Bambis Bombers

On his May 25th blog entry, ESPN's Keith Law states that Tanner Scheppers is going to get a second opinion from Dr. Frank Jobe regarding the stress fracture diagnosis he received earlier this month. LINK (will need ESPN Insider Access)

Ugh - Three errors already for Gamel in this game.

I'd primarily go with Gagne, but use Mota on occasion if Gagne is getting overworked...or if it's raining, given his complaints about slipping when the mound is wet. It's great to have options.

How's Jose Capellan doing? Actually, Latin Cappy was sent to AAA by the Tigers yesterday.

Put me in the satisfied camp regarding the trade. Other than Sheets, the remaining four Brewer starters were struggling to get the team to the eighth inning, where we can hand the game over to Turnbow / Sheets. Gallardo may be the exception, but everything I am reading it that the Brewer brass wants to limit his innings to keep him as an option for the stretch run in September / playoffs in October. For the Brewers to maintain their shrinking lead over the Cubs, they needed to bolster the bullpen. While Linebrink is not having a career year, I am alot more confident having Ned handing him the ball in the seventh inning than the agony of watching Balfour, Spurling, or Wise blow a late inning lead. Having Linebrink in the bullpen also keeps CV fresh to step in when a starter shows signs of blowing up early. Bottom line, it's going to be a tight race and winning an extra game or two might be the difference between playing October baseball in Milwaukee for the first time in 25 years. While I enjoyed following Will's success in the minors over the past couple of years, it was nothing like the thrill of witnessing the Brewers run during the fall of '82. Carpe Diem, Mr. Melvin!

The Atlanta Journal Constitution implies the Braves will part with Jarrod Saltalamacchia for pitching help. Would CV and Inman be enough to entice the Braves? LINK

Tigers optioned RHP Jose Capellan to Triple-A Toledo. Capellan had allowed three runs and posted a 9/2 K/BB ratio in nine innings for the Tigers. Still, the Tigers chose Zach Miner and Macay McBride over him for now. If it came down to performance, Jason Grilli, who is out of options, would have gotten the boot. EDIT: Text is from Rotoworld, please provide links or source, thanks.

It's nice to see Yohannis Perez have another strong game for the 'Tees. Has anyone seen him play recently? The early reports were that he had a lot of rust from a two year lay-off. I'm hoping that he is back in decent playing shape and that he can prove himself at AA later this year.

If it is steriods, I wonder if he was taking something to help speed the healing of the ankle he fractured last year? I'd rather have that scenario than a longer term situation.

A rare win for the baby Brewers this afternoon, 6-3 over the tiny Giants. This is a very young team, with 29 players under the age of 20. Scanning the rosters of the other AZL League teams, most of the other team carry half that many teenagers (14 for the league leading Angels, 11 for the second place M's). I can see why this team is struggling in the win column against more seasoned competition. Has there been any research done to see if there is any long-term benefit of bring young Latin American players to the US earlier (vs. fielding a team in the DSL or VSL)?

Another update on Cody Scarpetta. He informed Creighton that he does not plan on enrolling. He's either signing with the Brewers or enrolling at a junior college.

