May 2 Minor League Report

It was a busy day in Blue Jay-land. I was down at the dome

trying to stay awake

watching the Jays lose 3-1 to the Red Sox in a walkathon, but was able to keep some tabs on some great stuff happening in the minors through Twitter.

Buffalo Bisons (17-8)

Second baseman Jim Negrych provided the Bisons’ offense but the solo home run wasn’t enough as the Buffalonians fell 4-1 to the Louisville Bats. Claudio Vargas had a decent start and Mickey Storey was excellent in relief but tonight, it was the offense that didn’t get the job done. Youngsters Anthony Gose and Ryan Goins had two hits apiece in the loss.

Hitting:

Jim Negrych – 1/3, R, HR, RBI, BB
Anthony Gose – 2/4, K
Moises Sierra – 0/4
Luis Jimenez – 1/4
Mauro Gomez – 0/4
Josh Thole – 0/4, K
Eugenio Velez – 0/2, BB, K
Ryan Goins – 2/3, K

Pitching:

Claudio Vargas – L, 6 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 6 K
Mickey Storey – 3 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 6 K

August 19, 2012; Houston, TX, USA; Houston Astros pitcher Mickey Storey (65) pitches in the fifth inning against the Arizona Diamondbacks at Minute Maid Park. Mandatory Credit: Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

Jay Blue’s Player of the Game: Mickey Storey

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (12-16)

In a morning pitcher’s duel, the New Hampshire Fisher Cats lost to the Trenton Thunder 2-1. Starter Deck McGuire had a very good start, but gave up both runs to the Thunder on only four hits and one walk in his six strong innings. The offense didn’t do much of anything, only managing two hits against fourteenth ranked Yankees prospect Nik Turley. Kevin Pillar hit a leadoff triple to start the game and John Tolisano knocked him in with a single to represent the the Fisher Cats’ only hits in the entire contest.

Hitting:

Kevin Pillar – 1/4, R, 3B, K
John Tolisano – 1/4, RBI, 2 K
Ryan Schimpf – 0/3, BB, K
Brad Glenn – 0/4, 3 K
Ricardo Nanita – 0/4, K
Brian Van Kirk – 0/3, BB, K, SB
Kevin Ahrens – 0/2, BB
Jack Murphy – 0/2, BB
Amadeo Zazueta – 0/3, 2 K

Pitching:

Deck McGuire – L, 6 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 6 K
Tommy Hottovy – 2 IP, 2 H, 1 BB, 2 K

Jay Blue’s Player of the Game: Deck McGuire

Dunedin Blue Jays (16-10)

The Dunedin Blue Jays had a resounding win against the Brevard County Manatees 8-2 on Thursday night, with K.C. Hobson bringing his bat out to the park. Starter Aaron Sanchez ran into his pitch count in three and two-thirds innings, but allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits and a walk while striking out six. Ajay Meyer, Jeremy Jeffress and Scott Gracey came on to provide five and a third innings of shutout relief, striking out six batters between them. Offensively, Hobson led the eleven-hit barrage, going two for four with two home runs and three RBI. Center fielder Nick Baligod also had an excellent night, going three for three with two doubles and two runs scored and Jon Berti had a three for four night with three RBI and three stolen bases.

In other news, the organization’s top catching prospect, A.J. Jimenez returned to action, coming back from his Tommy John surgery last year and went one for four with a double and threw out a runner stealing.

Hitting:

Jon Berti –3/4, R, 2B, 3 RBI, 3 SB
Peter Mooney – 0/3, RBI, E
Andy Burns – 0/4, 2 K
A.J. Jimenez – 1/4, R, 2B, K
K.C. Hobson – 2/4, 2 R, 2 HR, 3 RBI
Matt Newman – 1/4, SB
Marcus Knecht – 0/2, R, 2 BB, K
Kevin Patterson – 1/4, R, 2B, 2 K
Nick Baligod – 3/3, 2 R, 2 2B

Pitching:

Aaron Sanchez – 3 2/3 IP, 2 H, 2 R (1 ER), 1 BB, 6 K
Ajay Meyer – W, 2 1/3 IP, 1 H, 2 K
Jeremy Jeffress – 2 IP, 2 K
Scott Gracey – 1 IP, 1 H, 2 K

Jay Blue’s Player of the Game: K.C. Hobson

Lansing Lugnuts (8-15)

Game 1

The Lansing Lugnuts got some very encouraging performances in Game 1 of their double header with the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers in their 5-3 win. Daniel Norris had what could be considered his first strong start in a long time with a five inning, three run outing.  While he only struck out two batters, he limited damage with five hits, a walk and a hit batter. Wil Browning wove two innings of his own brand of magic in yet another stellar appearance. Providing the offensive spark, Dwight Smith Jr. hit his first home run as a Lugnut while Kellen Sweeney went deep for his second of the year.

Hitting:

Dwight Smith, Jr. – 1/2, R, HR, RBI, 2 BB, SB
Jorge Flores – 1/3, R, 2B, BB, E
Dalton Pompey  – 1/4, RBI, 2 K, PO
Christian Lopes – 1/3, 2B, BB, K
Chris Hawkins – 1/3, R, BB, SB
Carlos Ramirez – 0/3, K
Shane Opitz – 1/2, 3B, RBI, BB
Aaron Munoz – 0/2, BB, K
Kellen Sweeney – 1/2, R, HR, RBI, BB

Pitching:

Daniel Norris – 5 IP, 5 H, 3 R (2 ER), 1 BB, 2 K
Wil Browning – W, 2 IP, 1 H, 3 K

Jay Blue’s Player of the Game: Dwight Smith, Jr.

Game 2

Game 2’s result wasn’t nearly as positive as the Lugnuts lost 9-3 to the Timber Rattlers. The Rattlers turned on the juice against spot-starter Ben White who gave up five runs while normally solid Arik Sikula gave up two more. Dalton Pompey and Christian Lopes had two hits each and together accounted for three RBI.

Hitting:

Dwight Smith, Jr. – 1/4, K
Dalton Pompey – 2/4, R, RBI, 2 K, SB
Christian Lopes – 2/3, 2 RBI, 2 K, E
Chris Hawkins – 0/3
Carlos Ramirez – 0/3, 2 K
Shane Opitz – 1/3
Gustavo Pierre – 0/3, K, E
Seth Conner – 1/3, K
Kellen Sweeney – 0/3, K

Pitching:

Ben White – L, 2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 3 BB, 3 K
Arik Sikula – 2 1/3 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 3 BB, K, HR
Ian Kadish – 1 2/3 IP, 1 H, 2 R (0 ER), BB, K
Chuck Ghysels – 1 IP, K

Jay Blue’s Player of the Game: Christian Lopes

If you like what you’ve seen by Jay Blue, read his work and listen to his podcast on Blue Jays from Away and follow him on Twitter: @Jaysfromaway.