SB Nation User Blog: BaronVonCurrentEvents

Praise for Neal in BA's writeup of the Cal-Carolina All Star Game

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Wed, 24 Jun 2009 18:08:48 -0000

Praise for Neal in BA's writeup of the Cal-Carolina All Star Game

A righthander, Neal utilizes more of an all-fields, line-drive approach.

Guys I think Neal is the breakout star of the league. Tell your friends.

Video of top Latin American free agent Wagner Mateo. It's said that the Giants are interested in...

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Thu, 18 Jun 2009 20:27:38 -0000

Video of top Latin American free agent Wagner Mateo. It's said that the Giants are interested in signing him.

Notes from San Jose, 6-17-09

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Wed, 17 Jun 2009 07:51:06 -0000

I was going to wait for Steve S's post, but since this turned out really long and the minor lines aren't ready yet, it's Fanpost time.

I went to San Jose tonight to interview Cal League All Star Roger Kieschnick. I stayed for the game, got comped BBQ, and saw a pretty damned good win. I took lots of notes and here's what I saw.

Thomas Neal

Neal smoked a ball to center on a flyout his first at bat. He made a strong throw to second base on a double. Stays on the back foot when he's driving the ball. He golfed one into right and got a run in on a bad cutoff play from the Rawhide, one of two oppo hits for the Cal League's leading batter. Runs well and not just for a guy with his size.

Buster Posey

Almost knocked out the opposing starting pitcher with a comebacker to the pitcher off McAnaney's calf in the first inning. Posey used great strike zone command and is really learning to work counts to walks. I spoke with a fellow here about purchasing Posey jerseys from the team store. They don’t have Posey jerseys, but they do have player shirts for Posey, and also Bumgarner. I'm sorry that I don't remember your username! Drop me a comment or an email and we'll work this out.

Roger Kieschnick

Kieschnick yanked a ball foul to right, then in a later at bat had a beautiful fluid swing that sent a three run homer over the wall in dead center. I watched some video on him from HWB this fall that showed him almost standing straight up at the dish. Compare that to his form now, with knees bent. It takes away a lot of stiffness in his swing that I can still see from time to time, but on that home run swing it was a thing of poetry.

Kieschnick is a fan of Mario Kart on the SNES and he likes Michael Crabtree. So I think he’s quickly becoming a favorite around here.

Conor Gillaspie

Made solid contact on a grounder to first and has pretty good foot speed but we knew that already. Has it been said that Gillaspie has trouble going to his left at third? I don't recall hearing anything about that but I saw some things that make me a bit concerned re: his D.

Nick Noonan

I was watching Noonan closely to see what was wrong with him. He turned away from an 88 MPH pitch that wasn't close inside. Ouch. Later he made a nice stop on a grounder and strong throw to retire the batter. He has quiet hands and closed stance in his swing. He salvaged a crappy day at the plate by drawing a four pitch walk late in the game.

Garrett Broshuis

Benefited from the generous strike zone tonight. Still, he worked quickly and played some excellent D, spearing comebackers and running one over to the bag himself. I saw a good curveball from him. He got corner calls on both sides of the plate consistently. He went to three ball counts only twice in seven innings.

Dan Runzler

Big Dan Runzler is fun to watch. He looks stockier than his listed weight of 215, but he's definitely tall. He throws hard too, consistent at 93 and reaching 94. His offspeed stuff in the 70s was not thrown for strikes. I counted three different speed guns on him among the scouts, and one Mariners scout took out his gun (not a euphemism I swear) just for Runzler. I asked him what he was looking for and he said just to check if the reports on Runzler's velocity were true.

He jammed Easley on a popup foul, got a called third strike at 93 against Cooper, induced a grounder that David Maroul misplayed at first and then retired the Rawhide by popping up Rumler. Now hear this: watch Runzler. He can do some things.

Steve Edlefsen

Edlefsen has a herky jerky motion and uses lots of effort, but he's consistent at 90-91 with a 78 changeup and a breaking ball in the low 80s, and throws strikes. He can jam right-handed hitters.

