Minor League Recap 6/19 and GCL preview

Written by Greg Fertel | 19 June 2008

Scranton falls to Toledo, 4-3

Alan Horne got the start, and didn't have his best performance. In 6 innings, Horne gave up 4 runs (3 earned) on 4 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 4. Horne cruised through the first 4 innings, then struggled with his control in the 5th inning, in which he allowed all 4 runs, 3 of the 4 hits (one to former Yankee prospect Erick Almonte), 2 of the 3 walks (one to Jackson Melian, another former prospect), and 1 HBP.
Dave Robertson walked 2 and allowed 1 hit in 2 scoreless innings.
Brett Gardner was 0 for 5, dropping his average to .282. He is in a bit of a slump, hitting only .195 in his last 10 games.
Shelley Duncan was 1 for 4 with a homer.
Juan Miranda was 2 for 4.
Cody Random was 1 for 4 with 3 strikeouts.
Eric Duncan was 0 for 4.
Nick Green was 2 for 3 with a home run.
Chris Stewart was 2 for 4.

Trenton defeated by Harrisburg, 7-3

Phil Coke got the start, and wasn't great. In 6 innings, the lefty allowed 5 runs (4 earned) on 5 hits (2 of which left the yard) and 2 walks. He also struck out 5. On the season, he has a still impressive 3.27 ERA.
Mark Melancon also struggled, giving up 2 runs on 2 hits (1 homer) and 1 walk in 2 innings of relief. He also had 2 strikeouts.
Ramiro Pena was 1 for 5 with a double.
Austin Jackson was 0 for 3, but he did draw 2 walks and steal a base (his 11th).
Cody Ehlers was 1 for 4.
Jose Tabata was 0 for 4 to drop his average to .237.
PJ Pilittere had 3 of the Thunder's 5 hits, one of which was a double.

Tampa loses to Lakeland (and Rick Porcello), 6-3

Grant Duff was the starter, and he allowed 5 runs on 8 hits and 2 walks in 6 1/3 innings, with 5 strikeouts.
Eduardo Nunez was 1 for 5 wiht a double.
Seth Cooper was 2 for 3.
Mitch Hilligoss, Andres Perez, Kevin Smith and CJ Henry were each 1 for 4. Henry and Perez each struck out twice.
Seth Fortenberry and Francisco Cervelli were both 1 for 3. Cervelli struggled a bit defensively, allowing 2 passed balls. He did, however, throw out the only runner who attempted to steal off him.

Charleston conquered by Columbus, 5-3

Jairo Heredia was the starter, and got roughed up (by his standards). In 5 innings, the 18 year-old gave up 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 4. His ERA on the season is 2.98, a very solid mark for a teenager.
Jesse Hoover struck out 2 in 2 innings of 2-hit relief.
Austin Krum was 1 for 5.
Brad Suttle was 2 for 3 with a double and a walk to bring his average to .255.
Brandon Laird was 1 for 4.
Austin Romine, hitting cleanup tonight, was 0 for 4 to lower his average to .295. He also caught, and threw out 1 of 2 attempted basestealers.
Dave Williams was 2 for 4 with a solo homerun.
Carmen Angelini was 1 for 3 with a walk to raise his average to .251.
Taylor Holiday was 1 for 4 with a double.
Jesus Montero, who had the night off, fouled out to the catcher pinch-hitting for Walter Ibarra. The Riverdogs were probably resting him after participating in the All-Star Game and coming 2nd in the Homerun Derby.

Staten Island saves the farm from a winless day, defeating the archrival Brooklyn Cyclones 7-2

Brandon Braboy, and 18th-round pick from this year's draft, was the starter. He was very effective in 4 innings of work, allowing just 1 run on 3 hits and 1 walk, while striking out 2.
Josue Selenes struck out 2 in 2 perfect innings to earn the win.
Switch-pitcher Pat Venditte made his minor league debut, striking out 1 and allowing 1 hit in 1 inning of scoreless relief. The batter that Venditte struck out was a switch-hitter, which made for some entertaining confusion as the umpires tried to sort out which way they were batting and throwing, as both Venditte and the batter kept switching sides.
Raymond Kruml was 1 for 3 with a steal, but was also caught stealing.
Mike Lyon was 3 for 5.
Daniel Brewer was 1 for 3 with a walk and a steal.
Taylor Grote, DH'ing tonight, was 1 for 4.
Mitch Abeita, 19th-round pick out of Nebraska, was behind the plate, and went 3 for 3 with a double. He also threw out the only runner who tried to steal.
Addison Maruszak was 2 for 4 with a double and a throwing error.

The GCL Yankees' opener was rained out, so we'll have to wait until tomorrow to see how they are doing. Their roster can be found here. Kelvin DeLeon does not appear on this list, so either the BA report was wrong about him being promoted to the GCL, or else they want him to get some more at bats in the DSL, and he will move up soon. In addition to the players I mentioned in the last post (Vizcaino, Joseph, Smith, Urena), there are several other players worth following. 5'10" Lefty Manuel Banuelos, signed for 6 figures out of Mexico around the same time as Aceves, is the youngest player on the team (born in 1991, making me feel really old), and he is supposed to have a great curveball to go along with a developing fastball. Shortstop Jose Pirela (who might play 2nd), 3B Jimmy Paredes, and catcher Francisco Arcia were all big signings in 2006, and should be intriguing to follow. Chase Weems, who originally was thought to be in Staten Island, will be sharing the catching duties with Arcia. This should be a really exciting team to follow. As always, there are plenty of talented teenagers, including 17 year-olds Banuelos and Vizcaino, and 18 year-olds Pirela, Smith, Urena, and Arcia. The pitching should be solid, with Manny Barreda (going to get some innings before moving up to Staten Island), Dickson Marquez, and Francisco Castillo joining Vizcaino and Banuelos. There are also plenty of exciting position players that should make the lineup a force. The speedy Pirela will probably hit at the top of the lineup, with guys like Smith, Joseph, Urena, Josue Calzado (shouldn't be there long, but should tear things up), and Zoilo Almonte (repeating the league, could see SI if he hits well). In other news, Jeremy Bleich's start against Georgia, which was scheduled for Friday, will be pushed back to Saturday because the LSU-UNC game was postponed due to rain.