David Welch wins Minor League Pitcher of the Week

One Aussie making waves in the minors at the moment is 25-year old David Welch. He is a lanky left handed starter who is playing for the Huntsville Stars in the Double-A Southern League. He has been pretty consistent all year, but has been particularly good in his last few starts. On 28 May, he pitched 6 innings, giving up 3 hits, no earned runs, and 2 walks to receive a no-decision. He followed that up with a no-hitter (over 7 innings in the second game of a double header) on 2 Jun, walking 2 and striking out 6. Not bad hey? And then on 7 Jun he delivered another impressive performance, allowing 6 hits and 1 earned run over 6 innings, striking out 1.

His record for the year is now 13 games, 8-1, 3,11 ERA, 75.1 IP, 70 hits 27 walks and 38 strikeouts. These efforts were enough to earn him the Minor League Pitcher of the Week award from MILB.com.

Aussie Updates (11 Jun 08)

Two Aussies in action today:

Phil Stockman
...got a bit of work as a one out guy for the Braves when they met the Cubs. And he did his job well. With two out in the bototm of the 8th, and after giving up 4 runs, the Braves tossed the ball to Phil to end the inning. He faced Kosuke Fukudome and did a might fine job of striking him out. Stockman's first three pitches were fastballs in the low 90s. He missed with the first, but got called strikes on the second two, hitting the outside corner. He then plopped in a 78mph curve on the outside corner for a swinging strike three. That's a good 12-15mph less than the fastballs and damn hard to hit in that situation. That ended the inning, and Stockman was not required in the 9th, as the Braves were unable to meet the Cubs 10-5 lead.

Justin Huber
...started today for the Padres as they faced the Mets and their hot rookie Clayton Kershaw. Huber did some good things, and some bad things. The good: he took his average up to .222 by going 1-for-2 with a line drive single to right field. He also played an important role in scoring one of the Padres' 2 runs. In the 6th inning, with 1 out and with runners on 1 and 2, Huber laid down a perfect sacrifice bunt to move the runners around. One of the runners went on to score.

The bad: in the top of the 7th inning, a regulation fly ball went to left centre field. Im not sure what actually happened, whether Huber lost it in the lights, or thought Hairston was gonna catch it, or what, but what should have been a catch dropped down for a base hit. It was not charged as an error, but it cost the Padres, as it was part of a rally that saw the Dodgers score 4 runs. Huber was pinch hit for later in the game when RHP and general big unit Johnathon Broxton was brought in for the Dodgers.

Snelling stays with Phillies, accepts AAA Assignment

Chris Snelling has ended speculation that he may have become a free agent after being designated for assignment by the Phillies earlier this week. He has accepted the assignment to AAA Lehigh Valley, and will therefore retain his "above award" pay check. While there was some talk that Snelling could have signed with the Mets or the Mariners, really it is not surprising that he accepted the assignment to Lehigh Valley. As much as Snelling might have plenty of fans, and a bit of a cult following, it wouldnt make much sense for either the Mets or the Mariners to sign a relatively unproven, injury-prone player at this point.

Snelling might be able to get a few good outcomes from the assignment. By going back to Lehigh Valley, he should be able to assume a senior position within the clubhouse and really develop the other outfielders in the team. The Pigs are 23-43 at the moment, and are 16.5 games off the lead. Things need a bit of work. If Snelling can exert a bit of energy, enthusiasm and improvement at Lehigh Valley, he will improve his sell- or trade-ability. The other option is that he will get some more time at the Phillies; either due to injury, or a late season callup when the rosters expand.

For now, we wish Chris well for his time back at the Pigs. Stay tuned for updates on his progress.

Aussie Updates (9 Jun 08)

Two Aussies in action today:

Grant Balfour pitched in the Rays' loss to the Rangers. He came into the game in the bottom of the 8th with one out and a runner on first. He battled Frank Catalanotto, throwing a couple of pickoff attempts on the way to walking him on 6 pitches. He was steady in the mid-90s against the next batter, David Murphy, and struck him out swinging on a 2-2 fastball. Balfour really pitched around Ranger's DH Milton Bradley, who is hitting .340 this year. He walked him on four pitches to load the bases and come up against Brandon Boggs. He again hit the mid-90s on his fastball, as he struck him out looking at a 2-2 fastball.

Justin Huber did himself a favour today, picking up a pinch hit single as the Padres swept the Mets. In the 4th inning Khalil Greene led off with a single, and was then out as Luke Carlin grounded into a force out at two, leaving Carlin on one. Huber came in to pinch hit and, after taking the first pitch for a strike, he kept things moving along by slapping a single to left field, moving Carlin over to second. Jody Gerut then hit a single to centre, scoring Carlin. Huber ended up being left on base. The Padres went on to win 8-6 on the back of a pinch hit homer from Tony Clark (at last), and Huber took his average back over .200; to .212.

What will Snelling do?

A quick browse of the net this morning shows there is a bit of talk about where Chris Snelling could end up if he declines the assignment to AAA with the Phillies. Here are two Mets blogs that expressed some interest in adding Snelling as another outfielder, and there is a bit of (perhaps not too serious) chatter on this Mariners blog, that suggest he could end up back there.

