Rookies 2004

29 August 2004    Pitching line = IP H R ER BB SO

    Game action ... INT --  Jonny Gomes (TB, LF) 1-1, 3 BB ... Joey Gathright (TB, CF) 2-4, BB ... Anderson Machado (CIN, SS) 2-4, R, RBI, BB, SB ... rehab, Brandon Larson (CIN, 3B) 2-4, 2 RBI ... Ryan Langerhans (ATL, CF) 2-5, R, RBI ... Michael Restovich (MIN, LF) 1-3, 20th HR, R, 2 RBI ... JD Durbin (MIN) 6.0 7 1 0 3 4 ... Matt Riley (BAL) 6.0 2 3 2 4 6 ... Brandon Phillips (CLE, 2B) 3-5 ... Josh Bard (CLE, DH) 2-4, 2 2B ... Arnie Munoz (CHA) 5.0 9 7 7 1 4 ... David Krynzel (MIL, DH) 2-5, R, RBI, SF ... Corey Hart (MIL, RF) 3-4, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, SF ... Craig Brazell (NYN, 1B) 2-4, 2B, 22nd HR, R, RBI ... Aaron Heilman (NYN) 6.2 8 1 1 4 5

PCL --  Freddy Sanchez PIT 2-4, double ... Adrian Gonzalez TEX 3-5, 3 RBI, .312 ... Casey Kotchman ANA 2-5, 5th homer, .360 ... Tim Stauffer SD 5.2 6 3 1 2 1, 3.36 ... Antonio Perez LA 3-4, double, 2 RBI (84) ... Todd Linden SF 19th homer, but just .252 ... Nick Swisher OAK 2-4, 25th double, 28th homer

EASTERN --  seven no-hit frames for the Jay's Francisco Rosario, 7.0 0 0 0 2 8 ...  James Vermilyea TOR 2.0 1 0 0 0 1 ... Joel Zumaya DET 3.0 5 6 6 3 3, 6.30 ... Bryan Bullington  PIT  6.0 7 1 1 1 4, 4.13 ... Matt Cain SF 4.2 7 5 5 4 3, 2.96 ... Abe Alvarez BOS 5.0 9 5 5 0 5, 3.59 ... Walter Young BAL 32nd homer, 2 RBI (93) ...  Yusmeiro Petit 7.0 4 2 2 0 10, 2.57

" ... Petit made a stellar Double-A debut for the B-Mets. He struck out 10, tying Scott Kazmir and Orlando Roman for the team high this season, and walked none, allowing two earned runs in seven innings in getting the victory. He was perfect in every inning he pitched except the second, when he allowed run-scoring hits to Jason Grove and Jake Weber. Following that, he retired the final 16 batters he faced. The 19-year-old Venezuelan right-hander is the New York Mets top pitching prospect, following the departure of Scott Kazmir and Matt Peterson via trades. He went 11-5 with a 1.98 ERA and 184 strikeouts in 127 1/3 combined innings for Capital City and St. Lucie at the Single-A level." (Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin)

SOUTHERN --  Joel Guzman LA SS 2-4, 2 R, HR (6), 2 RBI, BB ... TJ Nall LA 6.0 3 0 0 1 9, W 8-9 ... Jeremy Cummings STL 6.0 8 1 1 2 2 ... Richard Gardner CIN 7.0 2 1 1 1 6, 2.56 ... Napoleon Calzado ATL 2-4, R, K, SB (18) ... Kyle Davies ATL 6.0 1 0 0 2 10, 2.32 ... Peter Bauer FLA 7.0 3 0 0 2 4 ... Josh Barfield SD 2B 1-4, R, 2B, RBI, K ... Prince Fielder MIL 1B 2-2, R, 2 2B, 2 RBI, 2 BB ... Glenn Woolard MIL 8.0 4 0 0 0 5, W 6-1, 2.06

TEXAS --  Joe Saunders ANA 6.0 4 0 0 2 6 ... Todd Self HOU 3-4, homer

CAROLINA --  Mark Saccomanno HOU 1-3, R, K … Josh Anderson HOU 0-4, 4 K … 2004 1st rounder begins pro career just fine … Josh Fields CHA 2-4, R, HR (7), 2 RBI (37), K … Ryan Sweeney CHA 2-3, R, BB … Casey Rogowski CHA 1-4, R, HR (17), 3 RBI (82), K … Pedro Lopez CHA 2-3, 2 R, BB … Sean Tracey CHA (W) 7 4 1 1 2 6 (8-8, 2.78) … Rajai Davis PIT 1-3, 2 R, double, BB … Gregor Blanco ATL 1-3, 2 R, HR (7), RBI, 2 BB, K … Adam Loewen BAL (L) 3 5 5 5 3 2 (0-2, 6.75)

FLORIDA STATE --  Ismael Ramirez TOR 6.0 4 1 1 1 6, 14-6, 2.75 ... Mike Piazza NYN, rehab, 1-3, walk ... Jon Connolly CHN 7.0 3 0 0 0 4, 9-5, 2.40 ... Clint Everts MON 5.0 4 2 2 4 5, 2.25

 CALIFORNIA --  Bobby Livingston SEA (W 12-5) 9.0 3 0 0 0 6, 12-5, 3.32

MIDWEST --  Alex Frazier ARZ 2-5, 19th homer, .310

" ... Class A Beloit's Vinny Rottino ... broke Prince Fielder's franchise record for RBI. Rottino, signed as a non-drafted free agent during the winter, entered the weekend with 117 RBI. Fielder set the record last year with 112. The Midwest League record is 136." (Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Lastings Milledge NYN 2-5, walk, .340 ... Ryan Harvey NYN 3-5, double, .324 ... MON 3B Kory Casto 2-5, 35th double, 16th homer, .291 ... catcher Ryan Blake FLO (22nd round pick in 2003), one for the scrapbook, 4-4, 20th double, three homers (17), 4 RBI, 4 runs, .300 ... Jon Benick PIT 2-4, 28th homer, 2 RBI (93) ...

NEW YORK-PENN --  Ambiorix Concepcion NYN 4-6, double, homer & 1-3, .314 ... Jarrad Lavergne TB 7.0 2 0 0 0 7, 1.70 ... Matt Van Der Bosch BOS 3-3, 2 triples, homer, 2 walks

APPALACHIAN --  Mitch Einertson HOU 2-3, double, walk, 4 runs, 2 RBI, .312 ... Deacon Burns MIN 2-4, triple, homer, 3 RBI

NORTHWEST --  AJ Shappi ARZ 7.0 4 1 1 1 6, 4-1, 1.75 ...  OF Chris Carter ARZ 2-3, 15th double, 15th homer, 3 RBI, .336 ... SD catcher Colt Morton 15th homer

PIONEER --  Sean Rodriguez ANA, not a line you see too often, 0-0, 4 walks, 4 runs & 1-2, walk, .346 ... 2B Boomer Berry CHA 4-5, double, homer, .311 ... LA 2B Travis Denker 2-4, 10th homer, .314

GULF COAST --  (Fri)  Dallas Trahern DET, 1-2, inspite of 0.59 ERA, 5.1 4 1 0 2 5

    Troop movements ... CHN -- placed Kyle Farnsworth on the DL, recalled Todd Wellemeyer from AAA ... COL -- recalled Clint Barmes from AAA, optioned pitcher Chris Gissell to AAA ... STL -- placed Steve Kline on the DL, recalled pitcher Randy Flores from AAA ...  SEA -- placed RHP Clint Nageotte on the DL, recalled RHP Cha Sung Baek from AAA ... MIL -- activated Keith Ginter from the DL, optioned infielder Trent Durrington to AAA ... SF -- recalled RHP Brad Hennessey from AAA, optioned RHP David Aardsma to AAA ...

    Jonathan Mayo, MLB.com, with a few names to watch in this fall's AFL :

" ... Jeff Francouer  ... After hitting .293 with 15 homers and 52 RBIs in 87 games, the Braves' first-round pick in 2002 was rewarded with a promotion to Double-A Greenville. He should be ready for Atlanta's outfield by 2006."

" ... Jeff Baker   ...In a system chock full of third basemen, Baker has really stood out. He hit .325 and slugged .539 in High-A before getting promoted to the Double-A Texas League. With Tulsa, the 2002 draft pick has continued to hit, with a .297 average and .505 SLG in 24 games."

" ... Adam Wainwright  ... a disappointing season for Wainwright, the key prospect in the J.D. Drew trade. After a good start, Wainwright struggled in May before being shut down with an elbow injury in early June. He didn't need surgery, and the AFL will be a good place for him to get missed innings, as well as getting back on track for a big league job in 2005."

" ... Adam Loewen  ... The O's first-round pick in 2002 and considered to be one of the top pitching prospects in all of baseball, Loewen has struggled with his command all season. He did strike out 82 in 85.1 IP with Low-A Delmarva, but he gave up 58 walks as well. He did pitch better late in the year, even with control issues, and even got a bump up to the Carolina League, where he allowed just one run (and six walks) over five innings in his debut. If he can iron things out this fall, AFL fans will see something special."

" ... Jeremy Hermida  ... a solid, if unspectacular season for Hermida, the Marlins top pick in the 2002 draft. After hitting .284 a year ago in Low-A, he's duplicating that average up one rung in the Florida State League. The power hasn't come yet, though there's been an uptick in his SLG . He's not running quite as much, but he's striking out less."

" ... Huston Street  ... After a brief stop with Kane County in the Midwest League during which he gave up two runs and struck out 14 in 10.2 IP, he leapfrogged up to Double-A, where he's rung up seven K's and allowed a pair of runs in 7.2 IP. The AFL could be his finishing school before auditioning for a big league job next spring."

    Jeremy Deloney, Baseball Miscellany, with notes on DET's Ryan Raburn :

" ...  23 year-old has since moved to second base and is finally performing similarly to the way he did in 2001. Now with Double A Erie in the Eastern League, Raburn is hitting .296/.384/.537 with 27 doubles and 15 HR while attaining 40 walks and striking out 84 times ...  He's adding back the power to his offensive arsenal and is conjuring up images of Jeff Kent ... Raburn's best attribute is his above average bat speed. He has the potential to hit 25+ HR at the big league level. He does have some holes in his swing, but those can be corrected with more consistent experience ...  defense has also shown some improvement, though he's committed 25 errors this season. The future looks bright for Raburn and the Tigers. He'll play in the Arizona Fall League after this season ends and that should be a tremendous opportunity for the Tigers to take a look at their future second baseman. He profiles as a .280/25 HR type of player and could join SS Tony Giarratano as the Tigers DP combo of the future."

28 August 2004

    Game action ... INT --  Jonny Gomes (TB, LF) 2-3, 2 RBI, SF ... John Webb (TB) 6.0 3 3 3 6 2 ... Dane Sardinha (CIN, C) 3-4, 2B ... Anderson Machado (CIN, SS) 2-4, R, SB ... good job, Dustin Moseley (CIN) 7.0 2 0 0 2 3 ... Ryan Howard (PHI, 1B) 2-3 & 0-3 ... Seung Lee (PHI) 3.0 5 4 4 3 0 ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, CF) 0-4 ... Scott Baker (MIN) 6.0 7 5 5 2 3 ... much better, Byung-Hyun Kim (BOS) 5.0 1 0 0 1 6 ... rehab, Pedro Astacio (BOS) 4.1 8 3 2 0 3 ... David Krynzel (MIL, CF) 2-5, 2B, RBI ... Corey Hart (MIL, DH) 2-5, 2B, R ... Jeff Housman (MIL) 3.2 8 6 6 3 1 ... Victor Diaz (NYN, RF) 2-5, 2 R, RBI

PCL --  JR House PIT (at 1B) 2-4, double, .291 ... ouch, John Hudgins TEX, finding AAA on the tough side, 4.0 8 6 6 0 1 ... Adrian Gonzalez TEX 3-5, double, .309 ... vet Kevin Witt 34th homer ... Travis Blackley SEA, bounced again,  5.2 10 5 5 4 1 ... a couple of COL's buried prospects, Garrett Atkins 3-4, 15th homer & Rene Reyes 3-5, double, triple, 4 RBI ... Mark Teahen KC 3-4, .273 ... Joe Blanton OAK 5.1 9 4 4 1 8 ... bouncing back as a prospect, Jason Repko LA 2-5, double, walk, .319

EASTERN --  2B Ryan Raburn DET, impressive season, 2-3, 16th homer, error & 1-3, triple, .305 ... Zach Duke PIT 7.0 5 1 0 2 3, 4-1, 1.55 ... Brad Eldred PIT 2-4, double ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE 1-3, 1st AA homer, 3 RBI ... Ryan Garko CLE 2-5, 2 RBI, .344 ... Jason Arnold TOR, another encouraging effort, 5.1 4 1 1 2 3

With the minor league schedule in the final days, the Eastern League has announced its All-Stars (as selected by managers, coaches and the media).  First baseman Ryan Howard PHI is the poster boy for a strong group which includes several leading prospects :

" ... Shortstop: Aaron Hill [TOR] ... hitting .287 and has already set new career-highs in virtually every offensive category this season, including, hits (127), doubles (24), home runs (10), RBI (74) and runs scored (73). Hill, a 2003 New York-Penn League All-Star, was named MVP of the 2004 Futures Game and was also named to the Northern Division roster for the 2004 Eastern League All-Star Game."

