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Another forgettable day for the Dodgers minor league affiliates as all three teams lost on Sunday. Overall, the Isotopes, Lookouts, Quakes, and Loons have a combined record of 3 and 12.
Minor League Player of the Day – Matt Magill - 5 IP, 0 Hits, 2 Walks, 6 K's. Magill has been the forgotten pitcher on a stacked Lookouts pitching staff, but he opened some eyes with 5 innings of no-hit ball on Sunday. At first it might seem odd that Magill was removed while throwing a no-hitter, but I'm guessing that Magill and Redding were both scheduled to pitch half the game so they wanted Jon Michael to get his work in. Hopefully Matt's performance on Sunday is an indicator of things to come for the Simi Valley native.
AAA – The Isotopes scored a season high 11 runs on Sunday, but it wasn't enough as Albuquerque lost to the Storm Chasers (Royals) 17 to 11. The Topes will be happy to leave Omaha as they only tasted victory once in their season opening 4 game series. The Storm Chasers did most of their damage early as they tagged Albuquerque starter Fernando Nieve for 9 runs over the first two innings, then tormented reliever Brent Leach for 7 more runs over the next two frames. By that time the game was pretty much decided, but the Isotope offense didn't give up as several of Albuquerque hitters had big days. 6 different players had multi-hit games for the Topes, including Tim Federowicz who collected 4 singles. The middle of the lineup provided most of the fire power as 3rd baseman Jeff Baisley smacked two bombs, while Scott Van Slyke continued his hot start by homering for the third time in four games and finishing a triple shy of the cycle. Jerry Sands also finally got on the board as he connected on his first two hits of the season, including a solo homer. The last notable performance belonged to leadoff man Elian Herrera as he accomplished the rare feat of hitting two triples in the game.
AA – The Lookouts lost to the Smokies (Cubs) 7 to 4 on Sunday, but the final score only tells half the story. Both teams were actually held hitless until the bottom of the 5th, meaning that Lookouts starter Matt Magill actually had a very good game. Magill left the game after 5 frames without allowing a hit, and he only walked 2 while striking out 6. Jon Michael Redding picked up in relief, and that's when things got out of control for Chattanooga as he quickly allowed 5 runs on 5 hits. Geison Aguasviva also got tagged for a pair of runs before Javier Solano came in and shutout the opposition for the final two frames. The Lookout offense was relatively quiet as only two players had notable performances. Travis Denker drove in the first run with a pinch hit single, then stayed in the game and doubled in another run later on. J.T. Wise homered for the club's first long ball of the year.
HiA – The city of Rancho Cucamonga was excited to have a big league pitcher starting for the team on Easter Sunday, but unfortunately the fans didn't their money's worth as Ted Lilly was knocked around in the Quakes 7 - 1 loss to the 66ers. The good news is that Lilly lasted 6 innings and didn't show any lingering effects from his stiff neck, although he might now have some whip lash after watching two of his pitches leave the yard. Overall Lilly allowed 7 runs (6 earned) on 8 hits while striking out just 2. The original scheduled starter Andres Santiago tossed the final 3 frames and did not allow a run. The Quakes offense didn't provide much assistance to their major league pitcher as Rancho managed just 6 hits and 1 run. Leon Landry had the most notable performance with a homer and a single, while catcher Chris O'Brien also had a multi-hit game with a pair of singes.
LoA – Off day
Coming up – We'll be back to a full slate of games tomorrow, and the highlight should be Nathan Eovaldi's start for the Lookouts which would keep him on track to step in for the Dodgers on April 14th if Lilly can't go. The Loons will celebrate their home opener and will send Gustavo Gomez to the mound, while John Ely and Angel Sanchez will start for the Isotopes and Quakes, respectively.
Minor League Transactions - AAA: Wil Ledezma placed on bereavement leave list; Derrick Loop added to Isotopes roster. The 28 year old Loop was signed this off-season as a minor league free agent after spending the last two years with Philadelphia, has a career minor league ERA of 2.63, and apparently has the best pickoff move in baseball.
Albuquerque Isotopes Box Score (AAA)
Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score (AA)