Link Report for Games of Monday, April 18th

[DHonks]

Chris, I can see him definitely in Nashville by June. Nashville has 3 prospects along with Helling and Pratt (fringe) in their rotation. If Eveland keeps this up, he could jump to AAA and replace Pratt. Of course, the really exciting dilemma would be what if Parra and Sarfate also keep it up? Sarfate already has a year at AA under his belt, and Parra's only holdup has been health. It's exciting to think we might HAVE to keep someone in AA because of depth, despite performance. Although if that were to happen, maybe Housman would be moved to the pen to work on being a long man (so he's still able to start) and also work on specifically getting lefties out.

[hsvstarsfan]

1987 Revisited?

No one else is going to know this, I'm sure, but this season is following to the letter, the pattern of wins and losses of the 1987 season -- five straight losses to start the season, then a win, then two more losses to give the Stars a 1-7 start -- then three straight wins...... What are the odds?....... A 4-7 start is nothing to brag about, but it's progress, and the 1987 Stars did go to the playoffs that year........ By the way, for this bizarre repeat to continue, the Stars must suffer a loss tomorrow.
Another beautiful night in Huntsville...... Where are all the fans? Get outta the house!......... 75° at gametime, no humidity, a few high clouds, but nothing threatening, although the weatherman is calling for a small chance of rain Thursday through Saturday....... What's this?........ A radar gun is set up behind home plate in back of the screen??? Could it be the speed display on the scoreboard is working? And lo and behold, the inning-by-inning display is working! I must be dreaming!...... No, it was true. Someone got on the stick and for the first time in a year since the new scoreboard was promised to us, everything is in 100% working order, and it was nice to include the speed gun readings in my scorebook occasionally.......

Mobile has been one of Huntsville's most competitive opponents every year since 1997. No lopsided advantage over the other has ever existed..... Although the Stars have an 85-73 edge, neither team has won 2/3 of every game in the season series each year..... Despite the fact that Mobile hit more homers against us than any other opponent we faced in the league (28-13 over Birmingham and Montgomery), the Stars won the season series last year, 13-11....... Only one home run tonight. In the 4th inning, Corey Smith hit Dana Eveland's first pitch (43rd in the game) over the right-center field fence for a home run that tied the game, 1-1...... Corey, in his 3rd straight year in Double-A, hit 19 HRs for Akron last year, and was traded to the Padres by Cleveland for Jake Gautreau last February 2nd. He was the Indians' 1st pick in the 2000 draft.

Eveland, for the 3rd time this season, was in control..... Seven more strikeouts to his total, now at 18 in 15 2/3 innings........ He mixed his fastball, which topped at 94, with his breaking pitches and off-speed stuff. Didn't see the slider a lot........ He scattered six hits. Only in the 4th inning did he give up more than one hit, and that was after giving up that home run........ One batter after giving up a four-pitch walk, his only pass, to Nick Trzesniak, he finally yielded to the bullpen in the 7th. He threw somewhere around 94-96 pitches and never more than 16, nor less than 11 in any inning he worked. Roughly 62% of his pitches were for strikes. He ended four of the innings he worked with a strikeout....... Although he's winless in three starts, he is the rock of this rotation.

Facing him tonight was Brian Whitaker, and we know his story if you tuned in on Monday....... Whitaker started against the Stars six times last year. He lost four times, becoming only the 6th pitcher to lose to the Stars four times in a season. Given two chances to break the record, he won on July 20 and then on August 15, left after five innings and took a no-decision in a 3-2 Stars victory....... Whitaker doesn't have Eveland's hummer. He seems to top out at 89-90 mph, so the Stars hit him early --- five hits through the first three innings.

