Crawdads turn to past as Hot Stove Banquet is set

The Hickory Crawdads have turned to its past as plans have been finalized for the 2012 Hot Stove Banquet.

This year’s event will be the jump start to the 20^th Anniversary season that begins when the team takes the field on April 5 in Kannapolis.

The Hot Stove Banquet will be Jan. 30 at Rock Barn Golf and Spa. The night will begin with a social at 6:15 p.m., followed by dinner and the program at 7 p.m.

The event will be highlighted by a panel discussion, featuring former Crawdads pitcher and pitching coach Dave Lundquist (1994, 2004, 2006-07), former pitcher Neil Ramirez (2009-10), former infielder Josh Bonifay (2000-2001), and former third baseman Chris Mader (1993-1994).

The Hot Stove will also include season previews from area college and high school coaches, a silent auction, and dinner prepared by Rock Barn.

Tickets for the Hot Stove are $25 and are available by calling the Crawdads’ front office at 322-3000. Group tables are also available and include eight seats for $200.

Here is the career information on the former Crawdads:

• Lundquist, a former Major League pitcher with the Chicago White Sox (1999) and the San Diego Padres (2001-2002), pitched for the Crawdads in 1994 and 2004, before returning to the club as a pitching coach for the 2006-07 seasons. He went 13-10 with three complete games in 27 starts in 1994, before posting a perfect 4-0 record and miniscule 0.93 ERA in 10 games in 2004. Lundquist is ranked first in Crawdads history with 178.2 innings pitched, 27 games started, and two shutouts. He resides in Hickory during the offseason and is currently the pitching coach in the Philadelphia Phillies system with the High-A Clearwater Threshers.
• Ramirez spent the majority of the 2009 season and the entirety of the 2010 campaign with the Crawdads. He struck out a career-high 142 batters in 2010, complementing a 10-8 record and 4.43 ERA. Overall with Hickory, Ramirez went 13-14, along with a 4.54 ERA and 198 strikeouts in 46 total appearances (40 starts).  In 2011, Ramirez made one start with High-A Myrtle Beach, and was then promoted all the way to AAA Round Rock, where he made 18 starts, before finishing the season at AA Frisco.
• Bonifay played for the 2000-2001 Crawdads clubs, predominantly as the second baseman and on occasion in the outfield. In 133 games with Hickory, he hit .283 with 16 home runs, and compiled a .956 fielding percentage with 47 double plays turned. Bonifay finished his playing career in 2006 with the Corpus Christi Hooks, the AA affiliate of the Houston Astros. He made a return to Hickory for the 2008 campaign as an assistant coach. Bonifay knows the North Carolina baseball scene, as he played high school baseball at T.C. Roberson in Asheville. He is currently the hitting coach for the Greeneville Astros, the Rookie affiliate for Houston.
• Mader, a member of the inaugural squad in 1993, played in 194 total games for Hickory, patrolling both ends of the diamond at third and first base. He amassed a .265 batting average, 176 career hits, 90 career RBIs and a .924 fielding average with the ‘Dads. In 1993, Mader recorded 81 walks, the second-most free passes in a season for the Crawdads. Mader currently resides in Massachusetts and works as a managing director at Randstad Technologies. He also serves as the president of Pelham Baseball, which is affiliated with Little League Baseball Incorporated.