The Providence Journal
Robert Lee - PawSox 8, Clippers 6: Van Every's homer wins it in 10th
Jeff Bailey launched his 21st and 22nd home run of the season, Keith Ginter went 2-for-3 with two doubles and two RBI, and George Kottaras hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the sixth inning to power a 13-hit attack by the International League-leading PawSox (47-31), who pulled out an 8-6, 10-inning come-from-behind victory over Columbus (41-34).
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Bailey (3-for-4, 2 HR, 2 runs scored) has hit safely in seven of his last eight games, going 12-for-32 (.375) with two doubles, four home runs and six RBI. Right fielder Bryan Pritz has a six-game hitting streak, going 10-for-21 (.476) with three doubles and two RBI. Ginter, who went 2-for-3 yesterday with two doubles, 2 RBI, a run scored and was hit by a pitch twice, has hit safely in 9 of his last 11 games, and Kottaras has at least one hit in 7 of his last 9 games. Pawtucket is 5-0 in extra-inning games.
Robert Lee - Edgar Martinez hits groove as starter in Pawtucket
PawSox pitcher Edgar Martinez, however, made the difficult leap from catcher to pitcher and his career has blossomed since making the switch in 2004.
Martinez was signed as an undrafted free-agent catcher by the Red Sox in 1998. He started his professional career in 1999 for the Gulf Coast Red Sox and never rose above the Single-A level until his conversion from catcher to pitcher.
After mixing his 97-mph fastball with his changeup and slider to post a 2.10 ERA with seven saves and 46 strikeouts in 34.1 innings for Class-A Wilmington in 2005, he was promoted to Double-A Portland later that year, where he finished with a 1.50 ERA, one save, and 13 strikeouts in 18 innings.
In 2006, Martinez posted a 5-3 record with a 2.61 ERA for Portland in 69.1 innings before being promoted to Pawtucket last year.
He struggled against the more advanced hitting in Triple-A last season (2-6, 5.16 ERA), but he is finding his groove this season, even though he as been called into action at the last minute before several of his outings this year.
He entered yesterday’s game against Columbus with a 2-1 record and a 4.34 ERA while holding opponents to a .251 batting average. More importantly, he had a 1.93 ERA (3 ER, 14 IP) in his previous three starts.
Full Version: Sox Minor League News Links, Mon. June 23, 2008
Brendan McGair - Van Every powers PawSox to win
Van Every’s round tripper (his 17th) provided redemption on a day that saw the center fielder strike out three times and bounce into a double play. His parents, Jean and Paula, came up from Mississippi and were in stands to witness their son cap off what was a game that saw plenty of contributions from the hometowners.
“The guys don’t quit,” said PawSox manager Ron Johnson after Pawtucket took three of the four against Columbus and remain with the best record (47-31) in the International League.
Edgar Martinez was only guilty of one mistake in his 5 2/3 innings. The PawSox starter allowed a two-run home run to former Mets prospect Alex Escobar in the top of the sixth, the only runs Martinez permitted.
Johnson allowed Martinez (seven strikeouts, two walks) to remain in the game and get two more outs before taking him out. At that point he had thrown 82 pitches, which more than exceeded the expectations coming in.
“He hasn’t been in the starter’s role long. Last time out he threw 31 pitches which we wanted to do after he threw 66 and 88 (the prior two starts),” said Johnson.
Jeff Bailey led off the first with a solo home run and would later add to his team lead with No. 22 in the seventh. Total up the souvenirs Bailey, Van Every and Chris Carter (16 home runs) have amassed to date and it comes out to 55, which exceeds five teams in the IL.
Dan Goldberg - JetHawks trio thrilled to be all-stars
The third baseman is second in the California League in average (.352), hits (94), and on-base percentage (.421). Quite impressive for a player who skipped Low-A Greenville, and who never played in a full-season league.
Jimenez's prowess in the field, which had been criticized, has also improved to all-star quality.
"There have been a few reports that Jimenez is lackadaisical in the field," soxprospects.com wrote before the season, "focusing too much on his hitting."
Jimenez addressed those concerns. He spent time after batting practice in April, taking extra grounders at third. He worked with Epperson, hitting coach Carlos Febles and minor league field coordinator Bruce Crabbe on improving his balance and positioning - bending from the hips as opposed to the knees. The result has been improved range — particularly to his right - and smoother glove work.
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Still is another all-star whose defense has greatly improved thanks to extra time with Epperson. The fourth-round pick was converted to catcher and has worked on throwing runners out with his manager - a former catcher. Still is still not where he needs to be, but he has made significant improvement since April. As a receiver, there are few better in the league. He has just one passed ball.
