This is a press release right from the Railcats front office.  I would like to thank the Gary SouthShore Railcats.  I would also like to thank Railcats’ fan,  John, for helping me with this.  I am not sure about the wisdom of trading a talented pitcher like Paduch for, essentially, nothing, but what do I know?

Gary, Ind.—The Gary SouthShore RailCats Professional Baseball Club today announced that pitcher Jason Shelley has been removed the inactive list and placed on the club’s roster.  He will start the game tonight at  U. S. Steel Yard against the Schaumburg Flyers.

The RailCats also announced today that pitcher Jim Paduch has been traded to Evansville of the Frontier League in exchange for future considerations.  The club also sold the contract of pitcher Pete Sikaras to the Edmonton Cracker-Cats of the Northern League.  Sikaras had been on the RailCats inactive list all season and has not pitched in 2007.

Shelley finished second in the Northern League in victories in 2006 when he set a RailCats club record with 13 wins and also led the league in strikeouts.  This season, Shelley battled through a hamstring injury for six starts, going 1-1 with an earned run average of 8.88, before being placed on the inactive list to rehabilitate the injury.  Shelley has not pitched since June 12th.

Paduch made 11 starts and one relief appearance for the RailCats this season, going 3-5 with a 5.23 ERA.  He gained the confidence of manager Greg Tagert through his strong work ethic and was very effective at times but could not find consistency and was the odd man out when the RailCats needed a roster spot to activate Shelley.  Tagert expects him back in a RailCats uniform in the future.

Sikaras, who spent the last half of the 2006 season as the RailCats closer, did not report to the RailCats at the start of spring training and was placed on the club’s inactive list.  He informed the club on July 8th that he wished to resume his career, leading to the deal with  Edmonton.

The RailCats roster is currently at 21 players, one below the league limit.  The must add a player classified as a rookie if they expand to 22 players to meet the Northern League’s roster guidelines.

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