Jim Goulart

Pioneer League Pitcher of the Week Tyler Cravy, Helena[/b] 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 1 G, 1 GS, 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 HBP, 0 BB, 9 K Entering Saturday's matchup with first-half North Division champion Missoula, Cravy had gone winless in seven starts since July 15, when he fanned 12 Idaho Falls Chukars in just five innings. The Osprey fared little better against him Saturday as the 22-year-old right-hander allowed just two hits over six scoreless frames. Cravy, a 17th-round pick in 2009, struck out nine and did not walk a batter. He finished the Pioneer League campaign with 78 strikeouts -- third-most on the circuit -- in 63 innings. *** Congrats!

Follow Wednesday's action as it happens: Helena

PIO North Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak Great Falls 24 12 .667 - - 13-6 11-6 8-2 L1 Billings 23 13 .639 1.0 2 13-4 10-9 7-3 W3 * Missoula 15 21 .417 9.0 E 9-8 6-13 1-9 L4 Helena 11 25 .306 13.0 E 6-13 5-12 4-6 W1

Wednesday's Daily Menu: Nashville: Season complete; 71-73 record, 3rd place finish in the division, nine games back; actually, tied for 6th best record in 16-team league Huntsville: Season complete; 64-73 record, 8th best record in the 10-team league Brevard County: Season complete; 62-76 record, 11th best record in the 12-team league; 35-33 in the second half, however Wisconsin: Season complete; 67-72 record, tied for 10th best record in the 16-team league; 38-32 in a nice first half Helena: RHP Kevin Shackelford at Billings (Reds), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Live Audio Link -- Select the Helena feed from the MiLB main audio page Arizona Rookie (Maryvale): Season complete; 17-39 record, worst in the 13-team league DSL Brewers: Season complete; 44-27 regular season, first-round playoff series loss

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

That Mike Walker bat flip never gets old. Gets to rounding first base about 12 seconds later. I know he's apologized for that, but that was a sweet self-admiration journey.

Stars will flicker out unless government and civic leaders force some dramatic changes By Mark McCarter, The Huntsville Times HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- The time has come. If professional baseball stands a chance in Huntsville, it will take a dramatic rescue effort. As much as it pains me to type this, I often believe it's too late. I think it's just best to end the suffering and pull the plug on the Huntsville Stars. I'm a baseball guy at heart. I grew up on Southern League baseball, as a kid and in this business. I'm an advocate for quality-of-life aspects to the community. We need myriad things for entertainment and enrichment, whether they suit everyone's taste or not. Baseball is part of that quality of life. So, as long as there is a pulse, we should do what we can to save it. First, the city officials need to quickly and strongly initiate change. Huntsville is the Stars' landlord. Majority owner Miles Prentice should be commanded to come here for significant and serious conversation with government and civic leaders. Invoke some covenant rules. Prentice has plopped a rusting carcass of a '59 Buick on a piece of prime property. They must demand better day-to-day operation of the franchise, a more professional operation and stronger community outreach and marketing. Buck Rogers, the Stars' general manager, is a pleasant, hyperkinetic man fueled by liter jugs of Mountain Dew. He generates off-kilter promotional ideas that don't resonate in sophisticated Huntsville. Nor, frankly, has he. Far too much time and effort have been spent on circus acts like people piling into a car to see who can survive the longest, and not enough on running a quality show or becoming a more integral part of this community. A common complaint among visitors to the stadium is how rudely they've been treated by staff or how hokey the entertainment is. In fairness to Rogers, he has a modest budget. He has a squirt gun where he needs a fire hose. He has a small, inexperienced, unpolished staff. His energy and ideas can be a boon for a franchise somewhere else. He deserves and needs a fresh start. Secondly, to bang this drum still another time, local heroes need to gallop to the rescue. Someone who understands local sensibilities should be in charge of the operation and be given a workable budget. An ideal solution would be the sort of local consortium that saved the franchise two decades ago. It's gone beyond sad. It's embarrassing if you have any sense of civic pride at all. It's downright depressing to see a once-vibrant franchise become so pathetic, to see Joe Davis Stadium sit there as empty and soul-less as the shell of a boarded-up big-box store, left to the rats and roaches. Quickly to the stadium issue: You can't justify taxpayer investment if the Stars draw less than 100,000. A new or renovated stadium is not a panacea. It might spike attendance for a year or so, but unless other drastic changes were to take place - in ownership, management and major league affiliation - we'd be back in the same dreary boat in three years. That doesn't change the fact that Joe Davis Stadium is the worst and oldest in the Southern League and a nightmare of infrastructure woes. It can't go on leaking and creaking forever. Nor can this operation. With his teams in Midland, Texas, and Norwich, Conn., his new home in Key West, his involvement in a chain of Five Guys Restaurants, Prentice rarely visits Huntsville, never accomplishing much when that happens. I realize now, all his rhetoric to the contrary, Prentice cares more about cheeseburgers than Huntsville baseball. He really gave up a long time ago on this franchise. If we care about quality of life in Huntsville, the rest of us shouldn't give up. The Huntsville Times / Photo by Dave Dieter Near-empty Joe Davis Stadium is typical occasion http://media.al.com/sports_impact/photo/8829759-large.jpg

VIDEO: Rattlers Plays of the Year

Mike Fiers Named PCL Pitcher Of The Week Details from the Sounds' site...

