Link Report for Games of Wednesday, June 2nd

[MassBrew]

Wednesday's Daily Menu: Huntsville's an obvious choice here with the late Brewers' start; let play-by-play man Robert Portnoy serve your appetizer...

 

All times Central; pitchers subject to change; pre-game audio begins approx. 15 minutes prior to game time listed...

 

INDIANAPOLIS: IDLE

 

HUNTSVILLE: RHP Tim Bausher at Montgomery (Devil Rays), 7:05 PM

 

Audio link:

www.espn1450.com/

 

HIGH DESERT: RHP Bo Hall at Modesto (A's), 9:05 PM

 

Audio link:

www.hdmavs.com/listen_live.htm

 

BELOIT: RHP Kenny Durost at home vs. South Bend (Diamondbacks), 7:00 PM

 

For the second consecutive series, no online audio available http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/frown.gif

[MassBrew]

Final: South Bend (Diamondbacks) 3, Beloit 2

These are critical losses for the Snappers as they were approaching the top of the division...

 

Beloit Site Game Blurb and Player of the Game Info:

Any excuse to honor Cap'n Lou is a good one...

 

www.snappersbaseball.com/...63305d36be

 

Beloit Box Score:

Three lonely base hits; you may recognize the name Tila Rreynolds for the Silverhawks, the Brewers 2002 13th round pick infielder out of the University of Washington did not sign with the Crew...

 GAME DATE: 6/02/04 SBN at BLT SOUTH BEND 3 AT BELOIT 2 YTD YTD SOUTH BEND AB R H BI AVG BELOIT AB R H BI AVG M.Goss RF 4 0 0 0 .272 T.Trofholz DH 4 0 0 0 .306 E.Bonifacio 2B 4 0 1 0 .280 J.Murray SS 4 0 0 0 .217 E.Varela 1B 4 0 0 0 .284 V.Rottino 2B 3 1 0 0 .303 A.Murillo 3B 3 0 0 0 .276 L.Palmisano CAT 4 0 2 1 .309 M.Montero CAT 2 2 0 0 .288 A.Heether 3B 3 0 0 0 .259 A.Frazier DH 4 1 2 0 .271 S.Moss CF 3 1 1 0 .162 J.Kaplan LF 3 0 2 1 .277 D.Anderson LF 2 0 0 0 .274 L.Garcia CF 4 0 0 0 .277 M.Ramirez 1B 2 0 0 0 .248 A.Gonzalez SS 2 0 0 0 .206 R.Deevers RF 2 0 0 1 .206 J.Cook PH 1 0 1 2 .233 K.Durost PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 L.Reynolds SS 0 0 0 0 .237 T.Taubenheim PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Chico PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 B.Biggs PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 31 3 6 3 TOTALS 27 2 3 2 SOUTH BEND 0 1 0 0 0 0 2 0 0- 3 6 0 BELOIT 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 0 0- 2 3 0 DP--SOUTH BEND 0, BELOIT 0. LOB--SOUTH BEND 5, BELOIT 5. 2B--A.Frazier (12), J.Kaplan 2 (8), L.Palmisano (9). SB--E.Bonifacio (14). CS--A.Murillo. SF--J.Kaplan, R.Deevers. SH--D.Anderson 2. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SOUTH BEND M.Chico (W,7-3) 6.1 2 2 2 4 5 0 2.42 B.Biggs (S,10) 2.2 1 0 0 0 5 0 1.59 BELOIT K.Durost (L,4-4) 6.0 4 3 3 3 5 0 3.57 T.Taubenheim 3.0 2 0 0 0 2 0 3.81 WP--M.Chico. SO--M.Goss 2, M.Montero, A.Frazier 2, J.Kaplan, L.Garcia, T.Trofholz 2, J.Murray 3, A.Heether 3, S.Moss, R.Deevers. BB--A.Murillo, M.Montero 2, V.Rottino, A.Heether, S.Moss, M.Ramirez. T--2:31. A--481

Beloit Game Log:

Snappers best chance at a rally fell short in the 7th...