LHP Pat McAnaney, Visalia SP

The first pitch he threw was a home run to Tyler Graham. His velocity was consistent in the high 80s on the fastball and did not suffer after the comebacker off his leg. He was a little outside the zone in the third inning but keeps the ball down. He looks to be one of those momentum type pitchers; when he gets locked in, he's unhittable. He retired nine in a row at one point. He can get rattled, as he did after two errors and allowing home runs. McAnaney has been one of the best starters in the league and I was really excited about seeing him tonight. He's been pitching pretty badly over his last few starts, though, and did not help his cause with this one. He has a deceptive motion from the left-side, with a high leg kick and his wiry frame kind of flying all over the place. It hard to pick up the ball when it's working. Swingthrough stuff! zomg!

RHP Victor Capellan

Capellan is all kinds of ridiculous. He throws with a crazy amount of effort, submarine delivery RHP. He started out hitters at 89 but quickly ramped up to 92-93. He will pop the glove. His stuff was pretty nasty coming from that lower angle. He got a called third strike at the knees at 90 and I think I saw a breaking ball at 82 in there, infrequently. One of them broke down Posey, buckled his knees and made him miss badly. He was working with offspeed stuff at 84 as well.

Tom Layne has a slider blah blah.

Misc: Angel Villalona is day to day with a shin injury. He fouled a ball off the shin Saturday and it swelled up on him. He hasn't played since June 13. I saw scouts from the Mariners and the Mets there. The Mets scout was keeping tabs on the Visalia players. They honored the three All-Star bound Giants players in a pregame ceremony, complete with plaques. Aw.

San Jose Giants Bowl-A-Thon

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 02:39:59 -0000

San Jose Giants Bowl-A-Thon

July 18, bowl with the San Jose Giants and raise money to beat cancer. $11 gets you in, three games, pizza, soda, and when a Giants player throws a strike, it's 2-for-1 beers!

I don't know about you guys, but I'm so in.

Minor lines 6/10/09

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 15:43:41 -0000

Fresno Grizzlies (Triple-A): No game scheduled

Fresno was off Wednesday. They begin a four game series on the road in Portland Thursday night. Billy Sadler will start for the Grizzlies in search of his sixth win of the season. Will Inman opposes Sadler as the Beavers' starting pitcher.

The Grizzlies lost two in a row to Salt Lake. They have lived and died by one run games this past week. The last four Grizzlies’ contests have been decided by one run, with two wins and two losses in that time. Their record is 6-3 since their six game winning streak ended June 1. Fresno is three games behind Sacramento in the Pacific Coast League Pacific South Division.

Connecticut Defenders (Double-A): Game 1: Bowie 4, Connecticut 3, 7 innings

2B Brock Bond - 0-2, 1 RBI, 2 BB, .291
CF Mike McBryde - 2-4, 1 R, .275
RF Eddy Martinez-Esteve - 2-3, 1 RBI, 1 BB, .306
SS Brandon Crawford - 1-2, 1 R, 1 BB, .282
SP Tim Alderson - 5.2 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 1 WP, 1 HB, 2.20 ERA
RP Waldis Joaquin - 1.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 1 SO, L (1-4), 4.03 ERA

Game Notes: Bowie and Connecticut played two Wednesday night to make up for the game that was postponed due to rain on Tuesday. Connecticut lost the lead and had to come back to tie the game, just to see the win slip away at the last moment. The Defenders scored two runs when Brock Bond grounded out with the bases loaded. A bad throw by Bowie's second baseman allowed Brandon Crawford and Mike Mooney to score. Tim Alderson wasn't at his best in his sixth start at the Double-A level, even if the first run he allowed was unearned. The Bay Sox leadoff hitter reached on an error by Sharlon Schoop and then scored after back-to-back hits. Bowie got two more runs on an RBI double by Brandon Snyder in the fifth inning. Connecticut tied the game in their half of the frame with one run on three hits, an Eddy Martinez-Esteve base hit. Bowie went ahead for good on an RBI single from Ambiorix Concepcion. Mike McBryde gunned down the Bay Sox right fielder trying to stretch the hit into a double. Waldis Joaquin was on the mound in the inning and took the loss for the Defenders.

