Fish Farm Report: July 2nd

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RHP L.J. Brewster announced his retirement from the Grasshoppers. The 23-year-old 22nd round pick in the 2015 draft was 9-16 with a 4.58 ERA, a 1.52 WHIP, and a .286 opposing batting average at three levels of Miami’s minor league system.

RHP Hunter Wells was promoted to the Grasshoppers from the Muckdogs.

RHP’s Enmanuel Mercedes, Yeremin Lara, and Miguel De Los Santos were assigned to Batavia from GCL.

LHP Sean Guenther, RHP Brady Puckett, and RHP Ryan Lillie were given their assignments to join the GCL Marlins.

The international complex signed 13 players, including SS Ynmanol Marinez, SS Julio Machado, C Jonathan Chinchilla, RHP Jean Carlos Flores, RHP Zaquiel Puentes, C Jhonaiker Osori, SS Elvis Osoria, OF Adonis Giron, OF Anthony Felipe, OF Jandel Paulino, RHP Delvis Alegre, RHP Yeuris Jimenez, and RHP Josan Mendez.

Triple-A

Pacific Coast League

New Orleans Baby Cakes 10, Memphis Redbirds 3

The Baby Cakes (30-52) defeated the hosting Redbirds (50-32) by a 10-3 final with 3,050 in attendance at AutoZone Park. It was New Orleans’ first win of the four game series, with one left to play tomorrow.

Christian Colon led the way, going four-for-five with two runs. Steve Lombardozzi went three-for-five with a walk and a pair of runs, and Tomas Telis hit a single and a two-run homer. Cal Towey, Peter Mooney, and Brandon Barnes each hit a single and a double.

Adam Conley (2-3, 6.10) earned the victory with a 58 GameScore, getting 61-of-99 pitches into the strike zone. He allowed one earned run on three hits and four walks in six innings. He struck out five. Drew Steckenrider allowed a run in an inning of work, striking out a pair but allowing three hits. Kyle Lobstein gave up an unearned run in the eighth on two hits, and Victor Payano threw a hitless ninth, striking one out.

The Cakes and the Birds each tallied a run in the first, New Orleans on a Telis RBI-single and Memphis on a Wilfredo Tovar (3) home run. New Orleans added a run in them fourth when Colon crossed the plate on a Aledmys Diaz error, then added a pair in the fourth on a two-run shot from Telis for a 4-1 lead.

The Baby Cakes weren’t done by a long shot. They added five more runs in the seventh inning on a Towey two-run double, a Mooney RBI-double, and a Mike Aviles two-run single to make it 9-1. Harrison Bader (14) hit a solo shot to get one back for the Redbirds in the bottom of the frame.

The clubs traded runs in the eighth as well. Moises Sierra hit an RBI-single in the top half and Diaz hit a sacrifice fly in the bottom half to set the final at 10-3.

Elsewhere in the PCL

Fresno Grizzlies 4, Sacramento Rivercats 2
Tacoma Rainiers 5, Albuquerque Istopes 2

Double-A

Southern League

Jacksonville Jumbo Shrimp 6, Mobile BayBears 4

3,028 were on hand at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville to see the hometown Shrimp (37-43) defeat the BayBears (33-46), 6-4 in game five of their six-game series.

Matt Tomshaw was crisp in victory, tossing seven innings and allowing four hits and zero walks. He struck out three, but allowed a pair of earned runs on Sherman Johnson’s fourth inning round-tripper. In the end, Tomshaw earned a 65 GameScore and got 61-of-93 pitches over the plate. Clayton Mortensen earned his third save of the year by tossing a hitless ninth.

The Shrimp got an early start in winning their sixth consecutive contest, scoring four times in the first inning. Braxton Lee crossed the plate on a Brian Anderson sacrifice fly, then Cam Maron (3) hit a three-run-jack for a 4-0 lead. Lee got into the act in the second, adding a solo shot with what would eventually prove to be the winning run.

