Jim Goulart

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Not much fun standings-wise, but the Rattlers are only a half-game out of first place...

Wisconsin Media Notes Appleton Post-Crescent Video Interview with Walk-Off Man Greg Hopkins as part of their game story (photos also) Full Post-Crescent Photo Gallery Rattlers Radio Blog -- "Nine After Nine", always a must-read, and the home game means

Manatees drop series opener to Yanks By Frank Longobardo / Brevard County Manatees VIERA, Fla. - Looking to start fresh after a 0-6 road trip, it became the same old song and dance for the Brevard County Manatees as they fell 7-2 to the Tampa Yankees on Wednesday night at Space Coast Stadium. It was the 'Tees seventh straight loss. Making his first start with the Manatees, Brandon Williamson gave Brevard a quality start. He went six innings and allowed two runs (one earned) on four hits, while striking out three and did not issue a walk. Brevard County (8-11) has received quality starts from its starting pitchers nine times this season, but the Manatees are just 3-6 in those games. The 'Tees did get on the board first in the bottom of the second thanks to back-to-back, one-out RBI singles by Scott Krieger and Shea Vucinich as Brevard County took a 2-0 lead. Williamson's only two runs allowed on the night came in the top of the fifth. The inning began with Tampa's J.R. Murphy reaching on a fielding error by Nick Shaw. Two batters later, Tyson Blaser singled to put two on with one out. Shane Brown then doubled to left to clear the bases and tied the game at 2-2. Brooks Hall, who saw his first action of 2012 since being activated from the disabled list, relieved Williamson in the seventh. After getting Murphy to pop out to second, he allowed back-to-back singles. Two batters later, Jose Mojica reached on a Vucinich error and the Yankees (10-9) took a 3-2 lead. Hall would get two more outs in the eighth and leave a runner on second that Casey Medlen would inherit. The first batter Medlen faced was Murphy who singled to left to make it a 4-2 advantage for Tampa. The Yankees padded their lead in the ninth with three runs - on three hits and an error - off Medlen. Brevard County's offense remained stagnant as the Manatees struck out ten times and went 3-for-14 with runners in scoring position. The 'Tees left nine men on base and on five separate occasions they left runners in scoring position with two outs. The Manatees will call upon 2011 first round draft pick Taylor Jungmann (2-2, 3.18) to halt their losing streak on Thursday night at 6:35 PM (5:35 Central) against the Yankees. Jungmann is looking for his first win since April 10. Tampa will send Michael O'Brien (2-1, 5.79) to the hill. In O'Brien's last start, he allowed eight runs in 3 1/3 innings of work against the Daytona Cubs. Manatees starting pitcher Brandon Williamson allowed one earned run in six innings. (Dennis Greenblatt/Hawk-Eye Sports Photography) http://www.milb.com/images/2012/04/25/O6FdCqS9.jpg

Huntsville Stars an imperfect 10-10 in this young season but 'playing good baseball,' Coles says By Mark McCarter, The Huntsville Times HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- It wasn't a team meeting with voices so loud and language so harsh as to melt the paint off the clubhouse wall. But Huntsville Stars manager Darnell Coles felt it necessary to do some preaching - and teaching - postgame Tuesday afternoon. "Today was the first day you got knocked around," Coles told his players. An unnecessary reminder, perhaps, considering their lackadaisical 8-1 loss to the Jackson (Tenn.) Generals. However, the loss was "a teachable moment," he said. "You understand it. You don't necessarily want those things to happen. But when they do, you continue to play. You play the right way. You get on and off the field. You continue to make the plays," he said. It left the Stars 10-10 at the end of this first homestand of the season. They head today to Jackson, Miss., for a five-game set with the Mississippi Braves. If there is some consolation, it was the first time in this young season the Stars weren't really in the game. (Fourteen of the 20 have been decided by one or two runs.) Credit some of that to good pitching from the Generals' Danny Hultzen, who picked up where teammates left off on Monday night. The Stars had a 16-inning stretch of only one run and four hits the past two games. Coles is not lobbing out any alibis but did stress that "we're a little nicked up." They have already had more than their share of injuries. Brock Kjeldgaard, potentially the team's top power hitter, suffered a broken finger while breaking up a double play and will be sidelined six to eight weeks, according to Coles. Outfielder Kentrail Davis, considered one of the Brewers' top prospects, has been sidelined since April 11 with a hamstring injury. Infielder Jeff Bianchi is also nursing a sore hamstring; ditto Dan Merklinger, the most experienced pitcher, who is due to return today. "There are no excuses. Injuries are part of it," Coles said. It may well be revealed that this 10-10 start came in even tougher circumstances. First, the long haul of 10 road games immediately after spring training. Then the incumbent hassles of moving into new digs. And, finally, Jacksonville and Jackson - against whom the Stars went a combined 4-6 - might prove to be the best two teams in the Southern League this half. The Stars have proved to be the best-hitting team so far - a .277 team average - but they're only sixth in run production. However, they're eighth in ERA and eighth in fewest walks allowed. All things considered, "We're playing a good brand of baseball," Coles said. "Our guys continue to play hard. We won a couple of games late. We battled. And these guys are going to do that all year because," Coles added, "I'm not going to allow them not to." Huntsville Stars manager Darnell Coles http://media.al.com/sports_impact/photo/10880412-large.jpg

