The Buffalo Bisons have been below .500 for the past two seasons, and attendance has dropped as the Mets failed to stock the roster with a strong prospect influence. It’s primarily for that reason that the Bisons ownership is rumored to be interested in the Blue Jays, who had a sharp contrast in Triple-A talent last season. In going 79-64, the 51s had contributions from prospects Travis d’Arnaud, Anthony Gose, Adeiny Hechavarria, Moises Sierra, and David Cooper, while also fielding major league players like Travis Snider, Eric Thames, Adam Lind, and Brett Cecil for extended periods of time. Things will only get better moving forward, as not only will some of those prospects return to Triple-A in 2013, but there is some elite talent in the middle and lower levels of the system that should arrive in the next two years.

The reason why Buffalo should be attracted to Toronto is blatantly obvious; they’ll provide talent that will put fans in the seats and revenue in the owner’s pockets. The opposite is just as true; there are plenty of reasons why Buffalo should be considered a desirable affiliate location for Toronto.

Buffalo Bisons Logo – Bison charging through Buffalo skyline with script over a baseball (SportsLogos.Net)

First and foremost is logistics. A direct flight from Las Vegas to Toronto is around five hours, as the two cities are approximately 3600 kilometers apart. Buffalo, on the other hand, is so close a plane isn’t even necessary; the distance can be driven in less than two hours. As players like Mike McCoy and Yan Gomes would surely attest, that’s a significant benefit to team and players alike. It would be a favorable move for prospect folk as well, as you can make a scouting trip out of a weekend with Buffalo; with Las Vegas, not so much.

The second is analysis. While the Blue Jays have claimed they have ways of dealing with the “Vegas effect” when evaluating players – and I’m sure they have something – I don’t think anyone would argue having a more neutral environment with which to work would be preferable. The average hitter in the Pacific Coast League hit .278/.345/.430, while the average pitcher had a 4.69 ERA and 1.46 WHIP. On the other hand, in the International League, the averages were .257/.328/.389, 3.92 ERA, and 1.36 WHIP. The latter numbers are much more in line with both Double-A and Major League Baseball, which makes statistical projection from level-to-level more viable and reliable.

The third reason is about building a brand. The Blue Jays have done an excellent job of increasing their footprint in Canada over the past couple of years, particularly with the addition of a minor league club in Vancouver and their Winter Tour. Whether they’ll admit it or not, they attempted to take it a step further by moving a Double-A team to Ottawa, but plans fell through and they chose to extend their contract in New Hampshire instead. A Triple-A club in Buffalo would be huge for winning over fans in the United States, as Buffalo is significantly closer to Toronto than it is to New York City. For a team that often appears to care as much about the bottom line as it does on-field performance – though the merits of that could and have been debated – a Triple-A location that could pull fans from south of the border through the Rogers Centre turnstiles would have to be considered a bonus.

Agreements with minor league affiliates run for either two or four years, and while two years is usually considered normal – particularly at the beginning of a new partnership – Shi Davidi of Sportsnet.ca wrote in an article early this afternoon that both sides would be interested in a four year pact. That would be ideal, as in addition to the reasons I listed above, it would provide some much needed stability for a Blue Jays team that had struggled to find a Triple-A team that they wanted and that wanted them. The last few years in Syracuse were like an ugly divorce; Las Vegas gave us what we needed as a nice rebound, but we have an opportunity for something very real and very special down in Buffalo. I’m ready for a long term commitment if they are.

Anthony Gose is set to make his major league debut with the Blue Jays this week. (Original photo)

After a rough start to his inaugural Triple-A campaign in which he hit .216 with a .583 OPS in April, Gose has turned things around this season with the 51s. Though he has still struggled against left-handed pitching, the California native has managed to bring his average up to .292 with an OPS over .800 while adding a league-leading 29 stolen bases.

I was able to chat with Gose for a few minutes in a recent trip to Las Vegas, where the 21-year-old touched on the mechanical adjustments he’s made this season, his two-strike approach and the defensive side of his game, among other things.

Obviously you’ve been seeing the ball well lately, what’s been different now compared to the first month of the season?

“Slowing things down at the plate. Working with Chad on some mechanical flaws early in the season and trying to iron those out. I’m still working on that, and just trying to stay as consistent as possible with the mechanics and being slow and under control at the plate.”

Speaking of mechanical adjustments, you made a lot of them last year. Has it been nice to just go out there and hit this year a bit more?

“Yeah, it’s been fun. I’ve definitely seen the lowest of lows at the beginning of the season and I’m starting to play a little better so it’s definitely been fun and been a transition.”

It’s easy to see your improvements to your two-strike approach. How have you worked on that this season?

“Just really staying within the zone even with two strikes and not expanding outside the zone. Putting the ball in play more, not trying to do too much with it and just put it in play and give yourself a chance to get on base.”

How are you different as a player this year than you were with New Hampshire last year?

“I’d say I’m a little more consistent at the plate, I’ve cut down on my swing a bit, it’s not as big of a swing.”

I remember hearing that, at the major league level, your tools have the ability to change the outcome of a series. How important is your work in the outfield to you?

“I just take a lot of pride in my defense, that’s what’s really going to carry me throughout my career is running the bases and playing good defense and being able to put the bat on the ball more consistently — just trying to do what I can to help the team win. Saving runs helps the pitcher, helps the team, sometimes changes the momentum and gets us back into the dugout.”

Does periodically playing a corner outfield spot matter to you, or do you just want to be in the lineup every day regardless of position?

