battlekow

Wow! Lawrie just crushed a doubled off Trevor Reckling. That was a shot.

They just showed Rickie Weeks in the stands watching his brother Jemile play.

Escobar just made a really nice play on a wind-blown popup.

Baseball America's John Manuel: ...and J.J. Cooper:

Keith Law: "5:30 start time, 7 inning game, no inning to start after 7:30."

Brett Lawrie's video interview with Jonathan Mayo.

I meant to say that too...but the beer, it does something.

Escobar is leading off for the World team.

Forgot to post this yesterday, but Scarpetta was 10th on yesterday's Hot Sheet:

Blaine duo reunited in Brewers' minor league system David Rasbach It may be too soon to start setting up the orange and black athletic pipeline from Blaine to Milwaukee, but just wait a couple of years. By then - if all goes as Borderites faithful would like - no fewer than three of their native sons could be rubbing elbows with the likes of "Laverne and Shirley" in Wisconsin. Not bad for the tiny town on the U.S.-Canada border with a population of only 4,700. http://ad.doubleclick.net/ad/mi.tbh00/Sports;dcove=d;pl=story;lvl6=SportsNews;loc=ats;pos=MREC01;sz=300x250;tile=4;ord=123456789? Luke Ridnour is already in the Brew City. The former Blaine basketball great, who led the Borderites to back-to-back state championships in 1999 and 2000, just completed his first NBA season with the Milwaukee Bucks after playing his first five closer to home with the Seattle SuperSonics. And two others are on their way. Former Blaine baseball teammates Joey Paciorek and Kyle Dhanani have been reunited in the Milwaukee Brewers' minor league baseball system. The duo already is playing together again with the Helena Brewers in the rookie-level Pioneer League. "It was kind of weird looking up to see him taking groundballs across the infield from me again," Paciorek said in a phone interview. "It was kind of like a blast from the past." Paciorek and Dhanani played in the same varsity infield for two years at Blaine High and together at various levels in the youth baseball ranks while growing up. In 2005 they helped the Borderites to a third-place finish in the Class 2A state tournament - matching the program's best finish since winning the 1990 state championship. "We had some great times playing together back in Blaine," said Dhanani, who graduated from Blaine after that 2005 season, two years before Paciorek. While Dhanani chose to continue his baseball career at Thompson Rivers University in British Columbia, Paciorek was selected out of high school by Milwaukee in the 15th round of the 2007 draft. Paciorek spent his first professional season with the Arizona League Brewers, hitting .281 with 13 RBI and two homers in 40 games. He also ranked fourth in the league with his .416 on-base percentage. But last year, rather than taking a step forward and advancing up the ladder, the Brewers returned Paciorek to the Arizona heat for another year of extended spring training and a second season in the Arizona League. "It was a grind, just like everywhere else," Paciorek said of his experience in Arizona. "But the heat definitely makes it a little tougher than most places." So do the morning practice sessions before each game, which is played under the blazing Arizona afternoon sun. Paciorek struggled at the plate in his second season, as his batting average dipped to .165 and his RBI to only three in approximately the same number of games and at-bats he saw in 2007. "It's tough in that Arizona league," said Brandon Newell, who scouted both Paciorek and Dhanani for the Brewers. "It's really tough on those guys to do all those intensive drills in the morning and then play a game in the afternoon. Now that Joey has moved up to Helena, he'll get a little more normal season. He's be showing up for evening games most of the time, and for a lot of these guys that's a whole lot easier mentally. "Plus Joey struggled through some injuries in his first couple of years. Now he's finally healthy and he's comfortable with the instruction he's gotten the last couple of years. Hopefully that will be exactly what he needs to have a breakout season." Dhanani is hoping for the same after he got to skip the Arizona League and go directly to the Pioneer League after the Brewers selected him in the 43rd round of last month's draft. Newell said he feels Dhanani has the ability to handle that jump. "I've know Kyle since he was very young," Newell said in a phone interview. "The biggest thing for Kyle is he has finally reached the physical maturity level that will allow him to do some of the things he's always wanted to do. He has always been a very good baseball player, but it took him a while to get strong enough to do everything he wanted to do. He's worked hard to get stronger, and he got some great experience at Thompson Rivers, and I think he is ready for this level." Dhanani helped the Wolfpack to the Canadian collegiate national championships in 2007 and 2009. He was also selected a Canadian College Baseball Conference all-star this past spring. "College was a great experience, but it has definitely been a learning experience for me since I arrived here," Dhanani said in a phone interview. "It's more challenging hitting here than in the league I played in Canada. I'm still trying to find my hitting touch." In 11 games with Helena so far this season, Dhanani is hitting .156 (5 for 32) with six RBI, two doubles and two stolen bases entering play on Friday, July 10. But at least his adjustment to the Brewers system has been aided by having a friend and former teammate who already has two years of experience playing pro ball. "It's been really nice having Joey around," Dhanani said. "He called me up right after I got drafted, and he's told me some of the guys in the system to get to know and which ones to watch out for. He was really excited to have me join the organization, and he's been a big help to me." Though they don't live together, their host families are close, and Dhanani and Paciorek often share rides to the ballpark together or go out to see a movie when they need a break from the game. "It feels more like home to have somebody here that I already know," said Paciorek, who is hitting .250 (9 for 36) with a homer, four RBI and three stolen bases in 11 games so far this season entering play Friday. "We both come from the same small town, and it's great to have somebody here rooting for me to succeed, the same way I'm rooting for him to succeed." Even though they're both infielders and even trade positions in some games, Newell said he sees Paciorek becoming more of a corner infielder, while Dhanani will focus on becoming a middle infielder. "They're both great athletes," Newell said. "That's what immediately draws you to both of them. They both have some very good flexibility in their defensive games, and that's nice to have from a manager's perspective." So there's no reason they couldn't progress up the Brewers' system together, if all goes right. Who knows? They might even some day join Ridnour in Milwaukee playing at the top professional level of their sport. "There are two things those three guys all share," Newell said. "It's athleticism and the desire for success. If you have those two things, people will find you. It is a pretty big coincidence that all three of those guys come from a small town like Blaine. But that desire to compete at a high level intertwines among all three of them. All three of those guys have an innate ability to step up their game when they play better competition. I see no reason they all can't make it."

