#Rays minor-league OF Deshun Dixon (Hudson Valley) gets 50-game suspension for 2nd violation of drug policy

— Marc Topkin (@TBTimes_Rays) August 17, 2012

Dixon's mistake makes a tough situation exponentially worse. (Credit: Flickr user BeGreen90)

Dixon has just a .206/.270/.326 line in 11o career minor league games, but he was hitting better in July, posting a .243/.312/.329 line, before falling off a cliff in August as he went just 2 for 26 before being suspended. Dixon is an athletic player who has some potential that the Rays still hoped to see, but this second mistake really has to make you wonder whether Dixon is simply a lost cause.

We understand that pressure makes us do misguided things. Dixon felt the pressure to before and took a banned substance. But twice now? Dixon’s game is still almost completely undeveloped and he has the ability to be a much better player than he has been thus far in his career. Without the present ability, Dixon took to drugs to compensate. But while it was an understandable mistake, Dixon just has to realize that even failure, even a third consecutive season of struggles, is all a part of the process of giving Dixon the best chance to be a major league baseball player someday. But the Rays are losing their patience. We’ve heard Joe Maddon say that physical errors happen, but mental errors have to be stopped. Is Dixon in the game mentally? He’s taken a bad situation and simply made it worse. The chances of Dixon making the major leagues were unlikely from the start. At this point, nothing short of a miracle will take him where he dreams to go.

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Topkin also wrote about Ryan Roberts‘ charitable efforts in Arizona to help Ryan House, a charity organization that assists children suffering from life-threatening conditions, along with their families. Great to see Roberts volunteering in his community back in Arizona and hopefully he can bring the same fervor to organizations in the Tampa Bay area as well.

Double-A Southern League: Montgomery Biscuits 5, Birmingham Barons (CHW) 1

Matt Buschmann pitched well and Hak-Ju Lee had a huge hit as the Biscuits came away with a nice win. Buschmann went 6 innings allowing just 1 run on 3 hits, striking out 6 while walking 3 and posting a 5-3 groundout to flyout ratio. The game was tied at 1 after 6 innings, with the only Biscuits run coming on a Greg Sexton RBI double, but the Biscuits’ offense came alive in the 7th. The Biscuits strung together three consecutive singles, with Brett Nommensen‘s single giving Montgomery a 2-1 lead. A few batters later, Lee came to the plate with the bases loaded and 2 outs and came up huge in the clutch, drilling a bases-clearing triple to extend the lead to 5-1 and that was the final margin. The Biscuits managed just 7 hits and only Sexton (2 for 4) had a multi-hit game, but they came up huge in the clutch, especially in the 4-run 7th.

High-A Florida State League: Clearwater Threshers (PHI) 9, Charlotte Stone Crabs 2

C.J. Riefenhauser got off to an incredible start in 2012, but his season has gone the other way of late as he hasn’t managed an ERA below 4.50 in a start since June 22nd. Unfortunately, Saturday was no exception. Reifenhauser did throw 5 innings for the first time since June 29th, but he allowed 6 runs on 5 hits, striking out 5 while walking 3 and allowing 2 home runs. His groundout to flyout ratio was 4-4. You have to hope that Riefenhauser can get back on track soon. Steven Tinoco did go 3 for 4 for Charlotte, while Hector Guevara went 2 for 3 with a double, a walk, and a run scored, and David Wendt went 2 for 4 with an RBI. Derek Dietrich had the other RBI for the Stone Crabs.

The Hot Rods had a lot of fun with Goeddel following his walk-off walk. (Credit: Starter

Low-A Midwest League: Bowling Green Hot Rods 5, Clinton LumberKings (SEA) 4 (11 innings)

The Hot Rods had a 4-0 lead and a no-hitter going before everything fell apart in the 8th, but they rallied in extra-innings to win the game albeit in less graceful fashion. Starters Felipe Rivero and Roberto Gomez each tossed 3 innings in the game as the Rays are trying to limit their innings the rest of the year, and their line was the same: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 5 K.  Through 6 innings, Hot Rods pitchers had a no-hitter going while striking out 10. An Alejandro Segovia solo home run in the second inning gave the Hot Rods a 1-0 lead and was still the margin in the game. But after Charlie Cononie worked around a walk and a hit batsman to pitch a scoreless 7th with the no-hitter intact, Tyler Goeddel had an RBI single and Jake Hager had a 2-run single in the bottom of the inning to give Bowling Green a 4-1 lead. But in the 8th, Cononie allowed 2 singles and a walk before walking in a run and allowing a Michael Dowd 2-run single to tie the game. The game went into extra-innings and kept going until the 11th, where a hit-by-pitch, a walk, an intentional walk, and finally a Tyler Goeddel walk plated the winning run as the Hot Rods won on a walk-off walk. Austin Hubbard tossed two 1-hit innings, striking out 3 while walking just 1 for the win, and the offensive heroes were Segovia, who went 2 for 4 with his homer and 2 runs scored, Drew Vettleson, who went 2 for 5 with a double and a run scored, Hager, who had a 2-run single, and finally Goeddel, who went 1 for 4 with a walk and 2 RBI.

