SB Nation - Stephen Chapman

Farmers Only: Weekend Recap

BK — Mon, 17 Aug 2009 11:00:33 -0000

Roster Moves: As previously noted, Juan Francisco is in Louisville now, and Shaun Cumberland has rejoined the outfield mix in Carolina. Kris Negron has joined Sarasota, and Oscar Castro moves from Dayton to Billings, with Hector Santana taking his place. After sitting out for a lot of the year, Misael DeJesus is on the active roster in the GCL.
Louisville had a decent weekend, winning 2 out of 3 against Toledo. They won 4-0 on Friday behind a stellar pitching performance by Matt Klinker. Klinker went 7 1/3 innings of 2-hit ball, and struck out 9 while walking 3. Pedro Viola gave up only one hit in his 1 2/3 to close it out. Drew Stubbs was 2-for-5 with a RBI, and Eric Eymann and Chris Denove had two hits each as well. On Saturday, they won 4-1 behind a decent rehab start by Micah Owings. Micah went 5 2/3 innings of shutout ball, only giving up 3 hits and striking out 3, but issued 5 walks. That's a little concerning. Logan Ondrusek notched his 5th save. In the cleanup spot, El Nino Destructor was 2-for-4 with a double and a RBI in his AAA debug. Wes Bankston was 3-for-4 with a HR, and Corky Miller and Daniel Dorn had two hits each. The Bats lost the weekend-cap 7-2 as Sam LeCure had some trouble. Bankston and Dorn had 3 and 2 hits respectively (again), and Chris Valaika added two hits of his own. Up next: The Bats take on Indy at 7:05. No starter listed, but it should be Travis Wood.
Carolina took two of three from Birmingham over the weekend. On Friday, the Mudcats lost 11-6 behind another terrible outing by Zach Ward. He's started 3 games so far in Carolina and is the proud owner of a 23.14 ERA. That's not very good. Logan Parker drove in 3 runs in the game as well. Camilo Vazquez turned the table on Saturday night, leading the team to a 8-1 win. Vazquez pitched 5 1/3 innings of 1-run ball, and Joe Krebs pitched 2 2/3 no-hit innings of relief before Greg Atencio struck out the side in a perfect 9th. Stephen Chapman led the way with 3 hits for the offense, and Jake Kahaulelio and Korey Feiner drove in 2 runs each. They won on Sunday too, 4-3. Alexander Smit pitched 7 innings and gave up 2 runs. Up next: Luis Montano takes on Jacksonville at 7:05.
Sarasota had a mostly down weekend against Fort Myers. They won 3-1 Friday, lost 3-1 on Saturday, and dropped both games of a Sunday doubleheader 6-3 and 4-3. On Friday, Curtis Partch pitched 7 innings and only gave up 1 unearned run while striking out 6, and Mace Thurman pitched 2 scoreless innings for his 6th save of the year. Jason Louwsma was 2-for-3. Kris Negron was 0-for-3 in his Reds debut on Saturday, but Neftali Soto and Dave Sappelt each had two hits. Matt Fairel had a good start, going 6 innings of 1-run ball, but Josh Beal gave up 2 in the 9th to get the loss. Jeremy Horst earned his 12th loss in game 1 of the doubleheader, and Pedro Villarreal gave up 2 runs in 5 2/3 in the nightcap. Up next: Travis Webb takes on Jupiter at 7.
Dayton lost all three of their games over the weekend, and are now on a 5 game skid. They lost 9-7 to West Michigan on Friday, as Chase Ware got roughed up in his first start. Humberto Sosa and Tony Brown had two hits each and Byron Wiley homered. They lost 7-1 to Fort Wayne on Saturday, as Ezequiel Infante had his first bad start of the year. He gave up 5 runs in 4 innings. Carlos Mendez homered and Josh Fellhauer was 2-for-4. They lost 5-1 on Sunday despite a great start by Jordan Hotchkiss. Hotchkiss only gave up 1 hit in 5 innings, and struck out 6 while walking nobody. Up next: Dayton takes on Fort Wayne at 7:05.
Billings only played 1 game over the weekend, with the game on Saturday being rained out and the doubleheader Sunday being postponed due to wet grounds. The Mustangs lost 7-3 to Casper on Friday, mostly due to a bad outing by Tim Crabbe. The top 3 hitters in the order (Mariekson Gregorius, Yorman Rodriguez, and Yen-Wen Kuo) all had two hits. Up next: Blair Carson takes on Idaho Falls at 9:05.
The GCL Reds only played 1 game too, with their Sunday game being rained out and their off day on Saturday. They lost 6-3 on Friday. Misael DeJesus pitched a scoreless inning for the start, and Jefry Sierra was 3-for-4. Up next: They take on the GCL O's at noon.

Farmers Only: Mark Serrano is the new ace in Dayton

BK — Thu, 13 Aug 2009 11:00:22 -0000

Louisville lost 10-9 to Lehigh Valley in 10 innings. After scoring in the 9th to take a 9-8 lead, the Bats gave up runs in the 9th and 10th, the latter coming off of an error by pitcher Sean Watson. Matt Maloney was not good in his start, giving up 6 runs in 5 innings, and Logan Ondrusek allowed a solo shot in the 9th, his first run as a Bat. Chris Heisey and Wes Bankston both had 2 hits, a homer, and 3 RBI, and Luis Bolivar and Darnell McDonald had two hits each as well. Up next: Ben Jukich gets the start against Lehigh Valley at 7:05.
Carolina lost 9-1 to Birmingham as Luis Montano continued his rough stretch. Jose Castro was 2-for-4 and Stephen Chapman hit his 5th HR of the year. Up next: The Mudcats take on Birmingham at 7:15 behind Zach Ward and his 23.14 ERA. Yikes.
Sarasota beat Jupiter 4-2 behind a strong outing by Travis Webb. Webb gave up 4 hits in 7 shutout innings, while striking out 4. Denis Phipps and Jake Kahaulelio each homered, and Neftali Soto was 2-for-4. Up next: Lance Janke takes on Jupiter at 7:05.

