Durham Bulls Back in First Place

Wrap, Box, Columbus Dispatch

Season: 28-21; Trip: 2-0

Wrap, Box

Last week, last Saturday to be exact, the Bulls lost to Indianapolis and fell out of first place in the International League South Division. They’re back. With last night’s win (and Gwinnett’s loss) they are ½ game in front. [IL Standings] Good news.

Back at the beginning of the season I had the opportunity for a short chat with a couple of Bulls players. I asked them which pitcher should I watch this year. Who had an “arm”. One of them just shrugged, but the other thought for a moment and then said, “Andriese.” After these last three starts of his, it may be that he was on to something. Last night Matt Andriese went 7 innings (100 pitches) and it sounded like he was in control almost all of the way. That let Adam Liberatore come on in the 8th and strike out the side and Jeff Beliveau, he of the astounding ERA after 14 appearances (0.00) came on and added his 3 Ks to the total.

Nice to see Kevin Kiermaier back in center field (he delivered the winning hit as a pinch hitter the previous night). Vince Belnome continued his return to form with a 1 for 2 and 2BB night. Nice to see everyone on the roster above the Mendoza line (.200). That’s a recent, and very welcome, development.

Outside the game —

• Not sure we’ve mentioned all these roster changes: Pitcher Jim Patterson has been sent back to the Montgomery Biscuits. Pitcher Doug Mathis has been assigned to extended spring training. Brandon Gomes is with the Bulls and pitching in relief. Kevin Kiermaier is back.
• Long time WDBB favorite Elliot Johnson is playing for the Columbus Clippers. He started the season with the Cleveland Indians, was designated for assignment, passed through waivers, and accepted assignment to the Clippers early in the month. Mr. Johnson put in most of three years with the Durham Bulls and stands very high on WDBB’s Greatest Bulls Hitters leaderboard. [WDBB] Since leaving the Bulls he has played in the majors for the Rays, the Royals, Atlanta and Cleveland. [Baseball Ref]
• Speaking of former Bulls, Shelley Duncan, a important part of last year’s championship team [WDBB], is back in the game and playing in the International League. He just signed with the Reds and is now playing for the Louisville Bats, joining with Jason Bourgeois on that team, also of the 2013 Durham Bulls championship team. [MLB Rumors]
• Cole Figueroa had a spectacular moment last night playing for the Rays. Just check out the game video and you’ll see. [MLB.com] He came on in the bottom of the 9th as a pinch-hitter and hit a game-winning RBI double.

Look Back; Look Forward

Durham Bulls Athletic Park, October 19, 2013

Most seasons we do a review of what we liked and what we thought were areas to work on for the DBAP and the Bulls in the season. We put out an invite for further comment and we usually get a few interesting observations.

This year is different because of the renovations going on. To be honest, until the announcement was made I had not noticed that things were getting a bit shabby around the edges. After the announcement, however, we started looking more closely and realized that renovation would be a very good thing. On the other hand, until we see what happens (including cup holders for the front row of the terrace reserved seats!) we'll hold off on comments about facilities. The plans look good, though.

So let’s just talk about what worked well:

• National Anthem singers. When you listen to 60 or 70 performances a year you quickly come to appreciate effort that the Bulls invested in finding performers. We particularly like the choral groups. Also notable were a brass group whose name I missed and an a cappella group called Cognitive Resonance.
• Bull Durham racers. Fun to watch and creative in finding ways for Nuke to lose each race. Hope they come back next year.
• Food Truck events. The only down side of the food trucks was that it gave you a hint of what was possible down in the regular concession area. We hate to miss a moment of baseball, so we had to come very early. Being in right field, if the sun was out, it could be brutal for the vendors, I’d think. We appreciate the difficult balance that has to be made with contractors, etc., but it was a good idea worthy of a couple of repeats next year.
• I’m not big beer drinker, so I appreciated beer in small quantities being available (if not the price). Nice to taste all the varieties available. More always better, of course.
• Bull City Summer was an interesting adjunct to the season. We are looking forward to the book when it becomes available.

What else? Chime in.

News

On the Bulls website

• You can download a stencil to carve a Wool E. Bull pumkin.
• Buy a Governors’ Cup Champions T-shirt (got mine already).
• Take a look at the 2014 schedule (April 3! 166 days … a long, long time).

Players:

• Several 2013 Bulls have declared free agency: Ryan Roberts, Shelley Duncan, Jason Bourgeois and J.D. Martin. The last three made a difference this year. I'll miss them. Nothing precludes the Rays from re-signing, but usually doesn’t happen.
• Out in the Arizona Fall League Mike Montgomery and Merrill Kelly are at work for the Salt River Rafters along with several other Rays prospects we’ve never seen.  

The Durham Bulls in 2013 — Hitters — Part 2

Players in this version of the 2013 hitters’ table are sorted by wOBA. See previous post for the table sorted by games played. The less familiar stats such as weighted on-base average (wOBA) and weighted runs above average (wRAA) are explained at the links. Players with an asterisk are left-handed batters. Data sources are Baseball Reference.com and Fangraphs. Players discussed in order of games played.