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Lentz had to rearrange his plans for the break after hearing the news last Tuesday, and said he was surprised by the selection.
"I didn't see it coming."
Perhaps he should have. He leads the league in strikeouts per nine innings, and the hard-throwing right-hander is in the midst of the best month of his professional career. In June, he is 2-0 with a 0.00 ERA, and opponents are 2-for-37 (.054) against him.
Kevin Thomas - Dogs' pitcher left hanging by untimely suspended game; A rainy day in Manchester disrupts Kyle Jackson's progress in a move from the bullpen to the rotation.
The game was suspended in the bottom of the fourth inning with two outs and a runner on second base and New Hampshire leading, 4-1. The game will be completed when the Sea Dogs return for a four-game series July 28-31.
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The Sea Dogs' one run came in the third on a walk, a hit batter, a single by Jeff Corsaletti and an RBI groundout by Sandy Madera.
Portland (40-32) moved up half a game to three games behind first-place Trenton (44-30) in the Eastern League Northern Division, tied in second place with Binghamton (41-33).
Kevin Thomas - Does the pen need reinforcements?
Pawtucket also got two homers from Jeff Bailey (now at 22) and one from George Kottaras (his 12th).
Edgar Martinez (5 2/3 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 BB, 7K) started for Pawtucket. Like Portland's Kyle Jackson, Martinez is a former 40-man roster guy who is being moved from the bullpen to the rotation to re-start his career.
Jackson went 3 2/3 innings for Portland Sunday (3 H, 4 R, 3 BB, 4 K) when the game was stopped by rain).
Down in the rookie Gulf Coast League, 17-year-old third baseman Michael Almanzar is hitting .400 (6-for-15) in three games. Yes, 3 games is much too small a sampling, but Almanzar's potential is worth watching. If he gets on a prolonged hot streak, it will be interesting to see him in Lowell.
Willie T. Smith III - Four-run eighth seals Drive's victory
Third baseman Manny Arambarris supplied the key hit -- a grand slam over the Green Monster in left field in the fourth inning.
The Drive scored five runs in the inning. Although Hickory tried to play catch-up after that, Greenville never trailed again.
Despite some anxious moments in the eighth, Greenville earned the victory the same way it has so many times recently: with solid relief pitching.
"(Reliever Kyle) Foster did a nice job," said Greenville manager Kevin Boles. "(Ryne) Miller lost his command for a little bit, but he made some adjustments and was able to finish up strong.
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The Drive also utilized the base paths well, stealing four bases. A double steal by Negron and Che-Hsuan Lin resulted in one of the team's runs in the eighth.
The win allowed starting pitcher Jose Alvarez (5-8) to claim his first home victory of the season, while Hickory starter Rafael De Los Santos (2-6) was the loser. Miller earned his second save.
Bart Wright - Greenville Drive pitching coach Kipper never stops teaching
For any kid who ever watched a baseball game and thought, “I can do that,” it isn’t as easy as it sounds.
“The No. 1 thing, the biggest thing, the constant thing, here or anywhere, is pitching to contact,” Bob Kipper said. “If a guy has some ability and can do that, he has a real chance.”
Pitch to contact sounds counterintuitive, doesn’t it? Would you tell a running back to run toward the linebacker, or ask your shooting guard to wait until he’s covered before he thinks about taking a shot?
“I don’t know about that,” said Kipper, the Greenville Drive pitching coach, prior to Sunday afternoon’s game against Hickory. “It makes all the sense in the world to me, if you just think about it.”
This is why Kipper is such a well-respected teacher in the Boston Red Sox organization. The more he talks, the more sense he makes.
Marc Thaler - Rain suspends Fisher Cats
Portland (40-32) pulled within 2-1 in a threatening third. But Romero didn't surrender the big inning. Sandy Madera plated Ryan Khoury with a one-out, bases-loaded groundout for the frame's lone run.
After recording the fourth inning's first two outs, Romero worked around the first delay, a 16-minute stint, and a bases-loaded jam to preserve the slim lead. Moments before the game's second delay, Hatch delivered a two-run double for a 4-1 lead. The hit, just the third off Jackson, scored Jacob Butler and Jeroloman.
Marc Thaler - Fisher Cats Notes: Litchfield's Jackson finds positives
My fastball was working. I kept it down," Jackson said after yesterday's rubber match against the Fisher Cats was suspended by rain in the fourth inning. "My curveball, the ones I threw, were really good. I got a couple outs with it. Cutter, slider was really good."
