Tonight's Lineup - July 31st

Navarro - SS
Marte - LF
Pollock - CF
Parker - 3B
Perez - DH
Gomez - 1B
Asencio - RF
Davis - C
Elmore - 2B

Vasquez - SP (in a spot start for Taylor Sinclair who has some tightness)

For tonight's pregame show, we'll do a full system recap for the Diamondbacks, highlighting some former Silver Hawks and what they are doing throughout the minor leagues.

Poll Results

The question was "What do you think the Diamondbacks should do at the trade deadline?"

The Results:

0 people said "fire sale"
6 people said "trade three or four, but keep mostly intact"
12 people said "trade one or two if the price is right"
1 person said "stay the course, don't say anyone"

A new poll question is on the right about the best stadiums in the league. You can use photos to judge, you can talk to the Silver Hawks who have played at all, or whatever you want as criteria. Once the poll closes, I'll publish my rankings.

From the Notes - July 31, 2009

South Bend Silver Hawks (17-15 Second Half, 44-56 Overall)
vs. Peoria Chiefs (17-15 Second Half, 55-46 Overall)

Coveleski Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – 7:30 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 1-1 Tie
@ Coveleski Stadium: 0-0 Tie
@ O’Brien Field: 1-1 Tie
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .248 – T-9th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 3.89 ERA – 7th
Chiefs Team Hitting: .271 – 2nd
Chiefs Team Pitching: 3.77 ERA – 6th
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: Isaias Asencio’s solo home run in the bottom of the eighth inning provided the difference in the Silver Hawks 2-1 win over Quad Cities, helping South Bend to a three game series sweep. Asencio took a 0-2 pitch from Matt Frevert (LP, 2-1) over the wall in left-center for his fourth homer of the season. Ryan Cook (ND) pitched 7.0 innings of one run ball for South Bend, with Bayron Zepeda (WP, 3-2) earning the win in relief. Justin Mace (SV, 7) recorded his seventh save in eight tries. Rossmel Perez also added a RBI single for South Bend, scoring Justin Parker in the second inning.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
PLAYOFF CHASE (37 Games Remaining in the Second Half – Top Two of Remaining Teams Qualify):
· South Bend leads the playoff chase by 0.5 over Great Lakes, 3.0 over Dayton and 4.0 over Lansing.
· Fort Wayne was the first half champion and West Michigan was the first half wild card in the East.
· Peoria leads the West, with Clinton leading the wild card chase. Kane County and Cedar Rapids were first half qualifiers.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
· South Bend swept the series from Quad Cities, only the second sweep of the season (May 5-7 vs. Cedar Rapids was the other.)
· The Silver Hawks have won the first game in nine straight series, including Tuesday’s suspended game against Quad Cities.
· SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 1-1 vs. PEO. Silver Hawks are 12-8 against West in the second half.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
· Daniel Vasquez will be making his first start of the season tonight, replacing Taylor Sinclair.
· Justin Mace has thrown 12.0 consecutive scoreless innings, and has recorded four saves since July 8th.
· Bryan Woodall has lowered ERA from 7.08 to 2.98 since 6/5; has not allowed a run in July; has 20.1 straight scoreless innings.

Two Tigers Prospects Traded

The Tigers got Jarrod Washburn today, but traded away two prospects to get him.

Mauricio Robles was pitching for West Michigan most of this season, having recently been promoted to high-A Lakeland. He faced the Silver Hawks on April 11th, throwing 5.0 shutout innings in earning the win.

Lucas French pitched for West Michigan a couple of years ago, so you should remember his name if you have been following the Hawks for a while now.

Story here.

Tonight's Lineup - July 30th

Navarro - SS
Marte - DH
Pollock - CF
Parker - 3B
Perez - C
Diaz - LF
Ramirez- 1B
Asencio - RF
Estevez - 2B

Cook - SP

Tonight's pregame interview is with catcher Chris Davis about his stint with double-A Mobile.

Today's Roster Move

INF Justin Parker activated from the DL.

OF Marc Krauss sent to Arizona for injury evaluation.

Story Here.

My Take: It's great to get Justin Parker back. His bat is a huge addition to the lineup when he's healthy. However, it's unfortunate that Krauss' ankle injury is so bad that he's heading back to Arizona, where it appears surgery might be an option. Krauss is not expected to rejoin the Silver Hawks this season, so that leads me to believe he's not playing again this year.

Hopefully Parker's shoulder is healthy enough that it allows him to DH most of the time and play third the rest of the time. With Krauss out, there's not much power left in the lineup. A healthy Parker would be big to protect Pollock and Marte in the lineup.

Playing By The Rules

I expressed my frustration on the air, and I know the fans at the Cove were frustrated too. I'm sure listening at home, you were hoping that Wade Miley would be able to pitch the final two innings tonight, in a bid for a perfect game (he was perfect through 5 when he was removed).

However, I've mentioned it a number of times on the air and on this blog, that the ultimate goal is not to win a championship or achieve individual accolades at this level. Ultimately, the Diamondbacks want to develop players that will help at the Major League level in a few years. Winning in South Bend becomes secondary to player development.

It has also been determined by the D'Backs that 120-130 innings per season will be the maximum at this level, and do that, they must limit certain guys at certain parts of the season. Unfortunately, that is what everyone has to live with...whether a perfect game is on the line or not.

That Time of Year

A trade between the Mariners and Pirates resulted in two pitchers the Silver Hawks just faced last week in Clinton being dealt. Aaron Pribanic and Brett Lorin are headed to the Pirates organization as part of an Ian Snell/Jack Wilson to Seattle deal.

Here's the story.

An Article on A.J.

Jonathan Mayo of MiLB.com contacted me a few weeks ago to set up an interview with A.J. Pollock. After the two traded voice mails for a while, the story has been written and can be read here.

I found this little tidbit rather interesting:

"The Silver Hawks' attendance has seen a nice bump since South Bend's favorite son has come back as a pro. The club's season average: 2,494. In 10 home games with Pollock on the roster, it's climbed to 3,461. That, of course, isn't of immediate concern to Pollock, who's just trying to get the hang of the game at this level."

Today's Roster Move

Catcher Chris Davis is returning to the Silver Hawks from Mobile.

Catcher Tyson Van Winkle is being returned to short season A Yakima.

Story here.

My take: Davis was going to double A as a fill in while Sean Coughlin was injured. It's not surprising that he's coming back because everyone knew that his time there was temporary. Van Winkle did fine filling in. Despite not hitting much, Van Winkle played solid defense behind the plate.

