Jim Goulart

Nashville -- AUDIO, Game One: Jeremy Hermida slams one out of the park scoring two runs VIDEO, Game One: Matt Pagnozzi hits a home run to end Nashville's 5-4 win over Omaha VIDEO, Game Two: Hector Gomez hits a home run in Nashville's 13-4 win over Omaha (No sound on that last link...) But here's the AUDIO separately. AUDIO, Game Two: Kevin Mattison's hits a two-run triple opens up a 7-3 lead

Link includes a video interview with Manager Matt Erickson with some, but not all, of the quotes listed below, so follow and listen -- (this audio was also included in the Rattler Radio blog postgame entry linked earlier). Clint Coulter making defensive strides for Timber Rattlers by Tim Froberg, Post-Crescent Media GRAND CHUTE — The pop in Clint Coulter’s bat is what may get him to Miller Park on a permanent basis. Coulter is one the most improved hitters in the Midwest League and is starting to put up the type of offensive numbers the Milwaukee Brewers expected when they made him the 27th overall selection in the 2012 first-year player draft. What the Brewers may find even more intriguing is that the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers’ slugger is making strides behind the plate as a catcher. In Wisconsin’s 8-2 loss Wednesday night to Kane County, the 20-year-old Coulter gunned down the Cougars’ David Bote on an attempted steal of third. It was the third baserunner that Coulter has thrown out in the past two days. In addition, Coulter also picked off a baserunner Tuesday in the second game of a doubleheader split with the Cougars. “I’ve been working a lot with Charlie Greene (a field coordinator and catching instructor for the Brewers) and it’s been paying dividends,” said Coulter. “I’m getting a lot of reps and just trusting what he’s teaching me.” On the season, Coulter has thrown out 12 of 37 runners. He has always had a terrific arm, but has shown improvement this season on his release and overall mechanics. “He picked off a guy the other night and is getting the ball down to second a little better,” said Wisconsin manager Matt Erickson. “He’s cleaned up his footwork and we’ve been working on his pop times to second. He’s still got a ways to go, but you take it step by step.” At the plate, Coulter has emerged as one of the Midwest League’s better hitters. He is hitting .291 and leads the league in RBI (35) and is tied for the league in home runs (eight). Despite Coulter’s ability to contain Kane County’s running game, the Timber Rattlers finished out a three-game home stand with a disappointing performance. The Rattlers were outhit 13-7 and made some costly mistakes that allowed the Cougars to build a 6-0 lead after six innings. “It was a frustrating game, to be very honest,” said Erickson. “We didn’t set the tone well. We let a ball drop in right center that gave them their first run. We had a balk that advanced a runner an inning later and we had a fairly easy double steal where we got thrown out on the back end. And you can’t get thrown out when you’re down by three. This was a ballgame to forget about, to learn from and to move on.” Wisconsin starter Tristan Archer struggled in his fifth start of the season, allowing six runs on nine hits in five innings, while also uncorking a wild pitch and committing a balk. The Rattlers collected just two hits off Kane County starter Duane Underwood in his five innings of work and one of them was an infield single by speedy Johnny Davis. Underwood, a right-hander, was a second-round pick by the Chicago Cubs in the 2012 first-year player draft. “He’s a good pitcher. There’s a reason why he was drafted high like that,” said Coulter. “He had good stuff, but I thought we could have approached our at-bats a little better.” Wisconsin second baseman Chris McFarland left the game in the top of the ninth inning with an ankle injury following a collision with center fielder Omar Garcia, while the two were trying to catch Carlos Penalver’s RBI bloop single to shallow right. “Chris is athletic and he’s made some circus catches going away from the infield like that,” said Erickson. “He rolled his ankle a little bit. We’ll evaluate him tomorrow, but he’s pretty sore and he might miss a few days.”

Just for fun, here's the May 26, 2012 Link Report for Hopkins' last monster game alluded to in the prior post.

