minor lines, 7/30/11

by steve S on Jul 30, 2011 11:49 PM PDT in They Might Be Giants

Saturday highlight from the Giants' farm: Chris Heston allowed 1 ER in 8.0 IP. Also notable, Joan Gregorio had 5.0 one-hit, scoreless IP.

AAA: Fresno defeated Reno 7-4

Fresno: RF Justin Christian: 2 for 3, 3B, BB
Fresno: LF Brad Eldred: 1 for 3, HR, BB
Fresno: C Hector Sanchez: 2 for 4, 2B

Fresno: SP Matt Yourkin: 6.1 IP, 10 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 1 BB, 8 K--1 HR, 1 WP

Christian and Sanchez each had two hits for the Grizzlies, including Christian's 2nd PCL triple and Sanchez's 7th PCL double. Eldred led off the 2nd inning with his 19th HR.

Yourkin, who had so often had exactly 6.0 IP in his starts, had one of his longer starts, facing and retiring one batter in the 7th inning. His ERA is now 4.86.

AA: Richmond lost to Trenton 17-5

Richmond: LF Roger Kieschnick: 1 for 4, HR

Richmond: SP Ryan Verdugo: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 2 K
Richmond: RP Daryl Maday: 2.1 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 K--1 HR
Richmond: "RP" Skyler Stromsmoe: 1.0 IP, 2 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB--1 HB

No one reached base twice for the Flying Squirrels, and Kieschnick's 13th HR was their lone XBH.

Verdugo had his shortest start fo the year, walking four of his seven batters. Going the distance in the count to six batters, he may have reached the Giants' single inning pitch limit. Maday, the first of five Squirrels relievers, was not particularly effective in long relief, and the rout was on. Stromsmoe ended up with his third relief appearance this year.

A+: San Jose defeated Lancaster 4-3

San Jose: CF Gary Brown: 2 for 4, 3B
San Jose: 3B Juan Ciriaco: 1 for 2, BB, GiDP

San Jose: SP Chris Heston: 8.0+ IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 8 K

Brown had two of the Giants' five hits, including his 7th triple. Ciriaco also reached base twice.

Pitching into the 9th inning, Heston had his longest start of the year. He was perhaps the Giants' best pitcher in July, posting a 2.97 ERA in five starts.

A-: Augusta deated Hickory 6-5
(after trailing 5-2 through two innings)

Augusta: CF Chris Lofton: 3 for 4, 2 2B
Augusta: 1B Josh Mazzola: 1 for 4, HR
Augusta: C Jeff Arnold: 2 for 4, 2B, PB

Augusta: SP Taylor Rogers: 1.0+ IP, 6 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 1 BB, 0 K
Augusta: RP Justin Schumer: 3.2 IP, 3 H, 2 K
Augusta: RP Brett Bochy: 1.0 IP, 2 K

Combining for half of the GreenJackets' ten hits, Lofton and Arnold raised their AVGs to .267 and .224. Mazzola had his 10th HR.

Rogers had his shortest and perhaps worst start of the year. Schumer, the first of four relievers, had 3.2 scoreless IP. Bochy had 2 K in a perfect 9th inning for his 2nd save.

ssA: Salem-Keizer lost to Yakima 9-2
(falling behind 7-0 after three innings)

Salem-Keizer: SS Joe Panik: 2 for 4, 3B, SO

Salem-Keizer: SP Brandon Allen: 3.0 IP, 11 H, 7 R, 6 ER, 0 BB, 3 K

With two of the Volcanoes' five hits, including his 2nd triple, Panik raised his AVG to .340.

Allowing hits to 11 of 18 batters, Allen's BAA rose to .299, and his ERA to 6.58. He has 1-7 W-L record after nine starts.

R: Giants defeated Diamondbacks 5-3

Scottsdale: 3B Jose Cuevas: 1 for 3, HR, BB, E
Scottsdale: RF Elliott Blair: 3 for 4

Scottsdale: SP Joan Gregorio: 5.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 5 K--1 BK
Scottsdale: RP Kyle Crick: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 BB, 2 K

Cuevas had his 7th HR but also committed his 7th error (in 24 games). Blair's three singles raised his AVG to .333.

In eight starts, the 19-year-old Gregorio now has peripheral stats of 25 H, 11 BB, and 31 K in 35.2 IP. Comparing his current stats to his DSL stats last year, his WHIP is down, and his K/IP is up. After walking just one in his first three pro appearances, Crick had 2 BB in his fourth pro appearance.

DSL: Giants lost to Mets1 2-1 (6 innings--completed early)

Dominican: LF Julio Pena: 0 for 1, 2 BB
Dominican: SP Yeini Martinez: 6.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 5 K--1 HR, 2 HB

Pena (18.7 y.o.) was the lone Gigante to reach base twice, pushing his OBP above .300. Making his ninth start, Martinez (20.8 y.o.) took the complete-game loss.

Tweet Comment 31 comments | 0 recs |

Do you like this story?