Presumably that was before they gave him what he asked for and he rejected it, right?

John Sickels scouts the Timber Rattlers.

I thought that too, but I asked Keith Law and he said that we'd get #39A next year if we failed to sign Davis.

Wow, Nick Bucci.

Keith Law:

Gamel's been on the MLB roster for more than 45 days, so he's lost his rookie/prospect eligibility.

Baseball America updated their top prospects list and ranked Escobar #14, up from #19 preseason.

Scarpetta in today's MLU from BP:

Brewers blasted in 10th Curt Synness Idaho Falls shortstop Deivy Batista blasted a pair of home runs and drove in six to lead the Chukars to a come-from-behind 9-5 win over the Helena Brewers in 10 innings Wednesday. The two teams ended regulation play at Kindrick Legion Field tied at 5-all. In the top of the 10th inning, Idaho Falls loaded the bases with none out, and then went up by one on a sacrifice fly by Angel Franco. Next Batista drove a three-run homer over the left-field fence to put the Chukars on top by four markers. Chukars reliever Ryan Morgan then secured the win for the visitors in the bottom of the inning. The Brewers jumped out to a 5-0 lead after three innings. They scored two runs in the first, on a ringing triple to right-centerfield by Scott Krieger, scoring Mike Brownstein, and an RBI ground out by John Ellington. A critical play occurred when Helena's Josh Prince was picked off at second base by pitcher Santiago Garrido, prior to Krieger's three-bagger. The lost run would come back to haunt the home team. The Brewers later had another runner picked off at second, this time by the catcher, and a third runner thrown out attempting to steal. The hosts' Chris Ellington powered a three-run homer over the left field fence in the third, plating Prince and Krieger. It was Ellington's sixth home run of the season. Idaho Falls got back into the contest, when they tallied two runs in the fourth and then knotted it up in the fifth frame, on Batista's three-run blast. Brewers' right fielder Krieger helped keep his squad in the game, when he threw out Batista attempting to score in the seventh. The Chukars' Patrick Keating relieved starter Garrido in the sixth, with Morgan hurling the final two stanzas to register the win. Hiram Burgos started on the hill for Helena and went five innings, before giving way to Kristian Bueno. Jon Pokorny and Robert Currie pitched the final four innings. Currie was tabbed with the loss. Batista and J.D. Alfaro finished with three hits apiece for the Idaho club. Helena's Prince and Krieger rapped two base knocks each, while Ellington drove in four runs, bringing his league-leading total to 20 RBIs. Prince stole his 18th base of the year (in just 15 games), tops in the Pioneer league. The Brewers fall to 8-7, and are one game behind Northern Division leaders Great Falls and Missoula, which are both 9-6. Idaho Falls is 10-3 and leads the Southern Division. The two teams play the third of a four game series tonight at Kindrick Field, beginning at 7 p.m. http://www.helenair.com/content/articles/2009/07/09/sports/top/50spl_090709_brewers.jpg Helena Brewers' Edgar Trejo reaches for first base while Idaho Falls' Tito Espinosa attempts the tag on a pick-off- attempt during Wednesday's game at Kindrick Legion Field. (Lisa Kunkel Independent Record)

