Link Report Wed. 7/26: Update - Very Detailed Nashville Post

[Mass Haas]

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

[Mass Haas]

Wednesday's Arizona Brewers at Arizona Cubs Rookie League Game was postponed by rain.

[Mass Haas]

Wednesday's Daily Menu:

 

All times Central; pitchers subject to change --

 

Nashville: RHP Carlos Villanueva at home vs. Colorado Springs (Rockies), 6:40 PM pre-game, 7:00 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/

 

Huntsville: RHP Yovani Gallardo at home vs. Birmingham (White Sox), 6:50 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.espn1450radio.com/

 

Brevard County: LHP Derek Miller at Dunedin (Blue Jays), 6:05 gametime; sorry, no audio for this series

 

West Virginia: LHP Rafael Lluberes at Charleston (Yankees), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.sportsjuice.com/provi...e=wvpower.

 

Helena: RHP Jose Beltre at Billings (Reds), 7:50 PM pre-game; 8:05 gametime

 

Audio (click on "Listen Live"):

www.helenabrewers.net/html2/index.php

[Mass Haas]

Follow Wednesday's action as it happens:

Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Open the Nashville Gameday. For the others, choose "Log". 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.

 

Nashville:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1

 

Huntsville:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

 

Brevard County:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_dunafa_1

 

West Virginia:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_crdafx_1

 

Helena:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_bilrok_1

[Mass Haas]

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds and/or Huntsville Stars are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated an hour or two prior to gametime:

 

Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf

 

Following Nashville's lead, Huntsville now makes its media notes available as well, nice:

 

www.huntsvillestars.com/i...eNotes.pdf

[jvrocksaz]

CV and Yo off to solid starts tonight... It is nice to follow these two pitch on the same night..

[germanking]

The only question I have for Yo! and CV, is who will have the lower ERA by the end of the night?

[tyguy20204]

Villanueva has done nothing but impress all year.

[molitor fan]

The only question I have for Yo! and CV, is who will have the lower ERA by the end of the night?

 

 

Excellent (Jeff) query - 13 innings so far between the two - 0 runs so far.

[jvrocksaz]

Birmingham is just lucky the pitchers are not hitting tonight!!!

[And That]

Yo! and CV are both just pitching out of their minds right now. Even a bad Yo outing involves him simply giving up walks (not even runs). Steve Bray replaces CV in the 8th and ruins the shutout bid, but he's still pitching well. And congrats to Rob Hinton and Steve Hammond last night on their stellar starts. Pitching may not be working in Milwaukee, but it sure is fun to check up on the youngins nowadays.

[Rob]

The Truth is impressive again. Does he get bumped to AAA?

[PrimeTime955]

Our minor league pitching is absolutely sick.

[JohnBriggs12]

If Yost likes Bush in the pen so much, why wait until September? Recall Villanueva, and give him Bush's spot in the rotation so Bush can concentrate on relieving.

[brewmann04]

Brantley up to 290 nice to see him hitting.

Yes we have some good young Arms Just please let them stay healthy.

[Rob]

Small mention of Jefress:

 

baseballanalysts.com/arch...stocks.php

[Mass Haas]

Final: Huntsville 8, Birmingham (White Sox) 1

 

Huntsville Site Game Summary:

Link, text follows --

 

www.huntsvillestars.com/n...newsId=939

 

Stars Keep Rolling Right Along

 

Yovani Gallardo worked 6 2/3 solid innings and Jeff Eure belted a three-run home run to cap the scoring in Huntsville?s 8-1 win Wednesday night in the third of a five-game set at Joe Davis Stadium. The Stars matched a season-high with their fourth straight win to improve to 15-18 in the second half and move to within four games of North Division leading Chattanooga, while the Barons slipped to 15-18 in the second half. Huntsville has held Birmingham to two runs or less in seven of the last eight meetings and pushed their record to 11-7 against the visitors.

 

Lucas Harrell, making his second start at the double-A level, walked Travis Ezi and Callix Crabbe to open the home first and Steve Moss followed with a single to plate Ezi to give the Stars the early 1-0 edge. Brad Nelson walked to load the bases before Ron Acuna delivered Crabbe with a sacrifice fly to drive in his 39th run of the year and 16th against Birmingham.

