With the 2007 season in the books, MiLB.com is taking a look back at the year's highlights in each Major League organization.
April 7 -- Mike Hessman went 5-for-5 with three runs scored as Toledo defeated Louisville, 14-2. Ramon Santiago and Brent Clevlen added three RBIs apiece for the Mud Hens, who pounded out 18 hits. April 19 -- Justin Justice went 3-for-4 with a career-high six RBIs and Cameron Maybin scored five runs as Lakeland defeated Dunedin, 13-6. Justice ripped a three-run inside-the-park homer and fell a double shy of the cycle. April 22 -- Jeff Larish drove in a career-high six runs and fell a triple short of the cycle as Erie topped Bowie, 11-6. It was the 18th RBI for the 24-year-old first baseman on his way to an Eastern League-leading 101. That same day, 10 Toledo pitchers combined for 21 strikeouts and Mike Hessman homered twice in a 7-4, 16-inning victory over Durham.
April 23 -- Toledo's Virgil Vasquez was named International League Pitcher of the Week after going 2-0 with 19 strikeouts over 11 shutout innings. He won the award again on June 4. May 7 -- Erie's Andres Torres was named Eastern League Offensive Player of the Week after hitting .550 with a home run and three RBIs. Michael Hernandez won Florida State League honors for Lakeland after batting .421 with three homers and 10 RBIs. May 11 -- Duane Below struck out a career-best 14 over six innings in West Michigan's 4-2 victory over Cedar Rapids. May 12 -- Christopher Cody tied a career high with 13 strikeouts over 7 2/3 innings, but West Michigan fell to Cedar Rapids, 3-2. The 23-year-old southpaw was traded to Milwaukee on July 1. May 15 -- Ovandy Suero became the ninth player in the Minor Leagues to steal four bases in a game in 2007. He swiped second three times and third once as Lakeland edged Sarasota, 2-1. The 25-year-old outfielder went on to lead the Minors with 75 steals. May 17 -- West Michigan stole eight bases in a 5-2 victory over Quad Cities. Deik Scram had three thefts and Gorkys Hernandez, who also stole home on May 4, swiped a pair.
May 27 -- Ryan Raburn became the first Mud Hen in two years to hit for the cycle after homering in his final at-bat of Toledo's 14-5 win over Columbus. The 26-year-old outfielder smacked a triple in the first inning, an RBI double in the second and a single in the third before going deep in the eighth. He was called up to Detroit on July 6 and hit .304 with 27 RBIs in 49 games with the Tigers. June 3 -- Ryan Roberson slugged a walk-off two-run homer in the 11th inning as Lakeland overcame a nine-run deficit to beat St. Lucie, 12-11. The Flying Tigers trailed, 10-1, in the seventh but scored nine runs over the next three frames, including four in the ninth, to force extra innings. June 5 -- West Michigan tied Dayton and Clinton with eight players named to the Midwest League All-Star team. Catcher James Skelton, outfielder Gorkys Hernandez and designated hitter Deik Scram were selected as starters. Scram won MVP honors on June 20, going 1-for-2 with a stolen base and two runs scored. June 9 -- Justin Justice's theft of home was one of Lakeland's eight stolen bases in a 5-3 loss to Brevard County. Ryan Roberson also stole home for the Flying Tigers on on June 19. July 2 -- Gorkys Hernandez and Cameron Maybin were named to the 2007 All-Star Futures Game in San Francisco. That same day, Whitecaps second baseman Scott Sizemore earned Midwest League Offensive Player of the Week honors, going 10-for-25 with a homer, seven RBIs and four straight multi-hit games. July 9 -- Kody Kirkland recorded his second steal of home in 2007 in Erie's 7-4 win against Akron. He also stole home on April 20.
July 11 -- Mud Hens outfielder Timo Perez won the International League Star of Stars Award after going 3-for-4 with a double, two RBIs and a run scored in the Triple-A All-Star Game. He helped the IL defeat the Pacific Coast League, 7-5. Perez hit .322 with 13 homers and 69 RBIs in 122 games for Toledo, then batted .389 (35-for-90) in 29 games with Detroit. July 14-17 -- After striking out his final two batters in an appearance on July 14, Oneonta reliever Collin Mahoney fanned four more for six consecutive strikeouts in the Tigers' 4-0 loss to Jamestown.
July 15-16 -- Guillermo Moscoso hurled the second nine-inning perfect game in New York-Penn League history and the first since 1956 as Oneonta blanked Batavia, 6-0. The 23-year-old right-hander struck out seven in his fifth start and extended his scoreless streak to 20 2/3 frames. A day later, he earned NYPL Pitcher of the Week honors. July 22 -- A week after teammate Guillermo Moscoso's perfect game, Sean Finefrock yielded one hit -- a second-inning double -- over a career-high eight innings as Oneonta blanked Mahoning Valley, 4-0. The 2007 35th-round draft pick struck out three, walked one and lowered his ERA to 3.04.
