Jim Goulart

Just want to say that still 18-year-old Venezuelan West Virginia LHP Luis Ramirez is going to be tremendous on a Miller Park mound some day. Much more later on tonight's action...Colby, thanks for sharing!

Palmisano became the first to hit a pair of doubles in consecutives games since John VandenBerg in 2005 (May 15, 17) I'm not sure how you collate and file all your records, David, but I always love when you pull an obscure statistical nugget like this out of your hat....

Standings through Friday's action: Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 9 6 .600 - 6-2 3-4 W3 Nashville 9 6 .600 - 3-4 6-2 W3 Omaha 7 9 .438 2.5 5-3 2-6 W2 Memphis 6 10 .375 3.5 5-3 1-7 L4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 7 6 .538 - 1-2 6-4 W1 Huntsville 6 7 .462 1.0 4-6 2-1 L2 Chattanooga 6 9 .400 2.0 4-6 2-3 L1 West Tenn 6 9 .400 2.0 2-3 4-6 W1 Carolina 4 11 .267 4.0 2-3 2-8 L3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Palm Beach 8 6 .571 - 4-5 4-1 W1 Daytona 8 7 .533 0.5 5-3 3-4 L1 Brevard County 7 7 .500 1.0 2-4 5-3 L1 St. Lucie 7 7 .500 1.0 3-5 4-2 W1 Jupiter 7 8 .467 1.5 2-3 5-5 L3 Vero Beach 6 8 .429 2.0 4-3 2-5 W3 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 9 3 .750 - 7-3 2-0 W7 Hickory 7 5 .583 2.0 2-3 5-2 L1 Greensboro 8 6 .571 2.0 6-2 2-4 L3 Lexington 8 7 .533 2.5 6-5 2-2 W1 Lakewood 5 6 .455 3.5 2-4 3-2 L2 Lake County 6 8 .429 4.0 2-2 4-6 W1 Delmarva 5 8 .385 4.5 0-2 5-6 W2 Hagerstown 5 10 .333 5.5 2-5 3-5 L1

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

Follow Saturday'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_nasaaa_1 Huntsville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_monaax_1 Brevard County: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_pbcafa_1 West Virginia: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

Saturday's Daily Menu: All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP R.A. Dickey at home vs. Iowa(Cubs), 5:40 PM pre-game; 6:00 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: LHP Sam Narron at Montgomery (Devil Rays), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime Audio link: www.huntsvillestars.com/ Brevard County: LHP Rafael Lluberes at Palm Beach (Cardinals), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime Audio link (game will also archive at this link): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp West Virginia: LHP Mike Ramlow at home vs. Hickory (Pirates), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime Audio link (game will also archive at this link): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

Hoping for move coverage of Zach Braddock's outing, but the Charleston Gazette once again fails to send a reporter to cover the game. You'll notice that both the Gazette and the Charleston Daily Mail "cover" the Power, but in reality, the Daily Mail's coverage blows away the Gazette's. Unfortunately, the Daily Mail is a weekday afternoon paper only, so no coverage this AM. I'll also say that the Oklahoman's coverage of their AAA team is abysmal, and all Florida State League coverage except for Daytona is non-existant for another year, so a light read this morning Link Report-wise.