Serrano

Dayton won an exciting game 5-4 in extra innings. The Dragons had a 3-0 lead going into the 9th, but gave up 3 to tie, and it looked bleak when they gave up a run in the 13th, but they put up 2 in the bottom of the inning to win the game on an error. Mark Serrano had a great start in his 7 innings of work. He gave up 2 hits and no runs, and struck out 10 while walking nobody. Josh Fellhauer was 3-for-5, including a triple to lead off the 13th inning, and Cody Puckett hit a solo shot, his 17th of the year. Up next: The Dragons take on West Michigan at 7. J.C. Sulbaran gets the start.
Billings got destroyed by Idaho Falls 11-2. Ricky Bowen gave up 2 unearned runs in his 3 inning start, but the bullpen imploded. Chris Richburg was 3-for-4 and Yorman Rodriguez and Sean Conner were 2-for-4 with a RBI. Up next: Luca Panerati takes on Idaho Falls at 9:15 ET.
The GCL Reds supposedly played, but their score wasn't posted on MiLB.com for some reason. More info as I get it.

Farmers Only: Weekend Review

BK — Mon, 10 Aug 2009 11:00:14 -0000

Roster Moves: No new callups for Louisville, but Micah Owings and Chris Dickerson are there in the middle of rehab stints. In Carolina, Phillipe-Alexandre Valiquette and Scott Carroll are on the DL, and a new face joins the Mudcats in Greg Atencio, who last played for Omaha, the Royals AAA affiliate. Alexander Smit is off the DL in Sarasota, and Lance Janke joins the rotation out there. After a solid start for the GCL team, third baseman Henry Rodriguez skipped 2 levels up to Sarasota. Expect to see Daryl Thompson back soon as well, as he's rehabbing with the GCL team alongside Yonder Alonso, who was recently shut down for the time being. New faces down there include IF Mauricio Pimental, who comes from Billings, and the season debut for pitcher Luis Machuca, who you may remember as one of those named to the WBC preliminary roster for the Panama team.
Louisville scored 5 runs in the 9th on Sunday to salvage a game in their series against Rochester over the weekend. They lost 3-0 on Friday, in a game where they only mustered up 6 hits. 2 of the hits were by Daniel Dorn, and Chris Dickerson and Drew Stubbs each had a hit. Ben Jukich started the game and gave up 3 unearned runs in 5 innings, and it's worth noting that Jared Burton had a perfect inning of relief. They lost Saturday too, a 3-2 loss in a game that Matt Klinker had a good start in, but ended up getting the loss. Klinker gave up 1 earned run in 5 1/3 innings and struck out 5, and Enerio Del Rosario and Ramon Ramirez were perfect in their 1 2/3 and 1 innings of relief. Stubbs and Chris Denove both knocked in runs. In Sunday's 7-2 win, Chris Heisey was 2-for-5 with a HR, Wes Bankston knocked in 2 runs, and Dorn had 2 hits. Sam Lecure had a good outing, going 6 2/3 innings of 2 runs ball. Pedro Viola gave up a hit and a walk in his relief inning, and Burton and Logan Ondrusek were perfect in theirs, with Burton getting the win. Up next: Micah Owings takes a rehab start against Lehigh Valley at 7:05.
After a drubbing on Friday night, Carolina bounced back to win their other two games on the weekend against West Tenn. They lost on Friday night 20-9. Zach Ward, Chris Kelly, and Jerry Gil all gave up 6 runs in less than 2 innings each. Thankfully, these are probably the three worst pitchers on the staff right now. Juan Francisco and Stephen Chapman had three hits in the game, and Logan Parker homered. On a brighter note, they won Saturday night 7-3. Tom Cochran had another start where he gave up less than 3 runs (his 6th in a row), and Joe "The Cycle" Krebs pitched 3 one-hit innings for the save. El Nino Destructor had two more hits, and Chapman had two hits and drove in 3 runs. Jason Bour also had a nice game, going 3-for-5. The Mudcats put up 3 in the 9th to overtake West Tenn 6-4 on Sunday. Jose Castro went 3-for-4 and Todd Frazier hit his 13th HR of the season, a 3-run shot in the 9th to take the lead for good. Camilo Vazquez gave up 4 runs in 5 innings in his start, and Ruben Medina, Greg Atencio, and Sean Watson combining for 4 no-hit innings of relief. Up next: Jeremy Horst takes on West Tenn at 8:05.
Sarasota lost all three of their games over the weekend. On Friday, they lost 3-1 in 10 innings to St. Lucie. Lance Janke made his High-A debut, and pitched 6 innings of scoreless 3-hit ball, striking out 5 and walking nobody. Pedro Villarreal pitched 4 innings after that, and gave up the last 2 runs in the 10th inning. Dave Sappelt was 3-for-5. In Saturday's game, the S-Reds tied it up with 3 runs in the 9th before losing the game in the 13th 8-7. Curtis Partch started, and gave up 4 earned runs in 4 1/3 innings. Mark Pawelek pitched 3 strong innings in relief. Neftali Soto led the way for the offense, going 2-for-6 with a HR and 5 RBI. Sappelt had three more hits in this one, and Justin Reed had two. Matt Fairel had some trouble early, and it was too much to overcome as the S-Reds lost to Fort Myers 6-1 on Sunday. Jason Louwsma drove in the only run, and Josh Beal pitched 3 innings of scoreless relief. Up next: Alexander Smit takes his first start off the DL against Fort Myers at 7.
Dayton swept Lansing in all three of their games over the weekend, a 3-2 win Friday, a 18-5 pounding on Saturday, and a 10-9 victory on Sunday. Carlos Mendez was 3-for-4 on Sunday, and Mark Serrano pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings in his start. Donnie Joseph struck out 5 in two scoreless innings for the save. The offense was alive on Saturday, as evidenced by some of these lines. Kevyn Feiner was 5-for-6 with 4 doubles and 6 RBI. Cody Puckett was 4-for-6 with 2 doubles and a RBI. Enrique Rojas and Kevin Coddington each drove in 4 runs. Alexis Oliveras and Josh Fellhauer each had 3 hits, with the latter hitting his 6th HR of the season. The pitching could have been terrible, but it was actually pretty decent. J.C. Sulbaran gave up 2 runs in 5 innings, and Michael Konstanty ended up pitching an inning in the blowout win. Sunday's game was much closer, as Shea Snowden gave up a lot of runs early, but ended up scoring 7 in the 3rd to keep in the game. Humberto Sosa and Tony Brown homered for the Dragons, with Brown's being a grand slam. Up next: Ezequiel Infante takes on Lansing at 7:05.
Billings was rained out on Friday, and played a doubleheader on Saturday, with the second game getting rained out. So while Sarasota played 32 innings over the weekend, Billings only played 7, winning the game 2-1. Luca Panerati pitched the whole thing, giving up 1 unearned run in 7 innings, striking out 5 and walking none. Unquestionably his best outing of the season. Up next: Blair Carson takes on Idaho Falls at 9:05.
The GCL Reds played 2 full games and 2 doubleheader games over the weekend. On Friday, they beat the GCL Orioles 5-4 in 10 innings. Mitchell Clarke had the best outing for the pitching staff, pitching 3 scoreless innings. Jefry Sierra went 4-for-6 and Derrick Lowery had three hits for the G-Reds. They split a doubleheader with the GCL Red Sox, losing 5-4 in the first game and winning the second game 2-0. Billy Hamilton had two hits in the first game, and Harold Johnson gave up 1 run in 7 innings of work with 7 strikeouts. Luis Machuca pitched 6 shutout innings in the second game of the day, striking out 6 in his 2009 debut. Raul Rodriguez pitched a scoreless inning to get the save. They lost to the GCL Twins on Sunday 5-4. Daniel Tuttle pitched 4 innings of 1-run ball and Trey Manz was 3-for-4 with a HR. Up next: The G-Reds are off.

