Jim Goulart

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West Virginia Site Game Summary: POWER ENDURE DELAYS, BEAT SUNS After enduring three separate rain delays of one hour, 40 minutes and 20 minutes, the West Virginia Power were able to defeat the Hagerstown Suns 6-3 in a rain shortened contest that ended in the bottom of the sixth inning. In the second inning Andrew Lefave hit a two-run bomb, his second of the year to give the Power a 2-0 edge. West Virginia added three more in the top of the fourth inning. Kenny Holmberg and Steve Chapman hit back-to-back RBI singles before Martin Maldonado drove in the final run of the inning on a sacrifice fly. After the first rain delay, which lasted an hour, the Suns scored two of their runs in the bottom of the fifth. Brett McMillan reached on a fielder?s choice and knocked in Justin Maxwell before Erick San Pedro was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded. Right after the second delay, which continued for 40 minutes, Chris Marrero ripped an RBI double to bring the Suns within two, but it wasn?t enough. Darren Ford hit an RBI double in the top of the sixth inning before the third and final delay. Jose Romero (1-0) allowed two runs on three hits through an inning and two thirds to earn the victory, and Marco Estrada (1-3) was tagged with the loss. The Power improved to 23-8 with the win and the Suns fell to 12-21 with the loss. The Power will finish the four game series against the Hagerstown at Municipal Stadium on Friday night. The Power will start left hander Mike Ramlow (2-1, 7.15) and the Suns will counter with right hander Jhonny Nunez (1-2, 3.71). The first pitch is scheduled for 6:35 PM (5:35 Central).

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...amp;coll=1 Milwaukee's rise no surprise after looking into Stars Contact Mark McCarter at markcolumn@aol.com Huntsville Times Here's Doug Melvin's analogy: "It's like standing in line at Disney World, one of those lines where you're (waiting) an hour and a half. They bump you up 15 minutes. But an hour and 15 minutes is still a long wait," said Melvin, the general manager of the Milwaukee Brewers. Here's our analogy: It's like talking about a no-hitter in the fourth inning. It's premature, and you fret you might jinx something. There's a long way to go. Almost 130 games. It's not even summer. "Get back with me," laughed Melvin's aide, Dan O'Brien, "in September or October." Still, six weeks into the major league season, and the best record in baseball belongs to the Milwaukee Brewers, at 24-10, with a six-game win streak and a seven-game lead in the NL Central. It's surprising to everyone, except maybe those who have seen this construction in progress, when it was raw materials. And even those folks have found this breathtaking. "I think we had a good team," said Melvin. "But 14 games over .500, I think we're a little bit surprised. We believe in the players. I'm not totally shocked, but to be 14 over instead of six or seven (is a surprise)." "Did we expect .700 baseball? No," said O'Brien, one of the top men in the Brewers' hierarchy, with the business-card-filling title of "Special Assistant to the General Manager/Baseball Operations." Melvin and O'Brien were both at Joe Davis Stadium Thursday night to watch the Huntsville Stars. At that ballpark, much of the groundwork for these Brewers was done. We were told for years that Milwaukee would build the nucleus to a good team from talent that came through Huntsville. We were told the truth. In a typical lineup, half the starters or more are ex-Stars. Shortstop J.J. Hardy, a precocious 19-year-old when he was a Southern League All-Star, is batting .331 with nine homers and 27 RBIs. First baseman Prince Fielder is third in the NL in RBIs. Tony Gwynn Jr. is hitting .370 in a reserve role. Rickie Weeks has five homers. "We knew these young kids, Hardy, (Corey) Hart, Fielder, Weeks, were going to be a big part down the road," Melvin said. "We wanted to build around those kids." "It's been an effort we've invested in, and we're just now beginning to see the fruits of that labor," said O'Brien, who noted that the farm system "has always been the No. 1 priority in Doug's eyes." With the home-grown talent, Melvin has also made some risky trades that have panned out nicely and has done efficient, thrifty free-agent shopping (pitcher Jeff Suppan, 5-2, 2.63 ERA, and infielder Craig Counsell, most notably). Ask Melvin and O'Brien where the credit falls, it's like listening to an Academy Award thank-you speech. Manager Ned Yost, who instilled a one-for-all, all-for-one attitude. The amateur scouting department. The pro scouting department, instrumental in trades and free agency. The player development department. Front office personnel. Ownership. And players. Pure and simple, "We're a more talented team," O'Brien said. "The winning," said Melvin, "has given our fans some enthusiasm and excitement, and it's changing the culture. Ned has done a good job with that." To have followed this organization for much of a decade, it has been a long wait in line. We'll see what happens come September and October. But you can't help be eager to see what that ride will be like.

