TheCrew07

I completely agree on Pastornicky, he's setting the bar awfully low. I guess I might be in the minority but I'd rather get pitching for Greinke than a SS. I worry though what type of pitching Melvin might look to acquire so I'd be fine with an impact bat.

Which seems to point at the root cause being poor player development.

We'll have them through their age 31 30 seasons the way it is without a contract that buys out some FA years. I don't believe service time is any kind of issue with either player, the issue is and will be performance. edit. I thought they were both 24, but they are actually 23.

BA Hot Sheet June 29 No. 1 MATT SZCZUR, CF CUBS Team: high Class A Daytona (Florida State) Age: 22 Why He's Here: .478/.600/.696 (11-for-23), 2 2B, 1 HR, 7 R, 7 RBIs, 7 BB, 2 SO, 7-for-8 SB The Scoop: Szczur entered the year as a breakout candidate after wearing down from his baseball/football grind in the second half of last season. He recently missed 19 games due to a knee injury that kept him from playing in the Florida State League all-star game, but he has made up for lost time this past week, splitting his time between center field and DH as a precaution. The injury didn't seem to affect Szczur's plus-plus speed, as he swiped seven bases in eight attempts. Before the injury, Szczur led the FSL in runs, stolen bases and on-base percentage. On Wednesday, he came within a triple of hitting for the cycle, when he went 4-for-6 with a homer, a double, four RBIs and two runs scored. Perhaps the most refreshing development for Szczur this year has been has improved plate discipline, as his walk percentage has dramatically increased from 5.4 percent last year to 12.5 percent this year. An extraordinary athlete, Szczur looks like he's starting to combine his raw tools with performance and could see a promotion to Double-A Tennessee soon enough. No. 3 STARLING MARTE, CF PIRATES Team: Triple-A Indianapolis (International) Age: 23. Why He's Here: .355/.412/.839 (11-for-31), 7 R, 2 2B, 2 3B, 3 HR, 12 RBIs, 3 BB, 7 SO, 0-for-1 SB The Scoop: He had to struggle through May to find his footing in Triple-A, but it hasn't taken long for Marte to once again remind people that he's one of the best outfield prospects in the high minors. He had a 23-game stretch in late April and early May where he went 10-for-62 (.161) with just four extra-base hits. In the 36 games since then he's hit for a more characteristic .307 average (46-for-150) with a binge of triples. Marte's 10 three-baggers lead the minors, and he hit seven of them during his recent hot streak. With his ability to run, field and hit for both average and power, Marte doesn't look to be that far away from providing a boost to a Pirates lineup that could definitely use one. No. 6 ALEN HANSON, SS PIRATES Team: low Class A West Virginia (South Atlantic) Age: 19 Why He's Here: .500/.600/.850 (10-for-20), 2 2B, 1 3B, 1 HR, 7 R, 3 RBIs, 5 BB, 3 SO, 2 SB The Scoop: Fresh off an appearance in the Sally League all-star game, Hanson continues to make things happen at the plate. He has a nine-game hitting streak that extends back to June 16, and his .331 average is fifth best in the SAL. Making his full-season debut, he leads West Virginia in virtually every offensive category, including home runs (11). We identified Hanson as a Pirates sleeper in the most recent Prospect Handbook, but he won't keep that title for long if he continues to produce this type of offensive production. No. 8 TONY CINGRANI, LHP REDS Team: Double-A Pensacola (Southern) Age: 22 Why He's Here: 1-0, 1.54, 2 GS, 11 2/3 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 4 BB, 18 SO The Scoop: Last week, Pensacola's Daniel Corcino led this list for his work in a combined no-hitter. Cingrani had a start this week that was better than Corcino's. If not for a mediocre 3 2/3-inning outing earlier in the week, Cingrani would have given the Reds back-to-back No. 1s on the Hot Sheet, but even with that ugly outing, Cingrani's second start of the week had to be honored. He went eight shutout innings while striking out 15 and allowing three hits and a walk, a performance that added up to the best game score (90) we've seen this year in the minors. It's yet another reminder that the pre-draft scouting report that pegged Cingrani as a future reliever may have been a little light. IN THE TEAM PHOTO The worst thing a pitcher could see is Reds SS Billy Hamilton getting a lead off first base. The bad news for California League pitchers is that the Bakersfield shortstop has gotten much better at figuring out how to get to first. Hamilton, 21, was 7-for-29 this week with one extra-base hit, but he drew eight walks compared to four strikeouts, which allowed him to still swipe 12 bases in 15 attempts. Hamilton has walked 22 times compared to 17 strikeouts this month. The Cal League's hitting environments don't hurt, but Hamilton has managed to significantly cut his strikeout rate this year while upping his walk rate, it's a great combination for a leadoff hitter . . . HELIUM WATCH • Jeimer Candelario, 3b, Cubs. Chicago skipped the 18-year-old Candelario, a standout in last year's Dominican Summer League, past the Arizona League to short-season Boise, and they've had no regrets through the first two weeks. The switch-hitter homered in three straight games from June 20-22 and leads the Northwest League with four bombs. Candelario has batted .314/.364/.569 through 51 at-bats, showcasing plenty of bat speed to go with plus pitch-recognition skills.

