Cubs score late to take early lead in series

Daytona 5 at Fort Myers 1

W: J. Latham (1-0, 0.00); L: C. Gutierrez (0-1, 13.50)
HR: FTM: R. Tosoni (2).

Matt Fox pitched an absolutely incredible game for six innings, scattering 3 hits and a pair of walks and striking out an astounding 10 batters. But unfortunately, the bullpen could not match his performance.

Carlos Gutierrez would get Carlos Canzier to strike out swinging to start his shift in the seventh, but Steve Clevenger, Ryan Harvey and Jonathan Mota all took singles off the Miami native, scoring Clevenger to tie up the contest. A throwing error on a pick off attempt would put Harvey over the plate, putting the Cubs on top. After Darwin Barney ground out, Tony Thomas tripled off the sink-ball throwing rookie, bringing Mota home. Jeff Smith would get Jose Lugo out of the bullpen at that point, and the Dominican hurler walked James Adduci before getting Ty Wright to ground into a force out, retiring the Cubs.

Rene Tosoni would launch a solo shot home run over the right field wall in the bottom of the fourth for the Miracle. Despite out hitting the Cubs through the first six innings, it would be all that they would manage to get over the plate off the Daytona team.

Lugo would work a solid 8th inning, but despite a single to Juan Portes, the Fort Myers Miracle could not come up with a Miracle to even up the score. David Shinskie replaced Lugo in the top of the 9th. Harvey would go down on strikes, but Mota and Barney both singled. Thomas' sack bunt scored Mota and moved Barney to 2nd. Adduci would single which, combined with a throwing error by Yancarlos Ortiz, scored Barney making it 5-1 Cubs.

Whit Robbins would single off closer Brian Schlitter in the 9th, but Wilson Ramos, Edward Ovalle and Johnny Woodard all went down on strikes to end the contest in the Cubbies' favor.

Tosoni would go 2-for-3 at the plate with walk, a run and a RBI but he could not provide all the offense by himself. Portes was 2-for-4 with Steve Singleton, Ramos and Robbins all chipping in with singles and finishing off the contest 1-for-4 as one hit wonders. Ovalle, Woodard and Eli Tintor all drew walks, but were otherwise "0-fer" - the first two being 0-for-3 with Tint going 0-for-2.

Not the sort of thing that the Miracle would like to see. They will attempt to bounce back against the hard hitting Cubs Sunday evening at 7:05 for game two of the Florida State League Finals. Cole Devries (1-0, 0.00) will get the nod to take the mound for the Miracle, while the Cubs send up right-hander Jay Jackson (0-0, 0.00) out to counter.

Sunday's contest is the last game at The Bill, as the series reverts to Jackie Robinson Stadium for Monday's match up.

Box
Log
Miracle
Cubs

When the Marlins faced the Cubs in post season play in 2003, one of the radio stations in the area held a ceremony in which a stuffed "Cub" was impaled on the bill of the 50 foot Marlin out in front of Grey's Taxidermy off I-90. Anyone know where we can acquire a big bill fish at so we can impale a cub of our own at The Bill?

Daytona has a speedway, but Lee and Collier Counties have four Racetrac locations where you can go to get free general admission tickets to the Hammond Stadium for the playoff games on Sunday. Don't forget to plan a pit stop at Racetrac on your way to the Bill Sunday night!

Miracle win in Dunedin, return home on Wednesday

Fort Myers 2 at Dunedin 1

W: C. Devries (1-0, 0.00); L: B. Mills (0-1, 2.57); SV: A. Slama (1)
HR: FTM: R. Tosoni (1). DUN: M. Liuzza (1).

For the first time in Fort Myers Miracle playoff history, the Miracle took a win against the Dunedin Blue Jays - on the road.

In 2003 and 2006, the Miracle won one against the Jays, but in each year, it was within the friendly confines of Hammond Stadium. The Miracle will still need to do that, at least once, to progress to the best of five Florida State League finals round.

Juan Portes opened things up in the first with a single. Following a pop out by Steve Singleton, Rene Tosoni took a Brad Mills pitch over the right field wall to give the Miracle two.