Huntsville Site Game Summary: Link, text follows -- www.huntsvillestars.com/n...ewsId=1152 Big Inning Carries Stars to Short Victory Carlos Corporan?s three-run home run capped off a six-run third inning that carried Huntsville to an 8-3 win over Mobile in a rain-shortened five innings Thursday night at Joe Davis Stadium. The Stars ended a three-game slide to improve to 15-17 on the season and 8-11 at home, while the BayBears slipped to 16-18 overall and 10-9 on the road. Mobile scored the game?s first run, marking the eighth time in nine games on the home stand that the visitors have scored first, in the third inning on a run-scoring single by Jarred Ball, who knocked in the winning runs in Wednesday?s game. Yohannis Perez led off the home third with a single and scored to tie the game, and scored for the first time since April 24 at Montgomery, on a one-out double by Steve Sollmann. The Stars took the lead for good when Hernan Iribarren followed with a triple and then scored on a base hit by Laynce Nix, who was playing in his final game in his rehab stint. Lou Palmisano walked and Corporan then blasted the first pitch he saw from Matt Green over the wall in right field for his first home run and runs batted in since joining the Stars on May 2. The Stars matched their highest scoring inning of the season set back in the sixth inning on April 23 at Montgomery. Nix and Palmisano delivered run-scoring singles in the fourth inning to complete the home team?s highest scoring game since an 8-0 shutout win behind Steve Hammond on April 29 at Birmingham. Green was charged with eight runs on eight hits over four frames and has allowed 13 runs on 15 hits over 10 innings in his last two starts. The right-hander had yielded only six runs over 28 innings in his first five turns. Hammond gave up a two-run home run to Ronnie Merrill in the fifth inning, walked pinch-hitter Phil Avlas and then retired the next three batters to finish off his second complete game of the season and earn his first win in four tries at home. He matched a season-high with six strikeouts and has now thrown the only two complete games in the league to this point in the season. The series wraps up Friday morning with southpaw Lindsay Gulin making his first start since joining the Stars against BayBears? left-hander Greg Smith. Coverage of the game begins at 10:20 a.m. central time and can be heard through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com.

Brevard County Game Notes from MiLB.com: Manatees sting Miracle Steve Garrison allowed one run over five innings and Angel Salome knocked in a pair of runs as Brevard County topped visiting Fort Myers, 7-4, on Thursday. Garrison (2-2) bounced back from a rough outing and scattered four hits and two walks to earn his first victory since April 25. The left-hander was tagged for eight runs in four-plus innings in Saturday's 9-5 loss to Clearwater. Luis Pena allowed a hit and fanned two in a scoreless ninth for his fourth save. Chris Errecart, Mat Gamel, Mike Bell and Charlie Fermaint each had two hits for the Manatees (19-15). Cole Gillespie hit an RBI triple in the second and scored on Bell's groundout as Brevard County took a 2-0 lead that it did not relinquish. Edward Ovalle hit a solo homer, while Luis Ugueto and Steven Tolleson each had two hits for Fort Myers (12-22). Zachary Ward (0-5) yielded three runs -- two earned -- on four hits and two walks with a strikeout over five innings in his first start for the Miracle. -- Danny Wild/MLB.com ***More Details from the Miracle site: VIERA, FL ? The Brevard County Manatees came up with extra base hits and timely hitting at the right time on Thursday night to win their third straight, knocking off the visiting Fort Myers Miracle by a final score of 7-4 from Space Coast Stadium. After a 1-0 ball game on Wednesday, both offenses showed up on Thursday night combining for 19 hits. The Manatees struck first with a pair of runs in the second as Mat Gamel would score on Cole Gillespie?s triple to right and Gillespie himself would cross on Mike Bell?s groundout to second. The Miracle would tally their first run in the fourth to cut the deficit in half. After Luis Ugueto led off with a single to left, catcher Javi Sanchez would soon follow reaching on a fielder?s choice, scoring Ugueto from third. A Manatees run in the fifth and a pair of runs in the sixth would give the hosts a temporary four-run cushion at 5-1. The only Miracle error of the night, a throwing error by Matt Betsill at first, allowed Bell to score an unearned run from third in the fifth. In the sixth, Chris Errecart would smack a triple to left and later come across on Angel Salome?s single back up the box. Salome scored the second run of the frame as Charlie Fermaint grounded out to Steve Tolleson at second. A three-run seventh inning would bring the Miracle back to within one at 5-4. Edward Ovalle led off with his team-leading third home run of the season to make it 5-2. Toby Gardenhire would plate an unearned run on an Erik Lis single to right followed by Tolleson scoring on Juan Portes? infield single to third. Brevard County would tack on a pair of insurance runs in the seventh on Errecart?s RBI-double to left and Salome?s sacrifice fly to right. The Miracle would have a couple of tough breaks in Thursday night?s contest as Tolleson appeared to have his second home run of the season in the fifth. Tolleson?s fly ball to left appeared to hit above the yellow line, which would have resulted in a two-run homer. Instead, Tolleson would be credited with a double as Gardenhire ended up being thrown out at the plate on the play. The Miracle and Manatees will square off in game three of the series on Friday night. A pair of right-handers will face each other beginning at 7:00 PM (6:00 Central). The Miracle will send right-Jay Rainville (2-3, 2.67) to the rubber against Jesse Harper (1-3, 4.76) of the Manatees. ***Night opened ominously, when the first two Manatees walked, but Brevard failed to score. Wow, we're Mat Gamel fans, but four errors on five fielding chances? The pitchers did a nice job limiting the unearned run total to two -- Mass Haas