Puig deal signals bright Dodger future

Subscriber link with the scouting reports, unfortunately the Brewers aren't linked to any of the prospects at this time Top 20 International Prospects For July 2 Here's the free list

Just note that the Brewers using young pitchers for the rest of the season in no way would impact their service time with the organization or super 2 status. Bringing them up in July is essentially the same as having them start next season in the rotation. Thornburg hadn't thrown in 10 days and he was ejected at something like 80 pitches in his last start prior to him pitching for Milwaukee, let's not make too much of his MLB appearance until wearing down actually proves to be an issue. I actually don't think either Thornburg or Peralta are ready right now though I think Thornburg would be serviceable. I'm just saying from a service time standpoint the Brewers wouldn't be wasting anything by having either pitcher in the rotation this season.

I'd rather not cover 3 so if you'd take Huntsville from Sunday on that would be wonderful.

video at the link Taveras brightest of Texas All-Stars No. 3 Cards prospect homers, adds two hits to be named MVP

I'll take the T-Rats for you Brad, and if no one else will cover TLB next week I'll cover the Stars as well.

Yes he barely cracked the top 100 in 2007. Edit. Here's his scouting report, outside of the injuries he sounds a lot like our other Gomez.

Final: Round Rock 4, Nashville 2 Express Even Series With 4-2 Win Over Sounds Gonzalez Homers For Nashville's Lone Runs In Defeat ROUND ROCK, Texas - The Round Rock Express evened their series with the Nashville Sounds by posting a 4-2 victory on Thursday evening at The Dell Diamond. Third baseman Andy Gonzalez belted a two-run homer to account for Nashville's lone runs on the night, while shortstop Jeff Bianchi went a team-best 2-for-4, his fifth multiple-hit effort in his last eight contests. The loss dropped Nashville (32-49) to just 2-17 in games decided by two runs this season. Catcher Dusty Brown gave the home team a 2-0 lead in the second inning when he slugged his fourth home run of the year, a two-run shot to left off Sounds starter Mark Rogers. Nashville third baseman Andy Gonzalez knotted the contest at 2-2 in the top of the fourth with a longball of his own, a two-out, two-run jack against Derek Hankins (audio). The blast, which also scored Caleb Gindl (single), was the infielder's eighth of the year, all of which have come during the month of June. Round Rock pulled back in front, 3-2, in the bottom of the inning when Joey Butler ripped a double and later scored on a two-out RBI single to right off the bat of Yangervis Solarte (2-for-3). The Express tacked on their final tally in the fifth against Rogers when Luis Hernandez drew a one-out walk and raced around to score when Ryan Spilborghs followed with a double to left. After plating their lone runs in the fourth, the Sounds put runners on base in four of the final five innings but failed to score. Their best chance came in the fifth, when Nashville put runners on the corners with one out before Hankins coaxed an inning-ending double play from Corey Patterson to escape the jam. Hankins (3-4) picked up the win for Round Rock after holding the Sounds to two runs on eight hits over five innings. Four Round Rock relievers each tossed a scoreless frame, capped off by veteran Aaron Heilman, who closed out the contest to earn his sixth save of the year. Rogers (3-5) took the loss for the Sounds after surrendering four runs on six hits and fanning five batters in his six frames of action. The teams conclude the three-game set with a 7:05 p.m. CT finale on Friday night. Right-hander Brian Baker (1-3, 6.00) will make the start for the Sounds. Round Rock will counter with former Nashville hurler Zach Jackson (3-8, 5.09). Nashville Box Score Mark Rogers wasn't as sharp as his last outing, it sounds like his curve and change have made good progress since I last listened to a start (2 years ago now I think), he just wasn't locating and didn't pitch a single clean frame in the game. Mark's final line 6IP, 6H, 3BB, 4ER, 1HR, 1HPB, and 5SO while throwing 56 of 97 pitches for strikes posting an 8:1 ratio. Nashville has a good shot to take the series tomorrow with Zach Jackson on the mound. My updates will come late as I totally forgot my cousin is getting married tomorrow but they will get done, even if it's early Saturday morning. Nashville Play By Play Down 1 at the time the Sounds should have tied it here, 3 hits but nothing to show for it. Nashville Top of the 5th Edwin Maysonet singles on a ground ball to center fielder Julio Borbon. With Logan Schafer batting, Derek Hankins picks off Edwin Maysonet at 1st on throw to Michael Bianucci. Logan Schafer singles on a ground ball to center fielder Julio Borbon. Jeff Bianchi singles on a soft fly ball to right fielder Joey Butler. Logan Schafer to 3rd. Corey Patterson grounds into double play, second baseman Yangervis Solarte to shortstop Luis Hernandez to first baseman Michael Bianucci. Jeff Bianchi out at 2nd. Rogers had Hernandez down 1-2 and lost him, then gave up the double. Round Rock Bottom of the 5th Julio Borbon bunt grounds out, pitcher Mark Rogers to first baseman Sean Halton. Luis Hernandez walks. Ryan Spilborghs doubles (12) on a fly ball to left fielder Corey Patterson. Luis Hernandez scores. Brad Nelson grounds out, pitcher Mark Rogers to first baseman Sean Halton. Ryan Spilborghs to 3rd. Matt Kata strikes out swinging.

Forearm surgery.

