Batter's Box Interactive Magazine - Miracle No Match For MacDonald

Taking a cue for the organization’s ace, the Toronto farm featured impressive starting pitching at every level in winning 3 of 4 contests.

Buffalo 3 @ Syracuse 6

SkyChief hitters banged out 5 extra base hits, SkyChief pitchers punched 11 tickets, and it added up to a solid win over divisional rival Buffalo. The Bisons were out to a 3 – 1 lead by the middle of the third, but it was all Syracuse from there. SS Aaron Hill got the comeback rolling with a solo round tripper in the 5th, and then it was really on in the 6th as 7 Chiefs came to the plate and 3 crossed it. The key blow was a 2-run double from 2B Danny Solano. The best hitting line of the night belonged to CF Justin Singleton, who singled, tripled, walked, and stole a base. DH John-Ford Griffin continued to make the promotion to AAA look easy, collecting another base hit.

Francisco Rosario started for the Chiefs and struck out 9 over his 5-2/3, conceding 3 earned runs on 5 hits and 3 walks. Frank hit his pitch count in the middle of striking out the side in the sixth inning, so Mike Nannini came on and finished the feat. Nannini stuck around for 2 more innings of sterling relief, and Matt Whiteside pitched the ninth to nail down his 1st save of the season.

Boxscore - MinorLeagueBaseball.com. Recap - Post-Standard

New Hampshire 6 @ Binghampton 2

The Fisher Cats got some overdue offence, scoring 6 runs on 15 hits as they downed the Binghampton Mets. As Gerry told us in his first-hand notes, it was Big Vito with the two biggest hits. Chiaravalloti doubled leading off what would become a 4-run fifth, then doubled and scored again in the 6th. 2B Carlo Cota contributed 2 singles and a triple, while DH Kevin Barker (3) and 3B Rob Cosby (2) stuck to single-base hits. SS Raul Tablado made his Double-A debut with a single in 3 trips and drew the only Cat-walk (against 12 strikeouts... ugh).

Vince Perkins was excellent in out-dueling fellow prospect Yusmeiro Petit, hurling 6 innings and collecting his first Win of the season. Gerry tells us that Vince was throwing fastballs, fastballs, and fastballs, but it was more than the Mets could handle as they mustered just 4 hits and 1 walk off him while whiffing 7 times.

Boxscore - MinorLeagueBaseball.com.

Dunedin 6 @ Fort Myers 0

Mike MacDonald and Brad “Who’s Your” Mumma combined on a 1-hitter in shutting out the Fort Myers non-Miracle. For a 15th round pick a year ago, the sailing has been extremely smooth for Mike Mac – he’s now pitched at 3 pro levels, has just 1 loss in 16 starts and his career ERA remains under 2.

The D-Jay offence scored 2 runs every third inning in a neat little pattern. LF Adam Line (3 singles) and 3B Eric Arnold (single, double, walk) led the way. 2B Ryan Roberts chipped in a 2-run double.

Boxscore - MinorLeagueBaseball.com.

South Bend 5 @ Lansing 1

Unfortunately for Kyle Yates, his excellent starting pitching was not backed up with strong relief. Yates tossed 6 frames, striking out 5 while allowing 5 hits and walking none, but Po-Hsuan Keng came on for the next 2 innings and was tonged for 2 runs on 5 hits, including 2 jacks. Lefty Daryl Harang oversaw an uneventful ninth.

All you really need to know about the offence is that the best performance came from a guy who went 0 for 4. Catcher Curt Thigpen drew a walk and stole two bases, while also throwing out a would-be South Bend thief. The Lugnuts drew 7 walks altogether but hit just 2 safeties (the run-scoring blow being a double from RF Eric Nielsen).

Boxscore - MinorLeagueBaseball.com. Recap - Lansing State Journal

Three-Star Selection!

The Third Star: Justin Singleton , Syracuse. Triple. Walk. Stolen base. Single.

The Second Star: Vince Perkins , New Hampshire. 6 innings of 4-hitter, 7-1 K-BB.