“You know, I’ll play anywhere they put me. They can put me in right field, I don’t know, I’ll play anywhere. I ‘ll catch for them. I just want to be on the field and play and have a good time.”

- JM

After spending the bulk of his 2011 season at Triple-A Omaha in Kansas City’s minor league system, Chavez didn’t like the way he performed and went to winter ball, where he reverted back to a more normal arm slot and abandoned the sidearm angle that he threw from while with the Royals.

The Blue Jays claimed Chavez off waivers back in October and removed him from their 40-man roster in December. The initial plan with Chavez, a full-time reliever since 2005, was to have him serve as a bullpen long man, but according to Stanley, things changed after spring training.

“I think the theory on that was that Pete Walker and the pitching coach and myself, in spring training, [determined that] if he’s going to be a middle relief pitcher in the big leagues then we need to start him to build up his innings,” Stanley said. “And that was the theory, not knowing that he’d pitch so good as a starter.”

This season with the 51s, Chavez has compiled a 3.84 ERA in 70 1/3 innings (12 starts), with one complete game, 65 strikeouts, a career-low 1.9 BB/9 and a career-low 1.123 WHIP.

In addition to throwing a four-seam and two-seam fastballs, Chavez throws a power slider/cutter that’s around 89 or 90 mph, a changeup and an average curveball that Stanley said is made better by his other pitches. Now that he’s no longer throwing sidearm, Chavez is also starting to throw a splitter.

Repertoire aside, Stanley spoke very highly of the 28-year-old as a person.

“He’s a really big competitor, he’ll do whatever you ask,” Stanley said. “He’s a guy that’s on or around the plate; he’s not wild. He just doesn’t throw it down the middle. He’s a pitcher not a thrower.

“When he goes out there you know you’re going to get at least six, so it’s a good feeling for a pitching coach.”

About three weeks ago, it was reported in May that the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks from Japan tried to pry Chavez away from the Blue Jays with a two-year, $3 million contract, but Toronto rejected the deal. Now, with injuries to Brandon Morrow, Kyle Drabek and Drew Hutchison, keeping Chavez worked out for the Blue Jays, who have called on him to make the first major league start of his career tonight at Miller Park.

Right-hander Jesse Chavez makes his first major league start tonight for the Blue Jays. (Original Photo)

Adam Lind exited Thursday night's Las Vegas 51s game early after fouling a ball off of his shin. (Original Photo)

Chris Woodward made an impromptu appearance at first base for the 51s in the top of the fifth inning, when Adam Lind was removed from the game for an unknown reason. However, 51s manager Marty Brown implied after the game not to read too much into the move.

“He just hit a foul ball off his shin,” he said, adding that Lind was spotted limping in the clubhouse after the game. “He hit it pretty solid off of his shin, so we’ll see. He’s kind of day-to-day, we’ll see how he is tomorrow.”

Offensively, designated hitter Travis d’Arnaud got the 51s on the board in the first inning with a hard-hit RBI double to the gap in left center for his 20^th two-bagger of the season.

After Colorado Springs scored four unanswered runs to take a 5-1 lead, the 51s made it a 5-3 game in the bottom of the sixth on two-run double by third baseman Kevin Howard. After d’Arnaud and right fielder Moises Sierra drew walks, Howard, who finished 3-for-4 on the night, roped an 0-1 pitch to the opposite field down the third base line.

Sierra, who hustles on every play and legged out an infield single earlier in the game, scored all the way from first with a head-first slide at home plate to narrowly beat the throw.

While Brown didn’t seem too thrilled with the head-first slide, the 51s skipper certainly enjoys the way Sierra plays the game.

“We’ll have to talk about that tomorrow,” Brown said of the slide. “But you have to appreciate the way he goes about playing the game. He comes [to the park] with the idea of going 100%. He’s fun to have around.”

The Sky Sox got to 51s starter Andrew Carpenter early, as a sacrifice fly in the first inning and back-to-back doubles in the second quickly put two runs on the board. Carpenter ran into a jam in the top of the fourth, when Sky Sox first baseman Chad Tracy roped a pitch to left fielder Eric Thames for a leadoff double.

Thames dove to try and make the play, but the ball deflected off of his glove and rolled to the outfield wall behind him. A walk and a sacrifice bunt after that put runners on second and third with one out, but Carpenter was able to escape the inning unscathed after getting two key ground outs.

In the fifth, after a walk and a single put runners on first and second, Carpenter gave up another double, this time to former Angels third baseman Brandon Wood. Cut-off man Adeiny Hechavarria cleanly relayed Thames’ throw from left field with a perfect toss to home, but catcher Paul Phillips couldn’t hold on to the ball when he tried to make the tag and two runs came in to score.

Carpenter finished his outing having allowed four runs (three earned) on seven hits with three walks. He didn’t have his best stuff on the night, and his manager said that Sky Sox hitters took advantage of balls left up in the zone.

“He didn’t really establish his fastball like he has in some other outings,” Brown said. “Obviously he’s the type of guy that uses all of his pitches from the get-go and is more of a command guy. He got the ball up in the zone a few times today and it ended up hurting him, but it was an unusual outing.

“He usually gives you a really good start and gives you a chance to win.”

After right-hander Bobby Korecky gave up one run on three hits in the sixth, 37-year-old Tim Redding, who hadn’t pitched since June 3, surrendered a one-out solo home run in the seventh. In the next at-bat, Redding made a nice barehanded throw on a bunt by Sky Sox left fielder Brandon Roberts, and though the throw was in timE. Roberts was ruled safe as Woodward came off the first base bag.

