From Robinson to Withrow there were several big performances on Thursday as the Dodger minor league teams won 5 of their 6 games.
Minor League Player of the Day – Chris Withrow - 6 IP, 8 K's, 0 Runs, 2 Hits, 1 Walk. Withrow has been excellent in the month of June, and this last start was the exclamation point he needed to really prove he is still a top pitching prospect. Reports out of Chattanooga have been that his stuff has been excellent all year, so it looks like he is not starting to put everything together.
AAA – The Isotopes played a crazy game in Omaha, but when the dust settled it was Albuquerque who had lost to the Storm Chases (Royals) 18 to 13. Despite the loss, the offense smacked 4 jacks in this game, with two of them coming from Trayvon Robinson. The blasts give him an even 20 homers for the year, and it helped him collect 5 RBI's on the night. Jamie Hoffmann and Justin Sellers also homered and both drove in 3 runs. Jerry Sands had a solid game even though he didn't take one deep as he went 3 for 6 with a double to keep his OPS above 1.100. Ian Snell started for the Topes but didn't had a good game as he gave up 3 bombs and 8 runsover 4 innings. Travis Schlichting reached a new low as he allowed 8 runs on 7 hits in 2 innings of relief, and Ramon Troncoso gave up a couple of runs in 2 frames.
AA – Chris Withrow finally pitched like a top prospect and got plenty of offensive support as the Lookouts made the Generals surrender in a 7 - 3 victory. Withrow needed just 84 pitches to cruise through 6 innings, during which time he struck out 8 and only allowed 3 base-runners (2 hits and a walk). It was Withrow's best game by far this year, and hopefully carry his success from June into July. Josh Wall gave up a couple of runs in relief and Ethan Martin allowed one score, but it didn't make a difference as Chattanooga had a solid lead at that point. The offensive help was spread among almost every Lookout hitter as 9 of the 10 players to bat in this game recorded a base knock. Alfredo Silverio continues to shine as he crushed his 10th homer of the year, and the seldom mentioned Wilberto Ortiz also took one out of the park. Elian Herrera went 3 for 5 with a couple of doubles, while Jaime Pedroza and Travis Denker had 2 hits each.
HiA – The Quakes were down a run heading into the bottom of the 8th, but Rancho scored one in the 8th and another in the 9th to come away with the 3 to 2 walk-off victory at home against the Storm (Padres). There wasn't a whole lot of offensive in the game, as the tying run scored on sac fly by Anthony Jackson (after a Pedro Guerrero triple), and the winning run came on a RBI fielder's choice hit by Preston Mattingly when Ramon Jean beat the throw to the plate. The pitching, on the other hand, was very solid as Jon Michael Redding allowed just 4 hits and 2 runs over 7 innings while striking out 5. Josh Walter then picked up in relief and tossed the final two frames, giving up just a hit and a walk to pick up the win.
LoA – The Loons played a fast paced game on Thursday and came out winners as they twisted the Lugnuts (Blue Jays) 3 to 1. Starting pitcher Angel Sanchez continues to impress as he allowed just 2 hits and 1 run in 6 innings of work. His outing was somewhat different from his previous 7 starts because he only struck out 1, but his ability to limit the number of hits against him has been quite amazing so far. Also, if you want a little more background on Sanchez, check out this article by Loons beat reporter Hugh Bernreuter. It's a pretty interesting read. Getting back to the game, Bret Montgomery finished out the win with a 3 inning save in which he gave up 4 hits but struck out 5. Great Lakes was pretty quiet at the plate as they scratched out only 5 hits in this game, with their only extra base hit coming on a triple from Casio Grider. The two RBI's belonged to Chris Jacobs and Steve Domecus as they both drove in runs and singled.
Rookie Ogden – Gustavo Gomez became the first pitcher in the Pioneer League to 3 wins on Thursday as the Raptors clipped the Owls (Angels) 9 to 2. Gomez threw yet another gem as struck out 7 over 6 innings while allowing just 3 hits and a run, which was the first earned run he'd give up all season. His ERA is now 0.53 through 17 innings, and his batting average against is .143 while in Ogden. Brant Stickel gave up a run in 2 innings of relief work, but Joel Lima threw a shutout 9th to seal the win. At the plate it was Noel Cuevas who led the way in his 2nd Pioneer League game. Cuevas had been playing in HiA where he was struggling, but he is now back at a more appropriate level for his age of 19. Anyways Noel collected the three tough hits needed for a cycle with a homer, a triple, and a double, but he struck out in the 9th and fell short of the milestone. Charlie Mirabal also had 3 hits, while Scott Schebler and Enlly Morales had 2 base knocks. James Baldwin extended his hitting streak to 11 games and also stole his 8th base of the young season.
Rookie Arizona – Off day
DSL – The Dominican Dodgers defeated the Rays 8 to 5 with a well balance attack. Starter Victor Araujo tossed 4.2 innings and struck out 8 while allowing just 2 runs, and 17 year old Edinson Bock picked up the win by striking out 3 in 1.1 hitless innings. Fellow 17 year old Jonathan Martinez recorded his first professional save with 2 innings of shutout ball. At the plate, birthday boy Jose Moreno went 3 for 5 with 2 doubles and a couple of RBIs, while Melvin Santana and Arce Rodriguez both had 2 hits in 5 at bats.
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)