Here's the latest on 11th round pick Cody Scarpetta. He informed Creighton that he does not plan to attend the school this fall. He's either signing with the Brewers or going the JC route. Here's the article from yesterday's Omaha World-Herald. Pitcher Cody Scarpetta won't be a Bluejay. Catcher Joe Servais will be. The loss of Scarpetta and the addition of Servais are recent developments affecting Creighton's baseball roster for next season. A highly regarded recruit, Scarpetta was an 11th-round pick of the Milwaukee Brewers in the June draft. Although the right-hander from Rockford, Ill., has not signed with the Brewers, Creighton coach Ed Servais said there's no chance he'll wind up at Creighton. "He's definitely not coming," Servais said. "He's either going to sign with the Brewers or he's going to sign with a junior college. His injury is still a hang-up, but if he doesn't sign with the Brewers, he wants to be able to pitch next year and be able to get back into the draft." Scapetta suffered a finger injury in April that some draft observers said dropped him from possibly being taken in the first five rounds. The Brewers have until Aug. 15 to sign him. If Scarpetta enrolled at Creighton, he would have to wait until after his third season in the program to be eligible again for the draft. Elliott Soto, another Creighton recruit who was drafted in the 13th round by Minnesota, has told the Twins that he intends to go to college. Soto, from Algonquin, Ill., is expected to contend for the starting job at shortstop. Joe Servais also will put himself into the mix for the No. 1 catching job after deciding to transfer from Kansas to play his final collegiate season for his father. Joe Servais, an Omaha Skutt graduate, played for two seasons at Garden County (Kan.) Community College before heading for Kansas. He started 26 of the 36 games last season, hitting .247 with one homer and 11 RBIs. Servais, who also can play in the outfield, said a number of factors contributed to his transfer. "There wasn't one major thing that made me say that I didn't want to go back there," he said. "The nucleus of the team was juniors who had been together for three years, and it made it hard for another junior to mesh with them. I didn't feel like I had any close friends on the team, and I never felt 100 percent comfortable. "I didn't get to play as much I would have liked, and I knew the situation at Creighton that there would be some openings at catcher and in the outfield next season." The Bluejays lost starting catcher Chris Gradoville and outfielders Ross Sinclair and Andrew Small from the team that posted 45 wins and made it to the NCAA tournament. Meanwhile, Kansas went 28-30 and failed to qualify for the Big 12 tournament. "It was difficult to watch them have so much success," Servais said, "while we weren't having very much success." Servais picked Kansas over Creighton, in part because son and father wanted to avoid the dynamics that sometimes go along with such a baseball relationship. Ed Servais was particularly reluctant in possibly tainting his son's collegiate experience. "I just wanted him to have a good experience and be happy," Ed Servais said. "I've coached him before, but the stakes are much greater at this level. "It's not like 13-14 (age-group) baseball where you rotate players in and out. I didn't want anyone thinking that the only reason he was playing here was that I was the coach. "As it turned out, Joe just felt like Creighton would be a better fit for him. Our style of play is going to be a little more conducive to his style, and there could be more of an opportunity for him here." Joe Servais is playing for the Wausau, Wis., Woodchucks in the summer Northwoods League. Four of his future Creighton teammates - pitchers Zak Moore and Pat Venditte, first baseman