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The bats were alive on Sunday as the affiliates lost just one game. Darin Mastroianni and Jon Talley led the attack for their respective teams.


Las Vegas 10 Salt Lake 4

P.J. Walters was roughed up for four runs in 5.1 innings of work. He allowed seven hits and walked three batters. Scott Richmond pitched OK out of the 'pen with 1.2 scoreless innings, although he allowed two hits, walked a batter and did not strike out anyone. Ron Uviedo and Kyle Davies worked scoreless innings. At the plate, veteran Ryan Shealy had a day to remember with seven RBI, thanks in part to a two-out grand slam in the fifth inning. Darin Mastroianni had three hits, as did David Cooper. Adeiny Hechavarria went 2-for-4 with a homer and two RBI. Adam Loewen went 2-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored.

New Hampshire - Off Day

Dunedin 10 Daytona 5

Carlos Villanueva began the game with a scoreless rehab inning. Asher Wojciechowski took over and allowed four runs in 7.1 innings. He did not walk a batter and struck out six, but he allowed nine hits. Brad Glenn had two doubles and scored two runs. Kevin Ahrens and Jon Talley each had three hits. The latter prospect had two RBI and scored two runs. He is on a late-season surge. Ryan Schimpf had a tough day with an 0-for-3 at the plate and two errors in the field.

Lansing 5 Fort Wayne 3 (10 innings)

Egan Smith started the game and allowed just one run in six innings. He struck out three batters and did not walk a man. Dayton Marze then got roughed up for two runs in 1.1 innings. Danny Barnes allowed the inherited runner to score but he pitched 1.2 scoreless innings of his own and took the win. Brandon Berl received the save with a scoreless 10th. At the plate, Jake Marisnick, Marcus Knecht and Gari Pena each had two hits. Oliver Dominguez drove in two runs but made his 26th (!) error in the field. Eli Boike went 0-for-3 but had a pair of walks and scored twice.

Tri-City 6 Vancouver 4

The bullpen melted down for the Canadians despite a respectable start by Aaron Sanchez. He went six innings and settled down after a rough start due to command issues. In total, he allowed just one run on two hits and two walks. He struck out six batters. Kramer Champlin, Bryan Longpre (who did not record an out) and Drew Permison (who took the loss) were all touched up for runs. Steve McQuail went 1-for-3 with a double and three RBI. Andy Burns had two hits, including a solo homer. Nick Baligod went 1-for-3 with a walk and a strikeout.

Bluefield 11 Danville 4

Myles Jaye started the game and did not allow a run in two innings. Joe Musgrove relieved him and pitched three scoreless innings. Andrew Sikula then allowed two runs (one earned) in three innings. Milciades Santana was roughed up for two runs in his one inning of work. Andy Fermin had three hits, along with two runs scored and two RBI. Aaron Munoz went 2-for-5 with two runs scored. Ron Melendez came off the bench and went 1-for-1 with a double and two RBI. Danny Arcila went 0-for-3 with two walks and two runs scored. He also stole home.

GCL Jays - Done for the year

DSL Jays - Done for the year

The Three Stars:
3. Joe Musgrove, three scoreless innings
2. Darin Mastroianni, three hits
1. Jon Talley, three hits, two RBI
Baby Jays Show Up the Big Boys | 43 comments | Create New Account
The following comments are owned by whomever posted them. This site is not responsible for what they say.
hypobole - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 02:39 PM EDT (#242638) #
Lansing's fielding stats have been brutal this year. In addition to the 26 errors Marc pointed out with Dominguez, Pierre made an astounding 36 in 56 games before being demoted, Namba at 3rd has 21 and  Hobson an amazing 25 as a 1st baseman. Ugh. 
wacker - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 03:17 PM EDT (#242642) #
Checking out the first base men from AAA to Lansing, Cooper has committed 8, Mcdade 7, Talley 6, and Hobson 25 errors. I wonder how many errors each one has saved their infielders.
John Northey - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 03:53 PM EDT (#242646) #
Does Lansing have a brutal infield? IE: not well maintained? If so it could explain some of the errors.
Lugnut Fan - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 04:13 PM EDT (#242649) #
The infield playing surface in Lansing at this time is brutal and I would say is unacceptable. In July, woth the heat and humidity, the grass was covered and it killed large portions of the infield grass, so any infield errors since mid July committed in Lansing, I would take with a grain of salt. Up until mid July however, the infield was fine and wasn't really a factor. A lot of Pierres errors were throwing errors for example.
TamRa - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 04:38 PM EDT (#242657) #
LF, is Hobson really THAT brutal? It seems unlikely he could have been that bad and none of the scouting on him mentioned it - what's going on there?
Gerry - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 04:47 PM EDT (#242658) #
Mike Redmond is the Midwest League manager of the year.  Jake Marisnick and Michael Crouse have been named to the season ending all-star team.
greenfrog - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 05:09 PM EDT (#242659) #
More media love for the baby Jays. John Sickels on Noah Syndergaard:

