Looking at 2010 — 5 — Pitchers (cont)

Let's see if we can wrap this up.

Mike Ekstrom (26). RHP. Reliever. 58 Innings (3 2/3 postseason). 39 Games (1 start). 6-1. 6 holds, 1 save. ERA 2.79. On Rays 40-man.

• Ekstrom started the year in Tampa Bay and came to the Bulls in a swap for Joaquin Benoit in late April. He went back up to the Rays for a couple of weeks in early August, again in early September, came back for one round of playoffs, and went back to the Rays. Not quite sure why he was around all year given the somewhat erratic quality of the Rays bullpen, but nice to have him with the Bulls and he did a good job. Seemed to handle the back and forth better than most we’ve seen around here. He’s young. He’s only got two years of AAA under his belt. If he doesn’t stick with the Rays he might be back next year.
  
• Stats.

Winston Abreu (33). RHP. Reliever. 55 1/3 innings (3 1/3 postseason). 40 games. 0-4. 2 holds, 23 saves. ERA 2.28.

• A great deal of the Bulls’ success over the last two years can be attributed to Winston Abreu. If his number of saves seems a bit low (tied for 3rd in the IL), remember that in the early months of the season there were few save opportunities with the Bulls on a record-setting run scoring pace. Very, very important to the Bulls to know that if they had a lead going into the last inning, Abreu was there. At a guess, it’s up to Abreu whether or not he wants to put in another year with the Bulls. Certainly the team (and this fan) would love to have him back.
  
• Stats.

R.J. Swindle (26). LHP. Reliever. 55 innings (5 innings postseason). 40 games. 2-4. 12 holds. 2 saves. ERA 2.79.

• There was not a pitcher on the crew that was more fun to watch this year than R.J. Swindle. He got a late start on the season, not showing up with the Bulls until May 10. Impressive control right out of the gate. He didn’t walk a single batter until his eighth appearance. R.J. is famous for his slow curve that loops across the plate at much less than 60 mph, while his “fastball” barely approaches 80 mph. No pitcher on the Bulls staff could mix it up as well as he could. One or two inning guy, real asset to the team. Still young. He could be a real help to the Bulls in years to come if Rays want to keep him around.
  
• Stats.

Darin Downs (25). LHP. 40 1/3 innings (5 1/3 postseason). 23 games (1 start). 6-2. ERA 4.46.

• Downs joined the Bulls from the Montgomery Biscuits in late June. His numbers with the Bulls were much less impressive than his 1.67 ERA at AA level. On the other hand, this was his first visit to AAA baseball and he seems fully recovered from his injuries. Pretty sure that he’s going to be on the Rays “Let’s wait and see” list. Maybe Biscuits, probably Bulls next year.
  
• Stats.

The next several pitchers were in the 20 inning range, so let’s try to wrap this up with some one-liners.