It wasn't until the 3rd, they put a run on the scoreboard, though....... After Tony Gwynn struck out on an 89 mph fastball, Callix Crabbe showed the small crowd of fans his wheels when he tapped a slow roller to the right side of the infield. Ronnie Merrill came in and tried to barehand the ball and heave it to first to get the speedy Crabbe, who has stolen 81 bases in his three minor league seasons...... But Merrill could never get the handle on it and his momentum caused him to pass up his effort. Crabbe, who had the play beat anyhow, just kept running like a deer to second and did a head-first slide into the bag ahead of the tag. A ground ball to short by Brandon Gemoll moved him to third........ With two out, Nelson Cruz, the star of this game with two key hits, slapped an 85 mph pitch outside to right field for a single, scoring Crabbe, which made it 1-0.

Cruz was picked off, but his moment emerged again........ In the 8th inning, after Crabbe singled to center and was caught stealing on a close call, Gemoll singled through the right side of the infield to right. Next, Cruz smacked a double deep to the gap in right-center..... With two out, Gemoll, who is not a great runner, although he's not afraid to go, was off to the races. Gemoll chugged around third as the ball came in to the cut-off man. Ronnie Merrill made a strong throw to the plate, but Trzesniak had to dive slightly away from the plate, just as Gemoll slid into the catch. Clearly a goner......... Mitch Stetter (1.23 ERA through five games, no walks in 7 1/3 IP) and Matt DeWitt, fortunately held the Bay Bears to just one hit through the next three innings so Cruz could have his final chance. Greg Sain, in the 9th, doubled to the right-center field wall and went to third on a broken bat grounder to Gemoll (there were six broken bats tonight, one of which went into the stands on the third base side where most of the fans sit). But Stetter struck out Trzesniak on an 86 mph fastball....... Trzesniak hit just .148 last year against the Stars.

Nelson's next chance came in the 11th inning. Leading off, he stroked a single to left-centerfield gap. A little harder and he would have had a double, I'm sure, for he took a big turn around first...... On a 2-2 pitch to Tony Zuniga, he stole second. The throw to Merrill was good. It was low and headed into his glove, but Merrill never got a handle on it completely and it lay dead on the ground near his glove instead of in his glove........ .133-hitting Vinny Rottino was then walked to set up a double play, or at least a force, but Don Money was not going to let Matt DeWitt take his bat up there........ Jeff Winchester, hungry for a hit, anxious to be a hero, knocked a single into the gap in right-center. Right fielder Paul McAnulty gave it a little chase, but it was to no avail as the ball was on its way to the wall....... The Stars had won their 3rd straight game in a speedy 2:41 for an 11-inning contest.

The Bay Bears lost their 7th straight and their 2nd straight in 11 innings. Sunday, they lost to the Smokies, 3-2 when Dan Uggla homered in the 9th to tie the game and our old friend Noochie Varner, won it in the 11th on an RBI single....... This Mobile team should look familiar. 14 members of this year's team played with Mobile at some point last year........ R.D. Spiehs, who gave up the game-winning hits to Cruz and Winchester, held the Stars to just 3 runs in 14 2/3 innings over 12 appearances last year for a 1.84 ERA......... Since going 2-for-12 in the first series against Carolina, Nelson Cruz has gone 12-for-28 (.429) and has 6 hits in his last 9 at-bats........ Enrique Cruz, much improved over last year offensively and defensively, is 5-for-9 in his last 3 games.......... Matt DeWitt now has a decision in 3 of his 6 appearances........ Tony Gwynn, Jr. (.282) has hit safely in 7 of his 10 games this season. There's another improved players......... Ben Van Iderstine (.360) has struck out only twice in 25 at-bats.

Tuesday's game is a 12:05 businessman's special......... Dennis Sarfate (0-1, 1.00) will face Mike Thompson (1-1, 3.00)......... Thompson was 2-0 in six starts last year against the Stars, with a 2.25 ERA....... Sarfate was 1-3 against Mobile last year, with a 4.88 ERA in five starts. Last year, he gave up five HRs to the Bay Bears, more than any other pitcher on the staff against Mobile last year.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site Game Summary:

 

The Nashville Sounds dropped their third straight game on Monday evening, falling 3-0 in the finale of a four-game series against the New Orleans Zephyrs at Zephyr Field.

