Rookies 2006

 

                                                          Pitching Line = IP H R ER BB SO

 

30 July, 2006

    I guess I fibbed (back earlier than expected).  But, just this short report for Sunday - more coming tomorrow.

Just a couple of highlights ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE, a homer in his AAA debut, 1-4 ... Dan Johnson OAK, 3-5, homer, 5 RBI, .450 ... Joel Guzman LAD 3-3, double, homer, walk, .297 ... JA Happ PHI 7.0 2 1 1 3 5, 5-1, 2.17 ... Jarrod Saltalamacchia ATL, 2-4, 2 2B, 2 RBI, .217 ... Ryan Braun 3B MIL, 3-3, HR, 2 RBI, .304 ...  Jeff Niemann TB, 5 4 0 0 4 6, 2.93 ... Troy Tulowitzki COL hit by pitch, removed from game ... Alex Gordon KC 2-4, 29th double & 2-3, 19th homer, .315 ... Zack Greinke KC 6.0 3 0 0 0 5 ... Brandon Wood LAA 0-3 & 0-3, .273 ...  Eric Hurley TEX, 7.0 3 0 0 0 3 ... Evan Longoria TB 2-5, double, .361 ... Phil Humber NYN 5 2 0 0 2 7 ND, 2.37 … Justin Upton ARZ 1-4, 8th homer, .259 ... Cameron Maybin DET 2-5, .333

    Troop Movements ...  TOR - recalled Dustin McGowan from Triple-A, optioned Russ Adams to Triple-A ... MIL - placed Rickie Weeks on the 15-day DL ...  SEA - placed Rafael Soriano on the 15-day DL, activated Sean Green from the 15-day disabled list ... DET - optioned Colby Lewis to Triple-A, recalled Brent Clevlen from Double-A ... BAL - activated Jay Gibbons from the 15-day DL, recalled Jim Johnson from Double-A,  optioned Eddy Rodriguez to Triple-A, designated Luis Terrero for assignment ... CIN - recalled Justin Germano from Triple-A, designated Dewayne Wise for assignment ... ATL - recalled Tony Pena Jr. from Triple-A ... SF - optioned Jonathan Sanchez to Triple-A, designated Alfredo Simon for assignment ... PHI - purchased the contract of Danny Sandoval from Triple-A ... LAD - recalled James Loney from Triple-A ... HOU - optioned Taylor Buchholz to Triple-A, recalled Chris Sampson from Triple A ...

    More reasons to think twice about the TB kids - Delmon Young, BJ Upton, Elijah Dukes.  Check out the story in the Tampa Tribune :

" ...  Devil Rays manager Joe Maddon was "appalled." Executive vice president Andrew Friedman was perturbed. And most Rays players either didn't want to talk about or were dumbfounded by a story in Friday's USA Today that portrayed Triple-A Durham players B.J. Upton, Elijah Dukes and Delmon Young as impatient to make it to the majors, derisive toward the minor leagues and antagonistic toward the organization that cuts their paychecks. Said Upton to USA Today: "I can't believe I'm still here." ...   Said Young, who frequently has been outspoken in his criticism of the organization that drafted him No. 1 overall in 2003: "I don't know what they're waiting for. They're what, 30 games out of first place? They think we're going to mess up their clubhouse chemistry. B.J. should be up there. What are they waiting for? They always have excuses."

    The transition begins.

" ...  Triple-A Charlotte third baseman Josh Fields, the Sox's top hitting prospect, has been working in the outfield, but there are no plans to play him there until after this season, Williams said. "  (Chicago Tribune)


29 July, 2006

    No report on Sunday ... but back on Monday. 

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Daniel Cabrera BAL 5.1 5 6 5 2 9, 5.40 ... Adam Lind TOR, 3rd game up in AAA, 2-4, double ... Jordan Tata DET 6.0 4 4 4 5 4, 4.05 ... Dustin Pedroia BOS 2-3, 2-3, 26th double, .308 ... Sean Burnett PIT 7.0 4 1 1 1 1, 4.87 ... Delmon Young TB, turning on the power, 2-4, double, 6th homer, .walk, 3 RBI, .348 ... BJ Upton TB 1-3, 2 walks, 2 SBs (44), CS (17th), .270 .... Anderson Hernandez NYN 4-4, .246

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  Ben Hendrickson MIL 6.0 8 6 3 1 4, 2.26 ... Ubaldo Jimenez COL 7.0 2 0 0 3 7, 4.84 ... Chris Iannetta COL 2-4, double, .358 ... Joe Saunders LAA, out of the pen, 1.0 3 2 2 0 2 ... geesh, recall him already, Dan Johnson OAK 3-4, homer, walk, 5 RBI, .436 ...  Miguel Montero ARZ, lovin' AAA, 3-5, homer, .485 ... Micah Owings ARZ 6.1 6 6 6 3 3, 4.80 ... Angel Guzman CHN 5.0 7 4 4 2 2, 4.52 ... Chris Young ARZ 3-5, 2 doubles (25), 4 RBI, 11th SB, .275 ... Larry Broadway WAS 2-5, 13th homer, .304 ... Andy LaRoche LAD 3-4, .337 ... James Loney LAD 1-4, 26th double, .372 ... Jeff Keppinger KC 4-4, 2 doubles, walk, .438 ... Edinson Volquez TEX 6.0 4 1 0 3 11, 3.21

EASTERN (AA)  --  Garrett Olson BAL 5.0 5 0 0 3 7, 3.14 ... Kory Casto WAS 2-4, .292 ... Adam Miller CLE, really in a groove now, 6.2 5 1 0 1 11, 11-5, 3.08 ... CF Brian Barton CLE, ten games now, 2-3, walk, .515 ... one more dud for Gio Gonzalez PHI 5.1 9 6 6 2 5, 4.66

SOUTHERN (AA) --  Mark Reynolds 2B ARI, 0-4, K, .196 @ AA ... Steven Jackson ARI, 7 4 1 1 2 6, 2.70 ... Eric Patterson 2B CHC, 1-3, BB, .272 ... Joey Votto 1B CIN, 2-4, 35th 2B, R, .321 ... Camilo Vazquez CIN, 7 4 1 1 1 10, 2.55 ... Craig Brazell 1B LAD, 2-3, 15th HR, 2 RBI, .244 ... Elliot Johnson 2B TB, 14th HR, .301 ... Mitch Talbot TB, 6 7 3 2 1 4, 1.89 in three starts with Montgomery ... Yunel Escobar 3B ATL, 1-3, 2B, RBI, .286 ... Jarrod Saltalamacchia C ATL, 1-3, 3B, BB, K, .212 (and correction on his HR total - up to 9, thanks Barb!)... Stephen Smitherman, 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, .253 ... Dirk Hayhurst SD, 6 3 1 1 4 8, 3.58

TEXAS (AA)  --  Brandon Wood SS LAA 0-5, 2K, .277 ... Bobby Wilson C LAA 1-4, HR(9), 2R, 3RBI, .304 ... Josh Anderson OF HOU 2-5, R, .309 ... Hunter Pence OF HOU 1-4, SB(14), .299 ... Nate Gold 1B TEX 2-4, 2B, RBI, .296 ... Kurt Suzuki C OAK 1-3, 2B, BB, .289 ... Matthew Allegra OAK 1-3, HR(14), R, 2RBI, .280 ... Juan Richardson 1B STL 2-5, 2B, 2R, RBI, .320 ... Troy Tulowitzki SS COL 3-5, 2B, 2R, .297 ... Alex Gordon 3B KC 4-5, 2 2B, HR(18), 4R, 5RBI, .310 ... Billy Butler OF KC 1-3, 2RBI, 2BB, .322 ... Chris Lubanski OF KC 2-5, HR(10), 2R, 3RBI, .274

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Nick Adenhart LAA 7.0 5 2 2 2 6, 4.15 ... CF Chris Rahl ARZ 3-4, 6th triple, .345 ... Sean Rodriguez LAA 1-4, 25th double, .310 ... rare off-night for the TB phenoms - Evan Longoria 0-3, Reid Brignac 1-4, 3 Ks ... OF Casey Craig SEA 2-4, 2 homers, .369 ... Douglas Mathis 6.1 7 2 2 1 7, 4.17

CAROLINA (A+) --  Neil Walker C PIT 4-5, 2 2B, 3RBI, .268 ... Van Pope 3B ATL 3-5, HR(8), 2R, 2RBI, .261 ... Kala Kaaihue 1B ATL 1-3, HR(7), .220 ... James Parr ATL 7.0 5 3 3 1 5, 4.75 ... Drew Sutton 2B HOU 3-5, 2B, 3B, 2R, .264 ... Neil Sellers DH HOU 2-4, 2B, 2R, RBI, .265 ... Francisco Caraballo RF HOU 2-4, 2B, 3RBI, .229 ... Matt Bruback BAL 6.0 8 5 3 0 2, 3.92 ... Jensen Lewis CLE 5.2 6 2 2 1 6, 4.02 ... Tommy Hottovy BOS 6.0 8 4 2 1 9, 2.80 ... Rogearvin Bernadina CF WAS 2-4, 2R, RBI, SB, .281 ... Steve Mortimer 1B WAS 3-4, 2B, R, 2RBI, .242 ... Mike Hinckley WAS 6.1 11 3 3 3 3, 5.35

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Starting to turn around his season, Ryan Harvey RF CHN 4-5 4HR(16) 5RBI, .234 … Greg Golson CF PHI 3-5 HR(2) 2R 2RBI, .318 … On fire, Mike Carp 5-5, HR(10) 4RBI, .293 … Randy Roth 1B STL 2-3 R 2RBI, .333 … Sergio Pedroza LF LA 2-3 2 HR(3), .167 … Clete Thomas CF DET 2-3 RBI, .263 … Jeff Frazier 2-2 HR(9) 2RBI, .235 … Andrew Kown DET 7 5 1 1 2 3 W(5-4, 3.35)

MIDWEST (A) --  yikes, what's up with Justin Upton ARZ 0-4, .259 ... Hainley Statia LAA 2-3, 28th double, .305 ... David Freese SD 1-4, 4th homer, .338 ... CF & leadoff Jose Duarte KC 4-5, 2 doubles (16), 2 SBs (24), .282 ... Mark Hamilton STL, continuing the success from short-season ball, 3-5, .455 ... Jeff Samardzija CHN 6.0 4 2 1 3 3, 3.27 ...  22-year-old righthander Yohan Pino MIN, superb numbers, 6.0 1 0 0 0 4, 10-2, 1.55 ... John Mayberry TEX 2-4, 14th homer, .259 ... Cameron Maybin DET 2-5, walk, 3 RBI, .332

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Chris Volstad FLA 4 7 6 1 4 3, 3.44 ... Andrew McCutchen PIT 1-4, .282 ... Dexter Fowler COL 1-3, 2 RBI (28), BB, .283 ... Chris Nelson COL 2-4, .265 .... Fernando Martinez NYN 0-3, 2 BB, .324 ... Eugenio Velez SF 2-5, 2 HR (11), 3 RBI (70), .307 ... Matt Maloney PHI (W, 13-5) 6 5 1 1 2 8, 1.55 ... Mark Wagner BOS 1-3, 2B (29), BB, .307 ... Brad James HOU 5-2/3 6 1 0 3 3, 1.26 ... Josh Flores HOU 2-4 SB (22), .267 ... JR Towles HOU 2-4, .329 ... Austin Jackson NYA 2-4, 2B (20), .265 ... Lorenzo Cain MIL 1-5, 2B (24), .302 ... Max Ramirez CLE 0-3, BB, .296

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  shortstop Scott Sizemore DET 2-4, .342 ... Maxwell Sapp HOU, 1st rounder, 2006 (first catcher taken), 3-5, double, 3 RBI, .261 ... Pedro Beato BAL 6.2 6 1 1 1 4, 3.91 ... Jeremy Hellickson TB 7.0 3 2 2 0 8, 2.20 ... Keith Foulke BOS, rehab, 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 ... OF Zachary Daeges BOS 2-4, double, homer, .352

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Adam Cowart SF, amazing run continues, 5.0 4 0 0 0 2, 0.41 (in 44 innings, just 4 walks, only 22 Ks though) ... Tyler Colvin CHN 3-4, .331

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  Matthew Inouye C CHW 3-5, double(7), SB(2), .337 … solid in relief all year, Kanekoa Texiera RP CHW 15.1 IP 18SO, 3BB, 0.59 ERA … Travis Snider OF TOR 1-1 as pinch hitter, .308 … Mike Storey CLE (W 2-3) 5.0 0 0 0 2 5 ERA 3.44 … Robert Ramirez SS HOU 1-3, Double(14), .350 … Daniel Valencia MIN 2-3, Double(5), .311 … Jose Castillo (W 2-1) 7.0 1 0 0 0 8 ERA 2.84 … Paul Bennett 3B ATL 1-2, 2walks, 2runs, rbi, .350 … Larry Williams OF ATL 2-6, rbi, .344 … Kieron Pope OF BAL 1-4, HR(5) 2rbi, .355 …Anthony Martinez 1B BAL 3-5, .312

