Jim Goulart

Steve Garrison's first truly bad start in a couple of months

Jerry Crasnick ESPN Feature on Matt LaPorta Sporting News Feature on Matt

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 60 38 .612 - 36-17 24-21 W4 Memphis 53 44 .546 6.5 25-21 28-23 L1 Omaha 45 51 .469 14.0 20-26 25-25 W1 Nashville 39 58 .402 20.5 19-25 20-33 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 16 9 .640 - 9-6 7-3 L2 Huntsville 14 11 .560 2.0 5-5 9-6 L1 Carolina 12 13 .480 4.0 5-5 7-8 L2 Chattanooga 11 14 .440 5.0 6-9 5-5 W1 West Tenn 8 17 .320 8.0 1-9 7-8 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Palm Beach 13 8 .619 - 9-5 4-3 W5 Daytona 13 9 .591 0.5 6-3 7-6 W2 St. Lucie 13 9 .591 0.5 8-5 5-4 L2 Jupiter 10 9 .526 2.0 5-2 5-7 L1 Vero Beach 10 12 .455 3.5 4-7 6-5 L2 Brevard County 7 15 .318 6.5 3-9 4-6 L5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 18 5 .783 - 8-2 10-3 W8 Lakewood 14 9 .609 4.0 8-4 6-5 L1 Delmarva 12 11 .522 6.0 5-7 7-4 L1 Lake County 11 11 .500 6.5 5-7 6-4 W1 Hagerstown 10 13 .435 8.0 4-9 6-4 L5 Hickory 10 13 .435 8.0 3-6 7-7 W4 Greensboro 7 16 .304 11.0 2-8 5-8 L3 Lexington 5 17 .227 12.5 2-9 3-8 L3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pioneer League (R+) - PIO North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Billings 15 10 .600 - 5-1 10-9 W2 Great Falls 14 11 .560 1.0 8-4 6-7 L4 Helena 12 13 .480 3.0 7-9 5-4 W1 Missoula 5 20 .200 10.0 2-14 3-6 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona League (R) - Arizona League Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AZL Angels 11 5 .688 - 5-3 6-2 L1 AZL Cubs 10 6 .625 1.0 7-1 3-5 W6 AZL Padres 10 6 .625 1.0 6-1 4-5 W4 AZL Giants 9 8 .529 2.5 5-3 4-5 W1 AZL Royals 9 8 .529 2.5 6-2 3-6 W1 AZL Rangers 8 8 .500 3.0 4-5 4-3 L2 AZL Mariners 7 10 .412 4.5 4-5 3-5 L1 AZL Athletics 6 10 .375 5.0 3-5 3-5 L3 AZL Brewers 3 12 .200 7.5 3-5 0-7 L1

Follow Sunday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Open the Nashville Gameday. For the others, choose "Log" or "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often. Nashville Game One: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_nozaaa_nasaaa_1 Nashville Game Two: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_nozaaa_nasaaa_2 Brevard County: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t503&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_breafa_sarafa_1 West Virginia: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_wvaafx_crdafx_1 Helena: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_casrok_helrok_1 Arizona: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_13_athrok_brrrok_1

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated several hours prior to gametime. Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

Sunday's Daily Menu: All times Central except Arizona League; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: LHP's Steve Hammond and Lindsay Gulin in a double-dip at home vs. New Orleans (Mets), 4:45 PM pre-game; 5:00 gametime; each contest seven innings... Audio link via WNSR, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t556 Huntsville: Idle -- Southern League All-Star Game Monday Brevard County: TBD (it's RHP Alex Periard's turn) at Sarasota (Reds), 12:00 gametime Sorry, no audio for this series... West Virginia: LHP Dan Merklinger at Charleston (Yankees), 2:50 PM pre-game, 3:05 gametime Audio link via WSWW, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t525 Helena: LHP Efrain Nieves (oh, yeah) at home vs. Casper (Rockies), 4:50 PM pre-game, 5:05 gametime Audio link via KCAP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t433 Arizona: TBD vs. the baby A's in Maryvale, 10:30 AM local Mountain Standard Time Never any audio for the Maryvale Crew