DSL Orioles/Brewers 6, DSL Cubs 3 DSL O's/Brewers box score Jhonatan Javier was 1-3 with a triple and actually caught for once. Joan Abreu went 0-3 with a strikeout. No Andres Martinez, Juan Barrini, or Luis Chirinos. Eliezer Montano and Edwin Linares both pitched well. DSL O's/Brewers play-by-play Javier was picked off third in the 6th.

Idaho Falls Chukars 9, Helena Brewers 5 Helena box score The game was tied 5-5 after nine, but Rob Currie allowed four runs in his second inning of work to give the Chukars the ten-inning win. Josh Prince keeps getting on base, going 2-4 with a walk, and keeps being a little reckless when on base, stealing a bag but also getting picked off (while on second, no less). Scott Krieger and Chris Ellington continue to be a powerful 3-4 combination with a triple and home run, respectively. In contrast, Cutter Dykstra continues to not do much of anything, on the surface anyway, drawing a walk but going 0-3 otherwise and committing his 8th (!) error. I can't defend the fielding, but coming into today he was wielding a .115 BABIP in his nine games, having gotten only one hit on his 17 grounders so far, and his 8/6 BB/K supports the fact that he's seeing the ball pretty well but getting unlucky; in any case, it's just ten games. On the other side of the controlling-the-strike zone fence, Hitaniel Arias sure seems overmatched by the Pioneer League at the moment, going 0-4 with two strikeouts to drop his line to .186/.255/.326 with a 2/16 BB/K. Meanwhile, Edgar Trejo, who himself seemed quite overmatched at Wisconsin earlier this year, went 1-3 with a walk, his fifth walk already against just nine strikeouts. After a terrible first start and a solid second one, 6th-rounder Hiram Burgos had merely a bad start this time out; he sure sounded like the type of advanced-pitchability guy that should carve up the Pioneer League, but apparently not. Helena play-by-play The decisive 10th inning: Idaho Falls Top 10th Alberto Espinosa hit by pitch. Hilton Richardson hits a sacrifice bunt. Alberto Espinosa to 2nd. Hilton Richardson to 1st. Marvin Cooper hit by pitch. Alberto Espinosa to 3rd. Hilton Richardson to 2nd. Angel Franco out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Chris Ellington. Alberto Espinosa scores. Marvin Cooper to 2nd. Hilton Richardson advances to 3rd, on throwing error by left fielder Chris Ellington. Deivy Batista homers (5) on a fly ball to left field. Hilton Richardson scores. Marvin Cooper scores. Jason Morales grounds out, second baseman Cutter Dykstra to first baseman Hitaniel Arias. Carlo Testa flies out to left fielder Chris Ellington. Krieger temporarily kept the game tied in the 7th with an outfield kill: Idaho Falls Top 7th Pitcher Change: Jonathan Pokorny replaces Kristian Bueno. Angel Franco grounds out, second baseman Cutter Dykstra to first baseman Hitaniel Arias. Deivy Batista singles on a line drive to left fielder Chris Ellington. Jason Morales grounds out, pitcher Jonathan Pokorny to first baseman Hitaniel Arias. Deivy Batista to 2nd. Carlo Testa singles on a line drive to right fielder Scott Krieger. Deivy Batista out at home on the throw, right fielder Scott Krieger to catcher Shawn Zarraga.

