[Closed] Old McTorgy's farm report

Starting it back up!

Tony Jackson has news on Clayton Kershaw.. I think this is a fantastic idea.

A lot of you have been asking about Clayton Kershaw. Well, he's fine. Here's the story. A few years ago, after Greg Miller started experiencing arm problems (more on that later today), the Dodgers insituted a policy of giving their young, more highly regarded pitching prospects one or two starts off in the middle of the season just to save wear and tear on their arms. That is all that is going on with Kershaw. As it was put to me, if you stretch a rubber band far enough, eventually, it will break. Well, this is stretching the rubber band, then letting it go back to its original shape and starting over to prevent it from breaking. Make sense?

Well, time to get busy on the farm system after a month of trying to do too much other stuff. Starting with the Loons. Big win, although Matthew Gomez de Segura put on a pitching display that would be a bad game in t-ball. His line - .1ip, 6h, 6r 162.00 era. You can't make that stuff up, even in video games. Tommy Giles is off to a hot start, two games, 5-8 and rockets all over the field. Eduardo Perez is not long for Great Lakes, he is up to .327 with 8 home runs and 34 rbis. He could become a fast riser. The Loons did win, 9-7, but were leading 9-1 going into the bottom of the ninth before Gomez y Morticia stunk up the place. Miguel Sanfler had to come in and put out the fire. Cody White picked up the win and is now 7-5 with a 2.89 era.

Inland Empire also joined the winning. Got a great game from Alberto Bastardo and some timely hitting by Shane Justis to pick up the win, 3-2. My boy, Bridger Hunt, hasn't missed a step. He is hitting .385 and providing some good speed for the 66ers. Lucas May looks to be back. He picked up two more hits and now has 49 rbis go with his ten bombs and a .274 ba. Those kind of numbers from a catcher are good enough for me. The only problem, so far, is the 17 passed balls, but that comes with experience. Cory Wade picked up his fourth save and has his era down to 2.25. Bastardo is now 4-2 with a semi-bloated 5.15 era (IIRC, he had some really rough outings at the start of the season).

Unfortunately, the news is not all good. The Sidewinders and 51's got hooked up in a pitching duel that ended when Robby Hammock singled home David Krynzel with the winning run after Eric Hull had allowed a single and pair of walks to load the bases with two outs. Otherwise, not much offense from the 51's, Andy LaRoche had a double in four trips and is up to .240 with the stick, but Delwyn Young and Marlon were hitless, as were a lot of the 51's. Manuel Pinango went five strong shutout innings and might turn into a prospect. That is all for today, we will have a full slate for tonight.

Oh yeah, Andrew Lambo signed a deal with a $160,000 signing bonus and Gallagher's bonus was $250,000. Looks like below slot signing bonuses, so I suspect that White and Babu are firming up some nice offers for Blair, Cole and Rasmussen.

Yeah, tell me about it. I don't see anytime in the future where we will be restocking, at least for the position players. It wouldn't hurt if they decided to move up some decent pitching prospects. I mean, give me something. It sucks Miller has lost his touch with the heater. But how about Meloan, Megrew, and Orenduff? I figure since they switched Hammes to a starter, they don't want to bump him up another level so quickly. Give me those three, and I would be satisfied.

grabarkewitz:

but were leading 9-1 going into the bottom of the ninth before Gomez y Morticia stunk up the place.

Now there would be a minor league promotion the Veeck's would be proud of.

Have Thing hail relief pitchers from the bullpen. Especially Gomez y Morticia.

Big doings on the farm. Along with the sweep by the Blue, the farm pulled the same accomplishment. Started for the Loons as Clayton Kershaw won his seventh game, shutting out Lansing for seven innings and dropping his era to 1.89. He ain't long for Midland, MI. The erstwhile Juan Rivera went yard and had two hits, same for Tommy Giles, Preston Mattingly and Juan Apodaca. Since the arrival of James Peterson, the Loons have been one of the best hitting teams in the minors. Oh yeah, the final score was Great Lakes 7, Lansing 3.

In the Cali League, the 66ers almost wasted a very nice outing by Jesus Castillo as Jordy Pratt gave up the lead and Tony Harper had to double in Travis Denker in the top of the ninth to guarantee the win over the Blaze, 8-7. Russell Mitchell led the offense with three hits, while Harper and Blake DeWitt added two, including a homer for DeWitt. Jacobo Menque picked up the win and Francisco Felix got the save.

