Jim Goulart

Friday's Daily Menu: TGIF! All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Jeff Weaver at home vs. Albuquerque (Marlins), 6:45 PM pre-game; 7:00 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: LHP Derek Miller 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: RHP Jeremy Jeffress at home vs. Fort Myers (Twins), 6:00 PM gametime Audio link via the Miracle's SportsJuice site: http://www.sportsjuice.com/broadcaster2.aspx?bid=MTQ5-g%2fzH4cwYBjA%3d West Virginia: RHP Evan Anundsen at 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

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The Tennessean: Recent Marshall County graduate Seth Lintz was the area's top high school pick. Lintz, who struck out 155 batters in 75 innings this year, was picked in the second round - 53rd overall - by the Milwaukee Brewers. "I don't know what I'm going to do, if I'll go or not," said Lintz, a University of Kentucky signee. "All they've told me is they drafted me. I haven't sat down with them."

Link while active, text follows: Brewers select SIU's Adams 62nd overall By Pete Spitler, The Southern Cody Adams didn't have to wait long to find out his fate in the MLB draft. Adams, a junior hurler with Southern Illinois University, was picked in the second round, 62nd overall, by Milwaukee on Thursday. "It's a relief (to get drafted)," Adams said. "It's been stressful the last couple of days and to have it turn out the way it did, it couldn't have gone any better. " Adams told The Southern on Tuesday that he would not return to the Salukis for his senior year, indicating that he had verbally committed to an agent and had planned to sign within a couple days. He also becomes the highest-picked Saluki baseball player, besting former St. Louis Cardinals prospect pitcher Eric Haberer, who was picked in the third round, 90th overall, in 2004 and was released by the organization on March 20. "That's quite an accomplishment," Adams said. "I'm almost speechless, I can't put it into words. I never expected that when I came to SIU. Adams had a bit of a down year this past year, going 6-4 with a 3.75 ERA in 14 appearances a year after going 11-5 with a 3.01 ERA in 16 starts. He became the first Saluki pitcher to record 10 or more wins in a season in 26 years in 2007 and finished ranked 16th in wins in the nation. SIU has a long history of draft picks. Eighteen Salukis have been drafted in coach Dan Callahan's 13-year tenure. "It's going to be a crazy ride, and I'm not going to stop until I get to the bigs", Adams said. According to Adams, the Brewers are going to try and keep him as a starter rather than a middle reliever or a closer. He expected to come to a contract deal within two weeks and said that Milwaukee was to give him a call Thursday night to tell him where he was going within the organization. And what does Adams plan to do with his first MLB paycheck? "I'm going to pay off all my student loans and probably get a reliable car to drive around", Adams said.

