The Mallards

[Muskies]

@pgraves – Charlotte LF Carlos Ortega has been diagnosed with a broken elbow and will be out for 8 months

@pgraves – Washington SS Felix Soberano sustained a setback in his recovery and will be out for at least another week.

[Muskies]

Our game tonight is at 6:05 and has RHP J. Jackson (0-1, 5.06) pitching against RHP Tom Lewis (1-2, 7.04). I am anxious to see how he does tonight. I has had two outings, thus far, during both of them he was hit pretty hard. I brought Ramon into my office today to discuss what to do with Jackson if he is banged all around the ball park. I am going to push having him in the bullpen and putting P. Juarez back into the starting lineup.

A review of the waiver wire and the trading block did not reveal anything new.

@tliggett – New York’s SP Harvey Young left the game with finger blister, he will be day to day for two days.

I had some extra time before heading the ball park so I decided to take a look at the personality profiles of our pitching staff to see if there may be any conflicts

Jose Souza – Has good leadership skills and is an extremely hard worker, he gets along with everyone.
Jose Polledo – A good teammate who enjoys a beer or two with friends
Abraham Johnson – A clubhouse leader both on and off the field
Joe Jackson – Considered one of the team leaders and is pretty smart; popular in the clubhouse
Bartolo Salzar – is considered one of the team leaders

Marc Huporkorny – never shows any lack of effort
Manual Farias – considered one of the team leaders, but isn’t very smart
Alejandro Garcia – has exceptional work ethic
Matt Hinton – shows some leadership, is pretty smart and has a good work ethic. He gets along with everyone

Javier Tavares – leads by example, he is well regarded by teammates
Pancho Juarez – a real team leader

Lowell Bishop – Decent guy

There do not appear to be any cancer’s among the pitching staff in the locker room, other than perhaps there are too many leaders, not sure I see that as being a problem. Perhaps they just need more time…

Time to get ready to head to the ball park.

@pgraves – Philadelphia 1B Curt Cannon tied the regular season base on balls record with 4

@pgraves – SP Chris Faulkner of Nashville left the game with an injury, diagnosis pending.

In the second inning J. Jackson allowed a solo HR. Through six innings we are down 2 to 1 off two solo home runs. Now where is the offense? We tied the game up at two in the top of the 8th inning and Ortiz put Jackson back out on the mound. Jackson certainly had pitched well enough to earn another start buy why wouldn’t he hand the ball off to the number one bullpen in baseball. He seems pretty fixated on getting the pitchers to go over the 100 pitch count. Frustrating losing the game 3 to 2. We actually got a quality start from a pitcher only to see the offense fall flat on its face.

Flipping through the channels I noticed Detroit beat Memphis and Tampa is losing 11-3 to Austin in the ninth inning; with our loss to Columbus we have a four way tie for first place in the NL Central


Nothing to note in the late games tonight, I am going to head back to the hotel and get some rest. Until tomorrow.

@tliggett – Nashville’s Joe Bass hitting streak ended at 26 games.

Mallards fall to Columbus 2 to 3
By Rick Featherstone

COLUMBUS 3, MADISON 2
WP: P. Silva (2-0, 2.30)
LP: Joe Jackson (0-2, 4.34)
Save: A. Simon (8)
HR: K. Trent (7), L. Brown (4)
POG: Kevin Trent (RF) – 3-4. R 2 RBI, HR

Performances of the Day

[Muskies]

Tonight is the final game of the three game series against Columbus. I wish that the league office would schedule the last game of the series in the afternoon so that we had time to get the team and their gear of town on a timely basis. I flew home this morning with Mr. Stuart to make sure tha that the stadium and staff are ready for a three game home series against Kansas City. I will watch the game in the office. It will be a good test for Salazar (3-0, 2.66) against Sidney Booker (3-1, 3.26), who is one of the tops in the league. Last night was a tough loss to swallow, however, Joe Jackson certainly pitched well enough to earn another start or two, but the offense just couldn’t generate enough runs for the win.

Baltimore, Veteran Woods Sign Deal

Baltimore has reached an agreement with closer Rick WoPiods to continue as their closer for another three years.

This season Woods has 10 saves. In 14 appearances he has hurled 14.2 innings, struck out 16 and given up 6 walks with an 0-1 record. The Baltimore reliever has recorded a 3.07 ERA and allowed the opposition to hit .268 when on the hill. For his career Woods is 72-61 with 49 saves and an ERA of 4.15. The terms of the agreement have not been disclosed.

@pgraves – we have heard that the deal is for 3 years at $3.6 million per year with the third year being a player option.

