2-2 on Sunday for the affiliates.  Horrible nights for the Fisher Cats and Lugnuts were offset by a great start from David Purcey and some big bats for the D-Jays.

Game two of the Las Vegas doubleheader, top of the seventh, game tied at 0-0, Dave Delucci leads off with a single, steals second and scores the eventual winning run on a sacrifice fly.  The only other win was Dunedin who won 11-0 behind an Eric Thames home run and great pitching from Kenny Rodriguezz and Trystan Magnuson.

Two wins and two losses... Not bad for the affiliates given the poor seasons they all seem to be having.

Las Vegas won big in Colorado behind a great night at the plate by Jason Lane. New Hampshire was postponed while Andrew Liebel suffered another loss in Dunedin. Meanwhile, a former Blue Jay farmhand came back to haunt the Jays as scored the winning run in Lansing’s extra-inning loss.

What did we learn on this night? Some of the prospects can really hit. Everyone brought their bats but the Fisher Cats. And the 51s, but they were off. Sadly, they almost out-performed the Fisher Cats' hitters.

Only a Lansing doubleheader split prevented a winless night for the affiliates as they went 1-4.  However, some individuals managed to shine - especially at Oldsmobile Park.

A strong day on the farm featured three wins and a dominating pitching performance in Las Vegas.

Move along people nothing to see here, except for four losses. Picking the three stars was tough, Brian Van kirk was an obvious choice for #1, he reached base all five times he came to the plate.  Andrew Liebel had another good start, Reidier Gonzlaez was good for 5.2 innings before giving up five runs in the fifth, channelling Scott Richmond perhaps.  The four affiliates combined for 8 runs.

If you start from the top, things don't look so good with both Las Vegas and New Hampshire losing. But the A-ball affiliates saved the day - especially after Lansing came from behind to score eight runs in the final two innings to defeat Fort Wayne.

There were four games on the farm yesterday and the affiliates won three of them. There was a pitcher’s duel in Double-A between one of Toronto’s better pitching prospects and a Double-A veteran better known for being a minor part of the biggest trades of the past few years. Lansing won with a timely homer, demonstrating that when a team gets runners on with two out there’s no rule you have to strand them on base. Production from the bottom of Dunedin’s lineup and some good middle relief propelled them to a comfortable win and Las Vegas won behind Brett Cecil.

Every organization has at least one player who has all the talent in the world, but they just continue to drive management (and more importantly fans) crazy with their inconsistencies. In Toronto, we have David Purcey... or, Mr. One-Good-Game, then Mr. One-Bad-Game. Unfortunately for Las Vegas, last night was his bad game.

It was a 2-2 night for the affiliates as the Lugnuts and D-Jays put one in the win column.

A week after complaining that the affiliates never play well on Mondays, and threatening to fact-check that claim, the affiliates threw a wrench in my plans by going 3-0. The evening featured excellent starting pitching at all 3 levels, and one player went 5-5 with a home run. Who was it? Guess you'll just have to click through!

I was in Lansing over the weekend and I saw two games, both Lansing wins.  I had the opportunity to talk with the Lansing manager, Clayton McCullough, the Jays roving pitching instructor, Dane Johnson, the Jays roving hitting instructor, Chad Mottola, and another roving instructor, Mel Queen, as well as several players.  Look for these interviews on Batters Box over the next week or so.  We will start with what I saw in the two games I attended.  Here is a quick scouting report as well as some comments on the Dunedin Jays from a scout I was talking to.

A fairly uneventful day on the farm as the affiliates went just 1-3.  Highlights included a couple of strong starting performances and some big power from the usual suspects in New Hampshire.