Link while active, text follows: Turnbow finds mark during Sounds victory By MAURICE PATTON Tennessean Staff Writer Derrick Turnbow's earned run average continues to drop. And while that's a good thing for any pitcher to say, it's particularly so for Turnbow, who now has put together four consecutive scoreless innings for the Sounds. Turnbow made his third start Thursday and allowed just three runners over two hitless innings against Albuquerque. That set the tone in an eventual 2-0 Sounds victory. "I was just trying to have another good game, trying to carry something over from Sunday's start," said Turnbow, who allowed one hit in a two-inning start in that game. The former Franklin High standout struggled with the Milwaukee Brewers to open the season before being re-assigned to Nashville on May 12. Then he allowed at least as many earned runs as innings pitched in five of his first seven appearances with the Sounds - with 21 walks in six innings. In his past two outings, though, he's issued just five walks while striking out seven. Along with reducing his walks, Turnbow's ERA, which was 54.00 following his first Sounds appearance and was 14.54 two weeks ago, has fallen to 8.10. "We're going to have to eventually get him out of that role," Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas said. "But he did some things that were good to see. He was aware of base runners, and he was also able to make some pitches." Lindsay Gulin followed Turnbow and left the bases full of Isotopes in both the fifth and sixth innings. Gulin earned the victory with 4 2/3 shutout innings. The Sounds, meanwhile, took a 1-0 lead in the fourth on Tony Gwynn's one-out single and Brad Nelson's two-out RBI base hit. They picked up an insurance run in the eighth when pinch-hitter Mel Stocker drew a leadoff walk, moved up on a pair of infield outs and scored on an error by first baseman Tagg Bozied. The shutout victory was the second of the season for the Sounds, and their first since defeating New Orleans 4-0 on April 6. Nashville has also been shut out twice. What they said: "I think we needed the day off; that was a tough series for us." - Kremblas, whose team won just one of four against visiting Iowa before Wednesday's offday. *** Link while active, text follows: Rottino keeps streak intact By MAURICE PATTON Tennessean Staff Writer Vinny Rottino's fifth-inning single Thursday in a 2-0 win over Albuquerque extended his hitting streak to 15 games -the longest of the year by a Sounds player and the longest current streak in the Pacific Coast League. Iowa outfielder Andres Torres has the PCL's longest streak of the season, hitting in 24 straight games from April 14 to May 9. Rottino's streak is tied for the fifth-longest in the league this year. Nashville's longest streak in 2007 season was a 15-gamer by Brad Nelson (June 27-July 15). Rottino finished 1-for-3 Thursday. He is hitting .339 (20-for-59) over the life of the streak. Nix nixed: Following his inning-ending strikeout in the sixth, Laynce Nix is hitless in his past 18 at-bats - his longest skid of the season, surpassing an 0-for-17 string April 8-12. Nix hit a long fly ball in the fourth inning that looked like an extra-base hit. However, with the wind blowing in for most of the game, the ball died for an inning-ending out. "It's hard here with the wind blowing in," Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas said. "You've got to hit it really hard." Unannounced flyover: In the third inning Thursday, four military fighter planes flew just to the east of Greer Stadium. Alumni update: Former Sounds infielder Abraham Nunez, who was released May 18 and immediately signed to a minor league contract by the New York Mets, had his contract purchased Thursday by that team. In 15 games with New Orleans, Nunez was hitting .133 (6-for-45). To make room for Nunez, the Mets optioned infielder/outfielder Nick Evans to Class AA Binghamton. In 33 games with the Sounds, Nunez batted .210 (22-for-105) with 14 runs, two doubles and five stolen bases.

Link while active, text follows: Bell's big night lifts Stars By BRAD SHEPARD For The Huntsville Times Regardless of the stakes, Tim and Cher Bell would have stood and cheered for their son from Section F of Joe Davis Stadium. The fact that second baseman Michael Bell was the catalyst in the Huntsville Stars' biggest game to date this season gave them even more reason to after traveling from Santa Rosa, Calif. Bell was 3-for-4 with the go-ahead homer, scored Huntsville's insurance run and started the game-ending double play as the Stars beat West Tenn 3-1 in front of 2,878 on Thursday. Huntsville broke a deadlock with the Diamond Jaxx atop the Southern League North Division with nine games left - the next four against West Tenn. "I've been swinging the bat good on the road, but the balls were not falling - a lot of line-outs," Bell said. "It's a great feeling to do this in front of my parents their first day here. "Also my little brother (Timmy) was here, so it was nice to show him how to play the game." Bell got some extra hitting work in before the game - "I've always told him hard work pays off," Tim Bell said - and young Timmy saw a blueprint baseball game from his brother and his teammates. After the Stars (37-24) opened with a first-inning run, West Tenn tied it with an unearned run in the second - all that Huntsville starter Steve Hammond allowed. Huntsville's big-game pitcher, with 6 2/3 innings of four-hit work, ended a three-game swoon that saw his earned run average jump from 2.61 to 3.88. It was reminiscent of the pitcher who started the year 5-1, and he got a win, thanks to Bell's blast. "This is what I play for," Hammond said. "That seems to be when I do my best; when we're playing an important game or need to get a win. "Everybody knows this is important. This is a chance for us to get our fourth-consecutive half division title. Everybody knows it's time to take care of business." That includes Huntsville's bullpen, which put a dreadful stretch behind it at least for a night. Joe Bateman came on in the seventh with the tying run on second base and got out of the situation. After he worked another hitless inning, new closer Omar Aguilar came on and got a double play to close out his second save of the year. The clubhouse was rocking after the game - a far cry from the dismal atmosphere on the recent road trip. "I know over in Chattanooga a couple of games, it was like a morgue in there," Stars manager Don Money said. "They know what's on the line. "If you can't get up for this, you're in the wrong game."

