Minor League Highlights for Friday, May 30
Tacoma 4, Fresno 3. LHP Troy Cate, up from Inland Empire to make a spot start in place of the injured Ken Cloude, pitched very well in his AAA debut (5 1/3 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 6 K) and was rewarded with a victory. Offensively, two players who have struggled mightily this season — DH Kenny Kelly and 1B Craig Kuzmic — each had three hits to pace a 13-hit Rainiers attack. Both Kelly and Kuzmic were a triple away from hitting for the cycle. LF Jalal Leach added his 4th homer of the year, and RHP Aaron Taylor (1 1/3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 K) picked up his 12th save while lowering his ERA to 2.36 on the season.
San Antonio 8, Arkansas 4. This one was a pitcher’s duel early, but wound up a slugfest. Arkansas got to RHP Rett Johnson (6 IP, 10 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 K) two runs in the top of the 1st, but he settled down after that. Meanwhile, the Missions were held scoreless until the bottom of the 7th, when they scored a pair of runs to tie. They added a lone run in the 8th to take a 3-2 lead, but gave that lead right back in the top of the 9th to trail 4-3. Then things got REALLY interesting. After scoring a run in their half of the 9th to tie things up, 3B Justin Leone stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and sent everyone home happy with a walk-off grand slam. It was Leone’s only hit of the game, and his 10th homer of the year.
Rancho Cucamonga 5, Inland Empire 4. LHP Ryan Ketcher pitched well (7 IP, 8 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 2 BB, 7 K) and left the game with a 4-3 lead, but LHP Jared Thomas (1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K) allowed a pair of runs in the 8th and took the loss. Offensively, 1B John Castellano and SS Eddie Menchaca each had a pair of hits and 2B Ismael Castro hit his 3rd homer of the year.
Wisconsin‘s game with West Michigan was rained out Friday, and will be made up with a doubleheader on Sunday.
Gillick’s got a gem in the Seattle Times today: “”We’ve been as thorough as ever in scouting and reporting on the kids available. Our thought is to get a position player, but if we can’t get one we like, then we’ll take a pitcher.”
As opposed to, what…. “Since we don’t have a pick until #37, we decided to just goof off and play quarters here in the office, and maybe we’ll read through Baseball America the day before. We want to draft a position player, but if there aren’t any on the board, I thought maybe we’d draft a mime, or a dog that can field foul balls.”
Another turn through the rotation, it’s time for
Derek’s Rate Stats of Doom
Pitcher Batters h% hr% bb% k%
Moyer 285 21.4% 2.8% 9.1% 18.2%
Garcia 284 22.2% 4.2% 9.2% 13.4%
Pineiro 283 22.6% 2.1% 10.2% 13.8%
Franklin 271 22.9% 4.1% 7.4% 10.0%
Meche 266 21.8% 3.4% 6.4% 19.2%
Carrara 128 28.9% 3.9% 9.4% 7.8%
Hasegawa 113 18.6% 0.9% 5.3% 13.3%
Mateo 111 22.5% 6.3% 7.2% 18.9%
Rhodes 94 17.0% 0.0% 7.4% 20.2%
Nelson 81 21.0% 2.5% 12.3% 24.7%
Sasaki 72 23.6% 1.4% 6.9% 23.6%
Apx AL Rates 23.3% 2.8% 8.2% 15.9%
Leaders, good sense: H Rhodes, HR Rhodes, BB Hasegawa, K Nelson
Leaders, bad sense: H Carrara (but that’s luck, right?), HR Mateo, BB Nelson, K Carrara
So Carrara’s been putting a ton of guys on, not striking any out, and to pile it on, batters have been hitting them where they ain’t far more than you’d expect. In what way is Garcia like Franklin? Hit rates about the same, HR rates about the same, Garica walks more guys, strikes out more guys, but not by huge margins. Meche’s 3-HR start makes him look particularly bad, but check the dude out: low walks, high Ks… sweet.
Today’s Prospectus Triple Play (free!) over at Baseball Prospectus features Truly Terrible Freddy, Pineiro’s struggles, some harsh words about Bloomquist’s suckiness, and the continuing hose-work of Carrara. Ah, the joy of wearing multiple hats.
