Jim Goulart

Final: Round Rock (Astros) 2, Nashville 1 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Tony Gwynn photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2013 Sounds Open Road Trip With 2-1 Loss ROUND ROCK, Texas ? The Nashville Sounds were held to a season-low four hits in a 2-1 defeat at the hands of the Round Rock Express on Wednesday evening at The Dell Diamond in the opener of a five-game series. With the defeat, Nashville (39-32) fell to 13-19 in road games this season and has suffered a loss in 10 of its last 12 contests away from Greer Stadium. The Sounds out-hit the Express in the game, 4-3, as the teams combined for only seven hits (four for extra bases). The host Express grabbed a 1-0 lead with a pair of doubles in the bottom of the fourth inning against Sounds starter Dana Eveland. With one out, Brooks Conrad reached second on a two-bagger to right and came around to score two batters later on Humberto Quintero?s RBI double. The two hits were the first allowed by the Nashville left-hander in the contest. Round Rock doubled the lead in the sixth with a two-out rally against Eveland. Conrad and Royce Huffman drew walks with two gone in the frame then each moved up a base on a Quintero single. Charlton Jimerson followed by drawing a bases-loaded walk to force in Conrad with the game?s second run and a 2-0 Express lead. Nashville finally jumped on the board in the eighth when Tony Gwynn led off with a triple against Round Rock reliever Mike Gallo then scored on Brent Abernathy?s groundout later in the inning to cut the lead to 2-1. AUDIO: Tony Gwynn's 8th-Inning Triple -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-21.wma The Sounds put the potential tying run on base in the top of the ninth when Mike Rivera singled with one out, but Round Rock closer and former Brewer farmhand Roberto Giron retired the final two batters to quell the rally. Sounds shortstop Zach Sorensen stole his first base of the year in the contest, becoming the 15th different Nashville player to record a theft this season. Express reliever David Lee (1-1) earned his first victory of the season with 3 1/3 scoreless innings of work behind spot starter Mark McLemore, who worked only 3 2/3 frames. Lee retired nine straight Sounds batters to open his outing. Giron came on to record the final five outs and pick up his sixth save of the campaign. Eveland (3-3) took his third consecutive loss in the contest after allowing two runs on three hits while walking four and striking out eight batters over 5 2/3 innings. Three Nashville relievers combined for 2 1/3 hitless frames after Eveland departed the game. The teams meet again on Thursday night at 7:05 p.m. Nashville right-hander Ben Hendrickson (4-2, 2.21) takes the hill to face Express right-hander Ezequiel Astacio (3-2, 4.66). Nashville Box Score: Nelson Cruz now 15-for-19 in SB attempts... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_rreaaa_1 Nashville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_rreaaa_1

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Coaches Chat with Manager Frank Kremblas: www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-21.wma

The re-shaping of the Huntsville and Brevard County rosters begins, now that the Manatees first-half is complete. Ryan Braun and Adam Heether switch places, Braun to AA, Heether to high-A. Infielder Ryan Crew gets bumped to Brevard County, infielder Guilder Rodriguez gets bumped to Huntsville -- these moves are a chain reaction result of the Chris Barnwell and Ozzie Chavez promotions noted earlier. Finally, Brevard RHP Yovani Gallardo joins LHP Steve Hammond on the Temporary Inactive List. Don't read too much into that, it's very likely both will be back within a week, and no, we don't know the circumstances for the Inactive placements, nor will we pursue info at this time.

We'll also note that 2005 9th round Texas high school infielder Carlos Hereaud, a native of Venezuela, is now into year two of visa-related problems, and remains on the Arizona restricted list.

Like our other team feature threads, this one kicks off for the baby Brewers in Maryvale, and we use that term in a nice way -- most are just so, so young. Season starts Friday, and like we did for Helena this week, we'll review their roster over the next day or two. Our first news item involves Harold Mejia, who saw a lot of action at shortstop as a 17-year-old last summer (he'll be 19 in late August.). This year, we've learned the Dominican prospect will be converted to pitcher (RHP). For the briefest of moments, Mejia brought comparisons of Alcides Escobar's start the year prior. In reality, Escobar has simply been an uber-prospect from the start when you consider Alcides' 17-year-old debut came in Helena, not Maryvale, and he's followed up with plus seasons in low-A at 18, and now high-A at 19, not to mention Escobar's Arizona Fall League stint at age 18 in 2005.