Final: Kannapolis (White Sox) 9, West Virginia 6 West Virginia Site Game Summary: Ugly third inning haunts Power in loss to Kannapolis The Kannapolis Intimidators used a six-run third inning on Thursday night to snap their six game losing skid as they came from behind to defeat the West Virginia Power 9-6 to break up West Virginia's seven game road winning streak. The Power took an early lead by scoring twice in the first. Matt Cline scored on Jonathan Lucroy's triple and Lucroy touched home plate on Zelous Wheeler's groundout. Kannapolis cut the lead in half when Christian Marrero's groundout plated Dale Mollenhauer. Wheeler extended his hitting streak to five games in the third with an RBI single to make it a 3-1 Power lead. Kannapolis sent 11 batters to the plate in the third and scored six times on four hits to take the lead for good. Dan Merklinger issued bases loaded walks to Jim Gallagher and Lyndon Estill to tie the game. Mollenhauer's RBI single gave the Intimidators the lead. Sergio Miranda singled in two more runs and Mollenhauer scored the final run of the inning on Cline's errant throw. Logan Johnson added to the lead with a solo homer in the sixth inning and Mark Fleisher's RBI single plated Kannapolis's final run in the eighth. West Virginia rallied for three in the ninth but it was not enough. Wheeler walked with the bases loaded to bring in Eric Farris before Cline scored on a wild pitch. Eric Fryer's sacrifice fly scored Lucroy to plate the final run of the game. Gregory Infante (1-2) turned in four and a third scoreless innings of relief and fanned four to get the victory. Merklinger (0-5) was tagged with the loss after allowing six runs on five hits while issuing four walks over two and two-thirds. Both starting pitchers failed to make it through three innings. The Power fell to 25-34 with the loss and the Intimidators improved to 26-34 with the win. It was West Virginia's first loss on the road since May 21st against Lake County. Seven Power players hit safely at least once. Cline, Wheeler and Fryer all turned in two hits apiece. Fryer extended his hitting streak to six games and has knocked in a run in four straight games. The Power will finish the three game series against Kannapolis at FieldCrest Cannon Stadium on Friday night. Right hander Evan Anundsen (3-4, 4.20) will get the start for the Power and the Intimidators will counter with right hander Nathan Jones (1-7, 8.20). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central). West Virginia Box Score Dan Merklinger, the Seton Hall product, really struggling... West Virginia Game Log

Final: Fort Myers (Twins) 6, Brevard County 4 Brevard County Site Game Summary: Miracle Outlast Manatees, 6-4 By Tyler Stover / Brevard County Manatees (Viera, FL) The Fort Myers Miracle capitalized on a sloppy defensive game by the Brevard County Manatees, and were able to grind out a 6-4 victory. Despite being outhit by the Manatees 10-7, the Miracle were able to win the game by taking advantage of the four errors committed by the Brevard County defense. Three of the six runs allowed by the Manatees staff were unearned, and Zach Braddock (2-3) took the loss. Wilson Ramos led the Miracle attack with three hits and three runs batted in. All seven of the Miracle hits in the game were singles. Taylor Green and Lorenzo Cain each had two hits and Stephen Chapman hit his team-leading eighth home run of the season, but it was not enough to overcome the mistakes made by the Manatees in the field. Darren Ford added three stolen bases, giving him 30 on the season, enough to lead the FSL. Alex Burnett (5-2) clawed his way through six tough innings, limiting the Manatees to four runs. The effort was just enough to earn Burnett his fifth win of the season. Rob Delaney got the final four outs to earn his 13th save of the season. With the win, Fort Myers is the first FSL team to reach 40 wins, with a very impressive 40-20 record. Brevard County drops back to an even 30-30. Palm Beach has virtually locked up the first half FSL East title, leading the Manatees by nine games with only ten games remaining in the half. Top prospect Jeremy Jeffress (2-2, 6.98) takes the hill for Brevard County tomorrow, facing Fort Myers' Tyler Robertson (4-2, 2.76). First pitch is at 7:00 PM (6:00 Central). Additional Game Details from the Miracle's Site Brevard County Box Score Brent Brewer's K's are way down (three in his first 24 Brevard AB's, but other numbers in the small batting and fielding sample look familiar)... Brevard County Game Log

