How The 2008 Playoff Teams Were Built

The post-season picture is complete! The division champion Newark Sugar Bears and Vancouver Iron Fist have first-round byes while four teams battle it out in the wild card round: The third-seeded Las Vegas Rat Pack take on the sixth-seeded Hillsborough Hired Hitmen, and the fourth-place Philadelphia Endzone Animals match up against the fifth-seeded D.C. Bushslappers.

Let's take a look at how the playoff teams were built.


Pre-Season In-Season Years on Team
Team Protected Drafted Signed Trade 2+ 3+ 5+ Longest
Newark 14 12 4 0 18 10
6 C.Jones (13)
M.Ramirez (12)
R.Johnson (12)
Vancouver 15 11
2
2
18
10
7
Maddux (16)
B.Wagner  (11)
Alou (7)

Las Vegas

12
6
4
8
10
5
0
F.Thomas (4)
Four tied (3)
Philadelphia 14 6
4
6
13
7
5
Rolen (10)
J.Drew (8)
Pujols (7)

D.C.

11
12
6
1
8
3
NA
Beltran (3)
J.Reyes (3)
Escobar (3)

Hillsborough

15 10
5
0
12
6
NA
Sabathia (4)
Five tied (3)

"How Acquired" reflects only the most recent acquisition of the player; for example, a player who was drafted, released and then re-signed is considered a "free agent" acquisition. "Years With Team" counts only a player's DMBL service time and does not include years missed due to injuries, ineligiblity or the minor leagues. For example, Newark's Hideki Matsui has been with the Sugar Bears since 2003, but has just three years of service time -- he was an ineligible prospect in 2003, and missed all of 2007 due to injury.

Newark Sugar Bears (1st place, 114-48)
Hanover Division champions for a DMBL record eighth straight year, the defending DMBL Champions are largely intact, Chipper Joneswith six players hoping to be a part of history as the league's only "five-peat" champions. The Sugar Bears also have four players -- Chipper Jones, Manny Ramirez, Bobby Abreu and Randy Johnson -- who also picked up a pair of rings from the '01-'02 Sugar Bear run. Jones and Ramirez are the only two players remaining who have been members of all seven of Newark's league champion teams. (Johnson, who has been with the team since '96, missed the entire '97 season due to injury.) Jones and Johnson are the only remaining members of the inaugural 1996 Sugar Bears.

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH NWK
Bobby Abreu
OF
protected
10 (99-08)
Jack Cust
OF
draft (1st/14)
1 (08)
Mark DeRosa
2/3/O protected
2 (07-08)
Mike Fontenot
2B
draft (Supp/13)
1 (08)
Troy Glaus
3B
draft (7th/98)
1 (08)
Carlos Guillen
1/S protected
7 (02-08)
Chipper Jones
3B
protected
13 (96-08)
Hideki Matsui
OF
protected
4 (04-06, 08)
Yadier Molina
C
draft (12th/168)
1 (08)
Manny Ramirez OF
protected 12 (97-08)
Jarrod Saltalamacchia
1/C
draft (2nd/28)
1 (08)
Luke Scott
OF
draft (9th/126)
1 (08)
Marco Scutaro
2/3/S
draft (8th/112)
1 (08)
Matt Stairs
1/O
draft (3rd/42)
2 (07-08)
Nick Swisher
1/O
protected
3 (06-08)
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH NWK
Joaquin Benoit
RP protected
2 (07-08)
Jared Burton
RP
draft (5th/70)
1 (08)
Dave Bush
SP free agent (July 6)
4 (05-08)
Manny Delcarmen
RP
draft (2nd/26) 1 (08)
Scott Downs
RP
draft (6th/84)
1 (08)
Randy Johnson
SP protected
12 (96, 98-08)
Chris Ray
RP free agent (June 12)
1 (08)
Joe Saunders
SP free agent (April 18)
2 (07-08)
James Shields SP protected
2 (07-08)
Brian Shouse
RP
draft (10th/140)
1 (08)
John Smoltz
SP protected
8 (00, 02-08)
Rafael Soriano
RP protected
2 (07-08)
Matt Thornton
RP free agent (June 26)
2 (07-08)
Javier Vazquez
SP protected
2 (07-08)
Chien-Ming Wang
SP protected
3 (06-08)