" ... centerfielder Curtis Granderson [DET] ...  leads the Eastern League in runs scored (87) and on-base percentage (.417). The 23-year old is also ranked among the league leaders in a number of other categories, including, RBI (92-3rd), triples (8-tied 3rd), batting average (.315-5th), slugging percentage (.545-7th), home runs (21-tied 7th) and hits (133-tied 9th)."

" ... Right-Handed Starting Pitcher: Ian Snell [PIT] ...  is 10-7 with a 3.31 ERA for the Southern Division leaders this year. The 22-year old is second in the league in strikeouts (132) and is also among the league leaders in complete games (2-tied 3rd), shutouts (1-tied 3rd), innings pitched (144-4th) and wins (10-tied 4th). Snell was named ... starting pitcher for the Southern Division in the 2004 Eastern League All-Star Game." 

" ... Left-Handed Starting Pitcher: Gustavo Chacin [TOT] ...  Eastern League leading 15 wins this season and is also ranked among the league leaders in ERA (2.96-tied 3rd) and innings pitched (136.2-6th). The 23-year old was named ... Most Valuable Player for the month of July after going 5-0 with a 0.98 ERA in six starts." 

Among others saluted -- catcher Ronny Paulino PIT, 2B Jeff Keppinger NYN, 3B Mike Cervenak SF, OF Val Majewski BAL and Kevin West MIN, UTIL John Castellano PHI, and DH Mitch Jones NYA :

" ... Jones has 37 home runs this season (tied for 1st in the E.L.) and is just five home runs shy of breaking the Eastern League single-season home run record, which is currently held by Ken Strong and Rick Lancellotti. The 26-year old is currently hitting .260 and is ranked among the league leaders in extra-base hits (65-1st), RBI (95-2nd), runs scored (84-3rd) and slugging percentage (.575-4th)."

SOUTHERN --  Joey Gomes TB DH 2-4, R, 2B, HR (1), 2 RBI ... Skip Schumaker STL OF 0-3, R, 3 BB, K ... Anthony Reyes STL 7.0 5 0 0 1 7, 3.03 ... Lance Caraccioli CIN 6.0 3 0 0 3 6, 2.91 ... Anthony Gwynn MIL OF 1-4, 2B, K, SB (34) ... Carmen Pignatiello CHN 6.0 4 1 1 1 9, W 8-7 ... again at 1B, Josh Willingham FLA 1B 0-3, R ... Chip Ambres FLA OF 3-3, 2 R, 2B, HR (18), 2 RBI, BB, SB (25) ... Ray Aguilar ATL 7.0 7 3 3 1 3, L 1-3 ... Brandon McCarthy CHA 7.0 4 1 1 2 9, W 3-0, 2.84 ... Josh Barfield SD 2B 1-4, R, HR (18), RBI, K

" ...  catcher Josh Willingham was named ... Hitter of the Week for August 20-26. Willingham hit .409 (9-for-22) and drove in five runs for the week. He also blasted two homers and hit three doubles last week, posting a .818 slugging percentage in the process. For the season, he is now tied for third in homeruns (22) and ranks seventh in runs batted in (73). Willingham, a 17th round pick of the Marlins in the 2000 draft, is ranked the number six prospect in the Florida system by Baseball America." (Southern League)

" ...  Ricky Nolasco ...  Pitcher of the Week for August 20-26. Nolasco put together a pair of stellar starts last week, allowing just one earned run and six hits in 13.2 innings of work. He struck out 16 batters for the week, while limiting opponents to a .136 batting average. Nolasco, a fourth round selection of the Cubs in the 2001 draft, is ranked the number 20 prospect in the Chicago system by Baseball America." (Southern League)

TEXAS --  Nick Gorneault ANA 18th & 19th homers, 2 RBI ... ARZ SS Keoni DeRenne 4-5, .387 ... DJ Houlton HOU 7.0 3 0 0 2 6, 11-5, 3.12 ... Huston Street OAK 1.0 1 0 0 0 1, 1.69 ... Ian Kinsler TEX homer (20th overall, to go with 50 doubles), 94th RBI overall ... Juan Senreiso TEX 3-4, triple, 2 RBI, .348

CAROLINA --  Mark Saccomanno HOU 2-4, R … Josh Anderson HOU 0-4 … Josh Fields CHA 2-4, RBI, K … Casey Rogowski CHA 2-3, triple, RBI … Pedro Lopez CHA 2-4, R … Michael Kesten HOU (L) 8 8 3 3 0 6 (0-1, 3.38) … Kevin Howard CIN 1-5 … Rajai Davis PIT 1-5, triple (7), K … nice game, but no W … Nick Gravelle PIT 9 8 1 0 0 6 (3.71) … finally hearing from a year long quiet prospect … Gregor Blanco ATL 3-5, 2 R, HR (6), 4 RBI, K, .265 … in a bit of a funk lately … Anthony Lerew ATL 3 8 4 3 0 3 (3.92)

FLORIDA STATE --  Rehab, Mike Piazza (NYN, DH) 2-3 Double 2RBI … Reid Gorecki (STL, CF) 3-4 Triple 2R & 2-3 … Manny Delcarmen (BOS) 5 7 5 5 1 4 L(3-5, 4.68) … Tommy Winrow (NYA, RF) 2-5 R … Logan Kensing (FLA) 6 6 2 2 2 7 ND - 2.96 ERA … Jeremy Hermida (FLA, RF) 2-4 Double R … Rehab, Wil Cordero (FLA, 1B) 2-3 HR(1) 3RBI … Matthew Murton (CHN, CF) 1-2 HR(2)

CALIFORNIA --  yet another OF prospect for TB, Elijah Dukes 2-4, double, triple, .324 ... Erick Aybar ANA 4-6, triple, .334 ... Troy Glaus ANA, rehab, 1-3, 2 walks ... Bradley Sullivan OAK 6.0 8 2 1 0 2, 4.66 ... John Danks TEX 4.0 6 3 3 1 4, 5.65

MIDWEST --  Chris Lubanski KC 2-4, walk ... nice day for the ARZ kid Allen Mottram 2-4, homer, 3 RBI & 2-3, 2 homers, walk, 3 RBI ... Thomas Diamond TEX continues superb pro start, 4.0 1 0 0 0 4, 1.69 ... 2B Howard Kendrick ANA 2-3, double, .364 ... Carlos Marmol CHN 7.0 2 0 0 1 8, 14-7, 3.15 ... Brian Dopirak CHN, after a little dry spell, 3-5, 33rd & 34th doubles, 37th homer, 4 RBI (107), .301 ... 3B Brian Snyder OAK 2-5, 12th & 13th homers, .306 ... the suspensions by MIL appear to have shaken up the club, 23 hits in likely the best offense outburst of the season, everyone in the starting lineup with at least two hits, Lou Palmisano, awaiting his turn to sit for four games, 4-5 ... 2B Hernan Iribarren 3-7, 2 doubles ... Daric Barton STL 0-2, but 3 walks, .324

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Josh Kranawetter TB 7.0 5 0 0 4 5, 6-2, 1.85 ... Delmon Young TB 23rd & 24th homers ... Jason Pridie TB double, 17th homer & 0-2 ... Michael Bourn PHI 2-4, triple ... Ian Stewart COL 3-4, double, 3 RBI & 0-2, walk ... Jarrett Gardner BOS 7.0 6 2 0 1 4, 2.51

If you've been following our SAL notes, no surprises in the picks for Players of the Week :

" ... OF Lastings Milledge hit .481 (13-27) with 8 runs scored, 1 double, 2 homers, 12 RBI and a .741 slugging percentage ...  left-hander Jason Vargas went 2-0 with a 0.60 ERA, allowing 3 hits, 1 earned run and 2 walks while striking out 14 in 15 innings."  (MinorLeagueBaseball)

NEW YORK-PENN --  TJ Beam NYA 8.0 5 1 1 0 7, 2.57 ... SS Ben Zobrist HOU 2-5, triple, 4 RBI, .348

APPALACHIAN --  Mitch Einertson HOU 2-3, 2 walks, 3 runs, 65th RBI ... Kyle Waldrop MIN 7.0 3 3 2 0 6, 3.24 ... catcher Brandon Yarbrough STL 3-5, double, homer, .343 ... 1B Billy Becher 3-5, 2 homers, 5 RBI ... Reid Brignac RB 2-4

NORTHWEST --  Garret Gentry COL 3-4, 4 RBI, .458 ... Clint Brannon TEX 5.0 4 3 1 3 3, 0.71

PIONEER --  Billy Butler KC 8th homer, .373 ... Josh Brady MIL 3-5, double, triple, homer, 3 RBI, .392 ... Sean Rodriguez ANA 1-2, triple, 3 walks

ARIZONA --  (Thurs)  3B Wesley Long OAK 3-4, 17th double, .355 (more walks then Ks, 28-24)  ... Matt Bush SD 0-3, HBP, .162

GULF COAST --  (Thurs)   Junior Frias celebrated his 20th birthday by fronting a no-hitter for the BOS franchise, 5.0 0 0 0 4 10, Mike Snapp finished it off, 2.0 0 0 0 0 1

    Troop movements ...  SEA -- Mariners claimed RHP Brett Evert off waivers from the Braves and optioned him to AAA ... TEX --  purchased the contract of John Wasdin from AAA, designated RHP Scott Erickson for assignment ... CHA -- purchased the contract of RHP Jason Grilli from AAA, optioned LHP Josh Stewart to AAA ... NYN -- recalled RHP Jae Seo from AAA ... MON -- purchased the contract of infielder Maicer Izturis from AAA, optioned outfielder Ron Calloway to AAA ... CLE -- recalled Kazuhito Tadano from AAA, recalled pitcher Jeremy Guthrie from AA, optioned Fernando Cabrera to AAA, designated pitcher Chad Durbin for assignment ... HOU -- acquired pitcher Dan Wheeler from NYN for outfielder Adam Seuss, designated pitcher David Weathers for assignment ... ATL -- sent outright pitcher Armando Almanza to AAA ... LA -- purchased the contract of LHP Scott Stewart from AAA, optioned RHP Masao Kida to AAA ...

" ... Yusmeiro Petit, the Mets' top pitching prospect after the trades of Scott Kazmir and Matt Peterson, will be promoted to Double-A Binghamton for a start tomorrow. Petit had a 2-3 record, 1.22 ERA and 62 strikeouts in 44-1/3innings at St. Lucie." (NY Daily News)

" ...  Cody Ross ... has suffered several bad breaks lately, and another came Thursday when X-rays revealed a broken right wrist that will end his season ... The 23-year-old has missed most of this season because of injuries. A sore knee sidelined him in April, and in late May he went on the disabled list again after a relative shut a car door on his left hand and broke it. Ross was Las Vegas' hottest hitter. From July 25 to Aug. 17, he hit .379 with 10 home runs. "It's one of those years. I've got to get back on my feet and come back strong next year," said Ross ... He is on the Los Angeles Dodgers' 40-man roster and was expected to be called up in September." (Las Vegas Review-Journal)

    Jeremy Deloney, Baseball Miscellany, on John Hudgins TEX (just promoted to AAA) and Ryan Garko CLE :

" ... Hudgins ... doesn't have any dominating pitches and only pitches in the high 80s-low 90s with his fastball. It is his ability to command four pitches and his great control that has him rapidly moving up the organizational ladder. Hudgins is 6'2" 195-pounds and doesn't figure to throw much harder than he does now. He doesn't have to - his average stuff combined with his plus-plus moxie have the Rangers brass excited about a potential #3 starter in the rotation ...began the season with high A Stockton in the California League. He was 3-1 with a 2.35 ERA in 15 games (11 starts). He allowed only 18 walks and struck out 73 while holding batters to a .204 batting average in 65 innings of work. He since has been promoted to Double A Frisco where he is 5-3 with a 3.13 ERA in 12 starts (69 innings). Hudgins has struck out 64 while walking only 18 in 69 innings. With his arm action and clean delivery, he profiles as a bulldog warrior in the Majors."

" ...  Garko has split time between catcher (his college position), first base, and DH ... questions as to which position he'll play in the Majors, but his bat has answered any and all questions since signing last year after being chosen in the third round. The 6'2" 225-pound Garko began the year with high A Kinston and hit .328/.425/.609 with 17 doubles and 16 HR. His mature batting approach allowed him a high on base percentage in addition to hitting for surprising power. With Akron, Garko is hitting .333/.401/.517 with 12 doubles and 5 HR in 147 at bats. He's a smart hitter with a smooth swing and few weaknesses."

    Zach Chalifour, The Roto Times, highlights Kyle Sleeth DET and Omar Quintanilla OAK :

" ... The 22-year-old Sleeth has hit a few speed bumps on his fast track to the big leagues, but that shouldn’t stop him from making his professional debut with Detroit in 2005 ... Since his promotion to Double-A Erie ... numbers have suffered greatly as he’s compiled a 6.85 ERA in his 11 starts for the Sea Wolves thus far. Sleeth threw 68 innings in High-A ball this year and in 67 innings at Double-A he’s fanned just 48 hitters while walking 31, cutting his previous K/BB ratio in half. Because of his struggles at Double-A, Sleeth is unlikely to get a taste of the Show in 2004, though the Tigers may decide to make him a September call-up."

" ...  After an outstanding career for the University of Texas, Quintanilla has carried on with the Athletics right where he left off with the Longhorns. The first-round pick in last year’s draft is on a direct path to the majors ...   returned to High-A Modesto to start the 2004 campaign, where he hit .313 with 11 home runs and 72 RBI in 107 games before an August promotion to Double-A Midland. In his first 12 games with the Rockhounds, Quintanilla has annihilated Double-A pitching, hitting at a .392 clip in 51 at-bats with a home run and seven RBI. It’s likely that Quintanilla will eventually move to second base as a result of the emergence of Bobby Crosby. As soon as next season, these two youngsters could serve as one of the best young middle infield duos in the American League."

