TheCrew07

Final: Wisconsin 4, Dayton (Reds) 3 Hopkins homers in ninth to end Rattlers losing streak By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers GRAND CHUTE, WI - Greg Hopkins broke a 3-3 tie with a home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers a 4-3 victory over the Dayton Dragons Wednesday night at Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium. The win ended a three game losing streak for the Rattlers and started a six-game homestand with a bang. Wisconsin (11-9) scored first with an unearned run in the bottom of the first. Dayton starting pitcher Stalin Gershon mishandled a grounder from Yadiel Rivera and rushed a throw to first. The errant toss allowed Max Walla to score from second for a 1-0 lead. The Rattlers added to their lead with two runs in the third inning. Walla hustled his way into a one out double and one out later Jason Rogers drove in Walla with a single for his tenth RBI of the season. After Yadiel drew a walk, Brandon Macias doubled into the left field corner. The play looked like it would score both Rogers and Rivera, but the ball rolled under the fence for a ground rule double. Rogers scored, but Rivera had go back to third base. Still, the Rattlers led 3-0. Dayton (10-10) rallied to tie the game with two runs in the fourth and one in the fifth. Rattlers starting pitcher Andy Moye walked the first two batters of the fourth inning. A sacrifice bunt moved both runners up a base. Steve Selsky doubled to drive in two. In the fifth, the Dragons loaded the bases with no outs against Moye and Ryan Wright drove in the tying run with a sacrifice fly. The fly ball was deep enough to move the runner at second to third and an error on the play sent the runner from first to second. The call went to Jacob Barnes in the Rattlers bullpen to keep the game tied. Barnes got out of the inning with the game still even on a pair of line drives right at Rattlers infielders. Wisconsin needed bullpen help again in the eighth inning. Barnes walked two batters with two outs. Seth Harvey entered the game and struck out Kyle Waldrop looking at a 3-2 pitch. In the top of the ninth, Theo Bowe tripled with two outs, but was left stranded to set the stage for Hopkins. The right hand hitter crushed a 1-1 pitch from Jimmy Moran high over the left field wall for a game winning homer. Wisconsin has three walkoff wins in eleven home games this season. The Rattlers and Dragons meet in game two of the series on Thursday night. Matt Miller (0-3, 6.75) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Rattlers. Justice French (3-1, 2.91) is set to start for the Dragons. Game time is 6:35pm Thursday night is a College Night and a Sluggers Sports Bar Thirsty Thursday presented by 95.9 KISS FM. For college night, students may take advantage of $1 reserved bleacher tickets just by showing their college ID when they purchase the ticket. As part of Thirsty Thursday, all fans can enjoy 16oz soda and beer for just $2. After the game, those in attendance can take their ticket stub to Sluggers Sports Bar - located in Super Bowl on Northland Avenue - to win Miller Lite drinks and prizes. If you can't make it out to the ballpark, tune in on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:15pm. The game is also available on MiLB.TV. HOME RUN: WIS: Greg Hopkins (1st, 0 on in 9th inning off Jimmy Moran, 0 out) WP: Seth Harvey (2-0) LP: Jimmy Mora (1-2) TIME: 2:51 ATTN: 1,076 Wisconsin Box Score It's good to see the T-Rats right the ship after 2 very disappointing losses in South Bend. The Rattler pitching wasn't great, but it was good enough to set the stage for Hopkins' heroics. Andrew Moye's final line was 4.1IP allowing 5H, 3ER, and 3BB against 4SO. He also picked off a runner at 1st base. As Chris mentioned above Jacob Barnes pitched the next 3.1 giving up 2 hits and 2 walks against 1 strike out. Seth Harvey went the final 1.1 giving up 1 hit and striking out 3. Max Walla went 3-2 with a double, a walk and a stolen base, Jason Rogers went 3-4 with a double, likewise for Brandon Macias who also went 3-4 with a double. The only hit for Gregory Hopkins in the game was his HR, but you couldn't ask for more in that situation. Chadwin Stang committed his first error of the season and Tyler Roberts gunned down the only runner who tried to steal a base. Wisconsin Play By Play

Tigers, Rangers Stand Out For Overseas Efforts The article takes a look at how many players in BA's top 30 for each team were signed internationally and the team that originally signed the player gets the credit. So if team A signed a player and traded him to team B but that player is in the top 30 for team B then team A gets the credit. The Tigers have 16 players and the Rangers have 14, then there are a bunch of teams who have 11. The Brewers come in tied with the Athletics, Cards, and Orioles at 4 a piece. The notable Brewers... Wily Peralta, Santo Manzanillo, Orlando Arcia. Some of the team's have more in depth analysis attached but the Brewers didn't get any run though the Cards did, here's the part regarding the classies, and I'm not sure it's a very objective analysis. .