As a GM one always has to keep one eye on the present and one eye on the future. While in the position there isn’t much to reflect on the past, however, every now and then I like to a few moments to reflect on the past. On the plane I had some time so I looked back on the Mallard team that won the World Series in 2004.

Catcher – Scotty Hubbard (35 years old) – was traded this offseason to Jacksonville
First Base – Carlos Pena (34 years old) – is currently the first basemen with Nashville
Second Base – Ethan Sharp (41 years old) retired in 2010 after 13 season in the ABL
Short stop – Gabriel Hernandez (37 years old) retired in 2008 after 11 seasons, 2004 was his only year in Madison
Third Base – Wesley Mill (32 years old) – today is actually is birthday, currently a free agent, spent last year in Austin. His mind is there but his body is not.
Left Field – Arturo Delgado (39 years old) retired in 2007
Center Field – David Chamings (35 years old) – is still with the Mallards, next year is the last year and is a team option.
Right Field – Rick Arthur (37 years old) – retired in 2008

Key Pitchers
Robert Aquino (33 years old) – currently a reliever with Mesa
Tim Brown (38 years old) – retired in 2011
Pedro Gonzalez (38 years old) – retired in 2013
Lorenzo Hernandez (35 years old) – retired in 2011
Mike Howell – (39 years old) – a free agent looking for another team
Rafael Rodriguez (33 years old) – currently a middle reliever with Jacksonville
Jose Varela (36 years old) – currently a free agent, ironically he left Milwaukee after the 2004 season and came back for 2011 when we won our second championship.

Maybe if we have injury problems I should look at bringing him back, perhaps that is the juju we are missing. Makes you realized how quickly rosters turn over.

Game time
We are off to a nice start in the top of the first G. Martinez hit a 2 run home run followed a solo home run by K. Nishikawa.

In the bottom of the third inning B. Salazar has allowed 4 runs; now we are playing from behind.

It’s the top of the 4th inning G. Martinez hits a triple with two Shaffer and Ryan on base, to put the Mallards back on top, he has the two hardest bases of the cycle complete.

Ortiz has pulled Salazar in the top of the 5th inning after allowing another solo shot to tie up the game. M. Huporkorny is coming out.

Columbus third basemen just left the game with a fractured finger, he will be out for two months.

Bottom of the sixth and Columbus is threatening, players on the second and third with two outs, Huporkorny is tiring and allows a single, giving Columbus the go ahead run.

@tligget – San Francisco starting pitcher Bruce Hawkins leaves the game with a calf strain, he shouldn’t miss his next start.

Tampa is losing to Austin in the seventh, so they are continuing their slide as well and Memphis is blowing out Detroit, the winner of this game will be tied with Memphis for the lead in the division.

It is time to stretch. Columbus leads the game 7 to 6. There have been five players today who hit two home runs in a game, sure wish one of ours was on that list.

@pgraves – Dallas’ Sixto Chavez ties the regular season record for runs at 4

Tampa has tied Austin at 2 in the bottom of the eighth inning. Top of the ninth, we only have three more outs, to get on the board. Kouno has gotten into scoring position with two outs and Chamings strikes out to end the game. Our struggles continue losing to Columbus 6-7. Marc Huporkorny took the loss. After one quality start from the piching staff we have reverted back to our normal self.

Austin and Tampa have taken the game into extra innings. Tampa wins the game in the bottom of the 11th inning.

Mallards Drop their Second in a Row
By Rick Featherstone

WP: B. Gaillard (1-1, 5.30)
LP: M. Huporkorny (1-1, 1.82)
Save: A. Limon (9)
HR: K. Nishikawa (9), G. Martinez (5), A. Holliday (5), A. Marshall (6)
POG: G. Martinez 2-5, R, 4 RBI, HR, 3B

Performances of the Day

[Muskies]

Today we start a three game home stand against Kansas City. Wesley Peters has just sent me his scouting report on the team.

Kansas City has gone 13-17, .433 so far this year. They currently sit 5th place in the NL Central. Below are their key statistics for the year:



The team currently has two Key injuries

LF – Jason Davis has been sidelined for two weeks with shoulder tendonitis and is due to return the day after this series ends.

CF Xu-Gang Liu – was diagnosed with elbow inflammation and will miss another three weeks, having already missed two.

