Obvious call for Snakelet of the Day here, because frankly, he was one of the heroes of the entire organization in yesterday's action.
Snakelet of the Day:
Paul Goldschmidt (MLB): 1-3, HR, R, 2 RBI, BB, K
What do you mean that's cheating? Goldschmidt's still a prospect! Fine... you guys are no fun. However, there's still plenty of fun debate and discussion worth having about this guy:
Actual Snakelet of the Day:
Wade Miley (Triple-A): 6.2 IP, 8 H, 2 R (2 ER), 10:3 K:BB, HR, 7:1 GO:AO
Triple-A: Reno 3, Fresno 4. (63-47) The Jason Marquis trade may have officially cemented Wade Miley's spot in Triple-A for the remainder of the 2011 season (or at least until September) barring a catastrophic series of injuries, but that doesn't mean that Miley can't pitch his way into the 2012 rotation. By almost any measure, Miley was utterly spectacular for Triple-A Reno on Wednesday night, as the young left-hander worked 6.2 innings on the mound, allowing just two runs on eight hits - including a homer - and three walks, whiffing 10 and posting a 7:1 GO:AO ratio. It's not easy to succeed in the Pacific Coast League, but Miley certainly hasn't noticed. He now has a 3.66 ERA in six starts with the Aces, notching 39.1 innings while posting a 41:14 K:BB ratio and 2.23 GO/AO.
It is hardly a secret that I haven't always been a huge Kevin Towers booster, but the fact that KT elected to trade Zach Walters for Jason Marquis rather than go for a more prospect-expensive move like Jim Bowden's suggested Miley and Keon Broxton for Hiroki Kuroda trade seems like an excellent decision given how well Miley has pitched of late. If Miley can continue to put up an ERA closer to 3.5 than 4 in the PCL for the remainder of the year, it gives Arizona yet another reason to entertain the possibility of selling high and trading Joe Saunders in the off-season with one remaining year of arbitration control left, regardless of what you think of Bazooka Joe's value. Clearly, there are reasons to buy into Saunders, and I imagine that a GM somewhere would be willing to pay a nice prospect price for a year of Joe at $8MM.
After Miley left the game, Kam Mickolio notched a pair of outs while standing an inherited runner of Miley's, although Sam Demel came on and allowed a runner he inherited from Mickolio to score. Demel had a bit of a rough PCL housewarming, joining the Aces for the first time this year outside of a two-appearance rehab assignment back in June. Put into the game with one out and a runner on first in the bottom of the eighth and trying to hold on to a 2-1 lead, a stolen base and back-to-back singles (the runner had advanced to second on the first base knock) quickly evaporated the Aces' lead, slamming Demel with a blown save and the loss. Ryan Langerhans once again led the way offensively with a triple and two walks, while Lucas May and Mark Hallberg each doubled for the Aces.
Double-A: Mobile 2, Chattanooga 1. (66-42) The Lookouts tagged BayBears starter Wes Roemer early for a first-inning run, but the right-hander then shut down the Chattanooga offense for five innings, finishing the day with one of his best starts of the season. Roemer K'd five in six innings with two walks, posting a 7:3 GO:AO ratio and allowing just that first-inning run. The Mobile bullpen did its usual thing, as Bryan Woodall, Kyler Newby, and Mike DeMark shut down Chattanooga for three innings, giving the BayBears offense plenty of time to bounce back and snatch a one-run victory. Ryan Wheeler doubled for Mobile, while newly-signed Daryle Ward had two singles and a walk, driving in one of the Mobile runs.
Hi-A: Visalia 5, Rancho Cucamonga 2. (48-60) The Rawhide were looking for the sweep and received an impressive start from right-hander Derek Eitel, who looks more and more like a serious D-backs sleeper prospect with each outing. Eitel allowed just one run in seven innings of work with six strikeouts and an 11:2 GO:AO ratio, and although he did walk four batters in the outing, his 39 walks in exactly 100 innings of work in 2011 at Visalia a perfectly reasonable rate. It remains to be seen whether Eitel can live up to his peripherals or end up as a right-handed Zach Duke but having any sort of promise is impressive in itself for someone with Eitel's draft background.
The Rawhide offense supported Eitel early on via the long-ball, with Keon Broxton leading off the bottom of the first with a solo bomb and Alfredo Marte putting the Rawhide back on top with a solo home run in the bottom of the second after the Quakes had tied it up in the top half of the inning. It's a good thing that the offense supplied the long balls, because it certainly wasn't going to notch many runs off of Rancho Cucamonga starter Matt Magill, whose 12:1 K:BB ratio in his 6.1 innings on the mound was phenomenal. Kevin Munson and Evan Marshall closed out the game with an inning of relief apiece.
Low-A: South Bend 6, Lansing 3. (51-55) Starter Bradin Hagens had a short day, as four walks in just five innings on the mound forced a quick hook. Hagens struck out just two batters in his start while allowing six hits. Christopher Odegaard and Eury De La Rosa combined to post a 5:1 K:BB ratio in four innings of relief that saw just one additional Lansing run to cross the plate. The impressive relief work from the Silver Hawks 'pen gave the offense a chance to wake up, and it did just that. Led by infielder Gerson Montilla's 3-4 day with a double and a homer, the Silver Hawks notched nine hits and 18 total bases in the contest, including another home run from Yazy Arbelo.
Short-Season-A: Yakima 5, Everett 3. (15-30) Yakima outfielder Justin Hilt had a good day at the plate, hitting two home runs to lead the offense and notching a three-hit game. Tyler Bream also connected for a pair of doubles, adding a walk to his own three-hit performance to reach base four times on the night. Finally, Henry Zabala also doubled for the Bears offense to help the solid offensive day. Starter Alex Capaul pitched well for Yakima, allowing just three runs in seven innings on the mound despite a 3:2 K:BB ratio.
Advanced-Rookie: Missoula 4, Billings 7. (26-15) Outfielder Justin Bianco homered for the Osprey, while Tom Belza, Eric Groff, and Breland Brown each doubled for the Missoula offense. Super-projectable right-hander Robby Rowland was back on the mound for the Osprey after having perhaps his best game of the season the previous time out. Unfortunately, he struggled on Wednesday, posting a 0:2 K:BB ratio and allowing a home run in his five innings of work, resulting in three runs crossing the plate through five innings.
Low-Rookie: D-backs 2, Padres 6. (11-23) Jose Alegria and Jesus Abreu doubled to provide the only offensive pop in the AZL lineup on the day. None of the D-backs pitchers had noteworthy performances, although Wagner Mateo did have the team's only two-hit game on Wednesday.