We're all friends here: Newark owner/GM Craig "Butch" Garretson likes having familiar faces around. Of the 30-man roster, only four joined the team after Opening Day -- and of those, only one (Chris Ray) was truly a newcomer. Newark Sugar BearsDave Bush, who has been with the team since 2005, was drafted in the 14th Round (#196 overall), cut in Spring Training and then re-signed in July. The same goes for Joe Saunders, who was taken with the 65th pick in the Supplemental Draft, released, and then brought back a month later. It's the second straight year that Saunders joined the team as a minor league free agent, but then pitched himself into the big league rotation. The other in-season addition, June pick-up Matt Thornton, also had been a member of last year's team... The Sugar Bears have 12 players from their 2008 draft, the most of any playoff team. That doesn't include Bush and Saunders, who were drafted, released and then re-signed... The only member of the Protected List no longer with the team is long-time Sugar Bear Nick Johnson, who was released after announcing he will sit out the entire 2009 season to work on his Private Pyle impression. Johnson's release left Newark as the only team in the post-season without an ineligible player on the roster.

Vancouver Iron Fist (2nd place, 104-58)
The Iron Fist missed the playoffs last year, but the Morris Division champions have plenty of post-season experience: Greg MadduxThey were here in '05 and '06, as well as every year between 1991 and 2002. The Fisters return nine players from the '05 wild card team, plus one more who was with the '06 division champs. Three players -- Greg Maddux, Moises Alou and Billy Wagner -- were members of the '02 team. But only Maddux has an Iron Fist World Series ring, as the team hasn't won it all since 1994. (Maddux has two rings, as he also was a member of the '93 team.) Vancouver leads all playoff teams with most five-year players (7) and is tied with Newark for most returning players (18) and most three-year players (10).

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH VAN
Moises Alou
OF
protected
7 (02-08)
Ryan Doumit
C/O draft (4th/55)
1 (08)
Andre Ethier
OF
draft (6th/76)
2 (07-08)
Curtis Granderson
OF
protected 2 (07-08)
Jose Guillen
OF
draft (3rd/40)
2 (07-08)
Todd Helton
1B
protected 1 (08)
Maicer Izturis
2/3S
draft (Supp/18)
2 (07-08)
Jose Lopez
2/3 free agent (May 20)
1 (08)
Mike Lowell
3B protected 3 (06-08)
Victor Martinez
C/1
protected 4 (05-08)
David Ortiz
DH
protected 6 (03-08)
Ryan Spilborghs
OF free agent (April 30)
1 (08)
Chase Utley
2B protected 4 (05-08)
Josh Willingham
OF draft (10th/132)
1 (08)
Michael Young
SS protected 6 (03-08)
Adam Jones
Inelig draft (8th/111)
none
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH VAN
Chad Billingsley
S/R protected
2 (07-08)
Manny Corpas
RP protected
2 (07-08)
Zack Greinke
S/R draft (1st/6)
1 (08)
Matt Herges
RP draft (5th/62)
1 (08)
Rich Hill
SP protected
2 (07-08)
Greg Maddux
SP protected
16 (92-08)
Hideki Okajima
RP draft (2nd/20)
1 (08)
Scott Olsen
SP trade (June 18)
2 (07-08)
Akinori Otsuka
RP trade (July 18)
1 (08)
Jake Peavy
SP protected
5 (04-08)
Troy Percival
RP draft (3rd/29)
1 (08)
Ben Sheets
SP protected
5 (04-08)
Billy Wagner
RP protected
11 (97-00, 02-08)
Hiroki Kuroda
Inelig draft (8th/104)
none

