Minor League Recaps

Sunday's Results

Burlington Royals 8 Greeneville Royals 4

Greeneville tried to come from behind on Sunday, but were shut down in route by the opposing bullpen, getting only 2 hits after the seventh inning.  Terrell Joyce (2X4) and Ernesto Genoves (1X4) both homered in the game.  Genoves' HR was a 3-run shot to left with 2 outs in the seventh inning.  Lance McCullers (0-2) got the start and the loss, pitching 3 innings and being charged with 5 runs (3 ER) on 3 hits.  McCullers also walked 2 and struck out 6, fanning every batter he faced in the first.

Staten Island Yankees 0 Tri-City ValleyCats 11

Joe Bircher had a good game at "The Joe" yesterday.  Bircher faced 20 batters through his 6 innings of work, meaning at some point he retired a lot of those guys in order.  Actually after allowing a couple guys on in the second inning, Bircher got the next batter to hit into a double play, retiring every batter after that sequentially until he left in the 6th—15 in a row, counting the DP.  Joe Bircher collected his third win, moving him to 3-2 on the season, allowing 2 hits, walking 2 and K-ing 6 in his shift on the hill.  Offensively, the ValleyCats performed as well.  Tri-City had 12 hits, 3 stolen bases and a 2 out, 3-run line drive homer from Preston Tucker.  Here's the box from milb.com: 

Lexington Legends Rome Braves

-Postponed

Lancaster JetHawks 6 Inland Empire 66ers 0

Another strong pitching performance on Sunday here led to Lancaster's 3-hit shutout of Inland Empire.  Blair Walters (1-2) picked up his first win since joining the JetHawks.  Through 6 innings, Walters allowed just 2 hits, walked 3 and struck out 3.  At the plate Jiovanni Mier had a big night, batting 2 for 4 with 3 RBI. Domingo Santana hit 2 for 4 and collected his 85th RBI of the season.  Delino DeShields hit 1 for 4, scored a run and stole another base—his 4th with Lancaster and 87th of the year (more on that later).

Corpus Christi Hooks 7 Springfield Cardinals 1

Corpus Christi used the old "1-2 punch" to win their game in Springfield on Sunday.  "1" here being a strong showing by starting pitcher Paul Clemens and "2" being the 7 runs they scored to support Clemens' efforts on the mound.  Paul Clemens (2-2) went seven innings on Sunday, allowing 6 hits and 1 unearned run.  He also walked 1 and struck out a trio.  Jason Stoffel came on for the last inning and a third, picking up his 23rd save of the season while striking out 2 and allowing no hits, retiring the 4 batters he faced in a row.  Austin Wates went 2 for 4 at the plate with a pair of RBIs.  Jonathan Singleton went 2 for 4 with his 26th 2-bagger of the year.  Jake Goebbert went 2 for 4 with a walk and clubbed a 3-run homer in the ninth to put his team up by 6.

Oklahoma City RedHawks 5 Round Rock Express 2

Oklahoma City didn't score first Sunday, but RedHawks' pitching managed to keep their opponents scoreless after the second inning and the offense did the rest.  Carlos Corporan continued to produce offensively, hitting 3 for 4 with a double and 3 RBIs in the game.  Brad Snyder went 1 for 4 with a RBI double, his 55th and 18th, respectively.  On the mound, Mark Hamburger (1-5) took the win after coming on in the sixth for an inning and 2 thirds of work.  Hamburger allowed a hit, walked 1 and struck out 1.  Fernando Abad threw the first 5 and a third frames, but didn't get a decision after also allowing 2 runs on 6 hits, walking 1 and K-ing 3. Jose Valdez came out of the bullpen to get the last out and also picked up his 16th save of the season, fanning 1. 

Player of the Day:  Mr. 'Lino DeShields is the man today.  'Lino stole his 87th base of the year on Sunday and that ties him with Lou Frazier for most Astros minor league stolen bases in a season; a record that has stood since 1988.

Pitcher of the Day:  There are a few worthy guys today, but Joe Bircher tops them all.  Bircher dominated on Sunday.  He forced batters into 2 DP's, then "settled down", retiring 15 in a row and striking out 6 in his remaining time on the mound.  After the game, RobCop was seen asking for his autograph.