Tedaldtada

Phoenix 3 Salt River 3 F/10 Box Score Hunter Morris went 0-5 with 4 K. It happens sometimes. Josh Prince PH late and got a H. On the mound, Kyle Heckathorn could not finish an inning. He gave up 2 H 2 R and 2 BB. Johnny Hellweg pitched the 8th and 9th and gave a up a H with 2 BB and 2 K while keeping Salt River off the scoreboard. Game Log Gameday

Salt River 4 Phoenix 2 Box Score Not much in this one. Hunter Morris was back in the lineup and went 1-3 with a BB. Hunter is sporting a dirty little 'stache for the Fall League it appears. http://mlb.mlb.com/mlb/components/events/winterleagues/common/milb_mugshot_validator.jsp?winurl=http://mlb.mlb.com/images/players/mugshot/offseason/ph_519051.jpg&milburl=http://www.milb.com/images/players/mugshot/ph_519051.jpg Through 5 games, Morris has 5 hits and a 3:3 BB:K ratio. King Krush Davis went 0-3 with a HBP out of the 8-hole. He was lifted for a pinch runner. Josh Prince again led off and reached once on a BB. He also chucked out Blue Jays stud Jake Marisnick at the plate from RF. That is Josh's 3rd position played in Arizona. Game Log Gameday

Phoenix 13 Scottsdale 3 F/9 (from 10/12) Box Score Jimmy Nelson got the start and was very impressive. His final line: 4 IP 3 H 1 R 1 ER 1 BB 3 K. His most impressive feat was picking off super-burner Billy Hamilon at 2B. With the overflowing rosters in the AFL, I would not expect many of Nelson's outings to last longer than this one. Hunter Morris racked up another 4 AB's before being PH for late. Morris managed a single hit. Khris Davis was more productive. He rapped out 2 H including a 2B. The best Brewers player on the day was Josh Prince. From the leadoff spot, he went 4-5. Interestingly, Josh never had the chance to attempt a steal, although strong-armed C Tommy Joseph might have deterred him a bit. Game Log Gameday Of course there was no velocity readings on Gameday for this one. smh Mesa 8 Phoenix 3 (from 10/13) Box Score Nick Bucci got the start on Saturday and he was impressive despite giving up 1st inning 2-0ut 2-run homer to big bopper Jonathan Singleton. He finished with 3 IP 2 H 2 R 2 ER 0 BB 4 K 1 HR and 1 HBP. One gets the distinct feeling that Bucci will have a Fiers-esque impact as a prospect. Just don't let anyone tell you that Bucci 'came out of nowhere'. Us minor league wonks have had high hopes for a while now. Kyle Heckathorn relieved Nick and threw another scoreless innings. Santo Manzanillo struggled once again to get 2 outs. Can't help but think Santo might have been able to help the Brewers pen this year if it not for that car accident. Johnny Hellweg pitched the final frame in impressive fashion. Josh Prince was on 3 more times with 2 H and a HBP. and notched his 3rd SB on the young season. A huge day for Brock Kjeldgaard starting for Hunter Morris at 1B. He socked 2 HR to to improve his league leading total of 3. I sure hope Morris is okay having been PH for on Friday and getting the day off on Saturday. Game Log Gameday No velo readings here either. Grrr. On a day when we have 4 pitchers going.

No problem. Word his Jimmy Nelson is starting today. Naturally, they are calling for rain in Phoenix. Hope they get it in.

