16, while losing just 4 games. He also struck out 178 batters in 134 innings, earning him the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Year Award. Another player with 10 plus wins was Jeff Clark. Clark would go 14–9 while posting a solid 3.65 Earned Run Average (ERA) in 27 games. The most impressive season for the Suns may have come out of the bullpen, as closer Jackson Markert put together a memorable year. Markert broke the Suns' save record by picking up 39 saves and posting a 2.82 ERA. His success was a big reason why the Suns advanced to the playoffs. After winning the Northern Division second-half title, the Suns entered the playoffs, but came up short as Lexington swept them in two games. The Suns missed the playoffs in 2002, suffering a losing record. Tyler Von Schell led the Suns in home runs with 14. Julian Benavidez led the way in RBIs. Brandon Florence may have been the best all-around hitter on the team with an batting average of .303, with 11 home runs, and 63 RBI in 109 games. On the pitching side, Anthony Pannone led the Suns with nine wins and led innings pitched with 168.2. Ryan Hannaman put together a nice season with a 2.80 ERA and 145 strikeouts in 131.2 innings. Suns fans also saw a glimpse of what was to come with Francisco Liriano. Liriano went 3–6, but had a 3.59 ERA and struck out 85 batters in 80 innings as an 18-year-old. The Suns finished 20.5 games back of the first place, and eventual league champions Hickory Crawdads. Mandalay Entertainment Group purchased the team from Andy Rayburn. The team scraped together a winning season in 2003 but did not make the playoffs. The Suns' best power hitter in 2003 was Carlos Sosa, who led the team in both homeruns and RBI with 10 and 63. Derin McMains hit a solid .289 in 54 games before he was promoted to High-A San Jose. Brian Buscher would come to the Suns in the second half and hit .275 in 54 games. The strength of the Suns in 2003 lied in their pitching staff, in which several pitchers had great seasons. Merkin Valdez went 9–5 with a 2.25 ERA in 26 starts. He also led the Suns in innings pitched with 156, and strikeouts with 166. Josh Habel led the team with 11 wins