Cleveland Sports Forum

Lines of the Day:

CLE AAA Chisenhall, Lonnie 3B 5 1 2 1 .287 HR (5)

CLE AAA Judy, Josh 1 0 0 0 2 2 4.42
CLE AAA Putnam, Zach 2 2 0 0 0 1 2.96 W (3-1)

For a AAA debut season by a young player (he's 22) Chisenhall is continuing to put up good, solid numbers.

Clippers won 5-1 with a 4 run 10th, highlighted by a 3-run double from Cord Phelps. Zach Mac with a fine 7 innings, 1 run, 4 hits, no one walked, 5 struck out.

Phelps 306/408/519
Kipnis 291/365/491
Chisnl 287/369/456

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... x&did=milb

n another move the Indians promoted right-hander Adam Miller from Class A Kinston to Class AA Akron. Miller at one time was the top prospect in the Indians organization until being sidelined by multiple surgeries on the middle finger of his right hand.

He's been coming along OK this year, but only an inning or two every four or five days. I read he's down about 5 mph from his prime

Corey Kluber with 6 4-hit one-earned run innings. Fans all of 2.

Cord Phelps with 3 hits and 3 rbi. Carrera 3 hits. Phelps is certainly proving he's ready for the majors. Do we have a role for him?

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... x&did=milb

Matt Pakcer with his 3rd fine start in a row after a rocky season start. 7 innings, 1 run on 4 hits. Chen Lee tagged for a run in his one inning. Fedroff, Diaz and McBride with 2 hits apiece.

Here's news that would stir Joe if he were here: McBride finishsed the game behind the plate after Chen was lifted late. Does this mean the Indians have finally seen the light and are grooming McBride for his well-earned role as Tribe backup catcher?? [I think not, but Joe might difer]

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... x_akraax_1

TJ House's really lousy season continues. 5 innings, 6 runs for the big RH. Good 3 shutuout innings by Jose Flores, who Seattl took n the Rule 5 last winter.

Tyler Holt hs slipped to 269. Greenwell is at 272. 6 in the lineup are at 231 or lower.

Kinston fans won't miss the end of professional baseball after this season after all.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... a_kinafa_1

I haven't seen Pomeranz in a box score recently. He hasn't pitched snce the 18th. That means one start missed. What's up??.

Captains fall 6-3. Michael Goodnight goes 5, touched for only 1 run. Fans 5 but walks 5; control has been an issue for him in the past but this season this is first high walk total.

Carlos Moncrief with a triple and two walks. His avg is 252, but his SLG is 841. He adds to the fine game throwing out a runner at 3rd.

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb ... x_lcoafx_1

Indians' streak snapped at five
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Homers lift Winston-Salem
May 28, 2011 12:00 AM
David Hall
Staff Writer
Ian Gac and Andy Wilkins hit three-run homers and Terry Doyle pitched seven strong innings to lift Winston-Salem to a 6-1 win over the Kinston Indians at Grainger Stadium on Friday.

The loss snapped the Indians’ five-game winning streak and dropped them to 23-24. It was just their second setback in 11 games.

Gac’s homer, his Carolina League-leading 14th and his fifth in eight games against Kinston, was an opposite-field shot to right that gave the Dash a sudden 3-0 lead in the first.

Wilkins followed in the fifth with his third homer in three games, a towering wall-scraper to right that made it 6-0.

Doyle (1-5), a right-hander, held the Indians to an earned run on five hits. He walked two and tied his season high with eight strikeouts to earn his first win despite a respectable 3.54 ERA.

Kinston starter T.J. House (2-5) gave up both homers in a rocky outing. In five innings of work, the left-hander allowed six earned runs on seven hits, walked two and struck out four.

Right-hander Addison Reed pitched two scoreless innings of relief for the Dash (21-27), a Chicago White Sox affiliate.

Jeremie Tice doubled for the Indians, accounting for the only extra-base hit among their six knocks.

Jose Martinez, who entered the game leading the league with a .320 batting average, went 2-for-4 for Winston-Salem.