In his first Triple-A appearance of the season, right-hander Ronald Uviedo worked around a double to throw a scoreless ninth. Uviedo, 25, managed a 3.10 ERA in 29 innings for Double-A New Hampshire prior to Thursday night.

Scott Richmond (5-4, 5.89 ERA) takes the hill for the 51s tonight on a Fireworks Friday at Cashman Field.

Making his first Triple-A start of the season following a 3.38 ERA over his last 10 outings with Double-A New Hampshire, Cecil was in control for most of the night. Facing a Tucson lineup of almost entirely right-handed hitters, Cecil limited the Padres to seven singles in the first six innings, working primarily on the outer half of the plate except against Padres first baseman Matt Clark, Tucson’s lone left-handed hitter.

Brett Cecil gets a visit from the 51s' trainer after getting hit with a comebacker in the first inning. (Original photo)

Cecil’s heavily-used fastball periodically touched 89 mph and hit 90 twice, but was otherwise thrown almost exclusively at 88 mph with the occasional 85/86. If he missed outside with his fastball it wasn’t by much, and he was hitting his spots with it when he needed to. He didn’t have his best curveball, as it sat between 75 and 78 mph and was up in the zone more often than not, but his slider, which touched 85 mph, and his changeup, which sat 80-82 mph, looked really good when compared to some of his outings in the past.

Cecil ran into some trouble in the top of the seventh, when Padres right fielder Jonathan Roof followed up back-to-back one-out singles with a RBI double from  to put runners on second and third. A groundout plated Tucson’s second run, but a heads-up throw to third from 51s shortstop Jonathan Diaz got the second out of the inning. After a hard-hit double to left center put runners on second and third once again, though, Cecil was pulled from the game.

“I think I was just trying to do a little bit too much, I knew that it was probably going to be my last inning,” Cecil said of the seventh. “I would’ve liked to end the game with no runs but I was just trying to do too much, trying to make my fastball firmer.”

Clint Everts came on in relief and fired a wild pitch that scored the third run of the game, which was charged to Cecil. Even still, Cecil was pleased with the outing, that had a final line of three earned runs on 11 hits with six strikeouts.

“No walks, I gave up a few more hits that I would’ve liked to, but it was pretty good I thought,” Cecil said of his quality start.

After taking a 13-hour bus ride with the Fisher Cats from New Hampshire to Richmond on Monday for a three-game series against the Flying Squirrels, Cecil was notified of his Triple-A assignment at 9:30 pm that night. Going off of a six-hour nap, Cecil traveled all day Tuesday to make it in time for his start with the 51s.

Cecil said the hectic travel schedule didn’t affect his start, but the new Las Vegas climate did.

“I don’t think it was [the travel], as much as just coming back to the air up here,” he said. “I told one of the guys that I was out of breath throwing my pen warming up for the game. When I’ve come to Vegas [in the past] I’ve had at least a few days to get accustomed to it, but having come here, I went straight to the hotel and then right to the ballpark so obviously I didn’t spend much time outside.

“As soon as I got out there, near the end of my bullpen I started to feel myself breathing heavy trying to get that thin air into my lungs.”

Catcher Travis d’Arnaud led the 51s’ offense with a 4-for-5 night, and looked every bit like the No. 1 prospect that he is. After fouling a pitch off in the first inning to fall behind 0-2, d’Arnaud took the next pitch for a ball before hitting an opposite-field double down the right field line. In the third inning, d’Arnaud opted to swing at a first-pitch breaking ball, which he drove over the wall in right-center field for a two-run home run, his 15^th of the season.

In his next at-bat, d’Arnaud roped a first-pitch, two-out single to right field and quickly found himself a triple shy of hitting for the cycle in only the fourth inning.

“I was messing around with the guys a little bit about it but that’s about it,” he said about the potential cycle. “I tried not to over-think anything and just stay simple.”

Overlooked in the box score was a stellar defensive play by d’Arnaud. After Cecil had given up back-to-back singles in the top of the fifth inning, d’Arnaud picked his pitcher up by firing an absolute laser to second base to pick off Padres third baseman Jesus Merchan. The throw was on a line — nearly taking Cecil’s head off — and arrived at the bag before Merchan realized what had just happened.

Anthony Gose, starting in left field, also had a nice night on both sides of the ball. In the field, he notched an outfield assist in the top of the fourth after firing a no-bounce throw to home plate that arrived almost two full seconds ahead of the runner, who d’Arnaud simply tagged out standing up. After the play, “ooohs” and “ahhs” were heard from the crowd, along with applause and cheers.

At the plate, Gose executed a perfect squeeze bunt with two outs and the bases loaded in the second inning to reach base and drive a run in. It was easy to see that he’s been working on his two-strike approach as well, as he fouled off a 1-2 pitch to stay alive in the sixth before slapping a single to the opposite field in left. In the bottom of the eighth, Gose roped another 1-2 pitch down the line in left field for a double, finishing the night 3-for-4 with a walk, a double and a RBI.

Center fielder Moises Sierra quietly reached base in all five of his plate appearances and definitely impressed. In addition to getting hit by a pitch and drawing a pair of full-count walks, he hit a first-pitch moon shot over the scoreboard in left field for a solo home run in the fifth.

Sierra’s maximum effort was also noticeable, as he hit a high chopper in the eighth but hustled his way down to first base to beat the throw in a bang-bang play at the bag. He also scored from second on a single earlier in the game to beat the throw at home.