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

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/stars/huntsvil...amp;coll=1 Nemesis strikes again McDougall's 3-run homer helps Suns beat Stars 6-5 By BRAD SHEPARD For The Huntsville Times All Marshall McDougall was missing was a mask and a sneer. The Jacksonville third baseman played the role of villain to the Huntsville Stars perfectly Friday night, as he has all series long. He smacked a three-run homer in the first inning off Stars starter Mike Jones to give the Suns an early lead on their way to a 6-5 victory in front of a season-best 7,134 fans at Joe Davis Stadium. For the series, he went 8-for-23 with two home runs and nine RBIs. "So far, I've had two seasons," said the 28-year-old former Rangers' farmhand, who played three games last year after enduring two wrist surgeries. "I'll have 10 good at-bats and 10 bad at-bats. "I'm just trying to get consistent." McDougall was pretty steady against the Stars. He had at least one RBI in all five games, and his blast led to Huntsville's season-long bout with first-inning frustration. For the eighth time in 10 home games, the Stars were jumped on in the first inning. This time was a near-mirror image of Thursday night's opening inning. The Suns scored four runs off four hits, culminating with McDougall's homer over the right-field wall. "When people are on base, the pitcher's attention is elsewhere," McDougall said. "As hitters, you just try to be aggressive, and I've been lucky two nights in a row." After battling back twice to make the score 6-5 in the late innings, the Stars squandered a golden opportunity to at least tie in the eighth. And it really couldn't have turned out more unfortunate. After Michael Carlin legged out an infield hit and Brendan Katin singled sharply to left, Lou Palmisano tried to sacrifice them over. But after getting two strikes, he still tried to bunt, popping it back into the stands for a crucial first out. The 3-2 pitch he fouled away nearly beaned him, and he was just trying to get out of the way. Then, Moss - who'd started Huntsville's scoring with a two-run homer in the second - grounded into a double play to end the threat. "Bottom line is you've got to get the job done," said Palmisano, who was 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs. "I was asked to bunt, and I messed up the first two. "Dumb luck, I guess. I was getting out of the way and trying to throw the bat, and I was lucky it didn't hit me in the face." After pausing a moment, Palmisano reconsidered his comment: "Well, it hit the bat. I wish it would have hit me." After wasting their first scoring opportunity in the first, the Stars got two back in the second inning off Mike Megrew. Again, Huntsville mustered a comeback in the third when Palmisano's line drive to center field was misplayed by Xavier Paul, giving him a two-run double. Palmisano came home on a wild pitch and errant throw by the catcher. That's where the comeback halted, though. "We're giving ourselves chances," Stars hitting coach Sandy Guerrero said. "Right now, we're just not getting guys in."

Huntsville Site Game Summary: www.huntsvillestars.com/n...ewsId=1117 Suns Score Early and Hang On to Down Stars Marshall McDougal?s home run capped a four-run first inning rally and the bullpen shut down the Stars again in Jacksonville?s 6-5 win Friday night in front of 7,134, the largest crowd of the season. The Suns took three out of five to improve to 8-7 on the season, while Huntsville dropped to 6-7 on the season and 4-6 at home. The Stars also fell into second place, one game behind Tennessee, for only the second day all season. Chin-Lung Hu doubled on the game?s first pitch and scored two batters later on a single by Xavier Paul, who enjoyed the birth of his first baby girl and missed Thursday?s game to be there in person. Cory Dunlap followed with a single and McDougal then stepped up and launched a three-run long ball to right field, his second opposite field homer of the series. He drove in nine runs in the five-game set and at least one in all five games. The Stars have been scored on in the first inning in eight of their 10 home games and allowed at least four runs in four of those eight games. Steve Moss lined a two-run home run to right field in the second inning to slice the Suns lead to 4-2. It was Moss?s first long ball of the season, the Stars? fourth of the series and the first two runs allowed by Jacksonville starter Mike Megrew in 13 innings. The visitors tacked on two runs in the third against Huntsville hurler Mike Jones on a two-out, two-run triple by Anthony Raglani to push the lead back to four. Jones, Robert Hinton, Joe Thatcher and Marino Salas held the Suns hitless over the final five innings, with the bullpen trio combining to toss four perfect frames. Lou Palmisano?s second double of the night drove home Steve Sollmann and Brendan Katin to trim the lead to 6-4 in the home third. The Huntsville backstop then advanced to third base on a wild pitch and came in to score to cut the lead to one when catcher Alberto Concepcion?s throw to third base sailed into left field. Megrew picked up the win after allowing five runs on seven hits and a pair of walks in five frames. He struck out eight and earned his first victory at the double-A level. Brian Akin retired the first six hitters he faced before giving up back-to-back singles to Mike Carlin and Katin to open the eighth inning. Palmisano struck out trying to bunt the runners along and Akin was replaced by Jon Meloan, making his third appearance of the series. The hard-throwing right-hander got Moss to bounce into an inning-ending double play and retired the home side in order in the ninth to nail down his second save of the year. The Suns bullpen worked a total of 27 2/3 innings in the series and allowed one run. The Stars open a five-game series in Montgomery Saturday night with left-hander Sam Narron making the start against Biscuits? southpaw Chris Seddon. 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.

