Triple-A International League: Columbus Clippers (CLE) 7, Durham Bulls 1

Homers for your team are good. Homers for the other team are bad. Lance Pendleton allowed 3 homers while the Bulls’ offense stayed mostly quiet in their 7-1 loss to Columbus. Pendleton went 5 innings allowing 6 runs on 10 hits, striking out 3 while walking 1 but allowing flyball after flyball as 3 left the yard. Cord Phelps, Gregorio Petit, and our old buddy Russ Canzler did the honors for Colombus. T.J. McFarland struck out 6 in 7 innings of 1-run ball for Columbus. As it works out, Pendleton’s ERA on the season is now 4.76- McFarland’s is 4.75. Will Rhymes did go 2 for 3 with a walk for Durham while Brooks Conrad went 2 for 4 with the lone RBI.

Double-A Southern League: Montgomery Biscuits 5, Huntsville Stars (MIL) 4 (10 innings)

Starting on the same night as his ex-Vanderbilt roommate, Matt Buschmann gave the Biscuits 6 solid innings before coming apart a bit in the 7th, but the Biscuits rallied to win in 10 innings. Buschmann went 6.1 innings allowing 3 runs on 8 hits, striking out 6 while walking 1 and posting a 9-2 groundout to flyout ratio. The problem was that he allowed 2 home runs, a solo shot each to Hunter Morris and Scooter Gennett in the 7th. Buschmann allowed just 5 flyballs on the day, but two left the yard. Buschmann was unlucky, and thankfully the Biscuits picked him up. Ty Morrison beat out a 1-out bunt single in the 8th and advanced to 2nd on an error and 3rd on a groundball before a Mikie Mahtook RBI single drove him in, and Morrison singled, stole 2nd base, and scored on Omar Luna‘s go-ahead single to give the Biscuits a 5-4 lead, and that was the margin of victory. Chris Rearick and Kirby Yates followed Buschmann followed Buschmann with 3.2 perfect innings of relief. Morrison came up huge late in the game and went 2 for 5 with his 29th stolen base of the season and  2 runs scored, while Mahtook went 2 for 4 with a walk and his big RBI and Luna went 2 for 5 with his game-winning run batted in.

High-A Florida State League: Bradenton Marauders (PIT) 5, Charlotte Stone Crabs 4

The Stone Crabs’ defense fell apart as they let this one slip away. Todd Glaesmann drilled a 2-run homer in the 1st inning to hand Charlotte a 2-0 lead, but a Robby Price error scored a run for Bradenton before the Marauders came up with 3 runs in the 5th with a Robi Estrada error and a wild pitch mixed in to take a 4-2 lead. Hector Guevara slammed a 2-run homer to tie the game in the 6th, but Bradenton responded with a Dan Rovatt homer to take a 5-4 lead and that was the final. Enny Romero was not particularly sharp but didn’t get any favors from his defense, going 4.2 innings allowing 4 runs, just 1 earned, on 3 hits, striking out 4 while walking 2. His groundout to flyout was just 6-5. Enigmatic Enny surfaces again. Glaesmann and Guevara each had a 2-run homer for their only hit, while Price went 2 for 4 with a double and a run scored and Luke Scott went 0 for 3 with 2 walks in his rehab appearance.

Low-A Midwest League: Bowling Green Hot Rods 6, Great Lakes Loons (LAD) 2

Parker Markel was sharp and the Hot Rods ran all over the Loons to come away with a 6-2 win. Markel went 6 innings allowing just 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 6 while walking none. It was his incredible 6th consecutive quality start as he has rebounded in a huge way after a terrible start to 2012 including a shoulder injury. On offense, Cameron Seitzer did slam a 2-run homer, but the focus here has to be on the stolen bases. Ryan Brett stole his 46th, Tyler Goeddel his 27th, Taylor Motter his 19th, and Jake Hager his 11th, and the four combined for 5 of the 6 runs. Brett’s 46 bases lead the Rays system and are tied for 10th in the minor leagues.

