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Florida State League notebook 05/05/2009 3:22 PM ETBy Kevin T. Czerwinski / Special to MLB.com
Brevard County Manatees (Milwaukee Brewers) THE WEEK THAT WAS: The Manatees went 7-0 and opened a commanding five-game lead over second-place Clearwater in the North Division. Brevard County swept three games from Lakeland and Daytona before opening a series with a win over the Threshers on Monday. At 18-6, the Manatees have the best record in the league. NIFTY NINE: RHP Evan Anundsen pitched the Minor League season's second no-hitter, but the first that went nine innings, in a 1-0 victory at Daytona on April 28. He fanned a career-high 10 in the FSL's first no-hitter since 2006. Caleb Gindl's RBI single in the eighth provided the game's lone run. "I'm a sinkerball pitcher, and my plan of attack is to get as many three-pitch outs as possible," Anundsen said. "I tried to get ahead in the count, and keep guys swinging early and often. I was just sitting there hoping we'd score. Everyone on the team was focusing on their own job, going about their own business. It was a total team effort." Anundsen earned FSL Pitcher of the Week honors as he followed up the no-no by allowing three hits and a run over five innings to beat Lakeland on Sunday. He stretched his hitless streak to 10 1/3 innings before Chris Carlson singled. THIS AND THAT: Josh Butler improved to 4-0 after pitching six shutout innings against Lakeland. The 2006 second-rounder allowed only three hits as he lowered his ERA to 2.96. He has yet to yield a homer in 27 1/3 innings.
Charlotte Stone Crabs (Tampa Bay Rays) WHO'S HOT: Cody Cipriano is ninth in the league in hitting (.321), tops in slugging percentage (.589) and second in on-base percentage (.424). ... Darin Downs is tied for the league lead with four victories. He's also fifth with a 1.75 ERA. ... 3B Greg Sexton is hitting .343 over his last 10 games and .326 for the season. He took a four-game hitting streak into Tuesday's action. THIS AND THAT: Charlotte was in last place in the FSL South Division two weeks ago, but completed its climb to first place Friday with a 5-2 victory over Fort Myers. It was the Stone Crabs' ninth win in 11 games. The Charlotte players also wore pink jerseys to promote breast cancer awareness. The autographed jerseys were raffled off during the game and presented to the fans afterward. ... Charlotte has been caught stealing 16 times, tops among FSL teams. ... The 10 saves by Stone Crabs pitchers are also tops in the league.
Clearwater Threshers (Philadelphia Phillies) NOT ALL BAD: While the Threshers have begun their season in a series of fits and starts, that hasn't been the case for OF Dominic Brown, considered by many to be Philadelphia's top position prospect. He earned FSL Offensive Player of the Week honors after hitting .462 (12-for-26) with three homers and seven RBIs. He swiped a pair of bases, scored six runs and had a .962 slugging percentage during the week. He had a six-game hitting streak snapped Monday, yet still hit .389 in the 10 games heading into Tuesday's action, raising his overall average to .310. His strikeout-to-walk ratio (18-to-14) is also impressive, as is his .394 OBP. THIS AND THAT: The Threshers will host the Big East Baseball Championships from May 18-23 at Bright House Field. ... Kyle Drabek didn't factor into the decision Friday, allowing two earned runs on five hits in five innings against Daytona. He is winless in his last two starts, allowing six earned runs over 10 2/3 innings, after going 3-0 in his first three starts and allowing two earned runs over 18 2/3 innings.
