All Star thoughts from Section 102

Where I just kind of ramble about the Eastern League All-Star Game and my experiences from Northeast Delta Dental Stadium some 24+ hours after the fact...

- Although it would have been nice to have been up in the press box watching the game from some of the best seats in the house, I was happy with my decision to take things in from the front row of Section 102. It showed that there are so many dynamic angles in which to watch the game unfold and sitting two feet from the visiting bullpen was certainly a different view of things.

- The Fisher Cats bat retrieving dog, and crowd fave Ollie, may not have been the most popular dog on the field last night. That honor went to the two Team Ghost Riders dogs that trampled across the field with monkey jockeys on their backs, herding goats into a pen. This troupe seems to be making their way across all Minor League parks in the country and it’s a MUST see…easily the biggest crowd pleaser of the evening.

- The rain threatened things early on, but as the player’s were being announced and the anthem sung, the rain stopped and a perfect rainbow (not a double) popped up off beyond the center field wall. A nice touch by the city of Manchester!

- Surprised, and psyched, to see George Bell throw out the first pitch…not so surprised by New Hampshire Governor John Lynch throwing out a first pitch. I swear he throws one out every single time I’m at NeDDS.

- The Hilton Garden Inn that overlooks the park had a few large Harrisburg Senators signs in the windows, on separate floors. It was nice to see that kind of enthusiasm and support for one of the other teams in the fray. Also saw a lot of Trenton Thunder, Portland Sea Dogs and Altoona Curve gear being worn around the park…nice to see all of the other fans in the mix.

- However it was a bit disappointing to see empty seats in the house, including pretty much all of Section 117 in right field. I assume the weather may have scared off some walk-ups around game time, but they still should have banged that place out. Can’t blame the Fisher Cats organization, they promoted the crap out of it and they put on a top notch show.

- It was impressive to watch some of the Western pitchers warm up, most especially Erie’s Jacob Turner. The one major surprise from the Western pen was when 5’11” pitcher Austin Adams of the Akron Zips, came into the game and consistently put the stadium scoreboard gun at readings of 98, 99, 00 and even 01! For those that don’t know, the 00 and 01 are actually speeds of 100 and 101 miles per hour, as the scoreboard readout only has two place markers on it. He didn't look that fast warming up.

- As many of the amazing scribes who were at the game have already reported…and as I have swooned about forever…Trenton Thunder pitcher Manny Banuelos is the real deal. He was VERY impressive last night. There is something about the speed in which he snaps his arm through his delivery that is special, especially given his smaller size.

- Speaking of size and Trenton pitchers, Dellin Betances is HUGE and he was introduced between what had to be two of his shorter teammates so that when they were standing along the first base line it looked almost like a little league team and how there is always that one kid who is just that much bigger than everyone else and needs to bring his birth certificate everywhere to prove he is really only twelve but just freakishly huge for his age…but we’ll get back to Betances in a second.

- It was great to see North Conway, New Hampshire native Jeff Locke get such a warm reception in his homecoming. However things got kind of weird when he was warming up. Some kid came down to the railing right next to where we were sitting and crouched down as Locke loosened up. Since other old friends were popping there head in, we assumed it was another crony from Locke’s past, until the dude started saying stuff towards Locke such as “Yah, ya still pitch like ya did in high school,” and “I see ya still throw the same junk.” Yet he was saying these things in a more under his breathe manner, than jokingly at him and we waited for the proverbial, “I could still hit ya,” from the clown, but it never came. We determined that he was a Jeff Locke stalker from his high school days. He departed without ever really trying to get Locke’s attention…very awkward all around.

- Caleb Joseph, the Western Division’s starting catcher from Bowie, seemed to truly "get it" when it came down to having fun with it all and enjoying the moment. He almost got thrown out by Moises Sierra on a single to right field earlier in the came and was good-natured about that, staring out at Sierra as if in shock the play was that close. When he returned to the bullpen to warm up the pitchers after he was removed from the action, he was snapping jokes with nearby fans and willingly signing everything for the kids that came up to him.