The projected pitching match ups are:
RHP J. Souza (2-0, 4.84) versus RHP M. Hernandez (0-1, 1.80)
RHP J. Polledo (1-3, 5.45) versus RHP M. Williams (5-1, 3.50)
LHP A. Johnson (3-3, 6.63) vesus RHP A. Castro (3-3, 3.16)

The top five players on their team are:
SP Maximo Hernandez (33, 5.0 of 5.0)
3B Ed Green (27, 5.0, 5.0)
SS Jason Gross (26, 4.5, 4.5)
RF Alex Bruno (27, 4.5, 4.5)
CL James Kaufman (42, 4.0, 4.0)

First pitch tonight is at 7:05.

Going to take some time this morning to perform a review of the farm system:

Currently our minor league system ranks 4th out of 32, certainly a respectable showing.

Here is a snapshot of our top prospects at each position:



Interesting observation is that that Trevor Carlson is the top short stop prospect and the number 2 starting pitching prospect. That means that he is either a phenom or my minor league pitching prospects are that bad. After a quick review it is reflection of the lack of depth in the starting rotation. This is a combination of the depleted draft pool, low first round picks and missing on the diamonds in the rough. Our top prospect LHP Kiyomasu Fujita was found through international scouting.

The standing of our Minor League clubs are as follows:



Our top prospects have performed as follows:

2nd SP Kiyomasu Fujita (18, R) – season has not started yet
17th 1B Allan Stephans (21, AAA) – 21 G, .318/.341/.506
18th Trevor Carlson (20, AA) – 23 G, .253/.340/.527
131st SP Joe Jackson (25, ML) – 3 GS, 0-2, 4.34 ERA
187th C Jim Bell (24, AAA) – 19 G, .327/.441/.660
200th CL Jose Martinez (23, AAA) – 9 G, 4 SV, 7.27 ERA

I see a couple opportunities here to improve the prospect list. We have Katai Nishikawa locked up at first base through 2016, which doesn’t give Allan Stephans much of an opportunity, unless there is an injury to Nishikawa.

C. Jim Bell, is older than R. Mendenders and Menders is a far better defensive player, so there isn’t much opportunity there either.

SS Trevor Carlson defensively tops at his position, but he can’t get on base like Christian Ryan. On top of that Ryan can play multiple infield positions.




We have some holes in the prospect list at 2nd base, 3rd base and in the outfield, however filling those holes would hurt our prospect list at Catcher, First Base and Short stop, but I don’t see any opportunity for the prospects that we have. It will be time to start doing some research and making some calls. I have scheduled a meeting for tomorrow with Wesley to look at potential trades.

Tampa is playing the early game today against Phoenix, Phoenix topped Tampa 6 to 4.



Game Time

I would really like to see a strong outing by J. Souza, his last couple starts have been a real struggle, which seems to have set the tone for the rest of the staff.

@pgraves – Boston’s Irving Murphy just hit a GRAND SLAM in the top of the first.

Through three innings we have ourselves a pitching due. The score is knotted at 0-0 and J. Souza has 1 hit to M. Hernandez no hits.

@ tligget – San Antonio 1B Tim Gardner has left the game @ with an bruised injury, looks to be pretty minor.

@tligget – Dallas 2B Dutch Hansen will be out for 4 weeks with a strained hamstring

@tligget – Long Beach 1B Abraham Eaton, at this time we do not have a diagnosis

@tligget – Dallas CF Cameron Parkinson with shoulder soreness, tough day for the Harpies

@pgraves – Boston’s Richie Pope has moved up to number 14th on the career triples list with 70.

We finally got our first hit in the 4th inning, Shaffer than stole second, but got caught stealing 3rd. After 6 innings the Mallards are up 2 to 1 over Kansas City, Kansas City only run came on an error. One of the Mallard runs came on a Wild Pitch, the other off a Christian Ryan double.

@pgraves – Clevelands Kippy Crews has hit a GRAND SLAM

M. Huporkorny allowed a 2 run home run in the top of the 8th inning, wrenching after the outing by J. Souza.

We have started the bottom of the ninth with a double from C. Ryan. G Martinez grounds out, M. Fiadeiro grounds out, leaving M Kouno at the plate, who grounds out to the end the game. We lose our third game in a row, all by one run. Painfully frustrating!! That puts us in 4th place 2 games behind Memphis.

Interesting choice by Ortiz to pull Nishikawa in the bottom of the ninth with a runner on second for M. Fiadeiro. I am still not ready to second guess R. Ortiz.

