Mexican Pacific League Recap fro 11/6

Mochis 3, Mazatlan 1
Jon Weber (Mazatlan); 2 for 5 with a run scored and a walk.

Dominican Winter League Recap from 11/6

Toros 4, Gigantes 2
Julio DePaula (Gigantes); 2/3 no hit inning of relief

Licey 3, Aguilas 0
Willy Aybar (Licey); 2 for 3 with a double, RBI, run scored and drew a walk.

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 11/6

Zulia 7, Margarita 6
Ray Olmedo (Margarita); 1 for 4 with a walk

Arizona Fall League Weekly Stats Update (through 11/6)

BATTERS            AVG  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI   OBP   SLG   OPS
Nevin Ashley      .381  42 16  2  1  2  11  .417  .619 1.036
Cody Cipriano     .250   4  1  1  0  0   1  .250  .500  .750
Shawn O'Malley    .333  51 17  1  0  0   5  .433  .353  .786

PITCHERS           W  L   ERA  G GS SV   IP  H HR SO BB  WHIP  BAA 
Matt Gorgen        0  1 12.71  7  0  1  5.2 12  1  9  4  2.82 .444
Paul Phillips      0  1  6.14  7  0  0  7.1  9  0  3  4  1.77 .310
Heath Rollins      0  0  9.00  7  0  0  9.0 18  1  4  4  2.44 .462
Mitch Talbot       2  0  6.75  4  4  0 14.2 20  2  9  2  1.50 .339

Phoenix Desert Dogs fall to Scottsdale Scorpions 8-4

The Game: The Phoenix Desert Dogs fell to the Scottsdale Scorpions 8-4 on Friday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Scottsdale took the lead in the second inning, posting two runs to the scoreboard. Wilin Rosario delivered a solo home run to score the first run. Hector Gomez followed with a double to left and then later scored on an error by Brandon Waring to take a 2-0 lead.

The Scorpions added another run in the third inning. Thomas Neal hit a double to right. Cole Gillespie followed with an RBI single to center to increase the lead to 3-0.

Scottsdale’s offense continued to dominate, striking again in the fourth inning. Pedro Ciriaco singled to left to lead off the inning. Troy Hanzawa then reached on an error. Ciriaco and Hanzawa then pulled a double steal to move both runners into scoring position. Jose Tabata followed with a walk to load the bases. Domonic Brown also drew a walk with the bases loaded to push across the fist run of the inning. Thomas Neal drove home another run with a ground ball to second, giving Scottsdale a 5-0 lead.

Phoenix ended the shut-out in the home half of the fourth inning. Danny Espinosa lead off the inning with a double to center. Espinosa advanced to third on a ground out by Brandon Snyder and then later scored on a passed ball for the Desert Dogs first run of the game.

Scottsdale answered with more runs of their own in the fifth inning. Wilin Rosario, Hector Gomez and Pedro Ciriaco delivered back to back to back singles to lead off the inning and load the bases. Troy Hanzawa drove home the first run with a sac fly. Then Chase d’Arnaud delivered a sacrifice for the second run and the lead increased to 7-1.

But Phoenix generated a few more runs in the bottom of the fifth to make things interesting. Brandon Warning led off the inning with a solo home run to left. Then Darn Mastroianni and Shawn O’Malley drew back to back walks. AJ Jimenez followed with an RBI double to score Mastroianni and move O’Malley to third. Matt Angle delivered a sac fly to score O’Malley and pull the Desert Dogs to within three runs of the lead 7-4.

Scottsdale added an insurance run in the eighth on an RBI single by Jose Tabata. The Scorpions held on for an 8-4 win.

Robert Ray suffered the loss for Phoenix, falling to 1-1 on the season.

Phoenix Desert Dogs Player of the Game: Toshiyuki Yanuki; two scoreless frames on the mound with two K’s, still holds 0.00 ERA in 8 1/3 innings this season.

Rays Organization Stats:
Shawn O’Malley; 1 for 2 with a run scored and drew a walk
Heath Rollins; 4 runs (2 earned) on 4 hits with 2 walks in 2 2/3 innings pitched.

A Look Ahead: The Phoenix Desert Dogs are off on Saturday for the Arizona Fall League’s Rising Star Game at Surprise Stadium. The game cane be seen at 8:00 ET on MLB Network. Matt Gorgen will be the lone representative for the Rays.