 

Ezi and Crabbe walked to open the fifth, advanced on a Harrell balk and scored on a double by Nelson that made it 4-0 Stars and knocked the right-hander out of the game. Ex-Barons catcher Carlos Lee singled with two outs against Dwayne Pollock to drive in Nelson to make it 5-0. Harrell suffered the loss after giving up four hits, walking seven and striking out a pair over 4 1/3 innings.

 

Eure?s three-run blast, his 10th of the season, came off of Brian West in the seventh and gave him a team-high 42 runs batted in. The Stars have scored eight or more runs in five of their last six wins and eight of their last ten victories over the Barons. Huntsville won four straight games over Birmingham and Montgomery from April 14-17 and took four in a row from Mobile at the Joe April 23-25.

 

Gallardo struck out Cory Aldridge with two runners on to end the third inning and fanned Michael Myers and Wally Rosa with two runners on to close the fourth inning. He gave up a lead off single to Myers in the seventh, fanned Rosa and Chris Getz and was taken out after 104 pitches. Matt Yeatman allowed back-to-back singles to Pedro Lopez and Ricardo Nanita that pushed across Myers with the Barons lone run. Gallardo earned his second win after allowing five hits, fanning eight and walking three. The Stars scored four runs in the right-hander?s first four starts, all Huntsville losses, and have tallied 17 times in his last two turns.

 

The series continues Thursday night with right-hander Tim Dillard starting for Huntsville against Barons? left-hander Corwin Malone. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 p.m. central time and can be heard locally on ESPN Radio 1450 AM and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com.

 

***

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.al.com/stars/huntsvil...amp;coll=1

 

Stars whip up on Barons

Huntsville cruises behind pitching of Gallardo

By BRAD SHEPARD, For The Huntsville Times

 

If only the Huntsville Stars could play every game against their fellow Alabama-based Southern Leaguers.

 

The suddenly surging Stars beat up on Birmingham again Wednesday at Joe Davis Stadium for the third consecutive night, winning 8-1 for their fourth straight victory.

 

So far this season, Huntsville - which is 39-63 overall - is 21-16 against in-state opponents, including an 11-7 record against the Barons.

 

"We're just playing them one at a time," Stars manager Don Money said. "But if you look at our record, we're like 30 games under .500, and we're like 26 under against the top three teams in the league, Jacksonville, Chattanooga and West Tenn.

 

"There's your under .500 record right there."

 

Though Money's numbers are a little off, he's dead on in his assessment.

 

Huntsville is 24 games under .500 and 7-33 against the Southern League's three elite teams.

 

Luckily for the Stars, Birmingham isn't one of them. And Wednesday's starter, Yovani Gallardo, is looking like one of the top pitchers around.

 

The 20-year-old right-hander entered the game 1-2 with an 0.59 earned run average, and he allowed just one run in 6 2/3 innings.

 

Already with a 2-0 lead, the Stars broke the game open with a three-run fifth inning that started with walks to Travis Ezi and Callix Crabbe. Brad Nelson made Birmingham pitcher Lucas Harrell pay for his lack of control, ripping a two-run double into the left-field corner.

 

"With three walks tonight, I was just trying to get a good pitch in that situation," Nelson said. "I saw a pitch early on and fouled it off, but I got that one."

 

After the Barons changed pitchers, Carlos Lee knocked in Nelson with a single to make it 5-0. All night, Huntsville turned walks into runs as five free-passes wound up on the scoreboard.

 

"I thought a few weeks ago, we weren't taking advantage of situations when we had them," Money said. "Recently, we've been doing the small things, and they're showing up as Ws."

 

Huntsville piled on in the seventh with a three-run homer by Jeff Eure, his 10th of the year. Guilder Rodriguez, who'd struggled all season with a .179 average, added three hits.

 

It was only after Gallardo (2-2) was pulled after 104 pitches in the top of the seventh that Birmingham scored off Matt Yeatman.

 

Still, Gallardo's fortunes appear to have changed. He's been terrific on the hill, but after getting just four runs of support in his first four starts, he's gotten 17 in his last two - both wins.

 

"He's dominant," Nelson said of Gallardo.

 

"I'm at first base, so I talk to other players. Just talking to other teams, they say there's just something about him that sticks out."

 

Huntsville Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

[Mass Haas]

Final: Dunedin (Blue Jays) 13, Brevard County 6

 

Brevard County Site Game Summary:

 

Corrente, Jays ground Manatees

 

David Corrente homered and drove in four runs as Dunedin rolled past visiting Brevard County, 13-6, on Wednesday.