Holland's peripherals are very middle of the road, though admittedly he's never been a favorite of mine. The 2 pitchers I always coveted from the Rangers were Feliz and Perez. Not that Perez has put up awe inspiring peripherals, but he's got such an electric arm and he's also a LHP which I tend to gravitate towards. I listened to Holland's first rehab start last night and he wasn't particularly inspiring either, I understand it was it was first start back, but I've never had a reason to take to him. He could certainly improve with age but I think Perez has the much higher upside. Given the choice I'll almost always choose the younger player with higher upside, especially given the Brewer's system where have plenty of pitchers in that middle ground but very few who legitimately project to be top of the rotation starters. If we were the Rays or Giants then I might feel differently as recently they've usually had one of the top pitching prospects in baseball in their organization so I'd be comfortable looking for a mid rotation type starter. Holland could very well turn out to be a sub 4 ERA pitcher on a yearly basis, he's certainly more talented than a Dave Bush for example and is a LHP, I just don't like the idea of targeting him because he has MLB experience when there are higher upside prospects that might also be available. I was probably too harsh towards him given he's not one of my personal targets, certainly a pitcher sporting a mid 3 ERA which we could control for 4ish years would be a decent return for Greinke. Given the players in Texas organization he's just way down the list of players I would be looking to acquire. Given some time to further reflect I might be okay with Holland, i just see him as more of a low to mid 4 ERA type of guy long-term. edit. My theory on this stuff which I skirted around was that I'm looking to trade equal physical talent... if we give up Greinke I'd like someone back as equally physically gifted. He may not ever perform at the level of Grienke or a different player we could have had, but I want a high ceiling player coming back.

a local interest piece Appy notes: Walker ready to 'wow' E-Twins outfielder embracing the challenges of pro ball By Bob Sutton / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/06/27/HHxxlfag.jpg Adam Walker was a third-round pick out of Jacksonville University. (Todd Drexler/JUPhotos.com) Besides the typical changes from college ball to the pros faced by many players, Elizabethton's Adam Walker has the additional challenge of fitting into an outfield with a distinctly international flavor. The Wisconsin native, who signed quickly after the Minnesota Twins made him a third-round choice out of Jacksonville University in June's Draft, said he was ready for whatever was in front of him when the Appalachian League season got under way last week. "It wasn't too tough. I was ready to start my career in pro ball," Walker said of the decision to leave college after his junior year. "It's nice to get started and get the at-bats. It's nice to be able to sign and get out here." So Walker will try to settle in and stand out at the same time. He's pegged primarily as a corner outfielder, looking the part with a 6-foot-4, 232-pound frame. The Elizabethton outfield might be the definition of a baseball melting pot. There's Romy Jimenez from the Dominican Republic, Max Kepler from Germany and Rory Rhodes from Australia. That might create some diverse outfield chatter during a pitching change. "It's cool to meet people from different parts of the world," Walker said. "It's definitely interesting, learning where everyone was from, and it was 'wow.'" It's the "wow" factor that Walker might eventually provide with his bat. He said consistency must be one of his priorities at the plate. He hit his first professional home run Tuesday in his seventh game. "Just plate discipline and being more consistent out there," said Walker, who won't turn 21 until after the season. "It will help me get more consistent every day." Walker said he was always one of the bigger players on youth teams growing up in Wisconsin. Then he arrived at college and filled out. "Obviously, you look at him, he has the prototypical body [and] moves well," Elizabethton manager Ray Smith said. "I think his makeup is good. I know [the organization] thinks a lot of him." Walker, who played in the 2011 NCAA Regionals, toyed with some time as a first baseman at Jacksonville, but he was primarily stationed in the outfield. Now it's about refining his skills. "I think I have what it takes -- just sharpen up everything," Walker said. Elizabethton's players had plenty of bonding time as the Twins began the season with a six-game road trip. That should have provided time for players and staff to discover their teammates' backgrounds. Smith said the Minnesota organization has been willing to tap the less traditional baseball areas in its scouting. In this case, Elizabethton is directly experiencing the impact of that. "The game is so international now," Smith said. "It's almost become commonplace. [international players] haven't had the experience a lot of our guys have had, but they have the wide-eyed enthusiasm." Rhodes, in his second go-around in the league, hasn't missed a beat, starting the season with five consecutive multi-hit outings. He batted a league-leading .485 (16-for-33) through the first eight games of the season. In brief Walk this way: Bluefield first baseman Art Charles drew a league-leading 11 walks over the first nine games. The 21-year-old California native, a 2011 Appy League All-Star, is 7-for-22 with five extra-base hits. One at a time: Kansas City's 2011 fifth-round pick, Patrick Leonard, homered in his pro debut with the Burlington Royals. "I was thinking I wanted to get my first hit," Leonard said of the homer at Pulaski. "I hit it good, but I didn't know it was going to [clear the fence]. I was running hard to first base." The third baseman had a league-best four homers across the first six games, all solo shots. On the mark: Princeton Rays left-hander Blake Snell notched 13 strikeouts over his first 8 2/3 innings and did not allow a run during that span. He went 3 2/3 innings in his second outing without yielding a hit or walk. Right spot, right time: Greeneville Astros right-hander Jordan Jankowski has picked up a win in his first three appearances out of the bullpen. He's a first-year pro out of Division II Catawba College in North Carolina after transferring from Miami of Ohio.

