Triple-A International League: Lehigh Valley IronPigs (PHI) 9, Durham Bulls 3

This game was kind of a pity because the Bulls scored the final three runs in this game…but only after Lehigh Valley tagged Will Inman for a scary 7 runs in the 7th. Maybe the Bulls don’t score those runs if the IronPigs don’t rally like that but you never know. Chris Archer started this game for the Bulls after missing a start with a calf bruise,  and he was on a strict pitch count. Archer wound up going 3 innings allowing 1 run on 3 hits, striking out 4 while walking 3 as he was off, but hopefully he can build himself back up and resume dominating Triple-A hitters and pushing for a big league spot. Jim Paduch made up for Archer’s shortened start and pulled a Houdini act to only allow 1 run in his 3 frames, somehow working around 3 walks and 6 hits, striking out 3 in the process. Then, after Inman’s implosion, Adam Liberatore allowed just 1 hit over the final 2 innings, striking out 2. Everyone but Inman was great for the Bulls, but you need a complete team effort to win (or at least no one completely messing up), and the Bulls didn’t get that. On the offensive side, Mike Fontenot slammed his first homer of the season for the Bulls as he went 2 for 3 with that homer, a double, and 2 RBI, and Shelley Duncan went 2 for 4 with a double and an RBI.

Double-A Southern League: Mississippi Braves 5, Montgomery Biscuits 4 (11 innings)

The emphasis on getting complete team play is even more incisive here in this closer game as a top-heavy lineup and a bottom-heavy pitching effort wasn’t enough for the Biscuits to come away with a victory. Victor Mateo has gotten off to a terrible start for the Biscuits this season but had arguably his best start in this game–but that was setting the bar pretty low. Mateo went 5.2 innings allowing 4 runs on 11 hits, striking out 6 while walking 2. Mateo wasn’t on the hook for the loss when he departed because the Biscuits rallied for 3 runs in the 5th, with the top three players in their lineup, Kevin Kiermaier, Robby Price, and Mikie Mahtook, all notching consecutive RBIs on a single, a groundout, and a triple. After Mateo, the Biscuits bullpen went into lockdown. Marquis Fleming tossed 2.1 one-hit innings with 4 strikeouts to lower his ERA to 1.13, Juan Sandoval tossed a 5-pitch perfect frame with 3 groundouts to lower his ERA to 3.32, and C.J. Riefenhauser tossed a hitless inning to lower his ERA to 0.79 to get Montgomery through 10 innings. But someone had to come apart eventually, and that was Matt Nevarez, who finally allowed a run for the first time all season in his 7th appearance (raising his ERA to 0.93), and that proved to be the decider as the Braves won 5-4. Great bullpen work only means so much when your starter struggles, but the even larger disparity may have been between the top three in the Biscuits lineup and everyone else. Kiermaier, Price, and Mahtook went 5 for 14 (.357) with 2 walks between them and an RBI each. The rest of the lineup went just 3 for 26, and take out Mayo Acosta, who notched 2 hits, and they were only 1 for 22. Finding better starting pitching and more well-rounded offense wil be key for the Biscuits as they try to get back on the winning track.

High-A Florida State League: Charlotte Stone Crabs 4, Bradenton Marauders (PIT) 1

Speaking of the need for starting pitching, Ryan Carpenter certainly gave Charlotte as good of a starting as they could have hoped on Saturday and that was the key to the Stone Crabs’ 4-1. Carpenter went 7 innings allowing just 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 6 while walking 1, throwing just 90 pitches in the process. He could have gone 8 innings! Carpenter’s great start broke a string of a couple poor performances, but his ERA still stands at 2.85 as he has gotten off to a fabulous start to the season, striking out 43 while walking just 7 in 41 innings. Also impressing was Lenny Linsky, who worked around a hit for a scoreless 8th, striking out 2 and getting his other out on a groundout. Finally healthy after shoulder problems plagued him last season, Linsky has a 3.10 ERA and a 19-6 strikeout to walk ratio in 20.1 innings pitched. On the offensive side, the entire Stone Crabs offense consisted of home runs, with Drew Vettleson and Hector Guevara both slamming 2-run shots. Richie Shaffer and Jeff Malm both went 2 for 5 for Charlotte as well, with Malm lacing a double. Shaffer is slowly but surely breaking out, going 12 for his last 41 (.293) to get his average up to .240 on the season.

