August 27th, 2016 at 6:00 am 
by Harold Uhlman In the past two weeks the Dodgers have continued to search for and sign minor league players – especially pitchers – from independent leagues or as undrafted free agents.
The 30-year- old Merritt was signed by the Dodgers on August 24. He had been having a stellar season with the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League going 8-2 with a 2.99 ERA along with 93 strikeouts over 18 starts. He also made seven relief appearances with the Skeeters this season.
Merritt owns a 53-48 minor league record in 10 seasons and has posted a 3.38 ERA with 35 saves and 808 strikeouts in 1014.0 innings of work.
Roy Merritt
(Photo courtesy of Atlantic League)
At age 30 it is interesting that the Dodgers would sign him. The deciding factor may well be that he is a versatile left-hander able to start or pitch in relief. He certainly has a strong reference from Gary Gaetti his manager with the Skeeters.
“Roy is always so consistent and has been, in my opinion, the best left-handed pitcher in the Atlantic League since I’ve been here,” said Gaetti. “He’s going to be able to do everything that the Dodgers need him to do.”
Merritt was assigned to the Oklahoma City Dodgers and made his debut on August 24 against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. In 4.2 innings of relief work he gave up one run on four hits while striking out four and issuing no walks.
Grotz, who had been pitching for the Washington Wild Things of the Frontier League, signed with the Dodgers on August 19.
The 23-year-old right-handed Grotz was a 28th-round selection of the Houston Astros in the 2015 First -Year Player Draft. He was released by the Astros in April of 2016 and signed on with the Wild Things.
Zac Grotz
(Photo courtesy of Washington Wild Things)
Although the plan was to use Grotz as a seven and eight inning pitcher, he was moved into the closer’s role recording 10 saves before he was signed by the Dodgers. On the season with the Wild Things Grotz posted a 1.36 ERA along with a 0.885 WHIP and 51 strikeouts in 46.1 innings. He walked but nine.
Naturally disappointed to lose his All-star closer, Washington’s manager Gregg Langbehn is still pleased to help his players make it to the next level.
“Zac has earned and deserves this opportunity with the Dodgers,” said Langbehn. “He has had an outstanding season for us in a variety of roles. He has excellent command of all his pitches, works effectively down in the zone and is willing to pitch inside. We wish him great success in his next journey.”
Grotz made his debut with the Ogden Raptors of the rookie level Pioneer League on August 20. In three innings he gave up one hit, struck out three and walked one batter. On August 24 he made his second appearance and pitched a perfect inning against the Grand Junction Rockies.
Grotz has a habit of winning. On Friday evening he made his third appearance with the Raptors picking up starter Rob McDonnell. He pitched the final 4.2 innings giving up five hits with one earned run while walking one and striking out two in Ogden’s 6-5 win over the Grand Junction Rockies. In three appearances with the Raptors Grotz has racked up three wins.
The Dodgers signed undrafted right-hander Vinny Santarsiero on August 19. He had planned to return to Fontbonne University for his last year of college eligibility when he received a call from the Dodgers while he was working out in St Louis. In three years with the Griffins the 22- year -old Santarsiero compiled 135 strikeouts over 130.1 innings with a 3.94 ERA.
Vinny Santarsiero
(Photo courtesy of MiLB.com)
Fontbonne University’s coaching staff speak highly of Santarsiero.
“Vinny has come a long way since the first time he stepped onto Fontbonne’s campus,” commented head coach Ryan Good. “Over the past four years I have seen Vinny not only mature on the baseball field but off of it as well. It has been a pleasure to have him in the program and I am excited about where this next endeavor will take him.”
Assistant coach John Siener made the first contact in the recruiting process from Fontbonne’s end.
“We knew we had something special in Vinny very early on,” Siener said. “He came in with a lot of natural ability and a huge desire to keep getting better.”
The 6’-8” right-handed native from Gainesville, Florida most recently played for the Thunder Bay Border Cats out of Ontario, Canada. Thunder Bay is a summer collegiate baseball team in the Northwoods League. With the Bay Border Cats, he posted a 1.66 ERA while appearing in 16 games along with 23 strikeouts in 21.2 innings of work.
Santarsiero made his debut as a Dodger farm hand with the Ogden Raptors on August 23 pitching a perfect inning against the Orem Owlz.
Mortillaro was signed by the Dodgers as an undrafted free agent on August 12. The right-handed native of Queens, New York had pitched for two years with the West Illinois Fighting Leathernecks.
Joe Mortillaro
(Photo courtesy of Western Illinois Athletics)
A two-year letter winner for the Leathernecks, Mortillaro did not have a stellar 2016 season. He started 11 times in 2016 in his 12 appearances and posted a 2-6 record in 52.2 innings pitched while leading the team with 48 strikeouts. His effectiveness was hampered by an injured finger. Following the draft, he was not sure what his baseball future would be.
“When I went undrafted this past season I was disappointed. I didn’t have a great year so I was realistic about it and knew that I had to get better. I decided not to play summer ball and to go home and coach my local summer team. I continued to throw and work out daily. I worked hard all summer because I had confidence in my talents,” said Mortillaro. “I am incredibly grateful for the opportunity with the Dodgers. This is something that I’ve wanted since I started playing baseball when I was little. It’s a dream come true and now the next part of this journey begins.
The Dodger signing of the 22-year-old Mortillaro was pleasing to his West Illinois head coach.
“You always want your players to reach their goals. Joe’s first one was to get his degree and second was to get the opportunity to play professional baseball,” said Western Illinois head coach Ryan Brownlee. “It was disappointing for Joe to not get drafted this spring, but his finger being banged up didn’t allow that to happen. To his credit, he kept working this summer and stayed ready for the opportunity. I am excited to see what Joe does with his chance.”
