IL1 International League

International League News & Notes

Published on July 29, 2010 under International League (IL1) News Release


BUFFALO BISONS www.Bisons.com

ZIPPIDY DUDA: Bisons OF Lucas Duda splashed onto the Triple-A scene when he homered in five consecutive games, June 28 - July 2 in just his third week at this level. Since then, the 24-year old has shown no signs of slowing down. Duda has three doubles, three home runs and eight RBI in his last five games. The slugger has now driven in 37 runs in his first 37 games with the Bisons. Overall, Duda has hit .309 (43-139) with 11 doubles, a triple, and 13 home runs with the Herd. He's posted a whopping .683 slugging percentage while also averaging .436 (17-39) with runners in scoring position.

FELICIANO IS CLOSING IN: Bisons OF Jesus Feliciano has already led the International League in hits. He did that last year when he had 154 hits for the Herd. With one month to go, Feliciano now has his eyes set on the circuit's batting title. Feliciano is hitting .346 (85-246) through 67 games with the Bisons this season. However, because of a month-long stint with the Mets, the outfielder doesn't have enough plate appearances to qualify...yet! Feliciano needs to make up just 10 more plate appearances for his average to lead all IL hitters by 31 points.

BIG LEAGUE ARMS: The Bisons have added a pair of big league arms to their staff this week. RHP Fernando Nieve was outrighted to Buffalo by the Mets. The righty will jump into the Herd's rotation after going 2-4 with a 6.00 ERA in 40 games and 39 relief appearances with the Mets this season. Nieve was 3-0 in four starts with the Bisons in 2009. The Mets also signed RHP Chad Cordero and assigned him to Buffalo. Cordero led the National League with 47 saves during an All-Star season in 2005. However, the 28-year old spent most of last season recovering from a 2008 right shoulder surgery.

CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS www.CharlotteKnights.com

HOME RUN STREAK FOR RODRIGUEZ: INF Luis Rodriguez hit a home run in five consecutive games for the Knights from 7/22 - 7/26.  Rodriguez is the second player in the IL this season to homer in five consecutive games joining Buffalo's Lucas Duda.  Duda's streak ended at five; no player in the IL has homered in six consecutive games this season. The International League's record for most consecutive games with a home run is seven.  The feat was accomplished by Clarence Walker of Baltimore in 1926 and tied by Brook Jacoby of Richmond in 1983. The 12 home runs Duda has hit this season is already a career high for the 30-year-old who had never hit more than eight homers in a single season.

FALL PLANNING: Knights pitching coach Richard Dotson will serve in the same capacity this fall for the Peoria Saguaros of the Arizona Fall League.  Peoria will serve as the Fall League Club for the White Sox, Cincinnati Reds, Minnesota Twins, San Diego Padres and Tampa Bay Rays.

ROAD WOES: Twice on their current road trip the Knights have allowed a season high in runs allowed (19), hits allowed (22) and extra base hits (8).  Over their past 10 games the Knights have allowed seven runs of more eight times.  The Knights are 1-5 on their current trip and are now at .500 (28-28) on the road for the first time since mid-June.

COLUMBUS CLIPPERS www.ClippersBaseball.com

TEAM EFFORT: Columbus leads the IL in hitting at .289 (13 points higher than 2nd place, Durham), but has only two active players that qualify for the League batting title.  Jordan Brown made his first appearance on the leader board today, debuting at 2nd place (.311).  Jose Constanza ranks 3rd in the IL (.304), having just become eligible four nights ago.  Michael Brantley (.316), optioned from Cleveland on Tuesday, is three plate appearances from qualifying.  Brown is looking to become the first two-time IL Batting Champion since Billy McMillon (1996 with Charlotte and 2000 with Toledo) and first back to back winner since Richmond's Ralph Garr (1969-70).

BROWN GOES DOWN... TWICE: Somebody must have smuggled some Kryptonite into Huntington Park last night, as Jordan Brown went 0-2 with the bases loaded to drop his batting average in such situations from .786 to .688 (11-16).  Brown picked up his 29th RBI with the bases loaded on Tuesday night (18 PA, 0 HR) with a sac fly in the 1st.  He leads the IL in bases loaded RBI this year (Indianapolis' Brandon Moss is in 2nd with 17 RBI in 13 PA, 2 HR).  Since the start of the 2005 season (as far back as the data exists), Brown's 29 RBI with the bases loaded are the most in a season for any IL player (previous high was 26, achieved by Durham's Justin Ruggiano in 2009 and Toledo's Mike Hessman in 2007).