The First Star: Mike MacDonald , Dunedin. 7 innings of 1-hitter, 6-2 K-BB.

Posted by Jonny German on Friday, April 15 2005 @ 09:55 AM EDT.

Miracle No Match For MacDonald | 34 comments | Create New Account

The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.

Jordan - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:25 AM EDT (#111742) #

Rosario has now had two starts where he's struggled a little at the beginning of the game, before really hitting his stride in the middle innings. Maybe he needs another 50 warmup pitches out in the bullpen or something.... In any event, another encouraging start.

IIRC, Big Vito was batting ninth last night. How would you like it if you once won the NY-Penn League's Triple Crown, and 18 months later, you found yourself batting ninth for a low-scoring New Hampshire squad? File this one somewhere between "take the pressure off the guy" and "give him a wake-up call," and I think it was closer to the latter. Good response from Chiaravalotti.

Adam Lind is going to move up fast.

Vince Perkins is a wild card, but if he keeps this up, he could be like finding a forgotten $50 bill stuffed into your pocket. Thanks to Gerry, we know that his slider still needs work, but if he can throw that fastball and one other pitch, even a changeup, for strikes, you could be looking at the Jays' closer in July 2006.

Ken - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:43 AM EDT (#111746) #

Another encouraging start from Perkins. Jordan, I'd be interested to know if you think Perkins actually has a legitimate shot at being a starter in the big leagues, or does he profile as someone who will have trouble developing 3 dependable pitches? I know he has been touted as more of a reliever but this start seems very interesting, encouraging to say the least after the injuries last year (here's hoping to a full injury-free season).

Also, even though it's early, it seems it's been a long time since the Jays had a prospect at AAA displaying the type of firepower that Rosario is showing. 16/3 K/BB.

Mike Green - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:44 AM EDT (#111747) #

From Gerry's notes, "BTW Bubbie might be 5'11" in high heels"

Now there's a scary thought.

I agree that Adam Lind is likely to move up quickly. The promise of another sweet swing in Toronto in late 2006 or in 2007 brings an easy smile on this delightful spring day. As for Perkins, I don't think his fastball is good enough on its own to make him a successful closer. If he can get the slider working 60-70% of the time though, he's got it.

Jonny, "Who's your" Mumma is genius.

Marc Hulet - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:49 AM EDT (#111751) #

The only thing I worry about with Lind is that he doesn't hit for enough power considering that he profiles as a corner outfielder or first baseman. Unless he adds pop (at least 15-20 homers), he may not last as a regular.

Gerry, how much movement is there on Perkins' fastballs?

Jordan - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:54 AM EDT (#111754) #

This is nothing new, of course, but whenever scouts discuss Perkins, the name that comes up most frequently is John Wetteland. Gerry has pointed out elsewhere that unlike Wetteland, Perkins hasn't yet had the chance to try harnessing his stuff in short relief bursts -- not unlike Jason Arnold, who seems to have added a lot of giddyup to his fastball and refined his control since going to the pen.

Perkins has two off-speed pitches in his arsenal -- a slider and a change-up. The slider is from all accounts nasty and if he can throw it for strikes, then you're looking at something special. But Perkins hasn't so far managed to gain consistent command of either of these offerings. If he gets hold of one, he'll be a solid reliever. If he gets hold of two, look out.

R Billie - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 10:59 AM EDT (#111758) #

I've never understood the requirement to have three pitches as a starter. I mean Doc has the cutter as his third pitch (which he gives up a lot of homeruns on) and a changeup he seldom uses. But he's basically a two seam fastball, curveball guy. AJ Burnett has other pitches but is basically a fastball curveball guy. If you have two very good pitches then that's probably enough to get by as a starter if you can command them.

It sounds like Vince has at least gotten to the point where he can get his fastball over the plate with consistency which is a far cry from where he was the past two years. I don't know if he actually has command of it or if he's just aiming down the middle. I think the slider command will come as long as they keep giving him innings and once he has confidence in that slider his K's could spike. This is a guy who has been compared stuff wise to Rich Harden. Though as we've seen with League, wicked gas by itself is not enough if you can't command that second pitch.

