Jim Goulart

Fiers fans career-high 13 in Sounds' rout Brewers right-hander rebounds from rough outing against I-Cubs By Tyler Maun / MiLB.com Mike Fiers had mastered nearly every task set before him this season, but Saturday night provided him with an opportunity to redeem his one rough outing. The Major League veteran recorded a career-high 13 strikeouts and allowed five hits over 6 2/3 scoreless innings as Triple-A Nashville rolled to a 10-1 triumph at Iowa. "It was just another one of those nights where everything was working," said Fiers, who issued one walk. "I had good life on my fastball. I was able to locate it, and that just helped out with every other pitch. I put a lot of guys away with the curveball, which was working really good. I was keeping it down, and then at times, I flipped it in there for a strike. It felt like everything was working. Keeping them off-balance was the biggest thing." The record-setting performance came five days after the 28-year-old right-hander's worst outing of an otherwise dominant season. Iowa got to Fiers (6-1) for five runs on six hits over five innings. He fanned a season-low five while absorbing his first loss. "Last game, I was definitely not happy. It was a bad outing," Fiers said. "I just didn't have anything going. I couldn't locate my fastball. I was getting behind in counts a lot of the time. I had to come back into counts and make pitches, which I didn't do. They were ready and they ended up making good swings and capitalized on the mistakes I was making." Strikeouts came from the outset in Fiers' second shot at the Cubs' lineup. He froze Arismendy Alcantara and Javier Baez, Chicago's No. 6 and No. 1 prospects respectively, to close the first innings. The Cubs had few answers for Fiers, who struck out the side in the second and fifth and had just one inning -- the fourth -- in which he didn't record multiple strikeouts. All those whiffs inflated Fiers' pitch count, with the Nova Southeastern product topping the 100-pitch plateau after six innings. That didn't prevent him from going out for the seventh. "I didn't know where I was, pitch count-wise," he said. "I knew I was getting up there. [Manager] Rick Sweet and [pitching coach] Fred Dabney asked me if I was all right and how I felt. I told them, 'I'm good.' They let me go back out there. I've been there before and they had the confidence in me to get it done." After recording the first two outs in the seventh, Fiers surrendered a single to Logan Watkins to bring his night to a close. The outing dropped his ERA to 1.59, which ranks third in the Pacific Coast League. He's fanned 64 batters while walking only six and leads all Triple-A starters with a 12.7 strikeouts per nine innings. "It's Minor League Baseball and, obviously, everyone here wants to play in the Major Leagues," Fiers said. "You have it in the back of your mind and even if I didn't have the numbers that I have now, just being in Triple-A, that next step is being in the big leagues. It's hard not to think about it. But that's one of the main things that you have to do is focus on what you're doing and going into every start like you would in the big leagues." Fiers, who has made 36 appearances for the Brewers over the last three seasons, went 1-4 with a 7.25 ERA in 11 outings in 2013. "You've got to take that mind-set because if you're in the Minor Leagues and you're dreading being here and worrying about a call, things aren't going to go as well as you've planned," he said. "It's definitely in the back of my mind, but I'm able to go out there and take every start like I am in the big leagues. It really is a stepping stone to pitching well there. I've got to pitch well here and get ready for whenever that call is." Hector Gomez staked Fiers to a quick lead with a solo homer in the first inning. Taylor Green doubled home Sean Halton in the second and Halton hammered a two-run homer that capped a three-run third. Gomez, Halton and Elian Herrera each had three hits, with Gomez and Halton driving in three runs apiece. Iowa starter Eric Jokisch (2-3) surrendered six runs -- five earned -- on nine hits while striking out five and walking one in four innings. *** VIDEO, Full at-bat: Nashville's MIke Fiers fans 13th Iowa batter of the night as Sounds top Cubs, 10-1.