Name	Age	G	PA	AVG	OBP	SLG	OPS	wOBA	wRAA
Hak-Ju Lee*	22	15	57	.422	.536	.600	1.136	.508	8.0
Wil Myers	22	64	289	.286	.356	.520	.876	.387	13.5
Vince Belnome*	25	127	533	.300	.408	.446	.854	.389	25.6
Leslie Anderson*	31	119	494	.292	.372	.459	.832	.375	18.7
Brandon Guyer	27	98	405	.301	.374	.458	.832	.377	15.9
Luke Scott	35	3	14	.333	.429	.333	.762	.338	0.1
Kevin Kiermaier*	23	39	154	.263	.338	.423	.761	.344	2.1
Tim Beckham	23	122	522	.276	.342	.387	.729	.334	3.2
Cole Figueroa*	26	129	533	.286	.361	.367	.727	.337	4.3
Mike Fontenot*	33	120	470	.264	.335	.379	.714	.328	0.6
Jason Bourgeois	31	90	391	.290	.343	.368	.711	.325	-0.3
Juan Apodaca	26	29	97	.238	.333	.357	.690	.323	-0.3
Shelley Duncan	33	90	376	.215	.287	.382	.669	.303	-6.6
Chris Gimenez	30	95	375	.224	.350	.305	.656	.316	-3.0
Rich Thompson*	34	50	217	.249	.325	.312	.638	.300	-4.3
Ryan Roberts	32	37	148	.210	.320	.274	.594	.286	-4.5
Evan Frey*	27	47	148	.230	.329	.262	.591	.286	-4.5
Craig Albernaz	30	33	115	.225	.279	.304	.583	.271	-4.9
Jesus Flores	28	52	189	.178	.212	.244	.456	.211	-16.7

2013 Durham Bulls Hitters

Sorted by wOBA

Jason Bourgeois, besides having the most difficult name to spell correctly, added quite a bit to the team this year and not all of it shows in the stats. First of all, at the beginning of the year he was a speedy outfielder who, along with Rich Thompson, could cover left and center and steal bases (22 on the year). This base running speed made up for Durham’s lack of power throughout the year. He and Thompson helped limit the damage from Wil Myers’ surprising lack of skill in right field in the early part of the season. He got to play in 9 games with the Rays late in the season, but there was no public bid for his services as he passed through waivers on his way back. At 31, he needed perhaps a bit more to earn a call back for 2014. We’ll have to wait and see. Stats.

Shelley Duncan may have had his last hurrah as a baseball player with the Bulls this year. To be honest, we like just about everything about what we have seen from him over the years. But he seems to have lost a step and certainly was not the power hitter this year that he has been in the past. With over 300 major league games under his belt, he surely brought a depth of experience to the clubhouse and his enthusiasm with each win was visible. To get some insights into his approach to the game, take a look at two very fine articles (here and here) from this year’s Bull City Summer. 54 RBI is nothing to sneeze at. The Bulls needed every one they could get this year. At 33 is there a chance that he could be back? Maybe. Stats.

Wil Myers spent the early part of the season with the Bulls, playing in 64 games before moving on. (Note: that was more than Longoria's 38 games in late 2007/early 2008.) We won’t see him in the DBAP in a Bulls uniform again (unless it’s for a rehab assignment and we’d rather not see that happen). We admit that his first month or so was unimpressive when compared to the hype, but then we noticed his RBI numbers, which were substantial even early in the season, much less what he accumulated over his 64 games (57). Early awkwardness in right field smoothed out a bit, but needed work. At the plate he eventually showed all that was promised, hitting one of the longest home runs we’ve ever witnessed and 13 more to go with it. Note that even though he left the team in June, at the end of the season his 14 homers were tied for the team lead (with Anderson). We wish him well. We’ll be able to say we saw him way back when someday. Stats.

Jesus Flores ended up being the Bulls go-to catcher for much of the season. I think it’s fair to say that he would not have gotten quite as much playing time if the Bulls had not needed Gimenez in the outfield. Not much of a bat, but clearly an above average defensive catcher. And that’s what the Bulls needed after Myers departed and Thompson got hurt. Flores has 311 major league games, more than Duncan. So he was yet another veteran in the clubhouse, in his case working with several young pitchers. Honestly, I never paid much attention to him over the year. Maybe I should have. He might be at the bottom of the power heap, but he might be back even with that awful wRAA. Stats.

Rich Thompson had some seriously bad luck this year. First of all he started the season in a slump and then, just as he was coming out of it, he broke his foot and was out for the rest of the year. He was noticed in the stands of the Triple-A championship game and it sure sounded like he is on the verge of retiring. Too bad. One of the keys to the 2013 Bulls was speed. The Bulls stole 137 bases this year, up from just 74 in 2012. Of those 74 in 2012, Rich Thompson accounted for 29 of them. By the time of his injury on June 6, Thompson had picked up 22, and that with a not-very-good OBP of just .325 (not very good for Thompson, that is). At 34, we’ve got to guess that he won’t be back. Too bad. Stats.

Evan Frey was part of the scramble to find an outfielder in June and July. To that end he was helpful. At the plate, not so much. But he did his job. He also spent some time in Montgomery and came back to lend a hand at the end of the season. He’ll need to offer more promise at the plate if he’s to return. Stats.

