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IL1 International League

International League News And Notes

July 9, 2009 - International League (IL1) News Release


BUFFALO BISONS (www.Bisons.com)

VETERAN ROOKIE: LHP Ken Takahashi is technically a 'rookie,' but the 40-year old is having a great season in his first year in the states. Takahashi has posted a 0.72 ERA in 10 games with the Bisons this year. After nine appearances from the bullpen, the southpaw gave the Bisons six shutout innings on Tuesday night in his first ever start in America. Takahashi's work earned him a promotion to the Mets from April 26-June 23 where he pitched well (0-1, 3.00 ERA, 15 G, 18.0 IP). One of the reasons Takahashi is making such a smooth transition might be because he spent the last three years of his career in Hiroshima under former Bisons manager and IL Manager of the Year, Marty Brown.

BIG ADDITION: INF Javier Castillo continues to just pound the ball for the Bisons. Acquired in a trade with the White Sox on June 14, the six-foot, three-inch Castillo has hit in 19 of his 23 games with the Herd. He's averaged .326 (29-89) with Buffalo and already has twice as many home runs (4) as he had in 47 games with Charlotte to begin the year. Castillo enters play on Thursday riding a 12-game hit streak over which he has averaged .383 (18-47).

COMPLETE EFFORTS: The Bisons pitching staff has delivered a pair of nine-inning complete games in the last four days. LHP Jonathon Niese delivered the first when he shutout Rochester on five hits in the second game of a day-night doubleheader on Sunday. Niese struck out a Bisons season-high 10 in the game and was named IL Pitcher of the Week. Last night, RHP Lance Broadway gave the Herd bullpen a rest. While he lost his shutout over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in the 9th inning, Broadway allowed just seven hits and struck out four in his complete game.

CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS (www.CharlotteKnights.com)

ON ASSIGNMENT: White Sox outfielder Carlos Quentin went 0-2 in the fourth game of his rehab assignment.  He was later replaced by OF Michael Restovich.  Quentin is expected to be in tonight's starting lineup.  So far in his rehab assignment, he is 4-10 (.400) with two RBI, two walks and one run scored in four games with the Knights.  Quentin was placed on the White Sox disabled list on 5/29 (retroactive to 5/26) with plantar fasciitis in his left foot.

 

ALLEN TRADED: Infielder Brandon Allen has been traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks in exchange for right-handed pitcher Tony Pena.  Allen had been playing for Charlotte.  Allen, 23, is hitting .282 (84-298) with 16 doubles, eight home runs and 43 RBI in 62 combined games with Double-A Birmingham and Charlotte.  He entered the season as the sixth best prospect in the organization according to Baseball America.  Allen was transferred to Charlotte from Birmingham on June 19, he played in 15 games for Charlotte hitting .262 (16-61) with four doubles, one home run and 8 RBI.  Pena, 27, is 5-3 with a 4.24 ERA (16 ER/34.0 IP) and one save in 37 relief appearances with the Diamondbacks in 2009.  He leads the club with eight holds and ranks second in games pitched.  The White Sox also designated former Knights pitcher Jimmy Gobble for assignment

 

THURSDAY STARTER: RHP Bartolo Colon is the scheduled starter for the Knights tonight vs. Norfolk, with usual starting pitcher and IL All-Star Carlos Torres scheduled to back him up.  Colon has not yet reported to Charlotte.  The big right-hander was placed on the White Sox disabled list on June 9 with a sore left knee.  Colon had been working his way back in extended spring training in Arizona before his scheduled rehab assignment with Charlotte.  He was 3-6 with a 4.23 ERA in 11 starts for Chicago.

