California League

Prospect Of The Day

Stockton (Athletics) lefthander Brett Anderson had his best outing of the season last night and its inevitable there are more to come. Anderson shut down VIsalia (Diamondbacks) throwing seven innings and allowing just two hits while striking out 10. He also hit one batter.

Anderson had one bad outing on April 15 when he gave up seven runs (six earned) on nine hits in 2 1/3 innings. The rest of his starts have all been six innings or more and he is now 5-1, 2.43 with 36 strikeouts in 33 innings.

[...] Continue Reading »

San Jose likes to run and some Carolina League pitchers should be getting frustrated with their offense.

California League

Prospect Of The Day

Third baseman Josh Bell went 2-for-5 with a double and home run in Inland Empire’s (Dodgers) 8-7 loss to Lake Elsinore (Padres). The 66ers scored all seven runs in the final two innings. Bell’s home run was of the three-run variety and it came with two outs in the bottom of the ninth, leaving the rally just short.

The double was Bell’s sixth and he now has four home runs on the season.

Prospect Nuggets

San Jose (Giants) really manufactured their runs by stealing nine bases in an 11-8 win over High Desert (Mariners). Right fielder Tyler Graham led the team with four of his own, giving him 14 in his last six games…Righthander Wes Roemer was hit hard in his outing that lasted just 4 2/3. He gave up five runs on eight hits while walking four and striking out eight, but was spared the loss…Shortstop Josh Horton showed great plate discipline, drawing three walks, but Visalia (Diamondbacks) staged a rally in the ninth to beat Stockton (Athletics).

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Potomac walked to a unique victory against Winston-Salem and Rangers prospect John Whittleman had a solid night.

California League

Prospect Of The Day

Bakersfield (Rangers) third baseman John Whittleman takes the cake today after going 3-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs in a 3-1 win over Modesto (Rockies).

Whittleman has been known for racking up some outrageous strikeout totals, but he has now played three straight games without a single whiff and raised his season line to .261/.363/.455.

Prospect Nuggets

Stockton (Athletics) right fielder Matt Sulentic went 3-for-4 with his second triple and an RBI…Visalia (Diamondbacks) righthander Barry Enright was knocked around again throwing 5 2/3 and giving up seven runs on 11 hits but avoided the loss. He is now 1-2, 8.04 in 28 innings…San Jose (Giants) DH Andy D’Alessio hit his third home run of the season, a two-run shot in the first, but High Desert (Mavericks) staged a rally and won 8-5…Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) righthander Sean O’Sullivan followed a tough act with four solid innings and a win. John Lackey made a rehab start and pitched the first three before O’Sullivan came in. O’Sullivan allowed two runs on four hits.

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A couple of top prospects had milestone nights in Monday’s low Class A action.

South Atlantic League

Prospect Of The Day

With only two games to choose from in the SAL last night, the award goes to Asheville (Rockies) shortstop Helder Velazquez. The 19-year-old Puerto Rican native is known more for his glove than his bat, and he’s still hitting only .211/.260/.367 on the season, but he had a strong night at the dish. He went 3-for-5 with five RBIs as Asheville beat Augusta (Giants) 6-3. His highlight of the night came in the top of the seventh when he hit a grand slam off Augusta’s Daniel Turpen, breaking a 2-2 tie.

Prospect Nuggets

Augusta second baseman Nick Noonan went 0-for-2 with two walks, breaking his seven-game hitting-streak … Greenville (Red Sox) right fielder Ryan Kalish went 0-for-4 against Hickory (Pirates), and is now 3-for-17 since arriving in Greenville from extended spring training … Hickory catcher Ronald Pena went 2-for-4 with a triple, a home run, and three RBIs … Greenville first baseman Michael Jones went 3-for-4 with three doubles and two RBIs, and is currently working on a 19-game hitting-streak.

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Home runs were the highlight of last night’s action as two prospects had two-homer games.

California League

Prospect Of The Day

We’ve been patiently waiting for results out of Lancaster (Red Sox) first baseman Lars Anderson now that he’s in the California League. His first 22 games were a lot quieter than most would expect, but last night he broke out big.

Anderson’s average jumped 33 points last night to .300 after going 4-for-4. His on-base percentage went up 24 points, while his two home runs and a double spiked his slugging percentage by 102 points. He now sits at .300/.400/.544 in 90 at-bats with five home runs.