Kevin Kiermaier was a welcome addition to the Bulls' roster near the end of the season. Needing a center fielder ever since Rich Thompson’s injury, 23 year-old Kiermaier joined the Bulls in late July and clearly had a good time. He’s a fun-to-watch fielder and quick on the base paths (7 stolen bases, 6 triples). He had a terrific combined season at AA and AAA. The best part for Bulls fans is that he is a solid candidate for a full year with the Bulls in 2014. That should be fun. Stats.

Ryan Roberts simply wasn’t much help to the Bulls even though he got a good bit of playing time in his many stays with the team. It’s fair to say, I think, that he came into 2013 assuming he had a shot at being a Rays’ regular, and he did play in 60 games with the Rays this year. But when the Rays needed to move Wil Myers up, it was Roberts who got optioned down. He bounced back up a few days later, hit two home runs, and was optioned back (all this in late June, early July). He then went back up to the Rays for late July/early August, but came back, this time in DFA circumstances, meaning he was off the Rays’ 40-man roster. Roberts had the most major league playing time of any Bull, 510 games over 8 years, but he simply didn’t add much to the team that we could see. Quite likely the highest paid Durham Bull this year ($2.95 million). Did not play, as far as I could tell, in the Bulls’ post-season. Stats.

Craig Albernaz remains one of our favorite ballplayers and he was responsible for our biggest single thrill of the season, his grand slam into the bull back on August 6 against the Rochester Red Wings. Hard to imagine, but catcher Albernaz has spent parts of 5 seasons with the Bulls, although this year was the only time he’s spent all of the season in a Bulls uniform. He is obviously a huge asset to the Rays system. Will he be back? Hard to say. My guess is that they will place him in the location in their system that they are most interested in developing pitchers. Note that he holds an ERA of 0.00 in his 3 games, 3 innings pitched in 2013, a significant improvement over his 2012 pitching performance. He’s reported to have been working on a cutter. Stats.

Juan Apodaca did a decent enough job for the Bulls this year, so we were a bit surprised that he was released in mid-July. At a guess, he was a casualty of the Rays’ apparent confusion over just what to do at the catching position throughout their system. We have to note that not one of the four catchers with the Bulls this year made it into the black on the wRAA stat this year. The one with the highest rating was Apodaca and he got released. Certainly there are a lot of ways of looking at catchers that we fans aren’t going to be able to evaluate. Apodaca came to the Bulls out of independent ball, but we have not been able to find out if he caught on anywhere for the rest of 2013. Stats.

Hak-Ju Lee was injured on April 20 ending what was a spectacular start to the season. The young Mr. Lee was simply doing it all: hitting, stealing bases, and playing a superb short stop. His advanced metrics were pretty (BB/K of 1.22). It would surely have been fun to watch him develop over the year. Because the Rays are being their usual selves and not informing anyone about his status, we can only guess that his surgery went well and that he is rehabbing right now. We can hope so, and we can hope that his recovery is successful enough for him to be with the Bulls next year. Stats.

Luke Scott visited the Bulls on a rehab assignment at the end of the year. Stats.

Shelley Duncan Triples!

Season: 86-53; Games Remaining: 5
Wrap, Box, Gwinnett Daily Post

Former Durham Bull Matt Moore had his problems in his rehab appearance last night. Fortunately for Rays fans (and of interest to Bulls fans) Eric Single has put up a terrific article over at MLB. com about the outing. Moore is off to Oakland to rejoin the Rays.

Also fortunately for Bulls fans, after a fair amount of confusion and discombobulation in the 1st inning, a bases-clearing triple by Cole Figueroa in the 7th set up the win for the Bulls. Typically for this year’s Bulls, all the runners on base were batters who had gotten free passes. If the other teams in the league have learned nothing else this year, you’d think they would have learned not to give the Bulls freebies.

Kirby Yates had some troubles in the 9th, but pulled it off by striking out two in a row after 2 runs scored.

A game highlight was Shelley Duncan’s RBI triple in the 3rd inning. As reported by Duncan himself, it was his first triple since 2009! I wasn’t listening at the time, so find it hard to imagine how Duncan, who is not exactly known for his speed, got to third base.

I hit my first triple tonight since 2009. Just waiting for my dad to asked me if one of the outfielders ran into the wall & got knocked out.
— Shelley Duncan (@shelldunc) August 30, 2013

Outside the game —

• No roster moves today! Yet. But at a minimum Moore is probably headed back to the Rays.

Awards Rain Down

International League

International League Manager of the Year — Charlie Montoyo

Charlie Montoyo

Having already clinched the International League South Division title, Durham skipper Charlie Montoyo can now also lay claim to the IL Manager of the Year Award. His Bulls own the best record in Triple-A Baseball at 83-53 (.610). Durham’s division title is the sixth in seven seasons under Montoyo, who joined the Bulls in 2007 after piloting Tampa Bay’s Double-A Montgomery club for three years. Montoyo led Durham to the 2009 Governors’ Cup and Triple-A National Championship, one season before becoming the first-ever Bulls IL Manager of the Year in 2010. This year’s club is possibly his most balanced yet, comfortably leading the International League in both runs scored (664) as well as team ERA (3.31). Despite having several players promoted to the Rays during the course of the season, including top prospects Wil Myers and Chris Archer, the Bulls have rolled right along. No IL team has more wins since July 1 than Durham’s 32. The 48-year-old Montoyo is a former infielder who spent ten seasons in the Milwaukee, Montreal, and Philadelphia organizations. This is his 17th year as a Minor League manager, having all come within the Tampa Bay farm system. He was honored by Minor League Baseball in 2009 with the Mike Coolbaugh Award for displaying outstanding baseball work ethic, knowledge of the game, and skill in mentoring young players on the field.