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Link from the Chattanooga press coverage, text follows: Chattanooga's 13-3 win over Huntsville was overshadowed Saturday night by a dugout-clearing brawl that resulted in a 30-minute delay, eight player ejections and the dismissal of Lookouts manager Mike Goff. The melee was the first in the nine-year history of AT&T Field and the first Frank Burke has witnessed in 14 seasons as Lookouts owner. "It's brutal, it's scary and it's horrible," Burke said. "A baseball is a dangerous weapon, and people shouldn't throw baseballs at each other. We have a lot of kids here, and they don't need to see this kind of thing." Trouble was imminent in the bottom of the fourth inning when Huntsville relief pitcher Patrick Ryan hit Tonys Gutierrez in the knee. Gutierrez had launched a grand slam off Stars starter Donovan Hand in the second inning to give the Lookouts an 8-2 lead, and Ryan had just allowed a solo shot to Danny Dorn before throwing at Gutierrez. Ryan was up first against Lookouts starter Sam LeCure in the top of the fifth, and LeCure threw inside several times before allowing a walk. Michael Brantley was up next and, after dodging two inside pitches, lifted his bat at LeCure and walked toward the mound. Lookouts catcher Craig Tatum pounced on Brantley, and the dugouts emptied. Sean Henry raced from center field to mix it up with Ryan at first base, while Lookouts second baseman Justin Turner and closer Carlos Fisher found themselves outnumbered after positioning themselves in front of Huntsville's dugout. Goff was ejected for arguing after the players were separated and joined Henry, LeCure, Tatum and Turner in heading for the clubhouse. Brantley was ejected for the Stars, as were second baseman Mike Bell, catcher Angel Salome and pitcher David Welch, who made a pinch-hit appearance in the third inning. The Lookouts improved to 11-14 entering the three-day break for Southern League all-star festivities, snapping a five-game losing streak in the process. Huntsville pounded out 39 runs in the first four games of the series, becoming the first team this season to win four straight against the Lookouts. "We've been streaky all year, but this is really the first series in which our pitching staff has gotten beat up the way they have," Goff said before the fight-marred contest that followed a 43-minute rain delay. "We were due to go through a spell like this. We ran into a pretty hot Huntsville club, and you just can't make mistakes against these guys." The league's all-star game takes place Monday night in Zebulon, N.C.

Final: Chattanooga (Reds) 13, Huntsville 3 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Loookouts Take Out Some Frustration in Fight-Filled Win Over Stars Huntsville Heads into All-Star Break in Second Place By Brett Pollock / Huntsville Stars Danny Dorn hit two home runs and Robert Manuel tossed three scoreless innings in relief in Chattanooga's 13-3 win over Huntsville Saturday night in the last of a five-game set at AT&T Field that was marred by an on-field brawl in the top half of the fifth inning. The Stars lost a five-game win streak to fall to 14-11 in the second and also lost a chance to gain ground on first place Tennessee, which lost to West Tenn, while the Lookouts moved to 11-14 and within five games of the Smokies. The Stars bid for a fourth series sweep of the season and a second six-game road win streak was brought to an end. Danny Dorn hit a home run to lead off the fourth inning to give Chattanooga a 9-3 lead and Stars' pitcher Patrick Ryan responded by plunking Tonys Gutierrez, the next hitter. Ryan got out of the inning and led off the fifth and took a couple of pitches with a purpose from Lookouts' starter Sam LeCure, prompting a warning to both benches. Michael Brantley then took two more pitches with a purpose and charged the mound, was pushed from behind by catcher Craig Tatum and that ignited the melee. Play and calm were finally restored 30 minutes later and after all was settled, Mike Bell, Angel Salome, Brantley and David Welch from the Stars were tossed out of the game. Chattanooga lost Justin Turner, Sean Henry, Sam LeCure and Craig Tatum along with skipper Mike Goff. Needless to say, you'll want to listen in -- Audio -- use the same link as the Charlie Greene interview link above, then browse to the 02:13:00 hour/minute mark, starting with Patrick Ryan's plate appearance, Michael Brantley's at-bat then follows -- "This is ugly, I mean real ugly, punches being thrown all over the place!" Manuel allowed three singles and struck out five to earn his fourth win of the season and Carlos Fisher finished up with two scoreless frames to finish off the Stars second 10-run loss of the season. David Johnson tossed three shutout innings in relief for the Stars to extend his scoreless streak to 14 1/3 innings before Omar Aguilar gave up four unearned runs in the eighth, including two on Dorn's second long ball of the night. Chattanooga scored in the first inning for a fourth straight night to mark the eighth time in the last nine games the Stars' opponent has tallied first. The Lookouts took advantage of two errors to score on a pair of sacrifice flies, then added a run-scoring triple by Eric Eymann before a throwing error by third baseman Michael Garciaparra allowed Eymann to cross the plate with the fourth run of the inning. Bell's two-out, two-run home run in the second inning got the Stars to within two but was quickly nullified when Tony Gutierrez slugged a grand slam in the home half of the inning. It was the first baseman's fourth home run of the season and gave him eight runs batted in during the five-game set. Stars' starter Donovan Hand was lifted after two frames, giving up eight runs, five earned, on six hits, while walking one. He took the loss to drop to 1-3 since his promotion from high-A ball in late May. The Stars are off for the Southern League All-Star break and will resume play Wednesday night at home against Tennessee with left-hander Brae Wright taking the hill. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 pm central time and can be heard locally on SportsRadio 730 WUMP and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com and www.730ump.com. Huntsville Box Score Mat Gamel not here -- in New York for the Futures Game; prior to the brouhaha, starter Donovan Hand continues to find the jump to AA is a significant one... Huntsville Game Log

