Down On The Farm Minor League Report 8/20/08 Part 1

Triple A

The Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees lost to the Rochester Red Wings by a score of 7-2. Starting for Scranton was Ian Kennedy and he gave up 4 earned runs on 7 hits in 5 innings of work for the loss. He also had 9 strikeouts. Ian Kennedy is supposed to be a star at the major league level and you’d think he’d dominate at triple A. What kind of outing is this? 4 earned runs? 7 hits? Not only can he not prove himself at the pro level but he’s showing he can’t even be a factor in the minor leagues. Replacing Kennedy to start the 6th inning was Scott Patterson and he pitched 1.1 scoreless innings giving up 1 hit. Following Patterson was Phil Coke and he pitched 1.2 scoreless innings. Scott Strickland pitched the 9th inning and gave up 3 runs on 3 hits but 2 runs were unearned because of a fielding error by second baseman Bernie Castro.

The hitting stars of the game for Scranton worth mentioning were left-fielder Justin Christian, center fielder Melky Cabrera and right fielder Shelley Duncan. Christian went 2 for 5 with 1 run scored and was caught stealing. Cabrera went 2 for 4 with 1 run scored and Duncan went 2 for 4 with 1 rbi. Shelley Duncan will probably remain a career minor leaguer.

• Scranton/WB Recap - Scranton/Wilkes Barre Yankees official
• Scranton/WB Box Score - Scranton/Wilkes Barre Yankees official

Double A

The Trenton Thunder won over the Harrisburg Senators by a score of 6-1. Starting for the Thunder was pitching sensation Eric Hacker and he gave up 1 earned run on 3 hits in 6 innings of work for the win. I wonder why no one ever talks about Hacker. He had a great start at Tampa and is doing very well for Trenton. Wilkins Arias pitched a scoreless 7th inning and Oneli Perez followed Arias and pitched 2 perfect innings striking out 5 batters. The hitting stars of the game for Trenton worth mentioning were short stop Reegie Corona, left-fielder Colin Curtis, DH P.J. Pilittere and third baseman Kevin Russo. Corona went 2 for 4 with 2 runs scored and 1 rbi. Curtis went 2 for 4 with 1 run scored. Pilittere went 1 for 3 with 1 run scored and 2 rbi’s along with a home run and Russo went 2 for 4 with 1 run scored.

• Trenton Thunder Recap - Trenton Thunder Official
• Trenton Thunder Box Score - Trenton Thunder Official

A Adv.

The Tampa Yankees won a low scoring game over the Dunedin Blue Jays by a score of 2-1. Starting for Tampa was Christian Garcia and he gave up 1 earned run on 3 hits in 6 innings of work for the no decision. Grant Duff pitched a perfect 7th inning for the win. Eric Wordekemper pitched a scoreless 8th inning and Josh Schmidt pitched a scoreless 9th inning for his 13th save. His era is 2.76. Tampa scored their second run on an error and a fielder’s choice in the 7th inning. The hitting star of the game for Tampa worth mentioning was catcher Kyle Anson who went 1 for 3 with 1 run scored.

• Tampa Yankees Recap - Tampa Yankees Official
• Tampa Box Score - Tampa Yankees Official

Class A

The Charleston RiverDogs won a high scoring game over the Columbus CatFish by a score of 10-8. Starting for the RiverDogs was Noel Castillo and he gave up 7 runs on 8 hits in 5.1 innings of work for the no decision but 1 run was unearned because of a fielding error by first baseman Brandon Laird. Replacing Castillo was Craig Heyer and he gave up 1 run on 2 hits in 2.2 innings for the blown save and the win but the run was unearned because of a fielding error by shortstop Carmen Angelini. All I know is that I’ve been doing these recaps all year and I don’t remember posting so many errors by one player. Jonathan Ortiz pitched a perfect 9th inning for his 32nd save.

The hitting stars of the game for the RiverDogs worth mentioning were DH Jesus Montero, catcher Austin Romine and first baseman Brandon Laird. Montero went 2 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 4 rbi’s along with a home run. His batting average is .321. Romine went 3 for 4 with 2 runs scored and 3 rbi’s along with 2 home runs and Laird went 1 for 2 with 1 run scored and 3 rbi’s along with a home run. He walked twice.

• Charleston RiverDogs Recap - Charleston RiverDogs Official
• Charleston RiverDogs Box Score - Charleston RiverDogs Official