Short Season-A New York Penn League: Hudson Valley Renegades 4, Aberdeen Ironbirds (BAL) 3

The Renegades overcame an inconsistent start with great bullpen and an outstanding late rally that was reminiscent of some of the Rays’ great wins this year. And to top it off, the win brought them into a tie with the Brooklyn Cyclones for first in the New York-Penn League’s McNamara Division. Jeff Ames got the start for Hudson Valley and had a tough day, going 5 innings allowing 3 runs on 4 hits, striking out 2 while walking 4 and managing just a 3-5 groundout to flyout ratio. He left with the Renegades trailing 3-1, with the only run coming on a 3rd inning Tommy Coyle RBI triple. But in relief of Ames, Jose Alberto Molina tossed 2 shutout frames and Kris Carlson chipped in another to keep it a 2-run game heading to the 9th. The Renegades were in striking distance, and they were lucky enough to put something together. Joel Caminero led off with a single and a Jake DePew single two batters later gave Hudson Valley first and second with 1 out. That brought up Deshun Dixon, who had come on of late. And in this spot, Dixon came up big drilling a 2-run double to tie the game. Two batters later, Marty Gantt singled in Dixon for the go-ahead run and the Renegades had come all the way back. Marcus Jensen tossed a perfect 9th with 2 strikeouts for the save as the Renegades won 4-3 in exciting fashion. Tommy Coyle went 3 for 5 with his RBI triple and DePew went 2 for 4 with a double, but the difference was the clutch hits of Dixon and Gantt.

Rookie Appalachian League: Game 1: Bluefield Blue Jays 2, Princeton Rays 0 (7 innings)

7 innings, the minor league prerequisite for doubleheaders, is certainly shorter than 9, but it is never enjoyable to get 1-hit by the opposition. Blake Snell delivered another incredible start for the P-Rays, going 5 shutout innings allowing just 3 hits, striking out 6 while walking none and posting a 5-1 groundout to flyout ratio. But Tucker Jensen was a little better for Bluefield allowing just an Alvin Toles single and a John Alexander walk in 6 innings, striking out 5 while walking 1 and posting an 11-1 groundout to flyout ratio. But Jon Weaver allowed a pair of runs in the bottom of the 6th, and Brandon Dorsett tossed a perfect 9th for the save as the Blue Jays won 2-0. Toles was the only one with a game that he could possibly write home about, going 1 for 3.

Game 2: Princeton Rays 4, Bluefield Blue Jays 2 (7 innings)

This game went a lot better for the P-Rays. Bruedlin Suero continued the P-Rays’ great pitching of the day with his second straight strong outing following 5 disaster appearances to begin the season. He tossed 5 innings allowing just an unearned run on 2 hits, striking out 5 while walking 2 and posting a 5-3 groundout to flyout ratio. Nice to see Suero turning his season around. And the offense was able to deliver for him as well to help the P-Rays earn a split in the twin bill. Willie Argo had a great game, going 2 for 2 with a homer and 3 RBI, and Brandon Martin went 1 for 3 with a solo homer.

Rookie Gulf Coast League: GCL Rays 5, GCL Orioles 3

The Rays 6th rounder in 2012, Damion Carroll, made his first professional start following four relief appearances, and he showed some encouraging signs. He went 2.2 innings allowing 1 run on just 1 hit but striking out 1 while walking 4. The walks aren’t good, but his groundout to flyout ratio was great 6-0. Carroll has experienced control problems earlier in his career, and hopefully those can be smoothed out. Nolan Gannon, the Rays’ 4th round selection made the other half of the start for the GCL Rays, going 3.1 innings of shutout ball allowing just 2 hits and a walk, but he couldn’t strike out a batter and his groundout to flyout ratio was a ghastly 2-8, a far cry from his previous performance. Gannon was off on Saturday, but he was able to survive without his best command. In terms of the offense, Spencer Edwards went 2 for 4 with a double and 2 RBI, Cesar Perez went 2 for 4 with a double, an RBI, and 2 runs scored, and Adderly Rosa went 2 for 3 with a walk and 2 runs scored.