- After West closer Cory Burns (Akron) trotted from the pen in the middle of the 9th inning, we decided to hit the Sam Adams Bar and Grill, which couldn’t have been more perfect on the timing as the rains started to come down once again. The cooler part of this was that they had a reception of sorts for all involved with the game (front office types, stadium workers, the players and the one and only Kevin Gray from the Union Leader). A lot of the players took full advantage of their open bar (we were still forced to pay) and a few saddled right up next to us to slug down some Jack Daniels shots…they all had games tonight…I'm guessing it may have been a long ride home (or wayward destination), a long morning and a even longer night at the park tonight...but I won't go naming any names...

- ...With one exception...recalling one Dellin Betances, who joined in on the after-game festivities at the bar…that dude is HUGE…confirmed!

Pitching Matchups; Game of the Day 7/13/11

7:05pm
EASTERN LEAGUE ALL STAR GAME
Manchester, NH
Western Division (Casey Crosby 5-3, 3.73)
vs. Eastern Division (Zach Stewart 4-5, 4.52)

Williamsport Crosscutters (Adam Morgan 1-0, 0.00)
vs. Lowell Spinners (Luis Diaz 2-1, 3.79)

Vermont Lake Monsters (Kurt Wunderlich 0-2, 11.00)
vs. Aberdeen IronBirds (Parker Bridwell 1-3, 4.29)

Connecticut Tigers (Brennan Smith 1-2, 3.32)
vs. Mahoning Valley Scrappers (N/A)

9:00pm
AAA ALL STAR GAME
Salt Lake City, UT (can be seen on MLB Network)
International League (Zach McAllister 8-3, 2.97)
vs. Pacific Coast League (Brad Mills 7-7, 3.97)

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All-Star Break & NYPL Day Off

We'll be live at the Eastern League All-Star game (as paid attendees - Sec. 102, Row A...come say HI!) tomorrow night.

Pitching Matchups; Game of the Day 7/11/11

12:05pm
Portland Sea Dogs (Felix Doubront NR)
vs. New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Joel Carreno 7-4, 3.07)

7:05pm
Binghamton Mets (Tobi Stoner 3-3, 5.77)
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (N/A)

Hudson Valley Renegades (Jacob Partridge 0-2, 6.41)
vs. Lowell Spinners (Madison Younginer 0-2, 3.60)

Staten Island Yankees (Evan DeLuca 2-0, 0.90)
vs. Vermont Lake Monsters (J.C. Menna 2-0, 3.68)

Brooklyn Cyclones (Chris Hillard 3-0, 3.43)
vs. Connecticut Tigers (Wilsen Palacios 0-1, 10.03)

Game of the Day – Yankees vs. Lake Monsters – The Vermont Lake Monsters (14-7) are good…the Staten Island Yankees (18-4) are really good! The Lake Monsters halted the SI Yanks 4-game win streak last night with an 8-2 victory at Centennial Field. It was only the second road loss for the Yankees this season and their second loss in their last nineteen games. Evan DeLuca will be the Staten Island starter tonight in his fifth start of the season. In his prior four outings DeLuca has only allowed 2 earned runs and both of those came in the same game against Hudson Valley. His 0.90 ERA is second best in the New York-Penn and he has picked up wins in his last two starts. DeLuca will be opposed by fellow 2-0 hurler J.C. Menna who hasn’t been as dominant as DeLuca, but has been as effective, striking out 16 batters in 14 2/3 innings of work. This will be Menna’s first home start after three outings on the road…Staten Island outfielder Shane Brown leads the NYPL with a .458 batting average… Currently Vermont maintains a four game lead in the Stedler Divison over Lowell. Staten Island has a six game lead over Hudson Valley in the McNamara Division.

