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.

An extra inning loss and a walk off victory highlight today’s trip around the minors. Overall, the Rays farm system went 3-4 on the day.

Columbus Clippers 2, Durham Bulls 1 (10 innings)

After their rain shortened game last night, the Columbus Clippers and Durham Bulls played a low scoring extra inning affair, with the Clippers winning 2-1. Columbus jumped out to the lead in the top of the first inning, as Matt LaPorta‘s sacrifice fly drove in the first run of the game. The Bulls tied the game in the bottom of the fourth, as Cole Figueroa hit a two out single, and moved to second on a wild pitch. Henry Wrigley followed with a double, driving in Figueroa. Despite scoring chances for both sides, the game remained knotted at one until the top of the tenth inning. Aaron Cunningham led off the inning with a single, moved to second on a wild pitch, and advance to third on a fly ball. Jason Donald‘s RBI single plated Cunningham with the eventual winning run. Brandon Gomes took the loss in relief, allowing 1 earned run on 3 hits while striking out 3 in 2 innings of work. Rich Thompson was 3-5 in the loss.

Jacksonville Suns 4, Montgomery Biscuits 0 (8 innings)

The Suns capped off a sweep of their five game series with the Biscuits, shutting them out for the third time in their 4-0 victory. Jacksonville scored all their runs in the bottom of the second, highlighted by Chris Guiterrez’s two run, bases loaded double. Jose Alvarez dominated the Biscuits, allowing only 2 hits while striking out 5 in his 8 shutout innings. Nick Barnese bounced back after his rough second inning to pitch 6 innings, allowing 4 hits, 5 walks, and 3 hit batsmen while striking out 2. Donnie Webb was 0-1 with a run scored, an RBI, and 2 walks for Jacksonville.

Charlotte Stone Crabs 8, Bradenton Marauders 1

Two four run innings helped the Stone Crabs jump out to a lead, as they cruised by the Bradenton Marauders 8-1. Charlotte jumped on Bradenton starter Eliecer Navarro in the bottom of the third, scoring four runs, highlighted by Riccio Torrez‘s two run home run. The Stone Crabs scored another four runs in the bottom of the sixth, capped by a three run home run by Robi Estrada. The Marauders scored a run in the top of the ninth, however it was not enough as they lost 8-1. Eliazer Suero struggled with his control in the victory, giving up 1 hit while walking 6 in his 5.1 innings of work. Todd Glaesmann was 3-3 with 2 doubles, a run scored, an RBI, and a walk. Lucas Bailey contributed with 2 doubles.

Fort Wayne TinCaps 7, Bowling Green Hot Rods 3

Two errors by Ryan Brett helped the TinCaps jump out to an early 6-0 lead, as Fort Wayne held on for a 7-3 victory. The TinCaps struck in the bottom of the first, as Yeison Asencio hit a one out RBI single. Brett made his first error of the night in the bottom of the third, as his errant throw on an infield single allowed Travis Jankowski to advance to third. Jankowski scored on a Jace Peterson RBI single. Another Brett error factored into the scoring in the bottom of the fourth, as he misplayed a groundball. With two outs in the inning, an RBI single, a wild pitch advancing the runners, and a two run single led to a three run inning. The Hot Rods rallied in the top of the eighth, as Brett had an RBI double, and scored on Alejandro Segovia‘s two run home run. However, Matthew Stites shut the door in the top of the ninth, preserving the 7-3 win. Roberto Gomez took the loss, allowing 3 runs (2 earned) on 5 hits and 2 walks with 2 strikeouts over 3 innings. Segovia and Jake Hager each had two hits for the Hot Rods.

Hudson Valley Renegades 7, Vermont Lake Monsters 5

The Renegades fell behind 5-0 early, but rallied to notch a 7-5 victory over the Lake Monsters. The Lake Monsters scored a run in the top of the second, as John Wooten struck out, but reached first on a wild pitch. Wooten scored on back to back one out singles, giving Vermont an early 1-0 lead. Miguel Marte hit a two run double in the third, and Addison Russell and Bert Vertigan had run scoring singles in the fourth as the Lake Monsters jumped out to a 5-0 lead. The Renegades came back in the bottom of the fifth, using three consecutive bases loaded singles to cut the lead to 5-4. Hudson Valley tied the game in the bottom of the eighth. Deshun Dixon led off the inning with a triple, and scored the tying run on Michael William’s base hit. Luke Maile hit a two run triple with two outs, giving the Renegades their first lead of the game. Dylan Floro picked up the victory with 2 perfect innings, striking out 4 batters. Williams was 3-4 with 2 doubles and an RBI in the win.