Interesting Baseball America article about the expanded AAA and AA rosters this season.

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.

STANDINGS: AAA - Pacific Coast League American Northern Division AA - Southern League North Division Florida State League North Division Midwest League Western Division

Follow Wednesday's action as it happens with box score / game log links: Huntsville Brevard County Wisconsin

FYI, it'll be Brandon Williamson for Brevard tonight, not Brooks Hall. Hall will likely be eased into a bullpen role to begin his season.

Wednesday's Daily Menu: All times are Central Nashville: Idle ********** Huntsville: LHP Dan Merklinger at Mississippi (Braves), 6:45 PM pre-game, 7:00 gametime Free Live Audio Link -- Select the Huntsville feed from the MiLB main audio page I-Phone friendly audio link Alex Cohen is the new play-by-play voice of the Stars; follow him on Twitter @alexmcohen. It's fantastic that Huntsville is returning to what will be a traditional broadcast format this year. All games, home and away, are scheduled to be broadcast. MiLB.TV subsciption note: A total of 24 Stars' games (in Jacksonville and Tennessee) will be broadcast. ********** Brevard County: RHP Brooks Hall at home vs. Tampa (Yankees), 5:35 PM gametime Sorry, no audio for this series... Once again this season, Brevard does not have its own audio coverage. It appears two teams in the Manatees North Division (within which the majority of games are played) have audio, and all six teams in the South Division have audio (at least for their home games), so there will be opportunities to listen to approx. 70% or Brevard's games this season, just all from the opponent's perspective. There are no Florida State League games on MiLB.TV this year. ********** Wisconsin: RHP Andy Moye at home vs. Dayton (Reds), 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. MiLB.TV -- for subscribers; Wisconsin is one of only two (Great Lakes) Midwest League clubs that have all their home games available via MiLB.TV; Chris' call provides the audio. So for the $39.95 season-long package, fans in Brewer Nation can watch all Sounds games, all Timber Rattlers home games, and 24 Stars' road games (one Helena series this summer, too).

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South Bend Tribune game story certainly noted Rattlers' starter David Goforth's velocity - "flirted with 100"

Silver Hawks third baseman Matt Helm lays a late tag on Wisconsin's Jason Rogers. South Bend Tribune Photo / JAMES BROSHER http://www.trbimg.com/img-4f97c060/turbine/sbt-zzz08168-20120425/600

Omaha.com -- Royals' AAA club the polar opposite of struggling big league squad, and their defense did in the Sounds: But defense might stand out as much as anything, particularly Tuesday, as Jarrod Dyson — the league’s best center fielder — made another stunning play: an over-the-shoulder catch on a long drive by Brooks Conrad to straightaway center for the game’s second out. Dyson might have thrown Erick Almonte out at the plate in the second inning, but what would have been an on-target, one-hop throw home hit the top of the pitching mound and bounced high. No matter — Omaha ended the fourth inning by throwing out Hainley Statia at the plate as Terry Evans dug an RBI double out of the left-field corner and Falu, the cutoff man, made an accurate throw home. Then Giavotella, the second baseman maligned for his defensive skills, started a spectacular sixth-inning double play. He dove to his right to make a back-handed stab of Taylor Green’s shot, and then — still flat on the ground — raised his upper body and flipped the ball from his glove to Falu at second base. Falu grabbed the ball with his bare hand and completed the double play by throwing to first.

