Link Report for Thurs. 8/20 -- Final Updates Now Available; Dykstra Leaves Game with Head Injury

[Mass Haas]

http://www.brewerfan.net/images/store/dailylinkreport.jpg

[Mass Haas]

Thursday's Menu:

 

Times Central; pitchers subject to change --

 

Nashville: Rehabbing RHP Jeff Suppan at home vs. Sacramento (Athletics), 6:35 PM pre-game; 7:00 gametime

Live Audio Link

 

Huntsville: RHP Mark Holliman at home vs. West Tenn (Mariners), 6:45 PM pre-game; 7:00 gametime

Live Audio Link

 

Brevard County: TBD at Daytona (Cubs), 6:05 PM gametime

Live Audio Link -- Daytona Feed

Wisconsin: RHP R.J. Seidel at home vs. Cedar Rapids (Angels), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime; LHP Efrain Nieves is also slated to see action

Live Audio Link

 

Helena: RHP Adrian Rosario at Orem (Angels), 7:45 PM pre-game; 8:00 gametime

Live Audio Link

 

Arizona Summer League: at home in Maryvale vs. the Giants' toddlers; no more day games -- all games begin at 7:00 local time in the desert; no audio, naturally...

 

Dominican Summer League Brewers / Orioles: at home vs. the DSL Mets; (see this thread for some roster background) -- all games are 10:30 local time in the Dominican, and no need to ask about web audio; we usually won't see updated box scores until the overnight...

[Mass Haas]

Follow Thursday's action as it happens:

Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Tab or New Window". Choose "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often.

 

MiLB.com now has Gameday available for AA as well as AAA this season.

 

Nashville:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_srcaaa_nasaaa_1

 

Huntsville:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_wtdaax_hunaax_1&did=t559&sid=t559

 

Brevard County:

 

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t503&gid=2009_08_20_breafa_dbcafa_1&cid=503&t=g_box

 

Wisconsin:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_cedafx_wisafx_1&did=t572&sid=t572

 

Helena:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_helrok_orerok_1&did=t433&sid=t433

 

Arizona Rookie (Maryvale):

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_giarok_brrrok_1

 

Dominican Summer League Brewers / Orioles:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2009_08_20_dmerok_dobrok_1

[Mass Haas]

Thursday evening is the final televised Time Warner cable system game for the Rattlers this season (Time Warner Cable Sports 32). Game time is 7:05 Central.

[Mass Haas]

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated a few hours prior to gametime.

Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):



***

We're going to include the link to Kraig McNutt's Nashville blog in the same post as the Nashville media notes link going forward.

***

"Voice of the Rattlers" Chris Mehring's informative and entertaining Rattlers Radio Blog includes game notes an hour or two before gametime.

[Mass Haas]

Midwest League Standings

 

Arizona League Standings

 

Dominican Summer League Standings

[Mass Haas]

[Mass Haas]

The Manatees site recaps their recent road success, mentions some potential team and individual records set to fall, and gives us a nice photo of Power 50 hot-button topic second baseman Eric Farris.

[Mike]

It's raining hard here now. I'll be surprised if this one gets in. Gametime 55 min away.

[pete]

That Sacramento team has been hitting. My expectations aren't high for Suppan in that one.

[Mass Haas]

From Huntsville:

Friday Twin Bill to Finish Series

 

The Stars and Diamond Jaxx have been rained out Thursday night and will make the game up as part of a doubleheader on Friday night beginning at 5:00 PM central time. The teams will play two seven inning games to wrap up the five-game series.

 

The Stars will send right-hander Mark Holliman and left-hander David Welch to the mound in the twin bill, while West Tenn will counter with right-hander Steve Bray and southpaw Nick Hill.

 

Coverage of the doubleheader will get underway at 4:45 PM central time and can be heard through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com.

[Mass Haas]

Look for RHP Eric Arnett to start and get a bit of work in before RHP Adrian Rosario takes over for Helena tonight.

[colbyjack]

Seidel looks really sharp so far, using a nice 4 pitch repertoire, that includes a nice changeup he uses to set up his fastball. He kind of works backwards, and doesn't throw very hard, especially for such a big kid, although his fastball looks to have some nice sink to it.

[trwi7]

Brent Brewer. Ugh.