Princeton Rays 4, Bluefield Blue Jays 3

After squandering an early 3-0 lead, the Princeton Rays scored a walk off 4-3 victory over the Bluefield Blue Jays. The Rays jumped out to a quick 1-0 lead as Brandon Martin led off the bottom of the first with a double, and scored on Reid Redman‘s RBI single. Princeton added to the lead in the fourth, as John Alexander hit a two run home run, giving the Rays a 3-0 lead. The Blue Jays came back in the top of the seventh, as Matthew Dean had an RBI single, and came around to score on a two run triple by Jorge Vega-Rosado. The score remained tied until the bottom of the ninth. With one out, Ariel Soriano walked and stole second. Following a groundout to short, Brandon Martin hit a game winning single to center, driving in Soriano and giving the Rays a 4-3 victory. Zack Butler picked up the victory in relief, allowing 2 hits and a walk in 2.1 innings. Martin was 2-5 with a double and an RBI.

GCL Twins 4, GCL Rays 2

The Rays jumped out to an early 2-0 lead, but fell as the Twins rallied back for a 4-2 victory. The Rays took an early 1-0 lead in the top of the second on Ryan McChesney‘s RBI fielder’s choice. They expanded the lead as Yoel Araujo scored on a double play, taking a 2-0 advantage. The Twins came back in the bottom of the seventh, loading the bases with one out. After a run scored on a wild pitch, John Murphy hit a two run single to give the Twins the lead 3-2. Murphy came around to score on a double by Bryan Santy. Kyle Pelchy took the loss in relief, allowing 3 runs on 3 hits and 2 walks in 1.1 innings of work. Jiminson Natera went 2-4 with a double and a run scored.

27 of the Rays’ 40 picks were college players, 67.5%, the percentage of any draft in Rays history. The Rays selected 35 college players in 2011, but they had 20 more picks in that draft compared to 2012 because of all their supplemental picks as compensation for departed free agents and because the draft was shortened from 50 to 40 rounds in the new Collective Bargaining Agreement. 35 divided by 60 is 58.3%. And the number of college players that the Rays selected trails only 2011 in their history. Where are the Rays doing?

The fact that the players are coming out of college obscures the fact that the Rays still drafted a lot of them (12 of 27) for upside. And secondly,  as we touched upon after Day 2, this will allow the Rays to sign as many picks as possible. The Rays drafted just 7 high school players and they’re going to be able to do everything they can to sign all 7. For their 6 junior college selections, some are easier signs than others, but they’ll look to sign as many as possible of them as well. What the Rays did in this draft was maximize their efficiency. College upside picks, especially in the later rounds, can be signed on the cheap but still come with the potential for big reward. And signing those picks cheaply allows the Rays to focus their energies on the tougher high school and junior college players and the funds to potentially get most of them signed. There’s next to no chance that the Rays sign all 40 of their picks. But there’s a real chance they could sign 36 or 37 the way they allotted they picks. Let’s go pick by pick with quick thoughts on the player being selected where they were selected. We’ll give a grade to each pick as well (which has to do with the players based on their draft slots, not necessarily on the players’ abilities or their abilities compared to one another). For actual scouting information on the players, please click the links on each players name.

1st Round: 3B Richie Shaffer- Nice value pick as he could have gone earlier. Gives the Rays legitimate power and a relatively safe bet to make the big leagues as productive corner player. Nothing flashy, but good value. Grade: A-

2nd Round: SS/CF Spencer Edwards- High school shortstop who will likely move to the outfield but was announced as a shortstop. Nice upside as 5-tool prospect, although hitting is most questionable tool. Grade: A

3rd Round: CF Alvin Toles - JC product is speedster in center with 5-tool talent as well, although once again hitting is a little questionable. Grade: A

4th Round: RHP Nolan Gannon- Projectable HS righty with a nice sinker, shows flashes with 12-to-6 curve. Nice upside but will be a project. Grade: B+

5th Round: OF Braylin Jackson- HS outfielder with more hit tool questions, but nice power/speed potential. Grade: B+

6th Round: RHP Damion Carroll- HS arm with mid-90′s velocity, everything else in question. Grade: B

7th Round: CF Marty Gantt- Senior is a great story and has solid tools across the board. Definite potential to be big league contributor. Grade: A-

8th Round: C Luke Maile- Junior has power and plate discipline, too many defensive questions. Grade: B-

9th Round: CF Joey Rickard- Junior can run and play defense. Upside of a 4th outfielder. Grade: B-

10th Round: LHP Sean Bierman- 5th-year senior has injury questions, shifty but not great stuff. Money-saving pick. Grade: C+

11th Round: CF Clayton Henning- High school football wide receiver is extremely raw but shows flashes of 4 tools. Grade: B+