Johnson’s two-run homer in the fourth trimmed the Shrimp lead to three, but Taylor Ard hit an RBI-single in the sixth to get it back. Mobile tried to make it interesting in the ninth inning, with a Douglas RBI-double. Douglas scored on a Mortensen wild pitch, but then Mortensen snapped-to and induced a Francisco Arcia ground out to end the rally.

Mason, Lee, Anderson, and Kyle Barrett all finished with a pair of hits each. David Vidal, Alex Yarbrough, and Ard each hit safely once.

Elsewhere in the SL

Biloxi Shuckers 3, Birmingham Barons 1 (7)
Birmingham Barons 10, Biloxi Shuckers 4 (7)
Tennessee Smokies 5, Jackson Generals 4 (7)
Chattanooga Lookouts 5, Mississippi Braves 4
Pensacola Blue Wahoos 3, Montgomery Biscuits 2
Jackson Generals vs. Tennessee Smokies
Chattanooga Lookouts vs. Mississippi Braves

High-A

Florida State League

Jupiter Hammerheads 1, Lakeland Flying Tigers 0

James Needy (2-1, 1.06) defeated the Lakeland Flying Tigers (36-40) by a 1-0 score with 425 at Roger Dean Stadium. Needy allowed four hits and a walk over seven shutout innings, striking out six. He earned a 75 GameScore, getting 59-of-83 pitches in the zone. The Hammerheads have now won two in a row on the heels of a three game losing streak.

The Hammerheads scored the only run of the game in the bottom of the fifth, when Stone Garrett crossed the plate on a Gunner Pollman single to left field.

Each team collected a total of five hits. John Silviano led Jupiter with a pair of singles. Boo Vazquez, Brian Schales, and Pollman hit safely once.

Elsewhere in the FSL

Palm Beach Cardinals 8, Charlotte Stone Crabs 1
Florida Fire Frogs 1, Bradenton Marauders 1 (suspended in the sixth inning due to rain)
Tampa Yankees 3, Clearwater Threshers 0
St. Lucie Mets 5, Fort Myers Miracle 4 (7)
Fort Myers Miracle 12, St. Lucie Mets 1 (7)
Dunedin Blue Jays 4, Daytona Tortugas 2

Single-A

South Atlantic League

Greensboro Grasshoppers 7, Asheville Tourists 1

The Grasshoppers (42-37) defeated the Tourists (35-44) in game three of their four game set with 4,073 on hand at First National Bank Field.

Michael King (7-4, 3.20) tossed six shutout two-hit innings, striking out five and walking zero. Miguel Del Pozo and Marcus Crescentini each pitched a scoreless inning of relief, and Chad Smith finished it off in the ninth, but unfortunately blew the shutout by allowing a Ben Johnson homer.

Corey Bird (1) got things started quickly with a leadoff jack in the first inning. The Hoppers added a pair in the fourth on a Kenny Oakley wild pitch to score Dalton Wheat and a sacrifice fly from Justin Twine. Greensboro doubled their lead in the seventh on a Riley Mahan RBI-double, a James Nelson RBI-single, and a Colby Lusignan RBI-double. They added another run in the eighth for a 7-0 lead when Twine (3) went yard to left-center.

Johnson hit his round-tripper to lead off the ninth for Asheville to spoil the shutout, but then got three outs with no further drama. Wheat hit three singles, while Bird, Nelson, and Lusignan had a pair of hits each.

Elsewhere in the SAL

Lakewood Blue Claws 2, Hagerstown Suns 0
West Virginia Power 10, Hickory Crawdads 3
Lexington Legends 8, Greenville Drive 4
Augusta GreenJackets 11, Charleston RiverDogs 0
Delmarva Shorebirds 5, Kannapolis Intimidators 4
Columbia Fireflies 3, Rome Braves 2

Short-A

New York-Penn League

Batavia Muckdogs 1, State College Spikes 3

State College (9-4) set down the Muckdogs for Batavia’s (5-8) fifth straight loss with 3,083 in the park on dog night at Medlar Field.