International League Most Valuable Pitcher of the Year — J.D. Martin

J.D. Martin

Over a week removed from having established a new Durham franchise record for Triple-A victories in a single season, J.D. Martin has been named the International League’s Most Valuable Pitcher for 2013. The 30-year-old right-hander is the League-leader with 15 wins and a ratio of 1.48 walks per 9 IP. Martin’s last loss, one of just four this year, came on June 21 at Buffalo. Shortly thereafter he was elected to the International League All-Star Team, throwing a scoreless inning for the IL in Reno. Martin has been remarkably consistent all season, posting an ERA of 2.85 at home and 2.84 on the road. He is also the League’s Postseason All-Star starting pitcher. Martin is a veteran of 34 starts in the big leagues, all coming with the Nationals between 2009 and 2010. After spending last season in the Miami organization, he signed with the Rays as a free agent in January. Martin is the second IL Most Valuable Pitcher from the Durham Bulls, joining Jeremy Hellickson (2010) on the exclusive list.

International League All-Star Utility Player — Vince Belnome

Vince Belnome

The 25-year-old Belnome received votes as a first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, and designated hitter after seeing significant time at each position this season. Also a mid-season All-Star, he is currently 2nd in the IL in both on-base percentage (.604) and runs scored (73), and he’s 7th in batting average (.298). The last Postseason All-Star utility player from Durham was Elliot Johnson in 2010.

2013 Goodmon Awards

Most Valuable Player — Leslie Anderson

Leslie Anderson

Leslie Anderson has been selected as the team’s MVP for the second straight season. Anderson is having yet another stellar year for the Bulls, as he currently leads the team in home runs (14) and RBI (72). The veteran has tied his career best in homers and has already set new personal season-highs in RBI, OBP (.376), and SLG (.466). The Camaguey, Cuba native is in his fourth season with Durham.

Co-Pitchers of the Year — J.D. Martin & Kirby Yates

Kirby Yates

Starter J.D. Martin and closer Kirby Yates were both named mid-season International League All-Stars and will share the honor as the Bulls’ most outstanding hurler. Martin’s phenomenal 2013 campaign includes two IL Player of the Week awards, a Topps/IL Player of the Month nod, and Durham’s new Triple-A single-season record with 15 wins. Not to be outdone, Yates boasts a miniscule 1.69 ERA to go along with 18 saves in his rookie Triple-A season. Opponents are hitting just .167 against the native Hawaiian (3rd lowest in IL) and his 13.3 strikeouts per 9 innings pitched are second best in the league.

Team Spirit Award — Shelley Duncan

Shelley Duncan

Duncan, added to the Bulls roster on May 6 after beginning the season with Tampa Bay, is one of the club’s veteran leaders and his positive presence in the clubhouse has been palpable all year long even after he spent time on the bereavement list in June. He is the only Bulls player on the current roster to have played in a Triple-A National Championship Game (2008 with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre).

Community Service Award — Matt Bushmann

Matt Buschmann

Buschmann has been extremely active in Bulls’ charitable appearances since being called up from Double-A Montgomery in late May. He has participated in meet and greets with local Boys & Girls Clubs, promoting healthy and active lifestyles, and also the Drug-Free Junior Bulls Kids Club.

IL Award quotes from here, Goodmon Award quotes from here.

Congratulations to you all!

Last Minute Loss

Season: 82-51
Wrap, Box, Virginian-Pilot

Given Kirby Yates' performance this year, it was entirely understandable that Charlie Montoyo would go to him in the 9th instead of sticking with Brandon Gomes. Unfortunately, the result was a rare blown save and a loss for Yates and the Bulls.

On the other hand, you’ve got to think that Norfolk is going to be much hungrier than the Bulls for these four games (and the three at the end of the season). As we’ve been showing in other posts, the Tides are in the hunt for the wild card. Even though they need for Rochester and Pawtucket to both lose some games, the only way they are going to make it to the playoffs is by beating the Bulls — a lot. They will play Durham six out of their last eleven games. We’ll see.

Outside the game —

• Delmon Young was not exactly a beloved figure back in 2006 when he was in a Bulls uniform (when not throwing bats at umpires). He is back in the Rays system, but currently assigned to the Montgomery Biscuits. Stacy Long has some solid reportage here. We weren’t doing this blog back in 2006, but we recall him as a talented young man as part of a poorly led team. That was the year between the Bill Evers era and the beginning of the Charlie Montoyo era. And it was after Montoyo's arrival that I realized how critically important a good manager is to the development of young ball players and building a good minor league team. Not sure that idea had quite sunk in system-wide with the then Devil Rays.
• Over at Bull City Summer Mike Croley has two very insightful pieces on Shelley Duncan. If you want to get some idea of what goes on in a hitter’s head, really worth reading. One of the articles (this one) has a couple of those spooky photos that Leah Sobsey and Tim Telkamp have been taking/making this year. The other (this one) gets into just what could happen in one at bat.
• Also at Bull City Summer, Adam Sobsey got a terrific quote from Chipper Jones about AAA baseball (Note: Jones is talking about his time in Richmond, then the AAA team of the Braves, not the Durham Bulls). 
• Lastly, here’s the anonymously-written DNA of Sports which had an interesting profile of outfielder Kevin Kiermaier from a few days ago.

