Link Report for Thurs. 5/23 - High Draft Picks Nelson, Bradley and Lopez Venture Moundward

[The stache]

The Reds' next stud pitching prospect Robert Stephenson profiled here.

 

MWL notes: Stephenson gains steam

 

I found this quote interesting as it seems to be the pitching coach norm around baseball:

"A lot of trial and error works with Robert," Fossas said. "I let him do things he wants to do, and when he doesn't see the success factor there, then he's a lot easier to coach, but that works with everybody. A player or a pitcher who is always a 'yes' person, who wants to always please the pitching coach or the scouts, is a guy who won't make it."

 

Every time I read an article about Stephenson, Jose Fernandez, Taylor Guerrieri, Matt Barnes, Alex Meyer, or Sonny Gray (all drafted behind Taylor Jungmann) thriving , baby Jesus cries. Hell, all of them except Fernandez were drafted behind Bradley, too.

 

I think I'll join you in watching a few of Jungmann's latest starts. I have to find something positive.

[Mass Haas]

Via Jeff Hem's blog --

 

Audio from Tacoma — “An Untangled (Travis) Webb”

 

A chat with the Sounds’ lone lefty reliever and lone Washingtonian, Travis Webb. The southpaw, who was on several losing teams during his seven years in the Reds system, provides a very detailed, honest analysis of how the Sounds are dealing with their rough first month and a half of the season. He also discusses his transition the last couple of years to being a reliever, the importance for a lefty reliever in being able to get out left-handed batters and his return “home” to Washington (he’s a Spokane native).

 

***

 

Travis seems like a nice guy, but is certainly low-key. For pure entertainment value, you're invited to re-visit this week's earlier interview with fellow southpaw and tonight's star Zach Kroenke.

[Mass Haas]

Really nice tribute and collection of links on Epy Guerrero here.

[Mass Haas]

Yes, we're linking to a story on "Mascot Boot Camp" with Huntsville's Homer the Polecat (skunk). Watch the video.

[Mass Haas]

This Link Report polecat has to run for now, know there will be more formal links from around the system posted by mid-morning, including more audio, so keep an eye out for those, thanks.

[Mass Haas]

Stars Shutout By Hendricks, Smokies

By Alex Cohen / Huntsville Stars

 

To open up a five-game series at Smokies Park and a ten-game road trip overall, the Huntsville Stars were shut out by the Tennessee Smokies by a score of 2-0 on Thursday night.

 

Despite outhitting the Smokies by a 6-to-4 margin, the Stars offense was blanked by three Smokies hurlers, headlined by starting pitcher Kyle Hendricks.

 

The 23-year-old righty improved to 4-2 on the season by blanking the Huntsville bats through seven innings, giving up just four hits while striking out seven batters. With Hendricks out of the game in the eighth inning, relievers Brian Schlitter and Marcus Hatley shut out the Stars through the final six outs of the game. The save for Hatley was his second of the season.

 

Unfortunately, starting pitcher Jimmy Nelson took the hard-pressed loss. The Brewers 8th ranked prospect (per MLB.com) gave up just two runs in a season-high seven innings pitched while also striking out seven batters in the process. Nelson's ERA dropped back under 3.00 (2.98) with the start.

 

For Nelson, his only blemish of the evening came in the fourth inning. The Stars ace gave up a solo homer to Smokies shortstop Arismendy Alcantara to begin the inning and then a two-out RBI double to right fielder Tim Torres to take the loss.

 

The quality start for Nelson was the Stars sixth in a row for their starting rotation.

 

Aside from Nelson, the Stars got a scoreless inning of relief from righty Santo Manzanillo.

 

On offense, Huntsville got a pair of hits from catcher Robinzon Diaz, who now has 10 hits in his last 18 at-bats. First baseman Jason Rogers also added his team-leading 13th double of the year while outfielder Rene Tosoni, third baseman Mike Walker and pinch-hitter Shawn Zarraga each added a single.

 

En route to their series-opening defeat, the Stars were shut out for the fifth time this season and second time in their last four games.

 

The Stars and Smokies will play game two of their five-game series at Smokies Park on Friday. Huntsville will send RHP Ariel Pena (3-3, 2.95 ERA) to the bump to square off against Tennessee RHP Yeiper Castillo (NR). First pitch is at 7:15 PM (6:15 Central).

[Mass Haas]

Huntsville Audio Clip:

 

Brock Kjeldgaard Leaping Catch

 

Stars OF Brock Kjeldgaard robs Smokies Ty Wright of a solo homer in the 7th inning

[TooLiveBrew]

Sounds Tee Off In Tacoma To Win Finale, 11-2

Lalli Records Two Homers; Combines With Prince For Back-to-Back Jacks

Nashville Sounds

 

http://www.milb.com/assets/images/7/9/4/48440794/cuts/523_teamWin_n0sbz38h_5leu43xu.jpg

Sounds archive photo (Mike Strasinger / Nashville Sounds)

 

AUDIO: Blake Lalli Goes Yard

AUDIO: Josh Prince's Back-To-Back Blast

AUDIO: Hunter Morris Home Run

AUDIO: Lalli's Homer In Ninth

 

TACOMA, Wash. - The Nashville Sounds avoided a four-game sweep Thursday night at Cheney Stadium, using the long ball to pick up an 11-2 victory over the Tacoma Rainiers.

