Jim Goulart

Pre-Game TV Sports Report Phone Interview with Voice of the Stars Steve Jarnicki

Twinsights: Arcia brothers on a collision course Mike Berardino, blogs.twincities.com Perhaps in the not-too-distant future, this annual interleague clash between neighboring rivals will also feature a clash of brothers. And considering their relative youth, it could go on for many years. Orlando Arcia, younger brother of Twins right fielder Oswaldo Arcia, is a well-regarded middle infield prospect in the Milwaukee Brewers organization. Baseball America rated him the No. 7 prospect for the Brewers this offseason. “Anybody that sees Orlando play just gets amazed about his baseball instincts,” Oswaldo Arcia said through a translator last season. “Lots of scouts in Venezuela and here in the (U.S.), that’s the first thing they tell me: The baseball maturity that kid has is amazing. If he keeps working he definitely should be in the majors at the same age as me or younger.” Oswaldo Arcia, who turned 23 on May 9, opened the year tied for eighth among the majors’ youngest players. At 19 years, seven months, Orlando was the youngest player to make an Opening Day roster in the Florida State League. Class A Fort Myers right-hander Jose Berrios, two months older, was the second-youngest at the start of the season in the FSL. The Twins also had the eighth-youngest player in the FSL to start the year: shortstop Jorge Polanco at 20 years, seven months. Orlando, who doesn’t turn 20 until Aug. 4, entered Monday’s play hitting .262 in 53 games for Class A Brevard County. Blessed with better speed than his brother but lacking his power, Orlando had a .332 on-base percentage but was slugging just .335. He had yet to homer but did have nine doubles, three triples and 10 stolen bases in 14 attempts. Orlando also had made 12 errors while splitting his time between shortstop (27 games) and second base (24 games). A broken ankle had slowed Orlando in the Midwest League in 2012, but he has since reclaimed his career momentum. While Oswaldo bats left handed, Orlando bats right. Both are listed at 6 foot, but Oswaldo is listed at 220 pounds while Orlando is still listed at just 165 pounds.

AUDIO via Jeff Hem's blog -- "Tonight's interview is this week's installment of "Mondays with the Manager" with Rick Sweet, who discusses the team's 4-2 record thus far on the homestand, the team's tremendous pitching staff (1st in the PCL in ERA and strikeouts) and recent great defense (7 consecutive errorless games) and the lineup offensively, particularly the leadoff spot." *** Sweet gushes over shortstop Hector Gomez' defense, "best in the league".

Mills was optioned in the 2010, 2011, and 2012 seasons (Rotoworld). Sorry - nice try, though.

Manatees Blog -- Orlando Arcia has been stellar all year for Brevard, both in the field and at the plate *** You read that, and then you realize that Arcia lost the entirety of 2012 to ankle surgery. Technically, he's playing at 19, but from a development standpoint, he's playing at 18. Awesome... You folks placed him (respectfully) at #4 in your community rankings.

My goodness, how much weight might Victor Roache have lost? Via the 'Tees -- For the first time in 11 days, OF Victor Roache will be in the lineup for Brevard County. Roache has been out since May 21 with the virus that has gone through the Manatees clubhouse. Roache will hit sixth and play left field in game one of today’s doubleheader.

Huntsville Stars have Southern League first-half pennant within their reach Mark McCarter, Huntsville Stars The Huntsville Stars are on the cusp of extending their stay in the city by a few more days. With nearly two weeks remaining in the first half, the Stars could tonight clinch their first Southern League playoff berth since 2009. The Stars are 39-18 this half with 13 games remaining. The Tennessee Smokies, swept last week by the Stars in a five-game series, are 26-30. The Stars own the best record in the Southern League overall (4.5 better than South-leading Mobile) and have the fourth-best record in all minor league baseball. The Stars are visiting the Jackson (Tenn.) Generals tonight, while Tennessee hosts Birmingham. Either a Huntsville win or Tennessee loss will clinch for the Stars. The Stars end the trip to Jackson on Wednesday with a day game, then return to host Mobile and Chattanooga in a 10-game home stand. The Barons (25-32), Generals (23-33) and Chattanooga Lookouts (22-35) have already long been mathematically eliminated. Pitching has been the key for Huntsville - the 2.98 team ERA is second-best in the league - and one of the aces, Brent Suter, takes the mound tonight at Jackson. He's been one of a strong foursome, along with Tyler Cravy, Drew Gagnon and the recently promoted Taylor Jungmann, to lead the way. However, the most recent Southern League pitcher of week is Andy Moye, a veteran who has recently come off the disabled list and has a microscopic 0.77 ERA in three starts. Moye pitched six innings of shutout ball, allowing only one hit, in one of the victories over Tennessee last week. Huntsville's tenure as a member of the Southern League is scheduled to end on Monday, Sept. 1 with the home regular-season finale, but a playoff berth assures at least one more game in a best-of-five playoff tier that would pit the Stars against the second-half Southern League North winner. Should the Stars win both halves, they'd be in line to host four of the five games (if needed) against the North division team with the best overall record behind them. The Stars' last playoff appearance saw them lose three games to one to Tennessee in the North playoffs in 2009. In both 2006 and 2007, Huntsville reached the Southern League championship series against Montgomery, losing three games to one in '06, then losing a heartbreaker in 2007 on a ninth-inning game-five homer by the Biscuits' Sergi Pedroza as Huntsville stadium employees were in the process of hauling the championship trophy to the Stars' side of the field. Huntsville owns only three Southern League championships, knocking off Charlotte in 1985 in the first year of the franchise, then beating Carolina in 1994. It shared the 2001 title with Jacksonville when the playoffs were cancelled after the 9/11 attacks. All told, the Stars have made 12 postseason appearances, five coming as a Milwaukee affiliate (1999-present), seven as an Oakland A's farm club (1985-1998). **** The Times couldn't find a more attractive Andy Moye photo? Andy Moye named SL Pitcher of the Week (Mark Almond/Huntsville Times) http://imgick.al.com/home/bama-media/width430/img/sports_impact/photo/15104694-mmmain.jpg