Overall, the 51s’ offense pounded out nine runs on 15 hits, nearly half of which were for extra bases. Adam Lind hit a two-run home run off a curveball for his third homer in two nights and Adeiny Hechavarria hustled out his third triple of the season as well.

The 51s look to complete a three-game sweep of the Padres in the series finale tonight at Cashman Field. Right-hander Jesse Chavez (6-2, 3.68 ERA) takes the hill for Las Vegas.

Wins/Losses: 32-27 | Streak: L3 | 3rd in PCL Pacific South division (6.0 GB)

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Reno Aces 8, Las Vegas 51s 1 – LP: Richmond (5-4, 5.84)

The 51s’ offense managed just six singles and the Aces scored seven unanswered runs as Las Vegas dropped their third consecutive game to Reno 8-1 on Tuesday night at Cashman Field.

Hitting:

Adeiny Hechavarria and Vladimir Guerrero hit back-to-back, one-out singles in the bottom of the first and both advanced into scoring position on a fielding error, but the 51s were only able to score the one run, on an Adam Lind groundout. After that, their only other opportunity to plate a run came with runners on first and second with two outs in the bottom of the fourth inning.

After joining the 51s over the weekend from Advanced-A Dunedin, Guerrero went 3-for-17 (.176) with one double (but only one strikeout) in his first four Triple-A games of the season, while Lind, is hitting .415 (17-for-41) in his last 10 games but has just one extra-base hit — a double back on May 30 — over that span.

Pitching:

51s starter Scott Richmond lasted just four innings, giving up six runs (five earned) on 10 hits with one walk and three strikeouts. Richmond had a tough time getting out of the first inning, as a pair of two-out singles around an Adam Lind fielding error led to an unearned run, and a wild pitch on a swinging strikeout loaded the bases to continue the frame. What ultimately hurt Richmond, though, was a four-run second, where the first five batters all reached base via three singles, a walk and a double. He retired three of his next four batters to end the inning, but the damage was already done.

Clint Everts, making his third appearance since being assigned to the 51s from Double-A New Hampshire on May 27, gave up one unearned run and allowed three hits in two innings. After a fielding error by 51s left fielder Ricardo Nanita led to the run in the fifth inning, Everts benefited from a great play by his catcher, Travis d’Arnaud, to throw out Reno second baseman Taylor Harbin trying to steal second base. Left-hander Bill Murphy mopped up the game’s final three innings, allowing just one run on one hit that scored on two ground outs in the top of the ninth.

Wins/Losses: 21-35 | Streak: L2 | 6th in EAS Eastern division (11.0 GB)

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Richmond Flying Squirrels 1, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 0 – LP: Pino (1-3, 3.28)

Starter Joel Carreno‘s strong outing wasn’t enough, as the Fisher Cats’ bats fell silent to hand them a 1-0 loss to the Richmond Flying Squirrels on Tuesday night at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium.

Hitting:

Just like Triple-A Las Vegas, all of New Hampshire’s hits were singles. Mike McDade and Brian Bocock each went 1-for-3 and drew a walk, though Bocock was caught stealing for the first time this season in the  bottom of the third. The Fisher Cats’ only scoring chance came in the first inning, when Ryan Goins and McDade roped back-to-back, two-out singles but catcher Sean Ochinko grounded into a force out.

After drawing a walk in the third and another in the fourth, New Hampshire didn’t have another baserunner until Bocock’s leadoff single in the bottom of the ninth, which was wasted after a foul bunt strikeout and a double play ended the game.

Pitching:

Carreno was handed the hard-luck loss despite pitching his best game of the season, where he scattered just two hits over a season-high seven innings. Unfortunately one of those hits was a two-out solo home run in the third inning, but apart from that, Carreno faced the minimum amount of batters. He did not issue a walk for the first time in five Double-A starts this season, and out of his six strikeouts, five were of the swinging variety. Right-hander Scott Gracey kept it a 1-0 game with two perfect innings of relief.

Wins/Losses: 39-19 | Streak: W4 | 1st in FSL North division (7.5 GM Lead)

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Dunedin Blue Jays 7, Palm Beach Cardinals 1 - WP: Nolin (7-0, 2.43)

After scoring four runs in the second inning, the D-Jays added three more in the sixth to take the opener of a four-game series against the Palm Beach Cardinals 7-1 on Tuesday night at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium.

Hitting:

DH/first baseman Gabe Jacobo continued to impress, going 2-for-4 in the leadoff spot with a two-run home run in the second inning to bring his season total to five. Kevin Nolan, Marcus Knecht, Kenen Bailli and Kevin Ahrens each hit a double, and the D-Jays finished 4-for-12 with runners in scoring position. Also, in addition to throwing out a baserunner, catcher Jack Murphy finished with three RBI on the night thanks to a sacrifice fly in the second and a two-run single in the sixth.

Pitching:

After giving up a leadoff home run to start the game, Dunedin starter Sean Nolin settled in, allowing just six hits and one walk in 5 2/3 shutout innings the rest of the way. After two singles opened the top the top of the fourth inning and eventually led to runners on the corners with two outs, Nolin was able to induce a fly out in foul territory to end the inning. He gave up back-to-back, two-out singles in the fifth and also got some help from reliever Dustin Antolin in the sixth when a runner on third was stranded, but it was still a great outing. The start earned Nolin his seventh win of the season and improved his record to 7-0.

