Tues. 9/03 - Carolina and Wisconsin Begin Final Series Before Playoffs; Biloxi Clings to 1/2 G Playoff Lead

[Joseph Zarr]

Thread will be utilized for any minor league news Tuesday.

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[Joseph Zarr]

**Note: Biloxi plays a double header today with Rocket City. They'll begin Game 1 at 5:05 EST completing a game suspended back on August 4th. The Trash Pandas will begin with runners on 2nd and 3rd with one down in toe Top of the 1st inning.

[Ro Mueller]

It’ll be 23-year old LHP Tate Kuehner who gets to handle the long innings in AA Biloxi’s first game of the day: 

 

[Joseph Zarr]

The Shuckers are absolutely cobbling together a starting pitching staff at present knee-deep in a playoff push. If they somehow manage to squeak by the M-Braves it is going to be a true test of resilience and some solid fill-in bullpen efforts. All hands on deck. A post-season berth very very much remains in their hands. After this 7-Game series vs the Trash Pandas - a series they really need to feast on given the Braves current opponent in the juggernaut that is the second half Smokies - they return home to face the M-Braves for the final push. It could go any way at present. 

[Ro Mueller]

3B Juan Baez is back, baby. The Low-A Mudcats are home for the final week of the regular season against Orioles’ affiliate Delmarva, before next week’s playoffs. 20-year old RHP Daniel Corniel (4.47 ERA, 1.32 WHIP, 8.4 K/9 in 94.2 IP) starts the opening game of the series. 

[Ro Mueller]

4 hours ago, Joseph Zarr said:

**Note: Biloxi plays a double header today with Rocket City. They'll begin Game 1 at 5:05 EST completing a game suspended back on August 4th. The Trash Pandas will begin with runners on 2nd and 3rd with one down in toe Top of the 1st inning.

Jeez. The first play in today’s continuation game was a run-scoring, everybody’s safe fielder’s choice. (Maybe we should take the easier out in the first inning next time?) Two batters later, Rocket City hit a 2-out, 3-run homer. Tough tough start.

But to their credit, Biloxi responded with 3  runs on 3 hits and 2 walks in the 2nd frame, cutting the deficit to 4-3. Ernesto Martinez Jr. is already 2-for-2 with 2 RBIs.

[Ro Mueller]

AAA Nashville hosts Braves’ affiliate Gwinnett this week, with well-rested RHP Chad Patrick (3.02 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, 8.8 K/9 in 116.1 IP) starting things off. LF Isaac Collins has a 5-game hitting streak (8-for-19), along with homering in 2 of his last 3 games.

[Joseph Zarr]

6 minutes ago, Ro Mueller said:

Jeez. The first play in today’s continuation game was a run-scoring, everybody’s safe fielder’s choice. (Maybe we should take the easier out in the first inning next time?) Two batters later, Rocket City hit a 2-out, 3-run homer. Tough tough start.

But to their credit, Biloxi responded with 3  runs on 3 hits and 2 walks in the 2nd frame, cutting the deficit to 4-3. Ernesto Martinez Jr. is already 2-for-2 with 2 RBIs.

That's Southern League 'Player of the Week' Ernesto Martinez Jr., btw:

 

[Joseph Zarr]

Warren botches a slow-hit routine grounder off the heel of his glove to put two on immediately with nobody down (HBP opened the frame) in the 4th. Ugly play. He was caught trying consider the play at 2B (no chance) when he should have focused on the ball into glove and gotten the sure out. Two runners aboard. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Kuehner got ahead 1-2 to the next batter and then missed three straight pitches to walk the bases juiced (two sweepers low and well outside and a heater low and outside). The ugly continues in the 4th frame. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Whewwww. An absolute rocket line drive snared by Zavi Warren who deftly makes up for the earlier error. That ball was absolutely smoked. Warren lept and grabbed the ball across his body. Heck of a play! One down. Bases still juiced. That ball easily would have been down the line into the corner clearing the bases. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Kuehner's sweeper is nowhere to be found. Just missing way outside nearly every time. That makes it really tough. That's his bread and butter pitch.

