Everything You Need to Know About the Lake Elsinore Storm
Credit: LE Storm
“The Storm”
The Lake Elsinore Storm are the minor league Advanced Single-A baseball affiliate of the San Diego Padres.
They have been an affiliate of the Padres since 2001. Prior to that they were an affiliate of the California Angels.
The team plays at Peter Lehr Field. The stadium is called the “Lake Elsinore Diamond” and cost $24.3 million dollars to construct in 1994.
Storm games may be heard on K-Frog 92.9 FM and each game is broadcast by Sean McCall.
Lake Elsinore is just up the 15 freeway and the show they put on is really top-notch. The Padres’ minor league system is growing tremendously, and now is a great time to witness and rub elbows with players who will one day pitch for the Padres at Petco Park.
With a revived farm system, the Padres minor league teams will be more exciting than ever. Before we dig into the who/what/when/where’s of the 2017 Lake Elsinore Storm, let’s take a quick look into the history of the team.
History
The Lake Elsinore Storm first came into the MiLB in 1979 as the Santa Clara Padres. After that, they played in Redwood as the Pioneers until 1985, when they then moved to Palm Springs and became the Palm Springs Angels. In 1994 the wonderful Lake Elsinore Diamond was opened in Lake Elsinore and the team moved there to officially became the Lake Elsinore Storm we know and love today.
Key Storm Alumni
There have been a lot of key players to come out of Lake Elsinore, including some who even got their chance to shine on ten out of sixteen teams in the 2017 World Baseball Classic!
2017 WBC:
Australia: RHP Sam Holland (2015), RHP Chris Oxspring (2001-02)
Canada: C George Kottaras (2005), 1B Josh Naylor (2016)
China:Â INF Ray Chang (2005, 07)
Colombia: RHP Ernesto Frieri (2005-08), RHP Tayron Guerrero (2014)
Dominican Republic:Â RHP Bryan Rodriguez (2014)
Israel: RHP Dylan Axelrod (2008-09), 1B Cody Decker (2010), 1B Nate Freiman (2011)
Italy:Â RHP Mike DeMark (2007-08)
Mexico: INF/OF Luis Cruz (2004), RHP Luis Mendoza (2005), LHP Oliver Perez (2001-02), INF Luis Urias (2016)
Puerto Rico:Â OF Reymond Fuentes (2011)
Venezuela: LHP Jose Castillo (2016), RHP Francisco Rodriguez (2000)
A lot of storm players have gone on to MLB and become World Series Champions, Gold Glove Winners, Cy Young Winners, and had plenty of All Star appearances!
MLB:
3B/1B David Freese, OF/1B Darin Erstad, SS Khalil Greene, 2B Jedd Gyorko, 3B Chase Headley, SP Corey Kluber, SP John Lackey, OF/1B Xavier Nady, SP Jake Peavy, and RP Francisco Rodriguez.
Now that you know a good history of the team and who has come through Lake Elsinore, let’s take a look at the current Lake Elsinore Storm squad. The 2017 roster will be announced next week, so this is a look at the roster at the end of the 2016 season.
LAKE ELSINORE STORM ROSTER (end of 2016 season)
 Managers & Coaches
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edwin Rodriguez | Manager | R | R | 5′ 11″ | 175 | 08-14-1960 | Active | |
| Raul Padron | Hitting Coach | L | R | 6′ 0″ | 195 | 09-17-1984 | Active | |
| 33 | Glendon Rusch | Pitching Coach | L | L | 6′ 1″ | 225 | 11-07-1974 | Active |
| Freddy Flores | Coach | R | R | 5′ 10″ | 169 | 02-12-1974 | Active |
Pitchers
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status | MLB 40-man |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Mark Zimmerman | P | L | R | 6′ 0″ | 195 | 03-29-1994 | Active | No |
| 35 | Trey Wingenter | P | R | R | 6′ 7″ | 200 | 04-15-1994 | Active | No |
| 50 | Bryan Verbitsky | P | R | R | 5′ 11″ | 205 | 06-11-1992 | Active | No |
| 27 | Dylan Stoops | P | L | L | 6′ 4″ | 235 | 01-27-1992 | Active | No |
| Jose Ruiz | P | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 190 | 10-21-1994 | Active | Yes | |
| 26 | Gerardo Reyes | P | R | R | 5′ 11″ | 160 | 05-13-1993 | Active | No |
| 14 | Ben Paullus | P | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 190 | 08-31-1989 | Active | No |
| 30 | Zech Lemond | P | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 170 | 10-09-1992 | Active | No |
| 19 | Corey Kimber | P | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 175 | 06-28-1994 | Active | No |
| 37 | Brett Kennedy | P | R | R | 6′ 0″ | 200 | 08-04-1994 | Active | No |
| 8 | Chris Huffman | P | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 205 | 11-25-1992 | Active | No |
| 20 | Thomas Dorminy | P | L | L | 6′ 0″ | 190 | 06-01-1992 | Active | No |
| 4 | Louis Distasio | P | R | R | 6′ 4″ | 195 | 02-05-1994 | Active | No |
| 21 | Enyel De Los Santos | P | R | R | 6′ 3″ | 170 | 12-25-1995 | Active | No |
| 28 | Jose Castillo | P | L | L | 6′ 4″ | 200 | 01-10-1996 | Active | No |
| Ryan Butler | P | R | R | 6′ 4″ | 225 | 02-23-1992 | Active | No | |
| 11 | Colby Blueberg | P | R | R | 6′ 0″ | 195 | 05-11-1993 | Active | No |
| Pedro Avila | P | R | R | 5′ 11″ | 170 | 01-14-1997 | Active | No | |
| Elliot Ashbeck | P | L | R | 6′ 3″ | 215 | 11-16-1993 | Active | No |
Catchers
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status | MLB 40-man |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 29 | A.J. Kennedy | C | R | R | 6′ 0″ | 190 | 01-23-1994 | Active | No |
Infielders
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status | MLB 40-man |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Daniel Bravo | 2B | R | R | 6′ 0″ | 160 | 02-16-1995 | Active | No | |
| 25 | Ty France | 3B | R | R | 6′ 0″ | 205 | 07-13-1994 | Active | No |
| 12 | Ruddy Giron | SS | R | R | 5′ 11″ | 175 | 01-04-1997 | Active | No |
| 18 | Chase Jensen | 3B | R | R | 6′ 4″ | 195 | 01-29-1991 | Active | No |
| 3 | Luis Urias | 2B | R | R | 5′ 9″ | 160 | 06-03-1997 | Active | No |
| 24 | Nick Vilter | 2B | R | R | 6′ 4″ | 220 | 10-06-1993 | Active | No |
Outfielders
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status | MLB 40-man |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 23 | Michael Gettys | CF | R | R | 6′ 1″ | 203 | 10-22-1995 | Active | No |
| 15 | Edwin Moreno | CF | L | L | 6′ 1″ | 190 | 10-27-1993 | Active | No |
| 34 | Franmil Reyes | RF | R | R | 6′ 5″ | 240 | 07-07-1995 | Active | No |
Designated Hitter
| # | Name | Pos | Bat | Thw | Ht | Wt | DOB | Status | MLB 40-man |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 13 | Fernando Perez | DH | L | R | 6′ 0″ | 210 | 09-13-1993 | Active | No |
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Derek is a 22-year-old out of Lemon Grove, California. A burning passion for San Diego sports led him to pursue an opportunity to write and share about what’s going on with the teams in America’s Finest City. A young and aspiring sports journalist looking to grow his knowledge and expand his experience at any opportunity.
Thanks….you should do well in marketing.