Game #57: Day Baseball

The Zs game in Iowa against the I-Cubs begins today at noon.

The news is that Gunderson was sent down to AA after getting the win yesterday. Thanks, kid.

More Roster Changes

Hunter Jones was placed on the 7-day DL, leaving another rotation vacancy. No word yet on the specifics of the injury.

LF John Raynor is off the DL. Raynor had a tough year in New Orleans last year after a stellar 2008 in AA Carolina where he hit .312 with a .402 OBP.

Pitchers Bryan Evans and Kyle Gunderson have been called up to New Orleans and OF Hunter Mense has been optioned down to AA.

Game#56: Zs 2-1

Mr.Z loves it when he posts presciently about topics such as the "pig nachos" at Zephyr Field potentially ruining your night... or Adalberto Mendez.

Mendez has now thrown 13 consecutive scoreless innings and was given an emergency start last night. He breezed through four scoreless frames, giving up just one hit. Gookie Dawkins hit a late home run and the Zs held on for a close 2-1 win. They'll be going for three out of four today in Iowa at noon.

Bonifacio & VandenHurk up, Lamb DFAd, Carroll to join Zs

Lots of moves after the Mets completed a sweep of the Marlins today.

First and foremost, Stanton was called up, and to make room in a crowded outfield in which Stanton, Cody Ross, Cameron Maybin, and Chris Coughlan will have to share three spots, Florida sent Brett Carroll to New Orleans. Carroll hadn't been doing much in limited time in the show, and this will be his first seasoning in AAA since last summer.

Bonifacio's call-up leaves a hole at the top of the order (how about grooming Bryan Petersen as a leadoff hitter?). VandenHurk joins the parade of arms Florida is auditioning for any bullpen relief they can get. With Brad Stone recently placed on the DL, the Zs are down to Jones, Lawrence, and West as obvious starters. Jose Rosario, who has bounced between New Orleans and AA Jacksonville, will likely be given a shot. Not sure beyond that.

This is a bummer for Mike Lamb. With him and Lane gone, the Marlins seem to be purging the roster of veteran AAAA types.

Game #55: Zs Win 10-4

The Zs proved they can handle good pitching Sunday with a nice win against Iowa with legitimate major league prospect Jay Jackson making the start for the I-Cubs. Riding the bats of Hector Luna and Donnie Murphy, the Zs evened up the series with a 10-4 win in Iowa.

Logan Morrison played left field and Luna went 3-4 while hitting his 10th HR, but the story for New Orleans was the second start of the season by Sean West. After only getting five outs in his first start earlier in the week, West cruised through five innings today in Iowa City, giving up no runs and throwing a superb 39 strikes in his 50 pitches. Florida called up Rick VandenHurk today, so West is going to get his chances as a Zs starter for a while.

Mr.Z's HUGE Z goes to Sean West.

Stanton To Join Florida

Marlins blogger Joe Capozzi is reporting that Mike Stanton will bypass New Orleans and jump from AA Jacksonville to Florida. He will join the Marlins Tuesday in Philadelphia. More on this later, specifically on how it affects New Orleans.

Game #55: Zs 5-0

Top 4

The Zs pushed across four runs in the fourth inning on five singles (including one by pitcher Sean West) and a sac fly to take a big lead.

West has looked excellent in three innings, giving up just one hit.

Luna hit his 10th HR of the year in the 2nd.

Game #55 Preview

It's game two of the four-game set in Iowa.

The Teams:
June 6, 1:00 CT
New Orleans Zephyrs: 25-29, third in the PCL South
Iowa Cubs: 29-26, last in the PCL North

The Pitching Matchup:
Zs: Sean West (0-0 --- ERA)









The lefty Sean West is the newest addition to the Zs rotation. In his first AAA start of the season, he allowed five baserunners in 1 2/3 innings and managed to wiggle free with four Ks. The Zs would like to see some length from the big lefty after the bullpen blowup last night.