   Mets, trying to salvage something from a disappointing season (and some weird trades), hope a Cuban product can help turnaround a sorry story :

" ...  Mets signed Cuban defector Alay Soler on Friday, giving the pitcher a three-year deal worth $2.8 million. Soler, 24, was an ace for the Cuban national team last year, going 10-4 with a 2.01 ERA in 18 games. He defected last November with three other players. Soler had been working out at the Mets' complex in the Dominican Republic while paperwork was completed on his contract. When he gets his visa, he will travel to the United States and join the Mets' instructional league Sept. 19 in Port St. Lucie, Fla. "Soler is a big, strong right-hander with a power arm," Mets general manager Jim Duquette said. "He has command of all of his pitches - fastball, curveball, changeup and a slider. We are happy to add a pitcher with Alay's international experience."  (Associated Press)

  John Sickels, ESPN.com, on Joey Votto CIN and Brandon McCarthy CHA :

" ... Votto ... drafted by the Reds in the second round in 2002..  hit .317 last year in the rookie-level Pioneer League, and this year ... he's been outstanding at two levels ... he is a pure hitter who can hit for average, knock singles or doubles, and punch the occasional home run. His plate discipline is very good, which should enable him to maintain both the batting average and the home run power as he moves up. The walks, of course, boost his OBP ... main question for Votto is defense. His glove is mediocre even at first base, but if he continues to hit they will find a place for him. I gave Votto a Grade C in my book this year, with the notation that he had a lot of untapped potential. He is clearly tapping that potential now, and his grade will rise substantially for 2005, probably up to B+."

" ...  If you like control artists, you will like Brandon McCarthy ...  Promoted to Winson-Salem in the Carolina League, McCarthy went on a big hot streak, going 6-0, 2.08 in eight starts, with a 60/3 K/BB in 32 52 innings ...  McCarthy has moved up to Double-A, and he continues to throw strikes with regularity, 2-0 in two starts with a 15/2 K/BB in 12 innings ... McCarthy was a 17th round pick in 2002 ... a skinny 6-7 right-hander, weighing just 185 pounds. His fastball is average at 89 mph, but his changeup and curveball are very good. His command and feel for pitching is outstanding, as shown by the K/BB. Since he doesn't have a super fastball, McCarthy's margin for error is less than that for many premier pitching prospects. But his control is tremendous, and he understands the craft of pitching. He's probably a year away from being ready for major league action, but he looks like a solid pitching prospect to me."  

27 August 2004

    Game action ... INT --  Matt Diaz (TB, RF) 3-4, 3 2B, RBI, HBP ... Joey Gathright (TB, CF) 2-5, 2B ... Doug Waechter (TB) 5.0 3 0 0 5 3 ... Ryan Langerhans (ATL, LF-CF) 3-4, 2 2B, R, BB ... Jorge Padilla (PHI, RF) 1-3, 7th HR, R, 2 RBI ... Gavin Floyd (PHI) 6.1 10 6 6 1 6 ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, DH) 0-3 ... Russ Adams (TOR, SS) 2-4, 2B, RBI ... Brandon Phillips (CLE, 2B) 2-5, 2B, 3B, 2 R, RBI ... Francisco Cruceta (CLE) 7.0 3 0 0 1 3 ... Wilson Valdez (CHA, SS) 2-5, 2B, SB ... Bobby Keppel (NYN) 2.2 3 1 1 1 1

PCL --  Sam Narron TEX 5.0 7 4 4 3 2, 8-2, 4.03 ... vet Kevin Witt STL 4-5, 33rd homer ... Adrian Gonzalez TEX 2-4, double, 4 RBI, .305 ... Andy Tracy COL 33rd homer ... JR House PIT 14th homer, .288 ... Maicer Izturis MON 1-3, double & 1-1, .338 ... Dallas McPherson ANA 3-4, 3 doubles & 1-3  ... Hideo Nomo LA, rehab, 5.1 5 3 3 2 10 ... Antonio Perez LA 20th homer, .288 ... John Baker OAK 2-3, .375 ... Justin Germano (W 8-5) 6.0 4 2 2 1 6

EASTERN --  Matt Peterson, not faring too well in the PIT system, 6.0 2 3 3 4 7, 5.67 ... Darrell Rasner MON 7.0 7 1 1 2 4, 1.89 ... John Castellano PHI 18th homer, .340 ... Brandon League TOR 5.0 4 2 2 5 4, 3.47 ... Merkin Valdez SF, regaining form, 6.0 1 0 0 2 5

SOUTHERN --  Chris Seddon TB 3.0 9 8 5 2 2 , L 8-9 ... Willy Aybar LA 2B 2-4, 2 R, 2B, RBI, 2 K ... Brennan King LA 3B 2-3, 2 2B, 2 RBI, K ... Derek Thompson LA 6.0 5 1 1 3 5, W 5-7 ... Jake Meyer CIN 5.0 5 2 2 0 7, 2.70 ... Ricky Nolasco CHN 7.0 3 0 0 1 10, W 6-3 ... plays 1B, Josh Willingham FLA 1B 3-5, 3 R, 2B, HR (22), 2 RBI, BB ... Chip Ambres FLA OF 1-1, 2 R, HR (17), RBI, 4 BB ... Andy Marte ATL 3B 1-5, R, HR (21), 3 RBI, BB ... Brian Anderson CHA OF 0-3, R, 2 BB ... Josh Barfield SD 2B 2-5, 2 RBI

TEXAS --  great pitching matchup, Felix Hernandez SEA 7.0 3 0 0 2 7 over Denny Bautista KC 6.0 5 1 1 4 4 ... Fernando Nieve HOU 5.1 5 2 2 3 5 ... Jeff Salazar COL 2-4, double, walk ... Ben Kozlowski TEX 5.0 7 5 3 3 2 ... Shane Bazzell OAK quietly, a superb season, 8.2 4 1 1 1 11, 13-3, 2.86 ... CF Juan Senreiso 2-3, homer

CAROLINA --  Brad Snyder CLE 1-4, R, triple, RBI, 3 K … Nick Pesco CLE (W) 5 2 0 0 1 8 (1-0, 0.00) … Donnie Murphy KC 2-4, R, K … Shane Costa KC 1-4, R, HR (7), 2 RBI … Mike Aviles KC 1-3, double (36), RBI, BB, K … Josh Fields CHA 2-5, 2 R, triple (4), HR (6), 2 RBI (34), K … Ryan Sweeney CHA 0-5, K … Rajai Davis PIT 2-4, 2 R, double, triple (6), BB, SB (50) … Mark Saccomanno HOU 1-5, K … Josh Anderson HOU 1-5, R, triple, 2 RBI … Kevin Howard CIN 0-4, K

FLORIDA STATE --  Matt Merricks (LA) 5.2 7 1 1 3 4 L(1-2, 3.43) … Scott Olson (FLA) 4.2 3 0 0 3 5 ND - 3.13 ERA … Jeremy Hermida (FLA, RF) 2-4 HR(9) 2R … Brent Clevlen (DET, RF) 3-5 Triple R … Brandon Moss (BOS, RF) 2-4 3R - In 16 FSL games .491 BA .649 SLG … Jeremy West (BOS, DH) 2-4 HR(18) 2R 4RBI … Ron Davenport (TOR, RF) 2-4 Double RBI … Felix Pie (CHN, CF) 2-4 Double R …Eric Abreu (NYA), two outs short of a no-hitter, 7 1 0 0 2 4 W(1-0, 0.82) ... Doug Deeds MIN, who broke up the no-hitter in the first game, homer, double, single in the second game

CALIFORNIA --  Antonio Osuna SD, rehab, 2.0 0 0 0 0 4 ... hmmm, Jason Hammel TB 7.0 3 1 0 1 14, 2.18 ... John Suomi OAK 2-4, 11th homer ... Troy Glaus ANA 1-4, homer ... Michael Napoli ANA 1-2, 29th homer, 2 RBI (112), 2 walks

MIDWEST --  NYA OF Erold Andrus 3-4, 10th & 11th homers, 5 RBI, 13th SB, .281 ... Vinny Rottino MIL 4-5, 23rd double, 15th & 16th homers, 5 RBI, .314 ... CF Javon Moran CIN 4-5, 3 SBs, .373 ... Kevin Jepsen ANA 6.0 3 1 1 1, 3.30

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Beau Hearod HOU, 1-4, homer (25), 2 RBI ... Nyjer Morgan PIT, 1-4, triple, steal (52) ... Jon Benick PIT, 2-4, 2 RBI ... Paul Maholm PIT, 5.0 9 7 7 4 3 (L 0-2, 9.49) ... Carlos Lee CHW, 3-4, RBI ... Gio Gonzalez CHW, 6.0 5 1 1 1 3 (W 1-1, 3.26) ... combined no-hitter for Greensboro Jason Vargas FLA, 2nd rounder in 2004, 7.0 0 0 0 2 10 (W 2-0, 0.60) ... Nathan Nowicki FLA, 1.0 0 0 0 2 1 ... Carlos Martinez FLA, 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 (S 5) ... Michael Bourn CF PHI 2-4, walk, .320 ... Lastings Milledge NYA 2-3, double, 4 RBI, walk, .342 ... Ryan Harvey NYN 2-5, 10th homer ... Jacob Stevens ATL 5.2 2 0 0 4 6, 9-4, 2.20

NEW YORK-PENN --  SS Ben Zobrist HOU 4-5, .346 ... 1B Mario Garza HOU 3-4, double, 14th homer, 6 RBI ... Zachary Jackson TOR 5.0 6 3 3 1 2 ... Anibal Sanchez BOS .2 2 0 0 4 10 (1.92 in 70 1/3 innings, 42 hits, 28 walks, 94 Ks)

APPALACHIAN --  Mitch Einertson HOU 1-5, double, .302 ... CF Carl Loadenthal ATL 2-5, double, .308

NORTHWEST --  Shawn Nottingham SEA 3.0 5 5 4 4 4, 9-2, 3.15 ... Matt Tuiasosopo SEA 1-3, 3rd homer, 2 RBI, .293

PIONEER --  1B Chris Kelly CHA 1-3, 9th homer, .326 ... freefall, Sean Rodriguez ANA 0-4, .343 ... Bobby Mosby CIN 2-4, 17th & 18th homers, 3 RBI, .283 ... 2B Travis Denker LA 3-5, triple, .311 ... 3B Blake DeWitt LA 4-5, 11th homer, 6 RBI

ARIZONA --  (Wed)  Matt Bush SD 1-4, .169 ... 3B Wesley Long OAK 4-5, 2 doubles (16), 2 SB (15), .347

GULF COAST --  (Wed)  Philly phenom Scott Mitchinson improved to 7-0, 1.75, 6.0 3 0 0 0 7 (now in 61 2/3s, ONE walk, 60 Ks)  ... CF Greg Golson PHI 3-5, .297 ... Jay Rainville MIN 6.0 8 1 1 0 5, 1.83 (3 walks, 38 Ks in 34 1/3)  ... Neil Walker PIT 2-6 & Stephen Lerud PIT 2-4 in their final games before moving up to the New York-Penn League for the rest of the season

    Troop movements ... BAL -- released outfielder Karim Garcia, optioned outfielder Darnell McDonald to AAA, recalled outfielder Tim Raines Jr. & Jose Leon from AAA ... CLE -- promoted 3B Kevin Kouzmanoff from Low-A to AA Akron ... MON -- placed Jose Vidro & Francis Beltran on the DL, recalled Scott Downs and Gary Majewski from AAA ... TEX -- activated Chan Ho Park from the DL, placed Mickey Callaway on the DL ... HOU -- placed Dan Miceli on the DL, purchased the contract of Russ Springer from AAA ...

    Matthew Pouliot, RotoWorld, on a pair of fast-moving prospects, Ian Kinsler TEX and Carlos Quentin ARZ :

" ...  One of 2004’s biggest surprises has been the emergence of the 22-year-old Kinsler as a minor league player-of-the-year candidate ... hit .402/.465/.692 in 224 AB in the Midwest League. When Double-A Frisco shortstop Drew Meyer went down with a shoulder injury in June, the Rangers chose to bypass Single-A Stockton’s Joaquin Arias and promote Kinsler two levels. He has more than justified the move by hitting .318/.416/.494 in 60 games for Frisco. To go along with his outstanding offensive numbers, Kinsler is a fine defensive shortstop. He lacks outstanding speed, but he has good instincts and he doesn’t make many mistakes ...  Kinsler should be ready in 2006. The Rangers could deal Alfonso Soriano, who will soon be making more than he’s worth, and move Michael Young back to second to open up a spot."

" ...Quentin doesn’t get as much attention as Double-A El Paso teammate Conor Jackson, but if he’s the inferior prospect, the margin is very slight. He’s three months younger than Jackson, a superior fielder and he’s even outhit the fellow 2003 first-round pick this year ...  .310/.428/.562 in 65 games for Single-A Lancaster and .375/.453/.560 in 52 games for Double-A El Paso. Without a doubt he’s played in hitter-friendly environments, but those are very impressive numbers for someone who doesn’t even turn 22 until Saturday. Defensively, Quentin has pretty good range and a right fielder’s arm ... I see Quentin as having Aubrey Huff-type offensive potential."