Final: Colorado Springs (Rockies) 5, Nashville 2 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Chris Oxspring photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2307 Sky Sox Take Third Straight From Sounds, 5-2 COLORADO SPRINGS ? The Nashville Sounds lost their third straight game to the Colorado Spring Sky Sox on Thursday morning at Security Service Field, dropping a 5-2 decision. Nashville (18-16) has lost nine of its last 11 road contests and suffered its fifth consecutive defeat at the hands of the Sky sox, dating back to last season. With the win, the Sky Sox extended their season-best winning streak to four games, which matches the club?s best effort from 2006. Jorge De Paula (3-0) turned in a solid start for Colorado Springs to remain undefeated on the year, allowing one unearned run on three hits with six strikeouts over seven innings. The right-hander, who became the first Sky Sox hurler to earn his third win, lowered his ERA to a team-best 2.14 with the outing. Chris Oxspring (2-2) took the hard-luck loss for Nashville after allowing two runs (one earned) on three hits while walking two batters and striking out five over five innings. With the outing, he lowered his team-leading ERA to 1.98 through seven starts this season. The teams played scoreless baseball in the early portion of the contest before Colorado Springs broke through to take a 2-0 lead against Oxspring in the bottom of the fifth inning. Sky Sox catcher Alvin Colina put the home team on the board with a one-out solo homer off the scoreboard in left-center, his first roundtripper of the season. Colorado Springs added an unearned run later in the frame following fielding errors by Oxspring and second baseman Callix Crabbe. The errors snapped a streak of 39 2/3 consecutive mistake-free innings by the Nashville defense. The Sounds put a run on the board in the top of the sixth when Jose Macias opened the frame with a double then scored one batter later. Pinch-hitter Yovani Gallardo grounded out to third and Macias advanced to third on the play then scored when Sky Sox first baseman Joe Koshansky?s throw to the hot corner sailed out of play. Colorado Springs got the run back against the Nashville bullpen in the bottom half of the frame to increase the lead to 3-1. Ryan Spilborghs (3-for-4) greeted Luis Villarreal with a double off the wall in right and advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring on Koshansky?s RBI single up the middle. Nashville pulled within a run at 3-2 in the top of the eighth when Macias scored from second on pinch-hitter Ozzie Chavez?s RBI single to right off Matt Herges. AUDIO: Ozzie Chavez Pinch-Hit RBI Single -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...205-10.mp3 The Sky Sox immediately answered a Sounds score again as Koshansky (2-for-3) provided a pair of insurance runs in the bottom of the inning, belting a one-out, two-run homer to deep right off Luther Hackman. The blast, which also plated Cory Sullivan, was the first baseman?s fourth of the year and increased the Colorado Springs advantage to 5-2. Mike Gallo retired the Sounds in order in the top of the ninth to notch his fourth save of the year for Colorado Springs. Nashville looks to avoid the sweep when the teams wrap up the four-game series with 7:05 p.m. CT finale on Friday evening. Sounds right-hander Yovani Gallardo (4-1, 2.19), who leads the Pacific Coast League with 51 strikeouts, will take the hill to take on Colorado Springs right-hander Ubaldo Jimenez (1-3, 7.20). Nashville Box Score: Charles Thomas 3-for-21 with three walks since joining the Sounds; Brad Nelson 0-for-4 with 3 K's; Grant Balfour still on the Brewer relief radar; Joe Dillon activated from his strained hamstring DL stint... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_cspaaa_1 Nashville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_cspaaa_1

Speaking of former number 1s, and I know this has been asked elsewhere but... any word on Rogers? Did he throw on the 7th as planned? Unless the Brewers release that information themselves (won't happen), or his hometown newspaper in Maine does a follow-up feature story (probably won't for a while), we won't know. Just plan on seeing him next season, with the possibility he may get to throw in fall instructionals in Maryvale (which we also won't hear about).