I’m wearing my Chris Snelling jersey today (which I believe is the only one in Seattle)(please do not email us to dispel this hope), so it’s time to check in on our (my) favorite Mariner prospect. He’s hitting .280/.333/.373 with only 4 doubles and 1 HR. 3 walks, 13 K. He’s been hit by pitches (4 times) more than he’s walked. And if you’re hoping he’s been terrorizing the basepaths… nope. 0 SB, 1 CS (and if I remember, that was first thing when he came back, too). I’m concerned, but considering he’s coming back (and pretty fast) from ACL replacement, I’m going to wait and hope to see some continued improvement as the season goes on.
Minor League Highlights for Thursday, May 29
Tacoma 5, Fresno 3. The Rainiers took an early 3-0 lead after one, then held on for the victory behind RHP Brian Sweeney (7 IP, 10 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 0 BB, 4 K), who moved to 5-4 with the win. Three Tacoma hitters — DH Chad Meyers, LF Jalal Leach and 1B Craig Kuzmic — had three hits each, including homers for both Leach and Kuzmic. Meyers added his 15th steal of the season, and RHP Aaron Taylor (1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K) picked up his 11th save. LHP Troy Cate, up from the Inland Empire 66ers, is scheduled to make an unexplained spot start tonight.
El Paso 4, San Antonio 3. LHP Matt Thornton (6 1/3 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 5 K) pitched well once again since his return from surgery and left the game with a 3-1 lead, but RHP Chris Wright — the man Thornton replaced in the starting rotation — was unable to hold the lead (2 1/3 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K). From a purely developmental standpoint, however, the M’s have to be quite pleased with Thornton’s progress so far. Offensively, SS Jose Lopez and C Jim Horner each had a pair of hits, and 3B Justin Leone hit his 9th homer of the year. Leone also drew a walk, and his now hitting a robust .333/.446/.624 on the year. Looking over your shoulder yet, Mr. Cirillo?
Inland Empire 6, Lake Elsinore 2. Is it just me, or do these two teams face off more than “Tastes Great” vs. “Less Filling”? In any event, the 66ers corner outfielders led the way in this one, as LF Greg Jacobs and RF Shin-soo Choo each had three hits. Jacobs had two doubles and scored twice, while Choo homered, scored two runs and drove in two more. 3B Hunter Brown also added a solo homer in support of RHP Enmanual Ulloa (6 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 7 K), who picked up his first win as a member of the 66ers. Inland Empire pitching held Lake Elsinore’s hitters to just four hits and one walk in the game to go along with 10 Ks.
Wisconsin 9, Fort Wayne 4. The Timber Rattlers jumped on Fort Wayne early, taking a 7-2 lead after three innings and adding two more runs in the 5th. RF T.J. Bohn got things started with a two-run double in the first, his 15th of the year, and Wisconsin never looked back. Of the club’s nine hits, five went for extra bases (four doubles and a triple) The nine runs were more than enough for RHP Juan Sandoval (7 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 2 K), who has run his record to 3-4 after starting the year 0-4.
Rob Neyer decided to write a column about the Mariners yesterday. With all due respect to Rob, its pretty clear he hasn’t paid a whole heck of a lot of attention to the M’s through the first two months of the year.
His commentary on the pitching staff is something of a joke. His line about Garcia being almost as good as Franklin is only true if you believe strikeout rate is the only way to evaluate a pitcher.
Among my other favorites, he cites that Edgar Martinez is no Barry Bonds. Bonds is hitting .299/.497/.642 overall. Martinez is hitting .353/.451/.729 on the road, where Safeco can do him no harm. Bonds hits far better at Pac Bell (in that, he’s rare), and isn’t seeing his numbers deflated by his home park. So actually Rob, it is like he’s Barry Bonds.
He also continues to rip on Jeff Cirillo, suggesting the M’s treat him as a sunk cost (and presumably, that would mean release him).