 

Daytona Bottom 4th

• Tony Campana flies out to left fielder Lee Haydel.
• Nate Samson doubles (5) on a ground ball to left fielder Lee Haydel.
• Jake Opitz walks.
• Brandon Guyer reaches on fielding error by shortstop Brent Brewer. Nate Samson to 3rd. Jake Opitz to 2nd.
• Jonathan Wyatt reaches on fielding error by shortstop Brent Brewer. Nate Samson scores. Jake Opitz to 3rd. Brandon Guyer to 2nd.
• Josh Vitters pops out to second baseman Eric Farris.
• Mark Reed walks. Jake Opitz scores. Brandon Guyer to 3rd. Jonathan Wyatt to 2nd.
• Luis Flores grounds into a force out, shortstop Brent Brewer to second baseman Eric Farris. Mark Reed out at 2nd.

[Mass Haas]

Final: DSL Mets 13, DSL Brewers / Orioles 2

 

DSL Brewers / Orioles Box Score

19-year-old Dominican RHP Jaime King started and struggled, walking five, and passing on a bases loaded, no out jam to fellow RHP Rolando Pascual -- when the dust settled, it was 7-0 Mets after a six-run 3rd; Hitaniel Arias' double was the lone Brewer position player hit -- still just 18, the 6'6" Arias is hitting .242 with 23 K's in 66 DSL at-bats since arriving from Helena; Jhonatan Javier and Joan Abreu lifted early-to-midway through in the blowout...

 

DSL Brewers / Orioles Game Log

[Mass Haas]

You try to be a Jeff Suppan fan, but it's just so painful. Retired his first six batters, then this --

 

Sacramento Top 3rd

• Jeff Baisley doubles (18) on a line drive to center fielder Corey Patterson.
• Anthony Recker doubles (10) on a line drive to right fielder Brendan Katin. Jeff Baisley scores.
• Gregorio Petit singles on a ground ball to left fielder Adam Stern. Anthony Recker to 3rd.
• Eric Patterson doubles (29) on a ground ball to right fielder Brendan Katin. Anthony Recker scores. Gregorio Petit to 3rd.
• Adrian Cardenas strikes out on foul tip.
• Brett Wallace singles on a fly ball to left fielder Adam Stern. Gregorio Petit scores. Eric Patterson to 3rd.
• Coaching visit to mound.
• Aaron Cunningham out on a sacrifice fly to center fielder Corey Patterson. Eric Patterson scores.
• Travis Buck flies out to center fielder Corey Patterson.

[Mass Haas]

Cleanup batter Steffan Wilson 0-for-0 thus far for the Manatees (five walks), so his .352 OBP should get a nice bump tonight. Manatees cruising late...

[Mass Haas]

Pretty safe to say Adrian Rosario and Helena will not be preventing Orem from winning their 14th straight game. Yikes --

 

Orem Bottom 2nd

• Pitcher Change: Adrian Rosario replaces Eric Arnett.
• Casey Haerther doubles (10) on a fly ball to center fielder Chadwin Stang.
• Justin Bass out on a sacrifice bunt, pitcher Adrian Rosario to first baseman Sean Halton. Casey Haerther to 3rd.
• Tyler Mann singles on a line drive to left fielder Chris Ellington. Casey Haerther scores.
• Travis Witherspoon reaches on fielding error by third baseman Joseph Paciorek. Tyler Mann to 2nd.
• Kevin Ramos doubles (10) on a fly ball to left fielder Chris Ellington. Tyler Mann scores. Travis Witherspoon to 3rd.
• Richard Cates singles on a line drive to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Travis Witherspoon scores. Kevin Ramos scores.
• Carlos Ramirez singles on a line drive to right fielder Scott Krieger. Richard Cates to 3rd.
• Dillon Baird singles on a ground ball to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Richard Cates scores. Carlos Ramirez to 2nd.
• Michael Wing singles on a ground ball to center fielder Chadwin Stang. Carlos Ramirez scores. Dillon Baird to 3rd.
• Pitcher Change: Joel Morales replaces Adrian Rosario.
• Casey Haerther singles on a ground ball to second baseman Cutter Dykstra. Dillon Baird scores. Michael Wing to 2nd.
• Justin Bass singles on a ground ball to second baseman Cutter Dykstra. Michael Wing to 3rd. Casey Haerther to 2nd.
• Tyler Mann strikes out swinging.
• Travis Witherspoon strikes out swinging.
   
  

[battlekow]

Cleanup batter Steffan Wilson 0-for-0 thus far for the Manatees (five walks), so his .352 OBP should get a nice bump tonight. Manatees cruising late...

And he still only managed to score one of the Manatees' 10 runs.

 

Nice to see big leaguers Hardy & Suppan showing the kids how it's done down in AAA.

[wibadgers23]

Orem's line-up is unreal. Just about everybody is hitting .315 or higher. At least Arnett pitched a nice inning. Kind of a boring night all the way around.

[TheCrew07]

wasn't Seidel throwing in the upper 80s lower 90s out of high school?

