Injuries Keep Piling Up for Snappers

A Beloit Snappers Press Release

The roster for the Beloit Snappers keeps turning over as the Western Division leaders lost three players to injury and add two more from the Elizabethton Twins.

Outfielder Chris Parmelee (left hand), outfielder Joe Benson (lower back) and catcher Jair Fernandez (right wrist) have all been placed on the disabled list. To help fill the void left by those three, the Minnesota Twins have promoted outfielder Andrew Schmiesing and infielder Rene Leveret from Elizabethton to the Snappers.

Parmelee is batting .239 with 14 home runs and 49 RBIs so far this year. Chris is just one home run shy his season total from a year ago and has played in roughly half as many games (69 to 128). The outfielder from California was the Twins’ first round pick (20th overall) in 2006.

Benson is currently hitting .248 with 16 doubles, 39 runs and 17 stolen bases in 69 games. Last season, Joe had 18 doubles and 18 stolen bases in 122 games played. Benson was the Twins’ second round pick in the 2006 draft.

Fernandez is batting .283 with eight doubles and 20 RBIs in 36 games. Jair was also named to the Midwest League All-Star Team that took place earlier this month in Midland, Michigan. Fernandez was acquired by the Twins from the Seattle Mariners this past offseason.

Andrew Schmiesing comes to Beloit after spending just seven games in E-town. The 6-4 outfielder was hitting .379 with 11 hits and five RBIs while slugging .517 for the Elizabethton Twins.

Schmiesing was the Twins’ 11th round pick in the 2007 draft out of St. Olaf College. Last season he was with the GCL Twins where he led the team in on-base percentage (.421) and tied for the team lead in walks (18).

Rene Leveret joins the Snappers after playing in nine games for the Elizabethton Twins. While he was there, Leveret hit .306 with three doubles, two homers and six RBIs.

Rene was signed as a non-drafted free agent by the Twins on August 28, 2003. Last year at E-town, Leveret led the league in RBIs (65), tied for third in walks, tied for fourth in hits and tied for sixth in home runs.

Both Parmelee and Fernandez’s injuries are retroactive to June 26th with Benson’s retroactive to June 27th.

The moves leave Beloit’s active roster at 23, two below the Midwest League maximum.

In a related move, the Elizabethton Twins added David Martin to the roster. Martin, a left handed pitcher as the Twins 17th round draft pick, 516th overall from Louisiana State University. Martin did not pitch in LSU's 2007 season following hip surgery. He pitched in the summer of 2007 in the Northwoods League, recording a 2.72 ERA in 39.2 innings while posting 38 strikeouts. The 6'2" 193 pound native of Boaz, Alabama, was named the No. 9 prospect in the Northwoods League by Baseball America magazine – the magazine cited his plus-90s fastball and his loose arm action.

Martin was 5-3 with a 5.08 ERA in 88.2 innings pitched for LSU last season. He walked 37 and struck out 81.

Beloit, E-town both fail

Cedar Rapids 8 at Beloit 5

W: R. Fish (7-2, 4.86); L: S. Hirschfeld (5-2, 2.72); SV: T. Kiely (1)
HR: None.

Things were not a poppin' for the Beloit Snappers at Pohlman Field, as the Cedar Rapid Kernels downed the home town team, 8-5.

Steve Hirschfeld lasted only 3 innings, giving up 4 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3. Andrew Romine singled with one out on the field and Hector Estrella walked. Following a fly out to Efren Navarro, Jay Brossman doubled to drive in the pair of runners. Clay Fuller took a walk before Julio Perez ground ball single plated Brossman to give Cedar Rapids a 3-0 lead out of the gate.

Tyler Johnson doubled in the top of the 2nd, moved to 3rd on a Ryan Groth single and come home when Romaine hit into a double play.

The Snappers would answer back this time, with Ozzie Lewis doubling, then moving to 3rd on Eric Santiago's ground out. Greg Yersich would then double in Lewis.

Henry Reyes would work the 4th for the Snappers and be on the mound in the top of the fifth when Brossman hit his 22nd double out to center. After Fuller went down on strikes, Julio Perez would double Brossman in.

Trailing badly, Greg Yersich singled in the bottom of the 7th and Allan de San Miguel took a walk. Mark Dolenc then singled to load the bags. Leonardo Calderon would replace Kernels' starter Robert Fish and would get Estarlin De Los Santos out on strikes. Chris Cates would ground into a force out, which scored Yersich.

With two outs on the board, Santiago singled in the bottom of the 8th, then ended up on 3rd due to a throwing error by Calderon. Yersich would then take a walk and de San Miguel would reach on a fielder's choice as the Kernels tried to make a play at the plate. No luck, as Santiago scored. Tim Kiely replaced Calderon on the mound and allowed a single to Dolenc that brought in Yersich before getting the final out.

Chris Anderson would allowed back to back singles to Navarro and Brossman. Fuller would be taken out on a bunt pop out and Julio Perez on strikes. The pair of runners then orchestrated a double steal. Ariel De Los Santos singled to plate Navarro and Brossman, while Johnson's double brought in De Los Santos. That finished it up for the Kernels, but the Snappers were in a big hole with one inning left to play.

Ben Revere would single a line drive out to center with one out on the board, but Deibinson Romero ground into a force out. Ozzie Lewis then doubled in Romero, but Santiago would ground out to end the game.

Yersich was 3-for-3 with a walk, a pair of runs and a RBI. Lewis was 2-for-4 with 1 run and 1 RBI. Dolenc was 2-for-3 with a RBI.

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Joe Benson has a stress fracture in his back, something he has been battling for over a month. Chris Parmelee, the team's home run and RBI leader, injured his wrist while running into the wall during the team's recent road trip. Both will be out of the Snappers line up for at least a month.

Reinforcements are due as well, but Jair Fernandez, Ramon Santana and Paul Kelly are all injured as well, while Santiago, who had a minor injury to his hand, was able to play.

Johnson City 14 at Elizabethton 4

W: B. Zawacki (1-1, 4.22); L: D. Berlind (1-1, 10.13)
HR: JCY: C. Smith 2 (4), N. Vasquez (2). ELI: A. Soto (4).

Danny Berlind lasted only 2-1 innings allowing 11 runs on 7 hits and 5 walks. He'd strike out four. Omar Alcala would replace him on the mound and would give up another 3 runs on 4 hits and 3 walks while striking out three.

Elizabethton actually out hit the Redbirds, but could not convert get them in clumps, leaving 8 man stranded during the game.

Jon Waltenbury would double in the bottom of the fourth and Mike Harrington would draw a walk. A wild pitch moved the pair. Danny Rams would single to plate Waltenbury and another wild pitch would put Rams at 2nd. Angel Morales would strike out swinging, but Alex Soto then blasted his 4th home run of the season over the right field wall.

That would be all the scoring for the E-Twins though.

Rams and James Beresford were both 2-for-3, Rams with a run and a run batted in. Morales was 2 for 4. Everyone else had at lead a single with Waltenbury and Papasan knocking doubles.

The Twins host the Cardinals on Saturday for a 7:00 PM game before heading out on the road to face the Burlington Royals.

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Still Fishin', Rock Cats losing streak hits five

New Britain 2 at New Hampshire 3

W: R. Romero (4-4, 5.99); L: Z. Ward (2-3, 2.41); SV: Z. Dials (12)
HR: NHM: A. Hatch (6).

The New Hampshire Fisher Cats continued their win streak over the New Britain Rock Cats, taking a 3-2 win at MerchantsAuto.com Stadium.

Ricky Romero limited the Rock Cats to 1 run on 7 hits and a pair of walks while striking out 4 over six innings. Zach Ward, now out of the bullpen and back in the rotation, allowed 2 runs, 1 earned, on 4 hits and a walk while fanning 5 in six innings.

Luke Hughes was activated early and in back in the line up. Hughes doubled and moved to 3rd on a sac bunt. Danny Valencia sacrificed him in to put New Britain on the board.

The Fishers responded in the bottom of the 3rd when Anthony Hatch reached on a fielding error by New Britain's Erik Lis. Hatch would go to second on play. Chris Gutierrez would be hit by a pitch and Scott Campbell would single to drive in Hatch. Aaron Mathew's fly ball to left scored Gutierrez.

The score would stay that way until the bottom of the 7th, when Rob Delaney allowed a solo shot home run to Hatch. His sixth of the season, Hatch would put it over the right field wall.

Hughes would get plunked by a pitch in the top of the 8th, compliments of Jared Gothreaux. Tolleson then singled, but Valencia would ground into a force out that took Tolly down at 2nd. Brock Peterson's single to left would score Hughes. It also saw Daryl Harang to the mound for the Fishers, and he would strike out Erik Lis before giving way to Zach Dials, who got David Winfree to fly out to end the inning.

Dials would allow only a walk to the Cats in the 9th, effectively shutting them down to preserve the lead and the win for his 12th save of the season.