"**A new arrival in the Midwest League is Toronto Blue Jays right-hander Noah Syndergaard, just promoted from the Northwest League. He made his first start on August 24th for Lansing, going five innings, allowing four hits, one walk, and one run, fanning six. Overall this year, between rookie-level Bluefield in the Appy League, Vancouver in the Northwest League, and Lansing, he has a 1.64 ERA with a 65/17 K/BB in 55 innings, 42 hits allowed, and a 1.37 GO/AO.

"The number are obviously excellent and the scouting reports are just as good, focusing on his mid-90s heat and nasty curveball, and a better changeup than most 19-year-old pitchers have. I had him as a Grade B- pre-season based on his scouting reports and draft position (first round supplemental out of high school in Texas) and he's at least a Grade B now, possibly a B+ and a strong candidate for the Top 50 pitchers list."

...

Meanwhile, in his Monday Morning Ten-Pack, Kevin Goldstein of BP calls Jake Marisnick "the best position prospect in the Midwest League" and "one of the few prospects out there for whom the term 'five-tool player' doesn't sound like a misused cliché."
Gerry - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 07:22 PM EDT (#242661) #
Clayton McCullough is the FSL manager of the year. With the two others mentioned above and Dennis Holmberg in the Appy league that's four managers of the year for the Jays. That's impressive.

I think the job McCullough did was perhaps the most impressive. When the rosters were announced at the start of the year the Dunedin roster looked weak. While they have had some good pitchers go through there the lineup was a patchwork other than AJ Jimenez.

Jimenez, Brad Glenn, Nestor Molina and Wes Etheridge were named to the FSL all-star team.

AA said he wanted to improve the quality of the staff, it's looking good so far.
braden - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 08:29 PM EDT (#242662) #
One thing I've noticed about Syndergaard is that opposing teams seem to run wild on him. He has allowed 5 stolen bases through three innings tonight. There were a couple of similar instances in Bluefield. I'm not sure if they're simply not having him pitch from the stretch or if he has a lot of work to do with holding runners on but it may be worth monitoring.
Lugnut Fan - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 08:44 PM EDT (#242663) #

Teams have ran pretty regularly on Lansing all year.  The three stolen bases that Fort Wayne has probably would have happened even if Snydergaard wouldn't have been pitching.  Fort Wayne is trying to secure a playoff spot, so I would expect them to be aggressive.

As far as the question in regards to if Hobson has been horrid this season.  I wouldn't go that far.  I would say that he has been inconsistent.  I think it is fair to say that if you asked Hobson about his season, he would probably say the offensive and defensive numbers aren't where he would want them and I think the Jays were probably looking for a little more out of him.  He has a tendency to flub the routine plays, but make the tough plays.  I think it is a little unfair to compare him to say McDade or Cooper.  Bothy guys have a few years under there belt and are more seasoned than Hobson.  McDade had his struggles in Lansing as well.

The defense has been less than stellar in Lansing all year.  Honestly, they shouldn't be a playoff team with the number of errors that they have committed, but that is a testament to how good the pitching and offense has been.  That is one of the curses of having a very young team in the MWL.  They are going to make mistakes and make errors.

Gerry - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 10:03 PM EDT (#242664) #
Bluefield Jays clinched the division title tonight. Lansing and Bluefield are guaranteed playoff spots.
ramone - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 11:09 PM EDT (#242665) #
Drabek has been lit up tonight, 9ER through 3IP. Outside of an injury it couldn't have gone much worse for him this year.
dan gordon - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 11:30 PM EDT (#242666) #

Yah, that's an ugly game for Drabek.  In those 3 innings he walked 4 and gave up 8 hits to lead to those 9 runs.  He must be a very frustrated young man.  The season can't end soon enough for him.  He may need to take a month or two off to clear his head and then get to work at figuring things out for next year.