12th Round: C Taylor Hawkins- High school catcher with big-time present power. Hit tool in question but tools defensively as well. Grade: A

13th Round: RHP Dylan Floro- Junior’s stuff regressed since being drafted by Rays out of high school. If restored, has nice upside. Grade: B

14th Round: LHP Chris Kirsch- JC lefty has four pitches including plus fastball and curve that flashes plus. Control is an issue. Grade: A

15th Round: RHP Willie Gabay- Hard throwing JC relief prospect who could move fast. Nice sinker. Grade: B+

16th Round: 2B/SS Tommy Coyle- Junior with solid tools all around with some speed. Utility player upside. Grade: B

17th Round: SS Ryan Dunn- Junior is low for shortstop but fluid actions and surprising power. Valuable if can stay at short. Grade: A-

18th Round: LHP Kevin Brandt- Senior lefty with unimpressive fastball but solid secondary pitches. LOOGY potential. Grade: B

19th Round: 1B Miguel Beltran- Senior has big power potential but looks out-of-shape and other tools are questionable. Grade: C+

20th Round: RHP R.J. Davis- Senior who touches triple-digits with fastball but command and secondary pitch issues. Grade: B+

21st Round: RHP Jon Weaver- Senior reliever is not overpowering but all-around solid arsenal. Middle relief potential. Grade: B

22nd Round: CF Willie Argo- Senior slipped in college but has power-speed upside. Could be a steal at this spot. Grade: A+

23rd Round: INF Reid Redman- 5th-year senior provides sparkling defense at third and second base, great utility profile. Grade: B+

24th Round: 3B Daniel Duran- Senior with nice hit tool but little power and no defensive position. Grade: B-

25th Round: LHP Jordan Harrison- Junior has questionable arsenal other than occasional flashes. Grade: C

26th Round: RHP Jason Wilson- Senior has nice fastball, solid curve, poor control. Shows potential as 4th-5th starter or back-end bullpen. Grade: A-

27th Round: RHP Alex Keudell- Senior features great curve but questionable fastball. Good command. Grade: B

28th Round: LHP Dayne Quist- Little senior lefty with little stuff but great command. Middle relief potential. Grade: B-

29th Round: P/OF Keaton Steele- JC pick has potential as bullpen arm, outfielder. The Rays are going to have fun with him. Grade: A-

30th Round: C Michael Williams- Senior plays solid defense, may hit a little. Grade: B

31st Round: C/OF Taylor Ward- HS pick does not have catcher skill-set, speedy with solid swing. Doubt he stays at catcher long-term. Grade: B-

32nd Round: SS Ben Kline- 5th-year senior has nice defensive tools and rock-solid ability all-around. Potential big league starting SS. Grade: A

33rd Round: LHP Luke Goodgion- Junior has good size, stuff, erratic control. Bullpen potential. Grade: B

34th Round: RHP Ryan Garton- Little senior righty but excellent change and solid all-around arsenal with some projection. Sleeper potential. Grade: A-

35th Round: RHP Kris Carlson- Senior with nasty stuff, fastball hits mid 90′s and great movement on slider, but horrific control. Grade: B+

36th Round: SS Bret McAfee- JC pick selected by Rays for second year in a row. Injury prone, but great defense with some offensive tools. Grade: B+

37th Round: RHP Rob Finneran- 5th-year senior with bulldog mentality and solid stuff. Best pitcher in the history of Bentley University. Grade: B

s38th Round: C Chad Nacapoy- 5th-year senior shows solid defense but needs work and questionable offense. Grade: B-

39th Round: C Geoff Rowan- Senior has untapped tools both offensively and defensively. Definite upside. Grade: B+

40th Round: RHP Nick Sawyer- JC pick has nice fastball-curveball combination but terrible control. Grade: B+

Looking at the grades, they’re mostly within the A’s and B+’s (over half of them are). I certainly didn’t like every pick, but I do really like this draft class. The Rays got several outstanding values from the college guys and some nice upside from the high school and JC ranks. There’s a lot of risk here. Most of these players they have great upside but come with significant questions as well. Most of them will not pan out. But this isn’t a boom or bust draft. There are just so many upside players that a handful of them will have to pan out and the Rays could really end up with several quality big leaguers and a bunch of other minor contributors from this draft class. It was strange that the Rays drafted so many college players, but they chose the best ones they could find and ones with often considerable potential and that’s all that really matters. And then there’s the factor that since the Rays drafted so many college players, it should help them get nearly everybody signed. This is a very interesting draft class by the Rays and it’s going to be exciting to see the Rays get these guys signed and have them start their pro careers, and we’ll have to see how they develop.