Comments

Gary Brown's really starting to pick it up

24 for 64 since July 13 (I think), with 6 walks and 6 extra base hits.

by Julian Levine on Jul 30, 2011 11:56 PM PDT reply actions

His entire July line is great

.330/.405/.485

I look forward to this (imaginary) lineup:

CF Brown
2B Panik
3B Sandoval
C Posey
1B Belt
whatever
SS ~~Crawford~~Betancourt
whatever

Juan "Doesn't Cheat The Game" Perez, future CF for the World Champion San Francisco Giants.
"And besides, if I wanted to participate in a mindless patriotic ritual where my voice isn’t really heard, I would vote." - Chris Marcil

by marcello on Jul 31, 2011 1:33 AM PDT up reply actions

What's the chance that Joe Panik is able to stick at SS?

I’ve never actually watched extensive video of his defense, but I don’t know…the fact that the Giants’ scouting department thinks he can stick there gives me a little ounce of hope.

…I think it’s inevitable that Yuniesky ends up playing for the Giants. But only when he’s in his mid-30s.

by Julian Levine on Jul 31, 2011 1:41 AM PDT up reply actions

By the way

Is there a quick easy way to look at splits (i.e. by month) for a minor-leaguer? Neither B-Ref nor Fangraphs has ‘em (at least I don’t think they do).

by Julian Levine on Jul 31, 2011 1:44 AM PDT up reply actions

First Inning has monthly splits

As for the SS question, they’ll keep him there as long as possible (as they should), I just figure he’ll end up at 2B as most scouts think. He’s definitely there if the infield is Crawford/Panik.

by marcello on Jul 31, 2011 2:21 AM PDT up reply actions

After the draft they referred to him as Middle Infielder pretty consistently it seemed to me, so I’d guess they see him as 2B down the road. That said, it’s way too early to get too excited about his bat. I know he has a lot of believers, but there’s nothing important to be gleaned from his NWL numbers in my opinion.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 5:58 AM PDT up reply actions

In fact, just only about 2 weeks ago John Barr was still referring to him as a MI during an interview with Joe Ritzo. This was after Ritzo referred to him as a SS during the interview.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

Keep an eye on my son, Jake "The Jacksonville Rifle" Dunning. From SS to the mound - exclusively toeing the rubber since March 2010.

by Fla-Giant on Jul 31, 2011 10:23 AM PDT up reply actions

Thanks

by Julian Levine on Jul 31, 2011 12:45 PM PDT up reply actions

milb.com has a bunch of splits, too, if you click on a link to the player’s page.

by Dan from NM on Jul 31, 2011 1:51 PM PDT up reply actions

Brown does seem to have turned it around. That was an alarming slump he was going through there for 20-30 games. Good to see.

Two forks in my eye > Watching an Aubrey Huff at-bat in '11

by Phillyboijr on Jul 31, 2011 11:08 AM PDT up reply actions

I was at the SJ game. Heston looked great. A ton of first pitch strikes. Also, four three-pitch strikeouts. One scout near us said he was throwing a lot of curve balls. I was watching the radar gun of the charting pitcher and velocity was eh. Hitting 90 on his FB.

A Blue Jays scout was there scouting both San Jose and Lancaster. I told him he couldn’t have anyone from San Jose. :)

@legaleagle88
Giants Baseball: Why Not?
I thought Nate Schierholtz was cool before it was cool to think Nate Schierholtz was cool.

by kdl on Jul 31, 2011 12:17 AM PDT via mobile reply actions

I wonder who the Giants would want from Toronto

Jose Molina? Edwin Encarnacion as a RH bench bat maybe? Doesn’t seem like a tremendous fit between SF and Tor

Twitter Blog (Infrequently Updated)
Writing about the MLB Draft at MLBBonusBaby

by Gobroks on Jul 31, 2011 12:29 AM PDT up reply actions

Colby Rasmus!

by Deleuzian on Jul 31, 2011 3:44 AM PDT up reply actions

No need to read anything into it

It’s pretty typical SOP for minor league scouts to do roving assignments to cover the other organizations.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 6:00 AM PDT up reply actions

Yeah, that’s what I thought. He guessed that I was still traumatized over Wheeler, and was pretty amused.

@legaleagle88
Giants Baseball: Why Not?
I thought Nate Schierholtz was cool before it was cool to think Nate Schierholtz was cool.

by kdl on Jul 31, 2011 6:28 AM PDT up reply actions

Gary Brown for Jose Bautista!

My boy Joe Staley plays lineman on Sundays.
"I will never apologize for watching Bonds dominate" – Duane Kuiper

by Soulbrother16 on Jul 31, 2011 12:30 AM PDT up reply actions

I gotta imagine Roger K takes Neal's spot at Fresno

I mean he’s old and having a decentish-if-you-squint year repeating AA, and he was once a high draft pick so maybe they want to see what they have in him and test him at AAA

Twitter Blog (Infrequently Updated)
Writing about the MLB Draft at MLBBonusBaby

by Gobroks on Jul 31, 2011 12:28 AM PDT reply actions

He does make the most sense

And maybe Brown can move to Richmond. Kieschnick’s wRC+ is still barely above average but of course wRC+ isn’t the greatest metric in the lower minors. The power in a power-sapping league and stadium is intriguing and if he has a nice second half maybe things get interesting.