CF Marty Gantt (7th round 2012)- Gantt stood out in this game for three excellent catches in centerfield, two on dives and one on the run. He is very good at reading flyballs off the bat and glides in centerfield with his great speed. At the plate, Gantt has a little too much movement in his stance pre-swing, but he has a compact bat stroke with solid bat speed. He is patient at the plate but he needs work hitting breaking pitches.

2B Tommy Coyle (16th round 2012)- Coyle had a 3-hit game, showing some nice offensive tools. Coyle has a little Evan Longoria action in his lefty stance, standing tall prior to striding into an open stance, although it isn’t nearly as pronounced as Longoria’s. Coyle features above-average raw power with good bat control. His bat speed is a little inconsistent- he gets into trouble when he sells out for power- but at his best he shows flashes of above-average bat speed with a propensity for contact. He swings aggressively when he sees mistakes and shows power to right-center. Defensively, Coyle moves well, although his actions aren’t so fluid, a big reason that he hasn’t played any shortstop as a pro. He should be fine defensively at second base moving forward.

C Luke Maile (9th round 2012)- The scouting report on Maile is that he is a power hitter, but one that uses his strength more than his bat speed, and the Rays may be trying to make an adjustment with him. He showed a closed stance and a gap to gap approach. Maile is relatively big at 6’3″, 195, but he bent his knees enough that he looked like a smaller player in the batter’s box. He did show a compact swing and solid plate discipline.

DePew against Mateo.

C Jake DePew (9th round 2010)- DePew has an interesting stance where he holds his hands a little high, and he strides towards the pitcher before he swings. DePew is a big guy at 6’1″, 220, but you don’t really see any power despite some flashes of solid bat speed because his swing is very compact. DePew is good at putting the ball in play and is patient on pitches out of the zone, but he really doesn’t hit anything hard right now. DePew looks like he should be hitting for some power, and that’s an adjustment that I’m sure will be made because you don’t find many tap hitters his size. DePew does run very well for a catcher and hustles out of the box, something we know the Rays love.

LF Deshun Dixon (10th round 2010)- Dixon looks completely out of whack in the batter’s box. He has a bat waggle prior to the pitch and also kept shifting his weight from front to back, and his timing was terrible. His bat speed was decent and at 6’0″, 190, he may have a little pop if he can ever get his timing right. Dixon tried to bunt and failed miserably. As a player who incorporates speed into his game, he needs to work on that.

SS Leonardo Reginatto (Brazil, 2009)- Reginatto is a groundball hitter, relying on his legs, and he has a compact stroke and generates decent bat speed, making him able to hit harder groundballs and giving him a chance to have gap power.

3B Felix Gonzalez (Venezuela, 2008)- Gonzalez made a couple of errors in this game at third base, both because he was thinking too much about what he was going to do when he fielded the ball. He moves well and tries to be a little too flashy, getting him into trouble. His tools at third are there- but his bat doesn’t fit there at all as he’s basically a tap hitter.

As a bonus, here’s a couple of Mets prospects from the Brooklyn Cyclones.

RHP Luis Mateo (Dominican Republic, 2011)- Mateo features great control of his two primary pitches at this point, his fastball and changeup. Mateo’s fastball was in the low-90′s but it played way up thanks to great armside run almost every time he threw it and dynamic late sink. Renegades hitters kept swinging over the top of it, and the same can be said of his slider, which looks like his fastball out of his hand with excellent arm action before featuring sharp break, although with maybe a little less depth than you would like, making it almost look like a changeup. Mateo’s true changeup basically looked like his fastball but with a little more sink and run, and it didn’t really fool hitters at all. Mateo’s fastball-slider combination makes him an interesting player to watch as he has dominated the New York-Penn League to a 0.51 ERA, an 11.2 K/9, a 1.0 BB/9, and a 0.5 HR/9 in 3 starts and 17.2 IP.

CF Brandon Nimmo (1st round 2011)- Nimmo remains extremely raw. He features a close stance with a gap to gap approach, and while the bat speed is there, and he makes contact, the pitch recognition skills are not. He didn’t look comfortable in the batter’s box and his swing was almost too compact, leading to weaker contact. Nimmo is very patient at the plate, but other than drawing some walks, that isn’t helping him very much. Nimmo looks fine in centerfield and is extremely fast out of the lefty batter’s box. The five-tool potential is evident, but he’s a long way from that.