Phoenix Desert Dogs hold on to win slugfest against Peoria 12-11

The Game: Phoenix Desert Dogs were on the winning side of a high scoring shoot-out against the Peoria Saguaros 12-11 on Thursday in Peoria.

The Desert Dogs came out scoring in the first inning posting four runs on the scoreboard. Jemile Weeks singled to center to lead off the inning. Weeks then stole second and Danny Espinosa drew a walk to put runners on the corners. Brandon Snyder then delivered a two run triple to score Weeks and Espinosa. Chris Marrero followed with a sac fly that scored Snyder. Then Grant Desme hits a line drive double to left to put another runner in scoring position for Phoenix. Desme then advanced to third on a passed ball and later scored on a sacrifice by Nevin Ashley to give the Desert Dogs a 4-0 lead.

Peoria got on the scoreboard in the third inning as Mitch Canham led off the inning with a triple to center. Jose Vellejo drove Canham home with a single to second, bringing the Saguaros within three, 4-1.

Phoenix added another run in the fourth inning. Danny Espinosa was hit by a pitch to get things going. Espinosa then stole second and later scored on an RBI single by Chris Marrero to increase the lead to 5-1.

The Saguaros tied the game in the bottom of the fourth. Yonder Alonso and Brandon Hicks delivered back to back singles to lead off the inning. Jonathan Gaston then cleared the bases with a three run home run. Josh Rodriguez followed with a double and then later scored on a grounder by Tim Fedroff to tie the game 5-5.

Phoenix regained the lead in the sixth inning as Danny Espinosa singled to lead off the inning. Corey Brown later followed with an RBI single to score Espinosa and give them a 6-5 lead.

But the Desert Dogs lead did not last long as Peoria posted three more runs in the bottom of the sixth to take the lead. Josh Rodriguez and Mitch Canham delivered back to back singles with one out to get things started. Jose Vallejo then cleared the bases with a three run homer to give Peoria a 8-6 lead.

The Saguaros added an insurance run in the form of a solo home run by Matt McBride in the seventh inning. The homer increased the Peoria lead to 9-6.

Phoenix then mounted a two inning comeback that would eventually give them the win. The Desert Dogs struck for three runs in the eighth inning. Danny Espinosa lead off the inning with a double. Espinosa then scored on an RBI single by Chris Marrero. Corey Brown cleared the bases with a two run homer to tie the game.

The Desert Dogs rally continued into the ninth inning as they pushed across the go ahead runs. Nevin Ashley singles to left to get things started. Adam Loewen then drew a walk to put runners on first and second. Jemile Weeks then reached on an error to load the bases. Danny Espinosa followed with a two run single that scored Ashley and Loewen. Chris Marrero then walked to reload the bases. Weeks later scored on a passed ball and the Desert Dogs now had a 12-9 lead.

Peoria rallied in the home half of the ninth, posting two runs to the scoreboard on a an RBI single by Brandon Hicks and another by Mitch Canham. But the Desert Dogs held on for the win 12-11.

Drew Storen earned the victory, improving to 2-0 on the season. Josh Perrault picked up his first save of the season for Phoenix.

Phoenix Desert Dogs Player of the Game: Danny Espinosa; 3 for 3 with a double, 2 RBI’s, 4 runs scored and drew 2 walks, also picked up a stolen base.

Rays Organization Stats:
Nevin Ashley; 2 for 3 with an RBI and a runs scored with a walk and a strikeout at the plate, was 1 for 1 in throwing out base runners behind the plate.

A Look Ahead: The Phoenix Desert Dogs return home to Phoenix Municipal Stadium to play the Scottsdale Scorpions on Friday.

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 11/5

Lara 11, Margarita 8
Ray Olmedo (Margarita); 1 for 4 with a home run, 2 RBI’s, 2 runs scored and a walk.

Zulia 6, Caracas 4
Joe Bateman (Caracas); no runs on 2 hits with a strikeout and a walk in 2/3 inning.

Dominican Winter League Recap from 11/4

Licey 7, Estrellas 2
Henry Mateo (Estrellas); 0 for 1
Willy Aybar (Licey); 2 for 5 with a double and an RBI

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 11/4

Magallanes 6, Margarita 3
Carlos Hernandez (Magallanes); 2 runs on 6 hits with 2 K’s and a walk in 6 innings pitched

Caracas 14, Zulia 8
Rayner Oliveros (Caracas); 1 run on 2 hits in 1 1/3 innings.

