The Salt Lake Trappers were expecting three players sent to them on loan by the Florida Marlins to be in town in time for today's late-afternoon/evening practice, and that should pretty much complete the list of candidates in the final running for positions with the team that opens Pioneer League play Wednesday at Butte.
The three players from Florida, two pitchers and a catcher-third baseman, will be members of the team, an agreement reached previously by the two clubs. They are, says manager Nick Belmonte, players the Trappers would have liked to have signed outright from a tryout camp they attended but who were signed instead by the expansion Marlins. All three were picked up by Florida as free agents.They are catcher George Baker, who played 20 games with Baltimore's Class A Carolina League affiliate, Frederick, where he hit .204 in 49 at-bats; right-handed pitcher Barry Parisotto, 7-3, 3.91 with independent Reno of the California League; and right-handed pitcher Jeff Devaughan, 2-1, 1.57 in 15 games in 1990 with Texas's Gulf Coast League Rangers.
To make room for them, the Trappers dropped utility infielder Mike Vonblaircom of Oral Roberts University Friday, and Belmonte still has a decision to make on an extra outfielder between Andrew Jackson of Mesa College, who arrived Thursday, and Rich Polumbo of Nova College, who's been around all week.
They recently signed outfielder-first baseman Todd Rosenthal of Connecticut, utility man Kevin Floger of Auburn-Montgomery, first baseman Les Jennette, third baseman John Collarco of Northeast Illinois and right-handed pitcher Kevin Lacursi, a rookie out of Portland, and dropped 1991 Trapper pitcher Dave Matranga.
Belmonte has 25 men in camp, 28 with the three from the Marlins, and will carry that many for about the first 10 days of the season, then drop to about 25. The Trappers' home opener is June 20.