Friday, June 14, 2013

Down on the Farm: 6/14/2013

AAA  Salt Lake City Bees defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 7-5:

Gary Brown(CF)- 1 for 2, 2 SB(8).  BA= .229.
Brett Pill(1B)- 1 for 4, HR(10).  BA= .362.
Roger Kieschnick(RF)- 2 for 5, 3B.  BA= .283.
Cole Gillespie(LF-CF)- 1 for 4, HR(6).  BA= .272.
Kensuke Tanaka(2B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .320.
Johnny Monell(DH)- 1 for 2, 2B, 3 BB.  BA= .290.
Fabio Castillo(RHP)- 6 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 6.88.

Brown came out early, not sure why.  Castillo had better peripherals than the number of earned runs allowed would indicate.

AA  Reading Phightin' Phils topped the Richmond Flying Squirrels 3-1 in 10 innings:

Chris Gloor(LHP)- 7.1 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 3.57.

High A  San Jose Giants edged the Visalia Rawhide 5-4 in 10 innings:

Brock Bond(2B)- 2 for 6, 2B.  BA= .209.
Angel Villalona(1B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .243.
Skyler Stromsmoe(3B)- 3 for 4, 2B, BB, SB(1).   BA= .368.
Bobby Haney(SS)- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .259.
Eric Surkamp(LHP)- 3.1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.91.
Jason Forjet(RHP)- 3 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.42.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.67.
Bryce Bandilla(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.50.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(8).   ERA= 2.08.

Surkamp extends beyond 2 IP.  His peripherals looked better than his results in this one.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets beat the Charleston River Dogs 4-1:

Jesus Galindo(CF)- 1 for 4, SB(34).  BA= .273.
Ben Turner(C)- 2 for 4.  BA= .259.
Shayne Houck(3B)- 1 for 3, BB.  BA= .275.
Chuckie Jones(DH)- 1 for 4, HR(3).  BA= .205.
Rafael Rodriguez(LF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .230.
Chris Stratton(RHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 2 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 3.56.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1.2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, Save(15).  ERA= 0.61.

That's what we are looking for from Stratton.  Jones has a 4 game hit streak and is hitting .259 over his last 10 games with an OBP of .364.  RafRod is hitting .324 over his last 10 games.

Short Season  Salem-Keizer Volcanoes topped the Hillsboro Hops 3-2:

Tyler Hollick(RF)- 1 for 3, 2 BB, 2 SB(2).  BA= .333.
Shilo McCall(LF)- 2 for 2, BB, HBP.  BA= 1.000.
Chris Johnson(RHP)- 6 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

McCall and Hollick are probably the 2 most interesting prospects at S-K this year.  Chris Johnson is a holdover from last year when he put up a line of 2-4, 6.84, 48.2 IP, 11 BB, 47 K's.  Much nicer peripherals than results.  He's 6'4", 205 lbs.  17'th round pick in the 2012 draft.  Only 1 or 2 2013 draftees on the S-K roster so far.

DSL  Twins edged the Giants 1-0:

Raffi Vizcaino(RHP, 17 yo)- 5 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.97.

Game Wrap 6/14/2013: Giants 6 Braves 0

It was Madison Bumgarner's turn to flirt with a no-hitter and the Giants offense put up a determined effort that resulted in one of the more dominating wins of the season, so far.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 2 for 5, HR(1).  BA= .277.  For a slap and dash guy, Blanco can put a charge into a ball from time to time.  He did that to lead off the game and the Giants never looked back.

Buster Posey- 3 for 5, 3 2B.  BA= .313.  Buster put on a hitting clinic in front of family and friends.  His 3 doubles went down the LF line, RF line and up the R-CF alley.  The only missing piece to a doubles cycle was one up the L-CF alley.

Hunter Pence- 2 for 4, 2B, BB.  BA= .299.   Pence is having a great walk year.  He's gonna get paid this offseason!

Brandon Crawford- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .294.  Crawford hit out of the 5-hole tonight and held up his end of the bargain.  He keeps this up all year and if the Giants make the postseason again, I think he needs to be in the discussion for MVP.

Joaquin Arias- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .286.  Is anyone else curious as to what Arias would do if given 600 AB's over a full season?

Madison Bumgarner- 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 10 K's.  ERA= 3.30.  I was thinking possible no-hitter as early as the second inning.  His stuff was that good.  The two hits he did give up were a blooper to CF and a slap job down the LF line.  This very easily could have been a no-no, although his pitch count might have been the limiting factor.  I thought he was running out of gas fast in the 7'th inning.