That's why they call 'em 'keepers': Vancouver held onto all 15 players from their protected list, including a guy they acquired shortly before keepers were due -- former Mighty Man Todd Helton. Vancouver Iron FistHelton, who reached the post-season six times as a member of that team, was acquired in an off-season trade. Vancouver GM Yaro Zajac likes bringing back familiar faces. He drafted three players who were members of the '07 squad, and traded for a fourth in SP Scott Olsen. The Iron Fist still have 11 players from this year's draft, second only to the Sugar Bears. One of those 11 is infielder Maicer Izturis, who has the dubious distinction of being the latest draft pick to stick all season with a playoff team. Izturis was taken in the second round of the Supplemental Draft -- the 228th player selected overall. (Newark's Joe Saunders was drafted in the seventh round, #275, but was released before re-signing later.)

Las Vegas Rat Pack (3rd place, 106-56)
The Rat Pack claimed the top wildcard seed as well as the Ian Rintel Award for the Front Office Executive of the Year after the best turn-around in the history of Diamond Mind Baseball. Frank ThomasThe Rats reached the post-season as a No. 5 seed in 2006, but washed out in the first round. Owner/GM/Manager Eric Wickstrom then embarked on the most aggressive rebuilding program in league history, trading away almost everything to focus his resources entirely on the 2008 campaign. The team lost 110 games in 2007, but those days are long forgotten after this year's exhilirating run. Just seven players remain from last year's team; five were with the team for the '06 playoff run. And there's just one player here long enough to have worn a Harrison Rats uniform: Frank Thomas, who played for the team from 2003 to 2005 and returned this year. The Pack's roster includes Rich Harden,a member fo the 2005 and 2006 teams who has missed the last two seasons, but is reportedly in terrific shape and primed for a big year next season... Las Vegas has the most first-year players -- 20 -- of any playoff team. Just five have played three or more years for the franchise, and Thomas is the only player to have been here as many as four years (and he hasn't been here since 2005). In fact, just three players have been active for the Rats for the past three seasons: Chone Figgins, Joe Mauer and Chris Young.

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH LV*
Chone Figgins
3/O
protected
3 (06-08)
Jonny Gomes
OF
draft (11th/141)
2 (06, 08)
Alex Gordon
1/3
protected
1 (08)
Vladimir Guerrero
OF
trade (July 14)
1 (08)
Matt Holliday
OF
protected
2 (07-08)
Jeff Keppinger
3/S
draft (1st/9)
1 (08)
Joe Mauer
C
protected
3 (06-08)
Lyle Overbay
1B
free agent (June 24)
1 (08)
Ronny Paulino
C
draft (4th/43)
1 (08)
Carlos Pena
1B
draft (1st/2)
1 (08)
Placido Polanco
2B
protected
1 (08)
Ichiro Suzuki
OF
protected
1 (08)
Frank Thomas
DH
draft (8th/99)
4 (03-05, 08)
Jim Thome
DH
trade (Jan. 29)
1 (08)
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH LV*
Josh Beckett
SP
trade (July 17)
1 (08)
Erik Bedard
SP
protected
1 (08)
Joe Beimel
RP
free agent (June 5)
1 (08)
Rafael Betancourt
RP
trade (Jan. 29)
1 (08)
A.J. Burnett
SP
trade (Jan. 29)
1 (08)
Orlando Hernandez
SP
protected
3 (05, 07-08)
Tim Lincecum
SP
protected
1 (08)
Carlos Marmol
RP
protected
2 (07-08)
Damaso Marte
RP
draft (5th/57)
2 (07-08)
Joe Nathan
RP
trade (July 11)
1 (08)
Pat Neshek
RP
trade (Jan. 29)
1 (08)
Eric O'Flaherty
RP
free agent (July 14)
1 (08)
Rafael Perez
RP
trade (July 20)
1 (08)
Brian Wolfe
RP
free agent (June 10)
1 (08)
Chris Young
SP
protected
3 (06-08)
Rich Harden
Inelig
protected
2 (05-06)
*Played as Harrison Rats, 2001-2004