Stars season ends with another losing record, poor attendance By Mark McCarter, The Huntsville Times HUNTSVILLE, Ala. -- And so another Huntsville Stars season has come and gone, this one as forgettable and faceless as the stranger next to you on an hour-long flight. It ended symbolically and appropriately, with a rained-out doubleheader Monday afternoon. The Stars finish at 64-73, their second consecutive year without postseason play. It was their sixth losing season in the last eight years. Huntsville drew only 93,340 in 59 dates this season, an average of 1,582 per game, the lowest of all 30 Class AA franchises. (In fact, it's only 92 more per game than the Brewers' Class A Brevard County, Fla., team, the eighth-best attendance in the Florida State League.) The Stars' front office would have you believe Mother Nature has been at fault for attendance woes throughout the last several years. That's like blaming the nation's economic meltdown on a busted ATM machine. Huntsville hardly is the only team in the league to have dealt with consistent heat mixed with frequent rain. It lost more dates than any other team mostly because it was ill-equipped to handle rain, because of a short staff and porous tarp. You need a strong microscope to find very many bright spots from this summer. No Huntsville player made the postseason Southern League All-Star team. No player with more than 200 at-bats hit higher than .300. No one was even in double-digits in homers. Dan Meadows had six wins and a 1.51 ERA and Wily Peralta won nine games before his promotion to Class AAA. Perhaps the highlight was when Hunter Morris, the former Grissom High and Auburn player, became the first Huntsville native to play for the Stars. He had six hits in 17 at-bats, including a homer, triple and double, in four games before being sent back to Class A so he could play full-time. "It was a good development year," manager Mike Guerrero said Monday afternoon. He was one of the last ones left in the Stars' clubhouse, its carpeting soaked by a leak coming from the ceiling. As he chatted in his office, where bags were packed, three times the power conked out. "I feel good about the development area. The guys who were supposed to get better got better," Guerrero continued. He noted that three players who spent part of 2011 with the Stars - third baseman Taylor Green, outfielder Logan Schafer and catcher Martin Maldonado - are in the majors. "When you see players from your team make it to the majors," Guerrero said, "that's the biggest satisfaction. It's a beautiful thing." Few others will join them there from the '11 Stars. The Brewers strip-mined their minor league system, swapping many of their top prospects for experienced major leaguers, trying to capitalize on a playoff opportunity before the economics of small-market baseball doom them again. It's cyclical, this player development business, and the Brewers are back on a down cycle after being considered the best organization in the minors just three years ago. None of the six Milwaukee farm clubs finished with a winning season. As the Stars announced Monday's cancellation, it was noted they'll open the 2012 season on Sunday, April 15. The extended forecast is 70 percent chance of rain, with widely scattered apathy. Photo from The Huntsville Times / Bob Gathany Former Grissom High and Auburn star Hunter Morris, whose brief appearance with Stars was a rare highlight for summer of '11. http://media.al.com/huntsville-times/photo/9602299-large.jpg

PIO North Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak Great Falls 24 11 .686 - - 13-5 11-6 8-2 W8 Billings 22 13 .629 2.0 2 12-4 10-9 7-3 W2 * Missoula 15 20 .429 9.0 E 9-8 6-12 2-8 L3 Helena 10 25 .286 14.0 E 6-13 4-12 3-7 L2

Follow Tuesday's action as it happens: Helena

Tuesday's Daily Menu: Nashville: Season complete; 71-73 record, 3rd place finish in the division, nine games back; actually, tied for 6th best record in 16-team league Huntsville: Season complete; 64-73 record, 8th best record in the 10-team league Brevard County: Season complete; 62-76 record, 11th best record in the 12-team league; 35-33 in the second half, however Wisconsin: Season complete; 67-72 record, tied for 10th best record in the 16-team league; 38-32 in a nice first half Helena: RHP Andy Moye at Great Falls (White Sox), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Live Audio Link -- Select the Helena feed from the MiLB main audio page Arizona Rookie (Maryvale): Season complete; 17-39 record, worst in the 13-team league DSL Brewers: Season complete; 44-27 regular season, first-round playoff series loss

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

Nashville Audio Archive -- September 5 - Exit Interview with Manager Don Money Wonderfully blunt in his assessments, the skipper pretty much goes through the roster with analysis and commentary...