I'm off this week so I'm catching up on my reading. This article got me thinking about both Nashville and Huntsville where the facilities stink. We've discussed it in the past and I would love for the Brewers to make this kind of move. I wasn't paying much attention over the winter so I apologize if this has already been posted. Braves Plan To Buy Lynchburg Franchise, Move To Wilmington Sale contingent on construction of a new ballpark By Josh Leventhal As the first Opening Day in 33 years without a Kinston, N.C., franchise in the Carolina League approaches, another longtime league member may also be on the way out. The Lynchburg Hillcats, a franchise that been a part of the Carolina League since 1966, could be moving to Wilmington, N.C., after the team's owners agreed in principle to sell to the Atlanta Braves. The soonest that the move could take place would be for the 2014 season. The Braves, who own all of their minor league affiliates except at the high Class A level, want to complete their collection with a team in a new ballpark in Wilmington, as part of a joint ownership with Mandalay Baseball Properties. The deal is not done, and Carolina League president John Hopkins said, "There are many more mountains to climb." The biggest mountain is the construction of the new ballpark. The sale is contingent on the new park being built, and at this point the city of Wilmington doesn't know where the park would be or how it would be paid for. The deal also requires the Braves to find a new tenant for the ballpark in Lynchburg, though it could be a franchise in a different league. None of that has been determined either, Lynchburg general manager Paul Sunwall said. Mandalay Baseball CEO Art Matin said he expects some form of a public/private partnership to finance the new ballpark. "Without public financing, it won't happen," he said. "So we need a significant piece of financing to come from the city." Wilmington and Mandalay gave themselves six months to figure that out, after the Wilmington city council unanimously approved a memorandum of understanding with the potential new owners at their meeting on Tuesday. Wilmington mayor Bill Saffo previously said that a new ballpark will come at a price for residents. And while there was support at the city council meeting from residents donning Braves jerseys, opponents of the project are circulating a petition to require a referendum on using public money for a ballpark. Also on the to-do list is finding a location for the ballpark and determining the cost. "I am optimistic we can work this through," said Matin, who was joined at the city council meeting by Braves executive vice president of business operations Mike Plant and former Braves manager Bobby Cox. "I think Wilmington as a market has terrific potential to be a strong minor league market. "It has a strong business clientele, a lot of interest in baseball at the youth level, and even though there have been a couple unsuccessful attempts (at minor league baseball) in the past, I think that was more business operations than the market. I think the Braves agree with us and that is why we are pursuing it together." If all the pieces come together in Wilmington, then Lynchburg will bid farewell to the Carolina League—but not to professional baseball. Sunwall said that selling the Hillcats is contingent upon the Braves helping the city find a replacement team. "It would not be a Carolina League team in here . . . we would have a lesser league and possibly not as many games, but it would still be a positive for the city of Lynchburg," Sunwall said. The Hillcats are community-owned by the 16-member Lynchburg Baseball Corp., a group that includes many of the original owners who have guided the franchise for little profit while spurning previous purchase offers that would have taken the team out of town. The Lynchburg metro area has a population of 246,036, according to the 2010 census, compared to 362,315 for Wilmington. However, the team's longtime chairman Calvin Falwell, who long championed the cause to bring and keep professional baseball in Lynchburg, died last year. Sunwall said many of the owners felt this was the right time to sell the team, and that this is the right offer. "We're going to have another team in another league. That is part of the equation," said Sunwall, who has also been part of the ownership group since 1981. "We have had other offers over the years, but it was never with a commitment to put another team in here to replace us . . . We have been in business here since 1966. We have 16 owners, and as one recently said, 'We're all getting a little bit long in the tooth.' " The city financed a $6.5 million renovation of Lynchburg City Stadium in 2003 that upgraded the 72-year-old stadium into a more modern facility that includes 14 luxury suites and club seating. Part of the renovation agreement with the city stipulated that the team would pay off any remaining debt on the ballpark if it was sold, and Sunwall confirmed that the deal with the Braves will make the city whole. Though the Carolina League will leave if the Wilmington project goes through, Sunwall said is he confident professional minor league baseball will not leave the city. Other leagues that make sense geographically for Lynchburg are the South Atlantic League or the Appalachian League. "It's too early to go that far yet," Sunwall said. "As soon as Wilmington is ready, that will be the first thing we are going to be asking. The final details have not been finalized and probably won't be until we know what happens in Wilmington."

What do you base this on? An educated guess based on the history of TJ surgery performance and reduced pitch counts per outing, certainly nothing scientific. Sorry I should have made that more clear as I don't think his mechanics are anywhere near as bad as some do. He made it through Babe Ruth, High School, and College pitching the way he was. We've had players who haven't made it to A ball before TJ surgery.

Another interesting blog post from BA's Daily Dish from yesterday. Median Age in Each MiLB League

Many readers of this forum also follow draft and will remember the Cubs reaching for Hayden Simpson in the 2010 first round. The selection was roundly criticized at the time both on the web and here on our own draft forum. BA takes a look at how that pick is turning out. Simpson's career stats.