Saturday night's 7:05 contest will pit Julio Pinto (4-2, 7.52), just back from Advanced-A Dunedin, against New Britain left-hander Kyle Aselton (3-2, 5.03), another bull pen escapee.

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In order to make room for Hughes on the Rock Cat's roster, lefty Jay Sawatski was reasigned to the Fort Myers Miracle of the Florida State League. The Minnesota Twins' 8th Round selection out of University of Arkansas in the 2004 Draft, Sawatski was 1-4 with the Rock Cat in 2008 posting a 7.75 ERA in 22 games, 38.1 innings pitched. (Rock Cats/OSC)

Despite their lack of success on the field (33-45 record), the Rock cats remain a hit with the home town crowd. The Cats welcomed their 200,000th customer of 2008 to New Britain Stadium on Thursday afternoon - reaching that fan support milestone on the earliest date in the franchise's 26-year history. The Eastern League Club achieved the attendance mark in the month of June for the first time in franchise history and just on their 41st home date of the 2008 Season; the previous earliest date to 200,000 in New Britain was July of 2007. (Rock Cats/OSC)

Of the four players promoted to New Britain, only reliever Rob Delaney has excelled, allowing one run and only two hits. Both Danny Valencia and Brian Dinkelman are hitting under .200, having some problems adjusting to the speed of the game at the AA level.

Pawtucket 4 at Rochester 2

W: E. Martinez (3-1, 3.86); L: D. Graves (3-3, 5.10); SV: H. Jones (3)
HR: PAW: G. Kottaras (15). ROC: R. Ruiz (11).

The Pawtucket Red Sox doubled up the Rochester Red Wings at Frontier Field despite Randy Ruiz's 11th home run of the season.

Edgar Martinez would limit the Wings to just 2 hits and 4 walks over the first five innings of the game. He struck out five during that time frame.

Joe Thurston doubled off Danny Graves in the top of the 3rd and moved to 3rd on Jed Lowrie's ground out. Chris Carter would plate him with a line drive to right.

George Kottaras knocked hit his 15th home run of the season over the right field fence in the top of the sixth, to give the Pawsox at 2-0 lead.

Rochester's Ricky Barrett replaced Graves in the top of the 7th and would strike out Chad Spann before allowing a single to Jon Van Every. Jeff Bailey then drew a walk. A single by Joe Thurston would drive in Van Every to make it 3-0 for the visitors.

This time the Wings answered back as Trevor Plouffe singled and moved to 2nd on Ryan Jorgensen's ground out. Denard Span also ground out, moving Plouffe to 3rd, and a wild pitch by Michael Tejera saw him home.

Ruiz would make it 3-2 Pawtucket in the bottom of the 8th when sent a ball over the right center field fence off Miguel Asencio. But Sean Danielson would reach on a catching error by Garrett Jones in the top of the 9th, then steal 2nd. Carmen Cali would get Spann and Van Every out on strikes before Julio DePaula was brought into the game to get the final out. Instead, Jeff Bailey would reach on a fielding error by Serio Santos at short, allowing Danielson to score.

The Wings managed only 4 hits in the whole game.

Game two of the series is Saturday night at 7:35 p.m. Kevin Mulvey (3-7, 4.06) will pitch for the Wings against Pawtucket's Charlie Zink (8-2, 2.33).

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The Red Wings finished their road trip with a 5-3 record, a .306 (91-287) batting average and 48 runs scored (6.0 per game).

Outfielder Darnell McDonald now has an eight-game hitting streak, with four multi-hit games. McDonald currently leads the IL with a .320 batting average. The last Red Wing to lead the IL in batting was outfielder Jason Kubel (.343) in 2004.

Boston Red Sox RHP Mike Timlin, currently with Pawtucket on a rehab assignment, is scheduled to pitch an inning on Saturday.

Some Rochester Trivia: Who is the only person to play for both the baseball Rochester Red Wings and Rochester Amerks hockey team?

Why that would be none other than Fred Costello, the organist, of course!

Stormy night at the Bill; Miracle double up Manatee

Brevard County 1 at Fort Myers 2

W: C. Devries (6-6, 2.77); L: C. Cody (0-3, 6.57); SV: A. Slama (15)
HR: None.

While fireworks were scheduled for Saturday night, Mother Nature saw fit to share a display of her finest on Friday Night as well.

But even that was no-where near as fine as Cole Devries' pitching. The Minnesota native allowed only 2 hits and walked 4 while striking out five over six innings.

The Miracle took at early lead in the bottom of the 3rd when Eli Tintor doubled then moved to 3rd on a wild pitch. Garrett Olson's ground out plated him.

In the bottom of the 5th, Steve Singleton walked, and Tintor would double him in. A sac-bunt moved Tintor to 3rd, but the Minnesotan slugger would be stranded when Olson and Danny Berg both struck out.

There would be an hour and 21 minute rain delay, after which Blair Erickson would take over for Devries.

In the top of the 8th, Jonathan Lucroy singled with 2 outs on the board. Anthony Slama would be brought in for the last out, but Taylor Green and Charlie Fermaint singled, which plated Lucroy before Chapman would strikeout to conclude the half.

Slama would strike out all three batters he faced in the ninth inning to preserve the win.

Jay Rainville (0-1, 3.12) will take to the mound on Saturday. The Manatees hurler is to be determined, although Jeremy Jeffress (3-3, 4.75) told me he was due to pitch on Sunday, so you can count him out.

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Are you ready for... The Sean Fox Fan Club? Now, you can download this great 8x10 to your computer, print it out and bring it the ball park for Sean Fox, the Voice of the Fort Myers Miracle, to sign. Sean can be found on the concourse, usually right after the gates open at 6:00 PM for about 20 minutes in the general area around the [insert your sponsorship here] Autograph Table.

If you got your team photo tonight be sure to bring it back to the ballpark to collect autographs on. Two great Miracle players are up on the concourse from 6:20 to 6:40 every day to sign your mini-bats, balls and of course, team photos. Autographs can also be had prior to the game along the 3rd base line to the left of the dugout. Please remember that once the game starts, the Miracle cannot sign autographs again until after it is over, so please don't ask.

Tyler Robertson (4-2, 2.93) is still feeling the effects of tendinitis, although he says he's not really sure what's wrong. His next start has been pushed back until Wednesday, July 3, to give him a few extra days of rest. He says he's not experiencing any pain, but there's a bit of a "thunk" when he throws that is effecting his control.

Miraclefans.com has seen a bit more traffic of late. On June 19th, we had 503 visitors in one day. Thursday we saw 493 fans click on through. The phrase most often googled to find the page? "Eddie Santiesteban Baseball" (41.02%). Eddie, the brother of current Miracle outfielder Danny Santiesteban claims he has nothing to do with this recent growth in attendance. Perhaps he should be starting a fan club as well?

The Miracle conclude their home stand against the Manatees on Sunday. They will take Monday off before welcoming the Tampa Yankees into town for a 3-game series, which concludes on Thursday with Independence Day Fireworks. Thirsty Thursday will NOT be held this Thursday but that's okay. With a the great fireworks display that the Miracle put on, you won't miss the cheap beer.

GCL Twins blank GCL Red Sox at City of Palms

GCL Twins 5 at GCL Red Sox 0

W: M. Munoz (1-1, 5.00); L: C. Cabral (0-1, 4.50)
HR: None.

Miguel Munoz held the GCL Red Sox to only 3 hits and a pair of walks over six innings, in route to a shut out of the Red Sox at the City of Palms Complex. Jean Mijares and Mauro Schiavoni finish up the last three innings to preserve the win.

Herbert Lara would single out to left, then steal 2nd base. Juan Sanchez would be taken out on strikes and Tyler Ladendorf would fly out to right before Tim Atherton singled to bring the Twin's lead off man home. Jon Goncalves would single as well, but Hyuong-rok Choi (Rocky) would be called out on strikes to finish the half.

In the top of the 3rd, Sanchez tripled and following a strike out to Ladendorf, came home on an Atherton single.

Jakub Hajtmar would take a walk in the top of the 4th then steal 2nd. Josmil Pinto would reach on a field error by Red Sox first baseman Eddie Lora, which also allowed Hajtmar to come home, to give the Twins a 3-0 lead.

A pitcher change to Michael Rozier in the fifth didn't help matters for the Red Sox. Rozier would hit Atherton with a pitch. Goncalves would ground into a force out though, which took Atherton out at 2nd. Goncalves then stole 2nd. Rocky then doubled to plate Goncalves. Hajtmar's ground out moved Rocky to 3rd, and Pinto would double him in to the final Twins run.

Atherton finished up 2-for-3 at the plate with a pair of RBIs. Goncalves was 2-for-4 with a run.

The Twins rest on Saturday, and host the Pirates on Sunday for a noon game at the Lee County Sportsplex. If you're coming to watch the GCL Twins game, we suggest you use the Plantation gate to the parking lot, as the Miracle are also playing at home that day, and there is $3.00 parking fee in effect if you use the Six Mile Cypress gate.

