TheCrew07

Game Report: Ryder Ryan

MWL notes: Travieso has change in mind Dragons prospect adds new pitch thanks to former Reds All-Star Soto

Polanco does it again for Indianapolis Top Pirates prospect belts go-ahead double, falls triple shy of cycle

How many of those guys project as frontline starters? Every team has pitchers like ours, defining a good farm system isn't about the players at the bottom, it's about the players at the top. You've been around long enough to know the difference but you choose to continually latch onto and champion low ceiling players. It doesn't matter how many of those guys perform well if they ultimately don't have the talent necessary to compete at a high level in MLB. While Fiers has been amazing, he's not a prospect, nor is he likely a starter long-term, he just doesn't have the stuff or velocity to be, he's always had outstanding command so he definitely will have a nice MLB career but he's another guy who's already 29 years old. When talking about impact players, what has changed? The only pitcher with upside who's been consistent going back to last year is Nelson, one could make argument for Pena but he's yet to put together a full season so pardon me if I'm not excited yet. There are certainly many players to be encouraged about but a superficial fluff piece out of Rotographs about Jungmann doesn't change his status anymore than Bradley pitching well his 3rd time through the FSL changes his. I'm not sure how anyone can objectively look at the system and honestly believe that everyone else has the system wrong. Just within our own division the only team I wouldn't swap top pitching prospects with in a heartbeat is the Cubs.

Sounds Lose Series Opener In Oklahoma, 6-1 Falu Extends Hit Streak To Six Games In Defeat Nashville Sounds http://www.milb.com/assets/images/3/4/0/71876340/cuts/_MPS3012_si3awu5s_0lwyjv4r.jpg (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds) OKLAHOMA CITY - The Nashville Sounds dropped a 6-1 decision to the Oklahoma City RedHawks on Thursday evening at Chickasaw Bricktown Ballpark in the opener of a four-game series. Oklahoma City grabbed a 2-0 lead against Ariel Pena with a two-run second frame. Jon Singleton worked a leadoff walk and scored on Domingo Santana's RBI triple to right. Santana scored the inning's second run when he raced home on an Enrique Hernandez groundout. The Sounds got a run back in the third. Hector Gomez led off with a double against RedHawks hurler Mike Foltynewicz, moved to third on a balk, and scored on an Eugenio Velez groundout. Foltynewicz (2-1) picked up the victory after he allowed one run on four hits over five innings of work, while Pena (0-1) took the loss by giving up a pair of runs on four hits in his five frames, walking three batters and striking out three. The RedHawks pulled away in the seventh by plating four runs against a trio of Sounds relievers. Kyle Heckathorn gave up a run, Brent Leach surrendered a pair, and Michael Blazek was touched for a run plus allowed all three of his inherited baserunners to score in the frame. Second baseman Ronald Torreyes highlighted the Oklahoma City offensive outburst with a two-run double. Oklahoma City pitchers retired 14 of the final 16 Sounds batters. Sounds second baseman Irving Falu singled in the eighth inning to extend his hit streak to six games, matching the longest effort by a Sound this season. The teams continue the series with another 7:05 p.m. matchup on Friday. Right-hander Mike Fiers (3-0, 0.87) will man the bump for the Sounds and face Oklahoma City right-hander Jose Cisnero (0-0, 2.45). Nashville Boxscore No pitcher fared particularly well, Ariel Pena wasn't bad but he wasn't great either, at least not by the lofty K totals he posted to start the season. Nashville Recap Nashville Gameday

Right! His stuff will improve and he'll learn to repeat his delivery through osmosis and progress as a pitcher by not actually pitching, because that theory has worked for whom in the past?

