27 replies to this topic

[Cuzittt]

Today's Games:

IL: Pawtucket (Doug Mathis) @ Scranton/Wilkes-Barre (Andy Pettitte) [2:05pm]
EL: Portland (Billy Buckner) @. New Britain (BJ Hermsen) [1:35pm]
CL: Salem (Drake Britton) @ Winston-Salem (Matt Heidnreich) [2:05pm]
SAL: Greenville (Henry Owens) vs. Rome (Ernesto Silva) [4:05pm]
NYPL: Lowell - Season Begins June 18th.
GCL GCL Sox - Season Begins June 18th.
DSL DSL Sox - Season Begins June 2nd.

Notes:

The Game against Scranton/Wilkes Barre will be played in Rochester, NY.

Billy Buckner has not committed a Balk since 2007.

Media:

MiLB TV
MiLB Radio

Local Media:

Pawsox: Providence Journal, Pawtucket Times

Seadogs: Portland Press Herald

Salem: Roanoke Times

Greenville: Greenville Online

Lowell: Lowell Sun

[jonasi]

Boxes and Logs

Team	Box	Log	Gameday
Pawtucket	Box	Log	Gameday
Portland	Box	Log	Gameday
Salem	Box	Log	Gameday
Greenville	Box	Log	Gameday

[Rasputin]

The opening of the PawSox game just gave me a woody.

Ciriaco starts by winning a ten pitch battle with Pettitte by doubling, followed by Iglesias bunting for a hit. That's nine hits, at least three of them bunts in five AAA games bunched around his bench warming in Boston.

[JakeRae]

The opening of the PawSox game just gave me a woody.

Ciriaco starts by winning a ten pitch battle with Pettitte by doubling, followed by Iglesias bunting for a hit. That's nine hits, at least three of them bunts in five AAA games bunched around his bench warming in Boston.

Iglesias bunting for a hit is nice and all, but it does very little to alleviate concerns about his ability to hit. This is especially true since bunting for hits is one of those things that becomes exponentially harder when you transition from the minors to the majors.

[Buzzkill Pauley]

The opening of the PawSox game just gave me a woody.

Ciriaco starts by winning a ten pitch battle with Pettitte by doubling, followed by Iglesias bunting for a hit. That's nine hits, at least three of them bunts in five AAA games bunched around his bench warming in Boston.

Nice -- I think I'll switch over, since Salem is sitting JBJ and starting Drake Britton's amazing ability to fall into a hole.

[Rasputin]

Iglesias bunting for a hit is nice and all, but it does very little to alleviate concerns about his ability to hit. This is especially true since bunting for hits is one of those things that becomes exponentially harder when you transition from the minors to the majors.

He's also had two of this three extra base hits and two of his ten walks over the course of those games. They may be small steps but they're in the right direction.

[Buzzkill Pauley]

Iglesias bunting for a hit is nice and all, but it does very little to alleviate concerns about his ability to hit. This is especially true since bunting for hits is one of those things that becomes exponentially harder when you transition from the minors to the majors.

I agree -- with one caveat.

For a punch-and-judy-hitter like Iglesias, the threat of a bunt bid is more valuable than for most. If bunting for a hit can keep the corner infielders drawn in, it's more likely that his soft flares and wormburners will find holes.

Bunting for hits won't make him even an average hitter, but it has its uses.

[JakeRae]

He's also had two of this three extra base hits and two of his ten walks over the course of those games. They may be small steps but they're in the right direction.

Absolutely. I apologize if my post came across too negative. Iglesias' success this week has been very encouraging.

Also, while I think bunting success in the minors needs to be taken with a substantial dose of salt due to defensive differences, it is still very possible to be a good enough bunter for it to be very useful MLB skill for someone with limited power. Iglesias working on his bunting and being successful with it is a good thing. But, 3 of his 9 hits over the last 5 games coming from the bunt is less exciting than 9 hits over the last 5 games where none of them came via bunt, at least to me.

[Rasputin]

Absolutely. I apologize if my post came across too negative. Iglesias' success this week has been very encouraging.