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  shortstop Hector Gomez COL 3-4, double, .344 ... Steven Johnson LAD 6.0 3 1 0 2 6, 3.07 ... Drew Stubbs CIN 3-4, double, homer, walk, .264 ... Cole Gillespie MIL, deuces wild, 2-2, 2 runs, 2 doubles, 2 walks, 2 SBs, .391 ... Chris Errecart MIL 2-4, 6th homer, .288 ... Sean O'Sullivan LAA 7.0 4 2 2 0 3, 1.85

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  3B Adam Coe ATL 1-4, 6th homer, .273 ... Cristhian Martinez DET 6.0 5 0 0 0 7, 1.54 ...  1B Christopher Carlson 3-5, 10th double, 8th homer, .297 ... Jonathan Albaladejo PIT 5.0 4 1 1 0 8, 3.68

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  Matt Sweeney LAA 1-4, 5th homer, .338 ... Andrew Lefave MIL 3-3, triple, 2 walks, .488 ... Sharlon Schoop SF 3-5, .424

    Troop Movements ...  CLE - recalled Andy Marte, optioned Ramon Vazquez to Triple-A ... TEX - acquired Carlos Lee and Nelson Cruz from MIL for Francisco Cordero, Kevin Mench and Laynce Nix and Julian Cordero, recalled Josh Rupe from Triple-A, optioned Freddy Guzman to Triple-A ... TOR - sent Chad Mottola outright to Triple-A ... MIL - acquired David Bell from PHI for Wilfrido Laureano, placed Jose Capellan on the 15-day DL ... WAS - purchased the contract of Travis Hughes from Triple-A, acquired Shairon Martis from SF for Mike Stanton ... OAK - recalled Shane Komine from Triple-A, optioned Randy Keisler to Triple-A ... BOS - recalled Javier Lopez from Triple-A ... TOR - activated Alex Rios from the 15-day DL ... DET - sent Alexis Gomez outright to Triple-A ... NYN - activated Pedro Martinez from the 15-day DL, optioned Heath Bell to Triple-A ... LAD - acquired Wilson Betemit from ATL for Danys Baez and Willy Aybar, activated Brett Tomko from the 15-day DL ... HOU - promoted JR House to AAA ... CLE - promoted Kevin Kouzmanoff to AAA ...

    A scary night for one of baseball's top prospects. 

" ...  Carlos Gonzalez ... escaped serious injury Thursday night after getting hit in the back of his head by a pitch from Inland Empire's Jose De La Cruz. Gonzalez, playing for Lancaster in the Class A Advanced California League, was 3-for-4 with a homer and two RBIs when De La Cruz plunked him in the ninth inning ... The ball struck Gonzalez on the lower part of his helmet, also getting part of his neck. The slugging outfielder was down on the ground for some four minutes but suffered no injury other than some soreness and getting a good scare. There was some thought he had suffered a concussion, but that was not the case, despite the fact he was not in the starting lineup Friday against Rancho Cucamonga. "I'm a little sore on my neck but I'm glad everything is OK," said Gonzalez, who leads the Cal League with 86 RBIs and is seventh in hitting at .316. "I was scared right after I got hit. My whole body stopped for five seconds. I was scared. I'm just glad to be OK and be here."  (MiLB.com)

    John Sickels, MinorLeagueBall, reviews his pre-season Jays' picks :

" ...  1) Ricky Romero ...  Had a nice 2.47 ERA in 10 starts for Class A Dunedin, but has been hammered in Double-A (8.00 in 5 starts, 13/13 K/BB in 27 innings). Collapse in all ratios since his promotion seems rather odd."

" ... 7) Adam Lind ... .310/.357/.543 in 91 games for New Hampshire with 19 homers. Just promoted to Triple-A this week, is 0-for-5 so far. Definite breakthrough season."

" ... 8) Ryan Patterson ... .288/.327/.520 with 19 homers for Dunedin. Promoted to Double-A two weeks ago, is 15-for-63 (.238) so far with five doubles. A very intriguing bat."


28 July, 2006

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Charlie Haeger CHA, seems to be one of those guys (Rich Hill, Ben Hendrickson, et al) who might be destined to be AAA stars while continuing to fail at the MLB level, 6.0 6 2 2 0 6, 11-3, 2.57 ... Josh Fields CHA, no slowing down, 2-4, walk, .324 ... Lastings Milledge NYN CF & leadoff, 2-4, .278 ... J.P. Howell TB 6.0 6 1 1 3 4, 2.11 ... BJ Upton TB 2-4, walk, .270 ... Delmon Young TB 0-5, .346

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  Nelson Cruz MIL 1-4, 20th homer, .302 ... Jason Hirsh HOU 7.0 5 1 1 0 5, 12-2, 2.03 ... Steven Shell LAA, falling apart lately, 1.1 6 6 6 2 0, 6.20 ... Miguel Montero ARZ 3-4, .464 ... Chris Young ARZ 2-4, 2 doubles (23), .271 ... Larry Broadway WAS 2-6, 2 homers (12), .302 ... Matt Kemp LAD 2-5, triple, .354

EASTERN (AA)  --  David Purcey TOR, demoted a level, similar results, 4.1 3 3 3 5 8, 5.88 ... Alexi Casilla MIN 1-2, double, 3 walks, 3 SBs (9), .259 ... Carlos Gomez NYN 3-4, triple, .278 ... Jay Gibbons BAL, rehab, 3-4, double ... Phil Hughes NYA 4.0 2 1 1 1 8, 2.83 (63 hits allowed, 26 walks, 98 Ks in 86 innings) ... Brian Barton CLE 2-4, .500

SOUTHERN (AA) --  Homer Bailey CIN, ND, 6 5 0 0 3 8, 0.74 ... Danny Richar 2B ARI, 1-4, HR, K, .312 ... Mark Reynolds, 1-4, 27th HR on the season, 3 RBI ... Jose Garcia FLA, 5 9 6 6 1 5, all of a sudden 3.10 ... Greg Smith ARI, 6 7 3 3 2 3, 4.60 ... Eric Patterson 2B CHC, 2-5, 3B, 2 RBI, .272 ... Scott Moore 3B CHC, 0-5, 3 K, .260 ...  ... Joey Votto 1B CIN, 0-4, K, .319 ... Ricardo Nanita LF CHW, 1-3, HR, 2 BB, .287 ... Tim Dillard MIL, 7.2 8 2 2 2 3, 3.27 ... Tony Abreu 2B LAD, 2-4, .291 ... Elliot Johnson 2B TB, 0-3, BB, 3 K, .299 ... Scott Elbert LAD, no problems here, 7 2 0 0 3 13, 2.35 ... Jim Magrane TB, 7 6 2 1 4 3, 2.98 ... Jarrod Saltalamacchia C ATL, finally, 2-4, 2 HR (8), 6 RBI, .211 ... Brandon Jones RF ATL, 2-5, HR, 3 RBI, .276 ... Vince Sinsi 1B SD, 3-5, HR, 2B, RBI, 3 R, .263 ... Matt Harrison ATL, 5 7 4 4 1 5, 4.46

TEXAS (AA)  --  Hunter Pence HOU 3-4, 2 doubles (24), 24th homer, .299 ... Michael Wilson SEA 2-4, double, .342 ... Blake Hawksworth STL 7.0 6 1 1 0 8, 4.04 ... Brandon Wood LAA 0-4, 2 Ks, .281 (50 walks, 130 Ks)

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Carlos Gonzalez ARZ, moving over to RF, 3-4, 33rd double, 18th homer, .316 ... Chris Rahl CF ARZ, 5th rounder, 2005, 3-5, 36th double (to go along with 5 triples and 10 homers), .341 ... Corey Wimberly COL 3-4, 35th SB, .332 ... Chase Headley SD 2-3, 11th homer, .299

CAROLINA (A+) --  Brent Lillibridge SS PIT 2-4, 2B, 3B, R, 3RBI, SB, .290 ... Dan Schwartzbauer 2B PIT 2-5, 2 2B, R, 3RBI, .241 ... Neil Walker C PIT 2-5, 2R, RBI, .255 ... Steve Pearce 1B PIT 2-4, 2B, 3R, RBI, .248 ... Kala Kaaihue 1B ATL 1-4, HR(6), .217 ... Nerio Rodriguez PIT 5.0 5 2 2 2 4 W, 5.29 ... Jo Jo Reyes ATL 4.0 5 5 4 3 3 L, 2.61 ... Carl Loadenthal position player pitching ATL 1.1 2 0 0 2 0 ... Carlos Duran DH BAL 2-4, 2B, 3RBI, .271 ... Sandy Madera C BAL 1-4, HR(3), .324 ... Lou Santangelo C HOU 2-4, HR(16)CL leader, .250 ... Craig Anderson BAL 6.0 5 2 0 2 1 W, 3.86 ... Jose Constanza RF CLE 4-4, 2B, 3B, R, SB, .316 ... Andrew Pinckney 3B 3-3, 2B, 3B, R, RBI, .265 ... Kevin Dixon CLE 6.0 2 1 1 2 4 W, 4.66 ... Gary Galvez BOS 7.0 7 3 3 3 3, 5.14 ... Donny Lucy C CHA 2-3, HR(5), SB, .257 ... Mike Moat CHA 5.0 6 2 2 0 2 W, 2.91 ... Clint Everts WAS 5.1 6 4 3 2 9 L, 5.12

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Cory Dunlap 1B LA 2-4 HR(13) 2R 2RBI, .242 - .402 OBP … Mike Costanzo 3B PHI 1-3 HR(10) 2RBI, .237 … Greg Golson CF PHI 1-3 HR(1) 2R 2RBI, .214 … Coming over from the Yankees’ system, Hector Made PH-SS PHI 2-3, double, HR(4), 2RBI, .289 … Paul Janish SS CIN 3-5 HR(6), 2R 2RBI, .268

MIDWEST (A) --  3B David Freese SD, more success up a level, 2-4, double, .342 ... Jay Bruce CIN 0-1 as a PH, .317 ... Cameron Maybin DET 2-4, double, .331 ... Jeff Baisley OAK 1-4, 18th homer, .313 ... shortstop Hainley Statia LAA 3-4, 27th double, 18th SB, .302 ... Justin Upton ARZ 0-4, .262

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Todd Redmond PIT (W, 8-5) 7 4 2 2 4 3, 2.86 ... Andrew McCutchen PIT 3-5, 2B (17), 2 HR (13), 5 RBI (59), .282 ... Eugenio Velez SF 0-3, SB (40), BB, .306 ... Jeremy Slayden PHI 1-4, .299 ... Mark Wagner BOS 1-3, 2B (28), .307 ... Fernando Martinez NYN 1-4, .329 ... Josh Flores HOU 4-6, HR (6), 2 RBI (24), .264 ... JR Towles HOU 4-5, 3B (2), HR (9), 3 RBI (40), SB (11), .326 ... Eli Iorg HOU 3-5, 2B (21), 3B (2), RBI (64), SB (26), .245 ... Will Inman MIL, dominating again, (W, 7-1) 5 2 0 0 2 5, 1.23 ... Lorenzo Cain MIL 3-4, 2 2B (23), RBI (43), BB, .303 ... Mat Gamel MIL 3-5, 2 RBI (59), .281

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  LF Ben Zeskind TOR 3-6, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 E ... CF Adam Calderone TOR 2-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI ... C Brian Jerolman TOR 2-5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 RBI ... DH Matt Liuzza TOR 2-5, 1 RBI ... SS Jeremy Goldschmeding WAS 2-5, 1 RBI ... CF Albert Laboy PIT 3-4, 2 R, 1 RBI ... C Kris Watts PIT 3-5, 1 RBI ... LF Alex Presley PIT 2-5, 1 R, 2 RBI ... 2B Jim Negrych PIT 2-5, 1 3B, 1 RBI ... CF Jim Barksdale PIT 2-3, 2 R, 1 BB, 2 SB ... 2B Henry Cabrera PIT 5 4 0 0 0 6 (W 4-0) ... RF Jonathan Sanchez NYN 1-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI ... Tobi Stoner NYN 6.1 3 0 0 1 7 (W3-1) ... DH Kyle Larsen NYA 3-3, 2 R, 2 HR, 2 RBI ... CF Colin Curtis NYA 3-3, 1 R, 1 3B, 1 RBI ... 3B Miguel Abreu BAL 2-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI ... RF Jed Stephens BAL 3-4, 1 R ... 1B Manny Arambarris BOS 2-4, 2 RBI .391 ... LF Zach Daeges BOS 1-2, 2 R 1 BB, .346

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Scott Deal OAK, 1st night off after six straight wins, 6.1 4 3 3 1 1, 6-1, 1.79 ... now we begin to see why he was a 1st rounder, Tyler Colvin CHN 5-5, double, triple, walk, .316 ... Matt Antonelli SD 0-2, 3 walks, 4 runs, RBI, .303 ... 1B Craig Cooper SD 3-5, 4th homer, 5 RBI, .318 ... Joshua Sullivan COL 3.1 3 1 1 1 8, 2.08

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  Brandon Buckman 1B STL 2-4, .331 … Ronald Ramirez SS HOU 0-4, .350 … Andrew Darnell OF HOU 3-4, 2HR, 3rbi … David Valencia 3B MIN 3-4, HR(3), .293 … Larry Williams OF ATL 3-4, .345 … Willie Cabrera 2-4, Double, Triple, .317 … Always consistent hitting, Oriole Shortstop Pedro Florimon Jr. 2-4, Solo HR(1) .344 ...  Billy Rowell 3-5, double, .255 ... Kieron Pope OF BAL 3-4, 2 doubles, .361 … Mike McCormick 3B TB 2-4, double, .275 … Junior Contreras 1-3, .345 … Chad Pendarvis (L 3-2) 4.2 8 5 4 2 1 ERA 1.82

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  Josh Wall LAD 5.0 4 3 3 2 4, 4.29 ... 1B Rick Taloa LAD 4-5, 2 doubles, .297 ... Matt Berezay LAD 2-2, 5th homer, 3 walks, .303 ... 1B Steven Suarez COL 3-4, 2 homers, 5 RBI, .290 ... Ryan Mount SS LAA 3-4, 2 walks, .384 ... 2B Tadd Brewer LAA, 17th rounder, 2006, 4-5, triple, homer, 7 RBI, .301 ... OF Chris Heisey CIN 3-4, 6th homer, .368

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  Rick Vanden Hurk FLO, on the comeback trail, 3.0 0 0 0 0 5, 1.12 (1 hit, 3 walks, 15 Ks in 8 innings) ... Omar Alcala MIN 7.2 2 1 1 3 1, 2.09 ... OF Christopher Parmelee MIN 2-4, double, .296 ... Mauricio Mendez BOS 4.0 2 0 0 1 6, 1.31 ... Grant Duff NYA 4.0 3 3 3 4 3, 1.61 ... CF Gorkys Hernandez DET 2-5, 16th SB, .361..