@pgraves – Jeff Crawford of Long Beach 1 hit Oklahoma City over 8.1 innings

Mallards Lose Third One Run Game in a Row
By Rick Featherstone

WP: M. Hernandez (1-1, 2.00)
LP: M. Hinton (0-1, 4.02)
HR: J. Brantley (3)
POG: M. Hernandez 8.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 K

Performances of the Day

[Muskies]

Game time tonight is 7:05 again. Today I have a meeting with Wesley Peters. Our first order of the day will be seeing what I could get for First Basemen Allen Stephans. Wesley predicts that Allen should at least be a regular starter in the ABL. He is not home run hitter but makes good contact with the ball. So far this year in 90 at bats he is hiting .311/.333/.500 with 3 home runs and 16 RBI. He has struck out 26 times. Defensively he has good hands that make the hard plays look easy. He is ready to be promoted to the major’s as a backup and could possible slide into the rotation on a more regular basis.

We reviewed a list of the top prospects for which we might be interest.

3B Cory Norton – JAC (20/R/1.5* of 5*) #15 prospect– he has a really high ceiling, but there may be some issues with having the drive to make the most of his potential. He should be in the major’s by next year. Which would allow me to not have to exercise the option on Miguel Ruiz. He would likely cost me more than a single first baseman.

SS Lee Owens (LB) – (21/R/1.5*of 4.5*) #38 prospect – A superior offensive player who is consistent and has a great approach to hitting. Learns quickly and has few holes. Currently in AA hitting .333/.360/.400 with 7 RBI. He is listed as a short stop but his purse position is 2B

SP Antonio Soto (FRE) – (23/R/1.5* of 3.5*) - #22 prospect – Projects to be a mid-rotation starter and good influence in the club house. This year his 1-1, 3.86 ERA, 1.48 WHIP, .329 BABIP in AA

SP Julio Hernandez (FRE) – (24/L/1* of 3*) - #40 prospect – A solid workhorse should be a #3 starter for years to come. A leader who never shows any lack of effort. Currently in AAA is 2-2, 5.52 ERA, 1.02 WHIP, .274 BABIP.

Boy, its already 6:30 we have the start of the solid prospect list, but I would like to dig a little deeper tomorrow, but now I need to get ready to watch the game. Tonight we have Jose Polledo (1-3, 5.45) facing Nick Williams (5-1, 3.50), forgive me if I am not over optimistic.

@tligget – Fresno 1B Gabrial Smith is out for 3 to 4 weeks with a torn quadriceps, that puts Fresno with 6 players on the disabled list.

@pgraves – Baltimore Brian Murray now ranks 11th on the all-time triples list with 72.

Game Time
Through 3 innings the Mallards have a 3 to 0 lead over Kansas City. Thus far solid pitching and good offense. Steve Shaffer did go down in the first inning with a scratched cornea and is expected to miss 1 -2 weeks. Not likely long enough for the DL. It is timely that John Benson will be back in 3 days.

@tligget – Madison’s Steve Shaffer expected to miss 1 to 2 weeks with a scratched cornea.

@tligget – Ken Moss of Houston is out for 1 to 2 weeks with knee tendonitis

@tligget – Memphis starting pitcher Gary Owen leaves with and injury and has been diagnosed with a torn labrum, will miss 3 months.

After seven innings we remain up 3 to 0. Polledo pitched a fantastic game, lasting 7 innings, allowing only 3 hits striking out 7, now let’s if the bullpen can carry us home. Pancho Juarez has come in to pitch the 8th inning.

We loaded the bases in the bottom of the 8th with no outs and couldn’t get one run across. We win 3 to 0 over Kansas City. A nice effort all around but highlighted by the pitching performance of Jose Polledo, hopefully that outing by Souza yesterday and Polledo today will inspire the whole rotation and the team.

@pgraves – Javier Dias of Los Angeles is ejected for arguing a call. We don’t believe that it will warrant a suspension from the league

It was a good day, we got a win and got some nice work done. I will pick it up again tomorrow.

Mallards Win Behind Polledo’s Gem
By Rick Featherstone

WP: J. Polledo (2-3, 4.50)
LP: N. Williams (5-2, 3.52)
Save: L. Bishop (10)
POG: J. Polledo 7.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, BB, 7 K

Performances of the Day



Left Fielder Steve Shaffer is out
By Jerry Weathers

In the top of the first inning Shaffer was hit by pitch. In the process of trying to get out of the way he scratched his Cornea and will be out of the line up for a bit. The Mallards have announced that the will not place him on the disabled list during that time. For the season Shaffer is batting .303 with 2 HR, 18 RBI and 6 stolen bases. He will be replaced by Nolan Schaefer

[Muskies]

There are a lot of early games today so while Wesley and I continue to look at prospects we will also be watching the games. Boy, I love this job!!!! We are one of the three last games of the day. Our first pitch is at 7:05 and pits Abraham Johnson (3-3, 6.63) against Wayne Park (2-3, 6.84).