Farmers Only: Drew Stubbs' late inning heroics would have come in handy in Cincy

BK — Wed, 29 Jul 2009 11:00:32 -0000

Louisville won a wild one against Toledo 6-5 in 11. The game was tied 2-2 in the 6th, and stayed that way until the Mud Hens put up 3 runs on Jeff Kennard. Louisville rallied to score 4 times in the bottom of the inning, with hits by Eric Eymann and Daniel Dorn setting the table and Drew Stubbs doubling in the winning run. Stubbs was 3-for-5 in the game. Sure couldn't use that at the top of the lineup, right Walt? Ben Jukich had another good start, going 6 innings of 2-run ball, striking out 9. In relief, Kip Wells pitched a scoreless inning, and Zach Stewart went 1 2/3 innings of hitless ball. I think we can rule out all three of them for Friday's start. It's looking more and more like Lehr's. Up next: Sam LeCure is scheduled to take on Toledo at 7:05.
Carolina also had a comeback in extra innings, as they beat Chattanooga 5-4 in 13. After Jerry Gil walked 5 hitters to give up the leading run (one was caught stealing), Juan Francisco doubled in two runs to give the Mudcats the win. El Nino Destructor went 3-for-6 with a HR (his 19th) and 3 RBI in the game, and Stephen Chapman hit his 4th HR of the season. Matt Klinker started the game, and pitched well, giving up 1 run in 6 innings, striking out 8. Up next: Tom Cochran takes on Chattanooga at 7:15.
Jason Louwsma was the hero, singling in the winning run in the 9th as Sarasota beat Daytona 3-2. Zach Ward started and gave up 1 run in 2 1/3 innings of work, and Pedro Villarreal and Steven Otterness picked up the slack, pitching 3 relief innings each. Villarreal gave up 1 run and Otterness gave up 1 hit to seal the deal. Alex Buchholz and Shane Carlson had two hits each. Up next: Jeremy Horst takes on Daytona at 7.
Dayton had the opposite happen, as Aguido Gonzalez blew the save in the 9th to fall 4-3 to Peoria. Kevin Coddington went 3-for-3 with a walk and Byron Wiley had two hits, including a HR. Mark Serrano started, and gave up 2 runs in 5 innings. Ezequiel Infante and Donnie Joseph pitched scoreless relief outings. Up next: J.C. Sulbaran takes on Peoria at 7.
Billings lost 8-2 to Great Falls, as Luca Panerati got lit up. The Billings pitching staff has been terrible, as Jason Braun has the best ERA out of anyone who pitched tonight at 6.19, and that's after two perfect innings. Mariekson Gregorius was 3-for-5 and Tyler Stovall was 2-for-4. The Golden Child Yorman Rodriguez was 1-for-4 with 3 strikeouts. Ouch. Up next: Tim Crabbe takes on Missoula at 9:05.
The GCL Reds were blanked by the GCL Orioles 2-0. Harold Johnson started and gave up 2 unearned runs in 4 innings of work to lower his ERA to 1.06 on the season. Nathan Driessen and Raul Rodriguez were also good, each pitching two innings of shutout ball. Henry Rodriguez had two of the G-Reds 6 hits. Up next: The G-Reds take on the GCL Red Sox at noon.
Roster Moves: Federico Baez and Joe "The Cycle" Krebs join the Carolina bullpen. Krebs has put up a 2.45 ERA in 55 relief innings in Sarasota so far. Chris Denove is also off the DL, as Korey Feiner takes his place. Yen-Wen Kuo is back with Dayton after a stint in Billings. Jeremy Ware joins the Dayton bullpen after starting the year in the GCL, and has apparently started going by his middle name, Chase. 43rd round pick Ricky Bowen is with Billings, and 22nd rounder David Stewart is with the GCL team.