Peoria 6 Phoenix 0 Box Score It appears Hunter Morris will be a fixture in the 4-hole for the Desert Dogs. He went 2-4 Thursday producing the only multiple hit effort for his team. Khris Davis (0-3) hit 7th and played LF. That's it for the Brewers today. I am little surprised Jimmy Nelson or Nick Bucci have not started a game yet. Game Log Gameday

Scottsdale 6 Phoenix 5 F/9 Box Score Leading 5-4 heading into the final half frame, Scottsdale managed to pull off the comeback against the Desert Dogs today. Josh Prince got the start in LF and went 1-5 with 2 SB and 3 K. Prince could probably steal bases efficiently at the MLB level now. Hunter Morris hit 4th and went 1-4 with a BB. Big Brock Kjeldgaard hit 6th and played RF. He finished 2-3 with a HR and a BB to earn Desert Dog PotG honors. Another 7 pitchers appeared for Phoenix. Santo Manzanillo was the 3rd one out. He managed only 2 outs while giving up a H R and BB. Game Log Gameday

The AFL started up today. I am writing up a quick report on the 1st game now. The Brewers play on the Phoenix Desert Dogs team. Phoenix 4 Scottsdale 3 F/9 Box Hunter Morris (0-3 BB) hit cleanup and played 1B. Khris Davis (0-2 2 BB) hit 7th and played LF. Josh Prince entered at 3rd in the mid-innings and went hitless and made an error. Kyle Heckathorn earned the win with 2 fantastic innings. Kyle allowed a H and had 2 K. Johnny Hellweg notched the save with a scorless 9th giving up just a H. Game Log Gameday

28 Trout by a fair margin.

Cabrera volunteered to switch positions to accommodate Fielder. He volunteered to play a position he hasn't played regularly since 2007. The act of switching positions voluntarily to accommodate another player to try to make your team better weighs more to me than actual defensive metrics, subjective or objective. Cabrera accounted for a higher percentage of his team's WAR than Trout (I believe someone quoted 33% vs. below 25%). It could be argued that Cabrera was more valuable to his team than Trout. Rickey Henderson won one MVP, a year with his 10th highest SB total, finished 10th in the MVP the year he stole 130 bases, and never finished higher than 10th in any of the years he stole over 100 bases. Vince Coleman never finished higher than 11th in MVP voting in any of the years he stole over 100 bases. I place very little value on SBs in determining the MVP. You can argue that RBIs are a factor of having opportunities. Runs are also a factor of having guys behind you who can hit. Each statistic is dependent on teammates. I'll argue that RBIs is also a function of not buckling under pressure. Trout had an amazing year. But Cabrera shined in August and September whereas Trout wilted those two months. Yes, the Angels won more games than Detroit, but Cabrera to me was more valuable to his team than Trout. Trout is deserving, but I give the nod to Cabrera. That is some pretty strange reasoning. If I did not know you better, I would say you are just plain trolling at this point.

How is it a joke that a guy OPSing 1.000 with Comerica Park as a home field might win the AL MVP? The biggest reasons that Trout is so far ahead in WAR over Cabrera are both a little questionable. 1 is defense, and a single season of defense should not be completely trusted. 2 is the OPS+ numbers. Cabrera has 38 point lead in OPS (1.001 vs .963) but a 4 point deficit in OPS+ (166 vs 170). What is going on there? Apparently Angel Stadium is now a pitchers paradise, it has the same park factor as San Diego (92)??? Just 4 year ago it was a neutral park and had been forever. And Trout is hitting better at home vs the road, so those numbers are getting an even bigger boost. If not for these 2 factors the WAR difference would be pretty close, probably similar to Braun/Kemp last year. Maybe it's me, but I hardly need a defensive metric to tell me adequately that Trout is a much more valuable defensive player than Miggy. We could honestly be talking about the best (Trout) and worst (Miggy) defenders in the league.

That is a very deep list. Coulter at 10 is solid. The fact he is ahead of Guzman and Mazera should make people excited as both those guys profile as impact bats. Thought maybe Jose Pena would sneak in. There was a time Addison Russell looked like a possibility for the Brewers but he shot up draft boards.

Big-time congrats to the T-Rats!! What a season. If you believe winning in the minors better prepares a player for the bigs, then this is even sweeter. There is nothing like winning. Any picks for MVP? Nick Ramirez?