Low-A Midwest League: Lake County Captains (CLE) 6, Bowling Green Hot Rods 1

Not much to see here as the Hot Rods were thoroughly outplayed. Eduar Quinonez‘s defense didn’t do him any favors as he went 6 innings allowing 4 runs, just 1 earned, on 4 hits, striking out 3 while walking 1. He came blame his defense all he wants, but he would have been better served not allowing a 3-run home run following the error. In terms of the offense, the Hot Rods were held to just 2 hits on the day as Dylan Baker and a pair of relievers shut them down. They didn’t manage a single hit from 2 outs in the 2nd all the way to 1 out in the 8th. Ryan Dunn went 1 for 3 with a double and the only RBI while Andrew Toles went 1 for 4 with 2 stolen bases.

Triple-A International League: Charlotte Knights (CHW) 5, Durham Bulls 2 (11 innings)

Since the start of September, Alex Torres has been on a mission. And since then, nothing has been able to stop him. Torres was incredible once again for the Bulls in this game, going 6 shutout innings allowing just 2 hits, striking out 8 while walking none. 62 of his 89 pitches were strikes and his groundout to flyout ratio was an impressive 6-2. Torres, acquired by the Rays back in the Scott Kazmir trade, always had a little too much in common with the pitcher he was traded for. His repertoire was overbearing at best, but he hasdserious issues throwing strikes and had always been extremely enigmatic. But late last season, the Rays simplified his delivery, eliminating deception but helping him maintain his arm slot and stay around the zone, and lately hitters haven’t stood a chance. Armed with a low-90′s fastball with great late action, a devastating slider, and a strong changeup as well, Torres has looked as good as ever for a while now. Torres won’t quite keep this caliber of performance up, but we’ll see him in the big leagues by the end of this year. Whether as a starter or reliever, he has a chance to be a major contributor for the Rays over the next several seasons.

After Torres, the Bulls’ pitching fell apart, with Josh Phegley slamming a walk-off 3-run homer off Jim Paduch to end it. But on the offensive side, there were several more players to be excited about. Hak-Ju Lee has been on fire of late and was perfect in this game, going 2 for 2 with 2 doubles, 2 walks, and a run scored. It’s only 1o games and 41 plate appearances, but Lee could not have started off the year any better, managing a .412/.512/.647 line with 3 doubles, 1 triple, 1 homer, 6 RBI, 5 of 6 stolen bases, and a 9-7 strikeout to walk ratio. If he keeps this up and Yunel Escobar continues to struggle, suddenly there will be calls for Lee to be the Rays’ major league shortstop (although a full year at Triple-A would be best for his development). Leslie Anderson also went 3 for 5 while Brandon Guyer went 1 for 3 with a walk and two stolen bases. Could either of them be a call-up candidate as well?

Double-A International League: Jackson Generals (SEA) 7, Montgomery Biscuits 1

The Biscuits pushed a run across in the 1st inning of this game on a Cameron Seitzer double and a Todd Glaesmann single, but other than that, this game was a little reminiscent of the Rays game from Sunday as the Biscuits collected 3 hits as a team, one double. Victor Mateo was pretty bad (5 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 5 BB, 3 K) and the offense was only worse. Seitzer and Ty Morrison both went 1 for 3 with a walk while Glaesmann had his RBI hit, but that was it.

High-A Florida State League: Fort Myers Miracle (MIN) 5, Charlotte Stone Crabs 2

Combine the Montgomery game with this one and you get most of the Rays’ game. In this case, it was a 4-run inning that proved to be the difference and put this one out of reach. Ryan Carpenter pitched really well for Charlotte, going 6 innings allowing 1 run on 5 hits, striking out 6 while walking 1, and he has gotten off to a great start to the season, managing a 0.75 ERA with 14 strikeouts against 1 walk in 12 innings. Other than Carpenter, the highlights included Jake Hager, who went 2 for 5 with a triple and a run scored, Richie Shaffer, who went 1 for 4 with a double, a stolen base, and a run scored, and Luke Bailey who went 1 for 3 with an RBI.

Low-A Midwest League: West Michigan Whitecaps (DET) 10, Bowling Green Hot Rods 7

It isn’t even fair to have Taylor Guerrieri taking on these Low-A hitters, but the Hot Rods bullpen imploded spectacularly behind him as the Hot Rods wound up losing in a slugfest. Guerrieri, on a strict pitch count of 50 pitches, wasn’t overpowering but the Whitecaps couldn’t dream of doing anything against him as he went 4 innings of 1-hit ball, striking out just 1 and walking 1 as well but forcing a 9-0 groundout to flyout ratio. Once Guerrieri builds up arm strength, no one would be surprised if he quickly got bumped up to Charlotte because his control and command is far to advanced for the Midwest League and it will be against more advanced hitters than his secondary pitches will be put to the test. You certainly don’t want to hear about the Hot Rods’ pitching behind Guerrieri, but the bats did generate some fireworks. Andrew Toles went 3 for 5 with 2 doubles, 4 RBI, and a run scored, Joey Rickard went 2 for 4 with a double and 2 runs scored, Justin O’Conner went 2 for 5 with a run scored, and Tyler Goeddel went 1 for 4 with a double, a walk, and 2 runs scored.

