Rock Cats Recap

Where they stand:  New Britain is 7-4, second in the EL East, a half game behind Reading.

Who’s hot:  Joe Benson is hitting .372/.426/.581 in 43 at-bats.  Chris Parmelee is hitting .333/.362/.511 in 45 at-bats.  Cole DeVries is 0-0, 0.00, striking out ten and allowing just two hits and no walks in 7.1 innings (three appearances).  Steve Hirschfeld is 1-0, 0.82, allowing five hits and two walks in eleven innings (two starts).

Who’s cold:  Mike Hollimon is 1-for-26, giving him a line of .038/.167/.154 (his hit was a home run).  Allan de San Miguel is batting .167/.231/.250 in 24 at-bats.  Brett Jacobson has allowed five runs on five hits and three walks in five innings (three appearances).  Spencer Steedley is 0-1, 7.49, 1.94 WHIP in 5.2 innings (four appearances).  He has struck out eight.

Transactions:  Daniel Rohlfing was promoted from Ft. Myers to New Britain.  Danny Lehmann was promoted from New Britain to Rochester.

What’s next:  The Rock Cats have two more home games with New Hampshire.  They then go on the road for three in Portland, have an off day Sunday, and then have four in New Hampshire.

2011 Game 16: Twins 5, Orioles 3

Weather: 67°F, partly cloudy
Wind: 2 mph, out to CF
Attendance: 13,138
Time: 2:50

Twins record: 6-10 (tied for last in AL Central, 6.0 GB)
Fangraphs boxscore | MLB Game Wrap

Highlights:

  • Highest WPA, hitter: Butera .224 (2-4, 1 2b, 3 RBI) | Highest WPA, pitcher: Hoey .236 (1.1 IP, K)
  • Jim Hoey's firefighting in his Twins debut
  • The Twins have now managed to string two wins together for the first time this season.

Lowlights:

  • Lowest WPA, hitter: Span, -.087 (0-5, 2 SO) | Lowest WPA, pitcher: Mijares, .020 (0.1 IP, HBP)
  • Top 5 hitters in the order: 2-21, R, 8 SO
  • Tolbert: still batting second
  • Chris Guccione's kaleidoscope eyes

Given the night the top five batters in the order had, there's no way the Twins could have expected to win this game. Not with one of the four remaining spots in the lineup featuring a middle infielder with a bat -34.7 runs above average in 1108 career plate appearances. Not with one of the three remaining slots featuring a backup catcher, forced into a starting role, whose bat was worth -10.3 runs above average in 2010. Yet that backup catcher knocked in three of the evening's five runs and secured the win with what, thanks to some shaky ninth inning relief, proved to be a key run-producing double late in the game.
Continue reading 2011 Game 16: Twins 5, Orioles 3

Minor Details: Games of 4/18

Rochester at Buffalo.  Postponed.  Will be made up as part of a doubleheader this afternoon.

New Hampshire 7, New Britain 3 in New Britain.  The Fisher Cats scored five runs in the third inning.  It was the only bad inning David Bromberg had—he allowed five runs on seven hits and a walk in seven innings.  Evan Bigley singled and doubled.

Ft. Myers 6, St. Lucie 4 in St. Lucie.  The Miracle scored four runs in the seventh to take the lead.  The inning was aided by three walks and two errors.  Danny Rams singled and doubled and Nathan Hanson had two hits.  Daniel Osterbrock allowed three runs (two earned) on five hits and no walks in five innings.  Andrew Albers got the win, allowing a run on no hits and a walk in 1.1 innings.  Dakota Watts retired the final two batters of the game to get the save.

Beloit 4, Wisconsin 2 in Wisconsin.  The Snappers scored all four runs in the ninth to overcome a 2-0 deficit, hitting two doubles and then four singles.  Every starter had at least one hit, with Kyle Knudson the only Snapper with two.  Manuel Soliman gave up two runs on five hits and three walks in five innings while striking out seven.  Matt Hauser got the win with 1.2 innings of scoreless relief, allowing a hit and a walk with two strikeouts.  Jose Gonzalez struck out the only man he faced to get the save.

Twins Collectibles Spotlight: Shane Mack Baseball Cards

I noticed a while back that the various baseball card companies have been pretty single-minded in their choices for front photos for Shane Mack's baseball cards. Shane was a favorite of mine, and if you collected baseball cards in the early '90s, you'd know that he was quite the hustler on the base paths. To the left is his 1991 Upper Deck card #188.

Continue reading Twins Collectibles Spotlight: Shane Mack Baseball Cards

Happy Birthday–April 19

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)
George Sherrill (1977)
Dennys Reyes (1977)
Joe Mauer (1983)

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.

