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Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 21

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Hardy Richardson (1855)
Ken Strong (1906)
Gary Peters (1937)
Dick Green (1941)
Al Bumbry (1947)
Jesse Orosco (1957)
Les Lancaster (1962)
Ken Caminiti (1963)
Kip Wells (1977)
Terry Tiffee (1979)
Joc Pederson (1992)

A member of the pro football Hall of Fame, Ken Strong played minor league baseball from 1929-1931 and played very well.  He hit 41 home runs and had 130 RBIs in 1930 in what is now the Eastern League and hit .340 in 1931 in the International League.

In addition, we would like to wish a very happy birthday to twayn.

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Keeping Track

Minor Details: Games of April 19

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INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 7, ST. PAUL SAINTS 2 IN INDIANAPOLIS

Indianapolis scored five in the eighth to break a 2-2 tie.  Saints catcher Patrick Winkel was called for catcher's interference twice in the inning.

Multi-hit games:  DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. was 2-for-4 with a double.

Home runs:  Tony Kemp (1).

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  Simeon Woods Richardson pitched five innings, giving up two runs on six hits and a walk and striking out four.  Austin Schulfer pitched two shutout innings, giving up one hit and striking out one.

Opposition standout:  Nick Dombkowski pitched four innings, giving up one run on four hits and four walks and striking out two.

Record:  St. Paul is 7-11, in tenth (last) place, 3.5 games behind Iowa.

TULSA DRILLERS 5, WICHITA WIND SURGE 0 IN WICHITA

Austin Gauthier had a two-run single in the fifth to break a scoreless tie.

Multi-hit games:  None.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  Emmanuel Rodriguez, 2 (6).

Pitching prowess:  Marco Raya struck out four in three shutout innings, giving up two hits.  Taylor Floyd struck out two and walked one in a scoreless inning.

Opposition standout:  Jose Ramos was 2-for-4 with two home runs and three RBIs.

Record:  Wichita is 2-11, in fifth (last) place, nine games behind Springfield.

WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 13, CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 3 IN WISCONSIN

Wisconsin scored eight runs in the first inning.  They had just four hits, but were aided by four walks and an error.

Multi-hit games:  None.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  Jordan Carr pitched four innings, giving up one run on two hits and three walks and striking out three.  Juan Mendez pitched 1.1 innings, giving up an unearned run on two hits and a walk and striking out one.

Opposition standout:  Matthew Wood was 3-for-5 with a home run, two runs, and four RBIs.

Record:  Cedar Rapids is 6-6, in fourth place, 3.5 games behind Quad Cities.

FORT MYERS MIGHTY MUSSELS 16, JUPITER HAMMERHEADS 1 IN FORT MYERS

Leading 4-1, Fort Myers scored exactly four runs in each of innings five, six, and seven.

Multi-hit games:  Brandon Winokur was 2-for-3 with a home run, a walk, two runs, and four RBIs.  Gregory Duran was 2-for-3 with three runs.  Poncho Ruiz was 2-for-4 with a double, a walk, and three RBIs.  Maddux Houghton was 2-for-4 with a walk and two runs.

Home runs:  Winokur (2).

Multi-RBI games:  Winokur, 4; Ruiz, 3; Jose Rodriguez, 2.

Stolen bases:  Rafael Cruz (3), Rodriguez (1).

Pitching prowess:  Cesar Lares pitched four shutout innings, giving up one hit and three walks and striking out two.  Wilker Reyes pitched two shutout innings, giving up a hit and a walk and striking out one.  Samuel Perez pitched a perfect inning, striking out one.

Opposition standout:  Jesus Hernandez was 1-for-2 with two walks.

Record:  Fort Myers is 5-8, in fourth place, four games behind Dunedin and Lakeland.

TODAY'S TILTS

1:10  Cedar Rapids (C. J. Culpepper, 0-0, 2.25) at Wisconsin
5:05  Jupiter at Fort Myers (Charlee Soto, 0-0, 2.57)
5:35  St. Paul (Caleb Boushley, 1-1, 7.20) at Indianapolis
6:05  Tulsa at Wichita (A. J. Alexy, 0-1, 7.71)

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 20

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Germany Smith (1863)
Tommy Dowd (1869)
Charlie Hemphill (1876)
Charlie Smith (1880)
Dave Bancroft (1891)
Heavy Johnson (1895)
Roy Hofheinz (1912)
Preston Gomez (1923)
Tom Hutton (1946)
Milt Wilcox (1950)
Doug Clarey (1954)
Floyd Chiffer (1956)
Don Mattingly (1961)
Greg Brummett (1967)
Dan Smith (1969)
Todd Hollandsworth (1973)
Brandon Belt (1988)

Judge Roy Hofheinz was the leader of a group that brought an expansion team to Houston.