Maddox is a Cincy prospect and the H-Crew gets mention at the bottom PIO notes: Maddox shifts his approach Billings slugger focused on hitting to all fields in third season By Greg Rachac / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/06/28/ebSNvSIY.jpg Robert Maddox has two homers in eight games for the Mustangs. (Paul Ruhter/Billings Gazette) Robert Maddox had a fine 2011 campaign with the Billings Mustangs, hitting .282 while leading the team with 16 home runs and 51 RBIs. But an integral element of Maddox's approach was missing. For the last couple of seasons, the book on the left-handed Maddox was that he was a dead-pull hitter. In turn, teams gave the power hitter the Barry Bonds treatment. By shifting to the right side of the diamond, defenses dared Maddox to hit the ball the other way. Now in his third season with Rookie-level Billings, Maddox is starting to make opponents think twice about that type of alignment. Maddox saw the shift significantly with the Mustangs last season, and he's seen it to a lesser degree already in the early part of 2012. It's a strategy big league teams used for years against Bonds, who rarely hit to the opposite field. Because of his penchant for pulling the ball, Maddox says the defensive approach is "self-inflicted." But the difference now is that Maddox knows his best opportunity to advance through the Cincinnati Reds' farm system is to learn to hit to all fields -- even though it may cut into some of his power numbers. "I know I can pull the ball very well, with power," Maddox says. "But this year I'm working on driving the ball to center field and left field a lot better. "If going the other way with the ball will help my overall game, then losing a couple home runs won't bother me. It will increase my batting average overall, my on-base percentage, doubles, triples, runs scored ... the pros outweigh the cons. I'm not really concerned about home runs, because I know I have the power. I'm not worried about the numbers. As long as I become a better overall hitter, that's the most important thing." Maddox, an 18th-round pick in 2010 out of Ohio University, flashed signs of improvement last week, going to the opposite field for a two-out RBI double in the first inning against Missoula. Maddox drove the ball to the deepest part of Dehler Park -- about 420-feet from home plate -- off the wall in the left-center-field gap. He did the same thing two nights earlier. Leading off the fifth inning, Maddox doubled to the gap in left to break up Chris Pack's no-hit bid. It ignited the Mustangs' offense, which eventually delivered the winning run to beat Missoula in the 10th. Finally, in the team's first road trip through Helena, Maddox hit an opposite-field home run -- one of his two homers in the game -- to ignite a 9-4 victory. "In Rookie ball, you don't see shifts like they do in the big leagues with left-handed hitters, yet with Robert we've seen it a lot," said second-year Mustangs manager Pat Kelly. "It was pretty apparent to everybody what type of pull hitter he was, so that was a great sign to see, for him to be able to take the ball the other way." Maddox is hitting .345 with two homers and eight RBIs in eight games for Billings and is slugging .655 and had an OPS of 1.067. Kelly said Maddox's attitude "has been outstanding. I thought he really worked hard in extended [spring training]. But it's hard. He was a college player, and this is his third year of Rookie ball. He'd probably tell you this is not where he wants to be. But at the same time it's an opportunity to play and an opportunity to get better." In brief Ominous Owlz: The Orem Owlz fell to a surprising 1-8 after a 12-7 loss in Grand Junction before rebounding Wednesday with a 7-6 victory over the Rockies. Under longtime manager Tom Kotchman, Orem is a perennial playoff team and one of the most respected franchises in the league, having won three championships in the last seven seasons. Oops! Helena outfielder Raul Mondesi Jr. made a huge gaffe in a 2-1 loss to Missoula on June 25. Mondesi hit what would have been a game-tying solo home run in the 10th inning, but he failed to touch home plate. The Osprey appealed, and Mondesi was called out to end the game. Mondesi is one of two sons of former Major Leaguer Raul Mondesi currently in the Pioneer League. Adalberto Mondesi is with Idaho Falls. Four more years: The Arizona Diamondbacks reached an agreement with Missoula to extend their Player Development Contract last week. The deal will last through the 2016 season. Missoula is currently in its 14th season as an affiliate of the Diamondbacks