    At Baseball America, a spotlight on HOU CF Mitch Einertson :

" ... cracked his 24th home run of the season Wednesday night ... tied the Appy League record set  ... "Coming out of high school and hitting over 20 home runs is almost impossible to do," Burlington manager Rouglas Odor said. "Manny Ramirez, when he was here (in 1991), he hit 19 home runs and had 63 RBIs." Einertson, the Astros' fifth-round pick out of a California high school, has a league-best 63 RBIs of his own, adding a .305 average. While he boasts that impressive .705 slugging percentage, the 5-foot-10, 180-pound athlete also has a .410 on-base mark that illustrates his knowledge of the strike zone and ability to lay off bad pitches ... Observers aren't sure what's quicker, Einertson's bat speed or his ability to make those adjustments. Johnson City manager Tommy Kidwell said his staff found success against Einertson one night by consistently feeding him soft stuff down and away. The next night, he ripped one of those offerings over the fence. "He's hit fastballs, splitters, changeups," Kidwell said, "and he's hit them all hard."

    The Southern League has announced its end-of-season All-Star picks and the list is notable for who's missing -- among them, top MIL prospects Prince Fielder and Rickie Weeks.  Richard Lewis CHN won the 2B spot and Jesse Gutierrez CIN was the pick at first base.  MIL did place outfielder Brad Nelson on the squad. Among selections (by the league managers & media) -- catcher, Josh Willingham FLO, 3B Edwin Encarnacion CIN, and lefty starter Renyel Pinto CHN.

    TB, where change is the constant, could have a new look at 2B and 3B next season :

" ... Sometime in the next few games, 20-year-old rookie B.J. Upton will make the first of what figures to be many starts at third base before the end of the season. If Upton passes the late-season test, the Rays' shortstop of the future could have a new position next season. Upton, who made five errors in 11 starts at shortstop after being promoted from Triple-A Durham on Aug. 1, has been working at third for the past several days to prepare for the position change ...  ``I feel comfortable over there. Real comfortable,'' Upton said Wednesday. ``I've played there before, but not recently.'' ...  If Upton's future does prove to be at third base instead of shortstop, the Rays could keep Julio Lugo at short and possibly use rookie Jorge Cantu at second base next season if they can't afford to sign a middle-priced free agent such as Todd Walker of the Cubs. Cantu, 22, played his way into the Rays' plans this season by having a breakout first half at Triple-A Durham (21 HRs, 76 RBIs). In two tours with the Rays, Cantu was hitting .300 with nine doubles and six RBIs in 21 games entering Wednesday's game. ``He's done a nice job,'' Piniella said. ``He's making an impression.'' Cantu, primarily a shortstop in the minors, has played short, third and second with the Rays ...  ``I think he belongs at second base,'' Piniella said. ``His bat is suited for that position. He has driven the ball fairly well. I like the kid. He can play all three infield positions, but I think second base is what I'm looking at.''  (Tampa Tribune)

    Rockies' kids need patience :

" ... The Rockies won't add their September call-ups until Sept. 6. Manager Clint Hurdle said the roster would break down with 16 pitchers and 16 position players. Candidates include Garrett Atkins, Clint Barmes, Brad Hawpe, Andy Tracy, Chin-Hui Tsao and Allan Simpson." (Denver Post)

    Lou Palmisano among MIL farmhands disciplined :

" ...  Brewers farm director Reid Nichols suspended and fined four Class A Beloit players, including catching prospect Lou Palmisano, for an after-curfew incident in Peoria, Ill., in which one of the players was stabbed ...  Left-hander Greg Kloosterman ... was treated for a stab wound on the right side of his chest at a Peoria hospital at 4 a.m. Sunday ...   Kloosterman, Palmisano and pitchers Justin Barnes and Kevin Rival were out after team curfew ... the players were involved in the altercation around 3:30 a.m. Kloosterman was kept overnight at the hospital before being released with what was described as a minor stab wound. Nichols said no arrests were made because the other men involved in the incident could not be found. "They were in the wrong place at the right time," said Nichols. "They exchanged words with the wrong people. They're all good kids; they just used poor judgment. The situation could have been more severe." ... The decision was made to suspend each player for three games without pay and also fine them ...  Palmisano, 21, was a third-round draft pick last year and is considered one of the top catching prospects in the minors. He was batting .290 with six homers and 62 RBI through 104 games." (Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel)

   Tidbits from the International League office :

" ... Corey Hart is leading the Indians in eight offensive categories: at-bats (416); runs scored (64); hits (115); doubles (27); triples (8); stolen bases (16) and strike outs (87). The 23-year-old was the Southern League MVP last season and is playing his first season at Triple-A with Indianapolis."

" ... With a 2-for-5 effort last night, Guillermo Quiroz extended his hitting streak to 10 games. The catcher is 14-40 (.350) with 7 doubles and 8 RBI during the streak. Quiroz’ batting average had dipped to .218 prior to the streak, the lowest it had been since April 12, but is now up to .240."

" ... Ryan Howard ... named the Phillies’ Minor League Player ... of the Week for August 16-22. Howard batted .333 during the week with 5 HR and 12 RBI."

" ... The PawSox have added veteran RHP Pedro Astacio to their roster. He will make his PawSox debut this Friday in Game 1 of a doubleheader at Scranton/Wilkes-Barre. Astacio, who was signed by the Boston Red Sox as a free agent on June 30, had been with the Gulf Coast Rookie Red Sox for the past month and a half as he continued his comeback from right shoulder surgery in June of 2003."

   Edwin Jackson LA seemingly unfazed by lack of progress :

" ... Jackson returned to Cashman Field for the first time since June on Wednesday, but he looked more like a pitcher fresh from a Double-A callup than one on a major-league rehabilitation assignment. In his second rehab outing with the 51s ... allowed five runs -- three of them earned -- in 1 1/3 innings, without giving up a hit. He lasted only 45 pitches, 16 for strikes, before being pulled from the game, behind 5-0. Jackson had five walks, one wild pitch, and one hit batsman ...  Jackson sat in the 51s' clubhouse, facing his locker with headphones and an iPod drowning out his surroundings. "I just didn't establish a comfort level, and it went downhill from there," he said, adding that he had no pain in his arm. "Tonight, that wasn't a problem, it was just throwing strikes." Jackson figures to be a part of the Dodgers' plans for their stretch run, especially as the team's pitching has struggled in recent weeks. But with Wednesday's struggles, and only 12 games left in the Triple-A season, rehabilitation might not be an option much longer ...  51s manager Terry Kennedy seemed perplexed by Jackson's outing. "If he keeps throwing like this, he could be here for a while," Kennedy said. "He needs to work on a few things, but he can't help at the big leagues ... I don't know ... just ... I don't know." Jackson said he's not worrying about what, if anything, the pennant race holds for him. "As far as I'm concerned, the game's over now," he said. "I try to get through day-by-day. September and October are too far away. You can't play looking that far ahead."

   If not Jackson ... how about Chad Billingsley ?

" ...  The most disappointed person to see the rain start in the bottom of the fifth inning at Tuesday night's Jacksonville Suns game against the Mobile BayBears? Undoubtedly Chad Billingsley. The Suns starter was coasting. He had retired the last 10 batters he faced and had allowed just two baserunners ...  threw 68 pitches in five innings, recording five strikeouts and no walks ... During the 58-minute rain delay, Billingsley was the topic of discussion by half a dozen major-league scouts on hand to watch the 20-year-old right-hander. "He reminds you of (Milwaukee Brewers pitching standout) Ben Sheets to a certain degree, maybe a little taller than Sheets," was the consensus of the scouts, none of whom wanted to be identified in order to not let the Dodgers organization know their team's thoughts about the Suns' pitcher. "Sheets might throw a little bit harder right now -- he can clock it at 98 [mph]," said another scout. "But Billingsley was around 93-96 tonight and hit the 96 mark maybe 10-12 times. That's pretty good." Added another scout: "He simply has to learn command of his pitches, especially the fastball. If he gets that under control, he's going to be outstanding." But there was some reservation among the group, especially considering that just a year ago Billingsley was pitching in high school. "You definitely want him in your organization, but he's not a slam dunk [for major league stardom]," said one scout. "Don't get me wrong, we'd love to have him. But that's why they call players like him 'prospects' at this stage of his career.'' (Florida Times-Union)

   Guillermo Quiroz among the baby Jays likely to get Sept. MLB time :

" ... The Blue Jays will bring up three or four players in September when the major-league roster is expanded, general manager J.P. Ricciardi said yesterday. "I don't want to announce who the players will be at this time, but we want to make sure that when they get here they'll get some playing time," Ricciardi said. Among the leading candidates to be promoted are first baseman Eric Crozier, shortstop Russ Adams and catcher Guillermo Quiroz. All three are at triple-A Syracuse. As for the Jays headed to the Arizona Fall League, Ricciardi said right-handed pitchers Jason Arnold, Adam Peterson and Francisco Rosario, along with shortstop Aaron Hill and first baseman John Hattig are on the list." (Toronto Sun)

   Stephen Drew " ... show me the money.

" ... Top Arizona draft pick Stephen Drew enrolled in classes at Florida State on Thursday, a move similar to the one made by older brother J.D. Drew. Arizona selected the shortstop with the No. 15 pick in June's amateur draft. Drew's first class is Tuesday, so he still could discuss a contract with the team until the time he attends that class. ``If there were classes on Friday, he would be attending,'' Florida State baseball coach Mike Martin said. ``If he and the Diamondbacks do not come to an agreement, he will attend class on Tuesday.'' (Associated Press)

26 August 2004  

    Game action ... INT --  Stephen Smitherman (CIN, LF) 2-4, 2B, RBI ... rehab, Brandon Larson (CIN, 3B) 0-4 ... Matt Belisle (CIN) 2.0 6 7 7 2 1 ... Ryan Langerhans (ATL, PH & LF) 1-1, 15th HR, R, RBI & 1-3, 16th HR, R, RBI ... Wilson Betemit (ATL, 3B-1B & 3B) 2-5, R & 1-3, BB ... Jesse Garcia (ATL, 2B & SS-2B) 1-5, R & 2-4, 2B ... Dan Meyer (ATL) 5.2 3 1 1 3 5 ... rehab, Horacio Ramirez (ATL) 4.0 8 5 5 0 2 ... Ryan Howard (PHI, 1B) 2-6, RBI, BB ... Michael Restovich (MIN, DH) 3-4, R ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, CF) 0-3, BB, SB ... Guillermo Quiroz (TOR, C) 2-5, 2 RBI ... Mike Fontenot (BAL, 2B) 2-4, 2B, R, BB, Sac ... John Maine (BAL) 6.0 6 2 1 3 4 ... Josh Bard (CLE, C) 2-4, 4th HR, R, RBI ... Jamie Brown (BOS) 6.0 9 5 5 0 7 ... Robinson Cano (NYA, 2B) 2-4, 3B ... David Krynzel (MIL, CF) 2-5, 2 R, SB ... Ben Hendrickson (MIL) 5.0 4 1 1 0 4 ... Victor Diaz (NYN, RF) 1-4, Sac & 2-2, 2B, BB ... Prentice Redman (NYN, CF) 3-5, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, SB & 0-2, BB ... Pat Strange (NYN) 5.0 4 1 1 0 2

PCL --   a nice run of success for Chris George KC 7.0 3 1 1 4 8, 3.12 ... Freddy Sanchez PIT (at SS) 3-4, .256 ... Danny Haren STL 6.0 5 2 2 2 8, 10-4, 4.06 ... Adrian Gonzalez TEX 3-3, 2 doubles, walk, .303 ... Clint Barmes COL 3-5, 41st double, .330 ... Andy Tracy COL 2-5, 31st & 32nd homers, 3 RBI (110) ... OF Shawn Garrett COL 2-5, double, homer, .441 ... Casey Kotchman ANA 2-5, .368 ... Nick Swisher OAK 3-4, 27th homer, 3 RBI (83) ... LA may have to look for another alternative, Edwin Jackson 1.1 0 5 3 5 0

EASTERN --  Aaron Hill TOR 3-4, double, .287 ... Hanley Ramirez BOS 1-4, walk, 2 Ks ... Bobby Bradley PIT 5.2 2 2 2 4 1 ... Brad Eldred PIT, really has the hang of AA now, 2-3, 13th homer, 3 RBI, .284 ... Michael Hinckley MON 5.0 8 2 2 0 3 ... Ryan Garko CLE, adjusted nicely to AA, 3-4, double, homer, 2 RBI, .344 ... Sean Henn NYA 7.0 2 0 0 2 4

SOUTHERN --  No games scheduled.