Gac, a 25-year-old ninth-year pro from Seattle, has 141 career homers. Originally drafted by the Texas Rangers out of high school in 2003, he has averaged nearly 25 homers over the past three seasons, all of them at the high Class A level or lower.

Miller's comeback moves forward

Righty sent to Double-A Akron

David Hall Kinston Free Press Staff Writer

Adam Miller had a rough start and a rough finish to his unlikely return to the Carolina League.

In between, the one-time top prospect did enough to convince the Cleveland Indians it was time to move on.

Miller, a 26-year-old right-hander trying to make a comeback from a series of surgeries on his pitching middle finger, was promoted to Double-A Akron after the Kinston Indians’ 9-8 series-opening win over Winston-Salem on Thursday.

After manager Aaron Holbert met with Miller in his office to tell him the news, the skipper walked into the K-Tribe’s clubhouse and announced it to Miller’s teammates.

A virtual line formed at Miller’s locker as he packed his belongings and players took turns shaking his hand and wishing him well.

Holbert called the promotion “much deserved.” For Miller, it was the latest sign that he just might be able to get his career back on track.

“It’s there,” the 6-foot-4-inch Texan said of his stuff, which consists of a mid-90s fastball and a slider he’s still trying to figure out. “It’s just repeating it and getting it there more often than not.”

Miller, who was taken 31st overall in the 2003 draft and signed by the Indians for just over $1 million, was ranked by Baseball America as the Tribe’s No. 1 prospect from 2005-08.

He first pitched in Kinston in 2004 as a 19-year-old, flashing a triple-digits fastball as he tore through the Carolina League.

Miller reached the Triple-A level by 2006, but a complex injury to a tendon in his finger baffled doctors and led to four surgeries and lengthy rehab stints.

When he made his debut this season with Kinston, on April 30, it was his first appearance in an official game since May 20, 2008.

Overall this time around, Miller went 0-1 with a save and a 4.91 ERA in eight trips out of the K-Tribe’s bullpen.

In his first appearance, at Lynchburg, he was tagged for three earned runs in an inning of work. On Thursday, shortly before he was promoted, he surrendered three more earned runs in an inning to pump his ERA more than two full points.

In the six outings in between, he turned in nine scoreless innings, allowing just two hits.

Miller’s surgeries left his middle finger bent at about a 45-degree angle, hindering his ability to apply pressure to the ball and thus making the slider harder to throw.

He’s spent the season developing a feel for the pitch while rebuilding arm strength. Everything else has been positive.

“The finger’s been good — knock on wood, obviously,” Miller said. “I’ve had no setbacks. There’s never been a time where I was like, ‘I kind of feel a little something.’ It’s been good the whole time. Obviously, you never know what’s going to happen, but it’s been this long now. I think for the most part, it’s pretty much healed. It’s a normal finger for the most part.”

Giving hitters something to think about other than his fastball will be crucial to Miller’s further development, Holbert said.

“He still needs to work on making sure he’s getting control of the slider and throwing it more often, but you’re seeing some good things out of him,” Holbert said. “You’re seeing a very good demeanor out there, a good mindset. He’s attacking hitters. I think he’s going to be just fine in Akron, and hopefully he ends up in (Triple-A) Columbus and knocking back on the major league door.”

Notebook: Streak ends for Kinston closer
Guilmet gives up first runs

David Hall Staff Writer

Preston Guilmet is perfect no more, and it could be a blessing in disguise.

He doesn’t have to carry the streak around anymore.

Guilmet, the Kinston Indians’ closer, hadn’t allowed a run all season before he surrendered a pair of ninth-inning solo homers in Thursday’s series-opening 9-8 win over Winston-Salem.

The right-hander’s ERA jumped from nothing to 1.02 before he settled down in time to earn his 10th save, which tied him for the Carolina League lead.

The first blemish on his stat sheet came on a night when Guilmet wasn’t at his best. That he managed to keep it together just enough was the important thing.

