6/30/12 Indianapolis Indians 10, Louisville Bats 3

Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, KY
Game 1 of 4

First things first, most important notation on today's scorecard: 105 degrees game time temperature.  YES, that is HOT.

The visiting Indianapolis Indians were also hot, as the Bats continue to lose ball games through June.  They start this 4-game set with the Indians a whopping 20 games behind...who else?  The Indians, who reign not only the IL West, but the International League itself with a (50-31) record.  While several Indians had their way with Chad Reineke and the nearly hapless Bats, chief Indian Jeff Clement continued his 2012 tear to lead them on.

Clement is .295/.369/.429 with the Indians so far this season (241 AB), the 1st round pick (3rd overall) of the Seattle Mariners in the 2005 draft has career numbers in this range during his 7 AAA seasons (4 of them with the Indians), but he's been unable to replicate this at the Major League level (in 54 games/144 AB with the Pirates in 2010, he was .201/.237/.368 by comparison).  At 28, he's currently blocked by a somewhat waffling Casey McGehee, as well as his own teammate Matt Hague, who at 26 can also play 1B and is on the Pirates' 40-man roster (Clement is not).  Hague was also deadly this evening, with one more hit than Clement, yet on base shy of Clement's total bases.

Daniel Cabrera was tight and wildly effective on the mound for the Indians, 7H, ER, 5K, BB ...and 2 Wild Pitches plus a hit batter.  His opponent, Chad Reineke...well, we seem to be old friends this season, as I feel like I've seen Reineke more in 2012 than I've seen any other starter in the last 3 years or so.  I felt like this would be a good outing, Win or Lose, for Reineke if he could pitch 6 innings and give up no more than 3 runs.  Reineke blew this projection out with 4ER in 6IP, all of those runs came on Home Runs (Clement, 0 on 1 out; Hague, 2 on 1 out)...so it should be no surprise that he also struck out 8 ( 3 of them swinging) and walked only 1.  Location isn't Reineke's problem; it's his locating the wrong pitch at the wrong time.  His velocity is still sitting in the low 90s, but at age 30 and a Minor League career spanning 9 years, his only chance for MLB action this year is if someone in the Reds' rotation goes Koyie Hill with a table saw and they need help they can't get anywhere else.  

Reineke, like Clement, is also not on the parent club's 40-man roster.  These guys aren't trade chips for prospects and/or free agent deals, they are placeholders for future talent and development.  The Reds may have had plans for the likes of Jeff Francis, and the Pirates certainly have plans for Matt Hague, Chase d'Arnaud, Jeff Locke, and Starling Marte...Chad Reineke and Jeff Clement are those complementary positions for opposing Minor League teams by which assets on both rosters can get the experience they need to build trade value and maybe even get a phone call later in the season.  Clement is in the lineup to bring in baserunners and wear out pitchers; Reineke is on the mound to wear out batters and give his defense some work to do.

It's true, you never know what could happen...these guys are still a bit on the young side to call them "Minor League Veterans" at this point, but for the time being you have to wonder if MLB is really in the cards for them...or not.

It's only a 4-1 game when Reineke leaves, and the combined Bats bullpen of Josh Judy, Carlos Fisher, and Donnie "Mister Socks" Joseph allow 7 more hits and 7 more runs (5 of them earned).  Their roles are a little different than Reineke's, he set up the game for them and they couldn't keep a lid on the psycho-sluggin' Indians.

My guest tonight was my friend Ranny; $2 craft beer night is gone forever, replaced by $3 Landshark and $3 Cheeseburgers...the cheeseburgers were great, even though it was just about as bloody hot as I could stand it.  In the Mystery Rookie Card game, Ranny picked this pretty kool 2007 Fleer Justin Hampson RC. 

After 7 seasons in the Colorado Rockies system, 2007 was his first year with the Padres...who released him in early 2009.  Since February 2011 he's been with the Mets and at 32, is doing well with the Buffalo Bisons...in a similar role as Chad Reineke has here, I'm sure.

