AllKnighters New Regime Makes First Move December 14, 1998
Ann Arbor(AP) - In an effort to solidfy their bullpen, the Ann Arbor
AllKnighters completed a deal with Duluth. The package included sending
Michael Tucker, the talented young RF, and the AllKnighters 1st round
pick (#10) in exchange for Sterling Hitchcock and Duluth's #16 pick.
"Well, this deal does three things. First it put a lot of pressure on
Matt Lawton to become the everyday RF. He saw a lot of time there last
year and we're confident he can make the transition to being an everyday
player," said Michael Kennedy. He continued saying, "Secondly it still
let's us participate in the free agent draft with a pick that could net
us a productive player. We figured the players that could really help us
wouldn't drop down to us at #10, but we'll still get a quality role
player or prospect at #16."
Kennedy, concluded saying, "Thirdly, this solidifies our bullpen. It
let's us move Scott Sanders to the closer role where we feel he can rise
to become a top notch stopper. Sterling will slide right into the
rotation.
Kennedy also stated while the team is most likely done untill the FA
draft, but they still wouldn't mind moving up in the draft or acquiring
a quality SS or solid backup RF.
