7 Month Tryout Over: Who Makes the Jump?

On Tuesday at 10 AM the Portland Timbers will hold a press conference at the Nines Hotel to announce their first player signings for 2011. The number of players getting signed during the conference is unknown at the moment, but we do know multiple players will be presented. Tomorrow morning I will find out if I'll be allowed to attend the event. Here is what I expect to happen.

Players Signed on Tuesday: 4

When we play our first MLS game in March I expect that 9 of our current USSF Division 2 Timbers will be on the roster. However, half of these players will have to earn their spots during training camp. Looking at Seattle as an example, 6 players made the jump to MLS from the USL side. I see a greater number of our players moving up because of the expected increase in MLS rosters from 26 to 30 players.

The 9: My Picks

1. Ryan Pore (Tues)
2. Bright Dike (Tues)
3. Steve Cronin
4. Ian Joy (Tues)
5. James Marcelin
6. Mamadou Danso
7. Kalif Alhassan (Tues)
8. Kevin Goldthwaite
9. Steve Purdy

I'm interested to see how accurate my predictions end up. At this point I am not sure which of these players is capable of earning a starting spot, but I have a pretty good feeling most of them will be around. I'll let you know if I get the invite to the presser tomorrow. Fingers Crossed!