I had my biggest hit in the Mystery Rookie Card game ever!  I found 2 cards inside the opaque orange construction paper when I opened it.  First was this 1991 Topps Stadium Club Joe Caruso.  Joe was the 3rd round pick in the 1991 Draft of the Boston Red Sox, but after 5 seasons in the Minors he never got called up and faded away.

Oh, but that wasn't my big hit...this one was... 

Yes, that is a 1999 Fleer Mystique Cal Ripken, Jr., limited edition...number 1213 of 2500 copies made.  Slugger Monkey had a $20 tag on this one (remember, you only pay $1 for Mystery Rookie Card packs!), and I've seen them on CheckOutMyCards.com for $10, and around $11 on eBay from time to time.  Still the best 'book value' haul I've ever made playing the game.

Official Program, with Neftali Soto on the cover

Official Scorecard (with Danny Dorn) and Bat Chat

6/4/12 Durham Bulls 2, Louisville Bats 1

Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, KY
Game 4 of 4

Late afternoon rain showers may have delayed the start of the game, but only for 33 minutes…a 33-minute delay of another loss for the Bats. The game was well pitched by both teams, but the box score will only tell you that 24-year old Shane Dyer, recently called up from the AA Montgomery Biscuits, bested 30-year old Chad Reineke on behalf of the Durham Bulls.

Let’s face it, the Bats are so banged up right now with perennial lineup players Paul Janish, Chris Valaika, Denis Phipps, and even Daryl Jones all on the disabled list, manager David Bell has little other choice than to give more playing time to some old guys and some young guys we are less familiar with. Bring on the geezers, newly-signed Joey Gathright (last time I saw him in Louisville was in a 2009 game, playing for the visiting Norfolk Tides) and Willie Harris, in AAA Louisville after a 19-game .278 OPS run with the Reds.

Bell’s plan during this series seems to have been to give the starters an opportunity to build up higher pitch counts, and let the offense try to keep them in the game. Game 1 of the series saw Pedro Villareal face Lance Pendleton; Villareal stayed in for 5.2 innings, 3 ER and 106 pitches, left the game behind and earned an L as the Bats fell to the Bulls 3-1. Game 2 featured Sean Gallagher in for only 2.2 innings against Jim Paduch, 2 ER and 65 pitches; this was the shortest outing by a Bats starting pitcher during the series, the Bulls won 8-3. Game 3 was Jeff Francis’ gem of his 2012 season so far, a complete game shutout against Chris Archer; 114 pitches total, as the Bats’ offense backed him up with 7 runs.


Tonight, Bell left Chad Reineke in for 7 innings, 2 ER, 106 pitches. He only left with a 1-run deficit, but was (for the sake of pitching W-L record-keeping) out-dueled by Dyer, who was 0-1 with a 6.30 ERA prior to tonight’s outing. Dyer and Reineke were pretty much evenly matched, and Dyer left the game before Reineke did…but the Bats couldn’t get any more runs across the plate in support of Reineke, as they also failed to do for Villareal 3 days earlier. The Bats are holding on steadily and consistently to a W-L record of .300 or so, and are showing no signs of getting out of this pattern for the time being.

My point is this; Minor League teams aren’t focused on putting a plan together to win baseball games, they are more focused on key players working on specifics in an effort to help the Major League club determine what their next move is, with or without these players on board. I think most of us who follow baseball at this level understand this, but the casual fan is watching this team toss around listlessly at the bottom of the league and are understandably bewildered. Say what you like about the Reds’ minor league system but for this year, this is where it is now, at the AAA level. There are some flashes of hope in the lower levels (uh, Billy Hamilton) and even on this team, recent callups Villareal and Cody Puckett, along with late-2011 season AAA callup Neftali Soto. However, they and the rest of the AAA squad here and now are just plain having trouble handling opposing pitchers and supporting their own. You read a few weeks ago of my lamentations of Jeff Francis in this respect…only the Bulls and the Rochester Red Wings are scoring fewer runs than Louisville (by 5 and 18 respectively), but Louisville is allowing 40+ more runs than Rochester, tied with the Durham Bulls. This game found the Bats especially bereft of making anything on the basepaths happen at all; 24 total left on base (Kristopher Negron and Soto each stranded 4) and were 1-for-11 with RISP.

