Monday’s opponents: Florida Marlins on the other side of the Jupiter complex. Five games with Quad Cities 1 and 2 both in action.
Tuesday’s opponents: Camp day as the MLB team is off, too. Games will be in the morning, at 10:15 a.m. plus or minus 15 minutes – or plus more if there is rain. Guess I will find out for sure then…
Memphis lost to New Orleans, 9-4
Memphis pitching
Brandon Dickson, 3 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K’s
Hyang-Nam Choi was the losing pitcher – 2 IP, 5 H, 5 ER, 0 BB, 2 K’s
Katsuiko Maekawa – 1.2 IP, 5 H, 4 unearned runs, 1 BB, 2 K’s
Ian Ostlund – 2.1 perfect innings with a K
Memphis hitting
Mark Shorey – 2-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI
Jarrett Hoffpauir, 2-for-4 with a double and an RBI
Mike Folli doubled and walked
Bryan Anderson and Casey Rowlett singled
Springfield lost to Jacksonville, 7-2
Springfield pitching
Shaun Garceau started and took the loss – 3 IP, 6 H, 4 ER, 1 BB
Tyler Herron threw two perfect innings with 3 K’s
Russ Haltiwanger allowed three runs on two hits and two walks in his inning of work
Pete Parise and Francisco Samuel each pitched a perfect inning
Springfield hitting
Donovan Solano was 2-for-3 with an RBI with the only multi-hit game for Springfield
Jim Rapoport and Tyler Henley doubled
Brett Wallace, Tony Cruz, Andrew Brown, and Brandon Buckman all singled
Palm Beach lost to Jupiter, 15-12
Palm Beach pitching
Ryan Bird allowed two earned runs on two hits in his two innings
Jared Bradford – 2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 0 K’s
Thomas Eager – 2 IP, 4 H, 6 ER, 3 BB, 1 K
Wayne Damon – 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 0 BB, 2 K’s
Adam Reifer allowed one run on back-to-back opposite field doubles that both kicked up chalk, fanned two hitters in one IP.
Palm Beach hitting
Curt Smith 2-for-3 with a walk, double, homer and 3 RBIs
Colt Sedbrook 2-for-3 with 2 runs scored, a walk, SB and HR
Adron Chambers was 2-for-3 with a triple, a SB and 5 RBIs
Oliver Marmol wsa 2-for-4 with a run scored and RBI
Tommy Pham and Jon Edwards each doubled
Bryan Cartie singled and had two walks
Quad Cities #1 lost to Greensboro, 9-6
QC #1 pitching
Scott McGregor 2 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 2 K’s
Jameson Maj, 2 IP, 4 H, 3 ER, 0 BB, 2 K’s
Dylan Gonzalez, 2 IP, 2 H, 2 ER, 1 BB, 4 K’s
Jose Mateo, 2 IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 0 BB, 1 K
David Carpenter, one shutout inning, 1 H, 1 K
QC#1 hitting
Rickey Noland 3-for-3
Chris Swauger had an RBI triple and two walks
Brian Buck walked twice, had a single and scored three runs
Brett Lilley, Domnit Bolivar and Beau Riportella all singled and walked. Bolivar also had a backhand diving play at 3rd
Jose Garcia tripled and scored a run
Quad Cities #2 defeated Marlins 5th team, 5-3
QC #2 pitching
Josh Hester two shutout innings, 2 hits, 1 BB, 2 K’s
Santo Maertz 2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 1 BB, 4 K’s
LaCurtis Mayes 1.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 4 BB, 2 K’s
Joel Pichardo 2.1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 3 K’s and was the winner
Jose Rada earned the save with a scoreless 9th with two K’s
QC #2 hitting
Paul Cruz 3-for-3 with two doubles and a walk
Roberto De La Cruz homered and had two RBIs
Edwin Gomez and Luis Polanco doubled
Michael Swinson singled and had three walks
Yunior Castillo, Edgar Lara and Jairo Martinez all singled
These reports are provided through the courtesy of the St. Louis Cardinals by Director of Minor League Operations John Vuch. My observations follow.
As mentioned earlier, five minor league players were released this morning. They include second baseman Isa Garcia, left-handed pitcher Joe Rogers, right-handed pitcher Miguel Flores, catcher Christian Rosa and third baseman Nick Vera.