SMOOTH CRIMINAL: Tuesday night, Jose Constanza claimed the top spot in the IL with his 27th stolen base, 15th straight successful attempt.  Of the 11 players in the International League with at least 20 steals, Constanza's 93% success rate is the best.  If he finishes the year on top, he'll be the third Clipper to lead the IL in steals in the last four years (Michael Brantley in 2009 and Bernie Castro in 2007).  It will also be his fourth stolen base title (Eastern League- 2009, New York-Penn- 2005, Dominican Summer- 2004).

DURHAM BULLS www.DurhamBulls.com

HALL OF FAME INNING: Durham sent 15 batters to the plate in the first inning on Monday, collecting 10 hits, a walk, and a hit batter in a 15-4 win over Syracuse.  The first eight Bulls batters had hits.  It came the same night where Hall of Famer Tony Gwynn appeared at the DBAP.  The outburst was obviously Durham's largest of the season.  It was Durham's first 10-run inning since August 15, 2007, when the Bulls came up with 12 in one frame against Charlotte in a 15-5 victory.

CHASING A TRIPLE: Dan Johnson and Jeremy Hellickson are chasing IL Triple Crowns.  Johnson far and away leads the IL in homers (29) and RBI (92), and is fifth in batting average, nine points off the League lead.  Jim Rice in 1974 is the last IL hitter to win the Triple Crown.  In pitching, Hellickson, who starts today, is tops in wins (12), ERA (2.51) and strikeouts (119).  The last time this happened was in 1976 when Dennis Martinez accomplished the feat.

SEEKING A RECORD: With a win today, Hellickson would tie a Bulls Triple-A record with 13 wins on the season.  Current Yankees pitching coach Dave Eiland and Indians starter Mitch Talbot are the two pitchers to previously win 13 games for Durham in a season.  Talbot did it in 2007 and 2008.  Hellickson is making just his second start in the daytime, and he lost his previous one at Toledo.  A victory for Durham would be the team's eighth in a row, which would tie a season high.

BREAKING THROUGH: Durham Bulls Athletic Park hosts the bronze and gold medal games today of the Breakthrough Series today.  Held at the MLB Urban Youth Academy in Compton, CA from 2008-2009, the Breakthrough Series is designed to showcase rising high school junior and senior baseball players from urban areas throughout the United States.  Invited athletes typically have not participated in other travel and high-end tournaments prior to the Breakthrough Series, providing them with an opportunity for exposure.  The gold medal game is being shown on MLB Network on Sunday at 1:30 pm.  Bulls broadcaster Neil Solondz returned to Durham to broadcast the game with John Manuel of Baseball America.

GWINNETT BRAVES www.GwinnettBraves.com

BARBARO WATCH: G-Braves DH/1B Barbaro Canizares went 2-for-4 with 2 RBI last night, ending the game with a .315 AVG and the lead in the race for the IL batting crown.

NEW PITCHING CREW: Last night's starter Scott Diamond is one of the two newest members of the G-Braves pitching rotation (also Cristhian Martinez) with the same sort of fair fortunes that have fallen in favor of the last pair of new additions to stick in the rotation (Jose Ortegano, Mike Minor). Diamond, in just his third-ever Triple-A start, went 6.0 IP with allowing only 1 ER and 2 BB while striking out 4 batters. Martinez has gone 1-0 with a 0.77 ERA and 9 K in 11.2 IP in 2 starts since being added on 7/17. Ortegano went 11.2 IP in his first two starts and allowed just 3 ER combined (also 5 K), while Minor pitched 12.2 total innings and yielded just 2 ER (with 15 total K).

RESOP RETURNS: Starter Chris Resop had his first ML rehab start for Atlanta in Gwinnett on 7/27. He went 5.0 IP without allowing a hit and striking out 6 batters. Resop, who began the season with Gwinnett, led the International League in ERA, K, WHIP, and K/9 ratio prior to being recalled to Atlanta on 6/15. He began his rehab with Mississippi (Double-A) in starts on 7/17 and 7/22, going 0-0 with a 4.15 ERA (4.0 IP). Resop went on Atlanta's DL on 6/16 with a strained left oblique muscle, one day after injuring himself in his only appearance (2.0 IP, 5 R/ER) for ATL on the day he was promoted from GWN.