Phoenix Desert Dogs fall to Peoria Saguaros 3-2

The Game: A late game rally fell short as the Phoenix Desert Dogs fell to the Peoria Saguaros 3-2 on Wednesday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Peoria broke the scoreless tie in the fourth inning as Chris Heisey delivered a solo home run to put the Saguaros ahead 1-0.

Peoria posted a second run in the fifth inning. Cedric Hunter singled to right to get things started. Hunter later stole second to move into scoring position. Brandon Hicks followed with an RBI single to score Hunter and increase the lead 2-0.

The Saguaros posted an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning. Lance Zawadzki double to center with one out to put a runner in scoring position. Zawadzki later scored on an RBI single by Carlos Rivero to give Peoria a 3-0 lead.

Phoenix rallied in the home half of the ninth. Brandon Waring singled to right to lead off the inning. Cory Brown and Darin Mastroianni then drew back to back walks to load the bases. Shawn O’Malley and Matt Angle were both struck by pitches to push across two runs and keep the bases loaded. But Jemile Weeks flew out to left to end the inning as the Desert Dogs fell short 3-2.

James Simmons suffered the loss for Phoenix, falling to 1-2 on the season.

Phoenix Desert Dogs Player of the Game: Sam Demel; 1 no hit inning out of the bullpen.

Rays Organization Stats:
Matt Gorgen; 1 hit and 2 strikeouts in 1 inning on the mound.
Shawn O’Malley; 1 for 2 with an RBI and a walk.
Paul Phillips; 1 run on 2 hits allowed in an inning worked.

A Look Ahead: The Phoenix Desert Dogs head to Peoria to rematch the Saguaros on Thursday.

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 11/3

Caracas 5, Aragua 0
Joe Bateman (Caracas); 2 no-hit innings with 2 strikeouts.

Phoenix Desert Dogs suffer 6-5 extra innings loss to Surprise Rafters

The Game: The Phoenix Desert Dogs fell to the Surprise Rafters 6-5 in extra innings on Tuesday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. The Rafters took an early lead in the first inning as Nick Evans delivers an RBI double to score Daniel Descalso and give them a 1-0 lead.

Surprise added another run in the second inning. Daryl Jones led off the inning with a single to right and then advanced to second on a ground out by Jeff Bianchi. Marcus Lemon then hit an RBI single to left, scoring Jones and giving the Rafters a 2-0 lead.

The Desert Dogs cut the lead in half in the bottom of the second inning. Brad Emaus and Adam Loewen led off the inning with back to back singles. Shawn O’Malley followed with a sac bunt to move both runners into scoring position. AJ Jimenez then drove home Emaus with a sac fly to pull Phoenix within a run of the lead 2-1.

Phoenix tied the game in the third inning. Danny Espinosa collected a ground rule double to get things started. Josh Bell then singled to left to score Espinosa to tie the game 2-2.

The game did not stay tied long as Phoenix took the lead in the fourth inning. Shawn O’Malley drew a walk to lead off the inning. AJ Jimenez followed with an RBI triple to left, scoring O’Malley. Jimenez later scored on a sac fly by Darin Mastroianni as the Desert Dogs took the lead 4-2.

Surprise tied things back up in the top of the fifth inning. Doug Hogan led off the inning with a solo home run. Marcus Lemon followed with a single to third and then advanced to second on a throwing error. Lemon advanced to third on a sac bunt by Jarrod Dyson. Lemon later scored on a wild pitch by Heath Rollins to tie the game at 4.

Surprise regained the lead in the seventh inning. Jarrod Dyson tripled to left to lead off the inning. Daniel Descalso then drove him home with a sac fly, giving the Rafters the lead 5-4.

The Desert Dogs matched runs in the bottom of the seventh, adding a run of their own to tie the game once again. Grant Desme drew a walk to get things going. Desme stole second and then advanced to third on a wild pitch. Shawn O’Malley then delivered an RBI single to score Desme and tie the game 5-5.

The game stayed tied at the end of regulation and forced extra innings. The 5-5 score held until the top of the eleventh inning. Jeff Bianchi led off the inning for Surprise with a single to center and then advanced to second on a fielding error by Darin Mastroianni. Bianchi later scored on an RBI double by Marcus Lemon, giving the Rafters a 6-5 lead. The Desert Dogs could not deliver a run in the bottom of the eleventh as the Rafters held on to win.

Josh Perrault suffered the loss for Phoenix, falling to 0-1 on the season.

Phoenix Desert Dogs Player of the Game: Shawn O’Malley; 1 for 2 with an RBI, run scored and drew 2 walks.