Prospect Nuggets

Bakersfield (Rangers) third baseman John Whittleman was 2-for-3 with his third home run of the season while his teammate, outfielder Julio Borbon, went 4-for-6 with three runs scored and a stolen base … Bakersfield lefthander Kasey Kiker made his second start, throwing seven innings and allowing three runs on five hits. He struck out four and walked two in the victory.

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BA’s Red Sox correspondent Alex Speier reports that lefthander Nick Hagadone is scheduled to visit famed orthopedic surgeon Dr. James Andrews in Birmingham on Monday to determine if he will need  Tommy John surgery, Sox farm director Mike Hazen confirmed. 

Hagadone, the Sox’ supplemental first-round pick last June, left his April 16 start with low Class A Greenville after two innings with elbow pain; a Greenville official said Hagadone was holding his elbow in discomfort as he left the field.

The 22-year-old Hagadone, who spent his college career at Washington, had yet to give up an earned run in three starts in his first full professional season. He had struck out 12 and walked six in 10 innings of work. He went 0-1, 1.85 last season with short-season Lowell (New York-Penn League), striking out 33 and walking eight in 24 innings.

Chris Valaika stayed hot, Barry Enright got his first victory, and Tommy Hanson hasn’t gotten any easier to hit.

California League

Bakersfield (Rangers) 6, Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) 4

Third baseman Johnny Whittleman was 2-for-3 with a home run while shortstop Marcus Lemon hit a bases loaded triple in Bakersfield’s five-run seventh inning.

John Lackey made a rehab start for the Quakes and Sean O’Sullivan took over after two innings, only to be tagged with the loss. He gave up five runs in 4 1/3 innings on four hits and two walks. He struck out three.

Visalia (Diamondbacks) 6, Inland Empire (Dodgers) 4

Righthander Barry Enright finally got his first win of 2008, allowing just two runs on eight hits over five innings. He struck out six and walked one. Outfielder Steve Mena led Visalia with three RBIs.

[...] Continue Reading »

Gorkys Hernandez left with a hamstring injyury, Kasey Kiker made is 2008 debut and a couple of minor leaguers can now brag about facing Scott Kazmir.

CALIFORNIA LEAGUE

Lake Elsinore (Padres) 6, High Desert (Mariners) 1

Catcher Mitch Canham was 2-for-4 with a triple and RBI and the Storm put all six of their runs on the board before the third inning ended. First baseman Mike Baxter had a double, triple, two runs and two RBIs in his 2-for-3 performance.

Bakersfield (Rangers) 6, Rancho Cucamonga (Angels) 5

The Blaze broke a 5-5 tie in the top of the ninth with two outs thanks to an RBI single from DH Chad Tracy.

Outfielder Julio Borbon collected two hits, one double, a run and RBI on the night. Lefthander Kasey Kiker made his season debut, throwing five innings and allowing five runs on 10 hits. He struck out two and picked up a no decision.

Visalia (Diamondbacks) 10, Inland Empire (Dodgers) 5

The Oaks jumped out in front early, scoring six in the first inning and four in the second, then shut down the 66ers for the rest of the game.

Third baseman Ricardo Sosa had another big game, going 3-for-3 with a double, two runs and two RBIs.

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Righthanders Trevor Cahill and Tim Alderson squared off for the first time, but it wasn’t quite what would be expected, while third baseman Billy Rowell returned to the lineup in a doubleheader sweep by Frederick.

CALIFORNIA LEAGUE

Visalia (Diamondbacks) 10, Inland Empire (Dodgers) 7

Third baseman Josh Bell hit his third home run of the season for the 66ers, but Visalia spread eight runs across the sixth, seventh and eighth innings on the way to the comeback win.

Oaks third baseman Ricardo Sosa was 5-for-5 with two home runs, a double and seven RBIs.

Modesto (Rockies) 4, Lancaster (Red Sox) 1

Outfielder Jason Place led off the game with a home run, but the JetHawks couldn’t push any more runs across.

Third baseman Matt Repec drove in two for the Nuts.

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You may have never heard of Quinn Stewart, and if you have, you probably didn’t expect him to have a day like he did on Sunday.

California League

San Jose (Giants) 6, Visalia (Diamondbacks) 1

Lefthander Ben Snyder has carried his 2007 success over to 2008 so far, getting his second victory after throwing six innings and only only one run on three hits. Gerardo Parra’s home run off of Snyder was the only extra-base-hit he allowed. It was Parra’s second of the season.

Inland Empire (Dodgers) 6, High Desert (Mariners) 0

Lefthander James Adkins stymied the Mavericks for six innings, allowing just three hits and one walk, while striking out 11. Third baseman Josh Bell was 2-for-3 with a double, RBI and run scored.

