On an administrative note, Matt Morris has probably been flogged enough at this point. Does anybody have any suggestions for a different title? Other than the Moskos Report, that is . . . .
The GCL and DSL Pirates were off.
-- With scheduled starter Wilfredo Boscan getting called up, Indianapolis went with a bullpen game. It didn't work out too well, as Josh Wall and Jeff Inman got lit up for eight 5th-inning runs in a 10-3 loss to Columbus. Willy Garcia went 3-4 with a double. Alen Hanson went 2-2 with a double, but Gift Ngoepe replaced him after a caught stealing, so Hanson may have gotten hurt.
-- Steven Brault got knocked out in the 2nd inning as Altoona lost, 8-2, to a veteran Bowie team. Brault allowed six runs in an inning and two-thirds. Adam Frazier, Max Moroff and Dan Gamache all went 2-5, and Andy Vasquez 2-4. Josh Bell, of course, was busy going deep in the Futures Game. The loss left Altoona a game behind Bowie in the Eastern League's Western Division. They've taken different paths to contention, though. Here are the ages of the two starting lineups (and this is with the 22-year-old Bell away):
Bowie: 23 - 1, 24 - 1, 25 - 3, 26 - 2, 27 - 1, 28 - 1
Altoona: 22 - 3, 23 - 2, 24 - 2, 25 - 1, 27 - 1
I'm not sure what my point is, but I thought this was interesting.
-- Bradenton beat Daytona, 4-3, in ten innings. Tyler Eppler gave up one run over six innings on just two hits and two walks. He struck out four. Jin-De Jhang, Justin Maffei and Michael Fransoso all went 2-4. Austin Meadows was 0-5 and Reese McGuire 1-4.
-- Jerrick Suiter (pictured) went 5-5 with five RBIs as the West Virginia Power hammered Greensboro, 14-5. Suiter's hits included two doubles and his third HR. Jordan Luplow and Taylor Gushue also went deep, Luplow's fifth and Gushue's second. Elvis Escobar went 3-5, Pablo Reyes 3-6 and Connor Joe 1-2 with two walks. Stephen Tarpley looked like he was headed for a rough start, as the first four hitters got to him for a HR, two singles and a double. He worked out of a second-and-third, no out situation, though, with the help of a line-drive double play. He ended up allowing only one more hit, for a total of five, and the two runs over five total innings. He walked one and fanned five.
-- The West Virginia Black Bears lost to Vermont, 5-4. Starter Cesilio Pimentel gave up three runs over five innings. Daniel Zamora, drafted in the 40th round, made his pro debut, giving up one run on two hits in one inning. Ulises Montilla went 2-3 with a double and Logan Hill went 2-4. Casey Hughston was 1-3 with a double, but also struck out twice, giving him 19 strikeouts in just 60 ABs. Kevin Kramer went 0-4. Kevin Newman didn't play.
-- Bristol lost to Kingsport, 7-1. Gage Hinsz didn't have a great start, giving up three runs, two earned, in two-plus innings. He allowed three hits, walked one and struck out two. Erik Lunde went 3-4 with a double and a triple.