Spurling has done a fine job so far. Spurling has allowed 16 hits (16!) in just 7.1 IP, to go along with two walks. Only an act of God has placed his ERA at 3.68, along with the nice inherited runners work of the guys who have bailed him out.

The Sounds, already down one roster spot (presumably to be filled soon by Laynce Nix), and with Ryan Braun out today, trotted out Yovani Gallardo as their first pinch-hitter off the bench in the 6th inning today. Jose Macias was on first -- when Yo grounded out to third base, Macias hustled to third on the play, and then scored on a bad throw to third. Sounds down, 2-1 in the 6th...

Wednesday's Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Infielder/Outfielder Jose Macias: www.nashvillesounds.com/a...%205-9.mp3 Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Outfielder Charles Thomas: www.nashvillesounds.com/a...205-10.mp3

Standings through Wednesday's action: Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 18 15 .545 - 10-4 8-11 W6 Nashville 18 15 .545 - 10-5 8-10 L2 Memphis 17 17 .500 1.5 13-7 4-10 W1 Omaha 15 18 .455 3.0 12-6 3-12 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 16 15 .516 - 5-8 11-7 W1 Chattanooga 15 18 .455 2.0 9-9 6-9 W2 West Tenn 15 18 .455 2.0 8-7 7-11 L2 Huntsville 14 17 .452 2.0 7-11 7-6 L3 Carolina 13 20 .394 4.0 7-8 6-12 L2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daytona 18 14 .563 - 10-5 8-9 W3 Palm Beach 18 14 .563 - 9-9 9-5 W2 Brevard County 18 15 .545 0.5 9-6 9-9 W2 Vero Beach 15 17 .469 3.0 11-7 4-10 L1 Jupiter 15 18 .455 3.5 5-9 10-9 L1 St. Lucie 14 19 .424 4.5 7-11 7-8 L3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 22 8 .733 - 13-5 9-3 W1 Greensboro 20 12 .625 3.0 12-4 8-8 W3 Lakewood 15 14 .517 6.5 6-9 9-5 L2 Lake County 16 15 .516 6.5 9-7 7-8 W2 Hickory 13 17 .433 9.0 6-5 7-12 L1 Lexington 14 19 .424 9.5 7-10 7-9 L4 Delmarva 12 19 .387 10.5 6-9 6-10 W1 Hagerstown 12 20 .375 11.0 7-9 5-11 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". 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: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_cspaaa_1 Huntsville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Brevard County: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_1 West Virginia: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hagafx_1

These links will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds and/or Huntsville Stars are scheduled to play. Normally they are updated an hour or two prior to gametime, with Nashville's usually earlier: Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format): www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf Huntsville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format): www.huntsvillestars.com/i...eNotes.pdf

Thursday's Daily Menu: All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Chris Oxspring at Colorado Springs (Rockies), 11:20 AM pre-game; 11:35 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: LHP Steve Hammond at home vs. Mobile (Diamondbacks), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 PM gametime Audio link: www.huntsvillestars.com/ Brevard County: LHP Steve Garrison at home vs. Fort Myers (Twins), 5:50 PM pre-game, 6:00 gametime Audio link (game will also archive at this link): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp West Virginia: RHP J.T. King at Hagerstown (Nationals), 5:25 PM pre-game, 5:35 gametime Audio link (game will also archive at this link): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