Bobby Livingston (27). LHP. 27 2/3 innings (5 postseason). 5 games, no decisions. Livingston filled in some gaping holes in the Bulls starting lineup on August, and did a pretty good job for us. He’s been banging around AAA for the last couple of years — Indianapolis, Columbus, Norfolk, Buffalo, and Albuquerque — so have to think there’s a story there we don’t know about. Still, liked what we saw in August and September. Stats.
Heath Rollins (25). RHP. Started the season with the Bulls and appeared in 13 games (23 innings), but did not do well. Was sent down to Montgomery where he also did not do well. Stats.
Jake McGee (23). LHP. Started the season with Montgomery as a starter. Came to the Bulls in August to work as a reliever (17 innings) and did very, very well. Went to Tampa in mid-September. On 40-man. Likely to start 2011 with the Bulls. Stats.
Ramon Ortiz (37). RHP. 17 innings. 4 games. Much like Bobby Livingston, brought in at the end of the season to fill some holes in starting lineup. Less successful than Livingston. First time we’ve ever seen a pitcher tossed from a game for something he apparently said, not something he did (August 30). Did not appear in the postseason. Stats.
Brian Shouse (42). LHP. Reliever. Signed in mid-August to fill some holes and possibly back up the Rays bullpen. 10 games, 12 innings. Was of little help to Bulls. Stats.
Jeff Bennett (30). RHP. Starter. Started the year with Durham. Pitched one game, faced two batters in his second start and went on DL. Had one more start on May 11 and was released. Total of 10 2/3 innings. Stats.
Paul Phillips (26). RHP. Came up from Montgomery and got in 3 appearances (10 2/3 innings) before the end of the season and two in post season (6 1/3 innings). We like Phillips, but he’s running out of time. He could easily come out of spring training on the Bulls roster. Or just as easily disappear. Stats.
Joaquin Benoit (33). RHP. Likely to become a trivia question if he keeps up his terrific performance as a Rays setup man. He did spend a couple of weeks with the Bulls at the beginning of the year, making 8 appearances for 9 2/3 innings, 2 saves and a loss. Swapped out for Mike Ekstrom. Stats.
Jason Cromer (29). LHP. 8 innings. 4 games. A favorite of WDBB, Jason could not get his arm/elbow working right this year. He did show up for four games in late May/early June. He on the books as pitching a couple of games/innings in mid-August down in the Gulf Coast League, so we can hope. But have to say that it doesn’t look well. Jason’s running out of time. Stats.
Justin Garcia (24). RHP. Reliever. 4 2/3 innings. If you been reading this far, this is the punch line. Justin Garcia, as far as we can tell, has never been to Durham, NC. He came up from Montgomery and pitched two games in relief against Indianapolis, then went from there to the Charlotte Stone Crabs. Obvious candidate for the Moonlight Graham Award. Stats.
Alex Cobb (22). RHP. Starter. Alex did not play for the Bulls in the regular season. He did come up for the postseason and took a loss in his first appearance. Nevertheless, he is a very, very promising young pitcher, one of two on this year’s Biscuits squad on the Rays 40-man (Jake McGee being the other one). If we’re lucky, we’ll see a lot of him next year. Stats.

Elliot Got Some Hits

Game 142: Durham Bulls 6; Norfolk Tides 5
Season: 87-55; Home Games Remaining: 1
Wrap, Box, Triangle Offense

The last regular season game of the year is at one o’clock today. Look for a few unusual moments. But before that, let’s savor last night’s win. Wasn’t that game fun? Great weather. Decent (not great) baseball. And a win.

Who were the offensive heroes? Who other than Elliot Johnson, Chris Richard, and Joe Dillon? Who was the pitching hero? Joe Bateman, of course.

In the not-great category was Brian Baker’s pitching. He just looked like he had run out of gas before he got on the mound. And that may be the case. Over at Triangle Offense Adam Sobsey is reporting that Baker may be done for the year. Since it looks like Ramon Ortiz is also out for the year, I may go back and delete my post about the playoff starting rotation. Brian let five runs in on 7 hits and 4 walks. The Bulls were down 5-3 when he left.

Also in the not-great category was Brian Shouse’s appearance. But he didn’t let any runs in. We are finding it hard to believe that he is still on Maddon’s short list for a lefty specialist.

Jake McGee looked terrific.

In the great fun category was watching Omar Luna play shortstop. He wasn’t going to let anything by him last night, and he didn’t. Our opinion is that, after pitching, defense will be the key to the playoffs. Feeling good about having Mr. Luna around.

And then Elliot Johnson came to the plate in the 8th with Fernando Perez and J. J. Furmaniak on base (he and Chris Richard had hit back-to-back homers in the 1st). Elliot whacked a triple and the game was tied. Joe Dillon hit a sac fly and the Bulls were ahead. Joe Bateman stayed in for one...more...inning (his 76th on the year) and the Bulls had a win.

Game note: Justin Ruggiano and Angel Chavez were out for another game although Justin came in on defense in the 9th, and Angel was warming up to pitch the 9th until Elliot’s heroics changed the equation.

Looking back to last year’s last game is interesting. Note that last year the Bulls played 144 games but this year a rainout on the road meant that one game simply didn’t get played. The Bulls started the game using the same bat. Don’t remember when or if it finally broke. They were using Jon Weber’s bat, which gives me a bit of a twinge. Checking out the lineups a couple of familiar names jump out. Elliot Johnson was at shortstop, Michel Hernandez (now with the Tides) was the DH. Joe Dillon and Justin Ruggiano were getting a day off. Chris Richard had just been called up to the Rays. Joe Bateman appeared in relief. Desmond Jennings, Matt Joyce, and Sean Rodriguez from the last year’s starting lineup are now with Rays.