Triple-A International League: Durham Bulls 12, Gwinnett Braves 8

This game was over right in the 1st inning, when the Bulls tallied 10 runs, including 2 home runs by Brandon Guyer. Guyer finished the day 2 for 5 with the 2 homers, 5 RBI, and 3 runs scored as he has been on fire to begin the season, managing a .367/.478/.947 line with 2 doubles, 3 homers, and 8 RBI in 5 games. Wil Myers may be the better prospect, but with Guyer healthy and swinging the bat, he’s more likely to be called up first as the Rays hope to ignite their offense. Speaking of Myers, he had a nice day too, going 2 for 5 with 2 RBI and a run scored. He’s hitting a .333 in 22 plate appearances to begin the year, but he has struck out 7 times versus just 1 walk and he could certainly use more work on his plate discipline. One last big performer for Durham was Cole Figueroa, who went 3 for 4 with a triple, a double, a single, an RBI, and a run scored. He’s hitting .467 on the season and still hasn’t struck out in 17 plate appearances. Then there was the pitching for the Bulls, which actually wasn’t nearly as bad as the 8 runs they allowed. Alex Torres started and was great for Durham, tossing 5 shutout innings allowing just 2 hits and a walk while striking out 3, throwing only 74 pitches. Torres was horrific last season for the Bulls, but he righted himself at the end of the season and in Winter Ball and suddenly he’s looking like a player who will see big league time at some point in 2013. Steve Geitz and Frank De Los Santos did collapse in relief of Torres to allow the 8 runs, but Will Inman and Josh Lueke restored order with 2 shutout innings to end the game. This game was a little annoying given that the Bulls had a 12-0 lead and then began giving it away as the game wore on, but when you score that many runs, the fans will cut you some slack.

High-A Florida State League: Charlotte Stone Crabs 6, Bradenton Marauders (PIT) 2

It was almost the reverse of the Rays-Rangers game in this one as the Stone Crabs got great pitching and didn’t light up the sky on offense but came through big with runners in scoring position. Ryan Carpenter got the start in his season debut and his ERA is still 0.00 after he went 5 innings allowing no runs on 4 hits, striking out 7 while walking none. Carpenter has been a sleeper prospect for the Rays the past few years after a velocity loss his junior year in college dropped him to the 7th round of the 2011 Draft, but he was solid for the Hot Rods in 2012 and now has gotten himself off to a great beginning at High-A. Austin Hubbard allowed a pair of unearned runs in the 6th, but Lenny Linsky had a really encouraging outing over the last 2 innings, allowing just 1 hit while striking out 2, recording 3 of his other 4 outs on the ground. A shoulder injury has derailed Linsky’s career, but if healthy his great sinker-slider combination could get him into the Rays bullpen in a hurry. On the offensive side, Taylor Motter, Alejandro Segovia, and Curt Casali all went 2 for 3 for the Stone Crabs while Hector Guevara went 2 for 4, and while the Stone Crabs managed just 2 extra-base hits, they went 4 for 11 with runners in scoring position, getting four key RBI hits and scoring 2 more runs on errors. Great to see Carpenter looking sharp and the Charlotte offense getting contributions across the board.

Low-A Midwest League: Bowling Green Hot Rods 8, Lansing Lugnuts (TOR) 3

We’re still waiting for the Rays to get off to the races on the basepaths and use that to manufacture runs. The Hot Rods already have that covered. The Hot Rods equaled a franchise record with 6 stolen bases, and an even impressive display of their speed was Marty Gantt‘s inside-the-park home run in the 2nd inning. Gantt went 2 for 4 with his homer, 3 RBI, and a run scored in the game continuing his incredible start to the season (.438 average) after a rough go in his pro debut in 2012. Also impressing were Tommy Coyle, who went 3 for 4 with a double, a stolen base, 3 RBI, and a run scored, Tyler Goeddel, who finally had breakout game, going 2 for 4 with a walk, 2 stolen bases, an RBI, and a run scored, and Andrew Toles, who went 1 for 3 with a double, a walk, 2 stolen bases, and a run scored. On the pitching side, Jeff Ames had a great start himself, going 5 innings allowing just 1 run on 2 hits, striking out 3 while walking 1. The Hot Rods are clicking on all cylinders and it’s always fun to see them playing like this.