First time in Brewerfan history -- Helena home audio: Welcome aboard, Steve Wendt... www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

We really don't know why the web reports out of Brevard indicated that utility infielder Carlos de la Cruz would be transferred to Helena in a coaching capacity, but the Brewers confirm that he is there in a playing role. In other news regarding the H-Crew, catcher Bernie Dennis can't quite join the very-full catching brigade in Helena because he's on the Helena disabled list, as is RHP Omar Aguilar. The nature of each injury is unknown at this time. Dennis, soon to be 23, was signed as an undrafted free agent in February 2005, and hit .296 in 25 Arizona Brewer games last summer. Aguilar's signing after being drafted in the 30th round out of a California junior college was cited as quite the steal by Baseball America, yet we still await his first official pitch with the organization. He turned 21 years old in March.

Down in Brevard County, C / 1B Carlos Corporan has been activated from the Manatee disabled list. We never did learn the nature of his injury, but he was only out briefly. To make room, LHP Steve Hammond was placed on the Temporary Inactive List. Definition from MiLB.com: Temporarily Inactive List: A player with an excused absence to perform personal obligations is placed on this list. The player must be on the Temporarily Inactive List for a minimum of three days before the player can be reinstated to the Active List. A player on the Temporarily Inactive List does not count against a Club's Active List limits, but does count against its Reserve List limits.

Final: Mobile (Padres) 15, Huntsville 0 BayBears went for two after the first touchdown... Huntsville Site Game Summary: Link, text follows -- Mobile Turns Tables and Blanks Stars Roger Deago, Ryan Trytten and Paul Abraham combined on a two-hit shutout, as Mobile bounced back from being blanked last night to hand Huntsville its worst loss of the season, 15-0, Wednesday afternoon in the third of a five-game set at Hank Aaron Stadium. The BayBears have taken two of the three games to start the second half, while the Stars have now lost 13 of their last 17 games on the road. Michael Johnson got the scoring started with a first inning home run off of starter Travis Phelps, his seventh with Mobile. Johnson broke up Tim Dillard?s no-hit bid Tuesday night with a leadoff single in the eighth inning and has five hits in the series. Deago started a five-run third inning rally with a walk, as each of the first five batters reached base and scored. Vincent Sinisi doubled in two runs and Stephen Smitherman doubled home a run to highlight the inning. Phelps was taken out after a walk to Luis Cruz and did not retire any of the six batters he faced in the frame. He was charged with the loss after allowing six runs on five hits and two walks in two innings-plus worth of work. Russ Rohlicek tossed three scoreless innings in relief before Matt Smith gave up four unearned runs in the sixth inning. Chris O?Riordan knocked in a run with an infield singled and Drew Macias doubled in three with his first hit of the series. Matt Yeatman took over for Smith in the seventh and gave up an unearned run before allowing four in the eighth, on a solo home run by Smitherman and a three-run long ball by Matt Lauderdale, marking the third time this year the Stars have allowed two home runs in an inning and the first time they have yielded three round-trippers in a game. Deago did not yield a hit until Drew Anderson doubled with two outs in the fifth inning. The only other Huntsville hit was a two-out double by Adam Heether in the seventh. The Mobile southpaw matched a season-high with seven strikeouts, walked two and won for the first time at home since April 26. The two hits for Huntsville matched a season-low established on April 8 at Mississippi and the Stars were blanked for an eleventh time on the season. Huntsville has been held to one run or less in 24 of the 72 games played this season and has one run batted in by a position player in the first three games of the second half. The series continues Thursday night with southpaw Jeff Housman getting the starting assignment for the Stars against BayBears right-hander John Hudgins. Coverage of the game begins at 7:00 p.m. central time and can be heard on ESPN Radio 1450 AM locally and via the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville Box Score: Mobile reliever Ryan Trytten was released by the Brewers in August 2003 while with Beloit -- he went the independent ball route and landed with the Padre organization a couple of years ago; the Travis Phelps resurrection project hasn't gone that well... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1 Huntsville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1