Farmers Only: Ben Jukich continues to consume souls in Louisville

BK — Fri, 24 Jul 2009 11:00:32 -0000

Jukich

Louisville won 3-1 behind another good outing by Ben Jukich. The Soulsucker went 6 2/3 innings and gave up 1 run on 3 hits while striking out 5. Jukich hasn't given up more than 3 runs in a start in over a month. Chris Heisey and Corky Miller had two hits each, and Robert Manuel pitched a perfect 9th for his 9th save of the season. Up next: The Bats take on Syracuse at 7 behind Matt Maloney.

Parker

Carolina beat Huntsville 8-4. Tom Cochran pitched 5 innings of 3-run ball, and Enerio Del Rosario gave up 1 run in his first 2 innings of AA. Logan Parker went 3-for-5 with 2 RBI, and Jose Castro, Korey Feiner, Todd Frazier, and Stephen Chapman all had multi-hit games, with Chapman hitting his 3rd HR of the year. On the other side, former farmhand Drew T. Anderson had 3 hits for the Stars. Up next: Scott Carroll makes his first start for the Mudcats after his recent promotion at 8.
Sarasota beat Dunedin by scoring 4 runs in the 9th, 5-3. New S-Reds Zach Ward and Pedro Villarreal pitched 2 and 2 2/3 innings respectively, and The Cycle pitched 2 1/3 shutout innings of relief. Dave Sappelt, Neftali Soto, and Alex Buchholz all had two hits each. Up next: Jeremy Horst takes on Dunedin at 7.
J.C. Sulbaran left with a blister, but Dayton won anyway against Wisconsin, 4-1. Before he left, he had pitched 4 2/3 innings of 1-run ball while striking out 6. Aguido Gonzalez pitched 2 scoreless innings for his 11th save of the year, and Josh Fellhauer led the offense with 2 hits. Up next: Lance Janke takes on Wisconsin at 8:05.
Billings lost to Missoula 6-4, as Luca Panerati had another iffy start. He gave up 4 runs in 6 innings. Thomas Nurre and Efrain Contreras had two hits each. Up next: Tim Crabbe takes on Missoula at 9:05.
The GCL Reds scored in the 9th of a 3-2 game to take the game into extras, scored a run in the top of the 16th, but gave up 2 in the bottom of the inning to lose to the GCL Orioles 5-4 in 16. Henry Rodriguez and Cristobal Rodriguez were both 3-for-7, and the G-Reds had 15 hits in all. Alexander Smit started the game and pitched an inning in a rehab assignment, and was perfect. Harold Johnson gave up 2 runs (1 earned) in 4 innings, and Jeremy Ware gave up 1 run in 4 innings. Nathan Driessen was great in relief, giving up only 1 hit in his 4 innings. Jacob Wiley blew his first save of the season in the bottom of the 16th. Up next: They take on the GCL Red Sox at noon.

Farmers Only: Could Zach Stewart be positioning himself for a September callup?

BK — Wed, 22 Jul 2009 11:00:29 -0000

Stewart

Louisville won 5-2 over Buffalo behind a solid pitching performance by Matt Maloney. Maloney went 7 innings and gave up 2 runs and 2 hits while striking out 6. Zach Stewart pitched two scoreless innings in relief to get the save. That's 9 2/3 innings in Louisville so far without giving up an earned run, and he hasn't given one up since June 24th, when he was a Mudcat. In his 89 total innings (split between 3 levels), his ERA is a stellar 1.62. Wes Bankston was 4-for-4 to lead the offense, and Darnell McDonald hit his 7th HR of the season. As for the other big time prospects, Chris Heisey had a double to go 1-for-4 and Drew Stubbs and Alex Gonzalez on rehab were held hitless. Up next: Louisville takes on Buffalo again at 7:05 wiith Ramon Ramirez taking the hill.
Carolina won on a late-inning rally in Huntsville, 4-3. Stephen Chapman and Todd Frazier both went deep for the Mudcats, and Sean Henry had two hits in the leadoff spot. Lee Tabor wasn't bad, giving up 2 runs in 5 innings, but Sean Watson, Logan Ondrusek, and Phil-Alex Valiquette combined to give up 1 hit in relief to seal the win. Up next: The Mudcats take on Huntsville at 8, with Matt Klinker set to go (probably).

Mr. BubbaFan?

Sarasota lost 4-1 to Clearwater. Dave Sappelt and Neftali Soto had two hits each, and Chris Kelly pitched 2 shutout innings in relief, but that was about all that happened. Up next: Sarasota takes on Dunedin at 7. Luis Montano is likely to get the start.
Dayton was off. J.C. Sulbaran takes on Wisconsin at 8:05.
Billings beat Ogden 7-6 led by a 3-run HR by Thomas Nurre. Shea Snowden had some trouble in his start, but the bullpen shut Ogden down. Up next: The Mustangs are off today.
The GCL Reds were off too. They'll take on the GCL Rays today at noon.