Daytona Cubs (Chicago Cubs) QUOTABLE: "When you're throwing strikes, you have a chance in these day games after a night game, but especially in a morning game," Cubs manager Buddy Bailey told The News Journal after Brevard County's Evan Anundsen no-hit Daytona on the morning of April 28. "[Anundsen] mixed and matched his pitches. He had good sink and movement. He had command of both sides of the plate. When he wanted to throw his breaking ball for a strike, he was able to do it. When he wanted people to chase it out of the zone, he was able to do it." THIS AND THAT: Jake Opitz is off to a great start with Daytona, hitting .385 with two RBIs in 13 at-bats. The second baseman was a 12th-round pick last season. ... Ryan Searle is seventh in the league with a 1.88 ERA. ... Robinson Chirinos is second in the league with four triples. ... After opening the season with a monstrous hitting streak, Russ Canzler has cooled off. He's hitting .189 (7-for-37) in the 10 games heading into Tuesday.
Dunedin Blue Jays (Toronto Blue Jays) WHO'S HOT: Moises Sierra is fifth in the league with a .329 batting average. He's hitting .353 over 10 games and has a .424 on-base percentage (second in the league) for the season. He's also fifth with a .548 slugging percentage. Those are pretty impressive numbers, considering he hit .246 last season for Lansing in the Midwest League. ... Eric Thames is hitting .321, has collected two hits in each of his last three games heading into Tuesday's action and is second in the league with 22 RBIs. ... Reliever Tim Collins is 1-0 with a 1.20 ERA in 15 innings over seven outings. He has 28 strikeouts and only four walks in that span, but isn't the team's closer. That would be Dan Farquhar, who hasn't allowed a run in 11 innings and has six saves. THIS AND THAT: Dunedin's staff is last in the league with a 4.80 ERA and has allowed the most home runs (19). ... Blue Jays batters have struck out the most times (199). ... Darin Mastroianni leads the league with 19 stolen bases.
Fort Myers Miracle (Minnesota Twins) A HELPING HAND: The Miracle will host the fourth annual Special Needs Kids Baseball Camp on May 9 at Hammond Stadium from 10 a.m. until noon. The entire Miracle team and coaches will teach kids the baseball skills of hitting, throwing, catching and fielding. The event affords the opportunity for campers to experience the feeling of being on a professional baseball field. The camp is open to the first 25 players with physical or mental challenges, and is free to all who attend. To register a child for the camp, please call (239) 768-4210, or send an e-mail to Steve Gliner (sgliner@miraclebaseball.com). Include your name, the child's name, full address, phone number, e-mail address and any special needs for your child. THIS AND THAT: The Miracle fell out of first place after losing to Charlotte on Friday. Fort Myers had held onto the top spot for 12 days prior to the defeat. ... Fort Myers is tied for the league lead with 216 hits. The Miracle also have the most stolen bases (52).
Jupiter Hammerheads (Florida Marlins) WHO'S HOT: RHP Kyle Winters is 1-0 with a 0.87 ERA (third best in the league) through five starts. He's walked only four batters over 31 innings and has yet to yield a home run. ... OF Mike Stanton continues to make his case for a callup to Double-A. He's hitting .311 with five homers (tied for the league lead) and 17 RBIs in 90 at-bats. He's got a .398 on-base percentage with 12 of his 28 hits going for extra bases. THIS AND THAT: Right-hander Kris Harvey improved to 3-0 on Sunday, striking out two without allowing an earned run. He's struck out 15 batters over 14 innings this season, has a 1.93 ERA and has held the opposition to a 1.92 batting average. ... The Hammerheads have issued the fewest walks (52) in the league and have the third best team ERA (2.84). Offensively, however, they are last in hitting (.213), last in hits (166) and third from the bottom in runs scored (82).
Lakeland Flying Tigers (Detroit Tigers) WHO'S HOT: Andy Dirks is hitting .316 over his last 10 games, raising his average to .290. He has a .359 OBP and his strikeout-to-walk ratio (11-to-10) is excellent. ... Patrick Stanley has a 1.69 ERA in six games (one start). He's struck out 14 in 16 innings and has limited opposing hitters to a .143 batting average. WHO'S NOT: OF Kody Kaiser is hitting .188 over his last 10 games with 17 strikeouts in 32 at-bats. Overall, he's hitting .215 and has 29 strikeouts in 79 at-bats. ... 3B Roger Tomas is hitting .069 in his last 10 games (2-for-29), lowering his season average to .122. THIS AND THAT: Thad Weber is sixth in the league with a 1.80 ERA. He is also second with 30 innings pitched. ... Duane Below is second with 34 strikeouts. ... Lakeland is next to last in the league with a .223 team batting average. The Flying Tigers are also next to last with 76 runs scored and 170 hits.