A good portion of Tom Haudricourt's Sunday notes column focuses on Huntsville. Click the link for the full article. There are some big things happening on the pitching front with the Brewers' Class AA Huntsville affiliate. Entering Saturday, the Stars ranked second in the Southern League with a 2.64 ERA and led that circuit with six shutouts. The Stars recently set a franchise record with 30 consecutive scoreless innings. "We've had some guys dramatically improve and others we have high hopes for are pitching well," said Brewers assistant general manager Gord Ash. Among the surprises is left-hander Brent Suter, among the league leaders with a 5-1 record and 1.71 ERA through seven starts. Prospects Drew Gagnon (3-1, 2.66), David Goforth (2.60 ERA in 13 relief appearances, seven saves) and Kevin Shackelford (3.05 ERA in 14 relief outings) have fared well, and improving starter Tyler Cravy (5-1, 2.08) is another to watch. Making the Huntsville pitching situation more impressive is the fact that two starting pitchers, Brooks Hall (elbow spur) and Andy Moye (hamstring strain), have been on the DL. "That shows you the kind of depth we have," said Ash. "Cravy is an under-the-radar type guy who's having a nice year. We debated over the winter about putting him on the 40-man roster." Another great story at Huntsville has been the offensive production of catcher Shawn Zarraga, a 44th-round draft pick in 2007. Zarraga, 25, was hitting .444 through 26 games with a .517 OBP and .500 slugging percentage. Ash noted that Zarraga has made great strides behind the plate as well. "He's always had the hitting capability, but he's never been a very good defender," said Ash. "I talked to him at the end of last year and I said, 'If you really want to be serious, you better get home and get in condition.' "And he did. He lost 20 to 25 pounds. He has turned himself into a decent receiver. He's a switch-hitter. If you can hit like that, you've got a chance. No one had ever trusted his ability to catch. That's not the case anymore."

Almost! 25 innings, 38 K's!

Final: Huntsville 5, @Chattanooga 2 Cravy Stymies Lookouts In Stars Win Chattanooga, TN - Huntsville Stars right-hander Tyler Cravy turned in yet another impressive start as he won his fifth straight decision by beating the Chattanooga Lookouts Friday night 5-2 at AT&T Field. Cravy improved to 6-1 on the season. His six wins are the most in the Southern League. The Stars took a 2-0 lead in the first inning against Lookouts starter Nick Struck (0-1). With two outs, Nick Ramirez tripled off the center-field wall. Mitch Haniger scored Ramirez on a single into center. The next batter, Kentrail Davis, singled into center scoring Jason Rogers. The Stars made it 3-0 in the 3rd. Ramirez absolutely crushed a pitch over the right field wall for his seventh home run of the season. The Lookouts scored one run against Cravy in the sixth. J.C. Boscan led off with a double. Struck got a sacrifice bunt down which was bobbled by Cravy and an error was charged to the Stars pitcher. Darnell Sweeney then singled through the right side scoring Boscan making it 3-1. The Stars added two runs in the eighth. D'Vontrey Richardson tripled over the centerfielder Noel Cuevas's head scoring Josh Prince. Ramirez followed with an infield RBI single. Chattanooga scored their final run in the bottom of the eighth as third baseman Rogers committed two errors, one throwing and one fielding which aided the Lookouts. Scott Schebler had an RBI single against Kevin Shackelford which went for an unearned run. David Goforth worked a 1-2-3 ninth, notching his eighth save of the year, tied for the most in the Southern League. Cravy worked seven innings allowing four hits. He struck out a season high nine. Ramirez went 3-4 with 2 RBI. The Stars improved to a Southern League best 24-12 while Chattanooga drops to 14-21. The Stars lead the Lookouts in the five-game series 1-0. The Stars and Lookouts will continue their series with an afternoon game Sunday. The Stars will have RHP Drew Gagnon (3-1, 2.66). Chattanooga will have RHP Tyson Brummett (3-2, 0.49) on the mound. The game can be heard starting at 1:00 PM CT with Steve Jarnicki on 92.9 FM, 1450 AM, and wtkiradio.com. Huntsville Box Score These Link Report days run together -- weren't we just singing RHP Tyler Cravy's praises just yesterday? Actually, it was five days ago, time flies. The power was expected, but .292, Nick Ramirez? Nice. Defensive growing pains for Jason Rogers at third base... Huntsville Game Log Kudos boys, 24-12, .667 ball. Crazy good. You'll see evidence of 4-for-6 with RISP here.