Outside of the walk he issued after replacing Nolin in the sixth, Antolin earned his seventh hold of the season in lights-out fashion, tossing 2 1/3 scoreless innings without allowing a hit.

Making his first appearance of the season with Dunedin, right-hander Drew Permison induced three groundouts in a scoreless ninth inning. Permison, assigned to Dunedin just before the game, spent the bulk of last season closing games for the Vancouver Canadians before a late-season call-up to the Lansing Lugnuts.

Wins/Losses: 40-17 | Streak: W2 | 1st in MID Eastern division (9.5 GM Lead)

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Scheduled off-day

March 2, 2012; Dunedin, FL, USA; Toronto Blue Jays first baseman David Cooper (30) poses for a portrait during photo day at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Derick E. Hingle-US PRESSWIRE

Cooper, 25, will kick off his third stint with the Blue Jays after making a pair of visits to Toronto last year, when he hit .211/.284/.394. That line is somewhat deceiving, though, as Cooper’s 13-game stint at the beginning of the 2011 season brings down the .289 average and .851 OPS that he put up during his 14-game stint in September.

In addition to winning the Pacific Coast League batting title last year with a .364 average at Triple-A Las Vegas, Cooper became only the fifth player in over 50 years to hit more than 50 doubles in a season. The 2008 first round pick also drew a career-high 67 walks and led the league with a .439 on-base percentage in 120 games.

Returning to Triple-A this season with Adam Lind blocking his way, Cooper hasn’t replicated his 2011 success, but has still been effective at the plate. While his strikeout rate is slightly higher, his walk rate is nearly identical to last year, and he’s continued to drive in runs. The biggest knock on Cooper last season, though, was that he only hit nine home runs; far from acceptable for a first baseman, even with so many doubles.

Talking to Cooper in spring training, he told me that he revamped his offseason workouts to get stronger in hopes of turning a few more of his doubles into home runs. The plan seems to have paid off, as the California native has already belted six home runs in 42 games this season after hitting nine in 120 games in 2011. Cooper does, however, have one glaring split this season, which is his .177 average and .654 OPS in 16 games away from Cashman Field this season.

Even though he hasn’t racked up the ideal power numbers from a first baseman, I feel Cooper will still be a useful addition to the Jays, providing he gets an extended look this time around. His eye at the plate will instantly be one of the best on the team, and after seeing so many free-swinging players on the Jays this season, I think it will be somewhat of a refreshing change.

March 12, 2012; Bradenton, FL, USA; Pittsburgh Pirates pitcher Ryota Igarashi (17) throws throws in the seventh inning against the Philadelphia Phillies at McKechnie Field. The Phillies defeated the Pirates 4 - 1. Mandatory Credit: Joy R. Absalon-US PRESSWIRE

Igarashi, signed as a minor league free agent by the Pirates in December after spending his entire major league career with the Mets, was shipped to the Blue Jays for cash back on March 30. The 32-year-old likely drew attention from general manager Alex Anthopoulos because of the impressive numbers he put up with Triple-A Buffalo in 2011, and he’s been even better for Las Vegas this season.

In 21 innings for the 51s, Igarashi has compiled a 1.29 ERA with 28 strikeouts to three walks. His 12 strikeouts per nine innings are a career-high and his 1.3 BB/9 is his lowest mark since coming over from Japan in 2008. More impressively, Igarashi has not given up a home run and allowed just 10 hits all season in the hitter-friendly confines of Cashman Field and the Pacific Coast League, limiting opposing hitters to a mere .139 average.

After Crawford gave up six earned runs on 10 hits with four walks in just 7 1/3 big league innings, the move to send him down certainly made sense. With Igarashi in the fold, it adds a new arm with big league experience to a Blue Jays bullpen that is currently one of the worst in the majors right now, despite getting overhauled during the offseason. Igarashi will replace Crawford nicely and see more time against left-handed hitters, but his splitter can generate a ground ball from any hitter.

- JM

Wins/Losses: 24-23 | Streak: L2 | 3rd in PCL Pacific South division (8.0 GB)

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Nashville Sounds 7, Las Vegas 51s 6 – F/10 – LP: Hoey (0-2, 4.66)

After blowing an early 4-0 lead and clawing back to tie the game in the bottom of the eighth, the Las Vegas 51s ultimately fell to the Nashville Sounds, 7-6 in 10 innings on Thursday night.

Hitting:

Slugging catcher Travis d’Arnaud led the 51s’ offense with two solo home runs, and now has seven homers in his last 10 games to go along with a .310 average and 1.055 OPS over that span. Adam Lind also got in on the party, belting a two-run shot in the first inning for his third home run in five games with the 51s since being optioned to Triple-A over the weekend.

Leadoff hitter Anthony Gose went 3-for-5 with a double and stole his Pacific Coast League-leading 17th base of the season. He extended his hitting streak to eight games, hitting .437 (14-for-32) over that span.

Pitching:

51s starter Aaron Laffey lasted seven innings for the second time in as many starts and allowed five runs (three earned) on seven hits. It was also Laffey’s second consecutive start without issuing a walk and recording five strikeouts. His main mistake came in the third inning, when he surrendered a two-out, three-run home run to Sounds left fielder Brooks Conrad, who later shifted to first base when 2011 Blue Jay Corey Patterson made a pinch hit appearance with the game on the line (he flied out).

Jerry Gil gave up a go-ahead run on two hits in the top of the eighth and closer Chad Beck loaded the bases with two outs in the bottom of the ninth but managed to keep the game tied. Jim Hoey was tagged with the loss after  giving up the game-winning run in the top of the tenth via a RBI groundout.