Palm Beach Cardinals (St. Louis Cardinals) NICE EFFORT: LHP Nick Additon, a 46th-round pick in 2006, threw six hitless innings on Sunday against Jupiter but was not involved in the decision as Palm Beach lost, 2-1. "It feels really good actually," the South Florida native said. "I've been kind of struggling of late, and it felt good to get back up on the horse and see what it was like to have a good outing, throw strikes and give my team a chance to win. When you're falling behind, you don't have many options you can go to. And not being an overpowering guy, when you're behind in the count, balls get hit hard, balls find holes. It seems like when you're falling behind in the count, there's a lot of bad luck." THIS AND THAT: Palm Beach's eight home runs are the fewest in the Florida State League. ... Cardinal pitchers lead the league with 100 walks, the only staff in the circuit to have reached triple digits in free passes.
Sarasota Reds (Cincinnati Reds) GETTING HOT OVER YONDER: Top pick Yonder Alonso is proving to be one of the few bright spots for Sarasota. He's got his batting average up to .244 and took an eight-game hitting streak into Tuesday's action. In addition, he's making the hits count. He leads the FSL with 26 RBIs and has six over his last five games. THIS AND THAT: Jeremy Horst is eighth in the league with a 1.98 ERA. ... Sarasota pitchers have fanned a league-low 150 batters. They are next to last with a 4.23 team ERA. ... Jerry Gil leads the league with five losses. ... RHP Logan Ondrusek is 1-0 with a 1.15 ERA in 10 appearances. He's allowed two earned runs over 15 2/3 innings, and has not allowed a run in seven consecutive outings (10 1/3 innings). He's held the opposition to a .118 batting average and has yet to allow a home run.
St. Lucie Mets (New York Mets) I LIKE IKE, MAYBE: Ike Davis is hitting .324 over his last 10 games and has his season average up to .292. He hit his first professional homer April 28 against Jupiter. Still, he has only one long ball in 311 professional at-bats, a surprising number for a first-round pick who was drafted for his power. THIS AND THAT: Angel Calero is ninth in the league with a 2.00 ERA. He's a big reason why the Mets are second in the league with a 2.67 ERA. ... Relievers Nicholas Carr, Brant Rustich and Stephen Clyne are a combined 3-0 with a 1.43 ERA over 43 1/3 innings. They also have a pair of saves. ... St. Lucie leads the league with 206 strikeouts, and are the only staff in the circuit to crack the 200-plateau in whiffs. ... Offensively, the Mets lead the league with 19 homers, but are tied for last with 13 steals.
Tampa Yankees (New York Yankees) WHO'S NOT HOT: The team's offensive struggles have been considerable of late. That hasn't been any more evident than in the play of C Jesus Montero. Though Montero took a .311 batting average into Tuesday's game, he was hitting .189 (7-for-37) in the 10 prior games and had nine strikeouts in that span. ... RHP Charles Nolte has a 7.53 ERA in seven outings. Included in that are the seven runs that Dunedin hung on him Saturday. The opposition is hitting .298 against him, and he has issued nine walks in 14 1/3 innings. THIS AND THAT: Wilkin De La Rosa looked sharp in his second start, earning his first victory with five shutout innings at Lakeland on April 28. He followed that up with a no-decision against Dunedin on May 3. He has struck out 17 and compiled a 1.29 ERA in three outings. ... Tampa has the fewest runs scored (75) in the league. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.
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