Oklahoma City, Rancho Cucamonga, and Great Lakes all won one run games on Saturday, while Tulsa was shutout for the second day in a row.
Player of the day
Austin Barnes increased his batting average to .298 for the season after a three-hit performance, scoring two runs along the way. He has yet to homer in 2016, but he has just as many walks as he does strikeouts (19), fueling his .416 on-base percentage.
Triple-A Oklahoma City
Zach Lee pitched a career-high eight innings and player of the day Barnes did a little of everything as the Dodgers defeated the Bees (Angels) 5-4. Despite the win Lee wasn't all that impressive as he did allow eight hits, three walks, and four runs, however he was extremely efficient as he only made 99 pitches over his eight frames. Luis Avilan was perfect in the ninth to record his second save of the season.
At the dish Barnes was 3-for-5 with a double and two runs scored and also stole his 10th base of the season which is by far the most in the league among catchers. Charlie Culberson was 1-for-4 with a double in his OKC debut, while Corey Brown also had a two-bagger and knocked in a pair of runs.
Double-A Tulsa
The Drillers couldn't get anything going at the plate for the second day in a row as they were shutout by the Naturals (Royals) 4-0. Alex Verdugo doubled to keep his recent hot streak going, but that was the only extra-base hit for Tulsa. Nobody else did much of anything, including Alex Guerrero who is now 0-for-16 since joining the the Drillers.
On the mound starter Jeremy Kehrt lasted six innings and allowed all four runs on 10 hits. Caleb Dirks and Rob Rogers both tossed a scoreless inning of relief.
Class-A Rancho Cucamonga
The Quakes ended their brief two-game losing streak with a 4-3 victory over the Giants. Eric Mejia got the scoring started with a two-run double in the second inning, then Kyle Garlick's 11th homer of the season tied the game at three in the third. The game winning run scored in the seventh after a fielding error gave all the runners an extra base on a Johan Mieses single.
Rancho starter Tommy Bergjans struck out eight over five solid frames, allowing just two earned runs. Philip Pfeifer got the win in relief with two shutout innings, punching out three in the process. Scott Griggs picked up his seventh save and lowered his ERA to 0.73 with a perfect ninth.
Class-A Great Lakes
The Loons took the lead in the fifth with a grand slam, then held on four a 5-4 win over the Lugnuts (Blue Jays). Edwin Rios got the scoring started with a solo homer, but it was Ariel Sandoval who dealt the big blow with the aforementioned grand slam, his fourth long ball of the season. Matt Jones also had a solid game as he reached base three times via a hit and two walks.
Great Lakes starter Michael Boyle picked up the win after allowing four hits and two runs over five frames. Wes Helsabeck gave up a run in the eighth to make the game close then in the ninth Brian Bass allowed the tying run to reach third base before closing the door for his third save of the season.
Transactions
Triple-A: Charlie Culberson officially joined OKC while Logan Bawcom was sent to Tulsa; Double-A: Yadier Drake was placed on the DL to make room for Bawcom; Hi-Class A: Joshua Sborz was placed on the DL while Tommy Bergjans was activated from the disabled list; Low-Class A: Michael Boyle was activated from the DL while Dennis Santana placed on the disabled list.
Saturday Scores
Oklahoma City 5, Salt Lake City 4
Rancho Cucamonga 4, San Jose 3
Sunday Schedule
11:05 a.m. - Lansing (Taylor Saucedo) at Great Lakes (Victor Gonzalez)
11:05 a.m. - Salt Lake City (David Huff) at Oklahoma City (Carlos Frias)
12:05 p.m. - Tulsa (Frankie Montas) at NW Arkansas (Alec Mills)
2:05 p.m. - San Jose (Jason Forjet) at Rancho Cucamonga (Yaisel Sierra)