Final: Nashville 5, Oklahoma (Rangers) 4 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Brad Nelson photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2273 Sounds Close Successful Road Trip With 5-4 Win OKLAHOMA CITY ? First baseman Brad Nelson continued his hot hitting on Friday evening at AT&T Bricktown Ballpark, going 4-for-5 with a home run and three RBIs to lead the Nashville Sounds to a 5-4 victory over the Oklahoma RedHawks in the finale of a four-game series. The win was the third in a row for Nashville (9-6) and the club?s eighth in its last 10 contests. The Sounds, who remain in a tie with Iowa for first place in the PCL American Conference Northern Division, finished a successful road trip to New Orleans and Oklahoma with a 6-2 record and have won their last three series. Nelson, who missed the cycle by a triple, extended Nashville?s longest hitting streak of the season to eight games with his four-hit effort and raised his team-leading average to .333 on the season. He finished the four-game series against Oklahoma with nine hits in 17 at-bats. With longballs in his last three games, Nelson became the first Sounds player to perform that feat since outfielder Nelson Cruz from May 20-22, 2006. Oklahoma took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning against Sounds starter Zach Jackson when the RedHawks put together three straight two-out singles, the last of which by Dave Matranga plated Desi Relaford with the game?s first run. Nashville tied the game in the next half-inning when Drew Anderson grounded into a bases-loaded force out that allowed Ozzie Chavez to score. The Sounds pulled ahead with a three-run sixth inning that gave the visitors a 4-1 lead. Nelson continued his recent home run tear when he turned a 1-1 Rupe offering into a two-run homer to right that also plated Joe Dillon, who had walked, and gave Nashville a 3-1 advantage. AUDIO: Nelson's 3rd HR In Three Games -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...204-20.mp3 Vinny Rottino followed and drew a walk from Rupe as the final batter the right-hander would face. Ezequiel Astacio was summoned from the bullpen and walked Callix Crabbe before Chavez delivered an RBI single to extend the lead to three for Nashville. With runners at second and third and no outs, Astacio recovered to strike out Chris Barnwell, Jose Macias, and Anderson in succession to avoid further damage. Oklahoma promptly got those three runs back in the bottom of the inning with another two-out rally against Jackson. Just as they had in the second, the RedHawks did all the damage after the first two batters were retired in the frame. After Marlon Byrd was hit by a pitch and Relaford drew a walk, Kevin West made it a 4-2 contest with an RBI double and Matranga delivered his second clutch hit of the night, a two-out, two-run single to even things at 4-4. Nelson delivered again for Nashville in the seventh, plating Ryan Braun with an opposite-field RBI double off the top of the wall in left. Braun had opened the frame by greeting RedHawks reliever Franklyn German with a double of his own, his team-leading sixth two-bagger of the year. Jackson (3-1) earned a win for the third straight outing, allowing four runs on six hits over six innings of work. The southpaw walked two batters and struck out four in recording three winning starts in succession for the first time since late in the 2005 season. Chris Spurling followed with a pair of scoreless frames before turning things over to Jose Capellan, who held the RedHawks in check in the bottom of the ninth to earn his first save of the season. German (0-1) was saddled with the loss for the RedHawks after giving up the go-ahead run in his lone frame of action. The Sounds return to Greer Stadium tomorrow to open divisional play by hosting the Iowa Cubs (AAA-Cubs) in the 6 p.m. opener of a four-game series. It will be a battle of the PCL American Conference Northern Division current co-leaders. Nashville native R.A. Dickey (0-2, 11.70) will take the hill for the Sounds in Saturday?s 6 p.m. series opener. Iowa will counter with right-hander Angel Guzman, who will make his first PCL appearance of the year after being optioned from Chicago. Nashville Box Score: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_orhaaa_1 Nashville Game Log: Your Ryan Braun defensive update -- he was the DH tonight... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_orhaaa_1

