It was a 3-5 night on the farm that included a nail-biter in New Britain, a doubleheader split in West Virginia and a split of sorts in Florida. There's also lots of stuff to check out in Extra Innings.
Reno, NV - The 51's tied the game at 4-4 after two innings but the Diamondbacks affiliate sent Vegas down the river with five runs over the next two innings for the win.
Batting - Manny Mayorson (2/5) had a double, a walk and drove in two of the 51s runs. Ricardo Nanita (2/4) doubled, Darin Mastroianni (1/4) doubled, walked and knocked home a run and Adam Loewen (1/3) had a base on balls. Brian Jeroloman (0/2) drew two BBs so that means the BJBBM is up to...drum roll please...27! Dan Perales (1/4) and Jayson Nix (1/5) picked up doubles and Brett Lawrie (1/5) had a single, killing his call-up bid (kidding! ;D). Chris Woodward (0/3) did get aboard once with a base on balls, meaning every 51s hitter got to the pillows at least once.
Running - Nanita stole a base but Loewen was cut down at second trying to stretch a single into a double.
Pitching - Robert Ray took the loss as he was burned for nine runs (eight earned) over five innings. The damage was done on five hits (including two homers) and three walks as well as a hit by pitch. Ray did strike out six and recorded eight groundball outs. Lefty Rommie Lewis mopped up in relief by going three innings and giving up just one run on four hits. He struck out one and did not walk anyone.
Defence - Mayorson booted one at second, Nix kicked one around in center and Loewen had a clank at first.
New Britain, CT - Two runs in the second and three in the fifth allowed the Fisher Cats to hand the Twins affiliate the tloss!
Batting - John Tolisano (2/4) belted a two-run homer and added a double to lead the New Hampshire attack. Justin Jackson (2/4) doubled and Mike McDade (2/5) drove in a run. Anthony Gose (1/2) was the on-base leader by grinding out a pair of walks. Mark Sobolewski (1/3) doubled and also reached base with a walk. Jonathan Diaz (1/4) singled and Travis d'Arnaud (0/3) had one ball four at-bat. Adeiny Hechavarria (0/5) and Moises Sierra (0/4) were left wanting.
Running - Gose was nailed trying to steal third.
Pitching - B.J. LaMura earned the victory by limiting the Rock Cats to two runs over five innings. He scattered four hits and three walks and whiffed four. His groundout/flyout total was an impressive 7-0. Rei Gonzalez gave up six hits, hit a batter and issued a walk with zero Ks over two innings but managed to limit the damage to two runs. Lefty Evan Crawford earned the save with two perfect innings as he struck out four of the six hitters he faced.
Defence - A game saving play from Jackson as he threw out the potential tying run at home from left field to complete an inning-ending 7-2 double play to end the Rock Cats three-run rally in the sixth.
Jupiter, FL - The D-Jays came back from a 2-0 deficit with runs in the third and fifth innings but the Marlins affiliate plated the game winner in the sixth.
Batting - Brad McElroy (2/4) had a double and a walk in the leadoff spot while Brian Van Kirk (2/4) also had a two-base hit. Kevin Ahrens (1/2) had a walk and an RBI, Jon Talley (1/3) doubled and walked and Sean Ochinko (1/3) drew a base on balls. Brad Glenn (1/4) had an RBI and A.J. Jimenez (1/4) had the other hit. Ryan Schimpf (0/4) and Kevin Nolan (0/4) are hoping for better luck next time.
Running - McElroy swiped a couple of bases and Chris Hopkins stole a bag in a pinch-running appearance but did not score.
Pitching - Nestor Molina limited the Hammerheads to two runs despite eight hits and a walk over five innings. He gave up a homer but rung up four batters and got seven outs on terra firma. Lefty Matt Wright got the loss by yielding a run on three hits and two walks over three frames and did not strike out a batter.
Defence - Jimenez could not throw out a basestealer in three attempts.
Bluefield 11 Princeton 4 (Game 1 - 7 Innings)
Bluefield, WV - The Jays scored twice in the second and six in the third before adding three more in the fifth.