Wins/Losses: 18-27 | Streak: W1 | 5th in EAS Eastern division (9.5 GB)

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New Hampshire Fisher Cats 8, Portland Sea Dogs 2 – WP: Pino (4-1, 3.18)

After breaking a 1-1 tie in the bottom of the second inning, the Fisher Cats erupted for five runs in the fourth to go on to top the Sea Dogs 8-2 on Thursday night at Northeast Delta Dental Stadium. After losing both games of a doubleheader on Wednesday, the win gave New Hampshire a split in their four-game series against Portland.

Hitting:

New Hampshire’s newest members, second baseman Brian Bocock and catcher Sean Ochinko, were influential in the win. Bocock, playing in only his fourth game with the Fisher Cats after being on the 7-day disabled list since Opening Day, doubled his hit total on the season with a 3-for-5 night that included a double and three RBI. Bocock has certainly made the most of his four games since being activated from the DL, as he’s drawn three walks and stolen a base as well. Ochinko, called up from High-A Dunedin after it was announced that A.J. Jimenez would undergo Tommy John surgery, had a season-high three hits, including his first two doubles in a Double-A uniform.

Leadoff hitter Ryan Goins continued his hot May, going 3-for-5 to extend his hitting streak to six games. Goins, 24, has hit safely in nine of his last 10 contests and is currently hitting .379 (33-for-87) with an .882 OPS in 21 games this month. Switch-hitting left fielder John Tolisano went 1-for-4 with a walk and two RBI.

Overall, the Fisher Cats pounded out eight runs on 13 hits, 10 of which were singles, and had more walks (6) than strikeouts (5).

Pitching:

After giving up a season-high seven runs (six earned) in his last outing on May 18, Fisher Cats starter Yohan Pino rebounded nicely, allowing only a pair of earned runs on seven hits across solid strong innings. After back-to-back two-out doubles plated a run in the first inning, Pino did not have an opposing runner advance past second base until the sixth, when he served up a solo home run to Sea Dogs’ first baseman Reynaldo Rodriguez. Home runs have been a problem for Pino, as he’s given up at least one in five of his eight starts this season. Even though the Venezuela native only struck out three over seven innings on Thursday, it was only the second time this season where he hasn’t issued a walk.

Fernando Hernandez tossed two scoreless innings of relief, allowing only an eighth-inning single while striking out two. The single was the first hit he allowed since May 9, and he has now tossed 8 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings since then.

Wins/Losses: 30-17 | Streak: W1 | 1st in FSL North division (5.0 GM Lead)

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Dunedin Blue Jays 4, Jupiter Hammerheads 3 - WP: Marek (1-0, 9.00) S: Barnes (15)

After Jupiter tied things up at 3 in the top of the eighth, the D-Jays answered with the go-ahead run in the bottom half of the inning, topping the Hammerheads 4-3 at Florida Auto Exchange Stadium on Thursday. With the win, Dunedin halted their season-high losing streak at two games, and, just like the Fisher Cats, the win earned them a split of their four-game series with Jupiter.

Hitting:

Left fielder Marcus Knecht continued to show that he’s turning the corner, going 2-for-2 with a triple, a pair of walks and a RBI. Over his last 10 games, the Canadian is now 11-for-37 (.297) with three home runs, 10 RBI, five walks, and a 1.008 OPS. Leadoff hitter Gabe Jacobo has been on an even bigger tear as of late, as his 2-for-4 performance brought his average up to .295 on the year and he now has a .349/.370/.651 slash line over his last 10 games, including seven doubles and his first two home runs of the season.

Dunedin first baseman Jon Talley quietly went 2-for-3 with a walk, and Ryan Schimpf went 1-for-4, tying a season-high with two RBI while setting a new season-high with three strikeouts.

Pitching:

Dunedin starter Sean Nolin lasted only 5 1/3 innings in his shortest outing since May 3, but allowed only one earned run on three hits while striking out four. While the three hits were the second-fewest that he’s allowed in a start this season, Nolin issued a season-high four walks; one each in the game’s first four innings. After giving up a one-out single to Jupiter first baseman Mark Canha in the sixth, Nolin was pulled in favor of Dayton Marze, who induced a ground out but gave up a two-out double that scored Canha and charged the run to Nolin.

28-year-old reliever Stephen Marek, making his first outing of the season after being transferred from Triple-A Las Vegas without appearing in a single game, picked up the blown-save win after a successful double steal from the Hammerheads scored the game-tying run in the eighth inning.

D-Jays closer Danny Barnes pitched around a Schimpf fielding error and a double in a scoreless ninth to record his Florida State League-leading 15th save of the season. The game’s final out was recorded in dramatic fashion at home plate via an outfield assist, Dunedin right fielder Kenen Bailli to third baseman Kevin Ahrens to catcher Jack Murphy.

Wins/Losses: 33-13 | Streak: W2 | 1st in MID Eastern division (8.5 GM Lead)

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Lansing Lugnuts 5, Dayton Dragons 2 – WP: Rollins (4-0, 2.64) S: Meyer (16)

Thanks to some timely hits and a few gifts from Dayton’s pitching staff, the Lansing Lugnuts were able to beat the Dragons 5-2 on Thursday night. The win was Lansing’s ninth-straight over Dayton this season.