Struggling Cubs lose for ninth time in last 10 games By Sean Kernan, Daytona News-Journal DAYTONA BEACH — The Daytona Cubs and Brevard County Manatees are two teams heading in different directions. The Manatees used three home runs, and Brevard County pitchers struck out 12 in a 5-2 victory over the Cubs at Radiology Associates Field at Jackie Robinson Ballpark on Saturday night. The Cubs have lost nine of their last 10 games, including four straight to Brevard County, while the Manatees have won seven of 10. A big reason the Manatees (20-15) have improved and the Cubs (10-23) have not is Brevard County has raised its team batting average about 50 points to .250. Daytona’s has slipped to .239. “I think it comes down to how our approach has improved,” said Brevard County catcher Cameron Garfield, who slugged a two-run homer. “When you see a pitch that’s not the one you’re looking for, don’t swing at it.” Nicky Delmonico and Yadiel Rivera also hit solo home runs for the Manatees. Brevard County starter Hobbs Johnson (3-4) overmatched the Cubs through the first six innings before yielding two runs, one earned, in the seventh. After Dan Vogelbach doubled to lead off the second, the Cubs didn’t hit a ball out of the infield until Bijan Rademacher doubled home Albert Almora with nobody out in the seventh. The Cubs whiffed eight times between those two at-bats, and Johnson faced just two over the minimum number of batters in that stretch. The Cubs fanned 12 times and drew just one walk in the game. Rademacher, who was 2 for 4, was the only Cub with more than one hit. “Sometimes guys get too antsy and wired up because they want to get a hit so badly,” Daytona manager Dave Keller said. “They get a little anxious. Are our guys chasing (pitches)? Everybody chases at this level.” The Florida State League is off Sunday.

Brevard County -- First, catching up from Friday with VIDEO: Andrew Luftglass talks with Jorge Lopez after the 'Tees right-hander pitched seven two-hit innings to beat the Daytona Cubs. Well, not only is the Puerto Rican native coming along with his English, but it seems other members of the Manatees' broadcast staff are epic video-bombers, you'll see. *** AUDIO: Infielder Nicky Delmonico joins Justin Rocke on the Manatees Pregame Show AUDIO, Saturday game highlights -- The Manatees sweep the Cubs, 5-2. AUDIO: Delmonico and starting LHP Hobbs Johnson join the Manatees postgame show

Rattler Radio blog -- Postgame entry Some insights from Chris, and the video highlights...

Just a day after lamenting the lack of local Huntsville coverage, Mark McCarter comes through with a Mitch Haniger feature just posted within our 2014 Stars thread.