Huntsville Pre-Game Audio Interview with Brewers' Organizational Field Coordinator and Roving Catching Instructor Charlie Greene Click on the WUMP archive of July 12th, then browse to the 27:00 minute mark; consistently one of the more informative guests we hear...

Helena Pre-Game Audio Interview with Head Groundskeeper Jonathan "Button" Garrett Click on the KCAP archive of July 12th, then browse to the 12:45 minute mark; because we know there are aspiring groundskeepers out there, and there are some interesting topics touched on; we know Kindrick Field has improved overall... Final: Helena 10, Casper (Rockies) 4 Link while active, text follows: Brewers power past Casper Ghosts By JEFF WINDMUELLER - Helena Independent Record The Helena Brewers rolled over Friday night's high-hitting performance onto Saturday as they outslugged the Casper Ghosts 10-4 at Kindrick Legion Field. It was the first of a three-game series between the Pioneer League Northern Division Brewers (12-13) and Southern Division Ghosts (16-8). Helena racked up 14 hits while their pitchers gave up 11 one night after losing to Idaho Falls 14-13. The Brewers had 18 hits in that game, combining for 29 since being one-hit by the Chukars on Thursday. Helena took a big lead in the bottom of the fourth when Michael Vass hit a two-run homer and the Brewers batted through the order to the delight of most of the 937 in attendance. Mike Roberts started the inning off with a flair to left field before Erik Miller walked. John Delaney cracked a double down the left field line, and after fouling off numerous times, Michael Marseco battled from an 0-2 count to stroke a single to left, scoring Miller. Erik Komatsu struck out, but clean-up hitter Brock Kjeldgaard launched a two-run double off the left field wall. Vass followed right up with his homer, which cleared the fielders' heads in left-center. The homer, Vass' fourth on the year, brought the score to 7-1 and sent starting pitcher Ethan Hollingsworth packing. Casper's Alan Deratt came in to relieve, walking Jose Duran to start but getting the next two outs on a strike out and groundout to end the inning. Casper pitchers struggled all night and Deratt's stay was certainly a short one. He was able to battle his way out of a bases-loaded fifth inning to escape 1 2/3 innings without a run. Andres Marrero came in to start the sixth and the Brewers proved that if they couldn't get the hits, they'd take advantage of every mistake to make it home. Marrero walked Duran - who ended up 1-for-2 with three walks and two runs - then threw three wild pitches, each one advancing the Brewers second baseman until he reached home. After giving up a double to Kjeldgaard then walking the next three batters, giving Brett Whiteside an RBI on the fourth ball, Roberts batted into a double play. Still, with no outs to begin, Vass was able to cross the plate as the Brewers scored their final run of the game. Wilin Rosario went 3-for-5 for the Ghosts, collecting an RBI, the first of the game. He brought in Angelys Rosario in the third with a two-out single off Helena starting pitcher Trey Watten. Watten (2-0) finished five innings giving up all four runs on seven hits while striking out three and walking one. Watten began to falter in the fifth when, with a man on base, he beaned Carlos Martinez in the back of the head. Martinez went down and stayed down for a number of minutes before stumbling back to the dugout with an obvious concussion. Alex Feinberg took his place at first - and for the rest of the game - and Kane Simmons ripped a two-run double off the left field wall. Watten hit Nick Valdez in the middle of his torso and then gave up an RBI single to Eliezer Mesa. But, Andy Goff flew out on a payoff pitch to end the inning on the next at-bat and Casper's scoring was finished for the night. Garrett Sherrill would relieve Watten to pitch just one inning, and Rob Wooten closed the final three innings, giving up four hits but striking out six. He walked one. Roberts, playing in his fifth game with the Brewers, led the team with a 3-for-5 performance, scoring a run. Kjeldgaard (2-for-3) and Vass (2-for-4) each brought in two runs while scoring two of their own. The Brewers host Casper again today at 4:05 PM (5:05 Central). Efrain Nieves (3-1) is listed to start for Helena while Matt Baugh (1-0) should be on the mound for Casper. Helena Box Score A lot of those batting averages are climbing to much more respectable levels; at least Trey Watten is a starter and Rob Wooten is a closer, which will help us differentiate those two names... Helena Game Log