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Pitching Matchups; Game of the Day 7/10/11

1:05pm
Buffalo Bisons (Dylan Owen 4-4, 4.25)
vs. Pawtucket Red Sox (Matt Fox 4-3, 4.92)

Staten Island Yankees (William Oliver 1-1, 4.40)
vs. Vermont Lake Monsters (Seth Frankoff 2-0, 3.66)

Brooklyn Cyclones (Jeffrey Walters 1-1, 2.89)
vs. Connecticut Tigers (Luis Angel Sanz 1-2, 5.59)

1:35pm
Binghamton Mets (Tobi Stoner 3-3, 5.77)
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (Brett Jacobson 3-3, 3.78)

5:05pm
Hudson Valley Renegades (Jason McEachern 3-0, 0.40)
vs. Lowell Spinners (Ray Velette 0-0, 5.71)

6:35pm
Portland Sea Dogs (Stephen Fife 10-3, 3.57)
vs. New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Robert Ray 1-2, 7.33)

Game of the Day – Sea Dogs vs. Fisher Cats – Thankfully they had scheduled a Sunday night game between the Dogs and Cats, especially after last night’s near four-hour, 12-inning affair. Eastern League All-Star Moises Sierra showed why he was chosen for Wednesday’s Home Run Derby when he jacked the game-ending homer last night, his fourth game-winning hit of the season. Tonight, Dogs’ starter Stephen Fife looks for his Minor League best 11th victory of the season. Unfortunately Portland will be without the services of Will Middlebrooks and Chih-Hsien Chiang as both will be in Phoenix for the Futures Game. Robert Ray gets the ball for the Cats tonight in his sixth start of the season. Ray has faced Portland twice this season and is 0-1 with an 11.32 ERA in 10 1/3 innings of work. Pitcher Henderson Alvarez will represent the Fisher Cats/Blue Jays in today’s Futures Games. Both teams will be hoping for a quick game tonight with a 12:05pm Monday game time looming as the last game before the All-Star break.

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The INAUGURAL Mike McCardell Award

Many pundits love to espouse about how meaningless the almighty WIN is in a pitcher’s stat line, noting that is nothing but a mere anomaly, that any scrub reliever or starter can snatch one at any given time. It has at times been declared a worthless statistic all-together.

Say what you will about the win, but somebody has to get them and for those who don’t it can take a great toll on their confidence and snowball into an avalanche of losses…something no pitcher wants and a stat that no pundit can deny.

Case-in-point, one Mike McCardell, a sixth round selection out of Kutztown State for the Minnesota Twins in the 2007 first-year player draft. He was named a Baseball America Rookie All-Star after his first season in pro ball and in 2009 he had a combined 14-8 record with a 3.98 ERA between Class-A Fort Myers and Double-A New Britain.

Last season started out harmless enough for McCardell. He got his first start of the season against New Hampshire’s Zach Stewart on a 69 degree day in New Britain, Connecticut. McCardell went 4 innings, allowed 2 earned runs, scattered 4 hits and 4 walks and picked up a loss in the process. The date was April 10th, 2010.

Then it continued for McCardell; 2 losses in April, 3 in May, 4 in June and 3 more in July. We had our eyes firmly planted on McCardell’s plight all season long. We tried putting him consistently in our Game of the Day when he was starting and when that didn’t help we tried our best to ignore him. Nothing seemed to work until a perfect summer day in Bowie, Maryland, when McCardell scattered 3 hits and allowed only 1 run against the BaySox for the win. That date was July 31st and Mike McCardell had a 1-12 record.

So because of McCardell’s fortitude, and moreso because of his fruitlessness, we have decided to create an annual award in his honor; to shine a light on a struggling pitcher who is missing out on that elusive win, in hopes that it could go a long way in changing their direction, confidence and attitude when they hit the hill…and hopefully allow them to put a “W” in their start column.

Our inaugural Mike McCardell Award goes to Portland Sea Dog’s pitcher Stolmy Pimentel, who after 15 starts is now saddled with an 0-9 record to go along with a 9.12 ERA. Stolmy, like McCardell, had much promise heading into this season, but has struggled since starting the season in Double-A. In fact, things have gotten so bad for Stolmy that he was just shipped down to Class-A Salem as I wrote this piece. This is a pitcher who last year was featured in the MLB Futures Game and was the 6th ranked Boston Red Sox prospect heading into the season by Baseball America. Hopefully he won’t lose his way and can turn things around in Salem. As part of winning “The McCardell,” he will be featured in the Game of the Day each and every time he pitches until he grabs a win, whenever he makes it back up to Portland.