Also, while I think bunting success in the minors needs to be taken with a substantial dose of salt due to defensive differences, it is still very possible to be a good enough bunter for it to be very useful MLB skill for someone with limited power. Iglesias working on his bunting and being successful with it is a good thing. But, 3 of his 9 hits over the last 5 games coming from the bunt is less exciting than 9 hits over the last 5 games where none of them came via bunt, at least to me.

His OPS just creeped over .600 and he's our potential shortstop of the future. I'm gonna take every little good sign and revel in it.

[JakeRae]

His OPS just creeped over .600 and he's our potential shortstop of the future. I'm gonna take every little good sign and revel in it.

I already moved over to the Xander Bogaerts bandwagon. Thinking of Iglesias as our utility infielder of the future makes his abysmal offense much less frustrating.

In other news, Britton is having a very good start through 3 innings. 5 K, 3 H, 1 BB. He has given up 4 runs, but they have all been unearned due to Salem deciding not to play any defense behind him today.

[JakeRae]

Britton is done after 5. Added 3 more strikeouts and no base runners over his last 2 innings. That makes for 2 very good performances and one bad one in his last 3 starts. Nice to see something to hope on with Britton after a long stretch of nothing.

[Detts]

Perfect day for baseball in Greenville. 83 and partly cloudy with the wind blowing in from center.

Owens first strikeout with the curve. He is sitting 95 96 on the gun...and hit 100 once.

We know the gun here is bullshit, but he can bring it.

[Rasputin]

The opening of the PawSox game just gave me a woody.

Ciriaco starts by winning a ten pitch battle with Pettitte by doubling, followed by Iglesias bunting for a hit. That's nine hits, at least three of them bunts in five AAA games bunched around his bench warming in Boston.

Now ten hits and three walks in those five games bringing his OPS up to .623 on the season.

[SoxScout]

5 ip, 2 bb, 7 k
2 ip, 6 bb, 0 k
5 ip, 1 bb, 8 k

Britton;s last 3 starts

[JakeRae]

Now ten hits and three walks in those five games bringing his OPS up to .623 on the season.

Last hit was a line drive single. He also drew a walk earlier in the game. Both of those are good to see.

[Buzzkill Pauley]

5 ip, 2 bb, 7 k
2 ip, 6 bb, 0 k
5 ip, 1 bb, 8 k

Britton;s last 3 starts

Is he wearing Workman's pants again?

[Detts]

Offspead for the 2 k's inning 2.

[Detts]

Worked on his offspeed in the 3rd with swings and misses (one pitch clocked at 64). Tried to put guys away with fastball twice, but led to fly balls.

[Detts]

Control disappeared in the 4th. Survived on his offspeed and a DP.

IMHO his change and curve are why he is rocking it here as it is just too much for the Sally. His fastball dropped 5 mph after the first and was not fooling anyone.

[Detts]

Through 5!

Venicio flashed the leather/arm deep in the hole for the first 2 outs (after getting screwed on the call at 3rd stretching for a triple).

Owens still hit 93 when he threw heat.

[Detts]

Couple of final notes from a spectacular day in front of a sold out crowd of 5K+ (using Fenway math):

Cover boy of the Drive May magazine is Barnes...*sigh*

Boss is still fat. It was hilarious watching him have to go first to home in front of Ramos’ triple.

De La Cruz has a cannon.

And it was good to finally see Owens pitch.

[Cuzittt]

Pawsox win 7-5.

Boxscore

Doug Mathis went 5 innings, allowing 3 runs (1 earned) on 3 hits, 2 walks and a HBP; striking out 5. Justin Thomas went an inning, striking out one. Junichi Tazawa went 2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 4 hits and a walk; striking out 3. Garrett Mock pitched an inning, giving up a hit.

Pedro Ciriaco went 3/4 with a double and a SF. Lars Anderson went 3/5 with 2 doubles. Jose Iglesias went 2/3 with a walk and a sacrifice. Ryan Lavarnway went 2/5 with a double. Tony Thomas went 1/2 with a double and 2 walks. Che-Hsuan Lin went 1/3 with a walk. Josh Kroeger went 1/5 with a HR. Mauro Gomez went 0/4 with a walk. Alex Hassan went 0/4.