Darin Ruf and third baseman Steve Winkelmann - also are playing for the Woodchucks. "I was a little nervous at first, not knowing how it was going to be with those guys with my dad being their coach and everything," Joe Servais said. "But they've been really great, and they're going to make the transition a lot easier. I'm really pumped about this." So is his dad, to a point. "I'm not sure how this is all going to play out," the coach said. "I don't want anything to affect the tremendous chemistry that we had with this team last season. I'm glad Joe is coming back here, but I'm also a coach. It's my job to worry about things." ? CU NOTES: Casey Schmidt, who earned freshman All-America honors last season after compiling a 6-1 record and a 3.12 ERA, suffered an elbow injury this summer. "They're worried that there could be some ligament damage," Servais said. "He's back home in Denver getting it taking care of. Other than Casey, everyone else is healthy." . . . Servais said there is a possibility that Creighton could add another player to the roster in the coming weeks. In addition to his son, Servais signed Nebraska transfer Mike Nihsen earlier in the summer.

Grant Balfour with another strong outing 2 IP with 5 Ks - ERA down to 1.80

Here is an article from the Cardinals website imploring the St. Louis faithful to vote for Albert: Pujols behind Fielder in ASG voting 06/18/2007 7:47 PM ET By Matthew Leach / MLB.com ST. LOUIS -- If Albert Pujols is to be a starter for the fifth time this year, he needs some help. Pujols has fallen to second place among National League first basemen in the latest balloting update. The 78th All-Star Game will be played on July 10 in San Francisco. The Cardinals slugger, who has come on strong in June after a slow start by his standards, trails Milwaukee's Prince Fielder. He has been voted in as a starter three times, including twice at first base. Pujols also served as the National League's starting designated hitter in the 2005 All-Star Game, when he was beaten out by Derrek Lee at first base. Three days of in-stadium balloting remain at Busch Stadium. Ballots will be handed out through Wednesday's game against the Royals. That means that not only Cardinals fans, but KC partisans who know Pujols from his high school days can punch his name on the voting cards. Fans can cast their votes for starters up to 25 times with the Monster 2007 All-Star Online Ballot at MLB.com and all 30 club sites until June 28 at 10:59 p.m. CT. Fans will again be given the opportunity to cast an All-Star vote immediately following the 2007 MLB All-Star Game Selection Show Presented by Chevrolet, which will be televised by Turner Sports on Sunday, July 1. Baseball fans around the world will be able to select the final player on each All-Star team via the Monster.com 2007 All-Star Final Vote. Selecting the rosters isn't the end of the fun in 2007, either. Concluding the All-Star balloting process, fans will have the opportunity to participate in the official voting for the Ted Williams Most Valuable Player presented by Chevrolet at the All-Star Game via the Monster.com 2007 All-Star Game MVP Vote at MLB.com. The All-Star Game will be televised nationally by FOX Sports and televised around the world by Major League Baseball International. ESPN Radio will provide exclusive national radio coverage, while MLB.com will offer extensive online coverage and MLB Radio will have exclusive play-by-play coverage of the game on the Internet. Pujols has the best chance of any Cardinal to earn a starting spot. Scott Rolen remains in fifth place among third basemen, but he has a seriously uphill climb -- he's trailing heavyweights David Wright, Miguel Cabrera, Chipper Jones and Aramis Ramirez. Jim Edmonds has fallen out of the top 15 among National League outfielders.

