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Wild Things re-sign starting catcher

The Wild Things continue with their roster construction with the re-signing of starting catcher Cody Erickson.

In his first season in Washington, Erickson showed he was up to the task behind the plate. Defensively he only committed one error in over 49 games played and his remarkable 43% caught stealing rate ranked 2nd best in the Frontier League. As a full-time catcher for the first time in his career Erickson showcased himself as a premier catch-and-throw backstop, working in tandem with the pitching staff to lead the league in fewest stolen base attempts against.

Erickson’s offensive abilities also continued to evolve with the Wild Things, finishing second on the team in RBI (39) and third on the team in HR (7).

In a season where runs were challenging for Washington, Erickson showed he could be relied on in key spots. His .371 average led the team with both runners on base and runners in scoring position. A nagging injury limited his availability down the stretch but despite only in playing 64 games Erickson finished as the second most productive catcher in the league.

“Very proud of Cody and what he was able to accomplish with us. He took the reins as the starter early in the season and never really looked back,” said General Manager Tony Buccilli.

“We will try to do a better job managing his games in order to help him navigate a long season in 2020. I know he is preparing in a different manner physically and that should allow him to take another step forward with his development,” Buccilli stated.

Sharks fire head coach, assistants

The slumping San Jose Sharks fired coach Peter DeBoer on Wednesday less than seven months after playing in the Western Conference final.

Doug Wilson announced the change after the Sharks returned home from a road trip on a five-game losing streak and five points out of playoff contention. San Jose also fired three of DeBoer’s assistants and made assistant Bob Boughner the interim coach.

“When you have had a level of past success, change is never easy, but we feel this team is capable of much more than we have shown thus far and that a new voice is needed,” Wilson said. “As a team and as individuals, our play has not met expectations this year and our level of consistency has not been where it needs to be. This group of individuals who will lead our team moving forward are very familiar with our players, and we think this change can provide our group with a fresh start.”

Assistants Steve Spott, Dave Barr and Johan Hedberg all were fired along with DeBoer. Roy Sommer will move from being head coach in the AH: to associate coach under Boughner. Mike Ricci also has been hired as an assistant and Evgeni Nabokov will be the team’s new goaltending coach Dan Darrow will remain in his current role of assistant coach for video.

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