K-Tribe is the best team in all of baseball

Published in Sports on May 14, 2004 1:57 PM

• Print
• Email

Courtesy The Sports Network

POTOMAC, Md. -- The Kinston Indians are off to the best start of any team in professional baseball.

Their record currently stands at 24-8 and they are in first place in the Carolina League's Southern Division, six games ahead of their division rivals, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans.

"It all comes down to the fact that we have quality baseball players here,' Kinston manager Torey Lovullo replied about his team's hot start.

Kinston has been stockpiled with young hitting and pitching talent. Ryan Garko is a star of the future, but the problem is that the big league club has two pretty good players in his positions in Victor Martinez and Travis Hafner.

Michael Aubrey is Cleveland's first baseman of the future, currently hitting .314 with three home runs and 18 RBI. Pat Osborn only has 39 at-bats so far this season, but he's hitting .385 with three homers and 14 RBI. Outfielder John van Evry has also been impressive hitting .313 so far this season.

And that's just the hitters.

Kinston's pitching staff is led by young Fausto Carmona, ranked as the second best prospect in the Indians' system by the Sports Network before the season started. So far this year his stats are 2-2 with an ERA of 3.78 and a strikeout to walk ratio of 3:1 (33-11). Last season Carmona went 17-4 with an ERA of 2.06 with a strikeout-to-walk rate of 83-14.

Kinston lost a 4-3 decision to Potomac on Thursday night. No other information was available.

Kinston opens a three-game home stand with Frederick, starting at 7 p.m. tonight at Grainger Stadium.