I'm liking what I see from Adam Lind. The most important thing will be finding him a place to play. But he seems like he has a chance to be a Sean Casey type hitter which isn't bad for a third round pick.

Ken - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:08 AM EDT (#111762) #

Thanks, Jordan. I seem to remember that in 2003 after he tore apart low A, he had some troubles in Dunedin. Hopefully, this good start is a sign of better things to come. (Also, it's interesting to note that in the last year or so he has flipped the low number of hits and high walk rate for more normal H/IP and a lower number of walks that had seemed a slight worry after 2003)

Gerry - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:17 AM EDT (#111765) #

Perkins needs more time to refine his delivery, as does Francisco Rosario. At AAA and AA you can throw a 95 mph fastball and get by with it. As we have seen with Brandon League you need to be able to throw it to a spot consistently. Rosario and Perkins need time to refine their fastballs, and their secondary pitches. When you see them pitch they get out of their delivery routinely and slingshot their fastball outside to right handed hitters. Last night Perkins got some K's when Mets swung at those pitches, major leaguers are more selective.

I will be talking to Vince and Dave LaRoche today to find out if Perkins was throwing that many fastballs because the Mets couldn't handle it, or for another reason. Stay tuned for more updates. Perkins fastball is pretty straight, just a small tail on it.

Re: Lind. Remember he is still only 21, and like Rios, he has time for power to develop. He has a Ken Griffey swing right now, and the doubles could turn into home runs as he gets bigger and stronger.

Ducey - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:19 AM EDT (#111767) #

I remember in Spring Training Perkins was working with Arnsberg to get rid of a tendancy to throw across his body. Has this transition happened?

Marc Hulet - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:31 AM EDT (#111774) #

If Perkins' fastball is mainly straight, like Gerry said, he will really need to improve his other pitches. I have heard more than one pitching coach say that he would take a 89-92 mph fastball with excellent movement over a straight 95 mph heater almost everyday of the week. Look what happend to Koch. His heater had no movement and it didn't take long for his career to fizzle at the major league level, although he also lost some of his zip later on in his career too. Good Major league hitters can get around on a 95 mph fastball.

Also, from what I've read, Perkins slider isn't really an offspeed pitch because he throws it so hard.

Wildrose - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:31 AM EDT (#111775) #

I believe Baseball America felt that Perkins had the best slider in the system, harnessing it as Jordan points out is another matter.

Regarding having different pitch types and being a starter, I think having something off-speed is important. The slider/fastball combo generally comes in at the same speed.

Coach - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:45 AM EDT (#111779) #

I'm excited about Lind, imagining Catalanotto with more pop. How much more is the question that only time will answer. With the pitchers, I'm a quality-from-quantity advocate. If you have enough guys like Perkins, you may not know which one(s) will make it, but you improve your chances that some of them will.

Gerry, I can't say it often enough. Thanks so much for being our eyes and ears among the minor-league players and coaches. Having accompanied you on a road trip, I know you have a scout's perspective and baseball people recognize that immediately. You're a great ambassador for the Box.

Dean - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 01:02 PM EDT (#111798) #

I've never heard any refer to Perkins' fastball as being staight before.
I appreciate Lind's bat a lot, but his defensive deficiencies make him less than a total package. A cheap, hitting machine DH is nothing to gloss over though either.

MatO - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 02:28 PM EDT (#111819) #

Jays management has indicated that that Lind's position will likely be 1B so athleticism is less important but he'll have to hit. Right now he looks like the A ball version of Don Mattingly ie. high avg., low BB, low K. Still it's only one week and Vito got off to a big start last year before tailing off.

With Perkins it may be a matter of asking him to concentrate on his mechanics, thus asking him to simplify things and throw mostly fastballs. His slider is supposed to be awesome though.

Jacko - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 03:17 PM EDT (#111825) #

I think you need a credible third offering you can throw for strikes, or hitters are going to guess right too frequently.

