After closing out the previous month by
blowing a 5-0 lead in spectacular fashion, it's good to see September show up on the calendar. The call-ups aren't going to increase the chances of quality baseball, but at least we'll be able to see some different faces blowing games.
Scott Merkin has some ideas of who will make the trip from Charlotte and/or Birmingham in September, and it's sad that the one sure thing is
Donny Lucy, a 25-year-old catcher who was having a career year in Birmingham this year -- with a .733 OPS. He was promoted to Charlotte last month and owns a .209/.243/.239 line there. Be still my beating heart.
Here's a quick-and-dirty list of who would make a September call-up most worthwhile:
1. Jason Bourgeois. He was having a career year in Birmingham at age 25, but the fact that he's performed better at Charlotte makes me think he might have some worth at the major-league level. I've seen comparisons to Ray Durham, but that's probably more because they share the same skin color and are of below-average height. In terms of offensive skills, I'd liken him more to former Sox farmhand Aaron Miles.
From what I saw, he's not going to wow anybody at second base. On the other hand, he seemed to be able to track a ball, and his above-average speed and decent contact rate should give him a better chance of surviving at the plate than Andy Gonzalez. I don't see why he can't spell Danny Richar, and it's more worthwhile to give him the at-bats instead of Alex Cintron.
2. Charlie Haeger. Since returning to Charlotte, Haeger has been solid, posting a 2.72 ERA over 39 2/3 innings. Better yet, he's walked only nine batters compared to 25 strikeouts.
Considering Gavin Floyd will be receiving more starts and Jose Contreras and Jon Garland can't be relied upon for quality outings, it'd be good to have a guy who can throw 50 pitches on back-to-back days. The fewer trips Ozzie Guillen has to make to the mound, the better.
3. Gio Gonzalez. Merkin thinks Gonzalez won't be called up because he's not on the 40-man roster, but unless some dramatic setback occurs, he's going to end up on it anyway at some point in 2008. It seems like it would help gauge how far away Gonzalez is from helping the team on a regular basis, and considering his last two outings are among his finest of the season, it doesn't appear he's hitting a wall.
4. David Aardsma. His strikeout rate is where it should be (11.61 K/9) and he's holding Triple-A hitters to a .208 average. The concern lies in that he's allowing twice as many flyouts as ground balls, and he's paying for it in Charlotte's bandbox. Who knows if the little bit of extra space at U.S. Cellular Field would help, but he's the best of the available relievers.
One scout* I talked to suggests Aardsma might see better results if he points to the sky after completing an inning, instead of before the start of an outing. Kinda like how you wouldn't pay a mechanic before he even pops open the hood.
That's about it. I don't particularly care to see Andy Sisco or Nick Masset again, and Ryan Sweeney just finished an August in which he had a whopping two extra-base hits. If he can't muscle up against Triple-A pitching, I don't see any reason to trot him out against major-league arms.
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Speaking of pitchers I don't care to see again, how about that Mike Myers?
He hasn't exactly taken advantage of the 2008 audition afforded to him by Kenny Williams. After today's performance in which he walked Travis Hafner on four pitches and gave up an RBI single to Victor Martinez, he's retired less than half of the batters he's faced since joining the Sox. The official line:
6 G, 4 IP, 11 H, 10 R, 8 ER, 2 HR, 3 BB, 2 K, .478/.519/.826 allowed.
Thanks for playing.
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Minor league round-up:- Durham 7, Charlotte 3
- Lance Broadway only lasted three innings, giving up seven runs on six hits and three walks. He also threw two wild pitches.
- Tomas Perez had three of Charlotte's seven hits, and Kenny Perez had a pair of RBI.
- Huntsville 6, Birmingham 3 (8 innings)
- Wes Whisler gave up all six runs over 6 2/3 innings, but only one was earned. He gave up 10 hits, but didn't walk a batter, and struck out two.
- Cory Aldridge drove in all three runs on one swing, his ninth homer of the year.
- Kinston 12, Winston-Salem 4
- Paulo Orlando fell a double short of the cycle out of the leadoff spot.
- Matt Zaleski was hit hard in his start, giving up nine runs on nine hits over four innings.
- Kannapolis 9, Greensboro 7
- John Shelby hit another grand slam, his second in nine days. It was his 16th homer of the season.
- Brandon Allen added a three-run homer, No. 18; John Anderson and Sergio Miranda each went 2-for-4.
- Noe Rodriguez pitched the most effectively of any Kanny pitcher on the day, throwing three innings of one-run ball.
*The scout = My dad.