Former MWL Star Pitches Triple-A No-Hitter

This goes back to the 2007 season, but former Cedar Rapids Kernels pitcher Sean O'Sullivan threw a no hitter last night in triple-A. He was one walk away from a perfect game.

Story is here.

O'Sullivan pitched twice against South Bend in 2007.

On April 17, 2007, O'Sullivan pitched 6.0 innings against the Hawks, allowing three runs (one earned) and recieved no decision at Veterans Memorial Stadium.

O'Sullivan pitched against the Hawks at the Cove on August 10th, 2007. In that game, he went 6.2 innings, allowing only three unearned runs in earning the win, which at the time lowered his ERA to 2.37.

He would finish the season at 10-7 with a 2.22 ERA in 25 starts. Very impressive young pitcher.

Tuesday's Game Suspended

Tuesday's game has been suspended because of rain in the 4th inning with Quad Cities leading 2-0.

The game will be picked up where it left off at 5 PM Eastern Time tomorrow. The first game will be played through nine innings, and then the second game tomorrow will be a seven inning game.

Pregame coverage begins at 4:50 PM Eastern Time. Gates to the stadium open at 4:30 PM Eastern Time.

Tonight's Lineup - July 28th

It's been raining in South Bend for a while, but it has now stopped and hopefully we are good to go for tonight. Here is the lineup assuming the rains hold off:

Estevez - SS
Marte - LF
Pollock - CF
Diaz - RF
Perez - DH
Gomez - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Van Winkle - C
Elmore - 2B

Rodriguez - SP

Tonight's pregame interview will be with Ryan Cook about his great start, his middle season struggles, his all-star game start, and the adjustments that he's made to be better as of late. Very insightful stuff from Cook.

Krauss Update

I had a comment in my last post asking why Krauss left the game yesterday. He has had some lingering ankle injuries, and they really bothered him yesterday. I would imagine he would be out of the lineup tonight, and then hopefully with some rest he'll be able to DH for a while before returning to the field.

Back at Home

For those that are wondering...

Left Cedar Rapids at about 10:20 PM Central Time.

Arrived to Coveleski Stadium at 4:35 AM Eastern Time.

I arrived at my apartment at 4:59 AM Eastern Time. I imagine most of the players got to their places about the same time.

My head hit the pillow at 5:10 AM Eastern Time.

My alarm went off at 8:20 AM Eastern Time so I could do a radio interview at 8:30.

The interview ended at 8:36 AM, and my head was back on the pillow at 8:38 AM.

The alarm went off again at 10:50 AM. I got up, got ready, and have been at work since 11:45 AM.

I don't think the players are due to arrive until 4 PM today. I think because of the late night/early morning, they get to have a late arrival to the park today. I'm jealous!

From the Notes - July 27th

South Bend Silver Hawks (13-15 Second Half, 40-56 Overall)
vs. Cedar Rapids Kernels (16-11 Second Half, 56-41 Overall)

Veterans Memorial Stadium, Cedar Rapids, Iowa – 7:35 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 4-1 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 3-0 Silver Hawks
@ Veterans Memorial Stadium: 1-1 Tie
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .246 – T-10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 3.97 ERA – 8th
Kernels Team Hitting: .254 – 7th
Kernels Team Pitching: 3.44 ERA – 3rd
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: A two run single by Tyson Auer turned a one run deficit into a one run lead for Cedar Rapids in the fifth inning, and that’s all they would need to post a 2-1 victory over the Silver Hawks on Sunday afternoon. Manuel Flores (WP, 7-4) allowed only one run on six hits in 8.0 innings to earn the win. Taylor Sinclair (LP, 3-4) was the tough luck loser for the Hawks, allowing two runs on seven hits in 6.0 innings. Victor Estevez provided the only run of the game for South Bend, a solo homer in the third inning.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
PLAYOFF CHASE (41 Games Remaining in the Second Half – Top Two of Remaining Teams Qualify):
• Dayton and Great Lakes are tied for the playoff spots. South Bend is 0.5 back and Lansing is 2.5 out of the playoff spots.
• Fort Wayne was the first half champion and West Michigan was the first half wild card in the East.
• Kane County and Cedar Rapids were first half qualifiers in the West. Peoria leads by 0.5 over Wisconsin and Quad Cities.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
• South Bend’s two through six hitters went 0-for-19 yesterday.
• The Silver Hawks have lost five straight game twos after winning eight straight game ones of series.
• South Bend swept Cedar Rapids in the first half. It is the Silver Hawks only sweep of the 2009 season.
• SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 3-0 vs. CR. Silver Hawks are 8-8 against West in the second half.

Today's Lineup - July 26th

Navarro - SS
Marte - DH
Pollock - CF
Krauss - LF
Gomez - 1B
Asencio - RF
Estevez - 3B
Van Winkle - C
Elmore - 2B

Sinclair - SP

Pregame interview today is with Tyson Van Winkle.

Photos from Cedar Rapids - Part Five

The view from the Silver Hawks dugout. You can't tell from this picture, but the dugouts here are the biggest in the league. Not only are they deep, but they also are long. I like how they have benches for the players to stand on, so they can lean over the rails and watch the game.


Mr. Shucks is the mascot of the Kernels. They are giving away a Mr. Shucks Soap Dispenser for today's game.


The field from the right field line, beyond the bleachers.


Another shot back towards home plate from the right field bleachers.


The field from the first base concourse.

Hope you enjoyed this ballpark tour. South Bend has now visited every park in the league. Perhaps I'll do a ranking of all the stadiums later tonight since I'll have a lot of time to fill between today's game and tomorrow night's finale.

Photos from Cedar Rapids - Part Four

No, we are not at a grocery store. They actually have these little kids rides down the first base concourse.


Trevor Hoffman was with the Cedar Rapids Reds in 1991. That's right, the Cincinnati Reds had Hoffman in their farm system. The Reds left him unprotected in the expansion draft, and the Florida Marlins ended up with him. He then went to San Diego for Gary Sheffield, and the rest is history.


Eric Davis is one of my all-time favorite Reds. He played in Cedar Rapids in 1982. By the way, these stars are all around the floor on the concourse. As you walk around and look down, you see a number of former players who made it to the majors after playing in CR.


The field from the concourse behind home plate.


Just a general view of how the seats and suites are aligned.

Photos from Cedar Rapids - Part Three

A grill area on the third base concourse, covered by a white tent. This serves two purposes: It allows the concession workers to be safe from foul balls, and it also allows the fans in line to still watch the game.


The left field lawn section. I could really enjoy watching a game from here.


Scoreboard. Not huge, but it serves the purpose.