[Joseph Zarr]

He misses with consecutive heaters and walks in a run. 5-3 Trash Pandas. Kuehner is not sharp here in the 4th. No location on anything. It's a 50/50 proposition at present. Bases juiced. One down.

[Joseph Zarr]

A HB, E5, walk, line out, walk. 2-0 to the next batter. The struggle is very real. Sigh. Make that 3-0. Can't locate anything. Heater outside. Misses outside on another heater. Walks in another run. 6-3 Pandas. Ugly ugly ugly.

[Joseph Zarr]

Change-up inside off the plate. He wants these calls. They are all balls. Finally locates dead center on a heater and EBJ saves him snaring another absolute rocket to SS. Heck of a clean handle. That ball was absolutely smoked. They mercifully get the DP to end the frame. 

Needless to say, this is not the quality you are looking for in a supposed playoff push. 

[Ro Mueller]

DH/1B Tayden Hall returns from a 10-day injury absence for High-A Wisconsin, which is in Cedar Rapids for its final week of the regular season. 22-year old RHP Stiven Cruz makes his 4th straight start (3.46 ERA with 11 Ks in last 13 IP). 

[Joseph Zarr]

Runners on 1st and 2nd O'Rae K's swinging on an inside change-up. Absolutely fooled on that pitch. Nice pitch. That's Klassen's 5th K already in the 4th. EMJ will try to go 3-for-3 and get this game competitive again. Two down.

[Joseph Zarr]

And that's back-to-back swinging K's on off-speed to O'Rae and now EMJ. Shuckers will take their 6-3 deficit into the 5th frame. 

[Joseph Zarr]

All I can say watching these Shuckers over the past three some weeks: there is nothing clean about their collective baseball at present. It is so rife with sloppy and low energy. Very little clean crisp action. There are definitely bright spots - Eric Brown Jr.'s defense definitively one of them. (oh please, young man, fix that swing this off-season. PLEASE) and Ernesto Martinez's trending bat - and some occasional wins. But, this is a team with playoffs right in front of them. And, they just are not rising to the occasion. 

AND, just like that Zavi Warren butchers another ground ball to 3B. Just another routine play butchered. This after Kuehner walked a batter on four straight pitches with two down. It's really just a painful watch. So reminiscent of the first half.

[Joseph Zarr]

We are underway back at Five County Stadium. Corniel begins his evening with a weak ground out to the mound.

Warren is in the current paradox of make the routine play look ungodly difficult. Make the difficult play look smooth and easy. He ends the frame with a really nice diving stab of a ball to his throwing side. Slides to stab it. Gets up out of the dirt and dives to tag third base before the runner. He's 2-for-4 and it is something.

[Joseph Zarr]

Corniel has come out razor sharp. After the ground out he gets a swinging K. And, then the next batter sneaks a grounder inside the 1B line but Castillo charges the bounce off the foul wall and throws a dart to 2B to grab the runner. That's a non-routine three-up and three-down inning with a K. 

Wilken opened the Shuckers 5th with a line drive single into shallow LF. EBJ to the dish.

[Joseph Zarr]

EBJ lined out to the left CF gap (just before the warning track) nice catch. Hall walks. Men on 1st and 2nd yet again. One down. Let's see if the Shuckers can make something happen. Sparks will get the first opportunity here.

[Joseph Zarr]

Sparks walks em full on five pitches. Really patient eye. Several close pitches. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Kahle sac fly to deep RF. 6-4. All runners advance. Men on 2nd and 3rd. Two down now. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Baez reached on an error to SS. Takes second via balk. Bitonti works an 0-2 count for a walk. Men on the corners. One down. Yophery opened yet again in lead-off with a swinging K. Way too many K's for a lead-off hitter yet the org remains committed to the process.