TooLiveBrew

I fixed the MichaelHunt-o's in the starting lineups (also added a Narron-esque touch for our leadoff man). Looks like PretendAstronaut got the lineups from the JSOnline Brewers Blog... normally a reliable source, unless Hunt is posting. According to him, "Chin"-Soo Choo & "Cesar" Cozart were starting tonight for the Reds. Unreal when it's your job that you don't bother to double- or triple-check that post before submitting. Also, I'd like to take some time to thank Dusty Baker for batting a guy with a MiLB career (7 seasons) .645 OPS in the two-hole. It'd be nice to see the Crew get the win tonight with Votto out of the lineup.

Whoa, I just noticed there are DSL game stories now. Cool!

His pitches per plate appearance is still up over 3.75 (last year iirc it was around 3.35). 3.75 per PA is a pretty good indication that you're working consistently good PAs -- 3.75 was Ryan Braun's avg. in 2012.

I'm a little too gassed tonight, sorry for the bare-bones post. I do like those royal blue throwback jerseys! Home Runs Sink Sounds, 4-2 Nashville's Tyler Thornburg Delivers First Quality Start Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/x3Us1rg.jpg Tyler Thornburg (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) AUDIO: Sean Halton's RBI-Single AUDIO: Josh Prince's RBI-Double NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Nashville Sounds were bested by the Omaha Storm Chasers, who served up two home runs Thursday night at Greer Stadium to defeat the home team 4-2. The teams split the series, 2-2. The Storm Chasers picked up two runs off Sounds starting pitcher Tyler Thornburg (0-8) in the first inning when infielder Xavier Nady lifted a two-out, two-run home run over the centerfield wall. After the first, Thornburg settled in to turn in his first quality start of the season, logging seven innings for Nashville in the losing effort. He fanned six batters and walked one, limiting Omaha to four hits. The seven-inning outing matches the longest start by a Sound this season and seventh occurrence. Nashville quickly took one run back in the home half of the first inning as outfielder Sean Halton hit an RBI-single to score Josh Prince, 2-for-5, who doubled earlier in the frame. Halton, 3-for-4, extended his hit streak to a season-best nine games. Lefty Chris Dwyer (5-4) picked up the win for Omaha, scattering nine of Nashville's hits across seven innings of work to allow one run. Reliever Louis Coleman pitched two innings for Omaha to pick up his fourth save of the year. Omaha added to their lead with two runs in the eighth inning against Sounds reliever Travis Webb. After Willy Taveras led-off with a single into right field, nine-hole hitter Quentin Berry connected for a homer just left of dead center, his first of the year. Webb recorded one out before Johnnie Lowe came in to finish the inning. Lowe stayed in for the ninth to close out the game for Nashville, allowing two hits in 1 2/3 innings. The Sounds plated their final run in the ninth on Prince's double to centerfield. The hit scored Stephen Parker, who reached base on an Omaha throwing error. Other offensive highlights include Caleb Gindl, 2-for-3, and Khris Davis, who snapped his 0-for-24 slump with two hits. The Sounds welcome the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA-Marlins) to Greer Stadium Friday night at Greer Stadium for the first of a four-game set. Throwing for Nashville in the 7:05 p.m. game will be LHP Chris Narveson (0-1, 9.73) opposite the Z's RHP Matt Neil (1-2, 7.66). Nashville Box Nashville PbP Nashville Gameday

Thornburg is probably not ahead of either one for me at this point. I definitely whined when prospect evaluators tabbed him with the 'future bullpen' label early on in his career, but I think I see why between his time in the bigs last season & his 2013 campaign so far. I don't think he has much upside as a SP. Otherwise, I think I'd have everyone you listed ahead of the two new guys.

Yea, I listened to that last night. I'm not buying what they are selling regarding the lack of strike outs from Hellweg and Jungmann, but who knows, they might be right. I can only speak regarding Hellweg, since he's been on my 'beat' this season... but AAA teams just haven't seemed able to square up his pitches. I think there is something to that. He isn't piling up the strikeouts, but he does seem to be not piling up hittable pitches. I need to watch his next start to get a better feel for how he's operating.

If I were doing a top 10, I think I'd be surprised if they weren't in it. Not sure I can name 10 guys right off the top of my head I'd have ahead of them.

Not to mention where would he play? I'm of the opinion that Hunter Morris is just about ready for the bigs right now. I definitely don't want to see him have to repeat AAA next season so Corey can sign on a ~$13M deal.

On top of that, his plate appearances were routinely of pretty good quality during that stretch. He was definitely good, even with such a low OBP.

Fun fact: Gord Ash, in Part 1 of the audio interview he did with Jeff Hem that was posted last night, mistakenly called Hiram Burgos "Henrique Burgos." So there's that.

