Minor League Player of the Day – Jon Michael Redding (HiA) - 6 IP, 1 Hit, 0 Runs, 7 K's - Redding's performance was probably over-shadowed by the rehab appearances by Lilly and Guerrier and yet another bomb from Pederson, but he deserves some recognition for his strong performance on Thursday. I'm obviously not a big fan of his 4 walks, but at the end of the day Redding has done a great job for the Quakes and has filled a variety of roles, starting 15 games and making 7 appearances out of the bullpen.
AAA – Stephen Fife had his worst outing of the year as the Isotopes got roughed up by the Sky Sox (Rockies) 11 to 2. Fife allowed a 11 hits and a season high 9 runs over 4.2 innings, while striking out just 1. With the game already out of grasp Michael Antonini tossed the final 3.1 frames and gave up the final 2 runs. Ivan De Jesus' double was the only extra base hit for the Topes, and he also had the team's only RBI. Tony Gwynn went 2 for 5 and Jerry Sands extended his hit streak with a single, but that was about it for the offense.
AA – The Lookouts played an all around great game on Thursday as Chattanooga downed the Suns (Marlins) 6 to 1. Starter Allen Webster did not give up an earned run over 5.1 innings to record the win, although he did allow a decent amount of base runners on 5 hits, 3 walks, and 1 hit batter. Scott Elbert appears to be ready to rejoin the big league club as he struck out all 3 batters he faced, then Steve Smith made his AA debut a good one as he tossed a scoreless inning. At the plate J.T. Wise continued his recent hot hitting with a single and two doubles, recording 2 RBI's in the process. Luis Nunez also had 3 hits with two singles and a double, while Blake Smith drove in a pair with a double and a triple.
HiA – Rancho slugged 3 homers in the same inning on Thursday as the Quakes defeated the Ports (A's) 9 to 2 to complete the season sweep of Stockton. Chris Jacobs and Jonathan Garcia got the 5th inning started with back to back jacks, then later in the inning Joc Pederson connected a 3-run shot for his 16th bomb of the year. Pedro Baez added a bases clearing double later in the game, while Yasiel Puig went 1 for 3 with a walk and a RBI. A pair of rehabbing big leaguers pitched the first 3 innings of this game, with Ted Lilly allowing just a solo homer and a walk over 2 frames while recording 2 K's. Matt Guerrier made his long awaited return to the mound in the 3rd and gave up a double, then allowed the run to score on a wild pitch. The pitcher of the game, however, has to be Jon Michael Redding as he tossed the final 6 frames and allowed just 1 hit and struck out 6. Sure he walked 4, but it was still a very impressive outing from the right hander.
LoA – The Loons fell to the Hot Rods (Rays) again on Thursday, this time losing 6 to 2. Starter Duke von Schamann started the game strong and ended up with 7 K's over 6 innings, but he absorbed the loss after allowing 3 runs (2 earned). Jose Dominguez struggled with his control in relief as he walked 4 over 2 frames and gave up 3 runs of his own to really put the game out of reach. Nobody had more than one hit in this game, but Joe Winker did connect on a solo shot and also had a sac fly to take care of all of the scoring. Darnell Sweeney tripled, while Jesse Bosnik had a double.
Rookie Ogden – The Raptors pitched their second consecutive shutout on Thursday as Ogden blanked Billings (Reds) 7 to 0. A trio of pitchers combined on the 4 hitter, starting with Ross Stripling who is limited on innings but allowed just a single over two frames. Long reliever Kazuki Nishijima did most of the heavy lifting as he held the opposition scoreless for 5 innings, while Jason West completed the shutout by striking out 3 and giving up just 1 hit over the final 2 frames. Justin Boudreaux had the team's only extra base hit as he had an RBI double, but Corey Seager still managed to drive in two with his single. Delvis Morales had the only other notable night as he went 3 for 4 with a walk and a stolen base.
Rookie Arizona – The Arizona Dodgers got some help from the Aussie on Thursday as they defeated the Mariners 8 to 3. Trent Oeltjen joined the club on a rehab assignment and went 2 for 5 with an RBI, while Paul Hoenecke continued to crush the ball with a single, a double, and 2 RBI's. Andrew Edge also had a RBI double, and Joey Curletta contributed with a RBI single and a sac fly. Starter Victor Araujo won his 4th game of the year despite his 7.35 ERA by allowing 6 hits and 2 runs over 5 frames, striking out 7 in the process. Jackson Mateo was solid in relief as he gave up just 1 hit over 3 innings of relief and K'ed 4.
DSL – Not much to see here as the Dominican Dodgers lost to the Astros 10 to 3. The Dodgers managed just 4 singles in this game, with 2 of them coming from Yensys Capellan. Starter Edinson Bock allowed 5 hits, 2 walks, and 4 runs over 4.1 frames. A trio of relievers struggled out of the pen, including Ariel Pena who gave up 4 runs of his own over just 1.1 innings.
Coming up – The Lookouts will again provide the pitching highlight on Friday as Zach Lee takes the mound. The remaining starters are much less noteworthy as Blake Johnson will throw for the Isotopes, Ryan Acosta will get the ball for the Quakes, Arismendy Ozoria will get the nod for the Loons, and Carlos Frias will try and lead the Raptors.
Albuquerque Isotopes Box Score (AAA)
Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score (AA)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Box Score (HiA)
Great Lakes Loons Box Score (LoA)
Ogden Raptors Box Score (Rookie)
Arizona Dodgers Box Score (Rookie)