Cleaning house: How do you bounce back from a 110-loss season? Get rid of everybody! Wickstrom's rebuilding program didn't conclude with the end of the 2007 season. Las Vegas Rat PackHe added eight players via trade, and four more by free agency -- the most in-season additions of any team in the playoffs. As a result, he has the fewest keeper list players (12) and draft picks (6) still with the team. And the protected list includes three first-time Rat Packers acquired this off-season via trade: Erik Bedard, Placido Polanco and Ichiro Suzuki... Remember, also, that the Rats started with the largest protected list of any team -- 19 players -- making it all the more amazing that they wound up with just 12... Who needs the draft? The only player the Pack selected during the 2007 draft who is still with the team is Tim Lincecum, who was taken in the 7th round (#93 overall) as an ineligible prospect. In fact, from the last three drafts, the Rats have just three players remaining -- and two of them left and then came back! The only player remaining from the 2006 draft is Jonny Gomes, who was taken in the 2nd round (#19 overall) but traded; the Rats got him back this year in the 11th round (#141 overall). And the last survivor of the 2005 draft is Orlando Hernandez, who was taken in the 2nd round (#19 overall), but subsequently traded for a 7th round draft pick. The Rats then got him back last year after signing him as a minor league free agent.

Philadelphia Endzone Animals (4th place, 96-66)
The Endzone Animals are in the post-season for a second straight year and the third time in franchise history. Albert PujolsThe Animals bring back 11 players from last year's Morris Division champions, and five players who were with the 2005 squad that went to the big dance as a No. 4 seed. Four players have been with the Animals for all three trips -- J.D. Drew, Albert Pujols, Scott Rolen and Johan Santana. That doesn't include Magglio Ordonez, who spent the entire '05 season on the roster as an ineligible player... Rolen, who missed the entire '06 season due to injury, is the only remaining member of the original '98 team, then known as the Eagle Wings. He was the team's very first draft pick, taken #2 overall... Drew, a member of the franchise since he was drafted as an ineligible prospect in '99, spent his first six years with Philly, played in 2006 with the Iron Fist and then came back last year... Going by contiguous service, the senior member of the squad is actually Albert Pujols, who has spent his entire seven-year career with the Animals.

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH PHI
J.D. Drew
OF protected
8 (00-05, 07-08)
Adam Dunn
OF
trade (July 16)
1 (08)
Brendan Harris
2/S
free agent (Aug. 1)
1 (08)
Kelly Johnson
2B
trade (June 23)
1 (08)
Milke Lamb
1/3 draft (8th/110)
2 (05, 08)
Adam Lind
OF
free agent (June 24)
1 (08)
Dioner Navarro
C
draft (Supp/11)
1 (08)
Magglio Ordonez
OF
protected
5 (03-04,06-08)
Jorge Posada
C
protected
1 (08)
Albert Pujols
1B
protected
7 (02-08)
Scott Rolen
3B
protected
10 (98-05, 07-08)
Jimmy Rollins
SS protected
2 (07-08)
Gary Sheffield
OF
draft (10th/138)
 1 (08)
Mark Teixeira
1B protected
1 (08)
Chris B. Young
OF
protected
1 (08)
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH PHI
Jason Bergmann
SP draft (4th/47)
1 (08)
Matt Cain
SP
protected
2 (07-08)
Francisco Cordero
RP protected
2 (07-08)
Octavio Dotel
RP
free agent (July 12)
1 (08)
Jason Frasor
RP
free agent (July 20)
1 (08)
Yovani Gallardo
SP
protected
1 (08)
Aaron Harang
SP trade (July 19)
1 (08)
Jason Isringhausen
RP trade (June 23)
1 (08)
Kyle Kendrick
SP trade (June 18)
1 (08)
J.J. Putz
RP protected 3 (06-08)
Jon Rauch
RP draft (6th/82)
2 (07-08)
Johan Santana
SP protected 6 (03-08)
Justin Speier
RP trade (July 5)
2 (06, 08)
Brandon Webb
SP protected 3 (06-08)
David Price
Inelig draft (7th/96)
none