GOING TO THE BEACHY: Coming in relief for Resop on 7/27 and making his Triple-A debut was Brandon Beachy. A non-drafted free agent who signed with the Atlanta organization in July 2008, Beachy pitched for briefly for Danville (Rookie) in that same year. He split time between Rome (Class-A), Myrtle Beach (Advanced Class-A) and Mississippi (Double-A) in 2009, and has pitched in MISS all of this season. The Indiana native had 20 appearances out of the bullpen with MISS in 2010 before being converted to a starter for 6 of his last 7 games. He was 2-0 as a starter with a 1.54 ERA and 51 K in just 35.0 IP. In his relief appearance for Gwinnett, he pitched 4 innings and struck out 7 batters.

INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS www.IndyIndians.com

ALEX PRESLEY HAS ENTERED THE BALLPARK: Following his two-hit effort against the Syracuse Chiefs on July 28, Indians' OF Alex Presley is now tied for the eighth-most hits (129) in all of Minor League Baseball this season. Presley's 129 hits between Double-A Altoona and Triple-A Indianapolis would also put him in a third place tie with Seattle Mariners' OF Ichiro Suzuki at the Major League level. Presley has also turned in the sixth-best batting average (.351) in all of Minor League Baseball thus far this season. At the Major League level, Presley's .351 average would be good for the second-best mark, behind only Texas Rangers' OF Josh Hamilton's .358 average. The Indians' outfielder is also in the midst of a hot stretch at the plate that has seen him reach base safely in 19 of his last 21 games, during which time he has collected at least one hit in 18 of those contests (the stretch began on July 5 in game two of a doubleheader against the Louisville Bats). Since joining the Indians on June 25, Presley has hit .352 (43-for-122) with 26 runs scored, seven doubles, three triples, four home runs, 16 RBI and a .406 on-base percentage in 32 games.

RBI MACHINE: After belting his second grand slam of the season on July 28, a feat which has been accomplished by only one other batter (Lehigh Valley's Andy Tracy) in the International League this year, Tribe OF Brandon Moss has now collected the second-most RBI in the International League with 70 on the season. The Indians' left-handed slugger has recently moved past both Toledo Mud Hens' INF Jeff Frazier and Norfolk Tides' INF Robert Andino - who have collected 68 RBI and 64 RBI, respectively and trails only Durham Bulls' INF Dan Johnson's astounding total of 92 RBI. Since Moss' recent hot streak began on July 6, during which time he has reached base safely via a hit or a walk in 18 of 19 contests, the Georgia native is tied for the second-most RBI in all of Minor League Baseball with 27 and has hit .372 (29-for-78) with 17 runs scored, seven doubles and seven home runs. The Indians' outfielder has also been one of the most consistent contributors for the Tribe offense this season, and, among current players, he leads the team in games played (98), at-bats (358), runs scored (54), hits (96), doubles (23), home runs (17), RBI (70), total bases (172) and stolen bases (8).

AKI TO SUCCESS: After hitting only .182 (30-for-165) with two home runs and nine RBI in 54 games for Pittsburgh Pirates, INF Akinori Iwamura was designated for assignment by the Pirates on June 16 and was then optioned to Indianapolis on June 23. Since arriving in Indianapolis on June 27, Iwamura has reached base safely via a hit or a walk in 25 of his 27 games played with the Tribe and has recorded at least one base knock in 19 of those contests. One of the two games in which Iwamura did not reach base safely came on July 20, when the infielder made a pinch-hit appearance in the bottom of the ninth inning against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Overall, Iwamura has posted a .299 batting average (26-for-87) with 15 runs scored, four doubles, two home runs, 12 RBI, 23 walks and a .450 on-base percentage. Iwamura has also performed well in the clutch during his brief tenure with the Indians, as the infielder has hit .348 (16-for-46) with runners on, .346 (9-for-26) with runners in scoring position and .375 (3-for-8) with runners in scoring position with two outs.

