The Undercards: 5-1 Day Completely Overshadowed By Billy Hamilton

Pretty unbelievable. Rays affiliates had an incredible day, imitating the Rays with a 1.87 collective ERA on their way to a 5-1 day. But no one will remember that. Instead they’ll remember what Reds prospect Billy Hamilton did against the Montgomery Biscuits. However, there’s nothing we can do. Let’s get into the games.

Triple-A International League: Durham Bulls 3, Charlotte Knights 1

Wait, Lance Pendleton is still alive? And he’s pitching in the Rays organization? Well, yes. And on Tuesday night, the ex-Yankee and Astro actually pitched well, going 6 innings allowing just 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 6 while walking 3. Pendleton out-dueled another former big leaguer, although one that will be back in the bigs in September in the White Sox’ Dylan Axelrod, who took a tough loss in this one going 6 innings allowing just 2 runs, 1 earned, on 7 hits, striking out 4 while walking 1. On offense, the Bulls managed to plate 3 runs despite going 0 for 9 in runners in scoring position. Leslie Anderson did homer, but it was just a solo shot, and he also drove in a second run with a sac fly as part of his 1 for 3 day. Cole Figueroa went 3 for 4 with a double, Reid Brignac went 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored, Tim Beckham went 1 for 4 with an RBI double, and Rich Thompson went 1 for 3 with a walk, his 24th stolen base of the season, and a run scored.

Double-A Southern League: Montgomery Biscuits 4, Pensacola Blue Wahoos (CIN) 2 (8 innings)

Here’s the game that everyone in baseball is talking about. But not because of the Biscuits. Reds shortstop prospect entered the game with a ridiculous 143 stolen bases on the season, just 2 short of Vince Coleman’s all-time professional record, and Hamilton broke the record with 3 steals and added a 4th for good measure. Hamilton went 1 for 2 with 2 walks and then was off to the races and he’s awfully hard to catch. But the Blue Wahoos couldn’t even drive Hamilton in a single time as the Biscuits managed to win the game 4-2. Kyle Lobstein got the start and pitched well, going 6 shutout innings allowing just 2 hits and 2 walks while striking out 7. His groundout to flyout ratio was just 4-5, but it was nice to see Lobstein missing some bats. In terms of the Biscuits offense, Mark Thomas went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored, Michael Sheridan had a key solo home run in the 8th inning, and Mikie Mahtook, Shawn O’Malley, and Brad Coon had the other RBIs for Montgomery.

Low-A Midwest League: Bowling Green Hot Rods 3, South Bend Silver Hawks (ARI) 1

Parker Markel was outstanding again, nailing down his 10th win of the season with his 6th straight quality start, as the Hot Rods finally beat the Silver Hawks after losing to them three times in a row. Markel went 6.1 innings allowing 1 run on 7 hits, striking out 3 while walking 1 and posting a 9-4 groundout to flyout ratio. Markel’s season got off to a horrific start with a shoulder injury and persistant struggles before and after, but Markel has posted an incredible 1.24 ERA in his last 7 starts. Look for more on Markel over the next couple of days at RCG. Markel got his run support from RBI singles from Camerson Seitzer and Matt Rice, who went 2 for 4 on the day, and Jake Hager went 1 for 3 with a walk and 2 runs scored. A couple of tweets relating to this one as well.

Congrats to Vettleson on his 20th assist and Markel for continuing to pitch well, especially in front of his dad.

Short Season-A New York-Penn League: Hudson Valley Renegades 4, Connecticut Tigers 0

Same story in Hudson Valley as a sparkling pitching performance, this one by Jesse Hahn, led the Renegades to victory. Hahn went 5 innings allowing just 1 hit, striking out 6 while walking 1 and posting a 7-3 groundout to flyout ratio. It was his second straight start of exactly 5 innings, 1 hit, and 6 strikeouts and the third time in 4 starts that he allowed just 1 hit. Hahn has been dominant this season for the Hot Rods in his long-awaited pro debut following Tommy John Surgery after being a 6th round draft pick back in 2010. Ian Kendall and Jose Alberto Molina struck out 4 while allowing just 1 hit for the Renegades over the final 4 innings. The run support came from Thomas Coyle, who slammed a 2-run home run, and Joey Rickard, who went just 1 for 1 but certainly made it count with 2 stolen bases, a sac fly, and the unfortunate pleasure of being hit by two pitches.

Advanced Rookie Appalachian League: Princeton Rays 5, Danville Braves 2

Deja vu all over again here, but this one was especially satisfying as the P-Rays knocked out Braves 2012 first rounder Lucas Sims after just 1.2 innings. Kevin James got the first half of the start for Princeton and pitched pretty well, going 4 innings allowing 2 runs on 5 hits, striking out 5 while walking 1. It was the first time in 6 starts that James allowed as many as 2 runs. Jacob Faria took the second half of the start and was dominant, allowing just 1 hit in 4 innings, striking out 5 while walking none. Faria has been smacked around of late, but hopefully this start can get him going. Nick Sawyer struck out 2 in a perfect 9th for his 4th save, coming back strong from his first time ever struggling as a pro. Great to see that from all three of these guys. On offense, the P-Rays were led by Omar Narvaez, who went 3 for 3 with a walk, a stolen base, and an RBI, and Ariel Soriano and James Harris drove in the other Princeton runs. Harris showed that he still has the wheels when he actually gets on base, swiping 2 in this one- but he’s still just 6 of 13 steals on the year. Ughhhh. William Argo also stole his 15th base of the year for Princeton.

Rookie Gulf Coast League: GCL Twins 5, GCL Rays 2

Unfortunately, the GCL Twins spoiled Rays’ affiliates’ perfect day. This was an interesting game as the Rays’ 6th round pick in 2012, Damion Carroll, split the start with their 4th rounder Nolan Gannon. Carroll was outstanding, allowing just an unearned run on 1 hit in 4 innings, striking out 5 while walking none and posting a 5-1 groundout to flyout ratio. Gannon, meanwhile, struck out 6 while walking 1 in 4 innings of his own, but he allowed 2 home runs on his way to 4 runs on just 3 hits in the game. His groundout to flyout ratio was 3-2. Some bad luck and some bad location were the bane of Gannon’s existence in this one. Dayne Quist did toss a perfect 9th with a strikeout. The GCL Rays mustered incredibly little offense, scoring both their runs on errors. Johnny Eierman went 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored while Taylor Hawkins went 1 for 4 with his first career stolen base.