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  Clint Nageotte SEA, rehab, 3.0 3 0 0 1 0 ... OF Carlos Peguero SEA 3-5, triple, .300 ... 3B Alex Liddi SEA 3-4, double, triple, 6th SB, .336 ... shortstop Johan Yan TEX 2-3, walk, 13th error, .290

    Troop Movements ...  HOU - catchup, Troy Patton promoted to AA (5.2 4 2 1 3 6, in debut) ... COL - catchup, Shane Lindsay promoted to SAL (4.2 5 3 3 6 5, in first start) ... SEA - optioned Chris Snelling to Triple-A ... OAK - placed Scott Sauerbeck on the 15-day DL, recalled Ron Flores from Triple-A ... CHN - recalled Rich Hill from Triple-A, optioned David Aardsma to Triple-A ... KC - optioned Andrew Sisco to Triple-A ...

    Royals' updates from the Kansas City Star :

" ...  Shortstop Jeff Bianchi, who was playing in the Arizona rookie league, underwent shoulder surgery Tuesday."

" ... Mike Sweeney crushed a solo home run over the left-field wall in his second rehab game with Class A Burlington. Sweeney grounded into a fielder’s choice and flew out to right twice in his other three at-bats. He concluded his time in Burlington one for seven with two strikeouts and a walk. Sweeney drove back home after the game and will join Class AA Wichita for its game Friday."

    Andy Marte CLE, on the verge of MLB time :

" ...  General Manager Mark Shapiro says Andy Marte could be promoted to Cleveland "relatively soon." ...  Shapiro said: "Andy is still a work in progress with a lot of ability and great power. . . . It will be important to remember when he arrives that there is still development to be done with Andy, and it will have to get completed at the major-league level." ... Marte ... hitting .263 (93-for-354) with 23 doubles, 15 homers and 46 RBI. He's struck out 81 times and drawn 34 walks."  (Cleveland Plain Dealer)

    Zach Chalifour, RotoTimes.com, on Jeff Niemann TB and Max Ramirez CLE :

" ...  for the first time since being drafted two years ago, Niemann is pitching and pitching well. The 23-year-old picked up his first professional win last week, and is now 1-4 with a solid 3.32 ERA and 39 strikeouts in 38 innings at Double-A Montgomery ... It is no secret that the Devil Rays have recently been reluctant to rush prospects, but Niemann has a legitimate shot to join the rotation by mid-season next year, and he can be penciled in for the 2008 rotation."

" ... Ramirez, 21, is an average prospect with solid 15-20 home run potential who was having a strong season at Low-A Rome where he was batting .285 with nine home runs. He’s impressed the Indians thus far since joining their Low-A affiliate in Lake County, as he is hitting .545 with a home run, three RBI. He’s also showing great plate discipline with just two strikeouts in comparison to eight walks. He’s at least a few years away, and the Indians will likely look for either Ramirez or current backup catcher Kelly Shoppach to take the long-term job so that Victor Martinez can permanently move to first base."

    John Sickels, MinorLeagueBall, with a review of his pre-season COL picks and a positive attitude about Ian Stewart :

" ...  I'm a bit worried about Stewart, although he is still very young and has plenty of time to get things going well again ... Hitting .287/.347/.460 in 87 games for Double-A Tulsa. Not doing as well as expected, although 31 doubles is a positive marker."

" ... 7) Chris Iannetta ... .355/.473/.526 in 24 games since being promoted to Colorado Springs. Having an excellent season and looks like a major breakthrough prospect. Raise his grade to B+ and stick him on your top prospect lists."

" ... 8) Chris Nelson ... .263/.324/.431 with 10 steals for Asheville, also has 31 doubles. Not awesome but is rebounding somewhat after a poor '05 season. Still not quite living up to the potential he showed in high school and rookie ball."

" ... 15) Corey Wimberly ...  .314/.388/.362 with 33 steals in just 49 games for Modesto. Speed with decent on-base skills but lacks power."

CORRESPONDENTS : INT - Herb Walters, PCL - JDM, EASTERN - Harry Almquist, SOUTHERN - Zack Staten, TEXAS - Steve Macias, CALIFORNIA - JDM, CAROLINA - Jimmy Salmon, FLORIDA STATE - Wayne Stevens, MIDWEST - Bob Reed, SOUTH ATLANTIC - Martin Rose, NYP - Brian Carruthers, NW - Thom Hanson, APPALACHIAN - Mike Feifel, PIONEER - Joe McAnally & JDM, GULF COAST - JDM,  ARIZONA - JDM, ALASKA - Matt Nemeth 


27 July, 2006

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Matt Wright ATL, having his troubles in AAA, 6.0 8 4 4 1 4, 9.20 ... Josh Fields CHA 1-3, 19th SB, .322 ... BJ Upton TB 3B & leadoff 1-4, 2 walks, 33rd error, 42nd SB, .268 ... Delmon Young TB, beginning to hit his stride, 4-5, triple, 2 homers, 4 RBI, .354 ... Elijah Dukes TB 2-3, 3 walks, 8th error, .293 ... Jeremy Guthrie CLE CG one-hitter, 9.0 1 1 1 2 7, 3.07 ... Josh Banks TOR, just isn't happening, 6.2 9 7 5 4 3, 5.49

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  Carlos Villanueva MIL 7.0 4 0 0 1 8, 3-0, 0.43 ... Jeff Mathis LAA 1-3, homer (just his 4th), walk, .306 ... Hong-Chih Kuo LAD, 3rd start, 4.0 6 2 2 2 4  ...  Jeff Keppinger, now in the KC system, 3-4, 2 homers, walk, 4 runs, .391 ... John Danks TEX 4.2 6 6 5 2 5, 5.97 ... Tim Stauffer SD 5.2 9 5 3 3 5, 4.79 ... Paul McAnulty SD, back at 1B, 2-4, 14th homer, .326 ... George Kottaras SD 0-3, 3 Ks, .241

EASTERN (AA)  --  Radhames Liz BAL 7.0 4 0 0 2 8, 2.00 ... Jacoby Ellsbury CF & leadoff BOS 2-3, 2 walks, .367 ... Ryan Drese WAS 3.2 4 3 3 4 1 ... Ismael Ramirez TOR 6.0 7 1 1 0 6, 1.60 ... Brian Barton CLE 2-3, homer, .500 (8 games now in AA) ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE 2-3, double, walk, .389 ... Matt Guerrier MIN, looks ready to resume action with the Twins, 3.0 0 0 0 0 4

" ... Radhames Liz turned in the best start of his young Double-A career ... as Bowie edged Connecticut, 1-0 ...  In just his third start for the Baysox, Liz (2-1) scattered four hits and two walks over seven shutout innings while striking out eight. The 23-year-old made his Double-A debut on July 16, after going 6-5 with a 2.82 ERA over 83 innings pitched with the Carolina League's Frederick Keys. Liz's eight strikeouts were the most he recorded in a game since April 23. The right-hander struck out 33 batters over his first 15 innings pitched this season but has since averaged just five whiffs per start."  (MiLB.com)

SOUTHERN (AA) --  Scott Moore 3B CHC, 2-4, HR, 2 K, .264 ... Brian Dopirak 1B CHC, 2-3, 2B, RBI, BB, K, .264 ... Eric Patterson 2B CHC, 1-5, 2B, K, .270 ... Joey Votto 1B CIN, 0-3, BB, .323 ... Juan Mateo CHC, 6 4 3 3 2 5, 2.82 ... Tyler Pelland CIN, 5 2 1 1 4 7, 3.28 ... Kevin Randel 3B FLA, 2-4, HR, 2 RBI, .274 ... Jerry Gil CF ARI, 3-4, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R, .255 ... Ross Olendorf ARI, 7 7 4 4 0 6, 3.15 ... Ricardo Nanita CF CHW, 3-4, RBI, .287 ... Yovani Gallardo MIL, 6.2 5 1 1 3 8, 0.72 (lower and lower) ... Jeffrey Eure 3B MIL, 1-4, HR, 3 RBI, .264 ... Spike Lundberg LAD, 7 4 0 0 1 6, 2.04 ... Dan Miceli TB, 1 0 0 0 1 0 ... Anthony Raglani RF LAD, 3-5, 2 2B, 2 R, .237 ... Jarrod Saltalamacchia C ATL, 1-4, .207 ... Yunel Escobar 3B ATL, 1-3, RBI, BB, .284 ... Stephen Smitherman RF SD, 2-4, 2 2B, 3 RBI, .241 ... Anthony Lerew ATL, 5 5 1 1 3 5, 1.63

TEXAS (AA)  --  Brandon Wood SS LAA 1-4, 2K, .284 ... Terry Evans OF LAA 1-4, 2R, 2SB(11), .286 ... Jose Arredondo LAA 4.0 10 9 7 1 7, L(2-1), 6.67 ... Hunter Pence OF HOU 0-3, R, BB, .295 ... J.R. House C HOU 1-3, RBI, .325 ... Chad Reineke HOU 6.2 3 2 2 5 4, L(0-1), .338 ... Tim Hulett 2B TEX 1-3, 2R, 3BB, .415 ... Brant Colamarino 1B OAK 1-4, solo HR(11), .297 ... Michael Wilson OF SEA 1-2, 2B, 2R, RBI, 2BB, .336 ... Robert Rohrbaugh SEA 6.0 5 1 1 3 3, 2.86 ... Juan Richardson 1B STL 2-4, 2 2B, 2R, .313 ... Amaury Marti OF STL 3-4, HR(3), 2R, 3RBI, .364 ... Troy Tulowitzki SS COL 0-4, RBI, BB, .292 ... Joseph Koshansky 1B COL 1-4, 2B, .302 ... Alex Gordon 3B KC 3-4, HR(17), R, RBI, .303... Billy Butler OF KC 1-3, RBI, .322 ... Chris Lubanski OF KC 2-4, 2B, 2R, .273

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Corey Wimberly COL 2-5, double, .314 ... 3B Chase Headley SD 2-3, walk, .296 ... Evan Longoria TB 2-4, double, .371 ... 2B Emilio Bonifacio ARZ 2-4, 2 doubles (27), 16th error,.330 ... Carlos Gonzalez ARZ 1-3, 32nd double, walk, 15th SB, .311

CAROLINA (A+) --  Mike Carlin LF PIT 1-3, HR(10), 3RBI, .280 ... Brent Lillibridge SS PIT 1-3, 2R, 3SB, .277 ... Luis Munoz PIT 6.2 6 2 2 3 2 W, 4.03 ... John Drennen CF CLE 3-4, 2B, 3R, .333 ... Argenis Reyes 3B CLE 3-4, 3B, R, 3RBI, .247 ... Nolan Reimold RF BAL 2-3, HR(13), .263 ... Scott Lewis CLE 5.2 3 0 0 2 6 W, 1.48 ... JC Holt 2B ATL 4-5, RBI, SB, .235 ... Diory Hernandez SS ATL 2-4, HR(4), 2R, SB, .257 ... Kelvin Villa ATL 6.0 3 2 2 1 5, 3.18 ... Joey Devine ATL 1.0 1 2 2 1 2 L, 7.71 ... Trey Webb 2B WAS 1-4, HR(5), 2RBI, .257 ... Kevin Guyette BOS 6.0 5 0 0 1 4, 6.14 ... Rory Shortell HOU 7.0 3 0 0 2 5, 3.38

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Blake Dewitt 2B LA 1-4 HR(17) 2RBI, .269 … Xavier Paul RF LA 2-5 HR(12) 2R 2RBI, .295 … Ryan Crew LF MIL 3-5 double, 2R RBI, .320 … Mike Carp 1B NYN 2-5 double, 2R RBI, .285 … Clete Thomas CF DET 2-4 2R RBI SB(22), .258 … Jeff Larish 1B DET 3-4 double, R RBI, .248 … Colby Rasmus CF STL 2-3 triple, HR(3) 2R 2RBI SB(6), .216