Miller bounces back in Redbirds' win Cardinals prospect fixes mechanical flaw, returns to form By Ashley Marshall / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/06/27/qLsE8q8J.jpg Shelby Miller had allowed 32 runs over his previous six starts. (Allison Rhoades/MiLB.com) The Memphis Redbirds skipped Shelby Miller's last turn in the rotation to give him time to regain his composure and work on some mechanical changes after a disappointing first half of the season. Miller spent the time regrouping and analyzing his starts in the video room. After all, he had never done anything but win in his baseball career. MLB.com's No. 2 prospect allowed one hit -- a solo homer -- over five innings Wednesday night as Memphis edged the Albuquerque Isotopes, 3-2. "It was a huge eye-opener. I've never really struggled in any other league or faced this adversity," Miller said. "I got together with my pitching coach and he told me to put it behind me and to just try and have a good second half. "It helped with clearing my head of the first half and working on my mechanics -- looking at old film and working out what grips to use when and what leg kicks work best for me. I'm just trying to get it all together and making a solid effort to get my numbers where they should be." Against Albuquerque, the Cardinals' top prospect was perfect the first time through the lineup, but Matt Angle homered to right field leading off the fourth to knot the game at 1-1. Home runs have been Miller's Achilles' heel all year. Angle's blast was the 16th he's allowed in 15 Pacific Coast League contests. The 20-year-old right-hander has given up at least one longball in 11 starts, including one in each of his last seven. "It could have been better. I had three great innings at first and then gave up the home run," said Miller, selected 19th overall in the 2009 Draft. "It was a bad pitch that I should not have thrown. It was a 3-1 fastball inside, and when you're in a hitter's count, you don't want to throw that. You just try to eliminate all of the bad stuff. "That is how I have been beat all year -- it's been the home run, it's been the longball. I would walk a guy and give up a base hit to put two runners on base and then I would give up a homer and that would be three earned runs right there. I've not been going deep into games, and that's been a difference-maker." In the fifth, Miller loaded the bases on a pair of walks and a hit batter, but he struck out Isotopes starter John Ely, retired Angle on a popup and fanned Alex Castellanos to end the threat and his night. "I had a four-pitch walk, then I hit a guy going inside and then another walk out of the stretch," Miller said. "I wasn't in a groove throwing out of the stretch. I lost focus, I can't explain it. But I got the next three outs with the bases loaded and I felt really good." The Texas native fanned eight, threw 50 of 87 pitches for strikes and lowerd his ERA to 5.70 without figuring in the decision. He remains 4-6 on the year and without a victory in seven starts since May 15. "I had really good command of my fastball. That was the biggest thing for me," Miller said. "It was a righty lineup with seven right-handers, so I didn't throw my changeup much. There were only two lefties and I had only seen one of them three times, so there wasn't really situations to throw my changeup tonight. When the time was right, I threw it, but it was mainly curveball-fastball. I was able to throw my fastball down in the zone and I was hitting my spots with it." After tossing six shutout innings against Colorado Springs six weeks ago, Miller's struggles intensified. He yielded at least three runs in each of his next six starts, including seven over 3 2/3 innings at Tucson on May 21 and seven more over 4 2/3 frames against New Orleans on June 16. The difficulties are new to Miller, who fanned 140 over 104 1/3 innings with Class A Quad Cities in 2010 and combined to go 11-6 with a 2.77 ERA and 170 strikeouts over 139 2/3 frames a year ago. Even in school, Miller cruised. He went 10-2 as a senior at Brownwood High School in Texas, throwing three straight no-hitters while making a name for himself as an All-State punter and All-District wide receiver. "I've not been pitching that great this year," Miller admitted. "The biggest thing was throwing bad pitches in hitters' counts and leaving a cookie for them to hit. It's always been one bad pitch per game that makes my numbers look ugly. I just need to keep the ball down, hit my spots and work on my off-speed pitches when they need to be thrown." Miller came to Spring Training, ready to compete for a spot in St. Louis' rotation. He posted an 8.31 ERA in two Grapefruit League starts, then lost his first two regular-season starts for Memphis. But he followed that with a stretch in which he was 4-0 with a 2.27 ERA in six outings. "I wouldn't be too disappointed if I didn't get called up this year. We have a great staff in the big leagues right now, but I want to pitch so good that they have no choice but to call me up. But my focus is on pitching my best at Triple-A. There are not many [21-year-old] guys pitching at Triple-A, so I'm blessed." Jess Todd (1-1) ended up getting the win Wednesday, despite allowing one run on two hits over two innings. Mark Hamilton was 2-for-3 with an RBI double and a run scored and Eugenio Velez contributed two hits, including his 10th homer, for the Redbirds.

Cingrani dazzles in best outing as pro Reds prospect strikes out 15, pitches eight one-hit innings By Sam Dykstra / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/06/28/eyHgltRG.jpg Tony Cingrani has recorded four double-digit strikeout games in his two-year career. (Chris Nelson) Tony Cingrani couldn't decide where Wednesday's start ranked in his baseball career. The Reds' No. 10 prospect had just taken a no-hitter into the seventh and finished with 15 strikeouts over eight shutout innings in Double-A Pensacola's 5-0 win over Jackson. It was the highest strikeout total in the longest outing of his two-year Minor League career. When pressed about what could best such an outing, the 22-year-old left-hander mentioned a six-inning no-hitter he threw for Lincoln-Way Central High School in Lenox, Ill., in March 2007. That start stood out because it came against St. Rita of Cascia High School, one of the better baseball programs in Chicago's south suburbs. Then he remembered his opponents on Wednesday and changed his mind. "This was probably the best," he said. "This was better because it's obviously against better hitters and guys who have been in the pros for a while." Cingrani retired his first 14 batters -- 10 on strikeouts, including three in the opening inning -- before issuing a two-out walk to Denny Almonte in the fifth. The former Rice closer promptly picked off the Generals center fielder. He didn't surrender his first hit until Leury Bonilla lined a single to left field with one out in the seventh. And while he lost a chance at an even more historic evening, Cingrani admitted he wasn't miffed. "I was obviously aware of it, but I wasn't worried about it," he said. "A no-hitter would've been nice, but it was a single hit and I try not to get worried about that kind of thing." Bonilla was caught trying to steal second one batter later as Cingrani faced the minimum through seven innings. In the eighth, Kalian Sams singled, but Jesus Sucre bounced into a double play. After Almonte tripled, Cingrani struck out Joe Dunigan on his 100th and final pitch. The 15 strikeouts for Cingrani -- who employs a fastball, changeup and slider that he's continually working on -- eclipsed his previous high of 13, established over six hitless innings for Rookie-level Billings last Aug. 27. The eight innings were one better than his previous best, established for Class A Advanced Bakersfield on April 20. What makes Wednesday's outing even more impressive is that it followed a 3 2/3-inning stint a week ago in which Cingrani allowed two runs on five hits and three walks while striking out three. "I felt like I was rushing too much," he said of his last start. "My body was coming in way too fast and it affected my command -- I didn't know where anything was going. But I worked with [pitching coach Tom Brown], and that's something we really focused on in my bullpens and side sessions. "I feel like I've figured it out." The 2011 third-round pick is 2-1 with a 2.15 ERA and 38 strikeouts in five starts with Pensacola after going 5-1 with a 1.11 ERA in 10 appearances with Bakersfield. He's recorded 109 strikeouts over 86 innings across both levels, ranking third in the Minor Leagues behind A's farmhand Daniel Straily (124) and D-backs top prospect Trevor Bauer (116). With numbers like that, the Reds prospect has the confidence level to repeat Wednesday's performance -- the one he now believes was his best ever -- and, in fact, even improve upon it. "[My confidence level is] always high," Cingrani said. "Obviously, after the last two starts, it's not extremely high, but it's back up there now. Today was just another day. I've got to go out there and do it all over again in four or five days. "I definitely I feel like I can do this again. I can do even better."

