Jim Goulart

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

DVR Alert -- Friday's Wisconsin game (May 2nd) is the next one scheduled for local TV coverage -- 6:00 PM pre-game, 6:30 game broadcast (MyNew32 TV).

Thursday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: LHP Brad Mills at home vs. New Orleans (Marlins), 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's Drew Gagnon and Jacob Barnes in a doubleheader at Montgomery (Rays), 5:45 PM pre-game, 6:00 gametime; each contest slated for seven innings 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 host MiLB.TV broadcasts - be among those hoping Steve's audio link synchs up nicely with your MiLB.TV investment. ********** Brevard County: RHP Damien Magnifico at home vs. Tampa (Yankees), 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: LHP Zach Quintana and RHP Preston Gainey in a doubleheader at home vs. Burlington (Angels), 11:45 AM pre-game, 12:05 PM gametime; each contest slated for seven innings 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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Busy, busy! Look for Thursday's Link Report to arrive by mid-morning, in time for your day-long entertainment kicking off with the Wisconsin daytime doubleheader.

VIDEO: From MyNew32 TV's broadcast, here's a more complete set of highlights (and lowlights) from the Timber Rattlers' 5-1 loss in Game Two.

Rattler Radio Blog postgame entry -- As Chris states: If you are reading this when I posted it….Sleep fast, Timber Rattlers fans! If you are reading this after a good night’s sleep…GET UP! Game one starts at 12:05 PM! Includes pre-game AUDIO with Pitching Coach Elvin Nina, Between Games Interview with Matt Erickson, and three postgame interviews. Plus photos AND your two sets of doubleheader game highlights! Chock-full! Thanks, Chris!

AUDIO: Highlights from the Threshers' 7-6 loss to Brevard County in 11 innings on Wednesday This is the Clearwater broadcast team's version...

Here's your chance to name the Biloxi franchise!

Ballpark Digest -- Speaking of the team name: The contest will consist of two phases, the first now underway. During the first phase, fans will be able to submit their suggestions for the new team’s name for approximately three weeks. Nominations can be submitted through the official website of the franchise. As part of the process, fans will be asked to write a brief description as to why they are suggesting their specific name. "We are looking for creative names that reflect the culture and essence of this community," Rogers said. "Biloxi will absolutely be a part of the name, but we are looking for a team name that really captures the heart and soul of the entire Gulf Coast community." Following the nomination period, the top suggestions will be narrowed to a short list of five finalists. Fans will then be able to vote for their favorite. The date when the final voting will begin is forthcoming.

More from A. Stacy Long, Montgomery Advertiser -- Splish, splash: Star takes a bath Huntsville second baseman Greg Hopkins, with similar skill as Olympic diving champion Greg Louganis, went after a sixth-inning groundball Wednesday. A steady, game-long drizzle left Hopkins with a special landing. While Montgomery's Cameron Seitzer picked up a single, Hopkins came away with a fully saturated uniform. "That was like a Slip'N Slide," Hopkins said. "Before the game, we had an idea it might be like that. Once the ball is hit, your instincts take over." Hopkins said he last hit a Slip'N Slide when he was "12, maybe 13." "He got absolutely drenched," Biscuits second baseman Ryan Brett said. "That couldn't have felt good." Shaffer will takewall-aided triple Biscuits third baseman Richie Shaffer took advantage of some good placement for a first-inning RBI triple. His ball settled underneath a pad at the wall and Huntsville left fielder Kentrail Davis held up his hands, signaling that he felt the ball was out of play. When Shaffer kept running, Davis picked up the ball and umpires signaled that it was in play. "It was a weird play, but weird stuff happens in baseball," Shaffer said. "I wish I could have gotten an inside-the-park home run out of it." Motter expected homer discussion Montgomery's Taylor Motter said he understood when Stars manager Carlos Subero argued Motter's eighth-inning home run. The ball hit the back fence over left field and the walkway and bounced back onto the field. "I figure you have to argue it if it comes back on the field," Motter said. "If I was a manager, I'd do the same thing."