Bees take series with 4-1 win over Rattlers Coulter goes 3-for-3, knocks in only Wisconsin run By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers BURLINGTON, IA - A pair of Burlington Bees pitchers struck out eleven Wisconsin Timber Rattlers hitters and Ranyelmy Mendoza hit a two-run home run to lead Burlington to a 4-1 victory Thursday afternoon at Community Field. Rattlers catcher Clint Coulter went 3-for-3 with a pair of doubles, but Wisconsin couldn't get anything going after the first inning. Johnny Davis started the game with an infield single for the Rattlers (10-9). He sent a grounder to first and beat Burlington starting pitcher Mike Clevinger to the bag. Clevinger balked to get Davis to second. One out later, Coulter drove in Davis with a single to left and the Rattlers were up 1-0. Rattlers starting pitcher Tristan Archer left the bases loaded in the bottom of the first, but could not escape the second or third innings unscathed. Stephen McGee started the Burlington second with a single and was still at first with two outs. Kody Eaves doubled to left-center to drive in McGee with the tying run. In the third, Ryan Dalton reached on a one out single. Archer got the second out. Then, Mendoza hit a home run to left. The two-run shot by Mendoza put the Bees up 3-1. Clevinger tossed five innings and struck out seven Rattlers before turning the game over to the Bees bullpen. He walked one and gave up just three hits. Coulter doubled with one out against Bees reliever Victor Alcantara in the top of the sixth. Chris McFarland drew a walk with two outs. But, Alcantara got out of the inning with a force play at second. Then, he worked a 1-2-3 seventh. After the stretch, Burlington (12-7) tacked on a run. Eaves doubled against reliever Tyler Linehan. Michael Fish's single to left put runners on the corners. Mark Shannon's sacrifice fly to right was deep enough to knock in Eaves for a 4-1 score. Davis drew a leadoff walk in the eighth. The Rattlers centerfielder reached four times on Thursday with a pair of infield singles, a rushed throw forcing an error, and the walk accounting for his times on base. The nascent rally was snuffed out when Alcantara induced a 4-6-3 double play. That made Coulter's second double of the game almost moot. He was left stranded when Alcantara finished off the Rattlers eighth with a grounder. The Rattlers went down in order in the top of the ninth and Alcantara earned his first save of the season. Wisconsin dropped three of four games to the Bees at Community Field, a place where they are 3-10 in the last two seasons, in this series. The Timber Rattlers continue their road trip with the first game of a three-game series at Kane County on Friday night. Zach Quintana (0-0, 3.21) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. The Cougars will counter with Juan Paniagua (0-1, 5.54). Game time is 6:30pm. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or IHeartRadio starting with the pregame show at 6:10pm. HOME RUN: BUR: Ranyelmy Mendoza (3rd, 1 on in 3rd inning off Tristan Archer, 2 out) WP: Mike Clevinger (2-0) LP: Tristan Archer (0-1) SAVE: Victor Alcantara (1) TIME: 2:30 ATTN: 1,525 Wisconsin Boxscore The Rattlers collected just 5 hits with Johnny Davis and Clint Coulter accounting for all of them. Davis (2-3,BB) pushed his AVE to .327 and Coulter's perfect (3-3,2 2B,BB) day pushed his to .316. Unfortunately Davis only has 1 XBH so far this season, a triple, and he's only walked twice so his OPS isn't anything to write home about. Coulter on the other hand is OPS'n an incredible 1.065 through 17 games. Clint has 5 doubles and 4 home runs, exactly half of his hits have gone for extra bases. Just as importantly he's walked 12 times against only 8 strike outs, you have to look pretty hard to find something not to like... 2 CS in 4 SB attempts. Wisconsin Recap

Guillon puts it all together for Dragons Reds' No. 10 prospect strikes out 11 over seven scoreless innings

Winker plates four, reaches five times Reds outfield prospect homers, doubles twice in Cal League display

Selective Allie goes yard twice for Curve Two-day outburst gives Pirates prospect the Eastern League lead

Black stymies Barons for six no-hit innings Staked to big lead, Cubs prospect cruises in Smokies' victory

