LAD Wins, All Four affiliates lose - and it wasn't Pretty

Jeff did the MiLB Report, which follows... This is Mark.

They say good things come to those who wait...

Wait! Who says that? Well, we waited for seven games for a win that was way ugly, but as Al Davis used to say: "Just Win, Baby!" So, the Dodgers have a one-game winning streak. Big Whoop! It feels like they have been cursed... but we shall see. I have a couple of things to discuss, and then Jeff has his MiLB Report.

ONE: I have watched Noah Miller a lot at OKC, and he is truly a defensive wizard! He gets to balls deep in the hole (even on the outfield grass) and in one "cat-quick" move, is right back on his feet throwing with an arm that is not so much of a cannon but rather a quick-release buggy whip. He gets his throws away quickly, compactly, and accurately.

It's his hitting that is in question. He's a switch hitter, and at 23 years old, he is as close to the Show as he will ever be. I just think he should give up switch-hitting! Before last night's game, his batting average against RHP was .284. He had a .352 OB% to go with an .825 OPS. Compare that to Hyeseong Kim's paltry .678 OPS. However, against LHP, he is hitting .198 with a .266 OB% and .554 OPS. He should discontinue hitting right-handed. Alex Freeland is of that ilk as well.

Freeland can play a good SS, but Miller is a Wizard at the position. Mookie is going to be a problem... going forward. I have not seen a player lose it as quickly as Mookie. He is pathetic - there's no other way to put it. His OPS is .678... and the Dodgers have him for six more years and owe him $167 million. When I said that his contract would "age badly," I did not think it would be this bad!

TWO: I have known Tony Jackson, the former LA Daily News Beatwriter, ESPN reporter, and contributor to LADT for many years. This photo was the first time we met. Tony was sitting in the golf cart as Tommy signed a baseball for my son, who was five at the time (he is now 27).

Several years ago, when Tony left ESPN, he was burned out on baseball, and he went into Real Estate for a few years. We have kept in touch, and Tony still is a source of great inside information... some of which we can't talk about. ;) At any rate, I met up with Tony in Spring Training, and he was in a new job as a 911 dispatcher for the city of Phoenix. Well, that didn't work out, and when I was in London, I saw a post on Substack by Tony (Anthony) Jackson. I was compelled to read it.

He has written several Substack Posts, including "I thought I would die in a press box" and his initial one: "Welcome! Let's see if I can still do this!" Trust me, he can! Tony and I had discussed expanding LADT as I still own URLs such as NY Yankee Talk and every other MLB derivative. But, US Water Systems was blowing up, and I could not lose focus on that. Without further ado, here's a part of Tony's first Substack post (I was one of his first subscribers):

... then, my daughter-in-law posed that question.

“I like to do anything I can do at a high level,” I said. “Anything I can be good at.”

“What was the last thing you were good at?”

“In my entire life,” I said, “I think I’ve only been confident in my abilities when it comes to two things. One is driving. When I get behind the wheel, I believe I am the best driver on the freeway. Other than that, the only thing I’ve ever been good at is writing. And I haven’t done that for a living in about 14 years.”

The rest of the conversation is kind of a blur. The seed had been planted. I retreated into my silent thoughts, sudden realizations that should have hit me many years ago, but were only doing so in this moment. Since walking away from my sportswriting career in 2012, when it was pretty much on life support anyway, the only writing I had done was eulogies at three family funerals (my cousins always asked me to). I had long since given up on ever returning to journalism, my vocation for almost two decades, mostly because I didn’t want to. But the thought of a writing career outside of journalism was something I had never considered.

By the time we pulled into their driveway about 10 minutes later, I had already decided to create this account, mostly so I could link to it in job applications and give employers some strong work samples. By the time I got into my car three days later and headed back home to Phoenix, the account had been created and my plans for it were being formulated.

This is my first, introductory post.

If you have been a Los Angeles Dodgers fan for more than 15 or so years, you might remember me. Even if you don’t, you probably read my work in the Los Angeles Daily News, or maybe at ESPNLosAngeles.com back when it actually produced content. If you were a Cincinnati Reds fan way back at the turn of the century, you might have read my coverage in the old Cincinnati Post before I headed west.

And if you have never heard of me, that’s fine too. If you’re reading these words, you have at least stumbled in here accidentally, so I’m hoping you’ll enjoy it enough to return often. I hope this account develops a following, but that would be a bonus, because that isn’t its primary purpose.

My first objective is to find out if I can still do this, but at the risk of sounding arrogant, I’m pretty sure I can. My second, as stated above, is to generate something I can show to a potential employer who is looking for someone to write something, someone who has a way with language and a penchant for capturing emotion, that of both the subject and the reader.

Oh, and by the way, I’m also a pretty good interviewer.

I recommend you check it out. His second post was The Craziest Trade Deadline Ever (at Least for Me).

Godspeed Tony!

Minor league report by Jeff Dominique

Salt Lake City Bees (LAA) 14 - OKC Comets 13 

This was a very short outing for RHSP Emmet Sheehan, but no reason given.  Staked to a 3-0 lead in the 1st inning, he walked the 1st batter but got the next two.  He gave up a run scoring double and was pulled.  RHRP Jerming Rosario relieved Sheehan and gave up a run scoring single before getting the last out.  I was not watching, so I have no information on the reason.  

In the top of the 1st, OKC put up 3 runs.  SS Alex Freeland led off with a double (3).  DH Zach Ehrhard walked.  Freeland scored on LF Ryan Ward’s RBI single, with Ehrhard moving to 3rd.  Ward was picked off at 1B.  RF James Tibbs III walked, and CF Alek Thomas singled to score Ehrhard and moving JT III to 3rd.  2B Hyeseong Kim hit a SF fly to give OKC their 3 runs. 

