Jim Goulart

Can Helena save the day for the stateside squads? *** Final: @Helena 14, Grand Junction 1 Crew Cruises to Sixth Straight Win Helena scores season-high 14 runs, Banda impressive again By Zac Vierra / Helena Brewers Usually a broken bat results in a weak out or if the hitter is lucky, a bloop base hit. But when your team is on a winning streak, a broken bat hit can turn into a home run. That's what happened for the Helena Brewers on Monday as Jalen Harris (above, photo by Seth Eikomstead) hit a solo home run in the fifth inning on a 1-1 pitch by Scott Firth that shattered his bat. It was the kind of night where everything seemed to go right for the Brewers as they cruised to a 14-1 victory for a sweep of the Grand Junction Rockies. The win was the sixth straight for the Brew Crew, tying their longest winning streak of the season. "Everything seems to be firing on all cylinders right now. The guys are taking it game by game which is impressive for me. They are not looking too far forward they are not looking behind so I can't ask for anything different than that," said Helena skipper Tony Diggs. Fourteen runs were a season-high for the Brewers and for the second game in a row the offensive attack was led by Jose Pena who went 3 for 4 with four RBI. Omar Garcia added four hits, two RBI, and two runs scored in the win. Anthony Banda was terrific for the third straight outing as he earned his third win of the season. Banda allowed just one unearned run on five hits in six innings. He struck out a pair and didn't issue a walk. It was his team-leading fifth quality start of the season. "He's doing what he is capable of doing and you can't say enough for him because he is throwing strikes, he is being aggressive, he is going right after guys that's all you can ask from him," said Diggs. It seemed evident things were going to go Helena's way in the first inning when a routine fly ball turned into a run. With one out in the first, Dionis Hinojosa hit a towering fly to left field. Terry McClure settled under it and looked like he would make an easy catch, but with the wind howling, the ball popped off of his glove. Hinojosa would get to third on the error and he would score when Michael Ratterree hit a sac fly to center in the next at bat. The Rockies would get the run back in the top of the second when Ryan Garvey led off the inning with a triple off the glove of Garcia in center field and Miguel Delone pulled a single past the dive of Harris at second to tie the game at one. The Brewers would regain the lead in the bottom of the second. Pena led off the frame with a single and Taylor Brennan would follow with a walk. The runners would advance into scoring position on a bunt by Angel Ortega and after a strikeout, Garcia hit a seeing-eye single just past the dive of the second baseman. Pena and Brennan scored on the play as the Brewers took a 3-1 advantage. In the third the Brewers would add to the lead as Pena got an RBI the hard way when he was hit with a pitch in the back with the bases loaded. That would be it for Grand Junction starter Joel Payamps as he was pulled from the game. The new pitcher Daniel Palo would get out of the jam thanks to a double play on a fly ball and a lineout. The Brewers would again load the bases in the fourth but this time they would cash in for more than a run. With one out and the bases juiced, Adam Giacalone would hit a sac fly to left to plate Garcia. After Dustin Houle walked to re-load the bases, Pena would hit a soft single to center to drive in a pair and give Helena a 7-1 lead. Grand Junction would then go to the pen and Brennan greeted Firth to the game with an absolute bullet into the left-center gap as Houle and Pena to give Helena an eight run lead. "We took a couple big swings the inning before and it kind of got us out of the inning. It's always good for them to stay focused on what their job is and put the ball in play and do some damage and they did that [in the fifth inning]," said Diggs. The Brewers would add to the lead in the fifth when Harris hit a fly ball to center that landed beyond the fence for a solo homer. In the process half of his bat shattered and landed just to the left of the mound. "Jalen is a strong kid. He actually barreled it up pretty well so for the bat to break was a surprise and for the ball to go out after the bat broke, that was a surprise, but he is a pretty strong kid," said Diggs. Helena would continue the offensive onslaught in the seventh inning scoring four times highlighted by a RBI single by Pena. The Brewers will have an off day on Tuesday before hitting the road for a seven-game road trip. They will return to Kindrick Legion Field on August 29th.