Final: West Virginia 5, Charleston (Yankees) 4 West Virginia Site Game Summary: POWER WIN EIGHTH STRAIGHT The West Virginia Power used a five-run third inning to go 6-0 on their road trip and win their eighth consecutive game with a 5-4 victory over the Charleston Riverdogs on Saturday night. Brandon Laird hit his first of two two-run homers in the second inning to give the Riverdogs their only lead of the series. The Power scored all five of their runs in the third inning with two outs. Uly Snijders started the inning with a single and scored on Eric Fryer's base hit three batters later. Caleb Gindl struck out. However, the pitch was wild and Gindl reached first base safely as the tying run in Eric Farris crossed the plate, allowing the inning to continue. Zelous Wheeler singled in Fryer. Steffan Wilson capped the big inning with a two-run double. Laird hit his second two-run homer in the bottom of the fourth inning to bring the Riverdogs within a run. The Riverdogs had chances to score in the final five innings but never cashed in. Abraham Almonte began the fifth inning with a double but never got past second base. Carmen Angelini reached on a dropped third strike in the sixth and moved to second on a wild pitch but never made it to third. Austin Krum started the ninth inning with a base hit, but he never got past first base. Roque Mercedes (4-4) turned in another fantastic relief outing, tossing five scoreless innings, while allowing just three hits and was rewarded with the victory. Lance Pendelton (6-5) was tagged for five runs on seven hits over five innings and got the loss. R.J. Seidel allowed four runs on four hits over four innings and left the game with a one-run lead but didn't factor into the decision. The Power improved to 50-42 on the year and 18-5 in the second half with the win. The Riverdogs fell to 53-38 on the year and 8-13 in the second half with the loss. Seven Power players hit safely, including Anderson De La Rosa who paced the Power with three hits. Wilson has reached safely in 12 consecutive games and extended his road hitting streak to 18 games. He has knocked in 10 runs during the road trip. Fryer went 2-for-4 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games and Farris went 1-for-4 to push his hitting streak to 15 games. The eight-game winning streak for the Power is their longest of the season and is six short of the franchise record which was established last year. West Virginia improved their record to 19-12 in one-run games. The Power will continue the four game series against Charleston Riverdogs at Joseph P. Riley Jr. Ballpark in Charleston, South Carolina on Sunday afternoon. Left hander Dan Merklinger (3-5, 5.94) will make the start for the Power and the Riverdogs will counter with left hander Wilkins De La Rosa (4-3, 2.26). The first pitch is scheduled for 4:05 PM (3:05 Central). West Virginia Box Score We keep mentioning Eric Fryer's offensive dominance, and nothing is jinxing him, so here we go again -- in 204 AB's, .363 / .420 / .569 (.989 OPS) -- yeah, I'm guessing a Power 50 debut next update; in his last 24 innings over six appearances, RHP Roque Mercedes is 2-0 with 13 hits allowed, two walks, 21 K's, and a 1.13 ERA -- now you know why we were exasperated with his early-season troubles, the kid's got talent... West Virginia Game Log