Continue reading Happy Birthday–April 19

2011 Game 16: Twins at Orioles

6:05 Central Time start. Why is this night different from all others?

Happy Passover. Orioles are indeed kosher.

I for one have had about enough of bitter herbs this spring. Time to make some Hillel Sandwiches out of the opposition. Pass the matzot. And don't ask me what I am drinking in the third inning.
Continue reading 2011 Game 16: Twins at Orioles

Red Wings Report

Where they stand:  Rochester is 4-6, fifth in the IL North, two and a half games behind Lehigh Valley.

Who’s hot:  Trevor Plouffe is hitting .321/.374/.714 with three home runs in 28 at-bats.  Rene Tosoni is hitting .324/.381/.676 with three home runs in 37 at-bats.  Eric Hacker is 1-0, 0.00 in 11 innings.  He has given up four hits and no walks and struck out ten.  Jim Hoey is 1-0, 2.70 in 6.2 innings.  He has given up two runs on five hits and a walk with eight strikeouts.

Who’s cold:  Brandon Roberts is batting .071/.133/.071 in 28 at-bats.  Matthew Brown is batting .194/.324/.226 in 31 at-bats.  Andrew Baldwin is 1-1, 10.13 in 10.2 innings.  Kyle Waldrop is 0-2, 6.35 with a 2.47 WHIP in 5.2 innings (four appearances).

Transactions:  Anthony Slama was activated from the seven day disabled list.  Steve Holm was promoted to Minnesota.  Danny Lehmann was promoted from New Britain to Rochester.  Jim Hoey was promoted to Minnesota.  Jeff Manship was optioned from Minnesota to Rochester.

What’s next:  The Red Wings travel to Buffalo for four games, then come home for four against Pawtucket and four against Buffalo.

Episodic EPL Exposition & Monday MLS Mayhem – The Re-soccering

Relevant EPL Results

  • Villa 2 - 1 West Ham
  • Chelsea 3 - 1 West Brom
  • Everton 2 - 0 Blackburn Rovers
  • Sunderland 0 - 2 Birmingham

In the spirit of new starts, Chelsea will now be referred to as such.

EPL News

Continue reading Episodic EPL Exposition & Monday MLS Mayhem – The Re-soccering

Minor Details: Games of 4/17

Rochester 6, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre 3 in Scranton/Wilkes-Barre.  Doubles by Rene Tosoni and Chase Lambin keyed a four-run first.  Brian Dinkelman had three hits.  Tosoni also homered, driving in three for the game.  Lambin also singled, and Danny Lehmann had two hits.  Andrew Baldwin went seven innings to get the win, striking out eight while giving up three runs on four hits and no walks.  Phil Dumatrait pitched a perfect ninth for the save.

Portland 11, New Britain 6 in New Britain.  The SeaDogs did all there scoring in three innings, getting five in the third, three in the sixth, and three in the ninth.  Chris Parmelee had two singles and a home run.  Yangervis Solarte hit two doubles.  Joe Benson singled and tripled, Steve Singleton singled and doubled, and Mark Dolenc had two hits.  Liam Hendriks took the loss, allowing five runs on five hits in five innings.  He walked none and struck out four.  Brett Jacobson allowed the three-run sixth and Santos Arias allowed the three-run ninth.

St. Lucie 4, Ft. Myers 1 in St. Lucie.  A three-run third provided the margin of victory.  The Miracle had only four hits, all singles, and no player had more than one.  Their lone run scored on a passed ball.  Kane Holbrooks took the loss, giving up three runs (two earned) on seven hits and no walks in seven innings.

Cedar Rapids 5, Beloit 3 in Beloit (Game 1—scheduled seven innings).  The Kernels led all the way, although never by more than three runs.  Daniel Ortiz had two doubles.  Oswaldo Arcia homered and singled.  Michael Gonzales homered.  Adrian Salcedo took the loss, allowing four runs (three earned) on five hits and four walks in 4.2 innings.

Beloit 9, Cedar Rapids 1 in Beloit (Game 2—scheduled seven innings).  The Snappers scored five in the third and were never threatened.  Josmil Pinto and Derek McCallum each had two hits.  Michael Gonzales hit a three-run homer in the big third inning.  Oswaldo Arcia walked twice and scored three times.  Starter Andrei Lobanov pitched four innings, giving up one run on six hits and a walk while striking out five.  Martire Garcia struck out three in two innings while allowing a hit and a walk to get the win.

Remodeled basement. Same half-baked taste.