More storms in the heartland last night, hitting Oklahoma City (again), and cancelling the scheduled game in Jackson.  Clinton managed to avoid postponement for once, though.

AAA -- Tacoma 6, Colorado Springs 5  -- Box

You know, this team ought to be good.  What with three Seattle refugees and a whole host of top prospects.  And they seem to be enjoying their trip to the mountains.

Who's Zuninonian now?  None other!  Mike Zunino (Talk40 #1) himself, with two home runs (his 10th and 11th) including the game winner.

• First 17 games: .234/.354/.563
• Next 17 games: .190/.200/.403 (0 BB; 22 K [ouch!])
• Last 6 games: .360/.429/.880

He's still figuring it out, but the power is undeniable.  He still has a terrible home/road split (it was being discussed here before it was buzzworthy), so he's got to strike out less and figure out how to hit in the Northwest air.  That's about it, though.  Remember, one year ago he was in a Florida Gator uniform in the NCAA Tournament (his ex-mates lost to Austin Peay last night, by the way).

And he wasn't alone: Brad Miller (Talk40 #6) had a home run and a single; Dustin Ackley had a double, a single and a walk; Stefen Romero (Talk40 #11) had three hits, a walk and a steal; and Franklin Gutierrez had two hits and a steal of his own.

Brian Moran (Talk40 #35) was the mound star with five strikeouts in 2.1 IP of scoreless relief, before Logan Bawcom (Talk40 #31) came in for his 9th save.

Moran: 0.0 HR/9 | 1.6 BB/9 | 14.6 K/9

Yes, you read that right.

High-A -- Modesto 3, High Desert 1 -- Box

Modesto, down in the Central Valley, is one of the least homer-happy parks in the California League.  It has a "park factor" rating for homers of 77, compared to 138 for High Desert.  So a 3-1 game isn't so odd.

The Mavericks must have been in shock since they only mustered two hits, although one of them was a solo shot from Kevin Rivers.

Stephen Landazuri (Talk40 #24) had a decent start, but it wasn't enough: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 R, 2 ER, 2 BB, 5 K.

Low-A -- Clinton 5, Burlington 4 -- Box

Big drama in Iowa.

Down 4-0 entering the 8th, the LumberKings busted out for four in that inning to tie, and then scratched out the walk-off run in the 9th.

Emerging Janelfry Zorrilla was key to the 8th, unloading the bases with a three-run double.  He was then brought home by a Taylor Ard (Talk40 #32) single.

Jabari Henry (26intheMix), also rising on the charts, had started the 8th-inning rally with a single, and he also singled in the 9th, helping set up the game-winning wild pitch.  Yeah, a walk-off wild pitch.  The pitcher's got to love that.

Tyler Pike (Talk40 #14) was just OK: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 5 K.  His ERA is 2.85.

Looking Ahead

Jackson will try to get in a double-header, with Chance Ruffin (Watch List) slated for one of the games.  Tacoma's starter is "TBA."  With James Gilheeney sent down and Hector Noesi sent up, I'm not sure whose turn it would be.  Brandon Maurer is on the roster, but he won't pitch on three-day rest.  So I guess we'll see.