COLUMBUS CLIPPERS (www.ClippersBaseball.com)

WELCOME TO TRIPLE-A: Last night the #13 prospect in the Cleveland organization made his Triple-A debut.  Hector Rondon cruised through six innings, walking two batters while not allowing a single hit.  The 21-year-old, currently the 3rd youngest player in the IL, threw 95 pitches in his first start for the Clippers, notching eight strikeouts, before he was relieved by Rich Rundles at the top of the 7th (Rundles lost the no-hitter to the first batter he faced).  Rondon was selected to the Eastern League All-Star Team and was among the EL leaders in several categories at the time of his promotion.  He paced the circuit in WHIP (1.06), ranked 2nd in K/BB (4.6) and K/9 (9.1), was tied for 3rd in wins (7), 5th in ERA (2.75) and 6th in strikeouts (73).

HITTING MACHINES: Trevor Crowe picked up a hit in his 14th straight game last night and is hitting .322 (19-59) during the stretch.  His streak is the longest active streak in the IL.  Jordan Brown has hit in nine straight (.410, 16-39) and 15 of his last 16.  Andy Marte has hit in 13 of his last 15 games, reaching base in all 15, while batting .429 (24-56) with 4 HR and 15 RBI.  Marte's stretch has included a 10-game hit streak from 6/23-7/2 and eight consecutive at bats with a hit from 6/30-7/2.   Brown ranks 3rd in the IL in hitting (.324), while Marte comes in 4th (.319) and Matt LaPorta is 9th (.306).

ANOTHER TWO BITE THE DUST: Yesterday the Clippers placed starters Jack Cassel and Kirk Saarloos on the disabled list.  On the season, the Clippers have now sent 15 players to the DL a total of 17 times (George Lombard and Blaine Neal have been injured twice).  Columbus has had at least four players on the DL for every day this season, including a season-high nine players disabled on 7/6.  With the loss of Saarloos, there are now only four players on the team that have been active for every game this season (Michael Brantley, Jordan Brown, Andy Marte and Wyatt Toregas).

DURHAM BULLS (www.DurhamBulls.com)

DOUBLE TROUBLE: Reid Brignac hit a pair of doubles last night, his 19th and 20th of the season, giving Durham three players with at least 20 two-base hits.  Jon Weber leads the IL with 27, and Matt Joyce has 21. Durham leads the IL in doubles with 174, as well as homers with 90.

SLAM CITY: Elliot Johnson hit a grand slam Monday at Charlotte in a 6-1 win, the seventh by the Bulls this season.  He became the fourth different Bulls player to hit a grand slam.  Chris Richard (2), Justin Ruggiano (3), and Ray Sadler are the others.  To put the seven grand slams in perspective, Durham's parent team, the Tampa Bay Rays, has never hit as many seven in a season.

FAMILY MATTERS: Tuesday's 8-3 win over Gwinnett included the return of manager Charlie Montoyo.  Montoyo left the club on Saturday, June 27.  Charlie's son Alex, who turns two on October 17, had his third open heart surgery last Thursday.  Doctors called the surgery a success, and Alex Montoyo went home to Arizona (from UCLA Medical Center) Monday. Hitting coach Dave Myers and pitching coach Xavier Hernandez ran the club while Montoyo was gone, and the Bulls were 8-1 over that stretch.

TOUGH ROAD: Saturday night (the fourth of July at Charlotte) began a string of 14 of 17 games on the road.  Durham, 3-2 in this stretch so far, is 25-18 on the road this season.  The Bulls conclude pre- All-Star break play with a three-game series at Norfolk, the team the Bulls lead by one game in the South Division.  The Bulls dropped three of four at Norfolk earlier this year.

GWINNETT BRAVES (www.GwinnettBraves.com)

GET ON WITH IT: The Gwinnett Braves now hold three of the top five rankings in on-base percentage in the International League. Wes Timmons ranks second with a .431 OBP, Brandon Jones is third with a .391 OBP and Barbaro Canizares is fourth with a .387 OBP. Timmons is still going strong in his on-base streak, having reached safely in each of his last 32 games. In his last four, Timmons has reached first base in almost every way possible. He hit safely in three of the last four games, walked in three of four, was hit by a pitch on July 5 vs. Norfolk and reached on a missed catch error on July 8 at Durham. The G-Braves, who own a .339 team OBP, are second only to the Columbus Clippers, who have posted a .340 mark thus far.