Notice that in the Torstar game report, Zaun mentioned he had Roy throw the changeup a few times just for show. By doing that, he made his fastball/curveball repertoire even harder to hit.

Mike Green - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 03:30 PM EDT (#111826) #

Chi-Hung Cheng starts for Lansing tonight in Beloit at 7:30. Ryan Glynn starts for Syracuse tonight, while Cam Reimer toes the rubber for NH. Kurt Isenberg hurls for the D-Jays.

Ducey - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 03:30 PM EDT (#111827) #

I expect all of this has been discussed before here, but in case it has not, here is an update of Jays transactions from BA:

Released RHPs Joaquin Canizal, Matt Dalton, Derrek Nunley, Michael Smith, Seung Song, Andy Torres and John Wesley, LHPs Chris Leonard, Justin Maureau and Chris Michalak, OF Derry Hammond, Cs Jonathan Chappell and Andy Dominique and 2B Dominic Rich. Traded OF Tyrell Godwin to Nationals for LHP Aaron Wideman.

MatO - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 04:18 PM EDT (#111840) #

Random musings from the minors.

JFG has gotten off to a nice start but his 10 K's in 7 games is not likely to cut it in the long run.

Thomas Mastny is a reliever at high A.

Adam Peterson in 3IP has given up 5H and 6BB. No wonder he was designated. Anyone still interested in picking him up for one of the 2 vacant roster spots?

Edwin Jackson was godawful in his first AAA start.

James Loney is off to a slow start at AA.

Maldoff - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 04:20 PM EDT (#111841) #

Just to update, Glynn didn't start for Syracuse today. Justin Miller did. And he gave up a run in the first inning.

Sidenote: Scranton/W-B announcer just called Eric Crozier "a late bloomer". Thought that was funny.

Stellers Jay - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 04:49 PM EDT (#111845) #

Dominique played last night. Is that a mistake that says he has been released or has Quiroz been activated and in fact Dominique has been released?

I would put in a claim on Peterson and send him back to AA and see if they can get him straightened out in a place that he has had success in the past. Arms like that don't come along that often and it won't cost much if it doesn't work out. This time last year, the buzz was that he would be Toronto's closer in 2005. How far can a guy fall in a year? All it will cost is the $50 000 waiver fee and one of two empty roster spots. He's still got 2 option years left so you can send him to NH or Syracuse and let him work out his problems. It's not like you have to keep him on the roster and let him get hammered by Major League hitters for fear of losing him like a lot of other Waiver Pick-ups.

Sneeps - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:06 PM EDT (#111847) #

I find it hard to believe that the D-Backs gave up Hillenbrand for Peterson, only to give up him after THREE INNINGS. That's just terrible management in my opinion.

If we can pick Adam back up, I'm sure we could get him back on the right track. What a fleecing that would be.

R Billie - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:16 PM EDT (#111848) #

Well let's face it. The only reason they made the trade was to avoid paying Shea the $3.5M he would be due in arbitration as they already had people to man the corners of the infield. If they got anything out of Peterson they probably would have considered it a bonus. This deal was not unlike the Jays trading Brad Fullmer for Scott Cooper although Shea is a more versatile player than Fullmer and with less of a platoon issue.

Justin Miller gave up a run in the first but has held Scranton scoreless since then. In four innings he's given up 5 hits, struck out 2, and most importantly walked no-one. As long as he has command he's going to be a very successful pitcher and he tends to start games slowly.

For the hitters, Hill is 2 for 2 and has his second homerun of the year. Gross is 1 for 2 with a double. Griffin is 0 for 2.

R Billie - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:21 PM EDT (#111849) #

That's going to be all for Justin Miller in this game. He probably reached a pitch count. I guess they decided from the beginning they would start him in the pen and stretch him out slowly if his shoulder held up.

The Skychiefs put up a 5 spot in the bottom of the 4th highlighted by a 2 run single from Griffin and a 2 run homer by Dominique (his 1st) and a solo shot by Crozier (his 2nd). They lead 6-1 in the 5th inning with Glynn relieving Miller.