Cubs: Jay Jackson (3-3, 2.28 ERA)









Jackson is just 22 years old, but rumblings from the Cubs have been that he could get the call soon if Carlos Zambrano re-enters the rotation (which should happen). Jackson is starting for Iowa, and doing so effectively for his third consecutive season in the minors. Throughout his pro career, he's always given up less hits than innings pitched, the walks are low, and he induces ground balls. Sounds like an effective bullpen piece to Mr.Z. He's currently the Cubs #5 prospect and has zipped through their system. Listen, Jackson' real first name is Randy, so Zs fans in Iowa tonight should chant RA-NDY RA-NDY and get in the guy's head like Mets crowds do with Chipper Jones. Just a thought.

Meyer In, Lane Out, Stone to DL

A few roster moves before last night's tilt:

*Dan Meyer is on the New Orleans roster trying to "figure it out" after posting a hard-to-believe 3.12 WHIP in Florida. Lefties hit him for a higher OPS than righties in a small sample size. All this after an extremely effective 2009 in Florida's bullpen as a lefty specialist.

*Jason Lane has been released. He was hitting just .229 with 3HR in New Orleans and at age 34, Mr.Z isn't sure Lane has much of a chance at catching on somewhere else at this point.

*Brad Stone has a strained right shoulder and has been moved to the DL. This is a blow to the Zs rotation, as Stone had been reliable recently. Hunter Mence is back with the team again to fill the roster spot.

Game #54: Zs Lose 10-4

The Zs were failed last night by an ineffective bullpen, particularly two pitchers recently demoted from Florida. It was their third loss in the last five games.

Hunter Jones made the start and survived 5 1/3 innings before the bullpen fell apart in the 6th and 8th innings. The recently demoted Burke Badenhop replaced Jones and gave up a hit, a walk, and a wild pitch before leaving with either a blister or a hand injury. Sinkbeil was left to clean up the mess and gave up two hits and two walks of his own. By the time the inning was over, Iowa had scored five runs and had a 6-1 lead.

Two innings later, the Zs called on lefty Dan Meyer, who was mysteriously awful out of Florida's pen this year after pitching effectively last year for the big club. Meyer gave up four runs, and between him, Badenhop, and Veras, appear to have three former major league reclamation projects trying to figure out if they can reclaim their stuff.

Iowa's Mitch Atkins continued a recent string of effective starts, inducing 8 ground balls against just 4 fly balls and striking out six. He surrendered just one run in his six innings.

Brad Davis stayed hot for the Zs, knocking out two hits including a two-run double.

Adalberto Mendez

Don't look now, but the Zephyrs appear to be developing a bullpen ace in the mold of LAAAAA's use of Scott Shields for many years. Call it the Fingers role.

Mendez's last three appearances have each been for three innings and he's given up no runs in those nine innings. Hits? Three. In 14 2/3 innings of work, he's given up a total of two runs (in the same game), and has 13Ks against 6BBs. His ERA is a cool 1.23. The sample size is small, yes, but if Mendez keeps this up, he could be bolstering Florida's bullpen before the trade deadline.

Game #54 vs. Iowa: Preview

After winning six of eight against Portland and Oklahoma City, the Zs split with Omaha. Tonight they begin a four-game set in Iowa, the Cubs' AAA affiliate. Strangely, the Zs are 12-10 away from Zephyr Field but a dismal 13-18 at home.

The Teams:
June 5, 7:00 CT
New Orleans Zephyrs: 25-28, third in the PCL South
Iowa Cubs: 28-26, last in the PCL North

The Pitching Matchup:
Zs: Hunter Jones (0-4, 4.05 ERA)





Jones last appeared for the Zs on Tuesday against Omaha in relief of Sean West. It wasn't pretty, either. The lefty went 5 and a third innings, giving up seven runs on nine hits. To his credit, Jones has been accustomed to mostly starting this year. He has a healthy reverse split, holding righties to a .260 average; lefties are hitting a robust .323 against him. Jones lives by the ground ball and gives up some hits, so he needs to reduce walks.

Cubs: Mitch Atkins (3-2, 2.79 ERA)





Mitch Atkins is a B-level prospect who made his debut for the Cubs last year. His numbers so far suggest he's figuring things out. He's generating more ground balls than he has since his first year in the low minors and he's given up just 33 hits in 42 innings. He was promoted to a starter role about halfway through this season and four of those five starts have been quality.