Nashville Media Notes: CHAVEZ, WINKELSAS ADDED TO ROSTER; KERSHNER RELEASED Shortstop Ozzie Chavez joins the Sounds today to replace Chris Barnwell, whose contract was purchased by Milwaukee yesterday. The 22-year-old has spent the entire season with Double-A Huntsville, where he batted .254 (59-for-232) with nine doubles, three triples, one home run, and 21 RBIs in 68 games. Another addition is right-hander Joe Winkelsas, who joins Nashville for the second time this season. The 32-year-old, who earned a victory in his lone Sounds appearance on May 6 vs. New Orleans, was outrighted by Milwaukee yesterday after posting an 0-1 record and 7.71 ERA (6 ER / 7.0 IP) in seven relief outings for the Brew Crew. To make room for Winkelsas on the Nashville roster, left-hander Jason Kershner was released today by the Brewers. The southpaw had posted a 3-2 record, two saves, and a 3.48 ERA (13 ER / 33.2 IP) in 23 relief appearances for the Sounds.

If you click on "Video feature" here, you can skip to the 2:30 mark and see a brief highlight and interview with Mat Gamel. www.minorleaguebaseball.c...;fext=.jsp

Standings through Tuesday's action: West Virginia standings are final for the first half, actually 0-0 now... Pacific Coast League (AAA) - American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [b]Nashville 39 31 .557 - 26-13 13-18 L1[/b] Iowa 32 38 .457 7.0 17-17 15-21 L1 Omaha 28 43 .394 11.5 16-19 12-24 W1 Memphis 26 44 .371 13.0 14-22 12-22 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Carolina 1 1 .500 - 0-0 1-1 L1 Chattanooga 1 1 .500 - 1-1 0-0 W1 [b]Huntsville 1 1 .500 - 0-0 1-1 W1[/b] Tennessee 1 1 .500 - 0-0 1-1 W1 West Tenn 1 1 .500 - 1-1 0-0 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Lucie 39 30 .565 - 21-15 18-15 W1 Palm Beach 38 31 .551 1.0 21-15 17-16 W1 [b]Brevard County 35 30 .538 2.0 18-15 17-15 L1[/b] Daytona 35 34 .507 4.0 20-12 15-22 L1 Jupiter 30 38 .441 8.5 13-19 17-19 W1 Vero Beach 26 41 .388 12.0 16-18 10-23 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lexington 44 25 .638 - 24-12 20-13 W2 [b]West Virginia 39 30 .565 5.0 21-13 18-17 L1[/b] Delmarva 37 31 .544 6.5 19-17 18-14 L2 Lakewood 37 32 .536 7.0 20-14 17-18 W1 Greensboro 36 34 .514 8.5 22-13 14-21 L2 Hickory 33 36 .478 11.0 18-15 15-21 W1 Lake County 29 41 .414 15.5 14-22 15-19 L1 Hagerstown 28 42 .400 16.5 16-16 12-26 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pioneer League (R+) - North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Billings 1 0 1.000 - 1-0 0-0 W1 [b]Helena 1 0 1.000 - 1-0 0-0 W1[/b] Great Falls 0 1 .000 1.0 0-0 0-1 L1 Missoula 0 1 .000 1.0 0-0 0-1 L1

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds and/or Huntsville Stars are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated an hour or two prior to gametime: Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format): www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf Following Nashville's lead, Huntsville now makes its media notes available as well, nice: www.huntsvillestars.com/i...eNotes.pdf

Follow Wednesday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Activate the Nashville Gameday. For the other links, 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. It's sweet! Nashville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_rreaaa_1 Huntsville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1 Brevard County: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_1 Helena: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_helrok_1

