Short DFR tonight as Palm Beach has the night off and Quad Cities gets rained out. Reverse order tonight starting with the newbies in Batavia.
Go Muckdogs!
- D’Marcus Ingram was 1-for-3 with a double and a walk.
- 2009 draftee Ryan Jackson was 1-for-3 with a walk.
- Xavier Scruggs was 2-for-4 with a double and 3 RBI.
- Batavia walked 8 times.
- Batavia starter Kevin Siegrist allowed a solo HR and struck out 3 over 4 innings.
- Santo Maertz, a 2008 draftee who spent last year at Johnson City, struck out 2 and allowed 1 hit in his inning of work.
- Justin Edwards struck out 3 over 3 innings allowing 1 hit.
- Daryl Jones was 1-for-5. Jones isn’t showing any improvement in power but his OBP remains around .400 for the season. He played CF for the S-Cards tonight but isn’t projected as a CF in the majors.
- Daniel Descalso was 2-for-3 with his 6th HR of the season and a walk.
- Mark Hamilton was 2-for-3 with a walk.
- Brian Broderick was servicable allowing 4 runs in 6 IP on 8 hits and 2 walks striking out 3.
- Sam Freeman has had a rough go of it in Springfield thus far allowing another 2 runs in his inning of work tonight.
- Shane Robinson was 2-for-4. Both were doubles.
- Nick Stavinoha went 2-for-4 with a double and a HR.
- Allen Craig hit his 2nd HR in 2 nights adding in a double and a walk for good measure.
- Brett Wallace was 2-for-4.
- PJ Walters had a rare bout of Steve Blass syndrome. He walked 7 in 4 innings allowing 4 hits and 4 ER.
- Jess Todd picked up his 13th save pitching 2 innings allowing 3 hits and striking out 1.
Entries (RSS)
Congrats to Brett Wallace. He has now made it back to a .250 avg with his 2 for 4 night.
Jackson also had a sacrifice fly for Batavia.
Niko @ 3B???? what is that.
“Muckdogs” might be my favorite team name in the minors. Defend that title boys!
I’ve been trying to find a way to jump off the Decalso bandwagon all season, thinking he was going to break my heart, but he just keeps hitting. I know he’s playing in a great hitter’s environment, but that wOBA over .400 keeps me intrigued. Hopefully he can continue to develop and become a legit ML 2nd baseman.
I know this is a weird question, but what do you guys think of Xavier Scruggs? If I’m being honest, I don’t expect too much from him, but I was kind of intrigued by that pick last year. I guess he’s just one of those guys I pick up as a pet prospect for no real reason but then follow for a couple years not expecting a whole lot.
Oh, and what happened to Niko, and why is he so old? He’s already 20 and only 1 year out of high school. That math doesn’t add up to me. He is sort of like bizarro Robert Stock.
Count me in on the irrational Scruggs bandwagon!!!!!
And given his defense this year I think 3b probably makes sense for Nico, especially with defensive whiz kid Jackson right there.
Jack, Niko has a Feb. 26 bday, so he was 19 when he graduated from HS.
For comparison, Pete Kozma has an April bday, so he was also 19 when we drafted him in ’07. Colby has an August 11 bday, so he turned 19 the summer after he graduated.
All turned 20 just before or at some point during their first full season of pro ball.
On the flip side are guys like Stock — 19, w/ 3 full seasons of college ball — and Shane Peterson, who was 20 when we drafted him out of Long Beach State.
Then there’s Daryl Jones, who was still 17 when we drafted him. He’s almost a full year younger than Colby, even though they graduated HS the same year.
It’s actually become fairly common for some parents to hold their kids back a year in school to help their chances to excel in athletics. Their kids are always a year older than the competition, which in some case can be helpful. Rasmus, Vasquez and Kozma are all examples of guys who were a year older than they should have been when they graduated from high school and there are many others.
Under normal circumstances kids turn 18 their senior year, or in the months after graduation if they have a birthday that falls in the summer months. I’m really not a fan of this practice by parents, but looking back at my own physical development and now watching my children, I can see where it could be a HUGE advantage.
I attended the Muckdogs game last night and will share some thoughts with you. First, I had no access to a radar gun nor am I a “scout” so I cannot give too much detail on the pitchers.
D’Marcus Ingram has good wheels but ran conservatively. Twice he didn’t get as far on the bases as I thought he could have.
Jackson looked good in the field, started a nice DP in the 4th but booted a ball trying to backhand one far to his right in the hole in the 9th. Batter was given a hit, tough play but a “major league ready” glove would have had it. Showed well at the plate all night long.
Nico didn’t do much. Made one routine play in the field. Struck out twice, his hit was a bloop into CF that CF nearly catch with a diving catch. Nico also was thrown out at home advancing on an overthrow that didn’t get that far away. Seems like he has a long way to go for someone drafted so highly.
Scruggs is back in Batavia for a second year. Played a very good 1B in the field, K’d twice but smoked a ball in the 7th for a double (nearly missed HR in a tough HR park).
Carpenter, not much to say up or down.1-4 night as DH.
Ryde Rodriquez (I thought is was pronounced Ride but is really Reedae). Looks like a ballplayer, older than he is. K’d twice and walked; second K was a good at bat, fouled off a number of pitches. Nearly dropped a fly ball in RF but juggled it and caught it.
Castro caught. Excellent arm. Nearly threw out a runner stealing second, threw from his knees and beat the runner, ump blew the call. Again 2 K’s.
Riportella also returns to Batavia. Looks like a ballplayer but didn’t play like one. Did draw two walks but other at bats didn’t impress. Third inning, completely lost a fly ball in LF. Ran to his right when ball left bat (high clouds in sky, not tough sun) and ball flew over him (and the wall for a HR) to his left.
