Alright, I'm settling for quick recaps all week. Full recaps will return with Friday night's games. OKC defeated New Orleans 10-7 The Redhawks scored at least 1 run from the 2nd to the 6th. Crash Hessman went 2-4 with a solo homer, his 18th of the season. Jimmy Paredes went 4-5 with a 2-run single. J.B. Shuck went 2-5 with a 2-run double, Brad Snyder and Scott Moore drove in 1 each, and Landon Powell was 3-5 with 3 runs scored. Paul Clemens went 5 innings and allowed 5 runs on 7 hits (2-run homer), walked 3, and struck out 2. Mickey Storey pitched a perfect 7th and got 2 outs in the 8th, striking out 3 in the process. Fernando Abad got his 2nd save of the year. Corpus Christi defeated San Antonio 6-1 The Hooks got an excellent start from Brett Oberholtzer, who allowed a run on 6 hits and struck out 8 in 7 2/3 innings of work. Jason Stoffel got the last out of the 8th and the first out of the 9th, allowing a hit and striking out both men he faced. He also chipped in an RBI double. Not kidding. Drew Locke unleashed a grand slam in the 7th to break a scoreless tie. Jose Martinez went 2-4 with an RBI double in the 8th that scored Stoffel. Lancaster defeated Rancho Cucamonga 3-2 Domingo Santana scored the go-ahead run in the 9th when he dashed home when Scott McGough threw the ball away trying to pick him off 3rd base. Enrique Hernandez had an RBI double in the 5th and Ben Heath went 2-3 with a double and an RBI groundout, also in the 5th. Tyson Perez pitched 6 2/3 innings, and allowed 2 runs on 4 hits (2-run homer), walked 3, and fanned 8. Jose Trinidad got the win in relief, allowing a hit, a walk, and recording a strikeout, and Andrew Robinson got the save, his 2nd of the season. Lexington lost to West Virginia 9-7 Not a very good night for Nick Tropeano, as the Power knocked him around for 4 innings. He allowed 6 runs (5 earned) on 8 hits (2-run homer), walked 2, and struck out 2. Jesse Wierzbicki went solo in the 4th for his 1st homer of the season, and Zach Johnson was 4-5 with a 2-run homer in the 7th. He also reached on an error in the 4th, but was apparently credited with an RBI. Delino DeShields went 2-4 with a 2-run single and stole 3 bases. He's now got 41 thefts on the season. Jordan Scott had a hat trick and an RBI. DSL Astros lose 12-6 to the DSL Rays After the Astros jumped out to a 6-1 lead, the Rays scored 11 unanswered from the 6th to the 9th to double up the DSLstros. Arturo Michelena and Cristian Murillo drove in 1 each. Those were the only RBIs for the Academy. Yoel Silfa went 1-4 and scored twice. Samil De Los Santos allowed 4 runs (3 earned) on 5 hits (solo homer) in 5 1/3 innings, walking 1 and striking out 6. Johan Arias got the loss, as he allowed 4 runs on 3 hits (3-run homer) while only getting 1 out in the 7th.
Tri-City rosters announced. Pitchers <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Pitchers: Velasquez, J. Perez, Bircher, Holmes, West, Ballew, J. Cotton, K. Long, J. Meiners, J. Minaya, Neely, Propst, Shirley</p>— Tri-City ValleyCats (@ValleyCats) <a href="https://twitter.com/ValleyCats/status/212908702032871426" data-datetime="2012-06-13T14:06:04+00:00">June 13, 2012</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> Position Players <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>OF: Aplin, Gulbranson, E. King <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%2523Astros">#Astros</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%2523OpeningDay">#OpeningDay</a> <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%2523ValleyCats">#ValleyCats</a></p>— Tri-City ValleyCats (@ValleyCats) <a href="https://twitter.com/ValleyCats/status/212909186433028096" data-datetime="2012-06-13T14:08:00+00:00">June 13, 2012</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script> <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Catchers: J. Morales, M. Cokinos...INF: Elkins, Sclafani, Dineen, C. Davidson, N. Johnson</p>— Tri-City ValleyCats (@ValleyCats) <a href="https://twitter.com/ValleyCats/status/212909037296173058" data-datetime="2012-06-13T14:07:24+00:00">June 13, 2012</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
At some point, they have to give Hessman a chance, right? I realize his age and position isn't exactly a needed commodity right now...but the dude is on fire (1.449 OPS in the last 10 days )
Paredes is raking right now!! Such an intriguing prospect...I know he isn't walking at all but when your seeing the ball like he is right now can you blame him?? Looking at his career #'s he's never walked very much but he's consistently hit well regardless of position. He's also got 18SB and makes things happen with his legs. My guess is they don't want to bring him up as a backup utility guy which I completely agree with but when would this kid ever get a chance at 2B with Jose destroying major league pitchers??