Ramirez rides shift, sparks Stars over Biscuits by A. Stacy Long, Montgomery Advertiser The alignment may seem peculiar, with the shortstop on the opposite side of second base and the second baseman playing short right field. But it's becoming familiar to Huntsville Stars first baseman Nick Ramirez. With the Biscuits deploying a defensive shift against him, Ramirez hit his league-leading sixth home run, had three RBIs and scored three times in Huntsville's 8-4 victory Wednesday at Riverwalk Stadium. "The whole league has been shifting on him," Stars manager Carlos Subero said. "Everybody has been playing him like that." Many of the Biscuits were already familiar with Ramirez from last year in the Florida State League. Ramirez finished among the league leaders with 19 homers and 81 RBIs. "We have some numbers on him," said Biscuits manager Brady Williams, who was in the FSL last year, too. "He tries to get the head (of the bat) out, so playing a shift is nothing new. "We were trying to play the percentages." Teams' defensive shifts, Ramirez said, are helping him become a better hitter. He now has four home runs in his last five games and 13 RBIs over the last two weeks. "I think it makes me stay inside the ball more and go the other way," Ramirez said. "With the shift out there, I'm not trying to pull the ball as much." Ramirez blooped a single between two outfielders in the first inning, had an RBI double in the third and added a two-run homer in the sixth. "He's always been a powerhouse guy," said Biscuits pitcher Dylan Floro, a teammate of Ramirez's at Cal State Fullerton. Floro did not pitch Wednesday. "I've never seen shifts like that against him, but it's something the Rays do, and he's a pull guy." Ramirez came to bat in the eighth with a shot, albeit a long one, at a cycle. He needed a mere triple, which would have been fourth of his four-year career. "I definitely knew about that," said the 24-year-old, who popped out to short. "I needed to hit a pitch in the gap, either left center or right center, and probably run through a stop sign, too." Nick Ramirez takes a throw. (Photo: AMANDA SOWARDS/ADVERTISER) http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/3f3f16a3813ffee5ca732df371e9124ae26176de/c=1472-887-3145-2145&r=x404&c=534x401/local/-/media/Montgomery/2014/04/30/bis9984.jpg

Montgomery, AL - Huntsville Stars 1B Nick Ramirez homered for the fourth time in his last five games leading the Stars to an 8-4 win Wednesday morning over the Montgomery Biscuits at Riverwalk Stadium. VIDEO: Two-run homer

Nashville Game One -- The Sounds scored the contest's only run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Sean Halton doubled with one out against Zephyrs lefty Brian Flynn (2-2) and scored two batters later on catcher Robinzon Diaz's two-out RBI single to center (AUDIO). *** Mike Fiers became the first Nashville hurler to post three consecutive double-digit strikeout totals since the club joined the PCL in 1998 (AUDIO - Fiers' 10th strikeout).

Nashville, which has not qualified for the postseason since 2007... *** When you read that stand-alone, it really rings strong how important it is for the Brewers to field a strong AAA team in 2014, in order to help Nashville's front office (and their new stadium) commit to the Brewers for another two seasons. 2007 is a long time ago. No matter how professional and cooperative the Brewers organization may be, one can envision Nashville's staff simply saying, prove to us you can put together a strong 2014 for our fan base. Of course, that's all speculation on my part...

