Can't Handle the Clippers; Ruggiano Rules

Season: 40-35; Trip: 0-1
Wrap, Box, Columbus Dispatch

Looks like Matt Moore is ready to go to the bigs. As for a AAA team from Columbus, Ohio, not so ready. Against the Clippers he’s 0-2 (10.1 innings, 12 hits, 5 ER, 2 HR, 3.97 FIP, 4.35 ERA).

It’s possibly a measure of how desperate the TB Rays are to have a hitting first baseman that we saw young Richie Shaffer start at that position last night. Shaffer has a grand total of 16 appearances at the position, all in the 2012 and 2013 Arizona Fall League. As for regular season baseball—not ever. Wonder if he even has a glove? But there he was last night, just in time to not quite figure out a popup that dropped for a hit and let two runs across.

Meanwhile, the new Durham Bulls were mostly quiet against the Clippers, losing their fifth game in a row against them. Hak-Ju Lee, of the grand slam home run the other night, was ejected in the 3rd inning for arguing balls and strikes, something that seems to happen a lot to him this year. New outfielder Boog Powell was 1 for 3 in left field.

The scheduled second game wasn’t played because of poor field conditions. The plan is to try to have another double header today, first game at 4:00 today.

Outside the game —

• For the forty-leventh time this season we are reporting that Tim Beckham is on his way to the Bulls. We’ll believe it when we see it. Who will be the odd man out in the Bulls infield? My money is on Ryan Brett, but the Bulls could give up on Vince Belnome or Hak-Ju Lee. My track record on such predictions is woeful, however.
• Justin Ruggiano, thought by some to be the best outfielder in Durham Bulls history and who was recently DFA'd down from the Seattle Mariners, hit three home runs at Triple-A Tacoma yesterday.