Jim Goulart

Link Report Bonuses from Nashville: Getting To Know Your Sounds: Vinny Rottino Hardball Mysteries: TEXAS LEAGUER

I know first-hand that multiple folks involved directly in the front office review the Minor League Link Reports daily. Obviously all the minor league coaching staffs fill out concise game reports on each player that plays each night for Gord Ash and Reid Nichols, among others. But members of the front office also enjoy listening to the interview links and reading the quotes in the local papers, as that aspect of a player is part of their overall package and something that is part of the education of a future big leaguer. Consider it's a click or two from the Minor League Forum to this one, and there you go. I'll also share that I heard first-hand from a higher-up in the front office and that he was none too pleased when Brewerfan put the kibosh on an In-Game Thread for one night last season (no IGT so folks could "cool down"). The staffer was on the road and only had access to the IGT as commentary for the game (along with Gameday), and had enjoyed reading along the IGT's in the past. Subsequently, we've promised him we'll never pull that stunt again...

New photo of Angel Salome at AA, courtesy of the Stars http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2008/06/09/mFePRQvW.jpg

If you didn't see this coming, head to your optometrist now -- Southern League Pitcher of the Week David Welch, Huntsville 2-0, 0.69 ERA, 2 G, 2 GS, 13.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 5 BB, 7 SO Want a sure-fire way to earn a Pitcher of the Week award? Throw a no-hitter. The Stars' Australian lefty started his week doing just that in the second game of Huntsville's Monday doubleheader against Chattanooga. Welch didn't allow a hit over seven innings, striking out six batters. On Saturday, Welch followed up the no-hitter with another win, his league-leading eighth, working six solid innings against West Tenn. He allowed two runs -- one earned -- over six innings against the Diamond Jaxx, and the offense gave him seven runs of support. Welch has now allowed two earned runs or fewer in eight of his 13 starts this season. (Photo by Tony Farlow/MLB.com) http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2008/06/09/Nje7Ig3C.jpg

There's little doubt that the Brewers already have signed a lot more than the three draft picks we have media confirmations on (7th round RHP Trey Watten, 20th round RHP Liam Ohlmann, and 24th round LHP Brandon Ritchie), with their signings discussed in this thread on the Minor League Forum. It's just that the Brewers won't announce the signings until more are official. In the meantime, as they always do, the Brewers will analyze their needs in a post-draft sense, and will sign non-drafted players as well. First Non-Drafted Free Agent Signing Announced Brandon Drespling Signs with the Milwaukee Brewers NEW WILMINGTON, Pa. - Former Westminster College baseball player Brandon Drespling (New Castle, Pa./Laurel) signed a contract as a free agent with the Milwaukee Brewers on Sunday, becoming the first Titan baseball player since 1972 to sign with a Major League organization. A 5-foot-10 outfielder, Drespling signed with the Brewers on Sunday and Monday he flew out to their spring training facility in Phoenix, Ariz. Drespling will likely be assigned to the team's Rookie League affiliate in Helena, Mont. Drespling, who transferred to Westminster from West Virginia and UNC-Asheville, played and started in all 76 games for the Titans the last two seasons while twice earning first team all-Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) honors. Drespling batted .379 (108-285) with seven home runs, 60 RBI and 29 stolen bases, including a team-high .388 average in 2007 and a team-best .372 average in 2008 with 33 RBI. The last Westminster baseball player to sign with a Major League organization was Darryl Jones who was drafted in the fifth round of the 1972 amateur draft by the New York Yankees. Jones wound up appearing in 18 games with the Yankees in the 1979 season. About Westminster College... Founded in 1852 and related to the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.), Westminster College is ranked 15th among liberal arts colleges, according to the Washington Monthly 2007 Annual College Guide. Westminster is a national leader in graduation rate performance, according to U.S. News Guide to America's Best Colleges, and is one of the most affordable national liberal arts colleges in Pennsylvania. Westminster is also honored as one of "The Best 366 Colleges" and "Best in the Northeast" by The Princeton Review, and was recognized by the Templeton Guide as a "Character Building College." Nearly 1,600 undergraduate and graduate students benefit from individualized attention from dedicated faculty while choosing from 41 majors and nearly 100 organizations on the New Wilmington, Pa., campus. *** Pre-Season profile: One-year letterman . . . second year on the team . . . returning starter as a right fielder ... one of two players (Donnie Womeldorff) to start all 38 games as a junior (2007) . . . only Westminster player voted first team all-PAC . . . ranked seventh in the PAC with a team-high .388 batting average . . . also team leader in hits (50), total bases (78), stolen bases (13) . . . tied for team lead in runs scored (27), ranked second on the team in on-base percentage (.432), doubles (12), walks (10), triples (2) and ranked third with 27 RBI . . . best game was going 4-for-4 with three RBI and a homer at Grove City (4/20/07) . . . personal: birthday is Dec. 9 . . . son of Carl and Mary Drespling . . . one sister . . . previously attended West Virginia and UNC-Asheville before attending Westminster One-year letterman . . . second year on the team . . . returning starter as a right fielder ... one of two players (Donnie Womeldorff) to start all 38 games as a junior (2007) . . . only Westminster player voted first team all-PAC . . . ranked seventh in the PAC with a team-high .388 batting average . . . also team leader in hits (50), total bases (78), stolen bases (13) . . . tied for team lead in runs scored (27), ranked second on the team in on-base percentage (.432), doubles (12), walks (10), triples (2) and ranked third with 27 RBI . . . best game was going 4-for-4 with three RBI and a homer at Grove City (4/20/07) . . . personal: birthday is Dec. 9 . . . son of Carl and Mary Drespling . . . one sister . . . previously attended West Virginia and UNC-Asheville before attending Westminster Class: Senior Hometown: New Castle, PA High School: Laurel Major: Business Administration Position: OF Height: 5-10 Bats / Throws: R/R