2012 Helena Brewers Season Review 1st Half Record: 13-25, 4th Place 2nd Half Record: 11-27, 4th Place Notable Hitters: (League Average .279/.354/.419) Chris McFarland: 313 PA .301/.358/.433 122 TB 15 SB 23:79 BB:K Adam Giacalone: 298 PA .317/.394/.425 110 TB 3 SB 35:66 BB:K Jose Pena: 92 PA .306/.337/.529 45 TB 1 SB 4:17 BB:K Michael Garza: 86 PA .407/.442/.580 47 TB 5 SB 5:10 BB:K Others: Raul Mondesi Jr., Ruben Ozuna, Alfredo Rodriguez, Michael Reed, Michael Turay, Tyrone Taylor Notable Pitchers: (League Average 5.03 ERA .279 BAA) Taylor Wall: 54.1 IP 65 H 3 HR 20 BB 40 K 3.98 ERA .313 BAA Brent Suter: 43.2 IP 49 H 4 HR 8 BB 42 K 3.92 ERA .290 BAA Eric Semmelhack: 31.1 IP 27 H 1 HR 9 BB 20 K 4.02 ERA .229 BAA Connor Whalen: 30.2 IP 29 H 0 HR 13 B 36 K 2.35 ERA .236 BAA Others: Leonard Lorenzo, Ryan Gibbard, Damien Magnifico, Mike Francisco, Taylor Mangum Return of the Mac: Chris McFarland had some high expectations coming into 2012. With a scouting report that reads like Scooter Gennett's did out of HS, but with a body you can fall in love with, McFarland was everything you could have hoped for. He hit for average, he showed some ability to work a count, he displayed intriguing power, and he flashed potential with the glove and on the bases. Maybe our foremost authority on the Helena team, MTBrew, recently described McFarland as being, "as good a talent as any prospect in the Pioneer league." Those are exciting words and I am interested to see where Baseball America ranks him. Likely penciled into the top 3rd of the T-Rat lineup for next season, McFarland will become a much more familiar name in prospect circles with another big season. SP Magnifico?: Damien Magnifico was mainly a reliever in college. Reason being was he could not throw a breaking ball for strikes. It did not help that his routinely triple digit heater was usually a ball too. Slipping to the 5th round in the 2012 draft, many clearly saw him as a RP only. The Brewers might think they have drafted a starter. He only managed 21.2 IP on the season, but they were pretty respectable. The 15 walks are too high, but he struck out 25 while allowing a decent .250 BAA. The slow stretch out has seemingly begun. With a strong offseason and spring, Damien may just find himself in Appleton for 2013 as a starter. Stock Down? The Helena OF was supposed to be strength. With Ruben Ozuna (20), Michael Reed (19) and Raul Mondesi Jr. (19) all sporting OPS well below the league average, that just did not happen. Ozuna started cold, got hot in the middle, then cooled off towards the finish. His D is highly suspect making himself that much more of a problem when his bat isn't smacking around XBH's. Reed did not take the demotion from BC very well as he mainly put it on cruise control for Helena before getting hurt. I did not think Reed's performance in A+ was sustainable and agree with the Brewers sending him down. Maybe a compromise with Reed going to the T-Rats