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Tuesday’s News & Notes

Five out of six win on Monday in the Nats' minors

The Quick Rundown…

Team Yesterday’s Result Today’s Game Pitching Probables
Syracuse Chiefs Won, 11-2 vs. Indianapolis, 7:00 p.m. Craig Stammen (6-3, 3.86) vs.
Brian Burres (3-6, 3.75)
Harrisburg Senators Lost, 9-3 @ Richmond, 7:05 p.m. Erik Davis (4-2, 3.59) vs.
Justin Fitzgerald (6-4, 3.59)
Potomac Nationals Won, 5-2 (11 inn.) @ Kinston, 6:30 p.m. Adam Olbrychowski (2-3, 5.45) vs.
Marty Popham (0-1, 2.72)
Hagerstown Suns Won, 5-2 vs. Lakewood, 7:05 p.m. Matt Grace (8-5, 5.00) vs.
Jesse Biddle (3-6, 2.70)
Auburn Doubledays Won, 13-8 vs. Williamsport, 7:05 p.m. Wirkin Estevez (1-1, 6.23) vs.
Mike Nesseth (1-1, 1.00)
GCL Nationals OFF DAY vs. GCL Cardinals, 12:00 p.m. Brandon King (0-1, 11.25) vs.
Dail Villanueva (0-1, 15.43)
DSL Nationals Won, 3-0 (6 inn.)
@DSL Yankees1		 @DSL Mets1, 10:30 a.m.

Syracuse 11 Rochester 2
• Milone (W, 6-5) 8IP, 3H, 0ER, 0BB, 6K
• Mandel 1IP, 2H, 2ER, 2BB, 0K
• Brown 2-5, 2R, 3B, 3R HR, 4RBI
• Lombardozzi 3-6, 2R, RBI

Eight dominant shutout innings from Tom Milone and an offensive outpouring of 19 hits were more than enough to lead Syracuse to an 11-2 victory over the Rochester Red Wings. A masterful Milone retired the first seventeen batters he faced. Jesus Flores was 0-5; every other Chiefs starter had at least two hits in the rout. Corey Brown had the big blow with a three-run homer in a four run fourth inning. Syracuse sent ten men to the plate in a five-run 8th inning, starting the inning with eight consecutive hits. Syracuse has now won four of its last five games to improve to 32-43, 12 games back in the International League’s North division.

Richmond 9 Harrisburg 3
• Roark (L, 4-4) 5IP, 8H, 5ER, 0BB, 5K
• McCoy 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, K
• Rhinehart 3-5, R, 2B
• Rahl 2-5, 2B

The Richmond Flying Squirrels opened the game with four consecutive hits in a four-run first. Harrisburg starter Tanner Roark settled down to allow only one more run in a five-inning outing, but the damage had been done. Derek Norris scored in the fourth on an RBI groundout by Chris McConnell. In the seventh, Tyler Moore singled in Josh Johnson and Bill Rhinehart, who had doubled earlier in the frame, closing the gap to 5-3. Jimmy Barthmaier and a recently demoted Hassan Pena gave up four runs in the bottom of the frame as Richmond put the game out of reach on its way to a comfortable 9-3 win.

Potomac 5 Kinston 2 (11 inn.)
• Rosenbaum 6IP, 3H, 1R, 1ER, 3BB, 6K
• Frias 2IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 2K
• Perez 2-5, 2R, 2B, SB
• Bloxom 2-6, R, RBI

After an 88-minute delay to start the game, a blown save in the ninth sent this to extras, but Potomac prevailed ’round midnight for a 5-2 victory in 11 innings. It was a small-ball fest in the 11th as a bunt single, a beat-out chopper and a walk put runners on, while a double steal and an error, a squeeze play, and a line-drive single drove them in for the margin of victory. P-Nats ace Danny Rosenbaum returned to action with a solid six-inning start, allowing just one run over six inings, allowing three hits and three walks while striking out six. Hector Nelo got the dreaded BS-W, Joe Testa and Rob Wort channeled Nuke LaLoosh with a 3BB & 3K eleventh for the hold and save, respectively.

Hagerstown 5 Lakewood 2
• Wang 3IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 0BB, 3K, HBP
• Cole (W, 2-4) 5IP, 2H, 0R, 1BB, 6K
• Manno (S, 10) 1IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Martinson 3-4, 3R, HR, RBI, SB (20), 2E (20, 21)
• Sanchez 2-4, R, 2B, 3B

A.J. Cole pitched a solid five innings in relief of a rehabbing Chien Ming-Wang for his second win of the season, as the Suns cracked the BlueClaws, 5-2. Cole allowed just two hits and one walk while striking out six. Wang put in a pedestrian three innings, allowing two runs (both earned) on four hits (two singles, a double, and a triple), no walks, and three strikeouts. It was the first regular-season appearance for Wang since signing a $2M-plus contract in February 2010. Jason Martinson led the offense with a steal and six total bases, offsetting errors no. 20 and 21 or the season to lead the nine-hit attack.