Pitching keeps Sounds in contention by Nick Cole, the Tennessean With a combined 13-33 record over the past two Aprils, the Sounds found themselves falling out of PCL playoff contention before the flowers had even bloomed on the baseball season. But under the direction of new manager Rick Sweet, the Sounds find themselves in a much more palatable position after the first month of play in 2014. The Sounds are 14-12 heading into May, the club's best start since 2010. Nashville, which has not qualified for the postseason since 2007, found itself tied with Round Rock atop the PCL's American Southern division after Wednesday. The chief reason for the better April lies in a pitching staff that has the second-best earned run average in the PCL. Starting pitchers Jimmy Nelson (3-1, 1.97 ERA) and Mike Fiers (5-0, 0.80) have been among the league's top performers in the early season. The Sounds also can point to the addition of veteran major leaguers such as Eugenio Velez (.414 avg, 3 HR, 7 SB), Pete Orr (.350 avg, .550 slugging) and Jeremy Hermida (.830 OPS) to a lineup that was young by Triple-A standards a season ago as reason for improved offensive stability. Surgery sidelines Hellweg: Sounds starting pitcher Johnny Hellweg has thrown his last pitch this season. The 2013 PCL pitcher of the year underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow Tuesday. The procedure, which typically requires a recovery time of a full year, was performed by Dr. James Andrews. Hellweg was 1-2 with a 4.95 ERA in four starts for the Sounds. Back in the saddle: Sounds pitcher Rob Wooten is back in the ninth-inning role for Nashville after spending nine days with the Brewers last month. Wooten got off to a quick start to the season in Nashville, converting his first three save opportunities for the Sounds without allowing a baserunner. The early efficiency earned Wooten a call-up from Milwaukee on April 13 to serve as a middle reliever. But after posting an 8.31 ERA and taking a loss in four big-league appearances, Wooten found himself ticketed back to Nashville on April 21. The 28-year-old, who was the Sounds' lone Triple-A All-Star Game representative last season, has since found his groove again as the closer in Nashville. He still sports a 0.00 ERA through five appearances with the Sounds, and leads the club with four saves. Roster shakeup: Recent trips to the disabled list for Hellweg, outfielder Kevin Mattison and catcher Matt Pagnozzi have brought some changes to the Sounds' roster. In addition to the returns of Wooten and pitcher Alfredo Figaro from Milwaukee, the Sounds also added infielder Hainley Statia and reliever Jeremy Jeffress to the roster. Statia returns to Nashville for a third consecutive season after beginning the season with Double-A Huntsville, where he was reaching base at a .417 clip for the Stars through 11 games. He had a .352 on-base percentage in 114 games while serving as a utility man for the Sounds last season. Jeffress, a 2006 first-round pick by the Brewers, made his return to the organization on April 18 after being released by the Toronto Blue Jays. He made his Sounds debut on Tuesday with 1 2/3 innings of scoreless relief. The Sounds' Hainley Statia (Photo: Jae S. Lee / The Tennessean) http://www.gannett-cdn.com/-mm-/96da8c417c1de0fdf152cbc350f769f368c5ad45/c=25-0-2275-3000&r=537&c=0-0-534-712/local/-/media/Nashville/2014/04/30/nas-mix-sounds0501-01.jpg