TEXAS --  Shin-soo Choo SEA 2-3, walk, .311 ... Matt Chico ARZ, finally figured it out in AA, 7.1 5 1 1 1 6 ... Jeff Nelson TEX, rehab, 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 ... Huston Street OAK 2.0 2 0 0 0 3, 1.86 ... Jason Botts TEX 1-3, 23rd homer ... CF Juan Senreiso TEX, fitting in nicely since his promotion from A+, 3-5, double

CAROLINA --  Tripper Johnson BAL 0-1, RBI … Pat Osborn CLE 2-4, R, double, RBI, BB, K … Brad Snyder CLE 2-4, R, double, HR (5), 3 RBI … Adam Miller CLE (W) 7 2 1 0 1 9 (2-1, 1.89) … Brian McCann ATL 1-3, R, double, BB … Donnie Murphy KC 0-3, BB … Shane Costa KC 0-4 … Mike Aviles KC 2-4, double … Blaine Boyer ATL (W) 7 5 0 0 1 4 (9-10, 2.81) … Devon Lowery KC (L) 5 7 5 5 1 4 (9-9, 3.77) … Josh Fields CHA 1-4, double, 2 RBI (32), K … Ryan Sweeney CHA 0-4, R … Casey Rogowski CHA 0-4, R, 2 K … Pedro Lopez CHA 2-4, R, BB … Rajai Davis PIT 1-4, R, 2 SB (49) … Mark Saccomanno HOU 2-4, R, K … Josh Anderson HOU 0-4 … Kevin Howard CIN 1-2, 2 R, 3 BB

FLORIDA STATE --  Andrew Sisco (CHN) 5.2 4 0 0 2 7 W(4-10, 4.31) … Felix Pie (CHN, CF) 2-4 2SB(31) R … Kevin Deaton (NYN) 3 8 5 3 1 3 L(6-3, 2.99) … Jordan Pals (STL) 7 3 0 0 0 8 W(4-1, 2.45) … Jeremy Hermida (FLA, DH) 2-3 … Yorman Bazardo (FLA) 4 5 4 4 2 3 L(5-9, 3.42) … Alex Romero (MIN, RF) 1-2 HR(5) … Tommy Winrow (NYA, RF) 2-3 R RBI … Melky Cabrera (NYA, CF) 1-2 HR(8) 2RBI … Charlie Isaacson (NYA) 5 5 2 2 2 3 W(4-3, 3.39) … Jeremy West (BOS, 1B) 3-5 2R RBI … Dustin Pedroia (BOS, SS) 3-4 Double R … Tony Abreu (LA, SS) 2-3 SB(2) … Bill Bray (MON) 0.1 0 0 0 0 0

CALIFORNIA --  Rett Johnson SEA, at least he's getting some innings, 4.0 4 4 4 4 1 ... Troy Glaus ANA 0-3, K ... Jason Perry OAK 2-5, 22nd homer, .338

MIDWEST --  No games scheduled.

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Ian Stewart COL, 2-4, double, 2 RBI & 1-3, triple, RBI (96) ... Jon Benick PIT, 2-5, double ... Mitch Talbot HOU, 5.0 9 3 3 1 2 (4.05) ... Michael Bourn PHI, 3-4, 2 doubles, steal (50) ... Nate Cabrera PHI, 6.2 5 5 0 2 4 (L 5-4, 3.03) ... Jeff Fiorentino BAL, 1-3, RBI, 2 runs ... Steve Doetsch ATL, 2-4, 2 doubles, RBI ... Seth Pietsch NYM, 3-3, 2 doubles, steal (1), 2 runs ... Ryan Rodriguez CHW, 6.0 5 1 1 2 8 (3.96) ... Daniel Core (TOR) 6.0 6 3 1 1 6 (3.51) ... Jason Pridie TB, 2-4, homer (16), 3 RBI, steal (16) ... Delmon Young TB, 1-4 ... Andrew Sonnastine TB, 5.0 3 1 1 2 9 (0.96) ... Ryan Goleski CLE, 2-5 ... one-time top LA prospect Jonathan Figueroa among those to take a lickin' in a 14-12 match, 1.0 7 7 7 2 2 -- the BOS farmhands got 20 hits, 15 of them singles ... LA kids, 21 hits,  Alejandro De Aza LA OF 5-6, 3 doubles, 4 RBI  ... even with all the offense, only one hitter came out of the game with an average over .280

NEW YORK-PENN --  Jeff Marquez NYA 5.0 5 2 1 2 5, 1.84 ... Lou Merloni CLE, rehab, 0-4, 3 Ks

APPALACHIAN --  SS Travis Garcia NYN 2-4, 9th homer, 3 RBI, .321 ... Mitch Einertson HOU, hot, hot, 3-4, 24th homer (4th in last 3 games), 2 RBI, .305 ... OF JD Foust CHA 2-4, homer, 4 RBI, .330 ... Mark Jurich ATL 3-4, walk, double, triple ... Reid Brignac TB SS 2-4, 2 doubles, 3 RBI ... OF Yonathan Sivira STL 4-6, 3 doubles, .310 ... catcher Brandon Yarbrough STL 3-5, triple, homer, 4 RBI, .338

NORTHWEST --  Garret Gentry COL, right back in the swing, 3-4, double, triple ... big night for TEX catcher Michael Nickeas 3-6, 16th double, 9th homer, 7 RBI ... OAK catcher Kurt Suzuki 2-5, double, triple, 3 RBI, .307 ... Javier Herrera OAK 2-3, 11th homer, .343 ... Richard Robnett OAk 2-5, double, homer, 3 RBI, .323

PIONEER --  Billy Butler KC 1-3, homer & 2-4, double, .382... Seth Smith COL 3-5, double, .369 ... in a 24-5 tilt, the ARZ kids gave up 12 hits but fanned 17 ... Bobby Mosby CIN 2-3, 16th & 17th homers, 4 RBI, 4 runs, 2 walks ... LA 1B Cory Dunlap 3-5, double, .364 ... Ray Liotta CHA 7.0 2 2 2 4 7, 2.63 ... Sean Rodriguez ANA, struggling, 1-4, down nearly 50 points in the last couple of weeks, .350

ARIZONA -- (Tues)  Matt Bush SD 1-2, error, .170

    Troop movements ...  MIL -- placed Chris Capuano on the DL, recalled pitcher Pedro Liriano from AAA ... COL -- purchased the contract of SP Jeff Francis from AAA, designated Kit Pellow for assignment; sent outright pitchers Adam Bernero and Vladimir Nunez to AAA ... NYN -- signed outfielder Brian Buchanan; optioned pitcher Heath Bell to AAA ... BAL -- purchased the contract of LHP Bruce Chen from AAA, optioned RHP Eddy Rodriguez to AAA, designated outfielder Prentice Redman for assignment ... SF -- optioned RHP Kevin Correia to AAA, recalled RHP David Aardsma from AAA ...

    Brian Dopirak CHN is the poster boy as the Midwest League announces its post-season all-stars.  Dopirak was named the team's first baseman, the MVP and the top prospect. Among others chosen by managers -- Howie Kendrick ANA 2B, Eric Duncan NYA 3B, Ian Kinsler TEX SS, Daric Barton STL C, OF Kevin Collins CHN and pitchers, both from OAK, Brad Knox and Steve Bondurant.

    Scott Rex, OnDeck, has begun his reports on the short-season leagues.  In the Northwest, his 1-2-3 picks as the best prospects -- SS Matt Tuiasosopo SEA, OF Ryan Harvey CHN, and OF Javier Herrera OAK.  The A's Landon Powell is ranked 21st, the third catcher on the list (behind teammate Kurt Suzuki and Mike Nickeas TEX).

    Jeremy Deloney, Baseball Miscellany, on a RSox hopeful, Jon Papelbon and yet another ATL arm, Kyle Davies :

" ...  Red Sox aggressively placed him with high A Sarasota and he has elevated himself to become arguably the organization's best pitching prospect. He is 12-6 with a 2.69 ERA in 23 starts covering 123.2 innings. He's walked 41 while striking out 149 and has held the opposition to a .213 batting average - splendid numbers for a former reliever in his first full professional season. His repertoire mainly consists of an 89-94 mph fastball, a slurvy curveball, and changeup ... Sox officials point to Papelbon's work ethic for his quick ascent up the organizational prospect chart. He now stands 6'4" 230 pounds and has the build and durability to become a frontline starter. Once he polishes his curveball and changeup, Papelbon could get to Fenway Park quicker than expected. It's possible that he could make a start or two at Double A Portland, but it's most likely that he'll finish the the year with Sarasota."

" ...  one of baseball's best pitching prospects. The 6'2" 190 pound Davies began this season with high A Myrtle Beach. He dominated the Carolina League by going 9-2 with a 2.63 ERA in 14 starts. He pitched 75.1 innings and allowed 32 walks and a .208 average while striking out 95. Davies was then promoted to Double A Greenville where he has continued his dominance. He now stands at 4-0 with a 2.57 ERA in 9 starts. He's walked 20 and struck out 63 in 56 innings while holding hitters to a .202 average ...  does hit 95-96, but is more effective in the low 90s. His best pitch is his changeup which has outstanding depth and fade in addition to his deception ... Best of all is Davies' command. He is comfortable with throwing any of his three pitches at any time in the count and he relies on solid location to get ahead of the hitters early in the count ... he is as polished as 20 year-olds can possibly be. Both he and Triple A LHP Dan Meyer figure to be outstanding #1 or #2 starters in Atlanta sometime in the next 2-3 years."

    Over at Wait Til Next Year, Bryan Smith has an interview with David Cameron (U.S.S. Mariner, well-known to visitors here from his superb work at StrikeThree & now Baseball Prospectus) which produced some interesting tidbits on Delmon Young TB and Matthew Tuiasosopo SEA among others :

" ... Delmon’s a tough case. A year ago, scouts loved him and statistical analysis had no opinion. Now, his statistics are ridiculously impressive for an 18-year-old in the South Atlantic League, but he hasn’t made some adjustments that some would like. Like Prince Fielder, I don’t think he’s a normal 18-year-old who is going to grow at the same rate most do. He’s a very mature physical specimen for his age, and I don’t see a huge David Wright-style leap in his future. He’s already way ahead of where most teenagers are, but I think his development is going to be in smaller increments. His defense is still mediocre at best and he’s got some things to work on in his swing and pitch recognition. His numbers, I think, overstate his potential. He’s one of the better prospects in the game, but he’s not the next great phenom."

" ... Tuiasosopo tore the cover off the ball in Arizona and his first week in Everett, but pitchers have caught on and started exposing him with breaking balls, working him in and away successfully. He has a solid swing with legitimate opposite field power, but his approach needs work. Defensively, he’s just not a shortstop. Most organizations had him pegged as a rightfielder heading into the draft, and he hasn’t done anything to change anyones’ mind about that since. Expect him to move to the outfield permanently in 2006 at the latest. He may have the bat to carry out there, but we just don’t know right now. He’s more project than prospect at this moment."

25 August 2004

    Game action ... INT --  rehab, Brandon Larson (CIN, 3B) 1-4, 2 RBI ... Jason Kubel (MIN, LF) 1-3, 16th HR, R, RBI, BB ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, LF) 0-3, R, BB ... Cam Reimers (TOR) 7.1 6 3 3 3 1 ... Mike Fontenot (BAL, 2B) 3-5, 2B, 2 R, RBI ... Ryan Ludwick (CLE, RF) 1-4, 8th HR, R, 2 RBI ... Kyle Denney (CLE) 3.0 6 6 6 2 2 ... Wilson Valdez (CHA, SS) 2-7, 2nd HR, R, RBI ... Felix Diaz (CHA) 6.0 4 2 2 4 6 ... good outing, Brad Halsey (NYA) 8.0 6 2 1 0 9 ... Corey Hart (MIL, DH) 1-4, 15th HR, R, RBI ... Jorge De La Rosa (MIL) 6.0 7 1 1 2 5 ... Craig Brazell (NYN, LF) 2-6, R, BB ... Victor Diaz (NYN, RF) 2-6, 22nd & 23rd HRs, 2 R, 2 RBI, HBP ... Prentice Redman (NYN, CF) 1-6, 4th HR, R, 2 RBI, BB ... another good one, Jose Capellan (ATL) 6.0 4 0 0 2 6 :

" ... The hard-throwing 23-year-old from the Dominican Republic improved to 4-1 since joining Richmond on July 25 and lowered his earned run average to 0.87. Capellan, who topped out at 97 mph on the radar gun, has not been scored on in his last three starts, a span of 19 innings. "He was pretty sharp," said Guy Hansen, Richmond's pitching coach. "Even though a couple of balls were hit hard, he kept on pounding the strike zone. [Durham] is a tough club. They don't give away a lot of outs. He threw eight change-ups [in 92 pitches], which is probably a record for him. This guy is very, very special."  (Richmond Times-Dispatch)

PCL --  Kameron Loe TEX 6.0 6 0 0 2 4, 4-1, 3.05 ... Clint Barmes COL 2-5, double ... Andy Tracy COL 2-4, 30th homer, 2 RBI (107)  ... Tim Redding HOU 8.0 3 2 2 4 10 ... Casey Kotchman ANA 0-2, 2 walks, .367 ... Brad Hennessey SF 6.2 5 1 1 2 3 ... Nick Swisher OAK 2-3, double, walk ... reliever Brad Baker SD, a save in just his second game in AAA, 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 ... Xavier Nady SD, obviously needs a change of scenery to get some MLB time, 4-4, double, .331

EASTERN --  Hanley Ramirez BOS 2-3, walk, .291 ... Ian Snell PIT 6.0 5 3 3 0 6 ... Kyle Sleeth DET 6.0 7 3 3 4 1 ... Nate McLouth OF PIT 2-4, 2 doubles (37) , walk, .320 ... Curtis Granderson DET 2-5, double ... Boof Bonser MIN, working into a groove, 7.0 7 2 2 2 5

SOUTHERN --  Josh Barfield SD 2B 0-4 ... Chad Billlingsley LA 5.0 2 1 1 0 5, W 4-0 ... Skip Schumaker STL OF 2-4, 3B, RBI ... ouch, Bobby Brownlie CHN 4.2 7 5 5 1 4, L 9-9 ... Jace Brewer TB SS 2-4, 2 R, 3B, HR (9), 4 RBI, K ... Mike Prochaska TB 7.0 3 2 2 1 5, W 4-9 ... Edwin Encarnacion CIN 3B 0-4 ... Elizardo Ramirez CIN 6.0 7 2 2 0 4 ... Josh Willingham FLA C 2-3, R, 2B, HR (21), 2 RBI, BB, K ... Jason Stokes FLA 1B 1-3, R, HR (23), 2 RBI, K ... Nic Ungs FLA 7.0 7 2 2 2 4 , W 10-8 ... Dennis Ulacia CHA 6.0 7 2 1 0 4, W 8-7 ... Rickie Weeks MIL 2B 0-4 ... Dana Eveland MIL 7.0 5 3 2 1 4, L 0-1, 1.32 ... Rick Ankiel STL 5.0 1 0 0 1 2, W 1-0, 0.00 ...

