Finally, the member of that team who has had the most success in the bigs in Andres Gimenez. Gimenez started his Big League career with the Mets but was quickly traded to the Cleveland Indians (now Guardians) in exchange for Francisco Lindor and Carlos Carrasco. Since being traded to Cleveland, Gimenez moved to the other side of the bag and has become an All-Star (2022), two-time Gold Glover and most recently a Platinum Glove player in the American League. The young player’s success earned him a seven-year $106.5 million contract that runs through 2029 with a team option for the 2030 season as he has become one of the faces of the American League Central Division.
Gimenez led the Fireflies qualifying hitters that season with a .265 average, but Dash Winningham was the star with the power display, he hit 13 homers, giving him a still team-record 25 blasts on his career. The real star of this 2017 Fireflies team was pitching. Jordan Humphreys accumulated a single-season record 10 wins for the Fireflies to pair with a stunning 1.42 ERA in 11 starts. The club also had a ridiculous bullpen tandem with Adam Atkins and Adonis Uceta combining for 40 appearances and a 1.30 ERA to go along with a 0.92 WHIP while in the Soda City. The squad had the talent, but after a few call-ups, they were unable to make a post-season push. So what have we seen in the early parts of the 2024 campaign that shows this club could be a playoff contender? How about starting with an incredible similarity between the two teams. This 2024 Fireflies bullpen is absolutely loaded. As a team across the first 14 games, the pen has a 2.60 ERA with 65 punchouts in 55.1 innings. Jacob Widener has yet to allow an earned run and there are four separate pitchers who have recorded a save in the team’s first nine wins. Talk about depth beyond the starters! Offensively, there are two streaks to look out for. First, Austin Charles is riding a nine- game hitting streak since his last game Friday. It’s the second-longest hitting streak in the Carolina League this year and he is hitting .419 with a ridiculous 12 RBI on the run. After a slow start, the 20-year-old third baseman has been the hottest player in the League. If that weren’t enough for you, Blake Mitchell has been an on-base machine since April 6. He has reached safely in 12-straight, including his first-career three-hit game Saturday. While his hitting has been impressive, the tell-tale sign that he was ready for this jump is that he has 15 walks in that 12-game span. His careful eye at the plate has given him a .500 on-base percentage since the opening series. Yeah, 15 games out of 66 is still a long way from the finish line, but nearly a quarter of the way through the first half of the season, this Fireflies team looks as prepared as any since 2016 to make a big splash. There’s only one way to find out though. Follow along at Segra Park and online at ColumbiaFireflies.com to see if this is the club that can accomplish something that hasn’t been done for exactly 20 years in the Soda City.
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