 

The loss was the first shutout defeat of the season for Nashville (6-6), which fell into a first-place tie with Omaha in the American Conference Northern Division.

 

Four New Orleans hurlers limited the Sounds to only four hits in the contest, including two by Prince Fielder (2-for-4).

 

Brendan Harris put the Z?s on the board with a leadoff solo homer off Nashville starter Ben Hendrickson in the bottom of the second inning, his first roundtripper of the season.

 

Tyrell Godwin doubled the New Orleans advantage to 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth with a two-out RBI single to center to plate Hector Ortiz.

 

Another two-out knock led to the third Zephyrs run of the game in the bottom of the fifth. With two down, Dan DeMent and Jason Bowers drew consecutive walks before Ortiz delivered an RBI single to make it a 3-0 game.

 

Sun-Woo Kim (2-1) earned the victory after fanning six batters over five scoreless innings. Hendrickson (0-1) took the loss for Nashville after allowing all three Zephyrs runs in his 4 2/3 innings of work. The Sounds bullpen combined for 3 1/3 scoreless frames to close out the contest. Hector Carrasco tossed a scoreless ninth, fanning two batters, to earn his fourth save of the year.

 

Nashville continues its current road trip on Tuesday with the 7:05 p.m. opener of a four-game series against the Oklahoma RedHawks. Southpaw Jeff Housman (0-0, 1.69) takes the hill for the Sounds to face Oklahoma right-hander Ricardo Rodriguez (1-1, 2.25).

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...208640.xml

 

Backup catcher swats winner for Stars in 11th

By JOHN FERRY

Times Sports Staff jferry@htimes.com

 

Jeff Winchester had no idea he would be a hero for the Huntsville Stars on Monday night at Joe Davis Stadium.

 

No idea whatsoever.

 

The Metairie, La., native was serving as bullpen catcher for his team in the series opener against the Mobile BayBears.

 

The game went into extra innings, and the rosters became depleted.

 

In the 11th inning, Winchester was needed at the plate. To bat.

 

He came through.

 

Nelson Cruz had singled, stolen second, and taken third on an infield out. Vinny Rottino was intentionally walked.

 

With one out, Mobile pulled its outfield into little league depth. A fly ball of any distance would win it for the Stars.

 

"It was a great situation to be in," said Winchester, who had been in the Colorado Rockies organization since 1998 before going with the Milwaukee Brewers system this season.

 

"I just wanted to get something to the outfield."

 

On a fast ball, Winchester used an easy swing and drove it beyond the outfielders, into right center. Cruz scored the winning run as Huntsville took a 2-1 victory.

 

The win was the third straight for the Stars (4-7) while Mobile fell to 4-7 with its seventh straight loss.

 

The Stars had scored a total of 17 runs on Saturday and Sunday in beating Carolina. Against Mobile on Monday, Huntsville still had offense, collecting 13 hits but struggled to get runs across.

 

Winchester sees many bright days ahead.

 

"This team has great potential," he said. "Our record is not the greatest but we've been in a lot of the games we have lost."

 

Winchester added he believes the pitching staff is incredible, the Stars have veteran hitters, and he thinks the coaching staff headed by manager Don Money is good.

 

The Stars broke on top briefly in the third. It began when Callix Crabbe's grounder was almost turned into a sensational fielding play by Mobile second-baseman Ronnie Merrill, but when the ball rolled behind him Crabbe legged it out for a double.

 

With two out, Nelson Cruz singled past a diving Merrill and Crabbe came across for a 1-0 Stars lead.

 

Mobile tied it two outs into the fourth inning when Corey Smith sent a homer over left-center.

 

Huntsville had scoring opportunities in the second, seventh and eighth innings.

