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Minor League Player of the Day – Trent Oeltjen (AAA) - 3 for 4, 2 HR's, 3 RBI's, 4 Runs. Oeltjen has won this award a few times this year, and on Saturday he had the best game during an Albuquerque offensive explosion to capture this honor again.
AAA – The Albuquerque bats were on fire on Saturday as the Isotopes crushed the Cubs 16 to 3. Six of the eight position players in the lineup had at least 2 hits, and the other two players crushed homers. Trent Oeltjen won the player of the game award above and had the best day at the plate as he went 3 for 4 with a pair of bombs, 3 RBI's, and 4 runs scored. Josh Fields had a double and a homer to continue his month long hot streak, while Jerry Sands and Tim Federowicz had the other two bombs for the Topes. Matt Angle was a perfect 4 for 4 at the plate, while Ivan De Jesus went 3 for 5 with a triple and a RBI. Starter Blake Johnson won his first game of the year by allowing 3 runs over 5 frames, while a trio of bullpen arms provided 4 innings of scoreless relief.
AA – The Lookouts game was suspended after 7 innings with the game tied at 8 and will be continued tomorrow, but there were a few big stories in this game that deserve mentioning. First, starter Zach Lee had his second rough outing in a row as he allowed 7 hits, 4 walks, and 7 runs (5 earned) while throwing just 3.2 innings. The other big story is that Chattanooga was actually down 7 to 0 early in this game after Lee got hit around, yet the offense was able to come all the way back and tie the game. The big hits were homers by Kyle Russell and Blake Smith.
HiA – Angel Sanchez lost his 5th straight decision as the Quakes fell to the JetHawks (Astros) 4 to 2. Sanchez didn't get hit around quite as hard this time around as he allowed 8 hits and 4 runs over 6.1 frames. Ryan O'Sullivan threw 1.2 innings in relief and did not give up a hit, lowering his California League ERA to 3.09. The Rancho bats were pretty silent in this game outside of a Pedro Baez solo homer, as the only other highlights were a pair of singles by Scott Wingo and Casio Grider.
LoA – The Loons clamped down on the Snappers (Twins) on Saturday as Great Lakes defeated Beloit 7 to 2. After a couple of rough outings over the past few weeks, starter Gustavo Gomez threw a solid game as he allowed just 4 hits in 5 innings and struck out a season high 9 batters. Joel Lima followed with 3 shutout frames, giving up just 1 hit and punching out 4, then Juan Rodriguez pitched a hitless 9th which included a trademark walk. Scott Schebler lead the offense with a game high 3 hits, and he also stole home. Joseph Winker and O'Koyea Dickson both drove home a run with a double, while Darnell Sweeney plated a pair with a single and a sac fly.
Rookie Ogden – The Raptors scored a run in the top of the 9th to break a 4 - 4 tie, but the Voyagers (White Sox) stormed back in the bottom of the inning and won 6 - 5. Corey Seager was the one that drove in the tie breaking run in the top of the 9th to increase his average to .300, while Jeremy Rathjen, Devin Shines, and Jesus Valdez all collected a pair of singles on a night when none of Ogden's hits went for extra bases. Craig Stem made his first start of the season for Ogden but didn't fare too well as he allowed 3 hits, 3 walks, and 3 runs in just 3 innings. Relievers Gregg Downing and Michael Drowne kept the opposition in check over the next 5 frames, but Owen Jones blew the lead in the 9th and took the loss.
Rookie Arizona – Off day
DSL – The Dominican Dodgers played a 5-inning rain shortened game on Saturday, but they aren't complaining as they blanked the Cardinals 4 to 0. Starter Jose Agusto Diaz technically threw a complete game shutout as he allowed just 2 hits over 5 scoreless frames, striking out 4 and lowering his ERA to 1.06. Yensys Capellan had the big game at the plate as he went 2 for 2 with a pair of doubles and two RBI's, while catcher Jonathan Linares had the other multi-hit game with a pair of singles.
Coming up – Ethan Martin will look to continue his strong season for the Lookouts on Sunday, and Stephen Fife returns to the Isotopes to make the start. Jon Michael Redding will throw for the Quakes, while Arismendy Ozoria and Carlos Frias will take the mound for the Loons and Raptors, respectively.
Minor League Transactions – AAA: Brian Cavazos-Galvez was placed on the DL with a strained left angle, while Joe Becker was activated. HiA: Steve Smith and Alexis Aguilar were put on the disabled list, which led to the activation of Charlie Mirabal and the assigning of Bret Montgomery to the Quakes.
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)