Auburn 13 Williamsport 8
• Demmin (W, 3-0) 6IP, 3H, 2R, 2ER, 2BB, 6K
• Dupra 2⅔ IP, 5H, 5R, 5ER, 2BB, 1K
• Nieto 4-5, 3R, 2-2B, 2RBI
• R Perez 3-5, R, 2RBI
• Montilla 3-5, 2R, 2B, RBI

The Auburn Doubledays scored in each of the first five innings en route to a 13-8 victory over the Williamsport Crosscutters, snapping a three-game losing streak. Every starter reached base as the offense littered the field with 19 hits, with Adrian Nieto leading the way with a 4-for-5 night. Matt Skole, Russell Moldenhauer, and Hendry Jimenez all extended their current hit streaks to eight. Ryan Demmin got the win with two runs given up over six innings on three hits and two walks. Like a Kennedy at an open bar, 7th-round pick Brian Dupra got hammered in the ninth, pushed one inning too far with all five hits given up in the last 2/3rds of his two and 2/3rds innings pitched.

GCL Nationals — OFF DAY
The G-Nats look to get to .500 this week with games against the Cardinals, Astros, Mets, and Marlins.

DSL Nationals 3 DSL Yankees1 0 (6 inn.)
• Pineyro (W, 1-2) 6IP, 5H, 0R, 1BB, 8K
• Difo 2-3, 2R
• Mercedes 1-3

Ivan Pineyro went the distance in a 3-0 shutout, presumably shortened by rain. The 19-y.o. went all six innings, allowing five hits, one walk, and struck out eight. Wilmer Difo paced the offense with a 2-for-3 game and two runs scored.

43 Commments

  1. Was at the game last night, Wang was not helped out by some rather lazy fielding efforts behind him. His first inning it really looked like he was trying to place the ball, and wasn’t throwing hard at all. I noticed the Lakewood players all stopping warmups and watching him warm up in the bullpen – they watched two pitches, turned around smiling. They could tell he didn’t have the good stuff. But by the 2nd inning, he was starting to throw some off speed stuff that was catching corners. It was also interesting to see the CMW fan club in force at the Muni with a banner and tons of flags. Probably 50-60 more fans attending last night that would have not been there if not for the rehab start.

    AJ Cole did awesome, and overall it was really a good game. I actually left the stadium saying “now that was fun to watch”.

    Harper sat again, and didn’t even come out of the clubhouse until about 5 minutes before the team introduction. I honestly thought maybe he had been moved up. I didn’t hear anything about being injured/disciplined, so I have no idea what’s going on.

    Martinson is hot and cold within the same game. Two errors fielding – home run hitting. If he could only get the yin-yang of the game to be in harmony! 🙂

    1. Thanks, TBRFan, it’s good to see your report on Cole.
      Listened to an interview with Doug Harris, the Nats minor league guy, and he said that he expected A.J. Cole to take a little longer to develop than Robbie Ray because he was taller and had more moving parts to his delivery. That’s 2 very young hurlers with big time upside; a lot to get excited about.

      Lombardozzi sure is forcing his way into the conversation, isn’t he!

      The ‘Godfather’ keeps raking in Harrisburg.

    2. TBR: How was his pace on the mound? He has a reputation for being somewhat deliberate (read: slow).

    1. I have some (maybe) intersting observations about Manno:

      1. Is his foot still contacting the rubber when he relases the ball? I watched him in warmups and actual pitching and it’s awful close to off. I am actually surprised that some coach hasn’t argued this point yet.

      2. I think why he’s so effective is that he hides the ball with a windup that starts down behind his backside and doesn’t appear to the hitter until it’s released. It’s very hard to pickup the pitch and ball so late.

      3. I can’t figure out either why he’s still at the Suns . . but then again, we’ve got a few players that should be moved and have not been.

  3. Doug Harris a a good baseball guy. I know him for years . expects guys to wrk hard and be discipline on and off the field.

    Let me try and give you my input on Manno
    (1) He stays close to the rubber, and I do not think its an issue. It is certainly not the reason why he has been pund for pound top 3 pitcher in the S.A L League
    (2) His deception is off the charts. He also shows you differen arm angles and different looks. I remember a guy named David Cone who did the same. Also guys please remember all of this deception and the guy still throws 88-91 steady and does pop it when he needs it.