Scarpetta tosses a gem Chris Mehring GRAND CHUTE, WI - Cody Scarpetta gave up one hit over six innings and struck out nine for the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Wednesday night against the West Michigan Whitecaps. Wisconsin's offense pushed a run across in the first inning and that was enough for a 1-0 Timber Rattlers win. Wisconsin (42-40 overall, 8-4 second half) grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Juan Sanchez and Peter Fatse singled to start the inning and both moved up on a grounder to third. Brett Lawrie knocked in Sanchez with and RBI grounder to second. Scarpetta was in control all night. He faced the minimum over six scoreless innings. The only hit Scarpetta allowed was a one out double to Brent Wyatt in the top of the fifth. But, Wyatt tried to stretch the hit into a triple. A strong relay throw from Lawrie to third beat Wyatt by plenty for the second out of the frame. The righty from Rockford, Illinois only went to a three-ball count on a batter twice in the game and worked quickly and efficiently to put himself in position to pick up his first win since May 17. West Michigan starting pitcher Luke Putkonen was almost as good as Scarpetta. Almost. He allowed three hits, walked one, and struck out five. Efrain Nieves took over for Scarpetta in the top of the seventh. Nieves, who had allowed nine runs on eight hits and four walks over two innings in his previous outing, worked around a two out single in the seventh and a leadoff walk in the eighth. The lefty from Puerto Rico retired the side in order in the ninth to pick up the save, the first of his professional career. The Whitecaps are 51-32 on the season and 8-5 in the second half, but the Timber Rattlers are 4-0 against the Midwest League affiliate of the Detroit Tigers in 2009. Game two of the series is Thursday night. The Timber Rattlers have Trey Watten (4-6, 3.52) as the scheduled starting pitcher. West Michigan has Casey Crosby (7-2, 3.25) as the scheduled starter. Game time is 7:05pm. Wisconsin box score It was the Cody Scarpetta show tonight, as you probably guessed from the previous comments--9/0/1 K/BB/H in six innings is wonderful. Great to see a start like that on a Suppan night for the big club. As mentioned, Juan Sanchez made a nice play in the field and also had two of the Rattlers' three hits. Lorenzo Cain and Brett Lawrie were both 0-3. Wisconsin play-by-play Scarpetta finished with a flourish: West Michigan Top 5th Billy Nowlin called out on strikes. Jordan Lennerton strikes out swinging. Alden Carrithers grounds out, shortstop Michael Marseco to first baseman Corey Kemp. West Michigan Top 6th Joseph Bowen strikes out swinging. Avisail Garcia strikes out swinging. Luis Salas grounds out, second baseman Brett Lawrie to first baseman Corey Kemp.