" ...  Rehabbing southpaw Rick Ankiel (1-0) put an exclamation point on his final rehab start with Tennessee in a 6-1 Smokies win over Greenville Tuesday night. In his second rehab start with the Smokies, Ankiel earned the win. The left-hander took a no-hitter into the fifth inning and left with a 6-0 lead in a home start against the Braves. Ankiel issued a lead off four-pitch walk to Tony Pena, Jr. in the first, then proceeded to retire the next 12 batters ... Ankiel threw 57 pitches - 39 for strikes - and threw 12/16 first pitch strikes. Ankiel's fastball averaged 91 mph and topped out at 94. Through five rehab starts between Palm Beach and Tennessee Ankiel is 1-1, has struck out 18, walked two, and held opponents to 2 earned runs on eight hits." (Tennessee Smokies)

TEXAS --  No games scheduled.

CAROLINA --  Tripper Johnson BAL 0-4, K … Pat Osborn CLE 0-3, K … Brad Snyder CLE 1-4, R, K … Zach Dixon BAL (L) 7 4 2 2 1 4 (0-1, 2.57) … JD Martin CLE (W) 6 3 0 0 0 4 (11-9, 4.41) … Brian McCann ATL 1-4, RBI, K … Donnie Murphy KC 1-4, R, BB … Shane Costa KC 3-4, R, RBI … Mike Aviles KC 2-5, R, RBI, 2 K … Kahi Kaanoi KC (W) 5.2 5 2 2 2 3 (3-0, 1.75) … Josh Fields CHA 0-4, 3 K … Ryan Sweeney CHA 0-2, 2 BB, SB (7) … Casey Rogowski CHA 0-4, K … Pedro Lopez CHA 0-3, BB … Rajai Davis PIT 0-3, BB … Mark Saccomanno HOU 0-4 … Josh Anderson HOU 1-4, K … Kevin Howard CIN 0-2, RBI, 3 BB …

FLORIDA STATE --  Brandon Moss (BOS, RF) 3-3 Triple RBI & 1-3 … No support, Jon Papelbon (BOS) 6 3 1 1 1 6 L(12-6, 2.69) … CJ Woodrow (PHI) 7 8 0 0 1 4 W(3-0, 3.41) … Ryan Barthelemy (PHI, 1B) 2-3 HR(13) 3RBI & 1-3 … Eric Duncan (NYA, 3B) 2-3 Double R … Steven White (NYA) 6 4 2 0 1 2 ND - 2.52 ERA … Shaun Marcum (TOR) 7 4 0 0 1 4 ND - 2.94 ERA … Ron Davenport (TOR, RF) 2-4 HR(15) 2RBI … No hits through 7 for Mike Megrew (LA) 7 0 0 0 3 4 W(7-5, 3.30) … Tony Abreu (LA, SS) 3-4 2R

" ... For the second time this season, Megrew threw seven no-hit innings before leaving the ballgame. The last time was against Tampa on May 19th, with that no-hitter being broken up on the first batter after he left the game. Megrew finished the night with the seven no-hit frames, allowing three walks and four strike outs to improve to 5-3 on the year." (Vero Beach Dodgers)

CALIFORNIA --  Steven Shell ANA 7.0 7 1 1 2 6, 12-5, 3.45 ... Erick Aybar ANA 2-4, double, .332 ... nice return, Troy Glaus ANA 1-3, homer ... OF Luis Mateo TB 2-4, 15th & 16th homers, 5 RBI, .297 ... Jamie Shields TB 9.0 2 0 0 0 4, 3.59 ... Brian Stavisky OAK 4-4, 37th double, 5th triple, walk, .342 ... Joaquin Arias TEX 4-5, double (should be quite a battle to see who's the future SS in TEX, Meyer, Kinsler, Arias) ... Jon Zeringue ARZ homer (a four-bagger in each of his last four games), 2 RBI

MIDWEST --  Sean Thompson SD 6.0 7 1 1 0 8 ... Daric Barton STL 1-3, walk ... Chris Dunwell OAK 6.0 6 0 0 2 12, 4.11 ... ooops, now 10-2, Brandon Harmsen NYA 3.0 6 6 6 1 1 ... Chris Lubanski KC 4-5, double, triple, 3 RBI, .270 ... Abel Moreno ANA 6.0 6 2 2 1 6 ... 2B Howard Kendrick ANA 4-5, the cycle, 20th double, 5th triple, 9th homer, walk, .366 ... 1B Baltazar Lopez ANA 3-6, homer, .330 ... Glen Perkins MIN 6.0 4 2 2 3 2 ... Adam Jones SEA 2-5, double, .264

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Chuck James ATL, 5.0 4 3 3 2 8 (1.92) ... Josh Burrus ATL, 2-4, homer (10), double, steal (26) & 1-3  ... Lastings Milledge NYM, 2-4, 2 RBI & 3-4, 21st SB (9 for 13 last two days) .339 ... Blake Whealy NYM, 1-3, homer (20), 4 RBI ... Jermy Acey TOR, 3-5, homer (4), 3 RBI ... Thomas Mastny TOR, 4.0 5 1 1 1 7 (2.27) ... Michael Bourn PHI, 3-5, homer (5), RBI ... Carlos Lee CHW, 2-5, steal (1) ... Joshua Mueke HOU, 7.0 1 0 0 3 3 (W 9-0, 4.08) ... Jason Pridie TB, 2-4, RBI ... Delmon Young 1-5, steal (18) ... ... Jon Benick PIT 3-5, 2 RBI, .322 ... Chuck Tiffany LA 6.0 5 0 0 3 11

NEW YORK-PENN --  Barry Hertzler BOS 7.0 4 1 1 1 10, 2.51 ... Miguel Aguero STL 7.1 4 1 1 1 10, 2.90 ... Taylor Tankersley FLO 5.0 5 3 2 4 5

APPALACHIAN --  Mitch Einertson HOU 1-2, 23rd homer, 2 walks, .298 ... Reid Brignac TB 2-5, .347 ... Mark Jurich ATL 2-4, 15th homer

Einertson named the Appy's Player of the Year :

" ... OF and Player of the Year Mitch Einertson (Greeneville) has come out of high school in Oceanside, CA and taken the Appy League by storm. Einertson is having a historical season while leading the league in home runs with 22, which is tied second most in league history and only two behind the league record, RBIs with 60, extra-base hits with 34, and slugging percentage at .680 while also in the top 10 of runs tied for 4th with 43 and tied for 10th in both hist with 60 and doubles with 12."

Among other All-Star selections :

" ... 2B J.C. Holt [ATL] ... currently in the top 10 of four categories in the Appy League as he is ties for 3rd in stolen bases with 17, tied for 4th in doubles with 15, 6th in hits with 63, and 7th in batting average at .321."

" ... 3B Tony Granadillo [STL] ... has already began his movement within the Cardinals organization moving up to the New Jersey Cardinals of the New York-Penn League. Granadillo remains in the top 10 of six categories including 3rd in slugging percentage at .565, tied for 4th in home runs with 10, 5th in OBP at .413, 6th in runs scored with 40, tied for 7th in extra-base hits with 21, and 10th in batting average at .315." (Appalachian League)

NORTHWEST --  Travis Metcalf 3B TEX 1-3, 13th homer ... OAK CF Richard Robnett 3-3, double, walk, .319 ... Landon Powell OAK 2-4, .293

PIONEER --  Samuel Deduno COL 6.1 2 1 1 2 13, 3.25 ... Chris Nelson COL 4th homer, 2 RBI, .348 ... 1B Chris Kelly CHAS 5-6, 2 doubles, .329 ... OF Tom Collaro CHA 4-6, double, 15th & 16th homers, 7 RBI (62), .276

ARIZONA -- (Mon)  Drew Meyer TEX 3-5, SB, .375 ... Miguel Vega KC 2-3, 10th homer

GULF COAST --  Gabriel Hernandez NYN 6.0 2 0 0 1 8, 1.09 in just under 50 innings  ... (Mon)  Yos Almario-Cabrera NYA (looking for a position, has played 1B, 2B, 3B, SS & OF) 3-5, 8th double, 6th SB, .367 ...  Scott Strickland NYN, rehab, 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 ... PIT 1st rounder, Neil Walker 4-5, .263

    Troop movements ...  TEX -- purchased the contract of RHP Chris Young from Triple-A,  placed RHP Joaquin Benoit on the DL ... KC -- placed Mike Sweeney on the DL, purchased the contract of Alexis Gomez from Triple-A ... LA -- purchased the contract of RHP Masao Kida from Triple-A, optioned LHP Mike Venafro to Triple-A ... COL -- placed Preston Wilson on the DL,  recalled outfielder Choo Freeman from Triple-A ... STL -- recalled So Taguchi from Triple-A,  optioned RHP Jason Simontacchi to Triple-A ... NYN -- purchased the contract of RHP Heath Bell from Triple-A, optioned RHP Aaron Heilman to Triple-A ... SD -- placed Sterling Hitchcock on the DL, recalled RHP Dennis Tankersley from AAA ... CIN -- activated outfielder Austin Kearns from the DL, optioned RHP Matt Belisle to Triple-A ... HOU -- promoted Fernando Nieve to AA ( Nieve went 10-6 with a 2.96 ERA in 24 starts in A+)  ... CLE -- signed LHP Jeremy Sowers, the sixth overall pick in this year's draft ... 

" ... Sowers was 10-6 with a 3.08 ERA in 19 games for Vanderbilt last season, and struck out 119 and walked just 26 in 122 innings. He'll report to the Indians' instructional league on Sept. 17 and will likely start the season in Single-A Kinston next season, assistant general manager John Mirabelli said. Sowers was expected to be in Cleveland in the next day or two. Terms were not disclosed. The Indians had some difficultly signing Sowers, who reportedly turned down a $2.2 million offer from the club last month." (Associated Press)

    A new look atop Kevin Goldstein's Prospect Hot Sheet at Baseball America :

" ... 1. Jason Kubel ... has been hanging on the fringes of the No. 1 position all season, and with a .377-6-29 August, he's finally ascended to the top spot. At .360-21-97 for the season in 121 games, Kubel will certainly get some consideration for Player of the Year honors."

" ... 2. Curtis Granderson ... In a system with few legitimate position prospects, Granderson has arguably the hottest bat in the minors. The Illinois-Chicago alum is hitting .424-12-41 in his last 25 games while accumulating a nifty 21/12 strikeout-to-walk ratio, lifting his season totals to .316-21-92."

ARZ, already with Conor Jackson and Carlos Quentin chasing MLB jobs, has another OF climbing up the charts :

" ... 19. Jon Zeringue ... Diamondbacks addressed a strong organizational need by drafting Zeringue in the second round this year, as they wanted to use a another hand when counting the number of outfielders in their system who can flat out rake. Challenged with an assignment to the high Class A California League for his pro debut, Zeringue has hit .337-5-29 in 44 games, including home runs in his last three."

    Seeminly ignored, in spite of impressive power, Brad Eldred now a PIT favourite :

" ...  Eldred continues to impress with Class AA Altoona. The first baseman, promoted from Class A Lynchburg a month ago, went 3 for 5 Sunday with a double and his 11th home run and drove in six runs. In 24 games and 90 at-bats for Altoona, He is batting .278 with 38 RBIs, a .722 slugging percentage, three walks and 38 strikeouts. "He's got as much raw power as you'd want in a hitter," said Jeff Banister, the Pirates' minor-league field coordinator." (Pittsburgh Post-Gazette)

    Tidbits from the Eastern League :

" ... C Ryan Garko has reached base safely in 30 of his 33 games in an Aeros uniform this season, batting .346 (47-for-136) with 26 runs scored, 12 doubles, five home runs and 31 RBI since joining the club from Single-A Kinston."

" ... 3B Mike Cervenak is batting .383 (59-for-154) with 16 doubles, one triple, six home runs and 33 RBI since coming off the DL on July 9. On the season Cervenak has a league-leading .343 batting average."

" ... Top Red Sox prospect Hanley Ramirez has reached base safely in 16 of his first 20 games with the Sea Dogs. Ramirez is batting .277 with three doubles, one triple, four home runs, 10 RBI, 16 runs scored and seven stolen bases with Portland."