Dan Smith was drafted by Minnesota in the twenty-second round in 1987, but did not sign.

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Keeping Track

Minor Details: Games of April 18

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INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 6, ST. PAUL SAINTS 5 IN INDIANAPOLIS

The Saints scored four in the ninth to close to 6-5, but did not get the tying run on base.

Multi-hit games:  Matt Wallner was 2-for-5 with a home run and four RBIs.

Home runs:  Wallner (1).

Multi-RBI games:  Wallner, 4.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  None.

Opposition standout:  Paul Skenes struck out eight in 3.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and two walks.

Record:  St. Paul is  7-10, tied for eighth with Columbus and Louisville, four games behind Iowa.

WICHITA WIND SURGE 7, TULSA DRILLERS 6 IN WICHITA (10 INNINGS)

Ben Ross singled home the deciding run with one out.

Multi-hit games:  None.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  Noah Cardenas, 2; Jake Rucker, 2.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  Aaron Rozek struck out five in four shutout innings, giving up a walk.  Sheldon Reed struck out two and walked one in a scoreless inning.

Opposition standout:  Logan Boyer struck out two in two perfect innings.

Record:  Wichita is 2-10, in fifth (last) place, eight games behind Springfield.

CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 6, WISCONSIN 5 IN WISCONSIN

Cedar Rapids scored two in each of the first three innings to build a 6-1 lead.

Multi-hit games:  Ricardo Olivar was 2-for-4 with a home run and two RBIs.  Luke Keaschall was 2-for-4 with a double and two RBIs.  Rubel Cespedes was 2-for-4 with a double.

Home runs:  Olivar (2).

Multi-RBI games:  Keaschall, 2; Olivar, 2.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  A. J. Labas struck out two in two shutout innings, giving up one hit and two walks.  Ricardo Velez pitched a scoreless inning and struck out one.

Opposition standout:  Mark Manfredi struck out eight in four shutout innings, giving up one hit.

Record:  Cedar Rapids is 6-5, in fourth place, 2.5 games behind Quad Cities.

JUPITER HAMMERHEADS 6, FORT MYERS MIGHTY MUSSELS 5 IN FORT MYERS

Sam Praytor's two-run double in the sixth broke a 3-3 tie and a bases-loaded walk in the seventh provided an insurance run.

Multi-hit games:  Maddux Houghton was 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, and three runs.  Angel Del Rosario was 2-for-4 with a double.  Brandon Winokur was 2-for-5.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  Byron Chourio, 2.

Stolen bases:  Houghton (3), Del Rosario (10), Rafael Cruz (2).

Pitching prowess:  Jeremy Lee struck out five in five innings, giving up three  runs (two earned) on six hits and three walks.  Kade Bragg struck out two in 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up a hit and two walks.  Ben Ethridge pitched a perfect inning and struck out one.

Opposition standout:  Praytor was 2-for-3 with a walk, a double, and two RBIs.

Record:  Fort Myers is 4-8, tied for fourth with Tampa, five games behind Dunedin.

TODAY'S TILTS

6:05  Jupiter at Fort Myers (Tanner Hall, 0-0, 6.75)
6:05  St. Paul (Simeon Woods Richardson, 0-1, 7.56) at Indianapolis
6:40  Cedar Rapids (TBD) at Wisconsin
7:05  Tulsa at Wichita (Marco Raya, 0-0, 3.00)

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 19

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John Reese (1895)
Bucky Walters (1909)
Hector Maestri (1935)
Rick Miller (1948)
Ed Hodge (1958)
R. J. Reynolds (1959)
Frank Viola (1960)
Spike Owen (1961)
Scott Kamieniecki (1964)
Brent Mayne (1968)
Jose Cruz (1974)
Joe Beimel (1977)
Dennys Reyes (1977)
George Sherrill (1977)
Alberto Callaspo (1983)
Zach Duke (1983)
Joe Mauer (1983)
Jackie Bradley (1990)
Tyler Jay (1994)

Right-hander Hector Maestri was with the Washington franchise in 1960, making one appearance in the majors.  Before the 1961 season started, however, he was selected in the expansion draft by the new Washington franchise, for whom he made one more appearance in 1961.

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Keeping Track

Minor Details: Games of April 17

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INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 1, ST. PAUL SAINTS 0 IN INDIANAPOLIS

Carter Bins singled home the deciding run with one out in the bottom of the ninth.

Multi-hit games:  None.

Home runs:  None, obviously.

Multi-RBI games:  None, just as obviously.

Stolen bases:  DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. (7), Dalton Shuffield (1), Will Holland (4), Yunior Severino (1).

Pitching prowess:  David Festa struck out five in four shutout innings, giving up two hits and two walks.  Diego Castillo pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and striking out one.  Jorge Alcala struck out four in two shutout innings, giving up one hit and two walks.