 

www.sportsnetwork.com/mer...MEID=12489

[MassBrew]

Final: Montgomery (Devil Rays) 6, Huntsville 0

Another Rickie Weeks HBP doesn't make up for another dreary offensive performance by the Stars, five little singles...

 

Huntsville Box Score:

Uh-oh, Tony Gwynn leaves this one early, prompting a lineup shuffle that places catcher Joel Alvarado at 3B; if Brandon Gemoll isn't back, where's my signature -- Reid, get Huntsville another bat!

 GAME DATE: 6/02/04 HVL at MTG HUNTSVILLE 0 AT MONTGOMERY 6 YTD YTD HUNTSVILLE AB R H BI AVG MONTGOMERY AB R H BI AVG R.Weeks 2B 3 0 0 0 .244 F.Cortez 2B 5 2 2 0 .272 A.Gwynn CF 1 0 0 0 .260 J.Brewer LF 3 0 3 1 .296 J.Alvarado 3B 1 0 0 0 .172 J.Velazquez 1B 4 0 1 1 .257 P.Fielder 1B 3 0 0 0 .242 J.Salas 3B 5 0 1 0 .285 B.Nelson LF 4 0 3 0 .300 D.DeMent DH 4 0 0 0 .262 J.Belcher DH 4 0 0 0 .283 B.Martin RF 3 1 1 0 .264 C.Barnwell 3B 4 0 2 0 .216 I.Franco CAT 4 2 1 0 .182 C.Barnwell RF 0 0 0 0 .216 A.Clark CF 4 1 3 3 .208 J.Raburn RF 4 0 0 0 .252 N.Perez SS 4 0 1 0 .343 J.Raburn CF 0 0 0 0 .252 J.Cromer PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 K.Johnson CAT 3 0 0 0 .235 C.Hines PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 O.Chavez SS 3 0 0 0 .270 T.Bausher PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 F.Rijo PIT 0 0 0 0 .400 J.Novinsky PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 30 0 5 0 TOTALS 36 6 13 5 HUNTSVILLE 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0- 0 5 1 MONTGOMERY 0 4 0 0 1 1 0 0 X- 6 13 0 E--T.Bausher. DP--HUNTSVILLE 0, MONTGOMERY 2. LOB--HUNTSVILLE 7, MONTGOMERY 10. 2B--A.Clark 2 (6). 3B--F.Cortez (2), B.Martin (1). HR--A.Clark (8). SB--R.Weeks (4). CS--J.Brewer. HBP--R.Weeks. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA HUNTSVILLE T.Bausher (L,1-6) 5.0 10 5 4 2 5 1 3.67 F.Rijo 2.0 3 1 1 1 0 0 4.50 J.Novinsky 1.0 0 0 0 1 1 0 3.16 MONTGOMERY J.Cromer (W,3-4) 6.0 1 0 0 3 5 0 4.81 C.Hines (S,1) 3.0 4 0 0 0 4 0 4.45 HB--J.Cromer. SO--R.Weeks, A.Gwynn, J.Alvarado, P.Fielder, B.Nelson, J.Belcher 2, K.Johnson 2, F.Cortez, J.Velazquez, J.Salas 2, D.DeMent, B.Martin. BB--A.Gwynn 2, P.Fielder, J.Brewer 2, J.Velazquez, B.Martin. T--2:39. A--3409

Huntsville Game Log:

First inning, fourth, seventh, ninth -- all wasted away; bases juiced, no one out in the 4th -- nothing...

 

www.sportsnetwork.com/mer...MEID=16267

[MassBrew]

In progress: Modesto (A's) 3, High Desert 0, after three innings

Yup, this is shaping up as a Link Report for the trash bin tonight...c'mon Mavs, c'mon Crew -- plenty of time left...

 

Update: Modesto (A's) 6, High Desert 0, after six innings

OK, well this game's mathematically symmetrical thus far, anyway...

