Results tagged ‘ Josh Donaldson ’
A’s, River Cats’ & RockHounds’ Roster Projections
Will Hiro still be smiling in Sacramento?
We’re now less than a week away from opening day, and Jemile Weeks has been optioned to Sacramento, Adam Rosales has been placed on the disabled list, and Hiro Nakajima has been struggling and is now dealing with a strained hamstring. And thanks to these recent developments, it looks like the A’s opening day roster may now be rounding into shape – and along with it, the Sacramento River Cats’ and Midland RockHounds’ rosters too. Of course, plenty can still change and nothing is etched in stone. There haven’t been any official announcements from the team yet and there probably won’t be until about 24 hours before opening day, but below are our projected opening day rosters for the A’s and their Triple-A and Double-A affiliates based on what we think we know at this point…
PROJECTED 2013 OAKLAND A’S ROSTER
Derek Norris
–CATCHERS–
–INFIELDERS–
Brandon Moss 1B
Nate Freiman 1B
Eric Sogard 2B
Jed Lowrie SS
–OUTFIELDERS–
Coco Crisp OF
Josh Reddick OF
Chris Young OF
Seth Smith OF
Brett Anderson
–STARTING PITCHERS–
Brett Anderson LHP
Jarrod Parker RHP
Tommy Milone LHP
A.J. Griffin RHP
Dan Straily RHP
–RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Grant Balfour RHP
Ryan Cook RHP
Pat Neshek RHP
Chris Resop RHP
–LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Sean Doolittle LHP
Jerry Blevins LHP
Travis Blackley LHP
(Bartolo Colon – SUSPENDED)
(Fernando Rodriguez – DL)
(Adam Rosales – DL)
PROJECTED 2013 SACRAMENTO RIVER CATS ROSTER
Michael Choice
–HITTERS–
Jemile Weeks 2B
Andy Parrino SS-3B-OF
Grant Green 2B-3B-OF
Josh Horton 3B-SS-2B
Scott Moore 1B-3B-DH
Shane Peterson OF-1B
Conner Crumbliss OF-2B
Sonny Gray
–STARTING PITCHERS–
Sonny Gray RHP
Andrew Werner LHP
Jesse Chavez RHP
Bruce Billings RHP
Travis Banwart RHP
–RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Evan Scribner RHP
Mike Ekstrom RHP
James Simmons RHP
Arnold Leon RHP
–LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Hideki Okajima LHP
Jordan Norberto LHP
Pedro Figueroa LHP
Justin Thomas LHP
PROJECTED 2013 MIDLAND ROCKHOUNDS ROSTER
Miles Head
–HITTERS–
Anthony Aliotti 1B-DH
Tommy Mendonca 3B-DH
Miles Head 3B-1B
Jefry Marte 3B-1B
Darwin Perez 2B-SS
Tyler Ladendorf 2B-SS-OF
D’Arby Myers OF
Sean Murphy
–STARTING PITCHERS–
Carlos Hernandez LHP
Murphy Smith RHP
Josh Bowman RHP
Sean Murphy RHP
Jacob Brown LHP
–RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Brian Gordon RHP
Carlos Fisher RHP
Kyler Newby RHP
Darren Byrd RHP
Paul Smyth RHP
Nate Long RHP
Sergio Perez RHP
–LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Frank Gailey LHP
***UPDATE: In something of a surprise, the A’s have designated LHP Travis Blackley for assignment. This opens a spot in the A’s bullpen for either Evan Scribner, Pedro Figueroa, Mike Ekstrom or Hideki Okajima. Their spot in the River Cats bullpen will be filled by RHP Danny Otero, who was claimed off waivers.
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
A’s Spring Training Tour – 3/25/13
Major League Camp and Game vs. Brewers at Phoenix Municipal Stadium
The A’s beat the Brewers 9-7 on a relatively quiet day around camp. Bartolo Colon allowed 3 runs over 5 innings to earn his first win of the spring while Dan Straily gave up 4 runs in 3 innings of work. Outfielder Chris Young blasted a grand slam and infielders Josh Donaldson and Scott Sizemore each went 4-for-4, a particularly timely performance for Sizemore after his chief rival at second base, Jemile Weeks, was sent down yesterday. In his pre-game press conference, manager Bob Melvin announced it’s possible that the team could take all 36 players currently in camp back home for the Bay Bridge Series and make the final roster decisions after that.
The scene at Phoenix Muni before batting practice on Monday
Manager Bob Melvin hitting grounders to Scott Sizemore at second base
Scott Sizemore, who went 4-for-4 on Monday, taking grounders at second base
Derek Norris, the A’s spring home run leader, taking his hacks in the cage
Josh Reddick awaiting his turn in the cage
Josh Reddick standing in at second base during batting practice. Could he be the answer at second? He did snag a line drive there!
Bartolo Colon allowed 3 runs in 5 innings to earn his first win of the spring
Coco Crisp led off on Monday and had 2 hits and 2 stolen bases
Derek Norris went 0-for-1 with 2 walks but still leads the team in home runs with 5
Coach Tye Waller congratulates Nate Freiman’s neck after the 6’8″ first baseman got his first hit for the A’s
Crisp & Reddick congratulate each other after scoring on Chris Young’s grand slam
Reddick, Crisp & Sizemore head back to the safety of the dugout after Sizemore’s big bomb
Dan Straily allowed 4 runs in 3 innings of work on Monday
Now that my spring training trip has come to a close, be sure to stay tuned for lots of interesting insights from Bob Melvin, Grady Fuson, Farhan Zaidi and more…
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
A’s Swap Spare Parts For Second Shortstop!
Jed Lowrie: From worst to first?
As we pointed out in our analysis of the John Jaso trade just recently, the A’s are clearly in “WIN NOW” mode. And the team made another “WIN NOW” move on Monday, dealing part-time first baseman Chris Carter, minor league pitcher Brad Peacock and minor league catcher Max Stassi to the Houston Astros for infielder Jed Lowrie and right-handed reliever Fernando Rodriguez.
Lowrie is a 28-year-old former 1st-round draft pick out of Stanford. The switch-hitter hit a career-high 16 home runs in 340 at-bats with the Astros last season. He’s played primarily at shortstop in his 5-year major league career but has also spent time at third, second and first, and his versatility provides the A’s with added depth at every infield position.
