Minor League Player of the Day – J.T. Wise (AA) - 2 for 4, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 Run, 5 RBI's. A trio of offensive players had similar games on Wednesday, but the 5 RBI's by Wise are what won him this award over Jerry Sands and Blake Smith. After starting the season with a bang Wise has been very quiet over the last few months, but during August he has begun to heat up again. His overall season stats still aren't all that impressive, however, especially for a 26 year old who has played mostly 1st base this season.
AAA – The 1st place Isotopes continued their push for the playoffs on Wednesday as they defeated the Sky Sox (Rockies) 11 to 5. A trio of Albuquerque hitters had big 3-hit games, including Jerry Sands who hit yet another homer and pulled within two of the Pacific Coast League RBI lead (94) by driving in two. Jerry also increased his average to .299, and for the month of August he has an OPS of 1.417. Ivan De Jesus collected 4 runs batted in with 3 singles and a sac fly, while Matt Angle was a perfect 3 for 3 with a triple and a RBI. Fernando Nieve allowed 10 hits in 5.1 frames, but he didn't walk a batter and gave up just 3 runs to record the win. Three relievers finished off the victory, including Scott Rice who pitched 1.2 innings of scoreless ball.
AA – The Lookouts used a 15-hit attack and strong relief pitching to outshine the Suns (Marlins) on Wednesday 9 to 6. Blake Smith led the way in terms of hits with 3 base knocks, including a 2-run homer for his 12th bomb of the year. J.T. Wise had the bigger game, however, as he not only hit a 2-run jack of his own, but also doubled and had a sac fly to drive in 5 runs. Rafael Ynoa, Jake Lemmerman, and Brahiam Maldonado all connected on two-baggers as well. Starter Aaron Miller had a pretty lousy outing as he allowed 7 hits and 6 runs (5 earned) over 5.1 frames, but he still picked up the win thanks to the fact that he was handed a big early lead. A trio of Chattanooga relievers were outstanding as they stopped Jacksonville's rally, starting with Red Patterson who threw 1.1 scoreless innings. Steven Rodriguez and Steve Ames then finished off the contest with a pair of no-hit frames, striking out 4 in the process
HiA – Joc Pederson didn't homer on Wednesday, but he still played hero as his walk-off single in the 9th led the Quakes to a 7 - 6 win over the Stockton (A's). For Joc it was his second hit and second RBI of the night as he increased his average to .311. Yasiel Puig went 2 for 4 with a stolen bases in his second California League game, while Pedro Baez homered for the second day in a row. Chris O'Brien also took one deep, and Casio Grider's double in the final inning is what set up Pederson's heroics. On the mound Jarret Martin made his first appearance since June 22nd and was very sharp in his 3 innings of work, giving up just 1 hit and striking out 2. The same can't be said for Brandon Martinez, however, as he continued to struggle and gave up 9 hits and 6 runs over the next 3.2 frames. Luckily Eammon Portice able to stop the bleeding as he threw the final 2.1 innings to record the win.
LoA – The Loons were 2-hit on Wednesday as they were run over by the Hot Rods (Rays) 4 to 1. Darnell Sweeney and Pratt Maynard had the team's only two singles, with Maynard also collecting the only RBI on a groundout. Starting pitcher Greg Wilborn was actually pretty good in the loss as he gave up just 3 hits and 1 run over 6 innings, but as mentioned his offense just couldn't get it done and his bullpen was a little shaky. James Campbell allowed a run in the 7th, however, then Daniel Coulombe permitted 2 runs to score in the 8th which put the game out of reach.
Rookie Ogden – The Raptors combined on a 5-hitter on Wednesday as they blanked the Osprey (Dbacks) 5 to 0. Jharel Cotton, making the first start of his professional career, fired 5 shutout innings while allowing just 4 hits and striking out 6. Gregg Downing followed with 3 scoreless frames and 5 K's, then Owen Jones got the final 3 outs without a problem. As a team the Raptors only had 2 extra bases, with Bladimir Franco recording one of them (a triple) as he collected the club's only 2 RBI's. Jesus Valdez's double was the other extra base hit, while Justin Boudreaux had the only other notable game with a pair of singles.
Rookie Arizona – Off day
DSL – The Dominican Dodgers matched the Astros with 10 hits, but they scored half as many runs and made 6 times the numbers of errors as they lost 6 to 3. Josmar Cordero connected on his first homer since June and Luis Alcantara went 3 for 4, but the rest of the hits were singles that were spread among several players. Starter Wander Beras took the loss despite allowing just 1 earned run over 4 frames as two other unearned runs also scored against him. Luis Jimenez threw 3 innings of 1-hit relief but Jose Moreno allowed the final 2 runs to score in the 8th.
Coming up – All 7 teams are playing on Thursday, with the highlight being Allen Webster pitching for the Lookouts. Stephen Fife will throw for the Isotopes, Jon Michael Redding will start for the Quakes, Ross Stripling will take the mound for the Raptors, and finally Duke von Schamann will get the call for the Loons.
Minor League Transactions – LoA: Craig Stem was promoted to the Loons from Ogden to take over the open bullpen spot. Arizona: Riley Welch, son of Bob Welch, was signed as a non drafted free agent and was assigned to the Arizona Dodgers.
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)