SMALL BALL: The G-Braves have climbed up the rankings in OBP the small ball way. Gwinnett leads the League with 312 walks, 19 intentional walks,

36 sacrifice flies, 44 hit-by-pitches and is tied for the League-lead with Norfolk with 32 sacrifice bunts. The G-Braves are fifth in the League with 77 stolen bases and are tied for fifth with a .260 team batting average. Gwinnett, who is also fifth in the league with 747 hits (8.6 h/g) is 11th in the league in extra-base hits (221) and subsequently has the fourth-most singles (526) in the League. The G-Braves are 13th in the League with just 47 home runs, but Gwinnett has scored the fourth-most runs in the IL (381) and is averaging 4.38 runs per game, sixth-most in the IL.

 

IN THE STANDINGS: The Gwinnett Braves have the fourth-most wins the International League but because they have played one more game than everyone else, also have the most losses for a team with a winning record. Of the seven teams that have better than a .500 record, only Pawtucket and Gwinnett have a sub-.500 record in their respective last 10 games. The G-Braves' 7-6 win Wednesday at Durham was win number 25 on the road this season. Gwinnett is now tied for the second-most road wins and tied for the fewest losses (17) on the road in the IL this season. The G-Braves are 2nd in the League with a .595 road winning pct.

 

WES WATCH: Wes Timmons was 1-4 with a walk on Wednesday night at Durham to extend his on-base streak to 32 games. It is the longest current on-base streak in the IL. Timmons is batting .371 (39-105) with 24 runs and 27 walks during the streak. The last time Timmons failed to reach base was on May 26 vs. Toledo. Since then, Timmons has raised his batting average from .191 going into a May 27 game vs. Indianapolis to his current average of .289. His on-base streak has included 12-game, 6-game and 5-game hitting streaks.

INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS (www.IndyIndians.com)

STARTING STRENGTH:  RHP Ian Snell and LHP Tom Gorzelanny have led the way for the starting staff as the duo has combined to allow just one run for a 0.28 ERA in their last five starts (32.2 IP), while also having combined to strikeout an average of 8.4 batters per game (42 SO in five starts), including season highs of 12 for Gorzelanny on June 27 and a record breaking 17 for Snell on June 28. Since joining the Indians on June 28 Snell as made two starts with the Tribe in which he has yet to allow a single earned run in 14.0 total innings. In his first start with Indianapolis on June 28 Snell set a Victory Field record with 17 strikeouts, the most in all of Minor League Baseball this season, including 13 consecutive strikeouts which is the longest streak in baseball this season. The right-hander then received his first win for the Indians this season with a complete game shutout on July 5 when he gave up only five hits, while striking out six. Even though Gorzelanny is 2-2 in his five outings since returning from the Pirates' bullpen on June 10, the left-hander has only allowed four earned runs for a 1.08 ERA with 32 strikeouts in his last 33.1 innings of work.

BIXLER BLASTS THE COMPETITION: INF Brian Bixler led off Tuesday's offensive explosion with his second straight lead-off home run and his third long ball in as many games. Bixler homered in three straight contests (July 5-7) for the first time in his career, after being held homerless for his first 64 games with the Tribe this season. The multi-dimensional utility man also became the first Tribe slugger to belt a home run in three consecutive games this season and the first to accomplish that feat since OF Adam Boeve launched a long ball in four straight contests from May 27 to May 30 last season.  His lead-off home run on Tuesday was the Indians' fourth lead-off long ball of the season with OF Andrew McCutchen accomplishing the feat twice earlier this year (May 31 vs. PAW  and  April 21 @ TOL) and Bixler himself belting a lead-off homer on Monday, July 6. The 2008 IL All-Star just saw his seven-game hitting streak (11-26, 3 R, 3 HR, 7 RBI) come to a close on Wednesday, but has still recorded multi-hit performances in four of his last six contests.