Rodriguez is a hard-throwing right-handed reliever who has some control issues but who also managed to strike out an average of 10 batters per 9 innings last year. The 28-year-old has a tendency to give up the long ball and posted an ERA of 5.37 in 70 1/3 innings with the Astros last season. Rodriguez will likely have to battle with Pat Neshek and Chris Resop for a spot on the right side of the A’s bullpen.
To acquire the pair, the A’s parted with three players who’ve all spent far more time in the minors than the majors: Max Stassi, the most highly rated catching prospect in the system who has been praised for his abilities behind the plate but who has also been hampered by injuries and has yet to progress beyond A ball; Brad Peacock, who was slated to be one of the top starters at Sacramento this season but who had his ups and downs last year and ended up posting a 6.01 ERA with the River Cats; and Chris Carter, who was supposed to be the right-handed half of the A’s first base platoon this year. Carter, the only one of the three who was expected to start the year on the major league roster, had formerly been a top prospect but, despite his strong power numbers in the second half last year, his September struggles strengthened the A’s doubts about his potential for long-term success.
Fernando Rodriguez: International Man Of Mystery
About coming to A’s, the Stanford alum Lowrie was quoted as saying, “I’m excited to come to a team that won one of the better divisions in baseball last year. I’m excited to have an opportunity to come back and play baseball in the Bay Area.” He graciously neglected to mention the fact that he’s also undoubtedly excited not to be playing for the Astros, who will likely be bringing up the rear in their new division this year.
With Lowrie’s addition, the A’s infield situation suddenly becomes a bit murkier. Lowrie has played short, second, third and first. Scott Sizemore has played second and third. Hiro Nakajima can play short, and possibly even second. And then there’s also Jemile Weeks, who can play second, and Josh Donaldson, who can play third.
Being a switch-hitter, of course, only increases Lowrie’s versatility. But his left/right splits are somewhat curious. For his career, he has an OPS that’s .154 points better against lefties. But last year, he had an OPS that was .196 points better against righties. Lowrie claims that his previous struggles as a left-handed hitter were primarily related to lingering injuries, and his minor league splits do lend some credence to that claim. But it would be nice to see his splits even out a bit given the fact that he’s likely to be seeing plenty of action against both righties and lefties for the A’s this season.
But how exactly will the A’s use Lowrie this year? Well, they’ve certainly got plenty of options. But in a conference call with reporters, A’s general manager Billy Beane said that he and manager Bob Melvin had discussed their options and that they view Japanese import Hiro Nakajima as their shortstop. Beane also mentioned that he could see Lowrie as a nice right-handed complement to Brandon Moss at first base, much like Chris Carter had been.
Chris Carter: The object of the Astros’ affections
If we take Beane’s comments to heart, that then raises the question of where Lowrie would play against right-handers. The most obvious answer would be at second base, where there’s already a great deal of uncertainty, and where the top two current candidates, Scott Sizemore and Jemile Weeks, have both performed better against lefties than righties in recent times – Sizemore, who seems to be the favored candidate, even more so, which could make him a perfect platoon partner with Lowrie at second base.
Lowrie could also be available to back up both Nakajima at shortstop and Donaldson at third base if either struggles or just needs some time off. Of course, if Nakajima, whose defensive ability at shortstop is still a big question mark, spends much of the spring butchering balls at short, Lowrie could always take over the spot full-time and push Nakajima into duty at second. But wherever he plays, as long as he’s healthy – and that’s been something of an issue in the past – it looks like Lowrie will be in the lineup. So he should end up getting into a lot more games for the A’s than Chris Carter would have this year, which ought to make him a productive addition to the major league roster.
One of the biggest winners in this trade could turn out to be the A’s former first baseman Daric Barton, who now stands a decent chance of making the roster as the only true first baseman on the squad. Moss and Lowrie only have a combined 68 major league games at first base between them, and teams often like to have a little defensive certainty on the roster. Before this trade, Barton’s chances of landing a roster spot rested on something happening to either Moss or Carter – and now something has most definitely happened to Carter. Of course, it’s possible that Barton still doesn’t make the roster, but it’s certainly a whole lot more likely that he does now.
Brad Peacock: Now standing tall for the last-place Astros
On the other side of the coin, one of the biggest losers in this deal could be infielder Adam Rosales. With his guaranteed contract and major league experience, Rosales was the favorite to land the utility infielder role. But now – with Lowrie, Nakajima, Donaldson and either Weeks or Sizemore likely to make the roster – the A’s will have at least two available options at each infield position, making another spare infielder somewhat redundant. Both Weeks and Sizemore could both be losers in this deal too since whoever wins a roster spot will undoubtedly have his at-bats at second base reduced by Lowrie’s arrival. The deal doesn’t do anything to help Eric Sogard’s and Grant Green’s prospects either as it just pushes both of them further down the infield depth chart.
As far as position players on the major league roster go, this deal might just boil down to Lowrie and Barton replacing Carter and Rosales on the A’s 2013 roster. As far as the pitching end of things goes, Beane clearly likes Rodriguez, referring to him as “a real big arm” and saying that he was a key to getting the deal done. But the hard-throwing righty will have to compete for a roster spot with fellow right-handers Pat Neshek and Chris Resop in an already crowded A’s bullpen that’s also likely to include right-handers Grant Balfour and Ryan Cook along with left-handers Sean Doolittle, Jerry Blevins and Travis Blackley – with guys like Jordan Norberto, Pedro Figueroa, Evan Scribner, Arnold Leon and James Simmons waiting in the wings.
Max Stassi: Taking the ‘tools of ignorance’ to Houston
Another beneficiary of the deal could be former 1st-round draft pick Sonny Gray, who will no longer have to compete for attention with fellow prospect Brad Peacock at Sacramento this season. If he pitches well at Triple-A this year, the odds of Gray getting the opportunity to see some time in Oakland before the season’s through have just greatly increased with Peacock out of the equation.
Vying for time with Gray in the River Cats rotation this year will be last year’s phenom Dan Straily, new acquisition Andrew Werner, veteran lefty Garrett Olson, and long-time minor leaguers Jesse Chavez, Bruce Billings and Travis Banwart. It’s my guess that Straily will end up in the major league rotation before long, like most 6th starters do, due to injury, and Banwart will start the season in the Sacramento bullpen, leaving the River Cats with a rotation of Gray, Werner, Olson, Chavez and Billings.