MASHING IN THE SEASON'S FOURTH MONTH: After being held to three or fewer runs in each of the team's first six games in the month of July, the Indianapolis Indians' offense had turned in a paltry .186 batting average (31-for-167) and had been shutout on three different occasions en route to only six total runs scored. However, since July 6, the Tribe offense has turned in an impressive .304 batting average (211-for-694) with 125 runs scored, 39 doubles and 24 home runs in 20 games played. Overall in the month of July, the Indians' offense has hit .281 (242-for-861) with 131 runs scored, 45 doubles and 24 home runs in 26 games.

LEHIGH VALLEY IRONPIGS www.IronPigsBaseball.com

WHO'S HOT (PITCHING): RHP Michael Schwimer started his Triple-A career with 7 scoreless appearances (8.1 IP) and is unscored upon in 8 of 9 G -- going 2-1, 0.79, 2 H (11.1 IP, 6 H, ER, 3 BB, 7 K)...... LHP Antonio Bastardo has not allowed a R in 12 G w/ LHV (3 SV, 0.00, 10.1 IP, 2 H, 3 BB, 16 K) -- retiring his last 20 BF....... RHP Brian Gordon is unscored upon in 3 G since of DL (4.2 IP, 3 H, 6 K)...... RHP Vance Worley went 6.0 scoreless IP in his LHV debut on 7/27 -- giving him 24.0 consecutive scoreless IP combined in his last 4 G (2 w/ Reading, 1 relief appearance w/ Philadelphia, 1 w/ LHV).

THE PEN IS MIGHTIER?: In the last 2 G, the bullpen is 0-2, 8.17, 2 BS (6 IP, 7 ER). In the previous 10 G, the relief corps had gone 4-1, 2.20 w/ 6 SV, 6 H (45.0 IP, 11 ER) -- including a 17.2 scoreless inning streak as well as [1] a LHV-record of 23 consecutive opposing batters retired (prev. 18) and [2] a LHV-record 28 consecutive plate appearances without a hit (prev. 25).

'ONE' IS THE LONELIEST...: With the 3-2 loss last night, LHV fell to 11-27 (.289) in one-run games -- a winning PCT which ranks last in the IL (LOU is 13th at .414). LHV is 1st in the IL w/ 38 one-run games (PAW has 35; 17-18). SWB has the top record , 24-10 (.706). In '09, the team w/ the worst such win% was COL, .395 (17-26). If the Pigs were just .500 (19-19)in those games, they'd be 52-53 overall.

THE TIME IS NOW: Top prospect OF Domonic Brown made his ML debut last night, going 2-3, 2B, 2 RBI, 2 R. He hit .346 with five homers and 21 RBI in 28 games with the IronPigs since his promotion from Reading (Double-A) on June 25 where upon leaving the EL, he ranked 3rd in AVG (.318); T-3 HR (15); 2nd in SLG (.602); 4th in R (50). Combined he hit .327 with 20 home runs and 68 RBI in 93 games this season in the minors. Overall, hit in 37 of his last 42 G combined (54-155, .348-10-35, 11 2B, 29 R) between Double-A and Triple-A. He tied for the LHV lead in OF AST (3), playing in just 28 of the 104 LHV games.

LOUISVILLE BATS www.BatsBaseball.com

WILD THING: On July 19, the Bats were 6.5 games out of the Wild Card race. A mere ten days later they find themselves ½ game on top of the Wild Card standings ahead of IND. During the road trip, the Bats leapfrogged IND, CHA, and BUF to take over second place in the Wild Card standings and yesterday they took over sole possession of first with a win and SYR's 8th straight loss.

LOUISVILLE SLUGGERS: The Bats are leading the IL in home runs with 124 on the season. Charlotte is second with 116.  The Bats connected on three home runs last night and in their six games against Charlotte this season have hit 20 bombs.  Overall, the Bats have hit 27 homers in their last nine games and have gone deep at least four times in a game on five different occasions. Wladimir Balentien, who has five home runs in the last six games, including last night's solo shot, leads the Bats with 20 and is tied for 3rd in the IL. Juan Francisco is tied for 10th with 16 and Zack Cozart is tied for 12th with 15.  Francisco's 11 home runs in July are tied for 1st in the IL with Dan Johnson of DUR. Balentien is tied for 3rd with nine in July.