Games #52 & #53: Zs Win, Zs Win

Not sure I saw this coming.

The Zs niftily dusted themselves off after being rolled in the first two games of the series with Omaha by salvaging a split with two straight wins on Thursday and Friday nights.

Thursday night the Zs won 4-3, and it was all about Brian Lawrence. The palm ball was working and Lawrence went 7 innings giving up only 1 run and striking out 7. FYI, Lawrence has 47Ks to just 16BBs. LoMo had two doubles to power the offense.

The Zs brought the hammer down in the second game, taking it 15-6, establishing their season high for runs in a game. Brad Stone's start was... not great (5IP, 6R) but the Zs offense picked him up. Brad Davis had a three-hit game including a three-run HR and Richar had four hits, including two doubles, LoMo had two more hits, one of them a triple off Humber, who gave up an incredible 12 runs on 13 hits.

Games #50 & #51: Zs Lose, Zs Lose

Mr.Z's heart is in knots. And it ain't over Armando Galarraga.

After winning six of eight, including a tough series split against division-leading Oklahoma City, the Zs have sleepwalked through two home tilts with Omaha.

Tuesday night Mr.Z apparently enraged Gaby Hernandez with his withering criticism of his career (see previous post); Hernandez threw seven strong innings of two-run ball, striking out six. Sean West's first appearance of the year for the Zs was weird: he only got five outs, four of them strikeouts. Hunter Jones came in and was ineffective, giving up seven runs, including a majestic bomb to Alex Gordon, who KC has said they are converting into a left fielder... although he was the DH Tuesday. One the bright side, Donnie Murphy homered again in the 9-2 loss.

Not much good to say about last night. Things only appear reasonably competitive in a 10-5 Omaha win due to four Zs runs in the 8th and 9th. Ka'aihue took VandenHurk deep in the first, and things depreciated for the Dutchman. Badenhop was unscored upon in two and two-thirds so that's something.

Game #50: Preview

The Zs have won six of their last eight against the worst team in the PCL (Portland) and one of the best ones (Oklahoma City); tonight they open a four-game set against the formidable Omaha Royals.

Who's Interesting For Omaha
This is Kansas City's AAA affiliate we're talking about, so it stands to reason that they'd be loaded with young talent. Philip Humber is probably most interesting from a pitching standpoint. Humber was the third overall pick by the Mets in the 2004 draft and was part of the Johan Santana trade. He had Tommy John surgery in 2006 and was unceremoniously DFAd by Minnesota last season. Nice pickup for the Royals since he's pitching well this season in Omaha. He projects to pitch Friday against the Zs.

Yes, we'll see Alex Gordon, who was actually sent down by the Royals this year (and yes, KC has actually been playing Alberto Callaspo at third base in his stead). The absurdity of this has been elucidated elsewhere. More interesting is arguably my favorite prospect in the PCL, first baseman Kila Ka'aihue.








333/10/33 with a .500 OBP and an 1.150 OPS. He hits left, so maybe tonight's starter, lefty Sean West will hold him down? .458 OBP and an OPS just over 1000 against lefties. He's 26. What in the world is KC waiting for?

The Teams:
June 1, 7:00 CT
New Orleans Zephyrs: 23-26, third in the PCL South
Omaha Royals: 27-22, first in the PCL North

The Pitching Matchup:
Sean West (--- ERA) vs. Gaby Hernandez (6.59 ERA)

This is the Zs first-ever look at 6'8" lefty West. He's just trying to get his career back on track after spending much of last year toiling as a mediocre starter for Florida after being a mediocre starter for Jacksonville. He more Mark Hendrickson than Randy Johnson anyway, but the Ks just disappeared when he got the call last year. I don't think anyone in the Marlins organization knows exactly what they have in West.

Gaby Hernandez was actually once in the Marlins organization after being traded for Paul LoDuca, then moved to Seattle in a trade for Arthur Rhodes. The Red Sox claimed him off waivers during the off-season and the Royals then claimed him from the Sox. Judging by the unimpressive numbers, the guy looks to be minor league space filler... but a 2009 Baseball America report labeled his fastball, slider, and change as "average or better," saying that he's got a shot to be a end-of-the-rotation major league starter.

