A trio of minor league all-star games took center stage Tuesday night. BA's J.J. Cooper was in attendance at the California-Carolina League all-star game in Myrtle Beach, S.C. You can find all the details from there in his post here. The other two all-star contests were held by the low Class A leagues, the Midwest and South Atlantic.

Midwest League All-Star Game
Fort Wayne, Ind.

Eastern Division 6, Western Division 2

The East opened up a 5-0 lead through two innings and cruised from there. West starter Trey McNutt (Cubs) can still say that, officially, he hasn't given up a home run all season. But MWL home run leader Jerry Sands (Dodgers) took him deep in the first inning of the all-star game, clubbing a two-run shot that capped off the East's three-run first inning. That outburst represented more runs than McNutt had allowed in all but two of his 13 starts for Peoria.

“I had faced (McNutt) a few weeks ago and he had a pretty good slider,” Sands told the Fort Wayne Journal Gazette. “I didn’t want to see it, so I was looking for a fastball early, and I got it. And luckily I put a good swing on it. I hit that one a little better than I did some (in Monday's home run derby).”

After jumping on MWL ERA leader McNutt, the East added two more runs against Athletics lefty Ian Krol, the teenager who ranks third with a 1.86 ERA for Kane County. The game featured plenty of prospects, as West shortstops Hak-Ju Lee (Cubs) and Nick Franklin (Mariners) each went 1-for-2, while West catchers Wil Myers (Royals) went 0-for-1 with a walk and Max Stassi (A's) went 1-for-2.

Tigers righthander Jacob Turner threw a scoreless third inning for the East, giving up a one-out double to the Twins' Aaron Hicks but retiring the other three men he faced.

"I felt all right. It was one inning," Turner told the Grand Rapids Press. "Nothing spectacular and it wasn't terrible. I just went out there and did my thing. That's what you have to try and do."

Angels center fielder Mike Trout actually had a rare off night, going 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. How rare a night was that for Trout? In 66 regular season games for Cedar Rapids, Trout has gone hitless and had multiple strikeouts in the same game just three times. At least the news wasn't all bad for him on Tuesday.

South Atlantic League All-Star Game
Greenville, S.C.

Northern Division 5, Southern Division 5 (10 innings)

No word on whether there's any footage of an anguished Eric Krupa, Sally League commissioner, in the stands last night, a la Bud Selig in Milwaukee in 2002. But this all-star game did indeed end in a tie. Asheville's Eliezer Mesa (Rockies) was named the game's MVP after going 3-for-5 with a double, two RBIs and a steal.

“I just came into the game with the same approach I have had all year,” Mesa told the Greenville News. “I did not want to change it just because it was the all-star game. I was just thinking about hitting the ball middle-away and reacting.”

Among the prospects in attendance, Greensboro catcher Kyle Skipworth (Marlins) homered in the first inning for the North off South starter Chris Masters (Braves) and went on to finish 1-for-3. Shortstop Wilmer Flores (Mets) went just 1-for-5 for the South but made his hit count, driving in two runs with a second-inning double. The Rangers duo of lefties, Robbie Erlin and Robbie Ross, both threw scoreless innings for the North. Ross was the North's starter and struck out the side in the first inning, though he allowed two hits in the process as well.

Augusta third baseman Chris Dominguez (Giants) won the pregame home run derby, though he then went 0-for-3 in the game itself.

Meanwhile, In Games That Count . . .

Domonic Brown found out he'll be heading to the Futures Game yesterday afternoon, then went out and blasted two home runs for Double-A Reading. The Phillies outfielder went 3-for-4 on the night, raising his line to .325/.395/.614 and giving him 15 homers for the year, good for third in the Eastern League.

"I feel pretty locked in in the box," Brown told the Reading Eagle. "I'm just trying to keep it going. I don't know if it's the best feeling I've had, but it feels pretty good.

"I don't know what I'm doing right now, and I really don't care. I'm just trying to stay locked in."

Brown has certainly been locked in lately, as he's riding an 11-game hitting streak and is batting .368/.417/.671 in 76 June at-bats. As the season reaches its midpoint, his days in Reading figure to be numbered.