Rattlers stop streak against Bees with 6-4 win Brennan and Pena homer as Rattlers end six-game losing streak to Burlington By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers BURLINGTON, IA - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers used a combination of two home runs, speed, five solid innings of starting pitching, and six errors by their opponents to defeat the Burlington Bees 6-4 Wednesday night at Community Field. The win was the first by the Rattlers over the Bees since July 28, 2013, a streak of six straight losses. Wisconsin (10-8) had scored two runs in the first two games of this series at Burlington. They surpassed that total in the first inning on Wednesday night. Johnny Davis singled and stole second to start the game. Chris McFarland sent a grounder behind second that was bobbled by Burlington second baseman Kody Eaves. Davis raced for home. The throw was up the line and Davis scored. The throw was also dropped by Anthony Bemboom, the catcher for the Bees, and McFarland ran all the way to third base. McFarland was still at third base with two outs. Taylor Brennan made sure McFarland would not be left there. The Rattlers third baseman launched a 3-1 pitch over the wall in left for a 2-run homer. Brennan's third home run of the year made it 3-0. Rattlers starting pitcher Anthony Banda gave up an unearned run in the bottom of the second inning, but nothing else. The lefty pitched around three walks and a wild pitch with the help of three strikeouts over five innings. It was enough for Banda to be in position to win his first win of the season. That looked like a foregone conclusion when the Rattlers added a run in the fourth and two more in the fifth to push their lead out to 6-1. In the fourth, Rafael Neda reached on an error to start the frame. A one out walk to Angel Ortega and a force play at second on a fielder's choice by Omar Garcia had Neda at third with two away. Davis smacked his second hit of the night to right field to drive in Neda. In the fifth, McFarland was hit by a pitch to start the inning. He promptly stole second base to give him ten steals in ten attempts this season. A grounder to the right side by Clint Coulter moved McFarland to third base. Jose Pena was next and he lined a 1-2 pitch just over the wall in left field for his third home run of the season. Pena's blast, his third of the season, pushed the Rattlers lead to five runs. Victor Diaz kept the lead at 6-1 until the bottom of the eighth. Bemboom drove a two-run home run over the fence in right to make the score 6-3. Mark Shannon walked and stole second. Exicardo Cayones singled with two outs to drive in Shannon and Wisconsin's lead was two runs. Harvey Martin came out of the bullpen in the bottom of the ninth and he set down the top third of the Burlington batting order 1-2-3 with a pair of strikeouts for his first save of the season. The Timber Rattlers snapped a six game losing streak to the Bees with the win on Wednesday. Burlington won the first two games of the series, but Wisconsin will have a chance to earn the split with a win in the series finale on Thursday morning.| First pitch on Thursday is scheduled for 11:30am. Tristan Archer (0-0, 0.00) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Rattlers. Burlington has Michael Clevinger (1-0, 1.98) as their scheduled starting pitcher. Tune in for the action on AM1280, WNAM or IHeartRadio starting with the pregame show at 11:10am. HOME RUNS: WIS: Taylor Brennan (3rd, 1 on in 1st inning off Clint Sharp, 2 out) Jose Pena (3rd, 1 on in 5th inning off Clint Sharp, 1 out) BUR: Anthony Bemboom (2, 1 on in 8th inning off Victor Diaz, 1 out) WP: Anthony Banda (1-2) LP: Clint Sharp (0-2) SAVE: Harvey Martin (1) TIME: 2:49 ATTN: 283 Wisconsin Boxscore Johnny Davis' 3 for 4 effort bumped his AVE up to .308 for the season. I posted earlier this month about not being sure how well speed hits will translate towards MLB but regardless he's been extremely impressive both offensively and defensively given his very limited experience to baseball. Consider me firmly on his bandwagon. Wisconsin Recap

See, that's why no one is posting that way because the alternative point of view is framed as "hating on a guy". I've been as critical as Melvin as anyone but I certainly don't hate the guy. Also it would be in extremely poor taste to jump into a thread celebrating something and bag all over it. I'm not a fan of soccer at all, in truth I can't stand it, but I'm not going to pile on the people who enjoy and discuss it in the Off Topic forum either. To each their own... if people want to celebrate Melvin by all means go ahead, I don't see any reason to rain on that parade.

