Blue Jays MiLB – Bo knows power

Jays Journal takes its daily look into the Toronto Blue Jays Minor League system. Bo and Vlad power the Lugnuts offense and the Fisher Cats bats breakout for a big win.

Buffalo Bisons vs Rochester Red Wings (Twins)
4-5 Loss

The Bisons were unable to keep pace with the Red Wings in the late innings in this one. Each team scored 3 runs in the 4th inning and battled until the end. The Herd was unable to match the Red Wings run in the 9th inning and lost a close one.  Brett Oberholtzer pitched well but had a rough time in the 4th as mentioned.  He would allowed 2 earned runs on 7 hits over 5.2 innings. He also struck out 3 and walked 3. Chris Rowley would come on and pitch the final 2 innings after Matt Dermody shut down all 3 of his batters. Rowley would allow the 2 crucial runs for the Red Wings to take the victory.

Gregorio Petit opened the scoring up for the Bisons with a bang. He hit a homer to left that scored Raffy Lopez. Petit would go 2-3 with 2 runs scored to go along with the 2 run homer. Jon Berti also had a pair of hits and an RBI out of the lead off spot. Michael Saunders made his debut with the Bisons in this one after signing a Minor League contract with the Blue Jays. He went 1-5 on the night batting in the 3 spot as the teams DH.

After the game

Glenn Sparkman

was called up to the Blue Jays after throwing 8 innings while allowing just 2 runs on 7 hits.

T.J. House

will kick off the series against the Syracuse Chiefs Friday in Buffalo. House has been beat up in his past few starts as he has allowed 9 earned runs over 11 innings. He will look to right the ship on the mound Friday.

MVB – Gregorio Petit 2-3 with 2 runs scored, a home run, and 2 RBI

New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Portland Sea Dogs (Red Sox)
9-5 Win

Jonathan Davis kicked off a hit parade for the Fisher Cats in this one. He led off the game with a home run and went 2-3 and scored 3 times in this one. Starting the game off with this bomb ignited the offense and they collected 15 hits before this one was over with. Every hitting in the lineup was able to get a hit as they raked in 9 runs. Andrew Guillotte led the team with 3 hits and there were 4 other Fisher Cats that had 2 hits each. Tim Lopes was one of those hitters and he also drove in 4 runs. Ryan McBroom had a double and his 9th home run as he torched the ball deep left center.

On the mound Jon Harris was incredible for 7 innings. He matched his season high in innings during this one and stuck out 5 for his second game in a row. He allowed just 5 hits and 1 walk which led to 1 earned run. He would eventually be rewarded with the win for a solid evening. Dusty Isaacs let things get out of control for a moment in the 9th that put the Sea Dogs within striking distance. Isaacs allowed 3 runs and recorded just 1 out. Tim Mayza and Andrew Case would record an out each in the 9th to slam the door shut on the rally and take the win.

Conner Greene lead the Fisher Cats into this weekends home stand against the Trenton Thunder. Greene has thrown two straight outings in which he has allowed 3 runs. His season ERA however is still at an excellent 3.73.

MVFC – Jon Harris 7 IP, 5 hits, 1 earned run, 1 walk, 5 K’s

Dunedin Blue Jays at Bradenton Marauders (Pirates)
3-7 Loss

Two big innings doomed the D-Jays during this one. After a good start to the game Josh DeGraaf got hit around in the 3rd inning. DeGraaf would allow 3 earned runs on 9 hits in 3.2 innings. Phillip Walby kept the D-Jays in this one for a few innings as he pitched 2 scoreless innings out of the pen. This gave the D-Jays time to find their offense and get back into this one. They were able to score 2 runs in the 5th on a 2 run homer from Michael De La Cruz. Juan Kelly also added a solo home run in the 7th. Kelly’s 5th home run of the season tied the game at 3 runs a piece.

Onto the 9th inning where the D-Jays fell apart. Kirby Snead had not allowed a run and recorded 4 outs. In the 8th things would promptly change as he allowed a pair of runs to start the inning. The troubles did not stop there as Zach Jackson came in and allowed a pair of runs before recording the final out for the inning. These final 4 runs were to much for the D-Jays to overcome in the top of the 9th.

Dalton Pompey rejoined the D-Jays on a rehab assignment and went 0-3 in the lead off spot.

Conor Fisk will get the ball rolling for the D-Jays against the Daytona Tortugas Friday evening.  Fisk has allowed 3 runs in his last 10.1 innings (last 2 starts).

MVDJ – Michael De La Cruz 2-4 with a home run, run scored, and 2 RBI

Lansing Lugnuts vs Bowling Green Hot Rods (Rays)
9-11 Loss

A night of horror for pitchers in Lansing unfortunately finished with the slugfest ending in the Hot Rods favor. Eleven Lugnuts hits were unable to overcome the 15 hits their pitchers allowed through out the game. Osman Gutierrez took the brunt of the assault as he allowed 8 earned runs through the first 4 innings. The big blow was a 3 run home run off the bat of Josh Lowe. Lowe was the first round draft pick of the Rays in 2016.

The Lugnuts offense would keep up with the Hot Rods in the early innings until they pulled away in extra innings. The Lugnuts scored 9 runs and eventually tied the game in the 9th inning.  Bo Bichette continues to just annihilate Midwest League pitching as he hit his 9th home run of the season. He has also homered in the past 2 games now. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. collected a pair of hits which included a double. He also drove in a run and scored one. Joshua Palacios appears to be finding himself at the plate as he had a pair of hits in this one. He also stole a base, drove in 2 runs, and scored twice. Edward Olivares continues to make a name for himself with a triple and 2 runs scored.

Prior to the game it was announced that Vlad and Bo would be joining the All-Star Futures game in Miami as part of the MLB All-Star game festivities. The game will be aired on July 9th at 4PM EST.

Andy Ravel will get the start Friday and will look to find the right recipe to keep the South Bend Cubs bats quite as the team hits the road.

MVL – Joshua Palacios 2-5 with a double, stolen base, 2 runs scored, and 2 RBI

Next: Stottlemyre guest stars on the Jays Journal Podcast