We already have a mega-Huntsville-to-Biloxi thread, so this seemed a fun distraction worthy of its own thread. Biloxi baseball team name down to six finalists By Tyler Bouldin, WLOX.com BILOXI, MS (WLOX) - The Milwaukee Brewers' Double-A affiliate in Huntsville, Alabama, is enjoying one of its best seasons in the final season before moving to Biloxi for the 2015 season. At 39-18, the Stars are inching closer to a First-Half North Division title. The fans in Biloxi are hoping the winning ways will continue and now those same fans have an idea of what the team name will be. The club announced today that the fan contest to decide the team name has been broken down to six finalists: Beacon, Black Jacks, Mullets, Schooners, Shrimpers and Shuckers. Fans can vote on which finalist is their favorite for the next two weeks on the team's website. The winning name won't be made public for a few months because Minor League Baseball must give approval. Over 4,000 submissions were given during the first phase of the contest. *** So looks like voting is through June 16th, vote before then to be sure...

It's always Awards Season for the system in 2014! Via the Stars -- The Southern League announced today that Stars pitcher Andy Moye has been named Pitcher of the Week for the week of May 26th-June 1st. Moye pitched six scoreless innings in a 5-1 win against Tennessee to complete the sweep of the Smokies. Moye allowed one hit and struck out three batters. Since his return from the Disabled List on May 25th, Moye (1-0, 0.77 ERA) has surrendered just one run in 10 innings. Moye marks the third Stars pitcher to win Pitcher of the Week for the 2014 season.

The audio had been linked in yesterday's report, but here's Post-Crescent video and story on Aramis Ramirez' day.

Manatees turn up heat with solid pitching Florida Today The Brevard County Manatees are 5-2 in their past seven games, riding strong starting pitching to get back into the hunt in the Florida State League North standings. The Manatees are second in ERA in the FSL, at 2.65. Only Dunedin is better with a 2.51. Over the past seven games, the starters have given up an average of two runs in 46 innings. They have done it without Jed Bradley, who went to Double A last week. Every starter has logged at least one quality start in that stretch. Tonight's pitcher in Game 1 of the doubleheader at Port Charlotte, Jorge Lopez, is coming off a dominating performance in which he tossed eight innings, allowing one unearned run. Lopez is 6-2 with a 3.17 ERA, tying St. Lucie's Matthew Koch for most wins in the FSL. Game 2 starter Hobbs Johnson gave up two earned runs in his recent outing and comes in sporting a 2.95 ERA in 10 appearances. Tyler Wagner leads the staff in ERA, posting a 1.94 mark, good for eighth in the FSL. Damien Magnifico is just outside the top 10 in ERA, flashing a 2.39 through 11 starts. He is one of seven FSL starters to toss a complete game. Austin Ross has joined the rotation since the loss of Bradley and filled in nicely, allowing three earned runs in 13 innings.

The Post-Crescent has more on Steve Halcomb's marriage proposal after Saturday's game, including a video interview. The couple a few days prior at Miller Park, via Cacey's Twitter page...Congrats!

AAA All-Star Voting -- We can vote pitchers as well (wink-wink Nelson, Fiers, Mills).

Weather.com: Nashville, TN Jackson, TN Port Charlotte, FL Grand Chute, WI (Appleton) Santo Domingo, DR

Sortable individual stat pages: Nashville Huntsville Brevard County Wisconsin Dominican Summer League Brewers

STANDINGS: AAA - Pacific Coast League American Southern Division AA - Southern League North Division High-A - Florida State League North Division A - Midwest League Western Division DSL - Dominican Summer League San Pedro de Macoris

Look for these just prior to the respective game times -- Nashville Media Notes - it's a unique link each day, but look for it under the "Roster" banner on the Sounds' site. Brevard County Media Notes - again, it's a unique link each day, but look for it under the "Multimedia" banner on the Manatees' site. Wisconsin Media Notes - Linked on the Rattler Radio blog

To see tweets as to when the Link Report has been technically "completed" with available links, as well as to know when the new day's Report has been posted, please follow @Mass_Haas on Twitter.