SIX STRAIGHT: Yesterday's win gave the Bats six straight victories, which is their longest win streak of the season.  Their previous high was five straight from 5/7-5/11 and 7/2-7/5.  It's the first time Louisville has won six straight games since they won eight straight from 8/1 to 8/8 in 2008. That season the Bats won a franchise-best 88 games and won their first of two consecutive IL West crowns.  The winning streak has also improved the Bats overall record to 55-50, which is the most games over the .500-mark this season.  Louisville won 6 of 7 on the road trip and are 11-2 since the All-Star break.  This hot streak has moved the Bats into second place in the IL West and into first in the Wild Card standings.

ZACK ATTACK: SS Zack Cozart has been on fire in the month of July.  He has hit successfully in 14 of his last 19 games and has nine multi-hit games. He is batting .325 (26-80) with five doubles, five home runs and 15 RBI in his last 18 games.  For the month of July, he is batting .311 (28-90).  Cozart has not finished a month with an average higher than .276 (June).  His five home runs in July are the most of any month and his 15 RBI are tied for his season-high (June). Sunday night, Cozart set a new single season career high with his 15th home run of the year. He has already set a single season career high in stolen bases (23). Cozart ranks amongst the League leaders in many categories, including leading in runs scored (70). He is second in at-bats (408),  third in hits (109), third in total bases (185), and is tied for fourth in games played (101).  Defensively, he is rated second behind Brian Bocock (LHV) as the best shortstop, fielding percentage-wise (.980).

NORFOLK TIDES www.NorfolkTides.com

GOING STREAKING: With another hit last night, Robert Andino has now hit safely in nine straight games, batting .357 (15-for-42) with two home runs and eight RBI over that stretch. The nine-game streak is just two games shy of matching Norfolk's season-high of 11 games, set by Corey Patterson and Rhyne Hughes. Andino has also registered at least one RBI in 10 of his last 15 games, and he's 4th in the IL and tied for second among Orioles minor leaguers with 64 RBI this year. The 26-year-old has already set a career-high in RBI, surpassing his total of 50 RBI between Triple-A Albuquerque and Florida in the 2007 season.

WANNA BE LIKE MIKE: Over his last 12 games, Michael Aubrey has belted eight home runs and registered 22 RBI. Over that span, Aubrey leads all minor leaguers in home runs and he's tied for second in all minor league baseball in RBI (Class-A Potomac's Tyler Moore has 24 RBI over that span). Aubrey is tied for third in the IL with nine home runs in July, and he's also tied for first in the IL with 27 RBI this month. He's the first Tides player to record nine home runs in a month since Rob Stratton accomplished the feat in June, 2002, and he's the first Norfolk batter to register 27 RBI in a month since Ryan McGuire drove in 28 in May, 2000.

THE PEN IS MIGHTIER: Several Tides relievers have put up fantastic numbers as of late. Armando Gabino has gone 2-0 with one save and a 0.47 ERA (1-ER, 19.1-IP), 10 hits and 18 strikeouts over his last six games (two starts). Dennis Sarfate has gone 1-0 with three saves and a 0.96 ERA (1-ER, 9.1-IP), five hits and 14 strikeouts over his last eight games. Alberto Castillo has gone 1-0 with one save and a 1.10 ERA (2-ER, 16.1-IP), three walks and 17 strikeouts over his last 12 games.

PAWTUCKET RED SOX www.PawSox.com

LOWELL LOWERS THE BOOM: Mike Lowell is having one of the best rehab stints of any injured Red Sox player to ever play on a rehab assignment for Pawtucket. Lowell, who has been on Boston's disabled list since June 23 with a strained right hip, is 11-for-22 with 4 2B, 4 HR, and 10 RBI in 5 rehab games with the PawSox (3 as the DH and one each at 1B & 3B) since last Thursday. Mike matched a PawSox franchise-record with 3 HR in a game Tuesday night in Toledo as he belted a 2-run HR in the 1st-inning and a solo shot in the 3rd-inning (both off lefty Charlie Furbush) and later added a 2-run blast in the 8th-inning (off LHP Fu-Te Ni) to become the 18th different PawSox player to accomplish that feat. It was also the 20th time a PawSox player has had 3 homers in the same game as Scott Wade & Izzy Alcantara have both done it twice. OF Jonathan Van Every was the last PawSox player with a 3 HR game on June 29, 2008 at Rochester. Mike had this to say to reporters after the game in Toledo Tuesday night. "A night like this is special, no matter what level," Lowell said. "I'll take this any time." Lowell could be headed back to Boston as early as today and be ready to rejoin the Red Sox when they start a homestand on Friday night.