But this deal clearly wasn’t about the minor league roster; it was all about the major league roster – increasing the A’s infield depth and versatility and having a solid backup plan in place just in case Nakajima doesn’t pan out at short, Donaldson regresses at third, or nothing else works out at second. It’s clearly a “WIN NOW” move, just like it was with the Jaso deal. Peacock, Cole and Treinen represent a lot of young arms to give up – not to mention Carter and Stassi – in the two deals. But the A’s focus is clearly on winning now while the window of contention is open. And Beane admitted as much in his conference call with reporters, saying “Given where the club finished last year and where we see it having a chance to compete this year, we wanted to do everything we could to help ourselves right now.”
And for the A’s, the future is clearly NOW!
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Is the A’s Roster Set? And the River Cats Roster Too?
Will Hiro have A’s fans smiling too?
On Monday, we unofficially learned that shortstop Stephen Drew had agreed to a deal with the Red Sox and would not be returning to the A’s, and we also unofficially learned that the A’s would be filling the hole at shortstop by signing Japanese import Hiroyuki Nakajima. It was announced on Tuesday, after our last A’s Off-Season Transactions Update, not only that the Nakajima signing was official but also that, to clear room on the roster for their new shortstop, the A’s had traded outfielder Collin Cowgill to the Mets for Double-A third baseman Jefry Marte.
With the A’s new shortstop in the fold, it looks like their work is essentially done for the off-season and that the major league roster, barring any unforeseen (yet inevitable) injuries, is pretty much set. But it also seems that the Triple-A roster at Sacramento may be pretty much set at this point too. This really shows a remarkable level of certainty for an organization that’s typically had any number of question marks remaining at this time of year.
Below you’ll find a complete listing of the anticipated A’s and River Cats opening day rosters, barring any unexpected deals or injuries, as of this point in time almost 3 ½ months before opening day. Any changes should be minor, especially where the major league roster is concerned. I’d expect any changes to most likely come from potential moves involving some of the minor league pitchers or infielders. Following the roster lists below, we’ll go around the horn and discuss where things stand at every position for both the A’s and the River Cats…
Brandon Moss
2013 OAKLAND A’S
–CATCHERS–
–INFIELDERS–
Brandon Moss 1B
Chris Carter 1B
Jemile Weeks 2B
Adam Rosales IF
Yoenis Cespedes
–OUTFIELDERS–
Josh Reddick OF
Coco Crisp OF
Seth Smith OF
Chris Young OF
–STARTING PITCHERS–
Brett Anderson LHP
Jarrod Parker RHP
Tom Milone LHP
A.J. Griffin RHP
Dan Straily RHP
Grant Balfour
–RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Grant Balfour RHP
Ryan Cook RHP
Pat Neshek RHP
Chris Resop RHP
–LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Sean Doolittle LHP
Jerry Blevins LHP
Travis Blackley LHP
–SUSPENDED FOR 5 GAMES–
2013 SACRAMENTO RIVER CATS
Michael Choice
–HITTERS–
Daric Barton IF
Andy Parrino IF
Eric Sogard IF
Scott Moore IF-OF
Grant Green IF-OF
–STARTING PITCHERS–
Brad Peacock RHP
Sonny Gray RHP
Andrew Werner LHP
(+2 of the following 4 in the rotation with 1 in the bullpen & 1 traded or released)
Garrett Olson LHP
Jesse Chavez RHP
Bruce Billings RHP
Travis Banwart RHP
James Simmons
–RIGHT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Evan Scribner RHP
Arnold Leon RHP
James Simmons RHP
Mike Ekstrom RHP
–LEFT-HANDED RELIEVERS–
Jordan Norberto LHP
Pedro Figueroa LHP
Justin Thomas LHP
2013 OAKLAND A’S
Derek Norris: Catcher of the future or lumberjack in training?
As far as the 2013 A’s go, catcher and first base are two positions that are pretty clearly set. Right-handed hitter Derek Norris and left-handed hitter George Kottaras will make up the A’s catching tandem. This likely won’t be a strict platoon though, as the A’s view Norris as their catcher of the future. I’d expect Norris to get between 350-400 at-bats, with Kottaras getting somewhere between 200-250 at-bats – of course, performance on the field could have a big effect on playing time behind the plate. The first base platoon of Brandon Moss and Chris Carter will remain in place in 2013. This should be a pretty strict left/right platoon, unless Moss regresses and Carter starts coming on strong, in which case the big right-hander could end up stealing some at-bats from Moss.
Second base may represent the biggest question mark on the A’s roster. Jemile Weeks and Scott Sizemore both stand a decent chance of claiming the starting job, while prospect Grant Green appears to be a long shot. It’s my feeling that, as long as he can show in the spring that he’s ready to put it together, the edge will go to former #1 draft pick Weeks. But if Weeks looks like he hasn’t learned anything, then Sizemore should be ready to step in – though we do have to remember that he is coming back from an injury that sidelined him for a solid year and will be competing at a position that he hasn’t played much over the past two years. Whichever one of these guys doesn’t claim the major league job will probably end up at Sacramento with Green. At this point, my guess is that Weeks opens the season with the A’s, while Sizemore ends up at Sacramento waiting for a chance to come back and take over in the event that Weeks or Donaldson struggles – but that could very easily change based on what happens in the spring.
Your 2013 starting shortstop will be Hiro Nakajima, with Adam Rosales likely serving as his backup – as well as the backup at second at third. If Nakajima proves to be more of a “zero” than a “Hiro,” then Rosales will step in and start getting more at-bats at short. Josh Donaldson will be the starting third baseman unless and until he proves that his second-half surge last season was just a fluke. If that happens, then Sizemore is the most likely candidate to step in at third.
Josh Reddick: The undisputed champion of the ‘Bernie Lean’ dance competition
In the outfield, the A’s have five players (Cespedes, Reddick, Crisp, Smith and Young) to fill the three outfield spots as well as the designated hitter spot in the lineup. Those four positions should offer up about 2400 at-bats, which would mean there’s close to 500 at-bats to go around for each of them – that’s if they’re all healthy. Of course, they won’t all be healthy. I’d guess that at just about any point in the season, one of them will be dinged up enough to, if not warrant a stint on the DL, at least warrant a little time out of the lineup. So I wouldn’t spend too much time worrying about who plays where and when. I suspect it’ll work itself out one way or another and we’ll end up seeing plenty of all of them in the starting lineup.