MIDWEST (A) --  Pedro Ciriaco ARZ 3-5 (.268) ... Nate Culp SD 6 5 1 0 0 2 (debut) .. Daryl Jones SD 17th double, BB (.246) ... scary bad Tommy Mendoza ANA 4 2/3 11 8 8 4 2 (4.21) ... Hainley Statia ANA 2-7, 14th CS ... quel dommage Lucas French DET 7 9 6 6 2 4 (3.37) ... Cameron Maybin DET 4-4 (vaults to league-leading .328) ... Mark Reed CHN 0-4 (.274) ... Joshua Johnson KC 0-1, 2 more walks ... Wade Davis TB 6 6 2 2 1 2 (3.19) ... MWL no challenge so far for '06 2nd-rounder John Jay STL (LF) 3-4, double (.365/.437/.500 in 96 AB's) ... Bryan Anderson STL 2-5, K (.312)

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Jeremy Slayden PHI 2-4, SB (2), .299 ... Eugenio Velez SF 2-4, RBI (67), 2 SB (39), .309 ... Ryan Tucker FLA 7 4 2 1 1 6, 5.15 ... Travis Denker LAD 1-4, BB, .256 ... Andrew McCutchen PIT 0-4, .278 ... Brad Corley PIT 3-4, 2B (20), HR (12), 4 RBI (67), BB, .283 ... Chaz Roe COL (L, 3-4) 6 7 4 4 1 4, 3.99 ... Dexter Fowler COL 0-4, .283 ... Eric Young Jr COL 2-3, 2B (20), HR (4), RBI (35), BB, .270 ... Chris Nelson COL 1-4, RBI (55), SB (10), .263 ... Max Ramirez CLE 2-3, RBI (41), BB, .299 ... Brandon Erbe BAL 5 2 0 0 0 5, 2.85 ... Mark Wagner BOS 1-4, 2B (27), .307 ... Tony Granadillo BOS 2-4, 2 HR (11), 2 RBI (49), .274 ... Fernando Martinez NYN 1-5, .331 ... Austin Jackson NYA 2-3, 2BB, .263

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  3B Manny Arambarris BOS 5-5, 2 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI, 1 E ... 1B Jorge Jimenez BOS 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 1 BB, 1 E ...RF Bubba Bell BOS 2-5, 2 R, 1 RBI ... C Luis Exposito BOS 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 E ... LF Zach Daeges BOS 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 BB ... 3B Miguel Abreu BAL 3-5, 1 R, 1 3B, 3 RBI ... RF Zack Davis BAL 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 E ... LF Corey Shafer BAL 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB ... Graham Taylor FLA 7 6 1 1 0 3, 2.02 (W 2-2) ... 3B Jake Blackwood FLA 2-4, 1 RBI ... Eric Brown NYN 6 3 0 0 0 1, 1.93 (W 2-0) ... LF Dustin Martin NYN 3-4, 1 3B, 1 RBI, 1 BB...George Kontos NYA 7 4 1 1 0 8 (W 4-2) ... LF Seth Fortenberry NYA 3-5, 3 R, 1 3B, 1 HR, 2 RBI ... 2B Wilmer Pino NYA 3-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 SB, 1 CS ... 3B Jonathan Castro WASH 3-5, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI ... RF Francisco Nichols WASH 2-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 1 RBI ... RF Matt Wilkerson STL 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI ... 1B Ryan Strieby DET 3-4, 2 R, 1 2B 1 E ... 3B Ron Bourquin DET 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI ... CF Albert Laboy PIT 3-4, 1 CS ...1B Kent Sakamoto PIT 2-4, 2 RBI

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Tyler Colvin OF CHC 2-5, r, double, rbi #23, .284 ... Matt Camp OF CHC 3-4, rbi #21 , bb, .304 ... Steven Clevenger 2b CHC 3-4, r, 2 rbi, .287 ... Alfred Joseph OF CHC 3-4, 2 doubles, rbi #19, .364 ... Chris Davis OF TEX 3-4, r, 2 doubles, 2 rbi's, .261 ... Mark Pawelek P CHC w 1-3, 5.0 5 1 1 1 6 3.00 ... Inoel Deaza P OAK w 3-2, 6.0 4 1 1 1 4 3.38 ... Tim Lincecum P SF strikes out the side in only inning pitched 1.0 0 0 0 3 0.00 ... Leury Bonilla 3b SEA 3-4, 2r, hr, rbi, .207 ... Brad Miller 1b ARZ 2-4, r, .288 ... Daniel Mayora ss COL 2-5, r, 2 doubles, .331 ... Bret Berglund OF COL 2-3, r, 2 doubles, 2 rbi, bb, .200 ... Victor Ferrante OF COL 2-5, rbi, .255 ... Aneury Rodriguez P w 2-1, 6.0 6 1 1 2 7 2.40 ... William Harris P COL s #2, 3.0 2 0 0 0 3 1.35

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  2B Ronald Ramirez HOU 2-5, double, triple, .363 ... 3B Billy Rowell BAL 1-4, walk, .214 ... OF Kieron Pope BAL 2-2, 14th double, 4th homer, 2 walks, .348 ... OF Joey Howell BAL 3-4, triple, 2nd homer, .270 ... Jamie Richmond ATL, quite a season, 6.0 3 0 0 0 1, 6-0, 0.92 ... OF Travis Snider TOR 1-4, 5th homer, .308

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  CF Joseph Dickerson KC 4-5, double, .340 ... 2B Kurt Mertins KC 3-5, .425 ... Trevor Bell LAA 6.0 6 6 6 3 3, 3.07 ... Drew Stubbs CIN 1-3, 2 walks, picked off third, .258

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  Ryan Ketchner LAD, so far so good in injury rehab, 3.0 0 0 0 1 1 ... Preston Mattingly LAD 2-5, triple, walk, 7th error, .350 ... Milton Loo CIN 3-5, 2 doubles, homer, .382 ... Kyle Sleeth DET, 6.1 9 3 3 0 5, 3.63 ... CF & leadoff Gorkys Hernandez DET 3-4, walk, .359

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  Armando Galarraga TEX 3.0 3 1 0 0 3 ... CF & leadoff Cody Podraza TEX 2-3, triple, 12th SB, .319 ... Matt Sweeney 3B LAA 1-5, 4th homer, .348 ... CF & leadoff Luis Durango SD 3-5, walk, 11th SB, .375 ... 1B Jeremy Hunt SD 3-3, double, walk, .380

    Troop Movements ...  OAK - optioned Jason Windsor to Triple-A, recalled Randy Keisler from Triple-A ... DET - purchased the contract of Colby Lewis from Triple-A, designated Alexis Gomez for assignment ... NYA - acquired Sal Fasano from PHI for  Hector Made, designated Kelly Stinnett for assignment  ...  SEA - acquired Ben Broussard and cash from CLE  for Shin-Soo Choo and PTBNL, recalled Chris Snelling from Triple-A, designated Carl Everett for assignment  ... KC - recalled Andres Blanco from Triple-A ... BOS - optioned Kason Gabbard to Triple-A ... HOU - placed Orlando Palmeiro on the bereavement list, recalled Jason Lane from Triple-A ... CIN - activated David Ross from the 15-day DL, designated Joe Mays for assignment ...

    Jason Hirsh HOU claims the top slot in the Look Who's Hot chart at RotoAmerica

" ...  numbers are incredible: 11-2, 2.08, 41 consecutive scoreless innings, 0.92 ERA since May, etc. Oh, and he’s tall."

" ... 2. James Loney ...  The .380-hitting Loney will give the team an interesting decision this off-season as they ponder what sort of contract, if any, to offer All-Star 1B Nomar Garciaparra. Loney, hitting for power now as well, is ready."

" ... 9. Jacob McGee ...  You have to pay attention to a lefty with 140 K’s in 113 innings no matter the level he’s at."

" ... 10. Evan Longoria ...Outperforming his scouting reports. Longoria stands at .381/.461/.754 between two levels. Already 12 homers in 30 games thanks in part to the thin desert air of the CAL league."

    An eye-opener over at Scout.com.  It's their Top 100 (actually it goes on through # 300).  Delmon Young, Alex Gordon, Phil Hughes 1-2-3.  More than a few of the picks (and some omissions) are sure to spark some debates.  Ian Stewart, once a Top 10 guy, doesn't rate among the Top 300.  Andy Marte ranks as only the 5th best at third - behind Gordon, Andy LaRoche, Josh Fields and Ryan Braun

In spite of a 2006 horror show at the plate, Jarrod Saltalamacchia hangs on to the No. 5 slot among catchers.  Jeff Clement is No. 1, followed by Chris Iannetta and Miguel Montero

2006 phenom Yovani Gallardo shows up at No. 258, well behind moundsmen such as Mark Rogers (40), Angel Guzman (56), Dana Eveland (73), Merkin Valdez (84), Sean Burnett (153), Josh Banks (229), Kyle Sleeth (256).

    John Sickels, MinorLeagueBall, does another take on his pre-season Top 20 for the Brewers :

" ...  2) Ryan Braun ...  Hot lately, up to .283/.330/.505 in 26 games for Double-A Huntsville. A decent full-season debut although perhaps not quite as good as people expected."

" ... 6) Yovani Gallardo ... 1.66 in 18 starts between Class A Brevard County and Double-A Huntsville. Emerging as one of the top RHP prospects in the game."

" ... 10) Will Inman ... 1.33 ERA in 61 innings for Class A West Virginia, 74/13 K/BB with zero homers allowed. Big-time sleeper that you should watch closely."

    Just another KC mis-adventure :

" ...  Another No. 1 pick has come and gone for the Royals ...  Right-hander Colt Griffin, the team’s top pick in 2001, has told the Royals he will retire rather than continue his comeback from major shoulder surgery. “Colt tried everything he could this spring to bounce back,” said Royals senior director of minor-league operations Shaun McGinn. “But his fastball and his velocity just weren’t coming back. He started making hints that he was leaning toward retiring during the spring, and then he just said he wanted to try going another direction with his life other than baseball.” ...  Griffin’s brief baseball career was plagued by control issues. In 373 minor-league innings, Griffin walked 278 hitters, hit 44 batters and threw 82 wild pitches ... The Royals tried the last two years to convert Griffin to the bullpen with mixed results.”   (Kansas City Star)

    Carlos Gonzalez ARZ a shining star :

" ... he has impressed Cal League managers, even drawing comparisons to another Venezuelan outfielder: Bob Abreu. His confident approach also evokes a couple of other big leaguers. "Gonzalez reminds me of Hank Blalock and Ian Kinsler. The thing that stands out to me about all three is they think they can hit anybody," said Bakersfield manager Carlos Subero, who coached Blalock and Kinsler as they came up through the Rangers system. "Gonzalez, he has better tools than those two. He loves fielding, loves throwing the ball, likes runners trying to take the extra base so he can show off his arm. "I think Carlos Gonzalez might be one of the best outfielders coming out of Venezuela. He can have a long career if he stays healthy."  (Baseball America)

    Over at Baseball Analysts, Bryan Smith has a nice piece on short-season ball including a note on 2006 first rounder Jeremy Jeffress MIL :

" ... Jeffress ... has proven that not every high school flame-thrower is raw. The Virginia right-hander touched the high 90s during the showcase circuit, making teams forget about his small 6-0 frame. Now, his performance on the mound is living up to those velocity readings. Jeffress hasn't allowed a run in his last three outings, and in those 11.2 innings, he's allowed 3 hits, 4 walks and struck out 12 batters. Suddenly, the Brewers pitching crop (Yovani Gallardo, Mark Rogers, Will Inman, Jeffress) is starting to look pretty impressive."