Chattanooga wins tonight, so the Stars fall to 2nd, a half game behind

The Stars and Smokies are washed out tonight - the Stars can't build on their second half division lead

Big win for Brevard tonight. They extend the lead to 4.5 games with six to go. The magic number is down to 2!

More on 11th round pick Cody Scarpetta - it sounds like the Brewers are going to wait and see how his finger heals before putting an offer on the table. Scarpetta feels the Brewers drafted him in the 11th round to give the team more flexibility with a potential signing bonus. LINK Brewers pick from Scarpetta tree again By Matt Trowbridge ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR Click here for more information about Matt Trowbridge ROCKFORD ? His dad?s team is now Cody Scarpetta?s team. The Milwaukee Brewers picked Scarpetta, a right-handed power pitcher from Rockford Guilford, in the 11th round Friday of the First-Year Player Draft, 25 years after they chose Dan Scarpetta, a left-handed pitcher from Rockford Auburn. ?That?s what we?ve been talking about ever since it happened,? Cody Scarpetta said. ?It?s so ironic. And so exciting. He?s still got his jersey from when he played.? Before this year, only five NIC-9 players in the draft?s 42-year history had been picked in the first 11 rounds. Now it?s seven, with Scarpetta joining Rockford Boylan shortstop Jake Smolinski, a second-round pick Thursday. Scarpetta thinks he might have even gone a round or two higher if Commissioner Bud Selig hadn?t tightened his recommendations for slotted bonus money to be paid to picks in the first 10 rounds. ?The commissioner put a lock on the top 10 rounds,? Scarpetta said. ?After that, it gets more flexible. That?s what held me back a little bit, but the 11th round isn?t bad, either. I?m excited.? Rock Falls right-hander Seth Blair, a member of USA Baseball?s Junior Olympic team two years ago, was selected in the 47th round, 1,388th overall, by the Oakland Athletics. He paid little attention to the draft after he wasn?t picked in the first few rounds. He told scouts before the draft he would honor his scholarship at Arizona State unless he received ?a million-plus.? ?I was going to need first-round money, or I was going to go to college,? Blair said. ?Teams didn?t want to pay up. That?s OK with me.? He said he?d rather scare teams off than be drafted and not sign. ?Area scouts lose their jobs because of that,? Blair said. ?There?s no reason for me to have a big ego just for a couple of days and have someone lose their job they?ve earned.? While Blair stopped following the draft, Scarpetta was acutely interested. ?It was definitely one of the best times in the Scarpetta household,? Cody said. ?We were sitting around the computer, waiting, waiting, waiting and waiting. Then my name popped up, and we all clapped. Clapped and hugged. I?ve been getting a bunch of phone calls from my friends. It?s a good feeling.? The baseball draft is the most unpredictable of all major professional sports drafts, and Scarpetta had added anxiety because he can?t throw for two more months after an injury in late April. He tore the flexor tendon in his right index finger in a ballyhooed matchup against LaSalle-Peru?s Brett Zawacki, a 12th-round pick of the St. Louis Cardinals. Scarpetta had surgery two weeks later. Scarpetta said he?s been healing slightly ahead of schedule. He will have the splint removed a week from Monday. ?Things are moving and grooving,? he said. ?Today, I was squeezing a fist and straightening it out. ?I didn?t know what was going to happen with the draft. You wish you could know what was going through their heads when they make the pick. Fortunately, everything worked out in the 11th round. Anticipation was the biggest anxiety I had. It?s a dream. It?s what you?ve always wanted to do, but you have no control over it.? Scarpetta was surprised to be picked by the Brewers, who had little contact with him before the draft. But he thinks Milwaukee is a great spot for him as the Brewers are loaded with promising, young home-grown players. ?They like to take care of their own players, develop them and stick with them until they make the big leagues,? Scarpetta said. ?That?s a good sign that an organization treats their kids well.? Scarpetta, Smolinski and all draftees face an Aug. 15 signing deadline. Smolinski is almost sure to give up his scholarship with Clemson and sign. Scarpetta?s signing may depend on his finger. If he doesn?t recover quick enough, or get offered enough money, he?ll keep his scholarship to Creighton. ?With my injury, the Brewers said they want to track my progress throughout the summer,? Scarpetta said. ?If everything is well with my hand, they want me to sign. But I?m not going to rule out college.? Assistant sports editor Matt Trowbridge can be reached at 815-987-1383 or mtrowbridge@rrstar.com.