Durham Bulls Win International League South Division

Season: 82-50; Games Remaining: 12; Home Games: 4
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

Bulls win South Division of the International League! No other team in the Division can possibly catch up over the next 12 games. Victory!

Even though winning the South has seemed inevitable for a long time, particularly when Norfolk fell off a cliff back in mid-June (see the chart below), this is a big deal for Bulls fans. From the photos floating around, that’s true for the players as well. They deserve the celebration. They have worked very, very hard to get to this end.

This is the victory that matters in AAA ball. Yes, the Governors’ Cup is a great prize, but the teams who end up facing each other in the playoffs next month are likely to be quite a bit different from the ones who worked to get to the playoffs in the first place.

The Knights were snakebit last night, giving up a bunch (5) of unearned runs. But credit the Bulls for some hard base running to help force the errors.

When Shelley Duncan hit his home run in the 4th inning I finally noticed how much help he’s been to the team even without his usual power this year. He’s got 51 RBI, and that’s a big deal for a team of essentially patient singles hitters.

Merrill Kelly looked particularly sharp last night, ending his 7 inning with an impressive striking out of the side. Frank De Los Santos, who last pitched on the 14th, got in two good innings to wrap it up.

Even prettier, however, was the nice running catch of Kevin Kiermaier to end the game.

Well done!

 Outside the game —

• WDBB favorite Elliot Johnson will be putting on an Atlanta Braves uniform and rejoining his former Bulls teammate B.J. Upton. Both of them came out pretty well in our look at all-time Bulls hitters last January. EJ was not having all that good a year with the Royals, but maybe he’ll find a better fit with the Braves. Hope so.
• Speaking of inevitability, the Bulls were even ready to go with the T-shirt. 

Path to the South Championship

Gimenez Bangs One

Season: 76-47; Home Stand: 4-5; Home Games Left: 6
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

A walk-off home run is a thrill under any circumstances. That the hitter was Chris Gimenez makes it an even bigger thrill. The setup could not have been better. The Bulls went into the 9th inning trailing 2-1. Leslie Anderson singled. Shelley Duncan doubled. Mike Fontenot was hit by a pitch to load the bases. A sac fly by Kevin Kiermaier brought Anderson home. Then Gimenez put a 1-1 pitch over the Blue Monster.


From the stands this has seemed like a very tough year for Mr. Gimenez. He was the last man standing out of spring training for the Rays’ third catcher job when his main competitors, Stephen Vogt and Robinson Chirinos, both left the Rays system. So it seemed like he had a shot for an early call up. But his hitting has not gotten on track this season, apparently due to an odd injury to his hand. Plus, the failure of the Rays to keep the Bulls outfield populated has meant he has had to spend a lot of time in the outfield. The result is that  this has been his worst season at bat in his career. Nevertheless, as he showed last night, he can do it, and do it with some style. He’s probably a lock for a September call up, which is too bad for the Bulls since they could use him for the playoffs.

Before that moment, it was something of a slip-sliding evening as the Bulls played through the rain. (Note: this is the wettest summer in recent North Carolina history. A tribute to the Bulls groundskeepers to keep the field playable). Trivia question: What agricultural product is the source of Diamond Dry, which we saw used in copious amounts last night? (answer in the comments).

J.D. Martin pitched just fine and if the game had been called at the 5-inning mark he would have picked up his 15th win and a Bulls record. But his own error in the 6th let a man on base who eventually scored, so Martin left with the game tied.

So, let’s just savor the thrill of a walk off. And let the Bulls enjoy their well-deserved day off. It’s been 24 days since the last one.

International League North Division/Wild Card Competition

Unless something really weird happens, the top two teams on this chart are going to be playing in the first round of the Governors' Cup this year. One of the them will win the North Division and the other will win the wild card. So we’re going to start tracking it just for fun.

Of course, if the season ended today, we’d have a tie for the wild card spot between Norfolk and Buffalo!

click for larger view

Taking Advantage of Gifts

Season: 75-47; Home Stand: 3-5; Home Games Left: 7
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

Matt Buschmann had a terrific game. He one-hit the Knights and didn’t let a single runner get past first base in his 6 innings. Brandon Gomes was touched up for his first runs since showing up for his rehab assignment, but Kirby Yates shut things down.

All of the Bulls’ runs were the result of gifts by the Knights. The first run was scored by Jesus Flores, who reached base on an error got to first base after a dropped foul ball error was followed by a scratched out single, and the next four runners who scored reached base on walks. Have to think the Knights coaching staff were pulling their hair. Two of the most egregious errors were of the “I got it. No, you got it,” type. Could be the result of turmoil in the Knights’ roster. Still, pretty fundamental errors hurt them a lot.