Cole Devries would do the rest, scattering five hits and a pair of walks over 6.2 innings while fanning 3.

The Jays would not get a man past second until the bottom of the fifth, when Chris Emanuele made it to 3rd with two men out, but Brad Emaus flew out to send the Jays back on defense.

Carlos Gutierrez would work the next 1.1 innings, allowing only 1 hit and strikeing out 2 to bring the Miracle to the bottom of the ninth.

They would turn to closer Anthony Slama to slam the door on the Jays, but Matthew Liuzza had other plans, putting one over the right field wall to put the Jays on the board, ending the shut out bid. Anthony Hatch would single before Marcos Cabral went down on strikes. Emanuele then singled, moving Hatch to second, and putting the tying runner in scoring position with only one out on the board. But Slama would induce Luis Sanchez to hit into a double play, ending the contest.

The bus ride will be a little bit nicer for the Miracle as they come home to Hammond, where they will face the Jays on Wednesday and Thursday (if necessary) to determine the Western Divsion Champion.

Alex Burnett (8-6, 3.76) will get the nod on the mound against Dunedin’s Ray Gonzalez (12-4, 3.14).

Box
Log
Miracle
MiLB.com
Breeze
NDN

Tosoni finished off the night 2-for-2 with a pair of walks to go with his yarder. Whit Robbins was 2-for-4 at the plate but did not factor into the scoring. Aside from Portes, who was 1-for-4 on the night with a run, Wilson Ramos and Eli Tintor hit one single each for the Miracle.

The Jays swept their playoff series against the Miracle in 2000, and won, 2-games-to-1 in 2003 and 2006.

General Admission Tickets to Wednesday's playoff game are available free at Lee and Collier county Racetracs. Tickets can be upgraded to a box seat for just $2.00.

Game one between the Palm Beach Cardinals and the Daytona Cubs was suspended due to rain with the Cards leading 4-0 at the top of the fifth inning. It will be resumed tomorrow in West Palm Beach. The series will then shift over to Daytona for game two on Thursday (Cubs.

According to an article in the Sarasota Herald-Tribune the Cincinnati Reds have not committed to playing in either the FSL or the GCL for the 2009 season. 2009 will be their last year in Ed Smith Stadium, they will be moving to Goodyear, Arizona, after the taxpayers of Sarasota County voted down funding to renovate their 20-year old Spring Training facilities. That throws in a new glitch into the already complicated FSL Divisional problem, which started when the Tampa Bay Devil Rays partnered with Ripken Baseball to purchase the former FSL Dodgers franchise, moving it to Port Charlotte for the 2009 season.

Matt Tolbert and Jose Mijares were the only two former Miracle players to receive September call ups to the major league Twins. The other five players added to the Twins were infielder Matt Macri, pitchers Bobby Korecky and Phil Humber, outfielder Jason Pridie and catcher Ryan Jorgensen.

The Miracle were selected to receive the Florida State League’s Municipality Award Tuesday. The award is given each season to the best city or county operated Sports Turf Crew. It’s the ninth time since 1990 that Hammond Stadium crew manager Keith Blasingim's staff has won the award, voted on by field managers, pitching coaches and umpires.

Twins, Reds split two

Fort Myers 11 at Sarasota 3

W: C. Gutierrez (2-0, 2.35); L: S. Carroll (6-5, 3.51)
HR: SAR: J. Francisco (18).

The Fort Myers Miracle found their bats late in the suspended contest against the Sarasota Reds, coming away with an 11-4 victory against their I-75 rival.

Scott Carroll would replace Rafael Gonzalez, who threw only one inning before the game was interrupted by rain. Juan Portes would come in for the Miracle to replace Brandon Roberts, who had played in the first inning of the suspended game, getting as far as 3rd base before being left stranded.

In the top of the 2nd inning, Danny Berg would take a walk to start out. Danny Lehmann then singled, and a sac-bunt by Yancarlos Ortiz moved the pair of runners. Portes would sacrifice in Berg. Edward Ovalle followed that up with line drive to right to plate Lehmann, giving the Miracle a 2 run lead early.