26 July, 2006

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Franklin Gutierrez CLE 1-2, 2 BB, SB, .281 … Ben Francisco CLE 1-4, 13th HR, 2 R, RBI, .275 … Brayan Pena ATL 2-3, 2 2B, RBI, BB, .280 … Matt Garza MIN 9 3 0 0 2 8, 2.05 … John Hattig TOR 1-2, 2B, 2 R, 2 BB, .280 … rehab, Alex Rios TOR 1-4, BB, .286 … Ryan Sweeney CHA 0-2, BB, .291 … Sean Tracey CHA 7 7 1 1 2 4, 3.41 … Tonys Gutierrez CIN 2-3, 9th HR, R, RBI, BB, .307 … Val Majewski BAL 2-5, 2 R, 2 RBI, .254 … David Pauley BOS 7 3 1 1 1 4, 5.44 … Josh Kroeger PHI 1-4, 2B, R, RBI, .231 … Michael Bourn PHI 2-3, R, RBI, BB, SF, SB, .333 … Scott Mathieson PHI 8 3 1 1 2 7, 3.32 … Christian Garcia NYA 2-4, 2B, RBI, BB, .245 … Jeff Karstens NYA 7 6 1 1 0 5, 5.64 … B.J. Upton TB 1-4, 8th HR, R, RBI, .268 … Delmon Young TB 2-3, 2B, BB, .343

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  OF Matt Miller, up all the way from A-Ball, 3-5, .421 ... Dan Johnson OAK 2-5, double, .465 ... Jeff Clement SEA 1-3, walk, .241 ... Denny Bautista KC 3.0 11 11 11 3 1, 7.42 ... Matt Kemp LAD 4-5, 3 doubles, .385 ... Joel Guzman LAD 3-5, triple, 3 RBI, .294 ... James Loney LAD 3-5, .380 ... Delwyn Young LAD 4-6, double, 14th homer, .282 ... Scott Hairston ARZ 2-5, double, 20th homer, .330 ... Chris Young ARZ 3-5, 17th homer, 2 SBs (10), .272 ... Miguel Montero ARZ 3-4, homer, walk, .417 ... Brian Barden ARZ 2-4, 15th homer, .311 ... Felix Pie CHN 3-5, .272

EASTERN (AA)  --  oops, a little setback, Kevin Slowey MIN 5.1 9 4 4 1 7, 3.16 ... Ty Clippard NYA 8.0 5 1 1 2 2, 3.86 ... Eric Duncan NYA, on a nice roll, 1-3, 10th homer, .286 ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE 0-6 in a twin-bill, .386 (in danger of losing his batting lead to James Loney of the Dodgers in AAA) ... CF Brian Barton CLE 2-3 & 1-3, .478 ...  CF Carlos Gomez NYN 1-3, 22nd SB, .275 ... CF Jacoby Ellsbury BOS 2-5, 7th SB, .351 ... Shane Youman PIT 7.0 5 2 2 0 5, 1.51

SOUTHERN (AA) --  Garrett Mock ARI, 3.1 9 6 6 0 2, 4.72 ... Danny Richar 2B ARI, 3-6, HR, 3B, 3 RBI, 2 R, .314 ... Jesus Cota RF ARI, 3-5, 2 HR, 3 RBI, 3 R, .227 ... Chris Walker CF CHC, 2-4, K, .306 ... Eric Patterson 2B CHC, 0-3, BB, K, .271 ... Joey Votto 1B CIN, 2-3, 2B, R, .325 ... Chris Shaver CHC, 5 7 3 3 6 3, 2.64 ... Edward Valdez CIN, 7.1 3 0 0 2 6, 3.64 ... Ryan Braun 3B, 0-3, BB, K, .283 ... Steven Hammond MIL, 7 3 1 1 1 9, 1.42 ... Lance Broadway CHW, 6 8 3 3 1 6, 2.85 ... Tydus Meadows LF LAD, 1-4, HR, .284 ... Gabriel Martinez 3B/1B TB, 2-4, 2 2B, RBI, 2 K, .272 ... Andrew Sonnanstine TB, 6 6 2 2 1 5, 2.80 ... Colt Morton C SD, 2-4, 2 HR, 4 RBI ... Jack Cassel SD, 7 3 1 1 4 6, 2.01

TEXAS (AA)  --  Brandon Wood SS LAA 1-4, solo HR(22), 3K, .284 ... Hunter Pence OF HOU 1-4, solo HR(23), .297 ... Nate Gold 1B TEX 3-4, solo HR(20), 2R, BB, .290 ... Wladimir Balentien OF SEA 0-4, 4K, .260 ... Juan Richardson 1B STL 2-3, 2B, RBI, .311 ... Nick Stavinoha OF STL 3-4, 2 2B, 2RBI, .271 ... Troy Tulowitzki SS COL 2-5, 2 2B, 2R, BB, .296 ... Seth Smith OF COL 3-5, HR(10), 2R, 4RBI, BB, .292 ... Jordan Czarniecki OF COL 4-5, 2B, 2HR(11), 3R, 5RBI, .282 ... Alex Gordon 3B KC 1-5 solo HR(16), .298 ... Billy Butler OF KC 2-5, 2R, .322 ... Neal Musser KC 2.2, 9 11 5 4 3, L(4-2), 4.81

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Carlos Gonzalez ARZ 2-4, 2 homers (17), .311 ... Emilio Bonifacio 2-5, 42nd SB, .328 ... 3B Rusty Ryal ARZ 4-4, 16th double, 11th homer, .277 ... Reid Brignac TB 3-5, .315 ... catcher Emerson Frostad TEX 3-5, 9th homer, .297 ...  1st rounder (2nd overall) Gregory Reynolds COL 5.0 2 0 0 1 0, 2.65 ... Stephen Marek LAA 2.0 0 0 0 2 0 (ankle injury)

CAROLINA (A+) --  Andrew Pinckney SS CLE 2-4, 2B, 2 R, 2RBI, .267 ... Jordan Brown LF CLE 2-5, 3B, 3 R, RBI, .279 ... Rodney Choy Foo DH CLE 3-5, 2B, HR(6), 3 R, 3RBI, SB, .315 ... Stephen Head 1B CLE 1-5, 2B, R, 3RBI, .219 ... Javi Herrera C CLE 2-6, 2B, R, 3RBI, .375 ... Jose Constanza RF CLE 3-4, 2 R, 2 SB, .307 ... Pete Maestrales 3B BAL 2-4, 2B, 2 R, RBI, .289 ... Mario Delgado 1B BAL 3-5, HR(5), 2 R, 3RBI, .257 ... Carlos Duran LF BAL 3-4, 2B, 3B, R, 3RBI, SB, .261 ... Arturo Rivas CF BAL 2-3, HR(1), 2 R, SB, .400 ... Joe Ness CLE a bad night 3.2 7 6 6 3 4, 3.42 ... Josh Hansen 1B CHA 1-4, HR(9), .251 ... Chris Kelly IF CHA 2-4, HR(16), .269 ... Kyle Bloom PIT 6.0 4 1 1 2 2 L, 3.95 ... Carlos Torres CHA 6.1 3 0 0 0 7 W, 4.24 ... Devin Ivany C WAS 1-3, HR(5), 2RBI, .270 ... JC Holt 2B ATL 2-4, 2B, 2 R, 2RBI, SB, .226 ... Rogearvin Bernadina CF WAS 3-4, 2B, R, 2 SB, .279

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Donald Veal CHN 5 4 1 1 3 9 ND, 1.12 … Hernan Iribarren 2B MIL 2-5 HR(2) 2R 3RBI SB(17), .329 … Drew Locke DH LA 2-3 HR(5) 2RBI, .295 … Matt Megrew LA 4 2 0 0 5 5 ND, 2.73 … Mike Costnazo 3B PHI 1-3 HR(9), .233 … Trevor Plouffe SS MIN 2-4 double, RBI, .233

MIDWEST (A) --  the usual excellence Jacob McGee TB 6 2 1 1 2 11 (2.71) ... fine MWL debut for last month's 1st rounder Adam Ottavino STL 5 3 2 1 1 7 ... Cameron Maybin DET 2-4, K ... John Mayberry TEX 2-3 (.262) ... a pulse? B.J. Szymanski CIN 2-6, 21st double (.237) ... Alex Smit MIN 5 4 2 2 3 8 (3.56) ... Paul Kelly MIN 1-3, K, 5th CS ... Carlos Rosa KC 7 6 1 1 1 4 (2.63) ... it's what he does best Joshua Johnson KC 1-2, 3 BB's (.252 avg., but a .399 OBP) ... Justin Upton ARZ 1-4, 2 K's (.266)

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Jon Niese NYN (W, 10-6) 5-1/3 3 1 1 1 6, 3.42 ... Fernando Martinez NYN 1-5, .335 ... Jesus Gamero NYN, 9 RBI in last 2 games, 2-3, 5 RBI (11), .310 ... John Thomson ATL, rehab, (L, 0-1) 1-2/3 3 2 2 0 0, 10.80 ... Sean West FLA (W, 4-4) 6 7 4 3 3 4, 3.18 ... Andrew McCutchen PIT 1-4, 2B (16), RBI (54), .281 ... Travis Denker LAD 1-5, HR (4), RBI (22), .256 ... Dexter Fowler COL 2-5, 2 2B (21), .287 ... Eric Young Jr COL 2-4, 2 SB (69), .267 ... Chris Nelson COL 1-5, RBI (54), .263 ... Max Ramirez CLE 1-1, 2B (19), 4 BB, .295 ... Jeremy Slayden PHI 2-5, 2B (28), .296 ... Chorye Spoone BAL 6 6 0 0 2 6, 2.93 ... Michael Bowden BOS 4 3 3 3 6 4, 3.23 ... Mark Wagner BOS 2-4, 2B (26), .308 ... Austin Jackson NYA 1-4, RBI (40), BB, .260 ... Angel Salome MIL 0-4, .300 ... Lorenzo Cain MIL 1-3, BB, .299 ... Brian Bogusevic HOU 4 3 5 3 5 1, 7.39

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  LF Dave Mense FLA 3-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB, 1 SB ... SS Tim Torres HOU 2-2, 3 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 2 BB ... C Max Sapp HOU 1-2, 1 R, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB ... 2B Greg Buchanan HOU 3-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 SB ... 1B Andy Lytle CLE 2-4, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 BB (.360) ... 3B Ivan Naccarata 2-4, 1 R, 1 HR, 2 RBI ... LF Corey Shafer BAL 2-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI ... 3B Miguel Abreu BAL 2-6, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI ... Josh Tamba BAL 5.1 6 1 1 1 6 2.02 (W 5-0) ... LF Zach Daeges BOS 4-4, (.337) ... 2B Scott Campbell TOR 4-5, 4 R, 3 2B, 1 RBI, 1 BB ... LF Ben Zeskind TOR 3-6, 1 R, 1 2B, 3 RBI ... CF Adam Calderone TOR 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 RBI, 1 CS ... 3B Matt Lane TOR 3-4, 2 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI ... C Brian Jerolman TOR 3-6, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI ... RF Jonathan Baksh TOR 3-3, 1 R, 1 2B, 1 3B, 2 RBI ... Wilfreddy Aguirre TOR 5 3 0 0 1 3 1.40 (W 1-1) ... 1B Matt Fields TB 4-7, 1 R, 2 2B ... CF Jim Rapoport STL 3-6, 1 2B, 1 3B, 4 RBI, 1 SB ... DH Ryan Strieby DET 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 BB ... Matt O'Brien DET 6 7 1 1 1 4 (W 4-1) ...2B Jim Negrych PIT 3-4, 1 R ... CF Colin Curtis NYA 4-4, 1 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI, 1 CS ... Edgar Soto NYY 7 1 1 0 0 5 (W 1-2)

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Matt Matulia ss CHC 1-3, 2 r, 1st hr, bb, 4 rbi, .198 ... Nickolas Cadena 2b TEX 2-4, 2 r, 2 doubles, rbi, so, .301 ... Chris Davis of TEX 3-4, 3 doubles, r, rbi, .245 ... Akfredi Francisco P CHC relief w 4-0, 4.0 3 0 0 0 5 4.44 ... Michael Ballard P TEX 6.0 4 3 1 0 7 4.54 ... Andrew Bailey P OAK 6.0 1 0 0 0 8 1.50 ... Ben Snyder P SF 5.0 6 1 0 0 7 3.20 ... Brian Lauderdale 2b/3b SD 3-5, r, .300 ... Craig Cooper 1b SD 2-5, 2r, hr, .306 ... Victor Ferrante OF COL 3-4, double, rbi, bb, .250 ... Cesar Valdez P ARZ 5.0 8 1 1 3 5 2.16

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  Ronald Ramirez SS HOU 2-5, .361 … Mike McCormick 3B TB 2-3, HR(4), 4 rbi … Scott Madsen SS CHW 1-4, double(8), .311 … Matthew Inouye C CHW 1-3, HR(2), .330 … Pedro Florimon Jr. SS BAL 0-3, .341 ...  Kieron Pope OF BAL 3-5, 2 Doubles, 2rbi, .336 … Ryan Adams 2B BAL 5-5, .364 … Anthony Martinez 1B BAL 4-5, 2 doubles, 3rbi, .296 … Daryl Jones OF STL 2-4, triple, .254 .. Travis Snider OF TOR 2-3, .311 … Jonathan Jaspe C TOR 1-4, .300 … Larry Williams OF ATL 2-5, .341 … Robert Fontaine SS ATL 3-4, double, 4 runs, .325 … Jerry Verastequi C ATL 4-4, double, .441

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  Jason Neighborgall, wonder if he threw any strikes, 0.0 0 0 0 3 0, WP, 12.38 (18 walks in 8 innings) ...  2006 first rounder, Kyle McCulloch CHA 5.0 4 0 0 0 10, 1.61 ...  Chris Carter CHA 2-3, walk, .346 ...  first rounder Bryan Morris LAD 3.2 4 5 2 2 6, 3.71 ... Rowdy Hardy KC 6.0 2 1 1 0 5, 3-0, 2.92 ... shortstop Chris McConnell KC 2-5, double, error, .415

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  Eleazar Aponte DET 7.0 5 0 0 0 1, 1.91 (in 33 IP) ...  shortstop Adrian Cardenas 3-4, .316 ... Dave Williams NYN, rehab, 5.0 1 0 0 0 7 ... Milton Loo CIN 3-4, double, .345 ... Felix Doubront BOS 6.0 3 1 1 2 2, 1.70  (in 37 innings)

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  SS Sharlon Schoop SF 3-4, .421... Matthew Sweeney 3B LAA 2-4, double, .359 ... 2B Rayner Contreras SD 3-4, double, walk, .358 ... CF Cedric Hunter SD 3-5, 2 doubles, .336

    Troop Movements ...  MIL - activated Ben Sheets from the DL, optioned Dana Eveland to AAA, acquired Tony Graffanino from KC for Jorge De La Rosa, optioned Chris Barnwell to Triple-A ... TEX - activated Adam Eaton from the 60-day DL, designated Bryan Corey for assignment  ...  KC - recalled Leo Nunez from Triple-A ... WAS - placed Jose Vidro on the 15-day DL, activated Damian Jackson from the 15-day DL, recalled Bernie Castro from Triple-A, acquired Odalis Perez, Blake JohnsonJulio Pimentel and cash from LAD for Elmer Dessens ...