I have to admit that at the beginning of the game I was worried. The Bulls loaded the bases in the 2nd inning with no outs, but didn’t score. In the 3rd inning they again loaded the bases with none out and the next two batters (Beckham and Belnome) couldn’t get a run in. Finally, Leslie Anderson rose to the task and sent a single off the glove of the Knights’ shortstop that brought in two runs. Yet another odd single by Shelley Duncan got a third run across and the Bulls never looked back.

A final oddity — all of the Bulls runs were unearned.

Outside the game —

• The North Division championship and the Wild Card competition have become intertwined. From the look of it, every game that Rochester, Buffalo, Pawtucket, Lehigh Valley, and Norfolk play in the next weeks will matter in the final standings. 
• Gwinnett’s loss to to Lehigh Valley last night officially eliminated them from South Division competition.

Update: See above correction. To be honest, I scored it as two errors, one on the dropped foul ball E-3 and another on the play to first (E-4) and missed that the official scorer call the second play a single.

Shhh! Bulls Bats Sleeping!

Season: 73-44; Remaining Home Games: 12
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

As regular readers will know, there’s a lot I don’t understand/know about baseball. So I’m hoping someone will explain to me why Matt Buschmann took the loss in last night’s game. He only gave up one run, the Bulls lost 4-2, so how come Cory Wade didn’t take the loss since the third Red Wings’ run came on his watch?

Something that has worried me a bit these last weeks almost came true last night. As obsessive watchers of the Durham Bulls roster will know, they’ve been playing with only 11 position players for quite a while now. That means that there’s only two players on the bench. In the 9th inning Leslie Anderson singled in the second run and things were looking up, hopes were up, and Evan Frey came in to run for him. Then Shelley Duncan reached first on a error, but was limping when he pulled up (more worries there). The bases were loaded and the last man on the bench, Mike Fontenot, came in. Bases loaded. Just what might have happened next?

As it turned out, Jesus Flores smacked one right to 3B, and the third baseman stepped on the bag for the last out. But what if … ?

And now they are down to ten position players with the Jason Bourgeois call up. If Duncan is hurt they are down to 9. There is surely going to be a roster move or two today ... or maybe just Craig Albernaz will come off the DL. Or I wonder if any of those pitchers have outfield gloves?

Another mystery: How does a guy with a 6-11 record and an ERA of 4.68 in AA ball darn near no-hit the best hitting team in the International League in his AAA debut? That’s what Rochester’s Pat Dean did last night. More credit to him. This is a surprisingly good team that’s going to be fun to watch over the next couple of days. Here’s hoping the Bulls figure the pitchers out.

The Bulls got a couple of freebies from Rochester’s bad base running last night. Two Red Wings were picked off and two were thrown out at the plate (Bourgeois and Kiermaier showing their arms and accuracy, Flores showing his toughness, Buschmann showing a nice pickoff move).

Outside the game —

• Playoff tickets are on sale. A playoff game at the DBAP is a wonderful experience for fans. Typically the crowds are fairly small and the games are essentially matchups between which system has the best players coming up from AA, the best managing/coaching crew, and have hung on to key players from September callups. The opening series will match the South Division against the West Division, with the South hosting. That implies games at the DBAP Sep 4 and 5 and possibly a final round Sep 10-11.
• A brief chat with Scott Strickland last night reminded me of this item in George Habel’s blog from several days ago and Scott’s photo below. As Habel noted, some folks show off their ultrasounds, Scott is showing off the two acres (!) of turf that’s growing and to be installed at the DBAP this winter. Cute kids, ain’t they? Funny name, though … Tifway 419 Bermuda?

Two Out of Three; Martin Gets (More) Famous

Wrap, Box

Wrap, Box, Columbus Dispatch

Season: 69-40
Wrap, Box, Columbus Dispatch (1), Columbus Dispatch (2)

Those three ugly games after the All-Star break are quickly disappearing in the rear-view mirror. The Bulls’ two remaining 40-man guys (starters, that is), didn’t do very well back then. Now it’s all better. Mike Montgomery picked up a win on the 24th and last night, after two poor starts, Jake Odorizzi was very, very good. Only two hits over 7 innings and 101 pitches, and the first of those hits didn’t come until the 7th inning.

Odorizzi’s opponent, the Clippers’ Danny Salazar, was essentially matching him through five innings. But Salazar is on his way back from Tommy John surgery and left after five innings. In the 6th, however, poor defense by the Clippers let two runs in. Two more errors in the 8th set up two more runs.

But that is what the Bulls do this year. They just keep banging out singles and doubles, run the bases, and chip away. Yes, Belnome, Anderson, Duncan, and the much-missed Brandon Guyer are strong guys, but they aren’t going to beat an opponent’s brains in. What happens is that when the opposition looks up at the scoreboard around the 7th or 8th inning, they discover that they’re losing by a couple of runs and one of the Bulls two closers, Kirby Yates (ERA: 1.29, 14 saves) or Josh Lueke (ERA: 0.57, 13 saves) is warming up. Could not be a good feeling for them.

Last night also saw Charlie Montoyo do something that is fairly common this year, but something of a change from previous years. Cory Wade came in to pitch in the 8th and after a K got into trouble with a double and run-scoring single. Montoyo went for the left-on-left matchup and brought in Adam Liberatore to pitch to Clippers' Ezequiel Carrera. Yes, that’s a common enough move, and it worked. Carrera struck out. It just isn’t particularly common for the pre-2013 Charley Montoyo. More than that, after Liberatore walked the next batter to put runners on 1B and 2B, Montoyo brought in closer Kirby Yates for the second night in a row. Yates got a K with finish the 8th, and three quick outs to finish out the game.