Game 2: Connecticut 3, Bowie 2, 7 innings

CF Mike McBryde - 2-3, 1 R, .292
1B Brett Pill - 1-3, 1 RBI, .294
SS Brandon Crawford - 1-3, 1 R, .283
DH Adam Witter - 1-3, 1 R, 1 2B (2), 1 RBI, .214
RF Eddy Martinez-Esteve - 1-3, 1 RBI, .306
SP Henry Sosa - 6 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO, 1 PO, W (5-0), 2.21 ERA
RP Dan Otero - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, SV (12), 0.83 ERA

Game Notes: Henry Sosa was in control as the Defenders fought back to take game two of this doubleheader. Sosa threw four shutout innings before the Bay Sox got to him for two runs in the fifth. He allowed a double and an RBI triple but settled down to record the third out of the inning then pitched another scoreless frame. Connecticut strung together three hits to get two runs on the board in the fourth inning. Brett Pill put the Defenders ahead the next inning with a base hit to score Mike McBryde. Dan Otero relieved Sosa with the Defenders in the lead and pitched a perfect seventh inning to close out his 12th save of the year.

Team Notes: Alderson had a tough time holding runners on in game one as three Bowie baserunners stole second base. He also hit a batter and threw a wild pitch. ... Sosa threw another scoreless start in game two. It was his second shutout performance in a row and fifth in his last seven starts. The only bad start was the May 28 game against Binghamton where he allowed four runs in six innings. ... Connecticut is 1 1/2 games up on Trenton in the Northern Division.

San Jose Giants (A-Advanced): San Jose 10, Bakersfield 5

DH Tyler Graham - 3-6, 2 R, 1 SO, .324
SS Brian Bocock - 1-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 SO, .218
C Buster Posey - 2-4, 2 R, 1 HR (10), 3 RBI, 1 SO, .311
RF Roger Kieschnick - 3-5, 1 R, 1 HR (8), 1 RBI, .304
1B Angel Villalona - 2-5, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 SO, 1 E (7), .287
SP Garrett Broshuis - 6.1 IP, 8 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO, W (4-1), 2.89 ERA
RP Steve Edlefsen - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 1.59 ERA

Game Notes: The Giants won an important game against division rival Bakersfield. Perhaps the Blaze gave this one away with poor pitching and bad fielding. Tim Murphy has been bad all year for the Blaze and Wednesday night's start was no exception. Though his defense failed him in committing six errors, he still allowed five earned runs. He had an 8.72 ERA entering this game. San Jose generated offense in the second inning with three stolen bases and putting the pressure on the Bakersfield defense. Three errors in the inning netted the Giants two runs. Buster Posey and Roger Kieschnick hit back-to-back homers the same day they were named to the California League All-Star team. San Jose rallied for five runs over the middle innings to put the game out of reach. Garrett Broshuis survived a bad start, giving up five runs in 6 1/3 innings but still qualifying for the win. The Giants bullpen was as good as the hitting. David Mixon, Wilmin Rodriguez, and Steve Edlefsen combined for 2 2/3 perfect innings. Edlefsen struck out the first two batters he saw in the ninth inning and induced a groundout to end the game.

Team Notes: Posey and Neal will start for the California League June 23 while Kieschnick goes as a reserve. ... Visalia and Modesto both won Wednesday night, so the division standings stay the same. The Rawhide lead the Nuts by 1 1/2 games and the Giants are behind by 3 1/2. ... Angel Villalona made his seventh error of the season. He had 15 errors at A-level Augusta in 2008, his first season at first base.

