Extended Camp:
Released: RHP Michael Olmsted, OF Rob Mackowiak
-The Olmsted release must have a story behind it… he had TJS in the off-season, I had him on my prospect list and here’s the bio info I had on him:
Michael Olmsted RP R R 6-5 240 Cypress College- Olmstead pitched 73.0 innings in 2007 for Cypress, giving up 80 hits, walking 24, striking out 53, and posting a 4.19 ERA. The Mets drafted Omstead in the 9th round of the 2007 draft. He signed, pitched in 2 games for the GCL Mets (0-0, 0.00, 8 Ks/3.0 IP), and was promoted to Kingsport. At Kingsport in 2007, he went 1-1, 1.93, 1.00 in 6 starts, including 22 Ks in 28.0 innings. He ended the season with Brooklyn (0-0, 7.71 in 2 appearances). In 2008, Olmsted impressed for all 3 teams he pitched for, the GCL Mets, K-Port and the Gnats. His combined stats were: 2-1, 2.67 in 8 starts.
Please… find something wrong with this guy…
Signed: 3B Matt Gaski
-It just keeps getting weirder… Gaski is a 22-year old that was drafted in 2008 in the 34th round by San Diego… played two years college in Florida, then transferred for 2 years to the University of North Carolina-Greenboro… which just happened to be managed by his father. 2008 senior stats: .327/.422/.440/.862… so, the Padres play him for 88 at bats on their rookie team (.216/.364/.261/.625) and, I assume, they released him this year.
B-Mets
Starter Mike Antonini went five innings giving up four runs on seven hits, but it was good enough to get the win thanks to the B-Mets offensive explosion in the fourth inning. Binghamton scored seven runs in the fourth inning, there largest run total for any inning this season. The inning started off with a catcher’s interference call against Trenton’s Francisco Cervelli allowing Carl Loadenthal to reach base. Josh Thole followed with a single to right and Caleb Stewart followed up with a walk off Thunder starter Eric Hacker loading the bases. After Hacker struck out Shawn Bowman, Lucas Duda walked to bring home Loadenthal from third. Then D.J. Wabick reached on Marcos Vechionacci’s error on a tapper to third allowing Thole to score, tying the game. Matt Bouchard came up next with the bases full and dropped a single into center to score Stewart. With the bases still loaded, Binghamton (6-4) got their first extra-base hit from Ruben Tejada who drove home two to give the B-Mets a substantial 6-3 lead. Two more runs came across on an error and a wild pitch. In the fifth, Trenton (6-4) plated a fourth run off of Antonini thanks to a Reegie Corona walk, a Colin Curtis double and an RBI groundout by Edwar Gonzalez. Eric Brown relieved Antonini in the sixth and gave up a run on a run-scoring triple by Kevin Smith, which brought in Chris Malec. However, it was the final run that Trenton could score because the game was called after a 42-minute delay making the game final in five and a half innings. Hacker went four innings giving up eight runs to take his first loss for Trenton.
RHP Fernando Nieve placed on Temporarily Inactive List
LHP Edgar Alfonzo transferred from Brooklyn (SS-A) to Binghamton (AA).
Interesting… there may be more to this since Buffalo is still in need of filling one of their SP slots… on the surface, it would be either Neive, who should have been there in the first place, or Nelson Figueroa, if he goes unclaimed.
It's one of the things that makes his start with the Binghamton Mets so remarkable. Roy Merritt has always been a relief pitcher, but until month, he had never been his team's closer. Since inheriting that role out of the B-Mets' bullpen, he's been automatic. Merritt has five saves in as many opportunities for the B-Mets, whose home game on Monday against Trenton was rained out and will be made up on May 16 as part of a doubleheader. "It's different, but I like coming in and shutting the game out," Merritt said on Sunday, after recording the final five outs in the B-Mets' home victory over Portland. Merritt, a 23-year-old lefthander who is in his third year as a pro, has been almost unhittable in the first two weeks of the season. In 6 1/3 innings, he's yet to give up a run. He's allowed just four baserunners - one hit, one hit-by-pitch and two walks. He's struck out six batters. "He keeps on doing that, you won't see him (here) much longer," B-Mets manager Mako Oliveras said.
