Eastern League notebook

Akron Aeros (Cleveland Indians)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Aeros are 53-28 and in first place in the Southern Division, 5.5 games ahead of Reading.

WHO'S HOT: RHP Steven Wright earned the win in the second game of a doubleheader at Bowie on Thursday, delivering 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief while allowing only a pair of hits. It was the eighth consecutive scoreless relief appearance for Wright, who extended his streak to 16 consecutive shutout innings. The 24-year-old improved to 6-0 on the season. In relief, he is 5-0 with a 1.27 ERA in 28 1/3 innings with 24 strikeouts and just six walks.

TRIPLE TROUBLE: Akron executed the first triple play in franchise history Friday, dating back to 1989 when the club moved from Canton. In the bottom of the fourth inning at Bowie, the Baysox threatened to take the lead. Ambiorix Concepcion opened the frame with a double, and Aeros starter Josh Tomlin plunked Guillermo Rodriguez to put runners at first and second with no outs. Daniel Figueroa then popped up a sacrifice bunt that Tomlin caught for the first out, then fired to SS Carlos Rivero to double-off Concepcion. Rivero completed the play by throwing the ball to 1B Matt McBride in time to get Rodriguez. It was the first triple play in the Eastern League since 2007, when Binghamton's Mark Kiger, Wilson Batista and Brett Harper went around the horn to turn a 5-4-3 triple play.

DID YOU KNOW?: The Aeros kept their flawless record against the Senators intact in the series opener Saturday night and through Sunday's doubleheader, improving to 11-0 against Harrisburg on the season. ... Akron pitching notched a season-high 14 strikeouts in Saturday's win at Harrisburg.

ROSTER MOVES: RHP Hector Rondon was promoted to Triple-A Columbus on Sunday and LHP Bobby Livingston was signed as a Minor League free agent and assigned to Akron in Rondon's place. Rondon, the Aeros ace, opened the season by winning his first five starts before going on to a 7-5 mark with a 2.75 ERA. Rondon's ERA was fifth-best in the Eastern League, his victories were in a four-way tie for fourth in the league and his 73 strikeouts in 72 innings were tied for fifth in the league. Livingston, 26, agreed to terms with the Indians on Saturday after exercising a clause in his contract with the Baltimore Orioles that allowed him to ask for his release if he was not in the big leagues by July 1. He began the season with Double-A Bowie and pitched against the Aeros four times while going 6-2 with a 3.62 ERA so far this season. Livingston also made three starts for Triple-A Norfolk, going 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA.

MORE ON LIVINGSTON: He was originally drafted by the Seattle Mariners in the fourth round (129th overall) in 2001 and started the Texas League All-Star Game in 2005. Livingston made his Major League debut for Seattle against the Chicago White Sox on April 25, 2006. Despite being a pitcher, Livingston went 4-for-4 with an RBI for Cincinnati in a 10-3 victory over Atlanta in July 2007 at Turner Field -- a game in which he also earned the win. Livingston owns a record of 3-3 with a 6.31 ERA in 13 Major League games (10 starts) for Seattle and Cincinnati in 2006 and 2007.

ALL-STARS: Akron was one of three teams with five players named to the squad last week. The Eastern League All-Star Game is scheduled to be played July 15 at Trenton's Waterfront Park. 1B Beau Mills, C Carlos Santana, OF Nick Weglarz, RHP Hector Rondon and RHP/closer Vinnie Pestano will represent the Southern Division roster.

Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Curve are 29-36 and in last place in the Southern Division, 24.5 games behind Akron.

WHO'S HOT: The Curve bullpen has been up and down all season but has been trending up as of late. In nine games prior to Saturday's action, the bullpen had allowed just five earned runs over 35 innings for a sparkling 1.29 ERA. In addition, the relief corps enjoyed a stretch of 17 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings from June 26-30, driving down the group's ERA from 5.03 to 4.56.

ROSTER MOVES: OF Jonel Pacheco was promoted to Triple-A Indianapolis on Saturday. The 26-year-old left as the team leader with nine homers and tied for the team lead with 37 RBIs. ... C Milver Reyes was also promoted to Indianapolis, and C Miguel Perez was sent back to Altoona from Triple-A. ... The Curve also received INF Ray Chang from Class A Advanced Lynchburg after he batted .303 with 28 RBIs in 36 games for the Hillcats. Chang appeared in five games for the Curve last season, hitting .333 (2-for-6).