In other games tonight, Gose was 0 for 6 with 3 K's, but D'Arnaud was 3 for 6 with a HR.  Molina pitched well for 3 innings, not giving up an earned run - not sure why he came out at that point (innings limit?).  Marisnik hit his 14th HR.  Daniel Webb picked up the save for the  2nd time in his last 3 games for Lansing.  It looks like they are possibly grooming him as a late inning reliever.  After starting exclusively, he now has made 5 straight bullpen appearances in his comeback from injury.  His ERA as a reliever is 2.08 and as a starter is 5.97.   Webb had been considered one of the top high school pitchers in the 2008 draft, but didn't sign.  The Jays got him in the 18th round in 2009 after he had an inconsistent season.  Was considered a high upside guy, with a low-mid 90's fastball.  

ramone - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 11:34 PM EDT (#242667) #
Just to add to the Drabek start, someone asked Kevin Goldstein on twitter what's happened to Drabek this year and he responded that his "delivery has completely fallen apart".
BlueJayWay - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 11:36 PM EDT (#242668) #
Keith Law was speculating via twitter the other day that Drabek is hurt.  Anyway, he's just been horrid.  At this point I don't even know if Drabek is a legit prospect anymore.  What do you do with this guy?  He and Snider have not just had disappointing years; they've crashed and burned.
dan gordon - Monday, August 29 2011 @ 11:53 PM EDT (#242669) #

I think Drabek was rushed to the majors this year, and that may have hurt him.  When I saw him pitch for the Jays last season, I thought his control wasn't yet ready for him to skip AAA and pitch in the big leagues.  He started very well this year, but the wheels soon fell off as he just walked far too many.  That may have led to the troubles he is having now.  He's very yong, very talented and has a strong track record.  I still regard him as a top prospect.  It is not unusual for a good pitching prospect to have some struggles.  I'm sure they will be going over a lot of film to try to figure out what he's doing wrong mechanically, and I think he just needs a break from pitching to regroup and recover his self confidence.  I think he's got a good shot at being a mainstay in the Jays rotation by 2013.

I know there are a lot of differing opinions about Snider, but I feel quite strongly that he was brought up to the big leagues a couple of years too soon.  He's actually still a very young guy.  The injury problems worry me, but I think the talent is there.  Still think he will be a very good player, but maybe not the 35+ HR masher I had thought.  Put it this way - if I'm a GM of another team, and AA offered me my choice of Thames or Snider in a trade, I'd take Snider.

TamRa - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 12:47 AM EDT (#242670) #
At this point I don't even know if Drabek is a legit prospect anymore.

Change one word in that sentence and it could have been said many times in 2000
Spookie Wookie - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 01:06 AM EDT (#242671) #
The game story on the nhfishercats website implies that Molina had a pitch count limit tonight (not exactly clear because the sentence isn't grammatically correct). But I wonder if Molina getting pulled had more to do with the fact that the Fisher Cats scored 8 runs in the top of the next inning-- probably took a while.
TamRa - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:49 AM EDT (#242672) #
might be saving innings for the playoffs too
The_Game - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 03:43 AM EDT (#242673) #
I still think a lot of Drabek's problems are mental. He seemed to have no confidence in himself by the end of his time with the big club and it doesn't look like getting sent down to the PCL has helped matters. The talent and stuff is most certainly there, but is the mental toughness? I guess we'll see next spring...they'll give him another shot to make the team, I'm sure.

It's easy to point to Halladay as a success story, but most guys don't do what Halladay did. Many just fade away and join the long list of failed prospects.

scottt - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 07:51 AM EDT (#242674) #
Wasn't Romero a failed prospect before landing a job in spring training?
Denoit - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 09:56 AM EDT (#242676) #
I think any talk of a prospect being a "failure" before the age of 25 is just rediculous. Especially ones like Snider that have shown at times they can play. I don't know whats going on with Drabek, but some rest, and some early work in spring training could do wonders for next year. One bad season doesn't end a career.
hypobole - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 10:20 AM EDT (#242677) #
I'm glad there is still optimism for Drabek, but it seems to me his struggles seem to have more in common with Rick Ankiel or Steve Blass  than with other struggling young pitchers, A current comp might be Tyler Matzek of the Rockies. A breakdown of mechanics as severe as Drabek's is not overly common and I don't think there are many success stories afterwards ,
Krylian19 - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 10:36 AM EDT (#242679) #

Here's how I see the Drabek situation...

His mechanics appear to have gone to hell, from many accounts.  It's a bad year...there's no denying that.  But it's foolish to just give up on him and write him off after 1 year.  I suspect a lot of the people that are writing him off are the 'I told you so' types.  They seem to want to jump to conclusions so that if things do end up being bad, they can pat themselves on the back and tell all of us how smart they are and they knew all along that Drabek was a stiff.

Well...I'd prefer to give the kid some more time...let him work with the coaches...and try to find himself again.  Will he make it back?  Who knows...but I do know that it's too early to know either way.  If he makes it back...AWESOME!  That just makes our young up and coming pitching prospect stable that much stronger.  If he doesn't...it's a damn shame.  We've seen enough Todd Van Poppel's, Brien Taylor's, Matt Anderson's, etc. to know that many highly regarded prospects to end up failing for one reason or another.  But until a player actually retires and leaves the game, who knows what their future holds (Josh Hamilton, John Axford).