Short Season-A New York-Penn League: Hudson Valley Renegades 8, Connecticut Tigers 3

Rays 2012 first rounder Richie Shaffer got off to a tough start to his pro career, hitting just .227 in his first 13 games. He has finally begun to put it all together, going 3 for 4 for the second consecutive game, and he slammed the third home run of his pro career in the 8th inning of this one as the Renegades won 8-3. Jesse Hahn started for Hudson Valley and was nearly perfect in 5 innings, allowing just 1 hit and striking out 6 while walking none. His groundout to flyout ratio was also 7-2. Hahn earned his first professional win in the game (which is more of a reflection of Short Season-A bullpens than anything else). Brandon Henderson followed with 5 strikeout versus no walks in 2 innings, although he allowed 2 runs, 1 earned, and Rob Finneran struck out 1 in a perfect 8th before Jose Alberto Molina struck out 1 as he allowed a run in the 9th. Add up all the strikeouts by Renegades pitching, and you get an impressive 13. Pretty impressive and congrats especially to Hahn. Oh yeah, the offense scored 8 runs. Shaffer went 3 for 4 with his homer, a walk, and an RBI, Joey Rickard went 3 for 5 with a double, 2 RBI, and a run scored, and Luke Maile went 2 for 4 with a solo homer and a walk.

Advanced Rookie Appalachian League: Princeton Rays 5, Burlington Royals 4

Brandon Martin simply took over as the P-Rays came back to beat Burlington 5-4. Kevin James tossed 4 nice innings, allowing 1 run on 4 hits, striking out 6 while walking none and posting a 3-1 groundout to flyout ratio. He left with a 2-1 lead after the P-Rays tallied 2 runs in the 5th, including a solo homer by Martin, but Jacob Faria allowed 3 runs in the 6th as Princeton trailed 4-2. But Faria and Randy Davis tossed the next 2 innings scoreless, and the P-Rays came up with a run in the 8th on a Juan Morillo RBI single to pull within 4-3. John Walter came in for the 9th to close out the game for Burlington. But he hit James Harris with a pitch to begin the inning (Harris left the game), and then Walter had the unfortunate please of running into Brandon Martin. Martin drilled a 2-run homer to give Princeton a 5-4 lead, and Nick Sawyer worked around a walk and an error in the 9th for the save as the P-Rays won 5-4. Sawyer lowered his ERA to a ridiculous 0.39 on the season, 0.49 at Princeton, as he has struck out an insane 41 versus just 9 walks in 23 innings. Doesn’t get any better than that. Martin went 3 for 5 with his two huge homers, and Reid Redman, William Argo, and John Alexander all had multi-hit games as well.

Rookie Gulf Coast League: GCL Rays 3, GCL Twins 2 (10 innings)

Some of these players are really talented, but God I hate the GCL. Listen to this game. It was scoreless through 6 innings as the Rookie Rays failed to back up Geisel De La Cruz, who went 5 shutout innings, allowing just 3 hits and a walk while striking out 5. Sorry Geisel. Somebody finally got a run in the 7th as Leopoldo laced an RBI single to give the Rookie Rays a 1-0 lead. But reliever Jason Wilson blew the lead in the 8th, allowing a Logan Wade 2-run homer in give the GCL Twins a 2-1 lead. But the Rookie Rays tied the game in… kind of dramatic fashion, scoring the tying run on an error by the second baseman. And how about the winning rally in the 10th? Walk, sac bunt, groundout, hit-by-pitch, wild pitch. Sheesh. What is the GCL? Great starting pitchers who never get wins, hitters who can’t hit, position players who can’t field, and relievers who are lucky to be in pro ball. But that’s really why no one in their right mind would ever watch the GCL on TV. When you’re trying to craft kids into the best baseball players on the planet, a ton of work has to be done, and you have to start all the way at the bottom with the basics.

The minor leagues worked a lot of overtime on Saturday, with a double header and three extra inning games. Here is today’s look around the action last night:

Toledo Mud Hens 7, Durham Bulls 2 (Game One)

In the resumption of last night’s suspended game, the Toledo Mud Hens were ready. Tied 1-1 with two out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the fourth, new pitcher Brandon Gomes walked the first batter he faced before escaping the damage. Toledo poured on the offense in the fifth inning, scoring five times, highlighted by Justin Henry‘s two run double and Jerad Head‘s two run home run. The Bulls got a run in the top of the ninth, as Cole Figueroa drove in Reid Brignac with an RBI single, but it was not enough as Durham fell 7-2. Gomes allowed 5 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks over 1.1 innings. Tim Beckham was 2-5 with a run scored in the loss.