Brett Jackson’s K-Troubles Continue

Short Siesta Pays Off For Cardinals Shelby Miller

Boy it would sure stink to have to settle for Martin Perez who I've been coveting since 2009. While he's slow to settle in at each new level he's also: Even if Perez needs another full season of development time, so what? I'd rather take a shot on him then getting back someone like Derek Holland who fit's Melvin's trading history. Regarding Melvin, if you really think that's where people like myself have been coming from then you've missed the point entirely. I've taken extreme issue with Melvin's tendency to go after short-term solutions and his acquiring of high floor but low ceiling prospects in trades. Sometimes that's all he can get, like getting Villy for Franklin, that was a good trade. However if he waits until the deadline and gets some mediocre proven veteran then the same excuse makers will excuse away the result as, "What was he supposed to do?" when the answer has literally been posted 100s of times. He's supposed to identify and work to maximize the return on every asset in the organization, waiting until the trading deadline to decide that the Brewers are out of it would severely limit his options and be trading as his lowest possible value. He should have started putting feelers out a month ago, and he should have started testing the waters by last week, that's what he's supposed to do as a GM. Every day Greinke's value goes down, it's that simple. It's not about quitting on a season, it's about realistically assessing the strengths and weaknesses of your current team and organization, then moving forward in a way that best meets the future needs of the franchise. It's not like people just woke up one morning and decided to start criticizing Melvin, he's established easily identifiable patterns in his tenure as GM which have had both positive and negative consequences. Furthermore, he's directly responsible for the depth of the organization and performance of the MLB team. People can blame the players and blame the manager, but who's ultimately responsible for all of it? I was once a Melvin fan-boy, but when I became hooked on impact pitching my enthusiasm for him waned significantly and has eroded further every year since. I do understand why he's popular, many people are just happy be relevant again, I get that most don't care about the minors, or organization building, or ultimate trade value... they just want the MLB team to win and go to the post season. I'm okay with all of that, truly I am, to each their own. However I am disappointed that no matter who the messenger is, it seems that many of the pro Melvin responders don't seem to fully understand the arguments being presented by the other side. That's basically what the "What was Melvin supposed to do?" and "revisionist history" posts tell us, that our position with in-regards to Melvin being short-sighted is being completely overlooked or ignored despite the overwhelming evidence supporting the claim. Personally I'd rather someone actually shoot holes in the theories and prove to us where we've interpreted Melvin's moves incorrectly than toss out the same generic responses time after time. Prospects fail, Melvin did the best he could, no other trades were available... the first is partly true, the second is entirely open to the debate, and the 3rd is completely false. For example, reliable sources had SF offering Cain for Hart after his break out season... then those same sources had the Braves wanting to trade for Hart later. Here's a what if... what if we had acquired Cain for Hart and Cain was on the mound that day in Chicago when Fielder dove right in front Gallardo who blew out his knee. That play doesn't even have the opportunity to happen, we roll towards the post season with Sheets, Cain, and Gallardo and the following year we still have Cain and Gallardo at the top of rotation even after getting nothing for Sheets. What if instead of trading for Bush, Gross, Jackson with Overbay we had gone after the better talent in Marcum. Marcum still blows out his elbow in 2008 but in 2009 we have Marcum, Cain, and Gallardo at the top of the rotation. Then again maybe we target McGowan with Overbay and he gets hurt anyway but then we move Hardy for Buchholz and bring up Escobar... Just because the dominoes fell one way doesn't mean the situation couldn't have gone a completely different way if an alternative option was chosen. It wasn't fated to be Linebrink, Lopez, Sabathia, Suppan, Davis, Looper, Greinke, Marcum, Bush, Lee, Cordero, and so on... those were just choices, nothing more and nothing less.

Just keep making progress Tyler.

