox) have signed him to deals.

Another is 23-year-old first baseman Logan Wood, who was acquired in February from El Paso of the American Association.

"All I've heard are good things about him," Coyotes outfielder Eric Gonzalez said about Santana. "And he looks real good."

As for Wood, Gonzalez was just as complimentary, saying, "He has a hell of a stick. He just hits some balls that you won't be able to find them."

Gonzalez, meanwhile, also will be counted on to somewhat offset the loss of Teilon. In 2007, he slumped to a .272 batting average but still managed to have a .414 on-base percentage while spending much of his time in the infield. In 2008, Gonzalez is expected to move back to the outfield.

Moore's only worry about Gonzalez was his health and game-shape, which Gonzalez admitted isn't quite at 100 percent.

"The main thing is just to get him loose and try to keep him healthy the whole year," Moore said. "Eric will be fine as long as he stays healthy. He'll be fine once he'll loosen up. Eric's going to bring me what he brings me every year. His struggle last year was almost .280. I'm not worried about Eric performance-wise, just kind of worried about his health a little bit."

Another familiar Eric will lead the starting rotation once he gets a little bit healthier. Eric Montoya, who appeared in only 16 games last season partly because of arm issues, is back, and along with Aaron Guerra they are two of the top returning starting pitchers.

But Montoya's progress this spring has been slowed by his arm, which isn't quite at full-strength. Because of that, he won't make the Coyotes' opening-day start.

"He's not quite healthy but I think he'll be ready probably a week into the season," Moore said. "I don't think he'll be 100 percent his first start, but after his first start I think he'll be fine."

If Moore is saying the word "health" a lot, there's a reason. Last year, the Coyotes' staff was greatly affected by injuries, something Moore obviously doesn't want to see repeated.

"I think our main thing is staying healthy," Moore said. "The problem we had last year is we just weren't healthy. We had a lot of guys banged up. Montoya and Dario (Ferrand), we just had guys hurt, so the whole thing is to just try to keep those guys healthy and go out and pitch the way they're capable of pitching."

Brian Sandalow covers the Edinburg Coyotes for The Monitor. You can reach him at (956) 683-4436.

TOP 5 PLAYERS TO WATCH
P Julio Castro
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 210
Castro led the Coyotes with 19 saves, a total that was third in the ULB. Castro also sported an impressive 57 strikeouts in only 39 innings of work last season. The righty should anchor the Coyotes' bullpen this season.

P Aaron Guerra
Height: 6-foot-1
Weight: 195
The right-handed pitcher started last season in the bullpen but moved to the rotation. Guerra led the Coyotes with nine wins and had an ERA of 3.68. The UTPA grad is expected to be one of the Coyotes' top starters in 2008.

P Eric Montoya
Height: 5-foot-10
Weight: 160
Montoya was expected to be the Coyotes' No. 1 starting pitcher last season but dealt with arm troubles. When Montoya returns to full strength, he should be one of the leaders of the Edinburg rotation.

INF/OF Eric Gonzalez
Height: 6-foot-0
Weight: 200
Not only is Gonzalez the team leader, he's also the Coyotes' best returning hitter. His .272 average represented a slump from 2006 but could partly be explained by his time spent in the infield. He should spend most of his time this season in the outfield.

INF Mayobanex Santana
Height: 6-foot-3
Weight: 195
Santana has spent eight years in affiliated baseball, playing in organizations including the Chicago White Sox, Arizona, Cleveland and Oakland. He is a first baseman, but will start off at third.

Source: The Monitor