Augusta GreenJackets (A): Charleston 2, Augusta 0

LF/RF Ben Woodbury - 1-4, 1 SO, 1 CS (2), .333
RF/1B Josh Mazzola 1-4, 1 SO, .270
1B Mike Loberg - 1-3, .222
SP Kyle Nicholson - 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 4 SO, 1 HB, L (4-6), 4.10 ERA
RP Justin Fitzgerald -1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 3.58 ERA

Game Notes: Augusta had one hit in the first inning and had only two other base runners via a walk and an error through the seventh inning. When the Greenjackets could get hits, the scoring chances were quickly erased by double plays. The defense did the team no favors with two errors and a passed ball. One of the errors and the passed ball directly led to runs for the SeaDogs. Kyle Nicholson went seven innings and was charged with one unearned run due to the spotty defense behind him. Charleston starting pitcher David Phelps nearly went the distance, striking out five in eight innings. He retired 13 Augusta hitters in a row before Mike Loberg singled to lead off the eighth inning. Pat Venditte, Charleston's switch pitcher, saved his 20th game of the year. He leads the league in saves by a comfortable margin over Peter Andrelczyk of Greensboro and the GreenJackets closer Daniel Runzler. Andrelcyzk and Runzler have 11 saves each.

Team Notes: Charlie Culberson committed another error Wednesday night. He now has 22 on the year. If last season's mark of 35 was bad, he could break his own career worst for misplays this season. ... Wendell Fairley came into the game as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning and did not get an at-bat. He has two hits in 21 hits since June 1. One of the hits was a home run June 6 against Savannah. .... Nicholson bounced back from a terrible start June 5 where he allowed seven runs on ten hits in two innings. Aside from that bad outing, he has gone at least seven innings in every start since April 28.

OT: RIP David Carradine

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 14:42:06 -0000

OT: RIP David Carradine

Minor lines 5/30/09

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Sun, 31 May 2009 06:16:01 -0000

Highlights: Fresno adds a few bats to go with John Bowker, who hit his fourth home run of the year; Connecticut wins again thanks to Jesse English's best start of '09; Edwin Quirarte is featured in a new role, long reliever; and Kyle Nicholson tosses a complete game three-hitter.

Fresno Grizzlies (Triple-A): Fresno 6, Portland 1

2B Matt Downs - 1-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, 1 E (8), .277

RF John Bowker - 3-3, 2 R, 1 HR (4), 2 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SB (7), 1 PO, .342

1B Jesus Guzman - 1-2, 1 R, 1 RBI, 2 BB, 1 SO, .374

LF Joe Borchard - 2-4, 2 2B (2), 1 RBI, .500

C Steve Holm - 2-4, .189

SP Ryan Sadowski - 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 4 BB, 6 SO, W (4-2), 3.79 ERA

RP Ramon Ortiz - 2 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO, 1 HR, 2.93 ERA

Game Notes: Ryan Sadowski threw six shutout innings en route to his fourth win of the season. He allowed more walks than hits, but kept the scoring threats down all night. Fresno was in control of the game all the way. Matt Downs came through with a two-run RBI in the third inning. John Bowker moved back to right field and is still hitting. His solo shot in the seventh inning capped the scoring for the Grizzlies and was one of three hits. Jesus Guzman came up with a hit and an RBI in his second game back with Fresno after spending a week with the Major League club in San Francisco. The Beavers got a run from Max Venable on a solo home run in the eighth after Ramon Ortiz entered the game. Steve Palazzolo ended the game with a perfect ninth inning.

Team Notes: The Grizzlies added a new outfielder to the roster in Joe Borchard. He had a great day at the plate in his first game in the Giants organization. Borchard spent the last two seasons in the Atlanta system. Originally a first round pick of the Chicago White Sox, the outfielder hit 29 home runs in 2005 with Triple-A Charlotte in his last season in the White Sox chain. ... Sadowski can strike hitters out, but he needs to cut down on his walks. He has 47 strikeouts to 26 walks in ten starts so far. ... Fresno has won four in a row and nine of their last thirteen games.