It is just coincidental yet interesting in a symmetric sort of way that the minor league camp picked up five players the same day they jettisoned five others. That all changed after the game, as noted in the Memphis section below. The re-assigned players are typically given a day off when that occurs. Expect a couple more sets of cuts before camp breaks.
Following are the lineups and scheduled pitchers from the five games on the day. Memphis played on a single field with the other four clubs playing in a quad that made viewing those multiple games a bit easier.
| Lineup | Memphis | Springfield | Palm Beach | Quad Cities 1 | QC 2 |
| 1 | Barton cf | Rapoport cf | Pham | Lilley 2b | Castellanos 2b |
| 2 | Hoffpauir 2b | Solano ss | Sedbrook | Buck cf | Cruz dh |
| 3 | Stavinoha lf | Wallace 3b | Smith 1b | Swauger lf | Lara rf |
| 4 | Craig 3b | Cruz dh | Peterson | Scruggs 1b | Martinez 1b |
| 5 | Hamilton 1b | Jones lf | Luna 2b | Bolivar 3b | De La Cruz 3b |
| 6 | Shorey rf | Hill c | Edwards | Parejo rf | Gomez lf |
| 7 | Anderson c | Descalso 2b | Curtis 3b | Rodriguez dh | Swinson cf |
| 8 | Rowlett ss | Brown rf | Cartie | Noland c | Polanco c |
| 9 | Knoedler dh | Buckman 1b | Derba c | Garcia ss | Castillo ss |
| 10 | Yarbrough dhh | Marmol | Riportella dh | Moscatel dh | |
| 11 | Chambers | ||||
| Pitchers | Dickson | Garceau | Bird | McGregor | Hester |
| Choi | Herron | Bradford | Maj | Maertz | |
| Maekawa | Haltiwanger | Eager | Gonzalez | Mayes | |
| Ostlund | Parise | King | Mateo | Pichardo | |
| Salas | Samuel | Daman | Carpenter | Rada | |
| Reifer |
Since I spent Sunday with Memphis and Springfield, I watched more of Palm Beach here on Monday than I might normally do.
Memphis notes
Jarrett Hoffpauir moved over to his normal second base post, swapping back with Casey Rowlett to shortstop. I imagine Tyler Greene will be in the latter position tomorrow.
P.J. Walters was sent down from the major league camp following his three shutout inning performance on Monday. By Tuesday morning, Scout.com subscribers should look for an interview I did with him today.
Earlier in the day, it was announced that right-handed reliever Luke Gregerson was the second player, the player to be named later, in the Khalil Greene trade with San Diego.
Springfield notes
Note Andrew Brown in right field for Springfield. That might help to suggest how the Cardinals will deal with the Brown-Brandon Buckman-Mark Hamilton logjam at first base.
Palm Beach notes
I realize there are 11 players listed for Palm Beach and I cannot explain why, short of three designated hitters. The line-ups also did not list positions, so I labeled the infielders, the only ones I am sure of.
Even before his big day offensively on Monday, Adron Chambers is a player mentioned to me as a potential surprise of the spring. During the part of the game that I saw, he plated five runs on a bases-loaded triple and later added a two-run single. It will be interesting to see if he can break out this season.
Speaking of triples, Chris Swauger added a two-run three-bagger of his own.
As noted above, Ryan Bird was the starter. He yielded a two-run home run early, but the wind was blowing out to right.
Aaron Luna was at second base and the most current working roster has him there instead of in the outfield. Probably because I was watching, he made a fielding error. Another potential member of the 2009 Palm Beach infield is third baseman Jermaine Curtis, who is not being tried at second.
Colt Sedbrook and Curt Smith (see photos) went back-to-back, both to left field. Sedbrook’s home run was up in the breeze, while Smith’s was more of a line drive.
Injury updates
There were questions about some of the players listed in the “rehab” category yesterday in the Minors spring training groups post. The good news is there are no surgeries involved and all players are working their way back.
Jon Bravo suffered a bit of shoulder soreness earlier, but is just behind in his preparation. Nothing serious.
Josh Dew had some elbow soreness. He is playing catch, but has not progressed to the mound. As a result, he may not be ready for the start of the season.
Matt Arburr suffered an ACL injury (knee ligament) in the off-season and is just doing light activities so far. He is not hitting yet, so will not be ready for the start of the season.