ALL-STARS: LHP Daniel Moskos, the Pirates' 2007 first-round Draft pick, was one of three Altoona players named to the Eastern League All-Star Game, taking place July 15 in Trenton. Joining Moskos to represent the Southern Division will be SS Brian Friday and OF/IB Jason Delaney. ... In his rookie campaign with the Curve, Moskos has posted a 3.98 ERA in 15 games (14 starts). Friday, also in his first season in Double-A, is batting .256 with five homers and 18 RBIs, while Delaney is in his third season with the Curve and was an All-Star last season as well. This year's nod for Delaney came via fan balloting.

HE SAID IT: "This is a terrific honor for Daniel, Brian and Jason," Curve manager Matt Walbeck told the Altoona Mirror. "All three have been a big part of our team this year, and I'm happy to see them recognized for their contributions."

Binghamton Mets (New York Mets)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Mets are 30-50 and in last place in the Northern Division, 16 games behind Connecticut.

WHO'S HOT: 3B Shawn Bowman is batting .323 (10-for-31) with three RBIs over his last eight games. ... 1B Ike Davis has two home runs and six RBIs over his last eight contests.

WHO'S NOT: Thursday's lopsided 12-2 loss to visiting New Hampshire -- which included a season-high-tying 19 hits allowed for the Mets -- marked Binghamton's third straight defeat and its 23rd in the last 31 games. It also came a night after B-Mets manager Mako Oliveras held his third closed-door, post-game meeting in as many weeks.

HE SAID IT: "Sometimes a good coach just (has) to know when to back off a little bit, and let them figure it out," Oliveras told the Binghamton Press & Sun Bulletin.

ALL-STARS: Two of Binghamton's best hitters and its top relief pitcher have been picked to represent the team at the Eastern League All-Star Game. C Josh Thole, OF D.J. Wabick and LHP Roy Merritt were named to the North Division team for the July 15 contest at Trenton's Waterfront Park.

DID YOU KNOW?: Thole's selection came the same day he was placed on the seven-day disabled list with a dislocated left thumb, which he suffered June 30 against New Hampshire. Thole ranked second in the Eastern League with a .346 batting average and third in both hits (89) and doubles (31) upon his selection. ... Wabick ranks fourth on the team in batting with a .291 and has 30 RBIs. Wabick hit just .205 in April, but he caught fire in May, hitting .377 for the month. ... Merritt is 4-4 with a team-high 11 saves and a 2.95 ERA in 32 relief appearances. He converted nine of his 10 save opportunities in April. After struggling a bit in May, Merritt has returned to form. In his last four outings, he is 2-0 and has allowed just one earned run.

COULTAS DONE: RHP Ryan Coultas' season came to an abrupt halt last week when it was revealed the former infielder, who became one of the B-Mets' best starting pitchers this season, requires surgery to repair a torn labrum in his right shoulder. Coultas, who began his career as a shortstop but switched to pitching in 2007, had been one of the better stories for the B-Mets this season. He went 4-3 in 11 starts with a 2.78 ERA, the best of any B-Mets starter. He hadn't pitched since June 9 due to soreness in his shoulder.

Bowie Baysox (Baltimore Orioles)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Baysox are 45-37 and in third place in the Southern Division, 8.5 games behind Akron.

WHO'S HOT: 1B Eric Crozier reached base in all four of his plate appearances June 29, including a two-run homer in the first inning, as the Baysox toppled Altoona, 5-1. In 16 games since joining the team, Crozier is batting .288 (15-for-52) with four doubles, a triple, three home runs and 11 RBIs.

HE SAID IT: "It felt good to do something good against Akron," Crozier said in a team press release after hitting a triple in the Baysox's 3-0 shutout against his former team Thursday. "I have a lot of old friends on that team over there."

ALL-STARS: Four Baysox players were named to the Eastern League All-Star Game: LF Jonathan Tucker, 2B Miguel Abreu, and relievers Ryan Ouellette and Josh Perrault.

DID YOU KNOW?: At the time of his All-Star selection last week, Abreu led the team in batting average (.293), RBIs (25) and doubles (18). He also ranked second in runs scored (33) and stolen bases (16).

ROSTER MOVES: LHP Bobby Livingston was released by the Baltimore Orioles on July 1, and RHP Luis Lebron was promoted to Bowie from Class A Advanced Frederick on July 2. ... Livingston was 6-2 with a 3.62 ERA in 13 games with the Baysox this season. He also started three games for Triple-A Norfolk, going 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA over 20 innings. ... Lebron was 2-3 with 11 saves and a 3.00 ERA in 28 games for Frederick this season. Lebron, signed by the Orioles as a non-drafted free agent in January 2004, struck out 52 batters in 33 innings.