The Bulls still don’t know who will be their opponent on Wednesday. So let’s have some fun today and then wait and see.

Bye Braves, See Ya’ Next Year

Game 140: Durham Bulls 4; Gwinnett Braves 6
Season: 86-54; Home Games Remaining: 3
Wrap, Box

To be specific, on April 7, 2011. The first game of the 2011 season is at Gwinnett.

Over the years the Bulls have had a very competitive relationship with Gwinnett (née Richmond) Braves. This year has been no exception as the Bulls/Braves matchup ended very much in favor of the Braves at 9 games to 12. Here at WDBB we haven’t followed the Braves closely enough to make a guess as to why the rest of the season was not more successful for them. Certainly when they’ve been in Durham they have been a very good team (much like the Louisville Bats). Maybe it’s the Blue Monster.

Last night the numbers tell most of the story.

Bulls pitching gave up 15 hits (including 2 doubles and one home run), 4 walks, and only managed 6 Ks.

Braves pitching gave up 11 hits (all singles), no walks, and had 11 Ks.

Hard to win games with those kinds of differences. The Bulls did stay close, however, until the law of averages caught up with Jake McGee. (But for his first ever Triple-A run to be walked in? And for that run to be the difference in the game? That’s gotta hurt.) And then, of course, Brian Shouse gave up the insurance run.

Adam Sobsey's lengthy essay has some interesting thoughts on the season, with comparisons to 2009, and a look at AAA management, near the end of his piece. Also, he reports that Angel Chavez is OK. Very good news.

Their New Guy, Our New Guy

Game 139: Durham Bulls 6; Gwinnett Braves 7
Season: 86-53; Home Games Remaining: 4
Wrap, Box, Triangle Offense

I know that the differences between Bulls new guy, catcher Kyle Holloway and Braves new guy, third baseman Dan Nelson are probably greater than their similarities. But otherwise I’d have to spend time on how three members of the Bulls relief corps (R. J. Swindle, Dale Thayer, and Brian Shoushe) have put together six (two each) crummy appearances over the last couple of games. So let’s talk about the new guys.

Kyle Holloway is the ninth (!) catcher to put on the gear for the Durham Bulls this year. Although it is true that several of those put in very brief appearances (Albernaz - 1, Dillon - 1, Jaso - 3, Shoppach -2), the fact is that the Bulls have had problems at the position in 2010. Four or five is the norm. In addition, Mr. Holloway is ridiculously new to the game. His career began on June 20th. He had 73 plate appearances in professional baseball before last night, all in A or Rookie League. He teams up with Nevin Ashley who is the senior member of the Bulls catching corps with three games in AAA baseball.

So, how’d he do? Pretty good. At first it looked as if pitches were being called from the dugout. I’m not sure whether or not that continued since I got caught up in the game, but that makes sense to me. Two bases were stolen, but by the best base stealer in the International League, Gwinnett’s Matt Young. And Holloway threw Young out on his third try. At the plate he got a key double and scored a run in the Bulls four-run 5th inning. He worked five pitchers he’d never seen before, including catching 41 year old Shouse. Holloway is 22. Sort of like playing catch with your dad. Field of Dreams role reversal?

Darn good Triple A debut. More about Mr. Holloway at the Triangle Offense link at top (scroll to the end).

Gwinnett’s third baseman Dan Nelson was also having his Triple A debut, but his path was a bit different. He is 26 years old and has been banging around A ball since 2004, making it to AA just this year. So what did he do last night? In his second AAA at bat he hit a key three-run homer. He also made a couple of critical and very pretty plays at third base. He sort of won the game for the Braves.

As worried as I am about the Bulls catching situation, I looking forward to watching Ashley and Holloway over the next couple of weeks (as if I had a choice) and, as a fan of seeing guys get their chance, here’s hoping that Mr. Nelson keeps it up (just not in such a timely manner if he doesn’t mind).

