changes in chatham

It didn't look like too many big changes happened at the final roster deadline, but that was until this note popped on the Chatham A's web site today.

The A's will go the rest of the summer without Aaron Miller, Devin Lohman, Dylan Brown, and most notably, Alex White.

Miller, Lohman and Brown are all injured, while White -- who never actually pitched for Chatham -- will be shut down for the summer due to the heavy innings load he took this spring.

All in all, these are tough losses for a Chatham team that's already having trouble getting over the hump. Lohman, a middle infielder from Long Beach State, was hitting .341 with a team-high 12 RBI. Kyle Seager should fill his spot at second base, but it's still a big loss.

Miller, an outfielder from Baylor, was only hitting .209, but he was expected to be a major piece of the puzzle for the A's this summer. Same for Brown, an outfielder from Oklahoma State.

But considering the trouble Chatham's pitching staff has had this summer -- they have a league-worst 4.56 ERA -- White is probably the biggest loss. The sophomore from North Carolina was the ACC Pitcher of the Year this season, and he will head into his junior year as one of the top pitchers and top prospects in the nation. In fact, I had a feeling he was going to take home the league's top prospect award this summer.

So, this is obviously tough news for the A's, and it's got to be tough for these players, as well, especially the ones who got hurt. Hopefully they'll all recover and be doing what they do best next spring.

As for the A's, two reinforcements have been signed -- Tennessee catcher/first baseman Yan Gomes and UCLA outfielder Gabe Cohen. Gomes is a sophomore who hit .315 this season with five home runs. Cohen, a freshman All-American last season, struggled to a .204 average this year. He was originally on the Falmouth roster.