Final: DSL Braves 3, DSL Brewers 2 DSL Brewers Box Score 21 year old Juan Santiago finally gave up his first runs (1 earned) of the season, but it's hard to be excited about a 21 year old at the lowest level of professional baseball without an accurate scouting report to go with. Juan went 5IP allowing 6H, 2R, 1ER, 1WP, and 1BB against 6SO posting a 9:0 ratio. Victor Diaz made his first appearance of the season pitching a scoreless inning. Junior Flores is having a rough start and got the loss giving up a run over his 2 innings. On the offensive side Francisco Castillo led the way going 3-4 with a 2B and he stole 2 bases bringing his season total to 17. Carlos Belonis went 2-4 with a triple and was caught stealing for the 4th time. Alejandro Mendoza added the other XBH, a 2B. The defense was poor in this game as the Brewers committed 4 errors, Belonis his 6th (fielding), Jose Dicent his 1st (fielding), and Santiago and Diaz had errant pick off attempts. However both pitchers also record a PO at 1B in the game. DSL Brewers Play By Play Pretty bad sequences for both runs Santiago allowed, at least he got out of it without further damage with 2 big Ks in the 5th. DSL Braves Bottom of the 1st Luis Monasterio singles on a ground ball to center fielder Francisco Castillo. Juruengelo Tielman reaches on force attempt, fielding error by shortstop Carlos Belonis. Luis Monasterio to 2nd. Miguel Rivero grounds into a force out, second baseman Raphachel Colatosti to shortstop Carlos Belonis. Luis Monasterio to 3rd. Juruengelo Tielman out at 2nd. Miguel Rivero to 1st. With Ibrahim McKenzie batting, wild pitch by Juan Santiago, Luis Monasterio scores. Miguel Rivero to 2nd. Ibrahim McKenzie singles on a ground ball to center fielder Francisco Castillo. Miguel Rivero to 3rd. Victor Reyes grounds into double play, shortstop Carlos Belonis to second baseman Raphachel Colatosti to first baseman Alejandro Mendoza. Ibrahim McKenzie out at 2nd. DSL Braves Bottom of the 5th Cristian Palacios walks. Luis Monasterio out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Juan Santiago to first baseman Alejandro Mendoza. Cristian Palacios to 2nd. Juruengelo Tielman singles on a ground ball to shortstop Carlos Belonis. Cristian Palacios to 3rd. With Miguel Rivero batting, wild pitch by Juan Santiago, Juruengelo Tielman to 2nd. With Miguel Rivero batting, throwing error by Juan Santiago on the pickoff attempt, Cristian Palacios scores. Juruengelo Tielman to 3rd. Miguel Rivero called out on strikes. Ibrahim McKenzie called out on strikes. The only runs put on the board for the Brewers. DSL Brewers Top of the 6th Yunior De La Cruz lines out to shortstop Cristian Palacios. Alejandro Mendoza doubles (1) on a fly ball to center fielder Jose Morel. Francisco Castillo singles on a ground ball to shortstop Cristian Palacios. Alejandro Mendoza to 3rd. Raphachel Colatosti flies out to right fielder Miguel Rivero. Carlos Belonis triples (2) on a fly ball to center fielder Jose Morel. Alejandro Mendoza scores. Francisco Castillo scores. Pitcher Change: Ray Cabrera replaces Nelson Leon. Elvis Rubio grounds out, second baseman Luis Monasterio to first baseman Ibrahim McKenzie.

Final: Nashville 4, Round Rock 0 Buller Homers Twice As Sounds Blank Express, 4-0 Four Pitchers Combine For Nashville's PCL Co-Leading Seventh Shutout ROUND ROCK, Tex. - Catcher Dayton Buller homered twice to power the Nashville Sounds to a 4-0 shutout victory over the Round Rock Express in the opener of a three-game series on Wednesday night at The Dell Diamond. Four pitchers combined for Nashville's PCL co-leading seventh shutout of the season, which also snapped an eight-game losing streak to the Express at The Dell Diamond. Nashville (32-48) went yard three times on the night has homered in 10 of its last 12 games overall. Buller's two-homer performance marked the first multiple-homer game of his 11-year career and third two-homer effort by a Sound this season. Shortstop Jeff Bianchi had two hits and a stolen base while second baseman Eric Farris singled to extend his hitting streak to nine games, which matches a season high. Nashville starter Wily Peralta (3-8) tossed 5 2/3 shutout innings before experiencing leg cramps and precautionary leaving the contest. The 23-year old allowed four hits and three walks while inducing three double plays for the victory. Buller took Rangers rehabbing starting pitcher Derek Holland deep in the top of the third inning to give the Sounds a 1-0 lead. The homer was Buller's first of the season and first in 166 at-bats since August 5, 2010 vs. Carolina. · AUDIO: Dayton Buller's First HR In the next frame, first baseman Sean Halton went yard on Round Rock reliever Ross Wolf for the game's next run. Later in the inning after hits from left fielder Jordan Brown and second baseman Eric Farris, Express shortstop Luis Hernandez committed a costly fielding error during Buller's routine groundout that allowed Brown to score. · AUDIO: Sean Halton Goes Deep Later in the contest during the seventh inning, Buller hit a towering fly ball down the left field line that landed on top of the roof of the home run porch that was initially ruled a foul ball. After Sounds manager Mike Guerrero appealed, which caused the umpires to convene and change the call to a home run, Round Rock manager Bobby Jones was ejected. Reliever Robert Wooten stranded his only batter in 1 1/3 scoreless inning. Mike McClendon followed with a perfect inning and one strikeout. Jim Henderson struck out two in an inning to end the game. In his first rehab start, Holland (0-1) gave up one run on three hits in three innings for the loss. The Sounds and Express continue with the second game of a three games series at 7:05 pm CT at The Dell Diamond. Coming off a strong performance and victory, right-hander Mark Rogers (3-4, 5.65) takes the hill for the Sounds against Express righty Derek Hankins (2-4, 4.20). Nashville Box Score When Wily Peralta walked his 3rd batter I hopped up and ran to the bathroom quick only to get back and hear that he had pulled for an apparent injury. I was pretty worried until the next inning when Jeff mentioned he thought it was leg related, and then relieved a couple of innings later when it was revealed to be cramping. This was the first Peralta start I caught all of, and I was pretty happy with him, he was ahead in counts, getting a ton of groundballs, and 2 of the hits against him were borderline misplayed balls on the IF ruled hits. Did you know that Wily was leading the PCL in GB ratio? Free Jim Henderson! I agree with Jeff that Henderson is certainly worthy of an all-star appearance. Dayton Buller hadn't hit a home run in over 160 games if I remember what Jeff said correctly, but he hit 2 tonight. Jeff Bianchi (pronounced Bee-ankee which still surprises me) had the other multi-hit game as he was 2-3 with a walk and queue the calls for Sean Halton to get more playing time. Halton did get caught stealing (which oddly I don't remember) and Caleb Gindl got picked off first. Nashville Play By Play