Sam Perez was strong in six innings of work, striking out three and allowing just one run on four hits and zero walks for a 68 GameScore. Perez got 47-of-69 over the plate, so I’m not sure why he got lifted. Nestor Bautista (1-1, 6.75) came on in relief, and allowed two runs in two innings, on three hits and three walks for the loss.

State College scored first, in the fifth inning on a Tyler Lancaster RBI-single. The Dogs tied it in the seventh on a Ben Fisher RBI-single, but the Spikes retook the lead in the bottom of the frame on a J.D. Crowe RBI-single. State College added some insurance in the eighth on a Brandon Benson RBI-single.

Batavia outhit State College, 8-to-7, but couldn’t get it done where it counted. Fisher collected three hits and the only RBI of the game for the Muckdogs. Terry Bennett hit a pair of singles, and Harrison White reached safely three times on a single and two walks.

Elsewhere in the NYPL

Mahoning Valley Scrappers 3, Auburn Doubledays 0 (7)
Mahoning Valley Scrappers 3, Auburn Doubledays 2 (7)
Brooklyn Cyclones 7, Connecticut Tigers 6
Connecticut Tigers 3, Brooklyn Cyclones 2 (7)
Staten Island Yankees 2, Tri-City ValleyCats 1
West Virginia Black Bears 4, Williamsport Crosscutters 2
Aberdeen Ironbirds 8, Hudson Valley Renegades 2
Vermont Lake Monsters 8, Lowell Spinners 4

Rookie

Gulf Coast League

GCL Marlins 8, GCL Astros 2

The Marlins (4-2) thwacked the Astros (3-3) at Roger Dean Stadium in early action on Saturday by an 8-2 final.

Cody Poteet was sharp in his second rehab start, whiffing three and giving up two hits in three scoreless innings of work. Vincenzo Aiello (1-0, 9.00) struck out three of the four batters he faced and earned the victory. Sean Guenther whiffed two in an inning of work, and Ryan Lillie walked one and whiffed one in his first professional action.

As is beginning to become a trend for these instructional league Marlins, offense was on display. Every batter in the lineup hit safely at least once, while Sean Reynolds (two singles), Michael Donadio (three singles), Shao-Pin Ho (two singles), and Rosandel Reyna (one single, one double) all collected multiple hits.

The Marlins charged out of the gate with five runs in the first. Demetrius Sims and Gerardo Nunez both scored before the Astros recorded an out. They crossed the plate on an Austin Dean double. Dean scored on a Donadio single, then Reyna knocked two in with a two-out single.

The Marlins scored two more in the second inning, on another Donadio single and a Yeral Encarnacion single. Reyna added an RBI-double in the fifth for an 8-0 Marlins lead.

The Astros prevented a shutout on a Carlos Diaz RBI-single in the seventh, and Enmanuel Valdez (1) hit a homer in the eighth, but it was way too little too late for the Houston affiliate.

Elsewhere in the GCL

Nationals 6, Mets 1

Rookie

Dominican Summer League

DSL Marlins

The Dominican Summer League always takes Sunday’s off.

Marlins’ Minor Leaguers of the Day

Pitching: There was a lot of good work on a lot of pitching mounds for the Marlins’ organization today, but I’d have to say that Michael King was tops. He allowed just two hits in six innings, and struck out five while allowing zero walks. He’s now won his last three starts in a row, allowing just one earned run over his last 17 innings pitched.

Hitting: It’s hard not to pick the guy with four base hits. That’s what Christian Colon did with the New Orleans Baby Cakes. He scored twice and is hitting .571 since joining New Orleans.

Fish Stripes Top 30 Prospect Watch (dynamic tracker)

#1 James Nelson @WoahitsNelly: 2-for-4, one run, one double, one RBI, one strikeout, .320 with Greensboro.

#2 Drew Steckenrider @asteckenrider20: 1.0 IP, 3H, 1ER, 0BB, 2SO, 1HR, 1.72 ERA.