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David Wesier's www.starsboxscore.com/ TROUBLE IN THE ROCKET CITYOur out-of-town owner, Miles Prentice, paid a visit to Huntsville Tuesday night and observed another pathetic crowd at Joe Davis Stadium. His observation, as quoted in The Huntsville Times, was that attendance figures are "absolutely" a concern........ After looking at the attendance figures since 1997, I'd say he's right on the money....... I broke down the number of three-figure crowds in the last 11 years, the first column being the number of three-figure crowds through the first 31 games of the season, the number of home dates within those 31 games, and the total number of three-figure crowds for the year: Year thru 31 G Home Dates Total 2007 10 15 2006 2 16 4 2005 3 14 6 2004 5 16 12 2003 5 19 9 2002 4 14 13 2001 2 14 2 2000 1 14 2 1999 1 14 3 1998 4 19 6 1997 1 16 2Click on the link above for a better view of David's chart -- Jim 10 games out of 15 with a crowd of less than 1,000, far more than any previous year for the past 11 years, and well on the way for breaking the 2002 pace, which may well be the record for a single season. That's just an assumption...... During the Stars' Oakland era, the team drew better than 200,000 every season except the dreadfully bad 1988 team........ From my experience at Joe Davis Stadium since 1985, I've noticed that many of the regulars that used to come, say 10 years ago, no longer come, and aside from the fact that a few I know have died, some have registered various beefs about the management. I don't want to go into a long laundry list of gripes I've heard from them, or comment on their validity, but the fact is that these beefs are real, and are a part of the reason that regulars, some of them former season-ticket holders, have stopped coming....... But it doesn't stand alone as the reason.......... The park is old (the oldest in the Southern League), lacking the ambiance of newer parks, and is no longer the novelty and the conversation piece it was during the early years. As a result of the negligence, exhibitions against major league affiliates have ceased and All-Star games are no longer hosted. The city's concern about the park --- nil........ Also, most Huntsvillians, as diverse as they are because of Redstone Arsenal and Marshall Space Flight Center, don't identify with Milwaukee as their team's affiliate, don't care about the team, evident by the lack of civic pride of having a baseball team of their own to root for, and really, don't care for baseball, period........ This is Alabama, where football and NASCAR rule. Miles wants to get more groups into the park, and that is something he and Stars management will be working on, for the general public doesn't seem to care anymore. To get fans back in, the park must be a novelty again, and short of starting over and building a new park, which is badly needed, it will take a mighty infusion of money to build new skyboxes that jut out and allow patrons to sit out on a balcony, a grass berm in the outfield, a wraparound concourse, and moving the concessions along the concourse, or at least, in view of the action....... As Miles has said, a combination of private and public funds........ By my estimate, at least $35 million......... Says Miles, Joe Davis Stadium is "a diamond in the rough. It's very important for a community to have a professional franchise like this, one that's affiliated with Major League Baseball."....... Asked if he had hopes for a new stadium, Miles says, "I can dream."........ Until the city government and the people in this city can prove they want professional baseball in Huntsville, Miles will keep on dreaming, until he's finally fed up. The Stars, playing day baseball, lost for the fifth time in six games, hitting .230 in the stretch...... It puts them into a 4th place tie in the Northern Division. It was picture perfect weather for Seniors Citizens Day. Discounted tickets for the geezers. One of Huntsville seniors started the game off with the National Anthem, and did a fine job....... A nice breeze blew into the stands, the weather 83° and clear, and the humidity low. I tell you, you couldn't beat today's weather........ Unfortunately, it attracted a crowd of just 818. Jarred Ball, a Mendoza-line hitter with a lifetime .167 average against the Stars in 2005-06, ended a see-saw game in the top of the 8th with a two-out, two-run one-hop liner to right, capping a three-run rally to beat Jeff Housman, 6-5........ That gives the Bay Bears the series, with two games remaining...... Ball is 3-for-8 in the series. Mobile's three-run 8th started when Housman, who threw a 1-2-3 7th, hit catcher Wilkin Castillo with one out. Castillo moved to second, then to third on a pair of wild pitches, the first on Housman's first pitch to Javier Brito, the second with Mark Reynolds at the plate......... Mel Stocker saved a run with an exciting diving catch in right field off the bat of Brito, but Castillo wound up scoring on a ground-rule double to center, when Carlos Gonzalez hit a long fly ball to deep center that bounded off Steve Moss' glove....... With Reynolds (who walked on four pitches) on third and Gonzalez on second, Ball delivered the game-winning hit on a 1-1 pitch. Down 3-1, the Stars rallied in the 6th..... The Stars tied the game on a one-out, two-run homer by Lou Palmisano that just cleared the first fence in left-center, under the scoreboard....... Moss kept the inning alive with a ground single to left....... Second baseman Emilio Bonifacio then muffed a routine grounder to put runners on 1st and 2nd........ A fly ball to the warning track in left moved Moss to third, and Hernan Iribarren, behind 0-and-2, put the Stars ahead, 4-3, on a line single to left. The Stars fell a run short in the 9th after the first two hitters reached....... Pinch-hitter Carlos Corporan doubled to right-center, then scored when Stocker stretched a single into a double to break an 0-for-18 slump....... He took third on a sac bunt by Steve Sollmann, but Laynce Nix, who went 0-for-5, grounded out to third, and Palmisano struck out on a 2-2 pitch to end the game.... The run allowed by the Bay Bears bullpen was only one allowed over 9 1/3 innings of this series. The Stars play under the lights Thursday, with Steve Hammond (2-4, 6.00) taking the mound against Matt Green (3-1, 2.65), the Diamondbacks' 2nd round draft choice in 2005. Green has given up eight runs on 14 hits and a walk in 13 innings in his last two starts......... Hammond is 0-3, 8.16 at home in three starts. The Stars will go with Lindsay Gulin, a Southern League veteran who was with the Diamond Jaxx in 2000, going 5-2 with a 4.99 ERA in nine starts, and the Jacksonville Suns in 2001 and 2002, where, by anomaly, he logged 2.64 ERAs in both seasons...... Gulin comes down from Nashville to replace Mike Jones, who has been placed on the disabled list with an elbow strain...... Jonesy, I'm told, feels fine, and his stay on the DL may be a relatively short one. This was only the 3rd time in 20 games that the Stars reached double-figures in the hit column......... Adam Pettyjohn, who was 0-for-6 as a hitter, delivered the Stars' first hit in the 3rd after Jonathan Castellanos retired eight in a row....... After eight games, today was the first time this month the Stars had scored more than five runs....... Lou Palmisano's home run gave him shots in back-to-back games for the 2nd time this season. He did it the first time on the road against Birmingham, April 28-29. His 2-for-4 day puts him no better than 4th in the Southern League batting race (.361), but he leads Tennessee's Jorge Cortes by a percentage point in on-base percentage (.484)....... After hitting .229 in April, Hernan Iribarren is hitting .310 this month with three RBIs in this series against Mobile........ Steve Moss is hitting .172 this month after hitting .311 in April. Moss slumped in May last year, too, hitting .198 in May after a .273 April. The Chattanooga Lookouts promoted center fielder Chris Dickerson to Louisville along with speedster Jared Burton.