Toledo Mud Hens 4, Durham Bulls 2 (Game Two, seven innings)

Durham jumped out to a quick lead in the top of the second, as Will Rhymes hit a two run home run with two outs. Immediately after the home run, Toledo starter Drew Smyly hit Nevin Ashely with a pitch, leading to Smyly and Toledo manager Phil Nevin to be ejected from the game. The Mud Hens came back in the bottom of the fourth, putting runners on first and second with two out. Danny Worth hit a ground rule double, plating a run and moving Danny Dorn to third. Dorn the scored on a wild pitch, tying the game at 2-2. Toledo took the lead in the bottom of the sixth, as Ben Guez hit a two run triple, putting the Mud Hens ahead 4-2. In the top of the seventh, Toledo had two more ejections, as Bruce Rondon and pitching coach A.J. Sager were tossed from the game. Adam Liberatore took the loss, giving up 2 earned runs on 3 hits in an inning of work.

Montgomery Biscuits 4, Jackson Generals 3

Scoreless into the bottom of the fourth inning, Montgomery put two runners on with consecutive two out walks. Mayo Acosta followed up with a two run double, putting the Biscuits ahead 2-0. The Biscuits put another run on the board with Ty Morrison‘s RBI groundout in the fifth, putting the lead to 3-0. The Generals came back in the top of the seventh, as Francisco Martinez hit a two run double, trimming the lead to 3-2. Jackson completed the comeback in the top of the eighth, as Leury Bonilla‘s sacrifice fly drove in Rich Poythress with the tying run. In the bottom of the ninth, Mikie Mahtook led off the inning with a single. Derek Dietrich walked, putting runners on first and second. After a force out, Jonathan Arias uncorked a wild pitch, moving the runners to second and third. Following an intentional walk, Brett Nommensen grounded into a force out at second, scoring Dietrich with the winning run. Chris Rearick picked up the win, giving up an unearned run on 1 hit with 1 strikeout over 2.2 innings of work.

Charlotte Stone Crabs 2, Jupiter Hammerheads 1 (13 innings)

The Hammerheads scored first, with Aaron Dudley‘s sacrifice fly driving in Mark Canha to give Jupiter an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second. The score remained 1-0 into the bottom of the sixth, when Todd Glaesmann hit a solo home run with one out to tie the game. Despite several scoring chances on both sides, the game remained tied 1-1 until the bottom of the 13th inning. Robbie Price led off the inning with a single, and moved to second on a sacrifice bunt. Cody Rogers then had an infield hit to the mound, where pitcher Patrick Merkling had a throwing error, allowing Price to score from second. Victor Mateo had an excellent start for Charlotte, giving up 1 run on 5 hits and a walk, striking out 5 in 8 innings. Chris Andujar picked up the victory, allowing 1 hit in his inning of work. Price finished 3-5 with a run scored.

Bowling Green Hot Rods 2, West Michigan Whitecaps 1 (15 innings)

The Hot Rods scored in the top of the first inning, as Ryan Brett singled, and eventually scored on Jeff Malm‘s sacrifice fly. West Michigan tied the game in the bottom of the third, as Joshua Sale‘s throwing error following a Eugenio Suarez base hit allowed Carlos De Los Santos to score. Bowling Green looked as though they were going to take the lead back in the top of the fourth, with runners on first and third with no outs. However, a ground ball to the mound cut down Cameron Seitzer as he attempted to score from third, and two groundouts ended the threat. Although there were scoring chances for both teams, the game remained tied at one until the top of the fifteenth inning. Jake Hager reached on an error, moved to second on a passed ball, and scored on a base hit by Taylor Motter, giving Bowling Green a 2-1 win. Justin Woodall picked up the victory, allowing 2 hits and 1 walk over 5 innings of relief, striking out 5 batters. Five Hot Rods players had two hits each in the marathon win.

Lowell Spinners 6, Hudson Valley Renegades 5 (13 innings)

The Spinners took advantage of three errors and a balk by the Renegades, eventually scoring a 6-5 victory in 13 innings. Lowell kicked off the scoring in the top of the first, as Mike Miller reached on an error, and came around to score on Dreily Guerrero‘s single. Lowell loaded the bases with no out in the top of the second, scoring a run on a double play. The Renegades got on the board in the bottom of the inning, as Ryan Dunn doubled on a popup to second, reached third on a throwing error, and came around to score on a groundout. Hudson Valley took the lead in the bottom of the third, as Luke Maile had an RBI single, and Dunn drove in a run with a groundout. The Renegades and the Spinners each traded runs in the sixth and seventh innings, before Lowell tied the game in the top of the eighth as Matthew Marquis scored on Miller’s RBI single. The game went into extra innings, where the Renegades loaded the bases with one out in the bottom of the tenth, but Joey Rickard grounded into a double play to end the threat. Deven Marrero homered in the top of the thirteenth, giving Lowell the eventual 6-5 victory. Brandon Henderson picked up the tough loss, allowing the 1 run on 3 hits in 4 innings of relief, while striking out 5 batters. Leonardo Reginatto was 3-6 with a double, an RBI, and a run scored.

