TheCrew07

Final Game 1: Huntsville 5, Mississippi 4 (7 innings) Game 1 Box Score Interestingly as I followed the game and even after I started my post the box score had Tyler Thornburg charged with 3ER instead of the 1ER it's showing now, I thought it should have been 2ER all along. Regardless, Tyler wasn't sharp again walking 3 and allowing 5 hits in only 6IP, but he did strike out 4 batters. He threw 92 pitches but only 56 for strikes and posted a 4:5 GO:FO ratio. Jesus Sanchez came on pitched a clean 7th to nail down the victory, he hasn't been scored upon in at least 10 straight appearances. Scooter Gennett and Juan Sanchez both went 2-3 with a double while Jason Jarmillo added a double of his own. Thornburg went 1-1 with a HBP (excessively hateful Mr. Lugo!) bumping his season AVE up to .222. The defense wasn't good as the Stars committed 3 defensive miscues, Gennett had a throwing error in the 5th and Jarmillo had a throwing error and passed ball in the 4th. Josh Prince stole his 7th base of the season. Game 1 Play By Play The Stars answered back in the first to take a 2 run lead. Huntsville Bottom of the 1st Kentrail Davis grounds out, shortstop Andrelton Simmons to first baseman Ian Gac. Tommy Manzella strikes out swinging. Scooter Gennett doubles (6) on a fly ball to center fielder Todd Cunningham. Jay Gibbons walks. Jason Jaramillo doubles (7) on a ground ball to left fielder Adam Milligan. Scooter Gennett scores. Jay Gibbons to 3rd. Josh Prince singles on a soft line drive to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Jay Gibbons scores. Jason Jaramillo scores. With Domnit Bolivar batting, Josh Prince steals (7) 2nd base. Domnit Bolivar strikes out swinging. Thornburg's clean innings were the 3rd and 6th, here are the rest. Mississippi Top of the 1st Keenan Wiley singles on a bunt ground ball to third baseman Domnit Bolivar. Andrelton Simmons singles on a line drive to left fielder Juan Sanchez. Keenan Wiley to 2nd. Philip Gosselin out on a sacrifice bunt, third baseman Domnit Bolivar to first baseman Jay Gibbons. Keenan Wiley to 3rd. Andrelton Simmons to 2nd. Evan Gattis walks. Joe Leonard out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Josh Prince. Keenan Wiley scores. Andrelton Simmons to 3rd. Evan Gattis to 2nd. Ian Gac strikes out swinging. Mississippi Top of the 2nd Todd Cunningham walks. Adam Milligan strikes out swinging. Jose Lugo bunt pops out to catcher Jason Jaramillo in foul territory. Keenan Wiley flies out to right fielder Kentrail Davis. Mississippi Top of the 4th Joe Leonard singles on a line drive to left fielder Juan Sanchez. Ian Gac doubles (10) on a line drive to left fielder Juan Sanchez. Joe Leonard to 3rd. With Todd Cunningham batting, throwing error by Jason Jaramillo on the pickoff attempt, Joe Leonard scores. Ian Gac to 3rd. With Todd Cunningham batting, passed ball by Jason Jaramillo, Ian Gac scores. Todd Cunningham lines out to right fielder Kentrail Davis. Adam Milligan called out on strikes. Jose Lugo grounds out, third baseman Domnit Bolivar to first baseman Jay Gibbons. Mississippi Top of the 5th Keenan Wiley singles on a ground ball to right fielder Kentrail Davis. Andrelton Simmons flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. Philip Gosselin walks. Keenan Wiley to 2nd. Evan Gattis grounds into a force out, third baseman Domnit Bolivar to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Keenan Wiley scores. Philip Gosselin out at 2nd. Evan Gattis advances to 2nd, on throwing error by second baseman Scooter Gennett. Joe Leonard pops out to first baseman Jay Gibbons in foul territory.

Nine after 9 for May 14, 2012

Actually didn't I read that other side can fire the arbitrator? I'm not sure why the Player's Association ever would though, as it would be a PR nightmare. The way a new arbitrator is selected if the 2 sides aren't able to agree is actually kind of funny as you're simply the last man standing after both sides alternate turns striking names off a list.

Final: Kane County 9, Wisconsin 2 Cougars slam Rattlers By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GENEVA, IL - Kane County Cougars third baseman Michael Antonio was hitting .182 with no home runs heading into Monday afternoon's game against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers at Fifth Third Bank Ballpark. Antonio collected three hits, including a grand slam home run in the third inning, to lead the Cougars to a 9-2 victory over the Rattlers. Max Walla gave the Rattlers (23-15) a 1-0 lead in the second inning. Ben McMahan doubled with Nick Ramirez at first to put runners at second and third with one out. Walla's grounder to second got Ramirez home for the lead. The Cougars (20-18) came back with a two-out, two-run home run by Murray Watts in the bottom of the second inning. Antonio had doubled with one out in the inning and scored ahead of Watts line a pitch just over the wall in right field for his seventh homer of the season. Justin Trapp tripled with one out in the bottom of the third, but he was still at third with two outs. Then, Rattlers starter Chad Thompson walked the next two batters to load the bases. Thompson fell behind Antonio 3-1. The Cougars third baseman cracked a long homer to left on the next pitch for a grand slam and a 6-1 Kane County lead. Kevin Shackelford got the final out of the third, but did not fare much better in the fourth. Kane County scored three runs in the frame to grab a 9-1 advantage. Danny Mateo had an RBI double. Jorge Bonifacio singled in another run. The final run came home on a fielder's choice by Lane Adams. Yadiel Rivera got Wisconsin back on the scoreboard in the top of the sixth inning with a long home run to left. Rivera's third home run of the season made the score 9-2. But, Moen was solid the rest of the day. He allowed two runs on four hits without walking a batter and striking out four in six innings. Rattlers reliever Mark Williams came on in the bottom of the fifth and had a nice outing. He worked four shutout innings, walked two, allowed one hit, and struck out five. But, a pair of Kane County relievers combined to work three scoreless innings to secure Kane County's second straight win over Wisconsin. The Timber Rattlers and Cougars wrap up their four game series Tuesday morning. David Goforth (3-2, 4.67) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Robinson Yambati (1-0, 3.60) is set to start for Kane County. Game time is 11:00am. Tune in for the Miller Lite Pregame Show on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting at 10:40am. HOME RUN: WIS: Yadiel Rivera (3rd, 0 on in 6th inning off Kellen Moen, 0 out) KC: Murray Watts (7th, 1 on in 2nd inning off Chad Thompson, 2 out) Michael Antonio (1st, 3 on in 3rd inning off Chad Thompson, 2 out) WP: Kellen Moen (2-1) LP: Chad Thompson (1-1) TIME: 2:28 ATTN: 4,135 Wisconsin Box Score In the 2 outings since his debut no hitter Chad Thompson hasn't fared so well but at least Mark Williams continued his fine start to the season. Max Walla has dropped to 7th in the order and Yadiel Rivera to 9th and it worked today as both players produced runs, but it's a little disappointing from a development perspective. However it is understandable given how well the players in front of them have been hitting. Gregory Hopkins has cooled off a bit, Jason Rogers has been a pretty steady .280ish hitter, and Nick Ramirez (2-4 today) are all hitting in the upper .200s while Brandon Macias and Ben McMahan are hitting over .300 in their last 10 games. John Dishon batted lead off today as Chadwin Stang didn't play. Wisconsin Play By Play Not much to be excited about in here.