Final: Huntsville 3, West Tenn (Mariners) 1 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Stars Back on Top in North Division Bell and Bullpen Deliver in Big Win Over Jaxx By Brett Pollock / Huntsville Stars Mike Bell belted the game-winning home run and Steve Hammond worked 6 2/3 strong innings to carry Huntsville past West Tenn 3-1 Thursday in the opener of a crucial five-game set at Joe Davis Stadium. The Stars improved to 37-24 and took a one game lead over the Diamond Jaxx in the North Division with nine to go in the first half. Hammond worked out of a jam with runners at first and second nobody out in the first inning before Angel Salome doubled in Mat Gamel with two outs in the bottom of the frame against Ryan Ketchner to give the Stars a 1-0 lead to mark the ninth time in the last 11 games that Huntsville has scored first. West Tenn tied the game in the second on a Luis Valbuena sacrifice fly. Huntsville left the bases loaded with two outs in the fourth and could not cash in with runners at first and second and nobody out in the fifth. Bell then drove a 3-2 pitch over the wall in left field with one out in the sixth for his fifth long ball of the season and his first since May 7. Ketchner was taken out after a two-out walk to Michael Brantley later in the inning and suffered his second loss of the season after allowing two runs on eight hits, while walking four and fanning five. The Bell home run was just the third he has given up this year in 63 2/3 innings. Hammond was taken out with Matt Mangini at third base and two outs in the seventh and replaced by Joe Bateman, who got Brent Johnson to fly out to end the inning. Bateman left a runner at second with one out in the eighth and has given up just two earned runs in his last 19 2/3 innings. Hammond earned his sixth win of the year, and first since May 10, after allowing an unearned run on four hits, walking two and striking out four. Alcides Escobar knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in the eighth to push the home team's lead to 3-1. Omar Aguilar took over for Bateman and gave up a one-out single to Mangini before Jeffrey Dominguez grounded into a game-ending double play. Aguilar earned his second save since joining the team last week. The series continues Friday night with southpaw Derek Miller getting the starting nod for Huntsville against Diamond Jaxx right-hander Doug Fister. 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 A rare designated hitter series allows the "big eight" plus Carlos Corporan, who had a nice night; kudos to Diamond Jaxx southpaw starter Ryan Ketchner, who is deaf -- huge respect from my household... Huntsville Game Log

Huntsville Pre-Game Audio Interview with Manager Don Money Go to the WUMP archive of June 5th, chat is right off the top...