    Oh, just looking around for sleepers :

" ... Spokane lefthander Clint Brannon is emerging. Taken by Grady Fuson in the 34th round in June out of the University of Arkansas, the 21-year-old is posting stupid numbers. In seven starts and five relief appearances, he stands at 2-1, 0.59 with a save, scattering 24 hits (.153 opponents' average) and 11 walks in 45.2 innings, and fanning 47. He hasn't given up more than one run (earned or not) in any of his 12 outings, and in his last four efforts, spanning 19.2 innings, he's punched out 22 and walked zero." (Jamey Newberg)

24 August 2004

    Game action ... INT --  rehab, Brandon Larson (CIN, 3B) 1-3, 8th HR, R, RBI, BB ... Jason Bartlett (MIN, SS) 2-4, 2 R, RBI, BB ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, LF) 1-4, R, BB ... very nasty, JD Durbin (MIN) 2.0 9 10 10 3 0 ... Russ Adams (TOR, SS) 2-5, 2B, R, 3 RBI ... Guillermo Quiroz (TOR, C) 3-5, 2B, 8th HR, 2 R, 3 RBI ... Wilson Valdez (CHA, SS) 2-4 ... Arnie Munoz (CHA) 6.1 3 2 1 3 4 ... Robinson Cano (NYA, 2B) 2-4, 2B, R ... Jae Seo (NYN) 7.0 8 3 3 0 7 ... Tim Raines Jr (BAL, CF) 2-4, 2B, 2 R, BB ... Matt Riley (BAL) 4.0 3 0 0 3 2 ... Jhonny Peralta (CLE, 3B) 3-5, 2B, RBI ... Kazuhito Tadano (CLE) 5.0 5 3 3 0 6

CLE's Ryan Ludwick the Hitter of the Week in the IL ... " Ludwick hit .444 (12-27) with 7 runs scored, 5 doubles, 4 homers, 12 RBI and a 1.074 slugging percentage." (MinorLeagueBaseball)

PCL --  mostly a lost season for Ramon Nivar TEX, now back at 2B, 2-4, 9th homer, 4 RBI, .268 ... Adrian Gonzalez TEX 3-5, double, .299 ... Jimmy Gobble KC 6.0 4 2 2 3 2, 4.58 ... maybe Dusty shouldn't count on much help here, Joe Borowski CHN  0.0 4 4 4 1 0 ... Chris Burke HOU 2-3, double, walk, .320 ... Dallas McPherson ANA 3-5, double ... Clint Barmes COL, nice warmup for his Sept MLB stint, 3-6, 16th homer, .326 ... Shawn Garrett COL, on a roll since his promotion, 4-5, 2 homers, 4 RBI, .458 ... Joe Dillon FLO 3-4, homer (36th overall), 4 RBI, .329 ... 1st setback, Jesse Foppert SF 2.2 2 5 5 7 3 ... Nick Swisher OAK 2-3, 25th & 26th homers, 2 walks, 3 RBI ... Tim Stauffer SD 7.0 4 5 1 1 6, 3.51 ... Xavier Nady SD 3-5, 16th & 17th homers, 5 RBI, .320

EASTERN --  the Ks look good, not much else, Joel Zumaya DET 6.0 5 5 5 3 8 ... Bryan Bullington PIT 6.0 8 4 4 2 7 ... Curtis Granderson DET 3-4, double, 3 RBI ... Brad Eldred PIT 2-4, 12th homer, 4 RBI ... John Castellano PHI 2-3, 16th homer, .342

SOUTHERN --  Brian Anderson CHA OF 1-5, R ... Eduardo Villacis CHA 7.0 6 1 1 4 5, W 5-4 ... Prince Fielder MIL 1B 3-5, RBI ... Josh Barfield SD 2B 1-5, 3 K ... Clay Hensley SD 7.0 3 4 3 1 7, W 11-8 ... Ryan Ketchner LA 5.0 10 3 3 1 7, L 7-7 ... Jeff Francoeur ATL OF 2-5, R, HR (1), 2 RBI ... Brett Evert ATL 5.1 7 1 0 3 2, W 4-3 ... Skip Schumaker CHA OF 3-5, SB (19) ... Renyel Pinto CHN 7.0 4 0 0 3 7, W 11-8, 2.92 ... Edwin Encarnacion CIN 3B 2-7, 2 2B, RBI, 2 K ... Jason Stokes FLA 1B 2-6, R, HR (22), 2 RBI, BB, 2 K ... Josh Willingham FLA C 1-6, R, 2 BB ... Chip Ambres FLA OF 0-4, 2 R, 3 BB, K ... Steve Kelly CIN 5.0 6 2 1 1 3, W 11-6 ... Trevor Hutchinson FLA 6.0 7 3 2 3 2, L 9-7

TEXAS --  Ryan Shealy COL 1-2, 2 walks, 29th homer ... John Hudgins TEX 7.0 5 3 2 1 2, 3.13 ... after so many struggles, Rick Asadoorian finding some succes in the TEX system, 5-5, 4 runs, .289 ... Steven Bondurant OAK 6 5 1 1 1 5

CAROLINA --  No games scheduled.

FLORIDA STATE --  Jonathan Broxton (LA) 5.1 5 2 2 0 11 W(11-6, 3.23) … Yusemiro Petit 6 4 3 1 0 7 L(2-3, 1.22) … Brent Clevlen (DET, RF) 1-4 HR(5) 2RBI … Jon Lester (BOS) 7 4 1 1 2 8 W(6-6, 4.24) … Brandon Moss (BOS, RF) 2-4 … Dave Murphy (BOS, CF) 2-4 2R … Ismael Ramirez (TOR) 6 4 3 3 0 4 L(13-6, 2.80) … Robert Andino (FLA, SS) 3-5 R 2RBI … Reid Gorecki (STL, CF) 3-6 HR(8) 3R

" ... Hitter of the Week ... Sarasota OF Brandon Moss hit .516 (16-31) with 7 runs scored, 1 double, 1 homer, 3 RBI and a .645 slugging percentage."

CALIFORNIA --  Antonio Osuna SD, rehab, 1.0 0 0 0 0 2 ... Fred Lewis SF 2-5, 10th triple, 7th homer, 2 walks, .297 ... OF Eddy Martinez-Esteve SF 4-7, double, 3 RBI, .417 ... Jon Zeringue ARZ 2-5, 6th homer, .339 ... TEX SS Joaquin Arias 2-4, 3 walks, 5 RBI, .298

MIDWEST --  Travis Chick SD 7.0 5 2 2 1 11, 3-0, 2.76 ... Cristhian Martinez DET 9.0 3 0 0 1 1, 2.51 ... Lou Palmisano MIL 2-4, 5th & 6th homers, .290 ... Hernan Iribarren MIL 1-5, triple ... Daric Barton STL 4-4, 3 doubles, walk, 3 RBI, .326 ... Howard Kendrick ANA 2-5, double, .357 ... Adam Harben MIN 8.0 3 1 1 3 5, 2.98

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Jerry Owens MON 2-5, steal (29), 2 runs ... Kory Casto MON, 3-5, homer (15), 4 RBI ... Ian Stewart COL, 2-5, steal (17) ... Joey Reiman MON, 4-5, double, triple, 3 runs ... Jake Blalock PHI, 2-5 ... Chris Young CHW, 3-4, 2 homers (24), 2 RBI ... Jason Columbus SF, 2-4, homer (14), RBI ... Matt Esquivel ATL, 1-3, double, RBI ... Lastings Milledge NYM (back to help in a playoff run), 4-5, RBI, 2 steals (20) ... Ryan Harvey NYM, 3-4, homer (9), triple, 4 RBI ... Beau Hearod HOU, 1-4, homer (24), RBI ... Ryan Goleski CLE, 2-3, RBI ... Jeff Fiorentino BAL, 2-4 ... Christopher Britton BAL, 6.0 3 1 1 1 5 (W 8-3, 3.82) ... Jason Pridie TB, 4-5, triple, RBI ... Delmon Young TB, 0-4 ... Angel Molina FLA, 1-2, homer (18), 4 RBI

NEW YORK-PENN --  Jarrad Lavergne TB  7.2 6 1 0 1 9, 2-2, 1.96

APPALACHIAN --  HOU CF Mitch Einertson 2-4, 21st & 22nd homers (just 203 ABs), .296 ... Reid Brignac TB 3-5, 3 RBI ... SS Travis Garcia NYN 2-5, double, .325 ... first step on the road back, Kris Honel CHA 0.1 1 4 4 3 0 ... catcher Francisco Hernandez CHA 3-6, .327 ... OF JD Foust CHA 5-6, double, homer, 6 RBI ...  OF Mark Jurich ATL 3-5, 13th & 14th homers

NORTHWEST --  Jud Thigpen COL 2-4, double ... Steven Register COL 6.0 1 0 0 1 7, 3.65 ...

PIONEER --  No game scheduled.

ARIZONA -- (Sun)  Drew Meyer TEX, prepping for a utility role, 2-5, .343

    Troop movements ...  PIT -- placed Kip Wells & Sean Burnett on the DL, recalled pitcher John Van Benschoten from AAA, purchased the contract of pitcher Frank Brooks from AAA ... NYN -- recalled pitcher Aaron Heilman from AAA ... OAK -- activated Chad Bradford from the DL, optioned Justin Lehr to AAA ... TB --- optioned pitcher Franklin Nunez to AAA ... KC -- recalled  Angel Berroa from Double-A, optioned shortstop Andres Blanco to AA ... TOR -- promoted Gustavo Chacin to AAA

    Seth Trachtman, SportsBlurb, checks out the best of the catching prospects and picks the Cards' Daric Barton as the top dog :

" ...  Most believe Barton, the Cardinals’ top pick in the 2003 draft out of high school, will move to another position with Yadier Molina the catcher of the future with the Cards. For now, Barton’s hitting makes him the top catching prospect in the game. The 19-year-old is currently a man amongst boys in Low-A, hitting .316-13-68 with an incredible 60/37 BB/K ratio. That BB/K is comparable to Joe Mauer’s minor league history, and Barton has developed power well before Mauer ever did. This is still very early, but Barton looks like a solid potential major leaguer."

Jeff Mathis ANA is ranked No. 2.  A couple of the other picks :

" ... 5. Josh Willingham ... Florida does not seem to be impressed with Willingham following his call-up earlier this season. That should be their loss. Willingham has shown a great walk rate in Triple-A and .282-20-69 in Double-A this season at the age of 25. It does not matter where he spends his major league career defensively, he will be an asset at the plate."

" ... 10. Lou Palmisano ... third round pick in 2003 has a chance to be a starter in the majors, but he has a long way to go from Low-A. Palmisano is good defensively and is hitting .286, but he does not have very good plate discipline or power. He has little blocking him in the system but a long way to go nonetheless."

    John Sickels, ESPN.com, on the D'Backs onrushing Carlos Quentin :

" ... An effective first half in the California League got him a promotion to Double-A, and Quentin has been on fire at El Paso for the last two months. He has confirmed his status as one of the top outfield prospects in the game ... best tool is pure bat speed; the ball jumps off his bat ... has a mature approach at the plate, seldom swings at bad pitches, and can go to the opposite field as well as pull the ball ... may be another year or two before he fully taps his power for home runs ... outfield range is sufficient for left or right field. Arm strength was a major plus before the surgery, and it seems like he has that back now ... Overall, he has no major weaknesses and a lot of strengths ... Even accounting for park/league stat inflation, his numbers are solid, particularly a notably low strikeout rate. If you look at his college statistics, you can see his growth as a hitter ...  Quentin combines with fellow Diamondbacks prospect Conor Jackson as Arizona's "Corner Outfielders of the Future." Of all the hitters I have seen in the minor leagues this year, Quentin showed the best combination of bat speed and plate discipline. His numbers back up the scouting reports, and I think he is going to be an outstanding major league hitter, possibly as soon as 2005."

    John Manuel, Baseball America, with interesting profiles on the Jays' Gustavo Chacin and Raul Tablado. About time they began to get some attention.

    Joe Ptak, Cleveland Indians Report, on Jeremy Guthrie :

" ... Guthrie has been removed from the Aeros rotation and will spend the rest of the season working out of the bullpen. He debuted in his new role on Saturday by allowing three runs on five hits in 1.1 innings of work. Although Guthrie has struggled this year (8-8, 4.28, 128.1IP, 144H, 16HR in Akron), the timing of the move caught me a little off-guard since he had allowed just two earned runs in previous two starts covering 11 innings. Although, to be fair, his secondary numbers did not necessarily match that level of performance."