 

After Josh Kreuzer's two-run homer snapped a 6-6 tie in the fifth inning, Corrente hit an RBI double and added a solo homer in the seventh. The 22-year-old catcher, who went 3-for-4, also delivered a two-run double in a three-run eighth to cap the scoring.

 

Starter Russ Savickas (4-1) worked five innings, yielding six runs -- one earned -- on eight hits with one strikeout and a walk.

 

Cory Patton went 2-for-5 with an RBI double in the third and a leadoff homer by Eric Nielsen sparked a four-run fourth for the Blue Jays (18-16). After an RBI double by Scott Dragicevich and a run-scoring single by Juan Peralta, Aaron Mathews hit an RBI triple to forge the deadlock. Carlo Cota also drove in a run for Dunedin.

 

Reliever Ben Stanczyk (7-3) surrendered three runs on three hits with three strikeouts and two walks over two frames in the four-game series opener.

 

Brendan Katin, who leads the Florida State League with 30 two-baggers, went 2-for-4 with a three-run double in the third for the Manatees (13-19). Adam Heether and Ryan Crew also doubled in a run apiece. -- Marissa Rega/MLB.com

 

Brevard County Box Score and Game Log Link:

Ryan Crew continues to impress...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_dunafa_1

[Mass Haas]

Final: Charleston (Yankees) 8, West Virginia 4

 

West Virginia Site Game Summary:

 

RIVERDOGS DROP EIGHT STRAIGHT ON POWER

 

The Charleston Riverdogs hit into five double plays, four of which were inning-enders, and they fell behind 4-0 after five innings against the Power on Wednesday night. None of that mattered after they scored seven runs in the eighth inning to beat the Power 8-4.

 

The Power scored twice in the second inning to take an early lead. Kenny Holmberg doubled into right field and scored Ned Yost to put the Power ahead. Holmberg scored later in the inning on Michael Brantley?s bunt single. In the fifth Mike Bell knocked in Darren Ford on a sacrifice fly and Lorenzo Cain scored on Yost?s run-scoring single. The Riverdogs scored their first of eight straight runs in the sixth inning on a two-out RBI double from C.J. Henry.

 

Down 4-1 entering the eighth inning, the Riverdogs scored seven times to take the lead and never looked back. Henry hit his second RBI double of the game to bring the Riverdogs within two. Eduardo Nunez followed with a game-tying two-run single. Nunez scored the go-ahead run on Joe Muich?s RBI single. The Riverdogs added a few more insurance runs on an RBI base hit from Tim Battle and a two-run single from Reegie Corona.

 

Dan McCutchen (1-0) earned the victory, and Dane Renkert (5-5) got the loss. The Power are 53-48 overall and 14-18 in the second half after the loss while the Riverdogs improved to 53-50 overall and 15-18 in the second half after the win.

 

The Power will finish the four game series against the Riverdogs at J.P. Riley Stadium on Thursday night. Left hander Zach Kroenke (5-5, 3.68) will make the start for Charleston and the Power will counter with right hander Will Inman (6-1, 1.33). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central).

 

West Virginia Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_crdafx_1

[Mass Haas]

Final: Helena 7, Billings (Reds) 2

 

Helena Independent Record:

 

Brewers end losing streak

 

The Helena Brewers snapped a six-game losing streak Wednesday, when they upended the Pioneer League North Division-leading Billings Mustangs 7-2.

 

The Brewers edged out to a 2-1 lead in the fourth inning before scoring two more runs in the fifth.

 

Cole Gillespie hit an RBI single in the inning and Andy Bouchie stroked an RBI double in the frame.

 

Bouchie had two hits and drove in a run, while Gillespie drove in two and had one hit on the evening. He also scored a run.

 

Helena tallied another run in the sixth and two more in the ninth.

 

Helena was agressive on the basepaths, stealing four bases on the night. Chuckie Caufield notched two steals.

 

Helena also had solid pitching. Jose Beltre and Mike McClendon combined to hold Billings to three hits and one earned run over six innings. They also struck out five.

 

McClendon picked up the win.

 

Defensively the Brewers were flawless. They turned three double plays in the game.

 

Helena will now play Great Falls in Great Falls tonight before returning home for a two-game set with the White Sox.

 

Helena Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_bilrok_1

[Mass Haas]

Nashville updates later on.

 

Thursday's Link Report kickoff later, too...