Let's have some patience and hope for the best.

uglyone - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 11:16 AM EDT (#242681) #
While you don't give up on the guy, we still should admit that it's pretty rare for a prospect to bounce back from a year this bad.

Hopefully it's just a one year meltdown, but I wouldn't bet on it.
hypobole - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 11:20 AM EDT (#242682) #
Krylian  - you're stating motives fior people that are simply NOT TRUE. Do i hope Drabek succeeds? 100% yes. I merely stated the reasons why I'm not as optimistic as others on the board, I've been probably the biggest Edwin Encarnacion booster on the board this year, but I've never accused people who have a more negative outlook on him of wanting him to fail so they can pat themselves on the back. How many posters who are down on Adam Lind are hoping he never hits another home run or takes another walk simply so they can say "I told you so". My guess is zero. We want our players to succeed, but that doesn't mean we should never voice our concerns about them without having selfish and malevolent motives.
Krylian19 - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 12:33 PM EDT (#242694) #

My intention wasn't to paint everyone with the 'I told you so' brush.  But I have been around long enough and been on more than enough forums to see that there are a large number of people out there that do seem to get a certain amount, of I guess satisfaction is the best word for it, when they're able to announce that they were right.

Regardless....and more importantly, the situation with Drabek.  Yes, there's no doubt that this season has been a complete failure for him...and there are many cases where you can actually document that once a player has a season as brutal as this one, they never really find it again.  I'm not ruling out that posibility at all.  All I'm saying is that we have also seen players have bad seasons, and then bounce back.

For all we know, Drabek might even be hurt.  I don't know this...but I'm just saying we really don't know the whole story.  Maybe he's been dealing with personal issues...maybe the Jays still aren't allowing Drabek to throw his cutter and there is something to breaking balls not breaking in the PCL.  I just want to give the kid a fresh chance next year to right himself and not be in such a panic, like many are.

Who knows....in 2 years Drabek might be the Jays closer.

John Northey - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 12:33 PM EDT (#242695) #
Well, Drabek is 23 and had a 74 ERA+ in the majors this year which is poor but not horrid for a kid. But that 6.4 BB/9 was scary. Checking AAA we see a 7.41 ERA with 5.4 BB/9 and 1.5 HR/9 and 5.4 K/9.

The comparison many bring up is Halladay who also had a nightmare year early in his career. In 2000 he set a record for worst ERA for pitchers with 50+ IP at 10.64 (48 ERA+). He walked 5.6 per 9 and gave up 1.9 HR/9. In AAA he had a 5.50 ERA but just 2.6 BB/9 and 1.2 HR/9 with a low 4.6 K/9 and looked washed up at (you got it) 23.

Interesting that both were 23 in the year they got their butts kicked and that they were traded for each other. Now, the big question is do the Jays have a coach who can sit down and spend all of 2012 with Drabek and rebuild his confidence and mechanics ala Mel Queen (who passed away this year) with Halladay.
92-93 - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 12:53 PM EDT (#242698) #
I don't care how he's been pitching lately, I want Drabek in the MLB bullpen in September to see how his stuff plays up in shorter stints. Maybe some MLB success can inspire some confidence heading into the 2012 season, and really at this point there's nothing to lose.
electric carrot - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 12:59 PM EDT (#242699) #
do the Jays have a coach who can sit down and spend all of 2012 with Drabek and rebuild his confidence and mechanics ala Mel Queen (who passed away this year) with Halladay.

Disney version of this movie:

INT. EMPTY APT. TWILIGHT
Drabek sits on the floor head in his hands after a bad loss (and after his family disowns him and his girlfriend leaves him and he discovers that a burglar has broken into his house and taken all his possessions.) We hear a faint rapping at his window. Drabek at first refuses to look, cursing the day his Dad ever put a baseball in his hands --  but we of course see the ghost of Mel Queen gently tapping at the window holding a baseball.  He catches Drabek's attention -- we see a magical glint in MQ's eye ...
John Northey - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 01:37 PM EDT (#242703) #
Not sure if giving Drabek a few innings in September will help. His year is a disaster and he might just need to shut down and get away from it all for awhile.