23 August 2004  

    Game action ... INT --  rehab, Brandon Larson (CIN, 3B) 0-4, R, BB ... rehab, Austin Kearns (CIN, RF) 1-3 ... Jason Kubel (MIN, RF) 2-5, R ... Terry Tiffee (MIN, 3B) 4-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI ... rehab, Michael Ryan (MIN, PH) 0-1, RBI ... Scott Baker (MIN) 5.0 6 2 2 2 8 ... continuing to swing a big bat, Brandon Phillips (CLE, 2B) 3-5, 8th HR, R, 2 RBI, BB, SB ... Jhonny Peralta (CLE, SS) 1-4, 15th HR, 2 R, RBI, BB ... ready to return to the majors? Ryan Ludwick (CLE, RF) 3-5, 2 2B, 7th HR, 3 R, 3 RBI ... Byung-Hyun Kim (BOS) 4.2 8 3 2 0 5 ... Michael Vento (NYA, RF) 3-4 ... Jeff Housman (MIL) 5.0 9 3 3 2 2 ... Victor Diaz (NYN, RF) 1-3 & 1-2, 21st HR, R, RBI, HBP ... Prentice Redman (NYN, CF) 0-2, BB & 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI ... Pat Strange (NYN) 6.0 6 2 2 3 5 ... Bobby Keppel (NYN) 4.0 6 1 1 1 1

PCL --  Mark Teahen KC 1-3, double, walk, 2 RBI, .274 ... Bo Hart STL (at SS) 5-5, 3 doubles ... Sam Narron TEX 6.0 8 5 4 1 2 ... Derrick Turnbow ANA 2.0 3 4 4 2 2, 5.43 ... Casey Kotchman ANA, rebirth continues, 5-5, 2 doubles, homer, 3 RBI, .377 ... LA 1B Luis Garcia 2-5, 27th double, 29th homer, 6 RBI ... Travis Blackley SEA, continues to scuffle, 1.0 4 2 2 1 1 ... Jake Gautreau SD 3-4, homer ... Brad Hawpe COL 27th homer ... Andy Tracy COL 3-5, 36th double, 28th & 29th homers, 3 RBI ...  Joe Dillon FLO 4-5, 2 doubles (31), homer (35th overall) ... Josh Kroeger ARZ 4-5, double, 2 homers, .330 ... Joe Blanton OAK 7.1 4 1 1 0 6 ... Nick Swisher OAK 2-4, 24th homer

EASTERN --  Pedro Astacio BOS, rehab, 4.0 3 0 0 1 4 ... Mitch Jones NYA 2-4, 36th homer, 3 RBI & 2-4, 23rd double, 37th homer, .260 ... Hanley Ramirez BOS 1-3, triple & 0-4, 2 Ks, .277 ... Matthew Cain SF 5.2 5 5 1 2 6 ... Jason Arnold TOR 5.0 5 1 1 0 1 ... Aaron Hill TOR 3-4, double, triple, walk & 2-2, walk  ... Curtis Granderson DET 2-4, 21st homer ... Ramon Ramirez NYA 7.0 5 1 1 1 8 ... Abe Alvarez 5.0 2 1 1 1 3 ... Brad Eldred PIT 2-4, double, homer, 6 RBI

SOUTHERN --  Kyle Davies ATL 6.0 2 1 1 2 8, 2.57 ... Joel Guzman LA SS 2-4, 2 R, 3B, HR (5), 4 RBI, BB, K ... Brennan King LA 3B 2-4, R, HR (13), 2 RBI ... TJ Nall LA 5.0 4 4 4 3 8, W 7-9 ... Jose Diaz TB 6.0 3 0 0 3 12, W 1-2 ... Richard Gardner CIN 7.0 9 1 1 1 10, 2.72 ... Peter Bauer FLA 7.0 8 1 1 2 3 ... Jason Stokes 2-9, R, 2 2B, 3 K ... Matt Beech CIN 5.0 1 0 0 3 5, W 1-0 ... Edwin Encarnacion CIN 3B 2-8, K ... Brian Anderson CHA OF 0-3, K ... Brandon McCarthy CHA 6.0 6 1 1 0 8, W 2-0 ... Rickie Weeks MIL 2B 4-7, 3 2B, 2 RBI, 2 K ... Prince Fielder MIL 1B 1-6, R, HR (22), 2 RBI, BB, 2 K ... Brad Nelson MIL OF 2-7, R, 2B, K ... Glenn Woolard MIL 6.0 5 2 1 5 2, L 5-1

TEXAS --  Joe Saunders ANA 5.0 5 4 3 3 ... Alberto Callaspo ANA 3-5 double, 3 RBI ... SS Omar Quintanilla OAK 2-4, double, .415 ... Willy Taveras HOU 3-5, double, .337 ... Jason Botts 3-4 ... Conor Jackson ARZ 2-4, 2 doubles ... Jesus Cota ARZ 3-4, double, triple

CAROLINA --  Pat Osborn CLE 2-3, 2 R, 2 BB … Brad Snyder CLE 1-5, R, double, 3 K … Derrick Van Dusen CLE (W) 5 5 1 1 4 6 (6-0, 1.64) … moved from lead off to the three spot … Rajai Davis PIT 1-4, 2 R, double (19), RBI, BB, SB (47) … Donnie Murphy KC 2-4, 2 R, triple, HR (9), RBI (69), BB, K … Shane Costa KC 1-5, RBI … Mike Aviles KC 1-4, K … Josh Fields CHA 0-4, 2 K … Ryan Sweeney CHA 2-4, R … Casey Rogowski CHA 0-4, K … Pedro Lopez CHA 1-5, K … Mark Saccomanno HOU 2-4, R, double (24) … Josh Anderson HOU 0-4, RBI, 2 K … Sean Tracey CHA 7 4 2 0 0 5 (2.86) … Christopher Sampson HOU 6 6 2 1 0 2 (3.86) … Adam Loewen BAL (L) 5 2 1 1 6 1 (0-1, 1.80)

FLORIDA STATE --  No games scheduled.

CALIFORNIA --  Nate Schierholtz SF, now in RF, 2-4, 2 triples, .287 ... Bobby Livingston SEA 7.0 8 3 3 1 4 ... OF Doc Brooks ARZ 5-5, 2 doubles (16), 10th homer, 3 RBI, .312 ... MIL 1B Travis Hinton 4-5, triple, 21st homer, 3 RBI, .305

MIDWEST --  Hernan Iribarren 2B MIL, liking the promotion, 3-5, triple ... Tyler Clippard NYA 6.0 10 3 2 0 8, 3.14 ... quite a pro start for OAK's 24th round pick, Dallas Braden 5.0 4 1 1 2 10 (2 walks, 23 Ks in 13 innings) ... Justin Jones MIN 4.1 1 2 1 2 4

SOUTH ATLANTIC --  Mickey Hall BOS, 2-4, 3 runs, steal (10) ... Jarrett Gardner BOS, 5.0 8 4 4 0 5 (W 13-5, 2.65) ... Jarrod Saltalamacchia ATL, 2-2, double, RBI ... Steve Doetsch ATL, 2-5,homer (9), RBI ... Clinton Jonston TOR, 3-4, homer (12), double (32), 2 RBI ... Jason Columbus SF, 2-3, homer (13), double (26), 3 RBI ... Ian Stewart COL, 1-4, double, 3 strikeouts ... Delmon Young TB, 3-4, homer (22), double (24), 5 RBI ... Wes Bankston TB, 3-4, 2 doubles (27), 4 RBI ... Francisco Liandro TB, 2-3, double, RBI, 4 runs, 2 walks, steal (5) ... Josh Kranawetter TB, 6.0 3 0 0 2 7 (W 5-2, 2.08) ... Jon Benick PIT, 4-4, double, RBI ... Adam Boeve PIT, 1-4, homer (26), 2 RBI ... Kevin Kouzmanoff CLE, 2-4, 2 homers (15), 2 RBI ... Antonin Gray CHW, 2-4 ... Ricardo Nanita CHW, 2-4, double, RBI ... Jake Blalock PHI, 1-3 ... Zac Cline PHI, 6.0 4 1 1 1 6 (W 4-0, 3.08) ... Jerry Owens MON, 2-3 ... Matt Albers HOU, 4.1 5 5 5 4 6 (L 6-2, 3.36) ... Jeff Fiorentino BAL, 3-3, double, RBI, 3 runs ... Ryan Harvey NYN 2-4, homer, .318

NEW YORK-PENN --  David Purcey TOR 1st rounder in his pro debut 3.0 4 2 2 0 4 ... catcher Curtis Thigpen TOR 2-3, double, triple, 2 walks, .303 ... Carlos Perez BAL 7.0 2 0 0 0 10 ... Ronnie Martinez HOU 6.0 3 0 0 1 8, 9-2, 2.11 ... Mike Swindell NYN 8.0 1 0 0 1 6, 3.24

APPALACHIAN --  SS Reid Brignac TB 2-4, 2 RBI  ... Juan Gutierrez BAL 4-6, 2 doubles, homer, .320 ... Kyle Waldrop MIN 7.0 8 2 2 0 6

NORTHWEST --  Matthew Tuiasosopo SEA 1-4, double, .308 ... Clint Brannon TEX, 34th round pick, 6.2 2 1 0 0 7, 0.59

PIONEER --  Tom Collaro CHA 14th homer ... Sean Rodriguez ANA, slump, 0-3, 2 walks, .360

ARIZONA -- (Sat)  Matt Bush SD 1-2, .153

    Troop movements ...  KC -- placed Ken Harvey on the  DL, activated outfielder Matt Stairs from the DL, recalled Calvin Pickering from AAA, designated outfielder Ruben Mateo for assignment ... SD -- purcahsed the contract of pitcher Marty McLeary from AAA, sent Brian Buchanan outright to AAA ... TOR -- placed Frank Catalanotto on the DL,  purchased the contract of LHP Dave Maurer from AAA ... NYN -- optioned first baseman Craig Brazell to AAA, recalled RHP Matt Ginter from AAA ... TB -- recalled pitcher Scott Kazmir from AA "

" ... Highly touted lefthander Scott Kazmir will make the jump from Class AA and debut for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays on Monday night against the Seattle Mariners. The Devil Rays recalled Kazmir from Montgomery of the Southern League after Sunday's 2-1 win over Oakland. Tampa Bay acquired the 20-year-old prospect from the New York Mets in a trade for ace Victor Zambrano before the July 31 non-waiver trade deadline. Kazmir was selected 15th overall in the 2002 draft and is listed by Baseball America as the third-best pitching prospect in the game. He has a 2.50 ERA and 104 strikeouts in 101 innings this season in the minor leagues, including a 1.44 ERA in four games with Montgomery, the Class AA affiliate of the Devil Rays. In 49 career minor league starts, Kazmir has 283 strikeouts in 228 innings." (Associated Press)

    The manager says no :

" ... Despite a public clamoring for the Angels to recall third base prospect Dallas McPherson and numerous signs that would indicate an imminent promotion to the big leagues, Manager Mike Scioscia reiterated Saturday that the slugger will remain for now at triple-A Salt Lake ... fans see McPherson's eye-popping numbers at Salt Lake, where in 49 games he is batting .325 with 17 home runs and 49 runs batted in, and wonder why McPherson, who hit .321 with 20 homers and 69 RBIs in 68 games at double-A Arkansas this season, isn't already in Anaheim ...  "Dallas is going to be here when he's ready for that challenge and the opportunity presents itself," Scioscia said, "and right now, those two are not at a level where you want them to be." For all his offensive prowess, McPherson is not as advanced defensively as Kotchman. And for all his power, McPherson is striking out at an alarming rate — 71 times in 191 at-bats at Salt Lake. "It's not all just defense," Scioscia said. "There's a development that takes place in a player that only experience can give you. He's only been in triple A for two months. He's doing well, but there's a learning curve, and there's a big jump from triple A to the big leagues. Dallas has made gains, but there's still a ways to go." (LA Times)

    Mark Teahen, high praise :

" ... Royals legend George Brett made a special visit to Omaha last week to work with Royals third base prospect Mark Teahen, whom the Royals acquired in the deal for Carlos Beltran. Needless to say, Teahen was impressed with the special treatment. “He's a good guy,” Teahen told the Omaha World-Herald. “He's a ballplayer. You wonder if maybe he'll talk down to you but he's just here to help you out. He doesn't hold his experience and achievements over your head. He's just a normal, down-to-earth guy.” And what did Brett think of Teahen? “The kid and I have a lot of similarities,” Brett said. “He's got a lot more talent than I had and he's a better athlete than I was.” Brett said he isn't changing a single thing about Teahen's swing. “I just want his pre-pitch preparation better and I want to see more lower-half load,” Brett said. Brett plans on working again with Teahen in the Arizona Fall League." (Kansas City Star)

    Jason Kubel, just ten days away from a MIN trial :

" ... Expect righthander J.D. Durbin, 2-1 with a 4.91 ERA in four starts after being promoted to Rochester, and outfielder Jason Kubel, who is leading the International League with a .354 batting average, to be locks for promotions. Durbin possibly could be called up before then to address starting pitching depth in the majors. Outfielders Mike Ryan and Michael Restovich, both with some major league experience, could be promoted as well. Shortstop Jason Bartlett, who debuted earlier this month, could be recalled. And third base prospect Terry Tiffee, batting .304 with 12 homers at Rochester, could debut. Starting pitchers such as righthanders Seth Greisinger (4-4, 5.43) and Matt Guerrier (5-8, 3.14) are candidates." (Star Tribune)

" ... Righthander Boof Bonser, 10-9 with a 4.62 ERA at New Britain, has pitched much better lately and is close to being promoted to Rochester. Bonser, who came over from San Francisco as part of the A.J. Pierzynski trade, has been disappointing for most of the season. He was unimpressive in major league spring training, failed to make Rochester out of camp and was hit hard early. Now he's looking more like a prospect. "He's making more quality pitches, keeping the ball down in the strike zone and keeping the ball in the park," Rantz said. "He was giving up a lot of home runs early." ((Star Tribune)

    Correspondents -- INTERNATIONAL (Herb Walters), EASTERN  (Ralph Marston), SOUTHERN (Ken Savage), TEXAS (Aman Reaka), FLORIDA STATE (Wayne Stevens), CAROLINA (Troy Salvior), MIDWEST (Bob Reed), SOUTH ATLANTIC (Brad Dowdy), NEW YORK-PENN (Chris Carlson), APPALACHIAN (Scott Howes)

    
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2003 Minor League Stats 1 (Hitters, by OPS, by AAA, AA, A, Short Season, OBA, SLG, Walks, Ks, SBs, Errors)

2003 Minor League Stats 2 (Pitchers, by ERA, AAA, AA, A, Short Season, Ks & Hitters by position)