Kind words for Yadiel Rivera in the Rattler Radio Blog "Nine After Nine"

Almost flawless, Burgos falls short By Ashley Marshall / Special to MLB.com Hiram Burgos turned in the finest start of his four-year professional career on Tuesday. Unfortunately, he'll remember the game as the one that got away. The Brewers prospect was perfect through six innings and took a no-hitter into the ninth but ended up on the losing end of a 1-0 decision in the Class A Advanced Brevard County Manatees' setback to the Clearwater Threshers. "It was my best game of my career tonight," said Burgos, who threw 94 pitches. "I'm still very proud of myself and I feel proud of my team. We were good defensively, but we just couldn't get it going offensively. Someone has to win and someone has to lose. "This was the first time in all my career I nearly had a no-hitter. The closest before tonight was in the seventh inning back in Puerto Rico before I was in professional baseball, so that doesn't count. This was the longest outing I have ever had." Burgos (0-1) set down the first 18 batters he faced at Bright House Field before Peter Lavin drew a leadoff walk in the bottom of the seventh. Even though some of his more superstitious teammates were keeping their distance in the dugout, Burgos didn't realize he was working on a perfect game. "Everyone was trying to avoid me, but I like to talk when I'm in the dugout," the 2009 sixth-round Draft pick said. "I don't like to sit by myself and stay quiet, I like to talk about the game and the hitters coming up. But when I was looking for [my teammates], they were staying away. "I fell behind in the count to [Lavin] and I wanted to throw a strike, but I couldn't. Then the next batter, I was working out of the stretch and it felt weird and that was when I realized I had lost a perfect game." A sacrifice bunt and a groundout moved Lavin to third base, but Burgos struck out Jim Murphy to strand the potential go-ahead run. After a 1-2-3 eighth, Burgos gave up a leadoff double to D'Arby Myers, ending the 24-year-old right-hander's shot at history. "I had some butterflies in my stomach because I knew I was pitching a really good game," he said. "I was proud to go back out for the ninth because you don't get to do that too often. I told the manager that it was my game to lose and that if we lost, it was going to be on me. "I wasn't trying to trick anybody out there, I just wanted to get ahead in the count. It was a cutter down and in and [Myers] hit a fly ball to left. I was mad, but at the same time I was really proud of myself and my team." The Manatees left Burgos in to face Edgar Duran, who bunted back to the mound. Burgos fielded the ball cleanly and tried to get the lead runner at third, but Myers beat the throw. Brian Garman relieved Burgos in an attempt to force extra innings, but Lavin stroked a walk-off single up the middle to hand Burgos the hard-luck loss and complete the Manatees' 0-6 road trip. Despite picking up his first loss of the year, Burgos said he can take a lot from the outing. "I pounded the zone and kept the hitters off-balance. I was throwing my changeup, my curveball, my cutter and my fastball, and everything was working for me," he explained. "I was working backwards and whenever you can use your second and third pitches to get ahead in the count you will be successful. "I can take a lot of confidence from this. I have been working hard, and having confidence is the biggest thing." In four games, including three starts, Burgos is sixth in the Florida State League with a 1.27 ERA. He's given up only seven hits and four walks while striking out 21 over 21 1/3 innings. Hiram Burgos has allowed three runs in four games. (Dennis Greenblatt/Hawk-Eye Sports Photography) http://www.milb.com/images/2012/04/24/VvZU2GVx.jpg Photo is from recent home game.

RHP Brooks Hall will make his 2012 debut in a starting role for the Manatees Wednesday night.

Following starting efforts like this in the system is getting routine. Make that five frames and counting; 'Tees need to score...

Good news from 1B Nick Ramirez, who should see Wisconsin before too long

Huntsville will send LHP Dan Merklinger (0-1, 5.79 ERA) to face off against a Braves starter that is still yet to be determined. Merklinger will come off the DL to do so, the Stars will need to make a corresponding move on Wednesday.