Thanks to Brewerfan poster "Bambi's Bombers", who placed this initially in our draft forum as well. Looks like 31st rounder Brandon Rapoza will be signing with the Brew Crew Rapoza taken in MLB draft Rapoza to Brewers By STUART KORFHAGE stuart.korfhage@staugustine.com Publication Date: 06/07/08 Former Bartram Trail and Flagler College pitcher Brandon Rapoza was taken in the 31st round (938th overall) by the Milwaukee Brewers. For Rapoza, Friday was a long, stressful day. The Flagler College closer said he followed the draft for a while before growing annoyed and going out with some friends. When the Brewers called his name, Rapoza wasn't even by his computer. He found out about his pick when a friend called him. And then the calls kept coming in, congratulating him on the accomplishment. "It's real nice. I can't even really explain it," he said. "Honestly, I just wanted to keep playing." Rapoza said he's meeting with a member of the Brewers organization today and expects to sign a contract. It will mark a whirlwind courtship by the organization, which didn't really scout Rapoza during the season. However, when the team learned that others were interested in him, Rapoza was asked to throw in the bullpen for a scout. Clearly, they liked what they saw from the 6-foot-1 right-hander who throws in the 90s. With the senior season Rapoza had, it's no wonder he drew interest. He had nine saves with an ERA of 0.97. He struck out 42 in 37 innings of relief. "He's a competitor; he really goes after hitters," Flagler baseball coach Dave Barnett said. "He certainly deserves the opportunity. He was pretty much lights out if we were ahead late in ballgame." More, including colbyjack's Brewerfan.net Scouting Report, can be found here http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/2008%20Draftees/brandon_rapoza.jpg

West Virginia Press Release: CODY NAMED SAL PITCHER OF THE WEEK Charleston, WV (June 9, 2008) - The West Virginia Power went 4-3 during the first week of June, winning two of those games with left hander Chris Cody as the starting pitcher and Cody was rewarded with the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week award. Cody, who was sent to West Virginia from Brevard County back on May 20th, has been sensational over the last few weeks with West Virginia. During the first week of June, he went 1-0, tallying 15 innings over two starts while allowing just one earned run on six hits with 15 strikeouts. Cody made his first appearance with the Power in Lake County back on May 22nd. He tossed five scoreless innings of relief, holding the Captains to just three hits and fanned eight batters to get the victory. On the season, Cody is 2-0 with a 1.08 earned run average over four appearances, including three starts. The 24-year old from Brewster, New York was acquired by the Brewers from Detroit in a trade for Jose Capellan last season. He is the first Power player to earn a South Atlantic League Player of the Week honor this season.