 

edit. And Billings didn't walk anyone tonight..

[Mass Haas]

Final: Sacramento (Athletics) 6, Nashville 1

 

Nashville Site Game Summary:

Link for Jeff Suppan photo, text follows --

 

Sounds Fall Again To River Cats, 6-1

NASHVILLE - The Nashville Sounds were held to two hits by a trio of Sacramento hurlers as they dropped their fifth straight game on Thursday evening at historic Greer Stadium, falling 6-1 to the River Cats.

 

With the defeat, Nashville (65-61) fell to 1 ½ games behind Memphis in the PCL American Conference Northern Division.

 

Sacramento's win was the PCL frontrunners' sixth in a row. The Sounds' five-game skid is the club's longest of the season.

 

Milwaukee Brewers right-hander Jeff Suppan made the start for Nashville, his second rehabilitation outing while coming back from a strained left oblique that landed him on the disabled list in late July.

 

Suppan (0-1) took the loss after allowing five runs on eight hits while striking three batters in his 3 2/3 innings of work.

 

The veteran hurler worked the first two innings in hitless fashion before running into trouble in the third, when Sacramento posted a four-run rally. He allowed an additional run in the fourth and was removed after throwing 62 pitches, 44 for strikes.

 

Sacramento starter Shawn Chacon (7-4) turned in a dominant performance, allowing one run on two hits over seven innings of work. Brad Kilby and Jerry Blevins closed out the contest with a hitless frame apiece for the River Cats.

 

The Sounds grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when Joe Koshansky delivered a two-out RBI single to left off Chacon to plate Corey Patterson.

 

Sacramento rallied to take a 4-1 lead in the third against Suppan. Jeff Baisley and Anthony Recker (3-for-4) opened the frame with back-to-back doubles to tie the game. After a Gregorio Petit single put runners on the corners, Eric Patterson roped an RBI double just inside the first base bag to put the visitors in front. Two batters later, Brett Wallace lifted a bloop single to left to bring home Petit and extend the lead. Aaron Cunningham added a sacrifice fly to close out the frame's scoring.

 

The River Cats extended their advantage to 5-1 in the fourth when Patterson lifted a two-out RBI single to right to chase Suppan from the contest.

 

Center fielder Matt Carson belted his team-leading 18th home run of the year for Sacramento to lead off the sixth inning. His solo shot to left came against Sounds reliever Sam Narron and made it a 6-1 game.

 

Sounds third baseman Mat Gamel went 0-for-3 on the evening to snap his season-best nine-game hitting streak.

 

The teams wrap up the series with a 7:00 PM finale on Friday night. Left-hander Lindsay Gulin (6-7, 4.36) will man the bump for Nashville to face Sacramento right-hander Chad Reineke (6-4, 4.73).

 

Nashville Box Score

Jeff Suppan can thank Sam Narron for keeping an even more embarassing line off the wire, as he stranded two inherited runners; the lefty Narron is another of the farmhands who can seek employment elsewhere in mid-October; snoozer for the home fans; Sounds playoff tickets go on sale today -- hope they'll be needed...

 

Nashville Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Final: Brevard County 10, Daytona (Cubs) 2

 

Lee Haydel, Steffan Wilson, and Logan Schafer in nice photos at this blogger's site

Daytona Site Game Summary:

 

Brevard County Takes Advantage of Cubs Miscues

Six of Ten Manatees Runs are Unearned

 

DAYTONA - Behind three errors and eight walks by the Daytona Cubs, the Brevard County Manatees dealt the Cubs their third loss in four games with a 10-2 victory.

The Manatees gift-wrapped a couple of runs for Daytona in the bottom of the fourth inning. Second baseman Nathan Samson got the inning going with a one-out double down the left field line. Jake Opitz followed with a walk to put runners at first and second. Manatees shortstop Brent Brewer bobbled a taylor made double-play ball off the bat of Brandon Guyer to load the bases. Brewer had another opportunity to end the inning with a double play on a ground ball by Jonathan Wyatt, but his throw to second was errant and Samson came into give the Cubs a 1-0 lead. Manatees starter Michael Bowman (4-4) then walked Mark Reed with the bases loaded to bring in the second run of the inning.

The Manatees got one of the runs back thanks to a Cubs error. Catcher Anderson De La Rosa led off the sixth inning with a double to the gap. He advanced to third on a Logan Schafer groundball to second. Cubs first baseman Mark Reed could not hold onto a good throw from Nathan Samson and that allowed De La Rosa to come home.