Nashville Pre-Game Chat with Reliever Dennis Sarfate: www.nashvillesounds.com/a...204-20.mp3

Final: Jacksonville (Dodgers) 6, Huntsville 5 Huntsville Box Score: All the scoring in the first three innings; Huntsville bullpen fine once again, Mike Jones not so much; Steve Sollmann on base three more times; who knows what has happened to Adam Heether since the end of the '05 season -- I guess he was hurting last year, but he's 3-for-31 with 13 K's in 2007... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Huntsville Game Log: Brutal 8th inning for the Stars after a promising start, as Lou Palmisano and Steve Moss can't duplicate success from earlier in the game.. www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

MiLB.com: Cardinals shut out Manatees Gary Daley and Luke Gregerson combined on a four-hitter as host Palm Beach blanked Brevard County, 5-0, on Friday. Daley (1-0) allowed four singles, walked two and struck out three in seven innings after tossing 4 2/3 scoreless frames in his season debut on April 10. Gregerson walked one and fanned one over the final two innings. The Cardinals (8-6) took a 1-0 lead in the fourth on Allen Craig's run-scoring single. Nathan Southard laced an RBI single and Isaias Garcia lifted a sacrifice fly during a four-run seventh. Craig, Southard, Brandon Yarbrough and Jose Martinez collected two hits apiece for Palm Beach. Manatees starter Jesse Harper (1-1) surrendered one run on five hits and one walk with three strikeouts in six innings. Chris Errecart, Mat Gamel, Charlie Fermaint and J.R. Hopf singled for Brevard County (7-7), but Carlos Corporan and Alcides Escobar had 11-game hitting streaks snapped. -- Eric Justic/MLB.com

By the way, Jose Capellan maintains his 0.00 ERA with a 9th inning save in Nashville's 5-4 win tonight.

Don't worry, I'm sure the Journal-Sentinel guys will ask the tough questions of Yost -- not.

Final: Palm Beach (Cardinals) 5, Brevard County 0 Brevard County Box Score: Mike Bell walks twice in his first game of the season; 11-game hitting streaks end for Alcides Escobar and Carlos Corporan; Vince Perkins with a tough relief stint... web.minorleaguebaseball.c...p;sid=t503 Brevard County Game Log: Nothing resembling a rally for the Manatees toinight... web.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_pbcafa_1