“Sometimes you just don’t have it that night, and sometimes you’re able to hold on,” Guilmet said.

“I’ve been fortunate enough to do well up until now. To finally give up my first few runs, it’s almost like a weight off your shoulders.”

A chink in Guilmet’s armor has to cheer up the league’s hitters, who entered Friday hitting just .185 against him.

Guilmet, a ninth-round draft pick out of the University of Arizona in 2009, gave up consecutive one-out bombs to Andy Wilkins and Nick Ciolli on Thursday, turning a 9-6 game into a 9-8 game in a hurry.

Guilmet then allowed a double and a walk before striking out the next two batters to end the game.

His composure impressed K-Tribe manager Aaron Holbert.

“It was a good opportunity for him to start doubting his stuff, doubting his abilities,” Holbert said.

“He could’ve just folded and it could’ve crushed the rest of his season, so it was good to see him come back and really battle.”



Streak 2

Another impressive streak came to an end Thursday, and it won’t be missed much either.

Kinston leadoff man Tyler Holt went 0-for-4 and had his 25-game stretch of reaching base halted.

Holt, a plain-talking Florida State product, was lifted for a pinch hitter in the sixth inning because Holbert wanted to rest him. It was fine with Holt, who kept the streak alive despite hitting just .211 over his previous 10 games.

“Honestly, I didn’t even know it was still going on because I’ve been having (crappy) games lately,” Holt said. “It’s good to have a fresh start tomorrow.”

The Columbus Dispatch
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Cord Phelps' two-out, two-run double in the seventh inning gave the Clippers ample breathing room and visiting Columbus extended its winning streak to seven with a 5-2 win over Norfolk in Harbor Park.

With the score 1-1 in the seventh, Jason Kipnis led off with a triple and scored on a single by Luis Valbuena. Luke Carlin walked and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Valbuena scored on Ezequiel Carerra's single for a 3-1 lead before Phelps put the game out of reach.

Phelps got the Clippers (34-14) on the board in the sixth with a single to center field, scoring Paul Phillips.

Corey Kluber earned his third straight victory, allowing two runs (one earned) on four hits and one walk. He struck out two and improved to 3-3.

Carlton Smith picked up his second save, his first since April 27.

Pat Egan took the loss for the Tides (16-32), allowing all four runs in the seventh

Packer leads Aeros to win over Squirrels

The Akron Aeros banged out six hits, brought 10 men to the plate and scored six times in the bottom of the fourth inning as they went on to win game one of a four-game series against the Richmond Flying Squirrels 9-2 Friday at Canal Park.

Left-handed pitcher Matt Packer allowed just one earned run on four hits over seven innings to earn the win for the Aeros walking three and striking out four.

Lefty Clayton Tanner suffered the loss for Richmond lasting 3.1 innings, giving up eight earned runs on seven hits, walking three and striking out three.

Tim Fedroff went 2-for-4 with two RBI to extend his hitting streak to 20 games, which is tied for the third longest in Aeros history.

The Aeros (23-26) got on the board in the bottom of the first inning. Fedroff led off with a single. With one out, Jared Goedert and Beau Mills worked back-to-back walks. Matt McBride followed with a two-RBI single to give the Aeros a 2-0 lead.

The Flying Squirrels (23-24) answered back with a run in the top of the second inning.

The Aeros opened things up in the bottom of the fourth inning. With one out, Chun Chen and Kyle Bellows had back-to-back singles. Karexon Sanchez followed with a walk. Donnie Webb and Fedroff had back-to-back two-RBI singles to make it 6-1. Juan Diaz followed with a triple scoring Fedroff and giving the Aeros a 7-1 lead. Goedert capped the inning with a sacrifice fly that scored Diaz.

The Aeros added a run in the bottom of the sixth inning and went on to the win.

The Aeros and Squirrels will play game two of this four-game series Saturday. Left-hander Kelvin De La Cruz will get the start for Akron. De La Cruz is 3-3 with a 3.54 ERA in 2011. He will face fellow southpaw Ryan Verdugo, who is 2-1 with a 3.07 ERA this season. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m.