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/stars/huntsvil...amp;coll=1 Stars play close, but wins elusive Huntsville leaves too many on base in narrow loss By MARK McCARTER Huntsville Times Sports Staff, markcolumn@aol.com Half-full: Four of their last six games, the Huntsville Stars have been highly competitive. They have placed the tying or winning run on base in the bottom of the ninth, with legitimate chances to win. Half-empty: The Huntsville Stars have lost five of their last six games. Most recently, there was Wednesday afternoon's 6-5 loss to the Mobile BayBears, sinking Huntsville to 14-17 on the season. This time, outfielder Mel Stocker, a dynamic defensive player whose web-gem moments are becoming almost routine, snapped out of an arid 0-for-18 streak with a leadoff double. Steve Sollmann bunted him to third. Alas, there he remained. Yohannis Perez hit a scorching shot to third and was thrown out, then Lou Palmisano was struck out by relief ace Dustin Glant. Fuss not about Palmisano's K. It wouldn't have been close without him. His two-run homer keyed a three-run sixth; it was his fourth homer of the year, matching his '06 total. "We battled," said manager Don Money. "But we need to put some more crooked numbers on the board." There seems to be a trend among the Stars to pitch well - except for one dreadful inning. It happened to starter Adam Pettyjohn, who allowed only five hits. Four of them came in a three-run second inning. Then reliever Jeff Housman, in his third appearance since coming off the disabled list, struggled with control in the eighth, then yielded a two-run, two-out single to Jarred Ball. "There always seems to be that one big inning," Money said. The Stars and BayBears meet again tonight at 7:05, then end the homestand at 10:35 a.m. Friday before making the long trek to Carolina. With Wednesday's 12:05 start, the Stars began a six-game stretch with six different starting times.

Link while active, text follows: www.nashvillecitypaper.co...s_id=56104 Braun battling injuries, misses fifth game By Nate Rau, Nashville City Paper Sports Correspondent Nashville?s Ryan Braun was out of the lineup for the fifth straight game on Wednesday when the Sounds lost at Colorado Springs. Braun is out because of both a sore wrist and a strained groin. Sounds manager Frank Kremblas initially said Braun was missing time because of the groin injury, but now it appears his wrist has become an issue as well. Braun hurt his wrist during Friday?s game against Round Rock at Greer. Kremblas said after Wednesday?s game that Braun is day-to-day and there are no plans to put him on the disabled list at this time. Braun did take batting practice prior to Wednesday?s game against the Sky Sox, but was still held out of the lineup. Organizations are traditionally extra-careful with top prospects like Braun. So far this season, Braun has lived up to the hype in Nashville. He came into the 2007 campaign as the Milwaukee Brewers? top offensive prospect. Braun is hitting .358 with a eight home runs and 17 RBIs. The 23-year-old third baseman has committed just two errors on the season.