If you are in the group outing area beyond the left field wall, you can look straight down onto the warning track. This would be a great place to heckle the left fielder, if you were so inclined.


The view back to the field from the group outing area beyond the left field fence.

Photos from Cedar Rapids - Part Two

The view of the outfield from the wooden picnic area down the left field line. You can't tell from this angle, but the picnic area actually juts in from the rest of the seats, giving a nice view of home plate.


More picnic tables on the concourse down the left field line. This is just above the lawn section, and should not be confused with the picnic area I showed in the picture above this one.


A play area off in the corner down the left field line.


A general shot back towards the concourse from the left field corner. Decent amount of walking room for the fans.


The stadium from the concourse behind the third base dugout.

Photos from Cedar Rapids - Part One

One of the suites.


The Cedar Rapids ballclub used to be affiliated with the Cincinnati Reds (my favorite team growing up). These cards are enclosed in a glass case on the suite level, and feature Lenny Harris, Kurt Stillwell, and Joe Oliver. I was a big fan of Harris and Oliver; Stillwell was the shortstop of the future until Barry Larkin came along and took his job.


This is the above mentioned case on the suite level, featuring a lot of artifacts from former Kernels.


My view from the press box. Not bad at all. This is arguably my favorite stadium in the Western Division.


Just a nice touch by the media relations department here in Cedar Rapids. Andy Pantini and John Rodgers are two of the nicest guys in the league. We call John the "Dean of the Midwest League", since he has been broadcasting in the league the longest. He is perhaps the nicest guy I have ever met in my entire life.

Tonight's Lineup - July 25th

Navarro - SS
Marte - LF
Pollock - CF
Krauss - DH
Perez - C
Gomez - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Diaz - RF
Elmore - 2B

Cook - SP

I had recorded a pregame interview with Jordan Meaker, but when I just got back to the booth, it's not playing back properly. I'm going to keep trying, and hopefully I'll figure out what's wrong with it. If not, we'll do the standings/scoreboards today, and then do an interview tomorrow.

Well That Was Fun

Last night got somewhat crazy. The Silver Hawks played two and a half innings, and then the players were pulled off the field because of some lightning in the distance.

We had known that there were some heavy storms in the area, but most of it missed north. Apparently, they were still developing over the plains, and the lightning (with some of the darkest skies I've seen in a while) soon gave way to heavy rain. We weren't 15 minutes into the rain delay when the GM of Clinton came out to the field with a microphone and as nicely as possible told everyone to get out of the ballpark and get home because there are tornados in the area.

I scambled to pack up my equipment, get a very short story put up on the website and sent out to the media, and load the bus. I thought we might hang out in Clinton for a while, waiting out the heavy stuff which was definitely located between Clinton and Cedar Rapids. I thought wrong.

We loaded the bus, and headed off into the storm for the trip to Cedar Rapids, driving right through the heart of the storm. We put a movie in on the bus, to distract everyone from the fact that there was rain, wind, hail, and the potential of tornados. As we were trying to determine what movie to watch, I believe it was Jordan Meaker who jokingly said "I have the movie Twister." That was both funny and not cool -- all at the same time.

Roughly 15 minutes into the trip, my mom called my cell phone, not knowing that we were on the road. Her words were "I was just watching the weather channel, and they are saying there are 80 mph winds between Clinton and Cedar Rapids. You guys won't be going anywhere for a while." Then, I probably said the dumbest thing I could have said at that point, when I responded "Mom, you don't have to tell me that. We're driving through it." I'd like to take this time to apologize to my mom for making her worry for the next two hours until I called her from Cedar Rapids to tell her we arrived safely.

Ultimately, the trip involved a lot of rain, more lightning than I've seen in a long time, and a bunch of wind. I don't think there was any hail on us, but the first 45 minutes to an hour were somewhat rough. Most everyone just let themselves get lost in the movie, and tried not to worry about everything that was going on around them.

Anyhow, we made it, safe and sound, to lovely Cedar Rapids.

Friday's Game Cancelled

Story on www.silverhawks.com. Tornado like conditions.

Rain Delay - Friday night

We are in a rain delay in Clinton. A lot of lightning, with some rain and "damaging winds" and "large hail" on the forecast at weather.com. Hopefully most of that misses to the north as the entire storm was supposed to. I'll give updates every 20-30 minutes on ESPN Radio 1620 AM in and around South Bend, and online at www.silverhawks.com.

Former Hawks on Other MLB Teams

We'll go through this list on the pregame show tonight, but here's what some former Silver Hawks are doing on teams other than the Diamondbacks in Major League Baseball (Anyone missing? Let me know in the comments below):

Boston Red Sox
Brad Penny ('97): 6-4, 5.02 ERA, 18 GS

Florida Marlins
Emilio Bonifacio ('04-'05): .252, 1 HR, 22 RBI
Dan Uggla ('02): .232, 16 HR, 51 RBI

Houston Astros
Jose Valverde ('99-'00): 1-2, 3.00 ERA, 25 G, 24.0 IP, 10-14 in Save chances

Milwaukee Brewers
Mike Cameron ('92-'93): .260, 14 HR, 43 RBI

Chicago White Sox
Tony Pena (’03): 0-0, 13.50 ERA, 4 G, 4.0 IP

New York Yankees
Brian Bruney ('00-'01): 3-0, 4.71 ERA, 20 G, 17.1 IP

Oakland Athletics
Brett Anderson ('07): 5-7, 4.25 ERA, 17 GS, 70 K’s in 95.1 IP
Jack Cust ('98): .239, 16 HR, 50 RBI
Scott Hairston ('02): .260, 2 HR, 6 RBI - Traded from Padres (.299, 10 HR, 29 RBIs)

Pittsburgh Pirates
Ross Ohlendorf ('05): 8-7, 4.59 ERA, 19 GS,

Toronto Blue Jays
Lyle Overbay ('00): .260, 9 HR, 42 RBI

Washington Nationals
Alberto Gonzalez ('04-'05): .308, 1 HR, 17 RBI

From the Notes - July 24th

South Bend Silver Hawks (12-14 Second Half, 39-55 Overall)
vs. Clinton LumberKings (11-15 Second Half, 51-45 Overall)