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DSL Twins 5 at DSL Orioles 4

W: L. Parra (2-0, 0.82); L: S. Jean (1-2, 5.01); SV: E. Alvarez (7)
HR: None.

The DSL Twins fought off a late rally by the DSL Orioles and hung on to win 5-4 on the road.

Adrian Salcedo worked the first four innings for the DSL Twins, allowing the O's only 2 hits over that time span while fanning a pair.

Meanwhile the offense got to work in the second inning, with Oswaldo Arcia taking a walk, then stealing 2nd base. Eliel Sierra would strike out before Jean Carlos Mercedes singled to bring in Arcia. Jairo Rodriguez's single moved Mercedes to 2nd, and the pair would go home on a triple by Danny Santana. Xavier Gonzalez would go down on strikes before Juan Blanco singled to bring in Santana.

Manuel Soliman and Arcia hit back-to-back singles in the top of the 3rd and Sierra would walk to load the bags. Mercedes would hit into a force out that drove Soliman in for what would prove to be the game winning run. But it was still early in the contest and way too soon to count it done.

Leonard Parra replaced Salcedo in the fifth, and would still be in for the bottom of the 7th. Jaynnertt Melenciano singled and Larry Rivera doubled, but Melanciano would be taken out at 3rd on the play. Edwin Wilson then doubled in Rivera for the first Oriole's run.

With Lesmire Vargas on the mound for the bottom of the eighth, Moises Arias singled and Octavio Wilson walked. Jose Gonzalez would then replace Vargas on the mound, and allowed a double to Rojean Cleota, which scored Arias and Wilson. Cleota would advance to 3rd on a fielding error by Blanco. Martin Serreta would be taken out on strikes before Moises Ciriaco reached on a fielding error by Felix Caro that also brought in Cleota. But Parra would get Melenciano to ground out. With a runner at 2nd, Gonazlez then hit Rivera with a pitch. Edison Alverez was then summoned from the bullpen and the 18-year old Dominican got Wilson to ground into a force out to end the inning.

Despite hitting Joel Polanco with a pitch in the bottom of the 9th, Alvarez quickly finished off the O's to preserve the win, for his seventh save of the season.

Blanco and Arcia were both 3-for-4 in the contest; Blanco with a RBI, and Arcia with a walk and a run. Santana was 2-for-3 with a walk, a run and pair of runs batted in.

The Twins finish up the week at home as the host the DSL White Sox for a 10:30 AM Dominican Time game.

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Twins split pair with Reds

GCL Twins 9 at GCL Reds 7

W: M. Mopas (1-0, 0.00); L: M. Bohana (0-1, 18.00); SV: K. Mota (1)
HR: None.

Prior to the Miracle game, Sean Fox, the voice of the Miracle, had asked me what had gone on back there, besides six hours of baseball. I had to admit I didn't know as my car had been in the shop all day and I had been stuck on the Cape.

However, the GCL Twins and the GCL Reds split a pair as they completed the suspended game from June 21 and played the regularly scheduled June 26 game.

We left game one in progress with the Reds up by one and the Twins with runners on 1st and 3rd.

Twins pitcher Edgar Ibarra had hit Theodic Bowe with a pitch. Bowe then stole 2nd and advanced to 3rd on a balk. Cody Puckett took a walk, and an Efrain Contreras single out to center scored Bowe. Humberto Sosa would ground into a double play and Sam Vasquez's pop up would be caught by Jae-Hyung Jang (J.J.) in four territory to end the inning.

Michael Gonzlaez had doubled in the top of the 4th and moved to 3rd on Hyeong-rok Choi's (Rocky) bunt single. J.J. would hit a sac fly out to left that scored Gonzalez. Hyun-wook Choi (Wook) then flew out to left. Jakub Hajtmar would single to put runners on 1st and 2nd before Reggie Williams doubled to clear the bases. He'd advance to 3rd on Vasquez's throw. A fly ball single to right by Aaron Hicks brought in Williams to give the Twins a 4-1 lead.

Donald Lutz would take a walk in the bottom of the 4th for the Reds, then move to 2nd on a fielding error by Hajtmar. Kevin Coddington singled out to center to score Lutz, making it 4-2 Twins.

Williams would double in the top of the sixth, and come home on a Hicks ground ball single to give the Twins another run.

Following a fly out to Gonzales in the top of the 7th, Rocky doubled, then moved to 3rd on a passed ball. J.J. would hit a sac fly to right to bring him in. Wook would draw a walk and be doubled in by Hajtmar to make it 7-2.

Wilmer Gaunchez would replace Ibarra in the bottom of the 8th. Puckett would reach on a fielding error by Williams, but Guanchez would take Contreras on strikes. He'd then walk Sosa. Vasquez would single out to center to load the bags. Guanchez would then get Lutz out on strikes before Brodie Pullen doubled to clear that bags. That made it 7-5 Twins. Amazing how quick those big leads can evaporate.

Jean Mijares came in to replace Guanchez and allowed a walk to Mauricio Pimentel. Bowe would take a walk before Steve Blevins was brought in to get out of the jam left by Mijares. The Vulture Magic wasn't working however as Puckett walked to load bags. Contreras and Sosa would go down on strikes, but Vasquez reached on a fielder's choice as the boys tried to make the play at the plate. They didn't do it, as Pimentel scored. A wild pitch by Blevins allowed Bowe to score to tie up the game.

On to extra innings...and finally the top of the 13th. Mike Bohana would relieve Juan Rafael on the mound and allow a single to Hajtmar. Williams would move him on a sac bunt, and the Bohana would intentionally walk Hicks. Diaz then singled to load the bases. Danny Ortiz hit into a force out that took Hajtmar down at home, but Danny Rohlfing would single to score Hicks and Diaz before Rocky would strike out swinging.

Ian Mopas would strike out all three batters he faced to preserve the lead, and take home the win.

For the Twins, Hajtmar was 5-for-7 with a run, and a RBI, Williams was 3-for-5 with a pair of runs and a pair of RBIs, and Hicks and Gonzalez were 2-for-5 with a run each, Hicks with a pair of runs scored. Rocky was 2-for-6 with 2 runs and a walk, while all the rest of the Twins players had at least 1 run.

Ibarra would give up 2 runs, 1 earned, on 3 hits and 3 walks while fanning 8 over seven innings for a very impressive outing.

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GCL Reds 9 at GCL Twins 3

W: S. Snowden (2-0, 0.90); L: A. Sanchez (0-1, 2.79)
HR: None.

Angel Sanchez on the other hand, did not have a very impressive outing, allowing 5 runs, 3 earned, on 8 hits and a pair of walks. He struck out five but last only 4.2 innings. I am rather sorry I missed the game however, because Shea Snowden was on the mound for the Reds and the Mississippi native was one of the young pitchers that impressed me last season.

Converted to a starter, he seemed quite impressive this time around as well, limiting the Twins to only 1 hit and a pair of walks while fanning 3 over six innings. As a result, the Twins offense didn't kick into gear until the bottom of the 7th, when Blaine Howell replaced Snowden on the mound.

Diaz would take a walk. Jon Goncalves, who started the season last week on the DL, would replace Danny Ortiz as a pinch hitter, and would fly out to right. Tyler Ladendorf would reach on a fielding error by catcher Todd Waller. Danny Rohlfing would be taken out on strikes before Tim Atherton singled to bring in Diaz. Anderson Hidalgo took a walk to load the bags before Jeremy Vinyard was brought in to close the game. A fielding error by Mariekson Gregorius allowed Bert Lara to reach and Ladendorf and Atherton to score for the Twins 3 runs.

Atherton and Lara had the only two hits for the Twins.

Designated hitter Petr Cech, from the Czech Republic, had 2 of the Reds runs while Gregorius, batting at the bottom of the order had another pair. Only Sean Conner and Waller did cross the plate for the Reds, but Conner had a pair of RBIs while Waller was 2-for-4 at the plate with a RBI for the Twins I-75 rivals.

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DSL Diamondbacks 3 at DSL Twins 16

W: E. Cardenas (2-1, 1.55); L: M. Pena (2-2, 4.30)
HR: None.

Yes, that's right. The DSL Twins walloped the DSL Diamondbacks Thursday, starting out with a 6-run first inning and never letting up.

Eliel Sierra would go 3-for-4 at the plate with a walk, four runs and 2 runs scored including a pair of doubles. Jhonatan Arias was 3-for-5, all 3 hits were doubles with 5 RBIs. Carlos Vasquez was 3-for-6 with a run and a run scored, while Danny Soliman and Rafael Sanchez were both 2-for-4, Soliman with a walk, 3 runs and a run scored and Sanchez with a walk, a run and a RBI.

Oswaldo Arcia was 2-for-5 with a pair of doubles, 3 runs and 1 RBI. Felix Caro and Jairo Perez finished up 1-for-5 a the plate, Caro with a walk, 2 runs and a RBI and Peres with a double, a run and 2 RBIs.