Link while active, text follows: www.floridatoday.com/apps...002/SPORTS Manatees fire media director BY JIM CAWLEY FLORIDA TODAY In late November, Scott Pinner came to the Brevard County Manatees with talent, experience and an ambition to thrive as the team's director of media relations. Less than six months later, he departed at the insistence of his employer. The North Merritt Island resident was fired on Wednesday morning in what Manatees president Charlie Baumann said was professionally "one of the most difficult things I've had to do." "Scott turned out to have a lot of surprises and made a lot of representations in the community about sponsorship agreements that were disingenuous," Baumann said. "We had to part ways. We conducted an investigation and determined that his behavior was unbecoming of someone who is going to represent the Brevard County Manatees." According to Baumann, Pinner made sales agreements that he simply could not honor, adding that his former employee inflated his sales numbers and in some cases "tried to cover his tracks." "He tried so hard to please us that he would tell me anything he thought I wanted to hear -- to lengths that he was not telling the truth to us and to clients," Baumann said. "In any business, you can't tolerate that." Baumann also cited financial issues. "There was a severe misunderstanding that he thought he had the authority . . . financially, everything was to be approved by (Manatees GM) Buck (Rogers) and by myself. At some point, he thought that he could circumvent that." Reached by phone on Wednesday afternoon, Rogers, who was noticeably dejected over the situation, deferred to Baumann to speak on behalf of the organization. Pinner did not return messages left on his cell phone. The Manatees hired Pinner in November, impressed with his media experience and excited about his potential to heighten the fan experience in Brevard County. Until recently, those expectations were being met. Pinner was doing radio play-by-play for Manatees home and away games -- and doing them well. He also helped the organization: - Establish an in-house FM signal. - Transmit an online audio signal that allowed fans to listen to games on their computers. - Set up a video feed at Space Coast Stadium complete with monitors in the concourse so fans can follow game action while waiting in line for concessions. Before coming to Brevard County, Pinner was involved in several media endeavors. He was the PA announcer for the Inaugural World Baseball Classic for the Orlando region last season and for select Houston Astros spring training games at Osceola County Stadium. He was the lead announcer for Atlanta Braves spring training games at Disney's Wide World of Sports. Pinner also has been the voice of the University of North Florida and NCAA Division I baseball and softball tournaments and was the master of ceremonies for Pop Warner. In March, Pinner was the PA announcer for Washington Nationals grapefruit league games in Viera. Aside from his professional skills, Pinner was a friend to the Manatees staff, which is something Baumann said made the firing particularly difficult. "We're all just kind of in shock of what has transpired in the last couple of days," Baumann said. "We're saddened. We're a pretty close family and it's tough -- it's hard to really try to make sense out of this." For the time being, Pinner's position will be absorbed by the staff. Baumann said he plans to continue delivering all of the services to fans, including the in-house FM signal, in-stadium video feed and audio transmission online. WMEL's Kirk Aigus will do the radio play-by-play -- possibly with a partner. Some games can be heard on WIXC AM-1060, while others will be broadcast on WMEL AM-920. But emotionally, Baumann and his staff are still playing a little catch-up. "No one took any pleasure in this," Baumann said. "We're all sad. It's a genuine sadness for Scott and I hope he finds his way -- I really do."

Final: Brevard County 1, Fort Myers (Twins) 0 Walk-off walk for Mike Bell! Brevard County Box Score: Lorenzo Cain on base three times... web.minorleaguebaseball.c...p;sid=t503 Brevard County Game Log: Sometimes the best rallies involves not swinging the bat: Brevard County Bottom 9th - Alcides Escobar lines out to second baseman Steven Tolleson. - Lorenzo Cain walks. - Chris Errecart walks. Lorenzo Cain to 2nd. - Mat Gamel walks. Lorenzo Cain to 3rd. Chris Errecart to 2nd. - Cole Gillespie flies out to center fielder Edward Ovalle. - Michael Bell walks. Lorenzo Cain scores. Chris Errecart to 3rd. Mat Gamel to 2nd. web.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_1

In progress: Fort Myers (Twins) 0, Brevard County 0, after eight innings Will Inman -- 7 IP, 0 R, 4 H, 1 BB, 6 K

Hopefully Will Inman is indeed starting this evening. The MiLB Manatee site suddenly has shifted to TBD instead. With no other show in town this evening, hope several of you give Kirk Aigus a listen this evening. Kirk, of WMEL radio down in Brevard, has assisted with some of the prior home broadcasts, but he'll be going tonight as a lead for the first time. Good luck, Kirk, the 'Tees, and hopefully Mr. Inman -- 5:50 PM Central at the link above.

Joe Thatcher will be the next reliever up with the Crew. Book it.