As for McCardell himself, it seems as if his playing days may be behind him. I searched far and wide (ok, maybe I spent an hour on Google, but whatever) to try and find his whereabouts, but had no luck. He may just be sitting on the injured list, he could be in Indy ball somewhere or maybe he’s winning elsewhere in life, far away from the game. All I can tell you is that this once promising prospect will forever be recognized here at Beyond Fenway for his adversity and courage in the face of defeat throughout his 2010 campaign.

So here’s to you Stolmy Pimentel, the inaugural winner of the Mike McCardell Award…and here’s to you Mike McCardell, wherever you may be! In the end, it’s not how many you win, but how many you lose before your win one.

Now try telling Mike McCardell and Stolmy Pimentel that a win is meaningless.

Pitching Matchups; Game of the Day 7/9/11

5:05pm
Binghamton Mets (Jeurys Familia 1-2, 3.02) GAME1
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (Bobby Lanigan 5-6, 3.46)

Binghamton Mets (Robert Carson 2-7, 4.27)
vs. New Britain Rock Cats (Liam Hendriks 8-2, 2.70) GAME2

Hudson Valley Renegades (Jason McEachern 3-0, 0.40)
vs. Lowell Spinners (Hunter Cervenka 0-2, 9.00)

6:05pm
Buffalo Bisons (Pat Misch 3-4, 5.00)
vs. Pawtucket Red Sox (Tony Pena Jr. 6-4, 2.98)

Staten Island Yankees (Bryan Mitchell 0-0, 5.93)
vs. Vermont Lake Monsters (Brent Powers 0-0, 3.75)

7:05pm
Portland Sea Dogs (Chris Balcom-Miller 1-4, 4.96)
vs. New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Chad Jenkins 2-2, 3.34)

Brooklyn Cyclones (Carlos Vazquez 1-2, 2.41)
vs. Connecticut Tigers (Tyler Barrett 1-1, 3.12)

Game of the Day – BMets vs. Rock Cats (x2) – The BMets are the worst team in the Eastern League (31-55), yet despite their futility they are loaded with some highly-ranked pitching prospects (although most are struggling), two of which will see action this evening. In GAME ONE Jeurys Familia gets his tenth start for Binghamton. His first Double-A start came against New Britain back on May 10th when he dazzled in 7 innings, allowing only 1 earned run while striking out 6 batters. He has struck out 6 or more batters in 6 of his 9 starts since his jump to Double-A, including games with 10 and 11 Ks. Between Binghamton and St. Lucie he has 93 strikeouts in 87 innings of work. He will be opposed by the Rock Cats' Bobby Lanigan who is looking to square up his 5-6 record. Lanigan’s 96 1/3 innings is third most in the E.L. and his 3.46 ERA is 14th best in league, but he has allowed a team-high 106 hits. He had a no decision against the BMets back on May 25th when he allowed 3 earned runs over 6 innings…
In GAME TWO the BMets have Robert Carson on the hill, the 12th rated New York Mets prospect coming into the season according to Baseball America. Carson’s 14 prior starts have not been pretty, as he has been saddled with a 4.27 ERA and 1.55 WHIP. In two starts against New Britain this season Carson is 0-2 with a 6.10 ERA. The “Man From Perth,” Liam Hendriks, gets the go for the Cats in the nightcap, bringing his 8 wins (second best in the E.L.) to the table. Hendriks hasn’t lost a game since May 19th, a game that was sandwiched by two wins against the BMets. In those two starts against Binghamton, Hendriks allowed 6 runs and struck out 11 batters over 12 innings. After tonight Hendriks will be on a whirlwind tour as he heads to Phoenix for the Futures Game tomorrow, then to New Hampshire for the Eastern League All-Star Game on July 13th…With New Hampshire and Trenton both backpedaling a bit, the time is now for New Britain to charge forward and gain a few games in the Eastern Division before the All-Star break. They will get their second whack this week at winning two games in one day, having already done so on Thursday against New Hampshire.

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