In his latest hardball homecoming, Jackson tossed 3 2/3 innings. The Sea Dogs trailed, 4-1, when the contest was suspended after a 90-minute rain delay. His unofficial pitching line included three hits, four runs (four earned), three walks and four strikeouts.
While that line was hardly overwhelming, the slender 6-foot 3-inch righty said he was largely pleased with his concentration given the conditions. The wet weather presented yet another challenge for Jackson, attempting to turn the career corner against the Fisher Cats.
The Lowell Sun
Chaz Scoggins - Never-say-die attitude carries Spinners
The Spinners trailed 2-1 in the bottom of the ninth yesterday when Australian Mitch Dening led off with a single, his third hit of the game. Ronald Bermudez ripped a double into the left-field corner, and Lowell had the tying and winning runs in scoring position.
Carlos Fernandez-Oliva blooped a single by center that scored Dening with the tying run, but Bermudez had to hold up at third.
Sidearming David Slovak relieved Austin Garrett and struck out Sumoza, but Middlebrooks lofted a 1-and-2 pitch just far enough into center to bring home Bermudez with the winning run.
"With those pitches, you have to stay on the ball and not try to pull it," said Spinners manager Gary DiSarcina. "Will did exactly that."
Chaz Scoggins - Never-say-die attitude carries Spinners
The Spinners trailed 2-1 in the bottom of the ninth yesterday when Australian Mitch Dening led off with a single, his third hit of the game. Ronald Bermudez ripped a double into the left-field corner, and Lowell had the tying and winning runs in scoring position.
Carlos Fernandez-Oliva blooped a single by center that scored Dening with the tying run, but Bermudez had to hold up at third.
Sidearming David Slovak relieved Austin Garrett and struck out Sumoza, but Middlebrooks lofted a 1-and-2 pitch just far enough into center to bring home Bermudez with the winning run.
"With those pitches, you have to stay on the ball and not try to pull it," said Spinners manager Gary DiSarcina. "Will did exactly that."
Middlebrooks gives Lowell walkoff win
LOWELL — Will Middlebrooks blasted a fly ball to center field that was deep enough to score Ronald Bermudez and give the Lowell Spinners a 3-2 walk-off victory over the Vermont Lake Monsters.
Lowell took a 1-0 lead in the third when Bermudez plated Ryan Dent with a sacrifice fly. But Vermont scored twice in the eighth to take a 2-1 advantage.
Mitch Dening opened Lowell's half of the ninth with a single, advanced to third on the double by Bermudez and scored on a single by Carlos Fernandez-Oliva. Middlebrooks, the top Red Sox prospect in Lowell, then delivered the victory for the Spinners.
Jon Still Selected to Compete in Home Run Derby
(LANCASTER, CA) - The Lancaster JetHawks, Class A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox, have had their All-Star catcher, Jon Still, selected to compete in the California League-Carolina League Home Run Derby. This popular annual event is part of the All-Star festivities that take place bringing the two leagues together. This year's home run derby will take place Tuesday afternoon at 12:30 Pacific Coast Time. The main event, the California League-Carolina League All-Star Game, will begin at 4:30 Pacific Coast Time.
International League Player Of The Week
JONATHAN VAN EVERY, Pawtucket Red Sox IL BATTER OF THE WEEK Pawtucket's Jonathan Van Every led the International League with four home runs and 8 RBI in six games this week. He also posted the circuit's second-best slugging percentage (.864). Van Every hit .318 along the way, sparking the PawSox to five wins in six games as the club surged past Scranton/Wilkes-Barre into 1st place in the IL North with a League-best 47-31 record. Van Every homered in his first two games of the week on Monday and Tuesday, then followed it up with two more Saturday and Sunday. He saved his best for last, as his final hit of the week was a two-run, 10th inning walk-off blast that propelled Pawtucket past Columbus 8-6 yesterday afternoon at McCoy Stadium. Van Every now has 17 home runs on the year, 4th best in the International League. He is also 3rd with 54 runs scored.
28-year-old Jonathan Van Every was signed by Boston as a free agent this past December after spending the first seven years of his professional career in the Cleveland organization. He played parts of the last two seasons with Buffalo, hitting .265 with 13 HR and 39 RBI in 98 games with the Bisons. Van Every is a native of Brandon, MS.
GULF COAST LEAGUE
In Fort Myers, the Red Sox knocked off the Twins 9-2 at the Lee County Complex.
Chia-Chu Chen was 4-for-4 with a double, run scored and RBI for the Red Sox, who collected 14 hits altogether.
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