Zephyrs May Roundup

The Zs finished May with a 15-13 record after shuffling into the month at 8-13. They finished hot, winning six of eight against Portland and Oklahoma City. On a west coast swing, they were swept in four by Tacoma but dusted themselves right off to promptly sweep Portland.

They held their own against some of the PCL's better teams, taking four of six against OKC during the month and winning the two games that weren't rained out against Omaha. Fresno looks like the class of the league, though, and they rolled the Zs in a four-game sweep. Guess they won't have to deal with Buster Posey any more, though.

The Zs are near the bottom of the league in team ERA at 4.77, but the pitching has been outstanding over the last two series, especially the starters. VandenHurk and Hunter Jones have been above-average starters and Brad Stone has shown signs that he can scatter hits and give the Zs length. Jorge Sosa, Tankersley, and Buente have all been called up to Florida. Badenhop is now a Zeph. Florida's bullpen situation is a major problem and they're essentially throwing stuff at a wall right now to see what sticks, so expect more turnover in the coming weeks, especially when they get Reynel Pinto back from the DL.

Offensively, the Zs can often look sleepy. But new callup Javier Guzman has injected some life into the top of the order over the past week, going 10 for 20 (though he has made three errors in the middle infield). Logan Morrison is the team's top prospect, but Donnie Murphy has been its best hitter: he's working a .317 BAA with 8 HRs and 8 2Bs. His walkoff in the first game of the OKC series last week capped a late comeback and won the Zs their 5th straight game. LoMo came back from his injured shoulder and has been solid, if somewhat unspectacular. He's yet to flash much power, though he's sporting a fine .388 OBP.

Bonifacio, Klosterman, and Lorenzo Scott all hit the DL.

Mike Stanton still plays baseball in Jacksonville.

Game #49: Zs 5-3

The Zs concluded a heartening four-game series on Memorial Day by taking the final game 5-3 and salvaging a split with the division leaders. I'm thinking they're feeling pretty good about themselves after looking less than sharp in the second and third games.

Brad Davis had three hits, including a three-run shot off the Metairie Bank sign in left, and after Badenhop threw just two innings (albeit scoreless ones), Adalberto Mendez did the Rollie Fingers thing again with three shutdown innings to take the game into the sixth. He did the same thing in the first game against OKC during the series. In 11 innings for the Zs since his call from AA, Mendez has struck out 9 and given up just 7 hits. He's got a 1.54 ERA and just might be claiming the "bridge role" in the pen.

Adalberto Mendez, Mr.Z crowns you with Game #49's imperious HUGE Z.

Game #49: Preview

After five consecutive wins, the Zs have looked a little sluggish since returning to Zephyr Field against the division leaders. They'll have Burke Badenhop, recently demoted from the big club, on the hill as they try to salvage a series split.

The Teams:
May 31, 1:00 CT
New Orleans Zephyrs: 22-26, third in the PCL South
Oklahoma City Redhawks: 28-21, first in the PCL South

The Pitching Matchup:
Burke Badenhop (--- ERA) vs. Tommy Hunter (2.91 ERA)

Badenhop has spent the lion's share of the past few years with Florida, but had been one of a cavalry of ineffective bullpen arms for the Marlins. He'll be trying to get some mojo back in AAA against a middle-of-the-pack OKC offense that has been sporting a couple hot hitters, notably Brandon Boggs and Chris Davis.

Tommy Hunter is 6'3", 280lb, so it's unlikely any Zephyrs will venture to charge the mound today. A 2007 supplemental first-round pick (for DeRosa leaving via free agency), he pitched 112 reasonably effective innings for Texas last year but didn't make the team out of spring with an oblique injury. He's a strong candidate to replace the ineffective Scott Feldman or Matt Harrison any day now, so he's got plenty of incentive to stifle a Zs offense that has been been pretty well smothered since returning to New Orleans.