Eliecer Cardenas allowed only 3 hits to the D-Backs over 7 innings, being charged with one unearned run. He'd walk two and strike out 9. Deivi Germsen and Carlos Carrillo finish up the rest of the game with Germosen giving up 2 earned runs on 1 hit and 4 walks.

The Twins are on the road Friday against the DSL Orioles. Game time, as always, is 10:30 AM Dominican time.

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Arias works 9, fans 4, shuts out Clinton

Beloit 2 at Clinton 0

W: S. Arias (4-3, 2.39); L: K. Gomez (8-3, 2.81)
HR: None.

Santos Arias threw a complete 9-inning game, allowing only 3 hits to the Clinton Lumber Kings who were shut out by the Beloit Snappers, 2-0.

Ozzie Lewis doubled in the top of the 2nd, moved to third on Joe Benson's bunt single and came home when Eric Santiago ground into a double play for the first and only run the Snappers would need.

Clinton's best scoring opportunity came in the bottom of the 4th, when Mitchell Moreland singled and moved to 2nd on a balk. A passed ball by Allan de San Miguel got him to 3rd before Arias would strike out Cristian Santana to end the inning.

De San Miguel would double in the top of the 6th for the Snappers but find himself stranded at 3rd on a Chris Cates ground out.

Ben Revere tripled in the top of the 7th, then came home on a Benson single for the insurance run.

Benson was 2-for-3 with a RBI, and Revere was 2-for-4 with a run. Lewis was 1-for- with a run.

The Snappers now return home for a 4-game series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels. Game time is 7:00 PM at Pohlman Field. It is Redneck Night as well as Fireworks night #5.

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Cards in the Attic has a really nice review of the Beloit Snappers 2008 Card set. well worth checking out, you can find it at Aardvark Trading Co..

Johnson City 6 at Elizabethton 7

W: C. Leavitt (1-1, 7.36); L: R. Santos (0-1, 5.87); SV: M. Hamburger (2)
HR: JCY: J. Martinez (2), N. Vasquez (1). ELI: A. Morales (3), R. Leveret (2).

Must have been an off day for the Elizabethton Twins who only managed 7 runs on 9 hit - instead of their usual 2 billion - as they defeated the Johnson City Cardinals, 7-6.

Rene Leveret took a walk to lead off the bottom of the 2nd inning, and wild pitch by the Cardinals Randy Santos moved him to 2nd. Following a pop out to Michael Harrington, Evan Bigley would be hit by a pitch. Jeff Lanning's line drive sent Leveret home before Angel Morales hit his 3rd home run of the season to clear off the bases, giving the E-Twins a 4-0 lead.

Leveret would hit a solo shot home run in the bottom of the 3rd.

Dominic De La Osa reached on a throwing error in the bottom of the fourth, moved to second on Jeanfred Brito's ground single and to 3rd on a wild pitch by Johnson City's Samuel Freeman. Juan Richardson would sacrifice in De La Osa. Jon Waltenbury's ground out moved Brioto to 3rd, a throwing error by Alex Castellanos at 3rd allowed Leverett to reach and Brito to score, for 7 runs.

Curtis Leavitt would work five innings, allowing 3 runs on 7 hits while fanning five. He'd allow a home run to Nico Vasquez in the top of the 6th before Thom Wright came in to relieve him. Wright would allow 1 run on 2 hits and a walk while fanning 2 in one innings worth of work. Mark Hamburger worked the final 3, allowing 2 runs, earned, on 3 hits while striking out 6.

Lanning was 2-for-3 in the contest with a run and walk and a RBI, Morales was 2-for-4 with a run and 3 RBIs, and Brito was 2-for-5 with a run.

The two teams rematch tonight for a 7:00 PM game.

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Fisher Cats sweep series at New Britain

New Hampshire 13 at New Britain 6

W: B. Magee (1-10, 6.04); L: A. Swarzak (3-5, 5.63)
HR: NHM: T. Snider (11), J. Butler (10), A. Mathews (6). NBR: D. Martin (5), D. Butera (3).

The New Britain Rock Cats has a huge collection of top prospects and high round draft picks in their line up. Unfortunately, they don't play like they do. The New Hamphshire Fisher Cats jumped all over Anthony Swarzak in route a 13-6 romp at New Britain Stadium.

Jacob Butler and Brian Jeroloman took back-to-back walks off Swarzak in the top of the 2nd inning. Eric Nelson then singled to load the bags. Kyle Phillips line drive to right scored Butler. Anthony Hatch would strike out swinging and Ryan Klosterman ground into a double play that took Jeroloman out at the plate.

Scott Campbell would single and Aaron Mathews followed up with his sixth home run of the season, over the center field wall. Travis Snider and Butler then hit back-to-back singles. Jeroloman followed that up with a line drive double to center to score Snider. Nelson would sacrifice in Bulter before Phillips would fly out and Hatch would strike out to retire the side.

Klosterman and Campbell opened up the top of the 4th with back to back singles, and would advance a base each on Dustin Martin's throw. Mathews then sacrificed in Klosterman. Snider's single would drive in Campbell. Yohan Pino would be called into the game at that point, replace Swarzak, who had surrendered 8 runs on 10 hits and a pair of walks while striking out 2 in 3.1 innings worth of work. Pino would get Butler out on strikes, but Jeroloman would double off him to drive in Snider. Nelson would ground out to send the Fisher Cats on the defense.

Erik Lis would double for New Britain and following a fly out to Brock Peterson, David Winfree would single. Felix Molina then tripled to drive in the pair, and Drew Butera followed that up with his 3rd home run of the season, to give the Rock Cats 4. Following a ground out to Brian Dinkelman, Dustin Martin would make it an 8-5 game with his fifth home run of the season, a solo shot over the right field fence. Toby Gardenhire would go down on strikes to end the inning.

Both teams would catnap for a couple of innings. Nielsen then drew a walk in the top of the 7th. Phillips would double him in, but the former Miracle who is known as being one of the slowest players in professional baseball, was taken out at 3rd on the throw.

David Harang would replace Brandon Magee in the bottom of the 7th. Dinkelman, Martin and Gardenhire would all hit back to back singles which plated Dinkelman. Danny Valencia and Lis would both strike out, and Seth Overbey would come in to get Peterson to ground into a force out. The score was now 9-6 in favor of the Fishers.

Frank Mata would replace Pino for the top of the 8th, and allowed a walk to Campbell. Mathews then double him in. Travis Snider would go yard over the center field wall, his 11th of the season and Butler followed suite, for his 10th home run of the season. Jeroloman would draw a walk as did Nelson, but Phillips would fly out and Hatch ground into a double play to end New Hampshire's threat.

Martin and Gardenhire went 3-for-5 at the top of the order, Martin with a run and a run batted in, and Gardenhire with a RBI. Lis and Butera were 2-for-4 with a run each,Butera with a pair of RBIs as well. Winfree, Molina and Dinkelman all finished up 1-for-4 with a run each, Molina with a pair of RBIs as well.

The Fisher Cats sweep the series, but never fear! There's still a chance for revenge as the two teams meet tomorrow. They now switch over to MerchantsAuto.com Stadium for a 3-game set. Left-hander Ricky Romero (3-4, 6.34) will pitch for New Hampshire against New Britain right-hander Zach Ward (2-2, 2.53).

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New Britain infielder and former Miracle Luke Hughes as been selected to the 2008 All-star Futures Game. Hughes, a native of Perth, Australia, will represent the Minnesota Twins as a member of the World Team. The 10th annual Futures Game will be played on Sunday, July 13 at Yankee Stadium. The 6'0," 190-lb. Hughes has been one of the top offensive players in the Eastern League this season. He is batting .335 with 13 home runs and 34 RBI. In 47 games with the Rock Cats, Hughes has scored 41 runs and posted a .618 slugging percentage.

Scott Campbell was selected to the game for the Fisher Cats. A New Zealand native, he will represent the Blue Jays on the World Team. He is currently hitting an Eastern League-leading .353 with four home runs and 25 RBI. Campbell leads the Fisher Cats in on-base percentage (.453) and walks (42).

The game will be televised on ESPN2, and will be broadcast on XM Satellite Radio.



Rochester 4 at Louisville 1

W: P. Humber (4-6, 5.19); L: J. Fogg (0-1, 3.00); SV: C. Daigle (1)
HR: None.

Fogg wasn't the only weather putting in an appearance at Louisville Slugger Stadium Thursday as rain held the start of the contest between the Rochester Red Wings and the Louisville Bats up by 2-and-a-half hours.

Phil Humber picked up only his fourth win this season, limiting the Louisville Bats to only 5 hits and a pair of walks over 5 innings, while striking out 6. Meanwhile, this counterpart, Josh Fogg, worked all nine innings, allowing 4 runs, 3 earned on 10 hits while striking out 6.

The Red Wings jumped on Fogg early, with Tommy Watkins tripling in the first inning, then coming home on Matt Macri's ground out. The top of the 2nd would see Sergio Santos reach on a throwing error then advance to 2nd. Jason Pridie would triple him in.