I'm not sure as I didn't read much about baseball at all last summer, but I doubt it. It's not so much the motion in itself is the problem, it's the most pitchers who have that type of delivery end up dragging their arm behind the rest of the motion which adds more stress at the elbow. It doesn't matter what you throw; football, softball, baseball, whatever... if the timing of your delivery is off your elbow is going to be sore. For example, Marcum talked about becoming a total upper body pitcher in a couple of stories over the winter, he realized he had been pitching all arm. It's not so much how he broke his hands it's that he really wasn't using his muscles from his legs, through his core, through his arm in sync which puts more stress on the arm, not to mention he cost himself some velocity. I'm not sure he's even changed anything because I honestly haven't watched many games so far this season, I've been following most on Gameday because of the LR on the minor league forum and work. In short, it's all about relative angles at the release point and the easing of stress on key arm joints. When throwing a stressful amount, you should feel tired in your muscles, not in your joints. I wish I could go back and teach myself in grade school what I know now because for the last 5 years or so I've been able to throw pain free for the first time since little league. I can throw 60-70 passes with a football everyday during the season which is something I couldn't do even as young coach in my mid 20s. If I threw a ton on Tuesday, I wasn't able to throw again without a long warm up until the following week. I don't play baseball or softball anymore, but the motions are essentially the same until release, the difference is to spiral a football you are basically throwing a screw ball every time, and hardly any pitchers throw that pitch anymore.

Hawks complete the sweep of the Rattlers By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers SOUTH BEND, IN - The South Bend Silver Hawks scored five times in the fifth inning to pull away from the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to a 10-4 win Monday night at Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium. Marc Bourgeois and Gerson Montilla each drove in three runs to support a strong start by Jesse Darrah to send the Rattlers to their third straight loss. The teams traded first inning runs. Yadiel Rivera started the game with a single. A two out error allowed Jason Rogers to reach and send Rivera to second. Ben McMahan made the Hawks pay for extending the inning with an RBI single to right. South Bend (11-8) answered in the bottom of the first. Tom Belza tripled with one out and scored on an RBI grounder by Montilla. The Silver Hawks took the lead in the third. Number nine hitter Josh Parr was hit by a pitch from David Goforth. He would steal second and score on a single by Chris Ellison. South Bend added to their lead by sending ten men to the plate and scoring five times after two outs in the bottom of the fifth. Goforth got the first out of the inning. Tyson Van Winkle reached on an infield single and Ender Inciarte walked. Goforth looked like he would dodge more trouble when Carlos George snared a liner off the bat of Parr for the second out. But, Goforth lost the strike zone. He walked Ellison to load the bases. Goforth walked Belza to force in a run. Then, he fell behind Montilla 2-0. The Silver Hawks DH smacked a single to center to score two runs, make the score 5-1, and knock Goforth out of the game. Chad Pierce could not immediately stop the tide. The Rattlers reliever gave up back-to-back RBI singles to Matt Helm and Bourgeois to let the score get to 7-1. South Bend added another run in the sixth on a single by Parr and two more in the seventh on a homer by Bourgeois to push their lead to 10-1. Silver Hawks starting pitcher Jesse Darrah allowed that one unearned run in the top of the first, but nothing else. He allowed three hits, walked, one and struck out one over six innings. The Rattlers (10-9) would get a couple of runs off reliever Keith Hessler in the eighth. Greg Hopkins drew a leadoff walk on four pitches. Rivera drove next pitch off the wall in center 405 feet from home plate for an RBI double. Later in the inning, a sacrifice fly by Rogers scored Rivera. Wisconsin tacked on one more run in the ninth as Hopkins doubled in George, but the Rattlers would get no closer. The Timber Rattlers return to Time Warner Cable Field at Fox Cities Stadium to begin a homestand on Wednesday with a game against the Dayton Dragons. Wisconsin has Andy Moye (1-0, 0.82) as the scheduled starting pitcher. Dayton, the Midwest League affiliate of the Cincinnati Reds, has Stalin Gerson (1-1, 3.78) as their scheduled starter. Game time is 6:35pm. Wednesday night 105.7, WAPL Bang for Your Buck Night and fans can take advantage of $1 Cher-Make hot dogs, $1 Pepsi Products, and $1 Miller Beers! Wednesday is also the first of two straight College Nights. College students may purchase reserved bleacher tickets for just $1 when presenting college ID at time of ticket purchase. If you can't make it out to the game, tune in on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show at 6:15pm. Wednesday's game is also available on MiLB.TV. HOME RUN: SB: Marc Bourgeois (3rd, 1 on in 7th inning, off Chad Pierce) WP: Jesse Darrah (2-1) LP: David Goforth (2-1) TIME: 2:30 ATTN: 679