Sounds Defeat Storm Chasers, 5-4 Nashville Records Fourth Win In Last Five Games Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/IeR6xTn.jpg Jimmy Nelson (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Nashville Sounds continued their recent winning ways on Wednesday evening at Greer Stadium, hanging a 5-4 defeat on the division-rival Omaha Storm Chasers. Nashville (23-41) recorded its fourth win in the past five contests and its sixth victory in the last nine. Jimmy Nelson made his second Triple-A start for the Sounds and battled with control issues, walking six batters and striking out five in 3 2/3 innings while throwing only 40 of his 84 pitches for strikes. He allowed three runs on five hits and took a no-decision. Nashville jumped out to an early lead with a four-run outburst in the second against Omaha starter Justin Marks (1-6). After three batters drew walks from the left-hander to fill the bags, third baseman Ozzie Chavez put the Sounds on the board with a bases-loaded, two-run double down the left field line. Blake Davis added a third tally on a groundout before Hainley Statia plated Chavez with a one-out single to left. The Sounds tacked on a run in the third when Sean Halton's two-out double to right plated Josh Prince (2-for-3), who had singled. The two-bagger extended the Halton's longest hitting streak of the year to eight games. Omaha jumped onto the board with three runs off Nelson in the fourth. After Adam Moore and Chad Tracy drew consecutive one-out free passes from the right-hander and Willy Taveras singled to load the bases, Jarrod Dyson put the visitors on the board with a run-scoring fielder's choice. Christian Colon and Johnny Giavotella followed with back-to-back RBI singles that cut the Sounds' lead to 5-3. Later in the frame, Kyle Heckathorn (3-1) inherited a two-out, bases-loaded jam from Nelson but escaped without further damage as he induced an inning-ending grounder from Anthony Seratelli. The Storm Chasers pulled within a run at 5-4 in the sixth against left-hander Zach Kroenke. Taveras led off with a double off the left-center wall and scored on a one-out Colon single. Omaha had the potential tying run in scoring position with only one out but Kroenke worked through the frame with no further damage. Omaha again put the tying run into scoring position at second with one out in the eighth but Jesus Sanchez induced a groundout and flyout to keep the one-run lead intact. Rob Wooten, the fifth Sounds reliever of the night, took over in the ninth and allowed a pair of singles before striking out Dyson to end the contest and nail down his 12th save of the year. The Sounds look to nail down their third winning series in the club's last four when the teams wrap up the series with a 7:05 p.m. finale on Thursday evening. Right-hander Tyler Thornburg (0-7, 6.75) will man the bump for the Sounds on Burger King Throwback Thursday and face Omaha southpaw Chris Dwyer (4-4, 3.58). Nashville Box Statia: 1-4, RBI Hunter Morris: 1-3, BB Prince: 2-3, BB Blake Lalli: 0-2, 2 BB Halton: 1-2, 2B, RBI, 2 BB Chavez: 1-4, 2B, 2 RBI B. Davis: 1-4, 2B, RBI [pre]Nelson: 3.2 IP 5 H 3 R 3 ER 6 BB 5 K WP 84 TP (40 strikes) 4:1 GO:FO[/pre] Nashville PbP The big damage inning... definitely ended with a gut-punch, though: Nashville Bottom of the 2nd -Hunter Morris walks. -Josh Prince grounds out, third baseman Johnny Giavotella to first baseman Chad Tracy. Hunter Morris to 2nd. -Blake Lalli walks. -Sean Halton walks. Hunter Morris to 3rd. Blake Lalli to 2nd. -Ozzie Chavez doubles (2) on a ground ball to left fielder Willy Taveras. Hunter Morris scores. Blake Lalli scores. Sean Halton to 3rd. -Blake Davis reaches on a throwing error by shortstop Anthony Seratelli. Sean Halton scores. Ozzie Chavez to 3rd. -Hainley Statia singles on a soft line drive to left fielder Willy Taveras. Ozzie Chavez scores. Blake Davis to 2nd. -Caleb Gindl flies into a double play, center fielder Jarrod Dyson to second baseman Christian Colon to third baseman Johnny Giavotella. Blake Davis out at 3rd. Nashville Gameday

Jimmy Nelson with a short outing tonight. Done after 3.2 IP, 6 BB, 5 K, & 84 pitches. Here's his final inning: Omaha Top of the 4th -Max Ramirez flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. -Adam Moore walks. -Chad Tracy walks. Adam Moore to 2nd. -Willy Taveras singles on a ground ball to third baseman Ozzie Chavez. Adam Moore to 3rd. Chad Tracy to 2nd. -Jarrod Dyson grounds into a force out, second baseman Hainley Statia to shortstop Blake Davis. Adam Moore scores. Chad Tracy to 3rd. Willy Taveras out at 2nd. Jarrod Dyson to 1st. -Christian Colon singles on a ground ball to left fielder Khris Davis. Chad Tracy scores. Jarrod Dyson to 2nd. -Johnny Giavotella singles on a ground ball to right fielder Caleb Gindl. Jarrod Dyson scores. Christian Colon to 2nd. -Xavier Nady walks. Christian Colon to 3rd. Johnny Giavotella to 2nd. -Pitching Change: Kyle Heckathorn replaces Jimmy Nelson. -Anthony Seratelli grounds out, second baseman Hainley Statia to first baseman Hunter Morris. I hope this was simply a command issue, & not injury-related.