Batting - 'Rockin' Chris Hawkins (3/4) came up a single short of the cycle as he homered, tripled, doubled and drove in five runs. Kevin Pillar (2/3) also went deep and drove in a pair and Matt Johnson (2/4) drove in one. Art Charles (1/2) had two walks and two ribbies while Daniel Arcila (1/3) and Gustavo Pierre (1/3) also got on base with a walk apiece. Eli Boike (1/3) had a double and an RBI, Andy Fermin (0/3) drew a walk but Adrian Munoz (0/3) wore the collar.
Running - Arcila was nailed trying to steal second.
Pitching - Aaron Sanchez improved his record to 2-1 by pitching five innings of one run ball. He scattered six hits and a walk and struck out four. Six of his eight outs stayed on the green. Andrew Sikula yielded three runs on three hits and two walks over three innings while striking out a batter. He threw a wild pitch but three of his four outs in play were on the ground.
Defence - A zero in the error column.
Princeton 8 Bluefield 3 (Game 2 - 7 Innings)
Bluefield, WV - The Rays affiliate earned the split by scoring in every inning except the seventh. Bluefield's runs came in the fifth.
Batting - One swing of the bat produced all three Blue Jays runs and that came from Cody Bartlett (1/2), who belted a three-run homer and picked up a walk. Melvin Garcia (1/3) and Leo Hernandez (1/3) had the other hits. Carlos Ramirez (0/1), Gustavo Pierre (0/2) and Art Charles (0/2) got on base via the walk. Andy Fermin (0/3), Chris Hawkins (0/2), Eli Boike (0/2), Tim Mahler (0/1) and Kevin Pillar (0/1) had nothing to say offensively.
Running - Hawkins stole second but was picked off at third. Bartlett was gunned down trying to steal third.
Pitching - Losing pitcher Myles Jaye was jacked for five runs but only two of them were earned over his 2 2/3 innings. He gave up a homer among his six hits but put up a K-BB ratio of 4-1 while getting three groundouts. Toronto native Les Williams did not have much luck either. He stranded his lone inherited runner but he was burned for two runs over 2 1/3 innnings on three hits and a walk. He uncorked two wild pitches but struck out a batter to go along with four groundouts. Milciades Santana took care of the last two innings where he was victimized by a solo home run but he did ring up three Ks.
Defence - A couple of E6s for Pierre as he mishandled a pair of grounders. Jaye had a pickoff attempt go horribly askew. Hernandez had a PB.
Salem-Keizer 7 Vancouver 5
Vancouver, BC - The Giants affiliate erupted for two runs in the ninth to snap a 5-5 tie.
Batting - Matt Newman (3/4) wielded the mighty lumber by clubbing a homer and drawing a walk to get on base four times. Jonathon Berti (2/5) collected a pair of RBI while Yeico Aponte (1/2) and Kevin Schwartz (1/3) also reached base twice by picking up a base on balls. Kevin Patterson (0/2) also got on board twice with a walk and a hit by pitch. Roan Salas (1/5) singled and Stephen McQuail (0/3) walked. Jonathan Jones (0/1) had an RBI, Garrett Maines (0/3) had a sacrifice fly but Bryan Kervin (0/4) came up empty.
Running - Berti pilfered his 13th base of the year by stealing second. Schwartz was thrown out at home from center field.
Pitching -Taylor Cole surrendered a run an inning over three frames on four hits, a walk and an HBP. He struck out two and five of his six outs in play were on the ground. Lefty Justin Nicolino spun three innings and allowed an unearned run on three hits while posting a 4-0 K/BB total. Eric Brown allowed a single run on one hit over two innings but collected one K and all five of his other outs stayed inside the diamond. Alesone Escalante took the loss by giving up two runs (one earned) on two hits in his inning of work.
Defence - Newman threw one away from the outfield. Maines had a passed ball and was unsuccessful throwing out two basestealers.