Final: South Bend (D-Backs) 10 , Wisconsin 4 Wisconsin Box Score Yesterday I said I hoped the Rattlers would see Archie Bradley the next time the teams hooked up but Chris corrected me on the broadcast today. The T-Rats and Silver Hawks won't see each other again until next season and the way this series finished up maybe that's a good thing. David Goforth was pitching alright until the 5th and then the wheels came off and he actually ended up walking in 2 runs and leaving with the bases loaded. Chad Pierce came on and allowed all of the inherited runners to score and then didn't pitch a clean inning of his own until the 8th. Not only do the Rattler pitchers want to get out of town, but so does Jason Rogers. Jason reached on error in the first, then was robbed by Ender Inciarte 3 straight ABs including a diving catch in the 8th. Carlos George extended his hitting streak to 7 games with a single, Yadiel Rivera went 2-5 with a double, and finally Gregory Hopkins went 2-3 with a double and a walk. The boxscore charged Ben McMahan with an error but it was actually on Max Walla (unless Chris called it wrong) making an ill advised and pretty terrible throw to the plate to allow the runner to move up (think Braun), however Ben did score an OF assist later in the game. Chadwin Stang stole a base and Rafael Neda gunned 1 of the 2 runners who tried to steal against the T-Rats. Wisconsin Play by Play The South Bend 5th... South Bend Bottom of the 5th Fidel Pena grounds out to first baseman Jason Rogers. Tyson Van Winkle singles on a ground ball to third baseman Gregory Hopkins. Ender Inciarte walks. Tyson Van Winkle to 2nd. Josh Parr lines out to second baseman Carlos George. Chris Ellison walks. Tyson Van Winkle to 3rd. Ender Inciarte to 2nd. Tom Belza walks. Tyson Van Winkle scores. Ender Inciarte to 3rd. Chris Ellison to 2nd. Gerson Montilla singles on a ground ball to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Ender Inciarte scores. Chris Ellison scores. Tom Belza to 3rd. Pitcher Change: Chad Pierce replaces David Goforth. Matt Helm singles on a line drive to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Tom Belza scores. Gerson Montilla to 3rd. Marc Bourgeois singles on a line drive to right fielder Max Walla. Gerson Montilla scores. Matt Helm to 2nd. Fidel Pena strikes out swinging. This looks like a pretty heads-up play by Chad, and it was initially to catch the runner between 2nd and 3rd, but what the play by play doesn't tell you is that he short hopped the throw and Yadiel Rivera made a heck of play to save the run down. South Bend Bottom of the 6th Tyson Van Winkle flies out to right fielder Max Walla. Ender Inciarte doubles (7) on a line drive to left fielder Ben McMahan. Josh Parr singles on a line drive to left fielder Ben McMahan. Ender Inciarte scores. Josh Parr advances to 2nd, on throwing error by left fielder Ben McMahan. Chris Ellison reaches on a fielder's choice out, pitcher Chad Pierce to shortstop Yadiel Rivera to third baseman Gregory Hopkins to second baseman Carlos George to shortstop Yadiel Rivera. Josh Parr out at 3rd. Chris Ellison to 2nd on the throw. Tom Belza grounds out, first baseman Jason Rogers to pitcher Chad Pierce.

Well the system is about to get swept today because the T-Rats played some horrible baseball and are losing huge late.

He's through the 8th. Clearwater Bottom of the 8th Cody Asche called out on strikes. Anthony Hewitt strikes out swinging. Cameron Rupp grounds out, third baseman Michael Walker to first baseman Cody Hawn. Come on boys, score a run for him.

6... If it happens without audio did it really happen? With so many interesting players in A+ every year I'm about ready to be done with the FSL and the crappy media coverage we have down there. edit. Chris just reported that he's clear through 7 with a walk to start the 7th.

His potential is that of a perennial CY candidate, I don't think there's any doubt that he's one of the top 5 pitchers in the game. I was listening or watching someplace a couple of weeks ago and the talking heads were discussing how Strasburg had changed his approach trying to pitch less stressful innings by inducing ground balls earlier in accounts as opposed to trying to strike every hitter out. I'm not sure how much we can take from the 12 starts prior to his injury and the 9 starts since but he'd be elite even with a K rate around 8 for his career. He's currently at 10.8 through 21 starts. As far as future injury risk goes, there's been plenty of analysis done on his delivery prior to the injury but I haven't actually gone out and looked and for any before/after video for comparison's sake. Prior to the injury he was an inverted W guy like Marcum. I just did a search and came up empty on a before and after video comparison but even with no change in his pitching motion he's 7-10 years away from having to worry about his elbow again. Here's some in depth analysis from a couple of years ago.

Stars Fall to Generals in Series Finale HUNTSVILLE, Ala.- In the finale of a five-game series and ten-game homestand, the Huntsville Stars took a 8-1 whooping at the hands of the Jackson Generals on Tuesday afternoon. While the Generals offense broke out for eight runs on 14 hits, the story of the game was their starting pitcher, LHP Danny Hultzen. The 22-year-old phenom cruised through 5.2 shutout innings, giving up just two hits while striking out five. The second overall pick in the 2011 MLB draft improved to 2-2 on the season. On offense for Jackson, third baseman Fernando Martinez, shortstop Nick Franklin and left fielder Chris Pettit had three hits apiece. As a team, the Generals had more doubles (6) on Tuesday than the Stars had hits (5). For Huntsville, starting pitcher Josh Stinson was tabbed with the loss. In his first start of the season, the 24-year-old righty give up three runs in 4.2 innings to fall to 0-1 on the season. On offense, the Stars plated their only run in the ninth inning as third basemen Matt Cline drew a bases-loaded off of Generals RHP Jandy Sena to score catcher Anderson De La Rosa. Five different Stars batters accounted for all five hits. Overall, the Stars finished their 10-game homestand with a 6-4 record. They won the first four out off five games against the Tennessee Smokies but then could only take two of five games from the Generals. The Stars will head to Pearl, Mississippi for five games with the Mississippi Braves starting Wednesday. Huntsville will send LHP Dan Merklinger (0-1, 5.79 ERA) to face off against a Braves starter that is still yet to be determined. First pitch is at 7:00 PM.