Goodwin at 2B, showed excellent defense. On base twice with walks, one CS.
Siecrist started. Four innings just two hits (one HR). Look in good command of pitches, walked two K’d 3.
Maertz relieved for one inning, again looked good. 2K’s, 1 hit allowed.
Edwards pitched next 3 innings. Seemed to be throwing really hard, again no gun available for speed readings. Good command of pitches; K’d 3, no walks, only 1 hit.
Richardson (fellow Delaware Blue Hen) pitched the 9th. Got two quick ground balls to Scruggs at 1B. Then got a little wild, giving up a single and walk. Settled down to get groundball SS to 2B force to end game.
Defensively and pitching-wise team looked good (I know, just one game). I’m sure there were some nerves as it was first pro game for many of the players and they are just 20, 21 years old.
Offensively, not a good game even though they won. Team K’d 12 times and only got 6 hits. Auburn starter was excellent (K’d 6). Relievers and defense gave up the booty with 5 of the 8 walks and 3 errors. Batavia scored 5 in their half of the 7th on one hit (Scruggs double), 4 BB’s, 1 HBP and an error.
Glad to have Cardinal baseball back in Batavia for third year. Organization that ran Batavia baseball for years ran into financial difficulties. This is the second year, and first full year, that Rochester Community Baseball (runs the RedWings AAA team of the Twins) is running the backroom and stadium operations. Cardinals still control player and on-field activities. RCB does a good job in Rochester and as a Cards fan a long way from St Louis, I hope they can keep baseball in Batavia so I can see the baby birds.
Thanks for listening.
“Batavia starter Kevin Siegrist allowed a solo HR and struck out 3 over 4 innings.”
……………….
On an off day from American Idol, Ryan Seacrest started?
I was @ the Memphis/Iowa game and just wanted to share a few thoughts:
Walters: could not make a pitch to save his life and was very wild.
Wallace: Seems to have a nice short compact swing the he loads with power
Craig: It’s too bad he has no spot in the org because the kid can hit.
Paggs: In my opinion he look overmatched at the plate, had one good AB where he saw lots of pitches but other than that looked bad. Also he must have a horrid arm because the I-Cubs were running on him with no fear.
Todd: Based on the impromptu interview I did with in in the bully with my 2.5yr old he said he likes relieving more, because he comes in pressure situations.
Outside of the game I was really impressed with the bullpen guys specifically Manning and Todd. I was down there with 2.5yr old for an inning and a half and I was talking them up as was my daughter. They were both more than accommodating and made it a great experience for her. So if threy read this, thanks.
Re: BigWheel
I find it very hard to stomach this Pagnozzi insanity. Supposedly the org likes him because he can play D but the I-cubs stole six, SIX bases on him. Also, its not like it was off of only one pitcher (like Chris Young) who doesnt hold runners. They stole on pretty much every pitcher combination. Sad really. Maybe its just that all of the I-cubs are really really fast.
Thanks for the eyewitness accounts everybody, I really enjoy those.
I agree with the sentiment about Pagnozzi, I just don’t get it. The way Anderson has been used this season makes no sense whatsoever.
I’M JUST A FAN…NOT AN ANALYST. SO MAYBE SOMEONE COULD ENLIGHTEN ME ON HOW THE CARDINALS ARE HANDLING (DEVELOPING?) ALLEN CRAIG. DRAFTED IN 2006, HE WAS AN ALL STAR IN THE NY/PENN LEAGUE. IN ’07 HE HIT .311 WITH 24 HOME RUNS BETWEEN PALM BEACH AND SPRINGFIELD….WAS AN ALL STAR IN MID-SEASON AND POST SEASON. IN 2008, HE HIT .304 WITH 22 HOME RUNS, 85 RBI’S AT SPRINGFIELD, AGAIN VOTED AN ALL STAR. THIS YEAR HE IS AVERGING .273, 8 HOME RUNS AND 27 RBI’S. HE’S PLAYED 3B AND OUTFIELD. HE’S 6’2, 210 POUNDS AND WILL BE 25 IN JULY. SOME PEOPLE SAY HE DOESN’T HAVE A POSITION TO PLAY. AREN’T WE INTERESTED IN A RIGHTHANDED HITTING OUTFIELDER OR 3B? WHY ARE WE HOLDING ON TO HIM IF HE DOESN’T HAVE A FUTURE? PLEASE GIVE ME SOME INSIGHT ON THIS!
THAT’S GREAT AND ALL, BUT WHY ARE YOU YELLING?!?!?
A little hard-of-hearing…no, not really, I just leave the ‘caps lock’ on most of the time. Glad to meet you Erik.
What else are dj and descalso going to learn at spfld? There’s no reason not to promote them. Let them get aaa experience so they can come to ST next year ready to compete. The mif at memphis is not crowded. The of is crowded but only jay and craig look like real talent right now, with mather out.and craig ought to go to the big club.give us dj and jay and let shane and nick fight for time.
I agree Tom. I think both should be advanced.
I haven’t been following as much as I’d like but I’m just wondering if anyone has any insight to what is going on with the catching situation in Springfield? They brought up Derba from PB and he has yet to have a AA hit, and from his stats it looks like he wasn’t hitting too well in PB to begin with. I know he is strong on defense, so are they just hoping his bat wakes up? And are they gonna continue putting him in and having Hill and Cruz play there other positions? And why did they move Smith back to PB.. I think the organization is making some strange calls this season.
A couple of replies:
Muckdogs is very good. I prefer the Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and the Montgomery Biscuits though.
Re: Ryde Rodriguez age, I would think he is precisely as old as he is.