The RedHawks made six player transactions Wednesday.
IF Chris Jacobs, P Michael Tamburino, and P Sebastian Kessay were placed on waivers. All three of the players have been with the RedHawks for the past two seasons.
Jacobs hit .313 with 29 home runs and 118 RBIs in 141 games after joining the RedHawks from the Sioux Falls Canaries midway through the 2018 season. Tamburino was acquired from the Lincoln Saltdogs in 2018 and went on to go 9-8 in 25 starts over the next year and a half — he also picked up the win in a playoff matchup with St. Paul in Game 2 of the North Division Championship Series last September. Kessay, who was signed by the Arizona Diamondbacks organization during the 2018 season, went 12-4 in 34 appearances for the RedHawks over two years.
OF Chase Harris was traded to the New York Boulders (Frontier League) for P Carter Hope. Hope was then sent to the Lincoln Saltdogs to complete a transaction from earlier this offseason.
In addition to the player moves, IF Sherman Graves was signed to the RedHawks for this season. Graves, who played college baseball for Savannah State University and Reinhart University, hit .431 last season with 19 home runs in 50 games for the Santa Fe Fuego of the Pecos League. He was named the MVP of the Pecos League's Mountain Division in his first season of professional baseball.
2020 marks the 25th season of the RedHawks franchise and 10th season in the American Association. The RedHawks will begin this season with exhibition games against Winnipeg, Sioux Falls and Lincoln and start the regular season, on the road against the Texas AirHogs on May 19. The 2020 RedHawks home opener will be on Tuesday, May 26 at 7:02pm against Lincoln.
UPDATE (1/16/20): Jacobs and Tamburino cleared waivers and are now free agents. Kessay has been removed from waivers. In addition, the RedHawks traded P Aaron Ford, P Michael Hope, and IF Jake Vieth to the Sussex County Miners (Frontier Legaue) for IF Trey Hair.
Hair was drafted by the Tampa Bay Rays in the 34th Round of the 2017 MLB Draft. The Firth, Neb. native hit .324 in 94 games for the Miners last season, his first in independent baseball.