Another bottom-heavy day for the Jays' system. Toronto and Syracuse lose, New Hampshire is rained out, Dunedin wins, and Charleston sweeps a double-header. Winning percentages by level so far this year: .308 (MLB), .423 (AAA), .500 (AA), .577 (Hi-A), .833 (Lo-A).
Rochester 3 at Syracuse 1
boxscore
Ex-SkyChief Pete Munro beat the SkyChiefs for the second time this year, running Rochester's record in the season series to 6-2. Munro allowed only three singles and a walk in six innings while striking out five. Chris Baker was nearly as sharp, fanning seven in six innings, but allowed a two-spot in the second and another run in the fourth, which was more than enough for Rochester on this night. Talley Haines and Dave Maurer held the Red Wings hitless over the final three frames, but Syracuse couldn't mount a comeback against Rochester's bullpen. The SkyChiefs' only run came in the eighth, when Guillermo Quiroz doubled and scored on a single by Jorge Sequea.
Syracuse tallied just five hits on the night: singles by Russ Adams, Alex Rios, Jeff Guiel (brother of Jay-killer Aaron), and Sequea, and Quiroz's double. Rios also drew a walk, making him the only SkyChief to reach base twice. Shawn Fagan and Simon Pond each wore the sombrero. Baker walked two and gave up nine hits in his six innings of work.
Oh, and how could I forget Glenn Williams? He drew a rare walk, his second of the season (against 23 strikeouts).
Akron at New Hampshire, postponed by rain
St. Lucie 4 at Dunedin 6
boxscore
You know you're having a pretty good season when a brutal start means three runs in six innings. Josh Banks allowed a pair of solo home runs to St. Lucie's batsmen, tripling his career total. He also surrendered a double, three singles, and a walk in six innings while striking out only four. Coupled with Dustin McGowan's implosion on Sunday, Banks' hiccup might prompt Blue Jays management to leave the kids where they are for the next few weeks. Then again, it might not. After all, Banks still got the win, running his record to a cool 4-0, and though his ERA rose by nearly a full run, it's still only 1.29. Dunedin jumped out to a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first but fell behind 3-2 in the sixth before taking the lead for good with three runs in the bottom of the inning. Ron Davenport led the way with a two-run homer. Vito Chiaravalloti chipped in a double and a triple, and Jayce Tingler and Miguel Negron each singled twice; Tingler also drew a walk, giving him eighteen on the year against five strikeouts. (Tingler is in many ways the anti-Glenn Williams). Jason Waugh singled and walked in four trips to the plate. Manny Mayorson was the only D-Jay to be held hitless. Andy Torres and Bubbie Buzachero pitched well in relief of Banks, although Buzachero gave up a solo homer in the ninth, his second home run allowed this season.
Lakewood 2-0 at Charleston 4-1
boxscore (Game 1)
boxscore (Game 2)
Two typical games for the Charleston pitching staff. In the opening match, Shaun Marcum fired six-innings of two-run ball, both runs coming on a two-run fifth-inning homer by Bryan Hansen. Lakewood led 2-0 at that point, but the AlleyCats tied the game in the bottom of the fifth and put up another two-spot in the sixth to win 4-2. Marcum fanned six against one walk. Brian Reed pitched the seventh for the save. The nightcap was the Romero show, as Davis (5 IP, 1 H, 4 K) and Felix (2 IP, 1 H, 5 K) combined on a two-hit shutout. Clint Johnston drove in Juan Peralta in the first for the game's only run. Peralta went 2 for 5 with two walks on the night. Johnston went 3 for 5 with a walk and a double, and David Smith went 3 for 6. Ryan Roberts had two singles in six trips to the plate. Mike Galloway had three PAs in the first game, each of which ended in a different one of the True Outcomes (walk, strikeout, home run); he skipped the nightcap.
Adding the numbers up, it's not hard to see why Charleston is 19-4. AlleyCat pitchers fanned sixteen in fourteen innings on the night while only walking one. Conversely, AlleyCat hitters fanned only nine times and drew eight free passes. Pitchers who throw strikes and hitters who take balls will win a lot of low-A ball games.
Links of the Day
Matt Michael has a game story in the Syracuse Post-Standard
OurSportsCentral.com reports that Bob File is joining the Syracuse SkyChiefs and Chad Hermansen has been placed on the disabled list.
Online radio broadcasts, as always, can be found through theminorsfirst.com
Today's Games
Scranton (PHI) at Syracuse (David Bush), 6:00 PM
Akron (CLE) at New Hampshire (Gustavo Chacin, Todd Ozias), 5:05 PM (doubleheader)
Dunedin (Francisco Rosario) at Daytona (CHC), 7:00 PM
Lakewood (PHI) at Charleston (Ramon Mora), 6:05 PM
Three-Star Selection!
When your affiliates win three of four games and you have two of your top pitching prospects going, you expect the competition for stars to be tight. In actual fact, no one really stood out from the crowd on this evening. I have a bias against giving stars to pitchers who allow home runs, and you can feel free to argue with my choices, but...
Our Third Star: Vito Chiaravalloti, Dunedin. Big Vito had been in a bit of a slump before sitting out Friday and Saturday's games, but he's 3 for 7 with a double, a triple, and a walk in his first two games back.
Our Second Star: Felix Romero, Charleston. It's easy to get overlooked when you're pitching out of the bullpen in Charleston for the third consecutive season, but Romero's five Ks in two innings on this night give him 30 in 18 innings on the season. Oh, and he picked up his eponymous teammate to complete a two-hit shutout.
Our First Star: Davis Romero, Charleston. One hit in five shutout innings. Enough said.
https://www.battersbox.ca/article.php?story=20040504010804999