Huntsville's Struggles Continue in Series Starter Brett Pollock Lucas May drove in five runs and a five-run eighth inning broke open a close game and carried Chattanooga to an 11-5 win over Huntsville Wednesday night in the opener of a four-game set at AT&T Field. The Lookouts evened their second half record at 8-8, while the Stars matched a season-high with their sixth straight loss to fall to 7-10 in the second half and 45-41 overall. The Stars have allowed 45 runs on 58 hits in the last five games. May put the home team on the board in the first inning with a sacrifice fly before the Stars came right back in the top of the second to tie the game on a double by Taylor Green that scored Kevin Melillo, who had led off with a double. Green finished with three hits and has now collected six hits in 11 at-bats in three games since returning to the lineup. Jonathan Lucroy doubled with two outs in the third and came into score on a Drew Anderson single to give the Stars their first lead of the night. Chattanooga answered back with two in the bottom half of the inning on a double by May that scored James Tomlin and Josh Bell, both of whom had walked. Stars starter Josh Wahpepah was lifted after three innings, giving up three runs, two earned, on two hits, while walking three and fanning four. The Stars battled back to tie the game in the top half of the fourth when Vinny Rottino led off with a double and scored on a single by Green, who was thrown out trying to stretch it into a double. Mike McClendon took over on the hill in the bottom half of the fourth and gave up the go-ahead run after Tommy Giles led off with a double and scored on Tomlin's two-out, two-base hit. Adam Stern broke a 14 at-bat hitless drought with a one-out triple in the fifth and scored on a wild pitch to get the game tied at four. Casey Baron started on the mound in the bottom of the sixth for the Stars and retired the first two hitters before Russ Mitchell belted a home run to put the home team back on top at 5-4. The teams traded runs in the seventh inning, as Huntsville tied the score again on a run-scoring hit by Anderson before the Looks took the lead for good at 6-5 on May's fielder's choice grounder against Baron, who took the loss to fall to 4-4. The Looks tallied against Robert Hinton in the eighth on a two-run double by Ramon Nivar and successive run-scoring hits by May, Andrew Lambo and Adam Godwin. The Stars have now been scored on in 22 out of 44 innings in their last five games. The series continues Thursday with right-hander Mike Jones making the start for the Stars against Lookouts' right-hander JD Durbin. Coverage of the game begins at 6:00 pm central time and can be heard through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville box score Good nights for the two guys whose lines I check first, Jonathan Lucroy and Taylor Green; the former went 1-3 with a double and two walks (49/41 BB/K now) and the latter 3-4 with a double. Really bad night for Robert Hinton (did you realize he's still just 24?), who was getting my hopes up after a great June; he allowed five runs in the 8th to blow what was a one-run game wide open, and that was with Chuckue Caufield throwing a guy out at home. Huntsville play-by-play

Express Quiet Sounds, 10-0 NashvilleSounds.com NASHVILLE - The Round Rock Express shutout the Nashville Sounds 10-0 on Wednesday evening at historic Greer Stadium. Express first baseman Mark Saccomanno went 4-for-5 with a double, while catcher Lou Santangelo added a double and three-run home run in the cause. The Express struck first in the top of the second by plating four runs off Sounds starter Nick Green. Saccomanno and Chris Johnson singled to begin the inning, followed by a Yordany Ramirez RBI-base hit to give the Express a 1-0 lead. Santangelo then hit his third home run of the year, a three-run shot to right field for a 4-0 Express advantage. On the first pitch of the fourth inning, Express second baseman Jason Smith homered to right field that extended the Express lead to 5-0. Round Rock tacked on another run for a 6-0 lead in the fifth on an RBI-single by Smith that scored Saccomanno. Wes Littleton came in to relieve Green later in the inning and allowed a single and a two-run double that upped the Express lead to 8-0. Littleton allowed three consecutive singles to begin the eighth inning, with the Express scoring on a Brian Bogusevic two-run single that gave Round Rock a 10-0 lead. Express starting pitcher Mark McLemore (3-4) picked up the win, allowing two hits while striking out three over five scoreless innings. On his first start since coming off the disabled list, Green (2-4) took the loss after surrendering seven runs on nine hits in 4 and 2/3 innings. Sounds second baseman Hernan Iribarren went 2-for-4 on the evening, extending his hitting streak to seven games. The Sounds and Express continue with the second game of a five game series at 7:00 pm CT on Thursday evening at historic Greer Stadium. Right-hander Tim Dillard ( 8-3, 3.90) takes the hill for Nashville against right-hander Jeremy Johnson (5-6, 3.24) for Round Rock. Thursday will be a huge day at Greer Stadium, as the first 2,000 fans through the gates will receive a limited edition collectible Ryan Braun Bobblehead. It will also be a Purity Faith Night, featuring the headlining music act Jars of Clay. Nashville box score Very little to see here. Hernan Iribarren had two hits, and Adam Heether continues to buck for a call-up, going 1-3 with a double and a walk. Rare sight: Brendan Katin also walked. Alcides Escobar, Angel Salome, and Cole Gillespie went a combined 0-11 with zero times on base, and Salome allowed Round Rock to go 3-3 on SB attempts, plus a throwing error. If the Brewers were considering giving Nick Green a shot on the heels of his shoulder injury, they probably aren't anymore. Nashville play-by-play