#3 Dillon Peters @dillypickz

#4 Trevor Richards @trvrchrds

#5 Joseph Dunand @Joedunand

#6 Jeff Brigham @Jbrigs34

#7 Brian Anderson @AndersonBrian01: 2-for-3, one double, one RBI, one strikeout, .259 for Jacksonville.

#8 Boo Vazquez: 1-for-3, one strikeout, .368 with Jupiter.

#9 Kyle Barrett @kbarrett_4: 2-for-4, one run, .313 with the Jumbo Shrimp.

#10 Braxton Lee @Brax_Lee: 2-for-4, two runs, one double, one homer, one RBI, one strikeout, .337 in the Southern League.

#11 Austin Dean @AustinDean_3: 1-for-5, one run, one double, two RBI, .412 with GCL.

#12 Mike Kickham @MikeKickham4

#13 Sam Perez @SCPerez_: 6.0IP, 4H, 1ER, 0BB, 3SO, 1.13 ERA.

#14 Trevor Rogers @T_Raw1691

#15 Brian Schales @BrianSchales: 1-for-3, .266 with the Hammerheads.

#16 John Norwood @Norwood_10: did not get an at bat for Jacksonville.

#17 Cody Poteet @PoTweet_34: 3.0IP, 2H, 0ER, 0BB, 3SO, 0.00 ERA.

#18 Mason Davis @_Maeday20

#19 Matt Tomshaw @MatthewJTomshaw: 7.0IP, 4H, 2ER, 3SO, 1HR, 3.43 ERA.

#20 Albert Guaimaro @AlbertGuaimaro3

#21 Michael King: 6.0IP, 2H, 0ER, 0BB, 5SO, 3.20 ERA.

#22 Dustin Beggs @dbizzzzle

#23 Sean Reynolds @Sean___Reynolds: 2-for-3, two walks, one run, .417 for GCL.

#24 Tayron Guerrero @TyronGuerrero7

#25 Destin Hood @22_dhood

#26 Riley Mahan @RizzMahan: 1-for-5, one double, one RBI, .259 for Greensboro.

#27 Brian Miller @B_Millz05

#28 Ben Meyer @BenMeyer28

#29 Eliezer Rodriguez

#30 Isael Soto

Later

At 10:30AM, the DSL Red Sox (14-9) will host the DSL Marlins for a pair of seven-inning games.

Starting at noon, the GCL Marlins will host the GCL Nationals (4-1)

The Hammerheads will send James Buckelew (0-1, 1.38) out to the plate to attempt to claim the four-game series from the Flying Tigers, starting at 6PM.

At 7PM, the Grasshoppers will host the Tourists in the final game of their four-game set. Dustin Beggs (6-5, 3.05) will start for Greensboro.

The Jumbo Shrimp will host the BayBears to attempt to complete a six-game sweep starting at 7:05PM. Jacksonville’s starter has yet to be determined.

Also starting at 7:05PM, the Spikes will host the Muckdogs. Batavia will be trying to prevent a sweep, and will send Hunter Wells (0-2, 2.35) to the bump.

At 7:35PM, the Baby Cakes will be going for a four-game split in the final game of their four-game series with the Redbirds. Scott Copeland (5-7, 5.53) will start for New Orleans.

Birthdays

Frank Moore, the hitting coach for Greensboro, turned 39 today. Rigoberto Silverio, Batavia’s hitting coach, turned 31.

Tomorrow, Edinson Volquez turns 34 years-old. He is the fourth oldest Marlin on the team (behind Ichiro, A.J. Ellis, and Dustin McGowan), and the fifth oldest in the entire system (behind Mike Aviles).

Vote on your favorite prospects in the ever-constant widget below. It goes 229 Marlins deep, and I update the list after every system transaction to keep it current. I’ll track your top 30 prospects in the daily prospect watch. Check back later for more on the Marlins system as more prospects join the farm. Remember, the more you vote, the more accurately we can reflect what people are actually interested in tracking. Unlike in the all-star game, you only have one vote per player. You can vote anyone up or down. If you think they’re too high, simply vote them down, and vice versa.