PCL notes: Adams not feeling pressure Cardinals' No. 8 prospect taking advantage of his Triple-A time By Chris Jackson / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/05/14/MFG3jOMU.jpg Matt Adams has hit .322 with six home runs and 17 RBIs through 32 games. (Jamie Harms/MiLB.com) The trend in baseball in recent years has been for many top prospects to skip Triple-A entirely, jumping straight from Double-A to the big leagues. St. Louis Cardinals prospect Matt Adams, however, is content to be at Triple-A with the Memphis Redbirds, because he feels it will make him a better player in the long run. "I'm definitely facing good pitching and they're definitely going to make it tough up here at the Triple-A level, facing a lot of the veteran guys," said Adams, the Cardinals' No. 8-ranked prospect. The slugging first baseman put himself on the map last season when he hit .300 with 32 home runs and 101 RBIs at Double-A Springfield. This season Adams has hit .322 with six home runs and 17 RBIs in 32 games. "I think the pitchers here they think more, they use a lot more pitches," he said. "They'll show you a fastball here and there, but they don't give in during a hitter's count. Here as a hitter, you've got to prepare; you're not getting a lot of straight, four-seam fastballs." Facing a lot of breaking balls and pitchers who live and die with offspeed pitches can only help, Adams said. "I definitely think that," he said. "It's going to make me a better hitter for the future." Hitting is only one part of the game, though, and Adams remains committed to improving his fielding as well. "I feel good, I worked hard in the offseason," Adams said. "I've got a bit more range out there. I'm definitely happy with where I'm at, but I still plan to work hard and keep getting better." Adams was a catcher at Slippery Rock University, a Division II school, when the Cardinals took him in the 23rd round of the 2009 Draft. He was moved to first base that summer at Rookie-level Johnson City and has moved quickly through the Minors ever since. With the departure of Albert Pujols and the fact that current Cardinals first baseman Lance Berkman is 36 years old, the door seems to be wide open for Adams to seize a job in St. Louis in the near future. For now, however, Adams is focused on helping the Redbirds (13-23) turn around their season. "We've got a lot of talent here," he said. "We've kind of gotten off to a slow start. We're losing a lot of one-run ballgames. We're just coming up short. I think in the future we're going to turn things around." Memphis will continue its series with Colorado Springs through Tuesday before starting an eight-game road trip on Thursday. In brief Reborn on a bayou: New Orleans right-hander Tom Koehler has begun to reestablish himself as a top prospect. After getting shelled for seven runs on eight hits and three walks in 4 1/3 innings on April 18, Koehler has allowed just five earned runs in 23 innings over his last four starts, winning three. Koehler struck out eight over six shutout innings of a 2-0 win over Tucson on Thursday. The Bell tolls: Third baseman Josh Bell, whom the D-backs acquired from the Orioles last month, has caught fire since joining the Reno Aces. Bell has hit .421 (32-for-76) with four home runs and 29 RBIs in 19 games since the trade. As a point of comparison, he was hitting .049 (3-for-32) in nine games with the Norfolk Tides prior to the swap. Catching up: Las Vegas catcher Travis d'Arnaud saw his 14-game hitting streak come to an end May 5 when he was 0-for-3 against Salt Lake. Since then he's hit safely in four games, going 5-for-17 to further erase the memories of his slow start to the season. The Blue Jays' No. 1 prospect, d'Arnaud has raised his average from .182 two weeks into the year to .274 through Saturday.

Top Three College Pitchers From 2011 Draft Make Ace Turns Pirates 1st Round selection and #1 overall Gerrit Cole is discussed in this post.