 

The Sounds plated runs in six different innings, highlighted by Nashville's explosive fifth. Already out to a 5-2 lead, catcher Blake Lalli and outfielder Josh Prince connected for back-to-back home runs off of Tacoma starter Jeremy Bonderman (2-4).

 

Lalli's homer, his third of the year, scored two for Nashville, before Prince attacked his first pitch from Bonderman to make it 8-2. Lalli picked up his second home run in the ninth inning to become the fourth Sound this season to have multiple homers in a single game.

 

Each Sound in the line-up recorded a hit against Rainiers' pitching, combining to total 14. Lalli led the way with three, while Prince, Hunter Morris and Blake Davis each had two.

 

Prince extended his hitting streak to a season-best eight games with his double in the second inning, and scored on a double from Morris, who batted sixth. Morris hit Nashville's third homer in the eighth. The four dingers match a single-game season high for the Sounds.

 

The Sounds added to a 1-0 lead in the second inning with two runs, as Blake Davis led off the frame with a grounder into right field. He was driven around by a double into right-center from Scooter Gennett, who has now reached base in 38 of his 40 games this season.

 

Right fielder Caleb Gindl placed a bunt single towards third base to advance Gennett, who scored on a double-play ball to make it 3-0.

 

In the fourth, the Sounds scored another pair on three straight singles from the bottom of the order. Stephen Parker hit the first single to advance Prince to third after he reached base on balls. Hainley Statia followed with a single up the line to score Prince and set Parker up to come home on Blake Davis' base knock into left. Statia's single extended his season-best hit streak to seven games.

 

Starting pitcher Zach Kroenke (2-6) held the Rainiers to two runs on four hits across seven innings of work to pick up his second win of the season. He offered two walks and fired seven strikeouts. His only misstep in the winning effort was the two-run homer in the fourth to Tacoma's Nate Tenbrink. His seven innings of work matches Mike Fiers' seven-inning effort against Memphis for the longest by a Sound this season.

 

Relievers Johnnie Lowe and Rob Wooten both logged one inning on the hill for Nashville, each allowing a hit and fanning two.

 

The Sounds finish the road trip with a 3-5 record, during which the team hit .311 (91-for-293) with 30 extra-base hits: 14 homers.

 

Baseball returns to Greer Stadium Friday as the Sounds host the Albuquerque Isotopes (AAA-Dodgers) to a four-game set. RHP Frankie De La Cruz (1-5, 7.15) gets the start for Nashville against the 'Topes RHP Angel Castro (3-2, 3.64).

 

Nashville Box

 

 

Nashville PbP

Kroenke admirably worked his way out of a potentially nasty inning in the 2nd, with at the time merely a 1-0 lead:

 

Tacoma Bottom of the 2nd

-Carlos Peguero singles on a sharp ground ball to right fielder Caleb Gindl.

-With Stefen Romero batting, wild pitch by Zach Kroenke, Carlos Peguero to 2nd.

-With Stefen Romero batting, passed ball by Blake Lalli, Carlos Peguero to 3rd.

-Stefen Romero pops out to third baseman Hainley Statia.

-Mike Zunino pops out to first baseman Hunter Morris.

-Nate Tenbrink grounds out to first baseman Hunter Morris.

 

 

Nashville Gameday

[Mass Haas]

Brevard County Audio:

 

Pre-Game Interview with 1B/DH Cody Hawn

 

Game Highlights / Lowlights

[Mass Haas]

Quad Cities photo gallery includes several Timber Rattlers

 

Game story from Quad Cities Online

 

On Jorge Lopez -- "He was really mixing up his pitches and keeping us off balance"

[TheCrew07]

I wish we had Cingrani, that is all.

 

Cingrani not satisfied with results alone

[TooLiveBrew]

I wish we had Cingrani the Reds' developmental approach & scouting department, that is all.

[TooLiveBrew]

Unfortunately, in my moderator n00b-ness, I accidentally deleted TheCrew07's long Baseball America post. For some reason, the last few posts on p.2 of the 5/23 L.R. were displaying multiple times, so when I went to delete what I saw as the 2nd duplicate of your long Baseball America Hot Sheet post, it deleted the original as well.

 

I PM'd 1992casey for help. Sorry!

[TheCrew07]

No worries, I'll repost it in today's LR, it will the first post from the new laptop. Won't be more than an hour or so.

[LouisEly]

I wish we had Cingrani the Reds' developmental approach & scouting department, that is all.

 

The Reds do a great job of identifying prospects, but their developmental approach - specifically rushing pitchers to the majors - is not something I want to replicate. Leake never got to develop his stuff, they spent a lot of money on Chapman for him to be stuck in the bullpen pitching 70 innings a year, and Ryan Wagner both never got to develop his stuff and was stuck in the bullpen. Bailey struggled for several years in the majors before finding his stuff, and it's a miracle he hasn't gotten hurt considering how many more pitches he threw as a 19-year-old than as an 18-year-old (the innings weren't bad, but factoring in as many walks and strikeouts as he had it was a lot more workload than the innings suggest).

 

If they had taken their time with Chapman, Leake, and Wagner imagine what they would have...