Minor League Player of the Day – Blake Johnson - 2 IP, 0 Hits, 0 Runs, 2 K's, 1 for 1, game winning hit. Blake Johnson was one of the rare relief pitchers to win a game both with his arm and his bat as he recorded the victory on Friday with 2 innings of hitless ball, and also drove in the game winning run at the plate. The Dodgers former 2nd round pick has had an up and down season so far, but hopefully this will get him back on the right track.
AAA – The Isotopes connected on 3 homers on Friday, but that wasn't enough as Albuquerque lost to the RedHawks (Astros) 10 to 4. After some recent success, starter Stephen Fife slipped back into his old ways and had another rough outing as he allowed 7 runs on 8 hits over 4.2 frames. A couple of relievers got through the middle frames with limited damage, but Josh Wall gave up a 2-run homer in the 9th to cap the opposition scoring. At the plate Luis Cruz continued his recent hot streak with 3 more hits, including his 4th homer of the season. Trent Oeltjen and Jeff Baisley had the other two bombs and both also had multi-hit games.
AA – Reliever Blake Johnson was not only the winning pitcher in this 14 inning game, but he also had the game winning walk-off hit in the Lookouts 5 - 4 victory over the Suns (Marlins). Johnson came in from the bullpen in the 13th inning and went on the throw 2 hitless inning, then in the bottom of the 14th he came up with the bases loaded. Chattanooga didn't have any other options at this point in the game so they led Blake hit, and he rewarded his team with a walk-off single into center field. Going back to the beginning of this game, Chris Withrow was the starting pitcher and had an up and down game, allowing just 4 hits over 5 frames while striking out 8 but also walking 5. Once he left game his relievers were outstanding, and when you include Johnson's effort the bullpen finished the game with 9 innings of shutout ball and just 3 hits allowed. 16 different Lookout players got at least one official at bat in this game, including Ethan Martin and Aaron Miller who were used as pinch hitters. Speaking of hitting pitchers Withrow went 2 for 2, while Pedro Baez and Blake Smith both went 2 for 6 with a homer. Jake Lemmerman had 2 hits including a double, while Rafael Ynoa had the only triple of the evening.
HiA – Not much to write about in this game as the Quakes were weathered by the Storm (Padres) 13 to 2. Starter Greg Wilborn got rocked for 5 runs in just 2.1 innings, and his bullpen didn't have success either as Ryan Acosta and Jordan Roberts both allowed 4 runs of their own. Steve Smith was the only pitcher who escaped the game unscathed as he hurled a pair of perfect innings. On offense Jonathan Garcia increased his batting average to .271 with a single and a double, and he also stole his first base of the season. Chris O'Brien and C.J. Retherford both had doubles of their own for the only other extra base hits of the game.
LoA – Pedro Guerrero played hero on Superhero Night in Midland on Friday as the Loons defeated the Hot Rods (Rays) 9 to 6. Guerrero tripled in the 2nd inning then crushed a grand slam in the 3rd frame to give him homers in back to back days. Joe Winker chipped in with a pair of doubles to give him a lead leading 18 two-baggers for the season, and James Baldwin went 1 for 3 with a walk and stole 3 bases in this game. On the mound Ryan O'Sullivan recorded the win despite giving up 5 runs (4 earned) over 6 frames while averaging a strikeout per inning. Matt Shelton and Michael Thomas followed with 2 innings of 1-hit ball, then Yimi Garcia got back on track with his 7th save of the season.
Coming up – Nathan Eovaldi throws for the Lookouts on Saturday, while Garrett Gould and John Ely will start for the Quakes and Isotopes, respectively. The Loons starter is TBD, but it looks like it will be Gustavo Gomez.
Minor League Transactions – AA: Matt Wallach was added back to the Lookout roster
Albuquerque Isotopes Box Score (AAA)
Chattanooga Lookouts Box Score (AA)
Rancho Cucamonga Quakes Box Score (HiA)