Hitting:

Though the Lugnuts’ five runs were enough to give them the victory, they had countless opportunities to add more. In addition to drawing 12 walks, Lugnuts hitters left 16 runners on base and went just 2-for-14 with runners in scoring position.

Leading the charge was cleanup-hitting shortstop (wait, what?) Andy Burns, who went 3-for-4 with a double, a walk and a RBI. I was thoroughly impressed with Burns on both sides of the ball when I was down in Lansing in early May, and all the 21-year-old has managed to do in the 10 games since then is hit .294 (10-for-34) with four doubles, one triple, two home runs, seven RBI, seven walks and a 1.092 OPS. After dabbling at second and third base earlier in the season, an injury to Opening Day shortstop Chino Vega has given Burns the chance to play almost everyday at short, and he has certainly made the most of it.

Chris Hawkins, hitting third, went 3-for-5 to bring his average up to a team-high .321, K.C. Hobson went 1-for-2 with a RBI and three walks, and Kenny Wilson hit a single and drew a pair of walks.

Speaking of walks, Lugnuts leadoff hitter and second baseman Jonathon Berti went 0-for-3 but drew a pair of free passes, and went on to steal his league-leading 21st base of the season. He’s been caught six times in 27 tries as well, for a very respectable 77% success rate.

Pitching:

Lugnuts starter David Rollins bounced back from his shortest outing of the season against Fort Wayne on May 18 to scatter three hits in five strong innings. He allowed one earned run and one walk while striking out four, in an outing similar to his April 27 start against Kane County. Lugnuts catcher Carlos Perez erased Rollins’ leadoff walk in the first with a great inning-ending throw to third base, and three singles in the third plated Dayton’s only run of the game, but Rollins was dialed in apart from those few small miscues. He retired the final seven batters he faced, including three strikeouts in the fourth inning.

Aleson Escalante earned his first hold since being shipped to the Lugnuts from extended spring training on May 11, Javier Avendano registered his seventh hold of the season with a scoreless eighth around a hit and two walks, and Ajay Meyer got the save with two strikeouts in a perfect ninth. The save was Meyer’s 16th of the season, seven more than the next closest pitcher for the Midwest League lead.

- JM

But now, after hitting .238 with a .709 OPS in 309 games since inking that deal and getting optioned to Triple-A on Thursday, CBSSports.com’s Danny Knobler reported last night on Twitter that Lind has been placed on outright waivers.

Adam Lind has certainly had an interesting last few days. (Tom Szczerbowski-US PRESSWIRE)

Outright waivers allow a team to remove a player that is out of options from their 40-man roster while keeping him in the organization on a minor league team. Teams around the league are able to claim the player for a $20,000 fee and no other cost outside of the remaining money on the player’s contract, which in Lind’s case is roughly $12.5 million — a pro-rated portion ($3.95 million) of his $5 million salary this season, $5 million next season, and a $3.5 million in buyouts on his three club options from 2014-16.

Now that it’s past May 1, waiver priority goes by reverse win-loss records so far this season, meaning the Twins would have first crack on Lind. Outright waivers are irrevocable as well, meaning the Jays would not be able to pull him off and change their decision.

Early this morning, however, Sportsnet’s Shi Davidi talked to Lind on the phone and the first baseman said that his being placed on waivers was news to him.

“I don’t know if they have or if they haven’t. When I had my meeting with Alex and John, they said they optioned,” Lind said in the article. “I don’t know what’s true and what’s not.”

Then hours later this afternoon, MLB.com Blue Jays beat writer Gregor Chisholm talked to Jays manager John Farrell about the report.

“I’m not aware of that,” Farrell said in the article on BlueJays.com. “I know he was optioned, beyond that, that’s a confidential procedure. I’m aware of the reports that are out there, but I’m not aware anything beyond the option to Las Vegas.”

If Lind has in fact been put on outright waivers, though, general manager Alex Anthopoulos has no obligation to tell anyone else about the move, including Lind. However, given Anthopoulos’ recent comments and his track record of stressing credibility — Lyle Overbay and John Buck are two examples that come to mind — it would be surprising if he wasn’t up-front with Lind in this case.

Even if Lind is indeed on outright waivers, it’s highly unlikely that a team would claim him given his price tag and performance over the last two seasons. While Lind continued to struggle at hitting balls low and outside of the strike zone this season, he did spike his contact rate and his abnormally low .209 BABIP in 34 games this season suggests he’s been the victim of some bad luck in certain cases, so he could be enticing enough to another club as a reclamation project; assuming the Jays eat the majority of money left on his contract.

What teams would be willing to take a chance on Lind, whether via waivers or a liquidation-type, player-to-be-named trade? The obvious pick would be the Miami Marlins, who just optioned their own struggling first baseman, Gaby Sanchez, to Triple-A, but other teams like the A’s, Indians, Brewers, Mets and Pirates are all dealing with struggling first basemen of their own, though Lind wouldn’t necessarily be a clear upgrade in any situation.

As it stands right now, Lind is playing first and hitting fifth in today’s Las Vegas 51s game against Memphis, and should continue on there as originally planned to work with hitting coach Chad Mottola on getting himself back on track and to the Majors. With Brett Lawrie set to return to action following his four-game suspension, though, an updated move with Lind could be in the works as early as tomorrow.

-JM

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Wins/Losses: 21-21 | Streak: W1 | 3rd in PCL Pacific South division (8.0 GB)

Las Vegas 51s 5, Memphis Redbirds 3 - WP: Laffey (2-5, 5.04)

Aaron Laffey tossed his first complete game since 2007 and was supported with some timely hits as the Las Vegas 51s went on to defeat Memphis Redbirds 5-3 on Saturday.