Winning isn’t the name of the game, though. Don’t try to explain this to the casual fan, because it doesn’t matter to them.

UPDATE: A day or so after his CG shut out victory, the Reds rewarded Francis by releasing him from the team.

In the mystery rookie card game, my wife picked Australian RHP Rich Thompson’s 2008 UD RC. Thompson started 2012 with the Angels, but is currently on the Sacramento River Cats roster (AAA affiliate of the Oakland A’s).

I picked a 2008 Bowman Collin Balester RC. Balester, a 4th round pick by the Expos in the 2004 draft, was traded to the Detroit Tigers for Ryan Perry in December 2011, has played 11 games for the Tigers in 2012, and is back on the Toledo Mud Hens roster as of 6/3/12. If he's still on their roster in early August, I'll probably try to get him to sign this card.

Official Program, featuring new manager David Bell on the cover

Official Scorecard (with Danny Dorn) and Bat Chat

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
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4/13/12 Columbus Clippers 2, Louisville Bats 4

Louisville Slugger Field, Louisville, KY
Game 1 of 4
Bats Home Opener

Happy Home Opening Day!! I return to the familiar confines of Louisville Slugger Field for another season of baseball in the Allergy Capital of the U.S., and on a Friday the 13th, no less. The Louisville Bats are struggling to start the season, returning from a 2-6 road trip to begin 2012 under the new management of David bell. The Bats are at the bottom of the International League in AVG (.193) and OBP (.265), are only better than the league-worst Syracuse Chiefs by a run in Runs Scored (26) and a few points in ERA (4.77), and are tied with the Charlotte Knights for the league-worst Runs Allowed (38). 8 games is a fairly modest small sample size, and there is plenty of time for improvement, but the cloud that is looming among the others over Louisville today, is they open a 4-game series at home tonight against the 6-2 Columbus Clippers, the AAA National Champions of 2011. However, the Bats were 12-9 against the Clippers last year, and 9-2 at home. Leave it to a few Bats veterans and a couple of new guys to hold their own. The Clippers got on the board first, but Chris Valaika sealed the deal in response.



RHP Chad Reineke got the home opener start against Columbus LHP Scott Barnes, whose violent delivery was interesting to behold…every pitch he threw looked as if his shoulder was promptly separated upon release. And he did this 96 times. OUCH!

Here's some video I shot of Barnes' delivery...

Reineke pitched to great contact by the Clippers, with 2ER, 7 hits and 2 Ks in 4.2 IP, walking nobody and hitting Matt LaPorta. Barnes was also effective, striking out 6 and allowing only 4 hits and 4ER in 5 IP…but his Achilles heel was in his 4 walks, 2 WP and 1 HB.

By the time the top of the 5th ended with the Clippers up by 2, Reineke had been replaced by Travis Webb and the Bats retaliated against Barnes, beginning with a 1-out double by DH Daryl Jones.

Hold on a second, who is this Daryl Jones guy?Jones was a 3rd round pick by the St Louis Cardinals in the 2005 draft. He spent 7 years in the STL farm system, with a .757 OPS during that time. Jones has never made a Major League appearance, yet was named the organization’s 4th best prospect in 2009 by Baseball America (who was ranked lower than him? David Freese, Allen Craig, and Daniel Descalso). In November of last year, Jones was granted Free Agency by the Cardinals and was promptly signed by the Reds. At 25 years old, the outfielder has an opportunity to boost his big league value by posting a solid season for the Bats, and looked pretty good at the plate tonight, despite the fact that he left a total of 3 runners on base.

With Jones on, he steals 3rd during Corky Miller’s turn in the box and crosses the plate on a Put-out attempt where Lonnie Chisenhall missed the catch from Matt Pagnozzi. Miller walks, Kris Negron is hit by Barnes, and with 2 on and 2 outs, the only way Corky can score from second is on a well-placed poke to the deep left field corner. Valaika goes CLUTCH and delivers this, Miller and Negron both score and the Bats take the lead.

