Minor League Notes - 05/04/2008

by John on May 4, 2008 8:44 PM CDT in Minor League Notes

Nashville Sounds Notes:

Season Record: 10-19, -5.5 GB, 4th place (last) in the PCL’s American North Division
Away Record: 3-12
Home Record: 7-7
Last 10 Games: 6-4
Streak: 3 Wins

Won (5-1) vs. Salt Lake
Mark DiFelice (W, 3-0), 5 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 9 K – 2.65 ERA, Game Score: 64
Adam Heether-3B, 2-3, 2 2B, R, 3 RBI - .266 BA
Russell Branyan-DH, 1-3, HR (6), R, RBI, BB, K, CS - .363 BA
Vinny Rottino-C, 1-3, R, BB, SB - .242 BA

Huntsville Stars Notes:

1st Half Record: 20-10, tied for 1st place in the Southern League’s North Division
Away Record: 7-8
Home Record: 13-2
Last 10 Games: 8-2
Streak: 1 Win

Won (11-3) @ Montgomery
Sam Narron (W, 5-1), 6 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 5 K – 2.92 ERA, Game Score: 54
Mat Gamel-3B, 2-5, 2B, R, 5 RBI, K - .367 BA
Matt LaPorta-RF, 3-4, 3 R, BB, K - .333 BA
Michael Bell-DH, 2-5, 2 2B, 2 RBI - .245 BA
Cole Gillespie-LF, 1-3, 2B, R, 3 RBI, BB, K, SF - .261 BA

Brevard County Manatees Notes:

1st Half Record: 17-13, -2.0 GB, 2nd place in the FSL’s East Division
Away Record: 8-8
Home Record: 9-5
Last 10 Games: 6-4
Streak: 1 Win

Won (4-1) @ Clearwater
Alexandre Periard (W, 3-1), 5.2 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 1 K – 3.69 ERA, Game Score: 61
Lorenzo Cain-DH, 3-5, HR (1), R, RBI, CS - .252 BA
Martin Maldonado-C, 2-4, 2B, 2 RBI - .267 BA
Stephen Chapman-LF, 1-4, HR (5), R, RBI, K - .243 BA

West Virginia Power Notes:

1st Half Record: 11-19, -7-0 GB, 7th place in the SAL’s Northern Division
Away Record: 6-10
Home Record: 5-9
Last 10 Games: 4-6
Streak: 3 Losses

Lost (2-4) @ Delmarva
Richard Seidel (L, 1-3), 4 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K – 4.44 ERA, Game Score: 41
Steffan Wilson-LF-3B, 2-4, HR (4), R, RBI - .232 BA
Ulrich Snijders-C, 2-4, R, K - .229 BA
Brent Brewer, 0-5, 3 K - .221 BA

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Comments

DeFilice

is awfully close to getting a callup. He has 24 Ks and 0 walks on the year.

Whenever prince is at first, he should charge the mound and yell "MEAT!"

by jihad on May 4, 2008 9:34 PM CDT 0 recs

why does his name sound so familiar?

"Cubs fans boo again – 99% of these people can’t see the plate." -Ueck

by dux2bux on May 4, 2008 11:45 PM CDT up 0 recs

You're thinking of Mike DiFelice

the former backup catcher for the Cardinals.

Small correction, he has 25 Ks and no walks on the year. Watching him pitch yesterday, he almost seems like a guy who throws too many strikes. Major league hitters will jump on him early in the count, knowing that he’s not going to walk them so there’s no reason to sit there and take pitches. (The 0 walks is not terribly far out of line with his minor league career; he only walked 15 batters last season in about 120 innings.)

His stuff looks decent: no overwhelming fastball, but what looks like a pretty good breaking ball that at least fools AAA hitters. I don’t know that his stuff would fool MLB hitters though. He’s really a pleasure to watch: he works quickly and doesn’t fall behind in the count (I think he had only one three-ball count yesterday.)

by Tom (RFTN) on May 5, 2008 8:01 AM CDT up 0 recs

Wow

That’s the first time I heard that having an outstanding K/BB ratio as being a bad thing.

Still, I’m a little wary too: unlike Gallardo, whose arrival was anticipated since he was in A ball, this guy seems to have come out of nowhere. That might suggest that his “stuff” isn’t too well-regarded.

"I will agree that the attitude [at BCB] is ridiculous and they have done so much to instigate animosity and then block us from responding. Real mature!"

by roguejim on May 5, 2008 10:01 AM CDT up 0 recs

he did come out of nowhere

or, more specifically, an indy league.

so no, his stuff is not well regarded. but the brewers haven’t seemed to have issues giving chances to guys like that who can perform.

Also, cheese.

by Jeff Sackmann on May 5, 2008 12:52 PM CDT up 0 recs

Which is good

I hope he gets called up. We could use a little hope right about now.

"I will agree that the attitude [at BCB] is ridiculous and they have done so much to instigate animosity and then block us from responding. Real mature!"

by roguejim on May 5, 2008 1:01 PM CDT up 0 recs

In fairness...

the Atlantic League isn’t exactly “nowhere”, what with the seemingly 500 aging ex-MLBers that play there all the time. Still, I keep wondering why a guy with minor league numbers like DiFelice’s (he’s taken another step the last couple of years, but his K/BB was always strong) ended up there in the first place.

But hey, I was already championing a callup for him late last season, so I sure would be thrilled to see him up for at least a trial. :) He seems as good a bet as any to come up and run roughshod over the league for half a season before people catch up to his pitching.

by Zeyes on May 5, 2008 4:48 PM CDT up 0 recs

Looking over his stats, it looks like he had a pattern of reaching AAA and then watching his WHIP increase uncomfortably, with the exception of his time at Nashville. Maybe Nashville’s pitching coach has helped him out?

He's the round mound of profound

by drezdn on May 6, 2008 8:03 AM CDT up 0 recs

Outstanding K/BB

Certainly, DiFelice has looked excellent in the two starts I’ve seen. It’s a different situation from Gallardo, though, since scouts loved his stuff; also, DiFelice is 31 and has been in AAA several times before (as opposed to Gallardo, who was 21 and in his first try in AAA.) Gallardo’s BB/9 ratio was good but not ridiculously so (3.24.)

I think a lot of people voiced similar concerns about Andy Sonnanstine, who had a superb BB/9 ratio (1.36) in the minors but has struggled in the majors as his strikeout rate has dropped, meaning hitters are making more contact and getting more hits. DiFelice doesn’t have top-notch stuff and while he might fool AAA hitters, I doubt MLB hitters would look the same way against him.

by Tom (RFTN) on May 5, 2008 2:32 PM CDT up 0 recs

branyan is the new 3TO prophet...

"Cubs fans boo again – 99% of these people can’t see the plate." -Ueck

by dux2bux on May 4, 2008 11:46 PM CDT 0 recs

The Sounds

Didn’t they start slow (though not as slow as this year) last year too?

He's the round mound of profound

by drezdn on May 5, 2008 9:04 AM CDT 0 recs

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