[bthurley19]

YO with a 0.72 ERA after last night but still higher than CV who comes in with a stunning 0.43 ERA. Hopefully in a couple years we have a dominate rotation of Sheets, Cappy, YO, CV, and Zack Jack.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Brewers Asst. GM Gord Ash (Part 1):

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...207-26.mp3

 

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Brewers Asst. GM Gord Ash (Part 2):

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...207-27.mp3

 

Final: Nashville 2, Colorado Springs (Rockies) 1

 

Nashville Site Game Summary:

Link for new Carlos Villanueva photo, text follows --

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2079

 

Villanueva Sharp Again In 2-1 Sounds Victory

 

NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? Right-hander Carlos Villanueva earned his third win in four Nashville outings on Wednesday night in another one-run affair at Greer Stadium as the Sounds emerged on top for the second night in a row, beating the Colorado Springs, 2-1.

 

With the victory, Nashville (58-47) won its sixth straight home game and improved to 11-5 in one-run contests at Greer.

 

Villanueva (3-0) continued to dominate PCL hitters as he hurled seven innings of scoreless, four-hit baseball. In his second start as a Sound, the 22-year-old sent the Sky Sox back to the bench one after another and matched his season high by striking out eight batters. With his scoreless outing, he lowered his ERA from a minuscule 0.64 to an unbelievable 0.43 (1 ER / 21.0 IP) while pitching for Nashville.

 

The Sounds struck first, plating a run in the home half of the first to take a 1-0 lead. Kennard Bibbs (2-for-4) started the Nashville offense off early with a leadoff double off Sky Sox starter Jose Acevedo. Brent Abernathy then put runners at the corners with a bunt base hit down the third-base line. Dave Krynzel grounded into a double play, allowing Bibbs to score from third to etch the first run of the game.

 

Colorado Springs? first hit of the game came in the form of a double to left field off the bat of former Sound Carlos Rivera (Pirates' organization) in the top of the fourth inning. Rivera?s hit was the first hit allowed by Villanueva in 9 2/3 innings at Greer Stadium.

 

The Sounds? offense struck again in the bottom of the fifth as they etched an insurance run with some help from Chris Barnwell. Barnwell reached base on a fielding error by Sky Sox third baseman Tommy Whiteman and advanced to second on a Villanueva sac bunt. With two outs in the frame, Bibbs followed with an amazing 10-pitch at-bat that culminated in a single to right field that gave Barnwell the chance to score from second. There was a play at home but the right fielder?s throw bounced just short of the plate and allowed Barnwell to slide safely into home, giving the Sounds a two-run cushion.

 

AUDIO: Kennard Bibbs RBI Single --

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...207-26.mp3

 

Barnwell was just added to the Sounds roster Wednesday and arrived at the ballpark within a couple hours of game time after being optioned back to Nashville after last night?s game in Milwaukee. Barnwell currently holds a .325 batting average, which leads the team.

 

The Sounds brought in reliever Steve Bray and his seven-inning scoreless streak in the top of the eighth in relief of Villanueva. The Sky Sox broke Bray?s scoreless streak in his only inning of work. With two outs, Josh Wilson hit a solo home run to left, his fourth blast of the year, cutting the Sounds lead in half.

 

After Colorado Springs put the leadoff man on base in the top of the ninth against Mitch Stetter, Sounds skipper Frank Kremblas summoned closer Alec Zumwalt from the bullpen who recorded three outs to pick up his team-leading 11th save of the year.

 

Acevedo (5-7) hurled his sixth consecutive quality start but received the hard-luck loss, his seventh of the season. He allowed two runs (one earned) on six hits over his seven frames of work.

 

The Sounds will face off against the Sky Sox for game three of the four-game series on Thursday night at Greer with the first pitch slated for 7 p.m. The Sounds will give Justin Lehr (3-3, 3.43) the starting nod and the Sky Sox will send Justin Hampson (4-3, 3.08) to the bump.

 

***

Link while active, text follows:

 

tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS

 

Sounds hot at home

Top Sky Sox, stretch winning streak at Greer Stadium to six

By MIKE ORGAN

Tennessean Staff Writer

 

It's a good thing Greer Stadium has been good to the Sounds this season.

 

That's because Nashville has just nine home games in August when the Pacific Coast League American North Division race with Iowa will heat up.

 

The Sounds picked up another home win Wednesday night with a 2-1 victory over Colorado Springs.

 

A crowd of 3,164 watched Nashville pitcher Carlos Villanueva stage his best performance of the season with eight strikeouts. He improved his record to 3-0.