[colbyjack]

With expressed concerns about Rickie Weeks out there, I'm surprised more people haven't talked about Prince Fielder's mighty slump, as his average is down to .247 now. Last year he slumped at the same time after starting the year hot, and got hot again in mid-June, and didn't let up the entire year. Still, since we like to overreact, what's up with Prince?

 

I think it's absolutely great to see Brad Nelson hitting .300 at AA. And Kat, I need no apologies http://forum.brewerfan.net/images/smilies/smile.gif .

[Danagger]

at what point is it "ok" to be worried and/or alarmed about Weeks and Fielder? 150 AB's, mid June, late June? 2006...let us know. Anyone who had these expectations for Weeks (from the poll) and voted yes was flat out lying.

[MassBrew]

Final: Modesto (A's) 9, High Desert 8

Wow -- give Mel Queen's boys credit for taking an 8-6 lead (!) before losing a heartbreaker...

 

High Desert Box Score:

 GAME DATE: 6/02/04 HD at MOD HIGH DESERT 8 AT MODESTO 9 YTD YTD HIGH DESERT AB R H BI AVG MODESTO AB R H BI AVG C.Morris DH 4 0 1 2 .297 A.Ethier CF 4 2 1 0 .283 C.Crabbe 2B 4 1 0 0 .294 L.Turner 2B 5 1 3 0 .263 D.Boyd LF 5 2 3 0 .294 B.Stavisky DH 4 2 2 0 .336 T.Hinton 1B 5 1 1 1 .300 N.Cruz LF 4 0 1 2 .315 J.Frost RF 5 1 1 1 .278 J.Suomi CAT 5 0 3 1 .325 S.Candelaria 3B 3 1 2 2 .263 J.Perry 1B 4 1 1 1 .375 F.Villanueva CAT 4 2 2 0 .248 O.Quintanill SS 3 1 0 0 .261 K.Bibbs CF 3 0 1 2 .292 M.McBeth RF 5 2 1 1 .239 E.Cruz SS 3 0 1 0 .234 I.Garcia 3B 4 0 3 2 .240 B.Hall PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Lynch PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 C.Breslow PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 S.FISCHER PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Kusiewicz PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 L.Landeros PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 C.Shank PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 J.Coleman PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 36 8 12 8 TOTALS 38 9 15 7 HIGH DESERT 0 0 0 0 0 0 3 5 0- 8 12 3 MODESTO 2 0 1 0 0 3 0 2 1- 9 15 1 E--C.Crabbe, J.Frost, B.Hall, O.Quintanill. DP--HIGH DESERT 3, MODESTO 1. LOB--HIGH DESERT 6, MODESTO 11. 2B--D.Boyd (9), F.Villanueva (8), J.Suomi (15), I.Garcia (13). 3B--M.McBeth (4). HR--J.Perry (1). SB--C.Morris (24), K.Bibbs (18), J.Suomi (3). CS--C.Morris. HBP-- A.Ethier. SF--S.Candelaria, N.Cruz. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA HIGH DESERT B.Hall 5.0 5 3 2 1 5 0 5.87 C.Breslow 2.0 5 3 2 2 0 1 8.80 M.Kusiewicz (L,0-1) 1.1 5 3 3 2 1 0 6.35 MODESTO M.Lynch 6.2 6 3 3 1 3 0 4.42 S.FISCHER 0.1 2 2 2 2 1 0 3.26 L.Landeros 0.1 2 2 2 0 0 0 4.91 C.Shank 0.2 2 1 1 1 1 0 2.80 J.Coleman (W,1-1) 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.51 HB--B.Hall. PB--J.Suomi. SO--C.Morris, D.Boyd, T.Hinton, J.Frost, E.Cruz, N.Cruz 2, J.Suomi, J.Perry, M.McBeth, I.Garcia. BB--C.Morris, C.Crabbe, K.Bibbs, E.Cruz, B.Stavisky, J.Perry, O.Quintanill 2, I.Garcia. T--3:06. A--2919