REKNOWNED REHABBERS: Besides Lowell, some other notable Boston/Pawtucket rehab successes have been Nomar Garciaparra in 2001, Curt Schilling in 2007, and David Ortiz in 2008. Nomar went 7-for-16 with 2 2B, 1 HR in four games for the PawSox from July 24-27 of 2001 while rehabbing from wrist surgery. Schilling fired 15 scoreless innings in three rehab starts from July 21-31 of 2007 allowing just 8 hits and 0 walks with 18 strikeouts while recovering from right shoulder tendonitis. And Big Papi put on a show for McCoy Stadium fans from July 17-19 of 2008 when he blasted home runs in each of his three rehab games proving the torn tendon sheath in his left wrist had sufficiently healed before he headed back to Boston. Some of the notable PawSox rehab failures were OF Jose Canseco who went 1-for-6 with 5 strikeouts in two games on June 18 & 19 of 1995 while OF Manny Ramirez had a memorable rehab stint (broken finger) with Pawtucket going 3-for-30 with 9 SO in 11 games from June 13-24 of 2002 while also losing a valuable diamond earring while making a head first slide into 3B during a game at Syracuse.

RECORD LOWS: The PawSox have dropped 10 of their last 12 games since July 17 and 15 of their last 22. Furthermore, Pawtucket has lost 7 of 8 road games and they have lost 14 of their last 19 away games since June 24. The Sox have a 17-37 road record (worst in the League) and an overall record of 45-60 to again fall a season-high 15 games below .500 (also on Monday) for the first time since they ended last season with a 61-82 record.

BOBBLE MANIA: The PawSox are pleased to present Jacoby Ellsbury Bobblehead Doll Night at McCoy Stadium this Saturday when the PawSox take on the Durham Bulls at 6:05 pm. The first 4,000 fans (aged 14 & under) will receive this popular collector's edition Bobblehead Doll of the current Red Sox and former PawSox star and ironically Ellsbury may be in the house himself. Jacoby has been playing for the Gulf Coast Rookie Red Sox this week as he continues his comeback from broken ribs suffered in April. His rehab stint may indeed bring him to McCoy this upcoming weekend. Ellsbury joins an illustrious list of former PawSox and current Red Sox stars who have been feted with a PawSox bobblehead following such luminaries as Jason Varitek, Tim Wakefield, Jonathan Papelbon, Kevin Youkilis, Dustin Pedroia, and last year Jon Lester.

ROCHESTER RED WINGS www.RedWingsBaseball.com

NO SOUP FOR YOU, YOU, YOU, YOU, YOU AND YOU: Reliever Rob Delaney has struck out six consecutive batters he's faced (over his last two appearances).  Delaney has recorded a save in both of these appearances and has struck out the side both times.  Delaney is the first Red Wings pitcher to strikeout six consecutive batters since August 20, 2005 when LHP Francisco Liriano struck out six straight Pawtucket Red Sox batters at McCoy Stadium.  The last Wings pitcher to strikeout seven consecutive batters is LHP Glen Perkins on September 14, 2006 at Toledo (Game 3 of Governors' Cup Championship).

I'VE SEEN BETTER HANDS ON A CLOCK: Rochester has committed at least one error in four straight and seven of their last eight games.  Rochester has committed 93 errors which is 2nd most in the International League (Norfolk is 1st with 107).

POWER RANKINGS: Shortstop Trevor Plouffe has a career-high 15 home runs this season. Plouffe's 15 home runs are the most home runs a Red Wings shortstop has hit in a season since 1996 when shortstop Clay Bellinger hit 15 while leading Rochester to the Governors' Cup Finals (Wings lost 3-0 to Columbus).  The last time a Red Wings shortstop hit more than 15 home runs in a season was 1985 when Kelly Paris hit 18 home runs for Rochester.

SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE YANKEES www.SWBYankees.com

THE PUSH FOR EVEN: Scranton/Wilkes-Barre starting pitchers did not pick up their first win of the season as a unit until the 15th game of the season on April 23rd when Ivan Nova got a winning decision against Lehigh Valley. The Yankees starters dropped their first four decisions of the 2010 before Nova got the first W. Yankees starters have not had a mark of .500 since May 22nd when Zach McAllister picked up the win in SWB's 7-4 victory at Indianapolis evening the unit's record at 11-11. The Yankees starters are currently 34-36 on the season and have earned 67% of the decisions in the 105 games played by SWB this season. Yankees starters have not been over .500 as a unit the entire season.

PROLIFIC JULY: The Yankees are two wins away in the month of July from equaling the 17 win total in May for the most wins of any month in 2010. SWB's .286 batting average over the month is 19 points higher than the previous best of .267 set in April. The Yankees have scored 128 runs in July, which is one better than their total in May (127) the previous most prolific run scoring month of the season. The 29 homers hit by SWB this month are 11 better than the previous best month June. Pitching wise SWB's 3.72 ERA in July ranks second behind June's 3.53 as the best of the season and is a half run better then both April and May.

BACK TO BACK AND DOWN TO FIVE: Yankees closer Jonathan Albaladejo picked up his 33rd save of the season on Tuesday night in against Norfolk and now sits five saves away from tying the IL record set by Matt Whiteside of the 2004 Richmond Braves. Despite saving 55% of the Yankees wins this season, his saves on Monday at Rochester and Tuesday vs. Norfolk marked just the third time in 2010 that Albaladejo has picked up saves in back-to-back games. "Alby" saved SWB wins at Indianapolis on May 19th and then got the save in the completion of May 20th's suspended game on the 21st. The right-hander turned back-to-back saves for the Yankees at PNC Field against Indy for the second time on June 12th and 13th. THE COUNTDOWN TO 1,500: SWB Yankees manager Dave Miley has racked up 1,498 wins in his 21 seasons as a minor league manager and is now two away from 1,500 career wins. Miley entered the 2010 season with a career record of 1,438-1,089 including a 322-248 (.565) record as the Yankees Triple-A manager. Since moving with the Yankees from Columbus to Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to start the 2007 season, Miley has posted a 313-218 (.589) record.

SYRACUSE CHIEFS www.SyracuseChiefs.com

REHAB FOR MARQUIS: Major league rehabber Jason Marquis tossed five innings in his first rehab start for Syracuse last night.  Marquis allowed four runs on four hits and struck out seven.  He threw 72 pitches and gave up one hit after the first inning.

CHIEFS TO MAKE WORLD'S LONGEST HUMAN TRAIN: The Syracuse Chiefs announced that the first 1,000 children 12 & younger in attendance for the team's game on Tuesday, August 3 against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees will be invited to participate in an attempt to break the world record for the longest human train.  The world record attempt will take place in the right field upper deck of Alliance Bank Stadium prior to the scheduled 7:00 p.m. first pitch.  Participants will be organized on Tuesday so that the human train will spell out the word 'Chiefs.'  The current world record for the longest human train stands at 710 participants.

TOLEDO MUD HENS www.MudHens.com

CENTURY MARK: OF/1B Jeff Frazier has now played in 100 consecutive games. It is the longest consecutive games streak by a Hen since Chris Wakeland played 188 straight from 2000-2001 (last 99 of 2000, first 89 of 2001). Frazier has played in 104 of the Hens 105 games for the season. The only one he missed was April 12 against Indianapolis.

EXTRA INNINGS: At 0-3, the Mud Hens remain the only Triple-A team without an extra-inning victory on the season.  The only other full-season minor league teams without an extra-inning win are the Rome Braves (0-4) of the South Atlantic League and the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers (0-10) of the Midwest League.

HEN EGGS: OF/1B Jeff Frazier is hitting .333 (18-for-54) with four doubles, seven home runs and 16 RBI over his last 13 games...... SS Brent Dlugach has hit safely in each of his last eight games, batting .364 (12-for-33)...... OF Casper Wells is hitting .355 (11-for-31) with two doubles, three home runs and eight RBI over his last eight games...... RHP Alfredo Figaro is 3-0 with a 1.25 ERA (21.2 IP/3 ER) and 22 strikeouts over his last four starts.

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International League Stories from July 29, 2010


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