After a couple hours of pouring through the listing of the top prospects, both Wesley and I agreed that our primary target should be Cory Nelson the third basemen within the Jacksonville organization. Jacksonville is currently in a rebuilding mode. Fortunately, their Cory Nelson is not their top third base prospect, unfortunately their first basemen prospect is rated a couple spots above Allan Stephans…. But it doesn’t’ hurt to ask.

Jacksonville’s GM is Philippe Dos Santo’s. He is 57 years old from Germany and this is his first year on the job and in the ABL.

“Philippe, how are things? I haven’t had a chance to welcome you to the league.”

“Thank you, Kage, I appreciate that, it certainly is quite a change from overseeing Germany’s futbol club. But I was brought in to turn the organization upside down. Which means we will lose before we win.”

“I can certainly respect that, Phillippe. I know you guys are playing Austin right now, but you have some time?

“Sure I can spare a few minutes

Listen, I have this AAA first basemen Allan Stephans who is ready for the big leagues, but is not likely to see much time as long as I have Nishikawa on the roster. Do you have any interest?”

“I may be, who are you looking at?”

“I would like to structure something around Cory Nelson.”

“Hmmmm, surely you are not looking at a straight up deal?”

“What else do you have in mind?”

“I tell you what Kage, I will put together a list of potential players and send it over to you tonight.”

“That will work, welcome to the ABL Phillippe.”

“Thank’s Kage”


We will have to see what he comes up with, the price may be pretty steep given that he is in a rebuilding mode. My next call will be to German Cantu, the GM for Long Beach. He is in his second year as the GM of Long Beach and after 42-71 stint taking over in the middle of the season, has Long Beach playing 22-10 ball so far.

“German, congratulations on the nice start to the season.”

“Thank you Kage what can I do for you?”

“I have a first basemen Allan Stephans I thought you might be interested in taking a look at?”

“Stephans, huh, he is off to a good start this season, hitting .311 in AAA”.

He has been following him that is a good sign.

“Who are you looking at?”

“I would like to craft something around Short Stop Lee Owens.”

“Owens for Stephan’s… You are going to have to put in more than that. If you add Trevor Carlson, Jason Hester or Kiyomasu Fujita in we could work something out.”

“Well German, I can tell you Fujita is off the table. Let me put explore this and see if we can give this some legs. Thanks for your time”


They both took the call so we have some room to work. It was a lot to ask to look for a straight up trade. Cantu did have Trevor Carlson on the list who I would be willing to deal but that may be a steep price to pay. I was hoping to work a separate deal with Carlson. Wesley and I will have to take another look, but at least we have something to work with.

@tligget – Indianapolis SP Sander Softeland has left the game with an injury, we don’t have a diagnosis yet.

@tligget – Philadelphia RF Jerry Davenport was injured, still waiting to hear from the team as to the extent of the injury.

@tligget – Juan Lopez SS from New York went down with an injury, diagnosis is still pending.

@tligget – tough day in the ABL Nashville’s SP Brendon Simmons went down with an injury, again no diagnosis as of yet.

@pgraves – Jude Clark (SA) had a no hitter going through 7 innings, allowing his first hit in the 8th inning, however San Antonio is only up 1-0 over Ft. Worth.

Game Time
Top of the first inning, Johnson walks the first two batters, followed by a three run home run by A. Luna, our starting pitching woes aren’t over. We managed to push across one run in the second and are down 3 to 1 after three innings. I received the following email on my phone during the game:


From: pdossanto@claymores.com

To: kjohnson@mallards.com

Subject: Discussion from earlier today

Kage,

Thanks for the call today, I have taken a look at your roster and the following players, in addition to Stephan’s, interest me.

SP – Bartolo Salazar
SP – Jose Polledo
C – Roberto Menenders
SS – Christian Ryan
SP – Abraham Johnson
CF – Jason Hester
SS – Trevor Carlson
SP – Kiyomasu Fujita

I look forward to hearing from you.

P.

The three consistent players on each list are Hester, Carlson and Fujita. Fujita is non-negotiable at this point, he has the potential to become a superstar. I would like to see how he develops. I will let this marinate for a couple days and revisit.

@tligget – Long Beach 2B left the game with a strained oblique and is expected to miss one to two weeks.

After six inning we are down 3 to 2. Johnson has actually managed to put together a nice game his is still in and has struck out seven batters only walking one more.

Disappointing seventh inning, A. Johnson allowed another run, followed by J. Tavares coming in in relief to give up a three run home run. We lost the game 7-3, G. Martinez did hit a solo home run in the bottom of the 8th, but too little too late.