Rattler Radio Post-Game ThoughtsThanks Chris, for a great season on your blog...

Huntsville doubleheader rained out; AA season ends....

Pacific Coast League American Northern Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak # Omaha 79 62 .560 - - 40-32 39-30 5-5 L1 Memphis 77 65 .542 2.5 E 45-25 32-40 6-4 W4 Nashville 70 73 .490 10.0 E 40-32 30-41 4-6 L4 Iowa 65 77 .458 14.5 E 39-31 26-46 3-7 W1 SOU North Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak Chattanooga 42 27 .609 - - 21-13 21-14 6-4 W5 * Tennessee 40 30 .571 2.5 E 22-13 18-17 6-4 W1 Carolina 30 38 .441 11.5 E 16-18 14-20 3-7 L1 Jackson 30 39 .435 12.0 E 15-20 15-19 5-5 W2 Huntsville 27 40 .403 14.0 E 11-21 16-19 4-6 L2 MID Western Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak Quad Cities 40 27 .597 - - 22-12 18-15 7-3 L1 @ Clinton 38 30 .559 2.5 - 19-15 19-15 5-5 L1 @ Kane County 37 32 .536 4.0 1 15-19 22-13 4-6 W1 Beloit 31 36 .463 9.0 E 16-17 15-19 5-5 W1 * Burlington 31 36 .463 9.0 E 18-15 13-21 8-2 W5 Cedar Rapids 28 40 .412 12.5 E 16-19 12-21 3-7 L2 Wisconsin 28 40 .412 12.5 E 15-20 13-20 4-6 L6 Peoria 27 41 .397 13.5 E 13-20 14-21 5-5 W2 PIO North Club W L PCT GB *ELIM # Home Away L 10 Streak Great Falls 23 11 .676 - - 12-5 11-6 8-2 W7 Billings 21 13 .618 2.0 3 11-4 10-9 7-3 W1 * Missoula 15 19 .441 8.0 E 9-8 6-11 2-8 L2 Helena 10 24 .294 13.0 E 6-13 4-11 3-7 L1

Look for the Nashville and Wisconsin media notes here and here later on, respectively. If Huntsville posts theirs (last did so on Tuesday 8/30), it will be found by placing your cursor over the "roster" banner at the Stars' home page.

Follow Monday's action as it happens: Nashville (Gameday also available) Huntsville Game One (Gameday also available) Huntsville Game Two (Gameday also available) Wisconsin Helena

Monday's Daily Menu: Nashville: RHP Mike Fiers at Memphis (Cardinals), 12:50 PM pre-game, 1:05 gametime Live Audio Link -- Select the Nashville feed from the MiLB main audio page MiLB.TV -- for subscribers Huntsville: RHP's Jesus Sanchez and Cody Scarpetta in a doubleheader at home vs. Mobile (Diamondbacks), 1:03 PM gametime; each contest slated for seven innings Live Audio Link iPad/iPhone: Listen Traditional broadcast -- Mobile feed Brevard County: Season complete; 62-76 record, 11th best in the 12-team league; 35-33 in the second half, however Wisconsin: LHP Charly Bashara at Beloit (Twins), 1:40 PM pre-game, 2:00 gametime Live Audio Link MiLB.TV -- for subscribers Helena: LHP Mike Strong at Great Falls (White Sox), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Live Audio Link -- Select the Helena feed from the MiLB main audio page Arizona Rookie (Maryvale): Season complete; 17-39 record, worst in the 13-team league DSL Brewers: Season complete; 44-27 regular season, first-round playoff series loss