From the looks of the Twitterverse, it looks like Drew Muren is being promoted to Corpus Christi. To make room for him, Austin Wates was placed on the DL due to tightness in his quad.
If we had a respectable High A i would say it's time to promote Folty, but seeing as how almost all of our true prospects have to skip High A his next stop is Corpus and I don't think he's quite ready for that. DD seems ready to move on also, his most important numbers .372 OBP, 46 runs, 42 steals in 48 attempts. And he's finally getting that batting average up, .322 over his last 21 games. Projected out to a 162 game season, thats 115 runs and 105 steals, those are some pretty gaudy numbers. And he's trending upward. They can go ahead and send him to Lancaster. Send Matt Duffy also.
Duffy might be a guy who could probably hold his own in Corpus. He's leapt ahead of Jonathan Meyer in the pecking order at 3B, IMO. Also, one note to make: The Tri-City roster is tentative and is subject to change.
OKC lost to New Orleans 3-0 The Redhawks were held to 2 hits in this one. Wes Musick pitched 5 innings and allowed an unearned run on 3 hits, walked 4, and struck out 3. Aneury Rodriguez came in after Musick and allowed 2 runs on 2 hits in 1 2/3 innings of relief. Corpus Christi defeated San Antonio 10-6 The Hooks turned a 4-3 deficit and blew the game open, scoring 7 in the 8th. Drew Locke hit a grand slam for the 2nd straight game. Jonathan Singleton is currently mired in a 4-33 slump over his last 10, as he went 0-3 with a hat trick. He's had 3 strikeouts in 3 of his last 4 games. Chris Wallace went 3-4 with 2 doubles and 2 RBI. It looks like Jonathan Villar left early. Well, the left side of the infield was shuffled with Jordan Kreke, who started at 3rd, shifting to shortstop, and Jair Fernandez, who's normally a catcher, came on to play 3rd. He played 3 games at 3rd in 2010 when he was with the New Britain Rock Cats, Minnesota's AA club. Kreke finished 2-5 with an RBI double, and Fernandez was 2-2 with 2 runs scored, a double and an RBI single. Drew Muren got the start in center for his Hooks debut. Out of the 8th spot, he went 1-3 with an RBI triple and scored twice. Even Kevin Chapman had an RBI groundout in the 8th. Chapman struck out 2 in the 8th and was tossed for throwing behind Ali Solis in the 9th. Jair Fernandez was plunked in the 8th, so Chapman thought he'd return the favor. The Missions jumped Jake Buchanan for 4 in the 1st, but he settled down nicely after that. He allowed 4 runs on 7 hits, walked 2, and struck out 8 in 7 innings. Lancaster lost 3-2 against Rancho Cucamonga With this loss, the Jethawks bowed out of the 1st half division race. A 2-run single from Erik Castro was the only offense for the Jethawks in this one. Ben Orloff went 2-4 with a run scored. Jorge De Leon went 5 2/3 and allowed 2 runs on 5 hits (solo homer), walked 2, and struck out 4. Zach Grimmett picked a bad time to allow his first hit and run of the game, as he served up the go-ahead solo homer to Joc Pederson in the bottom of the 8th. Lexington beat West Virginia 9-2 6 runs in the 5th sent the Legends on their way to a win. Mike Foltynewicz still has not lost since Opening Day. In 6 1/3 innings, he allowed 2 runs on 5 hits (solo homer), walked 3, and struck out 4. Evan Grills finished off with 2 2/3 scoreless, allowing 1 hit and striking out 1. The big hit of the night belonged to Chan-Jong Moon, whose 3-run homer (2) pretty much turned the game on its head. Hope Moon gets his shot to be the everyday SS up there. Delino DeShields went 2-5 with a double, scored twice, and stole his 42nd base. Roberto Pena and Zach Johnson each had an RBI. Mike Kvasnicka went 2-5 with a double. DSL Astros lost 10-5 to the DSL Rayss Well, the Rays get their 1st 2 wins of the year against the Astros. Mesac Laguna's 2-run homer constituted the only RBIs for the Academy. Arturo Michelena had a triple. 5 guys scored 1 run apiece. Luis Abad pitched 3 innings and allowed 3 runs on 4 hits, walking 2 and striking out 2.