Finding the balance: There's more than one way to make a playoff team. Sugar Bears, for example, were built almost entirely through their keeper list and draft, with just one new face since Opening Day; the Rat Pack were a work in progress, with a dozen players added to the roster after keeper lists were due. Owner/GM Anthony "Bocci" Pucci's strategy was somewhere in between: The Animals were tied for the second-most protected players (14), but also are tied for the fewest drafted players (6); Philadelphia Endzone Animalsthey're second for most players added through trades (6) but in the middle of the pack for free agents (4). The missing keeper is Michael Cuddyer, who was cut Aug. 1 to make room for middle infielder Brendan Harris. Cuddyer, acquired from the Iron Fist in a trade last year, was hitting .263 with a .739 OPS as a reserve... They also have three first-year players who were on the keeper list after being acquired in off-season trades: Jorge Posada, Mark Teixeira and Chris B. Young (the outfielder), plus Yovani Gallardo, who spent all of the 2007 season in the minors... The Animals in-season moves included bringing back a member of the 2006 team: middle reliever Justin Speier... Philly struggled with injuries all season and it shows in their roster: The team had 47 players make an appearance this year, the most of any playoff team. (Las Vegas was second with 42, followed by a tie between D.C. and Hillsborough with 35, Newark with 34 and Vancouver with 31.) That doesn't include pitching prospect David Price, who has spent the entire year on the 30-man roster as an ineligible player. 

D.C. Bushslappers (5th place, 88-74)
The Bushslappers have been around just three years -- but they're already making their second straight post-season appearance. It's even all the more remarkable as owner Jamie Landsman took over in 2006 what had been one of the league's worst franchises -- the Columbia Crusaders/Rattlesnakes, which in 14 years never posted a winning record, let alone reached the post-season. How did he do it? By expunging the team of all Crusaders and Rattlesnakes, of course! The only players on the team who wore a Columbia uniform are Ryan Freel, who played for them in '05; Ramon Vazquez, a member of the '03 team; and Mike Timlin, who played for the Crusaders way back in '92. Freel was released after Landsman took over the team, played with Vegas in '06 and Honolulu in '07, and was brought back as a free agent. Vazquez, already gone when Landsman took over, actually hasn't worn a Bushslapper uniform yet -- he's been in the minors since joining the team as a free agent in June. Sammy SosaTimlin, who pitched in 14 games for Columbia in '92 and was so traumatized by the experience that he didn't return to the DMBL for four seasons... Who has the most playoff experience? Well, that would be Sammy Sosa, in the playoffs for an eighth time (but not since 2002). Sosa reached the post-season seven times as a member of the Iron Fist and played in four World Series. Jeff Kent, Adrian Beltre and Cliff Floyd are in the post-season for the seventh time, while Derek Lowe and Jason Giambi are a six-timers. Floyd has two rings from the '01-'02 Sugar Bear squads, Beltre has one as his teammate in '01, and Giambi won his with Arkansas in '98. Paul Lo Duca, here for the fifth time, also has two rings, won with the '02 and '04 Newark teams.