Connecticut Defenders (San Francisco Giants)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Defenders are 46-34 and in first place in the Northern Division, five games ahead of New Britain.

WHO'S HOT: 1B Brett Pill is hitting at a .400 clip (16-for-40) with two homers, 10 RBIs and seven runs scored over his last 10 games. ... 2B Brock Bond is batting .344 (11-for-32) with eight runs scored and four RBIs over his last eight games. ... RF Eddy Martinez-Esteve is batting .389 (14-for-36) with a home run, five RBIs and four runs scored over his last 10 games.

WHO'S NOT: CF Mike Mooney is hitting a cool .167 with just four hits over his last nine games.

THE FUTURE IS NOW: LHP Madison Bumgarner was named to the U.S. Team and will participate in the XM Futures Game on July 12 in St. Louis. Bumgarner joins former teammate Angel Villalona (San Jose) as the only two players representing the Giants.

ALL-STARS: The Defenders have four players who were named to the Eastern League All-Star Game: Bond, Martinez-Esteve, Bumgarner and LHP Joe Paterson.

MORE ON THE ALL-STARS: Bond earned his first All-Star nod since being signed by the Giants in 2007 out of the University of Missouri. ... Martinez-Esteve came into Spring Training 20 pounds lighter than he was last season and earned his third trip to an All-Star team since 2005, when he was named to the California Mid- and Post-Season teams. ... Paterson (2-2, 1.53 ERA) has been a nightmare for left-handed batters and earned his first All-Star appearance. In addition to holding all opponents to a dismal .190 batting average, he owns a .063 batting average against with 31 strikeouts vs. lefties. ... Bumgarner (5-1, 1.96 ERA), one of the Giants' top-rated prospects, received a promotion to Double-A on May 9, and the 19-year-old quickly earned his second All-Star honor to add to his already stellar list of accomplishments.

Erie SeaWolves (Detroit Tigers)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The SeaWolves are 43-38 and in fourth place in the Southern Division, 10 games behind Akron.

WHO'S HOT: OF Brennan Boesch is second in the league with 17 home runs, tied for fourth with 54 RBIs and second with 39 extra-base hits. He leads Erie in all three categories.

WHO'S NOT: The SeaWolves were mired in a season-high six-game losing streak on the road over the weekend at Binghamton's NYSEG Stadium. Erie's road troubles continued Friday as they were shut out by the B-Mets, 4-0, marking the seventh time this season that the 'Wolves have failed to score a run. Erie now owns the third-fewest road wins (15) in the league. The team's last road win came June 21 at New Hampshire -- a 9-4 extra-innings victory.

ALL-STARS: Despite the team's overall struggles, five SeaWolves players were named to the Eastern League All-Star Game: P Josh Rainwater, C Alex Avila, INF/OF Ryan Strieby, OF Brennan Boesch and OF Deik Scram.

DID YOU KNOW?: Erie's pitching staff ranks seventh in the league with a 3.88 team ERA. ... The team's offense is fifth in the league with a .261 batting average. ... The SeaWolves lead the league with 88 home runs and 399 runs scored.

Harrisburg Senators (Washington Nationals)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Senators are 34-45 and in fifth place in the Southern Division, 18 games behind Akron.

WHO'S HOT: LHP Jack Spradlin, the reigning Eastern League Picher of the Week, has put together a standout season from the the Sens' bullpen, going 4-1 with three saves and a 2.22 ERA. He has not given up a run in his last 13 1/3 innings of work.

ROSTER MOVES: RHP Adrian Alaniz was activated from the disabled list, and LHP Dave Williams was promoted to Triple-A Syracuse on Sunday. ... On June 30, LHP Yunior Novoa was activated from the disabled list, and INF Matt Whitney was placed on the disabled list. Also, INF Dimitri Young joined the Senators while continuing his MLB rehab after appearing in three games with the Gulf Coast League Nationals.

ALL-STARS: INF/OF Leonard Davis, LHP Jack Spradlin and RHP Josh Wilkie were named Easter League Southern Division All-Stars last week and will participate in the July 15 extravaganza in Trenton.