In the Southern League, Justin Orenduff and Ramon Troncoso combined on a 4-hit shutout as the Suns defeated the Biscuits, 4-0. Orenduff went six for the win and Troncoso got the three inning save. Alberto Concepcion was the big stick, homering and singling while scoring two runs. Xavier Paul had a single and a stolen base, but wasn't involved in the scoring.

Finally, the 51's opened up a can of whipass and defeated the Sidewinders, 10-6. Delwyn Young, Wilson Valdez and Luis Maza all had three hits and recently called up John Lindsey added a pair to lead the offense. Young was a homer short of the cycle. On the pitching side, DJ Houlton was surprisingly ineffective and the Billionaire got the win with two innings of work.

Torgy,

Where did you get the info on the signing amounts?

Saw something interesting in the Las Vegas lineup. Michael Rivera got the call all the way up to AAA, barely one full season after he was drafted. Don't know what to make of it, but I think it was more a move to put a warm body in the infield than his skillset.

Gotta feel sorry for Gabe White, he pitches a strong six innings, giving up three runs and keeps the Blue close, but then some clown named German with an era over eleven and Gomez y Morticia come in and the Lugnuts tally six quick runs to make a close game to a blow out. Seeing as how we have a decent class of college arms coming in, it might be a grand idea to cut lose the flotsam. Gomez y Morticia hasn't shown much in two years and German looks like bp fodder.

Chomping at the bit for the start of the Pioneer League season and to see Kyle Orr muscle several bombs out of the park.

Not a good start in Midland. Gabe White pitched a fine six innings, keeping the game close, but arsonists Yulkin German and Matthew Gomez y Morticia tossed a Molotov Cocktail into the game and turned a 3-2 nailbiter into an 8-2 blowout for the Lugnuts. The comedy is that Gomez y Morticia dropped his era from 162.00 to 20.25....some would call that success. Not much offense for the Loons, Scott Van Slyke knocked home Carlos Santana and Josh Bell with a double that was the extent of the Loon offense.

Not a better story to tell for the 66ers. Mario Alvarez gave up five runs (all unearned - cool accomplishment) in the first inning and Jordy Pratt topped that by giving up six earned run before the 66ers hit the third inning for a 12-0 slaughter at the hands of the Bakersfield Blaze. Again, the offense took a day off, although Blake DeWitt had three hits (two doubles) and Russell Mitchell added a pair of singles (his error led to the five unearned runs). Jesus Rodriguez finished the game on the hill and kept it from becoming a Greek tragedy.

Success! AJ Ellis had three hits and four rbis as the Suns defeated the Biscuits, 7-5. Bit of a nailbiter at the end as Jon Meloan tried to do his best Gomez y Morticia impersonation by giving up two runs in the ninth to make the laugher into a sweatfest. Eric Cyr went five for the win, giving up three runs, but the best work was done by Wesley Wright as he worked three innings and held the Biscuits to one hit and no runs. Cory Dunlap added a pair of hits and Anthony Raglani plated a run for the Suns.

So much for success, BJ LaMura, Eric Stults and this Pollok guy combined to give the RiverCats nine runs in the fourth and fifth innings as the Sacto nine defeated the 51's, 9-7. The poor pitching wasted a nice game by Delwyn Young, who had three hits, a home run and three rbis. Young did get nailed trying to steal home, but he is having a fine year with 46 rbis and nine bombs. Wilson Valdez also had three hits and Eric Hull worked two shutout innings to end the game.

TBoneShelby:

grabarkewitz:

Not a good start in Midland. Gabe White pitched a fine six innings, keeping the game close, but arsonists Yulkin German and Matthew Gomez y Morticia tossed a Molotov Cocktail into the game and turned a 3-2 nailbiter into an 8-2 blowout for the Lugnuts. The comedy is that Gomez y Morticia dropped his era from 162.00 to 20.25....some would call that success. Not much offense for the Loons, Scott Van Slyke knocked home Carlos Santana and Josh Bell with a double that was the extent of the Loon offense.

