Players with area ties keep playing

The end of the Minor League Baseball regular season, which in most leagues happens next week, means the playoffs are coming.

And as many as eight players who went to high school or college in this area, and another 20 or so who played for the Augusta GreenJackets, likely will have their seasons extended.

Cross Creek's Jon Egan was the first to reach the playoffs with the Boston Red Sox's rookie team in the Gulf Coast League. The Red Sox lost to the New York Yankees' rookies, who beat the Red Sox 4-1 on Aug. 26 in the one-game semifinal.

The Jacksonville Suns - Double-A affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers - won the first-half championship in the Southern League, and Evans' Tydus Meadows and Burke County's Jonathan Broxton will try to help lead the Suns to the overall championship beginning Thursday at home.

Appling's James Shanks will also participate in the Southern League playoffs.

The Florida Marlins prospect was returned to the Carolina Mudcats on Aug. 28 from Triple-A Albuquerque, and the Mudcats begin the postseason Wednesday at West Tennessee.

The High Desert Mavericks, with Midland Valley's Bernard Stephens, had already clinched a spot in the California League playoffs as of Friday, and were still in the hunt for South Division title. Hephzibah's Lloyd Turner was in a similar position with his Stockton Ports in the California League's North Division.

In the independent leagues, USC Aiken's Ashley Farr and Augusta State's Stephen Spragg are the likely postseason representatives for the area. Spragg's Washington Wild Things were the first team to clinch a playoff spot in the Frontier League, while Farr's Rockford RiverHawks were one game behind Kalamazoo in the West Division. The Frontier League's regular season ends Monday.

The Red Sox minor league affiliates are having a pretty good year. In addition to their rookie team making the Gulf Coast League playoffs, the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs clinched an Eastern League playoff spot Thursday night, the Triple-A Pawtucket Red Sox are still alive for a wild card spot in the International League playoffs, as are the short-season Lowell Spinners in the New York-Penn League.

The Sea Dogs' roster features 13 players who spent at least part of one season in Augusta, including Brandon Moss, Barry Hertzler, Edgar Martinez, Randy Beam, Kyle Jackson and Zach Borowiak, who all played here last season.

In Pawtucket, there are seven former GreenJackets, including Cla Meredith and Dustin Pedroia, from last season's team. And the Spinners feature Adam Blackley and Argimiro Guanchez from the 2004 squad.

WEEKLY HIGHLIGHTS: Evans' Ryan Pressley hit his first professional home run in his final game of the season Tuesday for the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim's rookie team in the Arizona League.

- Moss was riding a five-game hitting streak going into Saturday's game. Last year's South Atlantic League MVP was 13-for-21 with six runs scored, four RBI and two home runs in those five games. He is batting .268 with 16 homers and 60 RBI for the season.

- Broxton earned his fifth win of the season Tuesday with a scoreless inning, and on Thursday pitched Q of an inning to earn his fifth save.

- Former GreenJacket Jose Vaquedano earned his eighth win of the season for high-A Wilmington on Wednesday. The right-hander allowed one run on six hits in six innings. He struck out six and lowered his ERA to 3.60.

- Westside's Matt Childers went from having no saves this season for the Triple-A Richmond Braves to earning his second save in five days Aug. 26.

Jason Childers, Matt's older brother, earned his 15th save of the season Friday for the Braves and has four saves and a win in his past five outings.

Reach Kristy Shonka at (706) 823-3216 or kristy.shonka@augustachronicle.com.