Game #48: Another Drubbing, 8-3

It wasn't pretty yesterday in Metairie. After a three-hour rain delay, division-leading OKC immediately jumped ahead of the Zs, reversing a formula that had led to a nifty five-game winning streak for New Orleans. Jose Rosario was tabbed for a spot start and, let's say, "failed to impress." His line: 2.1 IP, 10H, 7R, 6ER, 1HR, 1K, 2BB. He was promptly demoted to AA after the game.

This one fell apart early; the Zs were in a 7-2 hole by the end of the 3rd inning. Saltalamacchia homered again, this time a three-run bomb, and Chris Davis (who should be back in Texas before long) buried the Zephs with two run-scoring singles and a 9th-inning HR.

Transactions

Veteran bullpen arm Scott Strickland is off the DL and back on the New Orleans roster.

To clear space, the Zs sent Jose Rosario, he of yesterday's disastrous start, to AA Jacksonville.

Stanton Watch

The internets say Mike Stanton will be called up next week, bypassing New Orleans.

Game #47: Zs Lose 8-5

Mr.Z is taking his first loss hard. Reliable bullpen righty Brett Sinkbeil wiggled out of a jam in the sixth but was victimized by a three-run Chris Davis HR in the 7th. Brian Lawrence, apparently, knew what he was talking about (see below).

Detroit DFAs Dontrelle Willis

Huh. He's given up a lot of walks (29 in 43 innings) but was striking out hitters at a decent 6.85/9 and his hits/innings ratio (49/43) definitely isn't catastrophic. You've got to think someone will be interested.

Game #47: OKC 7-5, Top 8

The pesky Redhawks pushed a run across against newcomer Kyle Gunderson in the 8th on a FC, which was an attempted double play. Mr.Z is listening on the radio, but Swoboda was scolding the middle infielders, saying over and over, "That was never going to be a double play."

Zs are going to Doolittle for the second straight night out of the pen.

Game #47: LoMo! LoMo! LoMo! LoMo! LoMo!

OKC 6-5, Bottom 7

RBI double with two outs in the seventh against a lefty! He pulled it down the right-field line. Improbably, the Zs have a shot at tying this right now with a hit by Luna.

Game #47: Zs Trying To Rally

Bottom 7 and the Zs are making noise. Runners are on 2nd and 3rd against new pitcher Zach Phillips. Inexplicably, Mattison was trying to bunt, apparently on his own, since there didn't appear to be a squeeze play -- the Zs romance with bunting is a coaching problem that should be addressed. With two runners in scoring position, a hitter hits.

Halladay Perfect Against Marlins, Morales Breaks Leg, Buchholz vs. Greinke

Up in the show, Mike Lamb has flied out deep to the track, Wes Helms whiffed, and Ronnie Paulino grounded to third in the 9th to seal Halladay's perfecto, the second of the season in MLB. Roy Halladay is the best pitcher of this generation.

In other MLB news, LAAAAAAAAA 1B Kendry Morales hit a walkoff grand slam against Seattle and broke his leg jumping onto the plate amid the pile. He's probably going to be out until August or so. Incredibl(y dubious and embarrassing)e.

Buchholz is winning the duel between two electric young righties in Boston, besting Greinke so far in Boston. It's 1-0 in the bottom of the 9th.

EDIT: Papelbon just closed it. Sox win Sox win.

Game #47: OKC 6-3, Top 7

Who Halladay?

Boggs (single) brought around Petit (double) against Sinkbeil and we've got a tie game in Metairie.

In other news, Roy Halladay is about to go for a perfect game in the bottom of the 9th against the Marlins.

EDIT: Chris Davis popped a three-run HR against Sink and the Zs find themselves losing late again against the division leaders.

Game #47: 2-1 Zs, Bottom 1

LoMo singled hard into right off a tough lefty to drive in Mattison and Luna hit a deep sac fly to bring Guzman home and advance LoMo to second. Last night excepted, Zs have been doing a lot of early scoring lately.

Javier Guzman Is Hitting .700 For the Zs

Which is slightly above his career average.

Game #47: 1-0 Redhawks

This has begun inauspiciously for Stone. First of all, it's a good thing the wind is blowing hard, in. German led off with a double and two long sacrifice flies backed Mattison up to the track. Boggs's sac fly brought German home and it's 1-0 The OC. Both Petit and Boggs's flies were drilled and might have been extra-base hits on a still night. Hopefully Stone settles down.