In the 3rd, Garrett Jones doubled, moved to 3rd on Randy Ruiz ground out, and came in on a Santos single.

Casey Daigle would allow Andy Green a double out to center field in the bottom of the 8th. Chris Dickerson would move him to 2rd. Dickerson would then go for his 14th stolen base of the season. A throwing error by Ryan Jorgensen sent the ball into the outfield and allowed Green to come home for the only Bats run.

Randy Ruiz tripled in the top of the ninth. Alejandro Machado would come in as a pinch runner and a sac-fly by Santos would bring him home the Red Wings' fourth run.

Pridie went 4-for-4 at the plate with 1 RBI, while Denard Span was 2-for-4.

The Wings now return home to face the Pawtucket Red Sox Friday at Frontier Field. Danny Graves (3-2, 5.40) will throw out the first pitch at 7:05 PM. The Pawsox will counter with Edgar Martinez (2-1, 4.22).

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Red Wings outfielder and former Miracle Denard Span was named to the U.S. Olympic Trial team, and will play in the All-Star Futures Game. Former Red Wing Davey Johnson will manage the U.S. club; Johnson will also serve as the manager of the U.S. Team at the Olympics in Beijing, China in August.

Former Red Wing/Miracle Matt Garza thew a one-hitter Thursday afternoon - a home run in the 7th inning by former Sara-Sox Hanley Ramirez - as the Tampa Bay Red Wings finished a 3-game sweep of the Florida Marlins. Garza (6-4) struck out 10 and walked one in his first complete game in 38 major league starts. He faced the minimum 18 batters through six innings on a humid afternoon in Miami.

Fox fine; Miracle offense comatose

Brevard County 3 at Fort Myers 1

W: A. Periard (6-6, 3.75); L: M. Fox (3-3, 3.95); SV: M. McClendon (6)
HR: None.

Sometimes, you have to stand up for what you believe in. Fort Myers Miracle field manager Jeff Smith believed that home plate umpire Jeff Gosney didn't know the difference between a ball and a strike. So he stood up for his team. This earned him an ejection in the sixth inning. It did not, rather unfortunately, seem to help Gosney get any better at his job.

Matt Fox carried a no hitter into the 5th inning, pitching brilliantly against Brevard County's Alexandre Periard. But lots of things happened in the sixth inning.

Fox would get Yohannis Perez and Brent Brewer to fly out out before Darren Ford singled, then stole 2nd. Lorenzo Cain then doubled in Ford.

That's when Smith decided to have some words with Gosney.

Jonathan Lucroy would then hit a grounder out to right which plated Cain. With Smith out of the game, Slice got to march up to the mound and take Matt Fox out of the game and put Matt Williams in. Williams would get Taylor Green to pop out to retire the side.

Perez would single to start out the top of the 8th. One out later, Ford would double out to left with the ball deflecting off 3rd baseman Juan Portes. Perez would have no problem scoring on the play as Ovalle was busy chasing down the ball.

Mike McClendon would replace Periard in the 9th. Danny Lehmann greeted him with a walk. Yancarlos Ortiz would reach on a force attempt on a throwing error by Stephen Chapman. Steve Singleton would line into an unassisted double play, doubling Ortiz off first. Yangervis Solarte would reach on a throwing error by Brewer at short, and Lehamnn would come in, avoiding a shut out.

Cole Devries (5-6, 2.99) will start Friday's rematch against the Manatees, who are sending lefty Chris Cody (0-2, 2.99) to the mound. If you are a member of the Sean Fox Fan Club, you can enjoy free hot dogs, chips and salsa on the concourse from 6 to 7 PM. If you're not a member of the Sean Fox Fan Club...well...don't you want to be a member of the Sean Fox Fan Club?

Also the first 750 members of the Sean Fox Fan Club through the door get a free team picture! How special is that? Sign up now so you too can take advantage of all these special member only benefits of the Sean Fox Fan Club!

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I seem to have made Jeremy Jeffress into an instant celebrity last night by going down and asking for an autograph. Then people kept asking me who he was all evening. This is kind of a low key autographing series for me. Once the Yankees come in, I'll be really busy.

Snappers, E-Twins streaks end

Beloit 5 at Clinton 8

W: F. Castillo (1-3, 5.49); L: D. Bromberg (5-5, 5.11); SV: A. Flores (6)
HR: CLI: I. Gac (19).

All good things must come to an end, and so it was with the Beloit Snappers' win streak. The Snapper fell into a hole early against the Clinton Lumber Kings and could not find enough runs to get out.

Ian Gac singled in the bottom of the 2nd before Beloit starter David Bromberg would hit Jonathan Greene with a pitch. Cristian Santana doubled to drive in the pair. Following a ground out to Jose Felix, Andres Jones singled to plate Santana, giving the L-Kings a 3-0 lead.

Renny Osuna singled to start out the bottom of the third, and Timothy Smith doubled him in. Michael Moreland's single moved Smith to 3rd, and Ian Gac would smack a line drive out to left to bring in Smith. Jonathan Greene hit into a double play and Cristian Santana would ground out to end the inning.

Estarlin De Los Santos and Chris Cates drew back-to-back walks off the L-Kings Fabio Castillo. Diebenson Romero would single out to left field to load the bags. Chris Parmalee would hit a sac fly to bring in De Lo while Joe Benson's follow up single plated Cates A fielding error by Santana gave Deibinson 3rd, and Benson would then steal 2nd, but Castillo would take Ozzie Lewis and Greg Yersich out on strikes to end the inning.

Bromberg would work the fourth without any further problems and the Snappers continued to play catch up in the bottom of the 5th. Eric Santiago walked. Mark Dolenc singled before De Lo would fly out, moving Santiago to 3rd. Cates ground out to put Dolenc on 2nd. Romero then doubled the pair in. Parmelee would fly out to retire the side.

Timothy Smith singled and Mitchell Moreland doubled to start out the bottom of the 5th. Gac then took a Bromberg pitch over the left field wall to give the L-Kings 8 to the Snappers 4. Bromberg would then hit Greene with a pitch before Nelson Prada took Bromberg off the mound and gave the ball to Henry Reyes. The big Dominican would get Santana to fly out, Felix to ground into a force out, and James to ground out, ending the inning.

Santiago and Dolenc would draw back-to-back walks from Joseph Ortiz in the top of the 7th. De Lo would offer up a sac bunt to advance the runners, and Cates would sacrifice in Santiago. Romero would be hit by a pitch and Parmalee would walk to load the bags before Chris Dennis came into to replace Ortiz, getting Benson to ground into a force out to stop the Snapper's scoring threat.

Bromberg's line score would not look good: 8 runs on 11 hits while fanning 4 over four innings. Henry Reyes and Danny Hernandez pitched the last four, with Reyes going three before letting Hernandez take over.

Romero was 2-for-4 with a pair of RBIs in the contest. Cates and Yersich were both 1-for-3, Cates with a walk, a run and a RBI and Yersich with a walk and pair of strike outs. Dolenc was also 1-for-3 with a run and a walk. Benson was 1-for-4 with 1 RBI.

The Snappers play one more against the L-Kings, Thursday night at Alliant Energy Field starting at 7:00 PM. They finally return home on Friday to open a 4-game series against the Cedar Rapids Kernels.

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BDN: Benson

Elizabethton 5 at Bluefield 13

W: T. Phelps (1-0, 4.50); L: B. Lanigan (0-1, 4.82)
HR: ELI: M. Harrington (3). BLU: L. West 2 (2).

The Bluefield Orioles took advantage of the Elizabethton Twins bullpen Wednesday night, putting 10 runs on the board to go on to a 13-5 win.

Andrew Schmiesing's single in the top of the 3rd combined with a Michael Herrington home run gave the E-Twins an early lead.

Twins starter Bobby Lanigan would give up 3 in the bottom of the fourth, putting the Orioles on top. He'd go on to work 5.1 innings, allowing 5 runs on 7 hits and a pair of walks while striking out 6. Jose Alcala would finish up the sixth inning, allowing 3 more runs on 2 hits and three walks while striking out 1.

The Twins would not find another run until the top of the 8th, when Michael Harrington walked, moved to 2nd on a Rene Leveret single and to 3rd on a Danny Rams ground out. Angel Morales then singled to plate Harrington.

Lee Martin, working the final 2 on the mound for the E-Twins would give up 5 run, 4 earned, on four hits and a walk while striking out 3 over 2 innings.

The final two runs came in the top of the 9th, with Nathan Hanson doubling and James Beresford singling him in. Schmiesing then lined out and Romero would go down on strikes before a passed ball moved Beresford to 2nd. Harrington then singled Beresford in. Leveret would fly out though, cutting the rally short and ending the game.

Hanson was 2-for-3 with a walk and a run; Harrington and Morales were 2-for-4, Harrington with a pair of runs, a walk and 3 RBIs and Morales with 1 RBI. Schmiesing was 2-for-5 with a run.