Jeff Cirillo:
Home: .197/.240/.254
Road: .286/.392/.381
April: .171/.275/.253
May: .313/.362/.391
Like nearly every other right-handed hitter in the game, Cirillo is no match for the powers of Safeco Field. On the road, he’s actually pretty good. You know how many American League third baseman sport a higher OPS than Cirillo’s .773 road mark? 5. That includes Eric Chavez (.775), Shea Hillenbrand (.778), and Corey Koskie (.787), where the difference is so small that its not even worth mentioning.
Forget being a sunk cost. If his rebound with the bat in May is any indication (and his splits suggest it is), Cirillo’s a league average 3rd baseman again. Add in his ridiculously good defense at the hot corner, and he’s an asset to the club and one of the reasons they’re winning ballgames.
Minor League Highlights for Wednesday, May 28
Fresno 9, Tacoma 4. RHP Jeff Heaverlo’s struggles continued, as he put together his worst start of the year (3 IP, 8 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 0 BB, 0 K) and took the loss, falling to 3-5 on the season. After a very promising start Heaverlo has been roughed up lately as he’s struggled with his command, but this is to be expected given that he’s coming back from surgery. On a positive note, he isn’t experiencing any shoulder pain. Offensively, DH Jalal Leach and C Julio Mosquera each had a pair of hits, including a homer for Leach, while LF Adrian Myers added his 4th homer of the year.
San Antonio 11, El Paso 3. LHP Travis Blackley shut down El Paso (6 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 6 K) to move to 6-2 on the year with a 2.18 ERA, and RHP Jared Hoerman (1 1/3 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 1 K) picked up his 13th save, tops in the organization. The Missions were led on offense by SS Jose Lopez, who was 3-4 with a double and scored three runs. 3B Justin Leone and LF Jaime Bubela each added two hits including a triple for Bubela, who also drove in three runs. El Paso, who made four errors on Tuesday, followed up that performance by making a remarkable SIX errors in the game.
Inland Empire 6, Lake Elsinore 3. The 66ers pounded out 14 hits, six of which went for extra bases, helping RHP Russ Morgan (2 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 K) to his first win of the season. Morgan took over in relief from RHP Kevin Olore (6 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 4 K), who left the game with his team trailing 3-2, only to see them score two in the 7th and two more in the 8th to win it. In a balanced offensive attack, each starter had at least one hit, the six runs were scored by six different players and five different hitters drove in a run. C Luis Oliveros continued his hot hitting with a 3-4 game to lead the way, and DH Shin-soo Choo and RF Cristian Guerrero each tripled.
Fort Wayne 6, Wisconsin 4. Despite scoring a run in each of their first three innings, the Timber Rattlers fell as RHP Tanner Watson (4 IP, 5 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 4 BB, 4 K) allowed three runs in the 1st and three in the 3rd. The bullpen pitched admirably the rest of the way, allowing just one hit over the final four innings, but the offense was unable to mount a comeback. 1B Jon Nelson and LF Corey Harrington each had a single and a double in the game. Nelson has raised his average to .280, but has yet to display the same power he did at Everett last year when he led the Northwest League with 17 homers.
Mariners all time pitching leaders through 2002:
Wins
1. Johnson (130)
2. Moyer (98)
Shutouts
1. Johnson (19)
9. Moyer (5)
Strikeouts
1. Johnson (2,162)
4. Moyer (801)
ERA
3. Johnson (3.42)
10. Moyer (3.80)
Complete Games
2. Johnson (51)
N/A. Moyer not listed in top ten.
Innings
1. Johnson (1,838)
3. Moyer (1,316)
Winning Percentage
3. Moyer (.671)
4. Johnson (.637)
I don’t think it is closer than we think. The only advantage Moyer has is winning percentage, which is rendered totally useless when you realize that Paul Abbott is number one on that list. Johnson was most definitely better and has a 500 inning lead on Moyer. He also didn’t spend the majority of his Mariner career in Safeco Field, which Jamie Moyer has taken full advantage of. From 2000-2002, his ERA away from Safeco is 4.47. It stands at 5.25 this year.