July 30 -- Dane Sardinha was the only Tigers farmhand to belt three homers in a game in 2007, helping Toledo pound Richmond, 10-3. The 28-year-old catcher connected off three different pitchers for a career-high seven RBIs. That same day, West Michigan's Jonah Nickerson earned co-Midwest League Pitcher of the Week honors after tossing a two-hitter against Cedar Rapids. Aug. 1 -- Jair Jurrjens hurled a three-hitter for his first shutout in more than three years as Erie blanked New Britain, 5-0. The 21-year-old right-hander struck out 10 en route to securing the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week award. Aug. 4 -- Daniel Worth went 3-for-4 and was the third Lakeland player to steal home this season in the Flying Tigers' 8-7 victory over Fort Myers. Aug. 5 -- Chris Carlson went 3-for-3 with a homer and a career-high six RBIs as Oneonta trounced Lowell, 18-7. The 23-year-old first baseman reached safely in all four of his plate appearances, while Casper Wells went 4-for-7 and fell a homer shy of the cycle. Aug. 8 -- Jeramy Laster belted two homers and drove in a career-high eight runs as West Michigan pounded Clinton, 15-4. The 22-year-old right fielder stroked a three-run double in the first inning, a two-run homer in the fifth and a three-run blast in the seventh to set a club record for RBIs in a game. Aug. 9 -- Angel Castro hurled eight hitless innings as Lakeland defeated Vero Beach, 6-1. The 24-year-old right-hander walked four and struck out three but was lifted after reaching his pitch count. The same day, Oneonta's Justin Henry, Ron Borquin, Chris Carlson, Casper Wells, Noah Krol and Guillermo Moscoso were selected to the New York-Penn League All-Star team
Aug. 14 -- Oneonta's Chris Carlson was named Player of the Game in the New York-Penn League All-Star Game. He keyed a three-run eighth-inning rally with a single in the American League's 6-4 win. Starter Guillermo Moscoso allowed two runs on two hits in the first inning and Noah Krol fanned one in the ninth to record the save. Aug. 17 -- Detroit called up top prospect Cameron Maybin. Maybin, taken 11th overall in the 2005 First-Year Player Draft, hit .316 with 14 homers, 53 RBIs and 25 stolen bases at three Minor League levels in 2007 but batted .143 with a homer and two RBIs in 24 games for Detroit. Aug. 18 -- Burke Badenhop pitched a two-hitter in a seven-inning complete game and teammate Randor Bierd followed with five perfect innings in his second Double-A start as Erie swept a twinbill from Altoona. Badenhop took a no-hitter into the sixth and Bierd fanned four in his longest outing since September 2006.
Aug. 21-27 -- Virgil Vasquez hurled a two-hitter as Toledo blanked Indianapolis, 4-0. The 25-year-old right-hander walked one and struck out seven in his sixth career complete game. He also won his next start, pitching seven strong innings as the Mud Hens clinched their third straight division title with a 4-1 victory over the Indians. He went on to win Pitcher of the Week honors for the third time.
Aug. 26 -- Michael Hernandez clubbed two homers, including a grand slam and plated a season-high six runs to power Erie to a 12-4 victory and a four-game sweep of Bowie. The 23-year-old right fielder collected 11 RBIs in the series. Aug. 28 -- Toledo's Mike Hessman was named International League MVP and secured a spot on the Postseason All-Star team. Timo Perez also was selected to the team. That same day, West Michigan's Gorkys Hernandez was named Midwest League MVP. Teammate James Skelton joined him on the postseason All-Star squad. Sept. 3 -- Jeff Larish belted a grand slam to help Erie defeat Altoona, 9-4, and clinch the Eastern League Southern Division title. The Arizona State product finished the season with a league-leading 28 homers and 101 RBIs, but the SeaWolves fell to Akron in the first round of the playoffs. Sept. 4-5 -- Phil Brackman fired 8 2/3 innings of one-hit ball as Oneonta blanked Tri-City, 4-0. The following day, the Tigers won the New York-Penn League Stedler Division title with a 14-8 victory over Aberdeen. Sept. 6-9 -- After West Michigan completed a first-round sweep of Lansing on Sept. 6, James Skelton went 3-for-3 with a double and two RBIs as the Whitecaps edged South Bend, 6-5, to clinch a spot in the Midwest League Championship Series. Sept. 10 -- Pinch-hitter Michael Sullivan's RBI single in the 11th inning gave Oneonta a 1-0 victory over Auburn in Game 1 of its New York-Penn League playoff series. Three Oneonta pitchers combined to allow four hits while fanning 11. The Tigers dropped the next two games to the Doubledays.
Sept. 15 -- Michael Bertram had three hits and two RBIs as West Michigan defeated Beloit, 11-5, to win its second straight Midwest League title. It was the fifth championship in 14 seasons for the Whitecaps, second to Wisconsin's seven titles. Michael Avallone is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs. |
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