Mitch Haniger's springtime taste of major leagues helps fuel desire to progress By Mark McCarter, Huntsville Times Mitch Haniger sat in the darkness of a cluttered Huntsville Stars' dugout after a recent game, drawn into a conversation about the "learning curve" of baseball, something that for Haniger in recent times has seemed more a subtle bend than a curve. He had just finished a 3-for-4 game, which, tacked onto a 2-for-4 game on the previous night, gave him a .407 batting average for the first seven games of the new month. It matches the division-leading Stars' recent hot streak, with seven wins in their last eight games. "Everyone is like, 'How's Double-A? How's the jump?" Haniger said. "Honestly, pitching is similar to the Florida State League, but everybody's a year better. The pitchers are a year better. The hitters are a year better. It's not like (a pitcher's) fastball or slider gained five miles an hour." For Haniger, "It's been a steady thing. Numbers-wise, I don't think I had a great April (.193, .615 OPS). But I felt good. I hit the ball hard. I was unlucky at times and I swung at some bat pitches, but overall I don't think my performance was as bad as the numbers showed." "There's a natural learning curve when you come from High A to Double-A," said Huntsville manager Carlos Subero. "The kid works hard and I have no doubt he'll figure it out. He's very analytical at times. He has a good thought process how to go about stuff." On a relatively experienced Stars' roster, Haniger is both one of the mostly highly touted prospects - No. 3 on the Brewers' list according to Baseball America -- and less-seasoned players. The Huntsville centerfielder had but 143 games' professional experience before being assigned to the Stars' roster for 2014. He played only 14 games at low-A in 2012 before tearing a knee ligament, then divided last season between low-A Wisconsin and Brevard County in high-A. "It made me respect the times I'm healthy and not take anything for granted," Haniger said. Haniger was a 2012 first-round draft pick out of Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, alma mater of another Stars' centerfielder, Logan Schafer (2011), where he drew the attention of an opposing outfielder named Lance Roenicke. Later, after the Brewers selected Haniger, Roenicke shared a positive scouting report with his father, who happens to be Milwaukee manager Ron Roenicke. As fate would have it, Haniger and the younger Roenicke would become roommates when they made their pro debuts in 2012 and again last season at Brevard County. Then the elder Roenicke got a first-hand look when the Brewers invited Haniger to their big league camp for a short stay this past spring. He merely went 8-for-16 with two homers and seven RBIs in 10 games. "The whole idea is when you come into camp and you're not a guy who has a legitimate chance to make the team, you try to impress somebody," said Ron Roenicke told Tom Haudricourt of the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel. "I told him, 'You impressed everybody here.' That's perfect for a guy coming in like he did." "The mental side is really good, and he's a really well-rounded player. He's a good defender, great arm. Offensively, he's a guy that makes adjustments and puts the ball in play when he has to. But he also drives the ball pretty well." "It was good. It was fun," Haniger said. "It was just getting one step closer to the dream. You watch TV and think, 'That's cool to play on TV in the big leagues.' And then I was in big league camp with all the guys I watched on TV. "It was a cool experience," he said, "but I felt like I kept a level head and felt like I can be here soon." http://imgick.al.com/home/bama-media/width620/img/sports_impact/photo/14911575-mmmain.jpg

AUDIO via Jeff Hem's blog -- "Tonight’s interview is with Sounds outfielder Jeremy Hermida. He discusses his season so far and coming to the Brewers; playing for Sounds manager Rick Sweet in Louisville (Reds) in 2011 and for Sounds hitting coach Bob Skube in Tucson (Padres) in 2012; his drive to get back to the big leagues, where he played at least part of every year from ’05-’12; and what he remembers about becoming the first player in major league history to hit a pinch-hit grand slam in his first major league at-bat (’05 with Marlins for Cardinals reliever and former Sound Al Reyes, )." *** Look for a fresh-faced Miguel Cabrera in the video as well. Given this news (Weeks declines possibility of trying LF), keep an eye on the possibility of a Hermida call-up at some point.

Wondering about the Dominican Summer League? Formal schedule hasn't been released yet, but last year started Sat. June 1st, so this year Sat. May 31st seems like a reasonable guess.

Weather.com: Des Moines, IA Chattanooga, TN Daytona Beach, 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 Saturday's action as it happens with box score / game log links: Nashville Huntsville Brevard County Wisconsin MiLB.com feature -- organizational scoreboard, Brewers

Saturday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: RHP Mike Fiers at 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: RHP Tyler Cravy at Chattanooga (Dodgers), 6:00 PM pre-game, 6:15 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). Unfortunately, Chattanooga also does not provide MiLB.TV coverage. ********** Brevard County: LHP Hobbs Johnson at Daytona (Cubs), 5:35 PM pre-game, 6:05 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 Victor Diaz at home vs. Cedar Rapids (Twins), 12:45 PM pre-game, 1:05 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. DVR ALERT: Next televised game is this coming Monday, 5/12, MyNew32 TV, 6:00 pregame show.[/i]

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

The Timber Rattlers play a usual home Saturday matinee today, look for yet another Link Report to debut by late morning to set you up.