Brian Lawrence On The Air With Ron Swoboda

Saying he's been throwing a palmball that has slider action... but slower. Subversion of the sub-slider bat speed? The aging hangers-on will do what they have to.

Whoa, says he expects tonight to be the "travel-day fiasco" that didn't happen last night due to adrenaline. Weird.

I think Swoboda just said "stick a solid one" pertaining to something... maybe the game last night. Needless to say, that's what she said.

Game #47: Lineups

Zs

1. Mattison CF
2. Guzman SS
3. Morrison 1B
4. Luna 3B
5. Murphy DH
6. Lane RF
7. Richar 2B
8. Davis C
9. Mitchell LF

Stone P

Redhawks

1. German 2B
2. Petit SS
3. Boggs CF
4. Garko DH
5. Davis 3B
6. Moreland RF
7. Tracy 1B
8. Iribarren LF
9. Richardson C

Kirkman P

Looks like Saltalamacchia has the night off.

Game #47: Preview

Mr.Z is sure something is happening here. Since What The Zeph? triumphantly debuted way back on May 23, the Zs have refused to lose. We're at five and counting. As he spoke into the winds last night at Zephyr Field, "I can feel it coming in the air tonight." With Donnie Murphy's walk-off shot, it came. Tonight's game is the second of four against division-leading Oklahoma City, and it would be nice to see the Zs stay hot against a winning team.

The Teams:
May 29, 6:00 CT
New Orleans Zephyrs: 22-24, third in the PCL South
Oklahoma City Redhawks: 26-21, first in the PCL South

The Pitching Matchup:
Brad Stone (3.20 ERA) vs. Michael Kirkman (2.59 ERA)

The Stoner's ERA coming into his last start was 4.42, but after seven shutdown innings in Portland which netted him that night's HUGE Z, he's now sporting a tidy 3.20. In a string of excellent recent starts by Zs starting pitchers, his might have been the best.









Michael Kirkman is one of those guys who just looks like a lefty. He's a legitimate prospect as a left-handed pitcher and has pitched damn well this year in 9 starts: just 36 hits over 48 innings with 45 Ks. Walks are a bit high at 31, but he's getting away with it by simply not giving up many hits. Lefties are hopeless against him (.125 BA), so watch for how LoMo handles him.









In-game updates beginning at 6.

Bonifacio, Scott, and Klosterman Hit the DL

No word yet on who is replacing them for the time being. Both Bonifacio and Klosterman stood in as first base coaches last night.

Game #46: 3-2 Zs, Five Straight Wins

Mr.Z has been partying hard all night after returning from Zephyr Field, where not only was it Fireworks Night (doubling with the ever-ambiguous "80s Night"), the Zephyrs won their 5th straight game. Don't look now, but the Zs have vaulted Round Rock in the standings and sit a half-game back of Albuquerque, just 3.5 behind the division leaders, Oklahoma City.

Last night was the first of four with the Texas Rangers affiliate OKC, and it ended dramatically. The Zs offense looked like a team that had played a 12-inning game in Portland, OR the night before: sluggish. They pushed a runner to second base in the 4th, 5th, and 6th innings and failed to capitalize. The OC's Omar Beltre fanned 5 and the Zephs seemed to struggle with his three-quarter arm angle. But Brian Lawrence was characteristically bend-but-don't-break, surviving six innings while surrendering two solo HRs, by Brandon Boggs and Jarrod Saltalamacchia, whose bat looks clearly major-league ready. (The throwing thing... that's a different story.)

Truth be told, the Zs should have taken control in the 8th. After loading the bases with no outs, Luna singled in two runs before Murphy, Mitchell, and Davis each whiffed feebly. But Adelberto Mendez was huge, throwing up donuts in the 8th, 9th, and 10th, and Murphy redeemed a couple failed at bats with men in scoring position earlier in the game by lacing an opposite-field liner to right that just cleared the fence. With respect to clutch bullpen hurling by Mendez, the Huge Z for Game #46 is D-Murphs.

