The Dodger minor league teams played some interesting games on Sunday as two contests finished early, Tim Sexton allowed 16 runs, and the Raptor game featured 10 runs in the 9th.
Minor League Player of the Day – Charlie Mirabal - 4 for 5, 3 2B's, 3 RBI's, 1 Run. As a 24 year old in the Pioneer League Mirabal isn't much of a prospect, but he did have a great day at the plate with 4 hits including 3 doubles. Mirabal has had an interesting career path as he's spent time on the mound and also played a few games in AAA this season, but now he's simply playing in a rookie league with a lot of younger players.
AAA – Lightening caused this game to finish early, which was probably a good thing for the Isotopes as they were getting shellacked by the Zephyrs (Marlins) 17 to 9. Starter Tim Sexton amazingly stayed in long enough to give up 16 runs on 17 hits, which has got to be close to the PCL record. Sexton had held his own when he first got promoted to AAA, but over his past 8 starts he's been getting mostly crushed. The good news is that even though the pitching was terrible, the Albuquerque offense did some damage themselves. Dee Gordon continued his torrid hitting with 3 more hits, while Jerry Sands hit his 17th AAA homer of the season. Catcher Damaso Espino also took one deep, as did Russ Mitchell who ended the night with 4 RBI's.
AA – The Lookout pitching staff tossed a 3-hitter as Chattanooga shot down the Stars (Brewers) 4 to 2. Nathan Eovaldi started this game and actually didn't have his most impressive stuff even though he allowed just 3 hits in 5 innings. He walked 3, struck out only 1, and gave up a couple of runs on a homer. His relievers were outstanding, however, as Ethan Martin and Josh Lindblom both tossed perfect innings, with Lindblom's work resulting in his 15th save of the season. At the plate, Alfredo Silverio fell a double shy of the cycle as he hit his 12th homer of the season and yet another triple, his lead leading 14th of the year. Brian Cavazos-Galvez also homered and had the other 2 RBI's in the game.
HiA – The Quakes led heading into the 9th, but closer Logan Bawcom blew the save as Inland Empire (Angels) rallied for a 5 to 3 victory over Rancho Cucamonga. The loss ruined a stellar start by Red Patterson who allowed just 1 run on 4 hits through 6 innings while striking out 7. Patterson's HiA ERA is now down to 2.70, and he's had 5 straight outings in which he's allowed 5 or fewer hits while going at least 6 innings. Bawcom on the other hand has struggled since his promotion and saw his ERA increase to 9.95. On offense, Angelo Songco went 2 for 4 with a double and a triple, while J.T. Wise also doubled and collected the team's only RBI of the night.
LoA – The Loons pitching staff threw the organization's second 3-hitter of the day on Sunday as Great Lakes silenced the Timber Rattlers (Brewers) 5 to 1. 2011 8th round pick Rick Anton was recently promoted from Ogden and did very well in his first full season start, allowing just 1 hit and an unearned run in 4 innings of work. Raul Burgos also allowed just 1 hit in 3 frames, and Bret Montgomery finished off the victory with 2 shutout innings. Loons outfielder Bobby Coyle led the offense with a double and his 8th bomb of the season, while Leon Landry went 2 for 4 with a double and a triple. Blake Dean also contributed with a couple of RBI's.
Rookie Ogden – The Raptors had a comfortable 7 to 2 lead heading into the 9th, but Great Falls scored 7 runs of their own in the final frame to go up 9 - 7. That didn't mean that Ogden lost, however, as they staged their own comeback and finished with a 10 to 9 walk-off victory over the Voyagers (White Sox). Matt Kirkland and Alexis Aguilar were the 9th inning heroes as Kirkland tied the game with a 2 run double, and Aguilar drove in the winning run with a pinch-hit walk-off single. Charlie Mirabal played a big role in the scoring earlier in the game as he went 4 for 5 with 3 doubles and 3 RBI's, as did Andrew Edge who went 3 for 4 with a stolen base. Not to be forgotten is Scott Schebler who connected on his 6th bomb of the year. Yimi Garcia made his first start of the year in place of the recently promoted Rick Anton and did very well, allowing 2 runs on 6 hits in 5.2 innings while striking out 6. Mike Drowne was the reliever who really let the game get away in relief as he gave up 5 runs in the 9th, although only two of the runs were earned due to a throwing error by Edge.
Rookie Arizona – The Arizona Dodgers were involved in the organization's second shortened game, but this one benefited the good guys as the Dodgers defeated the D-backs 5 to 3. Jesus Valdez and Chris O'Brien both homered to lead the offense, while Justin Boudreaux collected his 2nd career RBI with a double. Starter Kazuya Takano allowed 3 runs in 4 innings but he also struck out 6. Reliever Jason West did marvelous work in relief as he struck out 5 in 3 innings while allowing just 1 baserunner.
DSL – Off day
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)