Now, this sort of pitcher usage is common in the majors, but for most of the years we’ve been watching the Bulls it seemed that the manager and pitching coach would just as often go for a “development” opportunity. That is, more likely to leave a guy in for another batter or two (or three). This year, it seems as if Montoyo (and Allen, of course) are much quicker to pull a pitcher, much more willing to seek one or two outs from a reliever instead of one or two innings. That’s partly because after the early season turmoil the Bulls have more depth (and much more quality) in their relievers. As it is, Bulls relievers might be getting a bit bored. In the last three games they’ve only put in 7 innings, and only 6 pitchers have been used (Yates twice).

Outside the game —

• Brandon Guyer’s broken finger is reported to be a season ending injury. I don’t think we’ve witnessed a season with more severe injuries to position players. He joins Hak-Ju Lee and Rich Thompson on the “7-day DL”, but not likely to return. And just when he got his batting average up to .300.
• J.D. Martin has been named IL pitcher of the week. This is the second time this year for him. Quite likely if he were on any other roster than the Rays he would be banging on the door for a callup. As it is, even Chris Archer who just pitched a complete game, 2-hit shutout of the Yankees in Yankee Stadium, could be odd man out when Alex Cobb comes off the DL. Don’t get me wrong. Could not be happier than to have J.D. among us. Hope he's having as much fun pitching as we are watching.

More Rust

Season: 63-37; Home Stand: 5-2
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

There was a lot not to like about last night’s game. It was slow, almost 4 hours for a 9-inning game. The second inning was just awful, Mike Montgomery served up 3 BBs, two home runs, a double, and a single. The Bulls got an exceptional number of free rides — a season-high 10 walks and 2 hit batsmen by Red Sox pitching (plus two sac flies) — but left 12 runners on base. And it was hot!

But the game had its moments. Shelley Duncan twice came to bat with the bases loaded. The first time he doubled in two runs, the second time he hit a freakish comebacker to the pitcher that led to an inning-ending double play. Tim Beckham pulled off a nifty, behind-second-base grab and throw in the 3rd inning. (Is he major-league ready? Yeah, probably so.) Vince Belnome continued his exceptional on base performance, 2 BBs, single, double. And there was the almost comeback in the 8th. Not enough, but a big try.

Outside the game —

• Ryan Roberts made the most of his visit back with the Rays getting a big hit up in Toronto to help win the game.

Almost Slip Slided Away

Game 86, July 2, Durham Bulls Athletic Park, 10 innings
Durham Bulls (Rays) 6; Columbus Clippers (Indians) 5
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Indy Week

This year’s Bulls are not a home run hitting team. In fact, they are last in the International League in home runs. Last night was the exception. Leslie Anderson hit the Bulls' first home run since June 26 in the 4th inning. When Shelley Duncan hit a homer in the 6th it was the first time the Bulls had hit multiple homers since June 17th. They were needed, because what looked to be a comfortable 5-2 lead was given away by reliever Steve Geltz in the top of the 7th. A walk, a single, and another walk loaded the bases. Another single put a run in and a sac fly brought in another. Jeff Beliveau came in with runners on first and third. A sac fly scored the tying run.

The score stayed 5-5 until the bottom of the 10th when Leslie Anderson singled past a drawn-in infield and Tim Beckham (running for Vince Belnome) scored. Kirby Yates had pitched the last of the 9th and all the 10th to get the win.

Newcomer Merrill Kelly (subject of an interesting, unattributed article in a local website) looked just fine. A solid 6 innings with only a small spot of trouble in the 5th. He seems comfortable at Triple-A.

The fabled Daisuke Matsuzaka has lost more than a step, certainly a ghost of the guy who made a big difference to the Red Sox a few years ago. His return to the big leagues does not seem likely.

Newcomer Evan Frey got his first Bulls hit and seems to cover center field quite well. Cole Figueroa played shortstop for the first time (I think) this season.

Very small crowd at the game. No surprise given the weather we’ve been having lately. We were among the missing, watching the fans with their umbrellas from the comfort of our home. Reported misty rain throughout the game.

Outside the game —

• Broadcaster Kinas said that Jason Bourgeois will be/has gone on the disabled list.
• Pitcher Frank De Los Santos (remember him?) is off the disabled list and is pitching for the Florida Stone Crabs. Three innings so far, and has allowed only one hit. Looking good.
• Weird schedule sends the Bulls to South Carolina tonight, back to Durham for two games, then off to Lawrenceville, Georgia.

Rain and Rosterification

DBAP, July 2, 3:30 pm

Game 84, July 1, 7 innings
Durham Bulls 1, Columbus Clippers 2

Game 85, July 1, 7 innings
Durham Bulls 5, Columbus Clippers 0

Season: 52-33; Home Stand 2-1
Box (1), Box (2), Herald-Sun

With the sight of the tarp on the field at 3 in the afternoon, might as well take a look at last night and at all the changes in the Bulls roster. Have to mention, however, that it could be Daisuke Matsuzaka pitching  for the Clippers tonight against one of the Bulls new guys, Merrill Kelly. Last time we saw Matuzaka in the DBAP he was on a rehab appearance pitching for the Pawtucket Red Sox, and the Bulls had Hideki Matsui here making a comeback run.