Top Pitching Performances Over The Weekend, May 11-13 No divisional mentions for hitting over the weekend but the Cubs and Reds get a mention in the pitching section. Reds RHP Kyle Lotzkar: Lotzkar has been around for so long that he was drafted with a supplemental firstround pick the Reds got for losing free agent Scott Schoeneweis. With the way that Lotzkar burst onto the scene in 2008, blowing away the low Class A hitters for 10 midseason starts as a teenager, he could have made his big league debut by now. Instead, he still hasn't gotten past the Midwest League because injuries have slowed his development. He developed a stress fracture in his elbow in 2008 and had Tommy John surgery the following season. His 67 innings last year were a career high, but he missed more time with a strained hamstring. Lotzkar's stuff didn't hold up as well with his increased workload. After showing a 90-94 mph fastball in 2010, he worked more at 89-91 last season. He also battled control problems, leading the MWL with 15 hit batters in 14 starts. Lotzkar still has a plus curveball, while his changeup remains below average. Though he has progressed much slower than hoped and he's not close to being big league-ready, Cincinnati still opted to protect him on its 40- man roster in November. His stuff likely would play up in the bullpen, and he might be able to stay healthy by working shorter stints. If he can stay on the mound, he'll finally reach high Class A in 2012. Cubs RHP Jose Rosario: Rosario has yet to make it to full-season ball after four years as a pro, including three in the United States, but he'll get there in 2012 after making impressive strides last season. After his fastball worked at 90-93 mph in 2010, it jumped to 93-97 and exploded on hitters last year. One scout saw him throw five consecutive 97-mph heaters in one game. Rosario has good life to go with his velocity, and he also has improved his ability to command his fastball. He has a chance to develop a plus slider, though his is presently more notable for its mid-80s velocity than its bite. It lacks consistency and gets slurvy at times. His changeup is even more rudimentary, and some scouts wonder if he'll develop a deep enough repertoire to remain a starter in the long run. His lack of size also may not be conducive to the durability needed to stay in the rotation, though he generates his velocity with arm speed and not effort. Rosario has the ceiling of a No. 3 starter or a set-up man, but it will take a few more years before the Cubs know exactly what they have in him

Catching up on divisional prospect happenings since Friday, Miguel Sano is getting a ton of run now that Harper and Trout are up. Taveras was mentioned a couple of times though no questions specifically targeted his tools this week. BA's Hot Sheet Chat: Reds: Scouting Report post 2011: In any other season, LaMarre's 55 stolen bases would have stood out among Reds farmhands. No one in the system had swiped that many since 1994, but he took a back seat to Billy Hamilton, who led the minors with 103. LaMarre might have been even more prolific if not for a series of minor hamstring injuries. An outstanding athlete, he was the leading tackler on consecutive state-championship football teams in high school and was also a hockey star. He has well above-average speed and shows a feel for getting leads and reading pitchers. LaMarre had a quick bat and shows solid raw power in batting practice, but it hasn't come through in games. Instead he uses a top-of-the-order approach with good selectivity and an all-fields mentality. He also has a knack for laying down bunts. In the field, LaMarre is average defensively in center field with an arm that's strong enough to let him handle right field as well. He got a taste of Double-A at the end of the season, and will head to Pensacola to begin 2012. His bat will determine whether he ends up as a regular or a useful fourth outfielder. Cubs:

Again, that's AAA plus being on the 40 man roster, there are no longer MLB contracts being offered to draft picks so very few players below AA would end up on the 40 man. From the same article talking about A ball players: Five Myths about Minor League Baseball 5.

The minor league minimum salary is $86,473? Is that just AAA, or is that all levels? This information is a bit old, I'm not sure what's different pay wise in the new CBA, but here's an excerpt from a 2010 story on minor league, but at the time players in A ball were getting paid below the poverty level. Playing For Peanuts

Nine after 9 for May 13, 2012

Siegrist leads Cards' one-hit shutout Palm Beach starter yields seventh-inning single, fans five By Andrew Pentis / Special to MLB.com http://www.milb.com/images/2012/05/12/yGq4E39h.jpg Kevin Siegrist yielded five runs in his season debut on May 6. (Palm Beach Cardinals) For a left-handed hurler like Kevin Siegrist, the left shoulder is a pretty crucial piece of equipment. When it's strained, as the Cardinals prospect found out this spring, the pitcher is, too. But when that shoulder is feeling flexible, as Siegrist's was Saturday evening, the pitcher is free to let loose. In his second start back from the boredom of rehab and rest, Siegrist had a no-hitter before allowing a seventh-inning single in Class A Advanced Palm Beach's 3-0 win over the Jupiter Hammerheads. "I felt really good, [my motion] felt really nice and easy," said Siegrist, who gave up five runs over 4 1/3 frames in his season debut last Sunday. "During the week, I worked with our pitching coach, Dennis Martinez, in the bullpen and little things made me feel more free when I was pitching. My arm slot, we dropped it down a little bit, made it more natural. It helps me throw my breaking pitches and off-speed pitches." Siegrist (1-0) had retired 10 straight Hammerheads when Danny Black's single to right field broke up his bid for a no-hitter. "You're always thinking about it. I'd be lying if I said I didn't," said Siegrist, who approached 80 pitches. "When I stepped on the mound, I put that in the back of my head and tried to make pitches. "[black] stuck with a slider that I thought was a pretty good pitch. He hit a soft popup and my outfielder tried to make a good play and it was just out of his reach. I was just like, 'OK, give me the ball.'" The 22-year-old left-hander walked the next batter before being lifted. He struck out five while issuing two free passes and plunking one batter. Set to bat when Siegrist exited? Hammerheads No. 3 hitter and Marlins No. 1 prospect Christian Yelich, who had struck out twice against the 2008 41st-round Draft pick. "Showing my slider was really important to get him to back off my fastball," Siegrist said of his success in the matchup. "I feel like my fastball is my best pitch, so if I can get him off my fastball, it makes my other stuff that much better. I was taking one batter at a time. I didn't really think about him." Iden Nazario also got Yelich out on strikes and induced an inning-ending double play to end the mini-threat. Nazario retired all three batters in the eighth before Dean Kiekhefer pitched a 1-2-3 ninth to earn his third save. "That was nice to see," Siegrist said of his relief corps. "It pumps up the team." The Cardinals scored all of their runs off starter Rett Varner (0-1) in the sixth. Mike O'Neill, Ronny Gil and Alan Ahmady singled to get the rally going. Ahmady went 3-for-4 and was the lone batter to collect more than one hit. Varner allowed six hits and a walk before exiting with two outs in the sixth. For Siegrist, this is a new beginning in an old stomping ground. He attended Palm Beach Community College and compiled a 3.42 ERA in 11 Florida State League outings last season after a dominant stretch in the Class A Midwest League. Now that he's a regular in a Minor League rotation, the shoulder strain is no longer cause for concern. "It feels great now," Siegrist said. "This definitely gives me confidence. I just got to take it into my next start."