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

Green thrills Brewers fans in eagerly-awaited major-league debut Tom Hawthorn, the Globe and Mail Taylor Green, 24, a professional baseball player, got called into the manager’s office. He was greeted by grim-faced coaches and a manager with bad news. You’ve flunked a drug test, he was told. The young athlete’s career flashed before his eyes. Must be a mistake. “No way,” he insisted, heart pounding. “How is that even possible?!” He was told his punishment was greater than a 25-game suspension. Worse even than a 50-game suspension. The punishment, his manager said, maintaining a straight face, was a one-way ticket to Milwaukee. There was no failed drug test. Instead, the Milwaukee Brewers of the National League had use for a left-handed hitter and Mr. Green was about to be rewarded for years of hard work, including recovery from two serious injuries. He was being promoted to the major leagues. To “The Show.” A few days later, he was called upon to pinch hit. His parents, Jacqueline, a teacher now on disability, and Bill, an elementary-school principal, scrambled to get from the Comox Valley to Milwaukee. His mother needed a wheelchair to navigate the stadium. They sat in box seats 20 rows up behind home plate. Brewers fans had anticipated Mr. Green’s arrival. Before he arrived, he was hitting so well in the minor leagues that some rooters launched a “Free Taylor Green” campaign to encourage the Brewers to promote the prospect. Last week, when his name was announced as a pinch hitter, the stadium rose in a standing ovation, a tribute before he had even taken a swing. The at-bat brought to an end a long journey from the sandlots of Courtenay to a community college in California where he was scouted, drafted and signed by Milwaukee. A minor-league odyssey lasted five seasons as he played for the Helena (Mont.) Brewers, the West Virginia Power, the Brevard County (Fla.) Manatees, the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, the Huntsville (Ala.) Stars, and the Nashville (Tenn.) Sounds, whose manager, Don Money, himself a former major leaguer, fooled Mr. Green into thinking he’d failed a drug test. Along the way, he overcame a broken left wrist, as well as a beaning to the face. A pitch hit the bill of his batting helmet, ricocheting flush onto his nose, which was shattered. Being hit in the face by a pitched ball has ended more than one baseball career, as sometimes a hitter loses nerve, an affliction upon which pitchers will prey by throwing one inside fastball after another. After recovering from reconstructive surgery, Mr. Green forced himself to face pitches without flinching. With a teammate feeding baseballs into a pitching machine, he donned a catcher’s mask and deliberately had ball after ball strike him on his protected face until he knew he had the fortitude to return to the batter’s box. Those tribulations, testing as they were, diminish when compared with what his mother has faced. On Valentine’s Day, 1996, Jackie, a popular teacher, was felled by a massive stroke. She needed two emergency surgeries and spent six weeks in a coma. When she awoke, the only word she could manage was “no.” She spent arduous weeks at the G.F Strong Rehabilitation Centre in Vancouver. Though she could not speak words, she could sing them. Sometimes, husband and nine-year-old son sang O Canada with her. One of the friends who rushed to her side was Kim Cattrall, the actress known best for playing the libidinous Samantha in Sex and the City. Ms. Cattrall, who was raised in the Comox Valley, served as maid of honour at his parents’ marriage. She now includes stroke charities in her fundraising efforts. On his debut in Milwaukee, Mr. Green golfed a low pitch into right field for a single. Time was called and the ball was lobbed into the Brewer dugout as a souvenir. Remarkably, the crowd gave the rookie infielder a second standing ovation, seeing in his modest accomplishment the promise of future contributions. Behind home plate, his mother was helped to her feet to join in the ovation. “We’re in awe,” Bill Green said afterward. “We’re shocked. We’re happy. We’re relieved.” Two days later, in his next appearance, he slashed another hit as a pinch-hitter, starting a rally that led his team to victory. On Saturday, he got his first start. In his first at-bat, he rapped his third consecutive single. In a sport in which failing at the plate two times out of three is considered brilliance, the prospect began his career with a perfect 1.000 batting average. After his debut, his new teammates presented him with a ball purported to be the one he had slashed into the outfield for his first big-league hit. It was scuffed and scratched. Obscenities had been written on it. Another baseball prank. The real ball was encased in plastic with an engraved plate with details of the hit. It can now be found on a kitchen counter in the Comox Valley home of two proud parents. Tough road to The Show Taylor Green is the first player born in the Comox Valley to make a major-league roster, earning a spot in the Baseball Encyclopedia between Shawn Green and Hank Greenberg. He is only the fifth player born on Vancouver Island to make “The Show” in the 135-year history of major-league baseball. The others, all born in Victoria, are outfielder Mike Saunders and pitchers Steve Sinclair, Steve Wilson, and Rich Harden, who is with the Oakland A’s. It is a tough journey that demands skill, luck and timing. Vince Perkins, (former 40-man roster spot holder for the Brewers), a fireball-throwing pitcher from Victoria, spent a decade in the minor leagues without ever getting a chance to play in the big leagues. His greatest achievement was pitching for Canada in the World Baseball Classic. Mr. Perkins, who turns 30 later this month, was released earlier this season by the Toronto Blue Jays, who owned his rights. The son of a firefighter, he is now completing paramedic and firefighter training in Florida. Taylor Green at age five http://beta.images.theglobeandmail.com/archive/01315/web-taylor-gree_1315795cl-8.jpg

VIDEO: Sam Narron with a pickoff*** Nashville Audio Archive -- September 4 - Chat with LH starter Sam Narron

The roster move to get Charly Bashara active for Monday's Wisconsin game is Del Howell to the roster of the AZL Brewers.