Reflecting recent signings. 1. Carlos Correa, SS, Puerto Rico Baseball Academy (committed to Miami) 1 Supp. Lance McCullers, RHP, Jesuit HS, Tampa (Florida) 2. Nolan Fontana, SS, Florida 3. Brady Rodgers, RHP, Arizona State (JR) 4. Rio Ruiz, 3B, Bishop Amat HS, La Puente, California (USC) 5. Andrew Aplin, CF, Arizona State (JR) 6. Brett Phillips, CF, Seminole HS, Seminole, Florida (NC State) 7. Preston Tucker, LF, Florida 8. Tyler Heineman, C, UCLA (JR) 9. Dan Minor, RHP, Texas A&M- Corpus Christi (JR) 10. Joe Bircher, LHP, Bradley 11. Hunter Virant, LHP, Adolfo Camarillo HS, Camarillo, California (UCLA) 12. Terrell Joyce, LF, Florida State College (JUCO SOPH) (committed to Virginia Tech) 13. Brian Holmes, LHP, Wake Forest (JR) 14. Joe Sclafani, SS, Dartmouth (JR) 15. Erick Gonzalez, Gateway CC, Phoenix, Arizona (JUCO SOPH) 16. Dan Gulbransen, LF, Jacksonville U (JR) 17. Aaron West, RHP, Washington 18. Ricky Gingras, C, Point Loma Nazarene(JR) 19. Austin Elkins, 2B, Dallas Baptist (JR) 20. Michael Clark, LHP, Kent State (JR) 21. Marc Wik, CF, Chabot College (California) (JUCO SOPH) 22. Kenny Long, LHP, Illinois State (5th-yr SR) 23. Travis Ballew, RHP, Texas State (JR) 24. Pat Blair, SS, Wake Forest (JR) 25. Ryan Dineen, SS, Eastern Illinois (JR) 26. C.J. Hinojosa, SS, Klein Collins HS (Texas) 27. Tanner Mathis, CF, Ole Miss (JR) 28. Angel Ibanez, 3B, Texas-Pan American (JR) 29. Christian Garcia, RHP, Florence-Darlington Technical College (JUCO SOPH) 30. John Neely, RHP, Texas Tech 31. Michael "M.P." Cokinos, C, St. Mary's University (Texas) (JR) 32. Tyler Manez, LHP, Plainedge HS, North Massapequa, NY (Elon) 33. Mike Hauschild, RHP, Dayton 34. Jordan "J.J." Jankowski, RHP, Catawba College 35. Jimmy Sinatro, C, Skyline HS, Sammamish, Washington (Gonzaga) 36. Michael Martinez, 1B, Florida International 37. Michael Dimock, RHP, Wake Forest 38. Zach Remillard, 3B, La Salle Institute, Troy, NY (Coastal Carolina) 39. Mitchell Traver, RHP, Houston Christian HS (TCU) 40. Joe Shaw, RHP, Ennis HS, Ennis, Texas (Dallas Baptist) Where are they headed? Or, more appropriately, where might they be headed? Tri-City Brady Rodgers, RHP (3) Andrew Aplin, OF (5) Joe Bircher, LHP (10) Brian Holmes, LHP (13) Joe Sclafani, SS (14) Dan Gulbranson, OF (16) Kenny Long, LHP (22) John Neely, RHP (30) M.P. Cokinos (31) Aaron West, RHP (17) Travis Ballew, RHP (23) West's and Ballew's assignments haven't been formally announced yet, but it looks like they're headed to New York. Greeneville Dan Minor, RHP (9) Terrell Joyce, OF (12) Ricky Gingras, C (18) Marc Wik, CF (21) Angel Ibanez, 3B (28) Jordan Jankowski, RHP (34) Mike Martinez, 1B (36) GCL Carlos Correa, SS (1) Brett Phillips, CF (6) Erick Gonzalez, RHP (15) Also, 3 players were released last week. http://www.baseballamerica.com/blog/prospects/2012/06/minor-league-transactions-june-5-11/ Joe Witkowski, Max Ayarza, and Mario Gonzalez were all released. Ayarza, a 20-year-old shortstop from Panama, hit .148/.217/.241 in 54 at-bats (23 games) with a double, 2 triples, and 6 RBI for the GCL Astros last season. He walked 5 times and struck out 14 times, and was 