Wednesday's Daily Menu: All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: LHP Dana Eveland at Round Rock (Astros), 6:45 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: RHP Travis Phelps at Mobile (Padres), 11:20 AM pre-game, 11:35 gametime Audio link: www.espn1450.com/ Brevard County: RHP Yovani Gallardo at home vs. St. Lucie (Mets), 6:00 PM -- too bad the first-half finale doesn't have more meaning; not available via audio, sorry West Virginia: Idle Helena: RHP Mike McClendon at home vs. Missoula (Diamondbacks), 8:05 PM; we should know prior to gametime whether Helena audio will be available; also, the normally reliable Missoula link was of no use last night as well -- we'll let you know what's up later...

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Mat Gamel Shines in Home Run Derby as well: Link, text follows -- www.minorleaguebaseball.c...;fext=.jsp Legends catcher edges Gamel in final round EASTLAKE, Ohio -- For the first and last rounds, the South Atlantic League Home Run Derby resembled nothing so much as a pitchers' duel. Two hitters qualified for the second round with one home run apiece, and the event was won with two. Lexington Legends catcher J.R. Towles, who had been suspended by the team briefly earlier this month, won the Derby with two homers in the third and final round. But it was the second round that caught the attention of the crowd at Classic Park. Mat Gamel of the West Virginia Power, who advanced past the first round with only two homers, wowed the crowd with 15 second-round blasts. A left-handed hitter, Gamel sent several moonshots over the right field fence, even cleraing an auxiliary building that was 20 or 30 feet beyond the fence. He struck that building several times. But while Gamel hit more homers in that one round than Towles hit during the entire competition, Towles outhomered him, 2-1, in the final round. And with each hitter entering the round with a blank slate, that was all that mattered. Gamel hit first in the last round. When it was Towles' turn, he took his time and let the tension build before striking the derby-winning blow; he didn't hit his second homer of the round until he was one swing away from a tiebreaker. "I definitely prefer being second," Towles said. "That way, you know what you have to beat. When I got down to two outs, I was worried we'd have a tie." His next-to-last swing produced a deep fly ball that died on the warning track. His All-Star teammates, cheering on the Derby participants, rose to their feet when the ball was hit. They sat back down in disappointment after a local high school player caught it at the wall. "I caught it off the end of the bat, but everyone cheered, so I thought I got it," Towles said. There was no doubt about the next swing. Towles' homer ended up deep in the left field bleachers. Towles has eight home runs this season, but did not homer even once during his high school career. "I don't have a lot of power," Towles joked. On this day, he had enough. MiLB.com Game Story: Includes this text -- While pitching truly ruled the day, it was West Virginia third baseman Mat Gamel, the runner-up in the pre-game home run derby, who took home MVP honors. He doubled and scored in the fourth and drove in the North's final run with a single in the eighth. "Anytime you can contribute, it's a plus," said Gamel, the only player to collect multiple hits, "even though this game wasn't of the utmost importance." www.minorleaguebaseball.c...;fext=.jsp All-Star Game Box Score: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_sanafx_1 All-Star Game Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_sanafx_1 West Virginia's Mat Gamel contributed two hits, an RBI and two runs scored. (Photo by John M. Setzler Jr./MLB.com) http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2006/06/20/52n8LfHv.jpg