Alliant Energy Field, Clinton, Iowa – 8:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 3-2 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 2-1 Silver Hawks
@ Alliant Energy Field: 1-1 Tie
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .247 – T-9th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 4.02 ERA – 9th
LumberKings Team Hitting: .257 – 6th
LumberKings Team Pitching: 3.25 ERA – 1st
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: One day after being routed 10-2, the LumberKings returned the favor by hitting three home runs and defeating South Bend 11-3 on Thursday night. Travis Howell and Daniel Carroll had back-to-back home runs in the sixth inning, part of a five run frame for Clinton. Kyle Seager hit his first professional homer in the 8th, a three run shot to right. Randy Rodriguez (LP, 3-8) was charged with seven runs in 5.1 innings to snap a personal two game winning streak. The Silver Hawks scored all three of their runs in the top of the seventh on three straight RBI singles from Alberto Diaz, Tyson Van Winkle, and Victor Estevez.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
PLAYOFF CHASE (44 Games Remaining in the Second Half – Top Two of Remaining Teams Qualify):
• Great Lakes leads by one game over the Dragons and the Silver Hawks. Lansing is 2.5 back of Dayton and South Bend.
• Fort Wayne was the first half champion and West Michigan was the first half wild card in the East.
• Kane County and Cedar Rapids were first half qualifiers in the West. Wisconsin and Burlington are in line for second half spots.
_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
• South Bend has won the first game and lost the second game of the last four series (this one included…1-2 in game threes).
• South Bend had two homers in a game on Wednesday for the first time since May 31st and the fifth time overall.
• SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 2-1 vs. Clinton. Silver Hawks are 7-7 against West in the second half.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
• Taylor Sinclair’s 3.26 ERA is the best amongst Silver Hawks starters this season.
• RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.32 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
• Woodall’s current 15.1 consecutive scoreless innings streak is the highest on the team in 2009.

Tonight's Lineup - July 23rd

Navarro - SS
Marte - LF
Pollock - CF
Krauss - DH
Gomez - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Diaz - RF
Van Winkle - C
Estevez - 2B

Rodriguez - SP

Manager Mark Haley is the pregame interview. Tomorrow we'll do a Silver Hawks alumni report on the pregame, and Saturday I'll have a player interview...to be determined as to who it is though.

From the Notes - July 23rd

South Bend Silver Hawks (12-13 Second Half, 39-54 Overall)
vs. Clinton LumberKings (10-15 Second Half, 50-45 Overall)

Alliant Energy Field, Clinton, Iowa – 8:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 3-1 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 2-1 Silver Hawks
@ Alliant Energy Field: 1-0 Silver Hawks
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .247 – T-10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 3.94 ERA – 8th
LumberKings Team Hitting: .256 – 6th
LumberKings Team Pitching: 3.25 ERA – 1st
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: South Bend scored seven times in the 2nd inning on their way to a 10-2 victory over the Clinton LumberKings on Wednesday night. Marc Krauss and Alfredo Marte each had three run homers for the Silver Hawks, who hit two home runs in a game for the first time since May 31st (also against Clinton). Marte finished with four RBIs total in the game, giving him a team best 49 on the season. Reynaldo Navarro, A.J. Pollock, and Victor Estevez also added RBIs for the Hawks. Jordan Meaker (ND) spot started and threw 3.0 scoreless innings, with Bayron Zepeda (WP, 2-2) allowing just one run over a season-high 4.0 innings to earn the victory. Sean Morgan (ND) and Yonata Ortega (ND) each threw an inning of relief as well. Scott Savastano had a solo home run for the LumberKings.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
• The seven runs scored by South Bend on Wednesday is the second most in an inning this season (8 in B-2nd vs. FW on 6/21).
• South Bend had two homers in a game on Wednesday for the first time since May 31st and the fifth time overall.
• The Silver Hawks have seven home runs in July after hitting just two in the entire month of June.
• SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 2-1 vs. Clinton. Silver Hawks are 7-6 against West in the second half.
• South Bend’s coaching staff led the Eastern Division All-Stars to a win at Alliant Energy Field last month.
• With 45 to play, Great Lakes and South Bend are in line for playoff spots, with Dayton 1.0 game back and Lansing 2.5 back.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
• Randy Rodriguez has won two games in a row after losing six straight through June and early July.
• Taylor Sinclair’s 3.26 ERA is the best amongst Silver Hawks starters this season.
• RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.32 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
• Woodall’s current 15.1 consecutive scoreless innings streak is the highest on the team in 2009.

Photos from Clinton - Part Five

Hot dogs and Cracker Jack not good enough for you? Stop by Granny's Sugar Shack for Mini Donuts, Fried Oreo's, and Funnel Cakes.


Bored with the LumberKings game? Head down the left field line, turn around, and watch a little league game behind you. This may be the only place in the league where you can watch two baseball games at once. Beloit has a similar setup, but I'm not sure the view is as good.


The shot of the stadium from the left field lawn section. In addition to the backstop net, a fence extends over the roof of the stadium, keeping more balls from leaving the stadium. I'm sure this is a protective measure to keep the church in the background from getting pelted with foul balls. And yes, that is the steeple of the church you see, but it is being worked on right now so a lot of scaffolding surrounds it.

Photos from Clinton - Part Four

Although looking through some trees in left field, that's the riverboat casino that sits behind center field. Again, it actually extends above the top of the batters eye, thus making it difficult for a player to pick up the ball out of a right handers arm. Then again, it didn't seem to impact the Hawks last night, as they had no trouble finding the ball.


The left field lawn section/picnic area. Two things to notice here: 1) The left field wall has an S curve in it. 2) Odd looking light towers, and they are awfully low compared to other fields.


Kids play area down the left field line. Apparently some of the bark has spilled out onto the sidewalk. Clean up in aisle 5.


Another view of the S curve wall in left field. Why not just make the wall straight out there? If I was a left fielder, I'd be annoyed by this. But I'm not, so I won't complain.


The LumberKings bullpen mound and a general shot of the stadium from foul ground in left field.

Photos from Clinton - Part Three

A picnic garden down the left field line. The only thing I don't like about this area is that some of the tables sit in places where you can see the plate/mound area because of the seating bowl. The tables right along the fence are fine though and give you a good view of everything going on.


The same picnic area, from a different angle. Again, if you were sitting in the tables on the far left of this picture, there is no way you can see the field.


I was standing up in the Silver Hawks dugout when I took this picture. Unlike most other dugouts, this one doesn't really have a way to see the field without looking through a chain link fence. Only one person on each end of the dugout can stand on the stairs and see the field without the fence in front of them.


This is the batters eye. You can't tell from this picture, but the wall is actually about 20 feet tall. It's probably the weakest excuse for a batters eye in the league. If you look at it from the plate, there is actually a white riverboat casino that sits directly behind it, and thus makes it hard for hitters to pick up the ball out of a right handed pitchers delivery.