 

In the second, Nelson Cruz and Ben Van Iderstine singled and Enrique Cruz walked. In the seventh, Van Iderstine and Enrique Cruz singled.

 

In the eighth, Crabbe singled but was thrown out trying to steal second. Brandon Gemoll singled, Nelson Cruz doubled, and Gemoll was thrown out trying to come all the way around.

 

Matt DeWitt, the fourth Huntsville pitcher, went two innings to get the win.

 

R.D. Speihs went the final third of an inning and got the loss.

 

Nelson Cruz went 4-for-5 to lead the Huntsville attack. Van Iderstine and Crabbe added two hits each.

 

Huntsville and Mobile will play daytime games today and Wednesday. For today's contest, which begins at 12:05, Dennis Sarfate (0-1) will pitch for the Stars against Mike Thompson (1-0).

[Mass Haas]

Brevard County Site Game Summary:

 

ST LUCIE BLOOMS, MANATEES WHITHER IN LOSS

Bullpen roughed up in 10-7 defeat to Mets

 

VIERA, FL -- The Manatees gave the pitching staff a 7-3 cushion before the bullpen was unable to hold the lead in the ninth as the home team goes down 10-7 Monday night at Space Coast Stadium.

 

The Mets jumped on top of starter Carlos Villanueva early in the first as Brett Harper hit his seventh home run and third against the Manatees as St Lucie was first out of the gate, leading 2-0.

 

But the 'Tees would comeback right away in the bottom of the frame. Ozzie Chavez and Lou Palmisano would both lead the hit parade with singles before Drew Anderson would bring them home with a three-run shot to right center field. It was Anderson's first round-tripper of the season. The scoring didn?t stop there for Brevard.

 

Adam Heether followed Anderson's shot with a single to short. With Heether at first, Jeff Eure would double to left center to put runners at second and third with still nobody out. Center fielder Steve Moss would get the Manatees sixth consecutive hit to start the inning with a single to right that would score Heether. Josh Brady would hit into a fielder's choice and Steve Sollmann would ground into a double play to end the inning with the Manatees up 4-2.

 

Brevard would get on the board again in the sixth. Leading 4-3, Heether would lead off the inning with a double to center off the batter's eye and Eure would single down the left side to put both men in scoring position. Moss would hit his second RBI single of the game, scoring Heether once again.

 

After a lineout by Brady, Sollmann would hit a double down the right field line allowing Eure to score and put BC up 6-3.

 

Moss would also add a double to center in the eighth inning that would lead to a run after he stole third and was brought home by a balk.

 

The lead looked like it would hold up as the Manatees took the field for the top of the ninth. Dan Grybash would become the fourth pitcher in the game and he struggled right off the bat.

 

The Mets started out the ninth with a single, a double and a single before the first out was made. He gave up one more double before being relieved by Nick Slack, the Manatees closer. Slack continued down the path Grybash had paved as he allowed a two-run double to the first batter he faced. Those would be the game-tying runs as the Mets would battle back from a 7-3 deficit to put up seven runs in the ninth inning leading them to the 10-7 win.

 

The loss drops the Manatees to 4-6 while the Mets improve to 6-5. The Mets and the Manatees continue their three-game set Tuesday night at Space Coast Stadium with another 7:00 PM (6:00 Central) contest.

[homer]

I wasn't suggesting they remove him from the Catcher role (personally I think a full season is warranted unless he's a complete disaster in July), but I am curious why they put him there as opposed to third base. Just wondering what the rationale was.

[AJ Love]

Quote:

---

I wasn't suggesting they remove him from the Catcher role (personally I think a full season is warranted unless he's a complete disaster in July), but I am curious why they put him there as opposed to third base. Just wondering what the rationale was.

---

 

Mainly just the lack of catcher prospects in the system right now? It is a position they need to address for the future, I don't see Moeller and Miller being around in 2008 (maybe even '07)

[homer]

By the way, Eveland's career K:BB ratio in the minors is now 185:38