Rays Organization Stats:
Shawn O’Malley; 1 for 2 with an RBI, run scored and 2 walks.
Heath Rollins; 2 runs on 3 hits with a strikeout in 1 inning pitched, charged with blown save.
Mitch Talbot; 2 runs on 5 hits with 3 strikeouts in 4 innings pitched.

A Look Ahead: The Phoenix Desert Dogs face the Peoria Saguaros on Wednesday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium.

Phoenix Desert Dogs defeat Surprise Rafters 10-2

The Game: The Phoenix Desert Dogs defeated the Surprise Rafters 10-2 on Monday. The Desert Dogs took an early lead in the first inning and never looked back. Three consecutive walks loaded the bases for Phoenix. Chris Marrero then delivered a two run single. Grant Desme followed with an RBI single to score Daryl Jones and give the Desert Dogs a 3-0 lead.

Phoenix led of the third inning with back to back singles by Danny Espinosa and Brandon Snyder. Chris Marrero followed with a fly ball to right that moved Espinosa over to third base. Espinosa then scored on a wild pitch to increase the lead to 4-0.

Surprise reached the scoreboard in the bottom of the fifth inning. Brandon Laird led off the inning with a double to center. Laird later scored on a ground out by Ruben Tejada for the Rafter’s first run of the night.

The Desert Dogs posted three more runs to their total in the sixth inning. Grant Desme and Josh Bell led off the inning with back to back singles. Corey Brown then drove home Desme with a ground ball to first. Nevin Ashley later followed with an RBI single to score Brown. Ashley later scored on a double by Jemile Weeks to give the Desert Dogs a 7-1 lead.

Surprise got another run in the eighth inning as Daryl Jones led off with a triple to right field. Jones then scored on a ground out by Ruben Tejada for the second run of the night for the Rafters.

The Desert Dogs posted another three run inning to close the game in the ninth inning. Jemile Weeks and Danny Espinosa picked up back to back singles to get things started. Brandon Snyder then drew a walk to load the bases for Phoenix. Chris Marrero followed with a 3 run double to give the Desert Dogs the 10-2 margin of victory.

Stephen Strasburg improved to 3-1 with his longest outing of his career, going five innings and allowing one run with six strikeouts. Matt Harrison was the losing pitcher for Surprise.

Phoenix Desert Dogs Player of the Game: Stephen Strasburg; improved to 3-1 by allowing 1 run on 4 hits with 6 K’s and a walk in 5 innings on the mound.

Rays Organization Stats:
Nevin Ashley; 1 for 4 with an RBI and a run scored.

A Look Ahead: The Phoenix Desert Dogs (12-6) rematch against Surprise Rafters (8-10) on Tuesday at Phoenix Municipal Stadium. Mitch Talbot (2-0) will be pitching against Aaron Crow (0-1).

Top 30 Prospects in Review: 16-30

We'll start our prospect coverage for 2010 in the next few weeks, beginning with some personal top 30s very soon. After that will come our top 15 hitters and pitchers, but right now we'll take one final look back at our rankings last year. Who should have been higher? Lower? Who will be moving up the list? And who did we completely miss on?

Today's look will be at the bottom half of our top 30. For reference:
16. James Houser
17. Kyle Lobstein
18. Joseph Cruz
19. Albert Suarez
20. Kyeong Kang
21. Reid Fronk
22. Ryan Reid
23. Jason McEachern
24. Jake Jefferies
25. Shane Dyer
26. Alexander Colome
27. Justin Ruggiano
28. Matt Gorgen
29. Ty Morrison
30. Ryan Royster

James Houser at #16 was obviously way off. We had him that high based on his proximity to the majors and 2nd-round pedigree, but he completely fell apart in 2009 to the point of the Rays releasing him. His 2.86 ERA in 2008 in Montgomery masked some of the warning signs, including a declining SO/BB rate for several seasons.

Kyle Lobstein finished strongly in 2009 with Hudson Valley, and will assuredly move up. Joseph Cruz had a bit of an under-the-radar season as the third banana in Bowling Green's rotation, but he probably won't be a big mover. Albert Suarez may have been ranked fairly, but his season was over after two starts, and he'll require Tommy John. He'll miss most, if not all, of the 2010 season and will have to re-establish himself once healthy to make his return to the list.

Like Lobstein, Kyeong Kang finished the year with a bang. Kang's August/September OPS was over 1.000, helping his season number finish at .880. In a system hurting for hitting depth, Kang emerged as a viable prospect, though still clearly a tier behind Desmond Jennings and Tim Beckham.

