Brad Emaus hasn't been up at Las Vegas very long, but he seems to have figured AAA out already. Meanwhile, another Brad contributed to a victory in Dunedin on a night when two of the affiliates were resting.
Las Vegas 1 at Tacoma 3 (7 innings)
Jesse Litsch wasn't great, but he wasn't terrible either. He allowed eight hits and three runs and only lasted 4 2/3 innings while throwing 86 pitches, but on the plus side he struck out five and didn't walk any, and got six ground balls to just three fly balls. Litsch isn't a big strikeout pitcher, and the Toronto defense is probably quite a bit better than Las Vegas'.
Brad Emaus was the only 51 to reach more than once - he singled, doubled, and scored Vegas' only run.
Las Vegas 7 at Tacoma 2
I guess Vegas just isn't used to playing early games. The bats woke up for the night-cap, scoring seven runs in as many innings to give Rey Gonzalez the win. Gonzalez was good, allowing just one run over his five innings while striking out five, though he did allow nine base-runners. Josh Roenicke pitched the last two innings, and though he allowed a run, the more important thing is that he didn't walk anybody. And he struck out four.
Brad Emaus almost replicated his game one performance, but got an extra plate appearance this time, and used it to draw a free pass down to first. On the day, Emaus went 4-6 with two singles, two doubles and a walk. In Game Two, though, he had some offensive help from his teammates: Chris Aguila homered, Brett Wallace doubled (and K'ed), Brian Dopirak singled thrice, Chris Lubanski singled and doubled, and Adam Calderone singled, homered and walked. J.P. Arencibia didn't play.
St. Lucie 5 at Dunedin 10
After the top of the first inning, Dunedin was down 4-0, but they out-scored St. Lucie 10-1 the rest of the way. Perhaps Andrew Liebel had some early jitters, but he settled down and allowed only one more run over the next 4 1/3. On the day, he struck out five and walked one while giving up eight hits.
The offense was great top to bottom - every hitter reached base, and only Welinton Ramirez and Jon Talley reached less than twice (once each). The first three hitters - Tyler Pastornicky, Brad McElroy and Travis d'Arnaud - each had two hits and a walk, with McElroy driving in four. Mike McDade singled and doubled. Brian Van Kirk singled twice and walked, and scored each time he reached. Hech-a-Skech had the day off.
DSL Blue Jays 0 at DSL Rangers 7
Performances of note: Angel Feliz (born 1991) singled and walked twice, Victor German (born 1989) pitched four innings and allowed just an unearned run. Also, apparently the DSL Jays have a player named "Tonguard". Cool.
Three Stars
3. Brian Van Kirk - 1B, 1B, BB, 3 Rs
2. Brad McElroy - two hits, walk, four ribbies
1. Brad Emaus - four hits, walk
Here are MILB's Hitters and Pitchers of the Week. This week, New Hampshire's Shawn Bowman was selected as the Eastern League's Hitter of the Week, and here's what Joshua Jackson had to say about him:
Eastern League
Shawn Bowman, New Hampshire
.393/.452/.893, 11-for-28, 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 7 R, 3 BB, 3 K, 0 SB
Canadian-born third base prospect Shawn Bowman showed corner-infielder power this week, homering on Tuesday and then in each game from Thursday to Saturday. Bowman, whom the Jays picked up off waivers from the Mets in April, is fourth in the Eastern League with a .317 average, fourth in on-base percentage with a .411 mark and has the third-best slugging percentage at .566. His four RBIs on Tuesday helped the Fisher Cats eke out a 12-10 win over the Reading Phillies, and he earned three more RBIs on Thursday. Even though he was hitless on Sunday, he managed to contribute by walking twice, knocking in a run and scoring.
Congrats, Shawn!
Las Vegas 1 at Tacoma 3 (7 innings)
Jesse Litsch wasn't great, but he wasn't terrible either. He allowed eight hits and three runs and only lasted 4 2/3 innings while throwing 86 pitches, but on the plus side he struck out five and didn't walk any, and got six ground balls to just three fly balls. Litsch isn't a big strikeout pitcher, and the Toronto defense is probably quite a bit better than Las Vegas'.
Brad Emaus was the only 51 to reach more than once - he singled, doubled, and scored Vegas' only run.
Las Vegas 7 at Tacoma 2
I guess Vegas just isn't used to playing early games. The bats woke up for the night-cap, scoring seven runs in as many innings to give Rey Gonzalez the win. Gonzalez was good, allowing just one run over his five innings while striking out five, though he did allow nine base-runners. Josh Roenicke pitched the last two innings, and though he allowed a run, the more important thing is that he didn't walk anybody. And he struck out four.
Brad Emaus almost replicated his game one performance, but got an extra plate appearance this time, and used it to draw a free pass down to first. On the day, Emaus went 4-6 with two singles, two doubles and a walk. In Game Two, though, he had some offensive help from his teammates: Chris Aguila homered, Brett Wallace doubled (and K'ed), Brian Dopirak singled thrice, Chris Lubanski singled and doubled, and Adam Calderone singled, homered and walked. J.P. Arencibia didn't play.
St. Lucie 5 at Dunedin 10
After the top of the first inning, Dunedin was down 4-0, but they out-scored St. Lucie 10-1 the rest of the way. Perhaps Andrew Liebel had some early jitters, but he settled down and allowed only one more run over the next 4 1/3. On the day, he struck out five and walked one while giving up eight hits.
The offense was great top to bottom - every hitter reached base, and only Welinton Ramirez and Jon Talley reached less than twice (once each). The first three hitters - Tyler Pastornicky, Brad McElroy and Travis d'Arnaud - each had two hits and a walk, with McElroy driving in four. Mike McDade singled and doubled. Brian Van Kirk singled twice and walked, and scored each time he reached. Hech-a-Skech had the day off.
DSL Blue Jays 0 at DSL Rangers 7
Performances of note: Angel Feliz (born 1991) singled and walked twice, Victor German (born 1989) pitched four innings and allowed just an unearned run. Also, apparently the DSL Jays have a player named "Tonguard". Cool.
Three Stars
3. Brian Van Kirk - 1B, 1B, BB, 3 Rs
2. Brad McElroy - two hits, walk, four ribbies
1. Brad Emaus - four hits, walk
Here are MILB's Hitters and Pitchers of the Week. This week, New Hampshire's Shawn Bowman was selected as the Eastern League's Hitter of the Week, and here's what Joshua Jackson had to say about him:
Eastern League
Shawn Bowman, New Hampshire
.393/.452/.893, 11-for-28, 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 10 RBI, 7 R, 3 BB, 3 K, 0 SB
Canadian-born third base prospect Shawn Bowman showed corner-infielder power this week, homering on Tuesday and then in each game from Thursday to Saturday. Bowman, whom the Jays picked up off waivers from the Mets in April, is fourth in the Eastern League with a .317 average, fourth in on-base percentage with a .411 mark and has the third-best slugging percentage at .566. His four RBIs on Tuesday helped the Fisher Cats eke out a 12-10 win over the Reading Phillies, and he earned three more RBIs on Thursday. Even though he was hitless on Sunday, he managed to contribute by walking twice, knocking in a run and scoring.
Congrats, Shawn!