It's you funny you mentioned it because as my family was watching Chulk's inning today my bother and father both asked if the Brewers had anyone in the minors besides "this scrub" and I brought up Henderson, I'd like to see him get a shot.

Final: Kane County 5, Wisconsin 4 Kane County holds on to top Wisconsin By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GENEVA, IL - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers nearly pulled off the comeback at Fifth Third Bank Ballpark on Sunday afternoon. But, the Kane County Cougars held on for a 5-4 win. John Dishon and Chadwin Stang each had three hits to lead Wisconsin's 13 hit attack, but a two-run homer by Lane Adams in a three-run fifth inning gave Kane County just enough. The Cougars (19-18) got to Rattlers starter Drew Gagnon for a run on back-to-back doubles in the second inning. Orlando Calixte doubled to right-center with one out. Dean Espy followed with a double off the wall in left on a 2-2 to drive in Calixte to put Kane County in front. Stang rallied the Rattlers (23-14) to the lead in the top of the third inning. Dishon started the inning with a ground rule double. Stang got Dishon home with a bloop single to right-center. The Rattlers centerfielder took second on the throw to the plate and was not done running. Stang took off for third on the next pitch home and swiped the base clean. The throw wound up in left field to allow Stang to trot home with the go ahead run. But, Kane County responded in the bottom of the third to tie the game. A double and a single put runners on first and third with no outs against Gagnon. Danny Mateo was next and he sent a hard grounder to the mound that was fielded cleanly by Gagnon. But, he threw wildly to second. The runner from third scored the tying run and when the dust settled, Kane County had runners at the corners again and there were still no outs. However, Gagnon escaped the inning without another run crossing the plate. The Cougars got to Gagnon in the bottom of the fifth. There were two outs with a runner at second and Bonifacio singled to right-center. Lane Adams drove the next pitch over the wall in left for a two-run homer and a 5-2 Kane County lead. Stang and Dishon teamed up again to get the Rattlers a run in the top of the seventh. Dishon singled with one out and moved up to third on a passed ball and a wild pitch. Stang doubled to right to drive in the run. Jason Rogers started the Rattlers eighth with a double. He took third on a grounder. Greg Hopkins drove in Rogers with a sacrifice fly. The Rattlers threatened to tie the game when Ben McMahan and Yadiel Rivera had consecutive two out singles to put runners on the corners. But, Kane County closer Nick Graffeo got the final out in the eighth. Dishon doubled to right against Graffeo to start the Wisconsin ninth, but Kane County's closer kept him there and got the final three outs for his eighth save of the season. Game three of the series is Monday afternoon. Chad Thompson (1-0, 2.70) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Kane County has Kellen Moen (1-1, 4.79) as their scheduled starter. Game time is noon. Tune in for action on AM1280, WNAM starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 11:40am. HOME RUN: KC: Lane Adams (2nd, 1 on in 5th inning off Drew Gagnon, 2 out) WP: Edwin Carl (3-2) LP: Drew Gagnon (3-1) SAVE: Nick Graffeo (8) TIME: 2:39 ATTN: 2,181 Wisconsin Box Score Well Drew Gagnon was bound to have a stinker sooner or later, every pitcher does. Micheal Strong pitched well in relief as he went 3 full innings allowing just a hit and a walk to keep the Rattlers within striking distance. This is his 2nd consecutive 3IP appearance, I do like that most of the Rattler pitchers are going more than 1 inning in their appearances. Even if Tyler Cravy doesn't get going, this is going to be an interesting crop of pitchers to follow as they move up the chain. Chadwin Stang has hit in 4 of his last 5 games and went 3-5 this afternoon with a double and stolen base. John Dishon had his best day of the season going 3-4 with 2 doubles and Jason Rogers went 2-4 with a double and a walk. Mass highlighted Ben McMahan's monthly splits earlier and Ben has now hit safely in 7 of his last 8 games with 5 multi hit contests through that span. Brandon Macias was caught stealing for the 4th time, Yadiel Rivera committed his 4th error on a dropped throw, and Gagon/Neda were 1-1 cutting down would be base stealers. Max Walla received a day off after a couple of 0-fers have pushed his OPS under .700. Wisconsin Play By Play Plenty of missed opportunities. This was quite the high wire act to limit the damage. Kane County Bottom of the 3rd Justin Trapp doubles (7) on a fly ball to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Daniel Mateo singles on a line drive to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Justin Trapp to 3rd. Jorge Bonifacio reaches on force attempt, missed catch error by shortstop Yadiel Rivera, assist to pitcher Drew Gagnon. Justin Trapp scores. Daniel Mateo to 3rd. Lane Adams flies out to center fielder Chadwin Stang. With Michael Antonio batting, Jorge Bonifacio caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Rafael Neda to shortstop Yadiel Rivera. Michael Antonio called out on strikes.