The view from the Lumber Lounge beyond the right field fence. I could enjoy watching a game here.

Photos from Clinton - Part Two

This is the "Lumber Lounge" as you can see, and it's located beyond the right field wall. It is built entirely out of wood (aka lumber), and has a lot of picnic tables. A great area for group outings and picnics. It gives you a good view of the field too, which you'll see in a minute.


The Hawks taking batting practice. Just a general view of the stadium as well.


Does this picture look familiar? It should. I used it on the website last night for the game story. Hey, these pictures don't just automatically appear on the website...some of us actually do some work to get them up there. I wish I could put an action photo up for the game stories each night, but traveling by myself, I can't leave the booth and take photos during the game obviously.


Down the right field line, shooting back towards the plate area. Again, notice how the entire seating area is covered by a roof.


This is an example of one of the walkways that you take from the concourse up to the seating area. I chose section E to take a picture of, but I can't really explain why. There's also an A, B, C, and D. Imagine that!

Photos from Clinton - Part One

We start our journey outside the seating bowl. Believe it or not, when I took this picture I was actually inside the stadium. This is the concourse, behind the seating area. The awning on the left side is a concession stand (although I took the picture before the windows were open). Alliant Energy Field does not have an "open" concourse, meaning you cannot see the game from the concourse area.


A view of the press box. The windows on the left (under the Midwest League logos sign) is my radio booth.



From inside the booth, taken through a window looking at the seating area. You can see how the seats are all covered by a roof. A lot of protection from the weather for the fans. Good on rainy days, bad on days with beautiful weather.


The view from my booth, although this shot is angled a bit towards the left field line. I actually sit directly behind the window on the left and look straight towards home plate. The next picture shows my actual view a lot better.


This is my actual view....what I see when I'm calling the game. You can't get a great idea from this picture, but I am very close to home plate. In fact, I'd have to say that I'm closer to home plate in Clinton than at any other ballpark in the Midwest League.

Tonight's Lineup

Navarro - SS
Marte - DH
Pollock - CF
Krauss - LF
Perez - C
Ramirez - 1B
Asencio - RF
Elmore - 2B
Estevez - 3B

Meaker - SP

Pregame Shows

At this point of the season, I'm going to start mixing up the pregame show's third segment a bit. Normally this segment is reserved for interviews, and the MWL Standings on Sundays.

Since we are reaching the stretch drive, and there are a lot of playoff implications abound, we'll start checking the standings and playoff race twice a week (Wednesdays and Sundays).

I also want to do better about checking in with the Silver Hawks alumni report, so we'll start doing that every Friday (most likely doing Major Leaguers one week, Minor Leaguers the next).

Then we'll still do interviews on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays. Everyone in agreement? Good.

Pitching Notes

In case you've missed it on the broadcast the last few nights:

-Jordan Meaker is starting tonight in place of Brett Moorhouse. Moorhouse will resume his spot in the rotation the next time it comes around against Cedar Rapids on Monday

-This is a move done to limit the number of innings Moorhouse throws. The Diamondbacks like to keep starting pitchers at this level between 120 and 130 innings on the season, and Moorhouse was going to surpass that at his current rate.

-In addition, Wade Miley will be limited as well for the same reason.

-Both Moorhouse and Miley will probably be held to just 5.0 innings per start for the rest of the season.

-I understand limiting innings, and I realize the Diamondbacks know what is best for their pitchers. Sometimes though as a fan it gets frustrating, because a guy could be pitching a great ballgame and gets pulled after five. This is where the low levels of the minors turns into more about development, than about winning. You hope to do both, but ultimately, the goal is to get these guys to the majors to win at that level, and winning at this level becomes secondary to the ultimate prize.

From the Notes - July 22nd

South Bend Silver Hawks (11-13 Second Half, 38-54 Overall)
vs. Clinton LumberKings (10-14 Second Half, 50-44 Overall)

Alliant Energy Field, Clinton, Iowa – 8:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 2-1 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 2-1 Silver Hawks
@ Alliant Energy Field: 0-0 Tie
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .246 –11th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 3.96 ERA – 8th
LumberKings Team Hitting: .256 – 6th
LumberKings Team Pitching: 3.18 ERA – 1st
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: A great pitcher’s duel between Burlington’s Mike Montgomery (ND) and South Bend’s Taylor Sinclair (ND) resulted in both pitchers receiving no decision on Monday, as the Bees plated a run in the top of the ninth on the way to a 2-1 victory. Nick Francis singled to start the rally against Silver Hawks reliever Victor Capellan (LP, 0-1), and Jose Bonilla brought him home with a single to left field to break a 1-1 tie. Montgomery threw 6.0 innings of one run ball, while Sinclair had 6.1 innings, allowing just one run also. David Wood had a RBI single for Burlington for their first run, with Alfredo Marte driving home Jake Elmore as the Silver Hawks lone run. Eric Basurto (WP, 1-1) pitched two scoreless relief innings for his first win, with Barry Bowden (SV, 7) stranding the tying run at second in the bottom of the ninth for a save. Burlington took two out of three games in the series from the Silver Hawks.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
• SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 2-1 vs. Clinton. Silver Hawks are 6-6 against West in the second half.
• T.J. Hose was promoted to Visalia on Monday, as Alfredo Marte was activated from the disabled list.
• South Bend’s coaching staff led the Eastern Division All-Stars to a win at Alliant Energy Field last month.
• The Silver Hawks had just six hits in the last two games against Burlington (two on Sunday, four on Monday) after 12 in game 1.
• With 46 to play, Great Lakes and South Bend are in line for playoff spots, with Dayton 1.0 game back and Lansing 2.5 back.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
• Taylor Sinclair’s 3.26 ERA is the best amongst Silver Hawks starters this season.
• RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.32 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
• Woodall’s current 15.1 consecutive scoreless innings streak is the highest on the team in 2009.
• Randy Rodriguez has won two games in a row after losing six straight through June and early July.

Poll Results

The question was: What is your favorite sport other than baseball?

The results:

Football - 16
Hockey - 6
Golf - 4
Basketball - 4

I'm a bit surprised about hockey being second. I sometimes forget that I'm in an area of the country now where hockey has been popular. Being from northern Kentucky, there's no hockey anywhere around there (Columbus Blue Jackets are the nearest NHL team, and they weren't around for my childhood).

New poll question on the right.

A Few MiLB Transactions

Eli Rumler moved from double-A to high-A.

Manny Ferrer placed on the restricted list.

Derrick Walker was released.

All three are former Silver Hawks. I have no idea why Ferrer is on the restricted list. I'm sad to see Walker released, but he was only hitting .200 at high-A Visalia.