Rams, Nick Papasan and Leveret each had singles, the first two being one-hit wonders and the Leveret taking a walk to go with his single.

The E-Twin now return to Joe O'Donald Field to face the Johnston City Cardinals on Thursday night with a 7:00 PM start.

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Wanted. One Bullpen. Must be able to throw for strikes.

Fort Myers 6 at Palm Beach 10

W: E. Hernandez (3-1, 5.70); L: J. Lugo (1-4, 5.82)
HR: FTM: E. Ovalle (6).

Tyler Robertson had a tough night for his second outing back from tendinitis and the bullpen continued to emit great sucking sounds as the Fort Myers Miracle saw a 4-run sixth inning wasted by their pitching staff.

Palm Beach would get on the board first, when Tony Cruz drew a walk off Robertson. Brandon Buckman's line drive move Cruz to 3rd and a Luke Goresett line drive single saw him across the plate.

The Miracle took it back in to the top of the 2nd when Garrett Olson hit a ground rule double with 2 outs. Eli Tintor followed that with a walk and Yancarlos Ortiz hit a line drive out to left to score Olson.

Edward Ovalle homered in the top of the 4th to give the Miracle a slim lead.

It would be squandered though as Cruz doubled off Robertson to start the bottom of the fifth. A wild pitch moved Cruz to 3rd. He'd get Brandon Buckman out on strikes before hitting Gorsett with a pitch. Daryl Jones line drive single scored Cruz to tie up the game. Jeff Smith had seen enough at that point and fetch Oswaldo Sosa from the bullpen. Brian Carte would hit a sac-fly off Sosa to drive in Gorsett, and a throwing error by Olson, who suddenly found himself a center fielder(?!), moved Jones to 3rd. Daniel Decalso's grounder to second plated Jones to make it 4-2 Cards.

Blake King would take over the Cardinals mound from Shaun Garceau in the top of the sixth. Juan Portes took a walk and moved to 2nd on a wild pitch. Yangervis Solarte then singled, putting Portes on 3rd and Olson walked to load the bags. After a strike out by Tintor, Ortis singled to drive in a pair. Steve Singleton then doubled to finish cleaning off the bases, and it was 6-4 Miracle.

The bottom the 7th saw Gorsett single and Jones Walk. Cartie would go down on a sac-bunt that moved the pair. Smith then summoned Jose Lugo from the bullpen and all I could do was scream "No! No! No!" Descalso took a walk and Nick Derba struck out swinging. James Rapoport then singled to bring in the tying runs.

Then, to compound matters, they let Lugo back out for the 8th. Cruz walked and Buckman doubled. Goresett's grounder scored Cruz and a wild pitch brought in Buckman. Daryl Jones then walked. Blair Erickson would come in, although a tad bit late. Cartie would hit a sac-bunt to move the runners and Erickson then intentionally walked Descalso. He'd then, quite unintentionally, walk Derba to force in a run. A wild pitch would see Jones home to finish off the Cards scoring.

Ortiz was 3-for-4 for the Miracle with a run and 3 RBIs. Six other Miracle had single with only Berg and Portes going without, although both took walks in the game.

They now return home to "Flight to nowhere", one of the lamest promotions I'd ever read about and if any of the Fun Is Good staff thinks they're going to charge me for bringing my bag into the stadium, well...they better remember that FIGs are the main part of FIGgy pudding and I may just have to whip me up a batch on the concourse. I can't image why Steve Gliner thinks people will pay to go to a Miracle game to experience all the unpleasant aspects of air travel, when they can just hop on over to Southwest Florida International Airport, but...there it is. One hopes he comes with a warning label that says "Caution, may contain nut".

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New Hampshire 3 at New Britain 1

W: B. Cecil (3-1, 3.21); L: R. Mullins (6-6, 3.40); SV: Z. Dials (11)
HR: NHM: J. Arencibia (2).

The Rock Cats narrowly missed a second straight shut out on Wednesday when Danny Valencia single, moved to 2nd on a Brock Peterson walk and came in on an Erik Lis double in the eighth inning.

The Rock Cats out hit the Fisher Cats 9 to 8, but they couldn't get anything in clumps. (Perhaps a new brand of kitty litter?)

Valencia and Lis were both 2-for-4 on the nights. Dustin Martin, David Winfree, Peterson, Rocky Palacios and Brian Dinkelman all had singles.

Mullins suffered his sixth loss of the season, despite a quality start that saw him give up only 3 run, 2 earned, on seven hits and a pair of walks while fanning 5 over seven innings.

A throwing error by Peterson in the top of the 2nd lead to the unearned run.

Former Dunedin Blue Jay Brett Cecil pitched five shutout innings for the 3rd consecutive game, scattering 5 hits and striking out 4.

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Twins hold off Orioles rally

GCL Orioles 5 at GCL Twins 6

W: K. Mota (1-0, 0.00); L: D. De La Cruz (0-1, 7.71)
HR: TWI: A. Diaz (2).

The GCL Twins got back into the win column on Wednesday at the Lee County Sportsplex, holding off a late inning rally by the GCL Orioles.

The Twins took an early lead in the bottom of the second. Andres Diaz led off with a home run, his second in as many days. Daniel Ortiz singled then stole 2nd base. Tyler Ladendorf would double out to right and Michael Gonzalez would single to score Ortiz. Josmil Pinto would ground into a force out that caught Gonzalez at 2nd, but Ladendorf scored on the play for the Twins 3rd run.

In the top of the fourth, Garabez Rosa singled off of Alex Curry. One out later, Zach Dillon would double him in to make it 3-1 Twins.

Javier Santana would draw a walk off reliever Elliott Biddle. A sac-bunt would move him 2nd, and he would be tripled in by Rosa, cutting the Twins lead down to one.

The Twins offense got back to work in the bottom of the 7th. Juan Sanchez singled then stole 2nd. Two outs later, Aaron Hicks would single to drive in Sanchez making it 4-2 Twins.

The bottom of the 8th saw Ladendorf reach on a throwing error, and move to second on the play. A wild pitch by O's reliever Randor Bierd got him to 3rd. Gonzalez then doubled to plate him, making it 5-2 Twins.

Mauro Schiavoni would be on the mound in the top of the 9th. Luis Ramierez would take a double off of him, and Dillion singled to push him over the plate. A throwing error by Reggie Williams would move Dillon to 2nd base. He'd be replaced by pinch runner Grolmann Gonzalez. Jerome Hoes then drew a walk. Steve Blevins would be brought into shut down the O's rally and would get Jose Kianes to pop out before being replaced by Kelvin Mota. Dashenko Ricardo drew a walk off Mota to load the bags. Francisco Meja would fly out, but a fielding error by Diaz at first allowed Javier Santana to reach and Gonzalez and Hoes to score, tying up the game.

The O's would turn to Donis De La Cruz to try to preserve the tie and push the game into extra innings. Reggie Williams would reach on a fielding error with one out on the board. Hicks was then intentionally walked. Diaz walked as well to load the bags, and De La Cruz would hit Ortiz with a pitch, forcing in a run and handing the win to the Twins.

Diaz and Gonazlez were both 2-for-4 on the night, Diaz with a walk, a run and a run batted in, while Gonazlez had a pair of runs scored. Hicks and Ladendorf were 1-for-3 each, Hicks with a pair of walks and a RBI, and Ladendorf with a pair of runs. Ortiz, Pinto and Sanchez were all 1-for-4, Ortiz with a run and a RBI, Pinto with a RBI and Sanchez with a run.

Curry would work four innings for the Twins, allowing 1 run, earned on a pair of hits while fanning 3. Biddle went the next 1.2, giving up a run on 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 1. Schiavoni worked 2.1, allowing 3 runs, 1 earned, on 2 hits and a walk while fanning 2. Mota picked up the win on .2 innings work of work.

The Twins will stick around at the Lee County Sportsplex on Thursday, hosting the GCL Reds. The teams will play the conclusion of the rain suspended game from Saturday. The Reds were leading by 1 and the Twins had runners on first and third when the game was halted. They will play the remainder of nine innings, and weather permitting, will follow it up with a seven-inning version of the regularly scheduled game.

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DSL Twins 8 at DSL Rockies 5

W: P. Guerra (3-0, 3.70); L: J. Vargas (0-2, 2.41); SV: E. Alvarez (6)
HR: None.

The DSL Twins actually took a road win from the DSL Rockies. The team improved to 4-7 on the road. Coupled with their 10-1 home record, that is good for second place in the North Division, 2 games back from the DSL Cubs 1.

Pedro Guerra took the start for the Twins, allowing 3 runs, earned, on 7 hits and a pair of walks while fanning 4.

The Twins got onto the board in the top of the 2nd, with Jean Carlos Mercedes taking a walk with one out. Jairo Rodriguez reached on a force attempt and a wild pitch from DSL Rockie's starter Jonathan Vargas moved the pair. Danny Santana then drew a walk to load the bags. Wilfy Gil walked as well to score Mercedes. Juan Blanco would then sacrifice in Rodriguez to give the Twins 2.