Where do I go with this, I know it is too early to panic, but I feel like I am losing my grip on the season. We have a long night ahead of us, we have to get the team players and supplies packed up and to Tampa for a 1:05 start tomorrow.

Mallards Lose 2 of 3 to Kansas City
By Rick Featherstone

WP: W. Park (3-3, 5.60)
LP: A. Johnson (3-4, 6.85)
HR: C. Lerma (3), A. Lara (5), K. Nishikawa (10), G. Martinez (6)
POG: Antonio Lara 3-5, 2 R, 4 RBI, HR

[Muskies]

Each week I as my assistance to provide me a one page summary of how we are doing for and the Weekly Award Winners in the ABL and within our organization:



Weekly Award Winners
by Phil Graves

NL – Dave Hansen (AUS) – 16-28, 5 RBI, 6 R
AL – Clancy Gibson (SJ) – 13-27, 5 HR, 13 RBI

Career ABL in intentional walks
Roberto Sanchez, -, 123
Doyle Ellis, -, 122
Dave Christian, -, 118
Carlos Carrasco, -, 116
Dave Starr, -, 116

Weekly Power Ranking: 87.7, --, 17th in ABL

[Muskies]

Don’t have much time this morning for extra business, we didn’t get into Tampa until after 2:00 in the morning, caught a few hours of sleep on the plane and in the hotel and I am now on my way to the ballpark. Wesley sent his report on Tampa to me on the way to the airport.

-----


From: wpeters@mallards.com

To: kjohnson@mallards.com

Subject: Tampa Bay Scouting Report

Tampa Bay this year is 19-14, which is good for first in the NL Central Division. Their number of runs scored of 165 rank 10th in National League, their .278 batting average ranks 3rd. On the other side of the diamond, they have given up 150 runs (4th in NL) with their starters compiling an ERA of 3.72 which ranks 1st in the NL. Their bullpen sports and ERA of 5.20 ranking 15th.

Here are the projected pitching match ups:
RHP J. Jackson (0-2, 4.34) versus RHP H. Pickett (2-1, 5.13)
RHP B. Salazar (3-0, 4.24) versus RHP B. Bell (2-1, 4.91)
RHP J. Souza (2-0, 4.07) versus RHP A. Patino (3-2, 3.35)

The top 5 players on their team are:
3B Dalton Rouse (27, 4.5 of 5.0)
SP Mike Bonnett (32, 4.5 of 4.5)
CL Martin Duke (28, 4.5 of 4.5)
SS David Rodriguez (21, 4.0 of 5.0)
1B Manuel Colon (33, 3.0 of 3.0)

Wesley Peters
Head Scout – Madison Mallards

----

If we can have good series here, we are right back in the mix.

We are scoreless through three innings, J. Jackson has pitched three strong innings one hit and two strikeouts.

@tligget – Manny Cruz (SS) of Chicago leaves the game with an injury.

Tampa scores two runs in the bottom of the 5th inning, and we get one bac in the top of the 6th inning. J. Jackso is still going strong into the top of the 7th inning.

We head into the top of the ninth inning down one run, with Chamings, Ruiz and Osorio up to bat. Chamings flies out. Ruiz gets on base and Fiadeiro comes in to pinch hit and knocks him in to tie the game.

Lowell Bishop comes into the bottom of the ninth inning and shuts down the side 1,2,3, and we head into the 10th inning.

Bishop heads out to the mound in the bottom of the 10th inning and quickly allows a solo home run to Rick Lambright.

@tligget – Johnathon George (SA) has left the game with an undiagnosed injury

@tligget – Oklahoma City’ MR Larry Saunders leaves the game with an injury, no diagnosis as of yet.

@tligget – Antonio Morales (IND) leaves the game with a mild hamstring sprain, he will be day to day for a few days.

@tigget – Houston right fielder Alan Waddington leaves the game with an undiagnosed injury.

Mallards fall to .500 on the year loose to Tampa
By Rick Featherstone

The Mallards Joe Jackson pitched 8 strong inning only allowing two earned runs off 6 hits; however he did not get a decision as the Mallards offense couldn’t generate enough offense to get the Mallards the win. Tampa was won the game in the bottom of te inning off as solo home run by Rick Lambright.



Performances of the Day

[Muskies]

@NY – Shortstop Juan Lopez, who was injured on May 5th has been diagnosed with a broken elbow and will miss 4 to 5 months. For the season Lopez has hit .241 with 2 HR and 8 RBI in 58 plate appearance. The team has called up Vincente Delgado to cover in his absence.