Sandy Rosario- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.50.  Rosario seems to be getting his feet on the ground.  He has good looking stuff.  The last pitch of the game was a 95 MPH fastball that he blew right by Justin Upton.

With the Win, the Giants move a game closer to the NL West leading D'Backs who lost to the Pesky Padres 2-1.  The Giants are now 1.5 games behind the leaders.  The Rockies remained 2.5 games behind with an 8-7 loss to the Phillies and are in 3'rd place.  The Padres remain in 4'th place, but are now just 4 games behind the division leaders.  The Dodgers lost to the Pirates 3-0 to remain 8.5 games behind in last place.

Chad Gaudin faces Mike Minor tomorrow afternoon.

Down on the Farm: 6/13/2013

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies defeated the Tucson Padres 2-0:

Gary Brown(CF) 1 for 4, HR(6).  BA= .227.
Carter Jurica(SS)- 3 for 4.  BA= .293.
Cole Gillespie(LF)- 2 for 4.  BA= .273.
Johnny Monell(C)- 2 for 3, SF, SB(4).  BA= .287.
Chris Heston(RHP)- 9 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 5.09.

Not sure what got into Gary Brown all of a sudden.  He now has 3 dingers in his last 4 games and a 5 game hit streak. CG shutout for Hesto Presto.

AA  Harrisburg Senators ran over the Richmond Flying Squirrels 9-0:

Drew Bowlin(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.42.
Scott Shuman(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 8.18.

As you might expect from the score, there wasn't much to see in this one.

High A  Visalia Rawhide whipped the San Jose Giants 9-3:

Shawn Payne(DH)- 1 for 2, 2 BB.  BA= .227.
Jose Casilla(RHP)- 4 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.86.
Andrew Barbosa(LHP, Rawhide)- 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 3.91.

Payne started out the season so well but has struggled mightily in recent weeks.  Barbosa is the One Who Got Away.

Low A Game 1(completion of a suspended game):  Charleston River Dogs outlasted the Augusta Greenjackets 8-7 in 18 innings:

Jorge Bucardo(RHP)- 4 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 0.00.

This is a game where Travious Relaford stole 4 bases and Jesus Galindo 3 but I think those were already credited to them.

Low A Game 2)  Augusta Greenjackets blanked the Charleston River Dogs 1-0:

Martin Agosta(RHP)- 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 1.97.
Steven Okert(LHP)- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 2.83.

Seems like Agosta could be called up to SJ any time. Maybe after the short season clubs start?

DSL  Giants beat the Orioles 2-0:

Gustavo Cabrera(CF, 17 yo)- 1 for 3, BB, SB(5).  BA= .205.
Nathanael Javier(3B, 17 yo)- 1 for 2, 2B, BB.  BA= .206.
Michael Santos(RHP, 18 yo)- 6 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 3.07.

I'm liking this Santos kid.  6'4", 170 lbs.  Very nice numbers in his last 2 starts.  Also good to see the bonus babies have a second good game in a row.

Thursday, June 13, 2013

Game Wrap 6/13/2013: Giants 10 Pirates 0

Matt Cain flirted with a no-hitter in the early innings and the offense pounded Pirates' pitching into submission to salvage a win out of a tough road series.  Key Lines:

Gregor Blanco- 3 for 5, 2B, BB, SB(7).  BA= .274.  Blanco was the perfect leadoff hitter tonight

Brandon Crawford- 1 for 2, BB, SF, 2 HBP.  BA= .289.  Nice game for Crawford, albeit a painful one.

Buster Posey- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .306.  A day at the office.  I mean, what more is there to say?

Hunter Pence- 2 for 5, HR(11), SB(13).  BA= .296.  Pence busted this one wide open with a 3 run dinger off Bronc to give the Giants a 9-0 lead.

Joaquin Arias- 3 for 5.  BA= .274.  3 hits but 0 R and 0 RBI's.

Nick Noonan- 2 for 5, 2B.  BA= .212.  Noonan started the big 5 run rally in the 6'th with a line drive bunt past the pitcher that Todd Walker was not able to field in time and ended up throwing it away allowing Noonan to take 2B.    He was initially awarded a HR on a long drive in the 9'th inning, but a replay ruling changed it to a double as it hit the yellow padding at the top of the wall.