BA just noted on the broadcast the past half-inning that they're going with four starters -- two of the next five days are off days.

Jeff also tweeted out the link to part one of his two-part audio interview with Gord Ash, who's in Nashville for this series.

Hah I feel like he drops some good references throughout the course of a season. Not sure I've heard a Blazing Saddles one from him before, though

Thanks for putting these IGTs together all the time. They are consistently excellent.

Weeks has been hitting well for a while now (.905 OPS, last 18 games), so they haven't been conceding anything surrounding him lately. However, I agree that having such an important hitter for the team struggle so badly, for so deep into the season, has been one of the main weaknesses of the offense.

Jeff Hem with a good tidbit after last night's game

I agree with TheCrew07 -- I don't think you're being overly optimistic at all. I was very happy with both of those picks.

Obviously you meant Lou Palsmo.

I haven't seen them ping the ball like around like that in a very long time. It was fun to watch. I couldn't agree more, yoshii8. Both goals were absolute works of art. That was the best performance I've seen from a Klinsman USMNT squad. From start to finish, they just played the beautiful game, and honestly I wouldn't have even been too upset if that performance wasn't good enough for three points -- because it was just a joy to watch. The team-wide technical skill definitely looks to have improved recently, and I think credit has to go to the coaching staff in that regard.

Sounds Level Series With 5-2 Win Hellweg Throws 6th Quality Start; Lalli Cracks 6th Homer Nashville Sounds http://i.imgur.com/UADFf8G.jpg Hunter Morris & Josh Prince congratulate Blake Lalli after his three-run home run in the 2nd -- (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) AUDIO: Blake Lalli Three-Run Homer AUDIO: Hainley Statia's RBI-Single AUDIO: Josh Prince RBI-Single AUDIO: Rob Wooten Nets 11th Save NASHVILLE, Tenn. - The Nashville Sounds toppled the visiting Omaha Storm Chasers, 5-2, Tuesday night at Greer Stadium, highlighted by a three-run homer from Blake Lalli and a quality start from starting pitcher Johnny Hellweg (6-4). After Omaha starter Yordano Ventura (0-1) retired the first three Nashville batters using fastballs touching 100 mph, the Sounds adjusted to the hurler's speed and hammered out four consecutive hits to lead-off the second inning. Hunter Morris belted a ground-rule double into left field and moved to third on a single from Josh Prince, 3-for-4. Catcher Blake Lalli cleared the bases to give Nashville a 3-0 lead with a home run to left field. The homer was Lalli's sixth of the season and extends his hitting streak to a season-best seven games. Second baseman Hainley Statia added another run to the Sounds tally with a single into right field that scored Sean Halton, 2-for-3, who legged out a double earlier in the second inning. From the hill, Hellweg delivered his sixth quality start for Nashville, scattering six hits across seven innings of work to pick up his sixth win of the year. The only earned run charged to Hellweg was a home run he surrendered to Irving Falu in his final inning. The outing dropped Hellweg's season ERA from 3.25 to 3.06. The Storm Chasers picked up their first run in the fifth inning on Hellweg's throwing error. In an attempt to pickoff Jarrod Dyson, Hellweg tossed the ball over Morris, which allowed the runner on third to score. The Sounds quickly reclaimed their four-run advantage with an RBI-single from Prince in the home half of the inning. Finishing up Nashville's work from the hill were relievers Kyle Heckathorn, who logged a scoreless eighth inning, and Rob Wooten, who closed out the game with a hitless ninth for his 11th save of the season. Ventura was charged with the loss, his first, giving up five runs on eight hits to Nashville across 4.2 innings. The right-handed pitcher fanned five strikeouts and walked two. The Sounds will look to take the lead in the four-game series against the Omaha Storm Chasers Wednesday at Greer Stadium. Throwing for Nashville in the 7:05 p.m. game will be RHP Jimmy Nelson (0-1, 0.00) opposite Omaha's LHP Justin Marks (1-5, 6.75). Nashville Box Nashville PbP Four runs in the 2nd: Nashville Bottom of the 2nd Hunter Morris hits a ground-rule double (11) on a fly ball to center field. Josh Prince singles on a line drive to center fielder Jarrod Dyson. Hunter Morris to 3rd. Blake Lalli homers (6) on a fly ball to left field. Hunter Morris scores. Josh Prince scores. Sean Halton doubles (13) on a ground ball to center fielder Jarrod Dyson. Stephen Parker strikes out swinging. Blake Davis grounds out, third baseman Johnny Giavotella to first baseman Xavier Nady. Sean Halton to 3rd. Hainley Statia singles on a line drive to center fielder Jarrod Dyson. Sean Halton scores. Caleb Gindl grounds out, second baseman Christian Colon to first baseman Xavier Nady. Nashville Gameday

Greg Vaughn?

I don't disagree... but for comparison's sake, the 15th rounder David Denson is 6'4"/245 & doesn't turn 18 until November! Dude is already a monster.

No worries at all, BCF -- thank you again for putting in the work on this. Since it's next year, there's just that much more time to guarantee you can hit 50 tickets sold.