10 (David Phelps; Daniel Brewer; Adam Warren; Slade Heathcott Goes Yard!!!!!; Brett Marshall is Cruising Along)

Minor Leagues Report — By Tom K on August 30, 2010 10:41 pm

With the season winding down, some prospects may disappear as the Yankees shut them down. Jose Ramirez, a 20-year old who pitched very well for Charleston this year, is one such prospect. He started tiring in his last several starts, so they pulled the plug. He threw 115 innings this year, nearly twice his previous high and went 6-5 with a 3.60 ERA. (106 H, 42 BB, 105 K).

Scranton:

A slugfest ended up not going Scranton’s way as they blew a 7-4 lead in route to an 8-7 loss.

Chad Huffman connected for his 9th home run of the season and drew three walks, while Greg Golson hit his 10th home run of the season in the loss. Jesus Montero went 0-for-5 with a run batted in.

With Alfredo Aceves getting some rehab work in, David Phelps came out of the bullpen and did a fine job. In five innings, he allowed two runs on eight hits. He walked two and struck out five. He is 3-2 with a 3.32 ERA for Scranton (62.1 IP, 71 H, 13 BB, 53 K). One year after tallying 151 innings for the Yankees, he has tallied 150.2 innings for Trenton/Scranton. So whenever he does make it to the majors, he will pretty much be a finished product.

It will be interesting to see who the Yankees bring up on September 1st (or after the AAA playoffs). They don’t need all of the outfielders they have called up this year (Huffman, Curtis, Golson…and with Russo’s super-utility ability, you throw him into the mix as well). I guess as a reward, it doesn’t hurt to have a guy like Huffman on the roster – but he would have absolutely no role. ———————————————————————————————– Trenton:

They too blew a lead tonight (3-1 entering the eighth) but were able to pull out a 4-3 victory in ten innings.

Daniel Brewer went 2-for-5 with a run scored while the rehabbing Lance Berkman went 2-for-5. Corban Joseph also contributed two hits as he tries to finish strong after a bit of a slowdown since joining Trenton (21-for-93). Regardless, his year has been a success and only a truly outstanding showing in Trenton would have lead him to the Scranton roster to start off 2011. Being back in Trenton won’t be a major development issue.

Adam Warren continued his recent stretch of good pitching, throwing 5.2 innings, allowing one run on seven hits. He walked nobody and struck out six. He is 4-2 with a 2.88 ERA in nine starts for Trenton (50 IP, 43 H, 13 BB, 56 K). He has allowed two runs in his last 18 innings pitched, striking out 27. (Of course, mixed into those 27 was his 15 strikeout performance). In 131 innings overall, he has allowed 115 hits while walking 30 and striking out 123. Like Joseph, I thought it would take a big performance in Trenton to get him in Scranton to start 2011 – and I think he has done more than enough to earn such a promotion. ————————————————————————————————– Tampa:

Night off. ———— Charleston:

He finally did it – and in dramatic fashion. Slade Heathcott hit his first over-the-wall home run for Charleston tonight, a two-run game-winning blast in the 12th inning as Charleston took a 3-1 decision.

It was Heathcott’s only hit of the night (1-for-6). He also hit an inside-the-park home run earlier this season and is hitting .260/.366/.352 with 41 walks and 90 strikeouts in 273 at-bats. He has stolen 13-for-22. You are seeing the combination of raw athletic skill, as he has to learn how to steal bases. But he is showing the ability to take walks, while striking out too much. Regardless, not a bad season for a 19-year old at this level.

Brett Marshall continued his red-hot pitching, throwing seven innings tonight, allowing one run on five hits. He walked nobody and struck out six. He is 4-2 with a 2.50 ERA overall for Charleston (72 IP, 52 H, 22 BB, 56 K, 2 HR). Marshall’s Game Log, last six starts: 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 3 K 7 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 K 5 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 5 K 6 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K 6 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 4 K 7 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

That is one red-hot pitcher right there. He is a 20-year old coming off of an injury, and this was essentially a rehab year for him. Guess his arm strength is officially back. —————– Staten Island: A 6-3 loss for the SI Yankees tonight.

Kyle Roller went 2-for-3 with a walk, while Shane Brown went 2-for-5 with a run batted in in the loss. Brown is at .246/.394/.318, while Roller is having a strong campaign at .281/.381/.424. He has absolutely no position, so unlike a guy like Segedin (who they can try at all four corners), Roller is pretty much stationed at first base. Guess it wouldn’t hurt to try him in the outfield – but it probably wouldn’t be very pretty.

Gary Sanchez added a hit.

Dustin Hobbs made his Staten Island debut, lasting five innings, giving up four runs on six hits. He walked three and struck out three. With Sanchez’s early struggles in SI, and Hobbs having a rough first start after cruising through his GCL appearances, it just shows you that moving up a level even in the very lowest minor leagues is still quite a challenge.