CLOSE CALLS: With another one-run loss on Wednesday, Indianapolis has found themselves involved in several close contests in the past weeks. Before the Tribe's 13-6 win on Tuesday the Indians' previous five victories were all by a combined seven runs (1.4 runs per game average) including a streak of three straight one-run wins. The Indians have also been involved in many close defeats as four of their last five losses have all been by one run and eight of their last twelve defeats have been decided by just a single score. So far this season Indianapolis is 12-17 (.414 winning pct.) in games decided by one run, while last year they were a little bit better with a .456 winning percentage (26-31) in one run contests. However, the Indians have already passed their 2008 season total with six walk-off wins this year, while they have allowed only three walk-off wins for opponents. Currently the Tribe's 29 single-run games this year are ranked in a three-way tie for the most in the International League along with Durham and Pawtucket's 29 one score contests.

OFFENSIVE EXPLOSION: On Tuesday against Columbus, the Tribe offense exploded for 13 runs on 16 hits, which was two more runs than they had in their last six games combined. The Indians also received break out offensive efforts across the board as six individual batters recorded multi-hit games, five collected multiple RBI and three scored multiple runs. The offensive outburst also marked the first time this season that the Indians had five players with multiple RBI and just the second time that they have had six players collect multiple hits. The contest also saw several players turn in personal season bests as LF Chris Barnwell knocked in a season best three runs, International League All-Star catcher Erik Kratz and INF Shelby Ford each scored a season high three times and OF Jonel Pacheco collected his first RBI in an Indians uniform with his three on Tuesday evening. The Tribe also roped a season high seven doubles in the 13-6 win with Barnwell, Ford, and INF/C Hector Gimenez each collecting two and Pacheco adding one.

LEHIGH VALLEY IRONPIGS (www.IronPigsBaseball.com)

SERIES SWITCH: The IronPigs-Yankees upcoming two-game series has been shifted to Coca-Cola Park due to the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees continuing efforts to correct drainage issues at PNC Field in Moosic. Both games are scheduled for 7:05 p.m. The IronPigs are offering complimentary tickets to their season ticket and mini-plan holders for these upcoming games. In addition, those holding tickets to the games originally scheduled for PNC Field can exchange those tickets for a complimentary Field Level ticket (subject to availability) to the games at Coca-Cola Park.

REHABING RAUL: Also on Thursday, Phillies All-Star slugger Raul Ibanez is scheduled to continue a Major League rehab appearance for the IronPigs.  Tuesday, he became the fifth Phillies player to rehab with the IronPigs (went 1-2, BB, R). Prior to suffering the injury, the 37-year-old was enjoying an MVP-caliber season (.312-22-59 in 62 G), ranking second in the National League in both HR (22) and RBI (59). Despite not appearing in a game since mid-June, Ibanez received the 2nd-most All-Star votes among N.L. outfielders and, if healthy, will appear in his first Midsummer Classic on July 14 at Busch Stadium in St. Louis. Other notable rehabs at Coca-Cola Park: OF Shane Victorino (4/26-4/27/08), RHP Rudy Seanez (8/11/08), C Carlos Ruiz (4/25-5/1) and LHP J.C. Romero (5/18-5/31); Boston's RHP Daisuke Matsuzaka (6/16/08) & SS Julio Lugo (4/24-4/26/09); Detroit's LHP Dontrelle Willis (5/1/09).

KYLE KAN!: Even though his last win was his first since 5/27 @ BUF (had gone six straight starts w/o a win), RHP Kyle Kendrick has turned in Quality Starts in 7 of his last 9 GS -- and one was an 0.1 IP rain-shortened start 6/22 @ NOR. In these 9 G, Kendrick is 3-2, 2.93 with a CG (55.1 IP, 19 R, 18 ER). He has taken a SHO into the 6th in 4 of the starts.

TURNING THE C-C-CORNER?: Despite a being hit hard in a loss (4 IP, 6 ER) Tuesday, RHP Carlos Carrasco remains 4-1, 3.94 (29.2 IP, 13 ER) in his last five GS. With his win July 2 at Syracuse, Carrasco set a franchise record winning four straight GS -- going 4-0, 2.46 (25.2 IP, 7 ER) -- passing the record set by LHP Brian Mazone (4/25-5/6/08) and since tied by RHP Drew Carpenter (6/5-6/16/09) and RHP Rodrigo Lopez (6/18-Present).