The Rockies would take one back in the bottom of the inning, with Miguel De Leon singling, moving to 2nd on a pop out, to third on a wild pitch and coming home on Michael Ramirez single to center.

The top of the fourth saw Santana single with one out, then steal 2nd. Gil followed that up with a ground ball to center that scored Santana.

Back-to-back singles to Felix Caro and Jairo Perez put runners on base. A missed catch error by Moises Charles in right field and a throwing error by third baseman Gabriel Reyes resulted in a run for Cairo. Eliel Sierra would be hit by a pitch and steal 2nd. Mercedes would strike out, and Rodriguez would reach on a fielder's choice that took Perez out at home. Santana struck out to end the inning.

The Rockies would take two back in the bottom of the sixth.

The top of the 7th would see Caro single and be replaced by pinch runner Yancarlo Franco. Franco then moved on a pair of throwing errors by Jefri Hernandez, who probably shouldn't try picking anyone else off. Sierra then singled to score Franco, and advanced to second on a fielding error. Mercedes and Rodriguez would both walk to load the bags before Felito Dominguez was brought in to replace Hernandez. Santana singled to score Sierra; Mercedes would be taken out at home on the play. Gil would single to score Rodriguez, but Santana would be taken out at 3rd base to end the inning.

The Rockies got a pair more in the bottom of the 8th, with De Leon and Ramirez both doubling.

Sierra would reach on fielding error in the top of the ninth that put him at 2nd base. A wild pitch advance him to 3rd. He'd come home when Oswaldo Arcia ground into a double play.

Gil finished up 2-for-3 with a walk and three RBIs. Caro and Santana were both 2-for4 with a run each, Santana with a walk and a RBI as well. Perez was 2-for-5.

The Twins host the DSL Diamondbacks on Thursday for a 10:30 AM Dominican time game.

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Wings bounce Bats in Slugfest

Rochester 10 at Louisville 8

W: F. Liriano (4-2, 4.44); L: A. Pettyjohn (7-3, 5.03); SV: B. Korecky (10)
HR: ROC: T. Plouffe (1). LOU: A. Rosales (5), L. Bolivar (2).

After being shut out on Tuesday evening, the Rochester Red Wings bounced back to take a 10-8 win over the Louisville Bats in an afternoon matinee at Louisville Slugger Field.

Denard Span doubled for the Wings who seemed anxious to put behind them alligations that they in fact did not own any bats. Tommy Watkins then singled to drive in Span. Darnell McDonald would single out to center. Garrett Jones flew out, but moved the runners. Randy Ruiz would smoke a line drive out to center to plate Watkins and McDonald. Sergio Santos would reach on a fielder's choice that saw Ruiz nabbed at 3rd. Matt Macri then doubled out to left to drive in Santos, giving the Wings a big 4 run lead.

Span would double again in the top of the 2nd, then come home on McDonald's single.

In the bottom of the stanza, Aaron Herr would reach on a fielding error by Plouffe. Adam Rosales then took a Francisco Liriano pitch over the left field wall for his fifth home run of the season.

Ruiz and Santos hit back-to-back singles in the top of the 3rd and Matt Macri would lay down a sac bunt to move the pair of runners. Trevor Plouffe then launched a ball over the wall for his first yard marker of the season.

Everything seemed to be going well until the bottom of the 4th. Herr singled, Rosales doubled and Alvin Colina tripled, to bring in two runs. Chris Dickerson took a walk, but Jerry Gil would ground into a double play that plated Colina. Luis Bolivar then went yard, putting four more runs on the board. Liriano would allow two more hits, but no more runs before getting Drew Anderson to ground out to end the inning.

Watkins would double in the top of the 6th. A McDonald singled plated him before the Bats got Josh Roenicke out of the mound to replace Daniel Herrera who in turn replaced Adam Pettyjohn in the top of the 5th.

Liriano would last 5.1 innings, allowing 6 runs on 9 hits and 1 walk while striking out 2. Tim Lahey relieved him and would be on the mound in the bottom of the 7th when Anderson walked. Herr then tripled out to center to score him while a throwing error by Matt Macri plated Herr. Bobby Koreck would then take over to finish off the inning.

Rochester would add one more insurance run in the 9th. McDonald singled and was doubled to 3rd by Jones. Following a walk to Ruiz, Santos would hit into a double play that took McDonald out at home. A wild pitch by Todd Coffey would plate Jones however, who had moved to 3rd to finish things off.

Korecky would work 2.2 innings to finish off the game allowing 2 hits and a walk while striking out 2.

The final game of the series is Thursday at 7:05 PM. RHP Josh Fogg (0-0) who is on ML rehab will pitch against the Red Wings' RHP Phillip Humber (3-6, 5.60).

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Former Miracle outfielder Josh "Maddog" Rabe has decided to retire. Josh was playing with the independent Camden Riversharks but has been battling back injuries for two years and no long cared to endure the pain. Rabe will be attending law school, with an eye on becoming an attorney in the future.

Extra Bases Blog

The Red Wings have had a winning month of June every year of the Minnesota Twins affiliation (five consecutive seasons). Rochester is now 13-11 in June after Wednesday's win.

The 25-man rosters for the U.S. and World teams competing in the 10th annual Futures Game on July 13 at Yankee Stadium will be announced on Thursday afternoon. Former Red Wing Davey Johnson will manage the U.S. club; Johnson will also serve as the manager of the U.S. Team at the Olympics in Beijing, China in August.

OF Ben Revere, the Twins' top pick in the 2007 draft, leads the Class A Midwest league in batting with a .417 avg entering play Wednesday. Revere's .463 on-base percentage is also tops in the league, and his .565 slugging pct. is second in the circuit.

Rookie LHP Mariano Gomez has been a bright spot out of the Rochester bullpen, with a 2-1 record with one save and a 1.99 ERA in 31 games. Gomez has not allowed a run in 22 of his 31 appearances, and has allowed just two of his 12 inherited runners to score.

Soto goes yard twice to lead the E-Twins over Bluefield

Elizabethton 14 at Bluefield 8

W: D. Rondon (1-0, 3.00); L: B. Sisk (0-1, 1.93)
HR: ELI: A. Soto 2 (3), M. Harrington (2).

The mountain air obviously agrees with the Elizabethton Twins. Once again they knocked out a copious amount of runs against the Bluefield Orioles.

Bluefield actually got on the scoreboard first, with Brian Conley and Rodolfo Cardona singling off E-Twins starter Dan Osterbrook. Conley would score on Lance West's ground out, but a strike out to Elvin Polanco and a ground out to Ronnie Welty left Cardona stranded.

Evan Bigley singled out to left to get on base for the E-Twins in the top of the second. One out later Alex Soto pumped one out of the park for a pair of runs.

Levi Carolus doubled in the bottom of the stanza and, two outs later, came in on Luis Bernardo's single to tie the game.

Michael Harrington put his second home run of the season over the right field wall in the top of the 4th to restore the E-Twins lead.

Travis Keating took over the mound from Eddie Gamboa, who had done a fairly good job of keeping the E-Twins contained allowing only 5 hits while striking out 3.

Keating would get Soto out on strikes but Dominic De La Osa reached on a throwing error by Keating. Jeanfred Brito drew a walk, and Andrew Schmiesing's single drove in De La Osa. Jonathan Waltenbury reached on a force attempt that went awry when Rodolfo Cardona missed the catch. Brito would score on the play. Rene Leveret singled to drive in Schmiesing. Another error, this one by Orioles shortstop Robert Stevens allowed Harrington to reach to load the bags. Bigley would ground into a force out that scored Waltenbury, giving the Twins a 7-2 lead.

It was short lived. Lee Martin would allow a single to Jason Rook to lead off in the bottom of the seventh. A fielding error by De La Osa allowed Stevens on base before Bernardo was called out on strikes. Brian Conley then walked to load the bags. Cardona doubled to drive in 2. Martin would get West out swinging, but Polanco doubled to drive in two more. Ronnie Welty singled to score Polanco, tying up the game, and Levi Carolus would plate Welty to put the Orioles on top again.

Andrew Schmiesing singled off Bluefield's Brian Sisk. Waltenbury's follow up single moved him to 2nd, and Leveret's ground out advanced the pair. Harrington would ground out, but Schmiesing would score to tie up the contest, sending it into extra innings.

In the top of the llth with one out, Leveret would reach on a fielding error by Conley. A wild pitch by Sisk moved him to second. The speedy Angel Morales would go in as a pinch runner for the lumbering Leveret. Harrington would get plunked by a pitch, and Bigley would reach on a failed force attempt. Cardona's throwing error allowed Morales and Harrington to score. Juan Richardson double in Bigley, and Soto blasted his 2nd home run of the night over the left center field wall.

The six runs in the 11th would prove impossible for the Orioles to overcome as Danny Rondon used three ground outs to closed down the game.