2014 Draft Update Chat With John Manuel

He hasn't made the BA top 30 for the Brewers since being drafted in 2012. He didn't spend enough time in WI for me to see ever see him pitch in person. Here's a statistical analysis of him. Disciples of Uecker draft report: The short answer to your question is that I've never seen any kind of accurate scouting report on him. The long answer would be that he's probably more of your typical crafty lefty who just knows how to pitch, especially considering he's from Harvard. I'm certainly not going to tell anyone that they shouldn't be excited, like, or root for any prospect. Where does he ultimately fit? Without the benefit of watching him in person and because he doesn't generate any buzz out of prospect watchers I would guess the bullpen. If he pushes 90 MPH there is a chance he could be a Capuano or Wolf, but there's just not enough information out there to throw a projection like that on him yet. edit. This question was asked last season and MH reposted his audio interview, not sure if that is still out there.

Bees beat Rattlers 2-1 Pitchers' Duel goes to Burlington By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers BURLINGTON, IA - Ryan Etsell barely outdueled Barrett Astin on Tuesday night at Community Field. Etsell allowed one run on six hits over six innings. Astin allowed two runs - one earned - on six hits over seven innings. The unearned run was the difference as Etsell's Burlingon Bees defeated Astin's Wisconsin Timber Rattlers 2-1. Burlington (11-6) loaded the bases with three straight singles in the bottom of the fourth inning. Rattlers starting pitcher Barrett Astin got a foul pop out for the first out. Mark Shannon was next and he sent a slow grounder to second. Wisconsin got the runner at second, but Shannon barely beat the throw to first to deny the Rattlers an inning-ending double play and let the runner from third score for a 1-0 lead. Eric Aguilera singled to start the bottom of the fourth inning. He didn't try to go to second, but the throw in from left field sailed on Jose Pena and wound up near the tarp behind first base. This error allowed Aguilera to take third base. Anthony Bemboom followed with a single and the Bees were up 2-0. Wisconsin (9-8) got on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth, but was left wondering what could have been. Angel Ortega started the inning with a single. A balk by Etsell sent him to second. An infield single by Johnny Davis got Ortega to third base. Davis was running on a pitch to Francisco Castillo and the ball bounced a short distance behind Burlington catcher Stephen McGee. Ortega took off for home and scored without a play. Castillo sent a flyball to shallow right for the first out and the speedy Davis challenged the arm of Ranyelmy Mendoza. Davis won the race to third, but overslid the base. He got up and - instead of trying to get back to third - lit out for the plate. He was caught in a rundown before eventually being tagged out. Chris McFarland extended the inning with a single and stole second base with Clint Coulter at the plate. Coulter sent a grounder to the hole between short and third with McFarland racing for third. Burlington shortstop Erick Salcedo made the stop on the ball and - instead of throwing to first to try to get Coulter - ran at McFarland, who had rounded third too far. McFarland got caught in another rundown between third and home and was tagged out for the final out of the inning. The Rattlers had an opportunity in the top of the eighth inning as Steve Halcomb walked to start the inning against Bees reliever Trevor Foss. Ortega sacrificed Halcomb to second base. Foss got the second out on a flyball to center. That brought Castillo to the plate. The Rattlers right fielder lined a 3-2 pitch from Foss to deep to right, but Mendoza raced back to make a leaping grab just shy of the warning track. Bees closer Alan Busenitz worked around a two-out single by David Denson in the top of the ninth inning and struck out the side to record his fourth save of the season. Clint Coulter led the Rattlers offense with two hits. Astin pitched well, but took the loss. His seven innings set a single game high as a professional. He also struck out three without walking a batter. Astin has struck out thirteen and walked none in 22 innings pitched over four games for the Rattlers this season. But, he took the loss on Tuesday in Burlington and his record fell to 3-1. The Bees have won the first two games of the four-game series. Dating back to the 2013 season Burlington has also won the last six meetings between these teams. Game three of this series is scheduled for Wednesday night. Anthony Banda (0-2, 3.46) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Rattlers. Clint Sharp (0-1, 3.95) takes the mound for the Bees. Game time is 6:30pm. Tune in for the pregame show at 6:10 on AM1280, WNAM or IHeartRadio. WP: Ryan Etsell (2-0) LP: Barrett Astin (3-1) SAVE: Alan Busenitz (4) TIME: 2:05 ATTN: 478 Wisconsin Boxscore An error and unnecessary outs on the bases... close games usually come down to who makes the least amount of mistakes, tonight was no different. Regardless Barrett Astin continues to pitch well even though his draft day profile still rings true. Trevor Seidenberger had a heck of an 8th inning striking out the side. Wisconsin Recap

