Memorable Season for the Nuts

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In no particular order, here are a dozen memories from the 2009 Modesto Nuts regular season:

1. The fans. Ten sellouts and three crowds in excess of 5,000 leads the Nuts to a record at the gate.

2. Vee-Kay's breakthrough. Injury-free Jason Van Kooten is named the league's best second baseman in his third season as a Nut after hitting .302 and tying for league lead in doubles with 45.

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3. Reliable Charlie. In his first full professional season as a hitter, former Georgia Tech pitcher Charlie Blackmon hits .307 and leads the Nuts in hits and RBIs from the leadoff spot.

4. Baker's no butcher. Craig Baker converts his first 27 save opportunities en route to setting the Nuts' single-season record for saves with 33 and earning a spot on the all-league team.

5. Shel game. Shel Thompson gets to the May 17 game later than he wanted, but just in time to become Modesto's five-millionth fan.

6. Cory and Joey. Their names might sound like half a boy band, but Cory Riordan (12-7) emerged as the Nuts' ace while Joey Williamson (13-3) won consistently in both starting and relieving roles.

7. Jay's not blue. Adding 20 pounds of muscle in the offseason pays off in a big way at the plate for Jay Cox, who hits .294 and leads the team with 12 homers.

8. Making it Matt-er. Once he got healthy, Matt Repec became a consistent run-producer in the middle of the lineup, hitting .297 with 11 homers.

9. Beerer batter. Former Nuts closer Scott Beerer returns to baseball as an outfielder after a two-year absence and mashes at a .346 clip with seven homers in 52 games.

10. Tommy Turlock. In the last homestand of the season and again in the first round of the playoffs, Turlock's Tommy Mendonca has some local fans rooting for at least one player on the opposing Bakersfield Blaze.

11. Watch it, Buster. He appeared in six games at John Thurman Field and went 6-23, but Giants' catching wunderkind Buster Posey bid adieu to Modesto with a home run and a four-RBI game on May 18.

12. North rises again. The North Division finished 36 games above .500 against the South, setting up a situation in which Rancho Cucamonga won its first-round series despite a 61-79 regular-season mark that stands as the worst ever for a Cal League playoff team.

— Brian VanderBeek