Final: Wisconsin 2, Kane County 1 (11 Innings) Rattlers win 2-1 pitching duel in 11 innings By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GENEVA, IL - A trio of Wisconsin Timber Rattlers pitchers held off the Kane County Cougars long enough for the offense to scratch out a run in the eleventh inning for a 2-1 road victory at Fifth Third Bank Ballpark. Matt Miller, Tommy Toledo, and Seth Harvey combined to hold a potent Kane County offense to one run on five hits in the game. Tyler Roberts, who hit two home runs in Friday's game at home, gave the Rattlers (23-13) a lead in the fifth on Saturday. The Wisconsin catcher grounded a single that just made it through the right side of the infield to score Ben McMahan from second base to make the score 1-0. But, the Cougars (18-18) would tie the game in the bottom of the fifth. Kenny Swab was at second base with two outs. Tim Ferguson sent a grounder to right and second baseman Greg Hopkins made a sliding stop of the ball just beyond the infield dirt. Hopkins had no play at first, but he noticed that Swab had rounded third base too far and had stopped. Hopkins ran at Swab and threw behind him to third. Swab took off for the plate and scored when Brandon Macias threw wildly home. Those were the only runs allowed by the respective starting pitchers. Miller worked six innings and allowed that unearned run on four hits. Kane County starter Scott Alexander scattered six hits and two walks over six innings. Wisconsin had an opportunity to take a lead in the seventh inning as they loaded the bases with one out in the top of the seventh inning against Kane County reliever Jason Mitchell. But, Mitchell escaped with a strikeout and a fly out. Toledo walked the leadoff batter in the bottom of the ninth and - after a sacrifice bunt - intentionally walked a batter to set up a double play. The strategy worked as Orlando Calixte sent a sharp grounder to Macias at third. Macias turned the grounder into an inning ending double play and sent the game to extra innings. Wisconsin loaded the bases in the top of the eleventh inning on a single, a walk, and another single by the first three batters of the game. McMahan was next and he grounded the first pitch of his at bat right at the second baseman. But, Danny Mateo bobbled the ball and let it get behind him to let Jason Rogers score the go ahead run. Harvey gave up a single to the leadoff batter in the bottom of the eleventh. After a stolen base put that runner on second, Harvey walked the next batter to put the winning run aboard with Jorge Bonifacio and Lane Adams due up next. Harvey struck out Bonifacio, who entered the game with a .315 average good for fourth in the Midwest League, on a nasty 1-2 pitch. Lane, the league's leading hitter at .341 when the game started, struck out on three pitches. From there, Harvey clinched the game - and his seventh save of the season by getting Michael Antonio to ground out to first. Game two of the series is Sunday afternoon. Drew Gagnon (3-0, 1.02) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. Edwin Carl (2-2, 1.69) is set to start for the Cougars. Game time is 1:00pm. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 12:40pm. WP: Tommy Toledo (4-0) LP: Jason Mitchell (0-3) SAVE: Seth Harvey (7) TIME: 2:51 ATTN: 6,356 Nine after 9 for May 12, 2012 Wisconsin Box Score I'll be honest in that I fully intended on just building a computer for my brother's restaurant and coming home but one thing led to another all afternoon/evening/night and now I'm in no condition to add anything to Chris' commentary. I apologize as stellar attendance and pitching truly deserves more in depth analysis. Wisconsin Play By Play

Final: Wisconsin 5, Quad Cities 4 Rattlers go long to beat Quad Cities Roberts cracks two of three Wisconsin homers and Moye K's seven in five scoreless innings out of the pen for 5-4 win By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GRAND CHUTE, WI - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers went long a couple of different ways to beat the Quad Cities River Bandits 5-4 Friday night at Time Warner Cable Field. Tyler Roberts hit two homers and Yadiel Rivera hit one to provide three long balls for Wisconsin. Andy Moye worked five scoreless innings out of the bullpen to give Wisconsin some long relief and the Rattlers moved their record to nine games over .500. However, the game did not start out well for the Rattlers. Matt Williams put Quad Cities (18-17) up 1-0 on the second pitch of the game from Rattlers starting pitcher Jacob Barnes. The River Bandits leadoff hitter cracked a home run to the Quad Cities bullpen in leftcenter for the lead. Wisconsin (22-13) used a pair of homers in the bottom of the second inning to take the lead. Rivera launched a two-run homer over the Quad Cities bullpen with two outs. Roberts crushed the next pitch over the batter's eye in center field and the Rattlers were up 3-1. The Bandits used the another long ball of their own to go back in front in the top of the fourth. Anthony Garcia drew a walk. Then, Juan Castillo cracked a long home run to left for a 4-3 advantage. Quad Cities leads the Midwest League in home runs with 34 this season. The Rattlers took advantage of consecutive walks to start the bottom of the sixth. Jason Rogers, Wisconsin's RBI leader lined a single to left to score Chadwin Stang from second to tie the game. Quad Cities starting pitcher Dail Villanueva retired the first two batters of the bottom of the seventh inning. Then Roberts got a hold of a 1-1 pitch and golfed it over the wall in left to put Wisconsin in front 5-4. This was the second two homer game for Roberts as a Timber Rattler. He also hit two solo shots at Kane County on May 29, 2011. That one run lead was more than enough for Moye. The right-hander was making his first relief appearance of the season and he made it a good one. Moye, who made the start in game one of Monday's doubleheader against Cedar Rapids, came on in relief of Barnes for the top of the fifth and struck out seven over five innings and allowed two base runners - one on a hit batsman in the sixth and the other on a one out double in the seventh. Moye used 55 pitches - 42 strikes - to work his five innings against the River Bandits. He retired the final eight batters he faced to pick up his third win of the season. The Timber Rattlers begin a quick four-day road trip to face the Kane County Cougars on Saturday night. Matt Miller (2-3, 4.03) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. Scott Alexander (2-2, 1.75) is set to take the hill for the Cougars. Game time is 6:30pm. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:10pm. HOME RUNS: QC: Matt Williams (2nd, 0 on in 1st inning off Jacob Barnes, 0 out) Juan Castillo (5th, 1 on in 4th inning off Jacob Barnes, 0 out) WI: Yadiel Rivera (2nd, 1 on in 2nd inning off Dail Villanueva, 2 out) Tyler Roberts (1st, 0 on in 2nd inning off Dail Villanueva, 2 out) Tyler Roberts (2nd, 0 on in 7th inning off Dail Villanueva, 2 out) WP: Andy Moye (3-0) LP: Dail Villanueva (3-2) TIME: 2:10 ATTN: 3,566 Nine after 9 for May 11, 2012 - Chris gives some extended praise to Moye. Wisconsin Box Score Thank goodness the T-Rats salvaged an otherwise dismal evening on the farm. Jacob Barnes had been living dangerously all season but actually put up his best numbers from a peripheral standpoint tonight but got worse results. 2HRs will do that to a line though. Mr. Barnes gave up 5H including the 2 HRs in his 4IP allowing 4ER and 1 walk against 5 strikeouts. Andy Moye is putting up a very nice season on some very low pitch counts, in his 5 innings he allowed 1 hit, no walks, and struck out 7! He did all of that on only 55 pitches, 42 of which were strikes, my goodness. As Uecker would say, "How about that one folks!?" I've always been a Tyler Roberts fan and it's nice to see him have a big night like this and props to Yadiel Rivera as well. Rivera has seemed to struggle with breaking stuff low and away (think Hart when he struggles) but sincerely hope he learns to be selective because his glove is Escobar good without Alcide's mental mistakes. In case you missed it in the box score link Nick Ramirez did pickup his first hit of the season. Wisconsin Play By Play All Moye all the time. Quad Cities Top of the 5th Pitcher Change: Andrew Moye replaces Jacob Barnes. Matt Williams grounds out, shortstop Yadiel Rivera to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Nick Martini grounds out to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Colin Walsh flies out to left fielder Ben McMahan. Quad Cities Top of the 6th Roberto De La Cruz pops out to second baseman Carlos George. Anthony Garcia strikes out swinging. Juan Castillo hit by pitch. Roberto Reyes strikes out swinging. Quad Cities Top of the 7th David Medina strikes out swinging. Luis Mateo doubles (8) on a line drive to right fielder Max Walla. Matt Williams flies out to right fielder Max Walla. Luis Mateo to 3rd. Nick Martini flies out to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Quad Cities Top of the 8th Colin Walsh called out on strikes. Roberto De La Cruz called out on strikes. Anthony Garcia grounds out, shortstop Yadiel Rivera to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Quad Cities Top of the 9th Juan Castillo grounds out, second baseman Carlos George to first baseman Nick Ramirez. Roberto Reyes strikes out swinging. David Medina called out on strikes.