1-3 in stolen base attempts. Prior to last season, he spent 2 years with the DSL club, hitting .260/.311/.320 with a homer and 13 RBI in 150 ABs (46 games) in 2010. Gonzalez is a 20-year-old (turns 21 Christmas Day) 1B from Panama who never made it out of the Academy. Last year, he hit .273/.443/.398 in 176 ABs (64 games) with 11 doubles, a triple, 3 homers, and 32 RBI. He drew 50 walks and only struck out 25 times. Witkowski is a 23-year-old (24 on August 1) catcher who was signed as an undrafted free agent out of St. John's last season. He appeared in 18 games in the GCL, getting 50 at-bats. He hit .220/.291/.280 with a double, a triple, and 4 RBI, with 3 walks and 10 strikeouts.
Short season rosters are up. I'll post the rosters, and then I'll post my prospective lineups. Tri-City Lineup C: Morales/Cokinos 1B: Davidson 2B: Elkins/Johnson (Neiko can play anywhere) SS: Sclafani 3B: Dineen LF: McKinney CF: Aplin RF: Gulbransen DH: Whoever isn't starting between Cokinos and Morales Rotation: Velasquez, Rodgers, Ballew, Cotton, Bircher Greeneville C: Genoves/Gingras 1B: Martinez 2B: Magee/Sosa (Sosa would probably be the utility guy) SS: Batista/Blasik 3B: Ibanez LF: Joyce CF: Toney/Wik RF: Ovando/Monzon DH: Joyce, when he's not in the field; otherwise, I think it's between Monzon and Gingras. Every OF, probably with the exception of Joyce, might get time in all three spots. Rotation: Houser, Minor, Lee, Jankowski, Hauschild Bushue will probably get time in the rotation to get back up to speed. If he's in Greeneville the whole time, kiss his prospect status goodbye. GCL C: Polanco/Alfredo Gonzalez 1B: Redinger 2B: Solano/Martone, with Mejia playing both 2B and SS SS: Correa/Fernandez 3B: Rivera LF: Wallace Gonzalez CF: Reynolds/Phillips platoon RF: Hernandez DH: Reynolds, Phillips, and Gonzalez on days where they don't play in the field Rotation: Culbreth, Feliz, Guduan, Montero, Franco
Congratulations Texas League All-Stars!!!! <blockquote class="twitter-tweet"><p>Here are the <a href="https://twitter.com/search/%2523CCHooks">#CCHooks</a> All-Stars: Jose Martinez, Jon Singleton, Austin Wates, Jon Villar, Kevin Chapman, Brett Oberholtzer, Jason Stoeffel</p>— Corpus Christi Hooks (@cchooks) <a href="https://twitter.com/cchooks/status/213376884443054080" data-datetime="2012-06-14T21:06:28+00:00">June 14, 2012</a></blockquote> <script src="//platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script>
Ah.... forgot about the guys still in the College World Series. I think they'll be off to Tri-City. Fontana becomes the everyday SS, Tucker gets time in at LF/DH, Heineman slides to #2 catcher and gets some run as a DH, and Clark comes out of the pen. Notable Names not on any Roster Garen Wright, Miles Hamblin, Jay Austin, Juan Santana, Kilby Pena, Jack Armstrong, Jose Perdomo, Kyle Hallock, Krishawn Holley, Chia-jen Lo
Forgot that Hallock wasn't in Lexington anymore. I feel bad for Lo. He looked to be on the fast track to the big leagues before injuries derailed him.
Tommy John surgery. Out for season. And also, Carlos Lee hit a 2-run homer in the 1st game of his rehab assignment.