    Nate Stephens, RotoWorld.com, offers some in-depth prospect reviews in his weekly column.  Some excerpts from a couple of those featured this week :

" ...  Jay Bruce  ...  the Reds snagged him with the 12th overall pick in the 2005 draft ...  A big, left-hander at 6’3” and 190-pounds, Bruce had shown enough speed and defensive ability to warrant a look in center field once breaking into professional baseball. However, his bat was certainly strong enough to carry him in a corner outfield spot should he end up better suited there ...  assigned Bruce to Low-A Dayton to start the 2006 campaign ...  has hit an incredible .308/.388/.544 with 17 steals in 25 attempts over 96 games ...  will need to continue working on his control of the plate and his ability to read pitchers while on the bases, but his potential is clearly quite enormous ...  capable of belting 30+ homers to go with 15+ steals in his prime, so he’s worth an investment and patience while he develops."

" ... Matt Albers  ...  23rd round selection in 2001 ... Problems with command have always held him back, but any pitcher that has recorded 547 strikeouts in 522 minor league innings is worth watching ...   Albers’ 2.17 ERA in 19 starts for Double-A Corpus Christi is impressive, but our expectations should be tempered by his mediocre 95/47 K/BB ratio in 119 innings of work. The real reason he’s improved this season is that he’s given up just four homers after yielding 15 in 148 2/3 innings last year. That he’s pitching in a pitcher-friendly environment also helps ...  He’s got the stuff to develop into a useful fantasy starter, even if he does have a ways to go until he gets there. A permanent move to the bullpen also can’t be ruled out, but there’s intriguing potential here."

    John Franco, SportsBlurb (subscription), checks out a few of the "Whatever happened to .." guys. 

" ...  Felix Pie ...  has tools that are matched by few players in the minor leagues, but the Cubs’ habit of promoting him aggressively might have finally overmatched him as a 21-year old at Triple-A. For the Iowa Cubs, Pie has hit .262/.323/.392 with eight home runs and 11 stolen bases in 385 at-bats. He has also struck out a staggering 91 times in 98 games ... With a player this young, who is obviously struggling to adjust to Triple-A, you’d like to see the Cubs exercise patience, but trade rumors are swirling around Jacque Jones, and Pie could be tabbed as his replacement."

" ... Eric Duncan ... Last year, the Yankees opted to hang onto Duncan instead of trading him at the time when he was considered their most valuable prospect ... This year, he got off to a slow start at Triple-A ...  After a demotion to Double-A, however, Duncan has started to hit again. Through 144 at-bats for Trenton, Duncan has hit .278/.367/.514 with 6 home runs, and he has struck out just 18 times while drawing 19 walks. The Yankees have always pushed Duncan hard, and his success this year has been his first sustained success since hitting .373 for Staten Island in 2003. Now that the 21-year old is playing at the right level, he should continue to take advantage of the opportunity to develop into a bona fide major leaguer."


25 July, 2006

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Ryan Garko CLE 1-2, BB, HBP, SB, .251 … Ben Francisco CLE 2-4, 2B, 12th HR, R, 3 RBI, .275 … Brayan Pena ATL 2-5, .275 … Peter Moylan ATL 2 2 1 1 0 0, 5.67 … Boof Bonser MIN 6 7 3 2 2 8, 2.86 … Rob Cosby TOR 2-4, 12th HR, R, RBI, .265 … Sergio Santos TOR 2-3, BB, .223 … rehab, Alex Rios TOR 1-3, .333 … Francisco Rosario TOR 3 2 0 0 2 3, 3.99 … Casey Rogowski CHA 3-4, 2B, R, 2 RBI, SB, .293 … Chris Stewart CHA 1-4, .261 … Brandon Watson CIN 2-5, .222 … Val Majewski BAL 2-5, R, RBI, .250 … Eli Whiteside BAL 3-5, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, .248 … Hayden Penn BAL 5 6 2 2 2 3, 1.99 … Oliver Perez PIT 6 7 1 1 4 5, 3.41 … Dustin Pedroia BOS 2-4, R, 2 BB, .309 … Adam Stern BOS 2-5, R, RBI, BB, .258 … Carlos Ruiz PHI 2-3, BB, .322 … Michael Bourn PHI 1-4, 3B, R, 2 RBI, BB, .319 … Gavin Floyd PHI 6 7 5 5 2 5, 4.90 … rehab, Aaron Small NYA 2 4 1 0 1 0, 4.97 … B.J. Upton TB 3-6, 2 R, SB, .268 … Delmon Young TB 3-5, 3rd HR, 3 R, 3 RBI, BB, SB, .338 … Elijah Dukes TB 2-4, 10th HR, 3 R, RBI, BB, .290 … Shawn Riggans TB 3-5, 2 2B, R, RBI, .293 … Ben Zobrist TB 2-5, 2B, 3B, 3 R, 2 RBI, HBP, .264 … Brian Stokes TB 3 8 7 6 1 2, 4.06 … Lastings Milledge NYN 2-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, .278 … Anderson Hernandez NYN 1-3, R, BB, Sac, .240

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  Joe Saunders LAA 8.0 8 3 3 0 4, 2.55 ... Dustin Nippert ARZ 7.0 7 1 1 1 11, 11-5, 5.13 ...  3B Brian Barden ARZ 1-4, double, .309 ... Shane Komine OAK 8.0 4 0 0 0 9, .389 ... Dan Johnson OAK 2-5, double, homer, 3 RBI. .474 ... Jeff Clement SEA 2-4, .238 ... Michael Garciaparra SEA 3-4, .337 ... Paul McAnulty SD 3-5, double, walk, .326 ... Matt Kemp LAD 2-4, walk, .324

EASTERN (AA)  --  Adam Lind TOR 2-5, 19th homer, .310 ... Carlos Gomez NYN, heating up, 3-5, double, triple, 3 RBI, .274 ... Jacoby Ellsbury BOS 2-4, double, .346 ...  CF Brian Barton CLE 2-3, walk, homer, 3 RBI, SB, .471 ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE 1-4, .396 ... Matt Moses MIN 3-4, .256 ... Eric Duncan NYA 1-4, homer, .285

SOUTHERN (AA) --  Mark Reynolds LF ARI, 1-4, HR, 3 RBI ... Matt Chico ARI, 7 4 0 0 1 4, 2.02 ... Eric Patterson 2B CHC, 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI, .273 ... Joey Votto 1B CIN, 0-3, 2 BB, .323 ... Sean Gallagher CHC, 5.2 7 4 4 7 3, 2.93 ... Josh Hall CIN, 6 3 1 1 3 6, 3.47 ... Jorge De La Rosa MIL, 5 6 2 2 0 9, 2.40 ... Elliot Johnson 2B TB, 2-4, 3B, SB (17), .305 ... Jeff Niemann TB, 7 1 0 0 2 3, 3.32 ... TJ Nall LAD, 6 6 3 3 2 5, 2.75 ... Michael Ekstrom SD, 7 6 2 2 1 5, 3.50

TEXAS (AA)  --  Jonathan Ash 2B HOU 3-4, RBI, CS, .328 ... Tim Hulett 2B TEX 5-6, 2 3B, 3R, 2RBI, .444 ... Brian Stavisky OF OAK 2-7, R, 3RBI, .292 ... Wladimir Balentien OF SEA 1-3, solo HR(18), BB, .263 ... Ryan Feierabend SEA 7.0 7 4 2 2 2, W(8-7), 3.87 ... Amaury Marti OF STL 3-5, HR(2), 2R, RBI, .361 ... Joseph Koshansky 1B COL 2-4, HR(25), 3R, 2RBI .304 ... Ian Stewart OF COL 2-5, 2B, 2R, 3RBI, .274 ... Alex Gordon 3B KC 1-5, solo HR(15), 2E(9), .299 ... Zack Greinke KC 4.2 8 9 8 1 5, 5.93

" ...  catcher Guillermo Quiroz was hitting a little over .300 this season at Triple-A Tacoma, but wasn't getting a chance to play every day. His recent move to Double-A San Antonio has given him that chance ...   With two on and two out in the bottom of the seventh Monday night and the Hooks leading San Antonio 4-2, Quiroz drilled a 2-2 pitch onto the berm in left for a three-run dinger that sent the Missions on to a 6-4 win  ... The three-run blast by Quiroz was his second home run of the series and his third homer in five games with San Antonio since being reassigned by the Mariners last week."  (Corpus Christi Hooks)

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Reid Brignac TB 2-5, 19th homer, .312 ... Evan Longoria TB 2-5, 8th homer, .265 ... Chris Nowak TB 4-5, .317 ... Emilio Bonifacio ARZ, 2B & leadoff, 3-4, 25th double, 6th triple, .327 ... Sean Rogriguez LAA 2-4, walk, .312

CAROLINA (A+) --  Chuck Lofgren CLE 5.0 2 5 1 2 6 L, 1.98 ... Kevin Hart BAL 7.0 5 2 1 1 6 W, 4.42 ... Brent Lillibridge SS PIT 1-3, HR(1) first High-A homer after 11 at Low-A, .293 ... Chris Kelly 1B CHA 2-5, 2B, 2RBI, .266 ... Derek Hankins PIT 6.0 9 3 3 1 3, 4.25 ... Andrew Pinckney 3B BOS 3-4, R, RBI, .256 ... Matthew Goodson BOS 7.0 4 1 1 1 3 W, 3.89

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Anthony Swarzak MIN 9 1 0 0 2 4 W(6-6, 3.50) - Gives up a double in the 5th inning for his only hit allowed … Phil Humber NYN 7 2 1 1 2 4 W(3-1, 2.73) … Mike Carp 1B NYN 1-3 HR(9), .283 … Paul Janish SS CIN 2-4 HR(5), .256 … Chase Wright NYA 7 5 1 0 1 8 W(7-2, 2.33) … Alcides Escobar SS MIL 2-5, .254 … Brendan Katin RF MIL 3-4 2 doubles, 2R RBI, .287 … Tim Moss 2B PHI 3-4 HR(3) 4RBI, .300 … FSL Debut, Greg Golson CF PHI 2-4 R CS … Ryan Harvey RF CHN 2-5 double, R 3RBI, .226 … JT Restko LF FLO 2-4 HR(4) 2RBI, .230 … Jakob Marceaux FLO 5 3 1 1 4 1 W(2-9, 4.15) … Trevor Plouffe SS MIN 2-3 double, R RBI

MIDWEST (A) --  teenager scuffling Zach Phillips TEX 4 1/3 10 6 6 3 2 (5.38) .. Daryl Jones SD 0-5 ... love those K's Travis Wood CIN 6 3 2 2 2 11 (4.05) ... Jay Bruce CIN 37th double in his only AB (.311) ... Todd Blackford CHN 6 5 4 2 4 8 (4.50) ... just about ready for a promotion? Cameron Maybin DET 2-4, 5th HR (.314) ... Oswaldo Sosa MIN 6 2 0 0 1 8 (2.74) ... 19-year-old shortstop a little better all the time Paul Kelly MIN 3-4, BB (.280) ... Jared Lansford OAK 7 11 3 3 2 5 (W, 10-5, 3.23) ... Hainley Statia ANA 1-5 ... Bryan Anderson STL 25th double, stealer gunned (37 for 100 overall vs. base thieves) ... Justin Upton ARZ 0-4

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Aaron Thompson FLA (L, 6-6) 5 7 5 5 2 5, 3.66 ... Beau Jones ATL (S, 1) 3 2 1 1 2 4, 4.25 ... Andrew McCutchen PIT 1-5, RBI (54), .281 ... Travis Denker LAD 2-4, BB, .258 ... Brandon Durden COL (W, 8-2) 7 7 2 2 2 5, 3.17 ... Dexter Fowler COL 0-5, .285 ... Eric Young Jr COL 2-3, 2B (19), RBI (34), SB (67), BB, .264 ... Chris Nelson COL 1-3, RBI (54), .264 ... Max Ramirez CLE 1-4, 3B (1), .292 ... Shairon Martis SF 5-2/3 8 0 0 2 5, 3.64 ... Carlos Carrasco PHI 6 2 0 0 5 7, 2.48 ... Jeremy Slayden PHI 1-3, BB, .294 ... Mark Wagner BOS 1-4, .305 ... Fernando Martinez NYN 1-5, RBI (20), .340 ... Jesus Gamero NYN 4-4, 2B (3), HR (3), 4 RBI (6), .294 ... Austin Jackson NYA 0-3, .260 ... Angel Salome MIL 0-1, RBI (73), .303 ... Lorenzo Cain MIL 1-2, .296

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  No games scheduled.