As for the starting rotation, it’s important to remember that Bartolo Colon will be suspended for the first five games of the season and the A’s will play the first seven games of the season without a day off. That means that, barring injury, Brett Anderson, Jarrod Parker, Tom Milone, A.J. Griffin and Dan Straily will open the season as the A’s starting five. Of course, there’s a reasonable chance that one of those pitchers could have some nagging injury to start the season. In that case, Colon could be ready to step into the rotation after the first week. If, miracle of miracles, all five starting pitchers are fully healthy and functioning to start the season, then Colon could always kill time in the bullpen until one of them is sidelined with a balky elbow, shoulder, rib cage or back.
The A’s bullpen will be a crowded place though. Aside from Colon, there will be nine or ten legitimate contenders for the seven bullpen spots. On the right-handed side of things, Grant Balfour will be the closer and Ryan Cook will be the primary right-handed set-up man, while Pat Neshek will surely have a spot after signing a guaranteed contract, and Chris Resop is bound to get a spot after the A’s made a concerted effort to acquire him from the Pirates. That would push Evan Scribner to Sacramento.
On the left-handed side of things, Sean Doolittle and Jerry Blevins appear to be assured spots after their consistent performances throughout 2012, and Travis Blackley seems to be locked in as the long-man in the ‘pen. That would push Jordan Norberto and Pedro Figueroa to Sacramento. Of course, the odds that one of those seven relievers starts the season with some kind of injury is fairly high, which would open the door to one of those spots.
Daric Barton: Don’t worry, A’s fans – only in case of emergency!
2013 SACRAMENTO RIVER CATS
If we make the preceding assumptions about the major league roster, and take into account the fact that the Triple-A roster rarely includes more than 12 hitters and rarely has any fewer than 13 pitchers, then the River Cats roster starts to fall pretty clearly into place.
The A’s acquired two experienced minor league catchers – 29-year-old Luke Montz and 27-year-old Steven Hill – who should share the catching duties at Sacramento this year. Meanwhile, veteran Daric Barton will be standing in at first base, waiting for his chance should anything happen with Moss or Carter.
If Jemile Weeks doesn’t make the roster in Oakland, then he’ll surely be the starting second baseman at Sacramento. But if Scott Sizemore is the one to get sent down, as I suspect, then I’d expect him to get the majority of the starts at second base in Sacramento, preparing himself in case Weeks again struggles. Andy Parrino, who was acquired from San Diego in the Tyson Ross trade, is bound to be Sacramento’s primary starting shortstop this year. I’d expect to see the versatile Eric Sogard getting most of his starts at third base this year, while also picking up a few other starts around the infield. When Sogard’s not starting at third, then fading prospect Stephen Parker is likely to get some starts at the hot corner as well.
Grant Green: Still looking for a home
Scott Moore, who has been the A’s most promising minor league free agent signing this off-season, can play third base, as well as first base, second base and the outfield, but will probably end up seeing a lot of at-bats as the designated hitter for the River Cats. Sacramento’s starting outfield should be made up of on-base machine Shane Peterson in left, top prospect Michael Choice in center and former top prospect Michael Taylor in right. That just leaves our old friend Grant Green, whom the organization could make the River Cats’ regular second baseman, but I’m guessing that, when it’s all said and done, they’ll end up utilizing his versatility and giving him starts all over the field – preparing him for his most likely future role with the A’s as a versatile utility man.
There are three pitchers who, as long as they’re healthy, are sure to make Sacramento’s starting rotation – top prospects Brad Peacock and Sonny Gray, along with left-hander Andrew Werner, who was acquired from San Diego in the Tyson Ross deal. The rest of the River Cats’ rotation will be filled out by two of the following four hurlers – right-handers Jesse Chavez, Bruce Billings and Travis Banwart, as well as major league veteran and minor league free agent signee Garrett Olson. Of the two who don’t make the rotation, one will likely end up as the long-man in the River Cats’ bullpen with the other either DL’d, traded or released.
Sacramento’s 2013 bullpen ought to boast an impressive array of arms who could be ready to step in and help at the major league level at a moment’s notice. If all the major league bullpen arms are healthy, then the River Cats’ ‘pen should include names like Evan Scribner, Arnold Leon, James Simmons and minor league free agent signee Mike Ekstrom from the right side and Jordan Norberto, Pedro Figueroa and minor league free agent signee Justin Thomas from the left side.
On the whole, it looks like a River Cats roster that ought to be more than ready to defend its division title and, hopefully, so should the 2013 A’s!
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Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Down On The Farm with Farhan
Yesterday we brought you a complete rundown of manager Bob Melvin’s bloggers-only press conference from last week at the Coliseum. Well, after the skipper did his duty, the A’s director of baseball operations, Farhan Zaidi, joined us to address a number of player personnel queries. A trained economist in his 8th year with the A’s, Farhan is deeply involved in the critical analyses that the team does on players both inside and outside the organization, so his insights are invaluable. Rather than provide a complete rundown of every subject that Farhan took the time to touch on, below are his insights on some of the more intriguing young players to make their marks in the majors and minors for the A’s organization this year. Once again, A’s Farm, kicked off the questioning – this time by asking for Farhan’s take on one of the A’s top prospects whom folks are always eager to find out more about…
On the future of former 1st-round draft pick Grant Green…
“If you look at what Grant did this year, he cut his strikeouts down a lot. And his numbers were up across the board. And I think that was more in line with what we were expecting out of him than what we saw from him last year. We’re just trying to figure out defensively maybe where he can be an asset to the team and where we can fit him into our defense. There’s two different levels of prospects – there’s guys at a lower level where you just want them to be where they’re most comfortable or where their value is maximized, and then you have older guys where you’re maybe starting to have to look at your big league depth chart and you’re starting to say, ‘Where can this guy play?’ And with Grant, he’s a guy who I think next year will have a chance to make the team. So right now I couldn’t tell you what position he’s going to play or how he fits in, but I think he’s really given us a lot of options, which is always a good thing.”
On the newfound success of former farmhands Chris Carter and Josh Donaldson…
“You try to give guys as much rope as possible, because this transition from Triple-A to the big leagues is so tough. And if I guy has a good game when he comes up, he just kind of builds off that momentum and goes from there. But if he goes 0 for 4 with a couple of strikeouts, he can get in a downward spiral. And if you look at those guys and look at that first game after they came up, they started succeeding and then building off of that. And I don’t mean to reduce it to such a simple thing, but that’s how it is sometimes. Sometimes it’s a matter of just getting some level of confidence for these guys.”
