Sunday, May 27, 2012, Minor-League Updates

[mace]

Tim Crabbe threw 73 pitches today for Pensacola, only 34 of which were strikes. He was removed in the third inning with this line: 2.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R , 3 ER, 4 BB, 3 K. Crabbe did some very nice things last year and was high on a lot of prospect lists among starters in the Reds' system. His Pensacola ERA is not terrible at 4.04, but there are certainly signs of struggling. Of course, they say that AA is a tough level to master.

The Wahoos trail 3-0 after three.

[mace]

Dayton scored 6 runs in the last three innings to win 6-3. Kyle Waldrop (.280) had three hits and also smacked his second HR in three days, if I'm not mistaken. Ryan Wright (.320) added two hits and drove in runs in both the seventh and eighth. Juan Perez contributed three hits, including a big 2-RBI single in the ninth. Sean Buckley had a couple singles.

Gerson gave up 9 hits in 7 IP, but didn't walk anyone. Muhammad and Contreras finished it off with perfect innings.

[texasdave]

Originally Posted by mace

Tim Crabbe threw 73 pitches today for Pensacola, only 34 of which were strikes. He was removed in the third inning with this line: 2.2 IP, 4 H, 3 R , 3 ER, 4 BB, 3 K. Crabbe did some very nice things last year and was high on a lot of prospect lists among starters in the Reds' system. His Pensacola ERA is not terrible at 4.04, but there are certainly signs of struggling. Of course, they say that AA is a tough level to master.

The Wahoos trail 3-0 after three.

Alll levels are tough to master if you cannot throw strikes. I think Abner Doubleday said that first.

[mace]

Originally Posted by texasdave

Alll levels are tough to master if you cannot throw strikes. I think Abner Doubleday said that first.

Yeah, I saw a clip of that interview with Abner on youtube. It was a Thirsty Thursday night in Bakersfield, and he was unusually talkative.

[texasdave]

Thirsty Thursday - YouTube

What a great country we live in. Remember the Buffalo Herd!

[mth123]

The Bats up 1-0 after 4. Soto homered (#6). Maybe he's heating up.

[mth123]

The Bats gave up 7 Runs in the top of the 9th. Carlos Fisher and Travis Webb were the main culprits. There really is no help for any phase of the team at AAA is there?

[corkedbat]

Originally Posted by mth123

The Bats gave up 7 Runs in the top of the 9th. Carlos Fisher and Travis Webb were the main culprits. There really is no help for any phase of the team at AAA is there?

Other than possiby Francis (a couple of starts if there's a shorterm DL) or Navarro (ditto at catcher) - no there isn't much. Bullpen help will rely on Bray and/or Masset's return later in the season. Not much help period when it comes to position players. Maybe in a month or two, Gregorious, HRod or even LaMarre might be ready to help in a reserve role.

[RedlegJake]

Donnie Joseph later on. The guys mentioned and him, that's about it. And none capable of a really big role.

[VottoFan54]

The Blaze lost 6-5 in ten innings. Billy Hamilton had two more stolen bases.

[corkedbat]

I guess you could include Janish and Harris, but again, nothing major.

[mace]

Pensacola ended up winning that game, 7-5, after scoring 4 in the eighth. Andrew Means (3-4, .345) had a big 3-run HR.

[NeilHamburger]

Partly because of dealing Grandal, Sappelt and Alonso, promoting Mesoraco and because of some guys not really living up to expectations (Duran, Yorman) I'm not sure if there is an impact bat in the minors from top to bottom. I guess it depends on your opinion of Hamilton. But, guys like Soto, HRod, Didi and Lutz don't really project as MLB stars or impact bats.

I'd really like the Reds to focus on a couple of bats early in the draft.

[Blitz Dorsey]

Originally Posted by NeilHamburger

Partly because of dealing Grandal, Sappelt and Alonso, promoting Mesoraco and because of some guys not really living up to expectations (Duran, Yorman) I'm not sure if there is an impact bat in the minors from top to bottom. I guess it depends on your opinion of Hamilton. But, guys like Soto, HRod, Didi and Lutz don't really project as MLB stars or impact bats.

I'd really like the Reds to focus on a couple of bats early in the draft.

Damn man, Soto smacks 31 HRs at the age of 22 and you think he "doesn't really project as an impact bat"? Uh, might want to let that marinade for a little bit. He's still young for Triple-A.

I also think you are selling Henry Rodriguez and Donald Lutz short. Not saying they will be stars, but they have the potential to be impact bats.

[NeilHamburger]

I think HRod has the potential to be a solid MLB bat, with hopefully a good OBP. Defense is iffy.

Lutz has some interesting tools, but is so inexperienced and scouts aren't in love with him in terms of hitting at higher levels, so it's hard to get a read on him.

Soto is probably the closet thing they have.

I'm just not really overly-thrilled with the Reds offensive options going forward, and am hoping for big time focus on offense in the upcoming draft.