Here's a quick update of the Dodger minor league standings as we finish off the week. The Albuquerque Isotopes are currently in 2nd place, but are 9 games behind the division leading Round Rock. The PCL does not have any wildcard spots when it comes to the playoffs, so the Isotopes have a lot of ground to make up over the final month of the season. The Chattanooga Lookouts missed out on a playoff spot in the first half, but now lead their division by 2.5 games. The Rancho Cucamonga Quakes, on the other hand, already have a playoff spot securely in hand as they won their division in the 1st half of this season. They currently sit in 2nd place, 3 games back of the Storm. The Great Lakes Loons just barely missed out on a playoff spot in the 1st half of their season, and currently are in 3rd place just 4 games behind the division leader. The Ogden Raptors are very lucky that they backed into a 1st half playoff spot because they are just 1 - 7 in the 2nd half so far and are in dead last. The Arizona Dodgers lead their division by one game, and finally the Dominican Dodgers are in 4th place (out of 9 teams) and are 8.0 games back.
Minor League Player of the Day - Jackson Mateo - 5 IP, 10 K's, 2 Hits, 1 BB, 0 Runs. Mateo has been solid all season, but Sunday seemed to be his breakout game as he struck out 10 in just 5 innings. The 6'0" 18 year old doesn't have a big frame, but his ERA is just 1.76 through 61.1 innings and opposing batters are hitting just .199 against him.
AAA – After a series of stellar starts, Isotope starter Dana Eveland finally got lit up as Albuquerque lost to the Bees (Angels) 11 to 8. Eveland had given up 4 runs or less in each of his previous 9 starts, but got crushed on Sunday for 10 run on 10 hits. David Pfeiffer allowed a run in relief, but Jon Link tossed another scoreless frame for his 6th straight shutout outing. At the plate Tim Federwicz hit his second homer in as many days, a 3-run shot that provided a good part of the Albuquerque scoring. Jamie Hoffmann's triple was the team's only other extra base hit, and Russ Mitchell had the only multi-hit game with two base knocks
AA – The Lookouts tied the game in the top of the 9th, but Jacksonville fought back for a run of their own in the bottom of the inning and defeated Chattanooga 5 to 4. Michael Antonini lasted just 4 innings and gave up 4 runs, then Josh Wall and Steven Ames got through the next few frames unscathed. Scott Rice was the one that gave up the game winning run, although the run was unearned as it scored on an Ivan Ochoa fielding error. Alfredo Silverio led the offense with a double and his 14th bomb of the year, while Matt Wallach also homered and drove in the game tying run with a sacrifice fly in the 9th.
HiA – The Quakes were shutout by the Ports (A's) 5 to 0 as Rancho managed only 5 singles. Starter Matt Magill lasted just 2 innings and gave up 3 runs on 5 hits and 3 runs. Ryan Acosta followed in relief and allowed 2 runs over 4.1 innings, but by that point it was too late as the Quake offense was very quiet. Rafael Ynoa went 3 for 4, but besides that the only hits were singles by Jake Lemmerman and Angelo Songco.
LoA – The Loons lost their 3rd straight game on Sunday, 6 - 3 to the West Michigan Whitecaps (Tigers). Starter Garrett Gould breezed through the 1st inning, but was pulled after that in a scheduled shorted outing. John Housey tossed the next 3.1 frames and gave up 3 runs, then Juan Rodriguez continued his success in the Midwest League with 1.2 hitless innings. Andrew Pevsner gave up the final 3 runs of the game, which put the game out of reach for good. At the plate the Loons outhit the Whitecaps 11 to 8, and Michael Pericht went 2 for 4 with a homer. Jonathan Garcia's double was the team's only other extra base hit, while Bobby Coyle and Charlie Mirabal had 2 hits each.
Rookie Ogden – The Raptors lost to the Owlz (Angles) 3 to 2 in 11 innings despite a 4 hit game from Noel Cuevas. Cuevas not only collected 4 base knocks, but connected on his 7th jack of the year for the team's only extra base hit of the day. Joc Pederson and Justin Bourdreaux both had 2 hits with a couple of walks each. Starter Derek Cone threw very well as he gave up just 1 run on 4 hits through 5 innings, then Yimi Garcia tossed 4 innings of 2-hit ball. Matt Shelton took the loss, but even he didn't throw too badly as he gave up just 2 hits in 1.2 frames.
Rookie Arizona – Playing less than 10 miles away from their parent club, the Arizona Dodgers defeated the Brewers 9 to 6. Devin Shines went 3 for 5 with 3 doubles, while Joe Winker tripled, doubled, and coaxed two walks. Bladimir Franco also contributed with a single and his 2nd homer of the season. Starter Luis Mesa got touched up for 6 runs on 7 hits, but still picked up the win. A trio of relievers finished off the game by tossing 4 shutout innings.
DSL – The Dominican Dodgers shutout the Yankees 6 to 0 behind an outstanding performance from starter Jackson Mateo. Mateo struck out 10 in 5 scoreless innings and allowed just 2 hits, then his bullpen finished of the shutout with 4 more solid frames. Jose Javier, Webster Rivas, and Leo Rodriguez had 2 hits each, with Javier collecting 2 of the team's 4 doubles.
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)
Dominican Dodgers Box Score (DSL)