On the rapid rise of right-hander Dan Straily…
“I really think the year that he got on the radar for us as an organization was 2011 with the year that he had in the California League where, if you look at those numbers and adjust for the league and environment, that was a really impressive performance. And I think, before that, I would have said, ‘He’s kind of a good organizational guy.’ He had a good year in the Midwest League. But last year, to do what he did in the California League, he started showing some plus stuff, some plus velocity. He was a guy we started thinking could be a part of the plan going forward. Now look, he wasn’t in big league camp, so don’t give us too much credit. But he was a guy I would have said at the beginning of the year that I could see him spending most of the year in Double-A and if he had a similarly good year, move up to Triple-A, and then sort of really be on the radar. So a little bit like Parker, I think the most impressive thing about what he’s done is just the speed and sort of really forcing the issue – being so good in Double-A that we had to move him up, and being so good in Triple-A that, when the opportunity presented itself, we brought him up here. I wouldn’t say it was totally out of the blue, but obviously he’s totally blown by everyone’s expectations.”
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Mr. Melvin Meets The Bloggers
Bob Melvin: Hit me with your best shot!
With Oakland right in the thick of a heated pennant race, A’s manager Bob Melvin took some time out just prior to a mid-September night game versus the dreaded Orioles to attend a bloggers-only press conference at the Coliseum. Melvin was his usual friendly and cordial self as he addressed an array of topics over the course of about 10 minutes and, upon his exit, even made a point of complimenting his interrogators on their rapid-fire questions. The first subjects, raised by A’s Farm, concerned a couple of players who’ve spent some time with both the A’s and the River Cats this year, and Melvin went on to offer his take on a variety of different subjects from there…
On third baseman Josh Donaldson’s improvement in his second stint with the A’s this year…
“Well, I think as far as Donaldson goes, it was just a matter of getting here and having some success. The ability’s always been there. If you look at the minor league numbers, he’s been able to hit and hit for power. He’s a great athlete – he can play multiple positions. I think it was just important – similar to a Chris Carter situation – that he came here and had some success. And he did early on, and he’s just been riding on that and more or less believes in himself as a big leaguer now.”
On second baseman Jemile Weeks’ struggles this season…
Jemile Weeks: Let’s see, am I supposed to be in Oakland or Sacramento today?
“As far as Jemile, you talk about sophomore slumps and so forth, and he’s a tough kid who can be hard on himself, and I think he got into a little bit of a slump where he couldn’t quite get out of it. You look up there – and you have some pride – and you look at your average after hitting .300 for basically a full season, then not being able to repeat that, you try a little too hard sometimes as opposed to just letting your ability take over. And I think it was just a little bit of a change of scenery – he went down there (to Sacramento) and instantly hit. And I don’t think this is going to effect where his career is going forward.”
On the adjustments Jemile Weeks needs to make…
“I think mainly just keeping the ball out of the air a little bit. I think, this year, he hit a couple of home runs early on. He will tell you that had nothing to do with swinging a little bigger. I think he just felt more comfortable with his swing that he could drive some balls. And last year, he just wasn’t trying to do too much. He was just putting it in play, and putting it in play on the ground. So it’s just a matter of finding a happy medium for him, and he will do that.”
On the special challenges of working with a younger team…
“Well, I think basically, with where we are in the season, we try to keep the distractions to a minimum and just – I know it’s very cliché – keep all our efforts focused on a particular day. We are playing some match-ups in the second half – whether it’s a Moss/Carter type of thing. And I think keeping them aware of when they’re playing is important so they know and can do their homework on potential pitchers they’re going to face – whether it’s Kottaras and Norris, and we’ve run a little bit of a platoon with Pennington and Rosales at second. So I think they benefit by knowing what days they’re playing. And then I think with younger players, you try to be consistent in giving them good feedback, because the one thing about being a younger player coming to the big league level that you always have to get over is that awe factor and ‘do I belong here in the big leagues?’ And we’ve, as an organization, put a lot of stock in our younger players and getting them to the big leagues. We put them in prominent roles, and I think we’ve done that across the board this year, whether it’s the pitching end of it, whether it’s the position player end of it, and we’ve been rewarded with good performances.”
On traditional bullpen roles…
“It’s always a Catch-22, because you want to get the hot hand out there, you want to get the guys that are the best match-ups. Yet relievers are a little different breed. When that phone rings, the guy wants to have a pretty good idea when he’s coming in the game. If we have to change the role for a period of time, I think we’re more apt to do that than just consistently trying to match up. It’s a little different with call-ups when you have more options. But I think if you look at our late guys, our plus-game guys, they know when they’re coming in the game, and that I think is a comfort to them…confidence-wise for them, it helps them to prepare and feel good about what they’re doing, even though just looking at it statistically, it can be more of a match-up thing. So I think it’s a double-edged sword as far as that goes. I do like defining roles, but I’m not afraid to change them if we need to change them.”
On team chemistry and when it started to click…
“I don’t know if there was a particular time. I felt good about the players we had in spring training. And when you look at a big league roster, a 25-man roster, I think ours was more like 32 – we were bringing guys back and forth depending on how they were playing at a certain time. And I think, once we kind of defined what roles certain guys had…I think the timing might have been middle to late June…I think we’ve been pretty consistent, especially offensively. And once we started to play better offensively, hit some home runs and so forth, the team started to find an identity within itself. We always felt like we were a scrappy-type team, a team that played well and focused later on in games and played hard and that type of thing. But I think once we started to hit the ball out of the ballpark, we kind of gained a lot more confidence because of that. And we have the guys here to do that now.”
Josh Reddick: Who needs an MVP when I’ve got one of these!
On the team’s MVP this year…
“It’s a tough one. You know, the guys that we count on the most are Coco, Reddick and Cespedes. And I think at different parts of the season, they would each be considered the MVP at the time. I couldn’t put my finger on just one. But from an offensive standpoint, those three probably stand out the most.”
On the team’s perspective down the stretch…
“We’re trying not to look at the finish line. We’re trying to take it more day-to-day, and let’s count ‘em up at the end. We know the schedule – we know we’re playing a lot of games on the road. We’ve been fortunate enough to win some games on the road. But if you start thinking about this match-up, that match-up, who’s pitching in this series, those are just distractions you don’t need, especially for a younger group. So we’re trying to remain in the moment and put all our focus on today’s game. I know it’s very cliché, but I think it really has worked for us to this point this year, and that’s the way we’ll remain doing it.”