Hitting:

Taking a page from the Blue Jays, the 51s scored four of their five runs via the long ball. Chris Woodward belted a two-out, two-run homer in the second inning to put Vegas up early, while Travis d’Arnaud broke a 3-3 tie in the eighth with a two-run shot of his own, his third home run in two games. Woodward had a nice day at the plate overall, adding a game-tying RBI double in the fourth inning to finish 2-for-3 with a walk and three RBI.

While Woodward and d’Arnaud had the 51s’ only extra base hits, the rest of the lineup churned out a whopping 10 singles, with Anthony Gose, David Cooper, Ricardo Nanita and Danny Perales all hitting two each.

Pitching:

Baseball is truly unpredictable, and that was demonstrated on Saturday when 51s starter Aaron Laffey went the distance to earn just his second win of the season. Entering play with a 5.80 ERA, Laffey allowed three runs (two earned) on six hits in nine innings, with five strikeouts and no walks. It was the left-hander’s first complete game in almost five years, as his last one came in 2007 when he pitched for the Triple-A Buffalo Bisons in the Indians organization.

After a throwing error in the middle of the fourth, Laffey retired the next 14 consecutive batters, striking out the side in the ninth inning as well.

Wins/Losses: 16-24 | Streak: L2 | 5th in EAS Eastern division (8.5 GB)

Trenton Thunder 3, New Hampshire Fisher Cats 1 - LP: McGuire (3-1, 3.29)

New Hampshire’s bats were non-existent once again in their second loss to Trenton in as many nights, falling 3-1 on Saturday.

Hitting:

After managing one run in the series opener on Friday, the Fisher Cats responded with just one run again on Saturday. When you do that, it’s hard to win ball games.

New Hampshire’s lone tally came from a John Tolisano home run in the sixth, and he was the only Fisher Cat to have a multi-hit game, also hitting a single and drawing a walk. Four other Fisher Cats each added a single, but it was an ugly night offensively for New Hampshire, who managed one run on six hits.

Pitching:

Fisher Cats starter Randy Boone lasted just one third of an inning, allowing one earned run on three hits to get handed the loss. Reliever Aaron Loup came in to strand a runner at third, and only allowed one hit in 2 2/3 scoreless innings with four strikeouts.

Danny Farquhar gave up crucial runs in the fourth and fifth innings on four hits, while Fernando Hernandez kept New Hampshire close with three perfect innings. Ronald Uvideo tossed a scoreless ninth around two hits and a walk.

Wins/Losses: 27-15 | Streak: L1 | 1st in FSL North division (5.0 GM Lead)

Bradenton Marauders 3, Dunedin Blue Jays 0 - LP: Magnuson (0-4, 5.59)

The Marauders broke a scoreless tie with three runs in the seventh and D-Jays’ bats fell silent, losing to Bradenton 3-0 on Saturday at McKechnie Field.

Hitting:

It was the third time this season that Dunedin was held off the scoreboard, and D-Jays hitters managed just four hits in this one. First baseman Gabe Jacobo was the lone bright spot, going 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles to extend his hitting streak to five games. He’s now hit safely in seven of his last eight games, but has just a .214/.313/.333 slash line over his last 10.

Leadoff hitter Ryan Schimpf went 1-for-3 with a single and a walk, while designated hitter Jon Talley hit a single for his 16th hit in his last 10 games. After hitting .313 with an .879 OPS in April, Talley has torn the cover off the ball in May, hitting .409 with a 1.010 OPS in 11 games.

Pitching:

Dunedin starter Sean Nolin continued to impress, tossing a six-inning gem, but regrettably had nothing to show for it. The left-hander struck out eight, did not issue a walk, and allowed only four hits. Between the second and third innings, Nolin struck out five of the six batters he faced.

Rehabbing reliver Trystan Magnuson, who spent all of 2011 at the Triple-A level and was taken off the Jays’ 40-man roster this week, gave up a season-high three earned runs in one inning of work to take the loss.

Called up from extended spring training, right-hander Bryan Longpre made his D-Jays debut, striking out a pair in a scoreless eighth.

Wins/Losses: 30-12 | Streak: W3 | 1st in MID Eastern division (6.5 GM Lead)

Lansing Lugnuts 2, Lake County Captains 1 – WP: McFarland (1-0, 0.00)

Despite managing just two hits in the game, two key unearned runs helped the Lugnuts defeat the Captains 2-1 on Saturday. With the win, Lansing became the first team in the Midwest League to reach 30 wins.

Hitting:

On a night where the Lugnuts offense was out-hit 10-2, baserunners were obviously scarce. The Lugnuts trailed 1-0 until the top of the sixth inning, when a bunt and a wild pitch advanced leadoff hitter Kellen Sweeney, who reached on a fielding error, to third. Kevin Pillar cashed Sweeney in with a sacrifice fly to tie the game at 1, before Chris Hawkins roped a single to center for the Lugnuts’ first hit. Andy Burns, who has really impressed me this season, doubled to left field to score Hawkins, which wound up being the game-winning run.

Pitching:

Lugnuts starter Marcus Walden allowed one earned run on seven hits in four innings with two walks and three strikeouts to settle for the no-decision. Blake McFarland earned the win with four shutout innings of relief, allowing only three hits and two walks while striking out three. Closer Ajay Meyer tossed a perfect ninth to record his league-leading 14th save of the season.

-JM

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