Final: Sarasota (Reds) 7, Brevard County 1 SaraReds score early to beat Manatees SARASOTA - Sarasota jumped out to an early lead and cruised to a 7-1 decision over the Brevard County Manatees Saturday night at Ed Smith Stadium. The SaraReds (10-13 during the second half and 43-50 overall) scored all of their runs against the Milwaukee Brewers and LHP Zach Braddock affiliate by the bottom of the third inning. Brevard County (7-15 and 42-49), which swept Sarasota in four games earlier this season at Space Coast Stadium in Viera, could only manage four hits off the Reds pitching foursome of Camilo Vazquez, Ruben Medina (2-5), Logan Ondrusek and Terrell Young. Sarasota took a 4-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when leadoff hitter Jake Kahaulelio deposited Braddock's (4-6) second pitch of the game over the left-field wall, Justin Tordi smacked a two-run single and Carson Kainer contributed an RBI double. Former Manatee Community College star Jason Louwsma accounted for the runs in the third when he hit his fourth homer of the season, a three-run laser over the left field wall that also scored Todd Frazier and Chris Heisey. The teams will play at 1:00 PM this afternoon (Noon Central) and conclude the series Monday evening. Brevard County Box Score Heck of a day for the organization so far -- don't worry, we can count on the Power these days; actually some highlights here, as Darren Ford reached three times (OBP. 315, though) as did Taylor Green; John Axford with four shutout relief innings; with the exception of ERA, walks per nine innings, and no ground ball outs (OK, that's three exceptions, granted), Zach Braddock's peripherals are decent, but that's still a bad line for this offensively-challenged league -- we'll ask again, where are the breakout or high-level pitchers in the Brewers' organization this year? It's just not happening... Brevard County Game Log

"Turnbow's on a schedule" Give us a break -- when are the Brewers going to cut ties here in this ridiculous situation? Al least let him man up and pitch as a reliever when needed like the others; what a pitiful mess that's become. A season to forget in Nashville -- maybe karma for the stadium situation (new one was supposed to open in 2007, for pete's sake). And the Brewers are stuck there two more seasons, unless they can legally wrangle themselves out of the player development contract.

Link while active, text follows: Rain-shortened loss leaves Sounds manager steamed By MAURICE PATTON Tennessean Staff Writer About five innings into the first game of a scheduled doubleheader Saturday with New Orleans, the Sounds' focus turned from beating the Zephyrs to beating the rain. They were unsuccessful on both attempts, losing 7-0 at Greer Stadium in a game that was shortened to 6½ innings. The second scheduled game was not played, resulting in a doubleheader today that will begin at 5 p.m. A dismal performance by Sounds reliever Derrick Turnbow - five runs on a hit and four walks in one-third of an inning - slowed the game considerably, and a power outage stopped it entirely. Once power was restored, the umpiring crew stopped the game and awarded the victory to the visitors. "Losing the game isn't why I'm upset," Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas said. "We had to waste a pitcher. It was already a complete game; they could have stopped it (sooner)." Turnbow entered the game in the seventh inning with Nashville trailing 2-0 and the rain coming down steadily, although the conditions were still playable. A quick top of the seventh would have given the Sounds a chance to have at least batted. Instead, five of the six batters Turnbow faced reached base, and four scored. The fifth was erased on a fielder's choice, but that hitter scored as well and was charged to the struggling reliever, who posted an earned run average for the game of 135.00 - raising his mark for the season to 10.50. "He's on a schedule; he was supposed to pitch (Saturday)," Kremblas said of Turnbow's appearance. "We knew the weather situation and we thought if he was going to get his work in, he had to get it in the first game. "When I went to the mound, when he gave me the ball, it was wet. (Luis) Pena throws the first pitch over (Anderson Hernandez's) head. When you see guys miss high consistently, the ball's slipping." The rain and the lightning were concerns for everyone playing, Sounds catcher Vinny Rottino said. "It can't be easy to pitch in that," he said. "You've got lightning all over the place. I thought somebody was going to get hit. The rain started steadily coming down harder and lightning's striking all over." Even before the rain, though, the Sounds' offense was soggy. New Orleans starter Brian Stokes (9-8) allowed just three hits in six innings, with no runner advancing past second base. "He had good stuff," Rottino said. "He had three good pitches and he made good pitches." It was the fifth shutout loss of the season for Nashville and the second to New Orleans. All-star replacement: Kremblas will be replaced by Iowa's Pat Listach for the Pacific Coast League team in Wednesday's Triple-A All-Star game in Louisville. Kremblas informed league officials on Friday that he would withdraw from the position, citing personal reasons. Listach has managed the Cubs to the best record in the PCL (59-38 through Friday's games). Listach also will be a member of the World team's coaching staff in today's Futures Game at Yankee Stadium. What they said: "I've got no (Luis) Pena, no (Derrick) Turnbow, no (Erasmo) Ramirez, no (Ben) Howard and no (Joe) Bateman - and I've got a doubleheader." - Kremblas on the Sounds' short bullpen heading into today.