For the record, Saltalamacchia had no Mackey Sasserish throws back to the pitcher.

Sosa Called Up; Dan Meyer DFAd

Florida DFAd lefty reliever Dan Meyer last night after a 5BB "performance" against Atlanta. He had been terrible this year and in a bullpen "meyered" (irresistible) with trouble, getting lefties out was tops on the list. Meyer had been torched by lefties and it only got worse against righties. It's hard to think he won't pass through waivers and end up with the Zs but someone might take a flier on him as a LOOGY.

Jorge Sosa is leaving New Orleans and joining Florida's pen after his solid start against Portland in game two of the sweep (sounds nice). This will be his seventh major league jersey since debuting for Tampa Bay in 2002.

This leaves Tankersley as Florida's sole bullpen lefty and means he'll be sipping that cup of coffee at least until Reynel Pinto is back from the DL.

Game #45: Zs win 3-1 in 12

The Zs completed a sweep deep into the eve last night with a 3-1, 12 inning win.

Jones gave the Zs another outstanding start, going six scoreless innings. It remained scoreless into the 9th until LoMo cranked his first homer since rejoining the Zs. It was the only extra-base hit of the game. Sinkbeil had breezed through the 7th and 8th and it was Olenberger who got the call to save it. And he blew it, allowing a single to Anthony Contreras with two strikes and two outs, inflating his ERA to 9.13 this year. He gave up three singles in the inning and was lucky to escape giving up only one run. Why is Sinkbeil not the Zs closer at this point?

Richar was the hero again, slapping a two-out, two-run single in the 12, and Veras shut the door. Brooms all around.

Most importantly, the Zs have gotten four straight quality starts, the easiest way to make a club look much healthier.

Game #45: Huh?

Bottom 1, 0-0

Petersen was pulled between innings. Unless he hurt himself running the bases, this is a mystery. Hunter Mense has replaced him. Mr.Z will bring you news when he has it.

Game #45: Early Optimism

The new guys Petersen and Guzman led off with back to back singles and LoMo looms with no outs. And naturally he grounds into a double play as my cursor hovers over the "Post" button. Luna up with Petersen on third.

Game #45: Lineups

The Zs gun for a climactic sweep in Portland.

Zs:
1. Petersen RF
2. Guzman SS
3. Morrison 1B
4. Luna 3B
5. Lane LF
6. Mitchell 2B
7. Wilson C
8. Mattison CF
9. Jones P

Beavers:
1. Kazmar SS
2. Barfield 2B
3. Baxter RF
4. Cooper 1B
5. Cunningham LF
6. Stansberry 3B
7. Stewart C
8. Chalk CF
9. Ramos P

PSSSSSSSSSSST...

(whisper voice...) This would be the Zs sweep of a series more than two games since they've been affiliated with Florida.

Game #44: Zs win 2-1

And the great pitching just keeps on coming. Both teams got terrific seven-inning complete game, three-hit starts (seven-inning games for AAA double headers); the Richar homer in the second was the difference in another crisp game by the Zephs, who have really been playing ball in Portland.

Game #44: Zs 2-0

Danny Richar just knocked a two-run job into the left-field bullpen in the second. The Zs have jumped ahead early in each of the games in this series and the starters have just cruised. Let's see what VandenHurk does with a lead.

Game #44: Lineups

Sorry, rainout chaos. Jones and Greer will be going in game two later on, as opposed to Mr.Z's previous post. It's the aforementioned VandenHurk/Inman matchup in game one.

Lineups:

Zs
1. Mattison CF
2. Petersen RF
3. Morrison 1B
4. Luna 3B
5. Murphy SS
6. Davis C
7. Richar 2B
8. Mitchell LF
9. VandenHurk P

Beavers:
1. Baxter RF
2. Kazmar SS
3. Cooper CF
4. Munson 1B
5. Cunningham LF
6. Contreras 3B
7. Ryan C
8. Barfield 2B
9. Inman P

More New Players

Kevin Mattison
Is leading off and playing center field tonight. The numbers weren't overwhelming this year in AA (.233/0/7), though last year in A ball he showed a little pop, with 15 HRs.