Two-way player Micah Owings now a cool 0-for-18 with 11 K's (one walk for an .053 OPS) since his promotion to the Stars. *** Stars Swept in Doubleheader By Blue Wahoos Alex Cohen, Huntsville Stars In a doubleheader on Monday night, the Huntsville Stars lost game one by a score of 2-1 and the nightcap by a score of 3-2 against the Pensacola Blue Wahoos at Joe Davis Stadium. After a 33-minute rain delay to begin the game and another half hour delay in the first inning, the Stars were able to strike first in game one. When play resumed after the rain delay with runners at second and third and two outs, BlueWahoos pitcher Jon Moscot (W, 2-1) threw a wild pitch that plated first baseman Jason Rogers to make the score 1-0. Unfortunately for the Stars, that was the only run they would score and they only had one hit in the game from that point on. In the fourth inning, Pensacola tied up the game with one swing of the bat. With one out, first baseman Mike Costanzo hit a solo homer for his second roundtripper of the series to knot the game up at 1-1. One frame later, The Blue Wahoos were able to mount a two-out rally against Stars starting pitcher Andy Moye (L, 5-14) to provide the eventual game-winning run. Following a double form Moscot, outfielder Ryan LaMarre hit a two-bagger of his own to drive in his starting pitcher and gave Pensacola the lead for good. During the second game, it was Pensacola that would draw first blood. After Stars starting pitcher Frankie De La Cruz (L, 1-4) served up a leadoff homer to outfielder Brandon Short in the third inning, a two-run single from outfielder Yorman Rodriguez later in the frame made the score 3-0. With Mother Nature starting to impact the contest, the Stars used the middle innings to get back into the ballgame. Following an RBI groundout by shortstop Hector Gomez in the fourth inning, second baseman Eric Patterson scored on yet another wild pitch from a Blue Wahoos pitcher to make it a 3-2 game in the bottom of the fifth inning. Unfortunately for Huntsville, that is as close as they would get to Pensacola. In the top of the seventh inning, the game was called due to rain and unplayable field conditions at Joe Davis Stadium. The rain-shortened game marks the second time this season that a contest was called before the seventh-inning stretch due to weather. In eight double dips this season, Monday marks the second time the Stars were swept in a doubleheader. Huntsville has now lost the first three games of their series against Pensacola. On Tuesday, the Stars will play game four of a six-game series against the BlueWahoos. Huntsville will start RHP Taylor Jungmann (9-8, 3.92 ERA) while the Pensacola will counter with RHP Tim Crabbe (6-8, 3.35 ERA) First pitch is at 6:43 CT.

Rattler Radio Blog - “Sorry, George. But, that had to happen.”

Via Jeff Hem's blog -- Audio from Nashville — “Mondays with Mike (Guerrero)” Here is this week’s installment of “Mondays with Mike” with Sounds manager Mike Guerrero, who discusses the team’s recent road trip (4-4 through Colorado Springs and Reno), the first few games of the Round Rock series, updates on Chris Narveson, who was scratched for his start on Saturday after warming up in the bullpen, and Blake Davis, who is on the disabled list with a hamstring strain. *** Vague reference to Narveson having a "nerve" issue, unclear we're going to see Chris again in 2013.

VIDEO from Sunday -- Caleb Gindl belts a three-run homer in Nashville's 8-6 loss to Round Rock

Happy 19th birthday to DSL infielder Carlos Belonis. Hopefully the broken thumb which forced Carlos to miss all but the first two games of this season is healing nicely - coming in to the season, he was the Brewers' most talented DSL farmhand as per those in the know on such matters.

Voting continues through August 29th: Moniker Madness is back, and they've abandoned the bracket format for a different voting look. Rankings as of 7:30 AM Central on Sunday for the four Brewers are Brevard RHP Damien Magnifico (7th of 75), Huntsville RHP David Goforth (39th place), Huntsville OF Chadwin Stang (47th), and Dionis Hinojosa (75th and last ). *** Stryker Trahan is still your new leader.

Weather.com: Nashville, TN Huntsville, AL Beloit, WI Helena, MT San Pedro De Macoris, DR

STANDINGS: AAA - Pacific Coast League American Northern Division AA - Southern League North Division High-A - Florida State League North Division A - Midwest League Western Division Rookie Advanced - Pioneer League North Division Rookie - Arizona Summer League DSL - Dominican Summer League San Pedro de Macoris Division *** NOTE: To view first half or overall standings for Huntsville, Brevard County, Wisconsin, and Maryvale, you'll notice options at the respective links for that. Otherwise it's second-half standings as the default view for those three leagues.