Final: Mobile (Diamondbacks) 6, Huntsville 5 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Link, text follows -- www.huntsvillestars.com/n...ewsId=1151 Late Rally By Mobile Sinks Stars Jarred Ball?s two-out, two-run single capped a three-run eighth inning rally that propelled Mobile to a 6-5 comeback victory over Huntsville Wednesday afternoon at Joe Davis Stadium. The BayBears have won the first three games of the series to improve to 16-17 on the season and 10-8 on the road, while the Stars slumped to 14-17 overall and 7-11 at home. Huntsville took a 4-3 lead into the eighth before a ground rule double by Carlos Gonzalez drove in Wilkin Castillo to tie the game and move Mark Reynolds, who had been intentionally walked, to third base. Reynolds has six hits and has drawn three walks and has not been retired in the two games he has played in during the series. Ball, a .164 hitter with five RBIs entering the game, lined a 1-1 Jeff Housman offering over a leaping second baseman Hernan Iribarren into right field to deliver both runners and drive in his second and third runs of the game. Housman was charged with the loss, his first, after allowing three runs on two hits and two walks over 1 2/3 innings of work. Lou Palmisano and Guilder Rodriguez singled off A.J. Shappi in the eighth but were left stranded when Adam Heether struck out and Iribarren flied out. Dustin Glant took over in the ninth and gave up a pinch-hit double to Carlos Corporan that was followed by a double by Mel Stocker, who broke an 0-for-18 drought and cut the visitors lead to one. Steve Sollmann moved Stocker to third base with a sacrifice bunt but he was left there when Yohannis Perez grounded out to Reynolds at third and Palmisano fanned to end the game. Glant earned his second save of the series and fourth of the season. The run was the only allowed by the BayBears bullpen over 9 1/3 innings in the series. Mobile tallied three times against starter Adam Pettyjohn in the second inning on run-scoring hits by Ball and Ronnie Merrill and a throwing error by Rodriguez. Pettyjohn has allowed a three-spot in three of his last four starts and has thrown scoreless baseball in the other 13 innings in those starts. The veteran southpaw gave up five hits, did not walk a batter and struck out five over his five innings of work and remains winless in four starts at home. Palmisano?s two-run home run in the sixth tied the game and the Stars took their first lead later in the frame on Iribarren?s second run-producing single of the day in his first game with two runs batted in. Rodriguez had his first two-hit game of the season and scored a run. The series continues Thursday night with southpaw Steve Hammond taking the hill against BayBears? right-hander Jonathan Matt Green. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 p.m. central time and can be heard locally on SportsRadio 730 AM WUMP and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville Box Score: In 22 games of action, Lou Palmisano's OPS is 1.095. Even in a small sample, that's darn impressive for the pitcher-friendly Southern League www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Huntsville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Mobile Top 9th - Pitcher Change: Joe Thatcher replaces Marino Salas, batting 9th. - Ronnie Merrill Jr. called out on strikes. - Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Phil Avlas replaces A. J. Shappi. - Phil Avlas called out on strikes. - Emilio Bonifacio strikes out swinging. That's three right-handed batters this amazing southpaw struck out -- you just know the Brewer brass is fully aware...

Final: Colorado Springs (Rockies) 2, Nashville 0 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Charles Thomas photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2306 Sounds Blanked By Colorado Springs, 2-0 COLORADO SPRINGS ? Four Colorado Springs pitchers combined on a four-hit shutout on Wednesday morning at Security Service Field as the Sky Sox registered a 2-0 victory over the Nashville Sounds. Nashville (18-15) has dropped eight of its last 10 road contests and suffered its third shutout loss of the season. The Sounds advanced only three runners to second base all morning. Colorado Springs starter Bobby Keppel (1-1) earned his first victory of the season by working 5 2/3 scoreless frames, holding the Sounds to only four hits. Mike Gallo and Matt Herges followed with 2 1/3 hitless relief frames before Ryan Speier worked a 1-2-3 ninth, including a pair of strikeouts, to earn his team-leading fifth save of the year for the Sky Sox. The Sounds finished 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and grounded into three inning-ending double plays in the contest. Charles Thomas went 2-for-4 for the Sounds to account for half of the club?s morning hit total after opening his Nashville career with only one hit in his initial 13 at-bats. Colorado Springs grabbed a 1-0 lead with a two-out rally against Sounds starter Tim Dillard in the bottom of the second inning. After the first two batters of the frame were retired, Alexis Gomez doubled and scored when Jayson Nix followed with an RBI triple off the center field wall. Nix, the younger brother of former Sounds outfielder Laynce Nix, attempted to make it an inside-the-park home run but was thrown out at the plate on a relay by Charles Thomas and Callix Crabbe. AUDIO: Thomas Throws Out Runner At Plate -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...%205-9.mp3 The Sky Sox doubled the advantage to 2-0 in the third with another two-out knock as Clint Barmes (2-for-4) scored on an Ian Stewart run-scoring single against Dillard. Dillard (0-3) took a hard-luck loss for Nashville following a quality start and remains winless through his first seven career Triple-A outings. The right-hander allowed two runs on six hits while striking out five batters over six innings of action. The teams continue the series with another 11:35 a.m. CT morning matchup on Thursday. Nashville right-hander Chris Oxspring (2-1, 2.01) will man the bump to face Sky Sox right-hander Jorge De Paula (2-0, 3.21). Nashville Box Score: Doesn't this ballpark cater to offense? www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_cspaaa_1 Nashville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_cspaaa_1