2004 Bowman, Josh Wahpepah

#BDP110 Josh Wahpepah

Here is the final 2004 Bowman card that I will have to post on here for some time. I figured that I would post two cards today since I have been slacking recently. Plus, I am more than ready to move on to some other 2004 cards.

This signature was acquired at the Kansas City T-Bone/Wichita Wingnut preseason game I attended earlier this year. That game was kind of neat because it pitted two teams from different leagues against each other. That is not going to be the case next year since the Bones have joined the American Association and are going to be in the same division as the Nuts.

Josh was drafted by the Brewers out of Cowley College in Arkansas City, Kansas, in the third round of the 2004 draft (other Cowley alums include Junior Spivey and Travis Hafner). He pitched in 15 games that summer in the Pioneer League and posted a 4.40 ERA while starting and relieving. He moved up to the South Atlantic League in 2005 and he posted a 3.95 ERA in 27 games, again split between starting and relieving. He was bumped up to the Florida State League in 2006 and he had an ERA of 4.49 in 24 games while mostly starting. He repeated the FSL in '07 and was used primarily out of the bullpen and his ERA improved to 3.26 in 41 games. He then repeated the FSL again in 2008 and his ERA was 3.97 in 35 games. He got a brief promotion that year to AA and he had a 9.64 ERA in 4 innings of work. In 2009, he was finally moved out of the FSL and he played AA ball the whole season. With the Huntsville Stars, Josh appeared in 33 games (4 starts) and he had a record of 1-2 with a 5.18 ERA. The Brewers released him after the season.

Josh signed on with the T-Bones last season, but he got cut before the regular season began. I cannot find any stats for him for 2010.

I got to see something pretty cool on the day Josh signed this card for me. Josh's wife and son were at the game and they were talking prior to the game by the Wingnuts bullpen. Josh's son was just a toddler that could barely walk, but Josh brought him onto the field so that father and son could have some good bonding time. If Josh's career is actually over like it appears to be, I am sure that is a memory that he will never forget. It's just too bad that his son was too young to remember it.