Look for Nashville and Wisconsin media notes at the links just prior to their game times. New this season: Helena has media notes; it's a unique link each day, but look for it just prior to game time each day within the "Stats and Scores" banner here.

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 Game One Huntsville Game Two Wisconsin Helena DSL Brewers New MiLB.com feature -- organizational scoreboard, Brewers

Monday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: LHP Aaron Laffey at home vs. Round Rock (Rangers), 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 $39.99 season-long package ($9.99 to pay for a single month). The audio feed is from the home team. All MiLB.TV details available at the link. ********** Huntsville: RHP Andy Moye and TBD in a doubleheader at home vs. Pensacola (Reds), 4:28 PM pre-game, 4:43 gametime; each contest slated for seven innings Free Live Audio Link Alex Cohen is the play-by-play voice of the Stars; follow him on Twitter @alexmcohen. All games, home and away, are scheduled to be broadcast. It appears four Southern League teams air their home games on MiLB.TV, and we'll let you know when those dates pop up on the schedule. ********** Brevard County: Idle ********** Wisconsin: RHP Ryan Gibbard at Beloit (Athletics), 6:40 PM pre-game, 7:00 gametime; expect to see RHP Preston Gainey in a tandem role 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. MiLB.TV -- for subscribers; Wisconsin is one of four Midwest League clubs that have all their home games available via MiLB.TV. So for the $39.95 season-long package, fans in Brewer Nation can watch all Sounds games, Stars' road games from four Southern League locales, and all Timber Rattlers home games and some road games. NOTE: Many of the Rattlers' 70 home games will be broadcast on TV this season. Time Warner Cable SportsChannel and WACY-TV My NEW32 will split duties. We'll let you know when and who, and will try to provide day-before DVR reminders, so regularly check with us. ********** Helena: LHP Anthony Banda at home vs. Grand Junction (Rockies), 7:45 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Free Live Audio Link Voice of the Helena Brewers Steve Wendt is back on board, and this year he's added Twitter to the mix @steve_wendt. We've been treated to Steve's work for many years now (ten!); he is among the very best at the art of the pre-game interview, especially considering how at ease he makes all these first-time professional ballplayers. MiLB.TV -- When the H-Crew makes their way to Grand Junction (August), those games will be available for viewing online. ********** Arizona Rookie (Maryvale): Idle ********** DSL Brewers: at home vs. the DSL Tigers, 9:30 AM gametime, although game data won't be available until later in the day

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The roster move on Sunday was to place RHP R.J. Seidel on the DL. It's believed the Brewers were limiting Seidel's innings as of late anyway.

Catching up from pre-Sunday's games -- 1B Garrett Cooper activated from the DL at Wisconsin (in time to win the game), OF Lance Roenicke transferred back to Brevard County.