Final, Game One: New Orleans (Mets) 7, Nashville 0, game ended early, 6 1/2 innings, lightning Game Two: Postponed Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Brendan Katin photo, text follows -- Sounds Shut Out In Rain-Shortened Contest NASHVILLE - The Nashville Sounds were shut out by the New Orleans Zephyrs, 7-0, in a rain-shortened seven-inning contest on Saturday evening at Greer Stadium. The game, which was played under a steady drizzle for the majority of the evening, was halted after the top of the seventh due to a combination of temporary electrical failure resulting from a lightning strike then unplayable field conditions as the rains picked up during that delay. The teams' second game of their scheduled doubleheader was postponed and will be made up as part of a Sunday evening twinbill at Greer. New Orleans starting pitcher Brian Stokes (9-8) worked an abbreviated, six-inning shutout to earn the win for the Z's. He allowed three hits and struck out six batters in his 106-pitch outing. Nashville starter Mark DiFelice worked two scoreless innings and struck out four before departing early due to an undisclosed reason. NOTE from the Tennessean: Sounds pitcher Mark DiFelice left Saturday's game after two innings with an apparent but undisclosed injury. He was escorted to the clubhouse by trainer Jeff Paxson. The Zephyrs took a 1-0 lead in the top of the third inning against Nashville reliever Ben Howard. Stokes led off with a single, was sacrificed to second, advanced to third on a wild pitch, and scored on an Andy Green sacrifice fly. New Orleans made it a 2-0 game in the fourth when Valentino Pascucci and Michel Abreu led off the inning with back-to-back doubles off Howard. The Z's tacked on five runs in the top of the seventh to extend the lead to 6-0. Derrick Turnbow issued back-to-back one-out, bases-loaded walks to Abreu and Anderson Hernandez to plate the first two runs. After Luis Pena took over on the hill, New Orleans added a third run on former Sound Abraham Nunez's RBI infield single before Pena issued a pair of bases-loaded walks to pinch-hitter Anderson Machado and Jesus Feliciano. All five runs in the frame were charged to Turnbow, whose ERA rose to 10.50 through 18 outings. Sounds outfielder Brendan Katin went 1-for-2 to extend the club's longest active hitting streak to eight games, matching his longest effort of the season. Howard (2-6) took the loss after allowing two runs on four hits over his three innings of work. The teams wrap up the series with a 5:00 p.m. doubleheader on Sunday evening that will consist of two seven-inning contests. In the opener, Nashville left-hander Steve Hammond (0-3, 8.31) will man the bump to take on Zephyrs southpaw Willie Collazo (4-6, 4.32). All-Star left-hander Lindsay Gulin (5-4, 2.89) will make the start for the Sounds in the nightcap to face New Orleans right-hander Nelson Figueroa (3-3, 3.31). Nashville Box Score Frank Kremblas now in an almost impossible spot with his staff for Sunday, read below... Nashville Game Log

All the Huntsville stauff at the tail end this morning -- patience, grasshoppers... Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Catcher Carlos Corporan Got to do the David Ortiz "toss-the-helmet" the night before; discussion on his defensive prowess as well, humbly...

That's a rough four-run first inning against Zach Braddock -- Sarasota Bottom 1st - Jacob Kahaulelio homers (1) on a fly ball to left center field. - Jose Castro singles on a line drive to right fielder Chuck Caufield. - Todd Frazier walks. Jose Castro to 2nd. - Chris Heisey pops out to first baseman Jimmy Mojica in foul territory. - Jason Louwsma flies out to right fielder Chuck Caufield. Jose Castro to 3rd. - Carson Kainer doubles (10) on a line drive to left fielder Charlie Fermaint. Jose Castro scores. Todd Frazier to 3rd. - Justin Tordi singles on a line drive to center fielder Darren Ford. Todd Frazier scores. Carson Kainer scores. - Daniel Perales flies out to left fielder Charlie Fermaint.