Final: Jackson (Mariners) 8, Huntsville 1 Huntsville Box Score Well this is definitely not the news I was hoping for after spending the last couple of hours having my left eye tested. Josh Stinson went 4.2IP allowing 9 hits, 4 walks, 1 wild pitch, and 3 earned runs against only 3 strike outs. It looks like his pitch count was 80 in his first start as he was pulled at 79 pitches having thrown 48 for strikes. Bradley Blanks and Roque Mercedes were equally ineffective in their limited outings so Mitch Stetter was the only pitcher not charged with a run although he only went 2/3 of an inning. It looked like Roque had turned the corner in 2009 when he was dealt to AZ, but similar to Omar Aguilar the stint in BC was the peak of his effectiveness. I often think about Lucroy's comment that Aguilar was the filthiest pitcher he had caught to that point in his career... but hey, at least Axford turned out okay. Offensively the Stars only scratched out 5 hits again for the 2nd consecutive day and didn't score a run until the 9th. No Star had multiple hits, though Khris Davis did walk twice. Lee Haydel kept his streak going with double and Anderson De La Rosa also chipped in with a double. There were no errors and Josh Prince gunned another runner at home to save a run in the 3rd. Josh has a been surprisingly effective in CF, he's just not the intriguing prospect that D'Vo is. Speaking of which, no news is never a good thing, I'd like to at least hear that D'Vo had reported and was getting ready in AZ. With literally nothing coming out about Braddock, Bucci, Scarpetta, Lasker, and D'Vo I certainly find myself fearing the worst in every case. Huntsville Play By Play Plenty of Generals' highlights, the Stars scored their only run on a bases loaded walk. It seems that the Stars always play hard until the end, they never go quietly in the 9th. Huntsville Bottom of the 9th Khris Davis grounds out, shortstop Nick Franklin to first baseman Rich Poythress. Hunter Morris grounds out softly, second baseman Gabriel Noriega to first baseman Rich Poythress. Anderson De La Rosa doubles (1) on a line drive to right fielder Kalian Sams. Juan Sanchez singles on a line drive to second baseman Gabriel Noriega. Anderson De La Rosa to 3rd. Lee Haydel walks. Juan Sanchez to 2nd. Matt Cline walks. Anderson De La Rosa scores. Juan Sanchez to 3rd. Lee Haydel to 2nd. Josh Prince grounds into a force out, shortstop Nick Franklin to second baseman Gabriel Noriega. Matt Cline out at 2nd.

and of course as soon as I hit submit the Huntsville story finally pops. Stars Fall to Generals in Extra Innings. Huntsville held to just five hits. HUNTSVILLE, Ala.- Unlike Sunday night, the Stars were unable to provide late innings heroics as they fell to the Jackson Generals by a score of 6-4 in extra innings on Monday evening. In the first inning, the Stars got the scoring started as an RBI groundout by third basemen Andy Gonzalez gave them a 1-0 lead. After Jackson tied the game up in the top of the second, the Stars came back in the bottom of the frame to score two runs on an RBI double by right fielder Juan Sanchez and a sacrifice fly by center fielder Josh Prince. For Sanchez, the double was his first hit with Huntsville after being promoted from High-A Brevard County early in the afternoon. After the Stars scored three runs in the first two innings to make the score 3-1, they were held scoreless for the next seven innings. However, the Generals went on to score a run in the six inning on a RBI triple from Francisco Martinez and a run in the seventh on RBI single by Rich Poythress to tie the game. In the 10th inning, the Generals then scored three more runs off of Stars RHP Eric Marzec, who fell to 1-1 on the season with the loss. The Stars were able to muster up a run in the bottom half of the 10th with a solo home run by left-fielder Lee Haydel, who also had his third consecutive multi-hit game. For the Stars, the loss wasted another strong start by RHP Kyle Heckathorn, who gave up two runs in 5.2 innings while tying his season-high in strikeouts with eight. For the Generals, RHP Carter Capps avenged a loss in game one of this series by earning the victory with 2.0 innings pitched, improving to 1-1 on the season. In the final game of this five-game series and a 10-game homestand for the Stars will take place on Tuesday as the Stars will send RHP Josh Stinson (3-0, 2.77 ERA) to face off against LHP Danny Hultzen (1-2, 2.81 ERA). First pitch is at 10:43 AM.