Not a better story to tell for the 66ers. Mario Alvarez gave up five runs (all unearned - cool accomplishment) in the first inning and Jordy Pratt topped that by giving up six earned run before the 66ers hit the third inning for a 12-0 slaughter at the hands of the Bakersfield Blaze. Again, the offense took a day off, although Blake DeWitt had three hits (two doubles) and Russell Mitchell added a pair of singles (his error led to the five unearned runs). Jesus Rodriguez finished the game on the hill and kept it from becoming a Greek tragedy.

Success! AJ Ellis had three hits and four rbis as the Suns defeated the Biscuits, 7-5. Bit of a nailbiter at the end as Jon Meloan tried to do his best Gomez y Morticia impersonation by giving up two runs in the ninth to make the laugher into a sweatfest. Eric Cyr went five for the win, giving up three runs, but the best work was done by Wesley Wright as he worked three innings and held the Biscuits to one hit and no runs. Cory Dunlap added a pair of hits and Anthony Raglani plated a run for the Suns.

So much for success, BJ LaMura, Eric Stults and this Pollok guy combined to give the RiverCats nine runs in the fourth and fifth innings as the Sacto nine defeated the 51's, 9-7. The poor pitching wasted a nice game by Delwyn Young, who had three hits, a home run and three rbis. Young did get nailed trying to steal home, but he is having a fine year with 46 rbis and nine bombs. Wilson Valdez also had three hits and Eric Hull worked two shutout innings to end the game.

Your minor league daily wrapups are literary masterpieces, and freaking hilarious!!!

Btw, should I just accept the fact that Delwyn Young will never get a chance? He's the current Chin-Feng Chen isn't he.

IMO - Young has much better plate awareness than did CFC. CFC had great bat speed, but couldn't hit an off-speed pitch to save his life. He also chased heaters up out of the zone. The main issue with Delwyn, which was an additional issue with CFC, is that he doesn't have a position, with RF being the best fit, and he doesn't project the type of power you would like in a DH. I like torgy's comparison to Matt Stairs - undersized guy built like a chunk of granite, who provides surprising power but can be a defensive liability.

Delwyn not being a real good defender limits his value to the big club. Him being best in RF just limits him that much more as he is behind Ethier & Kemp.

As we have been saying for some time, Delwyn needs a change of scenery. A team short on young talent and OFs could give him a shot and find him to be a valuable player. With the Dodgers, he is buried well down the pecking order.

One thing I have noted before with all the kids we have now called up to the big club - we need to do some house-cleaning. Selling Micah Jones to the Ham Fighters was an indication of that. Guys like Delwyn, Valdez and Houlton may also odd-guys out in the youth movement. And then there are the vets like Bomko, Lurch, Martinez and Anderson who may get pushed of the big league roster, like Brady Clark did.

These guys figure to go in lesser deals or as secondary parts of the illusory big deals, if not as simple DFAs. The common aprroach is to trade for younger, more questionable talent at lower levels of the system.

ceyheyjay:

kennerbuggy:

One thing I have noted before with all the kids we have now called up to the big club - we need to do some house-cleaning. Selling Micah Jones to the Ham Fighters was an indication of that. Guys like Delwyn, Valdez and Houlton may also odd-guys out in the youth movement. And then there are the vets like Bomko, Lurch, Martinez and Anderson who may get pushed of the big league roster, like Brady Clark did.

These guys figure to go in lesser deals or as secondary parts of the illusory big deals, if not as simple DFAs. The common aprroach is to trade for younger, more questionable talent at lower levels of the system.

I wondered what happened to Jones. Why was that necessary. It seems to me he could have provided LaRoche some protection in Vegas.

I don't see Houlton getting moved as other possible options for SP depth haven't panned out so well. Stults has been majorly inconsistent and Miller....ugh.

If Abreu can handle the utility player role and Betemit continues to show well, Martinez likely goes the way of DFA. We should be able to keep one of Tomko or Hendrickson on the roster, and I'm just not sure about Anderson.

As I noted elsewhere, selling Jones may have just been a gambit to apply more $ toward signing recent draftees, and perhaps justifying to Our Bud that going over slot on some guys is justified by having more minor league roster spots to fill while also having more $ to spend - selling Jones opens a spot and provides the funds to fill it with a kid.