MORE ON THE ALL-STARS: In his first full season with Harrisburg, Davis was batting .285 with 11 home runs and a team-leading 38 RBIs when selected. He batted .309 with five homers and 20 RBIs in June to help the Sens to their first 20-win month in over five years. ... Spradlin owns a 0.64 ERA over his last 15 outings, spanning 25 1/3 innings, and has inherited 18 runners this season without allowing any of them to score. ... Wilkie has also been solid in relief for Harrisburg this year. He is 5-1 with a save and a 2.68 ERA. In 40 1/3 innings he has struck out 33 and walked just 12. He is currently riding a scoreless streak of 9 2/3 innings that dates back to June 14.

DID YOU KNOW?: Davis was selected in the eighth round of the 2004 Draft by the Expos. He was the 2008 Nationals Minor League Player of the Year, playing at three different levels in the Nats organization. This is the second time he has been named an All-Star; he was a mid-season selection for Hagerstown in 2007.

New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota Twins)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Rock Cats are 41-39 and in second place in the Northern Division, five games behind Connecticut.

ORGANIZATIONAL HONORS: 1B Whit Robbins was the Minnesota Twins Minor League Player of the Month for May. During the month, Robbins batted .386 with eight doubles, five home runs, 19 runs scored and 18 RBIs in 27 games. He also posted a .614 slugging percentage and .458 on-base percentage. Robbins has been one of the offensive leaders for the Rock Cats this season, hitting .306 with 16 doubles, seven home runs, 37 runs scored and 31 RBIs in 65 games in his first Double-A season.

DID YOU KNOW?: With the team's June 29 crowd, the Rock Cats eclipsed the 200,000 attendance barrier at the earliest point of any season in franchise history.

ALL-STARS: Five members of the Rock Cats will proudly represent the Northern Division roster in the Eastern League All-Star Game: 2B Brian Dinkelman, RHP Matt Fox, 1B Whit Robbins, RHP Anthony Slama and OF Rene Tosoni.

MORE ON THE ALL-STARS: Dinkleman was selected after batting .298 with 18 doubles, two triples, four home runs and 39 RBIs in 69 games. ... Fox was 6-2 with a tidy 2.98 ERA. ... Robbins was batting a healthy .307 (12th in the league) with 17 doubles, one triple, seven home runs and 33 RBIs in 67 games. ... Slama, New Britain's closer, has posted a 4-2 record with 15 saves and a 2.53 ERA in 35 appearances. ... Tosoni has hit a solid .279 with 15 doubles, three triples, 10 home runs and a team-leading 47 RBIs. Tosoni's powerful throwing arm is among the most respected in the league.

ALL-STAR TRIVIA: The 2009 Rock Cats All-Stars are seeking to replicate the MVP performance of Luke Hughes last year, who was named the "Star of Stars" at the 2008 All-Star Game in Manchester, N.H.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Toronto Blue Jays)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Fisher Cats are 37-44 and in fifth place in the Northern Division, 9.5 games behind Connecticut.

WHO'S HOT: 1B Brian Dopirak collected his Eastern League-leading 65th RBI while extending his hitting streak to a franchise-record 18 consecutive games Sunday at Merchantsauto.com Stadium. ... New Hampshire pitchers matched a season-high 12 strikeouts twice in a recent Portland series while recording 32 K's in the three-game set.

WHO'S NOT: The Fisher Cats went a miserable 8-18 in June.

MORE ON THE STREAK: Dopirak's hitting streak is his longest since the 2004 season, when he pieced together a 27-game hit streak for Class A Lansing. ... Maikel Jova (2004), Adam Lind (2006) and Aaron Mathews (2007) each recorded 16-game hit streaks while playing for New Hampshire.

ALL-STARS: Three Fisher Cats were named to the Northern Division All-Star team: Dopirak, Brian Jeroloman and Rey Gonzalez. The All-Star nod marks Jeroloman's second as he was also selected last season for the All-Star Game at Merchantsauto.com Stadium.

DID YOU KNOW?: The Fisher Cats extended their winning streak to a season-high five games with a 2-1 win over Portland before 8,072 fans Saturday at Merchantsauto.com Stadium. ... The crowd, the sixth largest to attend a game at Merchantsauto.com Stadium, saw New Hampshire play in special red, white and blue uniforms. The team played as the Primaries, which was the initial nickname of the Fisher Cats.

Portland Sea Dogs (Boston Red Sox)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Sea Dogs are 38-42 and in fourth place in the Northern Division, eight games behind Connecticut.

