Just wanted to draw your attention to the fact there was some minor league baseball Monday night! Lansing and Dunedin celebrated "Draft Night" with victories to earn a split for the affiliates.
Las Vegas, NV - Andrew Carpenter (3-1) was hammered by the Diamondbacks affiliate for all six runs on 11 hits in 5 2/3 innings. He surrendered three home runs, including one to former Jays farmhand Mike Jacobs that put the Aces up 3-0 after one. Former Jay Randy Ruiz and Connor Gillespie, not a former Jay, also took Carpenter deep. Carpenter struck out three and walked one and five of his nine outs in play were on the ground. The bullpen was aces though led by lefty Evan Crawford, who gave up just one hit and struck out two over 1 1/3 innings. Jerry Gil worked a clean eighth and Chad Beck survived two hits and a walk for a scoreless ninth.
Eric Thames put the 51s on the board with a homer in the fifth and Travis d'Arnaud did likewise in the eighth. For Thames, that was his second of the year in Las Vegas while d'Arnaud is now up to 13 dingers. Yan Gomes had the other single. Anthony Gose and Adeiny Hechavarria were 0-for-4 while Vladimir Guerrero, Adam Lind, Moises Sierra and Jonathan Diaz were 0-for-3. Nobody drew a walk.
Trenton, NJ - Sean Ochinko got the Fisher Cats on the board with an RBI single in the first and poked a two-run homer in third. Justin Jackson followed up with a two-run triple and John Tolisano drove in Jackson with a single. Brian Bocock had a run-scoring single in the second and also added a stolen base. Bocock and Jackson had three hits apiece while Ochinko, Kevin Howard and Mark Sobolewski each had a pair. Brian Van Kirk reached twice on a walk and by taking one for the team while Ryan Goins had a base on balls. Brad Glenn was 0-for-5.
The offence built a 7-2 at one point but the pitching couldn't hold it, or more specifically, Chad Jenkins (2-5). He was roughed up for eight runs on nine hits in 3 2/3 innings. He gave up a homer, had a K/BB total of 2-2 and he split his six outs in play evenly on the ground and in the air. Yohan Pino couldn't bail out Jenkins by allowing three of Jenkins to score while surrendering two of his own in 2 1/3 innings. Like Jenkins, Pino was hurt by the long ball in the form of a grand slam. He gave up two hits and walked a man but did strike out four. Matt Daly scattered a hit and a walk and struck out two over two scoreless frames.
Port Charlotte, FL - Ryan Schmipf got the offence started with a sacrifice fly in the first. Gabe Jacobo belted a solo homer in the third before Kevin Ahrens followed up with a two-run shot in the fourth. That teed up a five-run explosion in the fifth with Jon Talley knocking one out of the park for a two-run tater. The other runs came on RBI singles by Jack Murphy and Michael Crouse and a sacrifice fly by Ahrens. Ahrens and Jacobo had two hits apiece while Schimpf and Kevin Nolan had two walks each along with a stolen base. Marcus Knecht did not have a hit but did draw three bases on balls. Kenen Baili made it into the hit column with a double.
Shawn Griffith got the start against the Rays affiliate and allowed just one hit, one walk while hitting a batter over three shutout innings. He struck out three and four of his six outs in play were on the grass. Bryan Longpre (1-0) was nicked for a run on three hits but struck out two over three innings. Dayton Marze overcame a pair of hits to work a scoreless eighth and Trystan Magnuson was burned for a solo home run among his two hits but struck out four over two frames.
South Bend, IN - Andy Burns drew a leadoff walk in the fourth and was promptly cashed home by a Kevin Pillar double for the only run of the game. Pillar had two hits and Burns drew two walks. Chris Hawkins and Andy Fermin each had a hit and a walk. K.C. Hobson and Aaron Munoz joined Burns in the two-walks club. Kenny Wilson was 0-for-5, Shane Opitz was 0-for-4 and Markus Brisker was 0-for-3.
Marcus Walden (4-1) went the minimum five innings for the win. He allowed just three baserunners (one hit, two walks), struck out one and nine of his 14 outs in play remained in the infield. Brandon Berl allowed just one hit and struck out a batter over two shutout frames and Javier Avendano punched out four of the six batters he faced for the two-inning save.
*** 3 Stars!!! ***
3. Javier Avendano, Lansing
2. Kevin Ahrens, Dunedin
1. Marcus Walden, Lansing