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH DC
Carlos Beltran
OF
protected 3 (06-08)
Adrian Beltre
3B draft (7th/93)
1 (08)
Cliff Floyd
OF
free agent (Aug. 18)
1 (08)
Ryan Freel
3/O
free agent (July 15)
1 (08)
Jason Giambi
1B free agent (May 26)
1 (08)
Scott Hatteberg
1B
draft (6th/79)
1 (08)
Matt Kemp
OF
draft (1st/4)
1 (08)
Jeff Kent
2B protected
2 (07-08)
Derrek Lee
1B protected
1 (08)
Paul Lo Duca
C draft (14th/191)
1 (08)
Brian McCann
C
protected
1 (08)
Jose Reyes
SS
protected
3 (06-08)
Sammy Sosa
OF
draft (8th/107)
1 (08)
Dan Uggla
2B
trade (July 19)
1 (08)
Ramon Vazquez
2/3/S
free agent (June 2)
none
Ryan Zimmerman
3B protected
2 (07-08)
Jay Bruce
Inelig
draft (4th/51)
none
Kosuke Fukudome
Inelig
draft (9th/121)
none
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH DC
Kelvim Escobar
SP protected
3 (06-08)
Chad Gaudin
SP free agent (June 28)
none
Aaron Heilman
RP draft (5th/65)
1 (08)
Shawn Hill
SP draft (2nd/23)
1 (08)
Bob Howry
RP draft (11th/149)
1 (08)
Derek Lowe
SP protected
2 (07-08)
John Maine
SP protected
2 (07-08)
Ron Mahay
RP free agent (June 22)
1 (08)
Shaun Marcum
S/R protected
1 (08)
Darren Oliver
RP draft (15th/205)
1 (08)
Jonathan Papelbon
RP protected
2 (07-08)
Mike Timlin
RP draft (10th/135)
1 (08)

Please allow me to introduce myself: It's understandable that a team in just its third year of existence wouldn't have a lot of long-term players, but there's just eight players on the roster from last year's wild card winning team! What happened to 15 players on their protected list? D.C. BushslappersThree were traded away -- Alfonso Soriano, Joe Nathan and Carl Crawford -- and the fourth, prospect Lastings Milledge, was released. Another two keepers actually made their D.C. debuts this year: Derrek Lee, who was acquired in a trade with Las Vegas last year but was ineligible; and Brian McCann, picked up Jan. 3 in a trade with the Honolulu Sharks, their last action before going belly-up. The other "new" keeper is swingman Shaun Marcum, who was on the 30-man roster but didn't make an appearance with the big league club last year, so technically this is his first season with D.C. ... Their 12 holdovers from this year's draft doesn't include Jason Giambi, who was selected by the Bushslappers in the Supplemental Draft (#231 overall), released and then re-signed as a free agent... Infielder Ramon Vazquez and starter Chad Gaudin didn't play in the regular season, so they don't have any service time with the Bushslappers.

Hillsborough Hired Hitmen (6th place, 87-75)
After near-misses in '06 and '07, Brent Campbell is back in the post-season for the first time in 10 years. Campbell took a hiatus from the league following the '98 season after leading his previous team, the Louisiana Lightning, to the playoffs in back-to-back years. (Note: We checked to see if any players from the Lightning or his previous team, the Scranton Sparrows, are now with the Hired Hitmen... alas, the answer is no.) Campbell came back as the owner of the Hired Hitmen in 2005 and, after suffering through a 99-loss debut to get things in order, lost out on the post-season after losing a play-in game after there was three-way tie for the final berth. Last year, the Hitmen again came up just short as they finished two games out of the post-season in 7th place. This time the Hitmen are in and ready to do some damage. Ryan HowardThe Hitters are led by the sole remaining member of that '05 squad, C.C. Sabathia; five other players have been here since '06. That doesn't include Felix Hernandez or Ryan Howard, who have been with the team since the Hitmen drafted them as ineligible prospects in '05. King Felix also missed all of '07 with an injury, so he has just two years of service time. Everyone else on the roster is relatively new -- in fact, half the players just joined this season, and there's three more ineligible players on the 30-man roster waiting to make their DMBL debut! But just because they haven't been with the Hitmen long doesn't mean they don't have post-season experience. Carlos Lee is making his fifth post-season appearance, after making the big dance as a member of the Mudcats in '01 and three times with Stanhope ('03-'05); Aubrey Huff is here for the fourth time, with all his previous visits coming with Carolina ('03, '04, '06), while David Eckstein and Ramon Hernandez are here for the third time, and Dan Haren and Scott Linebrink are making their second post-season appearances. (The only one with a World Series ring is Linebrink, a member of the 2006 Sugar Bears.) Everyone else is a virgin -- even Dmitri Young, who made his DMBL debut in 1998 but never made the post-season before. "I'm getting a late start but I'm going to make a habit of this," Young said. "I'll be back here next year!" 

BATTERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH HIL
Billy Butler
1B
protected
1 (08)
Robinson Cano
2B
protected
3 (06-08)
David Eckstein
SS
free agent (Aug. 8)
1 (08)
Yunel Escobar
2/3/S
draft (2nd/21)
1 (08)
Brad Hawpe
OF
protected
3 (06-08)
Ramon Hernandez
C
free agent (April 8)
1 (08)
Ryan Howard
1B
protected
3 (06-08)
Aubrey Huff
1/3
free agent (June 24)
1 (08)
Howie Kendrick
2B
protected
2 (07-08)
Carlos Lee
OF
protected
3 (06-08)
Nick Markakis
OF
protected
1 (08)
Russell Martin
C
protected
2 (07-08)
Mark Reynolds
3B
draft (4th/49)
1 (08)
Dmitri Young
1B
draft (4th/50)
1 (08)
Justin Upton
Inelig.
draft (5th/63)
none
PITCHERS POS HOW ACQUIRED YEARS WITH HIL
Jeremy Accardo
RP
protected
2 (07-08)
Heath Bell
RP
draft (1st/8)
1 (08)
Justin Hampson
RP
draft (6th/77)
1 (08)
Dan Haren
SP
protected
1 (08)
Felix Hernandez
SP
protected
2 (06, 08)
J.P. Howell
SP
free agent (July 7)
1 (08)
John Lackey
SP
protected
3 (06-08)
Scott Linebrink
RP
free agent (June 17)
none
Peter Moylan
RP
draft (3rd/35)
1 (08)
C.C. Sabathia
SP
protected
4 (05-08)
Takashi Saito
RP
protected
2 (07-08)
Kevin Slowey
SP
draft (7th/92)
none
Justin Verlander
SP
protected
2 (07-08)
Johnny Cueto
Inelig draft (9th/119)
none
Max Scherzer
Inelig draft (13th/175)
none
*No players from Scranton Sparrows, '92-93, or Louisiana Lightning, '94-'98

Know when to hold 'em: The Hitmen were primarily built through their keeper list and this year's draft -- they have only five in-season additions, all free agents. The Hitmen join the Iron Fist as the only team to retain all 15 keepers; they also have 10 players from this year's draft. Missing, however, is third rounder (#34 overall) Ryan Spilborghs, who was cut April 8 and signed five days later by the Endzone Animals. Hillsborough Hired HitmenBut he almost immediately went on the D.L., and as soon as he was healthy enough to be activated, Philly released him. Vancouver claimed him off waivers -- and he quickly went on the D.L. again. Three teams and two D.L. trips in six weeks! But Spilborghs gets the last laugh as he's still with the Fisters, and thus heads to the post-season with the Morris Division champions...Two keepers were acquired in a trade made before the protected list deadline: Dan Haren and Nick Markakis. The young pair were acquired, along with four draft picks over the next three years, from Arkansas in exchange for Alex Rodriguez, Adam Dunn, Jeremy Bonderman, Ian Snell and Jonathan Broxton. At the time, the mega-deal looked like it was Arkansas loading up for a post-season run and Hillsborough rebuilding for '09, but that's not how it worked out. The same two teams swung a mega-deal in 2005, when the Hitmen shipped the first pick overall -- which everyone knew would be David Wright -- to Arkansas for a package that included C.C. Sabathia and a number of draft picks... Hillsborough has the most ineligible players (3) of any post-season team, plus two eligible players -- Scott Linebrink and Kevin Slowey -- who spent no time on the big league roster. Neither has any service time with the Hitmen.