Final: AZL Brewers 8, @AZL Athletics 6 AZL Brewers Box Score A-Crew scores two in the top of the 8th to take a 6-5 lead, give up a run in the bottom of the frame as the A's tie it up, and then the good guys score two in the 9th and hold on for the win -- AZL Brewers Top of the 8th Tanner Norton singles on a ground ball to center fielder Billy McKinney. Offensive Substitution: Pinch-runner Yonki Hernandez replaces Tanner Norton. Brandon Diaz out on a sacrifice bunt to first baseman Shawn Duinkerk. Yonki Hernandez to 2nd. With Eric Williams batting, wild pitch by A. J. Burke, Yonki Hernandez to 3rd. Eric Williams singles on a line drive to right fielder Justin Higley. Yonki Hernandez scores. Offensive Substitution: Pinch-hitter Jose Sermo replaces Luis Aviles. With Jose Sermo batting, Eric Williams steals (6) 2nd base. With Jose Sermo batting, wild pitch by A. Burke, Eric Williams to 3rd. Jose Sermo singles on a ground ball to right fielder Justin Higley. Eric Williams scores. Pitching Change: Rony Acevedo replaces A. J. Burke. With Steven Halcomb batting, Jose Sermo steals (2) 2nd base. With Steven Halcomb batting, Jose Sermo steals (3) 3rd base. Steven Halcomb strikes out swinging. Johnny Davis lines out to second baseman Joe Bennie. AZL Athletics Bottom of the 8th Yonki Hernandez remains in the game as the designated hitter. Jose Sermo remains in the game as the third baseman. Ben McQuown walks. With Billy McKinney batting, Ben McQuown steals (9) 2nd base. Billy McKinney grounds out, shortstop Steven Halcomb to first baseman David Denson. With Justin Higley batting, wild pitch by Scott Lieser, Ben McQuown to 3rd. Justin Higley doubles (7) on a ground ball to center fielder Brandon Diaz. Ben McQuown scores. Pitching Change: Tyler Spurlin replaces Scott Lieser. Kyle Wheeler called out on strikes. Gabriel Santana grounds out, shortstop Steven Halcomb to first baseman David Denson. AZL Brewers Top of the 9th Francisco Castillo walks. Clint Coulter called out on strikes. With David Denson batting, wild pitch by Rony Acevedo, Francisco Castillo to 2nd. David Denson strikes out swinging. Yonki Hernandez triples (2) on a fly ball to center fielder Billy McKinney. Francisco Castillo scores. Brandon Diaz singles on a ground ball to left fielder Ben McQuown. Yonki Hernandez scores. With Eric Williams batting, Brandon Diaz picked off and caught stealing 2nd base, pitcher Rony Acevedo to first baseman Shawn Duinkerk to second baseman Joe Bennie to pitcher Rony Acevedo. AZL Athletics Bottom of the 9th Piikea-Jiro Kitamura called out on strikes. Joe Bennie grounds out, shortstop Steven Halcomb to first baseman David Denson. Seongmin Kim strikes out swinging. AZL Brewers Game Log Huntsville LHP Brian Garman managed a scoreless inning in his first rehab appearance: AZL Athletics Bottom of the 1st Shawn Duinkerk singles on a ground ball to second baseman Francisco Castillo. Ben McQuown walks. Shawn Duinkerk to 2nd. Billy McKinney flies out to center fielder Brandon Diaz. Justin Higley strikes out swinging. Kyle Wheeler strikes out swinging. 17-year-old 1B David Denson started things off nicely -- AZL Brewers Top of the 1st Johnny Davis flies out to left fielder Ben McQuown. Francisco Castillo singles on a fly ball to center fielder Billy McKinney. Clint Coulter doubles (5) on a line drive to left fielder Ben McQuown. Francisco Castillo to 3rd. David Denson homers (5) on a fly ball to left field. Francisco Castillo scores. Clint Coulter scores. Tanner Norton grounds out, second baseman Joe Bennie to first baseman Shawn Duinkerk. Brandon Diaz lines out to left fielder Ben McQuown. *** With 13 hits and five walks, lots for you to review on the Brewer side of the box score. A-Crew won despite four errors and a super-adventurous day on the basepaths.