Final: Jackson (Mariners) 6, Huntsville 4 (10 Innings) Huntsville Box Score The first thing that struck me about this game was the Stars were outhit 14-5 and only lost by 2 runs, scoring 4, more on that later. Kyle Heckathorn was your starter tonight and went 5.2IP allowing 7H, 2ER, and 1 BB against 8SOs. Kyle threw 99 pitches and 61 for strikes but that's quite a few pitches for so few IP. Of course when you strike out 8 batters and give up 7 hits you're naturally going to throw more pitches, and his K rate has spiked tremendously to start the 2012 campaign, almost a 9.0. I love the K's, he just needs to give up less hits and it's all good, he was pulled for the pitch count after giving up a double and Darren Byrd allowed his inherited runner to score by promptly giving up a triple. Huntsville actually carried the lead into the 7th when Byrd got into more trouble and allowed the tying run to score. Eric Marzec came on in the 9th to strike out the side only to turn around and give up 3 runs in the 10th. Offensively Lee Haydel was the story as he had the only multi-hit game going 2-4 and a hit a HR, Juan Sanchez also contributed a double. The Stars had no stolen bases though Andy Gonzalez did get caught stealing. Defensively Jason Jarmillo had a PB right before Byrd gave up the triple but both Sanchez and Josh Prince had OF assists. Huntsville Play By Play Heckathorn came out dealing... Jackson Top of the 1st Denny Almonte strikes out swinging. Nick Franklin strikes out swinging. Joseph Dunigan strikes out swinging. I love when we get on the board right away. Huntsville Bottom of the 1st Josh Prince grounds out, second baseman Gabriel Noriega to first baseman Rich Poythress. Domnit Bolivar singles on a fly ball to left fielder Chris Pettit. Scooter Gennett singles on a ground ball to right fielder Johermyn Chavez. Domnit Bolivar to 3rd. Andy Gonzalez grounds out, third baseman Francisco Martinez to first baseman Rich Poythress. Domnit Bolivar scores. Scooter Gennett to 2nd. Hunter Morris grounds out, second baseman Gabriel Noriega to first baseman Rich Poythress. A stolen base cost Heckathorn a run here. Jackson Top of the 2nd Rich Poythress singles on a line drive to center fielder Josh Prince. Johermyn Chavez strikes out swinging. Chris Pettit flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. With Francisco Martinez batting, Rich Poythress steals (1) 2nd base. Francisco Martinez singles on a ground ball to right fielder Juan Sanchez. Rich Poythress scores. Francisco Martinez out at 2nd, right fielder Juan Sanchez to first baseman Hunter Morris. Huntsville wouldn't score again until the bottom of the 10th. Huntsville Bottom of the 2nd Khris Davis walks. Jason Jaramillo called out on strikes. Lee Haydel singles on a line drive to right fielder Johermyn Chavez. Khris Davis to 2nd. Juan Sanchez doubles (1) on a line drive to left fielder Chris Pettit. Khris Davis scores. Lee Haydel to 3rd. Josh Prince out on a sacrifice fly to left fielder Chris Pettit. Lee Haydel scores. Domnit Bolivar flies out to center fielder Denny Almonte Losing in extras is the devil. Jackson Top of the 10th Joseph Dunigan strikes out swinging. Rich Poythress walks. Offensive Substitution: Pinch runner Eric Campbell replaces Rich Poythress. Johermyn Chavez singles on a line drive to center fielder Josh Prince. Eric Campbell to 2nd. Chris Pettit grounds out, pitcher Eric Marzec to first baseman Hunter Morris. Eric Campbell to 3rd. Johermyn Chavez to 2nd. Francisco Martinez walks. Jesus Sucre singles on a soft fly ball to right fielder Juan Sanchez. Eric Campbell scores. Johermyn Chavez scores. Francisco Martinez to 3rd. Gabriel Noriega singles on a ground ball to right fielder Juan Sanchez. Francisco Martinez scores. Jesus Sucre to 2nd. Denny Almonte pops out to third baseman Andy Gonzalez. Huntsville Bottom of the 10th Eric Campbell remains in the game as the first baseman. Jason Jaramillo lines out to right fielder Johermyn Chavez. Lee Haydel homers (1) on a fly ball to right field. Juan Sanchez grounds out, shortstop Nick Franklin to first baseman Eric Campbell. Josh Prince reaches on missed catch error by first baseman Eric Campbell, assist to third baseman Francisco Martinez. Domnit Bolivar called out on strikes.