GCL Blue Jays 9 GCL Pirates 7
Dunedin, FL - The Blue Jays scored in each of the first four innings but needed two more in the eighth to prevent the Bucs from raising the Jolly Roger.
Batting - Jorge Vega-Rosada (3/4) led the Jays 11 hit attack with a double and two RBI. Seth Conner (2/4) finished a triple short of the cycle as he homered, doubled and drove in three runs. However, Mississauga's Dalton Pompey (1/2) went one better in the on-base department by drawing three walks to go along with his base knock. Alexys Rodriguez joined Pompey on base four times with two singles and two hit by pitches. Nico Taylor (2/3) doubled and walked, Angel Gomez (1/4) picked up a walk and Christian "Pepe" Frias (0/2) also heard ball four once. Justin Atkinson could not get "Rowan" with the bat as he had a Mr. Bean kind of day by going 0-for-5. Coincidentally, Atkinson's middle initial is R. Hard to believe I give away this kind of ground-breaking analysis for free, isn't it?
Running - Pompey and Taylor each stole second. Gomez was thrown out at third base by the Pirates left fielder.
Pitching - Adonys "DNA" Cardona gave up two runs on three hits and four walks over 3 2/3 innings. The Venezuelan struck out four and three of his four outs in play did not leave the infield. Chris Roman entered the game with a bases loaded situation but when in doubt, do as Roman did by limiting the damage to one run on one hit to strand two of the three runners. As a result, he got the victory. Zak Adams had a grisly (yes, pun intended!) pitching line. The good news was he pitched 1 1/3 hitless innings with one strikeout. The bad news? Six walks which led to four runs and he uncorked a wild pitch. Alex Ramirez relieved Adams with the bases loaded and did him no favours by allowing all three runs to score. Ramirez did his ERA a favour by not giving up any runs of his own over 1 2/3 innings in which he yielded three hits with a walk while striking out one to earn a hold. Julio Carmona also got a hold by overcoming two hits over a scoreless frame. One was the loneliest number on Colby Broussard's pitching line by allowing one run on one hit and one walk over one inning but it was not the saddest experience he knew as he earned the save.
Defence - Frias had a clank at second and Rodriguez had one ball get by him behind the plate. However, Rodriguez was 1-for-2 throwing out basestealers, Gomez nailed a runner at the dish from left field and Atkinson started a 5-4-3 twin-killing.
DSL Braves 3 DSL Blue Jays 2 (10 Innings)
San Pedro de Macoris, DR - The Jays led 2-1 after four innings but the Braves tied the game in the seventh before scoring the winner in overtime.
Batting - Cesar Barazarte (2/5) had the only multi-hit game that included a triple. Emilio Guerrero (1/3) had a double and a run batted in while Angel Rojas (1/5) also had a two-bagger. Gabriel Cenas (1/3), Maydawin De La Cruz (1/3) and Ricardo Guillen (1/4) also collected base hits. Angel Feliz (0/3) had the only walk. Mauricio Nagahashi (0/5), Nelson Aguida (0/4), Alvaro Blanco (0/1) and Luis Martin (0/1) could not put a crooked number in the hit column.
Running - Two huge gaffes on the basepaths as both Guillen and Barazarte were picked off first base. Blanco and Gabriel Quintana came in to pinch-run but neither of them crossed the plate.
Pitching - Eyerys Guerrero was victimized by an unearned run on three hits over three innings but punched out two batters and collected five groundball outs. Steven Romero threw a no-hitter over four innings but was still tagged with an unearned marker by walking a man and plunking another. He rung up four batters and induced a half-dozen groundouts. Lefty Ericdavis Marquez was charged with the loss when he gave up a...wait for it...unearned run on one hit and two walks over three innings while striking out one. On the positive side, Marquez did get five outs on the ground.
Defence - In a word, ugly! Guillen threw one away at short, De La Cruz booted one in center, Marquez had an errant pickoff throw and Aguida had two passed balls.
*** 3 Stars!!! ***
3. Matt Newman, Vancouver
2. Seth Conner, GCL
1. Chris Hawkins, Bluefield
Extra Innings...
