Dbacks Minor League Round-Up 5/9: Holmberg Tosses a Masterpiece

We haven't been raving about David Holmberg's start to the season because it hasn't been dominating, but it hasn't been bad either. That changed last night as Holmberg was dominant and revealed again why he's so highly though of. He threw 8 shutout innings on 5 hits and no walks while striking out 8 to earn his first win of the season. Holmberg is officially in mid-season form. After posting 10 walks and 10 strikeouts in his first three starts of the year, there was a little grumbling (some from me) that Holmberg was looking rather pedestrian. Well, in his last 4 starts he has walked just 3 in 25 innings while striking out 21. That's an elite-level 7.00 K/BB ratio. While all the buzz this year has been about Bradley, Holmberg let it be known that he's an elite prospect as well. He's not the dominating K-king like Bradley, but his control and varied arsenal will have him knocking on the door of rotation spot before long.

Around the minors: Reno split a doubleheader with Omaha as Chase Anderson had a nice outing in a 4-2 win in the first game. But in the second Garrett Mock dug the team a deep 12-0 hole through 2 innings that ended that one early. Holmberg's 8 shutout innings produced a 5-2 win over Chattanooga. Visalia also split a doubleheader with Sean Jamieson hitting a walk-off grand slam in Game 1, and newly-signed Robert Coe taking the loss in Game 2. South Bend's offense got shut down completely in their 5-0 loss to Lake County.

Snake Stars
3 Stars: David Holmberg, Mobile 8 IP, 5 H, 0 BB, 8 K, 0 ER, W (1-2)
2 Stars: Sean Jamieson, Visalia 1 for 3, 2 R, 1 HR (3, GS), 4 RBI
1 Star: David Holmberg, Mobile 2 for 3, 1 R, 1 DBL, 2 RBI
0 Stars: Garrett Mock, Reno 1.2 IP, 8 H, 2 BB, 11 R, 6 ER, 3 K

Triple A: Game 1: Reno 4 Omaha 2. Chase Anderson pitched a solid 6 innings to reverse an extended string of poor outings. He allowed 2 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks while striking out 6. Evan Marshall pitched a perfect 7th for the save. Chris Owings and Kila Ka'aihue each had 2 hits to pace the offense.

Triple A: Game 2: Reno 1 Omaha 13. Reliever Garrett Mock got the pinch-start in the nightcap and he got lit up like a Christmas tree surrendering 3 runs in the 1st inning and 9 more in the second. The offense managed just 6 singles with Tony Campana and Evan Frey each having two.

Double A: Mobile 5 @ Chattanooga 2. David Holmberg finally got his first win of the year despite how well he's pitched this year. I guess he decided he needed to be more than just good to get a win he needed to be great. And great he was with 8 shutout innings, no walks and 8 strikeouts. Holmberg also led the offense with 2 hits that included a double and 2 RBI. Nick Ahmed had a pair of hits as did Ender Inciarte that included a double and a triple.

High A: Game 1: Visalia 9 High Desert 7. Sean Jamieson isn't exactly known for his power stroke but he showed off what he has last night with a dramatic walk-off grand slam with 2 outs in the bottom of the 7th inning. Visalia loaded the bases in the 7th trailing 7-5 with nobody out on a Gerson Montilla single and walks to Jake Lamb and Ryan Court. Michael Perez then struck out and Tom Belza hit a shallow fly to right, setting the stage for Jamieson's deep home run to left field. Keith Hessler started and had trouble keeping the ball in the park as he surrendered 3 solo home runs before being ousted in the top of the 5th inning. Montilla had the only multi-hit game with 2 singles, a walk and 2 runs scored. It was the team's record-setting 15th straight home victory.

High A: Game 2. Visalia 3 High Desert 3. The 15-game home winning streak came to an end in Game 2 as newly-signed Independent Leaguer Robert Coe got off to a shaky start with 4 runs allowed in the first two innings. The offense rallied with 3 runs in the bottom of the 2nd that featured a 2-run triple by recently demoted David Nick. But that was as good as it got. Tom Belza added a pair of singles to the effort.

Low A: South Bend 0 @ Lake County 5. The offense was non-existent with just 3 hits on the night, and starter Brandon Sinnery wasn't his usual dominant self. Sinnery had been leading all Diamondback minor league pitchers in ERA thus far, but he allowed 5 runs on 9 hits and a walk in this one. Frazier Hall had 2 of the teams's 3 hits.