Tonight's Lineup - July 20th

Navarro - SS
Marte - DH
Pollock - CF
Diaz - LF
Ramirez - 1B
Asencio - RF
Estevez - 3B
Van Winkle - C
Elmore - 2B

Sinclair - SP

Tonight's pregame will be a little bit different, as we have a lenghty interview with South Bend's on field emcee Brian "The Crippler" Costello. The Crippler is a professional wrestler, and has an event coming up called "Clash at the Cove 11". Information on the event can be found here.

Hose Promoted to High-A, Marte Activated

Today's Roster Move:

RHP T.J. Hose has been promoted to high-A Visalia.

OF Alfredo Marte has been activated from the DL.

Full story is here.

My Take: The Silver Hawks had been carrying 14 active pitchers. When Marte came back, we knew one was moving. Congratulations to T.J., a well deserved promotion.

The good news is that the Silver Hawks bullpen has been really strong lately, so perhaps losing T.J. doesn't hurt as much as it seems on the surface. The bad news is that T.J. was a large reason why the bullpen has been so strong, and anytime you promote a closer who leads the team in saves and ERA, then it's going to leave a mark.

It just means everyone else has to step up to fill the void at the back end of the games.

Getting Marte backs helps too, as he's the team leader in RBIs.

From the Notes - July 20th

South Bend Silver Hawks (11-12 Second Half, 38-53 Overall)
vs. Burlington Bees (9-13 Second Half, 38-54 Overall)

Coveleski Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – 7:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 3-2 Bees
@ Coveleski Stadium: 1-1 Tie
@ Community Field: 2-1 Bees
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .247 –10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 3.99 ERA – 8th
Bees Team Hitting: .242 – T-13th
Bees Team Pitching: 4.00 ERA –9th
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: The Silver Hawks were shutout for the seventh time this season on Sunday afternoon, falling to the Burlington Bees 3-0 at Coveleski Stadium. South Bend tied a season low with two hits, and stranded just three runners on base all afternoon (all three were left in the fifth inning). Manauris Baez (WP, 4-4) allowed just two hits over his 6.0 innings on the mound, striking out five and walking two. Blaine Hardy (SV, 4) pitched 3.0 perfect innings in relief for the Bees. South Bend starter Ryan Cook (LP, 6-9) lost for the ninth time in his last 10 starts, allowing three runs (two earned) over 6.0 innings. Bryan Woodall (ND) continued his consecutive scoreless innings streak, tossing 3.0 innings in relief. Woodall has not allowed a run over his last 15.1 innings pitched, the longest streak on the team this season.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
· South Bend has now been shut out seven times this season, including twice in the last four games and four times in the 2nd half.
· South Bend committed two errors yesterday, their first multi-error game since July 10th at Beloit.
· SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 1-2 vs. BUR. Silver Hawks are 6-5 against West in the second half.
· With 47 to play, South Bend and Great Lakes are tied for the playoff spots, with Dayton 2.0 back and Lansing 3.5 out.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
· RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.32 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
· Woodall’s current 15.1 consecutive scoreless innings streak is the highest on the team in 2009.
· T.J. Hose is now 11 out of 12 in saves opportunities this season, and he saved back-to-back games on Friday and Saturday.

Congrats to Chris Davis

Former Silver Hawks catcher went 1-for-4 in his Mobile debut. Congrats Chris on your first double-A hit.

Diamondbacks Make a Trade

Sending Felipe Lopez to the Brewers for two minor leaguers. Story can be found here.

This doesn't really impact the Silver Hawks I don't believe, as both the minor leagues coming from Milwaukee's organization are at a higher level. This could potentially have an impact in that it may slow the promotion or reassigning of other players throughout the system. So even though on the surface it doesn't change the Silver Hawks, ultimately, it may still have an impact in one way or another.

Today's Lineup - July 19th

Navarro - SS
Estevez - 3B
Pollock - CF
Krauss - LF
Perez - DH
Ramirez - 1B
Asencio - RF
Van Winkle - C
Elmore - 2B

Cook - SP

During the pregame show, we'll take our weekly look at the MWL standings and the second half playoff race.

Lineup - July 18th

Navarro - SS
Estevez - 3B
Pollock - CF
Krauss - DH
Perez - C
Ramirez - 1B
Diaz - LF
Asencio - RF
Elmore - 2B

Miley - SP

Mark Haley is again our pregame interview.

'09 Alumni Report

Thought we'd take a quick look at what guys that played here in South Bend this season are doing at other levels:

Double-A Mobile:
Chris Davis has not yet played for the BayBears

High-A Visalia:
Brendan Duffy hitting .280, o HR, 4 RBI, 5 SB, 2 doubles, 1 triple
Trevor Harden is 1-7 with a 4.26 ERA in 11 starts. 61.1 IP, 84 H, 34 K's, 12 BB's

Short-Season A Yakima
Rafael Quezada is 0-3 with a 9.13 ERA in 6 starts. 22.2 IP, 36 H, 11 K's, 19 BB's
Houston Summers is 2-0 with a 4.50 ERA in 5 relief appearances. 12.0 IP, 12 H, 2 K's, 4 BB's
Brad Wilson is 1-0 with a 2.00 ERA in 6 relief appearances. 9.o IP, 5 H, 13 K's, 1 BB

Rookie Missoula
Keny Sosa is 1-1 with a 4.22 ERA in 4 starts. 21.1 IP, 26 H, 15 K's, 6 BB's

From the Notes - July 18, 2009

South Bend Silver Hawks (10-11 Second Half, 37-52 Overall)
vs. Burlington Bees (8-12 Second Half, 37-53 Overall)