Sounds Drop Series Finale At Omaha, 5-1 Velez Goes 3-for-4, Drive In Lone Nashville Run Nashville Sounds PAPILLION, Neb. - Omaha hurler Sugar Ray Marimon tossed a quality start to lead the host Omaha Storm Chasers to a 5-1 victory over the Nashville Sounds on Tuesday afternoon in the series finale at Werner Park, resulting in a split of the four games. Marimon (2-0) defeated the Sounds for the second time in a week, holding Nashville (9-10) to one run on six hits while fanning seven in his 6 1/3 innings of work. Omaha got out to an early lead as a second-inning walk came back to haunt Sounds starter Hiram Burgos. Melky Mesa drew the free pass with one out and later scored on a Pedro Ciriaco sacrifice fly. The Storm Chasers doubled their lead to 2-0 in the third on Carlos Peguero's two-out solo homer to right. Nashville got onto the board in the top of the third when Pete Orr (2-for-4) led off with a double to up his season-best hitting streak to five games (10-for-20, .500) and scored on Eugenio Velez's ensuing RBI single to left off Marimon. Velez went 3-for-4 on the afternoon to increase his team-leading average to .444 on the year. Omaha responded quickly, upping its advantage to 5-1 with a three-run third against Burgos. Matt Fields and Mesa opened the frame with a triple and double, respectively, before Mesa scored on a wild pitch. Ciriaco later scored the frame's third run after walking, stealing second, and coming plateward on Jason Donald's two-out RBI knock to center. Burgos (1-3) suffered his third loss in his initial four starts after surrendering five runs on five hits while walking four batters and striking out four in his four frames of action. The Nashville bullpen was spotless behind Burgos, as Dustin Molleken, Michael Blazek, and Donovan Hand combined for four scoreless innings. After scoring in the fourth, the Sounds put a runner into scoring position only once in the final five frames. Omaha hurlers retired the final eight Nashville batters in succession to complete the game. After joining the entire Pacific Coast League for an off day tomorrow, the Sounds resume their road trip on Thursday in Oklahoma City, where they will take on the RedHawks (AAA-Astros) in the 7:05 p.m. opener of a four-game set. Right-hander Ariel Pena (0-0, 2.00) will make the start for Nashville after missing his last turn in the rotation due to a forearm injury. Oklahoma City will counter with right-hander Mike Foltynewicz (1-1, 7.20). Nashville Boxscore Hiram Burgos has had a rough start to the season, today he also had a WP and a throwing error on a pick off attempt tacked onto his line. Hiram threw 83 pitches in just 4 innings, 50 for strikes. His ratios weren't all that far off his career norms coming into today's game, but his WHIP sure has spiked so far. Hunter Morris (1-3) was the only prospect to record a hit today. The team batting average is only .244 even with Peter Orr (.380) and Eugenio Velez (,444) raking in the early going, that is the 3rd worst team AVE in the PCL. There are only 3 other players hitting .250 or better; Morris (.277), Jeremy Hermida (.270), and Elian Herrera (.250). Nashville Recap Nashville Gameday

Subscriber piece, no new information for the LR diehards in this article, Tom lists all of the players who are making position changes this season. Moving Day For Milwaukee’s Position Players April 22, 2014 by Tom Haudricourt

Subscriber Piece Cubs Downplay Baez’s Struggles April 22, 2014 by Gordon Wittenmeyer

MH posted the Jimmy Nelson blurb earlier in today's LR but quite a few divisional mentions today. Minor League Roundup: Everything Moves In Cycles April 22, 2014 by J.J. Cooper and Josh Norris

Sounds Announce "First Tennessee Park" Will Be Name Of City's New Ballpark Tennessee's Largest Bank Secures Naming Rights

Three Strikes: Week 10 (VIDEO) College Draft Prospects Stat Roundup: Week 10 (VIDEO)

BA subscriber piece on the Reds' Ben Lively. Lively Doing His Best To Move On And Up