Greeneville Astros 6, Princeton Rays 5

Even though the Astros scored a run in the top of the third, the Rays came back to grab a 4-1 lead heading into the top of the seventh. Princeton scored twice in the bottom of the third, as James Harris tripled and scored on Brandon Martin‘s base hit. Martin came around to score, forced in on a bases loaded walk to Omar Navarez. The Rays put up two more runs in the bottom of the fifth, as Navarez hit a two run double. Greeneville came back in the top of the seventh, scoring four runs highlighted by a two run home run from Ricky Gringas, taking the lead 5-4. The Astros put another run on the board when Terrell Joyce and Jean Batista had back to back singles, with Joyce scoring on an error by James Harris. Princeton threatened to come back in the bottom of the ninth, with runners on second and third with no one out. However, Andrew Toles grounded into a double play, scoring a run, but effectively ending the threat as Princeton fell 6-5. Jacob Faira took the loss, giving up 4 runs on 5 hits while striking out 2 in 3.1 innings. Martin was 2-5 with 2 runs scored and an RBI in the loss.

GCL Rays 4, GCL Orioles 1 (6 innings)

The Rays jumped out to an early lead, and cruised to the 4-1 victory in a shortened game. With two out in the bottom of the second, Johnny Eierman and Leopoldo Correa executed a double steal, with Eierman scoring on an error by the Orioles’ third baseman. Correa came around to score on a single by Miguel Beltran. A double by Taylor Hawkins with two out in the bottom of the fifth drove in Douglas Duran and Beltran to give the Rays a 4-0 lead. The Orioles put runners on second and third with one out in the top of the sixth, scoring a run as Steel Russell hit a sacrifice fly to drive in Adrian Marin. Luis Cabrera picked up the victory in relief, giving up 1 run on 3 hits and 2 walks over 3 innings, while striking out 3 batters. Beltran was 2-2 with a run scored and an RBI.

Durham Bulls 12, Columbus Clippers 2

The Bulls blew a close game open in the fifth en route to a 12-2 romp over the Columbus Clippers. Durham scored twice in the bottom of the first, as Chris Gimenez hit a two out, two run home run to put the Bulls ahead 2-0. The Clippers came back in the top of the fourth, tying the game on back to back home runs by Matt LaPorta and Russ Canzler. Brooks Conrad put the Bulls back on top in the bottom of the inning, leading off with a solo home run to make it a 3-2 game. The Bulls then scored six times in the bottom of the fifth, highlighted by a three run home run from Gimenez and a solo home run from Henry Wrigley. Durham tacked on three more runs in the bottom of the sixth, highlighted by Rich Thompson‘s two run triple. The Bulls shelled Columbus starter David Huff, tagging him for 9 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks over 4.2 innings. Matt Torra earned the win, allowing 2 runs on 7 hits with 1 strikeout in 7 innings. Gimenez was 2-5 with 2 home runs and 5 RBI.

Montgomery Biscuits 6, Jackson Generals 4

The Biscuits and the Generals battled all night, with Montgomery coming away with a hard fought 6-4 victory. Jackson took the lead in the top of the third, as Brad Miller homered to give the Generals a 2-0 lead. The Biscuits came back in the bottom of the fourth, as Mikie Mahtook had an RBI double, and Oscar Luna drove in a run on a single, with another run coming in on a throwing error. The Generals tied the game in the top of the sixth, as Jesus Sucre walked and scored on a Johermyn Chavez triple. Montgomery took the lead again in the bottom of the seventh, as Mark Thomas homered to put the Biscuits on top 4-3. Jackson tied the game again in the top of the eighth, as Denny Almonte scored on an error by Derek Dietrich. The Biscuits took the lead for good in the bottom of the inning, as Dietrich hit an RBI single, and came around to score on Oscar Luna’s double. Kirby Yates picked up the win, giving up 1 hit and 1 walk in 1.2 innings, striking out 5 batters. Mahtook went 3-4 with 2 runs scored, 2 doubles, and an RBI.