Coveleski Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – 7:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 2-1 Bees
@ Coveleski Stadium: 0-0 Tie
@ Community Field: 2-1 Bees
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .247 –10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 4.00 ERA – 9th
Bees Team Hitting: .243 – T-12th
Bees Team Pitching: 4.01 ERA –10th
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: Randy Rodriguez (WP, 3-7) had his second straight strong outing, and A.J. Pollock homered again to lift the Silver Hawks to a 5-2 victory in the rubber match against the Kane County Cougars. Rodriguez allowed just two runs on four hits over 7.0 innings, striking out a personal high seven batters for his second win in a row. Pollock’s homer was his second of the series, and the second of his pro career. Ramon Ramirez started the scoring with a two run single in the second inning, with Rossmel Perez adding a RBI single in the third. The loss was pinned on Kane County starter Chad Lee (LP, 1-1), who allowed five runs over 5.0 innings. Victor Capellan (ND) lowered his ERA to 0.75 with a scoreless 8th inning, and T.J. Hose (SV, 10) stranded two in the ninth to earn his 10th save.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
· The Silver Hawks did not commit an error in the Kane County series, and have played errorless ball in five of the last six games.
· A win today would put the Silver Hawks at .500 for the third time in the second half. They have not been over .500 in the half.
· SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 1-2 vs. BUR. Silver Hawks are 5-4 against West in the second half.
· With 49 to play, South Bend and Great Lakes are tied for the playoff spots, with Dayton 3.0 back and Lansing 3.5 out.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
· RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.57 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
· First round pick A.J. Pollock hit two home runs against Kane County – his first two professional homers.
· Victor Capellan lowered his ERA to 0.75 in Friday’s game, tossing one scoreless inning
· Randy Rodriguez has won two games in a row after losing six straight through June and early July.
· Rossmel Perez stole his first base since 2007 in last night’s game against Kane County.
· Ramon Ramirez went hitless in his first game back with South Bend, but has since hit in four straight.

Tonight's Lineup

Reminder: If the internet feed drops out for any reason, call the number posted below.

Navarro - SS
Estevez - 3B
Pollock - CF
Krauss - LF
Perez - C
Gomez - DH
Ramirez - 1B
Diaz - RF
Elmore - 2B

Rodriguez - SP

Tonight's pregame interview guest will be Taylor Sinclair.

Pitching Matchups for Burlington Series

Here are the probables for the weekend series with Burlington:

Sat: LH Wade Miley (3-7, 4.52) vs. RH Mike Lehmann (3-3, 4.09)
Sun: RH Ryan Cook (6-8, 4.26) vs. RH Manauris Baez (3-4, 3.93)
Mon: LH Taylor Sinclair (3-3, 3.42) vs. LH Mike Montgomery (2-3, 2.25)

From the Notes - July 17

South Bend Silver Hawks (9-11 Second Half, 36-52 Overall)
vs. Kane County Cougars (12-8 Second Half, 53-37 Overall)

Coveleski Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – 7:30 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 3-2 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 1-1 Tie
@ Elfstrom Stadium: 2-1 Silver Hawks
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .248 –10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 4.02 ERA – 10th
Cougars Team Hitting: .252 – 8th
Cougars Team Pitching: 3.54 ERA –4th
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME: One day after shutting out Kane County, the Silver Hawks had the favor returned as the Cougars blanked the Silver Hawks 3-0 on Thursday afternoon. Kenny Smalley (WP, 8-3) held the Hawks to just two hits over 6.0 innings, with Matt Fitts (ND) and Justin Murray (SV, 8) keeping South Bend scoreless over the final 3.0 innings. Jeremy Barfield and Franklin Hernandez had RBI singles for the Cougars, with Leonardo Gil picking up the 3rd RBI on a groundout. The loss was pinned on Brett Moorhouse (LP, 4-10) as he allowed all three runs in 4.0+ innings of work. Moorhouse is now alone with the most losses in the MWL this season. Marc Krauss, Ramon Ramirez, and Isaias Asencio had the only three hits for South bend, as they were shutout for the sixth time this season.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
· South Bend shut out Kane County 11-0 on Wednesday, then were shut out 3-0 on Thursday.
· Despite only three hits yesterday, the Silver Hawks left nine runners on base (four walks, two HBP’s).
· South Bend has played errorless baseball in four of the last five games.
· SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 2-1 vs. KC. Silver Hawks are 4-4 against West in the second half.
· South Bend leads the chase for the second half playoff spots by one over GL, two over DTN, and 2.5 over LAN.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
· RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.57 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.
· Sean Morgan pitched a scoreless inning in yesterday’s game – his first appearance since June 5th @ Dayton.
· A.J. Pollock hit his first professional home run on Wednesday night, a two run shot to left field.
· Seven different Hawks had multi-hit games on Wednesday (Navarro – 3, Estevez, Pollock, Krauss, Perez, Gomez, Ramirez – 2)
· Victor Capellan lowered his ERA to 0.82 in Sunday’s game, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings.
· Randy Rodriguez snapped a personal six game losing streak with a team high 8.1 innings of one run ball on Saturday.

Streaming Audio - PLEASE READ

I understand that the streaming audio feed dropped out today, and a lot of people listening at home on the computer were unable to listen to the end of the game.

If this ever happens again, please please please dial the following number:
1-877-913-9739.

WRITE THIS NUMBER DOWN. PUT IT NEXT TO YOUR COMPUTER.

Keep calling that number until someone answers. Call it over and over again. Call it until your fingers can no longer dial that number.

I don't know when the internet feed drops out, because I am still broadcasting on the local radio station and can't monitor it. The only way I know is if someone emails me, but then I only have 90 seconds between innings to
A) Check my email
B) Read the message
C) Dial the number
D) Wait for someone to answer
E) Tell them the problem and hope they get it back

If you call as soon as you lose the feed, that'll minimize the time the feed is down.

I'm sorry for the lost feed, but if you don't call that number, there's nothing I can do. They are the ones that control the streaming audio. It's usually reliable. The last few days they've had some issues. Today though, apparently no one was monitoring it and they had no idea they had lost the feed until I called after the game. So again, write down that number above and call, call, call.

Today's Lineup - July 16th

Early game so not much time for a lot of posts this morning. Here is today's lineup:

Navarro - SS
Elmore - 2B
Pollock - CF
Krauss - LF
Gomez - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Diaz - DH
Van Winkle - C
Asencio - RF

Moorhouse - SP

Additional Roster Moves and Lineup

In addition to the moves listed below (scroll down two posts), here's what else happened today:

RHP Sean Morgan activated from the DL.
RHP Brad Wilson returned to short season A Yakima.

So that brings the total to 25 players and 2 on the DL. Wilson pitched well in his short stint here, but he should be at Yakima right now, so he was returned there. It's good to have Morgan back healthy, and he's expected to pitch out of the pen for now.