Reliever Greg Holle feature in our Huntsville thread this AM

Stars' busy reliever Greg Holle finds inspiration in his father's pro baseball career by Mark McCarter, Huntsville Times HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- The Huntsville Stars' busiest pitcher is sitting in the Stars' dugout after batting practice, the PA system playing its convoluted medley of classic rock and current rock and modern country. While the Stars hitters were taking their hacks, Greg Holle and fellow reliever Eric Marzec, the 5-foot-11 blond polar opposite to the dark-haired, 6-8 Holle, were idly talking about family and baseball. That's the perfect jumping-off point to learn about Holle. Holle was the Brewers' 11th round pick in the 2010 draft. Gary Holle, his father, was the Brewers' 13th round pick in the 1976 draft. Greg pitched in college at Texas Christian University in Fort Worth. Gary reached the majors for a brief time with the Texas Rangers, in nearby Arlington. It was during a family trip to a Rangers' game, when Gary was invited back to ceremonies honoring Nolan Ryan, that Greg determined "I wanted to go South (from the home in Loudonville, N.Y.) for college." Gary Holle is also the answer to this obscure trivia question: Who is the only father of a Huntsville player to replace Phil Jackson as a basketball coach? We'll get to that soon. Greg Holle has been a bullpen Swiss Army knife, a middle reliever, set-up and closer. He's pitched in 44 games, going into Thursday's meeting with Mobile, with a 4-3 record, 10 saves and 3.88. Says pitching coach Chris Hook, "From the fifth inning on, he should be very comfortable with any spot. He's done all those and he's performed admirably." Relieving "is the best fit, mindwise," Holle says. He performs well under a routine and with good work habits. It helps him knowing there's a 50-50 chance he'll be called upon to go to work when he shows up at the ballpark. "When you're a starter, if you have a bad night, and it happens to everybody, you have to sit there for four days," Holle says. Within Family Holle, there is more than the father-son drafted-by-Brewers coincidence. "It's the full family effect," as Greg was telling Marzec. "It was one of the things where the whole family was involved." There was the grandmother who was a die-hard Yankees fan, Greg's mom Paula, who has spent a lifetime in bleacher seats, and his older brother Gary Jr., a basketball player at Siena. And when Greg found himself a bride, it was the 6-1 former TCU volleyball standout, Kristen Hester. Gary Holle has a six-year career in pro ball, including a Triple Crown in his debut season, and that experience now benefits his son. "Him having done it and gone through the same (career), being able to just call him has been great," Greg Holle says. "Yeah, he was a position player (first base) and there's a little variance between a pitcher and that, but regardless if it's hitting or pitching, it can get in your head as far as trying to force the issue rather than letting the game come to you. "Aside from the stuff now, growing up he was my basketball coach, he taught Sunday school, all that. I was fortunate having a dad who was really involved." For one night, Gary Holle was also the basketball coach of the Albany Patroons of the Continental Basketball League. Basketball was his primary sport. He signed a scholarship to Xavier, then transferred to Siena, where he also joined the baseball team and, says Greg, "the next thing you know, he got drafted and winds up in the big leagues." He later became general manager of the Patroons, where Phil Jackson was still a long way from being the coach who'd win 11 NBA titles. After a set-to with a referee, Jackson was socked with a two-game suspension. The assistant coach got a one-game suspension. Enter Holle, who led the team to a win over Bay State - then "retired" undefeated as a pro coach. Huntsville Stars' pitcher Greg Holle http://media.al.com/sports_impact/photo/13266116-large.jpg

