New Orleans (AAA – Pacific Coast League)

New Orleans Zephyrs 11, @ Omaha Royals 5

Sure, Valentino Pascucci (.290/.411/.556) was left to languish in AAA for another long season in the minors, but he’s finishing strong. Thursday as the DH, he was 3-4 with two doubles, a bomb, three runs scored and four RBI. Oh, and he walked twice.

Eude Brito started, but the last three innings were an audition for relievers hoping to become part of the Mets plans. First, Ricardo Rincon struck out a batter in a perfect seventh. Carlos Muniz did the same in the eighth. Eddie Kunz gave up one hit in a scoreless ninth.

Trot Nixon was 2-5 with a homer and 3B Andy Green was 2-4 with a double and longball. Jesus Feliciano chipped in with a 4-5, night with a double.

St. Lucie (A+ – Florida State League)

St. Lucie Mets 2, @ Palm Beach 1

Julio Polanco lasted three innings, but the bullpen of Edgar Ramirez, Ryan Coultas, Junior Guerra and Emary Frederick combined for six scoreless innings.

SS Ruben Tejada was 2-3 with a walk and a run scored.

Savannah (A – South Atlantic League)

@ Columbus Catfish 10, Savannah Sand Gnats 5

Jeffries Tatford was 2-4 with a solo homer. 3B Stefan Welch was 2-4 and scored two runs. Michael Parker was 1-4 with a jack.

Brad Burns and three relievers walked eight and gave up ten hits and ten runs.  This was not really an SAL quality staff.

Tobi Stoner is on the bump for the B-Mets who are trying to make up two games on Portland to qualify for the Eastern League playoffs.  box

Brooklyn and Wilmer Flores host Oneonta.  box

Julio Polanco is starting for St. Lucie and Brad Burns takes the ball for Savannah.

Patrick Hickey, who covers the Brooklyn Cyclones at the excellent Dembrooklynbums.com, reports that Wilmer Flores has joined Brooklyn and is hitting seventh tonight.  Flores is one of the Mets best position player prospects.

Flores, who turned 17 the first week of August hit .310/.352/.490 in 59 games with Kingsport in the Appalachian League. Wednesday, he was 2-5 and scored a run for Savannah in the SAL.

The Cyclones are four games out of first with ten to play.

Baseball America did their analysis of the Arizona Fall League Rosters and had this to say about Daniel Murphy in the “Major League Tune-Up” Section:

Daniel Murphy already has reached the majors and has contributed for the Mets. He’s not likely to dislodge franchise cornerstone David Wright from third base but looks to get reps at second base with the Saguaros; he played 17 games at second in Double-A this season.

The other infielders on the team are:

Gordon Beckham, CWS (SS)

Kyle Blanks, SD (1B)

Shawn Bowman, NYM (3B)

Ian Desmond, WAS (SS).

Tyler Green, STL (SS)

Bill Rhinehart (1B)

Brett Wallace, STL (1B)

The White Sox won’t move their first rounder Beckham across the diamond to play 2B. Desmond and Green have both played SS exclusively this year, but surely could learn how to play second. Otherwise, it looks like Murphy will be spending a lot of time at the keystone in the Arizona sun. Unless of course, he’s a Met and not a Saguaro.

The Arizona Fall League released the first draft of its rosters Wednesday. The Mets assigned 23 year old RHP Tobi Stoner and 25 year old LHP Jason Vargas, 21 year old C Josh Thole, 23 year old INF Dan Murphy and 23 year old 3B Shawn Bowman to the Peoria Saguaros. The Mets can send two more pitchers to the league.

The AFL begins play on October 7^th, which happens to be the day that both NL Division Series are tentatively scheduled for game five if they go that far. So hopefully Dan Murphy’s resting up for the NLCS.

Stoner is 4-6 with a 4.62 ERA in 14 starts for Binghamton. In 74 IP, he’s fanned 57 (6.9 K/9) and walked 26 (3.2 BB/9).

Shawn Bowman who had back surgery last year to alleviate the pain caused by his pars defect is hitting .250/.269/.375 in 23 games with Binghamton after torching the FSL for a .340/.369/.485 line in 26 games.

The lefthanded hitting Thole is hitting .304/.388/.436 with 25 doubles for St. Lucie while displaying an extraordinary plate eye. He’s walked 45 times while striking out just 36 times in 335 AB over 107 games.

Vargas was placed on the disabled list on March 23^rd as he recovered from left hip surgery in March after having a bone spur removed from his pitching elbow in October 2007. He threw one inning in a spring training game in 2008.

Stars of the Day:

AAA: Valentino Pascucci & Michel Abreu

… … …Pascucci: 2-4, HR, R, RBI

… … …Abreu: 2-3, HR, BB, R, RBI

AA: Fernando Martinez

… … …Martinez: 3-5, 3B, RBI

A+: Emary Frederick/Brahiam Maldonado

… … …Frederick: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 3 K

… … …Maldonado: 1-3, HR, R, 2 RBI

A: Mark Cohoon/Carlos Guzman & Wilmer Flores

… … …Flores: 2-5, R

… … …Guzman: 3-5, RBI

… … …Cohoon: 4 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K

SSA: Jim Johnson & Roy Merritt/Sean Ratliff

… … …Merritt: 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

… … …Johnson: S, 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K

… … …Ratliff: 2-4, HR, R, 3 RBI

R (APP): Done
R (GCL): Done