Matt Cain- 6.2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 4.70.  I've seen Cain pitch better, but he was definitely on tonight.  Maybe a few too many flyballs to the warning track for comfort, but that's always been a part of his game.  Second strong start in a row for Hoss.  As always with Cainer, when he got into the 4'th inning with a no-no, I started thinking it was possible.

Jean Machi- 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.18.  Machi has become a go-to guy in the bullpen.

Mike "Bronco" Zagurski(Pirates)- 1 IP, 6 H, 5 R, 0 BB, 1 K.  ERA= 15.00.  I get a kick out of this guy.  Name reminds me of Bronco Nagurski and he just looks like a "Bronco."  He usually brings his gas can out with him when he faces the Giants.

With the Win, the Giants gained 0.5 games on the NL West leading D'Backs, 2.5 games out of first place.  The Rockies lost to the Nationals 5-4 to drop into a 2'nd place tie with the Giants.  The Pesky Padres and Dodgers were both idle to remain 5 and 8.5 games behind in 4'th and last place respectively.

The Giants not travel to ATL for the last leg of their 9 game road trip.  Madison Bumgarner takes on Kris Medlen in game 1 tomorrow evening.

Down on the Farm: 6'12/2013

AAA  Fresno Grizzlies beat the Tucson Padres 5-4 in 12 innings:

Carter Jurica(SS)- 3 for 5, 2B, BB.  BA= .284.
Cole Gillespie(LF)- 2 for 6, SB(4).  BA= .267.
Johnny Monell(1B)- 3 for 6, 3B, HR(11).  BA= .281.
Chris Dominguez(3B)- 2 for 5, BB.  BA= .289.
Kensuke Tanaka(2B)- 2 for 4, 2 BB, SB(15).  BA= .319.
Dan Runzler(LHP)- 2 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 4.45.
Heath Hembree(RHP)- 2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 3.38.
Mason Tobin(RHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 7.71.

AA  Harrisburg Senators edged the Richmond Flying Squirrels 2-1:

Carlos Teller(LHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 4 K's.  ERA= 2.20.

No offense to speak of in this one.

High A  San Jose Giants topped the Modesto Nuts 5-3 in 11 inninngs:

Brock Bond(DH)- 1 for 6, HR(1).  BA= .212.
Angel Villalona(1B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .243.
Mac Williamson(RF)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .261.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 2 for 5, 2B, 3B.  BA= .259.
Myles Schroder(3B-1B)- 2 for 5.  BA= .248.
Devin Harris(LF)- 1 for 5, HR(13).  BA= .258.
Clayton Blackburn(RHP)- 7 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 7 K's.  ERA= 4.25.
Cody Hall(RHP)- 2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 1.78.
Josh Osich(LHP)- 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.14.

Williamson has a 10 game hit streak in which he is hitting .429/.500/.800.  Blackburn got touched early for 2 runs in the first inning, but ended up with his 2'nd QS in a row after having only 1 in his previous 7 starts. Overall, his peripheral numbers continue to look great with 76 K's against 18 BB in 65.2 IP with a GO/AO= 1.36.  Cody Hall has 36 K's against 7 BB, in 25.1 IP.  Osich bounces back from a bad outing. He has 41 K's against 7 BB in 33.2 IP.

Low A  Augusta Greenjackets downed the Kannapolis Intimidators 5-3:

Trevor Brown(2B)- 2 for 4, BB.  BA= .256.
Chuckie Jones(RF)- 2 for 3, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .202.
Joe Biagini(RHP)- 5 IP, 7 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K's. ERA= 3.81.
Brandon Farley(RHP)- 2.2 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's. ERA= 3.55.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1.1 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's, Save(14).  ERA= 0.64.

Trevor Brown is hitting .325 over his last 10 games.  Chuckie Jones has 4 hits and 2 BB's in his last 2 games.

DSL  Giants were apparently idle.

Wednesday, June 12, 2013

Game Wrap 6/12/2013: Pirates 12 Giants 8

Barry Zito got lit up for the everyeth time in a road game. Ramon Ramirez poured gasoline on the fire.  The Giants offense fought back gamely, but could not overcome the generosity of the pitchers.  Key Lines:

Tony Abreu- 3 for 5, 2B.  BA= .400.  That is a very Scooter-like line.  Abreu is a talented player as long as he's healthy.

Hunter Pence- 2 for 4, 2 2B, BB.  BA= .294.  Pence keeps adding to his end-of-season payday.

Juan Perez- 2 for 3, BB, SF, Assist.  BA= .500.  Perez gets a solid start to his MLB career which is getting longer by the game.