Del Howell still deciding on his future Tommy Deas TUSCALOOSA | Del Howell isn't sure what to do. There's no baseball to plan his summer around. The University of Alabama's left-handed pitcher has been taking some time off from the diamond since the Crimson Tide's season finished at the end of May with a two-and-out performance at the NCAA Regional in Clemson, S.C. 'I'm having a summer,' he said. 'This is the first time I haven't played summer ball since I was 6 or 7. 'I've been going out to the lake, hanging out with friends, just staying here and working out. I'm having fun, but I feel like I'm missing something.' What may be missing for the former state Mr. Baseball, who led American Christian Academy to three consecutive state championships and started five years for the Patriots, is a solid grasp of what the future holds. He was chosen by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 15th round of June's amateur draft as the 466th overall pick, but hasn't heard much from the major league club since. Whether Howell returns for his senior season at Alabama depends on what kind of offer Milwaukee puts together. A source familiar with the situation said Howell was contacted by the Brewers in the early rounds of the draft with a six-figure offer. Howell will not comment on specifics of the negotiations other than to say they haven't gone very far. 'I talked to them, but not much since the draft, not much money talk,' said Howell, who said he is handling his own negotiations with Milwaukee. 'As of right now, I'm planning on coming back (to Alabama). 'I haven't heard anything. Nothing has changed. I'm just waiting to hear back.' Howell went 5-3 at Alabama this spring as a junior, starting 11 games and striking out 68 batters in 58 1/3 innings with 32 walks. He also batted 2-for-11 with a home run in spot duty at the plate, but wasn't himself for much of the season. He came down with mononucleosis, a viral infection, at some point in the offseason, but the condition wasn't diagnosed until the day before the season opener. His weight fell about 25 pounds to 181 early in the season, and his struggles to recover made for an inconsistent campaign. 'The SEC (portion of the season), I started to get my weight back,' he said. 'At times I felt like I was good, and then the next day it would be, 'Dang, it's back again.'' Howell is not playing summer ball after a standout performance last summer in the Texas Collegiate League. He was voted top prospect in that wooden-bat league, posting a 2-2 record and 2.41 earned-run average with four saves in 14 appearances. Instead, he has worked youth camps in recent weeks and gotten his weight back up to around 210 pounds. 'Usually I'm playing every night and working out in the mornings,' he said. 'Now I'm just working out and throwing a couple of bullpens a week.' Howell has also stayed in touch on an almost daily basis with UA head coach Jim Wells. The coach may not know for sure until mid-August whether Howell will be back for his senior season. Out of high school, Howell was a 17th-round selection by the New York Yankees, but turned down a substantial offer to play at Alabama. 'He understands what's going on,' Howell said of Wells. 'We're kind of both behind the eight-ball now. 'It's been my goal from day one when I started playing to get to the major leagues. It's just a matter of waiting and seeing what happens.' http://www.tidesports.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=TL&Date=20090708&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=907079919&Ref=AR&Profile=1011 Tuscaloosa News