Brevard County kept it going in the sixth inning as Cubs starter James Leverton (8-11) walked the bases loaded with one out. The lefty then hit Chris Errecart to tie the game at two. The Manatees were not done though, as left fielder Lee Haydel singled up the middle to score two more runs and chase Leverton from the ball game.

Jose Pina came in and could not keep the Manatees down. Third baseman Zelous Wheeler brought Errecart in with a sacrifice fly to right field and then a wild pitch by Pina allowed Haydel to come in for the sixth run of the inning.

The Cubs miscues continued in the top of the eigth. After a leadoff single by Haydel, Wheeler reached on an error by Opitz at third. Brewer then grounded to Reed at first, but Reed attempted to nail Wheeler at second and threw the ball into left field which allowed Haydel to come around and score.

Dan McDaniel came in to relieve Pina, but could not find a way to shut down the Manatees. De La Rosa singled to left to load the bases for the Manatees. Schafer singled down the third baseline as Wheeler and Brewer both score to make it a 9-2 ball game. With one away Caleb Gindl hit a sacrifice fly to right field an drove home De La Rosa.

 

The Cubs will continue their series against the Manatees Friday, August 21 at Space Coast Stadium. First pitch will be at 7:05 Pm (6:05 Central). All the action can be heard on the home of the Daytona Cubs AM 1340 WORD.

 

Brevard County Box Score

That's eight consecutive starts for RHP Michael Bowman, all between five and six innings in length, in which he has allowed two or less earned runs in each -- the walk totals are much more reasonable the last three times out as well -- he'll get his Power 50 return soon. Smash the Cubs? We can almost always count on the Brevard boys for the evening's highlight...

 

Brevard County Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

D-Cubs fall apart in Manatees' rout

By KEN WILLIS

Daytona News-Journal Sports columnist

 

DAYTONA BEACH -- On the next-to-last "Thirsty Thursday" of the season, the Daytona Cubs turned in an effort befitting dollar-beer night: It would only look presentable in a dimly-lit saloon.

 

Maybe not even there.

 

After cruising for five innings and taking a 2-0 lead, the Cubbies fell apart in every way imaginable in dropping a 10-2 Florida State League game to the Brevard County Manatees.

 

There were 2,073 watching the one-game homestand (the two teams begin a three-game series tonight in Viera) and most made it to their cars just before a thunderstorm enveloped an already-soggy Jackie Robinson Ballpark.

 

"You just go out there and play nine innings," Manatees manager Mike Guerrero said. "You've got to execute and do the little things -- it's pitching and defense and timely hitting."

 

Except for a fourth-inning blip, the Manatees did just that. The Cubs, on the other hand, eventually became a fundamental mess.

 

"When you gotta get extra outs, you're in a bind," said Guerrero, a former minor-league infielder well familiar with those basics.

 

Daytona starter James Leverton breezed through the first five innings, shutting out the Manatees on just two hits. The Manatees put their leadoff man on in the second, and their first two batters on in the third, but double-play grounders snuffed both efforts.

 

Meanwhile, the Cubs weren't exactly lighting up Brevard starter Michael Bowman. The Cubs mucked together a pair of runs in the fourth with just one hit, a couple of walks and two errors by Brevard shortstop Brent Brewer.

 

After a quiet fifth, the Manatees pieced together a six-run sixth inning -- with no shortage of help from their hosts. Anderson DeLaRosa opened with a double, and the next five at-bats produced an error, a walk, a sacrifice bunt, an intentional walk and, with the bases loaded, a hit batter -- Brevard's Chris Errecart was plunked on the upper left arm on a 1-2 pitch from Leverton.

 

Errecart's hit-by-pitch tied the game at 2-2, and Lee Haydel followed with a two-run single to center to put the Manatees ahead to stay and end Leverton's night. Two more runs scored on a sac fly and, for good measure, a wild pitch by Daytona reliever Jose Pina.

 

The ugliness didn't end there for the Cubs, who helped ignite the Manatees' four-run eighth with back-to-back defensive miscues. Third-baseman Jake Opitz misplayed a grounder and first-baseman Mark Reed threw wide of second base after fielding a dribbler.

 

Three Daytona pitchers combined for eight walks -- five of them to Brevard designated hitter Steffan Wilson.

 

"I wasn't getting a lot to swing at," Wilson said. "I don't know if they were just missing, or if I was just seeing the ball better."

[Mass Haas]

Final: Wisconsin 9, Cedar Rapids (Angels) 4

Wisconsin Site Game Summary

Rattlers deliver in the clutch

By Chris Mehring / Wisconsin Timber Rattlers

 

GRAND CHUTE, WI - The Wisconsin Timber Rattlers got three big two-out hits to pull away from the Cedar Rapids Kernels for a 9-4 win on Thursday night at Time Warner Cable Field. Brock Kjeldgaard homered and drove in the first three runs of the game for Wisconsin.