    I stand by what I said in the beginning of last year. Manno will be a guy in the future for the Nats. He is a lefty,smart,good arm and knows how to pitch. Please do not get me wrong and I will be the 1st to admit this, he needs work, he needs to continue getting bettter and better each day. I think what you will see very soon is his coaches working on curve/slider to lefty’s .
    To me it does not matter where he is at this time , Hagerstown or Potomac. He needs to pitch and he needs to prove himself each time out

    Great job by Kline ,Harris and Rizzo . A 26th round kid, who I had as a top 5 round kid after seeing him in Cape Cod. Love the ACC and love is makeup

        1. I get the feeling (my hunch only) they’re not promoting kids to Potomac because of that field. Sue you know better than anyone the condition would you be weary of putting a prospect on that field?

          1. H.L. Mencken, a patron saint for Journalists, once famously remarked that for every complex problem, there is a solution that is simple, neat, and wrong. I’m not sure if the problem of lack of promotions is all that complex, but I am fairly certain that blaming the field is too easy an excuse.

            I complained all last year about the lack of promotions from Hagerstown when Potomac was struggling in the first half until I came to the realization that Rizzo does not do midseason callups for position prospects below AA. Last year, he dropped down Harrisburg guys in July and called up Hagerstown guys in August when it came time to qualify Burgess and Lombardozzi for the AFL.

            That said, I am holding out hope of getting a couple of relievers in the next couple of weeks. Cole and Ray I don’t see being brought here this year, and Solis might be much later than everyone wants. Jordan is possibility, too, but it also wouldn’t surprise me if they sent up Grace in a sink-or-swim move, either.

            Again, it’s not so much that I’m preaching patience so much as adjusting folks to the New World Order. The days of social promotions and rushed prospects are over.

          2. In a possibly interesting turn of events, Hood played LF last night, with Higley manning RF; We’ll see if that continues, or was just an anomaly.

            I do tend to agree with Sue_D that Rizzo is playing ‘puppetmaster’ below AA, and could be looking for a few more draftees to fill-in at the GCL & Auburn levels before promoting anyone from HAG.

  4. Notes from the Senators game last night…

    Tanner Roark – Was at 89-93 all night on the fastball. Slider was right around 85 and his curve was at 73-75. I don’t think he’ll make it as a starter… but if he moves to the pen, maybe that 93 becomes 95 more often?

    Cory VanAllen – Was really impressed by him last night. Came in for one batter with the bases loaded and got the K in a left on left matchup. Was at 91-92 and attacked the zone.

    Hassan Pena – Pena gave up the hardest hit HR I’ve ever seen in person. Chris Dominguez, a mountain of a man (Giants 3B Prospect – 6’4 230) hit a Grand Slam that was still rising as it the light post 30 feet above the wall. Easily 475-500 foot bomb.

    Derek Norris – For a catcher, the man has wheels. Beat out an infield single to SS. Great hustle. Continues to be hurt by bad umpire strike zones. In the AB he K’d, the second strike call was well outside, putting him in a hole that he couldn’t recover from. Defense looked improved from the last time I saw him in Richmond, as well.

    Tyler Moore – Everything he seems to hit sounds hard off the bat. Great power… but that’s about it. Doesn’t really show much patience at the plate, and is prone to swing at pitches he’d probably be better off taking, even if they’re strikes (pitcher’s strikes).

    1. Can you be more specific about the defense? I’ve thought the issue with him is receiving balls. I know that he has something like 13 or so passed balls and had one recently that I put in one of the writeups. How has his defense improved from when you saw him last?

        1. I’d be shocked by that. My money’s on Norris spending the whole year at AA. One year per level is Rizzo’s move; especially if you’re dealing with a high school prospect with defensive issues.

          1. Sould: Didn’t Sue_D take you out behind the woodshed just a few days ago regarding your obsession with Norris’ PB count (wink, wink)?

            Having pointed that out, I wonder how many of those PB’s are coming on cross-ups, where he sets up inside & gets an off-the-plate two-seamer instead. It’s all about the footwork (part of the reason I got nicknamed ‘backstop Bob’ during my time behind the plate).

        2. Don’t think so on this one. Both Flores & Norris need to get repetitions as the #1 catcher for their respective teams this year to maintain / gain value. If Rizzo moves Norris up & Flores down, doesn’t that conflict with your projections on Solano as Knoor’s pet project?

      2. soul,

        In regards to Norris’s defense… he didn’t drop a single pitch, something he had a problem with the first time I saw him. He also seemed to be moving fluidly on pitches in the dirt and squared up the ball with his chest rather than playing the ball off to his side or simply trying to glove a pitch in the dirt.

        Arm was as strong as ever, though.

  5. I incomprehensibly tried to state this last night, I think Dixon Anderson (the 9th rounder) should be listed as a junior in the draft tracker, not a senior. I also found an article stated the O’s offered him 450k in the 6th round last year as a draft eligible soph and he did not sign.

    1. Fixed it. But bear in mind that the draft tracker is volunteer-run resource and I tend to let my volunteer make the corrections when she has the time. Nine hours overnight is a bit much to ask.