Wilson Ramos would walk off Carroll in the top of the third. Following a fly out to Johnny Woodard, Eli Tintor tripled to drive in Ramos. Berg singled in Tintor, but Lehmann would ground into a force out that took Berg out at second and Ortiz lined out before they could do anything more with the inning.

Alex Burnett would allow back-to-back singled to Eddy Rodriguez and Yuber Rodriguez. Chris Heisey ground into a force out that took E-Rod out at 3rd and moved Y-Rod to 2nd. After Justin Tordi was retired on strikes, Juan Francsico went yard for his 18th of the season, launching a ball over the left field fence to give the Sara-Reds 3.

Carroll would work five innings, and was still on the mound in the top of the six to issue another walk to Berg. Lehmann singled and Ortiz reached on a force attempt when Carroll mis-threw the ball. Berg would come in, to make it 5-3 Miracle. Portes would pop out before Ovalle doubled to score Lehmann. Steve Singleton's line drive to right plated Ortiz and Ovalle, helped out by a Daniel Perales throwing error. Singleton thought he could make it to 3rd while the Reds tried to recover the ball, but was mistaken, as E-Rod fired the ball to Francisco to take him down at 3rd. Ramos would single before Woodard popped out to send the Reds up to bat.

Burnett worked four, allowing 3 runs on 4 hits while fanning 5. Carlos Gutierrez would come in for the next three, giving up a pair of runs and a walk while striking out 3.

Dan Zeffro would replace Carroll in the top of the 7th, giving up a lead off double to Tintor. Berg singled Tint to 3rd, and Lehmann's sac-fly put him over the plate. Ortiz's ground out moved Berg to second and a Portes line drive saw him over the plate to make the score 10-3, Fort Myers.

The teams would exchange runs in the 8th inning, with Woodard tripling in Ramos for the Miracle and Logan Parker doubling in Francisco for the Reds, but that would pretty much finish off the game.

Gutierrez got the credit for the win, improving to 2-0 on the season. Matt Williams worked the final two innings for the Fort Myers squad.

Berg finished up 2-for-2 with a pair of walks, 3 runs and a run scored. Ramos and Lehmann were both 2-for-4 with a pair of runs each, Ramos with a walk and Lehmann with a RBI. Titnor was 2-for-5 with a double and a triple, a pair of runs and a RBI. Ovalle was 2-for-6 with a run and 2 RBIs. Portes and Woodard were both 1-for-4, Portes with 2 RBIs, Woodard with a walk, a triple and 1 RBI. Singleton was 1-for-5 with a RBI. Ortiz, who finished up 0-for-4 at the plate, chipped in a run.

After a bit of field grooming and a break in which the dogs attending the game got to go walkies or perhaps get a dog of their own to wolf down, the two teams set up for the rematch.

Box
Log



Fort Myers 0 at Sarasota 8

W: L. Ondrusek (1-5, 4.19); L: D. Guerra (10-7, 4.93)
HR: SAR: J. Francisco (19), L. Parker (4).

The last time the Fort Myers Miracle bats when whiz, wham, boom and they took a big blow out win, they were shut out in the following game. Such as the case at Ed Smith Stadium on Saturday as the Miracle forgot to swing in the second game, letting the Sarasota Reds blank them 8-0.

Yuber Rodriguez took a walk off Deolis Guerra to start. One out later, Juan Francisco went yard, for his 19th of the season to put 2 on the board. Todd Frazier would go down on strikes before Logan Parker's 4th of the season, made it 3-0 Reds.

Y-Rod singled in the bottom of the 3rd and came home on a Chris Heisey triple. Francisco then singled in Heisey. Guerra was able to induce Todd Frazier to hit into a double play. He'd then walk Parker before Carson Kainer popped out to end the inning.

Jose Lugo replaced Guerra on the bottom of the sixth. He'd get Justin Tordi to strike out before Jacob Long singled. Y-Rod hit a follow up single and Heisey was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Francisco hit into a force out that took Long out at home, but left the bases load. Frazier doubled to drive in two. Parker and Kainer each drew a walk to force in the 8th run.