Big 7th Inning leads Clippers to win

The Columbus Clippers scored four runs in the 7th inning Friday night and won for the second-straight night over the Norfolk Tides 5-2 in front of 7,525 fans at Harbor Park.

Cord Phelps delivered the big knock, a two-out, two-run double that broke the game open for the visitors. Jason Kipnis led off the 7th inning with a triple and scored one out later on an RBI single by Luis Valbuena that broke a 1-1 tie between the two clubs. Luke Carlin followed with a walk and both runners moved up a bag on a wild pitch before Ezequiel Carrera gave the visitors a two-run cushion with an RBI single ahead of Phelps’s at-bat.

Phelps finished 3-for-5 with three RBI. Corey Kluber (3-3, 6.36) earned the win by tossing 6.0 innings and allowing two runs, one earned, on four hits. Carlton Smith picked up his second save of the season with a perfect 9th inning.

The two clubs will play at a special 8:00 start time Saturday. RH Mitch Atkins (1-0, 7.20) will take the ball for the Tides opposite RH Jeanmar Gomez (4-1, 3.16).

Kinston's win streak stopped at five

Winston-Salem snapped Kinston’s five game winning streak with a 6-1 win Friday night at Historic Grainger Stadium.

Winston-Salem got to K-Tribe starting pitcher T.J. House in the top of the first inning. Jared Mitchell and Jose Martinez hit back-to-back singles. Carolina League home run leader Ian Gac followed with a three-run home run. The homer was the 14th of the season for Gac. Winston-Salem would make the score 6-0 when Andy Wilkins hit a three-run home run in the fifth inning. House (2-5) left the game after five innings, giving up six runs on seven hits. He struck out four and walked two.

Winston-Salem’s starting pitcher Terry Doyle was very good, giving up just five hits through seven innings. Kinston finally got to Doyle in sixth inning. Jeremie Tice led off with a double. Chase Burnette hit a two-out single to drive him home. Doyle (1-5) picked up the win, walking one and striking out eight. Winston-Salem’s reliever Addison Reed finished things up, giving up one hit over the final two innings.

Kinston got good innings out of reliever Jose Flores, who gave up just two hits in three scoreless innings. Kyle Landis pitched a perfect top of the ninth for Kinston.

The K-Tribe (23-24) continues the homestand with a Fireworks Saturday Night at Historic Grainger Stadium! Game time 6:30 pm, Toru Murata on the mound for Kinston.

Captains fall to WhiteCaps

West Michigan took game on of the weekend series against Lake County 6-3 on Friday night. A season high, 5,916 fans saw the WhiteCaps tally three runs in the sixth inning to pull away from the Captains.

The WhiteCaps jumped in front in the top of the first inning. An RBI single by Nick Castellanos with the bases loaded made it 1-0.

Anthony Gallas hit monster shot into the leftfield bleachers for a solo homerun; it was his fifth of the season. The homerun extended Gallas hit streak to 13 straight games and his on-base to 27.

In the seventh, James Robbins crushed his eighth homerun of the season a two run blast that pushed West Michigan out to a 6-1 lead.

Captains cut the lead in half in the bottom of the eighth inning, Carlos Moncrief drove in his 23rd run of the season with a triple. LeVon Washington reached on an error driving his second run of season making it 6-3.

Kyle Ryan (3-4) picked up the win for West Michigan tossing seven innings allowing three runs; two earned, walking one and striking out a season high eight. Bruce Rondon picked up the save pitching ninth hitting a batter and walking two. Nate Striz (0-2) took the loss allowing three runs on three hits in just one inning of work.

Lake County and West Michigan will continue their weekend series on Saturday at 6:00PM at Classic Park. Game one tomorrow will be a completion of the suspended game on May 14th with the Captains leading it 2-1 in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Captains starter is still TBA and RHP Brennan Smith (1-1) will pitch for the WhiteCaps.