I-Cubs' Hendricks spins six shutout innings Building on strong 2013 campaign, right-hander allows just two hits

Bees quiet Rattlers in 5-1 win Rattlers manage two hits to open road trip By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers BURLINGTON, IA - Chris McFarland gave the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers an early lead with a first inning home run at Community Field on Monday night. But, Wisconsin was held to just one more hit in a 5-1 loss to the Burlington Bees. McFarland came to the plate with two out and none on in the top of the first. Wisconsin's second baseman hit a home run to right field for a 1-0 lead. It was McFarland's third home run of the season. McFarland hit three homers in 87 games with the Timber Rattlers in 2013. Wisconsin (9-7) loaded the bases against Bees starter Elliot Morris after the home run by McFarland. Clint Coulter singled. Jose Pena walked and David Denson walked. But, Morris got a strikeout to end the first inning. Then, he retired the next 15 Timber Rattlers batters he faced in the game. Morris finished the game with five strikeouts. On top of that, Coulter's single in the first inning was the last hit of the game for Wisconsin. Rattlers starting pitcher Tyler Alexander hit the Burlington leadoff batter with his first pitch in the bottom of the first. The next batter singled. Alexander got the first out with a strikeout. Then, Angel Rosa doubled to right to drive in a pair of runs to give the Bees (10-6) a 2-1 lead. Rosa wound up on third base as the throw went to the plate. Wisconsin brought the infield in, but Anthony Bemboom lined the first pitch of his at bat through the right side of the infield to drive in Rosa for a 3-1 advantage. Alexander settled in after the first inning and didn't allow another run. He went five innings and matched his single game high as a pro for strikeouts with six. Reliever Taylor Williams came on in the bottom of the sixth and got a strikeout on the first batter he faced. But, a wild pitch on strike three let the batter reach. A walk and a loaded the bases for the Bees. Williams walked Kody Eaves on a 3-2 pitch to force in a run. Williams hit Chad Hinshaw on a 1-2 pitch to force in another run for a 5-1 lead. The Rattlers tried to rally in the top of the seventh against Bees reliever Harrison Cooney. Pena drew a walk to start the inning. Taylor Brennan walked with one out. Omar Garcia walked with two outs and the bases were loaded. Cooney escaped the inning with a grounder to second. He pitched around an error in the eighth and a walk in the ninth to work three scoreless innings for his first save of the season. Game two of the series is set for Tuesday night. Tristan Archer (0-0, 0.00) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Rattlers. Ryan Etsell (1-0, 2.45) is set to start for the Bees. Game time is 6:30pm. Tune in for the pregame show at 6:10pm on AM1280, WNAM or IHeartRadio to catch all the action. HOME RUN: WIS: Chris McFarland (3rd, 0 on in 1st inning off Elliot Morris, 2 out) LP: Tyler Alexander (1-2) WP: Elliot Morris (2-1) TIME: 2:34 ATTN: 501 Wisconsin Boxscore Not many positives out of this one beyond Tyler Alexander's 6 strike outs and Chris McFarland's HR both mentioned in the the game story. The Rattlers did walk 6 times as team so there's that... Wisconsin Recap Chris didn't mention it in the game story but Williams had Eaves down 0-2 before issuing the walk. Burlington Bottom of the 6th Pitching Change: Taylor Williams replaces Tyler Alexander. Mark Shannon strikes out swinging. Wild pitch by pitcher Taylor Williams. Mark Shannon to 1st. Ryan Dalton walks. Mark Shannon to 2nd. Erick Salcedo singles on a ground ball to center fielder Johnny Davis. Mark Shannon to 3rd. Ryan Dalton to 2nd. Kody Eaves walks. Mark Shannon scores. Ryan Dalton to 3rd. Erick Salcedo to 2nd. Chad Hinshaw hit by pitch. Ryan Dalton scores. Erick Salcedo to 3rd. Kody Eaves to 2nd. Eric Aguilera lines into a double play, shortstop Angel Ortega to second baseman Christopher McFarland. Kody Eaves doubled off 2nd. Angel Rosa called out on strike