Whit Robbins was 2-for-3 with a double for the light hitting Miracle. Juan Portes was 1-for-3 with a double. Tintor was also 1-for-3, good for the One hit wonder of the game title.

Logan Ondrusek picked up the win for Sarasota during a bull pen start. He worked five innings for his first win of the year.

Box
Log
Miracle
NDN
Herald-Tribune
Let's Go Miracle
Rays:
Breeze
News Press


There was a posse report this morning at Gulf Coast League that Pat Neshak would be pitching for the Miracle on Monday. I showed a great deal of doubt about that one, so it was amended to "he'd be at the game" in some capacity or other. LEN3 is reporting in his blog that Neshak as begun a throwing program but that he won't work himself up to throwing from a mound until later this month.

It's possible, depending upon his progress, that Neshak might pitch in Fall Instructional League, then get ready for 2009 spring training. The Twins probably won't want to risk his health by pushing for his recovery too soon.

On a more immediate note, Tyler Robertson played a session long catch this morning prior to the GCL game. He'll may take a GCL start by the end of the next week if all goes as planned.

I wasn't keeping score, but I believe the GCL Orioles were leading when their game against the Twins at the Lee County Sportsplex was suspended due to rain and lightning in the area. Joe Testa had just finished pitching the top of the fifth, starter Martire Garcia was struggling with his control early in the contest.

It's possible the game resumed - I don't think it rained all that long - but it did chase the very small crowd away. I left at that point as well. The GCL Twins play on the road tomorrow against the GCL Reds, while the GCL Red Sox host the division leading Pirates at the City of Palms Complex.

Note: Ah...they did resume! The Twins rallied back for a 5-3 win! Way to go Twins!

Evidently, the GCL has gone to a wild card format. There will be no more buy for the highest ranked team. Instead they highest ranked team will play the wild card - the team with the best record after the Division Leaders. At this point, that would be the Twins, but not if they keep taking losses to the O's the Pirates.

Robbins Rocks Mets; Miracle win slug fest

St. Lucie 7 at Fort Myers 9

W: O. Sosa (2-0, 3.57); L: D. Gee (7-6, 3.61); SV: A. Slama (20)
HR: FTM: W. Robbins (3).

Somewhere in the course of this game, I lost track of the score. I think it was right around when Yancarlos Ortiz hit a 2-run home run into the visitor's bullpen. The umpire signaled for a home run, surprising all of us, but then, after much discussion with the coaches on both sides, it was overturned and Berg when back to 3rd and Ortiz went back to the plate.

In any case...the St. Lucie Mets thought they were facing a bullpen pitcher and were not very happy when Ozzie Sosa struck out the first two batters he faced, and kept them off the board for the first and second innings.

Dillon Gee did not fair so well. Brandon Roberts, who as been added to the Miracle roster along with Jose Mijares on rehab assignment, knocked a line drive to center, but Steve Singleton hit into a force out that took him down at second. Following a fly out to Wilson Ramos, Whit Robbins then doubled to move Sing to 3rd. Edward Ovalle's grounder to center brought in the pair for the first two Miracle runs.

(For the purposes of the St. Lucie series, Wilson Ramos will be referred to by his first name "Wilson", and the St. Lucie player by the same last name will be referred to as "Ramos".)

Eli Tintor singled to 2nd and advanced on a fielding error by Peeter Ramos. Ortiz and Roberts would go down on strikes before Singleton doubled to plate Tintor.

Roberts, when he swung went all the way around, lost his balance and fell, which brought Larry Bennese charging out of the dugout. We all thought he'd re-injured himself again, but he assured Larry he was alright and was allowed to continue the game.

D.J. Wabick singled off Sosa in the top of the 3rd. Following a Brahiam Maldonado fly out, Ramos and Ezequiel Carrera both singled to drive in Wabick. A missed catch by Wilson advanced Carrera to 2nd and Ramos to 3rd.

Ovalle would be hit by a pitch to start off the bottom of the inning. Following a fly out to Juan Portes, Berg doubled Ovalle in. Tintor would ground out, moving Berg to 3rd. That's when Ortiz hit his phantom home run. After everything was rewound, Ortiz would go back to the plate, and would strike out.

