As the D-backs leave Florida on their absurd getaway red-eye, the farm was host to some absolutely spectacular lines, particularly from the happy hitting confines of the PCL. As Reno exploded for 15 runs, the predictable cast of big bats throughout the Aces lineup provided most of the heavy-hitting thunder. Leading the way once again was the man who it's hard to imagine being a "snakelet," as the title officially goes:
Snakelet of the Day:
Wily Mo Pena (Triple-A): 2-5, 2 HR, 3 R, 2 RBI, K
Triple-A: Reno 15, Tucson 9 (38-27) Believe it or not, all of the scoring in this game was done between the second and sixth innings, with only one half inning in that span in which a team failed to score at least one run. Tucson's second through sixth innings led to 3, 1, 0, 2, and 3 runs, while Reno tacked on 1, 3, 5, 4, and 2 runs in those innings. Needless to say, the starting pitching was poor, as the Aces teed off on Juan Oramas, called up to Tucson after just five (admittedly impressive) outings at Double-A, while Tucson had its way with newly-demoted Zach Kroenke. There were a ton of great nights at the plate for Reno, led by Wily Mo Pena, who hit his 19th and 20th home runs of the season, both off of Oramas. Cody Ransom went 3-4 with three doubles and a walk, and Collin Cowgill (as if you didn't expect to see his name here) went 3-4 with a home run - his 12th of the season - and a walk. Jordan Norberto threw a pair of scoreless innings - the 7th and 8th - to really re-establish order, striking out a pair and walking nobody.
Double-A: Mobile 1, Birmingham 2. (36-29) It was great to see Wade Miley finally get back on track, though his eight innings of one-run pitching came with an unsightly 4:3 K:BB ratio (and a much more impressive 11:6 GO:AO ratio). However, Mobile was absolutely stumped by the Barons' pitching for eight innings, finally scratching off a run in the top of the ninth inning with a solo home run from Marc Krauss, who also doubled to give him one of his more impressive games in a long time, though he did strike out twice. Your Daily Goldschmidt: Paul was the only other bat in the BayBears' lineup to have a solid day, hitting two singles and walking once.
Hi-A: Visalia 3, Modesto 8. (28-35) Visalia managed ten hits on the night, though eight of them were singles and they were effectively scattered by the Nuts pitching. Matt Davidson and Rossmel Perez each doubled for Visalia (Perez also added a walk and a stolen base to his night), while Ryan LaPensee reached base three times on a walk and two singles, then stole two bases. On the mound for Visalia was right-hander Diogenes Rosario, who didn't have a particularly good night. He threw just 5.2 innings and gave up three runs, all earned, with a backwards 2:4 K:BB ratio. Rosario profiles much better in relief (heck, Keith Law even bothered to write about him as a potential 'pen guy once), filling in in the rotation since Mike Belfiore was moved back to the bullpen. Brian Budrow came on and was even worse, giving up four runs in 2/3 of an inning, though three of the runs were unearned.
Low-A: An off-day for the Silver Hawks.
DSL: D-backs 1, Twins 0. (5-7) It's looking like 18-year-old Dominican right-hander Karl Triana might be a nice find for the Latin scouts in the D-backs organization. He threw seven innings of shutout baseball tonight against the DSL-Twins, striking out seven, walking none, and surrendering just a pair of hits. In three outings, Triana has a 14:2 K:BB ratio in 18 innings of work, sporting a handy 1.50 ERA. The DSL-backs managed just six hits of their own, all singles, but still scratched one run across, which was just enough to eek out a win. High-profile signing Ronny Mejias led the way with two of those singles, scoring that deciding run.