      1. Completely understand, I re-read my comment last night and thought it didn’t make sense so I wanted to clarify. Thank you for keeping up the awesome resource!

        1. Don’t thank me — thank my volunteer, SpringfieldFan for that. Not to mention, SoulDrummer’s been laying down some great beats on the N&Ns, which is really going to help as we’re about to hit another P-Nat homestand, which is when I appreciate the help the most.

          1. I dunno, he’s already complaining that you’re not sharing the big bucks with him. Pretty soon he’s going to want a piece of the gravy train.

  6. David well said about all, just for the record, I happen to think Cry Vanallen is a special talent, hit a rough couple of games but no big deal. He has big league stuff, and can be a a very good fit in the future

  7. Sue – Love the updates, thanks so much for all the work you do.

    So you have Lombardozzi and Antonelli in the same lineup. Why don’t they get them both playing defense and start to develop one of them in a different position that can help at the MLB level.

    If one of them could play OF, I am sure they would get a call-up.

    1. I’m not sure where else you can play either or them. Lombardozzi is right where he ought to be — simply not a good enough arm for the left side — and Antonelli, like most SSs, can easily slide over to 3B if need be, but like drinking non-alcoholic beer: What’s the point?

    2. I agree with Sue’s comment as well. Antonelli’s best value is as a utility guy. Shortstop seems to be the weakest of his utility infield spots. Give him the reps at AAA, I say.

      1. What’s interesting is that Syracuse features 3 players like that. All spark plugs for their offense in Hulett, Antonelli, and Lombardozzi. Now for some really interesting comparisons between them!

        1. peric: There is minimal comparison to be made, imo –

          > Hulett is 28yo, and has stumbled in a couple of callups with BOS (.281/.356/.411 triple slash with SYR as of 6/25). He’s a versatile AAA player, much like Chase Lambin was last year.
          > Antonelli is 26yo, and could still make another MLB roster as a utility IF, but is more likely trade bait as an add-on to a possible trade before the deadline.
          > Lombardozzi is 22yo, and is still a solid 2B prospect for the team. He may advance in the Org, or he may be traded, but he holds a much brighter future than either of the others. Never forget, the Phillies traded Ryne Sandburg to the Cubs in the 1981 off-season, because they thought they could afford to.

          And don’t even think about bringing Bynum into the discussion like you tried to do earlier in the season.

    1. Perhaps in my effort to offset some of the one-handed typing about Wang in the Natmosphere, I may have given Mr. Cole short shrift. Point taken!

    1. Drafttrack is up-to-date with all 20 signings. Sickels, however, did feature Manny Rodridguez in his prospect report and this is as good a place to repeat it:

      A sleeper from the 2011 draft to watch closely is right-hander Manny Rodriguez, drafted by the Washington Nationals in the 10th round out of Barry University in Florida. He’s already 22 but is a converted third baseman who just started pitching last year, so he has a fresh arm and more upside than most pitchers his age. In his first six innings for Auburn in the New York-Penn League, he’s allowed zero runs, two walks, and just one hit, while fanning seven. He posted a 2.00 ERA with a 126/35 K/BB in 113 innings and just 87 hits allowed during the college season. Barry is a Division II school but plays good competition, and Rodriguez’s stuff is legitimate, including a 90-94 MPH fastball and a curveball and changeup that are solid considering his lack of experience. He’s definitely interesting.

      I will be seeing games in both Jamestown and Auburn next weekend so I’ll obviously be looking for, um, M-Rod?

      1. Watch out for the mosquitoes they are particularly deadly this year due to all the moisture (snow and rain), flocking in huge numbers in the late afternoon and into the night. Calls for huge amounts of DEET.

    1. Milone looks major league ready. Its just a matter of an injury or Zimmermann getting shut down after 150 innings.

    2. zzzzzzz – Hunh; Milone, did sombody say Milone?

      Yeah Toast, he’s a solid candidate at this point for a 40-man addition & ‘test-drive’ when they shut down JZimm. Stammen or Detwiler could catch the promotion just as easily though, if they look sharp over the next month. Maya didn’t show anything special in his time up replacing Gorzelanny, so he’s dropped in the pecking order, imo.

      1. Couldn’t have said it better myself. Sue’s enthusiasm these last 2 years is sure contagious.

        1. Tom Milone needs a fan club name about as badly as anybody in the Natmosphere. So far we’ve got The Bill Rhinehart Mafia, Manno’s Minions, WILKAMANIA, and others that I’m sure those who’ve logged more miles on the bus than I have can add.

          Milone’s Millions? The Tom-Tom Drummers?

          All I know is it’s time to beat the drum for Tom Milone. He’s done it every level, and it’s got to be very rewarding a Potomac fan like Sue to watch him develop and shine.

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