More info on 11th round pick Cody Scarpetta. LINK High hopes for draft picks By Matt Trowbridge ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR Click here for more information about Matt Trowbridge ROCKFORD ? Cody Scarpetta won Rockford Guilford?s biggest baseball game of the season, in front of more than two dozen scouts and 1,000 fans. When the game ended, the scouts remained. They hung by the fence to watch Scarpetta?s dad throw to Scarpetta?s arch rival on Scarpetta?s home field. Jake Smolinski, who would lead Rockford Boylan to the NIC-9 title, pounded one home run after another far over the fence. With a wood bat. Off Scarpetta?s dad. Cody Scarpetta loved it. ?Jake was putting them over the trees,? Scarpetta said. ?I don?t know how it?s possible, but he?s put on even more muscle mass over the winter.? Scarpetta and Smolinski are more than rivals. They are friends. Great friends. And peers. ?I can only think of a couple of other guys who love baseball like we do,? Smolinski said. Baseball loves them back. Smolinski is expected today to become the NIC-9?s highest baseball draft pick since left-handed pitcher Dan Scarpetta ? Cody?s dad ? was taken in the third round by the Milwaukee Brewers 25 years ago. Freeport?s Matt Vorwald (seventh-round in 2001) is the NIC-9?s only other pick in the top 10 rounds in the last 35 years. Cody, a right-handed pitcher, could also go in the first 10 rounds today. Scarpetta is listed by Baseball America as a four-star player. According to the magazine, a 4-star player is one who projects to have the physical ability to be drafted in the top 10 rounds. Smolinski is listed by Baseball America, but has not been rated. Rock Falls right-handed pitcher Seth Blair, according to Baseball America, is a five-star player. A five-star player is one who projects to have the physical ability to be drafted in the top two rounds of the draft. ?Everything is unpredictable in baseball, especially in the draft world,? Scarpetta said. ?I have no expectations. Jake and I will both get drafted. That?s all I can say.? Smolinski (Clemson), Blair (Arizona State) and Scarpetta (Creighton) all have scholarships lined up with perennial baseball powers if they decide not to turn pro. ?It?s a win-win situation,? said Scarpetta, who is sidelined for another two months with a finger injury. ?If I don?t sign, I will go to Creighton for three years and hopefully come out a first-rounder. We have plenty of options.? ?It?s every kids dream to be a Major League baseball player,? said Blair, who boasts a 94 mph fastball and was a second-team Rawlings preseason All-American. ?But it?s not always the right situation out of high school, if you don?t get paid the right amount of money. But if you get paid enough, then you go.? Blair has dreamed of this day since he pitched for USA Baseball?s Junior Olympic team after his sophomore season with Rock Falls. ?I knew then it was a real possibility to happen in two years,? Blair said. ?That puts a lot of pressure on you, but good players thrive on pressure.? National audition tour Smolinski prepped for the draft by going 4-for-4 with a long home run and a double off Blair, who struck out 14, in his final game Saturday, a 9-3 loss to Rock Falls in the Class AA sectional finals. ?Stuff like that doesn?t hurt at the last minute,? Smolinski said. Smolinski has been on a last-minute whirlwind tour of auditions. The state?s Gatorade Player of the Year had to back out of Monday?s national PlayStation all-star game in Arizona because Boylan reached the sectional final. But he has flown to Texas and Pittsburgh for workouts at the Ballpark in Arlington and PNC Park. Tuesday, he took batting practice in front of White Sox scouts at U.S. Cellular Field and Wednesday he flew to Washington to audition for the Nationals at RFK Stadium. ?The area scout has to talk to his superiors and say this is why I like this kid,? Smolinski said. ?This gives everybody ? the general manager, the scouting directors, the scouts ? a good chance to see you in person. ?The weirdest part is hitting and fielding on the field. You see the huge stadium all around you, and the amazing fields you are playing on. I can?t describe it.? Rivals as workout partners Smolinski is used to being poked and prodded. After many of his games, scouts would line up to watch him take batting practice off Dan Scarpetta with a wood bat. ?Whether I had three walks in a game and didn?t get much to hit, or even if I was 4-for-4, they would want to see me hit after the game,? he said. ?It?s been a busy year, but it?s been fun. ?After the same guy has seen you 10 or 15 times, you wonder what else he is looking for. What haven?t I shown him?? Smolinski doesn?t wonder much. When the scouts ask, he hits. But then, he always hits. Smolinski and Scarpetta, friends since age 9, worked out all winter together. ?We?ve always played baseball either with or against each other,? Smolinski said. At Triple Play?s indoor facility, Scarpetta would throw to Smolinski, but only batting practice-type pitches. ?I couldn?t show him too much,? Scarpetta said. The only time Smolinski saw Scarpetta?s good stuff was when the Boylan shortstop ? projected to be a corner outfielder or third baseman in the future ? served as Scarpetta?s catcher. ?He?s good at every position he plays,? Scarpetta said. When Cody and Jake weren?t helping each other, Cody?s dad lent a hand. ?Dan threw to me quite a bit this winter,? Smolinski said. ?He starts off real nice and easy to hit. After awhile, that competitive edge comes out in him, and he?s throwing 70 miles an hour from 40 feet away, with curveballs and change-ups and whatever else.? ?Everybody,? Cody said, ?asks Dad to throw (batting practice) for them. Jake loves his BP. My dad is about trying to get people to the next level. He is never about just his own kids or his own players. ?And Jake and I are best friends.? Now those friends, who dream of playing on the same minor league team together, await a phone call that could change their life. So does Blair and two other Rawlings All-American pitchers from just outside the area ? Maple Park Kaneland?s Casey Crosby and LaSalle-Peru?s Brett Zawacki ? in an unusually talent-laden year for northern Illinois. ?We?ll see how it plays out and go from there,? Smolinski said. ?The draft is just so crazy. It?s got a mind of its own. No matter how good you do during the season or in workouts, things have to fall into place for you.? Assistant sports editor Matt Trowbridge can be reached at 815-987-1383 or mtrowbridge@rrstar.com.