Final: West Virginia 4, Greensboro (Marlins) 1 West Virginia Site Game Summary: BRADDOCK FANS 12 IN POWER SWEEP Power lefty Zach Braddock fanned 12 Greensboro batters on Friday night at Appalachian Power Park as the West Virginia Power defeated the Grasshoppers 4-1, completing the three game sweep of Greensboro to win their seventh game in a row. Darren Ford bunted his way on to first base, stole second and got to third on Blake Ochoa?s throwing error before scoring on Steve Chapman?s sacrifice fly in the bottom of the first inning. Andy Bouchie led off the bottom of the second with a triple and then scored on Kenny Holmberg?s single. With two outs in the bottom of the sixth inning, John Alonso hit a double off the wall in center field to score Chuckie Caufield. In the eighth, Chapman scored on center fielder John Raynor?s error. Greensboro avoided the shutout in the top of the ninth inning on Hunter Mence?s solo shot, his second of the series. Braddock (1-0) was fantastic for the Power. The lefty did not allow a run over five and two thirds. He allowed just four hits and struck out a season high 12 batters to get the win. Alex Periard allowed a run on three hits over three and a third to get his first save of the season and Derell McCall (1-1) suffered the loss. The Power improved to 9-3 with the win and the Grasshoppers fell to 8-6 with the loss. Ford, Chapman and Alonso all recorded two hits apiece for the Power. The Power will begin a four game series against the Hickory Crawdads at Appalachian Power Park on Saturday night. The Power will start left hander Mike Ramlow (1-1, 3.12). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central). West Virginia Box Score: 19-year-old LHP Zach Braddock hasn't allowed a run in his three starts this season; RHP Alex Periard is only two months older; we'll give catchers Andy Bouchie and Martin Maldonado credit, they're handling this relatively unheralded staff magnificently in the early going; over 4,400 in attendance in Charleston... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1 West Virginia Game Log: Looks like it'd be a fine idea to check out Andy Barch's call on the archive later, maybe the Greensboro 2nd to get a sense of Braddock's career night... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...amp;coll=1 Good impression Carlin does well in his Stars debut, but Suns claim 10-4 victory By MARK McCARTER Huntsville Times Sports Staff, markcolumn@aol.com His debut was a little late. But Mike Carlin quickly made up for lost time. Alas, the rest of the Huntsville Stars couldn't keep up with Carlin, who began the season on the disabled list and made his first start Thursday night, as the Jacksonville Suns pounded Huntsville 10-4 to even the series at two games apiece. The Suns were again generous with walks (15) but Huntsville managed just five hits, none a single. The Stars and Suns end this series tonight at 7:05. There will be a postgame fireworks display. There was wonderful fireworks late Thursday when pitching coach Rich Sauveur was thrown out in the eighth by plate ump Brett Cavins. The two gentlemen had an apparent disagreement over the precise geographic location and definition of the strike zone. Carlin, a 25-year-old outfielder who replaces Ulyses Davenport on the active roster, drove in Huntsville's first run with a sacrifice fly to right in the first inning. Two innings later, he drilled a homer to left through a fierce wind. Then, on his third at-bat, he was thoroughly robbed by a diving catch by right fielder Luke Allen. "A little combination of nerves and excitement," Carlin described his debut. "It's exciting to have a chance to come in and give the team a boost and hopefully fit in in a positive way." However, it was unequivocally a negative game for Huntsville. "It was nice for personal confidence," he said, "but if we don't win, what's it for?" Carlin was a minor league phase Rule 5 draft selection by the Brewers last winter, scooped up from the Pirates' organization, in which he played five seasons. He showed some pop for the Pirates, with 16 homers in '05, 15 last year. He is now tied for the Stars' home run lead, with one. Huntsville has three homers as a team; Brendan Katin and Steve Sollmann have the others. Five players in the league have as many homers as the Stars. One of those is Jacksonville's Anthony Ragliani, who ripped a three-run shot in the first off Huntsville starter Steve Hammond. Jacksonville starter Alvis Ojeda walked four men in the first, but allowed only one run, on Carlin's sacrifice and the bases were left loaded. Carlin homered in the third. "I got a hitter's count and he gave me a pitch I was looking for," he said. Then Sollmann walked - he has eight walks in the past three games - and later scored when Yohannis Perez reached on a throwing error by Chin-Lung Hu. Lou Palmisano's RBI double in the fourth cut the lead to 5-4. However, Hu led off the Suns' fifth with a double, scored on a single by Wilkin Ruan, and Cory Dunlap doubled home Ruan to make it 7-4. Another Moss K with bases loaded, this time in the sixth, ended Huntsville's last good opportunity to rally. Luke Allen's two-run homer in the eighth prevented further drama.