Charlotte Stone Crabs 3, Bradenton Marauders 0 (6 innings)

Enny Romero was perfect through five, and finished with a rain shortened one hit shutout of the Bradenton Marauders. The game was scoreless into the bottom of the fourth, when Steven Tinoco reached on an error. With two out, Riccio Torrez hit a two run home run, giving the Stone Crabs the lead. Charlotte tacked on another run in the bottom of the fifth, as Kevin Kiermaier tripled, and came around to score on a single by Philip Wunderlich. Romero lost his bid for perfection in the top of the sixth, giving up a double to Kirk Singer to lead off the inning. The game was halted in the middle of the sixth inning, before Charlotte was awarded the victory. Romero gave up only 1 hit and 1 walk, striking out 9 in his dominant 6 inning performance. Torrez was 2-2 with 1 double, 1 home run, and 2 RBI.

Bowling Green Hot Rods 10, South Bend Silver Hawks 2

The Hot Rods scored 8 times in the bottom of the second inning, and cruised to a 10-2 victory over the Silver Hawks. The eight run outburst was highlighted by a two run error by South Bend starter J.R. Bradley, and a two run triple by Drew Vettleson. Bowling Green sent 11 batters to the plate in the inning, tallying four singles, two doubles, a triple, a hit batter, and a sacrifice fly. South Bend got two runs back in the top of the third, as Tom Belza‘s triple drove in Raul Navarro and Chris Ellison. However, Juniel Querecuto hit a two out bases loaded single, driving in two to put the lead back to eight, providing the final runs in the 10-2 victory. Bradley picked up the loss, getting rocked for 8 runs (7 earned) on 8 hits in 1.1 innings of work. Trevor Shull picked up the win, giving up 2 runs on 6 hits and 2 walks, while striking out 4 over 6 innings. Ryan Brett was 3-5 with a run scored.

Hudson Valley Renegades 5, Vermont Lake Monsters 4 (10 innings)

The Renegades and the Lake Monsters battled in a back and forth affair, with Hudson Valley eventually coming away with a 5-4 win in ten innings. The game was scoreless until the top of the sixth, when Bruce Maxwell drove in the first run of the game, giving Vermont a 1-0 lead. The Renegades came back in the bottom of the inning, as Michael Williams tied the game on a two out single, and Leonardo Reginatto‘s two run single gave Hudson Valley a 3-1 lead. Vermont came back in the top of the seventh, using a double, a single, and an error to put together a three run inning, giving the Lake Monsters a 4-3 lead. Hudson Valley tied the game in the bottom of the eighth, as Justin O’Conner doubles, moved to third on a passed ball, and scored on a wild pitch. The game went to the tenth, when Charles Epperson led off the bottom of the inning with a triple. After two walks loaded the bases, O’Conner singled, driving in Epperson with the winning run. Ryan Garton picked up the win, giving up 1 hit and striking out 2 in his inning of relief. O’Conner and Williams each had 2 hits in the victory.

Bluefield Blue Jays 3, Princeton Rays 0

Tucker Jensen no-hit the Rays into the sixth inning, combining with two other pitchers to defeat Princeton 3-0. All three runs scored in the top of the sixth, as Christian Lopes doubled in the game’s first run. Lopes came around to score on Seth Conner‘s home run, giving the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead. Jensen, meanwhile, was masterful, not allowing a hit until Brandon Martin singled with one out in the bottom of the sixth. The Rays had back to back singles in the bottom of the seventh, chasing Jensen with runners on first and second with no outs. However, Colby Broussard got out of the jam without any damage. Tucker Jensen picked up the win, allowing 3 hits and striking out 1 in his 6+ innings of work. Martin was 2-4 for the Rays in the loss.

GCL Rays 7, GCL Red Sox 6

The Rays came from behind 3-2, and held on to a 7-6 victory over the Red Sox. The Rays struck first, with Bralin Jackson hitting a two out RBI single to give the Rays a 1-0 lead. The Rays tacked on another run in the fifth as Migeul Beltran was hit by a pitch, moved to second on a single, and scored two wild pitches. The Red Sox took the lead in the bottom of the inning, on two RBI singles and a wild pitch with two out. The Rays tied the game in the top of the sixth, as Johnny Eierman tripled, and scored on a wild pitch. Eierman gave the Rays the lead in the top of the seventh with an RBI single, and hit another RBI single in the top of the ninth. With the Rays ahead 7-3, the Red Sox mounted a comeback. Miguel Rodriguez hit a two run double, and came around to score on Ishea Conklin’s sacrifice fly. However, the Red Sox were kept in check the rest of the way, as the Rays escaped with a 7-6 victory. Matthew Ramsey picked up the win in relief, giving up 2 hits and striking out 1 in 2 innings. Eierman was 3-5 with 2 runs scored, a triple, and 2 RBIs.