R Billie - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:29 PM EDT (#111850) #

Now Griffin has hit a three run homer in the bottom of the 5th to put the Skychiefs up 9-1. Gross who is 2 for 3 in this game scored on the play.

The starter Condrey obviously has nothing but has stayed in the game to absorb all of this punishment. 5 innings, 11 hits, 9 earned runs, and four homeruns allowed. He's only struck out 2 of the 25 batters he's faced and has walked no-one.

Incidentally, Miller struck out only 2 of 16 batters but had 8 groundballs versus 2 flyballs. He had his sinker working.

Mike Green - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:33 PM EDT (#111851) #

The Sky Chiefs went ape woolies in the middle innings. There were homers by Hill, Crozier, Griffin (again) and Dominique, plus a double and single from the Gabe. They lead 9-1 and Ryan Glynn is now on in relief for Miller.

Stellers Jay - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:49 PM EDT (#111855) #

I guess that answers my own question from earlier. Andy Dominique has not been released given the fact that he has homered today for Skychiefs.

robertdudek - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 05:58 PM EDT (#111859) #

"I find it hard to believe that the D-Backs gave up Hillenbrand for Peterson, only to give up him after THREE INNINGS. That's just terrible management in my opinion."

It was a salary dump. They signed Glaus and decided to move Chad Tracy to first base. Ergo, no room for Hillenbrand. It was essentially the Alex Gonzalex for a scrub trade (from Arizona's perspective).

Sneeps - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 06:10 PM EDT (#111862) #

They still got rid of a perfectly good arm (and a shattered ego) after only 3 innings. It's the minors... what does it hurt to give him a chance?

Pistol - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 06:15 PM EDT (#111863) #

I'm sure they still want him, they just apparently didn't have room on their 40 man.

Sneeps - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 06:16 PM EDT (#111864) #

Quick Question:

I haven't been able to listen to many of the minor league games because when i click on the link to stream the radio feed, it defaults to realplayer. the realplayer says it needs to download components in order for me to stream, but it can't ever find the appropriate updates.

any way that i can work around this?

R Billie - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 06:17 PM EDT (#111865) #

They wanted to pick up Javier Lopez, a lefty pitcher whom Colorado had put on waivers. In order to pick him up they had to move someone off the roster and I guess they believe Peterson wont be picked up. They have the option of keeping him at the minor league level somewhere if he clears waivers I think.

Gross is now 3-4 in today's game with a double and a triple. Just like that he's overcome his slow start and pumped his average up to .273.

Stellers Jay - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 08:02 PM EDT (#111869) #

I'm not sure how many other teams like Toronto are under the 40 man roster, but I really can't imagine that Peterson clears waivers. He was considered a rising prospect less than a year ago and like I said earlier he's got options left and can be put in the minors. It's not like he has to rot away in a major league bullpen getting hammered in garbage innings. He can spend the year in AA or AAA working on his control. It's a good risk to take for the minimal cost of a waiver fee.

Mike Green - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:18 PM EDT (#111977) #

Kurt Isenberg pitched a 6 inning gem for Dunedin, and Chi-Hung Cheng had another nice outing for Lansing in victories.

Gerry - Friday, April 15 2005 @ 11:28 PM EDT (#111978) #

New Hampshire lost in 12 innings. In the twelfth, with two outs, Ryan Houston allowed a double. After running the count to 2-0 on the lefty, Jacobs, the Cats decided to walk him intentionally to face Prentice Redman. Redman hit a hard liner right at Tablado; it bounced a couple of feet in front of him, Tablado assumed a big bounce, and he missed the ball by a foot, leading to the winning, unearned, run.

The last 15 Fisher Cat hitters went down in order. Earlier the Mets scored three in the first inning, two of them unearned on errors to Cosby and Tablado. Davenport and Hassey had two hits. Davenport might only have one hit show up, the scorer decided one should be an error but it should be a hit.

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