As to who will eat the innings in September...
There are 18 pitchers on the 40 man with 2 more on the 60 day DL (Carlson, who is still hurt, and McGowan). The guys on the 15 day DL are Rauch & Villanueva. The remaining 16 include the current 12 here and Drabek, Alan Farina (Tommy John surgery, out for most of 2012 as well probably), Brad Mills (probably up again, but don't expect much), P.J. Walters (56 ERA+ lifetime in majors over 51 IP, 9.13 ERA in Vegas).

Ick. Not very good options to add to the current 12. Basically Mills & Drabek as I wouldn't bother with Walters until he figures out how to get AAA batters out. Good ol' Dirk Hayhurst was released by Tampa (according to his tweets) with his 4.12 ERA in AAA as a starter (ie: he could eat a few innings).

Ugh. I think Vegas has screwed up pitching stats so much it is hard to know who there is worth a call up.
China fan - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 01:50 PM EDT (#242704) #
As discussed earlier, there are several other pitchers at Las Vegas who could be helpful reinforcements in September, such as Sean Henn, Danny Farquhar, Kyle Davies and Chad Gaudin.  Maybe even Scott Richmond, who's now pitching out of the bullpen.  Henn and Farquhar have had relatively decent years, while Davies and Gaudin have major-league experience.  Mills is another obvious candidate, to see if he is more effective in a bullpen role.  And Drabek remains a possibility.  In addition, McGowan will almost certainly be promoted.  And Villanueva and Rauch are close to finishing their rehab stints.  So there's no shortage of arms who can be promoted (without touching anyone at New Hampshire), even if most of these guys are nothing to get excited about.
John Northey - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:01 PM EDT (#242705) #
I think that was my main issue. None of the potential call ups catch me as 'wow, I want to see what he does in the majors'. Most are 'might eat a few innings'. Farquhar would be nice to see as he did well in the past. McGowan of course we are all hoping for. After that I'm very 'blah'.
92-93 - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:21 PM EDT (#242706) #
You can make a good case for either side, but I think Drabek would benefit from a month of being with the team and picking up some low leverage innings where he can implement what he works on with Walton/Hengten. If he's hurt or tired you obviously don't want to bring him up and there's also the service time considerations.
Jonny German - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:29 PM EDT (#242707) #
92-93 considers service time??!?!
uglyone - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:45 PM EDT (#242708) #
If we're healthy right now our pitching staff looks like this, right?

SP Romero
SP Morrow
SP Cecil
SP Alvarez
SP Perez

RP Janssen
RP Litsch
RP Francisco
RP Villanueva
RP Rauch
RP Camp
RP Carreno

I think all the injured guys project to be coming back soon, and the only guy that may be on an SP IP limit is Perez...and Perez could just flip back to the 'pen while one of Carreno, Litsch, Villy takes the last few starts.

Do we really need all that many other guys to "eat innings" in september? I'd like to see Drabek, Farquhar, Uviedo, and maybe Mills in September, I guess, but that should be more than enough.

I'd love to see an end to all this crappy lefty Tallet/Miller/Ledezma/Lewis stuff, that's for sure.

Mike Green - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 02:53 PM EDT (#242711) #
Crappy No One Out Guys, you mean.
/junior-high humour

Jonny German - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 03:11 PM EDT (#242717) #
I'd like to see Drabek, Farquhar, Uviedo, and maybe Mills in September, I guess, but that should be more than enough.

I don't even particularly care about seeing them. The guy I really want to see, both personally and in terms of the future of the Jays pitching staff, is McGowan. And I'd like to see how Alvarez looks coming out of the pen, because I'm hopeful there won't really be room for him in the 2012 rotation and I'm hopeful he could be an excellent reliever. I'd keep Perez in the rotation, to get an idea of whether he's magically better as a starter than he is as a reliever.
uglyone - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 03:18 PM EDT (#242721) #
I like it.

How about Loser Loogy's?
uglyone - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 03:24 PM EDT (#242724) #
ah you're absolutely right, Johnny G, and said it much more efficiently to boot.

The guys I named are pretty irrelevant, McGowan is clearly the most important guy to take a look at. I wouldn't even mind seeing Carreno getting a shot at some starts with Alvarez and Perez moving to the 'pen.
ayjackson - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 05:07 PM EDT (#242732) #
Besides McGowan, I'd like to see Farquar and Beck to see if their stuff could play out of the pen next year.
92-93 - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 06:36 PM EDT (#242738) #
I don't care about Drabek's service time, but the team certainly does. And shouldn't.
rtcaino - Tuesday, August 30 2011 @ 11:29 PM EDT (#242757) #
I don't care about Drabek's service time, but the team certainly does. And shouldn't.

At this point, I'd imagine they just want to do what it takes to get him back on track.

The time to worry about his service clock was out of spring training. Of course, they did not seem particularly concerned about it at that point.
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