Webworld

• The issue of who the Bulls will play next Wednesday is not yet settled, but I’m happy to pass on the word that if it’s the Louisville Bats, Aroldis Chapman will probably not be in the bullpen. Bulls fans will remember Mr. Chapman as the guy who plonked Dioner Navarro with a 102 mph fastball and hit Dan Johnson with one that came in at only 99 mph. Chapman is up with Cincinnati and seems to have gotten a little better handle on his pitches — two appearances, two innings, six batters, three K’s, not bad.
• RaysIndex has a link to a Desmond Jennings interview. Happy looking/sounding young man. Brings up the point that, due to the lack of local media coverage, we really don’t get to see the Bulls up close very often.
• When the players move, so do their wives/girlfriends.
• Her Rays visualizes the Rays “new toys”.

He's Outa There!

Game 136: Durham Bulls 4; Charlotte Knights 8
Season: 84-52; Home Games Remaining: 7
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Triangle Offense

Since I am temporarily on the disabled list I had to suffer through the game in front of the TV at home, so if I missed any particular nuance, please let me know. You can be reasonably sure that I didn’t get it from the broadcast (more later).

Charlotte essentially gave the Bulls three runs in the 2nd to go with Justin Ruggiano’s home run in the 1st.The Bulls were cruising along very nicely until Charlotte got three of the runs back in the 5th as Ramon Ortiz began to look really shaky giving up a walk, two singles, a double and a sac fly.

In the 6th things really came unraveled. Charlotte third baseman Dayan Viciedo (it’s Viciedo, not Vicideo, Rich) got a single to center field. Ortiz worked catcher Tyler Flowers to a 3-2 count and then ...

Ortiz got thrown out of the game!

I’ve never seen that before — a pitcher getting tossed, apparently for arguing balls and strikes. Throwing at a batter, sure, but for arguing with the ump? Must’ve said something really ugly.

Brian Shouse came in and for a brief moment things looked OK, since Flowers grounded into a double play. But Shouse did not make it through the inning either. Two walks, a single, a double, and three runs later Shouse is out of there and the Bulls are behind 6 to 4. Joe Bateman came in for the last out, but the damage was done.

The Bulls could put nothing together after that. In fact, Charlotte got two more runs. So on to my rants for the day.

Rant #1: Brian Shouse has made seven appearances (9 innings) in a Bulls uniform. Results? Two blown saves (and losses) and an ERA of 9.00. I know we’re short on pitchers, but surely there’s someone downstream in the Rays system who is worthy of spending some time with the Bulls.

Rant #2: Rich Herrera (sp?) on the radio/TV. This comes in the form of advice. I doubt that he will be reading this blog, but maybe.

The job of a play by play guy is to paint a picture of the game. When a player comes to bat I want to know how he’s doing on the season, what he did in his last at bat, what he looks like, which side of the plate he bats from, etc. When/if he gets on base I want to be reminded that he’s there and which base he’s on. When the pitchers get changed I’d like to know that it happened and maybe use your expertise regarding why (why did Bateman just face one batter? Downs had pitched to two batters before you mentioned he was even in the game). My fellow Arkansas alum Scott Pose kept trying to help, but to no avail. So here’s my big tip:

Remind yourself every 30 seconds — It’s radio. They can’t see. It’s my job to help them see the game. What can I tell them now?

Odds and Ends

• More background on Nevin Ashley from DRaysBay
• Nice piece on Dan Johnson at The Process Report
• Steve Wiseman at The Herald-Sun quotes Fernando Perez on potential for callups and effect on the game.

“I think we’re doing a pretty good job playing hard,” Bulls right fielder Fernando Perez said, “considering that all these games don’t really matter and our team is probably going to look drastically different in a couple of days.”

• Adam Sobsey at Triangle Offense quotes Charlie Montoyo on the same topic.

Montoyo was asked whether he thought that [callup possibility] was on some players’ minds, distracting them from the Bulls’ business at hand: They’ve lost five of their last six games. Montoyo, normally even-keeled and calm-voiced, replied, “Of course! If I was one of them, I’d be thinking the same thing: Is it gonna be me?”