Mortillaro made his debut on August 13 with the Ogden Raptors against the Billings Mustangs. In four innings with the Raptors he has struck out five hitters in 4.1 innings but has given up four runs.
Peter Summerville
Catcher Peter Summerville’s signing is definitely an interesting one. He was signed by the Dodgers on August 12.
The 24-year-old Summerville attended Seattle Academy for academics, but played baseball for Garfield High School in Seattle. While at Seattle Academy, he was on the High Honor Roll or All A’s Honor Roll every trimester. He achieved his community service requirement of 160 hours for Seattle Academy by his sophomore year.
Following graduation Summerville played four years with Santa Clara University. He was not drafted and here is the interesting part. Peter Summerville has not played baseball since 2014 yet he was signed by the Dodgers and assigned to the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes of the California League.
Peter Summerville
(Photo courtesy of Santa Clara Broncos)
Out of baseball after the 2014 season, Summerville went into business for himself. He is the owner and general manager at Diamond Star Sports which is an indoor Baseball & Softball Training Facility in Van Nuys, California.
His introduction to the business world came in May, 2014 when he answered a Twittered feed from Gabe Kapler, now Dodgers Director of Player Development.
Summerville explains. “It wasn’t Kaplifestyle related, however. He wanted to know about my potential interest in the GM position of one of the largest baseball facilities in the San Fernando Valley called Diamond Star Sports. Gabe is a big part of that facility and its growth over the last couple years. My immediate reaction was to explain how I am still in school and this and that and didn’t think much of it. I hung up the phone and sat down for literally less than 5 minutes before I fired off a text to Gabe saying, ‘Wow, actually I think I would really be interested.”
Additionally, Summerville is a key component of Gabe Kapler’s “Kaplifestyle.”
“My internship started with a standard slate of tasks like responding to readers, company research, social media research, etc.,” said Summerville. “However, I began to really think about how I can make an impact on the Kaplifestyle community. I wanted to make it grow while maintaining the community feel. I still look at the site multiple times a day and see how we can make it even better in every aspect. While I still respond to the contact form and handle any small tasks, I really reach out to Gabe and Steph with ideas for growth and how to increase our presence online.”
Summerville is presently on the 7-day DL so has not yet begun his second baseball career.
Posted in 
I haven’t forgotten Dan Johnson who is now with the Drillers. He had a MLB career as a first baseman and is now a knuckle ball pitcher. Signed by the Dodgers on August 23 to a minor league contract. He has pitched two scoreless innings with the Drillers.
He served as the DH with the Drillers on Friday. Had a hit and two walks and scored the winning run in a 2-1 Drillers win.
It will be interesting to see how Dan Johnson figures into the Dodgers’ future plans. While a knuckleballer is unique and handy to have around, there are a lot of guys at Rancho, Tulsa and OKC who, in my opinion, deserve a call-up WAY before he does.
Johnson is 37. I am not sure what the plans are for him. I don’t see a call up in his future this year.
I think Logan Bawcom and Matt West have earned consideration for a call up from OKC.
Very interested to see what the story line will be for Peter Summerville. I can’t see him resurrecting his career as he was not a strong college player in 2014. Catchers Spencer Navin and Vinny DiFazio have both been released but I don’t see Summerville as a replacement for them. His DL time will pretty much finish off the 2016 minor league season.
One of the three catchers with the Raptors could move up on a short time basis. Keibert Ruiz is tearing it up with the Raptors -.403 in 17 games in August.
I’m thinking Summerville lands a job in another capacity with the Dodgers that would be defined by Gabe Kapler.
Harold,
I was reading this article and made some unintelligible utterance, and my wife asked what I said. I told her that Dan Johnson is now a Dodger. She responded with…Noooo, not my Dan Johnson. I told her the very same, but now he is a pitcher and not a 1B. She didn’t care, it was her Dan Johnson. When I had season tickets for the Sacramento River Cats, my wife always had a favorite player or players that she would cheer for. It started with Esteban German and included Bobby Crosby, Freddie Bynum, Eric Byrnes, Mark Ellis, Nick Swisher, F. P. Santangelo, and finally Dan Johnson. Now I am going to have to follow his Dodger career and let her know how he is doing.
With respect to Bawcom and West, both deserve to be considered, but neither one is on the 40 man roster. With Ethier, Kershaw, and Wood scheduled to come off 60 Day DL, some tough calls are going to need to be made for them to be added, before Bawcom, West, or even De Leon.
AC -“unintelligible utterance” – now that’s my kind of talk. I thought I was the only one.
Dan is a little long in the tooth for beginning a new baseball career but you have to love his commitment to the game. Hope your wife’s Dan can keep on playing as long as he can.
By call up I think Bawcom and West deserve a September call up.I know they cannot be accommodated on the 40-man roster but they could give the relievers going into the post season a bit of a rest. Bawcom has done very well in both relief and starter roles. West is very reliable. Both are right-handers.
More than one of your wife’s guy have wound up Dodgers.
It is truly a regret that we no longer have season tickets to the River Cats. My wife loves baseball, but she REALLY loved her River Cats. While they were the A’s AAA affiliate, I was okay with it. The team was always in contention. We loved the game, the people we sat near, and of course the workers. Every one of the workers would come up to us and ask how our son did that day. Workers at minor league ball parks are truly wonderful people. All that being said, there is no way I am going to support a AAA Giants affiliate, so we will settle for Rancho when they come up north, and every other year when OKC comes to Sacramento.