Farmers Only: Weekend Recap

BK — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 11:00:38 -0000

So not having power for 16 hours on Saturday prevented me from having this up yesterday, so we'll look at the big performances over the weekend bullet-style, plus recap Monday night's games.

In Louisville, Wes Bankston was 3-for-4 on Friday.
Kevin Barker was 3-for-4 with his 16th HR on Saturday.
Ben Jukich pitched 8 innings of 2-hit, 2-run ball, and struck out 6 on Saturday.
Adam Pettyjohn pitched 4 1/3 innings of relief on Saturday, and gave up 1 unearned run.
Zach Stewart pitched 2 scoreless innings of relief on Saturday.
Kip Wells got lit up on Sunday.
Infielders Michael Griffin and Luis Bolivar both pitched scoreless innings in relief on Sunday, with Bolivar getting the win.
Stephen Chapman had a pinch hit homer for Carolina on Saturday.
Tom Cochran pitched 5 innings of 2-hit ball on Saturday giving up 1 unearned run and striking out 6.
Travis Wood pitched 7 more shutout innings on Sunday, while giving up 4 hits and striking out 8. 18 scoreless innings now, and he hasn't given up a run since July 3rd.
Carson Kainer was 3-for-4 with 2 RBI on Sunday.
For Sarasota, Jake Kahaulelio was 3-for-5 on Saturday.
Scott Carroll gave up 2 runs in 8 innings on Saturday.
Justin Freeman pitched 3 shutout innings in relief on Saturday, striking out 5.
Enrique Rojas was 4-for-4 for Dayton on Saturday.
Lance Janke pitched 7 innings and gave up 1 run on 4 hits on Saturday.
Matt Fairel pitched 6 innings of 1-run ball on Sunday, striking out 7.
Alexis Oliveras was 3-for-5 on Friday for Billings.
Mariekson Gregorius was 3-for-6 on Friday.
Sean Conner was 2-for-4 with 2 HR and 3 RBI on Sunday.
Blair Carson pitched 3 2/3 innings of shutout relief on Sunday.
Donnie Joseph pitched another perfect inning on Sunday to lower his ERA to 0.77.
Harold Johnson and Jeremy Ware pitched 4 shutout innings each for the GCL Reds on Friday.
Danny Vicioso was 3-for-5 with a HR on Saturday.
Tyler Cline pitched 6 innings of 1-hit scoreless ball on Sunday, while striking out 6.

And for Monday's games...

Justin Lehr won his 12th game of the season as Louisville beat Buffalo 5-1. Lehr went 8 innings of 1-run ball, and a likely jetlagged Robert Manuel pitched an inning as well. Darnell McDonald and Chris Valaika both went deep, and Drew Stubbs and Brian Peterson both had two hits. Alex Gonzalez and Chris Heisey both had one hit and drove in a run each. Up next: Matt Maloney takes on Buffalo at 7:05.
Carolina was off. They'll take on Huntsville at 8.
Sarasota won 3-2 against Clearwater. Dave Sappelt went yard, and Kyle Day went 2-for-4 with a double. Rafael Gonzalez went 6 innings of one run ball. Up next: Travis Webb takes on Clearwater at 7.
Curtis Partch had a quality start as Dayton won 6-3 against Beloit. Every position player in the lineup had at least one hit, with Carlos Mendez, Cody Puckett, and Josh Fellhauer having two. Fellhauer also hit his 2nd HR of the year. Up next: Dayton's off.
Billings lost 6-3 to Ogden. Mark Fleury hit his first professional homer, and Mauricio Pimental had 2 hits. Up next: Shea Snowden takes on Ogden at 9:05.
The GCL Reds were rained out yesterday. They're off today.
Roster Moves: Lots of 'em. New faces in Louisville include catcher Brian Peterson and infielder Eric Eymann from Carolina, Alex Gonzalez on rehab, and Sam LeCure is on the DL. Infielder Justin Tordi, catcher Jason Bour, and FSL All-Star reliever Enerio Del Rosario are with Carolina in AA. Even more interesting is the newest Red in Sarasota, pitcher Zach Ward. Remember him? The Reds traded him in 2006 for Kyle Lohse. He's back. Also joining the S-Reds are pitcher Chris Kelly and Kyle Day, who's listed as a DH but has been used as a corner infielder. Alex Buchholz is finally back with them off the DL, too. After a short stint in Billings, Humberto Sosa is back with the Dragons in Dayton.

Futures Game/Weekend Recap

BK — Mon, 13 Jul 2009 11:00:28 -0000

As you may know, the Reds had two players selected to play in the Futures Game in St. Louis yesterday, Chris Heisey from Louisville for the US team and J.C. Sulbaran out of Dayton for the World team (he's from Curacao). Heisey started the game in LF and batted 6th (between Pedro Alvarez and Tyler Flowers, no less), and went 0-for-2 with a strikeout. Bummer. On the other hand, Sulbaran pitched the 9th inning for the World team with a 2-run lead, and despite walking 2 hitters, didn't allow a hit to earn the save.
Louisville swept their series against Columbus over the weekend to power into the all-star break on a 5 game winning streak and first place in their division. They won Friday 5-4 behind 7 strong innings from Matt Maloney. Zach Stewart gave up 1 run in 2 innings of relief for his first AAA save. Chris Heisey was the offense, going 2-for-4 with a HR. On Saturday, Pedro Viola blew a 3-run lead in the 9th, but the Bats came back in the 10th to win in walk-off fashion 7-6. Chris Valaika had the most important hit, driving in the winning run, but Craig Tatum had a big night going 3-for-4 with a HR, as did Wes Bankston, who had 2 HRs, his 12th and 13th of the year. Justin Lehr gave up 4 runs in 8 1/3 innings, and Jared Burton gave up one hit in 1 2/3 innings to earn the win. Sunday saw the Bats light up the opposing starter to win the finale 8-4. The most impressive performer? Kip Wells, who gave up one hit and struck out 3 in 3 innings of relief. Darnell McDonald homered and Corky Miller had two hits. Drew Stubbs was 0-for-5 to not help his cause at all for being brought up. Up next: The Bats are on the all-star break!