End of a Beautiful Run

Game 131: Durham Bulls ; Norfolk Tides 6
Season: 83-48; Home Games Remaining: 8
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Triangle Offense

Well, all good things have to come to and end and the Bulls run against the Tides of six in a row came to an end last night.

Two of the new guys, Ramon Ortiz and Brian Shouse, made their first 2010 appearance with the Bulls at the DBAP. Mike Ekstrom was back from the Rays. The weather was not brutally hot.

But you have to think that the Bulls are really, really tired of playing this Norfolk team — seven games in a row! And three more next week! What could be worse? Well, maybe next year when the Bulls start the season with six away games (against Gwinnett and Charlotte) and finish the season with six away games (against Charlotte and Norfolk). Have to wonder if the Bulls front office gets any input into the schedule. Surely they don’t agree with something as stupid as the last couple of weeks.

Meanwhile, back at the game, new guy Ramon Ortiz had a nifty six pitch first inning, but things got ugly in the second — single, single, single, grand slam. “Other than that, Mrs. Lincoln, how was the play?” Not bad. One run on a walk and a double in the next inning. Pretty clean through the 6th.

Mike Ekstrom came on in the 7th who was, in the immortal words of Bulls broadcaster Neil Solondz, “Perhaps a little bit inconsistent.” Walk, single, single (run scored), K, single, K, K. So he escaped a base-loaded situation and was actually looking a lot better at the end of it all.

Dioner Navarro’s two perfect throws to catch runners in the 6th inning (well, maybe Chavez’ tag of Davis was a bit late) brought him to my attention as I begin to speculate about what the Bulls will look like next week. Surely Navarro is a prime candidate to return to the Rays come September 1. For a lot of reasons.

• He’s doing quite well these days: wOBA .371.
• His average/OBP/Slugging is .288/.393/.400.
• At 34%, his pegs to catch baserunners is running slightly above his major league average of 30%.
• Yesterday Rays catcher John Jaso put in some time at first base (as well as catching) which, unless it was another instance of Maddon being quirky for the sake of being quirky, implies that the Rays wouldn’t mind having another catcher around.

How important is Navarro to the Bulls? That depends on how badly Jose Lobaton hurt himself in Norfolk a couple of days ago. I didn’t watch all that closely while he was warming up pitchers last night, but he was out there. So have to guess that he’s OK.

Craig Albernaz, one of my all-time favorite Bulls who only has one game with us this year, is down in Montgomery and, I assume, available for a call up. So we would probably be OK, although hard to tell how much our pitchers might miss the more experienced Navarro.

Which brings to mind seeing Michel Hernandez chatting with guys in our dugout on his way to the coach’s box last night. Sure liked watching him play for us and the Rays last year. Wonder if he might be available for our playoff run?

Lastly, I learned a new phrase last night, "sports turf manager". That means the guy who takes care of the field, in our case, Scott Strickland, who was recognized as being the best in the International League last night. Good work, Scott.

Rockin’ Time

Game 125: Durham Bulls (Rays) 8; Norfolk Tides (Orioles) 6
Season: 78-47
Wrap, Box

Pictured above are the new furnishings being installed in the Durham Bulls bullpen.

I’ve mentioned a couple of times this year the “maturity” of the Bulls position players. With the Rays’ signing of “veterans” Ramon Ortiz and Brian Shouse we’ve seen a dramatic increase in the maturity of the pitching staff as well. Of the three new guys (Paul Phillips doesn’t count. He’s already gone back to Montgomery), Bobby Livingston at 27 is the youngster. At 37 and 41, Ortiz and Shouse are definitely at the other end of the scale.

What’s going on? Not really sure, but here’s my speculation. I think that the Rays system is simply caught up in a broader cultural/demographic phenomenon, the “half-back”. To explain that, let’s go back to my youth in Florida. In that time, St Petersburg was known to folks living elsewhere in the state as the “City of the Living Dead,” a reference to the average age of the city’s residents. Nowadays here in North Carolina we are witnessing the “half-back” phenomenon, which refers to folks who retire to Florida and then move, “half way back.” Have the Rays simply shortened the process and just retired a couple of guys directly to North Carolina early?

