Well that didn't take long. It was always thought that Andrew Chafin had the kind of arsenal that would serve a flame-throwing lefty well, But I didn't think it would happen this soon. Andrew Chafin made his first appearance out of the bullpen as a professional since he's been struggling for the last couple of months as a starter. Now, I don't really know if it's merely because he's been struggling and they're just trying to shake him up a little, or if they really have an eye on making a concerted push to turn him into a reliever. Time will tell. In any case, I'm sure you're wondering how it went. Well, not so good. One inning, 3 walks, 1 hit, 2 runs, 1 strikeout. We'll keep an eye on things there. Our top two pitching prospects were also in action tonight in Skaggs and Bradley. You can check out their results after the jump.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: Kevin Medrano, Yakima 3 for 5, 1 R, 3 RBI
2 Stars: Shaun Cooper, Yakima 3 for 2, 2 BB, 2 R, 1 RBI
1 Star: Eric Groff, South Bend 2 for 4, 1 R, 2 DBL, 1 RBI
0 Stars: Wagner Mateo, Yakima 0 for 5, 4 K
Triple A: Reno 1 @ Tucson 5. Tyler Skaggs was on the hill and a tough 1st inning did him in. After the leadoff hitter ground out, the next hitter singled on a ball that deflected off Skaggs. Then Skaggs picked him off first but Mike Jacobs threw the ball into left field. Two walks sandwiched around a pop-up loaded the bases. Then light-hitting SS Beamer Weems smacked a double to center that cleared the bases. Only one of the runs was earned. Skaggs completed five innings allowing 3 more hits the rest of the way, one a solo home run by slugging 1st baseman Matt Clark. The offense had no response collecting just 4 hits, 2 by Josh Bell including a double.
High A: Visalia 1 @ Modesto 8. Willy Paredes' second start as a professional wasn't as good as his first. He was fine through four innings, but a 3-run 5th left him with a line of 5 innings pitched, 9 hits, 4 ER, 3 strikeouts. The offense was no match though they had plenty of base-runners, leaving 12 stranded and going 1 for 9 with RISP. Hot-hitting SS Michael Freeman had 3 more hits and is hitting .459 in his last 10 games and .403 for the month of July. Raywilly Gomez and Raoul Torres also had a couple hits each.
Low A: South Bend 3 Burlington 5. Archie Bradley started and he posted another typical Archie Bradley outing. He wasn't bad, but the walks are still killing him as he had 4 more tonight in 5 innings. But as usual he only allowed 2 hits. He was literally cruising through 4 innings with 5 strikeouts, 1 single and 1 walk. But then in the 5th after a leadoff flyout he walked the bases full. A sacrifice fly was followed by a 2-run double to center and his game was ruined. The Silver Hawks tied the game at 3 in the 7th on an Eric Groff double, but Seth Simmons allowed 2 runs in the 9th to take the loss.
High Rookie: Yakima 8 @ Boise 4. The Bears' offense took charge in this one as they overcame an early 4-2 deficit by scoring in each of the 4th through 7th innings. Second baseman Kevin Medrano posted a 3-hit, 3 RBI night and is having himself a nice rookie season. The 2012 18th-rounder is not showing any power yet but he is hitting a solid .354 hitting near the top of the order. Shaun Cooper also had a good night as the DH with 2 hits, 2 walks and 1 RBI. Alexander Carreras had a sub-par start but did enough to earn the win. A trio of relievers tossed 4 shutout innings to preserve the victory. Each of those relievers (Jose Jose, Victor Acosta and R.J. Hively) is having a terrific campaign so far with sub 2.00 ERAs.
AZL Rookie: Dbacks 9 Rangers 4. The offense got it done late for the home team led by two-hit, 2-RBI games from William Castillo, rehabbing FA Tyler Graham and 2nd-rounder SS Jose Munoz. 9th-rounder Jeff Gibbs started and pitched 3 shutout innings but Andrew Potter yielded 4 runs in the 6th and 7th to tie the score. But a run in the bottom of the 7th and 4 more in the 8th blew it open. CF Chuck Taylor also had 2 hits and his 9th stolen base. On the Stryker front he went hitless with 2 walks. I'm most impressed with Trahan's plate discipline as he has 20 walks and just 16 strikeouts in 89 plate appearances. And of his 22 hits, 9 have been for extra bases. What he needs to work on the most is his defense as he has 8 errors, 8 passed balls, and has thrown out just 2 of 30 base-stealers. He's got a long way to go to stick at catcher.