Fish Farm Report: May 5th

Triple-A

Pacific Coast League

New Orleans Baby Cakes 1, Iowa Cubs 7

The Iowa Cubs (13-14) took an early lead and never looked back with 5,001 on hand at Shrine on Airline in Metairie, Louisiana on Friday evening, by a 7-1 final score.

After winning the first two games of this four-game series, the Cakes (10-18) lost the last two. The Cubs started in the first inning with a Taylor Davis RBI-single, then added two in the third on a Mark Zagunis RBI-single and a Bijan Rademacher bases-loaded walk.

The clubs traded runs in the fourth, first on another Davis RBI-single for the I-Cubs, then on Brandon Barnes second round-tripper of the campaign for the lone Baby Cakes run of the night. Iowa added another run in the eighth, on a Chesny Young RBI-double, and two in the ninth, on a two-run jack by Todd Glaesmann.

Nobody on the Baby Cakes had more than one hit, and starter Scott Copeland pitched to a GameScore of 35, getting just 37-of-77 pitches over the strikezone. He gave up three earned runs on three hits and four walks in three innings to drop his seasonal record to 2-3, with a 6.33 ERA. No Cakes’ pitcher finished with an in-game WHIP under one, excepting Brian Ellington, who whiffed the only batter he faced in the eighth inning.

The Baby Cakes are taking a long trip - to the Pacific Northwest for a four-game series versus the Tacoma Rainiers (17-9). Game one is set for tomorrow night at 8:05 ET.

Double-A

Southern League

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp vs. Tennessee Smokies

The Shrimp (12-15) and the Smokies (16-11) got rained out of Smokies Stadium today. The two will play a pair of seven-inning contests tomorrow, with newly acquired Joe Gunkel playing the opener and surprising Omar Bencomo starting the nightcap. The five-game series currently stands at one game apiece.

Advanced-A

Florida State League

Jupiter Hammerheads 0, Daytona Tortugas 1

Ben Holmes pitched to a tough-luck, 1-0 loss to the Daytona Tortugas, with 2,196 in attendance at Jackie Robinson Ballpark on Friday night.

Holmes allowed one run over five innings, on six hits and a pair of walks. He earned a 52 GameScore with 55-of-82 pitches over the plate. Unfortunately for the Hammerheads, opposing starter Ty Boyles threw 5.1 innings of one-hit ball, followed by 3.2 innings of one-hit ball by Daytona’s bullpen.

Dexter Kjerstad (single) and Brian Schales (double) were the only Hammerheads to hit safely, as the team staggered to a .071 in-game batting average.

The Tortugas dished out all the damage they would need in the fifth inning, on a Ben Holmes wild pitch with two runners in scoring position. Blake Butler crossed the plate for Daytona for the only run of the game.

Game two of the three game set will play out tomorrow night at 5:35 PM. Felipe Gonzalez (2-2, 4.26) will start for the Hammerheads, opposite Wendolyn Bautista (1-0, 2.38).

Single-A

South Atlantic League

Greensboro Grasshoppers 2, Rome Braves 1

Greensboro (14-14) was the only team to taste success in the Marlins’ system on Friday, earning a 2-1 victory over the visiting first-place Rome Braves (17-11). The Grasshoppers had 5,111 on hand at First National Bank Field.

Starter L.J. Brewster threw six innings and allowed one run on five hits. He did it without the benefit of a single strikeout, raising his record to 3-2 and lowering his ERA to 3.21. Sam Perez came in and pitched two perfect innings in relief, striking out three, and Michael Mertz earned his first save of the season, whiffing two in an inning of work.

Jarett Rindfleisch raised his average by nearly 50 points by going three-for-three, with a double, a stolen base, and the only two Greensboro RBI of the day. James Nelson also finished with multiple hits, smacking two doubles, stealing a base, and scoring a run.

Rome scored first, striking in the top of the fifth on an Anthony Concepcion RBI-groundout. The R-Braves lead did not last for very long, however. Rindfleisch’s two-RBI double came with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning. That’s right, all runs scored in the fifth inning.

Game two of the four game series will start tomorrow at 7PM ET.

Prospect Watch

#8 Stone Garrett was 0-for-4 with a strikeout, and is at .184 so far this season.

#10 James Nelson went two-for-three with two doubles, a run, a walk, and a stolen base, and is now hitting .295.

#12 J.T. Riddle posted a 1-for-3 day with a double, and is at .290.

#18 Sam Perez pitched two innings of perfect relief, with three strikeouts. The performance dropped his ERA from unimaginable heights down to a still-staggering 10.22. Trust me, it will get lower.

#26 Justin Twine went 0-for-4 with two whiffs to drop his average to .120.

#28 Tomas Telis went 0-for-4 and is now hitting .256.

Transactions

LHP Greg Nappo was called up from the Shrimp to the Baby Cakes, and Odrisamer Despaigne was called up to fill a rotation slot with the Marlins from New Orleans. This was a mistake, and should be noticed by Marlins’ faithful. There are at least three starters I can think of who could possibly get a win with a callup, from double or triple-A. If Despaigne gets a win I will eat my hat (metaphorically).

Kyle Lobstein joined Jacksonville from Marlins Extended Spring Training.

Jupiter juggled pitchers on the seven-day DL, activating LHP Daniel Schlereth and replacing him with RHP Steven Farnworth.