First off, congratulations to Brian Schlitter, who's appearance today was one of the few bright spots of the game. Hopefully Al has to worry about embarrassing typos from now on.
Don't let anyone tell you that every vote doesn't count. By one vote, Chris Archer is your choice for the Cubs #7 prospect. Archer's got a good fastball and a devastating curve ball. The Indians gave up on him after a 2008 season when he struck out 106 batters in 115 innings of the Midwest League. Of course, he walked 84 men too. There were a lot of jokes about that around here, especially after he struck out 119 men in only 109 innings last season in the MWL. We could laugh that "Hey, at least he got the walks down to 66." Of course, left unsaid about this "Wild Thing" was that if he could ever get his curveball over consistently, he'd be a heck of a prospect.
This year Archer has done just that. Before he got promoted to Tennessee today, Archer had a 7-1 record with a 2.86 ERA. Archer had struck out 82 in 72 innings, but more importantly, he'd only walked 26. Archer now gets to see if he can still get the ball over in AA.
So to recap, our top seven prospects are 1. Andrew Cashner, 2. Brett Jackson, 3. Josh Vitters, 4. Jay Jackson, 5. Hak-Ju Lee, 6. Chris Carpenter and 7. Chris Archer.
Today's addition to the vote is maybe a curveball, but I know he's a favorite around here: Darwin Barney. Barney is a slick fielding shortstop perhaps best known for leading Oregon State to back-to-back College World Series Championships in 2006 and 2007. There's some question about his bat, but he's hitting .291 so far this season after a torrid May. I've often argued that he's trade bait, but several posters have commented on how they'd like to see him take over Mike Fontenot's utility role on the Cubs.
Iowa Cubs
Were rained out.
Tennessee Smokies
The Tennessee Smokies were snuffed out by the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx, 9-6.
Recently-promoted Rafael Dolis had a rough first start in AA. Dolis only lasted three innings and gave up seven runs on seven hits, although only three of the seven runs were earned. Dolis walked two and struck out three.
Center fielder Brett Jackson, on the other hand, is having no trouble adjusting to AA. Tonight he hit his second home run in two games in a 2 for 5 effort. It was a two-run home run in the fifth inning. Jackson scored twice.
Third baseman Josh Vitters also homered, his fourth for Tennessee. The solo shot was Vitters' only hit in a 1 for 4 game.
First baseman Blake Lalli went 3 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored. DH Russ Canzler had two doubles in a 2 for 3 game. He also walked once. Canzler had one RBI.
Daytona Cubs
The Daytona Cubs scored two in the top of the ninth to sink the Brevard County Manatees, 4-3.
Maybe Trey McNutt lost the vote to Chris Archer because of his start tonight. In his Florida State League debut, McNutt went only three innings and gave up three runs on four hits. He had trouble finding the plate as he walked four. However, he did strike out six in the three innings he pitched.
Oswaldo Martinez, recently demoted from Tennessee, got the win with 2.1 innings of no-hit relief. Martinez walked one and didn't strike out anyone.
Marco Carrillo got his second save by pitching a scoreless ninth. He gave up one hit. He didn't strike out or fan anyone.
The big blow in the ninth inning was right fielder Kyler Burke's RBI triple that tied the game at three with one out. Burke was 1 for 3 with a walk and he scored twice, including the eventual winning run.
Shortstop Junior Lake was 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored.
Peoria Chiefs
The Peoria Chiefs stole the pollen of the Burlington Bees, 3-1.
Starting pitcher Jeffry Antigua had a strong six-inning start, allowing only one run on three hits. Antigua walked one and fanned four.
Ronny Moria relieved Antigua and picked up the win with two shutout innings. He did not allow a hit, but he did walk one. Moria struck out two. Francisco Batista got his second save. He walked one but allowed no hits in the ninth inning. He struck out one.
Center fielder Jae-Hoon Ha hit his second home run, a solo shot in the ninth inning. Ha went 2 for 4.
Shortstop Hak-Ju Lee might have only gone 0 for 3 with a walk, but he stole two bases, scored twice and apparently made a spectacular catch on a dying quail in short left-center field to end the game with the tying run at the plate.
Boise Hawks
The Boise Hawks beat the Eugene Emeralds, 5-4.
John Mincone entered the game in the second inning and threw four innings, allowing only one unearned run. He allowed five hits, walked one and struck out two.
Carlos E. Rojas picked up his second win with two shutout innings. He gave up one hit, walked one and didn't strike anyone out. I think he used to be the drummer for Cheap Trick too. Anyone from Rockford who can check that out?
Corey Martin threw a perfect ninth to grab his fourth save. Martin struck out two.
First baseman Richard Jones hit a three-run home run, his second for Boise and fourth overall. Jones was 1 for 4.
Shortstop Arismendy Alcantara was 3 for 4 with a walk. He scored once and had one RBI. Pierre LePage was 2 for 5 with a double.
Center fielder Kyung-Min Na went 2 for 2 with two sacrifice bunts. He scored once.
AZL Cubs