Mark McCormick is progressing to the point he will be able to pitch live batting practice. Obviously, he is not yet game ready.
The lighter side of the news
If you’ve read this far, you probably are still wondering what the lead photo is about. Around 5:30 p.m., Brendan Ryan and Joe Mather passed the media room at Roger Dean by on a pair of loaned bicycles on their way to a local sandwich shop. The fun-loving guys posed for this very intense photo. (That’s a toothbrush behind Ryan’s ear.)
The roommates don’t have specific plans for the day off Tuesday. Here’s hoping they stay off the streets of Jupiter!
Great report, Brian. I’m a bit surprised that Isa Garcia was cut. He was a guy who made it to AA his second full season. The only stat that concerned me was his five walks in 194 AB’s but he seemed to show a little pop as a middle infielder.
His dad has been a pretty vocal critic of the academies over at the Birdhouse. I wonder if there is a connection.
Diz: I would not have that question about Garcia. Isa turned pro after 4 years of college play, between jcs and U Houston. This amount of experience helps explain why he did well at Johnson City (like Curt Smith) and reached AA. I could have predicted his release, but do not do such things. To advance, he would have been helped to be able to handle SS, like Solano or Martinez. Also he is an unspeedy, unpowerful, right swinging 2Bman. There are a fair number of such guys. Isa hit well in the minors, but the odds are tough and the Cards have a lot of players.
Apparently Scott Boras does not like the term baseball career. I can understand why. You can play ok for a couple of years in the minors, just like Boras or now like Garcia, and at the end you get a pink slip, because there are more players than roster slots. Its the nature of the beast.
The Cards may not try Curtis at 2B now. This will depend on current staffing.
Terry Pendleton came up at 2B, IIRC, but moved to 3B at AAA or in St Louis. If Curtis ever reaches in the majors, he is likely to have by that time shifted to his best suited position, 2B, because reputed not not have the arm, nor will he have the power bat, to fit well at 3B.
The Cards drafted Casey Mulligan as a pitcher. This is what he was listed at on draft day. Casey wanted to be a position player, so he had a couple of seasons at 3B and catcher. Now he is pitching. Curtis reminds me of Casey.
On the 5 releases, Vera and Rogers may have been coming back from injuries. If assessed as healthy, they can then be released, if the Cards have no further plans for them. Rosa was an UDFA, no surprise.
Mildly surprising is the quick release of 2008 draftee Miguel Flores who did ok at Johnson City. Maybe he and the Cards did not get along well.
Adron Chambers has some advantages as a ballplayer. He could step it up. But optimistic thoughts are abundant at this time of every year.
Jumbo, your Adron point reminds me of Tommy Pham, an oft-mentioned breakout candidate last spring.
Garcia reminds me of Gonzalez who played for Memphis a few years back – he will always have a minor league job because of his bat and if he gets in the right situation like Gonzalez did in SD he might get a shot at the majors.
Vera seems strange – might not be baseball related.
Smith was probably ticketed for QC but his hot Spring and Arburr’s injury probably land him in PB.
I think Chambers is as close to not having a job as he is to breaking out. Hopefully he goes the breakout route.
I think Buckman is in a tough situation in Springfield. Hamilton is the preferred guy due to his status and if he perfroms he will have a job. Brown can play the OF where Buckman can’t (he has also moved faster). With Hill also being able to play 1B and the OF Buckman seems to be a disadvantage.
Hamilton was playing first for Memphis today with Craig at third. If Freese makes the big team, I could see Craig back at third for Memphis with a spot at first for Hamilton. He’s spent the better parts of two seasons at AA and, while he hasn’t hit like he did at Palm Beach, if healthy, he might be ready to take a big step forward.
Craig has more value at third base than he does in left field or at first base. I’d like to see him play there.
It is interesting how the chain of events could join Joe Mather’s struggles with the bat in St. Louis to Brandon Buckman’s opportunity in Springfield – with several other links between.
Brian, nice job on the minors reports , really enjoying them and the photos.
For a DH , Beau Riportella is one heck of name.
It’s great seeing all the rosters laid out team by team, makes for some good dreams!
Brian – nice job of coverage, thanks for all the information. An observation:
I guess it only takes one hit a day to keep getting your name mentioned as a position player, but I have noticed with about 5 of these reports under our belts, a lot of the same names appearing day in day out. D Bolivar is one of those names and this is the second time he gets mentioned for a defensive play.