Hopkins powers Stars over Biscuits A. Stacy Long, Montgomery Advertiser Greg Hopkins didn't need long to recount the last time he had a game like his Wednesday at Riverwalk Stadium. His two home runs and five RBIs led the Huntsville Stars in a 5-2 victory over the Biscuits, and Hopkins harkened back to his last two-homer game. It was two years ago in low-Class A. "Those games definitely stick out," Hopkins said. "They don't happen often. You just want to stay in the moment and enjoy them." Hopkins' two-homer game was almost on the second anniversary of his last. He finished with six RBIs, added a double and scored three runs in the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers' 11-3 win over the Peoria Chiefs on May 26, 2012. He entered Monday with a .193 average, two home runs and 10 RBIs. "This is the best Double-A game he's had so far," Stars manager Carlos Subero said. "Hopkins has been in kind of a slump and hasn't been hitting well. "It's nice to see him with two hard-hit balls." Hopkins hit a two-run homer in the fifth inning to give Huntsville a 2-1 lead. His three-run blast in the ninth inning snapped a 2-2 tie. "I wouldn't say I'm a home run hitter at all," Hopkins said. "I got a couple of good pitches to hit and put a good swing on them." His ninth-inning homer came just after an error by the Biscuits. Kentrail Davis walked to begin the inning and Adam Weisenburger bunted. Biscuits pitcher Andrew Bellatti (1-2) threw wildly to second, allowing Davis to advance to third. Hopkins stepped up and, on a 2-0 pitch, put Huntsville ahead. "You have to get back to focusing on the hitter," Biscuits manager Brady Williams said. "You can't think about what has happened and you have to move on. "He's learning. We're all learning. That's why we're here." Ryan Brett homered in the third and Joey Rickard doubled home Jake Hager with two outs in the seventh for Montgomery. But the Biscuits finished just 1-of-13 with runners in scoring position. "We did very well at getting guys to third, but we hit some balls right at guys," Williams said. "That was a big hit from Rickard to tie it up, but it just wasn't enough."

Palm Beach turns 'routine' triple play Caldwell, Valera, Voit go around-the-horn in win over Manatees By Kelsie Heneghan / MiLB.com Worth a read for the story behind the play, but it's the Cardinals, so we're not pasting the text here :

Final: Huntsville 5, @Montgomery 2 HOPKINS HOMERS TWICE LEADING STARS TO VICTORY Montgomery, AL - Huntsville Stars 2B Greg Hopkins broke a 2-2 tie in the ninth inning with a three-run homer against Montgomery Biscuits RHP Andrew Bellatti (1-2) which gave the Stars a 5-2 lead. That would turn out to be the final score Wednesday night at Riverwalk Stadium. Hopkins homered twice for the Stars. With Huntsville trailing 1-0, Hopkins launched a two-run homer over the left field wall in the fifth inning giving the Stars a 2-1 lead. Montgomery tied the game in the seventh off Stars reliever Tim Dillard. Jake Hager led off with a double. Two batters later Joey Rickard doubled past third baseman Jason Rogers scoring Hager and tying the game at 2-2. In the top of the ninth, Kentrail Davis led off with a walk. Adam Weisenburger then put down a sacrifice bunt in front of the pitcher’s mound. Bellatti fielded the bunt and threw wildly to second trying to get Davis. Davis wound up taking third base on the throwing error. Hopkins then came to the plate and belted his second home run of the game, a three-run homer over the left field wall. For Hopkins it was his fourth home run of the season. In the bottom of the ninth, David Goforth walked a pair of batters and had the tying runner at the plate, but was able to get Ryan Brett to ground out to third to end the game. Arcenio Leon (1-0) collected the win out of the Stars bullpen. Tyler Cravy started for the Stars went six innings giving up five hits. The only run he allowed was a solo home run to Brett in the third. Cravy took a no decision. The Stars lead the Biscuits 1-0 in their five game series. Game two will be Thursday night at Riverwalk Stadium. The Stars will feature RHP Drew Gagnon (4-1, 2.36). Montgomery will have RHP Victor Mateo (6-3, 3.40) on the hill. Thursday’s game can be heard with Steve Jarnicki starting at 6:50 pm CDT on 92.9 FM, 1450 AM, and wtkiradio.com. Huntsville Box Score Mansfield, Mass., Bishop Feehan High School and St. John's product Greg Hopkins drove in all five runs with his two long balls. The 25-year-old did all his damage from the nine-spot in the lineup, as Huntsville finds a new hero on this night. SS Nick Shaw singled and walked three times out of the leadoff spot, and now sports the unique batting line of .216/.376/.252. He has 24 each of hits, K's, and walks. Shaw was caught stealing once and D'Vontrey Richardson and Nick Ramirez combined to go 0-for-10 with five K's right behind Shaw, so it was up to Hopkins and the bottom half of the order in this one. Yes, RHP Tyler Cravy was very good -- again. Huntsville Game Log Yay, Mitch Haniger's arm -- Montgomery Bottom of the 2nd Jeremy Moore singles on a fly ball to right fielder Mitch Haniger. Jake Hager out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Tyler Cravy to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Jeremy Moore to 2nd. Luke Maile lines into a double play, right fielder Mitch Haniger to third baseman Jason Rogers. Jeremy Moore out at 3rd. Cravy worked around leadoff doubles in each of his last two innings -- stressful pitches, but bigtime pitches: Montgomery Bottom of the 5th Luke Maile doubles (5) on a line drive to right fielder Mitch Haniger. Alejandro Segovia lines out to center fielder D' Vontrey Richardson. Luke Maile to 3rd. Joey Rickard grounds out, shortstop Nick Shaw to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Ryan Brett flies out to left fielder Kentrail Davis. Montgomery Bottom of the 6th Taylor Motter doubles (10) on a ground ball to left fielder Kentrail Davis. Cameron Seitzer walks. Richie Shaffer flies out to left fielder Kentrail Davis. Jeremy Moore grounds into a double play, second baseman Greg Hopkins to shortstop Nick Shaw to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Cameron Seitzer out at 2nd.

