I know what you're thinking...who? Ryan Strieby was a top power-hitting 1B prospect for the Tigers back in 2008 and 2009, but a chronic wrist injury has plagued him the last 2-1/2 years. In 2008 and through the first half of 2009 Strieby looked like he was headed for the big leagues posting plus .900 OPS seasons at High A and AA with big home run totals and tolerable K rates. But neither surgery nor rest has been able to cure Strieby of the pain and the Tigers finally gave up on him last week. The Dbacks signed him on Thursday and assigned him to Mobile where he'll probably take away all of Yazy Arbelo's at bats. I don't have any illusions that Strieby will suddenly be cured but he's a good upper minor-league depth guy and maybe there's an outside chance he'll get healthy and return to form. There were a number of fun minor league games to report on this week and some noteworthy performances, especially on the offensive front.
Snake Stars
3 Stars: Ryan Court, South Bend 4 for 5, 3 R, 2 HR (3), 4 RBI
2 Stars: Ryan LaPensee, Visalia 4 for 5, 3 R, 1 HR (3), 2 RBI
1 Stars: Chris Owings, Mobile 3 for 4, 2 R, 1 DBL
0 Stars: Dexter Price, Missoula 0 IP, 6 H, 1 BB, 6 ER
Game summaries after the jump.
Triple A: Reno 3 @ Las Vegas 4. The Aces lost a heart-breaker when Las Vegas scored one in the bottom of the 9th to tie the game at 3 and another in the bottom of the 10th with two outs to win it. Barry Enright pitched a solid game with 6+ innings and 2 runs allowed. But Zach Kroenke allowed a solo homer in the 9th, and Matt Gorgen (who was promoted to Reno a week ago) surrendered a double and a single in the 10th after striking out the first two batters. A.J. Pollock was the offensive player of the game with a double, a single, a walk and two stolen bases. The offense had 7 hits, 9 walks and 6 stolen bases but couldn't score more than 3 runs.
Double A: Mobile 6 Pensacola 2. The Bay Bears scored 6 runs in the first four innings and the pitching was solid in a convincing win. Chase Anderson had another fine outing with 2 runs allowed on 6 hits and no walks over 5 innings. The bullpen added four shutout innings of relief capped off by Evan Marshall. Chris Owings had a good night at the plate with 3 hits including a double (after earning 0 stars yesterday for his 0 for 5 night). Recent free agent signee Ryan Strieby added 3 singles in his second game for Mobile. Matt Davidson went 0 for 2 with a walk, an RBI and his 22nd error.
High A: Visalia 10 Bakersfield 8. This wild back-and-forth game wasn't settled until the 11th inning when Ryan LaPensee cranked a walk-off 2-run homer, his 4th hit of the night. There was no pitching to make note of but there was plenty of offense. Outside of LaPensee's monster night Gerson Montilla had 2 doubles and 2 RBI; Ender Inciarte had a double, a triple and an RBI; and Jonathan Griffin hit his 16th home run, a 3-run shot in the first.
Low A: South Bend 11 Burlington 9. The Silver Hawks had this game well in hand until a bullpen meltdown yielded 7 opposing runs in the 6th, 7th and 8th innings to put the team down a run. But Ryan Court saved the day with a 2-run homer in the bottom of the 8th to re-take the lead, and Kaleb Fleck pitched a hitless 9th to close it out. In addition to the game-winner in the 8th, Ryan Court hit another 2-run shot in the 3rd as part of his huge 4-hit night. The offense clubbed 18 hits with Raul Navarro getting 3 singles, Matt Helm rapping a single, a double and 2 RBI, and Chris Ellison adding a single, a triple and 2 RBI.
Short Season A: Yakima 1 Everett 2. The Bears were on the wrong end of this pitching duel as Cody Wheeler did his part with 4 innings of 1-run ball. But the offense was quiet as Everett scratched out a run in the 7th for the win. Derrick Stultz pitched 2 shutout innings in his professional debut. Wagner Mateo was the lone offensive bright spot with a single, a double, a walk and an RBI.
Rookie: Missoula 5 @ Grand Junction 10. The Osprey seemed on pace for a hard-fought victory but a disastrous 6th inning by Dexter Price was their Waterloo. Price retired nobody in that 6th inning before allowing 6 runs to cross. Ross Gerdeman had a tolerable start with 3 runs allowed over 5 innings on 8 hits and 3 walks. The offense had scored 5 of their own prior to the explosion but nothing afterwards. Jake Lamb had a good game with 2 hits including his 2nd home run of the season. Evan Marzilli added a couple of singles.
AZL Rookie: Dbacks 3 @ Angels 1. Luis Hernandez had an outstanding start with 7 innings pitched and just 1 run allowed on 3 hits and 3 walks with 2 Ks. Interesting thing about Hernandez is he's either really good or he's really bad. The offense did just enough with Alex Glenn getting an RBI double in the third and the game winners coming in the 8th off a passed ball and a bases-loaded-walk to Damion Smith, who just signed with the team 3 days ago. John McDonald started at shortstop in a rehab assignment and hit 3rd, going 0 for 1 with 3 walks.