instead of Lance Roenicke would have worked? Bottom line is he needs to play harder from the reports I have heard. Mondesi Jr. never could be mistaken for loafing. He plays all out but he has very little feel for the offensive side of the game. There is power, speed and a tremendous arm in his tool kit, so if he learns to weed out the bad pitches, he could make some noise. Kings of K: Manny Ruiz and Martin Viramontes are really good at one thing; striking guys out. Each averaged almost 13 K/9 but neither was successful at preventing runs. Ruiz in particular had a disappointing season after admirably appearing in multiple games for Brevard County in 2011. Are these guys going to turn into Santo Manzanillo or Evan Fredrickson? Giacalone's World: After starting 2-34, Giacalone found his stroke and mashed to the tune of a .355 AVG the rest of the way. He draws walks and smacks a few 2B's, but he has yet to find his power stroke. There is a lot to like hear, especially for $100,000 in the mid-rounds of the draft. Three to Watch: If you like SP's who throw in the mid-90's with big bodies and potential for decent offspeed stuff, be sure to keep an eye on Tyler Wagner, Leonard Lorenzo and Taylor Wall for next season. Wagner, the 2012 4th rounder, needs to be more consistent. He was flat dominant sometimes. He was another college reliever mainly. Lorenzo has been in the system longest and you could argue he had the best season of the 3 once you realize Wall's ERA is pretty lucky. Lorenzo logged the most innings on the team. Wall might be a mid-round gem for Bruce Seid and company. He needs secondary work, but put anything with plus velocity in the system and I am happy. Big East Beasts: Michael Garza (Hoyas) and Alfredo Rodriguez (Terps) were late round college picks that every team needs. Garza started out so hot, he was promoted shortly into the Helena campaign. Rodriguez stayed simmering all year long while steadying the most important defensive position on the field. Both are sure to be T-Rats mainstays for 2013. Three Stalling: Will West, Michael Shaub and Joel Pierce were three guys I wanted to check out this season. West (19), a 2011 UDFA, showed some real promise at times, but he struggled this season. Shaub (20) lost his control 34:35 BB:K this season, but I still remember that double-digit K bute he had in 2011. Pierce (19) was the guy I was most looking forward too. Drafted as a 17 year old out of Canada, many thought the lanky Pierce could add a few grades to his stuff as he filled out. We are still waiting on that. The Rock: Connor Whalen had no business being in Helena all season long but I cannot imagine where they would be without him at the back end. He should headline the WI bullpen next season as well. He finished with monster numbers in the hitter-happy hills of the Pioneer League. 2 Studs, 2 Games: Tyrone Taylor and Chris McFarland That does it for my recaps until the AFL starts. Go Brewers!