Weather.com: Nashville, TN Montgomery, AL Jupiter, FL Grand Chute, WI (Appleton)

Sortable individual stat pages: Nashville Huntsville Brevard County Wisconsin

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

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 Wednesday's action as it happens with box score / game log links: Nashville Game One Nashville Game Two Huntsville Brevard County Wisconsin MiLB.com feature -- organizational scoreboard, Brewers

DVR ALERT: As we've been indicating this week, Wednesday's Timber Rattlers game is being broadcast on local MyNew32 TV out of Green Bay, 6:00 PM pre-game. *** And reminding folks (as mentioned above), the Stars are available on MiLB.TV while in Montgomery. Chance for those with subscriptions to peek in on RHP Tyler Cravy this evening.

Wednesday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: RHP's Mike Fiers and Michael Blazek in a doubleheader at home vs. Omaha (Royals), 5:45 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime; each contest slated for seven innings 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: RHP Tyler Cravy at Montgomery (Rays), 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). Montgomery does place their games on MiLB.TV. ********** Brevard County: RHP Jorge Lopez at Palm Beach (Cardinals), 5:05 PM pre-game, 5:35 gametime 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: RHP Tristan Archer at home vs. Kane County (Cubs), 6:15 PM pre-game, 6:35 gametime 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.

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We follow 2013 alumni here, and LHP Zach Kroenke had his contract purchased from indy ball by the Nationals, and will report to AA Harrisburg in their system.

Just announced by @BrewersPD: "Tanner Poppe has been transferred to Huntsville; Kevin Shackelford has been transferred to Brevard County. Andy Moye transferred to H'ville. It's been quite the ascent for RHP Tanner Poppe, who turns 24 in July. Nice scouting, Brewers, as Poppe, who skipped Wisconsin this spring, was plucked in the 31st round of last June's draft. The 6'6" Poppe is doing exactly what players drafted at an advanced age need to do, kudos to him. Hopefully 40-man roster RHP Kevin Shackelford can find a quick fix back down at Brevard. You'd think RHP Andy Moye will take back his Huntsville rotation spot, with Jacob Barnes returning to a swingman role. Moye takes the 25th roster spot that was open when RHP Eric Marzec was called up to Nashville earlier this week. *** The Brewers also announced the release of RHP Leonard Lorenzo. Lorenzo is just the latest of a long line of Dominican Summer League prospects who are brought stateside, show a bit of potential in Maryvale/Helena/Wisconsin, and then are let go prior to reaching High-A. The only player signed and developed by the Brewers out of the Dominican Republic or Venezuela, position or pitcher, currently at AAA, AA, or High-A, is Brevard County middle infielder Orlando Arcia. That is totally unacceptable. At Wisconsin now via the Dominican complex are IF Francisco Castillo, OF Jose Pena, and RHP Victor Diaz.

Matt Erickson - Celebrity Sportscaster! "You sure do smell nice...."