Todd Frazier walks to lead off the 6th, and scores Louisville’s 4th run on a Fielder’s Choice by Jones.

Scott Carroll, my favorite pitcher in 2011, has been appearing as a middle reliever for the Bats this season; in 3 games so far his ERA is 0 and has allowed 5 hits in 4.2 IP with 4 strike outs. Perhaps the biggest reason for his move to the bullpen is due to the acquisition of more seasoned starters Jeff Francis and Sean Gallagher by the Reds during the offseason. Scott looked great tonight, allowing 2 to reach on base on back-to-back hits (a double and a single) with only one out in his first inning of work, but held the Clippers hitless and scoreless after that. J.J. Hoover pitches a 3-up, 3-down 9th inning to earn the save and the Bats win their home opener.

Friday night, Opening Night, and dollar beer night collided for a robust attendance of 12, 108 (8K of which were in their seats for the first pitch, and a little less for when the final out was recorded). The most significant improvement at Slugger Field this year is the renovated Budweiser Scoreboard…gone are the yellow light bulb text displays, replaced by great LCD boards.The main scoreboard, however, still utilizes 1960’s technology for its alpha-numeric displays. This is Minor League ballpark nostalgia in full effect. As if you may not have know, a great deal of the paid attendance NOT in the seats for first pitch were right here, at the Overlook patio.

Photos from the Game:

1st Inning:
Clippers LF (and former Major League hopeful) Matt LaPorta faces Chad Reineke

Scott Barnes on the mound, my attempts to capture his shoulder-seperating herky-jerkiness on camera were unsuccessful, but the memory (ouch) remains...hopefully the previously imbedded video will help you see what I saw!

Bats CF Denis Phipps faces Barnes (Phipps has added some upper-body muscle to his frame during the offseason)

Bats 1B Neftali Soto faces Barnes

4th Inning:
Clippers DH Chad Huffman faces Chad Reineke

Chad Reineke on the mound

Obligatory Todd Frazier photos! It’s good to see Todd back, but I can’t believe he didn’t make the Major League team to start the season. I prefer him in the hot corner (and at the plate) much more than the cancerous Juan Francisco, but I hate it for Todd that he’s still here.

Soto faces Barnes Soto flies out to right field to end the inning, as Barnes traces the ball in the air

5th Inning:
Manager David Bell, Bats C Corky Miller, and Chad Reineke discuss candlesticks on the mound. Bell gets the ball from Reineke and makes the call to the bullpen.

Clippers RF Travis Crowe faces LHP Travis Webb

6th Inning:
Bats DH Daryl Jones faces RHP Hector Ambriz

Miller faces Ambriz, Soto at 3rd base Corky shows bunt???

Ambriz on the mound

Miller walks (second walk of the inning for Ambriz); Bats OF Bill Rhinehart as 1B coach and Clippers 1B Beau Mills Mills is not holding Corky, who is something less than a threat to steal

7th Inning:
Bats RHP Scott Carroll

Clippers 3B Lonnie Chisenhall faces Scott Carroll

Denis Phipps faces RHP Chen-chang Lee Phipps cracks a double to CF

Todd Frazier Todd Frazier Todd Frazier
Swingandamiss Todd Frazier

HOOAH!!
#GoFridayBaseball
#ReceiveBaseball

My guest at tonight’s game was my friend Marty (who was with me when I got the Corky Miller FB last year). Here are the results of the Mystery Rookie Pack pull:

Marty chose the pink wrapper and ended up with a 2004 Bowman Chrome Carlos Quentin RC #202.

I always let my guest choose first, so I got the blue wrapper and ended up with a 2008 UD Timeline Clay Timpner RC #80.



Official Program, featuring new manager David Bell on the cover

Official Scorecard (with Danny Dorn) and Bat Chat

If you enjoy my work, I encourage you to spread the word via Twitter
(I am @yoshiki89), and also please leave a comment!