Final: Mississippi 9, Huntsville 6 Huntsville Box Score I haven't looked at the WI score yet but I did read the summaries of Nashville and BC, this is shaping up to be an ugly night on the farm. Dan Merklinger started and he's just been unable to get anything going so far this season. Dan only lasted 4 innings (poor defense helped that cause) allowing 4H, 4R, 2ER, 3BB, and 2 HBP against 4SO having thrown 87 pitches and 46 for strikes. Roque Mercedes came on in relief of Merk and did what he does giving up 5ER and 3BBs in his 2 innings, on the positive side he also struck out 3. Bradley Blanks went the next 2.2 scoreless innings working around a hit and 2 walks and Mitch Stetter got the final out of the evening. Stars actually outhit the Braves 10-8. The opposing pitcher Zeke Spruill is rated by BA as the #9 prospect for ATL. Scooter Gennett led the way offensively with a 3-4 effort but Kentrail Davis had the only other multi hit game going 2-4. Anderson De La Rosa did add a double which was the only XBH of the night for the Stars. Juan Sanchez had a forgettable game as he committed 2 errors at 3B and has 4 total errors already for the Stars costing them 2 runs tonight. Huntsville Play By Play Nice start to the game for the Stars. Huntsville Bottom of the 1st Kentrail Davis singles on a ground ball to second baseman Philip Gosselin. Kentrail Davis advances to 2nd, on throwing error by second baseman Philip Gosselin. Josh Prince grounds out, third baseman Joe Leonard to first baseman Barrett Kleinknecht. Scooter Gennett singles on a ground ball to shortstop Andrelton Simmons. Kentrail Davis to 3rd. Jay Gibbons reaches on force attempt, missed catch error by shortstop Andrelton Simmons, assist to second baseman Philip Gosselin. Kentrail Davis scores. Scooter Gennett to 2nd. Tommy Manzella grounds into double play, shortstop Andrelton Simmons to first baseman Barrett Kleinknecht. Jay Gibbons out at 2nd Then the game quickly turned as Mississippi scored 9 runs in 3 innings, but the Stars answered back with crooked numbers in the 4th and 5th. Mississippi Top of the 3rd Zeke Spruill walks. Keenan Wiley walks. Zeke Spruill to 2nd. Andrelton Simmons out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Dan Merklinger to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Zeke Spruill to 3rd. Keenan Wiley to 2nd. Philip Gosselin reaches on fielding error by third baseman Juan Sanchez. Zeke Spruill scores. Keenan Wiley to 3rd. Evan Gattis doubles (4) on a fly ball to center fielder Josh Prince. Keenan Wiley scores. Philip Gosselin to 3rd. Joe Leonard singles on a line drive to left fielder Jay Gibbons. Philip Gosselin scores. Evan Gattis to 3rd. Mathew Kennelly grounds into double play, shortstop Tommy Manzella to second baseman Scooter Gennett to first baseman Matt Cline. Joe Leonard out at 2nd. Mississippi Top of the 4th Todd Cunningham doubles (4) on a line drive to center fielder Josh Prince. Barrett Kleinknecht strikes out swinging. Zeke Spruill reaches on throwing error by third baseman Juan Sanchez. Todd Cunningham to 3rd. Keenan Wiley hit by pitch. Zeke Spruill to 2nd. Andrelton Simmons hit by pitch. Todd Cunningham scores. Zeke Spruill to 3rd. Keenan Wiley to 2nd. Philip Gosselin strikes out swinging. Evan Gattis called out on strikes. Huntsville Bottom of the 4th Scooter Gennett hit by pitch. Jay Gibbons flies out to left fielder Evan Gattis. Tommy Manzella singles on a ground ball to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Scooter Gennett to 2nd. Anderson De La Rosa doubles (3) on a ground ball to left fielder Evan Gattis. Scooter Gennett scores. Tommy Manzella to 3rd. Juan Sanchez grounds out, second baseman Philip Gosselin to first baseman Barrett Kleinknecht. Tommy Manzella scores. Anderson De La Rosa to 3rd. Matt Cline strikes out swinging. Mississippi Top of the 5th Pitcher Change: Roque Mercedes replaces Dan Merklinger, batting 9th. Joe Leonard flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. Mathew Kennelly strikes out swinging. Todd Cunningham singles on a ground ball to center fielder Josh Prince. With Barrett Kleinknecht batting, Todd Cunningham steals (4) 2nd base. Barrett Kleinknecht walks. Zeke Spruill walks. Todd Cunningham to 3rd. Barrett Kleinknecht to 2nd. Keenan Wiley singles on a soft ground ball to pitcher Roque Mercedes. Todd Cunningham scores. Barrett Kleinknecht to 3rd. Zeke Spruill to 2nd. Andrelton Simmons walks. Barrett Kleinknecht scores. Zeke Spruill to 3rd. Keenan Wiley to 2nd. Philip Gosselin doubles (8) on a fly ball to left fielder Jay Gibbons. Zeke Spruill scores. Keenan Wiley scores. Andrelton Simmons scores. Evan Gattis grounds out, shortstop Tommy Manzella to first baseman Matt Cline. Huntsville Bottom of the 5th Roque Mercedes strikes out swinging. Kentrail Davis strikes out swinging. Josh Prince singles on a line drive to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Scooter Gennett singles on a line drive to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Josh Prince to 2nd. Jay Gibbons singles on a line drive to left fielder Evan Gattis. Josh Prince scores. Scooter Gennett scores. Jay Gibbons to 2nd. Fielding error by left fielder Evan Gattis. Tommy Manzella grounds out, third baseman Joe Leonard to first baseman Barrett Kleinknecht. The Stars went down swinging. Huntsville Bottom of the 9th Pitcher Change: Cory Rasmus replaces Zeke Spruill, batting 9th. Juan Sanchez walks. Offensive Substitution: Pinch hitter Lee Haydel replaces Mitch Stetter. Lee Haydel flies out to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Domnit Bolivar singles on a line drive to left fielder Evan Gattis. Juan Sanchez to 2nd. Kentrail Davis singles on a line drive to center fielder Todd Cunningham. Juan Sanchez to 3rd. Domnit Bolivar to 2nd. Josh Prince out on a sacrifice fly to right fielder Keenan Wiley. Juan Sanchez scores. Scooter Gennett pops out to shortstop Andrelton Simmons.