Brewers get bats cracking By Troy Shockley, Helena Independent Record Through the first few innings Sunday, it seemed as if Helena and Grand Junction were settling in for another pitchers’ duel. Then came the fourth inning. That’s when the Brewers offense exploded for a half-dozen runs en route to a 13-5 win at Kindrick Legion Field. It was the Brewers’ fifth consecutive win and second straight over the Pioneer League North Division Rockies, who won the North’s first-half title. “I don’t know how many extra-base hits we had, but we had a number of them. We had a lot of doubles in the gap, and we had a couple long balls too. Today was definitely an offensive day,” manager Tony Diggs said. “I would have liked to get better out of our starting pitcher … but it was just one of those days for him was all.” That starter was Zach Quintana, who went 4 2/3 while giving up four runs on seven hits. He struck out two and walked three. The bulk of the Grand Junction offense came in the top of the third. After Helena’s Michael Ratterree and the Rockies’ Miguel Dilone traded early home runs, the visitors’ Ryan McMahon won a long battle with Quintana, eventually reaching on a single to give his team runners on the corners. A sacrifice fly to center made it a 2-1 Grand Junction lead, and a double from Dilone that sailed over Ratterree’s head in right scored another, making it 3-1. Quintana, though, gritted his way through the inning. And, with his pitches missing their mark, used a pick-off of Dilone at second to end the frame. It was his second such move of the inning, after recording a pick-off out at first earlier in the third. The momentum shifted quickly, however, and after the fourth inning the game was never in question the rest of the way. Taylor Brennan led off the inning with a double to the left corner, and Dustin Houle followed with a liner to right. Brennan had stopped at third, but a throw came in from Dilone in right field, anyway. He bypassed the cutoff man and tried to rifle it home — but was badly off the mark. That allowed Brennan to score, making it a one-run game. Jose Pena tested Dilone again in the next at-bat, lofting a high floating pop-up along the first-base line. Dilone made a diving stab at the ball, but missed. Next up, Jalen Harris, who connected to left on a single. A bobble by Ryan Garvey on the fielding attempt helped him to second and pushed two runs in, making it a 4-3 Brewers lead. Nathan Orf made it six straight base hits, his RBI single scoring Harris. A wild pitch advanced the runners, and things didn’t get any better for the Rockies after that. While the Brewers did surrender two quick outs, Grand Junction starter Zach Jemiola then watched a runner score on two consecutive wild pitches before Ratterree popped out to end the inning with Helena on top, 7-3. Helena went on to score at least one in the next four innings — including a Pena homer in the fifth and a three-run rally in the sixth — to put the game away. Earning the win for the Brewers was Chris Razo, who transferred back to the Capital City club from Wisconsin on Saturday. Fellow righty Ryan Fasano was promoted to Wisconsin in his place. Razo pitched 1 1/3 innings, getting the Brewers out of a runners-on-the-corners jam in the fifth and giving up just one hit to improve to 6-0. All of his wins have come out of the bullpen. Tyler Linehan earned a three-inning save, allowing one run on one hit while striking out three. “That’s his forte,” Diggs said of Razo. “Not that it’s necessarily a win, but to come in shut down the problem right then and let us keep playing. It’s good to have him back.” Also good is seeing the bottom of the lineup turn in such a strong day. The Brewers finished with 17 hits in the win, but just two of them came from the top three in the lineup. The bottom six, meanwhile, went 15 of 27 with 11 runs scored and six RBIs. Pena finished 4 for 5 with the home run and three doubles. Designated hitter Jesse Weiss also turned in a strong performance, going 3 for 5 with a pair of runs scored. Brennan, Houle, Harris and Orf all finished with a pair of hits. “We’re a great hitting team,” Weiss said. “And I think our offense is really coming around. It’s always nice to have the bottom guys pick up the top guys when they’re not hitting as well.” The two teams will meet once more at Kindrick, wrapping up a three-game set today in a 7:05 PM start (8:05 Central). Helena’s Renaldo Jenkins connects for a base hit that would drive in Jesse Weiss on third during the bottom of the sixth inning Sunday against Grand Junction. James Ridle photo, Blackfoot Media Group http://bloximages.chicago2.vip.townnews.com/helenair.com/content/tncms/assets/v3/editorial/c/6b/c6b007c4-0889-11e3-ae00-0019bb2963f4/5211a27664db1.preview-620.jpg

Vogelbach, Bryant go back-to-back to lead Daytona By Brent Woronoff, Daytona News-Journal DAYTONA BEACH – Dan Vogelbach and Kris Bryant talked about hitting back-to-back home runs before Sunday's game. The new Daytona Cubs then pulled off the feat in a five-run seventh inning and Daytona (30-19) hung on for a 5-3 victory over Brevard (24-30) before 1,860 fans at Jackie Robinson Ballpark. “It was cool to go back-to-back. We talked about doing that before the game,'' Vogelbach said. “Hopefully we'll be doing that a lot more.'' Brevard lefty Brent Suter tossed six shutout innings and left with a 1-0 lead on T.J. Mittlestaedt's homer in the third. But Daytona teed off on reliever Stephen Peterson (4-1) in the seventh. The Cubs began the frame with four straight hits — two on bunts — to take a 2-1 lead. Vogelbach then blasted an 0-2 fastball over the right-center field fence for a two-run shot. Bryant followed with a homer to left. “The lefty who started was really good. The other lefty who came in (in the seventh) had a little more lively fastball,'' said Vogelbach, the Cubs' second-round pick in 2011. “He got me on the first two. So I was trying to get my foot down earlier. He left it up a little, and I hit it pretty well. That homer by (Bryant) was huge. The guy left a curve ball up.'' Bryant, the second overall pick in June's major-league draft, hit his third homer in his seventh game with the D-Cubs, while Vogelbach hit his second. The pair were both promoted last Tuesday. “That's what everybody sees,'' Daytona manager Dave Keller said of the homers. “But it all started because we bunted and got some base hits. That set up everything.'' Daytona's Pierce Johnson pitched four innings to improve to 6-1. He struck out six of the first eight batters he faced, but loaded the bases with no outs in the eighth. Jeffrey Lorick got out of the inning, allowing two runs on ground outs. Austin Reed allowed one hit in the ninth to get the save. Johnson came on in the fourth for Scott Baker, who made his second rehab start for Daytona. Baker gave up one run, on Mittlestaedt's homer, in three innings. Baker last pitched on July 29. The Cubs hit three doubles and advanced a runner to third three times against Suter before scoring their first run in the seventh. Daytona Cubs' Pierce Johnson throws to Brevard Manatees' Greg Hopkins Sunday during the fifth inning. News-Journal photo / David Massey http://www.news-journalonline.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=DN&Date=20130818&Category=SPORTS&ArtNo=130819414&Ref=AR&MaxW=445&border=0