LOUISVILLE BATS (www.BatsBaseball.com)

BAILEY TOPPS IN JUNE: RHP Homer Bailey was named the TOPPS IL Player of the Month for June. In five June starts, Bailey went 4-0 with a 0.47 ERA. He allowed two runs in 38.1 IP and walked seven while striking out 38. On the season with Louisville, he is 8-5 with a 2.71 ERA. Bailey was recalled by Cincinnati June 27 and in two stints and three starts with the Reds, he is 1-0 with a 5.94 ERA. He's also twice been named IL Pitcher of the Week (4/20-4/26 and 6/1-6/7).

FUTURES GAME: OF Chris Heisey has been selected to play for the U.S. Team in the XM Futures Game at Busch Stadium on Sunday, July 12 at 2:00 p.m. EDT on ESPN2. In 12 games, after being promoted from Double-A Carolina, Heisey is batting .333 with five doubles, one home run and eight runs batted in.

EIGHT STRAIGHT ERROR-FREE GAMES: The Bats, who have struggled with their glove work all season long, played in eight straight error-free games (6/30-7/7) for the first time this season. During that stretch they compiled a record of 4-4. Their previous high was three in a row from 4/16 to 4/18. Louisville is now second in the IL in errors with 79 & has committed at least one error in 50 of 86 games. They are last in the IL in double plays (52) & assists (784), and are 13th in fielding % (.974). Gwinnett leads the IL with 89 E.

300: With Kevin Barker's RBI single last night in the top of the third inning, he became the first player in a Louisville uniform to record 300 RBI with the franchise. His double in the fifth inning also made him the franchise leader in doubles, as he surpassed Gene Roof with 89 two-baggers. On April 26 at Toledo, he became the franchise leader in home runs by surpassing Brandon Larson.  He now has 82 home runs in a Louisville uniform and leads the Bats this season with 15.

NORFOLK TIDES (www.NorfolkTides.com)

ON-BASE MACHINE: With four hits yesterday Jeff Fiorentino has now hit safely in eight straight games, and he's reached base safely in 25 consecutive contests, a streak that is the 3rd-longest in the IL this season. Over that 25-game stretch, Fiorentino has hit .389 (35-90) with a home run and 15 RBI, and he's posted an on-base percentage of .447. The 26-year-old has also reached base safely in 26 straight road contests, the longest such streak in the IL this year.

JOLBERT'S HOT: Jolbert Cabrera clubbed a three-run homer in Tuesday night's win, and he now has two home runs and seven RBI over his last two contests. Cabrera has hit safely in five straight games, hitting .364 (8-22) with two homers and 11 RBI over that span, and he's also hit safely in 20 of his last 22 starts. Over that 22-game stretch, Cabrera has hit .333 (30-90) with three home runs and 22 runs batted in.

THE FUTURE IS NOW: Tides starter Chris Tillman has been chosen to play in the Futures Game on July 12 in St. Louis. Tillman ranks 6th in the IL with a

2.50 ERA and is 4th in the League with 88 strikeouts. The 21-year-old began the season 5-0 with a 2.13 ERA and Norfolk was 8-0 in his first eight starts, as the Tides averaged 7.6 runs a game in his outings (61 runs, 8 starts). However, despite posting a 2.79 ERA (15 ER, 48.1 IP) with 44 strikeouts, eight walks and

39 hits allowed over his last eight starts, the 21-year-old has gone 2-5, as Norfolk has plated just 20 runs over that span (2.5 runs a game).