High Desert Game Log:

 

www.sportsnetwork.com/mer...MEID=18746

[MassBrew]

 WEST DIVISION W L PCT GB [b]INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS (MILWAUKEE) 28 22 .560[/b] COLUMBUS CLIPPERS (NEW YORK YANKEES) 28 22 .560 TOLEDO MUD HENS (DETROIT) 27 26 .509 2.5 LOUISVILLE BATS (CINCINNATI) 25 27 .481 4.0

 WEST DIVISION W L PCT GB WEST TENN DIAMOND JAXX (CHICAGO CUBS) 30 23 .566 [b]HUNTSVILLE STARS (MILWAUKEE) 28 25 .528 2.0[/b] BIRMINGHAM BARONS (CHICAGO WHITE SOX) 27 26 .509 3.0 MOBILE BAY BEARS (SAN DIEGO) 26 27 .491 4.0 MONTGOMERY BISCUITS (TAMPA BAY) 22 31 .415 8.0

 SOUTH DIVISION W L PCT GB LANCASTER JETHAWKS (ARIZONA) 32 20 .615 INLAND EMPIRE 66ERS (SEATTLE) 31 22 .585 1.5 LAKE ELSINORE STORM (SAN DIEGO) 26 26 .500 6.0 RANCHO CUCAMONGA QUAKES (ANAHEIM) 25 27 .481 7.0 [b]HIGH DESERT MAVERICKS (MILWAUKEE) 20 33 .377 12.5[/b]

 WESTERN DIVISION W L PCT GB PEORIA CHIEFS (ST.LOUIS) 30 21 .588 KANE COUNTY COUGARS (OAKLAND) 30 22 .577 .5 CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS (ANAHEIM) 30 22 .577 .5 CLINTON LUMBER KINGS (TEXAS) 27 24 .529 3.0 [b]BELOIT SNAPPERS (MILWAUKEE) 28 25 .528 3.0[/b] QUAD CITY RIVER BANDITS (MINNESOTA) 23 25 .479 5.5 WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS (SEATTLE) 23 29 .442 7.5 BURLINGTON BEES (KANSAS CITY) 17 36 .321 14.0

[MassBrew]

Huntsville Site Game Summary:

 

Wednesday?s game at Riverwalk Stadium should be quickly filed away and forgotten. The Stars (28-25) are still in a pennant race, and their 6-0 loss to Montgomery (22-31) was the kind that can leave a hangover. Huntsville pulled within two games of Southern League West leader West Tenn, which lost a doubleheader at Birmingham.

 

Biscuits lefty Jason Cromer (3-4) held the Stars to one infield single over six scoreless innings, walking three and fanning five for his third win. Righty Carlos Hines authored three shutout frames of relief, giving up four singles and fanning four for his first save.

 

Montgomery banged out 13 hits and broke the game open with a five-hit, four-run second. Brian Martin, who homered twice in a doubleheader split the day before, ripped a triple to left-center, and Iker Franco followed with a soft come-backer to the mound. Stars starter Tim Bausher threw the ball up the rightfield line for an error, scoring Martin and sending Franco to third. Aaron Clark slammed a two-run homer to right, and one out later three consecutive singles, the last a run-scoring hit by Jose Velazquez, made it 4-0 Biscuits.

 

Two moments encapsulated Huntsville?s frustration: a bases-loaded scoring chance gone awry and Tony Gwynn Jr.?s sixth-inning ejection. Jason Belcher hit with the bases full and none out in the fourth, spoiling several two-strike pitches before lifting a fly ball down the leftfield line. Jace Brewer made the catch as Gwynn tagged up at third and broke for home. Brewer?s throw arrived just ahead of Gwynn, whose deft slide appeared to avoid catcher Iker Franco?s sweep tag. Gwynn was called out by plate ump Pete Pederson, and Stars skipper Frank Kremblas argued to no avail. Chris Barnwell grounded out to end the inning.