Hunter Mense
This is Mense's second stint with New Orleans this year, though he's also been in both A and AA. A lefty slap hitter.

Todd Doolittle
Doolittle is a righty bullpen arm who was having a nice season with AA Jacksonville. His ERA was 3.32 and he was as effective against lefties as righties.

Javier Guzman
A switch-hitting shortstop who had spent time at both A Jupiter and AA Jacksonville this season. Doesn't project to be much with the bat.

Buente, Tankersley, and Lamb Up; Peterson & Badenhop Down

Some shakeup action by the big club, a night after the bullpen blew a nice Nate Robertson start against Atlanta. Badenhop was the prime culprit in the meltdown -- the sinker hasn't been sinking -- and he's coming back to New Orleans to work on it. It's disappointing for him to have regressed like this after being a good piece of Florida's pen last year. His ERA was over 10 in May.

It'll be good to have Peterson back; he wasn't seeing much action in Florida and was 1 for 16, usually pinch hitting. Give the guy a break. Pinch hitting is hard.

Mr.Z is pleased for both Buente and Lamb. Buente's 2.70 ERA this year has earned him a shot in the show, where he's got a shot at solidifying himself as a legitimate big league bullpen arm. Lamb was born to pinch hit and gets another crack at being Florida's #1 lefty bat off the bench; the Lenny Websters, Ross Gloads, and Mike Lambs of the baseball world (old guys) tend to make for better pinch hitters than the Bryan Petersons or Emilio Bonifacios (young guys).

Tankersley certainly hasn't been overwhelming in New Orleans, but he's held lefties to a .143 BAA, Fredi Gonzalez loves a LOOGY, Florida just put Reynel Pinto on the DL, and Dan Meyer stinks. If you, reader, are left handed, younger than 40, and certain astrological phenomena align, you too might have a career in baseball.

Game #44: Double-Header Game 1 Preview

The word from Portland is that Hunter Jones is making the start for the Zs in Game 1, opposed by John Geer. This probably means that the VandenHurk-Inman matchup originally scheduled for yesterday will take place in the second game. The first game is officially the make up of yesterday rainout.

Pitching Matchup
Hunter Jones (3.77) vs. Josh Geer (5.98)

Along with Jose Alvarez, the Marlins organization received Jones in the Jeremy Hermida trade with Boston. It felt like Florida was somewhat hosed in that deal, even though Jones has become a solid AAA starter and potential insurance to the big club in case of a Nate Robertson meltdown. His tailing fastball has generated almost double the amount of grounders to fly balls. Still, comparing his stats to his good years like 2008 in Boston's system, his walks are significantly up now that he's starting and the strikeouts are down. It could be his conscious reinvention as a ground-ball pitcher, or simply evidence of a AAAA guy in slow decline.

In eight starts this year, Geer has given up 67 hits in 49 innings (9 of them homers) and a .327 batting average against. Lefties crush him. His numbers are somewhat artificially inflated by a disastrous relief outing in which he went three innings and gave up six earned, but still, this is a guy a hot Zs team should make hay against.

Game #44: PPD, Double-header tomorrow

Game off today in Portland. The Zephs will double-dip tomorrow, with the first game beginning at 4:30 PM. The second game is scheduled for 9. This probably isn't the worst thing in the world. With the early start today, these guys would have been at the ballpark forever if the delay went much longer. See you tomorrow for two.

Game #44: Lineups

We're in a rain delay. Check back at 1:30.

This will be a defensively challenged Zephyrs team today. Several of the players are out of position as a result of being shorthanded. Nice to see Mike Lamb starting today after offensive heroics in a pinch-hitting role each of the last two nights. Ride the westerly winds.

Zs:
1. Bonifacio SS
2. Richar 2B
3. Morrison 1B
4. Luna LF
5. Lamb 3B
6. Lane CF
7. Mitchell RF
8. Wilson C
9. VandenHurk P

Beavers:
1. Baxter RF
2. Kazmar SS
3. Zawadzki 3B
4. Cooper CF
5. Munson 1B
6. Cunningham LF
7. Ryan C
8. Barfield 2B
9. Inman P