Mark Thomas

MiLB Roundup: Bats, Hot Rods win; Legends lose; Bertram, Curley homer; Roe gets win; Revere tallies 3 hits

Minor League Baseball

Highlights from Wednesday Kentucky MiLB action:

  • The Louisville Bats held Toledo scoreless through eight innings and held on for an 8-3 win. Shortstop Zack Cozart and outfielder Michael Griffin each slugged a home run in the game, and left-handed pitcher Ben Jukich earned the win with seven shutout innings.
  • Neither team scored for the first six innings, but a late offensive onslaught sent the Bowling Green Hot Rods to a 5-3 win over Dayton. Catcher Mark Thomas was 2-4 with two RBI.
  • Hagerstown scored six times in the first two innings and sent the Lexington Legends to a 9-1 loss. The Legends mustered on four hits in the game.
  • Former UK infielder Michael Bertram homered for the second consecutive game and drove in three runs for AAA Toledo.
  • Former Campbellsville outfielder Chris Curley slugged his third home run of the season for low A Rome.
  • Lexington Catholic alum Ben Revere was 3-4 with a triple and two runs scored for AA New Britain.
  • Lafayette alum Chaz Roe improved to 8-13 on the season after surrendering three runs in six and two-third innings for AAA Colorado Springs.
  • Frankfort native Cameron Conner was promoted to rookie-level Idaho Falls where he went 1-3 with a double in his debut.
  • Louisville native Seth Bynum was 3-3 with a walk for AAA Syracuse.

MiLB Roundup: Bats lose; Legends, Hot Rods win; Shaffer streaking; Adcock gets no decision; Lueke gets save

Minor League Baseball

Nathan Adcock; Photo by mwlguide via Flickr

Highlights from Kentucky MiLB action:

  • Paducah native Shawn Roof and the Toledo Mud Hens sent the Louisville Bats to a 6-2 loss. Roof tallied three hits, one RBI and one run scored for the Mud Hens, and right fielder Wladimir Balentien homered for the Bats.
  • Lexington Legends pitchers surrendered just four hits in a 14-1 win over Hagerstown. First baseman Kody Hinze slugged his 17th home run of the season, right fielder Jacob Goebbert drove in five runs and right-handed pitcher Jose Cisnero surrendered one run in six innings.
  • Bowling Green Hot Rods pitchers surrendered just three hits in a 4-1 win over Fort Wayne. Catcher Mark Thomas was 2-4 with a double and two RBI.
  • Former NKU outfielder Jake Shaffer extended his hitting streak to eight games with a single for high A High Desert. Monday’s game was the first in the streak in which Shaffer didn’t have multiple hits.
  • Former NKU right-handed pitcher Josh Lueke recorded his 17th save of the season for AA Tacoma.
  • Former Murray St. left-handed pitcher Daniel Calhoun improved to 8-0 on the season after pitching two scoreless innings of relief for low A Quad Cities.
  • Elizabethtown native Nathan Adcock took a no decision after surrendering two runs in five innings for high A Bradenton.
  • Louisville native and 2010 Astros draftee Jason Chowning earned his second professional win with three scoreless innings of relief for short-season Tri-City.

Bowling Green Hot Rods June Awards

Minor League Baseball

Standout Bowling Green Hot Rods performances from June:

Hitter of the month: C Mark Thomas

  • Stats: 27-77 (.351), 2 HR, 13 RBI, 12 R
  • Honorable Mention: Tyler Bortnick, Brett Nommensen, Ty Morrison, Ryan Wiegand

Pitcher of the month: LHP Kyle Lobstein

  • Stats: 4-0, 1.19 ERA, 27 SO/10 BB, 30.1 IP
  • Honorable Mention: Kirby Yates, Alex Koronis, Shane Dyer, Scott Shuman

BluGrass Baseball Hot Rods April Awards

Minor League Baseball

We’re back on the April minor league award series with the Bowling Green Hot Rods. The first month of the season wasn’t kind to the Hot Rods, who stumbled out of the gate to the tune of a 5-17 record. Check out Bowling Green’s standout April performances below:

Hitter of the month: C Mark Thomas

  • Stats: .298/.365/.426 — 2 HR, 7 RBI, 5 R
  • It says a lot about the Hot Rods’ first month that the team’s most productive hitter played in just 14 of 23 games. Thomas led Bowling Green with two home runs, ranked second on the team with seven RBI and if he would have played in enough games to qualify for the percentage categories he would have led the team in batting average, on-base percentage, slugging percentage and OPS.
  • Honorable Mention: OF Christopher Murrill, 1B Ryan Wiegand

Pitcher of the month: RHP Shane Dyer

  • Stats: 1-2, 2.17 ERA, 20 SO/3 BB, 29 IP
  • If Dyer was upset at being sent back to Bowling Green to start 2010 he’s making his case for a promotion. The 2008 6th-round pick led the team in ERA and innings pitched. He even tallied a complete-game shutout in the month.
  • Honorable Mention: RHP Alexander Colome, RHP Wilking Rodriguez, RHP Kirby Yates

Anderson starts slow for Bats; Gaynor returns to Kentucky

Minor League Baseball

Josh Anderson; Photo from Wikimedia Commons

Some MiLB links and updates to pass along for your Monday morning:

  • Michael Grant of the Courier Journal profiles Somerset native, Lexington Legends hall of famer and Eastern Kentucky University alum Josh Anderson‘s slow start for the Louisville Bats.
  • Michael Compton of the Bowling Green Daily News profiles Western Kentucky University alum Wade Gaynor and his return to Bowling Green with the West Michigan Whitecaps. Gaynor was 3-15 in the three-game set against the Hot Rods.
  • Mark Maloney of the Lexington Herald-Leader recaps the Lexington Legends home opener. Be sure to check out the photo gallery from the game to see the Legends “tuxedo jerseys.”
  • Standings Update: The Bats currently sit in last place of the International League west division at 4-7. The Hot Rods are seventh in the Midwest League eastern division at 3-8, and the Legends are third in the South Atlantic League southern division at 6-5.
  • Outfielder Daniel Dorn leads the Bats with a .343 average, four home runs and seven RBI. Third baseman Jonathan Meyer leads the Legends with a .386 average, first baseman Kody Hinze leads the team with three home runs and outfielder Jacob Goebbert leads Lexington with 12 RBI. Catcher Mark Thomas leads the Hot Rods with a .417 average in six games, two home runs and five RBI.

BluGrass Baseball MiLB Opening Day Highlights

College Baseball

Ryan Strieby; Photo via Flickr by mwlguide

The minor league season officially kicked off Thursday night, and there were no shortage of relevant Kentucky highlights to pass along. Check out these recaps of the local teams, plus notes from Kentucky alumni across MiLB:

  • Sam LeCure surrendered two runs in five innings to give the Louisville Bats their first win of the season, 5-3 over the Toledo Mud Hens. Chris Heisey, Todd Frazier, Daniel Dorn and Chris Valaika each tallied two hits. The two Kentucky natives, Josh Anderson and Chris Burke, were a combined 0-10 batting in the top two spots in the lineup. (Box Score)
  • University of Kentucky alum Ryan Strieby was 1-3 with a home run for the Mud Hens.
  • The Lexington Legends dropped their first game 5-2 to Charleston, but 2009 second round pick Tanner Bushue made his Lexington debut with 4.1 scoreless innings. He allowed one hit, one walk and struck out six. 2009 Astros’ first round pick Jiovanni Mier was 1-4 in his debut. (Box Score)
  • The Bowling Green Hot Rods season got off to an inauspicious start with a 7-2 loss to Fort Wayne in the team’s Midwest League debut. Leadoff man and center fielder Christopher Murrill was 3-5 in his Bowling Green debut, and Brett Nommensen and Mark Thomas each tallied two hits. (Box Score)
  • Eastern Kentucky University alum Christian Friedrich took the loss in his AA debut for the Tulsa Drillers, but allowed just one run in six innings. He surrendered four hits, walked two and struck out five. (Box Score)
  • Lexington native Ben Revere was 1-4 with a run scored in his AA debut for the New Britian Rock Cats. (Box Score)
  • UK alum Collin Cowgill was 2-4 with a double in his AA debut for the Mobile BayBears. (Box Score)

Bowling Green Hot Rods 2010 Opening Day Roster

Minor League Baseball

The Bowling Green Hot Rods have released their 2010 Opening Day roster for its first season in the Midwest League. The Hot Rods will feature four players, right-handed pitchers Shane Dyer, Jairo De  La Rosa and Deivis Mavares and infielder Robi Estrada, who spent part of 2009 with the team. Five 2010 Hot Rods were ranked by Baseball America on the Tampa Bay Rays’ top 30 prospects list, and I’ve included those rankings next to the players’ name below.

Pitchers

  • RHP Alexander Colome (BA #7) — NDFA (2007)
  • RHP Jairo De La Rosa — NFDA (2002)
  • RHP Shane Dyer — 6th Round (2008)
  • LHP Kyle Lobstein (BA #11) — 2nd Round (2008)
  • RHP Deivis Mavares — NDFA (2007)
  • RHP Jason McEachern (BA #25) — 13th round (2008)
  • RHP Wilking Rodriguez (BA #17) –NDFA (2007)
  • RHP Scott Shuman — 19th Round (2009)
  • LHP Matthew Stabelfeld — 41st Round (2009)
  • LHP Jake Sullivan — 22nd Round (2009)
  • RHP Kirby Yates —

Catchers

  • Mayobanex Acosta — R/R — NDFA (2006)
  • Tomas Francisco — R/R — NDFA (2006)
  • Mark Thomas — R/R — 22nd Round (2006)

Infielders

  • SS — Tyler Bortnick — R/R — 16th round (2009)
  • 3B — Julio Cedeno — R/R — NDFA (2006)
  • 2B — Robi Estrada — S/R — 19th round (2006)
  • SS — Diogenes Luis — S/R — NDFA (2006)
  • 1B — Eli Sonoqui — L/L — 9th round (2006)
  • 2B — Kyle Spraker — R/R — 34th round (2009)
  • 1B — Ryan Wiegand — L/R — 25th round (2009)

Outfielders

  • CF — Dustin Bell — L/R — 5th Round (2007)
  • LF — Ty Morrison (BA #14) — L/R — 4th Round (2008)
  • CF — Christopher Murrill — L/L — 35th Round (2009)
  • RF — Brett Nommensen — L/L — 8th Round (2009)