Final: Nashville 2, Albuquerque (Marlins) 0 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Brad Nelson photo, text follows -- Sounds Pitchers Combine On Four-Hit Shutout NASHVILLE - Four Sounds pitchers combined to throw a four-hit shutout and lead Nashville to a 2-0 win against the Albuquerque Isotopes at Greer Stadium on Thursday night. Nashville pitchers Derrick Turnbow, Lindsay Gulin, Jason Shiell, and Luis Pena all threw scoreless outings to give the Sounds their second shutout of the season. The team's only other shutout came on April 6, which was just the fourth game of the season for the Sounds. Gulin relieved Turnbow, who made his third start of the year for the Sounds and had his second consecutive successful outing. He pitched two scoreless innings and gave up no hits while striking out four batters, but he still surrendered three walks. Nashville needed the strong pitching because it had a tough time coming up with runs of its own. The Sounds manufactured their first run in the bottom of the fifth inning when Tony Gwynn led off the inning with an infield single off Albuquerque starter Frankie De La Cruz. He moved to second base on a wild pitch and then to third on a groundout from Callix Crabbe. Brad Nelson (2-for-4) then continued his hot streak and brought Gwynn around to score on another infield single. Nelson is batting .376 (29-for-77) over his last 22 games. Albuquerque loaded the bases in the sixth and seventh innings, but Gulin managed to get out of the jams with a pop-up from former Sound Andrew Beattie and a strikeout from John Gall. Gulin (2-4) pitched 4 2/3 innings of scoreless ball to earn the win and gave up three hits while walking five batters. He lowered his ERA to 3.10 on the season. The Sounds scored their second run of the game in a similar fashion to their first. Pinch-hitter Mel Stocker led off the eighth inning with a walk and eventually made his way to third base after a Hernan Iribarren sacrifice bunt and a Gwynn groundout. He scored when Crabbe knocked a grounder to third base that Isotopes third baseman Tagg Bozied could not handle. The unearned run was charged to reliever Ross Wolf. De La Cruz (6-3) pitched five innings and gave up one run on four hits in a losing effort for Albuquerque. Randy Williams and Brandon Villafuerte both pitched scoreless innings of relief for the Isotopes, with Wolf giving up the only other run during his inning of work. Shiell contributed 1 1/3 scoreless innings of relief for Nashville before handing the ball over to Pena, who earned his eighth save of the season after striking out two of the three batters he faced in the ninth inning. AUDIO: Luis Pena Nails Down The Save Vinny Rottino singled to left field in the bottom of the sixth inning to extend his hit streak to 15 games, the longest for any Sound this season and the longest active streak in the PCL. His single was one of only two hits that made it out of the infield for Nashville, the other belonging to Nelson. The teams continue their series on Friday evening at 7:00 p.m. at Greer Stadium. Right-hander Jeff Weaver (1-3, 6.00) will start for the Sounds against righty Gaby Hernandez (2-4, 5.35) for the Isotopes. It will be Rocketown Night as part of another Faith Night at the ballpark and a fireworks show will follow the game. Nashville Box Score The fact that Brad Nelson is maintaining this pace with only Laynce Nix as any real power protection in a small-ball lineup (Callix Crabbe your # 3 hitter) is impresive; Luis Pena's on a fantastic roll; in addition to five walks during his scoreless stint, Lindsay Gulin hit two batters, which I guarantee did not cause pain to the victims; Chris Barnwell having a nice season for the 'Topes... Nashville Game Log

Goodies from Nashville: Pre-Game Audio Chat with Catcher J.R. Hopf Getting To Know Your Sounds: Richie Gardner Hardball Mysteries: Golden Sombrero http://bp2.blogger.com/_ycizRyh8NHE/SERES3fZuAI/AAAAAAAAAEM/gsykw9pPQKM/s400/Golden+Sombrero+Chorizo.jpg

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

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 31 27 .534 - 19-11 12-16 W1 Omaha 29 28 .509 1.5 15-15 14-13 W1 Memphis 30 30 .500 2.0 11-13 19-17 W1 Nashville 24 34 .414 7.0 12-15 12-19 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Huntsville 36 24 .600 - 19-11 17-13 L1 West Tenn 36 24 .600 - 21-9 15-15 W2 Carolina 32 28 .533 4.0 14-11 18-17 L3 Chattanooga 31 29 .517 5.0 20-15 11-14 W1 Tennessee 25 35 .417 11.0 12-18 13-17 L2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Palm Beach 38 21 .644 - 24-9 14-12 W5 Brevard County 30 29 .508 8.0 19-12 11-17 L2 Vero Beach 29 30 .492 9.0 17-11 12-19 L2 Jupiter 28 31 .475 10.0 15-11 13-20 W2 Daytona 27 32 .458 11.0 12-16 15-16 L3 St. Lucie 14 45 .237 24.0 7-24 7-21 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lake County 34 24 .586 - 15-15 19-9 L5 Delmarva 33 24 .579 0.5 20-11 13-13 W6 Lakewood 32 26 .552 2.0 16-14 16-12 L1 Greensboro 31 28 .525 3.5 13-17 18-11 W3 Hagerstown 28 29 .491 5.5 12-16 16-13 W1 Hickory 28 32 .467 7.0 12-17 16-15 L1 West Virginia 25 33 .431 9.0 8-18 17-15 W1 Lexington 19 39 .328 15.0 9-21 10-18 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 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_05_albaaa_nasaaa_1 Huntsville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_05_wtdaax_hunaax_1 Brevard County: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_05_ftmafa_breafa_1 West Virginia: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_06_05_wvaafx_kanafx_1

LHP Lindsay Gulin is following Derrick Turnbow tonight. RHP Ben Gordon is lated to make his first start on Saturday, in Chris Narveson's absence (DL).