PAWTUCKET RED SOX (www.PawSox.com)

A STAR CLOSER: Pawtucket's bullpen ace, closer Fernando Cabrera, was elected to the 2009 International League All-Star Team, earning a trip to Portland, Oregon for the Triple-A All-Star Game on July 15. Cabrera, 27, is currently the International League leader in Saves with 17 as he has gone 17-for-17 in save opportunities since taking over from Daniel Bard as the PawSox closer in early-May. He is currently 0-2 with a 1.21 ERA in a team-high 29 relief appearances. Opponents are hitting just .162 against him and during his 17 saves (in 17 opportunities) he has a 0.43 ERA (1 ER in 21 IP). Cabrera was signed by the Red Sox as a minor league free agent on December 18, 2008. He spent most of last season with Baltimore going 2-1 with a 5.40 ERA in 22 RA after beginning the year on a rehab assignment with Norfolk following off-season elbow surgery (0-0, 0.69 in 11 games for the Tides). Some other notable PawSox players who have appeared in the Triple-A All-Star Game since the event began in 1988 include: INF Tim Naehring (1990), 3B Scott Cooper & OF Phil Plantier (1991),

RHP Brian Rose (1997), OF Trot Nixon (1998), RHP Tomo Ohka (2000), RHP Bronson Arroyo (2003), OF Brandon Moss (2007), and in 2008 a team-record five PawSox players were chosen including 1B Jeff Bailey, OF Chris Carter, OF Jonathan Van Every, 2B Joe Thurston, and RHP Charlie Zink.

ROCHESTER RED WINGS (www.RedWingsBaseball.com)

I LOVE A (HIT) PARADE: The Red Wings offense is heating up the last six games batting .325 (67--206) as a team.  Rochester has 12 or more hits in three straight and four of the six games.  The Red Wings offense has heated up in July batting .321 (77-240) as a team and is averaging 5.9 runs per game.

BREAK ME OFF A WINNING RECORD: The Red Wings need to go 3-1 in their last four games before the All-Star break to clinch their fifth winning record at the All-Star break in the last six years (2008 Wings were 45-54 at the Break).  Last season Rochester played 99 games prior to the All-Star break which was the most games the Red Wings have played prior to an All-Star break since 1988 when the Triple-A All-Star game was introduced.

THESE HOTELS AREN'T SO BAD: So far this season the Red Wings have a 20-19 record away from Frontier Field.  If Rochester can finish with a winning road record this season it would only be the second time since 1994 that Rochester has had a winning road record.  The last two times Rochester has finished a season with a winning road record they've made the Governors' Cup Finals (1993 37-34 record away from Silver Stadium and 2006 37-35 record away from Frontier Field).

SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE YANKEES (www.SWBYankees.com)

ENJOYING JULY: With a 4-2 start to the month of July, the Yankees are off to their best start since opening the season in April with 11 straight wins, finishing the month with a franchise best .850 winning percentage and a 17-3 record. SWB got off to a 3-1 start in May before losing its second game at Indianapolis on May 5. The Yankees won three in a row to extend the May record to 6-2 before dropping five straight and finishing the month at 9-13 for a 15-15 record. June was the toughest month of the campaign for the Yanks who dropped four in a row to open the month and suffered a five game losing streak in late June to finish the month at 12-14.

RUSSO KEEPS REACHING: Kevin Russo picked up a sixth inning double in Wednesday's game at Buffalo to extend his consecutive games reaching base streak to 31 straight games dating back to May 4. The Yankees lead off man has reached base in 37 of the 38 games he has played in this season. The only game in '09 that Russo has failed to reach base safely came on April 15 at Buffalo when he was taken out of the game after injuring his hamstring with a 0-2 game. Russo's streak is the second longest streak in the IL this season. The longest streak belongs to Gwinnett's Wes Timmons who has reached in 32 straight games dating back to May 27.

RIDING THE RECORD ROLLER COASTER: Following a win at Louisville on May 8, the Yankees had the best record in Minor League Baseball at 23-5 and had a five and a half game lead in the IL North. Since that 11-5 win, the Yanks have posted a 25-29 record which has included three five-game losing streaks, a three-game losing streak, a five-game winning streak, and a four-game winning streak. Despite the ups and downs in the last 54 games, the Yankees lead in the North has only been cut into by one and a half games and currently sits at four games over Syracuse.