Brevard County -- AUDIO: Catcher Cameron Garfield joins Justin Rocke on the Manatees Pregame Show. AUDIO, Game Highlights: The Manatees defeat the Cubs, 5-2 *** Did you see the news we linked about the Manatees moving to Winter Park (Orlando) in 2016? If you're visiting the Link Report only via Twitter, be sure to bookmark this Minor League Forum to keep up with all the updated threads here. It's a pretty manageable daily visit.

Brief MLB.com pipeline article -- Prospect Coulter homers in third straight game *** Rattler Radio blog - Postgame Entry Audio, photos, video... Chris speaks to RHP Mark Williams discusses the torn ACL injury that sidelined him, so we learn about his time away to begin 2014; Williams also updates us on RHP Chad Thompson (shoulder) and his rehab progress... Learn about the outfield positioning shuffle in the Matt Erickson audio, too.

Despite Friday's hig-scoring Nashville affair, here's a look inside Colorado Spring's having-an-impact humidor.

Biloxi with contractor issues, falling behind on construction.

Final: @Huntsville 2, Jackson 1, 13 innings Rogers Wins It For Stars In Extra Inning Game Huntsville, AL - Jason Rogers saved his only hit of the night for the perfect time as it gave the Huntsville Stars a 2-1 win in the bottom of the thirteenth over the Jackson Generals. The Generals and Stars were tied at 1-1 going into the thirteenth. With two outs, Nick Ramirez lined a double to right-center field. Then Rogers gave the Stars their 23rd win of the season on a game-winning hit over the left fielder Jamal Austin's head scoring Ramirez. Rogers' teammates mobbed him in between first and second base celebrating the win. The win improved the Stars to a Southern League best 23-12. They also took four out of five from the Generals who fell to 15-20. Jackson took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Jack Marder singled over shortstop Nick Shaw. That run came against Huntsville starter Jacob Barnes. Barnes took the no decision as he went five innings allowing four hits. He struck out a season high eight batters. The Stars tied the game in the bottom of the fifth. Kentrail Davis hit a solo home run that just went over the fence in right-center field. It was Davis's first homer of the season. The home run allowed by Jackson starter Tyler Olson would be the only mistake he would make. Olson struck out ten in seven innings. Eric Marzec (1-2) earned the win out of the Stars bullpen. Marzec pitched the top of the 13th. After allowing a leadoff single he left the go ahead run stranded at second base. The Stars will travel to Chattanooga, TN Saturday to begin a five-game series with the Chattanooga Lookouts, the Double-A Affiliate of the Los Angeles Dodgers. RHP Tyler Cravy (5-1, 2.08) will start for Huntsville. Chattanooga will have RHP Nick Struck (0-0, 7,71) on the mound. The game can be heard starting at 6:00 PM CT with Steve Jarnicki on 92.9 FM, 1450 AM, and wtkiradio.com. Huntsville Box Score Five Huntsville relievers combined on eight shutout innings, sweet. It's a shame that the Huntsville Times and the media outlets there are pretty much ignoring the Stars again this year. These guys deserve some more ink and video, online audio. "It was just a bad pitch," Tyler Olson said of the homer. "Changeup to a lefty that was up in the zone. I was actually trying to bury the pitch, just to kind of get a ground ball from him. And I just left it up -- home run." Olson got the better of his next exchange with Kentrail Davis, finishing off his outing with a 10th strikeout. That's from an MiLB article on the Mariners' prospect. 25-year-old catcher Adam Weisenburger continues to post fine numbers -- on base three more times here, and his line now stands at .302/.443/.429. Huntsville Game Log