A pair of Reids, Reid Fronk and Ryan Reid, ranked back to back but neither found much success in 2009. Fronk couldn't get it going at the plate, finishing with a .201 batting average and just four homeruns after launching 17 a year ago. Ryan Reid, the righty reliever, simply hasn't shown the control he did in a stint with Vero Beach in 2008. He finished the year with an unremarkable 4.17 ERA for the Biscuits, and he no longer looks like a real prospect.

Jason McEachern and Alex Colome teamed up with Lobstein to form a strong Hudson Valley rotation. Colome has at least caught up to Lobstein, and arguably has passed him. McEachern's stuff isn't on the same level as those two, but he found similar success at the same level despite being a year younger.

Two 2008 draft picks, Shane Dyer and Jake Jefferies, met with mixed results in Bowling Green. Jefferies had the better season and figures to place on the 2010 version, but his .261/.326/.359 line doesn't stand out. Dyer got hit around to the tune of a 1-10 record with an ERA over 5. There's still hope for him but he'll really need to prove himself in a system with as much pitching depth as the Rays'.

Justin Ruggiano, like Houser, was placed based on how close he was to the majors. Technically, he didn't even maintain prospect status, and after an uninspiring season with Durham, he doesn't look to fit into the team's future plans at all.

Matt Gorgen is possibly the biggest riser, although he struggled after a promotion to Montgomery and has gotten beaten up in the Arizona Fall League. He seems to have a better profile than Ryan Reid, but he'll have to prove he can get more advanced hitters out the way he did in the Florida State League.

Ty Morrison had a strong showing in extended spring training, and put up decent numbers in Princeton. His athleticism is still his main tool, and we'll need to be patient to see if he can turn it into plus baseball skill. A good example of someone who didn't put things together is Ryan Royster, who has completely fallen off the map with two poor seasons after winning the system triple crown in 2007.

Mexican Pacific League Weekly Stats (through 11/1)

BATTERS            AVG  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI   OBP   SLG   OPS
Jon Weber         .000   0  0  0  0  0   0  .000  .000  .000

Dominican Winter League Recap from 11/2

Escogido 10, Licey 1
Willy Aybar (Licey); 1 for 2 and drew a walk.

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 11/1

Margarita 7, Lara 1
Ray Olmedo (Margarita); 0 for 2 with 2 K’s.

Caracas 9, Aragua 3
Joe Bateman (Caracas); 2 runs on 3 hits with a strikeout in 2/3 of an inning pitched.

Venezuelan Winter League Weekly Stats (through 10/31)

BATTERS            AVG  AB  H 2B 3B HR RBI   OBP   SLG   OPS
Jose Lobaton      .500  10  5  1  0  1   3  .500  .900 1.400
Dioner Navarro    .000   0  0  0  0  0   0  .000  .000  .000
Ray Olmedo        .261  69 18  4  0  0   9  .278  .319  .597
Justin Ruggiano   .000   0  0  0  0  0   0  .000  .000  .000

PITCHERS           W  L   ERA  G GS SV   IP  H HR SO BB  WHIP  BAA 
Joe Bateman        1  1  2.51  9  0  1 14.1 11  0 15  4  1.05 .216
Jason Cromer       0  0  0.00  0  0  0  0.0  0  0  0  0  0.00 .000
Carlos Hernandez   1  1  3.38  3  3  0 13.1 14  1  7  4  1.35 .269
Calvin Medlock     0  0  9.00  6  0  0  6.0 11  1  7  3  2.33 .379
Rayner Oliveros    1  0  1.29  4  1  0  7.0  3  1  5  4  1.00 .136
Doug Salinas       0  0  2.35  3  2  0  7.2 14  0  5  3  2.22 .400
Alexander Torres   0  0  0.00  0  0  0  0.0  0  0  0  0  0.00 .000

Dominican Winter League Recap from 10/31

Aguilas 10, Estrellas 6
Richard De Los Santos (Estrellas); 2 runs on 3 hits in 2/3 of an inning.

Gigantes 4, Licey 3
Julio DePaula (Gigantes); 1/3 inning pitched with a strikeout and a walk.
Willy Aybar (Licey); 0 for 4 with 3 K’s.

Venezuelan Winter League Recap from 10/31

Margarita 4, Lara 3 (Game Two)
Ray Olmedo (Margarita); 1 for 3 with a run scored.