Connecticut Defenders (Double-A): Connecticut 4, Portland 3

SS Brandon Crawford - 0-4, 1 SO, .269

RF Eddy Martinez-Esteve - 0-4, 1 R, 1 SO, .304

1B Brett Pill - 3-4, 1 R, 1 2B (16), 2 RBI, .275

3B Sharlon Schoop - 1-4, 1 R, 1 2B (10), 2 SO, .315

C Jackson Williams - 1-3, 1 RBI, 1 CS (1), 1 PO, .238

SP Jesse English - 5 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 1 HR, W (3-3), 4.02 ERA

RP Ben Snyder - 2.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 3 SO, 1 WP, Hold (5), 2.02 ERA

RP Joe Paterson - 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, SV (5), 0.86 ERA

Game Notes: Connecticut won their third game in a row in a close one. They took an early 3-0 lead over Portland, getting two runs in the third inning on back-to-back doubles from Brett Pill and Bobby Felmy. The SeaDogs didn't do much against Defenders starting pitcher Jesse English with just two hits and one run scored. English gave up a solo home run to the first batter he faced in the fourth inning before he retired the side. Portland got back into the game after Ben Snyder took the mound. Snyder allowed two runs, one on a sacrifice fly that brought Portland within a run of the lead. Joe Paterson gave up a hit in a scoreless inning and earned his fifth save of the year.

Team Notes: English spent a few games in the bullpen after making three straight starts over the end of April and the beginning of May. He's back in the rotation with two starts in a row. Saturday was his best all year, and certainly the longest. He matched his best strikeout total of 2009 of May 13, a four inning performance where he also walked three. In this start, he walked only one. Brandon Crawford has gone hitless in his last 15 at-bats and is hitting .195 with 12 strikeouts since May 20. ... Sharlon Schoop is hitting everything he sees as the month closes out. The new Connecticut third baseman has a five-game hit streak going and doubled his RBI total in the matter of one week. Schoop had seven RBIs going into May 23 and since then he's become a major run producer for the Defenders.

San Jose Giants (A-Advanced): Visalia 8, San Jose 5

SS Brian Bocock - 2-4, 1 R, 2 2B (5), 1 BB, 2 SO, 1 E (4), .227

RF Roger Kieschnick - 1-4, 1 RBI, 1 BB, 1 SO, .324

C Buster Posey - 1-4, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 SO, .300

1B Angel Villalona - 2-5, 1 R, .304

LF Thomas Neal - 1-2, 1 R, 1 BB, 1 HBP, .321

3B Conor Gillaspie - 3-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, .273

RP T.J. Brewer - 1.2 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 0 SO, L (2-1), 3.86 ERA

RP Edwin Quirarte - 3.1 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 4.24 ERA

RP David Mixon - 1.2 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 4.74 ERA

Game Notes: San Jose needed to play well against Visalia to make a move in the division standings, but failed when they lost their third game of the series against the Rawhide. T.J. Brewer fell apart in just the second inning, allowing five runs and six hits before he was mercifully pulled. One of the runs scored on Brian Bocock's fielding error. Edwin Quirarte entered the game in relief and retired the final batter for Visalia on a fly-out. The part-time closer saw a new role Saturday night when the team asked 3 1/3 innings of him. He allowed one run on a sacrifice fly. Conor Gillaspie put the Giants ahead briefly with a two-run hit in the second inning and they scored once in the fourth, fifth, and sixth but it wasn't enough. The Rawhide got two more runs against David Mixon to put the game out of reach.

Team Notes: Quirarte's days on the pitch count appear to be over after Saturday's appearance. It seems he has stabilized since two bad outings earlier in the month where he allowed six runs over 1 1/3 innings. ... Roger Kieschnick drove in a run, and he saved a run from scoring when he made an excellent throw in that second inning to gun down Derrick Walker. ... Nick Noonan had another 0-for-4 night. He's hitting .195 since May 19.

Augusta GreenJackets (A): Augusta 7, Lexington 1

SS Vladimir Frias - 2-4, 2 R, 1 2B (1), 1 3B (1), 1 RBI, 1 SO, .182

3B Josh Mazzola - 1-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, .280

2B Juan Carlos Perez - 2-4, 1 R, 1 RBI, .282

RF James Simmons - 3-4, 1 R, 2 RBI, .275

C Matt Klimas - 2-4, 1 RBI, 1 SO, 1 CS (2), .306

SP Kyle Nicholson - 9 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 5 SO, 1 HR, 1 WP, W (4-4), 3.66 ERA

Game Notes: Kyle Nicholson was fantastic in a complete game, three hit performance to give Augusta a big win over Lexington. Nicholson stumbled early when he allowed first and the second inning hits, but he retired nine in a row before he served up a home run to Federico Hernandez. He walked one batter after the homer and hit a batter in the ninth, but the Legends got nothing else against the dominant pitcher. Augusta rallied for three runs in the fourth inning to give their pitcher some support. James Simmons brought home two runs on a base hit. They banged the ball around in the seventh inning with three extra-base hits. Two GreenJackets scored in the inning, one thanks to Vladimir Frias' RBI triple. Frias added that hit to a first inning double, making a big day for the new Augusta arrival.