Opposition standout:  Cam Alldred struck out six in four shutout innings, giving up three hits and two walks.

Record:  St. Paul is 7-9, tied for seventh with Columbus, four games behind Iowa and Omaha.

TULSA DRILLERS 2, WICHITA WIND SURGE 1 (11 INNINGS)

Jose Ramos singled home the deciding run.

Multi-hit games:  Ben Ross was 2-for-5.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  None, of course.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  Jarret Whorff pitched four innings, giving up one run on two hits and five walks and striking out two.  Hunter McMahon pitched three shutout innings, walking one.  Jared Solomon struck out three in two shutout innings, walking one.  John Stankiewicz pitched two innings, giving up an unearned run on two hits.

Opposition standout:  Justin Wrobleski struck out four in four innings, giving up one run on four hits and a walk.

Record:  Wichita is 1-10, in fifth (last) place, nine games behind Springfield.

WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 5, CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 3 IN WISCONSIN (GAME 1--7 INNINGS)

Luke Adams hit a two-run homer in the fourth to break a 3-3 tie.

Multi-hit games:  None.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  Luke Keaschall (6).

Pitching prowess:  Jacob Wosinski pitched 1.1 scoreless innings, giving up one hit and two walks.  Juan Mendez pitched a scoreless inning, giving up one hit.

Opposition standout:  Mike Boeve was 3-for-3 with a double and a walk.

CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS 8, WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS 2 IN WISCONSIN (GAME 2--7 INNINGS)

Cedar Rapids scored three in the second to take a 3-2 lead and four in the fourth to put the game out of reach.

Multi-hit games:  Gabriel Gonzalez was 3-for-3 with two doubles, a walk, two runs, and two RBIs.  Rubel Cespedes was 2-for-3 with two doubles, a walk, and three RBIs.  Dillon Tatum was 2-for-3 with a walk and two runs.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  Cespedes, 3; Gonzalez, 2.

Stolen bases:  Gonzalez, 2 (2); Misael Urbina, 2 (3).

Pitching prowess:  Zebby Matthews pitched five innings, giving up two runs on five hits and striking out four. Kyle Bischoff struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.

Opposition standout:  Gregory Barrios was 2-for-3 with a double.

Record:  Cedar Rapids is 5-5, in fourth place, 2.5 games behind Quad Cities.

JUPITER HAMMERHEADS 4, FORT MYERS MIGHTY MUSSELS 3 IN FORT MYERS

Gregory Duran hit a three-run homer in the sixth to tie it, but Jordan McCants hit an RBI double in the seventh for what would turn out to be the deciding run.

Multi-hit games:  Duran was 2-for-4 with a home run, a triple, and three RBIs.  Rayne Doncon was 2-for-5 with a double.

Home runs:  Duran (1).

Multi-RBI games:  Duran, 3.

Stolen bases:  Angel Del Rosario, 4 (9).  Cole Elvis (1).

Pitching prowess:  Nolan Santos struck out two in two innings, giving up an unearned run on two hits and a walk.  Julio Bonilla struck out two in two perfect innings.

Opposition standout:  Emmett Olson struck out five in five shutout innings, giving up four hits and three walks.

Record:  Fort Myers is 4-7, in fourth place, four games behind Dunedin and Lakeland.

TODAY'S TILTS

5:35  St. Paul (Joe Gunkel, 0-1, 7.27) at Indianapolis
6:05  Jupiter at Fort Myers (Jeremy Lee, 1-1, 2.08)
6:40  Cedar Rapids (John Klein, 0-0, 1.13) at Wisconsin
7:05  Tulsa at Wichita (Travis Adams, 1-1, 7.04)

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 18

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Frank Navin (1871)
Sam Crawford (1880)
Duffy Lewis (1888)
Jack Scott (1892)
Perry Hall (1898)
Steve Blass (1942)
Mike Paul (1945)
Doug Flynn (1951)
Bobby Castillo (1955)
Rich Bordi (1959)
Jim Eisenreich (1959)
Dennis Rasmussen (1959)
Rico Brogna (1970)
Steve Dunn (1970)
Brian Buscher (1981)
Miguel Cabrera (1983)
Billy Butler (1986)
Anthony DeSclafani (1990)
Prelander Berroa (2000)

Frank Navin was the owner of the Detroit Tigers from 1908-1935.

Rich Bordi was drafted by Minnesota in the fifth round in 1977, but did not sign.

We would also like to wish a happy birthday to Mrs. CarterHayes.

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Keeping Track

Minor Details: Games of April 16

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INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS 10, ST. PAUL SAINTS 6 IN INDIANAPOLIS

Indianapolis took the lead to stay when Nick Gonzales hit an RBI triple in the fourth to make it 5-4.  It was 7-6 after six, but the Indians scored three in the seventh to put it out of reach.