Schmiesing finish up 3-for-6 with a pair of runs, a walk and a RBI. Soto was 2-for-6 with 2 runs, and 4 RBIs. Leveret was also 2-for-6, but with 1 RBI. Waltenbury was 2-for-7 with a run and a run scored.

The E-Twins play one more at Bluefield, before returning home to face Johnson City. The 6-2 Cardinals trail the E-Twins by one game in the Appy West standings.

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Monday:
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DSL Reds 0 at DSL Twins 3

W: R. Acosta (4-0, 0.00); L: L. Machuca (1-2, 5.24); SV: E. Alvarez (5)
HR: None.

The DSL Twins blanked the DSL Red, 3-0 Tuesday at home. Ramon Acosta pick up his fourth win of the season, allowing only 1 hit while fanning 5 over 7 innings. Edison Alvarez nabbed is 5th save of 2008, striking out 2 in the ninth to preserve the win.

Jairo Rodriguez reached on a fielding error in the bottom of the 3rd, then stole 2nd base. Xavier Gonzalez singled to move Rodriguez to 3rd. He'd score when Yancarlo Franco ground into a force out that took Gonzalez out at 2nd. Carlos Vasquez would ground out and Jhonatan Arias fly out to leave Franco stranded however.

With two outs on the board in the bottom of the six, Jairo Perez would be hit by a pitch. Eliel Sierra would single his way onto base before Felix Cara tripled to drive in two.

Caro finished up 2-for-4 with 2 RBIs, while Gonzalez went 2-for-3. Perez and Sierra had the other two hits for the Twins.

The DSL Twins will pay a visit to the DSL Rockies on Wednesday for a 10:30 AM Dominican Time game in which they will likely get trounced.

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Beloit powers past L-Kings for sixth straight

Beloit 8 at Clinton 5

W: M. McCardell (4-1, 3.17); L: R. Tatusko (1-5, 5.48); SV: S. Steedley (8)
HR: CLI: C. Santana (7).

The Beloit Snappers extended their second half win streak, rallying back from a 5 run deficit to defeat the Clinton Lumber Kings, 8-5.

With two outs on the board in the bottom of the 1st, Renny Osuna singled. Mitchell Moreland then took a triple of Snappers starter Mike McCardell to plate him giving Clinton the early lead.

Cristian Santana led off the bottom of the 5th with a home run. Carlos Dominguez and Miguel Alfonzo used back-to-back singles to get on base. Lawson would hit a ground bunt that took Dominguez out at 3rd. Osuna then flew out before Moreland tripled to drive in 3, giving Clinton a 5-0 lead.

McCardell would work 8, allowing all 5 runs, earned, on 9 hits while striking out 6.

Beloit started battling back in the top of the sixth. Estarlin De Los Santos hit a single out to left to lead off. Chris Cates would fly out before a passed ball by Dominguez moved De Lo to 2n. Deibinson Romero singled out to left to plate Sanata, putting the Snappers on the board.

With Ryan Tatusko on the mound for the L-Kings, Ozzie Lewis would draw a walk and Greg Yersich singled to follow him onto the base. Eric Santiago's ground out moved the pair. Mark Dolenc's grounder to 3rd plated Lewis. De Lo would reach on a fielder's choice that failed when Dominguez failed to make the catch, allowing Yersich to score. Hector Nelo then made his way to mound from the bullpen. A passed ball by Dominguez moved Cates to 3rd. Romero would triple him in then come home on a sac-fly by Chris Parmelee, making it 7-5 Snappers.

Beloit tagged on one more in the 9th with Dolenc singling then moving on a sac-bunt by Delo. He'd steal 3rd and a throwing error by the hapless Dominguez scored him.

Bad game for Senor Dominguez. Good game for Snappers!

De Lo and Dolenc were both 2-for-4 with a pair of runs, Dolenc with a RBI was well, Romero went 2-for-5 with a triple, a run and 2 runs scored. Cates, Lewis and Yersich all singled and recorded a run for the Snappers; Cates and Lewis each had a walk as well.

The LumberKings (1-4) and Snappers (5-0) continue the series tomorrow night at Alliant Energy Field, first pitch scheduled for 7:00 PM.

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A tale of two shut outs

New Hampshire 6 at New Britain 1

W: R. Ray (3-0, 0.78); L: J. Manship (0-2, 5.40)
HR: None.

Once again, the New Britain Rock Cats proved to the New Britain declawed cats, as they managed only 5 hits against New Hampshire's Rob Ray.

Sure Rob Ray's a good pitcher, but the recently promoted FSL hurler looked unstoppable as he worked 9 innings of shut out baseball, allowing only 5 hits and fanning 10.

Scott Campbell doubled off former Miracle Jeff Manship to start off the proceedings. Aaron Mathews singled to move him to 3rd before Travis Snider was called out on strikes. J.P. Arencibia singled to score Campbell, putting the Fisher Cats on the board.

Manship catches on quick however and set on to to work 6 innings, allowing only 2 more hits the entire time and going on to fan 4 more, for a total of 5.

Jason Miller would take over in the 7th, but it was in the 8th that New Hampshire rocked him. Ryan Klosterman doubled. J-Mill then hit Campbell with a pitch. A throwing error on the pick off attempt moved the pair of runners to 2nd and 3rd. Mathews line drive out to left plated the pair. Snider drew a walk, and Arencibia singled out to center to score Mathews before Brian Jeroloman was taken out on strikes. Eric Nelsen then flew out before former Miracle Kyle Phillips doubled to drive in 2 more.

Felix Molina was 2-for-3 while Steve Tolleson, Brock Peterson and Danny Valencia were all one hit wonders, Tolleson with three (3!) strike outs on the side.

The Rickity Cats will try to find some offense against New Hampshire on Wednesday night at 6:35 PM as the series continues at New Britain Stadium. Left Ryan Mullins (6-5, 3.47) will throw out the first pitch. New Hampshire counters with southpaw Brett Cecil (2-1, 3.59)

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Rochester 0 at Louisville 8

W: M. Maloney (7-4, 4.55); L: B. Duensing (4-7, 4.10)
HR: LOU: A. Rosales 2 (4).

The Louisville Slugger Museum & Factory is located in Louisville Kentucky, and so the Rochester Red Wings evidently felt they did not need to bring bats with them, they could just buy new ones at the gift shop.

Unfortunately, the Wings have yet to take a tour. Rochester was shut out by the Louisville Bats' Matt Maloney and two relievers, managing - much like their Double A affiliate - only 5 hits in the contest. Meanwhile the Bats wasted little time breaking out their sluggers against Rochester starter Brian Duensing.

Jerry Hairston doubled to get things started off for the home town team and Andy Green followed him onto base with a single that served to plate Hairston. Following a ground out to Drew Anderson and a fly out to Aaron Herr, Ryan Hanigan walked putting two runners on. Adam Rosales then slugged his 3rd home run over the left field wall to give the Bats a 4 run lead.

In the bottom of the 6th Anderson singled with one out on the board. A wild pitch moved him to 2nd, just in time for Aaron Herr to double him in. Following a ground out to Harigan, Rolases put his second home run ball of the night over the left field fence, making it 7-0 Bats.

With Julio DePaula on the mound in the bottom of the 8th, Chris Dickerson would double with two outs on the board. Jerry Gil drew a walk before Luis Boilvar's line drive scored Dickerson.

Randy Ruiz was 1-for-4 at the plate with a double, while Darnell McDonald, Garrett Jones, Trevor Plouffe and Ryan Jorgensen all shared the one hit wonder title.

The two teams play at 12:05 game Wednesday and one can only hope that the Wings send someone out to buy them some bats early Wednesday morning. Lefty Adam Pettyjon (7-1, 4.48) will throw out the first pitch, while southpaw Francisco Liriano (3-2, 4.14) will counter for the Wings.

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Extra Bases Blog

The Red Wings starting pitchers have struggled the last five games; in 24.2 innings of work, the starters have allowed 24 runs (22 earned) on 36 hits, while walking four and striking out 18.

The Wings were blanked for the seventh time this season.

Rookie LHP Mariano Gomez has been a bright spot out of the Rochester bullpen, with a 2-1 record with one save and a 1.99 ERA in 31 games. Gomez has not allowed a run in 22 of his 31 appearances, and has allowed just two of his 12 inherited runners to score.

Former Twins and Wings right-hander Juan Rincon signed a Minor League deal with the Cleveland Indians on Tuesday, and will report to Buffalo later this week.

From a bit of mail in the Extra Bases blog: "They started out a couple guys (Aaron Hicks, et al) at Ft Myers (in the GCL) who could/should be in Elizabethtown or maybe even Beloit." I love people who have naver seen these kids play sit there and make these assessments. Hicks is currently hitting 3 for 10 with a walk and one run in three games. This qualifies him for Elizabethton? Beloit? The world is full of GMs who have never seen a single game. Oh - I know - maybe they could call him up to Rochester so he could help the Wings! There you go. And take Ladendorf and his .231 average with along as well.