[Cuzittt]

Portland wins 3-1.

Boxscore

Billy Buckner went 6 innings, allowing a run on 5 hits, a HBP and a BALK; striking out 8. Aaron Kurcz went 2 innings, walking one and striking out 3. Charle Rosario pitched an inning, giving up 2 hits.

Juan Carlos Linares and Zach Gentile each went 1/3 with a double; Linares with a SF. Oscar Tejeda went 1/3 with a walk. Jeremy Hazelbaker, Matt Spring and Reynaldo Rodriguez each went 1/4; Hazelbaker with a double, Rodriguez with a HR. Ryan Dent went 0/3. Derrik Gibson and Ronald Bermudez each went 0/4.

[Cuzittt]

Salem loses 5-2.

Boxscore

Drake Britton went 5 innings, allowing 4 unearned runs on 3 hits and a walk; striking out 8. Manuel Rivera went 3 innings, allowing a run on a HR and a walk.

Travis Shaw went 2/5 with a triple. Xander Bogaerts, Carson Blair and Matty Johnson each went 1/3 with a walk; Johnson with a CS. Shannon Wilkerson went 1/4 with a walk and a SB. Michael Almanzar went 1/4. Sean Coyle went 1/5 with a SB. Brandon Jacobs and Drew Hedman each went 0/4.

[Cuzittt]

Drive win 11-3.

Boxscore

Henry Owens went 5 innings, giving up 2 hits and 4 walks; striking out 3. Tyler Wilson went 2 innings, allowing 2 runs on 2 hits (1 HR), a HBP and a walk; striking out 2. Matty Ott went 2 innings, allowing a run on 2 hits (1 HR) and 2 walks.

Cody Koback and Nick Natoli each went 2/4 with a walk; Natoli with a HR. Keury de la Cruz, Garin Cecchini, David Renfroe, Henry Ramos and Blake Swihart each went 2/5; de la Cruz with a double and HR, Ramos with a triple. Jose Vinicio went 1/4 with a double, walk and PO/CS. Boss Moanaroa went 0/1 with 4 walks.

[berezina]

I never believed in jinxes before, but that balk's on you, Cuzitt.

Pedro Ciriaco is Mr. BIP: 3Ks, 3BBs & 1HR for the season.

[Again2004]

Thanks detts. for your informative comments on Owens.

[Cuzittt]

STORIES

PAWSOX

Game Story

The Pawtucket Red Sox are back on the winning track. On Sunday afternoon in Rochester the PawSox downed the Scranton Wilkes-Barre Yankees and Andy Pettitte 7-5 in front of 13,584 fans at Frontier Field. The Sox have won three straight. They earned the victory against the winningest pitcher in MLB postseason history, Andy Pettitte. Pettitte, making a bid to return to the New York Yankees lasted 5 innings, surrendering 8 hits and 5 runs, walking 2 and striking out 5. The lefthander threw 95 pitches.

The PawSox jumped on Pettitte for two runs in the first as Ryan Lavarnway and Lars Anderson picked up an RBI each. In the second, Jose Iglesias drew a bases loaded walk to make it 3-0. In the fourth, Tony Thomas and Pedro Ciriaco added an RBI apiece. Josh Kroeger homered in the eighth and in the ninth Lars Anderson doubled home a run to cap the scoring.

Doug Mathis earned his first win in a PawSox uniform. Mathis (1-2) gave up 3 runs in 5 innings. Justin Thomas, Junichi Tazawa and Garrett Mock worked the final 4 innings. Mock earned his fourth save jn 5 attempts.