Seth Rosin can hit the side of a barn with a baseball. From space.
Giants baseball: We're stupid enough to WIN that (TM)

by quincy0191 on Jul 31, 2011 12:43 AM PDT up reply actions

Neal’s spot in Fresno has mostly been either MIA or DL this year. I’m not sure they need a coporeal presence to fill that spot.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 6:00 AM PDT up reply actions

DFA Rowand and when he clears let him “find” his swing in Fresno.

Go Giants

by Gianni on Jul 31, 2011 5:55 AM PDT reply actions

I detect a recurring 1st inning pattern for SP in the organization last night.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 6:01 AM PDT reply actions

It’s interesting to me that pretty consistently the Augusta squad is posting the best walk rates in the system.

WIlloughby 12%
Duvall 12%
Lofton 11%
Campbell 11%
Lollis 11%
Haney 11%
Adrianza 11%
Mazzola 10.4%
Harris 9%
Arnold 8%

And although it’s SSS, there is a notable difference in walk rates for some of the players who’ve played at two levels this year.

For instance Adrianza’s walk rate in SJ is 7.5%, down from 10.7% in Augusta. Ryan Lollis’ also posted a 7% bb rate in SJ, but has an 11.% in Augusta. Joel Weeks drew 3 bb in 45 PA in Richmond, but has 15 in 106 PA in SJ. You could make an argument for all three of those guys that, having played at higher levels they’re more able to slow the game down when they slum it in Low A, but regardless, it’s pretty difficult to find 10% walk rates anywhere else in the system, and the Augusta team is flush with them.

If it’s something the coaching staff down there is preaching successfully, then those guys need to share their secrets with the rest of the staffs (or perhaps get promoted themselves).

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 6:33 AM PDT reply actions

On the other hand, they’ve had little success with Rafrod (5.8%) who’s vaunted “advanced approach” to hitting back in his first go round in the AZL now looks like it was probably more a combination of timidity and your standard level AZL pitching.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 6:36 AM PDT up reply actions

One theory

The Augusta manager, Lipso Nava (one of the great names in the system), was a hitting coach until this year. In fact, the original Ausgust hitting coach left the team about a month ago so it appears that Nava is playing both roles. Perhaps having the manager be the hitting coach makes the hitters want to please him more than usual.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

Keep an eye on my son, Jake "The Jacksonville Rifle" Dunning. From SS to the mound - exclusively toeing the rubber since March 2010.

by Fla-Giant on Jul 31, 2011 10:21 AM PDT up reply actions

Maybe this will make people feel better after an ugly series

Clayton Blackburn pitched 5 strong innings in AZ today (his longest stint as a pro), giving up only 4 hits and no runs. He only had 1 K, but he also didn’t walk anybody. He continues his unbroken string of strong pitching performances in his short pro career. I can’t wait to see this kid on TV. It’ll be hard for the Giants to keep him off the Augusta roster next spring.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

Keep an eye on my son, Jake "The Jacksonville Rifle" Dunning. From SS to the mound - exclusively toeing the rubber since March 2010.

by Fla-Giant on Jul 31, 2011 3:46 PM PDT reply actions

What’s the scouting report on Blackburn? Does he have enough good pitches to be a starter?

Check out Catch-28.com. A blog about Buster Posey and the San Francisco Giants.

by EricW on Jul 31, 2011 4:10 PM PDT up reply actions

I’ve never been able to find a scouting report on him. He was overshadowed by a tremendous class of HS starting pithcers in the state of Oklahoma this year (Bundy, Bradley, Fulmer). It’s hard to get much ink when those top 2 guys are sucking up all the copy and eyeballs of the scouts. I do know that he had 106 Ks in 66 innings this year while pitching at the highest level of HS ball in Oklahoma. He’s also a very good athlete, and good hitter, despite having a body that needs to be toned up more than a little bit.

"There ain’t much to being a ballplayer, if you’re a ballplayer." - Honus Wagner

Keep an eye on my son, Jake "The Jacksonville Rifle" Dunning. From SS to the mound - exclusively toeing the rubber since March 2010.

by Fla-Giant on Jul 31, 2011 7:44 PM PDT up reply actions

I’m going to guess this doesn’t make anybody feel that much better (based on a sample of one).

Still, future…

Kendry Flores is going tonight, too.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 4:59 PM PDT up reply actions

ouch…3.1 IP and 10 hits…

by repeat_in_2011 on Jul 31, 2011 8:34 PM PDT up reply actions

Not his finest hour.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Aug 1, 2011 5:31 AM PDT up reply actions

With the caveat that I opined a few weeks ago, that I think the lower minors tend to exaggerate gb rates because of the quality of hitters, Blackburn is certainly showing signs of being an extreme gb pitcher thus far in his career. Can’t find GB% for the AZL, but his GO/FO ratio according to MiLB.com is 27/4 thus far on the season. In his two starts it’s 18/2.

MY DAD WAS WRONG!
MY BOY NEEDS TO THROW HARDER!

by Roger on Jul 31, 2011 7:23 PM PDT up reply actions