Now, Tonight's Lineup:
Navarro - SS
Estevez - 2B
Pollock - CF
Krauss - DH
Perez - C
Gomez - 1B
Ramirez - 3B
Diaz - LF
Asencio - RF

Sinclair - LHP

From the Notes - July 15

South Bend Silver Hawks (8-10 Second Half, 35-51 Overall)
vs. Kane County Cougars (11-7 Second Half, 52-36 Overall)

Coveleski Stadium, South Bend, Indiana – 7:00 PM Eastern Time

Season Series: 2-1 Silver Hawks
@ Coveleski Stadium: 0-0 Tie
@ Elfstrom Stadium: 2-1 Silver Hawks
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Silver Hawks Team Hitting: .247 –10th
Silver Hawks Team Pitching: 4.08 ERA – 10th
Cougars Team Hitting: .253 – 8th
Cougars Team Pitching: 3.49 ERA –4th
________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
LAST GAME (Monday): South Bend stranded nine runners on Monday, including two in the top of the ninth, in a 5-2 loss to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers on Monday afternoon. Ryan Cook (LP, 6-8) allowed five earned runs in 6.1 innings, suffering his eighth loss in his last nine starts. Brock Kjeldgaard had a homer for the Timber Rattlers, and Juan Sanchez drove in two runs as Wisconsin took two out of three games in the series. The Silver Hawks loaded the bases with nobody out in the 9th, but left the tying run at the plate. Efrain Nieves (WP, 3-5) allowed one run in 5.0 innings for the win. Nick Tyson (SV, 5) got the final two outs for his fifth save. Marc Krauss and Isaias Asencio each drove in a run for South Bend.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
TEAM NOTES:
· The Silver Hawks ended the longest road trip of the season with a 6-4 record, although they lost 3 of the last 4 games.
· SB was 14-9 against the West in the first half, including 2-1 vs. KC. Silver Hawks are 3-3 against West in the second half.
· The Hawks have won seven games in July. The team won just four games during the entire month of June.
· The Silver Hawks committed just one error in the series versus Wisconsin. The Timber Rattlers played perfect defense.
· South Bend leads the chase for the second half playoff spots by one over GL, two over DTN, and 2.5 over LAN.
__________________________________________________________________________________________________________
INDIVIDUAL NOTES:
· Alfredo Marte has been placed on the DL. Chris Davis was promoted to Mobile. Taylor Sinclair activated from DL. Tyson Van Winkle joins the Hawks from Yakima.
· Victor Capellan lowered his ERA to 0.82 in Sunday’s game, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings.
· Randy Rodriguez snapped a personal six game losing streak with a team high 8.1 innings of one run ball on Saturday.
· Reliever Brad Wilson has tossed 4.1 scoreless innings for South Bend and 12.1 scoreless innings as a pro.
· RHP Bryan Woodall has lowered his ERA from 7.08 to 3.76 since June 5th, and has not allowed a run in July.

Three More Roster Moves

Full story here.

Davis to double-A to fill a backup role. Former Hawks catcher Sean Coughlin apparently got hurt in the Southern League All-Star Game.

Tyson Van Winkle takes his spot. He was a 10th round pick this June from Gonzaga.

Taylor Sinclair activated from the DL as expected and will start tonight.

Still carrying three players on the DL and 28 total.

Marte on the DL

I said I wasn't going to post again today, but I had to since this is somewhat big news.

Read the full story here.

Marte's shoulder was bothering him in Beloit, and he hasn't played since.

No one new is coming for now, and I doubt anyone will. The move was retroactive to the 11th, so he'd be eligible to come off of the DL on the 18th or 19th. So you're really only talking about him missing 3-4 more games.

This does open up a roster spot for Taylor Sinclair, who is supposed to come off the DL and start tomorrow night. So perhaps certain players who may have been headed back to Yakima or Missoula buy themselves an extra few days.

Again, I have no idea what's going to happen, but the Silver Hawks are carrying 28 players. Assuming Sinclair is activated tomorrow and no one else moves, then some decisions will have to be made when Marte, Parker, and Morgan are ready to come off the DL. Marte should be back soon, Morgan threw a side session the other day and looked good to my untrained eye, and I'm not sure about Parker's status yet.

Some decisions are looming.

Off Day Thoughts/Poll Results

I don't have any off day thoughts. My mind doesn't work on off days.

In honor of the off day which I will spend on the golf course, a new poll question is up on the right sidebar. By the way, the All-Star Game itself was the runaway winner over the HR Derby and Futures Game for the favorite past of the MLB All-Star celebration.

This will be my only post today. Back tomorrow.

Home Run Derby Picks

Mine is Ryan Howard. Put your picks in the comments below.

Contestants:
Albert Pujols
Ryan Howard
Prince Fielder
Adrian Gonzalez
Carlos Pena
Joe Mauer
Nelson Cruz
Brandon Inge

From the Notes - July 13th

A few interesting tidbits from today's notes:

-The Hawks are winless on Mondays (0-5) this season

-Neither team has committed an error in this series through the first two games

-Victor Capellan lowered his ERA to 0.82 in yesterday’s game, tossing 3.0 scoreless innings

-Silver Hawk starters are 24-39 this season. Reliever are 11-11

-South Bend catchers have thrown out 34% of would-be base stealers

Today's Lineup - July 12th

Photos from the stadium in the posts below this one.

Navarro - SS
Estevez - 3B
Krauss - LF
Gomez - 1B
Perez - C
Diaz - CF
Ramirez - DH
Asencio - RF
Elmore - 2B

Miley - SP

During today's pregame, we'll take our weekly look at the Midwest League standings and the playoff chase, as we do every Sunday afternoon.

Also, in case you were curious, Ramon Ramirez will be #3 now. There's a story behind this....

Ramirez is the veteran. He was #33, but was promoted to Visalia. When he left, Miley took his old number 33. Then Jordan Meaker took Miley's number 15. Then Brad Wilson came in and took Meaker's old number 35.

Now, Ramirez is back. Since he's the veteran, he gets first choice of the number (that's how it works -- the older you are, or the more experience you have, you get first choice). Ramirez wore #3 last night. Today, I was told Ramirez was going to switch back to #33 and Miley was going to be #3. Because of this, I sent out a new roster to all the teams in the league (which we are required to do).

We arrive at the stadium, and I get a text message saying that Ramirez is going to be #3, and Miley's keeping #33. I have no idea how this got worked out. I'm curious as to whether there was money involved. (Seriously, people will sometimes pay other players good money to get a uniform number). Regardless, I had to send out another roster to the league. Other broadcasters around the league are now making fun of the Silver Hawks because we have players changing numbers every week. It's absurd.

Photos from Appleton - Part Five

My mom would not be a fan of the Timber Rattlers (she hates snakes). Quite honestly, I don't really like them either (snakes, that is. I don't have a big problem with Wisconsin).


Here's Wisconsin broadcaster Chris Mehring hard at work. He has no idea I took this picture. As you can see, I can look from my booth and into his. Or at least, I could...


...until Chris decided he was tired of looking at my ugly mug, and blocked my view with rosters, stats, and any other pieces of paper he could find.