OF Mel Stocker was placed on the 7-day at Nashville earlier this week, retroactive to July 9th (undisclosed injury). That was the spot LHP Randy Choate filled.

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 59 38 .608 - 36-17 23-21 W3 Memphis 52 43 .547 6.0 24-20 28-23 W1 Omaha 44 50 .468 13.5 20-26 24-24 L1 Nashville 39 57 .406 19.5 19-24 20-33 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 16 8 .667 - 9-5 7-3 L1 Huntsville 14 10 .583 2.0 5-5 9-5 W5 Carolina 12 12 .500 4.0 5-5 7-7 L1 Chattanooga 10 14 .417 6.0 5-9 5-5 L5 West Tenn 7 17 .292 9.0 1-9 6-8 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Lucie 13 8 .619 - 8-4 5-4 L1 Palm Beach 12 8 .600 0.5 8-5 4-3 W4 Daytona 12 9 .571 1.0 6-3 6-6 W1 Jupiter 10 9 .526 2.0 5-2 5-7 L1 Vero Beach 10 11 .476 3.0 4-6 6-5 L1 Brevard County 7 14 .333 6.0 3-9 4-5 L4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 17 5 .773 - 8-2 9-3 W7 Lakewood 14 8 .636 3.0 8-3 6-5 W4 Delmarva 12 10 .545 5.0 5-6 7-4 W3 Lake County 11 11 .500 6.0 5-7 6-4 W1 Hagerstown 10 12 .455 7.0 4-8 6-4 L4 Hickory 9 13 .409 8.0 3-6 6-7 W3 Greensboro 7 14 .333 9.5 2-8 5-6 L1 Lexington 5 16 .238 11.5 2-9 3-7 L2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pioneer League (R+) - PIO North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Billings 14 10 .583 - 5-1 9-9 W1 Great Falls 14 10 .583 - 8-4 6-6 L3 Helena 11 13 .458 3.0 6-9 5-4 L2 Missoula 4 20 .167 10.0 1-14 3-6 L10 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona League (R) - Arizona League Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AZL Angels 11 4 .733 - 5-3 6-1 W4 AZL Cubs 9 6 .600 2.0 6-1 3-5 W5 AZL Padres 9 6 .600 2.0 6-1 3-5 W3 AZL Rangers 8 7 .533 3.0 4-4 4-3 L1 AZL Giants 8 8 .500 3.5 5-3 3-5 L4 AZL Royals 8 8 .500 3.5 6-2 2-6 L2 AZL Mariners 7 9 .438 4.5 4-4 3-5 W2 AZL Athletics 6 9 .400 5.0 3-4 3-5 L2 AZL Brewers 3 12 .200 8.0 3-5 0-7 L1

Follow Thursday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Tab or New Window". Choose "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often. UPDATE: MiLB.com apparently will make Gameday available this year in additional leagues beyond AAA, which would supersede the game logs in some ways. We'll see if they're ready to go tonight! Nashville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_04_09_nozaaa_nasaaa_1 Huntsville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t559&t=g_box&gid=2009_04_09_mobaax_hunaax_1 Brevard County: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t503&t=g_box&gid=2009_04_09_dbcafa_breafa_1 Wisconsin: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_04_09_qcsafx_wisafx_1

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated several hours prior to gametime. Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

Saturday's Daily Menu: All times Central except Arizona League; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Mark DiFelice and LHP Steve Hammond in a double-dip at home vs. New Orleans (Mets), 5:45 PM pre-game; 6:00 gametime; each contest seven innings... Audio link via WNSR, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t556 Huntsville: RHP Donovan Hand at Chattanooga (Reds), 6:00 PM pre-game; 6:15 gametime Audio link via WUMP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559 Brevard County: TBD (it's LHP Zach Braddock's turn) at Sarasota (Reds), 5:00 gametime Sorry, no audio for this series... West Virginia: RHP R.J. Seidel at Charleston (Yankees), 5:50 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime Audio link via WSWW, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t525 Helena: RHP Trey Watten at home vs. Casper (Rockies), 7:50 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime Audio link via KCAP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t433 Arizona: Idle

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

Is it just me, or is the funniest part of the video the Stone Cold Steve Austin on-a-rant music playing over the loudspeakers the whole time, especially given the similar appearances? Wingnuts manager suspended over tirade with umpire