Game time tonight is 6:05 and pairs RHP Bartolo Salazar (3-0, 4.24) against RHP Brit Bell (2-1, 4.91). John Benson will rejoin the team; Thomas Lee will go back down to AAA. A daily review of the waiver wire and trading block didn’t provide and inspiration to round out the team.

After thinking about it overnight, I calmed down and decided for the meantime to let Ortiz manage. He is a proven winner and knows what he is doing. But I will be watching…

Before I re engage Jacksonville and Long Beach in trade negotiations I decided to get a feel for the teams that are in a win now versus rebuilding mode.

@tligget – Cleveland right fielder Clyde Kelly leaves the game with a sore elbow, he will be day to day for a few days.

Rebuilding:
Boston, New York, Houston, Jacksonville, Long Beach, New York, Phoenix, Sacramento and San Francisco

Win Now
Cleveland, Columbus, Indianapolis, Mesa and Philadelphia

Cleveland

- ABL 1B – Desi Love (24/L/ 3* of 4*) – to date he is hitting .297 with 8 HR and 19 RBI – Allan Stephans wouldn’t be an upgrade for Cleveland


Indianapolis
- ABL 1B – Valentine Rodriguez (24/L/5*) – currently hitting .282 with 1 HR and 3 RBI in 71 at bats

@tligget – Columbus Catcher Logan Turner has left the game with an injury, diagnosis is pending

Mesa
- ABL 1B Octavio Lopes (28/R/1*) hitting .133 with 1 HR and 7 RBI. Their regular 1B Jose Garcia is sidelined for 2 to 3 months with a torn meniscus. This one has possibilities. I will have to take a look at their prospect list

Philadelphia
- ABL Curt Cannon – (31/S/2.5*) hitting .212 with 0 HR and 8 RBI. Another possibility.


I got Wesley on the phone and asked him to provide some feedback on Mesa and Philadelphia and potential prospects they may be willing to trade for ABL ready first basemen. He will have it for me first thing in the morning.

First pitch is only a couple of hours away, so I am going to head to the ballpark to watch some of the games and warm up.

@tligget – San Francisco’s Vetle Mikkelsen and Fernando Luna both leave the game win an injury, Mikkelsen’s injury is undiagnosed and Luna is day to day with a tired arm.

Game Time

Through three innings we are leading Tampa 1 to 0, B. Salazar has pitched three innings allowing three hits.

@tligget – Richie Pope (BOS) leaves the game with a strained hamstring and will miss three months.

David Chamings leaves the game in the fourth inning with an injury, diagnosis is pending….

@tigget – Philadelphia 3rd basemen Goitom Chatuluka is out for 1 to 2 weeks with strained quadriceps

Through 6 inning we are down 4 to 1, Salazar allowed a three run home run and another run in the bottom of the sixth inning.

@pgraves – through 7 innings Jacksonvilles Sadayoshi has pitched 6 no hit innings.

@tligget – Garry Parrson’s New York Middle reliever left the game with shoulder soreness and he will be day to day for 3 days.

Salazar pitched through 8 inning and 120 pitches, J. Tavares has come in to pitch in the bottom of the 8 inning. Kouno hit a solo home run in the top of the ninth inning, but it wasn’t enough. Mallards fall to Tampa 4 to 2.

Mallards drop another, lose 4 to 2 to Tampa
By Rick Featherstone

Mallards continue their slide falling 4 to 2 to Tampa. For the month of May they are 1-7. Bartolo Salazar took his first loss of the year by allowing four runs in the sixth inning. A larger concern is the loss of center fielder David Chamings to an undiagnosed injury. With the loss the Mallards fall 4 games out of first place in the NL Central.

[Muskies]

Henry Misses Team Flight
By Phil Graves

Word out of Highlanders camp today is that Bill Henry may be fined by the team or benched for the next game as punishment for missing the team flight. “It’s unacceptable,” commented manager Mark Donnelly. “He should know better and should take responsibility for his actions. Something needs to be done tocurb this behavior before it becomes a real problem.”

Pressed for comment, Henry simply said “I overslept, It happens.”

Game time tonight is at 6:05 and pits RHP Jose Souza (2-0, 4.07) against RHP Andres Patino (3-2, 3.35). Hopefully we can avoid the Tampa fans from bringing out the brooms for the sweep.

Wesley has provided me with his prospect lists for Mesa and Philadelphia for my review. Tomorrow is a day off so I would like to make some movement on a trade of some sort.

Mesa Prospect Lists

Mesa’s current minor league system rank’s 31st out of the 32 team’s in the ABL. They have only one prospect ranked in the top 100 and two in the top 200.