Jack Z claims his first HS player: CF Caleb Gindl of Pace HS (FL) From Scout.com As a junior, Caleb batted .453 with 7 home runs and 43 RBI. He also pitched in relief, showing a fastball that topped out at 93 miles per hour. For his efforts, he was selected 5A first-team All-State as well as being selected Offensive Player-of-the-Year in his area. During the summer of 2006, he was chosen by Major League Baseball scouts to play on the 20-man southeast team that played at the East Coast Professional Showcase. Caleb is being recruited by Auburn (offer), Troy (offer), LSU (offer), Clemson, Army, Ole Miss, Alabama, Mississippi State, Vanderbilt, Florida State, Tulane, Mercer and Boston College.

The Nashville soap opera continues... LINK UPDATE: The Nashville Sounds threw another curveball this afternoon. At the final hour, the team did what it said it wasn't going to do. It signed the Metro Council amendment to the memorandum of understanding to extend the deadline for completing financing on a new downtown ballpark without having a joint development agreement with Struever Bros., Eccles & Rouse. The Sounds pulled a last minute move last Friday with filing a resolution to get on the agenda for the April 3 meeting when everyone thought the deal was dead then. On April 3, the council will consider the amendment. But Councilman Mike Jameson, who is sponsoring the amendment, has said he'll vote against it without the joint development agreement. That typically means other council members will follow suit and reject the extension. And guess what? That agreement doesn't look like it's happening anyway. Struever Bros. issued a statement saying it made a best and final offer today and the Sounds rejected it. "Within this proposed joint development agreement, SBER offered a clear path forward to get the project back on track by offering to share design expense and construction risk that under terms of the memorandum of understanding approved by Metro in February 2006 belong exclusively to the Sounds," Priscilla Carroll, the developer's general counsel said in the statement. "SBER is for an extension of this project by the Council, but only if an extension will result in the project becoming a reality. The fact remains that the Sounds must accept a fair and reasonable offer to help them with the obligations of the MOU." Even if the agreement was signed, the Sounds could be dealing with a hostile council, making passage difficult. As originally reported: There may have been no joy in Mudville when mighty Casey struck out, but he wasn't in Nashville when the Sounds deal went South. The Nashville Sounds have whiffed on a deal to go downtown after much anticipation that locals would while away summer afternoons on the riverfront hearing wood meet twine wrapped tightly in leather. But the team's development partner is feeling a bit like Ray Kinsella ("if you build it, they will come"). It says it wants to build a ballpark so another minor league baseball team will come. If Mayor Bill Purcell holds the Sounds in default -- as he has threatened -- of the memorandum of understanding signed a year ago, the team's development partner Struever Bros., Eccles & Rouse intends to move forward under the MOU and search for a team to replace the Sounds if issues can't be worked out. The developer already has relationships with professional baseball teams, notably the Baltimore Orioles and the Boston Red Sox. It would be a challenge to get another team and Struever Bros. would prefer to have the Sounds play in the ballpark but is prepared to search if necessary. To help in that cause, the developer may need an amendment to the MOU that allows for at least a Double-A team, not Triple-A as stipulated. Neither the Sounds nor Struever Bros. have budged on a joint development agreement to restructure the deal to build a new $43-million ballpark downtown. As a result, blame has been flying from every direction. As it stands, the developer appears to have Metro on its side. Purcell said Friday he would hold the team in default of the MOU if the Sounds don't agree by 4 p.m. tomorrow to extend the deadline for completing financing to Oct. 31. The team won't sign the amendment without the joint development agreement. Glenn Yaeger, the Sounds general manager, however, hasn't given up hope for a downtown ballpark if the deal dissolves. This afternoon, he said from his spring break vacation in Arizona while taking in some baseball spring training games, that the team won't give up trying to get a new ballpark downtown, just not with Struever Bros. as the development partner. "The only remedy we have is to let this expire," Yaeger said of the MOU. Yaeger tossed a knock down pitch at Struever Bros. this afternoon, which prompted the developer to start talking publicly about what it would do if the city pushed the Sounds into default. He has been blaming Struever Bros. for the troubles with the deal moving forward, saying the developer hasn't performed under the MOU. But Yaeger went farther yesterday. He said the developer hasn't responded to requests to show a commitment to the project, "one they've been unwilling to do for 14 months." Yaeger said the developer's fee is one point of contention. If Struever Bros. becomes master developer as proposed, it takes over how the $43 million is spent on the ballpark. He said $10 million covers "soft costs" with the first $2 million going to Struever Bros. as a development fee. Yaeger said the team wants Struever Bros. to reinvest that into the project. "To us, that's a commitment to the project," he said as San Francisco Giant Barry Bonds was striking out in the background. The team also wants Struever Bros. to cover the cost of getting construction documents to the level needed to determine a guaranteed maximum price. Those costs would be reimbursed at closing, he said, but noted that the developer has balked at that notion. Interestingly, it's the lack of complete construction documents and a guaranteed maximum price that could put the Sounds in default. Struever Bros. and Metro's position is those documents were supposed to be completed long ago. The Sounds' lenders wanted them as a condition for loaning $23 million for the ballpark. Yaeger has countered that the design process was stopped when it appeared that Struever Bros. wasn't able to put together its $20-million share of the money for the ballpark and never disclosed who its equity partner was on the planned $225-million adjacent development. "We knew Struever Bros. wasn't going to able to hit the Dec. 31 deadline," Yaeger said. "We've been asking the city since July to step in." By default, the Sounds actually get another 45 days to make it right if Purcell proceeds to push the team into default. That isn't believed to be enough time to pull together construction documents to get a guaranteed maximum price. After the 45 days, Struever Bros. gets 90 days to find a developer for the ballpark, which could be itself and bring another team. The length of time pushes the process nearly to a new mayor and a new council, which it could change the environment entirely for a downtown ballpark. Or, depending on the status of Struever Bros., could mean the Sounds come back and ask a new mayor and a new council to float city bonds to build the ballpark, something Purcell wouldn't do.

Here's the link Go to the bottom of the article for the reference (or should I say Menschion) of Kevin Mensch.

Count me in.

Carlin played first base for the Pirates A+ affiliate Lynchburg for most of last year. www.baseballamerica.com/t...62981.html Here is his bio frlom the baseball Cube: www.thebaseballcube.com/p...rlin.shtml

Oakland picks up Josh Alliston the 2nd round of the Rule 5 Draft www.baseballamerica.com/t...62979.html