2012 Maryvale Brewers Season Review Final Record: 19-37, 3rd Place Notable Hitters: (League Average .266/.347/.392) Clint Coulter: 214 PA .302/.439/.444 75 TB 3 SB 37:40 BB:K Jose Sermo: 197 PA .284/.335/.432 79 TB 6 SB 11:41 BB:K Jose Pena: 183 PA .299/.350/.527 88 TB 1 SB 13:39 BB:K Others: Malcolm Dowell. Edgardo Rivera, Renaldo Jenkins, Tyrone Taylor Notable Pitchers: (League Average 4.72 ERA .266 BAA) Joel Dicent: 52 IP 55 H 3 HR 30 BB 43 K 5.19 ERA .274 BAA Zachary Quintana: 43.1 IP 44 H 3 HR 22 BB 39 K 5.82 ERA .259 BAA Eduard Reyes: 30 IP 26 H 0 HR 10 BB 33 K 2.70 ERA .241 BAA Jonathon Armold: 29.2 IP 34 H 2 HR 13 BB 32 K 3.64 ERA .281 BAA Others: Ryan Fasano, Carlos Sosa, Taylor Mangum Coulter-geist: As in, Clint Coulter-geist haunted AZL pitchers to the tune of an .883 OPS, 19.5% above league average. Maybe the more exciting thing is that OPS is very OBP heavy. That should set off jumps for joy as you realize that Clint is a physical freak who many expect will tap into some off the systems best power potential. I'll say it again, the guy got about 40 HS AB's his SR year. He is just starting to tap his potential. I would love to see him in a T-Rats uniform next season, but the likely route is extended ST then anchoring the Helena lineup as the #1 catcher. Hits Galore: Opposing teams hit .291 against the Brewers' pitchers. Particularly hittable were Danny Keller (.362 BAA), Juan Francisco (.352 BAA) and Anthony Banda (.309 BAA). All of those guys were mainstays on the Brewers staff with each finishing in the top-5 in IP on the club. Keller was a slightly over-slot signing out of HS, but he is already 20 and lacking any particularly tasty production. Francisco is already 21 and gave up a near 1.000 OPS to opposing hitters. LHP Anthony Banda was our 2012 10th rounder from San Jacinto College, yet he just turned 19. Look for him to improve quite a bit for next season. The Jose Pena Awakening: A prospect who has successfully started tapping into his raw power (OPS ~18.5% above league average) is 19 year old Jose Pena. With very good bat speed and a knack for squaring it up, Pena finally lived up to some of the bonus-baby expectations. He earned a late season promotion to Helena where he seemingly found even more OF gaps despite losing some of his patience. When Clint Coulter was struggling early season, Pena really carried the load for this squad. The Case of Jorge Lopez: Many were disappointed with Jorge Lopez this season. He started out very rocky in the AZL, then was shipped abroad to the DSL where the results only mildly improved. On the bright side, he had his dominant outings where he piled up strikeouts and GB's once he got there. Of course, we will never know the true story behind his move to the Dominican, but let's just hope he gets what he needs and comes back next season throwing heat. Goldmine?: Tyrone Taylor lasted about 1 week in the AZL. What a week it was. .389/.395/.694 with 3 SB and 8 XBH in 8 games. Amazingly, he got better upon promotion. What do we make of this unreal 18 game stretch through the lower minors? I wish I could say, but one thing is clear; Tyrone Taylor's 2013 season might be the most anticipated of anyone's for me. I am really interested to see where he lands (if even eligible) on the BA league prospect lists coming out soon. I have him as the 11th best prospect in the system. The "Others" Trio: Ryan Fasano, Carlos Sosa and Taylor Mangum all posted nice seasons in limited usage. Combined: 50.1 IP 50 H 3 HR 13 BB 51 K for these guys. Fasano (UDFA) was a SR sign out of Rutgers. Sosa busted up the DSL for a few years before this one. He has always had that late inning RP role. I have to say I am actually kind of surprised they did not use him more. Mangum (also a UDFA) actually got he bump to Helena towards the end of the year. 2nd Year Progressions: Malcolm Dowell and Renaldo Jenkins each made a jump this season. Both are still teenagers, so there is reason to believe there could be more there. Dowell showed a nice eye at the plate and some good speed. We shall see if the former football star in Georgia will develop some pop. Jenkins played himself into a promotion despite the limited playing time he saw in the AZL. I am guessing his D had something to do with that. When he did play, he hit for average, showed he had an idea and he ran the bases well. The 3rd year progression on these two, likely both headed for Helena, will be telling. Quintana Thoughts: 2012 3rd Round HS pick Zachary Quintana is built like Tyler Thornburg but his repertoire will probably more closely resemble Yovani Gallardo in a perfect world. Though his overall results were somewhat mixed, Zachary flashed his promising stuff regularly. This is a guy who could explode next season. International Youngsters: Dustin Houle, Edgardo Rivera and Angel Ortega are a trio of interesting youngsters with major league ceilings. All 3 are likely 4-5 years from that ceiling at least. Houle was the youngest player chosen in the 2011 draft. He is like a super raw version of Clint Coulter. Hopefully he converts some of that physical talent into production. Edgardo Rivera is an 18 year old from P.R. HS. He profiles as a plus speed contact bat. Rivera even showed a decent eye for age posting an OBP almost 100 point higher than his AVG. People like to compare Ortega to Yadiel Rivera, but he would need to bust out a lot more power before that is apt. His glove appears slick, and that could take him pretty far as is. Eduard Reyes and the like: He logged the most dominant 30 innings for the team this season. He walked few and struck out a ton. Only problem is that he is much too old for the league. Keep an eye on him because as long as you produce, you progress, and get promoted. I will never forget this game. Here is the L.R. from the evening. Good luck to all who appeared for Maryvale this summer!