SEADOGS

Game Story

Buckner earned his first Eastern League victory Sunday, recording eight strikeouts in six innings to lead the Sea Dogs to a 3-1 win over the New Britain Rock Cats.
The Sea Dogs (9-21) have won two series this season, both in New Britain. They return home tonight for a three-game series against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
Buckner (1-2, 3.94), who struck out 11 in six innings April 24 against New Britain but didn't figure in the decision, yielded five hits and didn't walk a batter.
Buckner pitched in 36 major-league games with Arizona and Kansas City between 2007 and 2010. He had arm surgery in the offseason but bounced back well enough to sign with the Red Sox as a minor-league free agent March 2.
"He's got a real good mix," Portland Manager Kevin Boles said. "We signed him late and he's been a very pleasant surprise. He attacks the zone. He can finish hitters. He really knows how to pitch."
Aaron Kurcz struck out three and didn't allow a hit in the seventh and eighth. Charle Rosario gave up consecutive singles to start the ninth, but he induced a double-play ball from Deibinson Romero and got his first save when center fielder Ronald Bermudez snared a low liner for the final out.
"Kurcz had a quality fastball. It's crisp and comes out of his hand pretty good," Boles said.

SALEM

Game Story

The Dash took advantage of three Salem errors to score four unearned runs in the first two innings on their way to a 5-2 victory over the Red Sox on Sunday.
Salem starter Drake Britton was the hard-luck loser. He allowed three hits and a walk in five innings, striking out a season-high eight batters.
The Sox out-hit the Dash 8-4, but stranded 10 men on base. Travis Shaw went 2 for 5 with a triple.
Xander Bogaerts broke up a shutout by Winston-Salem starter Matt Heidenreich with a two-out RBI-single in the sixth inning.
Outfielder Matty Johnson was activated off the disabled list. He went 1 for 3.

DRIVE

Game Story

A patient approach at the plate helped the Greenville Drive produce 15 hits and coax seven walks to drill Rome 11-3 in front of 5,023 fans Sunday at Fluor Field.
The Drive have won back-to-back games for the first time since April 17-18 while the Braves lost for the seventh straight time.
“We had a good approach and were patient at the plate,” said Greenville manager Carlos Febles. “We got good pitches to hit. Getting ahead in the count makes you a better hitter. That’s exactly what we did today.”
Febles said he has seen the young Drive players get better at working the count. “Early in the season, we were swinging. Now, they’re working the counts and having the right mindset going to the plate.”
Greenville’s offense struck immediately with two runs in the bottom of the first. Keury De La Cruz followed Cody Koback’s leadoff single with a double. After an out, David Renfroe singled to score Koback. Boss Moanaroa then sent a check-swing grounder past the mound that enabled De La Cruz to score.
De La Cruz added to the Drive’s lead in the third with a solo homer just inside the foul pole in right.
An inning later, Jose Vinicio plated two more runs on a double to right center field. Vinicio tried for a triple but was thrown out at third base.

Stretching a Dollar

The career of a minor league baseball player as he makes his way up the chain in an attempt to one day play in the Major Leagues appears to be an exciting and adventurous journey.
But, after playing in front of several thousand fans in increasingly more modern stadiums, the minor league athletes have to find a way of making ends meet in the same fashion as those attending the games.
For those who don’t have a multi-million dollar signing bonus on which to lean, ways to make modest salaries last is imperative as the going rate in the South Atlantic League ranges anywhere from $900 to $1,400 per month.
“I remember when I was in college I slept on a mattress and box springs on the floor. In the living room we had bought an old couch from The Salvation Army,” said Drive General Manager Mike deMaine. “We had a few crates to put under the TV. That’s what I imagine these guys are going through.”
The Drive and the Boston Red Sox organization do what they can to help. That includes providing housing at a local apartment complex at a reduced rate. Since it is not mandatory, players are also free to make their own arrangements.
During the early years of the Drive, virtually all players stayed in what is termed ‘Team Sponsored Housing.’ .
One Drive performer taking advantage of that option is outfielder Lucas LeBlanc.
Married with two young children, LeBlanc was looking for an inexpensive place where the family could have privacy and still be near downtown.
“I was looking for a place and it was kind of one to find within my budget, some place close to the field,” said LeBlanc. “(Drive pitcher Justin Erasmus) gave me a call. (The place) was in a good location at a price I could afford. I think the kids are really going to enjoy both the place and where it's located.”