Off the top of my head, Pujols went from A to AAA in 1 season and was in the majors next season. That's about it. That's the point. Below avg FB even better. Proves he's not dominating like the typical A+ pitcher blowing guys away with a plus fastball. He's actually pitching, not throwing. And if you can do that in Brevard County, you can do it in Milwaukee. And if not, you've lost nothing How do you know he's actually "pitching", what do you know about his secondary stuff that we don't? I would love an accurate scouting report on him but again all it takes to succeed in A ball is FB command and being able to locate an off speed for strikes. That combination isn't good enough for AA and it's certainly not good enough for MLB. I get what you're trying to say, he's not much of a prospect so who cares if we throw him in the pool and he drowns but why wouldn't we go with someone from AAA like Peralta who need to know about for the future? I'm sorry but I think it's a horrible idea, he has very little chance of success at this point in time. I'd rather he ride out this high in A+ and if he's still mowing em down by the break then promote him to AA and see how he fares there.

For those that are curious about prospect success rates: I went looking for the article and found this post, which has the previous studies I remembered linked. One thing to remember is that the result of these studies is largely determined by the sample size and criteria used. This particular one looks at prospects from 1990 to 2003, regardless this type of analysis is why I'm constantly arguing for more prospects, not less, as they are the only way to control cost and maintain success for an MLB team like Milwaukee. Also, many fringe 100 players like a Corey Hart (he was included as he topped out at 91 but using him as an example) aren't taken into consideration even though they go on to have productive MLB careers. Essentially this is just a snapshot of the 3 best prospects in every organization each year so your players that top out in that 100-110 range are not considered.

Cubs’ Paul Hoilman Sets Peoria Record Posted May. 10, 2012 4:30 pm by Pat Hickey Filed under: Daily Dish Paul Hoilman is no stranger to re-writing the record book. On Wednesday night, he broke another one by hitting safely in his 22nd straight game—a franchise record for the low Class A Peoria Chiefs. Hoilman, a 23-year-old first baseman, went 2-for-4 with a triple in a 2-1 home loss to Beloit and extended his hit streak in his first at-bat by legging out an infield single to Beloit third baseman Miguel Sano—the strong-armed Twins’ top prospect. Hardly a speedster, the righthanded-hitting Hoilman hit a chopper behind the third-base bag and barely beat Sano’s throw to first. “I knew he had a good arm so I was running as hard as I could,” Hoilman told the Peoria Journal Star. Hoilman passed the Chiefs' previous mark of 21 shared by outfielder Kerry Robinson and infielder Jack Wilson. Hoilman made his professional debut for Boise last season after being selected in the 19th round of the draft and set a franchise single-season record with 17 home runs despite playing just 71 games. During a four-year career at Eastern Tennessee State, Hoilman broke two Atlantic Sun Conference career records—home runs (73) and doubles (83). In 2010, Hoilman won the inaugural TD Ameritrade College Baseball Home Run Derby in the final college baseball event at Rosenblatt Stadium. He hit .421 and tied for fifth in Division I with 25 home runs. The Rays selected him in the 49th round of the 2010 draft, but he elected to return to ETSU and finish his degree in math with a concentration in pre-med. As a senior, Hoilman’s ranked second Division I in both home runs (22) and strikeouts (72) as his average dipped to .313 amid college baseball’s new bat standards. Also Streaking • The Rangers have a pair of prospects with hitting streaks. Shortstop phenom Jurickson Profar, the Rangers top prospect entering this season, has hit safely in 19 straight games for Double-A Frisco. The 19-year-old has seen his average increase from .205/.280/.409 when the streak began on April 19 to .261/.318/.462 after going 1-for-4 with two RBIs yesterday against Midland. Second baseman Yangervis Solarte has a 20-game hit streak with Triple-A Round Rock. Solarte is a 24-year-old switch-hitter with a knack for barreling up the ball and was a minor league free agent pick-up by the Rangers this past offseason. • Royals outfielder Wil Myers has a 15-game hitting streak with Double-A Northwest Arkansas. Myers has hit safely in 28 of 29 games this season. He had a 13-game hit streak snapped with an 0-4 outing against Arkansas on April 22 before starting his current run the next game. The Royals No. 3 prospect entering the season, the 21-year-old Myers is hitting .339/.394/.722 with 11 home runs in 115 at-bats. • Padres prospect Alexi Amarista has a 17-game streak going with Triple-A Tucson. The 5-foot-8 utility player carries the streak over from Triple-A Salt Lake, as he was a part of the trade on May 4 that brought righthander Ernesto Frieri to the Angels.