Follow Monday's action as it happens with box score / game log links: Nashville Huntsville Brevard County Game One Brevard County Game Two Wisconsin Completion of Suspended Game Wisconsin Regularly Scheduled Game DSL Brewers MiLB.com feature -- organizational scoreboard, Brewers

Monday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: RHP Taylor Jungmann at home vs. Iowa (Cubs), 6:45 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime Free Live Audio Link Jeff Hem is the play-by-play voice of the Sounds; follow him on Twitter @jeffhempbp; we'll link to his blog updates at On the Air…and Off MiLB.TV -- for subscribers; all Nashville games, home and away, will be available to watch via MiLB.TV's $49.99 season-long package ($12.99 to pay for a single month). The audio feed is from the home team. All MiLB.TV details available at the link. ********** Huntsville: LHP Brent Suter at Jackson (Mariners), 6:50 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime Free Live Audio Link Steve Jarnicki is the new play-by-play voice of the Stars - welcome aboard! Follow Steve on Twitter @SteveJarnicki. All games, home and away, are scheduled to be broadcast. MiLB.TV - It appears seven of the ten Southern League teams telecast their home games (not the Stars). Yes, there is MiLB.TV coverage available from Jackson. ********** Brevard County: RHP Jorge Lopez and LHP Hobbs Johnson in a doubleheader at Charlotte (Rays), 3:35 PM pre-game, 4:05 gametime; each contest slated for seven innings Free Live Audio Link -- Select the proper link based on listed schedule Dave Walkovic returns as the play-by-play voice of the 'Tees; follow the Brevard broadcast booth staff on Twitter @BCManateesRadio. All home games and many road games are scheduled to be broadcast. When road games are only available via the opponents' audio feed (or not at all), we'll let you know that. No Florida State League games are available via MiLB.TV. ********** Wisconsin: First, it's the completion of Sunday's suspended nine-inning game (Timber Rattlers trail 3-2, bottom of the 5th) at home vs. Quad Cities (Astros), 11:45 AM pre-game, 12:05 PM gametime, followed by Monday's regularly-scheduled game, now shortened to seven innings. RHP Preston Gainey is scheduled to start in the nightcap. Free Live Audio Link - 1280 AM WNAM Chris Mehring is back to do his customary fantastic work as the Voice of the Rattlers. Follow him on Twitter @CMehring; we'll link to Chris' infamous blog often -- Rattler Radio. For the $49.95 season-long package, fans in Brewer Nation can watch all Sounds games, Stars' road games from seven Southern League locales, and all Timber Rattlers home games and some road games. NOTE: Thirty-nine (!) of the Rattlers' 70 home games will be broadcast on TV this season. Time Warner Cable SportsChannel (9) and WACY-TV My NEW32 (30) will split duties. We'll let you know when and who, and remember to refer to the Rattlers' full TV schedule so you can coordinate your DVR activity. DVR Alert: The next Wisconsin game scheduled for local TV is Wednesday evening, June 4th (MyNew32 TV). ********** DSL Brewers: at the DSL Tigers, 9:30 AM, although game data won't be available until later in the day We're going to lock in the link to Brad Krause's fantastic Miller Park Prospects - Dominican Summer League primer right here, at least for the first couple of months of the DSL campaign, for your easy review. Brad will also be adding DSL Link Report duties to his Brevard coverage for us here. Thanks, Brad!

http://www.brewerfan.net/images/store/dailylinkreport.jpg

Mills can opt out of his contract on June 15th. Since there's no room for yet another LHP in Milwaukee, it would make sense for the Brewers to identify a team willing to place a red-hot Mills on their big league staff right now and facilitate a trade to get something in return. Why would a team give up something for him? That would allow the acquiring team to not have to compete with other potential suitors, if Mills simply walked away and hit the open market on June 15th. At this point, it would be very surprising to see Mills still with the Brewers organization after the 15th, in my opinion.

BitB Interview with Josh Kusnick – “Then one day, a player said, ‘If you buy me a glove, you’re my agent.’” Very good read with many Brewers references... We learn there never really was a decision by Cleveland to be made in the Brantley/Green PTBNL debate -- “The deal was, if the Brewers missed the playoffs, the Player to be Named would be Taylor Green, who is another one of my guys, and if the Brewers made the playoffs, it was Michael Brantley."

BitB Interview with Josh Kusnick – “Then one day, a player said, ‘If you buy me a glove, you’re my agent.’” Very good read with many Brewers references... We learn there never really was a decision by Cleveland to be made in the Brantley/Green PTBNL debate -- “The deal was, if the Brewers missed the playoffs, the Player to be Named would be Taylor Green, who is another one of my guys, and if the Brewers made the playoffs, it was Michael Brantley."

Knowing you all read the media notes daily, but making sure you saw this from Brevard -- ORLANDO MAGIC: Manatees INF Orlando Arcia has been on a tear at the plate over the last several games…Since the beginning of the series at Palm Beach, Arcia has a .370 batting average (17-for-46)…In those 12 games, Arcia has recorded five multi-hit games and four doubles…The infielder has driven in five runs and stolen two bases during this stretch.