Optimism abounds for 2015 Kernels

CEDAR RAPIDS - Ah, that opening-day optimism. It extends down to the minor leagues, too.

'Good team, good group of guys,” Zack Larson said about the 2015 Cedar Rapids Kernels. 'We all work hard. It should be a good year for us.”

That's what they're supposed to say, right? You don't want someone around who doesn't expect to succeed individually and collectively.

But, you know, Larson might just be right. At first glance, the Kernels appear to be a pretty strong ballclub.

The season opener is Thursday night at Kane County (6:35 first pitch), the home opener Sunday afternoon at 4:05 against Beloit.

'Yes, sir,” Nick Gordon said, when asked if he expected his team to be competitive. 'Very competitive.”

It's guys like the 19-year-old shortstop that give cause for winning hope. Gordon was the parent Minnesota Twins' first-round draft pick last summer, the fifth-overall selection.

After signing, he hit .294 in Rookie ball and has the talent for a breakout season. He'll hit in the two hole for a lineup that has a nice mixture of first-year players and guys who have experience at the Midwest League level.

The veterans, if you will, are almost all in the outfield. Larson and Zack Granite were in the 2014 opening-day starting lineup but had their seasons sabotaged by injuries.

Max Murphy spent the final month here after tearing it up at Elizabethton. Tanner English was summoned from E-town for the second round of the MWL playoffs because of injuries.

Expect Larson to play right field, English and Granite center, and Granite and Murphy left.

'There should be some pretty good defense out there,” said Larson.

'Every single outfielder has played here in Cedar Rapids already, so we're going to be good,” said Granite, the team's likely leadoff hitter. 'That's probably our most experience, the outfield.”

Going around the infield, Jonatan Hinojosa will likely be Gordon's double-play partner up the middle most days. He provided a spark after a late-season promotion in 2014.

T.J. White is expected to get the majority of the time at third base, with Trey Vavra and Tyler Kuresa over at first. Vavra's brother, Tanner, was a second baseman for last season's Kernels.

The catching duties will fall on Jorge Fernandez and Brian Navarreto. Fernandez, a switch hitter from Puerto Rico, hit .321 last season at E-town.

'We're definitely going to compete,” Granite said. 'We've got a lot of good guys on this team. The pitching staff should be strong again. And as a lineup, we should be good, too. I'm going to lead off, so it starts with me. We've got guys like Murphy and Larson. So our lineup should be good.”

So should the starting pitching rotation.

Lefty Mat Batts gets the nod Thursday. He gave up just four hits in the 10 innings he pitched last season for the Kernels after a late-season promotion.

Stephen Gonsalves also posted good numbers in his eight Cedar Rapids starts last season and is considered a good prospect. John Curtiss got an emergency start in the playoffs last season and performed well.

Throw Michael Cederoth (a third-round pick in 2014), Felix Jorge (who started eight games in 2014), Zach Tillery and Jared Wilson into the mix, and there is promise and depth.

'We played pretty good in spring training,” said third-year Manager Jake Mauer. 'Our starting pitching should be pretty solid. Our bullpen is going to be a question mark right now. We have some guys who have the potential to be pretty good. We've got to throw strikes and attack guys. If we do that, we'll be in pretty good shape.”

The Kernels have qualified for the MWL playoffs in both seasons they have been a Twins affiliate. Will it be three-for-three?

'This team is a pretty solid team,” Wilson said. 'We've got a lot of experience, a lot of college guys. I've been impressed with our defensive play, as well as our offense. It should be a good year this year.”

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