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 35 27 .565 - 19-11 16-16 W5 Memphis 32 32 .500 4.0 13-15 19-17 W1 Omaha 29 32 .475 5.5 15-19 14-13 L4 Nashville 27 35 .435 8.0 15-16 12-19 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Huntsville 38 26 .594 - 21-13 17-13 L1 West Tenn 38 26 .594 - 21-9 17-17 W1 Carolina 35 28 .556 2.5 17-11 18-17 W3 Chattanooga 34 30 .531 4.0 20-15 14-15 W3 Tennessee 26 38 .406 12.0 13-21 13-17 L3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Palm Beach 39 24 .619 - 24-9 15-15 L3 Brevard County 32 31 .508 7.0 21-14 11-17 W1 Vero Beach 32 31 .508 7.0 20-12 12-19 W2 Jupiter 31 32 .492 8.0 18-12 13-20 W3 Daytona 30 33 .476 9.0 15-17 15-16 L1 St. Lucie 16 47 .254 23.0 7-24 9-23 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lake County 37 25 .597 - 15-15 22-10 W1 Lakewood 35 27 .565 2.0 19-15 16-12 L1 Delmarva 34 27 .557 2.5 20-11 14-16 W1 Greensboro 34 29 .540 3.5 14-18 20-11 W1 Hagerstown 29 32 .475 7.5 13-19 16-13 L1 Hickory 28 36 .438 10.0 12-17 16-19 L5 West Virginia 27 35 .435 10.0 8-18 19-17 L1 Lexington 20 42 .323 17.0 10-24 10-18 W1

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): www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf

Follow Monday'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: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_09_nasaaa_orhaaa_1 Huntsville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_09_wtdaax_hunaax_1 Brevard County: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_09_breafa_lakafa_1 West Virginia: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_09_kanafx_wvaafx_1

Nashville's game at Oklahoma is also available for subscription viewing at MiLB.TV.

Monday's Daily Menu: No pesky big league main course to distract you! All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: LHP Sam Narron at Oklahoma (Rangers), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: RHP Donovan Hand at home vs. West Tenn (Mariners), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime Audio link via WUMP (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559 Brevard County: LHP Bobby Bramhall at Lakeland (Tigers), 6:00 PM gametime Sorry, no audio for this series... West Virginia: RHP Amaury Rivas at home vs. Kannapolis (White Sox), 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): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

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

Rosenthal on Sparky's Show this Morning

More on Odorizzi's efforts in the championship game at this link. And with the tying run at the plate and the bases loaded in the bottom of the seventh inning Saturday, Odorizzi had the ball in his capable right hand. He basically played catch with Kuper, using fastballs hovering around the 95 mph mark to blow away the final two hitters. "When he's excited like he just was, I don't know what the (radar) says," Hawkins said. "But he threw all those pitches yesterday and he's still got that zip." "I told (Coach) my adrenaline was pumping, I've got these final outs, no problem," Odorizzi said. "Just let me get in there and do my thing. I came in and it was straight fastballs all the way."

Your definition of rocked must be vastly different than most. Examples?

Another signing becomes official -- Link while active, text follows: Former Choate pitcher Liam Ohlmann drafted in 20th round by Brewers By: Record-Journal Staff The Milwaukee Brewers had selected Ohlmann in the 20th round (608th overall). Brewers scout Rene Mons called shortly thereafter . "I had known that they were going to take me for about a month," said Ohlmann, a 6-foot-1, 220 pound right-hand pitcher out of Choate Rosemary Hall and Manchester Community College. "I just wasn't sure if anybody was going to grab me before them. I'm ecstatic. It's the culmination of years and years and years of hard work and I couldn't be happier." Ohlmann signed with the Brewers at his home Friday night for undisclosed terms and leaves for mini-camp in Tempe, Ariz. on Sunday. Much more, including colbyjack's Brewerfan.net Scouting Report, can be found here http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y155/colbyjack/2008%20Draftees/liam_ohlmann.jpg