Buster Posey(.299), Joaquin Arias(.250), Brandon Belt(.251)- 2 hits each.

Barry Zito-  4.2 IP, 11 H, 8 R, 1 BB, 4 K's.  ERA- 4.79.  I guess it says something that after a game like this, Zito's ERA is still under 5, but he's become something of an automatic blowout on the road.  I would say that picking up his option becomes more iffy by the start.

Ramon Ramirez- 1 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 BB, 0 K's.  ERA= 11.12.  Can we please have Hembree or Dunning or Fabio Castillo, or just about anybody?

With the Loss, the Giants sit in 3'rd place in the NL West 2.5 games behind the D'Backs who are locked in another tight one in LA.  The Rockies lost to the Nationals 5-1 and sit 1.5 games out in 2'nd place.  The Pesky Padres topped ATL 5-3 and sit just 4.5 games behind the leaders in 4'th place.  The Dodgers are sitting 7.5 games back pending the completion of their game with the division leaders.

Matt Cain tries to salvage a win in the current 3 game series tomorrow facing Charlie Morton.

Tuesday, June 11, 2013

Down on the Farm: 6/11/2013

AAA  Tucson Padres defeated the Fresno Grizzlies 7-2:

Gary Brown(CF)- 3 for 5, 2B, HR(5).  BA= .228.

Brownie is now 9 for 13 with 3 doubles and 2 dingers in his last 3 games.

AA  Harrisburg Senators squeaked by the Richmond Flying Squirrels 1-0:

Javier Herrera(LF)- 2 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .319.
Jack Snodgrass(LHP)- 8 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB, 5 K's.  ERA= 1.92

Jack Snodgrass would seem to be climbing the Giants prospect rankings with his performance so far for Richmond.

High A  San Jose Giants cracked the Modesto Nuts 5-3:

Mac Williamson(RF)- 1 for 2, 2B, BB, HBP.  BA= .257.
Devin Harris(LF)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .260.
Jeff Arnold(C)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .255.
John Polonius(2B)- 2 for 4, 2B.  BA= .219.
Myles Schroder(3B)- 1 for 4, 3B.  BA= .240.
Edwin Escobar(LHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 9 K's.  ERA= 3.23.
Bryce Bandilla(LHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 3.60.

Escobar now has 73 K's against just 14 BB's in 55.2 IP.  As for Bandilla, he has 60 K's against 17 BB's in 35 IP.

Low A Game 1  Augusta Greenjackets pounded the Kannapolis Intimidators 9-3:

Trevor Brown(2B)- 2 for 4, 2 SB(7).  BA= .246.
Ben Turner(C)- 3 for 3, 2B, HR(1).  BA= .253.
Alberto Robles(SS)- 3 for 4, 2 2B.  BA= .310.
Joan Gregorio(RHP)- 6 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.74.
Tyler Mizenko(RHP)- 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 0.68.

Robles is a 22 yo DSL graduate.

Low A Game 2  Augusta Greenjackets smothered the Kannapolis Intimidators 7-1:

Trevor Brown(2B)- 2 for 4, SB(8).  BA= .251.
Rafael Rodriguez(LF)- 3 for 3.  BA= .227.
Chuckie Jones(RF)- 2 for 2, BB.  BA= .194.
Alberto Robles(SS)- 1 for 2, BB, SB(3).  BA= .323.
Kendry Flores(RHP)- 6 IP, 6 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K's, GO/AO= 7/3.  ERA= 2.87.

Flores has turned in 2 outstanding games in a row with 3 ER in 14 IP and 14 K's against 1 BB.

DSL  Giants beat the Reds 7-2:

Jean Angomas(RF, 17 yo)- 1 for 3, 2 BB.  BA= .333.
Gustavo Cabrera(CF, 17 yo)- 2 for 4, 2B, BB, SB(4).  BA= .194.
Carlos Cartegena(LF, 19 yo)- 1 for 4, HR(2), BB, SB(1).  BA= .217.
Nathanael Javier(3B, 17 yo)- 1 for 3, 2B, BB.  BA= .188.
Jose Morles(C, 18 yo)- 2 for 5. BA= .273.
Marco Guzman(2B, 18 yo)- 2 for 5.  BA= .278.
Jonathan Loaisiga(RHP, 18 yo)- 5 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 3 K's.  ERA= 2.70.
Jose Morel(RHP, 19 yo)- 4 IP, 7 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K's.  ERA= 1.13.

Good to see the kids have a good game.  They've been scuffling.