Final: South Bend (D-Backs) 8, Wisconsin 1 South Bend scores a big win By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers SOUTH BEND, IN - The South Bend Silver Hawks grabbed an early 4-0 lead over the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers Monday night at Stanley Coveleski Regional Stadium. The Hawks kept adding their lead and beat the Rattlers 8-1. The Silver Hawks (10-8) took advantage of a couple of miscues in the first to score their first run. A dropped third strike allowed South Bend leadoff batter Chris Ellison to reach first. Tom Belza was next and his line drive to right bounced over the head of Max Walla for an RBI triple. South Bend added three more runs in the bottom of the second inning as they collected four straight hits with one out off Rattlers starting pitcher Mark Williams. Ender Inciarte, who had been named the Midwest League Player of the Week earlier on Monday, had a single, the third hit of the string, to knock in a run and put runners at the corners. Ellison followed with a two-run double. The Rattlers (10-8) had an opportunity against South Bend starter John Pedrotty in the top of the sixth. Yadiel Rivera doubled and Walla singled to put runners on the corners with no outs. But, Pedrotty got out of the inning without any damage on a strikeout and an inning ending double play. The Hawks padded their lead in the bottom of the sixth. Inciarte struck again with an RBI single off Rattlers reliever Seth Lintz. The Rattlers erased Inciarte on caught stealing for the second out of the inning. Then, Ellison cracked his first home run of the season. The solo shot put South Bend up 6-0. Wisconsin got on the board in the top of the seventh. Greg Hopkins doubled to score Brandon Macias from first base with one out. But, one run was all the Rattlers could manage. Marc Bourgeois got that run back immediately in the bottom of the seventh with a leadoff homer to right. Later in the frame, Fidel Pena singled to drive in a run. The hit, Pena's fourth of the night, made the score 8-1 in favor of the Silver Hawks. And that was the final score. Pedrotty pitched six scoreless innings, walked one and struck out five for his first win of the season. The final game of the series - and the road trip - is Tuesday night at The Cove. David Goforth (2-0, 3.86) is the scheduled starting pitcher for the Timber Rattlers. The Silver Hawks send Jesse Darrah (1-1, 5.40) to the hill. Game time is 6:05pm CDT. Tune in for the broadcast on AM1280, WNAM or timberrattlers.com starting with the Miller Lite Pregame Show beginning at 5:45pm. HOME RUNS: SB: Chris Ellison (1st, 0 on in 6th inning off Seth Lintz, 0 out) Marc Bourgeios (2nd, 0 on in 7th inning, off Seth Lintz, 2 out) WP: John Pedrotty (1-0) LP: Mark Williams (0-1) TIME: 2:36 ATTN: 704 Wisconsin Box Score Well the T-Rats were playing so well for so long that they were probably due a game like this, but it's uninspiring all the same. I'm a little bit disappointed that Rattlers won't face the D-Backs first round pick from last year Archie Bradley who is pitching very well as a 19 year old, maybe next time the teams match up. Mark Williams deserved a better fate than 4 ER in his 4 innings, but Seth Lintz pretty much got what he deserved giving up 2 HRs, at least the rest of the BP got the night off. Yadiel Rivera and Orlando Arcia could make the SS situation very interesting, Rivera had a long cold streak dropping his average from the mid .300s down to the mid .200s, but a 2-4 night with a double hopefully gets him back on track. I'm worried he's going to hit enough, but his power has surprised me, and he should only develop more with age. John Dishon got picked off and Max Walla had an OF assist for the T-Rats. Wisconsin Play By Play Dishon usually does very good things on the bases, not so much here. Wisconsin Top of the 5th Gregory Hopkins flies out to center fielder Ender Inciarte. John Dishon walks. With Tyler Roberts batting, John Dishon advances to 2nd on a balk. With Tyler Roberts batting, John Dishon picked off and caught stealing 3rd base, pitcher John Pedrotty to shortstop Josh Parr to third baseman Matt Helm to second baseman Fidel Pena. Tyler Roberts grounds out to first baseman Bobby Stone.

So many exciting teams to choose from lately. There was a time when I rarely missed AAA audio, at least early in the season, now I honestly couldn't tell you the last time I caught a Nashville game. It's really too bad, I've heard plenty of memorable calls over the years punctuated by Parra's perfect game, but that team has just held very little interest for me a long time. I've been much more drawn to A and R+ in recent years, the players are relatively new to the system, they always have audio, and I'm sure Chris and Steve factor largely into the picture as well.

Squeeze attempt?

I don't why but I have an affinity for the Jack of all Trades players like Sanchez and Brownstein, but they never seem to make it. Even Vinny Rottino is still toiling away in the minors chasing down his dream and he's hit at every single level and sports a career .783 MiLB OPS. I guess I just really liked the way Sanchez went about his business in WI but his bat just hasn't gotten going since he's been with the Brewer organization.

I believe Scooter only has 1 error so far this season which is a significant improvement from years past (I only remember noting 1 from a box score and baseball-ref has him at 1 as well). Obviously it's still early but on the surface it appears he's made decent strides in the field. Now if only he'll start taking walks I'd start to get legitimately excited about him. I've never been one to dismiss a player because of his size or lack there of, but I've been cautiously optimistic about him for some time because even though he's always hit, he's needed to make significant improvements in just about every other part of his game.

Plus he didn't run after he struck out even though he would have easily been safe if he had and that wasn't anywhere near a strike. To be fair the White Sox have to lead all of baseball in mediocre at best pitchers with no hitters at this point. That's only true in the same way that Parra is a mediocre at best pitcher. Talent wise Humber was the 3rd overall player taken in the 2004 draft, the first draft I really followed on bf.net. He was probably a reach given his stuff, he wasn't a mid 90s guy, I remember reading scouting reports on BA that he worked consistently in the low 90s with a developing curve that had reached plus status and an improving 3rd pitch, which I want to say was a change. I know he junked a pitch in college and started throwing something different, I just forget which way it went. The point is that is his 2nd and 3rd pitches were a work in progress. At any rate he always had the raw tools be an above average MLB starter, just like JDLR did, so it's no surprise to me when one of these guys that always had talent starts to play to their ability... doesn't matter if it's JDLR, Humber, Morrow, Romero, or someone like Chris Tillman would break out. They aren't mediocre at best, the overall results in their careers may have been, but it's not like a pitcher with a below average FB like Marcum pitched a perfect game. Humber's career has definitely been underwhelming and he was pigeon holed as a bust for many years, but he pitched very well last season. It's not like this recent success came out of the blue. It's disappointing to me that instead of celebrating the achievement I keep seeing articles and discussion about the "randomness" of baseball because 2 pitchers who aren't very highly thought of have pitched perfect games recently. A perfect game will always require a perfect storm of pitching, defense, and circumstance... that's never going to change, they've always appeared to be "random". However, I don't really think Humber is getting his due either, he's not Dallas Braden who couldn't even crack his own organization's top 10 lists as a prospect. Furthermore, 3 of the 18 pitchers who've pitched perfect games since 1918 have a career ERA+ of less than 100, it's hardly unprecedented.