- The Las Vegas Review-Journal provides an update on Brett Lawrie.
"Lawrie returned to the field July 14 at Single-A Dunedin, and in his four games went 1-for-8 with an RBI. Then came the five-strikeout doubleheader Tuesday at Colorado Springs. It didn't help Lawrie was forced to play with other players' equipment. His stuff arrived the following day, and so did Lawrie's offense. But he's not just making plays with his bat. Even though the former catcher hadn't played third base until this season, Lawrie made two sensational defensive plays Saturday."
- Mark Anderson of the LVRJ also has a feature on Jayson Nix.
"The Blue Jays took Nix off the 40-man roster and designated him for assignment. He chose to stay with the Blue Jays rather than test free agency.
'I wanted to stay here. I like what's going on up there (in Toronto) with the team. I feel like they'll do well, and it's something I want to be a part of, and I feel I can help them.'"
- Also courtesy of Mr. Anderson, here is an article on catcher Ryan Budde.
"Budde remembers the first time he got the call. It was in 2007, when he was with Triple-A Salt Lake and the Los Angeles Angels needed a catcher...He got his first hit against Boston's Josh Beckett. Later that season, his ninth-inning double off Yankees reliever Sean Henn gave the Angels a win and Budde his first big-league RBI. Budde and Henn are now teammates in Las Vegas."
- Sportsnet's Shi Davidi travelled to Connecticut to get a first-hand look at the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Manager Sal Fasano:
"We have the potential of five to six position players that are big leaguers, not to mention the pitchers. I think there’s an opportunity here for a good chunk of the Blue Jays future to develop. When you have a team like this, you’re not just trying to develop them to be big leaguers, you’re developing a championship-type player. To me there’s a difference, because a championship-type player will do whatever it takes to win and has the talent to back it up. And that’s what we’re trying to get with the guys here."
- Davidi also had a chance to chat with Jays 2010 first round pick Deck McGuire.
"The one thing I've been getting better at is attacking with my fastball down in the zone. The Blue Jays, that's their big thing, pounding down in the zone and it's the one thing that's gotten me into trouble when I've gotten in trouble this year, leaving some fastballs up and you pay for your mistakes."
- The Eagle-Tribune out of North Andover, MA shines the spotlight on catcher Travis d'Arnaud, who spoke about his struggles last season.
"It was probably from me not training hard enough that one offseason — not really focusing in on my core. I wasn't doing the right baseball workouts I should've been doing and when baseball season came around I wasn't in the shape I should've been in."
- The Vancouver Sun looks at the early success of the Canadians partnership with the Blue Jays. C's general manager Jason Takefman:
"We've been ecstatic with the new relationship. Fans compliment us on the style of baseball the team plays. We hit and run, we double steal, we take the extra base and it's really exciting. Our fans really respond to that very well. You never know what kind of team you're going to have so the performance on the field has really exceeded our expectations."
- The Bluefield Daily Telegraph says the folks in Bluefield are also happy to be in the Blue Jays nest. General manager Chris Maxwell:
“When we post the score on Facebook, people are all over it making comments. I think people have latched onto this team with how hard they play. Even when we were losing games by a run, the fans stayed with them because they saw the effort."
- The Daily Telegraph has a word with a Jay, Ajay Meyer.
“ 'It has been an upgrade since college,” said Meyer, whose given name is Andrew Jay, hence, Ajay. “You learn to pitch a lot lower in the zone. In college you can normally throw it down the middle for some hitters, but here you can’t. One through nine, they are going to be sticking it so you learn to pitch to every hitter.' ”
- Finally, here's a nice story from The Daily Telegraph in which a Bluefield Blue Jays fan reunited with her sister through the team's Facebook page.
"Hinton resident Susie Ellison is a fan of the Bluefield Blue Jays on Facebook...Ellison was elated when she found out that Belinda Hatfield, a Bluefield resident who posted a comment on the Blue Jays’ Facebook page, was her paternal sister whom she knew about, but had never met, in fifty-one years."