Mike Montgomery got in a “complete” game in his seven innings last night, but none of the Bulls were able to figure out the Clippers’ Danny Salazar. Salazar went 6⅓ innings before he faced any more than the minimum number of hitters. Good pitching and good defense (2 double plays, two very nice throws from the outfield cutting off advancing runners) helped.

In the second game, the Bulls going (yet again) with a committee of pitchers, went much better. Pitching was solid with the crew getting a rare shutout. Only 4 so far this year, the last back on April 29, but only 7 innings.

Shelley Duncan had a particularly impressive night, 2 for 3 and the only RBI in the first game and 3 for 3 with a RBI in the second game. Left field seems to agree with him.

Rosterification and more —

• Alex Colome is back, but it appears the Rays broke him and he may be headed for the DL.
• We have to mention the rare instance of WDBB being more or less right about something when, right after we published our analysis of Bulls pitching, Will Inman was released.
• That helps make sense of the addition of RHP Ramon S. Ramirez to the team. The 31 year-old Ramirez certainly brings a lot of experience to the Bulls, but not quite sure what else. Stats.
• Similarly, the Bulls desperately need an outfielder and in Evan Frey they seem to have acquired a player much like Rich Thompson. His advanced stats are not very promising, but we like speed and that appears to be his strength. We saw him pinch run in the first game and start in center field for the second game. Stats.
• Ryan Roberts hit two home runs for the Rays last night and was optioned back to the Bulls. Hope he brings that bat with him.
• J.D. Martin won the June version of the BCS/RPI award. (Click on the link. Not enough time to explain here.)
• After the deluge, Bull City Summer had a chat with groundsman Scott Strickland.
• Wonder if after all the frog-strangling rains PETA is going to take a second look at that award they gave the DBAP?
• Speaking of food, the Durham Food Truck Fest coming on July 10 is one heck on an idea. May be forced to get out of my seat and take a stroll around the park.

Figueroa Debuts in Left, and More ...

Season: 47-27; Home Stand: 6-2
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun

The last home stand the Durham Bulls went 7-1, this home stand they went 6-2. This is one terrific baseball team. I you haven’t seen them play you’ve missed something.

Last night’s game was, however, a bit different from many in that it was a very low-scoring affair. Overall, the Bulls scored 46 runs over the last 8 games (compared to their opponents’ 28). Even with the one-game anomaly of the 16-3 win last Monday, the Bulls are a hot team. They dominate the South Division, leading Norfolk by 9 games and are playing very good baseball.

Last night was also an interesting look at Matt Buschmann. It was his fifth appearance as a Bull and he did a good job. I worry about him mostly because he sure works hard. It took him 96 pitches for him to get through five innings last night. Compare that to J.D. Martin’s seven inning, 93 pitch performance the other day. On the other hand, he didn’t let a single run score. His ERA over these 22+ innings is a beautiful 1.59 and he’s got a nice low WHIP of 1.19. So it looks like Buschmann and his fellow newcomer Merrill Kelly will help the Bulls get through the second half of the season.

Another positive sign on the pitching front was a solid 3 innings by Juan Sandoval. A couple of short, ugly appearances early in June are messing up his stats, but if he keeps this up, he’s in for a good season.

The Bulls missed a lot of scoring opportunities last night. If they’d lost the game I’m sure we’d be wringing our hands over that. But they didn’t, so we won’t. Vince Belnome's first (of two) double set the stage to be batted in on Shelley Duncan’s single. New guy Ryan Roberts' first hit as a Durham Bull let Brandon Guyer show off his speed as he scored the winning run from first base. By the way, Belnome’s 21 doubles leads the Durham Bulls and he’s #2 in the International League.

Meanwhile, out in left field we saw Cole Figueroa catch a fly ball in the 6th inning in his new role as an outfielder. In his 532 games as a professional ballplayer he has played in the outfield exactly one time (last night, stats). That would be 0.19% of his pro career. Over in right field we had catcher Chris Gimenez. Gimenez has quite a bit of experience moving around without all his catching gear on. He’s played about half of his pro games as a catcher and the rest at 3B, 1B, and the outfield. Nevertheless, without some rosterification this road trip will be a challenge. There are only two regular outfielders on the current roster (Bourgeois and Guyer) and they need rest from time to time. And no other park has a short, Blue Monster-like outfield wall.

Outside the game —

• Catcher Juan Apodaca was moved off the Bulls roster to the Princeton Rays. It was likely to make room for Ryan Roberts. I couldn’t see into the dugout to see if it a real move or if it was just on paper. The Princeton, West Virginia team is Rookie level and has just begun their season. My guess is that Apodaca is still around.

Matchup

The Blue Jays' Triple-A team, the Buffalo Bisons, were in Durham at the end of May. The Bulls swept them 4-0. The team is a poster child for the importance of pitching. As the table shows they aren't all that much worse than the Bulls in hitting, but there’s a big spread in pitching (and much of that apparently in starting pitching). Recently they lost 3 out of 4 to Gwinnett.