On how his past managerial experiences have prepared him for the challenges of this job…
“Well, first of all, I don’t think you ever get comfortable and say ‘Okay, I’ve had all the experiences, and this is the way I’m going to do things.’ I try to learn from our players. And it’s more about me acclimating to the players than the players acclimating to me. I have to work the personnel that we have in the fashion that we’re best-suited to do it. If we’ve got a bunch of guys that run, you’re not going to sit around and play for a three-run homer. If we have a bunch of guys that hit home runs, you’re not going to run into outs. And this team has kind of morphed into that type of team. We were running quite a bit early on, but we’re not running quite as much now because we don’t want to run into outs because we’re hitting some balls out of the ballpark. I think keeping guys accountable more so now, and communicating. There are certain times you don’t want to communicate, whether it’s your mood or whatever, but you have to stay consistent in what you’re doing as a manager. I like to be a positive guy, especially with the whole group. I will take guys individually if there’s something I want to do on the negative side. But I think it’s staying consistent, whether you’re winning or losing, and staying consistent in my approach to the players – that’s probably the thing that stands out the most for me.”
* * *
After Bob Melvin’s press conference, long-time A’s broadcaster Ray Fosse took some time to chat on the field during batting practice and offered up some interesting takes on the A’s current manager…
Ray Fosse: I love Bob Melvin this much!
Fosse on Bob Melvin…
“Bob Melvin’s the greatest manager. He deserves so much credit. Nothing against the other guys, but Collin Cowgill, I just interviewed him, and he knows him from being with the Diamondbacks, and he said, ‘I’d run through that wall for the man.’ And when your players are willing to sacrifice their bodies to do whatever…Brandon Inge, when he dove for the ball and separated his shoulder, he comes in the next inning and hits a double down the line, and then he goes on the disabled list. He comes back, he does the same thing here, hits a double, drives in two runs, and then has surgery. But when he was out here, he said, ‘I’d take a bullet for the man right now. If there’s a fight, I’m defending him.’ And that’s the respect these guys have for that man.”
Fosse on respect…
“For the first time in the years that we’ve had the (World Series championship) reunions, when the players came in on the cars and they had the red carpet out to the mound, did you notice that every current player was lined up? Never has that been done before. Bob Melvin said, ‘We need to respect the guys who won the championships. I want my team out there shaking their hands as these guys walk by.’ Gene Tenace came on the air and he said, ‘I won’t get a chance to see Bob Melvin, but please tell him that’s the classiest act I’ve ever seen to show respect for a team of the past.’ And it was – I still get goose bumps thinking about what they did.”
* * *
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Saturday, July 28th: Cats & Hounds Win behind Kila’s & Aliotti’s Big Bats while Bowman & Cole Pitch Ports & Bees to Victory
A’s Farmhand Of The Day
Sacramento River Cats DH Kila Ka’aihue (2 Home Runs / 5 RBIs)
PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE (TRIPLE-A)
Sacramento River Cats 13
Reno Aces 4
(WP – Straily 5-2 / 1.36)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Designated Hitter Kila Ka’aihue
(2 Home Runs / 5 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Designated hitter Kila Ka’aihue clubbed 2 home runs and drove in 5 runs, while third baseman Josh Donaldson collected a pair of doubles and drove in 4 for the River Cats on Saturday. Starter Daniel Straily allowed 3 runs on 7 hits while walking none and striking out 4 over 6 innings to earn his 5th win with Sacramento.
TEXAS LEAGUE (DOUBLE-A)
Midland RockHounds 8
Corpus Christi Hooks 3
(WP – Gray 5-7 / 4.28)
Farmhand Of The Game:
First Baseman Anthony Aliotti
(2 Home Runs / 4 RBIs)
Worth Noting: First baseman Anthony Aliotti blasted 2 home runs and drove in 4 runs, while outfielder Conner Crumbliss homered and drove in 2. Starter Sonny Gray allowed 2 runs on 8 hits while walking none and striking out 3 in 6 innings to earn his 5th win on Saturday.
CALIFORNIA LEAGUE (HIGH-A)
Stockton Ports 6
Bakersfield Blaze 0
(WP – Bowman 4-8 / 3.42)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Josh Bowman
(6 1/3 IP / 0 ER / 7 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Starter Josh Bowman had another strong outing for Stockton, striking out 7 over 6 1/3 scoreless innings to earn his 4th win. Infielder Tony Thompson hit a 2-run homer, while outfielders Josh Whitaker and Myrio Richard drove in 2 runs apiece in the win.
MIDWEST LEAGUE (CLASS-A)
Cedar Rapids Kernels 1
Burlington Bees 6
(WP – Cole 5-2 / 2.06)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher A.J. Cole
(6 IP / 1 ER / 6 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Starter A.J. Cole had another solid outing for Burlington, allowing 1 run over 6 innings to earn his 5th win with the Bees. First baseman Max Muncy hit a 2-run homer, while third baseman Wade Kirkland doubled in 2 runs in the win.
NEW YORK-PENN LEAGUE (CLASS-A SHORT-SEASON)
Vermont Lake Monsters 7
Aberdeen IronBirds 2
(WP – Eppley 2-0 / 1.52)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Catcher Bruce Maxwell
(2 Doubles / 4 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Catcher Bruce Maxwell, serving as the designated hitter for the day, had his second straight big night at the plate, collecting a pair of doubles and driving in 4 runs. Starter J.C. Menna allowed 2 runs in 4 innings of work, and right-hander Nate Eppley picked up the win with 2 innings of scoreless relief.
ARIZONA LEAGUE (ROOKIE SHORT-SEASON)
AZL Athletics 6
AZL Royals 4
(WP – Voiro 2-1 / 2.41)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Lee Sosa
(3 IP / 0 ER / 1 K)
Worth Noting: In the completion of a suspended game from earlier this month, right-hander Vincent Voiro picked up his 2nd win, allowing 1 unearned run over 2 1/3 innings, while right-hander Lee Sosa tossed 3 scoreless and hitless innings to earn the hold. The A’s first two draft picks this year, shortstop Addison Russell and third baseman Daniel Robertson, both homered in the game.