Carolina lost the weekend series to Jacksonville by going 1-2. On Friday, they lost 2-1 in 10 innings, behind a solid outing from Camilo Vazquez. He pitched two perfect innings before being pulled during a rain delay. By all accounts, nothing to look too much into. Jerry Gil gave up 1 unearned run in 3 innings, and Ruben Medina and Philippe-Alexandre Valiquette both pitched 2 innings of shutout relief. The bullpen did a great job picking up the starter given the situation, but the offense couldn't capitalize. Sean Henry drove in the only run. On Saturday, they split a doubleheader, winning 2-0 and losing 1-0. Matt Klinker pitched brilliantly in the first game, giving up 1 hit in 6 innings and striking out 8. Todd Frazier was 3-for-4, and Juan Francisco and Stephen Chapman drove in the Mudcats 2 runs. Tom Cochran was almost as good in the second game, giving up 1 run and 1 hit in 5 innings while striking out 9, but the offense could only muster up 3 singles to support him. Up next: The Mudcats are on the all-star break too!

Sarasota lost their first game of the weekend 6-3 against Fort Myers, but rebounded in a big way against Charlotte, winning 6-1 on Saturday and 5-0 on Sunday. Jason Louwsma and Justin Reed had two hits in Friday's game, and Justin Freeman and Mark Pawelek picked up the bullpen after Travis Webb got lit up. Luis Montano gave up 1 run in 6 innings on Saturday, and it was a mixed offensive effort with Reed, Louwsma, Neftali Soto, Justin Tordi, and Jose Gualdron all with two hits each. Louwsma had another big game on Sunday with two hits, including a HR. Scott Carroll pitched great again, going 6 shutout innings, and The Cycle and Josh Beal closed it out. Up next: Jeremy Horst takes on Charlotte at 7.

Dayton continues to be the anti-Louisville, losing all three games over the weekend. They closed out their series with Clinton with a loss on Friday, 6-0. Nothing really happened in that one. They lost to Cedar Rapids in the 8th inning on Saturday, falling 6-5. Josh Fellhauer was 4-for-5 with 2 RBi, and Enrique Rojas added 3 hits as well. On Sunday, they lost 11-7, and Lance Janke got lit up. Byron Wiley was 4-for-4 with a HR and 4 RBI, and Andrew Means and Cody Puckett had two hits each. Up next: Dayton closes out their Iowa tour in Cedar Rapids at 1:05. Matt Fairel will take the hill.

Billings went 1-2 over the weekend. They won 6-4 over Orem by scoring 4 runs in the 9th. 5 Mustangs had 2 hits, including Tyler Stovall who drove in 2 runs as well. Josh Garton added a PH HR in the 9th, a solo shot and his first as a pro. Shea Snowden pitched 6 1/3 innings of 3-run ball, and Donnie Joseph earned his first win in 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. On Saturday, they traveled to Ogden and lost 10-4. Luca Panerati gave up 7 runs in 5 innings, and while Forest Cannon's 1 2/3 innings of hitless relief helped, the offense couldn't overcome the deficit. Sunday's game saw another loss, 6-4 this time. Mark Serrano was once again good in relief, but the offense was once again unable to overcome a 5 run hole. Humberto Sosa was 4-for-5, and Efrain Contreras, Sean Conner, and Mariekson Gregorius all had two hits each. Up next: Justin Walker closes out the Mustangs tour of Utah in Ogden at 9.

The GCL Reds won both of their games over the weekend, 11-3 on Friday and 6-1 on Sunday. Donald Lutz was the star on Friday, going 4-for-5 with a 3-run homer and 4 runs batted in total. Henry Rodriguez also had three hits. Nathan Driessen pitched 3 2/3 one hit innings in relief, striking out 6, and Raul Rodriguez and Jacob Wiley pitched hitless outings as well. On Sunday, all three Rodriguezes had two hits (Yorman, Cristobal, and Henry), and Harold Johnson pitched 3 perfect innings in his start. Up next: They take on the GCL Orioles at noon. Not sure who's starting.