Rattler Radio Blog - Postgame Entry a must-visit after such a big win

Stars Lose Series Opener With BlueWahoos Alex Cohen, Huntsville Stars To begin a season-high six-game series against each other at Joe Davis Stadium, the Huntsville Stars fell to the Pensacola BlueWahoos by a score of 4-1 on Sunday evening. After giving up just one hit over six scoreless innings in his last start, Stars starting pitcher Drew Gagnon took the hard-pressed loss on Sunday. The 23-year-old righty fell to 4-7 on the season by giving up four runs on eight hits in 6.1 innings pitched. With two scoreless frames to begin the game, Gagnon ran into trouble to start off the top of the third inning when he hit BlueWahoos second baseman Corey Wimberly with a pitch. Two batters later, Wimberly scored on a two-run homer by outfielder Ryan Lamarre. Following a single from shortstop Devin Lohman, Gagnon walked three straight batters, including catcher Tucker Barnhart with the bases loaded to score a run and give Pensacola 3-0 lead. Pensacola tacked on their only other run in the fifth inning with a solo homer from first baseman Mike Costanzo. The roundtripper was the second of the year for the former big leaguer, both of them against the Stars. Huntsville scored their sole run in the sixth inning on an RBI single from Jason Rogers. For Rogers, the run batted in was with 80th on the season, adding to his SL-leading total. Aside from Rogers, the Stars were paced by two hits by third baseman Mike Walker at the plate. For the BlueWahoos, starting pitcher Carlos Contreras improved to 2-2 on the season with the victory. The 22-year-old righty gave up one run in six innings of work. To cap off the victory, BlueWahoos closer Trevor Bell notched his 14th save in 15 opportunities with a scoreless ninth inning. The win for Pensacola snapped their season-high six-game losing streak. On Monday, the Stars will play a doubleheader with the BlueWahoos to make up for a postponed game during their series in Pensacola last month. The Stars will send RHP Andy Moye (5-13, 4.20 ERA) and RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-3, 5.06 ERA) to the bump in games one and two respectively while the BlueWahoos will counter with RHP John Moscot (1-1, 6.60 ERA) and RHP Daniel Renken (6-8, 3.67 ERA) First pitch is at 4:43 CT.

Via Jeff Hem's blog -- Audio from Nashville — Donovan Hand is Back "Here is tonight’s interview with Donovan Hand, whom the Brewers optioned to Nashville yesterday when they had to make room to active Yovani Gallardo. Hand discusses what the past few months in the major leagues — his first-ever stint — have been like and what it’s like to return to the Sounds after watching so many other players do it the past couple of seasons."

Final, @Helena 13, Grand Junction 5 Helena Box Score Jose Pena raised his SLG to .434 with today's extra-base fest. Jesse Weiss has patiently sat on the sideline (only 12 games played), but swatted three singles today after a five-day layoff. Team was 8-for-18 with RISP, just a great offensive day as was made so evident in Zac's game summary. The Independent Record should have more in the AM. Helena Game Log RHP Zach Quintana is a "young" 19 (April birthday, 3rd round, 2012), so the fact he's getting such consistent opportunities to be the main man in the Helena rotation speaks about his potential. Hadn't peeked at his vitals in a while, 5'11" surprised me, pictured more of a classic frame, to be honest. This isn't the case, but it feels like the Brewers are extra-anxious to see one of these high school pitching draft picks (Quintana, Danny Keller - 2011, 6th round), ascend nicely -- post-Yovani Gallardo, who? Credit for Jake Odorizzi? Will Inman, Jeffrey Jeffress, Evan Anundsen, Odorizzi, Seth Lintz, Dylan Covey, Jorge Lopez, Quintana and Devin Williams - top 5 round high school pitchers since Yovani. (Sorry Mini, didn't see your note...)