Team Notes: Augusta is 12-2 since May 14 when they'd lost three in a row. They are now one game under .500 and four games behind Charleston in a crowded Southern Division, where four teams ahead of the GreenJackets are separated by just three games. Augusta faces Lexington twice more in this series. Two wins over Lexington would put them ahead of the Legends in the division and push them to a winning record. ... Each of Nicholson's three hits came against the leadoff batter of an inning. ... Perez appeared in the outfield for both games of a doubleheader May 26 but is back at second base. He has hit safely in his last eight games.

Minor lines 5/28/09

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:11:10 -0000

Steve S needs a pinch hitter for the next few days, so forgive the slightly different formatting and style in the Minor Lines in his absence.

Highlights: Garrett Broshuis pitches six strong before a lightning storm knocks him out (of the game); Bowkermania continues to run wild, as do the Grizzlies with seven stolen bases on the night; and your first place Connecticut Defenders win again behind Henry Sosa, despite Sosa's meh start.

Fresno Grizzlies (Triple-A): Fresno 4, Omaha 3

CF Eugenio Velez - 2-5, 1 R, 1 SO, 2 SB (4), .211

3B Ryan Rohlinger - 1-5, 1 R, 2 SO, .297

RF John Bowker - 4-5, 2 R, 2 2B (10), 1 HR (3), 2 RBI, 1 SB (6), .329

SP Kevin Pucetas - 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 SO, W (5-1), 3.47 ERA

RP Alex Hinshaw - 1.1 IP, 0 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 1 SO, 5.54 ERA

RP Geno Espineli - 1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO, 3.32 ERA, SV (6)

Game Notes: Fresno nearly lost a 4-0 lead but hung on to win by run. John Bowker was responsible for two of the runs, an RBI double and solo home run. The Grizzlies ran wild in the game, stealing seven bases. Bowker's steal of third base turned into a run when Omaha catcher J.R. House made a throwing error. Bowker had room to score on the mistake. The new first baseman came up big with a solo home run in the seventh inning. Turns out Fresno would need that run as Omaha mounted a comeback against the Grizlies bullpen. Geno Espineli gave up two runs on back-to-back two-out hits but retired the final batter of the game on a flyout. Starting pitcher Kevin Pucetas' six shutout innings stood up for a win. Omaha first baseman Kila Ka'aihue struck out with two runners in scoring position in the sixth inning, and was ejected by home plate umpire D.J. Rayburn.

Team Notes: Ben Copeland, Matt Downs, and Eugenio Velez had two steals each. ... Pucetas won his fifth game of the year. His counterpart Luke Hochevar took his first loss. The two have identical 5-1 win-loss records. Hochevar was the first overall pick in the draft in 2006. ... Bowker hasn't missed a beat since switching to first base, hitting .500 (9-for-18) with three RBI. He continues to hit well no matter where he plays in the field and in the lineup. His days at first might be numbered with Jesus Guzman returning from San Francisco.

Connecticut Defenders (Double-A): Connecticut 8, Binghamton 7

SS Brandon Crawford - 0-5, .304

RF Eddy Martinez-Esteve - 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B (11), 2 RBI, .314

1B Brett Pill - 1-3, 1 R, 1 2B (15), 2 RBI, 2 BB, .264

2B Sharlon Schoop - 1-2, 1 R, 1 2B (9), 2 BB, 1 RBI, .313

SP Henry Sosa - 6 IP, 5 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 1 HR, W (4-0), 2.40 ERA

RP Jesse Foppert - 1 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, Hold (2), 1 WP, 4.56 ERA