Vera went to a Division 3 school in the same collegiate league as the poster Easton, small liberal arts colleges. He probably racked up big numbers and signed after getting a degree. Vera went to JC in 2007 and hit .300, not surprising given his maturity for the league. But Johnson City is already not the fast track, because the most advanced collegiates are assigned to Batavia for initial pro play. In 08, Vera did not qualify at Quad Cities, only getting to Batavia and did not play much. He was reported at Baseball America to have been released, later clarified to put on the DL. Teams cannot released injured players. The players have to be fit, then they can be released. A bunch of low round college seniors do not get much chance to play. Vera would be one. Its not a level playing field of equal chances for all.
Miguel Flores was out of a juco, about the 16th rd in 08. Was drafted in 07 by another team, so scouts were interested in him. He did ok at JC, given his amateur background. Its a little surprising Flores would be let go at the onset of spring training. It almost has to be something outside of pitching.
vegasjim, in my informal discussions with Cardinals staffers, Bolivar did come up as another guy (like Chambers) getting notice this spring with his play at third base. I guess your assessment of the reports supplied by the Cardinals bear this out. I do wonder if Bolivar’s bat is big enough to hold down a corner infield spot, as I don’t think his defense hasn’t been a problem in the past.
Speaking of spring optimistic stories. Last year, the Cards talked up Adam Daniels and Joe Rogers, while releasing Eric Haberer who had won the most games in 07 for Springfield and who never even got a chance at being a loogy. This made no sense. Rogers soon blew out his arm and Daniels was released. Fiasco all around.
Tommy Pham is a near premium prospect. He has pop that cannot be taught and a good arm. He is very rough, Ks like a fiend, and is going to need years in the minors. But his tools could reach the majors someday.
Adron Chambers could surprise, because he has come late to baseball, after football. He is a good athlete for a low round in the draft. Played at the same juco as D’Marcus Ingram, Pensacola. If Chambers pumped iron all winter, maybe he could lift his game. He is going to need to do so.
Pham is a guy that could turn it around in a heartbeat. He had reasonable K/BB ratios until last year when it appears he decided to simply swing from the heels and his K rate went into the stratosphere while his power spiked.
There is a difference between plate discipline (which I think is his problem) and pitch recognition. Lack of plate discipline is a lot easier to overcome than poor pitch recognition. He has time to put it together.
I want to rant about something Joe Morgan said during Sunday night’s WBC game and I’m surprised I haven’t seen anything about it elsewhere.
Mark DeRosa was playing first base for Team USA when David Wright threw a ball wide toward the right field corner side of first base. Morgan commented that DeRosa should’ve switched and had his LEFT foot on the bag to reach for the ball that he missed.
I’ve played more than 1000 games at first base and, like DeRosa, throw right-handed. I know darn well to toe tap around the bag to get my RIGHT foot positioned on the correct side (in this case the right side) of the base for the maximum stretch. Try stretching for yourself using both feet. I cannot imagine using my left foot to touch the base. Joe spent quite a bit of time on this subject as I sat there wondering what he was talking about.
No wonder he had a very successful blog, Fire Joe Morgan, dedicated to his ineptness as a broadcaster. He is a discredit to my Alma Mater, Cal-State Hayward.
Releases of players have winners as well. In the case of Garcia, it gives life to Foli and Marmol who are also competing for backup infield jobs at AA. I would have thought Foli would be the odd man out but hei has had a lot of Vuck rpeort mentions.
Garcia’s release illustrates that players can be effective, by at least one dimension, in his case hitting for average. Plenty of solid baseball players get released in the minors, because the flow of players into a system substantially exceeds its final yield to the majors.
I see that Baseball America has a premium article on their website concerning five young centerfielders, including our own phenom. As I’ve mentioned, I let my premium membership lapse but if anybody else has one, it’s probably an interesting read.
“reifer allowed one run on back to back opposite field doubles that both kicked up chalk, fanned two hitters in one IP.”
so he K’d two and two BARELY put him in play, and he gave up a run.
ain’t that baseball for ya? momma said there’d be days like that
Has Joe Morgan ever said anything insightful?
Morgan was one of the smartest and most instinctive baseball players ever but seems to have forgotten everything he knew.