Multi-hit games:  Diego Castillo was 3-for-4 with a triple.  Tanner Morris was 2-for-2 with a double, a walk, and two runs.  Will Holland was 2-for-3 with a home run, a walk, two runs, and three RBIs.  DaShawn Keirsey, Jr. was 2-for-5 with a triple and two RBIs.

Home runs:  Holland (2).

Multi-RBI games:  Holland, 3; Keirsey, Jr., 2.

Stolen bases:  Holland (3), Castillo (1).

Pitching prowess:  Austin Schulfer pitched a perfect inning, striking out one.

Opposition standout:  Gonzalez was 4-for-5 with a triple.

Record:  St. Paul is 7-8, tied for fifth, 3.5 games behind Omaha.

TULSA DRILLERS 15, WICHITA WIND SURGE 4 IN WICHITA

Tulsa scored five in the fourth to take a 6-2 lead.

Multi-hit games:  Jake Rucker was 3-for-4 with a home run.

Home runs:  Rucker (1).

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  Alerick Soularie (2).

Pitching prowess:  None.

Opposition standout:  Dalton Rushing was 2-for-5 with a home run (3), two runs, and three RBIs.

Record:  Wichita is 1-9, in fifth (last) place, eight games behind Springfield.

CEDAR RAPIDS KERNELS AT WISCONSIN TIMBER RATTLERS

Rained out.  Will be made up as part of a doubleheader today.

JUPITER HAMMERHEADS 7, FORT MYERS MIGHTY MUSSELS 4 IN FORT MYERS

Jupiter scored two in the first and led all the way.  It was 7-1 before Fort Myers scored some late runs.  The Mighty Mussels stranded nine and were 0-for-12 with men in scoring position.

Multi-hit games:  Isaac Pena was 3-for-4 with a double.  Maddux Houghton was 2-for-3 with a double.  Rayne Doncon was 2-for-5 with a double.

Home runs:  None.

Multi-RBI games:  None.

Stolen bases:  None.

Pitching prowess:  Danny Moreno struck out three in two shutout innings, giving up one hit.

Opposition standout:  Colby Shade was 3-for-3 with a double, a walk, and three runs.

Record:  Fort Myers is 4-6, in fourth place, four games behind Dunedin.

TODAY'S TILTS

11:05  St. Paul (David Festa, 0-0, 2.16)  at Indianapolis
12:05  Tulsa at Wichita (Jarret Whorff, 0-0, 2.25)
12:10  Cedar Rapids (Andrew Morris, 0-0, 0.90 and Zebby Matthews, 1-0, 1.80 at Wisconsin--doubleheader
6:05  Jupiter at Fort Myers (Ross Dunn, 0-0, 2.57)

Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 17

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Alexander Cartwright (1820)
Cap Anson (1852)
Tom Needham (1879)
Jake Daubert (1884)
Buzz Arlett (1912)
Solly Hemus (1923)
Tsutomu Wakamatsu (1947)
Denny Walling (1954)
Craig Worthington (1965)
Marquis Grissom (1967)
Gary Bennett (1972)
Ryan Raburn (1981)
Jed Lowrie (1984)
Deolis Guerra (1989)

Alexander Cartwright was instrumental in developing the rules for the game of baseball.

Buzz Arlett was a star in the low minors from 1934-1941, and probably would have been for several more years had World War II not intervened.  He had a career average of .319 with a slugging average of .480, but never played above Class C.

Tsutomu Wakamatsu was a star in Japan from 1971-1989, making the all-star team eleven times.  His career average of .319 is second to Leron Lee on the all-time list of players with at least four thousand at-bats.

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Keeping Track

Happy Birthday–April 16

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Dutch Leonard (1892)
Paul Waner (1903)
Babe Phelps (1908)
Pete Hughes (1915)
Pete Suder (1916)
Joe Bauman (1922)
Rich Rollins (1938)
Bernie Allen (1939)
Garry Roggenburk (1940)
Jim Lonborg (1942)
Bob Montgomery (1944)
Bruce Bochy (1955)
Curt Young (1960)
Fernando Vina (1969)
Antonio Alfonseca (1972)
Kelly Dransfeldt (1975)
Nolan Arenado (1991)

Pete Hughes was a star in the low minors from 1937-1952. His incomplete career numbers are a .350 average and a .637 slugging percentage, but for some reason he never played above Class B.

Joe Bauman hit 72 home runs for Roswell in the Longhorn League in 1954.

Kelly Dransfeldt was drafted by Minnesota in the seventh round in 1993, but did not sign.

Rich Rollins, Bernie Allen, and Garry Roggenburk all played for the Twins at the same time. I wonder how unusual it is for a team to have three players who share the same birthday. They also all were born or raised in the state of Ohio. Rollins and Allen were also business partners for a while.

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