Charleston Gazette: Power?s Gamel shines in Sally All-Star win EASTLAKE, Ohio ? West Virginia Power players figured prominently in the North?s 4-0 victory against the South in Tuesday night?s 47th annual South Atlantic League All-Star Game. A paid crowd of 7,017 attended at Classic Park, home of the Lake County Captains of the Northern Division. Power third baseman Mat Gamel went 2-for-4 with a double and RBI while right fielder Lorenzo Cain drove in a run despite going hitless in two at-bats for the North. Gamel, who also scored a pair of runs, was the only player for the North with multiple hits. The Power?s other North All-Star, catcher Angel Salome, went 0-for-1. Cain struck the first blow for the North in the bottom of the first inning with a run-scoring groundout for a 1-0 lead. In the fourth, Gamel led off with a double and scored on Mark Ori?s sacrifice fly for a 2-0 advantage. Gamel gave the North some breathing room in the eighth with a one-out, run-producing single for a 3-0 edge. Gamel came around on a groundout by Steve Lerud of Hickory for the final run. Nine North pitchers combined on a three-hitter with reliever Aaron Thompson of Greensboro picking up the win with an inning of perfect ball and two strikeouts. North hurlers stranded five baserunners, including three left in scoring position with two outs. The North also turned two double plays. South starter Jo Jo Reyes of Rome took the loss, allowing an unearned run and one hit in two innings with four punchouts and no walks. Only two of the North?s runs were earned as the South committed a pair of errors. The South Atlantic League is off again today for the all-star break. The Power, which finished the first half in second place in the Northern Division, begins the second half with a four-game homestand against the Kannapolis (N.C.) Intimidators. The Power and Intimidators, who finished the first half in last place in the Southern Division, will square off at 7:05 p.m. Thursday (6:05 Central).

Link while active, text follows: www.helenair.com/articles...106_03.txt Brewers win opener By TOM COTTON - Helena Independent Record Sports Editor For the fourth consecutive year, the Brewers won their season opener, downing the Missoula Osprey 4-2 in front of 1,280 fans at Kindrick-Legion Field. This contest proved to be a little closer than last season?s season opener ? a 16-3 win by the Brewers over the Osprey ? as Helena rallied to take the lead in the fifth when they pushed three runs across. Missoula broke open a 1-1 game in the fourth with an RBI single by Ricardo Cruz. However, that advantage would last until the bottom of the fifth inning. Missoula starter Jordan Norberto had retired 11 straight batters until Fredy De La Cruz stepped to the plate. De La Cruz, who hit five home runs in the Arizona League last season, launched a majestic solo shot over the left-field fence. That would tie the game at two and the Brewers would take the lead for good four batters later. Chris Errecart smacked a ball that rattled around in the left-field corner of Kindrick Legion Field. The shot drove home Stephen Chapman, who had reached thanks to a walk, and Taylor Green. Missoula manager Hector De la Cruz, however, took issue with Green?s run saying the hit went into the ?dead-ball? area of the stadium behind the Osprey clubhouse. De La Cruz argued that Green should have been sent back to third on the play. Home plate umpire Anthony Johnson, however, let the two runs stand and the Brewers led 4-2. ?That was a big two-out hit by Errecart,? said Helena manager Ed Sedar. ?That is the kind of team we have to be, getting big two-out hits and we have enough players in our lineup to do that.? Helena?s three run outburst in the fifth, however, was the majority of the offensive fireworks of the game. Both pitching staffs showed midseason form in the season opener. Helena?s pitchers struck out nine Missoula batters and gave up just one extra-base hit. Missoula?s were nearly as sharp as Helena was able to string together only six hits in the game. Brewer right hander Roque Mercedes got the win in the contest, yielding two earned runs and striking out four. Helena pitching coach Mark Littell said Mercedes did a good job keeping the ball down in the strike zone and changing speeds. The Brewers utilized three relief pitchers during the contest. Steve Palazzolo and Brandon Parillo gave up two hits in three innings and Chris Toneguzzi notched his first professional save. Toneguzzi, a 13th-round draft pick from Purdue, worked his way out of a jam in the ninth. With runners on first and second with two outs, he struck out Matt Oxendine to end the game. ?It was a learning lesson for him (Toneguzzi) in how to mix in the breaking ball,? Littell said. The two teams will meet again today at 7:05 PM (8:05 Central) with Mike McClendon scheduled to start for Helena and Anthony Barnette set to go for Missoula. Jon Ebelt Helena Independent Record Staff Photographer - Missoula?s Matthew Oxendine, right, is called out at second base as Helena?s Brad Miller holds up the ball after making the tag during the Brewers? home opener Tuesday. http://www.helenair.com/content/articles/2006/06/21/sports_top/b01062106_03.jpg