Corey Kemp, Josh Prince, and Sean McCraw delivered the big hits and R.J. Seidel was the beneficiary. The righty picked up his first win as a Timber Rattler with five solid innings.

 

Kjeldgaard gave the Rattlers (56-66 overall, 22-30 second half) a 3-0 lead in his first two at bats. In the bottom of the first inning, Mike Brownstein doubled with one out and Kjeldgaard followed with another double to drive in Brownstein. Kjeldgaard's double extended his hitting streak to nine games.

 

In the third inning with Brownstein aboard after a one out walk, Kjeldgaard lifted a high fly ball to left-center that cleared the wall for a two-run homer. That home run was the nineteenth of the season for Kjeldgaard.

 

The Kernels (68-55, 28-25) came back to within a run in the top of the fifth. Seidel walked Matt Crawford with one out and Angel Castillo followed with a single. Adam Younger singled to left and Crawford scored as Castillo took third base. An infield grounder by Darwin Perez cut the Rattler lead to 3-2.

 

Seidel was done after the fifth. He allowed the two runs on four hits and three walks with four strikeouts.

 

Then, the Rattlers went to work extending their lead with their display of clutch hitting. Kemp doubled with two outs in the bottom of the fifth to drive in a pair of runs. In the sixth, Prince's double with two outs drove in two runs to give Wisconsin a 7-2 lead.

 

Efrain Nieves relieved Seidel and worked a scoreless sixth, but he ran into trouble in the seventh as the Kernels loaded the bases on a walk and two singles by the first three batters of the inning. Tyson Auer singled to knock in one run. Nieves got a strikeout for the first out. Then, Roberto Lopez knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly to make the score 7-4. Nieves got the final out of the inning on a grounder to second.

 

Wisconsin added two more runs on -- what else -- a two-out, two-run double. In the bottom of the seventh, McCraw doubled to send home a pair of runs for a 9-4 lead.

 

Brandon Ritchie wrapped up the game with two scoreless frames.

 

The Timber Rattlers and Kernels continue their four game series on Friday night. Trey Watten (5-12, 4.91) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Wisconsin. Cedar Rapids will send Tyler Chatwood (5-7, 4.38) to the mound.

 

Friday is a North Shore Bank Family night with children 12 and under eating free. Children 14 and under may run the bases after the 95.9 KISS-FM Fireworks display.

 

Game time is 7:05 PM.

 

***

 

Link while active, text follows:

 

Kjeldgaard stays hot as Timber Rattlers beat Kernels

By Cory Jennerjohn

Post-Crescent staff writer

 

GRAND CHUTE - Batting .241 usually doesn't make one a hitting savant.

 

Of course, things can change when you've hit safely in 17 of 19 games this month.

 

It's all because Brock Kjeldgaard has become picky.

 

"We talk a lot about trying to get pitch selection and narrowing down his zone a lot earlier in counts," Timber Rattlers hitting coach Matt Erickson said. "Keep his aggressiveness but be more selective early in counts."

 

Kjeldgaard continued his second-half surge by going two-for-five with a double, a home run and three RBI as the Timber Rattlers beat Cedar Rapids 9-4 on Thursday at Fox Cities Stadium.

 

A 34th-round pick of the 2005 draft, Kjeldgaard saw his batting average fall to .213 before hitting .359 this month.

 

"There was six or seven games where I was really struggling, and those hurt your batting average," Kjeldgaard said.

 

The struggles at the plate should be expected for someone originally pegged as a pitcher.

 

"He's fairly new at hitting," manager Jeff Isom said. "He was a pitcher for me two years ago in Helena. Usually you see it the other way around, but they converted him to a hitter."

 

Kjeldgaard's two-run home run that sailed over the 385-foot sign in left-center in the third gave him 19 on the season, tied for second in the team record books with Mike Wilson's total from 2005. Kjeldgaard is just two back of tying Juan Silvestre (1999) and Matt Hagen (2003) for the all-time club lead.

 

When Kjeldgaard gets his arms extended from his 6-foot-5, 220-pound frame, good things can happen.

 

"I was telling him the other day, I've seen his swing evolve this season," Isom said. "Before he was cutting himself off without being in the hitting zone and out of the hitting zone real quick, but now he's staying in the hitting zone for a longer period of time."

 

Wisconsin Box Score

Top four in the lineup combine for eight hits, everyone reaches base at least once; Pete Fatse back at his natural second base spot, at least for a game...

 

Wisconsin Game Log