On the other hand, and a perspective encouraged by those of my age and appearance , what’s wrong with a “mature” approach to the game? What’s wrong with being comfortable out there on a summer evening? What’s wrong with liver spots instead of tattoos? We all know that old guys can be really sneaky. What’s wrong with tripping up a guy coming home with your cane?

Given the length of this road trip, I’m wondering how many of the new guys will still be with the Bulls by the time they get back to Durham.

Bulls Pitching Roster Sorted By Age

Couple of interesting points in last night’s game.

• Leslie Anderson got his first home run and, in another at bat, got his first hit off a left-handed pitcher (a point of some concern to Rays Index a while back).
• Rocco Baldelli was 0 for 5.
• Nobody’s pitching (except for Winston Abreu, of course) was impressive. Norfolk and Durham had 14 hits apiece.
• Bulls did not hit into a double play.

Noticing Elliot Johnson

Game 123: Durham Bulls 6; Charlotte Knights 2
Season: 76-47
Wrap, Box

We are really late today, but I’ve been wanting to devote most of a post to one of my favorite players for 2010 — Elliot Johnson. He had a great night last night, so the time seems right.

His 4 for 4, two-homer game last night is just icing on a very good year. In fact, you can say that quite possibly the best thing that happened to the Bulls this season was for Elliot to pass through waivers and land here (not that he should have been waivered in the first place). You’ve got to think that there is a GM somewhere who’s really unhappy that he didn’t put a bid in when he could have.

There was a time (2007) when I would not have thought so. It says a lot for this young (26) man that he has had two not very stellar years and is here today with some of the best numbers in the International League.

Numbers:

• Average: .318 (#2 in the IL)
• OBP: .378 (#5 in the IL)
• OPS: .858 (#8 in the IL)
• Stolen bases: 24 (#7 in the IL)
• wOBA .373, bRAA +12.1 (393 PA)

Mostly a middle infielder (53 starts at SS, 16 starts at 2B) he’s done some time in the corner outfields (16 games in left, 9 games in right).

And plenty of RBI — 50 — which is quite a few for a guy who mostly bats in the #2 spot.

If there’s a “problem” for Elliot it’s that there are a lot of guys up on the Rays roster — Bartlett, Brignac, S. Rodriguez, Zobrist to name a few — who have middle infield credentials. The Bulls fan in me thinks that is just fine — he’ll likely be with us through the playoffs. Once they are over, however, here’s hoping he finds a place in the majors.

Points of interest in last night’s game:

At thirteen wins, Richard De Los Santos tied a Bulls record. Here’s hoping he pushes on past the tie.

In a very Maddon-esque move, Montoyo put new pitcher Brian Shouse in to face one batter in the 8th. One pitch, one out. Then Winston Abreu came on in a non-save situation to close it out in the 9th. Sure there was a good reason for that, just can’t figure out what it was.

Pitching Challenges

Game 118: Durham Bulls (Tampa Bay) 3; Gwinnett Braves (Atlanta) 4
Wrap, Box
Game 119: Durham Bulls 2; Gwinnett Braves 4 (7 innings)
Game 120: Durham Bulls 6; Gwinnett Braves 2 (7 innings)
Season: 74-46; Games Remaining: 23; Home Games: 10
Wrap, Box (119), Box (120)

To say that the Bulls’ pitching situation has been difficult over the last two days is not exactly accurate. Chaotic might be a better word. In Friday’s game Heath Phillips pitched one inning, gave up four runs, left the game, and is now reported to be on the disabled list. Carlos Hernandez (who came off the disabled list a couple of days ago) came in, pitched two innings, and is now reported to be back on the disabled list. Aneury Rodriguez came in to hold things in check for five innings, but the offense could not quite catch up. Plus, since Rodriguez was supposed to start Saturday, Montoyo and X. Hernandez had to do some scheming.

As an aside, I like watching Carlos Hernandez pitch. For those new to the Bulls, he’s been around for much of the last two years. He started 21 games last year and he’s got 18 appearances this year. And yet I also worry about him. If he’s back to the DL you’ve got to wonder if he will be around to finish the year with us. I hope so.

Outside of the pitching problems, Friday’s game also saw new outfielder over from Montgomery, Emeel Salem, take left field and hit a double in his second at bat.