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/mobiler...amp;coll=3 Dillard throws 3-hit shutout By NEAL McCREADY Mobile Register Sports Reporter Tim Dillard's bid for a no-hitter was broken up by Mobile first baseman Michael Johnson in the eighth inning Tuesday night at Hank Aaron Stadium, but the BayBears never truly solved Huntsville's big right-hander. Dillard (5-4) went the distance for Huntsville, giving up three hits in the eighth inning but very little else in the Stars' 3-0 win in front of an announced crowd of 2,412. "I wasn't really thinking about (a no-hitter)," said Dillard, who walked just one BayBear while striking out seven. "I was just thinking, 'If we hold them to less than three runs, we win the game.' Nobody really said anything. They talked about it after the eighth inning, when I gave up three hits. They were encouraging. They didn't really talk about that. I talked to them because the defense was incredible tonight." After Johnson's single to lead off the eighth, Luis Cruz and Drew Macias flew out. Brett Dowdy followed with a two-out single to center field and Stephen Smitherman added a pinch-hit infield single to load the bases. But Dillard struck out Mobile shortstop Juan Ciriaco to end the threat, then retired the BayBears in order in the ninth. "In a situation like that where you're down two or three runs late, you just try to get the tying and winning runs to the plate and we did," Mobile manager Gary Jones said. "He just came back and made a nice 2-2 pitch to Ciriaco out and away. You have to give him credit." Dillard's father, Steve Dillard, played college baseball at Ole Miss before spending his major league career with the Boston Red Sox, Detroit Tigers, Chicago Cubs and Chicago White Sox. Dillard, a 6-foot-4, 213-pounder from Saltillo, Miss., signed with Ole Miss after two standout seasons at Itawamba (Miss.) Community College but never made it to Oxford. Instead, he signed with Milwaukee and has spent the past three seasons working his way through the Brewers' farm system. "It wouldn't have been so much about baseball (at Ole Miss)," Dillard said. "It would have been about education. I don't really regret it because I like where I am right now, but at the same time I'd like to have a degree. That would be nice." Dillard, 22, entered Tuesday's game with a 3.67 ERA and opponents were hitting .279 against him. The BayBears, however, couldn't figure him out. "I like to get first-pitch strikes," Dillard said. "I like to get them to swing the bat because I know I have a great defense behind me and they proved it (Tuesday). They prove it night after night. I know they can play. I just let them hit it, just not a great pitch. I want them to get it off the handle of the bat and we'll make plays." "He threw a sinker, and he was just running the ball in on right-handers and jamming them," Jones said. "He threw the change-up on left-handers early. He did a nice job." Huntsville got Dillard all the offensive support he needed in the first inning when the Stars spoiled Mike Ekstrom's Double-A debut with two quick unearned runs. Callix Crabbe and Steve Moss led off with back-to-back singles and then advanced a base each on Drew Anderson's sacrifice bunt. Ekstrom rallied to strike out Brad Nelson, and then got Lou Palmisano to hit a ground ball to BayBears shortstop Ciriaco. However, Ciriaco's throw was too low for Johnson to dig out of the dirt, and both Crabbe and Moss scored. Dillard gave himself some insurance in the fifth when he doubled down the right-field line with two outs and scored on Moss' single to left field after Crabbe drew a walk. The BayBears and Stars meet again this morning at 11:35. Mobile will send left-hander Roger Deago (5-3) to the mound opposite Huntsville right-hander Travis Phelps (1-4).

Diehards will remember that when the Brewers first drafted Tim Dillard in 2001 in the 15th round, it was as a catcher (pg. 217, Brewers' 2002 media guide), and then again in 2002's draft as a catcher, 34th round - pg. 221, Brewers' 2003 media guide). He was converted to full-time pitcher at extended spring training in 2003. So if he was really fast, he could be his own battery-mate.