BA's Prospect Hot Sheet 5/11/2012 No. 12 JUAN CARLOS SULBARAN, RHP REDS Team: Double-A Pensacola (Southern) Age: 22 Why He's Here: 1-0, 0.00, 1 GS, 7 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 9 SO The Scoop: There are times when it was fair to wonder if the worst thing that happened to Sulbaran's career was his strong outing for the Dutch team against the Cuban national team before he ever threw a pro pitch. Sulbaran didn't always show the same intensity throwing in minor league games. But he has the stuff to be a middle-of-the-rotation starter and in the past year he's shown an improved ability to work out of jams. With a fastball that touches 95 mph, he's on the short list of the Reds' top pitching prospects. Sulbaran's outing this week is his best of the season, but it's not his season high for strikeouts. He struck out 11 in just 6 innings against Jackson earlier this year. In the Team Photo: I linked Tyrell's scouting report earlier in the week. MAN AMONG BOYS • Hiram Burgos, rhp, Brewers. Fourth-year pro Burgos leads the high Class A Florida State League in ERA (0.87), WHIP (0.65) and opponent average (.150), but he's also a 24-year-old repeating the league. You'll pardon the Brewers for keeping Burgos put for now after he put up a 4.89 ERA in 24 appearances for Brevard County last year.

Weeks has always been a patient hitter, but he hasn't been a selective hitter, and those are 2 entirely different concepts. From my perspective Weeks has been prone to letting the best in pitch in an AB go bye with the bat on his shoulder, and to me it doesn't make sense to take pitches for the sake of taking pitches. I want selective hitters that will attack a pitch if it's in their zone, regardless of count. If you always let the pitcher pitch ahead in the count, you're always going to be behind the 8 ball. Like the other day with Ish in the 9th, all I heard all day long was people calling and email radio shows about him swinging at the first pitch. If he's looking for a pitch in a certain spot and gets it, he should absolutely swing at it, you don't let your pitch go bye because you're trying to walk in a run, that's bad hitting. He didn't execute at all so he didn't come through, but swinging at the pitch was sound if it was exactly what he was looking for. It looked to me like Kottaras got unintentional intentional walk, not that the pitcher couldn't throw strikes. In that respect I would like Weeks to quit taking pitches for the sake of taking pitches. There are guys you know you can give a strike away tp and still get a good pitch to hit and there are pitchers you'd better jump on the opportunity when it presents itself. Rickie has the same approach either way, take a strike. I thought he was making improvements in that regard over the last 2 years, he wasn't letting that "get me over FB" go through any more, but this year it seems he's back to be overly patient in my opinion.

I've been pretty slow to jump on his bandwagon, I'm not sure what to make of him. He doesn't walk much and doesn't hit for extreme power, but he has decent power, makes good contact, and his numbers are ascending as he progresses through the minor leagues. I guess it depends whom we are comparing him to? Halton vs Morris I take Morris. Gamel vs Morris I take Gamel. Morris vs Ishakawa/Conrad I'm undecided.

This has already been done numerous times, THT or BP did study on it about 5 years ago which is the most recent study I recall, top position player prospects have a success right around 50% while pitchers were something like 30%. The difference isn't talent, it's in the criteria used to judge the end result. Pitchers fail more often than not because of injury since they tend to be pushed too far before their bodies are mature, not because they can't throw strikes or get people out. If Prior had a been a Ray instead of a Cub, he might still be pitching today, we just don't know.

Correct, he has to be 1 year past his signing date to be eligible for a trade and while I'm not opposed to moving him, when I look at the cubs organization what exactly are we going to try to pull when they are in rebuilding? The only players I would want are young long-term solutions that they wouldn't want to give up. For example, Rizzo could be a nice long-term option if the organization isn't sold on Gamel, Castro would fill an obvious SS need, and so on. Furthermore the only pieces I'd be willing to give up are those on short term contracts which doesn't seem to fit Theo's current plan for the Cubs either. I don't see it a fit and I think it was more likely that they are doing their due diligence on the Midwest League. What T-Rats are worth taking a look at from a different organization's perspective? Gagnon, Walla, possibly Goforth, and maybe Rivera? I'm not saying the other guys don't have a MLB future in some capacity but if you're scouting for impact talent it's going to be a pretty short list on every MiLB team. Every once in a while you get a team like our Huntsville squad in 2008 or the current Jackson team (Seattle's AA) which has 3 prospects rated in BA's top 60 in all of baseball but it doesn't happen very often.