 

In the top of the sixth, Rickie Weeks was called out on strikes and offered a few words to Pederson. Kremblas charged down the line to protect his player, and Weeks retreated to the dugout. Gwynn batted next and checked his swing at a count of 1-2. On appeal, third base umpire Rob Hanson punched out Gwynn, who flipped his bat in the air. With his back turned to home plate, Pederson tossed Gwynn out of the game, and again Kremblas raced home to back up Gwynn. Neither discussion with Pederson bore fruit.

 

Bausher (1-6) suffered his sixth loss, surrendering five runs, four earned, on 10 hits and two walks with five strikeouts in five innings. Reliever Fernando Rijo permitted one run on three hits and one walk over two frames, and John Novinsky tossed a scoreless eighth, allowing only a walk, his first in over a month, and fanning one.

 

In the series finale Thursday night, Stars lefty Matt Ford (1-1, 3.06) returns from the disabled list for his first start in over a month. The Biscuits counter with righty Jose Veras (1-0, 5.87). Game time is 7:05 p.m., and the FPH Financial Services Pre-game Show starts at 6:50 p.m. Stars baseball can be heard on locally on ESPN 1450 and at www.huntsvillestars.com.

[MassBrew]

David Weiser's www.starsboxscore.com Huntsville update:

 

STARS LOSE, BUT GAIN

Only the second shutout ever in the Montgomery Biscuits' young history --- and they've both come against the weakest hitting team in the league --- that's the Stars, of course.

 

One would hope a new month would translate to a better start for some of the prized prospects on this club, who have not met our expectations thus far, but three days into the season, the Stars have hit .213 in this series against Montgomery that started June 1......... Prince Fielder --- another o-fer. He's on an 0-for-12 slide and 20-for-110 (.182) since the start of May. Rickie Weeks. He went from .311 in April to a .220 May, and is 2-for-23 on the Stars' two most recent road trips. He's 1-for-9 in this series, dropping his mark to .244. Tony Gwynn, Jr. He's 4-for-18 after going on a nine-game hitting streak........ Combined, the nucleus of what was to be one of the best hitting teams in the Stars' history, is hitting .251 with 14 HRs and 64 RBIs, 118 strikeouts (.212 K avg.) and 66 walks....... Their combined secondary average, for those fans familiar with sabermetrics, is .269........ And that's without isolating the month of May.

 

The link to my site below now has the hitting comparisons between April and May, and although most Stars had better months in May, Fielder and Weeks definitely did not, and their problems are bleeding into June........ The best thing you can say, though, is that it they've been brilliant in the field. The Stars, in fact, had the fewest errors in May (24) in their history and the fewest errors after 50 games (49) in their history........ The club leader in errors with 10 is gone --- Enrique Cruz now at High Desert.

 

http://www.starsboxscore.com/standing.html

 

Despite the 6-0 loss, the Stars are still in this first half race, with a little less than three weeks to go. They actually gained a game on West Tennessee after a twin loss to Birmingham ......... The Stars are now 3-3 after being blanked this year.

 

The Stars will try to even this series, Thursday, with Matt Ford (1-1, 3.06) making his comeback....... He'll pitch two innings, then make way for Dennis Sarfate, who has not been scored upon in his last two starts, covering 13 innings...... Cross your fingers for Ford, who hasn't pitched since April 26........ Pitching coach Fred Dabney says Mike Jones has made excellent progress, and will pitch a simulated game tomorrow, and there's an outside chance he may pitch an inning or two on the Stars next homestand.