! I don't mind a little ribbing if it's from "Jedi Darkside Boy" and "Mr. Hates the Brewers". [sarcasm]As for the rest of yous, keep it to yourself![/sarcasm] PS I am also a huge SW's freak. And so goes the 2012 Brevard County Manatees. They shall be remembered as a plucky bunch if nothing else.

2012 Brevard County Manatees Season Review 1st Half Record: 29-39 2nd Half Record: 34-33 Notable Hitters (League Average .255/.326/.373) Mike Walker: 525 PA .280/.361/.415 191 TB 10 SB 54:123 BB:K T.J. Mittelstaedt: 324 PA .258/.359/.469 129 TB 14 SB 42:84 BB:K Jason Rogers: 279 PA .300/.416/.412 96 TB 7 SB 42:42 BB:K Others: Reggie Keen, Nick Shaw, Cody Hawn, Shea Vucinich Notable Pitchers: (League Average 3.86 ERA .255 BAA) Taylor Jungmann: 153 IP 159 H 7 HR 46 BB 99 K 3.53 ERA .267 BAA Jimmy Nelson: 81.1 IP 63 H 3 HR 25 BB 77 K 2.21 ERA .216 BAA Drew Gagnon: 67 IP 56 H 3 HR 18 BB 49 K 2.82 ERA .229 BAA Eric Arnett: 60.2 IP 54 H 4 HR 31 BB 61 K 3.56 ERA .241 BAA Casey Medlen: 54.1 IP 52 H 2 HR 17 BB 63 K 2.98 ERA .246 BAA Hiram Burgos: 41.1 IP 21 H 1 HR 6 BB 41 K 0.87 ERA .150 BAA Nick Bucci: 31.2 IP 25 H 3 HR 15 BB 37 K 1.99 ERA .210 BAA Others: Greg Holle, Seth Harvey, Alan Williams, Brian Garman, Eric Marzec The Burgos Train Leaves the Station: To think, Hiram Burgos' first appearance on the year was in relief. I can recall mentioning in that particular L.R. that Burgos appears to be transitioning towards a bullpen role. He did not appear in relief again the rest of the season at any level on his way to Brewers MiLB PotY honors. He was simply un-hittable in 6 BC starts. The 0.89 ERA is just sick and Fangraphs has him posting a 2.04 FIP with the 'Tees. Hiram's April was foreshadowing of things to come in the BC rotation. The One Man Show: For the majority of the 1st haf, T.J. Mittelstaedt was the main man in the BC order. With an OPS 24% above league average, Mittelstaedt was the lone hitter playing at an All-Star level. Not only was his bat powerful (33 XBH in 76 G), but Mittelstaedt logged time all over the diamond (2B, 3B, LF). Not bad for a 44th round pick in 2010. The Rogers Promotion: After a .301/.394/.485 stint in WI, few thought Jason Rogers would smack around FSL pitching just as well. After posting a 20% above league average OPS in the MWL league, Rogers kept chugging along with an OPS roughly 15.5% above average in the FSL. The bigger parks (especially at home) sapped some power, but Rogers is clearly headed to Huntsville to mash in 2013. I honestly cannot decide if I like him or Sean Halton better. Nice to have both honestly. Pitchers Haven: 489.1 IP 430 H 23 HR 158 BB 427 K That is what the 7 pitchers listed above combined to do in almost 500 IP for the Manatees in 2012. I would argue all 7 have major league arms. All 7 should be in AA or higher next season with the exception of maybe Eric Arnett and Drew Gagnon. Arnett may return to the FSL in the rotation in 2013 and Gagnon will probably be on the Jimmy Nelson path next season. None of these guys are aces but they are all useful pieces to be sure. Bullpen Bites: I am not sure I can remember a bullpen with quite so many interesting names. Alan Williams, Seth Harvey and Casey Medlen all throw in the mid-90's. Williams comes from the left side. Brian Garman and Eric Marzec get less pub, but they each posted fantastic numbers this season. Greg Holle was the bullpen horse logging 61.2 IP. Tommy Toledo, who was promoted mid-season after smashing up the MWL, struggled but he also sports a hard heater. There have been some whispers that Toledo will join the rotation next season. The Always Next Year Crowd: We all know Jed Bradley's story this season. He started off gangbusters looking like a true mid-rotation workhorse from the left side. Then, it all fell apart. Minor, nagging injuries and some possible over-working by Jed could be to blame. Certainly one to watch next year. Brooks Hall showed up in mid-season but really failed to impress what-so-ever. I find it hard to give up on him, especially with the way Chris Mehring would talk about him when he pitched for the T-Rats. Austin Ross started out wonderfully, then he needed TJ surgery. At least the injury happened in April. Shawn Zarraga had an .821 OPS through about a month, then he did not appear in a game again for the rest of the season. His injuries always seem mysterious. The New Additions: Miguel Velazquez (minor league free agent) and Hector Gomez (waiver wire pickup) did absolutely nothing. Both were formerly well thought off as prospects and I would welcome the organization to take similar risks in the future. The Rest: Shout out to Cody Hawn, Nick Shaw, Reggie Keen and Shea Vucinich for being rocks in the lineup. Each had their moments. Franklin Romero Jr. chucked out a bunch of guys from the OF. John Dishon joined him in the 2nd half. I really had a great time following the kids this year and sliding in my 0.02 whenever possible. Best of luck to all of the young men. Surely some of these names will be wearing Brewers uniforms in the near future. I am not really one to remember the particulars of certain games, so if you can remember some special ones, post it here. The only one I can remember is Burgos' near no-hitter on April 24th. Here is the L.R. from that day.