Sunday’s Games:
Sacramento @ Reno – 1:05pm PT
Midland @ Corpus Christi – 6:05pm CT
Stockton @ Bakersfield – 7:30pm PT
Cedar Rapids @ Burlington – 2:00pm CT
Vermont @ Aberdeen – 5:35pm ET
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Sunday, July 22nd: Haviland & Bowman Pitch Hounds & Ports to Victory while Bees Win in Extras and Cats Fall
A’s Farmhand Of The Day
Midland RockHounds pitcher Shawn Haviland (5 IP / 0 ER / 5 K / Win)
PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE (TRIPLE-A)
Tucson Padres 5
Sacramento River Cats 3
(LP – Thompson 1-2 / 4.35)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Jermaine Mitchell
(Home Run / Double / RBI)
Worth Noting: Starter Tyson Ross allowed 3 runs and struck out 5 over 6 2/3 innings of work, while right-hander Rich Thompson took the loss after giving up the game-winning run in relief. Outfielder Jermaine Mitchell homered in the 5th inning to give the River Cats the lead, and catcher Josh Donaldson also homered in the game.
TEXAS LEAGUE (DOUBLE-A)
Midland RockHounds 2
San Antonio Missions 0
(WP – Haviland 6-8 / 5.06)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Shawn Haviland
(5 IP / 0 ER / 5 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Starter Shawn Haviland had one of his best outings of the season for the RockHounds, allowing just 2 hits while walking none and striking out 5 over 5 innings to earn the win. Catcher Beau Taylor and first baseman Anthony Aliotti each drove in a run in the win.
CALIFORNIA LEAGUE (HIGH-A)
High Desert Mavericks 3
Stockton Ports 5
(WP – Bowman 3-8 / 3.62)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Josh Bowman
(7 IP / 3 ER / 6 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Starter Josh Bowman had another solid outing for Stockton, allowing 3 runs on 5 hits while walking none and striking out 6 to earn the win. Catcher Max Stassi hit a 2-run homer in the 1st inning to give the Ports the lead, while outfielder Dusty Robinson drove in 2 runs, and third baseman B.A. Vollmuth doubled and drove in a run in the win.
MIDWEST LEAGUE (CLASS-A)
Burlington Bees 1
West Michigan Whitecaps 0
(WP – Mye 3-0 / 3.78)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Eliezer Mesa
(Double / Game-Winning Run)
Worth Noting: Burlington won the game in the 13th inning after outfielder Eliezer Mesa doubled and scored the game-winning run on pinch-hitter Nick Rickles’ sacrifice fly. Starter A.J. Cole delivered another strong outing for Burlington, striking out 7 over 5 scoreless innings of work.
NEW YORK-PENN LEAGUE (CLASS-A SHORT-SEASON)
Vermont Lake Monsters 4
Tri-City ValleyCats 2
(WP – Dull 3-0 / 0.00)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Second Baseman Chris Bostick
(Double / 2 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Second baseman Chris Bostick had 3 hits, including a double, and drove in 2 runs, including the go-ahead run in the top of the 9th inning for Vermont. Starter Brent Powers allowed 2 runs over 3 1/3 innings while walking 5 and striking out 4, and right-hander Ryan Dull picked up his 3rd win with 1 2/3 scoreless innings in relief.
ARIZONA LEAGUE (ROOKIE SHORT-SEASON)
AZL Mariners 2
AZL Athletics 8
(WP – Torres 2-0 / 4.76)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Shawn Duinkerk
(Home Run / Triple / 2 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Outfielder Shawn Duinkerk homered, tripled and drove in 2 runs, while starter Jose Torres allowed 2 runs over 5 innings to earn his 2nd win.
Monday’s Games:
Tucson @ Sacramento – 12:05pm PT
Midland @ San Antonio – 11:05am CT
Burlington @ West Michigan – 6:00pm CT
Lowell @ Vermont – 7:05pm ET
AZL Angels @ AZL Athletics – 7:00pm PT
Monday’s Links:
Sacramento River Cats Complete Season Stats
Midland RockHounds Complete Season Stats
Stockton Ports Complete Season Stats
Burlington Bees Complete Season Stats
Vermont Lake Monsters Complete Season Stats
AZL Athletics Complete Season Stats
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Thursday, July 5th: Whitaker’s Grand Slam Leads Ports to Win while Cats, Hounds & Bees Fall
A’s Farmhand Of The Day
Stockton Ports outfielder Josh Whitaker (Grand Slam)
PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE (TRIPLE-A)
Sacramento River Cats 8
Fresno Grizzlies 9
(LP – Figueroa 0-1 / 1.73)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Luke Hughes
(Home Run / 3 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Luke Hughes, playing in left field, hit a go-ahead 3-run homer in the top of the 8th inning for the River Cats. Fresno came back to tie the game off right-hander Merkin Valdez, and catcher Josh Donaldson followed with a solo-shot in the 10th to give Sacramento the lead, until left-hander Pedro Figueroa surrendered 2 runs in the bottom of the 10th to hand the victory to Fresno.
TEXAS LEAGUE (DOUBLE-A)
Arkansas Travelers 2
Midland RockHounds 1
(LP – Ortiz 3-4 / 3.34)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Fabio Castro
(7 IP / 1 ER / 6 K)
Worth Noting: Starter Fabio Castro had another solid outing, allowing 1 run while striking out 6 over 7 innings of work, but right-hander Jonathan Ortiz surrendered the winning run in the top of the 10th inning. Designated hitter Josh Horton had 3 hits, including a double, while catcher Ryan Lipkin collected 2 hits and drove in the RockHounds’ only run.
CALIFORNIA LEAGUE (HIGH-A)
Stockton Ports 6
Bakersfield Blaze 5
(WP – Walz 5-5 / 2.99)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Josh Whitaker
(Grand Slam)
Worth Noting: Outfielder Josh Whitaker kept up his torrid pace by blasting a grand slam in the top of the 9th inning on Thursday night to give the Ports a lead that Bakersfield couldn’t overcome. Starter Ian Krol allowed 3 runs and struck out 5 in 6 innings of work, while right-hander T.J. Walz struck out 3 in 2 scoreless innings to earn the win.
MIDWEST LEAGUE (CLASS-A)
Burlington Bees 1
Peoria Chiefs 2
(LP – Cole 4-1 / 2.44)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher A.J. Cole
(6 IP / 1 ER / 9 K)
Worth Noting: Starter A.J. Cole had another strong outing for Burlington, allowing just 1 earned run while striking out 9 over 6 innings to lower his ERA with the Bees to 2.44. Outfielder Eliezer Mesa homered forBurlington’s only run of the game.