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Brad Miller 1b ARZ hr, 3rbi .275 ... Shane Dove P ARZ w 2-3, 9.0 4 1 1 0 5 1.12 ... Cyle Hankerd OD ARZ 2-4 double, 2rbi, .341 ... Victor Ferrante pair of COL 2-4, 2 3r hr's, 6 rbi's, .235 , 9-22 over last 4 games ... Daniel Mayora ss COL 3-6, .341 ... Jeff Kindel 1b COL 3-5, 3r, 2 rbi, triple, bb, .387 ... Brian Aguailar C COL 3-6, r, .333 ... Luke Cannon OF SD 3-4, 3r, 3 rbi, bb, hr#2, .268 ... Willy Crafort OF SD 3-5, 2 rbi, .202 ... Andre Piper-Jordan OF OAK 3-4, 2r, triple, hr #1, 3 rbi, .300 ... Alex Vladez 3b oAK 2-4, .252 ... Manelik Pimental 1b SEA 1-5, hr & 4 rbi, .284

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  Matthew Inouye C CHW 0-2, .330 … Junior Contreras 1B NYM 1-3, .343 … Justin Edwards CHW 5.0 5 0 0 0 3 … Ronald Ramirez HOU 1-5, .359 … Ralph Henriquez HOU 2-3, double 2rbi, .252 … Brandon Buckman 1B STL 0-4, .342 … Daryl Jones OF STL 1-3, .238 … Kieron Pope OF BAL 2-4, double(11), HR(3), .324 … Jonathon Jaspe C TOR 2-5, double(9), .302 … Travis Snider OF TOR 1-3, .300 ...  Zach Clark BAL (W 3-2) 5.0 4 1 1 1 4 ERA 1.78 … Elvis Hernandez STL pitched seven no-hit innings with 10 strike outs.

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  SS Chris McConnell KC, back on track after struggles in the Midwest League, 2-5, .417 ... Chris Carter CHA 1-4, 13th double, 2 errors (11), .339 ...  SS Chris Valaika CIN 3-4, walk, 7th error, .315 ... Drew Stubbs CIN 0-5, .256 ... CF Cole Gillespie MIL 2-5, double, walk, .397

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  CF Joe Benson MIN 2-4, triple & 0-3, .288 ... Chris Parmelee MIN, 2006 first rounder, 1-3, 5th homer & 2-3, double, .296 ... Juan Francisco CIN 5-6, 3 doubles, .287 ... Adrian Cardenas PHI, 2006 1st rounder, 5-6, 7th SB, .298

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  Robert Hernandez CHN, lead man on a one-hitter, 5.0 1 3 0 3 2, 3-0, 1.71 ... Jeremy Jeffress MIL, 2006, 1st rounder, 6.0 3 0 0 2 4, 1.65 ... OF Carlos Peguero SEA 2-4, double, triple, .297 ... Brent Fisher KC, 7th round pick, 2005, 4.1 2 0 0 3 6, 1.78 (16 hits allowed, 44 Ks in 35 innings)

    Troop Movements ...  CLE - purchased the contract of Tom Mastny from Triple-A, optioned Edward Mujica to Triple-A ... SD - optioned Justin Leone to Triple-A ... LAD - activated Jason Repko from the 60-day DL ... CIN - released Esteban Yan ... NYA - designated Kris Wilson for assignment, recalled T.J. Beam from Triple-A ... CHA - optioned Sean Tracey to Triple-A, acquired Mike MacDougal from KC for Tyler Lumsden and Daniel Cortes.  ... WAS - Jose Guillen out for the season ... CHN - placed Derrek Lee on the 15-day DL, recalled Ryan Theriot from Triple-A  ... LAA - optioned Kendry Morales to Triple-A, purchased the contract of Curtis Pride  ... MIL - optioned Dana Eveland to Triple-A ...

    Another new face atop the Prospect Hot Sheet at Baseball America.  Astros well represented.

" ...  1. Jason Hirsh ... [HOU]  The minors' hottest pitcher has not allowed an earned run in his last six starts, spanning 41 innings. During his last six starts, the righthander has allowed 17 hits and 12 walks while striking out 41. To keep the count running, Hirsh has now won his last 10 decisions, and has a 0.92 ERA since May, spanning 108 innings."

" ... 2. Troy Patton ... [HOU]  20-year-old has not allowed more than two runs in any of his last 10 starts and in is last four starts, he has been even more vicious. In that span, Patton is 4-0, 0.72 with a 22-4 strikeout-walk ration in 25 innings."

" ... 10. Clayton Kershaw ... [LAD]  The first high school hurler taken in this June's draft, Kershaw is having his way with the GCL. In five appearances the Texan is 1-0, 1.13 with a 21-1 strikeouts-walk ratio in 16 innings."

" ... Tip Fairchild ...  [HOU] continued success even after a promotion to high Class A. From May 1 through his promotion, Fairchild was 9-0, 1.2. Now in the Carolina League, Fairchild lost his first start, but has bounced back in his last two. In those two wins, Fairchild allowed just two earned runs in 13 innings."

    A salute to these selected Players / Pitchers of the Week :

International  " ...  Jason Dubois ...  hit .417 (10-24) during the week with three doubles, a triple, four home runs, 10 RBI and a 1.125 slugging percentage. He also drew two walks and scored seven runs in six games ... An International League All-Star, Dubois is hitting.264 and leads the Bisons with 24 doubles, and 61 RBI (4th in IL) in 84 games this season. His 14 home runs are tied for second on the Buffalo roster behind only Andy Marte (15)."  (Buffalo Bisons)

" ... Carolina League Lou Santangelo ... [HOU]  homered on Tuesday and Thursday, but that was a mere prelude to what happened two days later. On Saturday against Frederick, Santangelo went yard three times and drove in four runs to lead the Avalanche to a 10-7 victory. The 23-year-old's recent power surge has catapulted him into a first place tie in the Carolina League's home run race, as he and Winston-Salem's Christopher Kelly have each hit 15."  (MiBL.com)

" ... South Atlantic League Max Ramirez ... [CLE]  had a strange week, to say the least. The 21-year-old had a great game for the Rome Braves on Tuesday, going 3-for-3 with an RBI double. He was then traded to the Indians organization ...  and assigned to the Lake County Captains. Over his first three games with his new team, Ramirez went 4-for-6 with a homer, double, three RBIs and four walks. All told, he reached base in 16 of 19 plate appearances, good for an otherworldly .842 on-base percentage."  (MiBL.com)

" ... Northwest League Tyler Colvin ...  [CHN]  started the week by going 0-for-4 against Everett. Since then, however, he has been an exceedingly tough out. The 20-year-old outfielder has hit safely and driven in at least one run in each of his last six games, and homered on both Thursday and Friday." (MiBL.com)

" ... California League Douglas Mathis ... [TEX]  pitched a seven-inning complete-game shutout against Modesto on Saturday, allowing four hits while striking out a season-high 10 batters. The 23-year-old right-hander has tossed 19 consecutive scoreless innings and has lost just once in his last 10 starts." (MiBL.com)

" ... Northwest League Scott Deal ...  [OAK]  earned a pair of victories this week and is now 6-0 with a 1.38 ERA over 39 innings pitched this season. The 19-year-old prodigy fired six shutout innings against Spokane on Monday and six more against Eugene on Saturday, and opponents are now batting just .199 against him on the season."  (MiBL.com)

Texas League  " ... Travis Blackley ... [SEA]  After flirting with a no-hitter on July 22 and narrowly missing a complete game shutout, Travis Blackley is a worthy recipient of this week's award ...  In 2003, Blackley won the Texas League Pitcher of the Year award after going 17-3 with a 2.61 ERA. He followed that up with a fine Triple-A campaign with Tacoma in 2004, compiling a 3.83 ERA with an 8-6 record. His success at Triple-A was rewarded with a Major League call-up, where he went 1-3 in six games with Seattle. The left-hander missed all of last season with a torn labrum."  (Texas League)

" ...  Donnie Veal ... [CHN]  dominated Clearwater on Thursday, as the 21-year-old Mississippian struck out nine over five innings of no-hit ball. Daytona won the game by a score of 3-1, which is also Veal's win-loss record. The 6-foot-4 righty was removed after five innings because his pitch count exceeded 90. Blame it on all those strikeouts."  (MiBL.com)

    Jim Callis, Baseball America, on Chris Carter CHA :

" ...  The White Sox knew Carter was raw when they made him a 15th-round pick out of a Las Vegas high school in 2005, but they couldn’t resist his size (6-foot-4, 210 pounds) or power potential. He has lived up to that assessment thus far in pro ball, debuting by hitting .283 with 10 homers and 64 strikeouts in 65 games at Rookie-level Bristol last year. He batted just .130 with one homer and 17 whiffs in 13 games in the SAL earlier this year, but has gotten back on track at Great Falls, though he does have 27 strikeouts in 29 contests. Carter is just 19, so it's not surprising he struggled in low Class A and it's not a kiss of death that he has to repeat Rookie ball. He does have some arm strength but probably will be limited to playing first base, meaning his bat will have to carry him. He has one of the higher ceilings in the White Sox system, but until he accomplishes anything in full-season ball, it will too early to label Carter as one of Chicago's Top 10 Prospects." 


24 July, 2006

    INTERNATIONAL (AAA) --  Ben Francisco CLE 2-4, 3B, 2 R, RBI, BB, SB, .273 … Asdrubal Cabrera CLE 1-3, R, Sac, SB, .226 … Martin Prado ATL 2-5, RBI, .308 … Alex Romero MIN 2-3, HBP, .211 … Ryan Roberts TOR 3-4, 2B, 8th HR, 2 R, RBI, .280 … John Hattig TOR 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI, .280 … Dustin McGowan TOR 4-2/3 6 4 4 3 5, 4.73 … Davis Romero TOR 3-1/3 1 0 0 0 3, 4.15 … Josh Fields CHA 1-4, R, .322 … Casey Rogowski CHA 2-4, 8th HR, R, 4 RBI, .287 … Jordan Tata DET 6 7 4 4 4 3, 3.90 … Brandon Watson CIN 1-3, 2 BB, SB, .194 … Philip Dumatrait CIN 5-1/3 8 2 2 2 4, 3.98 … Mike Burns CIN 2-2/3 0 0 0 1 1, 1.03 … Val Majewski BAL 3-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, SB, .246 … Eli Whiteside BAL 3-4, R, .240 … Daniel Cabrera BAL 6-1/3 3 3 3 3 6, 4.15 … Dustin Pedroia BOS 1-2, 4th HR, R, 3 RBI, HBP, 2 Sac, .307 … Adam Stern BOS 3-4, R, BB, SB, .256 … Chris Roberson PHI 2-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI, SB, .303 … Carlos Ruiz PHI 1-3, 9th HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB, .318 … Christian Garcia NYA 2-4, .243 … Carlos Pena NYA 2-5, .257 … Steven White NYA 4-2/3 8 6 6 3 3, 4.86 … Wes Bankston TB 2-3, RBI, BB, .375 … Ben Zobrist TB 2-4, 2B, BB, .359 … Chris Seddon TB 7 5 3 3 0 7, 4.95 … Evan MacLane NYN 5 13 7 3 0 1, 3.52

PACIFIC COAST (AAA)  --  Matt Kemp LAD 1-5, double ... Joel Guzman LAD 2-4, 6th SB, .287 ... Felix Pie CHN, a sign of life, 3-4, double, homer & 1-3, double, .268 ... Angel Guzman CHN 4.1 6 4 4 5 2, 4.31 ... big day for the D'Backs' kids as Tucson scored 28 runs ... Miguel Montero ARZ 2-5, double, homer, walk, 4 RBI, .350 ... Chris Young ARZ 3-6, 16th homer (grand slam), walk, 5 RBI, .266 ... Alberto Callaspo ARZ 5-8, .338 ... Robby Hammock ARZ 5-6, 2 doubles, homer, walk, 5 RBI, .299 ... Scott Hairston ARZ, back in the lineup, 2-6, 19th homer, 2 walks, .330 ... at SS Brian Barden ARZ 3-8, triple, grand slam (2nd in two days), 6 RBI, .310 ... winning ugly, Micah Owings ARZ 5.1 9 4 4 1 5, 7-0, 4.26 ... Dustin Moseley LAA 3.1 9 10 7 5 2, 4.50 ... Edinson Volquez TEX 6.2 3 2 2 4 8, 3.38 ... Yusmeiro Petit FLO 5.2 6 2 2 1 6, 4.57 ... Matt Palmer SF 7.0 2 0 0 1 6, 2.88 ... Ubaldo Jimenez COL 4.2 5 3 3 5 7, 6.04 

EASTERN (AA)  --  Adam Miller CLE, in a groove, 5.0 5 1 1 3 7, 10-5, 3.27 ... Kory Casto WAS 1-3, 20th double, walk, .291 ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE 1-4, walk, .398 ... J.A. Happ PHI 7.0 3 0 0 2 9, 4-1, 2.37 ... Eric Duncan NYA 2-3, 2 walks, 2 homers, .286 ... Ricky Romero TOR, a hint of talent, 6.0 7 3 3 2 2, ERA down to 8.00 ... into the game with some mediocre numbers, Miguel Pinango NYN tosses a seven-inning, CG, no-hitter, 7.0 0 0 0 0 7 ... Garrett Olson BAL 7.0 4 0 0 1 6, 3.55 ... Wardell Starling PIT 6.1 4 3 3 4 4, 3.28

" ...  right-hander Miguel Pinango fired a no-hitter against the Portland ...  in a 7-0 victory in game two of a twin bill ...  Pinango took a perfect game into the final frame, after retiring Jacoby Ellsbury to start the inning, Matt Van Der Bosch reached on a throwing error by shortstop Corey Ragsdale. Pinango then retired the next two batters for the no-hitter. Pinango improves to 5-6 on the season and lowered his ERA to 3.83 ... Jacoby Ellsbury's ten game hitting streak came to an end in game two. Ellsbury had collected a hit in every game at the Double-A level since being called-up."  (Portland Sea Dogs)

SOUTHERN (AA) --  No games scheduled.