 

The right-hander allowed four hits through seven innings in his second start. Villanueva's ERA dropped to 0.43. He has allowed one earned run in 21 innings.

 

Villanueva also struck out eight in three games for Double-A Huntsville this season.

 

"It's been a combination of things that have worked for me,'' Villanueva said. "I don't throw in the high 90s, I'm not a blow-it-by-them kind of a guy. So I rely on my pitch in and out to keep him off balance.''

 

Wednesday's victory extended Nashville's home winning streak to six games. The Sounds improved to 34-20 at Greer Stadium.

 

And while they've been tough to beat in Nashville, the Sounds have a losing record (24-27) on the road.

 

Nashville (58-47) is four games ahead of Iowa (53-50).

 

Fortunately for the Sounds, they won't have to travel to Iowa on any of the lengthy upcoming road trips.

 

Nashville Manager Frank Kremblas said he is not surprised by the struggles his team has experienced away from Greer because of the number of young players he's had to rely on.

 

"A lot of teams are similar to us, they play better at home than they do on the road,'' Kremblas said. "You look at the teams that play better than average on the road and you see they usually have older guys.

 

"They're a little more used to the travel and that kind of thing. We have a fairly young team.''

 

Nashville took a 1-0 lead into the fifth inning when Kennard Bibbs hit the ball into right field, and Chris Barnwell scored from second. Colorado Springs catcher Chris Iannetta mishandled the throw at the plate.

 

The Sky Sox scored in the eighth after Steve Bray replaced Villanueva on the mound for Nashville. Jayson Nix hit Bray's third pitch over the left field wall for a home run, trimming the score to 2-1.

 

***

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.nashvillecitypaper.co...s_id=51217

 

Villanueva, Bibbs come up big for Sounds

By Nate Rau, Nashville City Paper Sports Correspondent

 

With Nashville and Colorado Springs locked in a pitchers? duel at Greer Stadium on Wednesday night, it was the Sounds? smallest player who tilted the scale in their favor. Kennard Bibbs, who is listed as 5-9, 149-pounds, collected two hits, a run and an RBI to lead Nashville to a 2-1 victory over the visiting Sky Sox.

 

Bibbs was the difference in a game controlled by Nashville starter Carlos Villanueva and his Colorado Springs counterpart Jose Acevedo.

 

Nashville got on the board in the first inning when Bibbs, who is not an everyday starter, hit a leadoff double and eventually scored from third after Dave Krynzel grounded into a double play.

 

Bibbs added an RBI single in the fifth.

 

?The more pitches you see, the more comfortable you?re going to be in the box,? Bibbs said. ?I?ve been fortunate enough to get some consecutive games under my belt and I?m feeling pretty comfortable in the box.?

 

Villanueva turned in another sparkling performance for the Sounds and has yet to allow a run at Greer this season. Villanueva threw six hitless innings in his first Nashville start on July 15. He followed that up by holding the Sky Sox hitless for three innings before surrendering a double to former Sound Carlos Rivera.

 

In total Villanueva (3-0) went seven innings and allowed only four hits en route to lower his ERA to 0.43. He also matched his Sounds season-high with eight strikeouts. Villanueva bested Acevedo, who also threw well, going seven innings while giving up just two runs.

 

?I feel really comfortable here, the coaches [and teammates], it?s unbelievable. We?re a team,? Villanueva said. ?When you?re on a team [like this], it?s easy.?

 

The only Sky Sox run of the game came in the eighth when Josh Wilson hit a solo homer off Sounds reliever Steve Bray.

 

Alec Zumwalt picked up save his eleventh save for Nashville.

 

Nashville?s lead in the Pacific Coast League American Northern Division stood at four games, with second-place Iowa playing a night game in Tucson.

 

Sounds and Brewers extend agreement: The Nashville Sounds will remain the Triple A affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers through 2010, it was announced Wednesday. Nashville became a Brewers affiliate last year and then won the Pacific Coast League title.

 

The agreement means the Sounds will be a Brewers affiliate when Nashville?s new downtown ballpark, First Tennessee Field, opens in 2007.

 

Barnwell rejoins Sounds: To make room for Chris Barnwell, who was optioned down by Milwaukee, Ozzie Chavez was sent to Double A Huntsville.

 

Nashville Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1

[dadofandrew]

I'm sorry I doubted you Carlos V. Looks like he, Dillard, and Ty, despite pitching in a pitcher's park in '05, all have talent as well.