Link while active, text follows: www.dailymail.com/display...format=prn One-run victories fuel Power Michael Dailey Charleston Daily Mail Sportswriter Reid Nichols makes his living evaluating young baseball talent. And 11 games into the South Atlantic League season, the Milwaukee Brewers' director of player development is pleased with what he's seeing from the West Virginia Power. "I think it's been a little bit of a pleasant surprise," said Nichols after the Power's 2-1, 10-inning victory over Greensboro on Thursday night at Appalachian Power Park. "The guys have played well right from the start. "In general, the outfield, the infield and the pitching has been good, so that makes for a good start. "Last year we had a lot of first-time players in this league. This year we have some repeaters, so they know what to expect. I think they helped get us going." One of those repeating players, Michael Brantley, couldn't agree more with Nichols' assessment. "It's absolutely helped," said Brantley, who batted .300 in 108 games with the Power last season. "In the clubhouse, all the returning players are the captains. We're the voice of the team. "We're trying to help out the younger guys by getting them focused and prepared." So far this season, that extra experience has helped the Power win a lot of close games that in prior seasons would have been disappointing losses. Of West Virginia's eight wins, six have been by one-run, which has helped the Power stand on top of the South Atlantic League's Northern Division. Power starter Mike McClendon was outstanding in tossing five shutout innings on Thursday, before giving way to a trio of relievers. Submariner E.J. Shanks (2-0) earned the win by tossing 2 1/3 scoreless innings. The Power improved to 8-3 with the win, while Greensboro dropped to 8-5. "Our pitching staff has been great, we're playing good defense, and we've been getting some clutch hits," said Brantley. "That's what it takes to win one-run ballgames." Another thing helping the Power is the development of a never-say-die attitude. "We've got some scrappers on this team who never give up," said Nichols. "We've got some guys that are playing, I think maybe a little better than expected, but that's a good thing. "Hopefully they can continue to play that way on into their Major League careers." Aside from returning players like Brantley and fleet-footed centerfielder Darren Ford, the Power is also getting help from a few first-year surprises. "We've got a couple guys here, like Jimmy Mojica, that we just found," said Nichols of Mojica, a 2006 free agent signee. "One of our scouts watched him in Independent League play and thought he could help us. As it turns out, he was right. "I know it's early, but he's swinging the bat and playing good defense here." Mojica, currently batting .387 with a pair of homers and five RBI, scored the game-winning run from third Thursday on a fielder's choice by Stephen Chapman. Another player Nichols expects to see improve is ultra-talented shortstop Brent Brewer, a second-round pick in last year's amateur baseball draft. Brewer, a 19-year old from Tyrone, Ga., turned down a football scholarship to Florida State in order to pursue his baseball dream. "We're asking him to do an awful lot to step into this league, as young and as green as he is," said Nichols of Brewer. "But he's a special athlete that I think will make the adjustments early on. "He will advance and get better. I think he'll make a pretty good looking shortstop." Another possible addition to the Power pitching staff is 19-year old flame-thrower Jeremy Jeffress. Jeffress, a first-round pick last season, has lit up the radar gun at 102 miles per hour in Nichols' presence. "Jeremy obviously has a power arm," said Nichols. "He knows what he has to work on. He needs to work on throwing his breaking ball for strikes. "He'd have a hard time in this league right now, because everybody here can hit a fastball."

Standings through Thursday's action: Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 8 6 .571 - 5-2 3-4 W2 Nashville 8 6 .571 - 3-4 5-2 W2 Memphis 6 9 .400 2.5 5-3 1-6 L3 Omaha 6 9 .400 2.5 4-3 2-6 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Huntsville 6 6 .500 - 4-5 2-1 L1 Tennessee 6 6 .500 - 1-2 5-4 L1 Chattanooga 6 8 .429 1.0 4-5 2-3 W1 West Tenn 5 9 .357 2.0 1-3 4-6 L1 Carolina 4 10 .286 3.0 2-2 2-8 L2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daytona 8 6 .571 - 5-3 3-3 W1 Brevard County 7 6 .538 0.5 2-4 5-2 W2 Palm Beach 7 6 .538 0.5 3-5 4-1 L1 Jupiter 7 7 .500 1.0 2-3 5-4 L2 St. Lucie 6 7 .462 1.5 2-5 4-2 L5 Vero Beach 5 8 .385 2.5 3-3 2-5 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 8 3 .727 - 6-3 2-0 W6 Hickory 7 4 .636 1.0 2-3 5-1 W2 Greensboro 8 5 .615 1.0 6-2 2-3 L2 Lexington 7 7 .500 2.5 5-5 2-2 L2 Lakewood 5 5 .500 2.5 2-3 3-2 L1 Lake County 5 8 .385 4.0 2-2 3-6 L1 Hagerstown 5 9 .357 4.5 2-4 3-5 W1 Delmarva 4 8 .333 4.5 0-2 4-6 W1