Mendez got a single off Sosa in the top of the 4th, and Josh Thole got a free pass. Shawn Bowman then singled out to right to load the bags. Wabick's follow up single, combined with Sing's throwing error, cleared off the bags, tying up the game. (Speaking of tying, Missy looked very smashing in her 70's tie-dyed T-shirt and shades.)

Continuing in his quest to be re-injured before he is done with his rehab, Roberts would get plunked by a pitch in the bottom of the fourth. After Singleton flew out to center, Wilson's line drive moved Roberts to 2nd. Whit Robbins then crushed one of the right field wall - no where near a foul pole - for a genuine home run to give the Miracle a 3 run lead again. Ovalle would single and steal 2nd, but Portes would fly out and Berg ground out to end the inning.

Sosa would put two outs on the board in the top of the fifth before hitting Mendez with a pitch. Thole then drew a walk, and Bowman singled to score Mendez. Wabick then hit one hop to Portes at 3rd, who tagged Thole on on his way to 3rd to end the inning.

Casey Hoorelbeke, a side arm pitcher, replaced Gee in the bottom of the fifth, making the Mets fans happy as they couldn't figure out why the field manager Tim Teufel felt Gee was going to get any better. Hoorelbeke would confound the Miracle for the bottom of the 5th.

Carlos Gutierrez replace Sosa in the top of the sixth, and Maldonado took a single off the rookie sinkballer. Ramos and Carrera both ground out, and wild pitch moved Maldonado to 3rd. But the University of Miami product got Rueben Tejada to hit into a ground out, stranding the Mets runner.

After Singleton popped out in the bottom of the six, Wilson singled. Robbins flew out, but Ovalle came back with a single to move Wilson to 3rd. Ryan Coultas then replaced Hoorelbeke and Portes singled to score Wilson. This was there I got really confused.

Lucan Duda took a walk and Mendez singled him to second. Thole singled Duda in, and moved to second on a fielding error by Roberts. (Gee...I've missed those!) A wild pitch put Mendez on 3rd and Bowman would single him in. Jose Lugo then came up the mound to get three outs to retire the Mets.

"Wasn't it just 7-6 Miracle and now suddenly it's 7-6 Mets?"

"That's an eight," Matt Fox assured me. "We have 8."

"Are you sure?" That scoreboard is a disaster. Half the lights are out and in fact I initially thought the O in the bottom of the fifth was a four.

"Here," he said, trying to give me his chart. "See for yourself."

"No, no, it's okay, I trust you, it's just...."

Tintor would be hit by a pitch, then steal 2nd. Ortiz would be hit by a pitch, then replaced by Garrett Olson as a pinch runner. Roberts would hit a sac-bunt to move the pair, which gave Coultas room to intentionally walk Singleton.

"He's walking Sing to get to the guy that has the most home runs on the team?"

"Wilson hits into a shit load of double plays," Alex points out. He also strikes out quite a bit, which would end up being the case here. Robbins then drew a walk to force in Tint, making the score 9-7 and closing out the offense portion of the program.

Wilson and Robbins finished up 2-for-4 with a pair of runs each, Robbins with a double and the home run, plus a walk, giving him 4 RBIs as well. Ovalle was 3-for-4 with a run and two runs scored. Portes was 2-for-5 with a run scored. Tintor and Singleton were both 1-for-4, Tint with a pair of runs, Sing with a run and a RBI. Roberts finished up 1-for-3 with a run and Berg rounded out the hitting, going 1-for-5 with a double and a RBI.

Anthony Slama finished up on the mound, walking one and fanning three to pick up his 20th save of the season.

"We may or may not have a double header at Gulf Coast League tomorrow," I tell Fox (5-4, 3.72), "So I may or may not be around to watch you pitch tomorrow." He will be facing Dylan Owen (8-6, 3.72) of the Mets in Monday Night's Rodeo Night contest. Unlike Alex, who still gets upset then I blow him off in favor of an 18-year old, Fox is fine with that and warns me to take care and not get too much sun.