I love Jamie Moyer. He’s a good pitcher. He is not, however, anywhere close to being what Randy Johnson was in Seattle.
Jamie Moyer wins yet another start, and we’ve got nothing to say? C’mon guys! Seriously, I think the fact that the game started at 11am, coupled with the lack of TV coverage, means nobody had a chance to see this one. I listened to probably four innings today at work and have checked out the boxscore, but that’s about it.
In any event, people — well, Rizzs at least — have been talking about how productive the catching duo has been this year, but what he seems to not realize is that it has been ALL BEN DAVIS. Sure enough, however, Dan Wilson (I swear Neihaus called him Jeff Nelson on his 1st inning double) went 3-4 today to raise his average to .267. Keep in mind that it’s an empty .267, however (.308 OBP, .366 SLG). Big Ben’s numbers are remarkably similar… at least the .266 average and .310 OBP, I mean. But how about the power? Check out his .544 SLG on the strength of 12 extra-base hits out of 21 hits overall. None too shabby.
Finally, there was a discussion on KJR this afternoon about the best pitcher in M’s history. Unfortunately the discussion — the part of it I heard, at least — focused entirely on wins and losses. I know, I know, that’s what I get for listening to KJR. “Jamie Moyer has the best winning percentage in Major League Baseball since 1996!” For some reason I’m always skeptical of stats like that, because the “since 1996” qualifier makes it seem so… contrived.
Having looked at some numbers, it’s actually closer than I thought it would be. Randy Johnson is still the clear leader in my opinion, but what makes it closer than you might think is that he wasn’t really Randy Johnson until 1993 or 1994, when he starting cutting down on the walks. It might be hard to seperate the two, but you really can’t count 1999-2002, his Arizona years, and arguably the best four years of his career, when considering him as a member of the Mariners.
Much to my surprise, here’s a great article on Freddy Garcia in the King County Journal. I call this a surprise because I certainly wasn’t expecting it, although Greg Johns does always seem to write good stuff when I happen to find it. When was the last time you saw a column in the Times or PI mention Baseball-Reference.com? Exactly.
Minor League Highlights for Super Tuesday, May 27
Fresno 5, Tacoma 2. The Rainiers opened their roadtrip with a loss, as they fell behind 5-0 after two innings and managed just five singles and a double in the game. LHP Craig Anderson (7 IP, 7 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 2 BB, 1 K, 3 HR) took the loss, though he did settle down after that rough start. The only offensive performance of note was that of SS Mickey Lopez, who had a pair of hits to raise his average to an even .300. Lopez has taken over shortstop duties since Ruben Castillo was placed on the DL last week.
San Antonio 7, El Paso 5. This was a sloppy game on both sides as the two teams combined for seven fielding errors — of the 12 runs scored, only two per side were of the earned variety. RHP Clint Nageotte (5 1/3 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K) picked up the win to move to 5-1 on the season with a 3.83 ERA, and RHP Jared Hoerman (1 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 0 K) recorded his 12th save. On the other side of the ball, CF Michael Curry and 1B A.J. Zapp each had three hits, including a double for Zapp. SS Luis Ugueto stole his 17th base of the year, good for second in the system behind Curry’s 21.
Inland Empire had the day off, as the Cal League played an abbreviated schedule. The 66ers have yet to announce a starter for today’s contest, though it would seem to be either LHP Troy Cate or RHP Kevin Olore — it’s Olore’s turn if they keep with the rotation, but with the off day yesterday Cate could start on regular rest.
Fort Wayne 2, Wisconsin 0. The Timber Rattlers were very nearly no-hit yesterday, going without a hit until DH Dustin Delucchi singled with one out in the 9th. For the game they put just three runners on base — 2B Corey Harrington was hit by a pitch, RF Tomoshi Aoki walked and Delucchi singled. LHP Cesar Jimenez (5 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 BB, 3 K) took the loss and fell to 3-3 on the year, though he still sports a sparkling 1.48 ERA. A Minor League Highlights tip of the cap to Fort Wayne RHP Brian Whitaker (8 1/3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K), who left the game after Delucchi’s single.