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...amp;coll=1 No minor test case Katin tries to focus on playing as irregular drug test investigated Contact Mark McCarter at markcolumn@aol.com Huntsville Times You see my new glove?" asked Brendan Katin, managing a weary, self-effacing smile. Sitting on the steps of the Stars' dugout was a well-worn frying pan. Welcome to Baseball Humor 101. Twice in Wednesday morning's game, Katin missed fly balls in right field. Another time, on a sensational diving attempt, he caught the ball only to have it bounce from his glove. He already looked like he was using a flat hunk of metal instead of leather, so his teammates made it official and presented it to him on the bench. What an up-and-down week for Katin. On Monday, he was 0-for-7 and left the winning run on base in extra innings with a double-play ball. On Tuesday, he blasted a grand slam and totaled six RBIs to lead a Stars win. On Wednesday, he was 0-for-3, with the two errors. "It's a funny game," he said with a sigh. "I wish I was better at something else." On Sunday, it wasn't so funny. On Sunday, Brendan Katin's week turned into a surreal, nightmarish journey. He learned that his spring training drug test showed irregularities. A "high testosterone ratio," they call it. A red-flag for possible performance-enhancing drugs. Katin flatly denied using anything illegal. "I know I haven't done anything wrong," he said. "I don't even take protein vitamins." There are plausible reasons for the test result. It could have natural causes, he said. It could be a tainted sample. The test is being reviewed and he's been assured "a team of doctors is paying special attention to my case," he said. Dr. John Greco, the Huntsville orthopedist, said that "there are conditions that can cause relatively small increases or decreases" in the ratio and that "upper-level athletes in their prime have a much higher ratio than you and I." In rare cases, he said, there can be natural causes. On the other hand, he said any numbers "off the charts" could be evidence of juicing. Greco cautioned it was unfair to play judge-and-jury without knowing more about Katin's physical conditions and how high the ratio was compared to acceptable levels. Similar cases have involved Floyd Landis, the Tour de France winner, whose testosterone level was possibly raised by overzealous celebration, since alcohol can impact the test, and Australian swimmer Ian Thorpe, who is expected to be cleared any day after an investigation of the testing that revealed a high hormone level. Katin admitted he might have had a drink or two the night before his test. He also underwent surgery a month before, and residual medicine in his system could have also caused what he says is an anomaly. "He's trying to stay positive," said Steve Sollman, his roommate. "It's definitely a tough situation, especially when you've got a game to play. I truly believe he hasn't done anything wrong. "You look at him, he's the same size he was last year (235 pounds), the same size he was when he was at (University of) Miami." Indeed, Katin shows none of the traditional tell-tale swollen neck and face of steroid users, nor any mood swings (except for fluctuating performance at the plate). With an automatic first-time-offender 50-day suspension, "you'd have to be very, very, very stupid" to do anything illegal, he said. Major League Baseball, which administers the testing and has jurisdiction over minor leaguers in drug testing, initially suspended Katin. He appealed and was permitted to play. "Monday, I was thinking about it at the plate. I was thinking about it in the field," he said. That was the 0-for-7 night. Katin learned Tuesday he can play until the review is complete, with results expected in mid-May. "It was a relief, knowing I could play for a while," he said. That was the grand slam night. "It's tough, but I'll get through this. The truth will come out," he said. "I know what I have put in my body. I know a lot of people won't believe me, but the people who know me, they know I haven't done anything wrong." On Wednesday, Katin went from the fire to the frying pan. The heat, he knows, will remain.

At West Virginia, Power infielder Taylor Green was activated from the disabled list Thursday while outfielder/first baseman Andrew LeFave was placed on the DL with an undisclosed injury.

Nashville fans with the MiLB.TV subscription can watch this evening (also available on a per-game basis): web.minorleaguebaseball.c.../video.jsp

Follow Friday'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_orhaaa_1 Huntsville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Brevard County: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_pbcafa_1 West Virginia: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1