Are you reading Chris Mehring's 9 After 9 everyday? If not, you certainly should be, today's post game is full of Gagnon information. In fact Chris' blog is far and away the best MiLB blog I've come across and if you want to learn about the T-Rats and by extension the minor leagues in a hurry, this blog is a must read.

Final: Huntsville 3, Jackson (Mariners) 2 Stars "Scoot" Past Generals Ninth-inning homerun gives Huntsville their second walkoff in three games. HUNTSVILLE, Ala.- In walk-off fashion for the second time in three nights, the Huntsville Stars came away with a 3-2 victory against the Jackson Generals on Sunday afternoon. Following a game Saturday night that featured 19 combined runs and 28 combined hits, the teams were only able to combine for five runs on 19 hits on Sunday. Huntsville got the scoring started in the second inning as a solo homerun by first basemen Hunter Morris gave the Stars a 1-0 advantage. For the Huntsville-area native, it was his first homerun of the 2012 season. After Jackson tacked on a run in both the top of fourth and fifth inning on RBI singles by second basemen Eric Campbell and first basemen Rich Poythress to make the score 2-1, the Stars tied the game back up in the bottom of the fifth with an RBI single of their own from center fielder Josh Prince. The score would remain that way until the bottom of ninth inning, where second basemen Scooter Gennett provided the drama. With one out, the 21-year-old launched a solo homerun off of Generals RHP Stephen Hensley to win the game for Huntsville. It was the Stars third walk-off victory in the bottom of the ninth inning so far this season. In terms of pitching, RHP Robert Wooten improved to 2-0 on the season with a scoreless ninth inning and RHP Jesus Sanchez silenced the Generals in his 2.0 innings of work. On offense, left fielder Lee Haydel and shortstop Domnit Bolivar had two hits apiece for the Stars. Game four of a five game series will take place on Monday as the Stars will send RHP Kyle Heckathorn (1-0, 3.57 ERA) to face off against RHP Brandon Maurer (0-0, 3.60 ERA). First pitch is at 6:43 PM. Huntsville Box Score Evan Anundsen started and went 4IP allowing 6 hits, 1 earned run, 2 hit batters, and 1 walk against 3 strike outs. He wasn't terribly efficient throwing 85 pitches but only 49 for strikes and he was followed by R.J. Seidel who went 2IP allowing 3 hits and 1 earned run against 1 strike out. Jesus Sanchez allowed 1 walk in his 2 innings and Robert Wooten had a hit and strike out in his. While the story of the night is certainly Scooter Gennett's walk off bomb, Lee Haydel is quietly having a good season when he gets opportunities. He hasn't excelled in a PH role, though he's come up with some key hits, but he's been very productive when he gets a chance to play in the field. In other happenings Khris Davis went 1 for 4 in his return. Haydel, Josh Prince, and Domnit Bolivar each recorded a stolen base, Bolivar committed his 3rd error of the season, and Anderson De La Rosa gunned the only General's runner who tried to steal a base. De La Rosa has also been productive in limited opportunities putting up a .385/.429/.813 line in his 13 ABs. Huntsville Play By Play Anundsen and the Stars limited the damage in the 4th, bases were loaded with 2 outs. Jackson Top of the 4th Johermyn Chavez hit by pitch. Chris Pettit pops out to shortstop Domnit Bolivar. Francisco Martinez pops out to shortstop Domnit Bolivar. Jesus Sucre singles on a line drive to right fielder Matt Cline. Johermyn Chavez to 2nd. Eric Campbell singles on a ground ball to right fielder Matt Cline. Johermyn Chavez scores. Jesus Sucre to 3rd. Denny Almonte walks. Eric Campbell to 2nd. Nick Franklin flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. Seidel's 5th Jackson Top of the 5th Pitcher Change: R. J. Seidel replaces Evan Anundsen. Joseph Dunigan doubles (5) on a fly ball to center fielder Josh Prince. Rich Poythress singles on a line drive to center fielder Josh Prince. Joseph Dunigan scores. Johermyn Chavez flies out to center fielder Josh Prince. Chris Pettit grounds into a force out, third baseman Andy Gonzalez to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Rich Poythress out at 2nd. Chris Pettit to 1st. With Francisco Martinez batting, Chris Pettit caught stealing 2nd base, catcher Anderson De La Rosa to second baseman Scooter Gennett. Huntsville wasted an opportunity to score more runs in the 5th. Huntsville Bottom of the 5th Lee Haydel singles on a line drive to center fielder Denny Almonte. With Matt Cline batting, Lee Haydel steals (1) 2nd base, . Lee Haydel advances to 3rd, on missed catch error by shortstop Nick Franklin. Matt Cline walks. Josh Prince singles on a ground ball to left fielder Chris Pettit. Lee Haydel scores. Matt Cline to 2nd. Domnit Bolivar ground bunts into a force out, third baseman Francisco Martinez to shortstop Nick Franklin. Matt Cline out at 3rd. Josh Prince to 2nd. Domnit Bolivar to 1st. Scooter Gennett grounds into a force out, shortstop Nick Franklin to second baseman Eric Campbell. Josh Prince to 3rd. Domnit Bolivar out at 2nd. Scooter Gennett to 1st. Andy Gonzalez called out on strikes.