http://www.pressconnects.com/article/20090421/SPORTS02/904210374/1118/sports
Gnats:
The Sand Gnats (8-4) were almost able to dig themselves out of an early deficit but came up one run short as they fell to the Charleston RiverDogs, 5-4, Tuesday afternoon at Historic Grayson Stadium. Rafael Fernandez was 1-for-4 with 3 RBI in a losing effort for Savannah. Josh Stinson (0-1) started the game for Savannah and ran into trouble in the second but managed to wiggle free with just one run coming across for Charleston. His teammates picked him up in the bottom half of the inning when Sean Ratliff scored on a fielder’s choice by Jefry Marte to tie it up. Stinson wouldn’t make it out of the fourth inning as he loaded the bases before departing. Charleston (7-5) would eventually plate all three of those runs off reliever Manny Olivares to make it 4-1, RiverDogs. The 21-year-old Stinson went 3.0+ innings, allowing four runs on four hits. The Gnats mounted their comeback down, 5-1, in the fifth when Fernandez cleared the bases with a double off the glove of Taylor Grote in left field to pull Savannah within one. With Fernandez on second, Wilmer Flores flew out to end the inning. D.J. Mitchell (2-0) struck out eight over six innings for Charleston to earn the win. The ambidextrous pitcher, Pat Venditte, secured the final four outs for the RiverDogs to earn his fourth save of the season. With their singles in this afternoon, Ratliff and Eric Campbell have now reached base safely in all 12 games of the 2009 season.
As of the end of game April 21:
2B Josh Satin is leading the league in hitting (.433)… 4th in OBP (.500)… and 11th in OPS (.933).
SS Wilmer Flores is 11th in the league in hitting (.359)… 20th in OBP (.395)…
2B Jordany Valdespin is 19th in the league in hitting (.324)… 4th in slugging (.568)… and 14th in OPS (.901).
3B Jenry Marte is 20th in the league in hitting (.317)…
SP Eric Beaulac is tied for the league lead in ERA (0.00)… 6th in WHIP (0.67)…
SP Jeurys Familia is tied for the league lead in ERA (0.00)… 16th in WHIP (0.84)…
SP Chris Schwinden is 13th in ERA (0.82)… 13th in WHIP (0.82)…
SP Jeffrey Kaplan is 19th in ERA (0.90)…
Mets Alumni:
From Desi Relaford:
Making the transition from baseball life to real life is a hurdle that can at times seem insurmountable. The baseball life is “The Life.” It’s a fairy tale. Let me try to open a visual portal into the world of Major League Baseball. Think heaven, only it’s a baseball heaven. You don’t carry your own bags. There are people who clean up after you. Please believe me when I say this, if you ask you shall receive, or at least everything that the law would allow. Then again, we also know from the recent past ballplayers could even get away with procuring felonious items as well (PED’S). Big league baseball provided a myriad of supporters that would range from individuals in the organizations whose job it was to make sure we didn’t have to do too much. Grown men making dumb money, being treated like spoiled children. I loved every minute of it!
Must be cool to watch such a talent laden team take the field every night. Probably around eight to ten guys could be considered legitamite prospects and make the team's top 30 next year.
ReplyDeleteI would expect Ramirez, Beaulac, and Kaplan to be promoted by the Sally League All-Star break. From what I can tell from the game logs, the Sand Gnats already have six starters (three I mentioned plus Allen, Carson, and Familia, and I'm guessing Stinson's the long man).
Any reason why they sent Jenry Mejia stright to St. Lucie, as opposed to some of the older guys in Savannah? Either way, I expect we'll see Eric Niesen sent in AA soon.
Good observations, Barry.
ReplyDeleteYes, it's fun going to Sand Gnat games, not like the Bataan Death March we had here the past two years.
The team actually has too many good starters, with Jeffrey Kaplan and Jeurys Familia leading the way.
Someone had to go to Lucy at this level, and they picked Mejia.
The Gnats are still piggybacking guys like Stinny and bealuac, but yes, I expect Stinson to go long man, then quickly back to Lucy.
The others will probably stay, at least thru the all-star break. Frankly, there's a log jam ahead of them.
Mack