Sounds' Fiers fans 11 in two-hit shutout Brewers right-hander wins fifth straight start, lowers ERA to 0.80 By Josh Jackson / MiLB.com http://www.milb.com/assets/images/2/5/4/73901254/cuts/fiers640_w97fhdbu_rhpm9bhq.jpg Mike Fiers leads the Pacific Coast League with five wins and 47 strikeouts. (Mike Strasinger/Nashville Sounds) Mike Fiers is off to a such a hot start in the Pacific Coast League that something must be working especially well for him. What is it? "Everything," he said. Fiers pitched a seven-inning two-hitter and struck out 11 without issuing a walk Wednesday as Triple-A Nashville blanked New Orleans, 1-0, Game 1 of a doubleheader at Greer Stadium. "I've been able to throw all four of my pitches for strikes, really locating with most of them every start," the 28-year-old right-hander said. "Usually, when I go into a game, I pick the best three to work with, but when all four are working this well, it makes it easy for me to to keep hitters off-balance [throughout the game]." Fiers (5-0) has won every game he's started this season and leads the PCL in wins and strikeouts (47). He's second behind Memphis' Tsuyoshi Wada with a 0.80 ERA. "I saw that. I try not to look at stats too much, but that's hard not to notice when you see something. It's another little confidence-booster," the 2009 22nd-round Draft pick said. "It's a reminder that I can pitch. I had a rough year last year, up and down [between Milwaukee and the Minors]. Just the confidence of it, 'Hey, I can pitch and get it done.'" His dominant outing on Wednesday ended a six-game winning streak by the Zephyrs, who'd scored 45 runs during that stretch, including nine against the Sounds on Tuesday. Fiers didn't study their lineup with any more rigor or depth than usual. "I don't really look too far into what any team does [in the games before]," he said. "I'm not going to look back at how long these guys have been doing well because I don't know what the pitchers before me threw, if they made bad pitches or what. I can't go off what they did. If I make my pitches, I expect to get guys out." Both of New Orleans' hits were doubles. Fiers opened the game with back-to-back strikeouts before surrendering a two-bagger to Josh Rodriguez, then punched out the first two batters in the fifth inning before Juan Diaz doubled. In both cases, he retired the next hitter to get out of trouble. "It didn't matter if they hit a home run or whatever it is, you have to pitch the same. That's a big thing that I've gotten better about my years in the pros," said Fiers, who went 9-10 for the Brewers in 2012. "Everyone says, 'Hey, don't worry about that' [after a big hit], but it really is a big factor, being able to put it away and focus on the next guy." Fiers got into another jam in the sixth, when Matt Angle reached on a two-out error by first baseman Hunter Morris, Milwaukee's No. 10 prospect. Angle took third on an errant pickoff attempt, but Fiers struck out Rodriguez to end the inning. "There were a couple [moments] with guys in scoring position, where I was having to bear down and make good pitches, even better pitches than I made before," he said. "But I like being in that situation. I like a 1-0 game where every pitch matters and one pitch could change the game." Fiers has not allowed more than one run in any start and has limited foes to a .160 batting average. Wednesday's performance was his first complete game since April 28, 2013, but he struck out 12 over eight innings of one-run ball on April 19 at Omaha. "Those doubleheaders are always fast. Seven innings seems a lot shorter than nine -- I don't know why, but those last two innings make the game a lot longer," he said. "I'd rather throw a nine-inning shutout, of course, but I'll take the seven-inning one." Brian Flynn, the Marlins' No. 7 prospect, also went the distance for the Zephyrs. He fell to 2-2, despite allowing a run on eight hits and a walk with three strikeouts over six innings. "He's definitely got good stuff. He has good life on his fastball," Fiers said of Flynn. "I've been in that situation, too -- you throw well and deserve to have a win, but the other guy was better. It's a good start but also a bad [feeling]."

Old friend RHP Jesus Sanchez (Marlins organization now) made a spot start in Game Two of the Nashville doubleheader. He was OK for three innings here, but had previously struggled in his relief role in April.

AUDIO via Jeff Hem's blog -- Today's interview is with Brewers outfielder and former Sound Logan Schafer, who joins the Sounds today to continue his major league rehab assignment with the Brewers. He’s coming back from a right hamstring strain and discusses the injury, returning to Greer Stadium and the Sounds, how much fun this season has been so far for the first-place Brewers and the challenge he’s faced in going from an everyday player in the minors to a 4th outfielder role in the majors.

The Nashville media notes have indicated that 29-year-old LHP Brad Mills (career stats) is now in the rotation. Today's Figaro start is a spot start because of the doubleheader. Of course, there are any number of ways this becomes a fluid situation again.

Notice that Chris has the upcoming rotation listed in his media notes, and we've adjusted the Menu above to reflect the Diaz / Banda combo for today. Chris also notes: Television: MyNEW 32′s Sports Showdown (Game two) Pre-game at 6:00 PM, gametime 6:30 according to their site -- imagine some of Game One may sneak in on-air.