The Providence Journal
John Wagner - Mud Hens 1, PawSox 0 -- Bowden better, but PawSox stymied on offense
Pawtucket starter Michael Bowden was good, but Toledo starter Eddie Bonine was just a little better. Bowden gave up a solo home run to Timo Perez to lead off the fourth, and that was the game's lone run as Bonine and the Mud Hens limited the PawSox to just one hit, a one-out single by Dusty Brown in the second.
Full Version: Sox Minor League News Links, Sun. July 27, 2008
David McDonough - Sea Dogs make it two straight at Trenton; Portland gets a good start from Dave Gassner, jumps to an early lead and holds off the Thunder.
Zach Daeges led off the Portland second with a single, and Aaron Bates followed with a grounder that skipped between third baseman Walter Ibarra's legs. After Lars Anderson walked, Reddick's triple cleared the bases.
It was Reddick's first extrabase hit in Double-A. He joined the Sea Dogs from Class A Lancaster on July 21.
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With two outs and one on in the third, Bates hit his seventh homer of the season to give the Sea Dogs a 6-1 lead.
Gassner retired the Thunder in order in the third and fourth innings but ran into trouble in the fifth.
Kevin Thomas - Do you want Manny & the Captain back?
The top story in the minors was Michael Bowden's second start for Pawtucket. He went 6 innings (6 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 3 K).
Portland won at Trenton for the second straight night, 6-3 ... Aaron Bates (.291) was 2-for with his 7th home run ... Josh Reddick hit a 3-run triple.
In Lancatser, first baseman Mike Jones (.350) and second baseman Chih-Hsien Chiang (.303) both went 3-for-5.
Greenville outfielder Jered Stanley (.311) was 2-for-4 with 2 home runs.
In Lowell, starter Kyle Weiland (1-1, 1.89) went 5 innings (3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 5K) and Seth Garrison (1.47) got his fourth save (1 2/3, 1 K)
In the Gulf Coast League, 20-year-old catcher Maykol (.333) enjoyed a 3-for-4 day.
Kevin Thomas - Sox should keep them both, for vastly different reasons
Of course, the search for catcher is also necessary in case the Red Sox don't re-sign Varitek.
Boston's best candidate for next season in its minor-league system is former Portland Sea Dogs catcher Dusty Brown, 26, who is strong defensively and is putting together his best offensive season at Triple-A Pawtucket, hitting .278 with 10 home runs.
Current Sea Dogs catcher Mark Wagner, 24, remains a future option. He is quick defensively. After a horrible June, when he hit. 159, he has rebounded to boost his average to .245 with 10 home runs.
Wagner could be the future No. 1 catcher, just as Brandon Moss or Josh Reddick could be the future left fielder.
Lake Monsters Drop Second Straight to Lowell
BURLINGTON, VT - Ricardo Burgos went 2-for-3 with a run and a RBI triple in the fourth inning that gave the Lowell Spinners a lead they would not lose in a 5-3 victory over the Lake Monsters in New York-Penn League action Saturday night at historic Centennial Field.
After a leadoff walk to Jeff Natale in the top of the fourth, Burgos smacked a triple to right center to score Natale for a 2-1 Lowell lead. Luis Sumoza follwed with an RBI single plating Burgos for a two-run Spinners lead.
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Lowell starter Kyle Weiland (1-1) allowed one run on three hits with five strikeouts over five innings for the win, while Seth Garrison struckout one in the final 1 2/3 innings for his fourth save.
JetHawks Rally from Six Run Deficit to Beat Mavericks 10-9
Despite a JetHawks lead in the first inning, the Mavericks beat up on starter Chris Province, pulling in front 9-3 in the top of the fourth. But Lancaster was quick to answer. Five JetHawks hit singles in the bottom of the fourth inning. That combined with a walk and a hit batter to push four runners across the plate and make it a two run game.
RBI singles by Reid Engel and Jason Place tied the game in the sixth inning. After their first 12 hits were singles, the JetHawks finally got an extra base hit in the seventh inning when Daniel Nava's solo home run gave the JetHawks the lead.
After the rocky beginning, Josh Papelbon restored order out of the bullpen. The right-hander pitched four innings for just the second time in his career and allowed just one run to earn his second win. Cody McAllister was impressive in two scoreless innings for his second save. McAllister struck out the final three batters to end the game.
Kevin Gray's On Baseball: The future is this week
Four Boston prospects were promoted to Double-A earlier this month, most notably Lars Anderson, a first baseman with more upside than the price of oil.
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Anderson, only 20, had nothing more to prove at High-A Lancaster, where the 6-foot 4-inch lefty batted .317 with 13 homers and 50 RBI.
Those numbers through 77 games sound impressive, but the ballpark in Lancaster, Calif., is known as a hitters' haven. Pitchers call it a joke. The wind almost constantly blows out, turning pop flies into cheap homers.
Now it's time for Anderson to prove himself in the Eastern League. He'll face the some of the game's top pitching prospects and find that 380-foot drives are often caught at the warning track.
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Reddick, who flew under most scouts' radar while playing for Middle Georgia College, has come a long way since beginning last season in limbo at extended spring training.
Reddick, 21, began 2008 at low-A Greenville, then joined Lancaster and tore up the California League with 17 homers and a .343 average. He was called up to Double-A after All-Star outfielder Bubba Bell was diagnosed with a stress fracture in his left femur.
"(Reddick's) got a lot of skills, no doubt," said Hazen. "He's an exciting type of player. He really plays hard every time he's out there, and he does a lot of things really well."
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Watch for Portland's Argenis Diaz, a 21-year-old with a sensational glove and solid bat. After Diaz batted .358 in the Hawaii Winter League, the Red Sox felt compelled to place the youngster on the 40-man roster to avoid the risk of losing him in the Rule 5 Draft.
"He has good hands. Good arm. We like his ability with the bat. I don't know if we'll project him for a lot of power, but we think he'll have a chance to hit and be a plus-defender," Hazen said.
Right-hander Richie Lentz has been mowing down hitters since making his Double-A debut on July 9. Lentz, a 19th-round pick out of the University of Washington, didn't allow an earned run in his first four appearances (6 1/3 innings) while striking out 11. Overall, he has fanned 88 batters in just 57 1/3 innings this season.
9th rally too little, too late
The Columbus Catfish scored five runs in the bottom of the ninth, but it wasn't enough against the high-power offense of the Greenville Drive, losing 15-9 at Golden Park Saturday.
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In the first inning, Jered Stanley hit a three-run homer to jumpstart Greenville's offense.
Later in the fourth inning, Greenville sent 10 batters to the plate and scored another seven runs. Stanley added his second three-run blast of the night and his 13th home run on the season.
Jon Couture - INSIDE BASEBALL: Salesmanship stops with Sox brass
Red Sox lefty relief prospect Kyle Fernandes is as hot as he's been in his professional career.
The 22-year-old Westport High alum ran his scoreless innings streak to 10 on Friday night, tossing three hitless frames for Low-A Greenville (S.C.) in a 4-1 win over Columbus (Ga.).
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With a .181 average against in July and 2.93 ERA in the second half, he could be closing on another promotion to High-A Lancaster (Calif.). He finished the 2007 season there, but struggled badly with free passes — he walked 13 in 23 2/3 innings, a rate of nearly five per nine innings.
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