Thursday's Daily Menu: The Stars' series against West Tenn is HUGE! All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Derrick Turnbow at home vs. Albuquerque (Marlins), 6:45 PM pre-game; 7:00 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: LHP Steve Hammond 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 Zach Braddock at home vs. Fort Myers (Twins), 6:00 PM gametime Audio link via the Miracle's SportsJuice site: http://www.sportsjuice.com/broadcaster2.aspx?bid=MTQ5-g%2fzH4cwYBjA%3d West Virginia: LHP Dan Merklinger at 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

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Not that I've seen thus far...

Link while active, text follows: Seneca Valley grad returns to Milwaukee Brewers as a long-relief specialist Thursday, June 05, 2008 By Jim Rodenbush, Tri-State Sports and News Service Zach Jackson kept missing his chance to pitch at PNC Park. In 2001, during his senior year at Seneca Valley High School, he was set to participate in a pre-draft workout at the brand new ballpark, but the event was rained out. In 2006, Jackson made his major-league debut with Milwaukee just three days after the Brewers completed a four-game series in Pittsburgh. By the time the Brewers returned, Jackson was back in the minor leagues. A Cranberry resident, he finally got his opportunity last month. In front of a throng of supporters, this 25-year-old left-hander pitched two innings in relief and allowed two runs during Milwaukee's 8-4 loss to the Pirates on May 22, which wrapped up a three-game series. "I'm just thrilled to be here," said Jackson in the Brewers' clubhouse before the game. "It was one heck of an experience, just getting called up to the major leagues two years ago. There was still a void there, not getting to play at PNC Park during that time." The Brewers brought up Jackson from Class AAA Nashville May 16 and sent left-hander Mitch Stetter to the minor leagues. Jackson made his season debut May 18 when he pitched 12/3 scoreless innings of relief in an 11-7 loss at Boston. Milwaukee traveled to Pittsburgh that night, and Jackson got to enjoy a day off in his hometown before the Brewers started their series with the Pirates. Besides spending time with his family and friends, Jackson also paid a visit to his former high school team. "It's been awesome to see all of the familiar faces," Jackson said, "and they've all come out to the yard to support me. They've been waiting just as long as I have to see me play in Pittsburgh." Jackson's second go-round in the major leagues had a different look to it. In 2006, he made seven starts for the Brewers, going 2-2 with a 5.40 ERA in eight appearances. This time, he was used exclusively as a reliever. He actually made the move to the bullpen while still in Nashville after struggling at the start of the season. In all, he was 1-3 with a 6.98 ERA in 10 games with the Sounds, but had a 2.92 ERA in five appearances as reliever. "I had a tough start to this season," Jackson said. "The Brewers now see me as a long-relief guy, a bullpen guy. It's new territory to me. But with the start I had, it couldn't have been better timing. It gave me the opportunity to basically start over in the bullpen. It was a blessing." Jackson said he immediately took to the new role. "The scouts and coaches told me they saw a difference in me so quickly," Jackson said. "I just changed as a pitcher. It's a different mentality. I know I can start. But I don't have the mind games now of, 'I need to keep these pitches in my back pocket for the third time through the lineup.' In the bullpen, you just have to do whatever it takes to get outs." Back in 2001, Jackson was a 50th-round selection by the Chicago White Sox before going on to pitch at the University of Louisville and then Texas A&M. He was the 32nd overall pick in the 2004 draft, chosen by the Toronto Blue Jays. Less than two years later, he was in the major leagues. Jackson hopes to be back with Milwaukee in the near future. He was recently sent back down to Nashville "You don't want to just be here," he said. "You want to be here, you want to stay, you want to contribute, you want to help the team win. I'm anxious to get out there. I want to take advantage of every opportunity I'm given. I feel like I have something to prove."