#81 – 2B Paul Wiggins (AAA) – In 7 games at AAA he is hitting .348/.500/.348 with 4 runs batted in. Wiggins is an extremely hard worker, but his future in the ABL is more that of a role player rather than a starter.
#158 – SS Carlos Sorenson (AA) – In AA this year he is hitting .207/.266/.391 with 2 HR and 10 RBI. Sorenson is an above average fielder, but doesn’t appear to have the offense to be a daily player in the ABL.

Philadelphia Prospect List

Philadelphia’s current minor league system ranks 28th out of the 32 teams in the ABL. They have two prospects in the top 100 and three in the top 200. All of their top prospects are starting pitching.

#51 Larry Ballard (AA) – In 5 starts he is (1-0, 2.90 ERA) – Larry has flashes of brilliance, but overall he doesn’t project to have much of a career in the ABL. He is cocky and arrogant, without the tools to back it up. He also doesn’t appear to have the stamina to make it deep into games.

#62 Ash Anderson (AAA) – In 6 games he is 4-1, 3.34 ERA – Projects to be an ABL starter, but doesn’t have the tools to be ace. He is good kid with good leadership skill and is well liked in the clubhouse.

#115 Mike Axley (AA) – In 4 games he is 1-1, 4.50 ERA – Not a lot of potential in this guy, he has a questionable work ethic and is already injury prone.


Not really a lot here for me to work with, to give up a #17 prospects. Tomorrow I will get back in touch with Jacksonville and Long Beach to see where we can take this. No changes to the trading block or waiver wire this morning either.


Game Time

@tligget – New York’s Steve Scott has left the game with a strained hamstring. He looks to be sidelined for 3 to 4 weeks.

Top of the second inning Kouno leads off with a solo home run, immediately followed by M. Fiadeiro who hits a solo home run.

Top of the third inning, we loaded the bases and Fiadeiro brings in two runs with a single on two outs. That is the clutch hitting we need. Through three innings we lead Tampa 4 to 0 and Souza has not allowed a baserunner.

No baserunners came to an end in the fourth inning as Souza loades the bases with one out. An error allows one run across, but that is all the damage that Souza allowed. After 4 innings the Mallards lead 4 to 1.

After five innings the Mallards leads 4 to 2; Souza allowed a solo home run to Aaron Williams.

@tligget – Charlotte’s Travis Elledge leaves the game with an injury, no diagnosis as of yet.

After six innings, the Mallards lead Tampa 7 to 2 after scoring three more runs in the top of the sixth inning.

@tligget – Pete Huggins, LF from New York is out for about 4 days with a Quadriceps strain.

Tampa scores another run in the seventh inning; the score is now 7 to 3.

@pgraves – Austin pitcher Joseph McKay has struck out 13 batters through 6 innings.

@tligget – Fresno MR Kelly Payne leaves the game with a sore shoulder, he will be day to day for a week.

J. Souza picks up his third win of the season, as we prevent a sweep at the hands of the Tampa. The win gets up back to .500

@pgraves – Columbus’ Logan Turner gets home run number 300 of his career.

@pgraves – Austin pitcher ties the team record for strikeouts with 15, 2 shy of the record set by now Mallard pitcher J. Souza in 2012.

It’s 10:30 and Oklahoma City and Cleveland are entering into the 14th inning. At the bottom of the 13th Cleveland had the bases loaded with two outs and ended up striking out, not allowing a run. Oklahoma City is on its sixth pitcher of the game. Cleveland ended up winning with a run in the bottom of the 16th inning in game that lasted 5 hours and 13 minutes.


Mallard Prevent Sweep, beat Tampa 7 – 3
By Rick Featherstone

Lead by Maurili Fiadeiro, the Madison Mallards defeat Tampa 7 to 3 to avoid being swept. Fiadeiero was 2 -5, R, 3 RBI and HR. Since being called up Fiadeiro is hitting lights out with a batting average of .458 in 17 games and 48 at bats. Starting pitcher Jose Souza picked up his 3rd win of the season pitching 6 1/3 innings allowing 3 runs, 2 of them earned and striking out 6. Your Mallards have moved back to .500 and are 3 games out of first place, behind Tampa, Memphis and Columbus.



Performances of the Day

[Muskies]

My experiment with Windows and a PC has come to an end. After a much to long sabbatical with the holidays and then year end work, I returned to my Muskies to find that the file was corrupt and and Windows 8 is unstable and unsavory.

After many attempts to fix, I was only able to generate from a recent back up, but it was after the previous season. The end results is that the Muskie dynasty has come to an end, for the time being while I start fresh.

Thanks to all of those who have followed along.