The Undercards: Bulls Bring the Power, Hot Rods Bring the Speed

For once this actually makes sense. Bulls are generally regarded as powerful while hot rods (a type of car) can definitely be referred to as fast, at least in comparison with people. Team nicknames are not indicative of team performance, but for once this worked out pretty well.

Triple-A International League: Gwinnett Braves 11, Durham Bulls 9

Yes, the Bulls brought their power bats. But they forgot the pitching. Lance Pendleton had a start to forget, lasting just 2.2 innings allowing 8 runs on 10 hits, striking out 3 while walking 1. But Josh Lueke picked him up with 2.1 perfect innings, striking out 3, and Julio Teheran, the one-time super prospect, had a terrible start for Gwinnett as well, allowing 7 runs on 9 hits in 5 innings, striking out 2 and walking 2 as well, and allowing four home runs! Rich Thompson, Henry Wrigley, Chris Gimenez, and Reid Brignac all went deep against Teheran. But Teheran would earn the win in this game as the Durham bullpen let up 3 more runs. Gimenez had a huge game, going 4 for 4 with a homer and 4 RBI, Wrigley went 3 for 5 with a homer, a double, and 3 runs scored, and Brignac went 2 for 5 with a homer, a double, and 3 RBI.

Double-A Southern League: Jackson Generals (SEA) 8, Montgomery Biscuits 3

Not exactly the results the Biscuits wanted from this game, but there are positives to take. Jake Thompson‘s line was not pretty as he went 5 innings, allowing 5 runs on 10 hits. But he struck out 6 while walking 2 and posted a 6-3 groundout to flyout ratio. Hopefully he continues to progress. On offense, Tyler Bortnick went 3 for 4 with a double, Omar Luna went 3 for 5 with an RBI, and Mayo Acosta went 2 for 3 with a walk and 2 runs scored. Hak-Ju Lee, meanwhile, went 1 for 2 with 3 walks, extending his hitting streak to 19 games.

High-A Florida State League: Palm Beach Cardinals 5, Charlotte Stone Crabs 3

A 9th inning rally fell short for the Stone Crabs as they fell in this one. Victor Mateo tossed 5 decent innings for Charlotte, allowing 2 runs on 3 hits, striking out 4 and walking 4. Scott Schneider tossed 6 shutout innings for Palm Beach, and George Jensen allowed 3 runs, just 1 earned in the 8th inning to put this game out of reach despite 3 runs in the 9th by the Stone Crabs. Mikie Mahtook went 1 for 3 with a solo homer, a walk, and his 17th stolen base of the season, while Derek Dietrich went 2 for 4 with a run scored.

Low-A Midwest League: Bowling Green Hot Rods 7, Lake County Captains (CLE) 5

This game got scary at the end, but still there was a lot to like in this game for the Hot Rods. Parker Markel took the hill for the Hot Rods and came through with another great start, allowing 1 run on 2 hits in 5 innings, striking out 5 while walking 3 and posting an incredible 10-1 groundout to flyout ratio. On offense for the Hot Rods, this game was all about the stolen bases. Ryan Brett didn’t have a hit in the game, but he had a sac fly, walked twice, and stole two bases, his 30th and 31st steals of the season. Congratulations to him on reaching 30 stolen bases on the season, most in the organization. Tyler Goeddel had an RBI double and also notched his 20th stolen base of the season, another milestone. Taylor Motter went 2 for 3 with an RBI double and stole his 14th base, while Juniel Querecuto swiped his 6th.

Short Season-A New York-Penn League: Hudson Valley Renegades 7, Auburn Doubledays (WSN) 2

Taylor Guerrieri is back, and although his outing was short as he works his way back, he was as good as ever. Guerrieri went 3 shutout innings, allowing just 1 hit, and he struck out 2 while walking none and posted a 6-0 groundout to flyout ratio. Jose Alberto Molina followed him with 3 shutout innings of relief for his first professional victory. The Renegades received their runs from all over the place in this one. Tommy Coyle went 2 for 5 with a stolen base, 2 RBI, and 2 runs scored, Justin O’Conner went 2 for 5 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored, Marty Gantt went 3 for 5 with a double and a run scored, Ryan Dunn went 2 for 4 with an RBI, Deshun Dixon went 2 for 5 with a double and an RBI, and Leonardo Reginatto went 1 for 2 with a walk, an RBI, and a run scored.

Advanced Rookie: Danville Braves 9, Princeton Rays 4

Tough game for the P-Rays in this one. Bruedlin Suero lasted 5 innings, allowing 4 runs on 6 hits, striking out 4 while walking 2. His groundout to flyout ratio was just 4-5. A couple of notable players did have nice games, though, as Alvin Toles went 2 for 4 with 2 RBI, and Brandon Martin went 1 for 4 with a double, a walk, and an RBI.