NEW YORK-PENN LEAGUE (CLASS-A SHORT-SEASON)
Hudson Valley Renegades 6
Vermont Lake Monsters 0
(LP – Avila 0-1 / 3.15)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Austin Booker
(2 for 3)
Worth Noting: Vermont managed only 6 hits on Thursday night, 2 off the bat of outfielder Austin Booker, and another pair courtesy of catcher Bruce Maxwell. Starter Andres Avila allowed 5 runs, 4 earned, over 5 innings to take his 1st loss.
ARIZONA LEAGUE (ROOKIE SHORT-SEASON)
AZL Giants 0
AZL Athletics 10
(WP – Paulino 1-1 / 3.18)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Gregory Paulino
(5 IP / 0 ER / 5 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Former top prospect Michael Ynoa walked 1 and struck out 1 in 1 scoreless inning in his 2nd appearance of the season, while right-hander Gregory Paulino struck out 5 in 5 scoreless innings to earn the win. Catcher Reynaldo Mateo hit a 3-run homer in the 1st inning, and third baseman Renato Nunez doubled and drove in 3. First baseman Matt Olson and shortstop Daniel Robertson both posted a pair of doubles, and outfielder B.J. Boyd and Addison Russell, serving as the designated hitter for the day, collected 3 hits apiece.
Friday’s Games:
Sacramento @ Fresno – 7:05pm PT
(Straily vs. Yourkin)
Arkansas @ Midland – 7:00pm CT
(Oye vs. Smith)
Stockton @ Bakersfield – 7:45pm PT
(Bowman vs. Rogers)
Burlington @ Peoria – 7:00pm CT
(Alcantara vs. Peralta)
Hudson Valley @ Vermont – 7:05pm ET
(TBD vs. TBD)
AZL Reds vs. AZL Athletics – 7:00pm PT
(TBD vs. TBD)
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
Wednesday, July 4th: Cats & Ports Blast Opponents while Hounds & Bees Fall on the 4th
A’s Farmhand Of The Day
Sacramento River Cats pitcher Tyson Ross (7 IP / 1 ER / 7 K / Win)
PACIFIC COAST LEAGUE (TRIPLE-A)
Sacramento River Cats 18
Fresno Grizzlies 4
(WP – Ross 3-1 / 2.17)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Tyson Ross
(7 IP / 1 ER / 7 K / Win)
Worth Noting: Starter Tyson Ross had a strong outing in his return to Sacramento, allowing just 1 run and striking out 7 in 7 innings to earn the win, and the River Cats’ lineup offered him plenty of support on Wednesday. Catcher Josh Donaldson homered twice and drove in 4 runs, and shortstop Adam Rosales also launched a pair of homers, including a grand slam, and drove in 6. Outfielder Michael Taylor blasted a 3-run homer, first baseman Kila Ka’aihue clubbed 2 doubles and drove in 3 runs, and outfielder Grant Green collected 4 hits, including a double, and scored 4 times.
TEXAS LEAGUE (DOUBLE-A)
Midland RockHounds 0
Springfield Cardinals 5
(LP – Daley 7-7 / 4.70)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Gary Daley
(6 IP / 2 ER / 3 K)
Worth Noting: Starter Gary Daley had a solid outing on Wednesday, allowing 2 earned runs on just 3 hits over 6 innings of work, but Midland’s lineup only managed 4 hits and couldn’t push a run across the plate. Tyler Ladendorf, getting the start in center field, contributed the RockHound’s only extra base hit of the night, a double in the 6th inning.
CALIFORNIA LEAGUE (HIGH-A)
Stockton Ports 14
Bakersfield Blaze 3
(WP – Long 3-0 / 2.82)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Josh Whitaker
(Home Run / Double / 4 RBIs)
Worth Noting: Hot-hitting outfielder Josh Whitaker had another big night, clubbing his 12th double and his 14th home run and driving in 4 runs, and third baseman B.A. Vollmuth blasted a 3-run homer, his 1st for the Ports. Shortstop Michael Gilmartin homered and drove in 2, while designated hitter Beau Taylor collected 3 hits, including a double, and drove in 1 run and scored twice. And to top off the night, the team celebrated the victory with a post-game 4th of July cookout at the home of outfielder Dusty Robinson’s family in Bakersfield.
MIDWEST LEAGUE (CLASS-A)
Burlington Bees 2
Peoria Chiefs 8
(LP – Granier 9-5 / 3.64)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Pitcher Drew Granier
(7 IP / 3 ER / 8 K)
Worth Noting: Starter Drew Granier had another solid outing, allowing 3 runs on just 4 hits while walking 1 and striking out 8 over 7 innings of work, but the Bees could only push 2 runs across the plate on Wednesday, one coming courtesy of a home run off the bat of first baseman Douglas Landaeta. Outfielder Eliezer Mesa drove in catcher Nick Rickles for Burlington’s only other run of the night.
NEW YORK-PENN LEAGUE (CLASS-A SHORT-SEASON)
Hudson Valley Renegades 1
Vermont Lake Monsters 2
(WP – Pudenz 1-0 / 0.00)
Farmhand Of The Game:
Outfielder Austin Booker
(2 for 3 / RBI)
Worth Noting: Outfielder Austin Booker had 2 hits and drove in the go-ahead run for Vermont in the bottom of the 8th inning to give the Lake Monsters the win on Wednesday.
ARIZONA LEAGUE (ROOKIE SHORT-SEASON)
AZL Athletics
AZL Royals
SUSPENDED
Thursday’s Games:
Sacramento @ Fresno – 7:05pm PT
(TBD vs. Hacker)
Arkansas @ Midland – 7:00pm CT
(Piazza vs. Castro)
Stockton @ Bakersfield – 7:45pm PT
(Krol vs. TBD)
Burlington @ Peoria – 7:00pm CT
(TBD vs. Cates)
Hudson Valley @ Vermont – 7:05pm ET
(Lopez vs. Avila)
AZL Giants vs. AZL Athletics – 7:00pm PT
(TBD vs. TBD)
Be sure to like A’s Farm’s page on Facebook and follow us on Twitter @AthleticsFarm to keep up with all the news down on the farm!