Because Aneury Rodriguez pitched Friday, Charlie Montoyo had to get creative for the double-header yesterday. He started the first game with new guy Brian Shouse. I couldn’t chase down the last time he started a game. However, in 10 years in the majors (467 games) he doesn’t have a one. Unfortunately, the baseball gods don’t necessarily smile on either ingenuity or necessity. Shouse gave up four runs in the first inning and that was enough for Gwinnett to take the game. Need to mention Darin Downs. He pitched 4 innings of 1-hit baseball. Very nice performance. He’s looking better every day. Nice to see Elliot Johnson back in the lineup.

Back to Shouse — Chris Richard is no longer the “old guy” in the clubhouse. Shouse (41) has him by several years.

Which brings us to the second game of the double-header and a very nice 2-inning start by Jake McGee. Four K’s, still no walks for the left-hander. Followed by 2 innings by Dale Thayer, 2 by R.J. Swindle (who got the win), and one by Winston Abreu. Brian Baker will be starting today and, if he can hang on, the pitching situation might settle down just a little bit.

Nice to see the 13-hit performance by the offense.

Roster Moves

Of course, as soon as the Bulls leave town the Rays will cascade down a bunch of roster changes. It's a plot on their part to keep Bulls fans in the dark.

On the other hand, maybe they read my post yesterday and decided to do something about it.

First of all, thanks to DRR for the heads up.

As mentioned earlier, Carlos Hernandez came off the DL yesterday and may start tomorrow. Probably on a low pitch count/inning limitation.

Brian Shouse, on a Rays minor league contract, disappeared from the DL part of the Bulls roster today, but is reported to have been pitching in Charlotte, Florida and on his way to the Bulls. Left-handed, side-arming reliever. Probably a “lurker” for a September plus up for the Rays. They seem to like sidearming specialists (except for Joe Bateman whom they have been ignoring, so far).

Rocco Baldelli, in the same report, is heading for the Bulls as well. No idea whose roster he will end up on.

Stacy Long is reporting that outfielder Emeel Salem is on his way from Montgomery. If I were a betting man, I’d be betting that Fernando Perez is heading for the DL.

Welcome to August/September in Triple A. I glanced at the changes for Gwinnett and they’ve got many more than the Bulls.

Quiet Night At the DBAP

Game 92: Durham Bulls 4, Charlotte Knights 6
Season: 55-37
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Indy Week

Let’s sift through the wreckage and see if we can find something interesting to say about last night, or the last two nights for that matter.

• Charlotte pitchers are dedicated to the proposition to not letting Dan Johnson hit. They’ve given him five bases on balls in eight plate appearances.
• Which makes sense because the next batter in the lineup, Joe Dillon, has been in an awful slump. But maybe, just maybe, he’s seeing some light. Joe hit a two-run home run (driving in the walked Dan Johnson) in the 9th last night.
• Alvin Colina may not be the best choice (from an admittedly short list) for designated hitter. He had three K’s last night.
• When we’ve got three catchers, how come Navarro gets two games in a row? Orders from St. Pete?
• Give some credit to Charlotte defense, a couple of nice catches by right fielder Stefan Gartrell, and one by left fielder Jeremy Reed.
• And Charlotte offense, especially first baseman Josh Kroeger, home run, two doubles, and a single.
• The flurry in the 9th showed a bit of what we’ve come to love about this year’s team. Bet it rattled Charlotte. Need to keep that up tonight.

The Knights are a good team, so it’s up to the Bulls to take it to them in their back yard down in South Carolina.

Diligent observers of the Bulls’ roster will notice a new addition, left handed pitcher Brian Shouse. Who is Brian Shouse and when will we see him on the mound? To quote Indy Week Blogger, Adam Sobsey,

41-year-old lefty side-armer Brian Shouse ... made 45 relief appearances for the Rays in 2009, latched on with Boston this year, was let go after an injury, and was immediately placed on the disabled list by the Rays after yesterday's deal was announced.

Not mentioned, since probably not known till he got snuck in, is that Shouse is on the Bulls disabled list. He might show up here eventually. The Rays seem to have a love affair with side armers and lefty specialists. Which should mean that Joe Bateman and/or R.J. Swindle have a shot some day.