Box
Log
Miracle
News Press
News Press: Graham
NDN
NDN: Graham
Breeze
CU Photos
TC Palm

The stat packs were missing when the gates opened at six, which not only made the seasonals unhappy, but looked bad when the team had to tell the scouts that were attending the game that they didn't have media packages for them. Way to go, Gary Sharp! Keep up the good work. And BTW, Adam Everett is OFF the roster and Roberts is wearing #9.

Additional kudos to Kris Koch. If I must pay $5.00 for a braut at the grill, I'd really like condiments to go along with it. Maybe you could get someone to refill the containers? (The whole place is going to hell in a handbasket, I swear.)

Don't believe everything you read. A recent article in the Strib said that Rene Tosoni was likely done for the year. This was news to him as he's been taking batting practice and says he'll be back with the Miracle by Mid-August at the latest. Also, Tyler Robertson has been shut down for a couple of weeks to rest his shoulder. It is however, nothing serious and the MRI was clean.

Minnesota Twins Holding Tryout Camp at New Britain Stadium

New Britain Rock Cats Press Release



New Britain, CT - The American League's Minnesota Twins - in partnership with their Double-A, Eastern League affiliate, the New Britain Rock Cats - announced today that they will conduct an Tryout Camp for aspiring baseball players at New Britain Stadium on Saturday morning, July 19th. The tryout, which is available to players from ages 15 - 22 years, will run from 8:30 AM (registration) to approximately 1:00 PM. Professional scouts from the Minnesota organization - led by Twins' Area Scout Jay Weitzel - will be at the Stadium to meet, greet, and evaluate those players invited to appear to showcase their baseball skills. Position players will be asked to show their talents in hitting, fielding, running, and throwing; Pitchers will be invited to toss approximately 20 of their best offerings in the Rock Cats' bullpen. The actual length of this Open Tryout Camp will be determined by the number of participants who appear on the 19th.

All players wishing to participate in this by-invitation Tryout should contact Bob Dowling of the Rock Cats (860-224-8383) with a brief summary of their baseball experience. That information will be passed along to the Twins' evaluators for review and any subsequent action.

Those who do participate should enter the Main Gate of New Britain Stadium by 8:30 AM in uniform, with their own glove, bat and spikes. All potential participants who are current members of an American Legion team will need written permission from their coaches to take part.

In the last three years, two current American League All-Stars, Catcher Joe Mauer and 1B Justin Morneau, played for the Rock Cats on this very diamond. You could be next!

---

Steedley Heading to Florida; Martin to Beloit

Beloit Snappers Press Release

Spencer Steedley's tenure as a Beloit Snapper has come to an end, as the left-hander has been promoted to the Twins' High-A Affiliate Fort Myers Miracle. Along with Steedley's promotion, the Twins have sent left-handed pitcher Blake Martin to the Snappers to fill Spencer's slot on the roster.

In 31 appearances this season, Steedley was 5-3 with a 2.14 ERA. Spencer struck out 59 batters while walking just 17. The left-hander also sported a 1.12 WHIP with opponents batting just .208 against him.

Steedley, a 2008 Midwest League Western Division All-Star, was the Twins' 25th round pick in the 2007 First-Year Player draft. Born in Salisbury, North Carolina, Steedley attended the University of North Carolina - Charlotte.

Blake Martin joins the Snappers after pitching in two games for the Elizabethton Twins this season. Blake was 0-0 with a 2.25 ERA in four innings pitched.

Drafted by the Twins in the 17th round of this year's draft, Martin attended Louisiana State University.

The moves leave Beloit's active roster at 24, one below the league maximum.

In a related move, David Coulon was removed from the Elizabethton roster. I believe that there was a problem with with his contract, although I don't know the specifics. Elizabethton is awaiting the arrival of Carlos Gutierrez, the Twins 1st round pick, 27th over all from the University of Miami. Gutierrez will be joining the team as soon as his contract is validated by MLB.

Joe Christensen reported in his blog that Gutierrez would report to Class A Fort Myers, but that seems very unlikely given the way the Twins work with their prospects.