YANKEES DOODLES: Tuesday night the Yankees picked up their second win when trailing after the 8th inning, the first was at Rochester on April 25... After a stretch of division games where the Yankees went 3-13, the Yankees have won six of eight against the IL North... The Yankees team ERA for the month of July is 2.00, with the opposition hitting .227 against SWB pitching... Shelley Duncan has not homered since June 22, a span of 13 games covering 46 at bats, his longest homerless drought of the season... Out of nine extra inning games the Yankees have played in 2009, five have gone 11 innings with the SWB winning three and losing two.

SYRACUSE CHIEFS (www.SyracuseChiefs.com)

PADILLA STREAK ENDS AT 18: International League All Star outfielder Jorge Padilla had his 18-game hit streak end against Rochester on Tuesday night when he went 0-4.  During his streak Padilla was a batting .423 (30-71) and raised his batting average from .347 to .372.

DUKES ENTERS RECORD BOOKS: Chiefs outfielder Elijah Dukes joined three players that have hit home runs over the center field batter's eye that sits

408-feet from home plate and is 40-feet high.  Ryan Thompson, Patrick Lennon (twice), and Ottawa first baseman Walter Young all mastered "The Wall" from 1997-2003.  Dukes' home run came in his third game as a Chiefs player.

TRIO OF CHIEFS PITCHERS RELEASED: Three Chiefs pitchers all were released this week in a flurry of player moves.  Left-hander Wilfredo Ledezma came first on Sunday, while Preston Larrison was announced one day later on July 6.  Cory Doyne then became the third Chiefs hurler in as many days.  The Chiefs replaced all three with three pitchers from the Nationals Double-A affiliate in Harrisburg: lefty Dave Williams and right-handers Andrew Kown and Zach Segovia.

TOLEDO MUD HENS (www.MudHens.com)

HIT MEN: In the month of July, Toledo is 4th in the League with a .287 batting average and several players are off to a hot start. Wilkin Ramirez, after struggling to the tune of a .146 average (1 HR/5 RBI) in June, is batting .520 (13-25) with 2 HR and 7 RBI in July. Brent Clevlen continues his solid play so far this month, following up the month of June where he hit .312 with a .286 average so far in July. Jeff Frazier is also at .286 for the month and back near the top of the order. Will Rhymes is 6-13 (.462) in four games so far. After Dusty Ryan was called up by Detroit, many thought Toledo would struggle offensively from the catcher position, but Max St-Pierre has a current four-game hit streak and is batting .333 in July.

COMIC RELIEF: It is said laughter is the best medicine, so with the Hens game (July 2 at Columbus) out of hand the Hens used position players to pitch the final two innings. Down 14-0 in the seventh, OF Jeff Frazier took the mound and pitched an inning, making it the first time a Hen position player pitched since Kevin Hooper did it on September 5, 2005 (when he played all nine positions). Frazier allowed four runs in the inning. In the eighth, Frazier moved to third base and Mike Hessman took the mound to show him up, needing three pitches to record three outs in his perfect inning.

HOT BULLPEN...: Since June 6, LHP Clay Rapada, RHP Casey Fien, and RHP Ryan Perry have been an absolute dominant trio from the back end of the Hen Pen. They have combined for 2.42 ERA (7 ER/26.0 IP) with 37 strikeouts. Rapada had a 12.2 scoreless inning streak snapped on June 23, Fien had a 12.2 scoreless inning streak (8 appearances) snapped on July 2 in his second inning of work. Also, RHP Matt Rusch has not allowed a run in 8.1 innings since June 29.

...WITH A HICCUP: In the 10 games prior to the 8-1 loss to Columbus on Sunday the Hens bullpen - excluding Jeff Frazier and Mike Hessman - had combined for 37 innings and only allowed 7 runs (1.70 ERA). They allowed 7 runs in three innings alone on Sunday after RHP Chris Lambert had held the Clippers to one run through six innings. Since this game the bullpen is back in order and has not allowed a run in six innings.

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International League Stories from July 9, 2009


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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