TEXAS (AA)  --  Brandon Wood LAA 1-3, 36th double, .286 ... Michael Wilson SEA 3-3, walk, .356 ... JR House HOU 1-4, 10th homer, .329 ... a forgotten man in the KC system, Mitch Maier, in CF, 4-5, 21st double, 11th homer, .285 ... Ian Stewart COL 2-4, 30th double, 6th triple, .272 ... Troy Tulowitzki 1-5, 23rd error, .294

CALIFORNIA (A+) --  Mike Stodolka KC 3-5, 22nd double, .306 ... ofers for the TB shining lights, Evan Longoria 0-3, Reid Brignac 0-4 ... Nick Adenhart LAA 7.0 7 2 2 2 3 ... 2B Corey Wimberly COL 3-3, 2 walks, 5 SBs (33), .315 ... Emilio Bonifacio ARZ 3-5, .323 ... Cesar Nicolas ARZ 3-4, 22nd double, .298

CAROLINA (A+) --  Kala Kaaihue 1B ATL 3-6, 2B, HR(5), 2R, 3RBI, .230 ... Wes Whisler CHA 6.0 6 1 0 1 3 W(10), 2.97 ... Ralph Roberts ATL 5.0 2 0 0 2 3 W, 3.47 ... Jack Egbert CHA 4.0 5 4 1 2 1 L, 2.91 ... Christian Guerrero RF WAS 1-2, HR(3), .233 ... Jordan Brown LF CLE 2-4, 2B, HR(10), 2RBI, .281 ... Jensen Lewis CLE 5.0 5 1 1 0 7 W, 4.07 ... Tommy Hottovy BOS 5.1 3 1 1 2 5, 2.79 ... Matt Lorenzo PIT 6.0 6 2 0 1 4, 2.70 ... Mario Garza DH HOU 2-4, HR(5), 2RBI, .231 ... Thomas "Tip" Fairchild HOU 7.0 5 2 1 3 5 W, 3.32

FLORIDA STATE (A+) --  Hernan Iribarren 2B MIL 2-4 triple, R, .327 … Brendan Katin RF MIL 3-4 R 2RBI, .282 … Jeff Larish 1B DET 2-4 double, R 2RBI, .248 … Jeff Frazier LF DET 2-3 R 2RBI, .234 … JT Restko LF FLO 2-4 double, .224 … Gaby Hernandez FLO 4 7 6 6 4 3 L(9-7, 3.68) … Paul Janish SS CIN 2-4 RBI, .256 … Johnny Cueto CIN 5 1/3 6 5 5 1 4 W2-0, 5.25) … Mike Carp 1B NYN 2-3 HR(8), .283 … Victor Hall CF NYA 4-5 triple, R RBI SB(14), .327 … Blake Dewitt 2B LA 2-3, .272 … Drew Locke CF LA 2-4 2 doubles, R, .286

MIDWEST (A) --  Bryan Anderson STL 3-6 (.316) ... Hainley Statia ANA 2-6, 26th double (.299) ... Justin Upton ARZ 2-4, 11th SB (.270) ... Josh Rainwater DET 6 6 4 1 0 7 (W, 5-3, 3.64) ... Cameron Maybin DET 1-5, 22nd SB, 3rd CS ... dimming a bit Mark Reed CHN 0-3 (.279) ... Jay Bruce CIN (PH) 1-1 ... Chi-Hung Cheng TOR 6 3 0 0 1 8 (3.09) ... Paul Kelly MIN 1-4 ... 1st start for the 22-year-old after 34 relief outings Yohan Pino MIN 5 4 2 2 0 5 (W, 9-2, 1.71) ... Daryl Jones SD 0-4, 2 K's (.246)

SOUTH ATLANTIC (A) --  Angel Salome MIL 1-3, BB, .304 ... Lorenzo Cain MIL 1-4, 2B (21), BB, .295 ... Max Ramirez CLE 2-2, 2B (18), RBI (40), BB, .293

NEW YORK-PENN (SHORT-SEASON) --  Jack Spradlin WASH 6 1 1 0 1 2 1.97 ... DH Dustin Martin NYN 2-3, 1 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI ... Jacob Ruckle NYN 6.1 5 2 2 1 4 (W 3-1) ... DH Scott Cousins FLA 1-4, 3 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 BB ... 1B Nate Messner FLA 2-3, 3 RBI, 1 BB ... C Francis Poni PIT 3-4, 1 R, ... LF David Kennedy TB 3-4, 1 R ... 2B Greg Buchanan HOU 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B ... C Brandon Snyder BAL 2-3, 1 R, 2 2B, 1 RBI ...Chris Salamida HOU 5 2 0 0 1 5 (W 3-1) 0.66 ... LF Nate Southard STL 2-3, 2 R, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 1 BB (GM1)  &  2-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 2 RBI (GM2) ... C Jim Skelton DET 3-4, 1 R, 3 RBI ... RF Brennan Boesch DET 3-3, 1 RBI, 1 BB ... 1B Charlie Yarborough PHI 2-4, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 HR, 3 RBI ... Andy Cruse PHI 6 2 0 0 3 3 (W 2-2) ... SS Jonathan Diaz TOR 1-2, 2 RBI, 2 BB ... Brian Magee TOR 4.2 5 1 0 1 7

NORTHWEST (SHORT-SEASON) --  Alexander Valdez 3b OAK 2-4, 2 r, 2 doubles, bb, .243 .... Matthew Sulentic OF OAK 4-5, r, double, .366 ... Jacob Smith C OAK 2-5, rbi, .214 ... Chad Huffman DH SD 2-5, r, .268 ... Luke Cannon OF SD 2-4, r, bb, double, .231 ... Matt Camp OF CHC 2-4, double, rbi, .294 ... Billy Petrick P w 5-0, 5.2 6 1 1 0 5, 2.33 ... Cyle Hankderd OF ARZ 2-4, .336 ... Brad Miller 1b ARZ 1-2, 2 rbi, .276 ... Chris Kemp 1b, TEX 2-4, 2r, double, hr, 2 rbi, .257 ... Chad Tracy DH TEX 7th hr, .306 ... Adam Cowart SF w 6-0, 5.0 3 1 0 1 3, 0.45 ... Ricky Orta P SEA l 2-2, 5.0 3 2 1 2 2 4.96

APPALACHIAN (ROOKIE) --  Tyree Hayes TB 4.0 2 0 0 1 6 ... Adolfito Garcia BAL 5.0 1 0 0 2 2, 2.19 ...  3B Billy Rowell BAL 1-5, .219 ... CF Sean Henry NYN 3-5, 9th double, 4th homer, .255 ... catcher Gregory Yersich MIN 2-4, 2 homers (4), .276 ... OF Travis Snider TOR 3-4, 5th double, .299 ... catcher Jonathan Jaspe TOR 1-4, 4th homer, .297 ...

PIONEER (ROOKIE) --  Sean O'Sullivan LAA (W,1-0) 6.0 2 0 0 0 3 ... Ryan Mount SS LAA 3-5, 2-2b(7), RBI ... Chris Carter 1b CWS 0-3, BB, 3SO ... Aaron Hartsock KC (W,3-0) 5.0 1 1 1 1 5 ... Jay Cox LF COL 0-2, R, 2BB, SO ... Gerardo Parra RF ARI 3-4, 2b(7), 2R, SB(12), CS(1) ... Steven Johnson LAD (L,1-3) 5.0 4 2 2 1 4

GULF COAST  (ROOKIE) --  Steven Evarts ATL, 2006 1st round supp.,  3.0 3 1 1 1 2, 1.64 ... 3B Adam Coe ATL 3-5, 5th homer, 4 RBI, .293 ... shortstop Adrian Cardenas PHI, another supp. 1st rounder, 2006, 2-4, walk, .261 ... OF Lucas Montero CLE 3-3, 4th double, 3rd homer, 4th SB, .264 (and lifted for a PH in the 8th)

ARIZONA (ROOKIE) --  Paul Raglione KC 6.1 7 0 0 0 5, 3.57 ... 1B Scott Lucas KC 1-3, triple, .337 ... OF Andrew Lefave MIL 2-4, homer, .485 (undrafted FA, no mention in the BrewerFan Top 50) ... Clint Nageotte SEA, a first step on the road back from injury, 2.0 1 1 1 1 2 ... OF Carlos Peguero SEA 3-4, 2 triples, .287

    Troop Movements ...  CHN - placed Sean Marshall on the 15-day DL, recalled David Aardsma, Michael Wuertz from AAA ... CIN - recalled Brian Shackelford from Triple-A  ... CHA - acquired Sandy Alomar Jr. from LAD for RHP B.J. LaMura ... WAS - optioned Melvin Dorta to Double-A ... TB - Matt White, 1996 1st rounder,  announced his retirement ...

    Over at OnDeck.com, Scott Rex has been updating his league-by-league prospect ratings.  Lots of these guys currently in the majors.  The top dozen listed here.

    INTERNATIONAL               PACIFIC COAST
  1 Delmon Young OF TB          Chad Billingsley RHP LAD
  2 Jon Lester LHP BOS          Stephen Drew SS ARZ
  3 Lastings Milledge OF NYN    Jered Weaver RHP LAA
  4 Andy Marte 3B CLE           Howie Kendrick 2B LAA
  5 Adam Loewen LHP BAL         Matt Kemp OF LAD
  6 Matt Garza RHP MIN          Joel Guzman OF LAD
  7 Jeremy Sowers LHP CLE       Chris Young OF ARZ
  8 Josh Fields 3B CHA          Carlos Quentin OF ARZ
  9 Hayden Penn RHP BAL         Andy LaRoche 3B LAD
 10 Tom Gorzelanny LHP PIT      Edinson Volquez RHP TEX
 11 Humberto Sanchez RHP DET    Jason Hirsh RHP HOU
 12 Elijah Dukes OF TB          John Danks LHP TEX
    EASTERN                     SOUTHERN                    TEXAS
  1 Phil Hughes RHP NYA         Homer Bailey RHP CIN        Brandon Wood SS LAA
  2 Mike Pelfrey RHP NYN        Anibal Sanchez RHP FLO      Alex Gordon 3B KC
  3 Adam Miller RHP CLE         Yovani Gallardo RHP MIL     Ian Stewart 3B COL
  4 Radhames Liz RHP BAL        Scott Elbert LHP LAD        Billy Butler OF KC
  5 Gio Gonzalez LHP PHI        Jeff Niemann RHP TB         Troy Tulowitzki SS COL
  6 Ricky Romero LHP TOR        Jarrod Saltalamacchia C ATL Thomas Diamond RHP TEX
  7 Jonathan Sanchez LHP SF     Ryan Braun 3B MIL           Hunter Pence OF HOU
  8 Kevin Slowey RHP MIN        Carlos Marmol RHP CHN       Travis Buck OF OAK
  9 Eric Duncan 1B NYA          Joey Votto 1B CIN           Jose Arredondo RHP LAA
 10 Jacoby Ellsbury OF BOS      Matt Harrison LHP ATL       Ryan Feierabend LHP SEA
 11 Jair Jurrjens RHP DET       Taylor Tankersley LHP FLO   Troy Patton LHP HOU
 12 Adam Lind OF TOR            Lance Broadway RHP CHA      Matt Tuiasosopo 3B SEA

    Nice little feature on the Alaska Baseball League in many Saturday papers.  This one carried in the Denver Post.

    Matt Garza in MIN?  Maybe.

" ... Gardenhire planned to speak with General Manager Terry Ryan on Sunday, and two topics figured to emerge: Matt Garza and adding a third catcher. Gardenhire said he and Ryan had yet to discuss the possibility of promoting Garza from Class AAA Rochester to help bolster the starting rotation. But with Carlos Silva and Scott Baker remaining inconsistent, speculation mounts. "I'll probably call [Ryan], and talk to him about a few things," Gardenhire said, "and just happen to mention, 'How's Garza doing?' If he says, 'Oh, he's fine,' then it probably means he's not willing to talk about him yet." The Twins are still carrying 12 pitchers, but Gardenhire said he'd like to trim to 11 and add another catcher. The team could promote Chris Heintz, who entered Sunday batting .287 for Rochester. The pitcher most likely to get sent down is Willie Eyre, who has a 7.84 ERA."  (Minneapolis Star Tribune)

CORRESPONDENTS : INT - Herb Walters, PCL - JDM, EASTERN - Harry Almquist, SOUTHERN - Zack Staten, TEXAS - Steve Macias, CALIFORNIA - JDM, CAROLINA - Jimmy Salmon, FLORIDA STATE - Wayne Stevens, MIDWEST - Bob Reed, SOUTH ATLANTIC - Martin Rose, NYP - Brian Carruthers, NW - Thom Hanson, APPALACHIAN - Mike Feifel, PIONEER - Joe McAnally & JDM, GULF COAST - JDM,  ARIZONA - JDM, ALASKA - Matt Nemeth 
 

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