Hope everyone finds time today to listen to the collection of interviews from Brevard and Wisconsin in this Link Report, really solid stuff (as usual). *** A Wednesday, and no matinee games with screaming schoolkids via the field mikes? Darn...

Palm Beach walks off in pitchers' duel Cards' Lee hurls eight shutout frames; Manatees' Bradley spins nine By Kelsie Heneghan / MiLB.com Inning after inning, the scoreboard at Roger Dean Stadium was laced with zeros. With Brevard County southpaw Jed Bradley and Palm Beach right-hander Thomas Lee dealing on the mound, it took until the 11th frame for the Class A Advanced Cardinals to walk off with the 1-0 victory. Though the teams combined for just seven hits before extras, Lee hadn't realized how much of a pitchers' duel it was. "I didn't really pay attention too much about how his outing was going. Obviously just from me not being in the dugout for very long, I knew he was doing well," the Cardinals prospect said. "It wasn't a matter of 'I have to do better than him,' just that I have to throw strikes and get my team back out there so they can go and hit. For me personally, when I think about the other guy and trying to do better, it throws me off my game." Concentrating on the away halves of the frames, the Sonoma State product allowed three hits over a career-high eight innings, inching a step closer to his personal goal of hurling nine frames in pro ball. "I was really focusing today, not really thinking too much [because] I was on the same page with my catcher [Casey Rasmus]," Lee said. "I'm not a guy who is known for his velocity, so just being able to go to the corners and add and subtract from my pitches." The 24-year-old was reminded of his final college start -- another duel which resulted in a walk-off win for his team after he was done for the night. Bradley was fueled by the competition, adding that he always wants his opposing pitcher to do well, but "maybe not that well" he said with a laugh. "I try to stay the same the whole time I am out there as far as intensity from pitch one to when they take the ball away," the Brewers prospect said. "But you definitely feel your heartbeat speed up as the innings go on, especially in the ninth inning." The Georgia Tech product scattered four hits while striking out three over a career-high nine innings. Bradley gave up three of the hits early before pitching perfect sixth, seventh and eighth frames. He yielded a leadoff single in the ninth, but then forced three groundouts to end his night. "If I was back in Little League, I would've wanted to go out for the 10th, but they don't let you do that at this level," he said. After Bradley and Lee were done for the night, the relievers kept the game scoreless until the bottom of the 11th. Bruce Caldwell and Breyvic Valera led off the frame with a pair of singles and advanced on a bunt by Ildemaro Vargas. After an intentional walk issued to Starlin Rodriguez, Luke Voit came up with the bases loaded and one out. In his first game back since extended spring training, Volt singled in Caldwell to notch his first hit for Palm Beach and win the game. "I was really happy to see that in his first game up. … He was really happy, along with everyone else, that we were able to score in that game," Lee said. "Honestly, it was a good game for us just because it felt like we needed a strong outing from our pitching staff. We've had some pretty good outing from our pitchers, but we've come up short. Just being able to go out there and put up zeros, help our teammates not be stressed out about scoring [is big]." On the mound in the 11th, Stephen Peterson (0-2) yielded the game's only run on three hits and a walk while recording one out. "My team left it all out on the field. They were grinding every at-bat, every play," Bradley said. "We can hang our hat on knowing we played a great game." Palm Beach reliever Christopher Thomas (1-0) allowed three hits while striking out one in a frame.

More Timber Rattlers -- Kyle Lobner's postgame report with quotes via BrewCrewBall *** Rattler Radio Blog - Postgame Entry with audio, photos and video doubleheader highlights

PHOTOS: Another excellent collection via Brad and Miller Park Prospects

Brevard County - AUDIO: Dave Walkovic is joined by pitching coach Dave Chavarria on the Manatees Radio Network to talk about the 'Tees dominant starting pitching. AUDIO, Game Highlights: Jed Bradley throws nine scoreless innings, but the Manatees fall to the Cardinals in 11 innings, 1-0. AUDIO: Justin Rocke is joined by OF Victor Roache on the Manatees Pregame Show to talk about Roache's clutch hits in Jupiter.

Via Tom Haudricourt -- Ron Roenicke said he expects reliever Tom Gorzelanny to have his rehab assignment moved up from Class A Brevard to AAA Nashville.

Via Joe Block -- Ron Roenicke says Jim Henderson will join Huntsville for a rehab assignment. He'll pitch Friday and tentatively will make three outings.