Link while active, text follows: Shortstop Cline's demotion provides needed jolt to Power West virginia opens seven-game homestand to end SAL first-half season by Jacob Messer Charleston Daily Mail sportswriter According to his manager and teammates, Matt Cline has provided the West Virginia Power with a spark. An inferno is more like it. The Power is 8-3 since May 27, the day Cline swapped roster spots with fellow shortstop Brent Brewer. Cline hit .266 with one triple, five doubles, eight RBI, 15 runs and 25 hits in 32 games with the high Class A Brevard County Manatees. He also made 11 errors during that stretch. "When they sent me down here, they told me I did great up there," Cline said of the Milwaukee Brewers, the Power's parent club. "They said they just needed to make a change. The change is working out for the team and for me. We got some more wins, and I got some more playing time." Cline is hitting .353 with one home run, five RBI and 10 runs in 10 games. "I just go up there and try to get on base any way I can so the guys behind me can get some RBIs and I can score some runs," he said. Perhaps the biggest beneficiary of Cline's contributions is SAL All-Star catcher Jonathan Lucroy, who bats third in the Power's lineup. Cline sets up Lucroy not only by getting on base but also by advancing leadoff hitter and second baseman Eric Farris when he gets on base. "I love having him in front of me," Lucroy said of Cline, a 22-year-old Long Beach State product whom the Brewers picked in the 22nd round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. "He's a real consistent hitter. Pitchers can't pitch around me. They have to give me good pitches to hit. It really makes my job easier." "He just goes about his business in the (No.) 2 hole," Power Manager Jeff Isom added. Cline is one of 21 players on the Power's 27-man roster who played for Isom at rookie league HHelena (Mont.) last season. Helena hit .291 as a team during the regular season and lost in the first round of the Pioneer League playoffs. Cline said it is no coincidence West Virginia began winning when he arrived to Charleston. "I think it's just the chemistry we have," Cline said. "I played with all of these guys last year. We all have fun together. We all joke around. "I think that's what they were missing before I got here. I don't know that for sure because I wasn't here. But I feel like when I got here, the team started getting loose and having fun. It was like a puzzle that was missing a piece. I don't want to sound too self-centered, but I think I was that missing piece." Reuniting Cline and Farris has bolstered West Virginia's defense up the middle. "He came in and gave us a good, solid, defensive shortstop," Lucroy said. "He knows how to play the game the right way. He isn't flashy. He isn't out there trying to be big league. He just goes out there and tries to get the job done. When he is our shortstop, everybody knows he is going to give 110 percent."

Link while active, text follows: Hasty style of base-running bites Sounds By MAURICE PATTON Tennessean Staff Writer Under fourth-year Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas, the team's base-running style has been aggressive. That style might have been costly over the past couple of days - particularly in Sunday's 8-2 loss to Albuquerque. With the Sounds trailing 3-1 with one out in the fourth inning, Brad Nelson doubled into the right-field corner and advanced to third when the throw went across the field. However, Nelson was thrown out attempting to score on the play. Laynce Nix followed with an inning-ending fly out - one that had the potential to be a sacrifice fly with Nelson at third. "I don't know if I helped (Nelson) at all," said Kremblas, who also coaches third base. "He was looking at the ball. I can't make that decision for him. I had no problem with it; I think the guy (third baseman Dallas McPherson) made a nice throw. "I think he made up his mind he was going to go." On Saturday, Adam Heether was thrown out trying to tag up and score from third a fifth-inning fly ball to shallow left field. Three innings later, Mel Stocker was gunned down as he tried to score from second base on a two-out single to right field. Sitting on a streak: Sounds catcher Vinny Rottino was not in the starting lineup for Sunday's game, putting his 17-game hitting streak on hold. Rottino's streak remains the longest current streak in the Pacific Coast League and the fifth-longest in the league this season. Working on a streak: Hernan Iribarren, who sat out the previous two games after extending his hitting streak to six games Thursday, picked up where he left off. Leading off for the Sounds, his double raised his streak to a season-high seven games. Barnwell gets to former team: Albuquerque shortstop Chris Barnwell, who spent the previous three seasons with the Sounds, went 3-for-5 with a solo home run and an RBI base hit Sunday. "I got in there and stopped trying to do things, and just hit," said Barnwell, who had been 1-for-10 for the series. "I felt better. "Their approach pitching had been better than my approach hitting." In eight previous games against the Sounds this year, he had hit .407 (11-for-27) with a home run, five doubles, seven runs scored and 13 RBIs. Expiration of time match: With both the Isotopes and the three-man umpiring crew booked on a 6:45 p.m. flight to Dallas, a travel curfew was in place for Sunday's series finale. Under the terms of the curfew, no inning would have started after 3:50 p.m. At 3:50, the Sounds were batting in the bottom of the ninth. Had they tied the score and forced extra innings, the game would have been suspended and picked up in the top of the 10th on the second day of a four-game series in August at Greer Stadium.