Great Falls (White Sox) 14 Helena 10 Box Score This was just a crazy game. 18 runs in the 1st 4 innings. Zero the next 4. Then 2 GF's runs n the 9th to tie it and 4 more in the 10th to pull ahead and win it. Tyler Wagner's last couple of starts did not go well. He could not get out of the 1st on Thursday. In fact, the only Brewers pitcher with any kind of success, if you don't count Elliot Glynn's 3 hits, was staff rock Connor Whalen. At the plate, everyone had at least 1 hit. Adam Giacalone's on-base streak is nice to see. Even in July, when he hit .387, Giacalone's slugging percentage was under .500. Only 3 of Helena's 16 H were better than singles. Michael Turay hit a bomb. Game Log And so went the 2012 summer ball L.R.'s for me. I really, really had tremendous fun. Thank you MH for basically letting me "plug and play". And thanks to all the contributors and reporters for filling up approx. 150 threads with wonderful information. The quality of coverage here is 2nd to none, trust me, I checked. Kudos all!

Great Falls (Chi Sox) 7 Helena 3 Box Score Close for the 1st half of the game, GF's pulled away with a couple run scoring innings in the middle. Leonard Lorenzo finished the season strong. He got 12 outs allowing only 2 H 1 ER and 1 BB with 6 K. There is some nice upside with Lorenzo but he is 21 and it's not like the overall numbers overly impress. I wouldn't be surprised to see him back in Helena to start next season. Ryan Fasano came in and let it get out of hand while Elliot Glynn and Jono Armold survived their appearances. The bats were impotent for the most part. Raul Mondesi Jr. (2-4 3B), Paul Eshleman (2-4 2B) and Chris McFarland (1-3 2B BB SB) had the best games of the bunch. Game Log Programming Note: Thursday is Helena's last game. With all 3 of my teams complete after tonight, I will start up on the season reviews. They should be up by the end of the day Sunday. :-) Btw, do we need an AFL Link Reporter? I'd be willing.