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Brett Anderson was uncharacteristically roughed up, Aaron Poreda pitched well and Matt Wieters was at it again in high Class A action.

California League

San Jose (Giants) 12, Stockton (A’s) 2

Lefthander Brett Anderson had his first rough outing of 2008, giving up seven runs (six earned) on nine hits in 2 1/3 innings. The Ports offense was fairly quiet also as Sean Doolittle collected the only extra base hit in his 1-for-4 performance.

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CALIFORNIA LEAGUE

Modesto (Rockies) 9, Lancaster (Red Sox) 5

First baseman Lars Anderson hit his third home run of the year, but the JetHawks couldn’t keep up with Modesto catcher Michael McKenry. He went 4-for-5 with two doubles, a home run and six RBIs.  McKenry picked up his first double and two RBIs in the first inning, putting the Nuts in front early, 2-0. He picked up another two-run double in the second inning to make it 5-0. His home run came in the fourth with one man on, making the score 8-2.

San Jose (Giants) 4, Stockton (A’s) 2

The Giants’ starting pitchers remained perfect on the season after righthander Kevin Pucetas outpitched Henry Rodriguez. Rodriguez went six innings, giving up three runs on four hits, but couldn’t get enough help from his offense to get the win. He also struck out seven and walked none. The Ports offense was held to two runs on five hits, all singles. Pucetas also went six innings and gave up just two runs on four hits while striking out four.

High Desert (Mariners) 7, Lake Elsinore (Padres) 2

Third baseman Matt Mangini went 2-for-4 with two doubles and two RBIs to help the Mavericks win. High Desert now sits alone atop the Southern Division standings.

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As we did last year, we’ll look around the minors every weekday with the Daily Dish, a supplement to the Baseball America Prospect Report, which is available by e-mail every weekday.

Christian Lara found himself on both the winning and losing team of Lancaster’s 6-3 win; Rick Porcello made his second start of the season and Eric Hacker was perfect for Tampa. 

CALIFORNIA LEAGUE

• Lancaster (Red Sox) 6, Inland Empire (Dodgers) 3, 18 Innings, Suspended game resumed

The 18 innings of baseball isn’t even the best part of this story. This game originally started on Monday. It was suspended after the 15th because of time regulations and resumed yesterday. Lancaster strung together some hits in the 18th and closed the door in the bottom half for the win, but shortstop Christian Lara was really the center of the story.

Now, try to follow this: Lara started on the bench for Lancaster on Monday. The game was suspended and afterwards, Lara was notified that he had been traded to the Dodgers for Eric Hull. Lara had been assigned to Inland Empire. So that means, when the game resumes, he’d be on the opposite bench. But, his belongings were still in Lancaster so he rode the bus back with them to gather them. However, now that he was Dodgers property, he couldn’t return to Inland Empire on the Lancaster bus for liability reasons. So the 66ers sent a clubbie to pick Lara up and bring him back to San Bernardino to meet his new team. Lara spent the final three innings on the 66ers bench, but he didn’t get into the game.

"There wasn’t anything like that," Lara said. "We just played for fun and didn’t worry about who was on the team. I never have been through this, but it’s exciting."

Lara said it was a weird situation, but he’s looking forward to playing for the Dodgers system.

"I feel great," Lara said. "I feel good with this team. I feel I have an opportunity to go to the majors."

Reid Engel went 5-for-8 for Lancaster.

• Inland Empire (Dodgers) 3, Lancaster (Red Sox) 1, Game 2

First baseman Lars Anderson hit his first home run of 2008, but the 66ers scored two runs in the fifth and held on for the win.

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Carolina League action started last night and it was nothing short of spectacular. Catcher Matt Wieters gave a performance that made Orioles fans drool while Braves righthander Tommy Hanson was locked in for Myrtle Beach.

Wieters, the fifth overall pick in 2007, smashed two home runs in a 7-3 win over Lynchburg. Frederick’s home stadium has a 28-foot wall that is behind a shorter, outfield wall. Hitting the 28-footer is a home run, but Wieters’ second home run cleared both walls in left field. Meanwhile, righthander Jake Arrieta, pitching in his first minor league game since signing with the Orioles last season as a fifth-rounder, threw four innings, striking out nine and allowing just one run on two hits.

Frederick is primed to compete in the Carolina League this year with several of the Orioles’ top prospects on the team. One of those prospects, third baseman Billy Rowell, pulled up lame running to first base in last night’s game, but nothing has been released yet on the extent of the injury.

