AAA: Louisville Bats (11-8) @ Buffalo Bisons (2-16) - 6:05 PM

RHP Matt Maloney (2-0, 1.86) vs. RHP Brandon Knight (0-2, 5.50)

The Bisons have lost six games in a row.  On the plus side, Wily Mo Pena had two hits Wednesday in his Bisons debut.

The Bisons play 20 of their next 28 games at home.

The Bisons have been outscored 88 to 45.  The Bisons offense is averaging 2.5 runs per game while the staff yields 4.9.

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Bats Roster | Bisons Roster

AA: B-Mets (9-8) @ Portland Sea Dogs (9-9) – 6:00 PM

RHP Ryan Coultas (0-1, 3.45)  vs. LHP Felix Doubront (2-0, 3.14)

The B-Mets need a win Thursday to avoid a sweep.  The B-Mets are currently 2-4 on their roadtrip to New Hampshire and Maine.

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B-Mets Roster | Seadogs Roster

A+: Sarasota Reds (7-12) @ St. Lucie Mets (9-10) @ – 7:00 PM

RHP Matthew Klinker( 0-0, 4.79) vs. LHP Eric Niesen (0-2, 2.81)

The St. Lucie pitching staff leads the FSL with 169 strikeouts and a 1.10 WHIP.  Charlotte is second with 152 strikeouts, while Jupiter is second with a 1.12 WHIP.

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St. Lucie Roster | Reds Roster

Savannah Sand Gnats (11-9) @ Greeneville Drive (12-8) – 7:00 PM

RHP Eric Beaulac (1-1, 1.50) vs. RHP Brock Huntzinger (1-0, 3.07)

The 22-year old Beaulac will make his second start of the season.  In 12 IP, Beaulac has given up just seven hits and three walks while fanning 17.

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Drive Roster | Gnats Roster

In his excellent now almost daily commentary about minor league performances, Kevin Goldstein of Baseball Prospectus has the following to say about Fernando Martinez: 

 

Look dude, at some point you gotta start hitting

Fernando Martinez, OF, Mets (Triple-A Buffalo)
Wednesday’s stats: 0-for-3, 1 BB, 2 K
Martinez has been much-hyped since signed a seven-figure deal out of the Dominican four years ago. Since then, it’s been mostly mediocre performances, with constant excuses for his youth and constant injuries. Banged up again this spring, Martinez is still just 20, but he hasn’t had a consistent string of success anywhere for about three years now. Currently mired in an 1-for-18 slump that has dropped his triple-slash numbers to .233/.288/.411, it’s impossible to say that someone still under the legal drinking age is running out of time, but it’s fair to say that some out there are running out of patience.

 

Will Sommer at Mets Fans Forever talked to C prospect Josh Thole. In a nice interview, they covered defense and Thole’s improvement with the bat in 2008.

Will Sommer
Now in your first three minor league seasons, 2005 – 2007, your batting average was mid-to-high .200s.  What changed last season when you hit exactly .300?

Josh Thole
I think it was just, well I mean, I was just a little more consistent all season, but the biggest thing was, was I just made a little adjustment with my hitting.  I just spread out and just stayed in the what I call the two-strike approach and just tried to put the ball in play as much as possible, so I think that I give a lot of credit with that then – - my manger last year, Tim Teufel, really helped me out with that a lot.

In his always excellent Minor League Report, Adam Rubin of the Daily News focused on Savannah catcher Kai Gronauer this week. Rubin chatted with the Mets scout for Europe and Gronauer as well.

Fun facts: Gronauer grew up playing soccer, tennis, handball and swimming and his parents still don’t quite understand baseball’s nuances.

AAA: Nelson Figueroa

… … 7 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K

AA: Josh Thole, Lucas Duda

… … Thole: 2-4, 2B, BB

… … Duda: 2-3, 2B, BB

A+: Angel Calero, Brant Rustich & Ike Davis

… … Calero: 6 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 7 K

… …Rustich: 5 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 7 K

… … Davis: 3-6, 2 B, 2 R

A: Robert Carson, Sean Ratliff & Josh Satin

… … Carson: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 7K

… … Ratliff: 4-5, 2B, HR, 2 RBI, 3 R

… … Satin: 3-5, 2B, RBI, R

Advanced A – Florida State League

@ St. Lucie Mets 2, Jupiter Hammerheads 1 (14 innings)

The pitching was as good as I hoped it might be in St. Lucie Wednesday.  Jeff  Allison blanked the Mets through six innings on one hit.  On the other side, Angel Calero (1-1, 1.23) held the Hammerheads to one run on three hits in six innings of his own.  He fanned seven and walked two.  Brant Rustich relieved Calero and shutout the Hammerheads for five innings.  Rustich (1-0, 1.38) punched out seven Hammerheads, while giving up just one hit and one walk.  In 13 innings out of the bullpen this year, Rustich has fanned 18, walked three and given up just eight hits.

1B Ike Davis (pictured) scored both St. Lucie runs in the game.  He tied up the game in the bottom of the ninth.  Davis led off with a double, went to third on a balk, and tied the game on a Francisco Pena sacrifice fly.  In the 14th, Davis singled and then Reese Havens doubled him home.  Davis (.297/.373/.446 in 74 AB) was 3-6 with a double, his third career three-hit game.

A – South Atlantic League

Savannah Sand Gnats 11, @ Greenville Drive 7

The Gnats offense got cranking in the top of the first and barely slowed down on its way to cranking out 11 runs on 17 hits to snap a five-game losing streak.  Six different Gnats had multi-hit days.  LF Sean Ratliff led the way with a 4-5 performance that included a double, a homer and two RBI.  2B Josh Satin was 3-5 with a double.  RF Rafael Fernandez, 3B Jefry Marte, 1B Eric Campbell and DH Raul Reyes all added two knocks.  Fernandez and Marte each doubled.

LHP Robert Carson (2-2, 3.48) was the first beneficiary of all of this tasty run support.  He yielded just two unearned runs over six innings.  The runs were unearned thanks to Marte’s throwing error – it was his tenth miscue of the young season.  He walked two and fanned seven.

Wendy Rosa and Eric Turgeon made things a little too interesting in the end, but Jimmy Johnson shut things down in the ninth.