Final: West Virginia 8, Kannapolis (White Sox) 5 West Virginia Site Game Summary: POWER SECURE SEVENTH CONSECUTIVE ROAD WIN The West Virginia Power used a three-hit performance from Zelous Wheeler and six strong innings from Amaury Rivas to defeat the Kannapolis Intimidators 8-5 at FieldCrest Cannon Stadium on Wednesday night to secure their seventh consecutive road victory. The first five Power batters reached safely in the second inning. Steffan Wilson began the inning with a walk and got to third on Wheeler's first of two doubles on the night. Caleb Gindl walked to load the bases before Eric Fryer singled in Wilson and Wheeler. David Fonseca followed with a base hit to score Gindl and complete the three-run inning. Wheeler's second double of the night scored Wilson in the third inning. Kannapolis scored their first run on Christian Marrero's solo homer in the fourth inning. The Power answered with a three-run fifth. Jonathan Lucroy scored the first run on Dale Mollenhauer's errant throw before Gindl singled in a pair of runs. Kannapolis got two more in the bottom of the fifth inning on a solo homer from Sergio Morales and Luis Sierra scored on Mollenhauer's groundout. Wheeler struck again in the eighth inning with a two-out RBI single to plate West Virginia's final run. The Intimidators came up with two runs in the ninth inning. Jim Gallagher's sacrifice fly scored Mark Fleisher and Sierra singled in Logan Johnson but it was too little and too late. Rivas (5-1) allowed three runs, two earned on six hits and struck out six to get the victory. Corey Frerichs (3) retired the first six batters he faced and surrendered a pair of unearned runs on two hits over three innings to get the save. Jason Rice (1-5) gave up four runs on five hits over three innings and was tagged with the loss. The Power improved to 25-33 with the win and the Intimidators fell to 25-34 with the loss. West Virginia has not lost a road game since May 21st when they dropped back-to-back one run games in a double header against Lake County. They have improved their road record to 17-15 after losing six of their first eight on the road. Every Power player hit safely at least once. Wheeler paced the Power with his three-hit performance and Wilson chipped in with a pair of singles. The Power struck out a season high 17 times, however. The Power will continue the three game series against Kannapolis Thursday night. Left hander Dan Merklinger (0-4, 6.35) will get the start for the Power and the Intimidators will counter with right hander Miguel Socolovich (0-2, 6.91). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central). West Virginia Box Score Everybody in the lineup had at least one hit and struck out at least once -- OK, you retrosheet.org types, how many times in a full major league yearly schedule would that happen, huh? Amaury Rivas zero walks, six K's -- we likey, we likey... West Virginia Game Log

Final: St. Lucie (Mets) 8, Brevard County 4 Brevard County Box Score Manatees trailed 6-0 after seven innings, tried late to no avail; Stephen Chapman with the only Brevard walk as patience is out the window as of late; tough day defensively as well -- four errors, including two by the normally solid Taylor Green; Chuckie Caufield with two doubles, Green two singles and little-used Anderson de la Rosa a home run pretty much all you can hang a hat on in this one; John Axford with a Josh Butler impersonation -- I know, that's harsh, sorry... Brevard County Game Log

Salome slugs Stars past Lookouts By Rob Jemella / Special to MLB.com In a game full of offensive fireworks, Angel Salome put on the biggest show. Salome went 3-for-4 with a home run and six RBIs on Tuesday night, powering the Huntsville Stars to a 15-10 victory over the Chattanooga Lookouts at AT&T Field. "I've had some good games but never six RBIs," Salome said. "I feel pretty good, too, because of the way the game went. We needed to keep scoring." Salome, who turns 22 on Sunday, started the scoring in the first inning with a three-run homer to right field. He added a two-run single during a six-run eighth, then completed his night with an RBI single as Huntsville tacked on three runs in the ninth. "In a game like that, you've got to keep hitting," Salome said. "You can't give up because you never know when a team can come back on you." The 2004 fifth-round pick, who served a 50-game suspension last season, has 14 RBIs in his last five games and is hitting .413 (50-for-121) since April 14. Cole Gillespie had three hits and three RBIs, while Matt LaPorta doubled three times and drove in a run for Huntsville. The Stars pounded out 21 hits en route to their second straight win. Starter Brae Wright (4-5) allowed three runs on six hits over six innings for Huntsville (36-23). James Avery (2-3) took the loss after giving up four runs on 10 hits over five frames. Justin Turner had two doubles and drove in three runs for the Lookouts (30-29), while Chris Valaika and Eric Eymann each contributed three hits and an RBI.