I get the feeling that the Brand has now settled in to where they feel more comfortable going against Our Bud's directives. The were forced to bypass Vlad when they were buying the club - I don't think they have any desire to make any more such sacrifices. If the Yanks, BoSox & Mess can blatantly disregard the slotting directives, why can't they?

I also tend to think we'll probably hang onto Houlton as he has pitched so well this season, and many of our other options haven't panned out. However, that effectiveness also makes him more valuable in trade, and he is still maybe 7th on our SP depth chart.

In terms of Bomko and Lurch, what do we do with Tsao & Brazo when they return in a few weeks. Would you prefer to cut Seanez, who has so far been surprisingly effective? Or is it Sammy, Eggplant or Billz we should cut?

Do the math - we are heading for a big roster bind having gone with the youth movement and a few under-performing expensive vets being pushed into part-time roles. We have a bursting roster right now with Anderson, Martinez, Brazo & Tsao on the DL, and none have serious injuries. Cuts, trades, demotions, etc., are coming. The questions are who and when.

Keep in mind that we still have potential contributors like LaRoche, Houlton and Meloan in the minors.

[quote][cite] kennerbuggy:[/cite][quote][cite] ceyheyjay:[/cite][quote][cite] kennerbuggy:[/cite]One thing I have noted before with all the kids we have now called up to the big club - we need to do some house-cleaning. Selling Micah Jones to the Ham Fighters was an indication of that. Guys like Delwyn, Valdez and Houlton may also odd-guys out in the youth movement. And then there are the vets like Bomko, Lurch, Martinez and Anderson who may get pushed of the big league roster, like Brady Clark did.

These guys figure to go in lesser deals or as secondary parts of the illusory big deals, if not as simple DFAs. The common aprroach is to trade for younger, more questionable talent at lower levels of the system.[/quote]

I wondered what happened to Jones. Why was that necessary. It seems to me he could have provided LaRoche some protection in Vegas.

I don't see Houlton getting moved as other possible options for SP depth haven't panned out so well. Stults has been majorly inconsistent and Miller....ugh.

If Abreu can handle the utility player role and Betemit continues to show well, Martinez likely goes the way of DFA. We should be able to keep one of Tomko or Hendrickson on the roster, and I'm just not sure about Anderson.[/quote]
As I noted elsewhere, selling Jones may have just been a gambit to apply more $ toward signing recent draftees, and perhaps justifying to Our Bud that going over slot on some guys is justified by having more minor league roster spots to fill while also having more $ to spend - selling Jones opens a spot and provides the funds to fill it with a kid.

I get the feeling that the Brand has now settled in to where they feel more comfortable going against Our Bud's directives. The were forced to bypass Vlad when they were buying the club - I don't think they have any desire to make any more such sacrifices. If the Yanks, BoSox & Mess can blatantly disregard the slotting directives, why can't they?

I also tend to think we'll probably hang onto Houlton as he has pitched so well this season, and many of our other options haven't panned out. However, that effectiveness also makes him more valuable in trade, and he is still maybe 7th on our SP depth chart.

In terms of Bomko and Lurch, what do we do with Tsao & Brazo when they return in a few weeks. Would you prefer to cut Seanez, who has so far been surprisingly effective? Or is it Sammy, Eggplant or Billz we should cut?

Do the math - we are heading for a big roster bind having gone with the youth movement and a few under-performing expensive vets being pushed into part-time roles. We have a bursting roster right now with Anderson, Martinez, Brazo & Tsao on the DL, and none have serious injuries. Cuts, trades, demotions, etc., are coming. The questions are who and when.

Keep in mind that we still have potential contributors like LaRoche, Houlton and Meloan in the minors.[/quote]

I would say one of Hendrickson or Tomko is gone soon enough, possibly replaced by Tsao or Brazoban. I would expect that either Tsao or Brazoban spend as much time as possible on rehab assignment and then possibly get permanetly send down, depending on the situation. Yhency is the obvious candidate. At this point, he may be no more than depth/insurance in our organization.

As for what happens when Martinez and/or Anderson decisions have to be made, both could be cut, but I would guess it's more likely we'd see another "injury" before that happens. The brass may convince Nomar that he's got a sore fingernail and needs some time on the DL or something similar. That seems to be Colletti's MO. If an injury doesn't happen and you need a roster spot, "create" an injury.