Final: Helena 4, Missoula (Diamondbacks) 2 Helena Box Score: Eight groundball outs in five effective innings for 19-year-old Roque Mercedes; nice work out of the pen, but it was tight in the 7th, 8th, and 9th with men on base and in scoring position; 20-year-old Fredy de la Cruz was 5th in the Arizona League last summer with five HR's, hit # 1 tonight... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_helrok_1 Helena Game Log: Stephen Chapman with a first inning triple; Chris Errecart's two-out, two-run double in the 5th the key hit of the game... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_helrok_1

Final: St. Lucie (Mets) 2, Brevard County 0 Brevard County Site Game Summary: Devaney divine for St. Lucie Mike Devaney took a no-hitter into the eighth inning and tossed a complete-game shutout as St. Lucie blanked Brevard County, 2-0, on Tuesday. Devaney lost the no-hitter with one out in the eighth when Hernan Iribarren grounded a 2-0 two-seam fastball into left field for a single. "It was a 2-0 count, so he got a good pitch to hit," the right-hander said. "The last thing I wanted to do there was walk him." The 23-year-old allowed two hits, struck out 10 and walked two to extend his scoreless streak to 25 innings. Devaney says his success goes back to Saturday's All-Star Game when he struck out two in a 1-2-3 inning for the East team. "The one inning I threw at the All-Star Game felt really good and it just carried over into tonight," Devaney said. "I knew after the first inning I had good stuff." Devaney attributed a lot of the success during his scoreless streak to a changeup he developed, but went away from it on Tuesday. "My curve was working so well I just wanted to stay with what was working," he said. "It had a really good bite to it." St. Lucie's Caleb Stewart snapped a scoreless tie in the bottom of the fifth with his first home run of the season. "That really took the pressure off me," Devaney said as he helped the Mets (39-30) stop their six-game losing streak. Devaney, who lowered his ERA to 1.61, said the insurance run the Mets added in the sixth on Enrique Cruz's RBI single "was even bigger, it allowed me to throw strikes. I could give up a solo home run and we would still have the lead." This is not the first time the 23-year-old flirted with a no-no. In his sophomore year at Concordia College in Oregon, he tossed a no-hitter against the University of British Columbia and its pitcher that night, Colorado Rockies starter Jeff Francis. That experience kept him relaxed during the fifth when he realized he had a chance to make history. "I tried not to think about it, but it is difficult to ignore it," Devaney said. "I just tried to stay relaxed and focused and continue doing what I was doing the inning before." Steve Hammond (6-5) took the loss, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out four and walked one over 5 2/3 innings for Brevard County (35-30). Luis Pena kept the Manatees in the game with 2 1/3 hitless innings. -- Chip Haunss/MLB.com Brevard County Box Score: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_sluafa_1 Brevard County Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_sluafa_1

Final: Huntsville 3, Mobile (Padres) 0 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Link for Tim Dillard photo, text follows: www.huntsvillestars.com/n...newsId=885 Dillard Deals Stars a Shutout Victory Tim Dillard threw no-hit baseball for seven innings and tossed a complete-game, three-hit shutout, as Huntsville ended a four-game losing streak with a 3-0 win over Mobile Tuesday night in the second of a five-game set at Hank Aaron Stadium. The Stars squared their second half record at 1-1 and finished off their fourth shutout win of the season, while the BayBears dipped to 1-1 in the second half and 28-43 overall. The Stars won for only the fourth time in their last 16 games away from home and for just the second time when scoring less than four runs, with both of those wins over the BayBears. Dillard retired the first 10 batters he faced before walking Vincent Sinisi with one out in the fourth inning. He then set down the next 11 hitters in a row and faced only one over the minimum through seven frames. Michael Johnson broke up the no-hit bid with a line drive single to center field on the first pitch of the eighth inning, his fourth hit of the series. Brett Dowdy singled to center with two outs and pinch-hitter Stephen Smitherman singled off the glove of a diving third baseman Adam Heether to load the bases before Dillard retired Juan Ciriaco on a called third strike to end the home team?s only scoring threat of the night. The right-hander fanned Sinisi and George Kottaras to open the ninth before getting Joey Gomes to ground out to end the game and finish off the Stars second individual nine-inning, complete-game shutout of the season. Dillard matched a season-high with seven strikeouts to earn his fifth win of the season and fourth on the road. He has tossed 16 consecutive scoreless innings over his last two starts and has held Mobile to one run in 14 frames in two meetings. Callix Crabbe and Steve Moss led off the game with singles and advanced on a sacrifice bunt by Drew Anderson before Brad Nelson struck out for the second out of the inning. Lou Palmisano hit a ground ball to the shortstop Ciriaco, who made a one-hop throw past Johnson at first base that allowed both runners to score to give the Stars a 2-0 lead against Mike Ekstrom, making his double-A debut. Dillard doubled with two outs in the fifth, stayed when Crabbe walked and scored on a base hit by Steve Moss, who knocked in his 15th run. Dillard is 7-for-20 as a batter with two doubles, a home run and five batted in. Ekstrom allowed three runs, only one earned, on five hits with one walk and four strikeouts and was followed by Geoff Jones and Bubba Nelson, who combined to toss three innings of scoreless relief. The series continues Wednesday morning with right-hander Travis Phelps getting the starting assignment for the Stars against BayBears left-hander Roger Deago. Coverage of the game begins at 11:20 a.m. central time and can be heard on ESPN Radio 1450 AM locally and via the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville Box Score: Scoring one earned run hardly an offensive explosion, but the Stars will take it for a win... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1 Huntsville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1 Pretty cool how the ball seems to be floating in this additional Tim Dillard photo, courtesy of PonderPhoto.com via the Stars' site: http://www.huntsvillestars.com/images/news/dillardt.JPG