Farmers Only: Weekend Recap

BK — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:00:44 -0000

Louisville went 1-2 against Indy over the weekend, winning 1-0 on Friday and losing both games of a Sunday doubleheader 1-0 and 5-3. Ben Jukich was impeccable on Friday, only giving up 3 lone hits in 7 innings of work. Jared Burton, Pedro Viola, and Robert Manuel finished out the game to preserve the shutout. On offense, Drew Stubbs went 2-for-3 with a stolen base, his 32nd of the season. That's twice as much as Willy Taveras, for those of you keeping track at home. Matt Maloney pitched a solid 5 innings in Game 1 of Sunday's doubleheader, only giving up 1 run, but was outdueled by Ian Snell. Zach Stewart pitched a shutout inning of relief. Justin Lehr had some trouble in the second game, giving up 4 runs in 4 2/3 innings of work. Up next: Sam LeCure takes on Indy at 7.
Carolina lost all three of their games over the weekend, 4-3 to Chattanooga on Friday, and 7-4 and 6-0 losses to Tennessee to round the weekend out. Travis Wood started Friday's game, and was once again amazing, going 6 innings of 2 run ball, with only one of those earned. His ERA increased to 1.37. That would look pretty damn nice in Bronson's spot in the rotation, and would probably come with less crappy Goo Goo Dolls covers. Todd Frazier was 2-for-4 in that game as well. The bullpen blew Saturday's game too, after Camilo Vazquez pitched 5 shutout innings with 7 strikeouts. Carson Kainer led the way for the offense, going 3-for-4 and Zachary Cozart and Brian Peterson both had two hits. On Sunday, the offense got nothing going. Chris Kelly, Sean Watson, and Ruben Medina combined for 5 innings of shutout relief, but that was the only positive thing for the Mudcats. Up next: The Mudcats take on Tennessee at 7:15. No starter listed, but Lee Tabor pitched last time in this spot.
Sarasota went 2-1 over the weekend, winning 6-2 on Friday and 4-1 on Saturday, before losing 5-2 in the last game of the weekend. Jeremy Horst went 5 innings and gave up 1 run on Friday, and The Cycle and Enerio Del Rosario both pitched scoreless innings of relief. Dave Sappelt started his High-A career on a tear, going 4-for-5, and Jose Gualdron, Neftali Soto, and Jake Kahaulelio all had two hits to lead the offense. In Saturday's game, Sappelt picked up right where he left off, going 2-for-3 with a HR. Soto also went deep, and Gualdron and Justin Tordi both had two hits. Rafael Gonzalez had a solid start, going 5 innings of 1-run ball, and Josh Beal and Justin Freeman combined for 4 shutout innings from the bullpen. Travis Webb started Sunday's game, and gave up 1 earned run in 5. Up next: Sarasota plays Charlotte at 7:05. No starter listed, but Luis Montano is next in line.
Dayton got swept over the weekend too. Matt Fairel got the loss as the Dragons dropped 5-3 to Fort Wayne on Friday. Fairel went 5 innings and gave up 3 runs while striking out 5. On Saturday, they lost 5-1 to West Michigan behind a solid outing by Curtis Partch. Partch went 6 innings of 2-run ball, and Andrew Bowman added a perfect inning of relief to help the Dragons' cause. Josh Fellhauer went 0-for-4 leading off in his first pro start, and Andrew Means hit his 2nd homer of the season. Sunday's game was quite a doozy. After coming out a 2-run lead in the top of the 1st, West Michigan bounced back to score 13 in the bottom of the inning, chasing J.C. Sulbaran out after 6 batters reached (4 on walks) and scored and no outs were recorded. Andrew Bowman wasn't much better, giving up 7 runs in 2/3 of an inning. The lone bright spot on the pitching staff was recent callup Ezequiel Infante, who pitched 2 2/3 innings of scoreless 1-hit ball. Andrew Means had three hits for the Dragons, and Josh Fellhauer had two hits, but Byron Wiley had the best day for a Dragon we've seen all year. Wiley went 3-for-5 with 3 home runs (his 6th, 7th, and 8th) and 6 RBI. Unfortunately, that wasn't enough to get past a dismal pitching performance, as the Dragons ultimately fell 20-11. Up next: The Dragons take on the Whitecaps again at 7. Not sure who's gonna pitch, as Josh Ravin is on the DL.
Billings dropped their final game with Helena 6-5, and split games with Missoula, losing 3-2 and winning 8-7. Friday's game saw a pretty crappy start by Leonardo Astorga, but good relief outings by Mark Serrano and Jason Braun. Humberto Sosa and Josh Garton led the offense with two hits each, and at the DH spot, Mark Fleury made his pro debut, going 1-for-3 with a RBI. Shea Snowden had a good start ruined on Saturday, as he pitched 5 1/3 innings of 4-hit, 1-run ball. Alexis Oliveras and Mariekson Gregorius had two hits each. On Sunday, the Mustangs jumped on top early, with Yen-Wen Kuo leading the way with 3 hits and 3 RBI. Luca Panerati had a mediocre start, giving up 3 runs in 5 innings, but Donnie Joseph and Adian Kummet had scoreless outings in relief to close it out. Up next: Mustangs are off.
The GCL Reds played 4 games over the weekend, losing 8-1 to the GCL Orioles on Friday, dropping both games of a doubleheader against the GCL Red Sox on Saturday, 2-0 and 5-2, and bouncing back to beat the GCL Twins 3-0 on Sunday. Not too many bright spots on Friday, as Jefry Sierra had two hits and Matteo Pizziconi pitched an inning of perfect relief. Pedro Villarreal had a good start in the first game of the doubleheader on Saturday, pitching 5 innings of 1-run ball, but Danny Hernandez picked up the G-Reds only hit in the game, and one hit wasn't getting it done. In Game 2, Raul Rodriguez and Nathan Driessen pitched well in relief, but that was the only notable story. Tyler Cline and Marcos Molina combined to pitch 8 shutout innings on Sunday, with Henry Rodriguez picking up 2 hits. Up next: The GCL Reds are off too.
Roster Moves: Lots of movement between the rosters over the weekend. Michael Griffin is back in Louisvlle after Drew Sutton's callup. Matt Klinker takes Jordan Smith's spot in Caroilna, and Stephen Chapman is also in Carolina. Sarasota's new faces include Steven Otterness, Dave Sappelt, and the first 2009 draftee to make it to the FSL, Shane Carlson. Joining the Dragons in Dayton are Ezeqiel Infante and 7th round pick Josh Fellhauer. Mariekson Gregorius makes the move down to BIllings.