Another day, another offensive explosion for the Loons. Scott Van Slyke, beginning to show signs that he is gonna attain his potential, ripped three hits (including a homer) and drove home four to lead the Loons to a 7-2 win over South Bend. Francisco Lizzaraga, Eduardo Bell, Trayvon Robinson and Preston Mattingly all had two hits and Mattingly drove home two. Arismendy Castillo (the bad Castillo) notched the win as he didn't give up his usual dozen hits and six walks. Van Slyke is now hitting .271 and Mattingly is up to .255. Pretty good as both were below .200 a month ago.

Inland Empire rode a four run fourth inning and it was enough as the 66ers beat the Silverhawks, 4-3. Marlon (Mr. No Hitter) Arias picked up the win, going 5.2 innings and giving up all three Lancaster runs. Cory Wade picked up the save, shutting out the Silverhawks over the last three plus innings. Russell Mitchell lead the offense with two hits and a solo homer. Blake DeWitt added a pair of hits and my boy, Bridger Hunt went 1-3 with a run.

Mike Megrew had it going on as he pitched a strong five innings (four hits, one run) and the Sun's offense was on it's game as Jacksonville took a 7-1 decision over the Biscuits. Marshall McDougall led the offense with three hits, and AJ Ellis, Juan Gonzalez, Anthony Raglani and Chin Lung Hu all had a pair of hits. Luis Gonzalez and Mark Alexander shut down the Biscuits to complete the game effort.

Alas, all was not perfect on the farm. The 51's played a double dip against the RiverCats and dropped the opener as Matt Riley gave up a two run homer to former Dodger farmhand, Jorge Piedra to break up a tie game and give the RiverCats a 5-3 victory. Delwyn Young belted a solo homer, his tenth, while Sandy Martinez and Luis Maza each had two hits.

In the night cap, the 51's offense opened a can of whipass named John Lindsey. Lindsey had a pair of solo homers to lead the 51's to a 10-4 drubbing of the RiverCats. Delwyn Young (there is that name again) had two hits and scored three runs. Larry Barnes added a two-run homer and Ken Huckaby drove home a pair of runs with his two hits. Casey Hoorelbeke picked up the win in relief of Harold Eckert. The Billionaire notched his fourth save in the winning effort.

Had a great first Father's day. My wife (God bless her) cleared the schedule and we drove up to Montgomery to watch the Suns take on the Biscuits. It was an exciting game with the Suns winning it 5-4. First observation is that Cory Dunlap is not just battling his weight, he has lost! I noticed the Suns didn't have very many players and my wife pointed out that it might be because they need two uniforms for Dunlap. A couple of Biscuits fans around me commented on how appropriate his name was since his belly dun lapped over his belt. He is huge!!!

Oh well, onto other observations. Chin Lung Hu is ready. He ended the day 3-4 with a 1B, 2B, 3B and a BB at least 1 RBI and scored at least a run. The Suns appear to try to set things up for him. The Biscuits started a soft tossing lefty and Hu worked him and even continued to stroke when the Biscuits brought a hard throwing albeit slightly wild righty. Defensively he continues to show how smooth he is particulary going to his left. I wouldn't be suprised to see him moved up to Vegas tomorrow (Suns first half is now over). Other notables were John Meloan who struck out the side with relative ease for the save. Juan Gonzalez the second basemen hit a homerun but didn't appear to be much of a prospect. Xavier Paul looked decent in the lead off role (he looks like a career 4th OF in the show). Raglani is frustrating because he has great bat speed and pretty stroke but can't seem to put it together. A.J. Ellis threw out a runner stealing (he may be the defensive back up for Martin in a year or two) and he swung a decent bat but was not remarkable. The rest of the line up was pretty much Roster fodder although Joey Norrito did spin 6 2/3 pretty good innings craftily getting out of a couple of jams and Wes Wright looked ok.

Oh by the way did I mention that Cory Dunlap was fat! Strikes on the inside corner were almost grazzing his belly and he stands in the back of the box like Joel Guzman used to do.

Good report LM. You mentioned Hu possibly moving up. I'm wondering if we aren't due for some shaking up, especially when it comes to pitching. Poor old Hagdag has seen about all he can take in Vegas. How about sending an arm or two his way? Wesley Wright maybe? Orenduff after a couple more starts. And we all know it's about time Kershaw moved up a rung.