Link while active, text follows: Poor hitting keeps Sounds from longest streak of year By MAURICE PATTON Tennessean Staff Writer Four seems to be an unlucky number for the Sounds lately. By allowing four unearned runs Sunday, the Sounds lost 8-2 to Albuquerque at Greer Stadium, preventing them from extending their win streak to a season-high four games and marking the third time the team missed an opportunity to win four straight. "It's hard to beat somebody four times in a row - especially when you're not hitting," said Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas, whose team was held to six hits. Nashville took a 1-0 lead in the first inning on Hernan Iribarren's leadoff double and Callix Crabbe's one-out sacrifice fly. But by the time Crabbe doubled home Tony Gwynn in the ninth, Albuquerque had scored eight unanswered runs. "The way we started, you think it's going to be a good offensive day for us," Crabbe said. "I was thinking we were going to get more. But that's how baseball goes sometimes." For Nashville starter Richie Gardner, the loss was his first in eight starts. Since losing April 28 against Colorado Springs, Gardner had been 5-0 with a pair of no-decisions. The Isotopes took three of four in Albuquerque during the first month of the season, outscoring Nashville 41-37 in the four games. During the Sounds' last road trip, the two teams scored 27 runs each and split a series. "All of us wanted to sweep," Gardner said. "We didn't come away with that, but that's all right. We're playing good baseball. I think we're playing well, and if we just keep doing our thing, good things are going to keep happening." What they said: "We'll try to take this momentum into Oklahoma City. I think we're in good shape as a team. Three of four - it's a start. We'll take it." - Crabbe.

David Weiser's www.starsboxscore.com One Step Forward, One Step Back A pre-game Christian concert outside the stadium attracted 2,216 on this sweltering 94° afternoon where you would sit in the stands and think of nothing but how refreshing a shower would be right now....... Here's an idea for Buck. Have a small jazz combo or four or five piece band perform out in the party deck. Better yet, wait until you get that new sound system you've been telling us about. Microphone problems are constantly plaguing on-the-field announcements and national anthem singers. Well, one more comparison to the 1997 season has fallen by the wayside. For the first time this season, the Stars were shut out....... Justin Thomas, who faced the Stars last April 11 (5 2/3 innings of relief, 5 H, 2 R) went the distance in holding the Stars to five hits -- the lowest total for the Stars since April 12..... Mumba Rivera, with 10 saves in his last 11 opportunities, was warm and ready in the 9th. Thomas had thrown 103 pitches in eight innings. But manager Scott Steinmann let Thomas finish the game..... He retired the side on 13 pitches, striking out in the 9th, Alcides Escobar and Angel Salome, sandwiching Mat Gamel on a first-pitch fly ball to right-center. His two strikeouts gave him a season-high 10........ Wish we had the Justin Thomas that was 3-3 in May with a 6.27 ERA. All that heat embedded in the Stars' bats the last two months somehow escaped into the atmosphere and the stands....... Gamel went 0-for-4 for only the 6th time this season -- the first time since May 21...... Escobar lined a one-hop hit to right in the 6th inning, extending his hitting streak to 14 games, two shy of Gamel's streak of late April-early May...... Matt LaPorta hit a hard grounder through short into left in the 2nd inning for the Stars first hit, but was left on base after Cole Gillespie and Chris Errecart struck out swinging. LaPorta has hit safely in nine of his last 10 games....... Errecart and Gillespie have struck out 57 and 53 times respectively, leading the team. Gillespie is in a bad slump. He's 5-for-30 this month and 7-for-39 (.179) in his last 11 games...... The closest the Stars came to bringing anyone home was after Freddy Parejo tripled down the right field line with one out in the 3rd inning. But Michael Brantley bounced out to first on an 0-1 pitch and Escobar grounded out to Mark Kiger moving toward the bag to end the inning. Big Michael Wilson, the Diamond Jaxx HR leader, broke a scoreless tie in the 6th with a home run over -- and I mean OVER the scoreboard. It was hit so hard, none of the three outfielders did more than turn their heads to watch it go. The Stars, who have not won three straight games since mid-May, will send Donovan Hand to the hill in the hopes of concluding this crucial series with a one-game lead over the Diamond Jaxx before traveling to Jacksonville, where they have lost nine of their last 10 games. Mat Gamel, a shoo-in in my opinion for the league MVP, is still 2 hits shy of 100 for the season....... Only one other Huntsville Star, D.T. Cromer in 1997, has ever reached that milestone total in June, and Cromer got there on June 25.

