AA – Eastern League

@ Portland Sea Dogs 6, B-Mets 2

This one wasn’t as close as the final score; Portland scored four times off Jose Sanchez (1-3, 8.68) in the first three innings, while the B-Mets didn’t push a run across until the ninth inning.

Josh Thole (.382/.462/.491 in 55 AB) was 2-4 with a double and a walk.  In 13 games, Thole has drawn eight walks and fanned just six times.  Entering Thursday’s play, Thole has six doubles and no triples or homers.  In each of the first three months of the 2008 season, Thole had exactly six extra-base hits.  So I just might be rooting for a five single night from Thole on Thursday just for consistency’s sake.

1B Lucas Duda (.318/.500/.432) was 2-3 with a double and a walk.  Like Thole, Duda has more walks (15) than strikeouts (11) through 15 games.  The contact and discipline are in place, now Duda, who plays a power position, needs to drive the ball more.

AA: B-Mets (9-7) @ Portland Sea Dogs (8-9) – 6:00 PM

RHP Jose Sanchez (1-2, 9.88) vs. RHP Jared Plummer (0-1, 9.00)

Portland bombed Sanchez for 9 runs in three innings on April 18.

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B-Mets Roster | Seadogs Roster

A+: Jupiter Hammerheads (9-9) @ St. Lucie Mets (8-10) @ – 7:00 PM

RHP Jeff Allison (1-1, 1.72) vs. LHP Angel Calero (1-1, 1.13)

I’m psyched for this pitching matchup.  Both Calero (5) and Allison (10) are in the top ten in the FSL in ERA.  Allison was the former Marlins first round pick (16 overall) who has fought a heroin addiction and suspensions which forced him to miss the whole 2004 season.

1B Ike Davis (.279/.364/.426 in 68 AB) hit his first professional homerun on Tuesday night.  Now the search is on for #2.

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St. Lucie Roster | Hammerheads Roster

Savannah Sand Gnats (10-9) @ Greeneville Drive (12-7)

LHP Robert Carson (1-2, 4.91) vs. RHP Yeiper Castillo (0-1, 5.40)

Carson will try to stop the Gnats five game skid.

Adam Rubin reports that 2B Jordany Valdespin who was hitting .385/.406/.615 in 65 AB for Savannah, has been suspended by the organization.

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Drive Roster | Gnats Roster

@ Rochester Red Wings 1, Buffalo Bisons 0

The Bisons wasted a great start by Nelson Figueroa and dropped their sixth in a row on Wednesday afternoon.  IT was the third time in five games and the fifth time overall that the Bisons have been shut out.  Figueroa (0-1, 2.25) allowed just one run in the seventh inning on four hits.  He did not walk a batter and fanned two.

However, the Buffalo offense was characteristically quiet.  All seven of the Bisons hits were singles.  Jesus Feliciano was 3-for-4 and ended the game stranded at first.  Wily Mo Pena, making his Bisons debut was 2-4.

AAA: Buffalo Bisons (2-15) @ Rochester Redwings (6-10) @  – 12:00 PM

RHP Nelson Figueroa (0-0, 3.00) vs. RHP Kevin Mulvey (0-1, 4.61)

They’re scoreless in the sixth.  Both Figueroa and Mulvey have been sharp.

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Redwings Roster | Bisons Roster

Tuesday, the Bisons were rained out.

The B-Mets couldn’t hold an 8-4 lead in the game’s final two innings on their way to a 9-8 loss to the Portland Sea Dogs.  The Dogs scored three runs in the bottom of the ninth off Roy Merritt, who blew his first save.  1B Lucas Duda (pictured – .293/.483/.390 in 41 AB) was 3-4 with a double and 2 RBI.  C Josh Thole (.373/.450/.471) was 2-4 with a double and a walk.

St. Lucie snapped its six game losing streak with a 4-3 walkoff win.  Kirk Nieuwenhuis’s third hit of the night drove home Matt Bouchard with the winning run.  Nieuwenhuis (.235/.316/.382 in 68 AB) was 3-5 with a double and a homer, setting a new personal high with those three hits.

The Gnats dropped their fifth in a row 4-3 in Greeneville.  Jefry Marte had two hits.

So the Freddy Garcia experiment is officially over: the Mets released the veteran righty on Tuesday.
The Bisons also activated Wily Mo Pena and Nelson Figueroa. I never commented on the WMP signing – I like it. His right-handed pop will come in handy, if he can figure out how to make a little more contact at AAA. Again, like the Garcia signing, there’s little downside.

Behind the plate, C Mike Nickeas was promoted from AA Binghamton to Buffalo as well. C Rene Rivera was assigned to Brooklyn in a paper move while Salvador Paniagua came off the Brooklyn roster to join Binghamton.

In the infield, Jonathan Malo, he of the .203/.242/.288 batting line was sent down from AAA to AA.  SS Matt Bouchard, he of the .155/.219/.172 line in 55 AB was send down to from AA to St. Lucie.  That move pushed Jacob Eigsti, who will turn 25 in June down to Savannah booting 21-year old Jordanny Valdespin who was hitting .385/.406/.615 down to Extended Spring Training.

I don’t understand the Eigsti/Valdespin exchange at all.  The Mets could have phanton DLed Eigsti or released him so that Valdespin could stay in the lineup.

The B-Mets brought also Fernando Nieve of the temporarily inactive list sending Eric Brown to the the Brooklyn roster.