LHP Jackson Ferris entered the 2nd to relieve Rosario.  A single, BB, and 2 doubles scored 3 for SLC and a 5-3 lead for the Bees.    

In the OKC 3rd, Ehrhard led off with a BB and scored on Thomas’ triple (2).  Kim drew a BB and 1B Ryan Fitzgerald was HBP.  C Eliezer Alfonzo stroked a 2-run single with Fitzgerald taking 3rd.  Alfonzo stole 2nd, and both runners scored on single from SS Noah Miller and a 8-5 lead. 

OKC got another run in the 4th when Ehrhard walked, stole 2nd, and scored on Thomas’ RBI single. 

Ferris allowed a run on two singles and a GIDP in the 4th, and 2 in the 5th on a 2-run HR.  The lead was down to 9-8. 

OKC got two more in the 6th.  Ward and JT III singled.  Thomas doubled to score Ward and move JT III to 3rd.  JT III scored on Fitzgerald’s SF for an 11-8 lead. 

But Ferris and José Rodríguez gave up 5 in the bottom of the 6th, the last three on a 3-run HR off Rodríguez giving SLC a 13-11 lead. 

In the 7th, a double and 2 singles off Rodríguez scored another.  

In the 8th inning, OKC scored a pair.  Ward led off with a BB, and JT III singled.  Both runners moved up on a Thomas groundout.  Kim had a RBI single with JT III to 3rd.  Fitzgerald and Alfonzo had back-to-back walks for a run. 

RHRP Nick Robertson retired the side in order in the 8th. 

OKC did not score in the 9th and lost. 

·      Ryan Ward – 3-5, 1 BB, 2 runs, 1 RBI

·      James Tibbs III – 2-5, 1 BB, 3 runs

·      Alek Thomas – 4-6, 1 run, 4 RBI, double (14), triple (2)

·      Eliezer Alfonzo – 2-4, 1 BB, 1 run, 3 RBI, double (16) 

 This loss snapped a 9 game win streak. The Comets last loss was July 28 vs. Las Vegas.

Box Score 

Corpus Christie Hooks (Houston) 3 - Tulsa Drillers 1 

LHSP Luke Fox was back on the mound in AA for the first time since April 19.  He allowed 1 hit, but it was a 1 out HR in the 3rd. 

The Drillers lone run came in the 3rd.  DH Jake Gelof led off with a BB and moved to 3rd on a single by SS Elijah Hainline.  Gelof scored on a SF from C Nelson Quiroz. 

LHRP Myles Caba relieved Fox.  He got two quick outs, but a BB and double scored the go ahead run. 

With RHP Aidan Foeller on the mound, he gave up a single, a SB, and two WP for the Hooks third run.  

The Drillers had 4 hits, and the Hooks had 3, but two of the three were a double and HR. 

Hainline was the only Tulsa batter with 2 hits.  

This is an example of Josue De Paula in LF.  You have to take the bad with the good. 

Box Score 

Dayton Dragons (Reds) 8 - Great Lakes 5 

After a scoreless 1st inning by both teams, Great Lakes jumped out to a 5-0 lead in the 2nd, thanks to pair of 2 run HR. 

In the 2nd with one out, 1B Jose Meza singled and scored on a 2-run HR (6) by LF Samuel Munoz.  C Victor Rodrigues singled and reached 3rd when 2B Mairo Martinus reached 2nd on a fielding error.  Rodrigues scored when CF Eduardo Quintero hit a SF.  SS Emil Morales crushed his 16th HR with Great Lakes and his 22nd of the year. 

Dayton would have nothing of it.  With RHSP Isaac Ayon on the bump, he allowed a 2-run HR and a 3-run HR.  The 3-run HR came from 2B Eric Becker.  If that name sounds familiar, he was the overall consensus pick for the Dodgers from many of the mock draft groupies. 

The game was delayed after GL went out in order in the top of the 3rd due to lightning. 

When play resumed, Ayon gave up a solo HR on the first pitch in the 3rd inning.  Ayon went back out in the 4th.  He gave up a one out single and RHRP Alex Makarewich relieved him.  The runner stole 2nd and scored on a double. The runner went to 3rd on a WP and scored when the catcher threw it away.  

Over the last 6 innings, GL managed 2 hits to go with their 8 K. 

·      Emil Morales – 2-4, 1 run, 2 RBI, double (13), HR (16)

·      Jaron Elkins – 2-4

·      Samuel Munoz – 1-4. 1 run, HR (6)  

Box Score 

Lake Elsinore Storm (San Diego) 5 - Ontario Tower Buzzers 1 

Once the Tower Buzzers lost, that was all four LAD affiliates losing this night.  

RHP Jack O’Connor started and pitched a scoreless first three innings.  In the 4th, the Storm picked up 2 on a BB, single, and 2-run triple.  

RHRP Joel Cruz entered the 5th. The first 4 batters reached on a BB, 2 singles, and double.  The 3rd run scored on a SF, giving Lake Elsinore a 5-0 lead.  

Ontario’s lone run came in the 6th.  LF Ching-Hsien Ko singled.  DH Oswaldo Osorio walked and both runners moved up on SS Caleb Johnson’s infield single.  Ko scored on a SF. 

One highlight was 10th round draft pick RHRP Devin Bell making his professional debut.  He pitched a clean 1.0 inning with a K.  He threw 13 pitches, 7 for strikes. 

Ko was the lone Ontario batter with 2 hits, and 3B Joendry Vargas had a double (28) for the lone XBH. 

Box Score