Link while active, text follows: Naught a good result Mustering zero offense, Stars suffer first shutout and fall into first-place tie By BILL BRYANT Huntsville Times Sports Staff, bill.bryant@htimes.com For a team with as much offensive pop as the Huntsville Stars, they sure didn't give starting pitcher Brae Wright a puncher's chance Sunday night against West Tenn. As a result, Huntsville has only earned a split decision through four games of a crucial five-game home set, leaving it tied with the Diamond Jaxx atop the Southern League North with six games remaining in the first half. The left-handed Wright (4-6) allowed just two runs and five hits in 6 1/3 innings. But the Stars couldn't solve fellow southpaw Justin Thomas (4-5), who won the talent show with his best Johan Santana impression - nine innings, five hits, no walks and 10 strikeouts - in a 2-0 West Tenn win before 2,216 at Joe Davis Stadium. "I had everything working - the fastball, slider and changeup," said Thomas, who entered the contest with a nondescript 5.16 earned run average. "I've been in Double-A for two years, and this was by far my best performance." If Huntsville manager Don Money could hand out a grade lower than "F" to his club for this game, he'd do it. "For some unknown reason, we were flatter than Florida," said Money, whose team hosts the Diamond Jaxx again tonight at 7:05. "Now we're tied again. "This should have been like a playoff game to them. If you can't get up for games like this ... I can't figure it out." Through the first five innings, both lefties posted zeroes across the scoreboard. Then, in the top of the sixth, designated hitter Mike Wilson hit a Wright offering over the scoreboard to give West Tenn a 1-0 lead. "I made one mistake," Wright said. "He hit a bomb." "He's got stupid power," Thomas added. The Diamond Jaxx scored another run in the top of the seventh, but Wilson's blast was all Thomas needed to subdue the Stars. The two times Huntsville got something going - Freddy Parejo had a one-out triple in the third inning and Alcides Escobar reached second base with one down in the sixth - nothing materialized. Parejo was left stranded by two ground-outs, and Escobar ran into trouble later when he got caught trying to steal third. "We had guys running bases like they played four games today," Money said. Just as puzzling was Huntsville's inability to produce against Thomas, not so much because of his bloated ERA, but because it has handled lefties so well this season. The Stars were hitting at a .330 clip against them coming into Sunday. Huntsville's top three hitters - Mat Gamel, Michael Brantley and Escobar - who, incidentally, are also 1-2-3 in the league batting race, went a combined 1-for-13. "We were flat all up and down the lineup, though you have to give (Thomas) credit," Money said. "Brae Wright pitched a very solid game. But their guy pitched a great game." Hatton High School graduate Donovan Hand is scheduled to start on the mound for the Stars tonight.

Nice job by the folks at RightFieldBleachers with their Evan Frederickson interview.

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For those that put either Braddock or Periard in the "Bad" category above, your expectations must have been unreasonably off-the-charts. Care to follow-up?