Meanwhile in Myrtle Beach, Hanson had a stellar line against Wilmington (Royals). He threw five innings, put up zeros in the hits and runs columns, while striking out 13 and walking just one. That’s right, he recorded 15 outs, 13 of which were via the strikeout. Needless to say, the Pelicans won 2-0 on two bases loaded walks in the 13th inning. Overshadowed in it all was Royals righthander Blake Wood, who allowed just one hit 5 1/3 scoreless innings with nine strikeouts and no walks.

With last night’s Florida State League lineup snafu in the past, righthander Mark Melancon threw Friday night for the Tampa Yankees, his first minor league game since 2006 after he missed all of last season following Tommy John surgery. Melancon went 1 2/3 innings with one strikeout and no walks or hits.

Rick Porcello didn’t take long to show opposing hitters he means business. In his pro debut, in high Class A at the age of 19, Porcello threw five innings, giving up just one hit and striking out three against the Tampa Yankees. Meanwhile, Twins lefthander Francisco Liriano was making a rehab start with the Fort Meyers Miracle and there was already ninth-inning drama in a High Desert-Lancaster matchup. [...] Continue Reading »

As we did last year, we’ll look around the minors every weekday with BAPR Plus, a supplement to the Baseball America Prospect Report, which is available by e-mail every weekday.

Dellin Betances outdueled Jeff Locke, Mike Moustakas made his full-season debut and South Bend had the ultimate downer–the Silverhawks found themself down by 10 runs before it even got to bat

Jeremy Hefner, a 10th-rounder out of Oral Roberts last year, allowed only three hits and no runs in five innings as Fort Wayne (Padres) throttled Lansing 7-1. The Wizards have gone to a tandem starter system this year, so Hefner’s ability to get to five innings was an impressive exercise in pitch efficiency. Allen Harrington followed up by allowing only one run in four innings.

The South Bend fans didn’t have long to cheer during the Silverhawks’ (Diamondbacks) season opener. West Michigan (Tigers) scored 10 runs in the first inning on the way to a 15-2 win. South Bend starter Jordan Noberto was only charged with three earned runs, as an error led to seven unearned runs. [...] Continue Reading »

And now it’s over. The Northwest and New York-Penn Leagues will continue for a couple of more days, but for all of the full season leagues Monday was the final day of the regular season. It was the last day for some players to cap off strong seasons, and one last chance for others to improve stats of seasons they’d like to forget.

Triple-A

The Cardinals would be fair in asking where has this Chris Lambert been. In his first start with Toledo after being traded from the Cardinals, Lambert allowed one hit while striking out 10 in six shutout innings. The Cardinals’ 2004 first-rounder had a 7.49 ERA with Memphis before the trade.

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We have our first champion of 2007 thanks to Jacob Wild’s dominating 14-strikeout performance for the Arizona League Mariners. The GCL Dodgers ensured that the Gulf Coast League title won’t be decided until today, and Nick Adenhart got a little testy.

Triple-A

After hitting seven home runs in the first four months of the season, Jason Pridie hit his seventh home run this month to beat Richmond and help take Durham a step closer to a playoff spot. The Bulls now lead Richmond for the Southern Division crown by two games with four games to go. [...] Continue Reading »

Brandon Waring is going to hate to see the season end as it will halt an impressive home run binge. Jeff Samardzija is still glad to be out of the Florida State League and the Gulf Coast League Yankees are one win away from winning their league title.

Triple-A

Luke Hochevar put together one of his best starts since being promoted to Triple-A, little did he know that his Omaha Royals still have seven innings to play when he left the game after eight innings. Omaha’s Mike Aviles‘ hit his 16th home run in the 15th inning to break the deadlock.

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One of the key planks in Royals general manager Dayton Moore’s plan to rebuild the hapless franchise is rebuilding the team’s pitching depth. While top prospects like Luke Hochevar and Tyler Lumsden have struggled, the Royals are getting outstanding seasons from a couple of lesser known lower-level prospects. On Tuesday Daniel Cortes and Matt Mitchell dominated once again.

Triple-A

In his second start since being promoted to Triple-A, Louisville lefthander Matt Maloney struck out 10 batters in five innings to pick up his first Triple-A win. He did give up four runs thanks in part to three walks. Maloney’s season got a kick start from his trade to the Reds from the Phillies in the Kyle Lohse deal. After striking out 8.2 batters per nine innings before the trade, he’s fanning 13.1 batters per nine since. [...] Continue Reading »