Already discussed on the Major League Forum, but I'd be remiss in not congratulating Chris Barnwell on his promotion to Milwaukee. We've linked to and read several stories over the years about Chris' professionalism and work ethic. Nice work, kid (27 is a kid to me). Chris went 0-for-2 in his big league debut tonight. Nashville Press Release: Link, text follows: www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2011 http://www.nashvillesounds.com/images/news/barnwell.jpg Nashville Sounds shortstop Chris Barnwell had his contract purchased by the Milwaukee Brewers this afternoon and will be in uniform for the club tonight at Miller Park for an interleague game against the Detroit Tigers. The 27-year-old, who is playing his sixth professional season after being drafted by Milwaukee in the 25th round in 2001, will make his Major League debut with his first appearance with the Brewers. Barnwell has appeared in 616 minor-league games over his six-year professional career. To make room on the 25-man roster, the Brewers outrighted former Sounds reliever Joe Winkelsas back to Nashville. The right-hander went 0-1 with a 7.71 ERA (6 ER / 7.0 IP) in seven relief outings for Milwaukee but had not appeared since June 9, when he took his loss after allowing three runs in one inning of work against St. Louis. Winkelsas is expected to join the Sounds on their current road trip in Round Rock, Texas. Barnwell currently leads Nashville and ranks 8th among Pacific Coast League batters with his .326 average (75-for-230) in 66 games for the Sounds this season. He ranks second among Sounds hitters with 19 multiple-hit games on the year and has accumulated 16 doubles, one triple, three home runs, 26 RBIs, and nine stolen bases in 12 attempts. All of Barnwell?s appearances have been starts at shortstop, where he holds a .974 fielding percentage (eight errors in a PCL-leading 312 total chances). He has participated in 47 double plays to lead all circuit shortstops. Barnwell has logged three double-digit hit streaks this season (12 games, 11 games, 10 games) and reached base safely in 29 straight games from April 12 to May 14, the longest on-base streak by a PCL player this season (.421 on-base pct. over that stretch). With his promotion, he becomes the ninth non-rehab player to join Milwaukee from Nashville?s roster this season but only the second position player (Corey Hart). In another transaction announced earlier Tuesday, the Brewers activated right-hander Rick Helling from the 60-day disabled list and designated former Sound Allan Simpson for assignment. Simpson, who co-leads Nashville with five saves this season, made two appearances for Milwaukee and posted no decisions and a 3.38 ERA (1ER / 2.2 IP). The Brewers have 10 days to trade, release, or outright assign Simpson to the minor leagues.