Farmers Only: Homer and Edwin rock AAA, and a rookie ball preview

BK — Tue, 23 Jun 2009 11:00:28 -0000

Louisville beat Gwinnett 11-5 on tremendous performances by Homer Bailey and Edwin Encarnacion. After giving up a leadoff HR to Reid Golecki, Homer settled down to keep the tally to one run over 7 innings of work. He struck out 8 in the process. In his second start in his rehab stint, Edwin Encarnacion hit an absolute bomb for a 3-run homer. The big bat on the evening, however, belonged to Darnell McDonald, who went 3-for-5 with two solo HRs. Kevin Barker and Luis Bolivar also went deep for the Bats, and Norris Hopper had three hits and drove in two runs. Up next: Edwin and the Bats roll on against Charlotte at 7:15. No starter listed, but it should be Justin Lehr's turn.
Jeremy Horst's AA debut didn't go so well, as Carolina got dismantled 10-2 against Jacksonville. Carson Kainer led the way in his Carolina debut, going 2-for-4 with a 2-run HR and Jake Kahaulelio got a hit in his first game as a Mudcat. Chris Heisey had the day off as Shaun Cumberland stunk up the joint in CF, going 0-for-3. Horst didn't fare too well in his start, going 5 2/3 innings and giving up 5 runs on 5 hits, while striking out 5. The Suns broke the game open off of Jerry Gil, who gave up 4 runs in one inning. Up next: The Mudcats take on Jacksonville again at 7:15. Travis Wood should get the start.
Sarasota shut out Palm Beach 5-0 behind an excellent start by Matt Klinker. Klinker went 6 innings of shutout ball with 9 strikeouts and no walks, and Mace Thurman and Enerio Del Rosario pitched 2 and 1 inning respectively to preserve the shutout. Behind the shutout, the S-Reds outfield had a field day, with Justin Reed and Denis Phipps having 2 hits each and Keltavious Jones having his 2nd hit of the season. All-Star catcher Devin Mesoraco went 2-for-4 to raise his All-Star average to .207. Up next: Sarasota takes on Palm Beach at 6:35 with no starter listed, but it's Luis Montano's turn.
Dayton is on their All-Star break.
Billings takes on Great Falls on their opening day at 9:05 ET. Former Dragon Leonardo Astorga will get the start.
The GCL Reds are also beginning their season today at noon ET against the GCL Orioles.
Roster Moves: Cody Puckett and Stephen Chapman have earned the callup to Sarasota after putting up huge numbers in Dayton. We should see some replacements in Dayton soon as well. As previously mentioned, Jeremy Horst takes the open rotation spot in Carolina and Carson Kainer joins the Mudcats as Chris Kroski goes on the DL and Denis Phipps goes back to Sarasota.

Rookie ball also starts today, and the rosters are starting to shape up. Here's a quick overview of the Pioneer League affiliate, the Billings Mustangs. (Keep in mind, these rosters are subject to change, especially later on today after the teams play.) More after the jump!

Manager Julio Garcia, hitting coach Delino DeShields, and pitching coach Bob Forsch will bring back an interesting mix of old and new to Billings. A couple of familiar names that have played elsewhere this season:

Leonardo Astorga (1-3, 15.43 ERA in 18.2 innings in Dayton)
Mike Bohana (0-2, 8.22 ERA in 15.1 innings between Dayton and Sarasota)
Tony Brown (.229/.309/.325 between Dayton and Sarasota)
Yen-Wen Kuo (.174/.174/.217 in Dayton)
Tom Cochran (1-0, 3.20 ERA in 19.2 innings in Carolina)
Misael DeJesus (1-4, 9.85 ERA in 28.1 innings in Carolina)
Humberto Sosa (.241/.302/.335 in Dayton)
Justin Walker (0-0, 0.00 ERA in 1 inning in Sarasota)
Tyler Stovall (.164/.215/.230 in Dayton)

And of course, the true rookies that were drafted this year:

James Walczak (RHP, 15th round)
William Stramp (3B, 33rd round)
Forest Cannon (RHP, 34th round)
Mark Serrano (RHP, 6th round)
Christopher Richburg (1B, 23rd round)
Derrick Lowery (1B, 24th round)
Jason Braun (RHP, 29th round)
Donnie Joseph (LHP, 3rd round)
Shane Carlson (SS, 32nd round)
Trey Manz (C, 26th round)
Adian Kummet (RHP, 31st round)

The rest of the roster is filled with guys who played somewhere in the organization last year. A few highlights:

LHP Shea Snowden - A 16th round pick last year, posted a 1.50 ERA in 36 innings in the GCL.
RHP Clayton Shunick - The Reds 5th rounder out of NC State, is repeating Billings after a lackluster season last year.
LHP Ezequiel Infante - Pitched in the Dominican Summer League last year, posting a 0.19 ERA (!) in 47 innings out of the bullpen. Infante or Joseph should be the closer in Billings.
RHP Hector Santana - Put up a 2.90 ERA between 3 levels last year.
RHP Evan Hildebrandt - 6th round pick from 2007. Hasn't panned out yet.
LHP Luca Panerati - One of the Reds Italian imports, pitched well in the GCL last year and for the Italy team in the WBC.

The GCL Reds have a tenative roster up as well, but it's nowhere near finalized yet (unless they plan on playing with 5 position players). More info on them as it comes up.