Just-released from West Virginia, OF Kurt Crowell signed with Schaumburg of the independent Northern League and had a nice debut.

Final: Chattanooga (Reds) 5, Huntsville 4 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Lookouts End Series With Walk-off Win Stars Return Home for Huge Series With West Tenn By Brett Pollock / Huntsville Stars Sean Henry singled home the game-winning run with two outs in the ninth inning to lift Chattanooga to a 5-4 comeback win over Huntsville Wednesday afternoon in the last of a five-game set at AT&T Field. The Stars slipped to 36-24 and saw their lead over West Tenn evaporate, as the squads are now tied for first place. The Lookouts improved to 31-29 and moved to within five games of the lead with 10 to go in the first half. Patrick Ryan took over on the hill for Huntsville in the home ninth and retired the first two batters before Shaun Cumberland singled and moved to third base on a double by Eric Eymann, who collected his ninth hit of the series. Henry then grounded the first pitch he saw past a diving Mat Gamel at third to hand the Stars their second walk-off loss of the road trip and their third in their opponent's last at-bat. Ryan suffered his second loss of the series and of the season. The Stars had runners at first and second with one out in the top of the inning before pinch-hitter Chris Errecart grounded into a double play. Carlos Fisher went three scoreless, hitless innings to grab the win, his first, in relief. Cumberland's leadoff long ball in the home first staked the Lookouts to the lead and marked just the second time in 10 games on the road trip the Stars did not score first. However, Huntsville rallied to tie the game in the second inning on a two-out infield hit by Freddy Parejo that scored Angel Salome, who led off the inning with a base hit to right field. Justin Turner, the second baseman, dived to try to make the catch in shallow right field and could not and wound up getting kicked in the head accidentally by the right fielder Sean Henry, who came in to field the ball. Salome had been thrown out trying to stretch the hit into a double but was sent back to the field and ruled safe at first after the play had come to a halt. Lookouts manager Mike Goff argued the ruling and was thrown out of the game and finally left the field 10 minutes after the argument ensued. Turner was eventually taken off the field on a stretcher in an ambulance and moved to a local hospital as a precautionary measure. Danny Dorn doubled with one out in the home second and scored to put the Lookouts back on top on a single by pitcher Ben Jukich, the fourth run knocked in during the series by a Chattanooga hurler. Huntsville tied the game on a Michael Brantley home run with one out in the third, his second home run of the road trip and season. Stars' starter Donovan Hand struck out Jukich and Cumberland with runners at the corners to end the fourth inning and keep the game tied. Jukich ended the third inning with a strikeout of Salome and then fanned six of the next seven hitters before Gamel walked with one out in the sixth and scored when Matt LaPorta launched a two-out home run, his third of the series and league-best 16th of the season. Drew Anderson doubled in the home half of the inning and scored on a two-out double by Chris Denove, who drove in just his fifth run of the season. Pinch-hitter Cody Strait followed with a single but Parejo made a perfect one-hop throw to the plate to cut down Denove and keep the Stars in the lead. Hand was removed after six innings, allowing three runs on nine hits, walking one and fanning five and was replaced by Juan Sandoval. Cumberland led off the home seventh with a base hit, stole second, moved to third on a wild pitch and scored to tie the game at four on a Henry double play grounder. The Stars return home to open an important five-game series against West Tenn on Thursday night with left-hander Steve Hammond taking the hill against Diamond Jaxx southpaw Ryan Ketchner. 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 Huntsville Game Log