WHO'S HOT: DH Jon Still has three homers, 10 RBIs and seven runs scored over his last 10 games, batting .282 (11-for-39) along the way.

WHO'S NOT: Portland, which has not won more than three consecutive games this season, dropped seven of their last 10 series. ... The Sea Dogs hit .232 (202-for-872) in June.

ALL-STARS: Four Sea Dogs were selected as Northern Division All-Stars: INFs Lars Anderson and Jorge Jimenez and RHPs T.J. Large and Junichi Tazawa.

DID YOU KNOW?: RHP Junichi Tazawa became the ninth player in franchise history to be selected to the Future's Game. ... Portland has had two coaches selected in Todd Claus (2006) and Ron Johnson (2003). ... Former Futures players include Clay Buchholz (2007), Edgar Martinez (2006), Hanley Ramirez (2005), Juan Perez (2004), Jorge De La Rosa (2003), Kevin Youkilis (2003), A.J. Burnett (1999) and Pablo Ozuna (1999).

ROSTER MOVES: LHP Tommy Hottovy was assigned to Portland from Class A Short-Season Lowell on Saturday, and RHP Adam Mills was placed on the Lowell roster.

Reading Phillies (Philadelphia Phillies)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Phillies are 47-33 and in second place in the Southern Division, 5.5 games behind Akron.

WHO'S HOT: Reading matched its season high in runs scored and hits (18) in a 12-2 romp over Trenton on June 29 in the finale of a four-game series at Waterfront Park. The Phillies moved to 14 games over .500 (47-33) for the first time since August 24, 2002, with a 7-5 victory over Connecticut on Saturday.

DID YOU KNOW: OF Michael Taylor ranked seventh in all of Minor League Baseball through Thursday with 97 hits and 167 total bases.

MAJOR HELP: Philadelphia Phillies LHP Scott Eyre pitched a scoreless seventh inning in his second rehab appearance with Reading on Friday. The Phillies scored an unearned run in the 11th inning to escape with a 4-3 win over Altoona. Eyre gave up a hit and a walk while striking out two. During the short outing, he threw 22 pitches -- 12 for strikes.

STREAKING: The Phillies have a handful of players riding moderate hitting streaks in 1B Kevin Mahar (11 consecutive games), 2B Brad Harman (nine), 3B Neil Sellers (eight) and 1B Brian Stavisky (seven).

IBANEZ SIGHTING: Philadelphia LF Raul Ibanez worked out at FirstEnergy Stadium for three consecutive days last week. On the disabled list with a strained left groin since June 18, Ibanez took batting practice Wednesday but did not play in the game. Despite his inactivity, Ibanez ranked third in the National League in home runs (22), fourth in RBIs (59) and sixth in runs scored (51) while batting .312.

Trenton Thunder (New York Yankees)
THE SEASON SO FAR: The Thunder are 40-40 and in third place in the Northern Division, six games behind Connecticut.

WHO'S HOT: The Trenton pitching staff struck out 15 Erie batters Friday, three short of the team record (against Binghamton on April 9). Thunder pitchers lead the league in strikeouts (591).

WHO'S NOT: Since reaching their high watermark this season at seven games over .500 on June 5 (30-23), the Thunder have gone 9-17. Over that rough stretch, Trenton has gone from holding a half-game lead in the Northern Division to sitting seven games out of first place.

DID YOU KNOW?: Trenton halted a season-high six-game losing streak (its longest skid since last July) with Friday's victory. During the six games, the Thunder hit just .237 as a team while the pitching staff owned a gaudy 7.53 ERA, allowing 70 hits in just 49 innings.

ALL-STARS: The Thunder had five players selected to the 2009 Eastern League All-Star Game, which will be played in their home park. RHPs Zach McAllister and Josh Schmidt and INFs Reegie Corona, Eduardo Nunez and Jorge Vazquez were named to the Northern Division roster.

MAJOR HELP: New York Yankees C Jose Molina was scheduled to make a rehabilitation start for the Thunder on Sunday against New Britain. Molina was placed on the disabled list May 8 with a strained left quad. The 10-year Major League veteran has appeared in 518 games between the Cubs, Angels and Yankees. He has a career average of .238 with 20 homers and 131 RBIs.

MOLINA TRIVIA: Molina holds the distinction of having hit the last home run in the history of Yankee Stadium. He is one of three in his family currently playing in the Majors -- San Francisco's Bengie Molina and St. Louis' Yadier Molina are his brothers.