Helena 11 Billings (Reds) 5 Box Score Ryan Gibbard got his final start of the season. Unfortunately, he put up a bunch of crooked numbers in the wrong columns. No big innings, just a few here and there against Ryan. Gibbard finishes the season with a 5.27 ERA. Anyone care to guess the WI rotation for next season. Hopefully Magnifico, Wagner and Wall, then who knows. A huge 6 run 8th put Helena ahead 11-5 and that is how it finished. Chris McFarland (2-4 HR SB), Adam Giacalone (1-4 HR BB), Emmanuel Quiles (3-4 2B) and Raul Mondesi Jr. (2-4 2 2B CS) had huge games. Jose Pena took 3 BB, his first 3 since joining Helena. Game Log

Billings (Reds) 5 Helena 2 Box Score Taylor Wall, who has reportedly been touching the mid-90's, got his final start of the season. It didn't go the greatest (2 IP 2 H 2 R 2 ER 2 BB 2 K), but there are some nice sharp tools to work with in the Taylor Wall toolbox. Remember, he is basically a converted college SS. Keep an eye on him. Mike Francisco pitched the next 2 innings and was great leaving zero's behind along with a of K. Martin Viramontes had his best appearance of recent memory. Unfortunately, that includes giving up the go ahead run in the 9th inning. I'm pretty sure Viramontes leads the entire minor league system in K/9 still. Jono Armold had to come in for Viramontes. Armold promptly allowed two more Viramontes runners across and that was it. Jose Pena and Adam Giacalone both hit triples and Raul Mondesi Jr. ripped a double. Chris McFarland was pulled after a 1st AB popout. Ra Ra Jenkins moved over to 2B in his absence. 3 more games for Helena. Game Log

It blows my mind that people classify Jungmann as disappointing.

Great Falls (White Sox) 7 Helena 4 Box Score A 3-run 9th was not nearly enough for Helena to come back as the they took a bad loss to Great Falls 7-4. Preston Gainey and Michael Schaub spilt up the innings and each were not all that fantastic. Neither guy has really earned a promotion to full season but I have to imagine Gainey will have a shot. Adam Giacalone had a nice night with two hits. No walks, again, for the Helena Brewers. This is a problem system wide, but trust me, the Brewers are not the only system struggling. Game Log

Daytona (Cubs) 3, Brevard County 2 Box Score A walk-off win for the last place club in the last game of the season. And so was the 2012 Brevard County season. On a positive note, Nick Bucci has finished full season ball very strong. In 42.2 IP over two levels, Bucci struck out 44, walked 15 and posted a 1.90 ERA. Jason Rogers left the game for a pinch hitter mid game. Kind of odd, but we may never know. I'd rather see him in the AFL than Kjeldgaard. Mike Walker had the best game at the plate with a H and a BB. Walker also nabbed his 9th and 10th bags of the year. I will do a comprehensive recap for BC within the next few days. Still no internet at home, so time is somewhat limited right now. Game Log

Great Falls (White Sox) 11 Helena 3 Box Score One comment on Tyler Wagner; He is still a work in progress. One more; He did have a 5:1 K:BB and a 7:1 GO:FO. The hitters were again led by surging Jose Pena (2-4). Still 0 BB's for Jose in over 60 AB's. Paul Eshelman had another 2 H and chipped in a BB. This might seem skimpy, but there wasn't much to talk about. Chris McFarland needs work on D. Ruben Ozuna had the only XBH, a 2B. Game Log

Daytona (Cubs) 4 Brevard County 2 Box Score So, this game stunk. It just eats at me that the Cubs are going to be the ones pounding in some of the final nails. Gotta turn it around now boys. Brandon Williamson started and did some inexplicable things, such as serving up a homer to John Andreoli. That was his first in almost 500 AB's this season. Eric Arnett was much better this time out as he no-hit the Cubs over the final 2 innings with 2 K. At the plate, no one had multiple hits but Nick Shaw, Mike Walker and John Dishon all were on twice with a H and a BB. Shaw's hit was a double and Dishon stole his 17th BC base. Game Log