A Javelina must have a keen eye..
John
Opening Day in Arizona and Venezuela, and good news from the land of the Javelina:
Dustin Ackley, hitting 3rd and playing 2b, opened his fall season with a HR off Tiger RH prospect Brooks Brown, then followed with a walk. Three groundouts left him 1-for-4, but he was error-free in the field.
Josh Lueke pitched the 9th as follows:
- Pitcher Change: Josh Lueke replaces Seth Garrison.
- Engel Beltre lines out to shortstop Jose Iglesias.
- Eric Farris grounds out, second baseman Dustin Ackley to first baseman Michael McDade.
- Zack Cox strikes out swinging, catcher Ryan Lavarnway to first baseman Michael McDade.
Nate Tenbrink, AA LH 3b/OF prospect, played 3b, hit 6th and went 0-for-4.
And, much farther south, also a good Opening Day for Johermyn Chavez of Los Navegantes del Magallanes of the Venezuelan Winter League. Chavez led off, played CF, and rapped out two hits, both doubles, albeit in a 16-4 loss in an ugly day for the Navegantes pitchters, none of whom are affiliated with the Mariners.
One of Chavez' teammates is Jesus Montero, the almost-Mariner Yankee catching prospect (did not play in the first game).
Alex Liddi played 3b for Lara, hit 7th and got a double (1-for-4) off Aguilas starter Austin Bibens-Dirkx.
Finally, Yoervis Medina, a RH starting prospect of some note -- who pitched well in Everett and earned a promotion to Clinton, where we was 5-0 with a 2.50 ERA and had 42 K in 36.0 IP -- went 2.1 IP in long relief for La Guaira with 0 R, 0 H, 1 BB, 2 K.
Comments
Thanks for the update...hopefully these kids can build up more confidence for next season!
Dustin Ackley left Wednesday's game in the 3rd inning, but apparently it was just a routine deal to get Nate Tenbrink additional playing time. Before that, he had a sac bunt and a double.
Surfacing Wednesday: Tom Wilhelmsen -- 2.0 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K
Josh Fields -- 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 2 K
Mauricio Robles (VWL) -- 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K
Dan Cortes (VWL) -- 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, SV
I'm very excited by Wilhelmsen's development, and all 4 of the above (plus Lueke) could be impact pitchers at the MLB level very soon.
And another day at the office for Chavez of Venezuela (Johermyn, not Hugo) -- 2-for-4, HR, BB, SB. So, two doubles, HR, walk and SB in his first 2 games (1 K).
And another development that I will post in the Nakajima thread.
Don't know why the game summary on mlb.com reported it otherwise, but apparently Ackley left the game because of a sprained finger on his glove hand as a result of a line drive in the 2nd inning. Apparently not serious, but he will miss at least a few games.
http://www.heraldnet.com/article/20101013/BLOG05/101019932
... and there goes the Capt Jack dynasty, slowly crumbling...
And another day at the office for Chavez of Venezuela (Johermyn, not Hugo)
Another day at the office for Hugo would have left quite a statline. 16 hours, 82 critics disappeared, 2 coups suppressed, .4 billion barrels oil swapped for arms, and 9 SSI-like blogs shut down...
I prefer Johermyn's single, homer, walk, and SB.