RP Matt Yourkin - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO, Hold (3), 2 WP, 3.04 ERA

RP Joe Paterson - 1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 1 SO, SV (4), 0.90 ERA

Game Notes: Binghamton didn't make it easy for Connecticut, but the Defenders pulled it out after falling behind. They scored two runs on consecutive hits in the third inning but the B-Mets tied it immediately in their half of the inning. Henry Sosa got into trouble when he allowed a two-run homer in the fifth inning but recovered to retire the side in the sixth, his final inning of work. Connecticut rallied for four runs in ths seventh. Eddy Martinez-Esteve's big hit plated two runs. He would score on Brett Pill's double, a hit that brought two runs home. They needed two more runs in the eighth to hold off the B-Mets when Jesse Foppert gave up three runs in his inning of work. Binghamton could have had more runs after Matt Yourkin threw two wild pitches in a row, pushing runners to second and third, but Yourkin got a strikeout to end the inning. Joe Paterson quelled the madness with a scoreless frame, good for his fourth save of the year.

Team Notes: Connecticut is six games over .500 and they lead the division by three games. ...Thursday was Sosa's highest run total this year. Before this game, Sosa hadn't allowed an earned run over his last two starts. ... Closer Dan Otero had the day off, the day after he allowed his first run of the year and blew the save. Paterson came in to close the game out. ... Mike McBryde is back in action after missing most of the last month. He has three hits in his last eight at-bats.

San Jose Giants (A-Advanced): Visalia 2, San Jose 1

SS Brian Bocock - 2-3, 1 RBI, .234

DH Buster Posey - 1-3, 1 SO, .310

1B Angel Villalona - 1-3, 1 SO, .292

LF Thomas Neal - 0-4, 1 SO, .310

SP Garrett Broshuis - 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 SO, 2.08 ERA

RP Steve Edlefsen - 1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO, 1.69 ERA, L (0-1)

RP Edwin Quirarte - 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 SO, 4.61 ERA

Game Notes: The Giants tied the game thanks to an unlikely hero in Brian Bocock. He had two hits on the day, one bringing home the tying run in the sixth inning. Visalia went ahead early with a run on a sacrifice fly, the only run Garrett Broshuis gave up. Broshuis was solid over six innings and only a lightning storm could stop him. The game was delayed by lightning for an hour and 19 minutes after the sixth inning. Once play resumed, Collin Cowgill hit a solo home run against Steve Edlefsen to put the Rawhide ahead in the seventh inning. The home run sealed the Giants' fate Thursday night and sent them to their sixth loss in the last ten games.

Team Notes: San Jose lost a chance to gain ground on Visalia in the North Division for the second game in a row. They went into this series tied for second place with Modesto, two games behind Visalia. Now the Giants are four games behind the leaders and two games back of the Nuts. ... Neal ended his five game hitting streak with an 0-for-4 day. ... Edwin Quirarte pitched a scoreless inning for the first time since May 15.

Augusta GreenJackets (A): Off

Augusta had an off day Thursday. Friday they open a four game set with Lexington on the road, part of an eight game road trip. The Legends are on a four game win streak while the GreenJackets have won seven of their last nine games. Left-hander Eric Surkamp takes the mound Friday in search of his third win. He seeks redemption after his shortest start of 2009, a 3 2/3 inning outing where he allowed three runs on eight hits.

OT: Trustworthy tattoo artist in the South Bay?

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Mon, 25 May 2009 04:23:02 -0000

My birthday is coming up in a few weeks. A friend is buying me my very first tattoo as a gift. We need to find a reputable, clean, and trustworthy tattoo artist in the South Bay Area. Preferrably someone who specializes in custom designs. A place that does piercings as well as tattoos is fine. I'd go to my usual piercing place in Pleasant Hill but my friend lives in Sunnyvale and really wants to go to a place near her place. She's paying for it, so I have to do what she says. Thanks!

Prospect Tube dot com

BaronVonCurrentEvents — Sun, 03 May 2009 02:49:36 -0000

Prospect Tube dot com

I'm probably late to the party on this, but I just found this today and decided it was the greatest thing ever.