 

The first batter in the bottom of the 2nd inning set the tone right away for the night....... Brian Martin, who homered twice in Tuesday's double-header, lined a triple to left-center field past Brad Nelson, on the run. It caromed away from the wall at the 395 mark past Gwynn Jr. The relay throw by Ozzie Chavez skipped past Chris Barnwell and Martin was credited with the triple......... The Stars looked like it would have an easy out on the next batter, Iker Franco. Franco's chopper back to the mound was fielded with time enough for starter Tim Bausher to look back Martin, but Bausher threw the ball away up the right field line. Barnwell had trouble finding the ball and Franco had more than enough time to advance to third, giving the Biscuits a 1-0 jump......... Aaron Clark stood in next and slammed a two-run HR to right to make it 3-0....... Three consecutive singles followed Nestor Perez's grounder for the first out, and Montgomery took a 4-0 lead.

 

For Bausher, it was the second straight start in which he gave up at least four earned runs --- that after nine straight games of giving up two runs or less....... His mound opponent, Jason Cromer, gave up just one hit through six --- a 4th inning single by Nelson in what would be the Stars' best chance in this game......... With the bases loaded and nobody out, Jason Cromer walked Tony, Jr. and Fielder, and a swinging bunt by Nelson set the stage for Jason Belcher, one of the two best hitters in May (2, 14, .315)....... Belcher fouled off several pitches and worked the count full, then lined a fast ball to left fielder Jace Brewer. Gwynn attempted to score, slid into home, and was snap tagged by catcher Iker Franco......... Manager Frank Kremblas came running out of the dugout charging that Franco had missed the tag, but Kremblas lost the argument...... Barnwell grounded out to end the inning.

 

The Stars lost all the arguments in this game...... Tony Gwynn, Jr. was the biggest loser, after arguing a strike three call at the plate with home plate ump Pete Pedersen in the 6th inning. He was backed up by the 3rd base ump, Rob Hansen, and in disgust, Gwynn threw his bat up in the air........ Pedersen, in no mood after listening to Rickie Weeks' earful after a called third strike, tossed Gwynn, necessitating some position juggling, since the Stars still are short a position player after losing Brandon Gemoll more than two weeks ago....... Chris Barnwell was moved to right, and he actually made an assist out there in the 7th inning with a perfect two-hop throw to Joel Alvarado, playing 3rd base, getting Brian Martin who tried to go from first to third on Nestor Perez's single.

 

Chris made one dandy play in the 3rd inning off Nestor Perez, making a diving stop of a ball at third, then throwing across from a knee -- as good a play as you would see in the major leagues......... It saved a run, but it mattered only to Bausher's ERA......... Nelson also made a fine catch in the 7th inning, climbing the wall to take away a home run from Franco.

 

Famililar patterns........ Weeks led off this game by being hit by a pitch....... It was the 8th time this season Weeks has been hit in his first trip to the plate, and the 6th time he's led off a game like that........ Rickie has now been hit 17 times in 53 games, almost as many times as he's walked and more than nearly every player on the team has walked except for Prince, Tony Jr., and Nelson....... He's two away from the club record of 19 set by Ramon Hernandez in 1998........ In the 1st inning with runners on first and second, Fielder hit into another rally-killing double play --- the official count doesn't agree with mine after pouring over game logs, but it leads the club (Barnwell led in this category last year with 12)........ He hit into eight in May and five times they came in the 1st inning.

 

Ben Hendrickson made his major league debut Wednesday night (5 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 2 BB, 2 K)........ We all knew he would sometime this year....... He becomes the 145th former Huntsville Star to make it from there to the majors.

[MassBrew]

-- Photos by Julie Bennett, Montgomery Advertiser

 

Biscuits shortstop Nestor Perez and Huntsville's Rickie Weeks wait for a call from an umpire at second base during their game on Wednesday night at Riverwalk Stadium. Perez and the Biscuits won 6-0.

 

http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/images/news_daily/060304/SPORTS_bicuits603_1.jpg

[MassBrew]

Huntsville third baseman Chris Barnwell tags out Montgomery's Jace Brewer on Wednesday.

 

http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/images/news_daily/060304/SPORTS_bicuits603_2.jpg

[MassBrew]

Daily Press High Desert Game Summary:

Not a first-hand account with the Northern road trip, but some details...

 

www.vvdailypress.com/cgi-...832,42467,