Reds Minor League Baseball Blog

Lousville got in their make up and then some as they swept a doubleheader over Indianapolis.  Game one was a 2-1 win and Ramon Ramirez had a very nice start.  He gave up one run on six hits and with four strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings.  Pedro Viola got the final two batters out to pick up his fifth save.  Drew Stubbs led the way at the plate with a pair of singles.

Game two was also a one run game but this time it was a 3-2 win.  Jeff Kennard struck out three in two shutout innings to improve to 2-1 while Robert Manuel pitched a shutout ninth to pick up his seventh save.  Adam Rosales went two for three with a double and two runs while Chris Valaika went one for one with a double, a walk and two RBIs.

The Bats took care of the Yankees for the second straight time and you couldn’t have asked for a better start from Matt Maloney.  He gave up just three hits and didn’t allow a free pass and he struck out ten in the shutout.  His ERA now sits at 2.00 and he has a pretty good 58/9 strikeout to walk ratio in 67 1/3 innings.  It’s nice knowing you have a kid like this waiting in the wings in the event something happens in the big league rotation.

Drew Stubbs belted a solo shot in the 3-0 win.  Norris Hopper went two for four with a walk and a run.

You have to feel for Jordan Smith because he pitched a very nice game.  He gave up one run on seven hits with five strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings.  Unfortunately, he dropped his first start and he fell to 2-1.

Drew Stubbs ended up with two of the Reds three hits in the 1-0 loss.  Justin Tordi had the other one.

Baseball America was the first site to throw out their top Reds prospects list.  What’s most impressive about the list is how many major league ready players the Reds have at the top of their list.  There’s no surprise that Jay Bruce comes in at number one, even ahead of Homer Bailey.  Bruce had the monster season that saw him go from High A all the way to Triple A with success at every stop.  Bruce might start the season at Louisville, but I’d expect him not to be there for long.

Bailey comes in at number two and while he had a rough season last year, he had some flashes.  His time in Triple A was pretty effective but I’d still expect to find a spot in the rotation from day one this year.  Dusty Baker has a tendency to ride his starters (especially when the pen isn’t all that great) so I’d be worried about overuse.  Hopefully Bailey is handled correctly and he has a solid season in 2008.

Joey Votto comes in at three and while he’s not much of a prospect anymore, he’ll hopefully be the team’s starting first baseman.  The Reds have Scott Hatteberg for another year and if you remember way back with the Cubs, Dusty Baker kind of shut out Hee Sop Choi from finding solid playing time.  Hopefully Votto makes an immediate impact in the spring and forces the Reds hand to start him every day.

Johnny Cueto comes in at four and he’ll probably start in Louisville.  Still, this is a kid who is ready and I’d like to see him at least get a spot in the Reds bullpen.  2006 first round pick Drew Stubbs rounds out the top five and he’ll most likely start the season at Sarasota.  Devin Mesoraco, the team’s first round pick in 2007, checks in at number six.

Those top four guys though could provide a solid nucleus for the Reds for the next several years.  You just have to hope their both pan out and are used correctly.

Travis Webb was shelled in the Dragons 9-1 loss to the White Caps.  He fell to 4-4 on the season and he gave up six runs on four hits and four walks with two strikeouts in just 1 2/3 innings.

There were no hitting stars in this one.  Drew Stubbs had one of the five hits and he scored the only run for the Dragons.

The Dragons lost 7-6 to the Loons and the damage that mattered came in the ninth inning.  Ramon Geronimo gave up three ninth inning runs and he took the loss.

Justin Turner went two for five and he drove in two runs.  Drew Stubbs went one for three with two RBIs and a run.

The Dragons took both games in their doubleheader sweep over South Bend.  In the first game, the offense was rolling and Chris Valaika doubled, drove in three and scored a run.  Juan Francisco went two for three with a homerun and two RBIs while Jordan Smith picked up the win with five decent innings in the 6-3 win.

In game two, pitching saved the game and Pedro Viola picked up the win with 2 2/3 shutout innings of relief.  Drew Stubbs went two for three and he scored both runs in the 2-1 win.

The Dragons got it done with two wins in their doubleheader with Fort Wayne.  In the first game, Rafael Gonzalez improved to an impressive 6-0 on the season with six shutout innings in the 4-1 win. He gave up three hits and four walks with a strikeout.  Drew Stubbs hit a two run homer and Gerardo Cabrera went yard with a solo shot.

The Dragons got more solid pitching in the second game.  Anthony Gressick gave up just one hit in five shutout innings and he improved to 2-1.  Chris Helsey hit a solo homer in the 3-1 win.

Daryl Thompson got it done and he improved to 3-0 with six shutout innings over Burlington.  He gave up just three hits and he struck out six.

Drew Stubbs was the hitting star. He went two for four with a two run homer in the 2-0 win.

Chris Valaika got it done at the plate in the Dragons 9-5 win over Quad Cities.  He went four for five with a double, a triple, three runs and two RBIs.  Jason Louwama and Drew Stubbs both went yard.

Sean Watson had a very nice and he improved to 2-0.  He gave up just two runs on four hits and a walk with ten strikeouts in five innings.

The Dragons needed a late run but they outlasted the White Caps in an 8-7 game that saw both sides combine for five errors.  Jordan Smith was decent in his start and while he gave up four runs, just one of them was earned.  He gave up four hits and a walk with six strikeouts in five innings.  Jose Rojas closed things out with an impressive ninth inning.  He struck out two and didn’t give up a baserunner.

Juan Francisco was the hitting star.  He went three for five with a double, two RBIs and a run.  Drew Stubbs also had a nice game and he went two for four with a walk and two runs.

Drew Stubbs capped off a three run sixth inning as the Dragons came from behind to beat the West Michigan White Caps 3-2.  Stubbs and Chris Heisey were the only two Dragons with two hits in the game.

Sean Watson had a nice start. He gave up just one run on seven hits with six strikeouts in five innings of work.  Marcos Mateo struck out two as he got the final four batters out and he picked up the save.