Final: DSL Brewers 4, DSL Tigers 0 DSL Brewers Box Score It's always fun to look at pitching lines like this, 2 youngsters combined for 3H, 0 BBs, and as Brad mentioned earlier 1 put up 11Ks on his own. I love me some quality pitching. Young Jorge Ortega has been as dominant as Rizzo in the early going... one of you twitter types should start pimping McCalvy to get us some updates on these DSL pitchers, I'd even take a scouting report directly from the organization. None of them made the Brewer top 30 from BA so I'm no help there. Ortega's full line 8IP, 3H, 0ER, 0BB, 11K, and a 6:2 ratio, just fantastic... As disappointing as the pitching in AZ has been, the DSL pitching has been that good. Miguel Diaz pitched a clean 9th and has only allowed 1 run in 6.2 innings pitched so far this season. The Brewer bats were quiet until the 8th when they erupted for 4 hits and 4 runs with the help of some poor defense from the Tigers. Jose Dicent went 2-4 and has a mini 2 game multi-hit streak going, Alejandro Mendoza was perfect on the day going 2-2 with 2BB. Francisco Castillo had the only xbh, a triple, he went 1-2 with 3BB and stole his 15th base on the season. Carlos Belonis also swiped a bag his 12 but Elvis Rubio was caught stealing for the 1st time. The sound defense and relatively high walk totals have been impressing me so far this season, I'm really diggin this DSL team. DSL Brewers Play By Play Welcome to the Jorge Ortega Show! DSL Tigers Top of the 1st Samuel Crafort flies out to left fielder Juan Ortiz in foul territory. Gregoris Hidalgo grounds out to first baseman Kevin Martinez. Sandy Acevedo strikes out swinging. DSL Tigers Top of the 2nd Lenny Pena grounds out, shortstop Raphachel Colatosti to first baseman Kevin Martinez. Felix G. Santana strikes out swinging. Ignacio Valdez strikes out swinging. DSL Tigers Top of the 3rd Victor Ovalles singles on a ground ball to left fielder Juan Ortiz. Francisco Contreras pops out to first baseman Kevin Martinez. Omar Oses grounds into double play, shortstop Raphachel Colatosti to first baseman Kevin Martinez. Victor Ovalles out at 2nd. DSL Tigers Top of the 4th Samuel Crafort pops out to shortstop Raphachel Colatosti. Gregoris Hidalgo grounds out, first baseman Kevin Martinez to second baseman Alejandro Mendoza to pitcher Jorge Ortega. Sandy Acevedo strikes out swinging. DSL Tigers Top of the 5th Lenny Pena grounds out, first baseman Kevin Martinez to second baseman Alejandro Mendoza to pitcher Jorge Ortega. Felix G. Santana singles on a ground ball to center fielder Francisco Castillo. Ignacio Valdez strikes out swinging. Victor Ovalles singles on a ground ball to right fielder Jose Dicent. Felix G. Santana to 3rd. Francisco Contreras flies out to left fielder Juan Ortiz. DSL Tigers Top of the 6th Omar Oses strikes out swinging. Samuel Crafort pops out to third baseman Elvis Rubio in foul territory. Gregoris Hidalgo strikes out swinging. DSL Tigers Top of the 7th Sandy Acevedo strikes out swinging. Lenny Pena strikes out swinging. Felix G. Santana strikes out swinging. DSL Tigers Top of the 8th Ignacio Valdez strikes out swinging. Victor Ovalles grounds out, first baseman Kevin Martinez to pitcher Jorge Ortega. Francisco Contreras pops out to third baseman Elvis Rubio in foul territory. The offense awakens! DSL Brewers Bottom of the 8th Francisco Castillo triples (1) on a fly ball to center fielder Samuel Crafort. Raphachel Colatosti hits a sacrifice fly. Fielding error by right fielder Ignacio Valdez. Francisco Castillo scores. Raphachel Colatosti to 1st. With Carlos Belonis batting, wild pitch by Juan Falcon, Raphachel Colatosti to 3rd. Carlos Belonis hit by pitch. Pitcher Change: Cesar Burgos replaces Juan Falcon. Elvis Rubio called out on strikes. Juan Ortiz singles on a ground ball to center fielder Samuel Crafort. Raphachel Colatosti scores. Carlos Belonis to 2nd. Jose Dicent singles on a line drive to left fielder Felix G. Santana. Carlos Belonis to 3rd. Juan Ortiz to 2nd. Carlos Pena out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Samuel Crafort. Carlos Belonis scores. Juan Ortiz to 3rd. Alejandro Mendoza singles on a line drive to center fielder Samuel Crafort. Juan Ortiz scores. Jose Dicent to 2nd. Kevin Martinez reaches on fielding error by third baseman Lenny Pena. Jose Dicent to 3rd. Alejandro Mendoza to 2nd. Francisco Castillo flies out to center fielder Samuel Crafort.