FYI, something to keep an eye on: Back on the 21st, Huntsville's Brock Kjeldgaard looked to be off with a normal rest day, he actually pinch-ran late in that game: Huntsville Bottom of the 8th Pitcher Change: Steven Hensley replaces Brian Moran. Khris Davis singles on a ground ball to left fielder Chris Pettit. Offensive Substitution: Pinch runner Brock Kjeldgaard replaces Khris Davis. Anderson De La Rosa out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Steven Hensley to first baseman Rich Poythress. Brock Kjeldgaard to 2nd. Lee Haydel reaches on fielding error by second baseman Eric Campbell. Brock Kjeldgaard to 3rd. Matt Cline reaches on a fielder's choice out, third baseman Francisco Martinez to catcher Jesus Sucre to third baseman Francisco Martinez. Brock Kjeldgaard out at home. Lee Haydel to 3rd on the throw. *** Big Brock has since missed the last two games. No DL stint yet, so there's that. Just-promoted Juan Sanchez has started in his place.

Wisconsin Media Notes http://mlblogsrattlerradio.files.wordpress.com/2012/04/april-23-2012-002.jpg?w=300&h=168 Awesome, Chris...

Jeff Hem tweet: Josh Butler: 3+IP, R, 3H, BB, K (52/33). Not sure what issue was but walked off w/trainer. To guess/speculate from booth = foolish. *** (Apparently audio issues from Nashville today as well. Depending on when you attempt, you may or may not pick up the web broadcast.)

Scooter Gennett showing up big for Stars as Southern League 'Hitter of the Week' By Mark McCarter, The Huntsville Times HUNTSVILLE, Alabama -- Considering it includes a Muppet, a brush with legal authorities and a frustrated mother, this may be one of most terrific nickname sagas in the history of sports. Young Ryan Gennett's favorite Muppet was Scooter. File that away for a second. When he was five, he balked at buckling his seat belt as he went for a ride with his mother Tina. She became so exasperated as he kept clicking it on and off, she drove to the police department, thinking an officer might scare some sense into her son. When the cop asked, "What's your name, son?" the scofflaw responded out of the blue, "Scooter Gennett." It was the first Tina had heard of the name. But it stuck. Mostly because, as Gennett said, "For a year I didn't answer to Ryan because I thought I'd get in trouble. I thought I'd get arrested." Gennett, the Stars' second baseman and the Southern League "Hitter of the Week" after his 13-for-29 week and walk-off homer Sunday, was 1-for-4 Monday as the Stars lost 6-4 in 10 innings to the Jackson Generals. The series ends with a 10:43 a.m. game today. Jesus Sucre broke the game open with a bases-loaded, two-run bloop single in the top of the 10th off Huntsville reliever Eric Marzec, who had walked a pair of batters. However, the Stars' offense was equally to blame, going hitless after the second inning except for Lee Haydel's 10th-inning solo homer. Ever optimistic, Huntsville manager Darnell Coles noted, "We kept battling. We put the tying run on in the last inning. As long as we keep battling like that, I'm happy." Gennett, who turns 22 next Tuesday, is a 16th-round draft pick out of Florida State who has been ranked as the No. 6 prospect in the Milwaukee organization, according to mlb.com's Prospect Watch. Though born in Ohio, he moved to Florida at age 10 when his father Joe, a former Houston scout, recognized the opportunity for his baseball-crazed son - "I've always wanted to be a major league player," Scooter said to play year-round in warmer weather. Gennett is a modestly sized 5-foot-9, 165 pounds. That means, "So what about your size?" is question 1A to "Where did Scooter come from?" "I've been told a lot that because of my size, I can't do certain things," he said. "I love it when people say that. I like to prove them wrong. Not so much from a selfish standpoint, but to prove to myself I can do it." In spring training, when Gennett hit for the cycle for the Brewers during an exhibition game against the Kansas City Royals, a writer brought up the size issue. "If you're an infielder, the shorter you are, the closer you are to the ground to field the ball, right?" Gennett said. Apprised of that quotation, Coles laughed, "That means he shouldn't come up on any, right?" It seemed almost redundant, then, to have Gennett on his knees in front of the Stars dugout at 4:15 Monday afternoon, Coles slapping grounders at him. But it's a regular drill, helping develop hand-eye coordination. Coles offered high praise for Gennett's work ethic and his mental approach to the game. "He's been playing great defense, and his numbers speak for themselves," Coles said. Gennett leads the Southern League in hits and is in the top 10 in five other offensive categories. "I'm going to try to keep the same routine going," he said. "If I have a bad game, not try to change anything, to stay as consistent as possible. If you have a couple of bad at-bats, you can't let that ruin you for the game." Sunday night's game was a perfect example. He was 0-for-4 until the walk-off homer in the ninth. He stood pretty tall then.