Both the Mets and the Mariners have underperformed this year, with the Mariners struggling at the bottom of the AL West - 16.5 games behind the Angels, and the Mets 4th out of 5 in the NL East, 7.5 games behind the Phillies. Its probably no coincedence then that these teams have been mentioned as probable signers for Snelling. I think that surely either of these teams would be better options for Snelling than AAA Lehigh Valley, who have stank all year. But I guess it depends a bit on the money and the opportunities. Snelling is still quite young at 26, so he has plenty of time up his sleeve.

Aussie Updates (5-8 Jun)

There has been a stack of Aussie news over the past few days; plenty of Aussies in MLB action; call ups and send downs; villains; heroes, the whole bit. For Phil Stockman and Chris Snelling especially, there was some very quick changes of fortune.

Welcome back
...Phil Stockman. Phil had one of the shortest ever stints in AAA. As reported on Tuesday, Stockman was optioned back to Richmond to make room for John Smoltz on the Braves MLB roster. However, within 48 hours, he was recalled to the Braves squad, as Smoltz faced season-ending surgery.

Stockman had rushed to Durham by Wednesday (Aus time) to join Richmond's game against the bulls. During the second inning he found out he had been called back up:


"Everyone was laughing when I came into the dugout ... and I said, 'Is this a joke or what?' I'd never heard of this," Stockman said.


Stockman got a few days rest with Atlanta before pitching today in their loss to the Phillies. He came into the game with one out in the top of the ninth, with the Phillies up 8-2. Stockman faced the 2-3-4 hitters in the Philly lineup: in-form Shane Victorino, NL-RBI leader Chase Utley, and power man Ryan Howard. He got Victorino to fly out to left field, and then hit Utley with his first pitch (which is probably not a bad idea the way Utley has been hitting). He then finished the inning by getting Ryan Howard to pop up to shortstop. The Braves were unable to overcome the 6-run lead, and lost 8-2.


(Kind of) A hero one day, sent packing the next


...As Phil Stockman was having his adventure to Durham and back earlier in the week, Chris Snelling was being re-activated on the Phillies' roster. He was expected to play a role in the Phillies' series against the Reds, who boast a strong right handed rotation but he did not end up making an appearance. It was not until the 10th inning of the Phils' game against the Braves yesterday (Fri in the US) that Chris got the chance to makean impact, and make an impact he certainly did.


With the game tied at 2-2, Snelling came in to pinch hit in the leadoff spot in the top of the 10th. It was a quality at-bat from Chris: he took the first four pitches, 3 balls and a strike, all of them mid-90s fastballs. With a 3-1 count he smacked the 5th fastball for a double to centerfield (you can watch the hit here). Much like his leadoff homerun against the Astros back in April, Snello's hit sparked a bit of a rally from the Phillies. His hit was overshadowed by the feats of Shane Victorino - who went on to hit a triple that scored the pinch runner So Taguchi, and then threw out the winning run at the plate to end the game - but it was an indication that Snelling can make big league impact.


After Friday's (yesterday in Aus) game, Snelling boasted a .500 average and a 1.500 slugging % in the majors this year - mind you he only had 4 at bats :). However, he now find himself being designated for assignment and optioned back to AAA Lehigh Valley. The Philadelphia Inquirer is reporting that the Phillies' Jayson Werth has returned from the DL, which means that room needs to be made on the roster to accommodate him. The loser in the piece is Snelling. Philadelphia skipper Charlie Manuel said: "He can hit, he's got a good swing. He works hard at his hitting. But the way it sets up, it's hard to keep him....If we can find the room, he's definitely a guy we'd consider keeping around to hit". You can read some fan comments on this news here and here.


Snelling can become a free agent if he doesnt accept his assignment to Lehigh Valley, but there doesnt seem to be any immediate contenders to sign him up. He has three days to decide what to do, and the Inquirer reckons that because he is signed to a $450,000 contract, he will accept it. Stay tuned for more as it happens (or as is the case today, a few days after:) ).

Huber getting lots of game time, not many results
... Justin Huber started for the Padres on Thursday (Wed in US) as they played the Cubs. He also started the Padres last two games against the Mets (Saturday and Sunday here) Friday/Sat in US), with their left handed starters Johan Santana and Oliver Perez. The Padres have won 4 in a row in this time, which is a good thing, and Huber has done some good things, but his average has dropped below .200 again, and he made a pretty dodgy defensive play today.

On Thursday the Padres broke the Cubs 9-game winning streak. It was a good pitching performance from Greg Maddux, and a closely fought game. Huber started the game in left and got off on the right foot, taking a screamer off the bat of Jim Edmonds in the 2nd inning, to rob him of a base hit (you can check out the catch on MLB Gameday. He followed this up with a 2-2 line drive single to right field in the bottom of the second, before striking out to end the 4th inning. In the sixth inning he got a hold of one to deep center, that would have probably been a homer at many other fields. However, Jim Edmonds returned the favour, showing pace that was nowhere to be seen during his time with the Pads earlier this year, to rob Huber of an XBH in front of the 400 sign and end the inning.


Batting 7th for the Padres is a tough gig at the moment, with strikeout king Khalil Greene hitting at 6, and Kevin Kouzmanoff being a bit hit or miss, the 7 hitter is often under a bit of pressure with 2 outs on the board already.


Up against the Mets' ace Johan Santana yesterday, Huber went 0-for-3, with 1 strikeout. He followed that up today by going 0-for-2, although he did drive the ball pretty hard. The bad news out of today was a bad defensive play. Huber took a catch in shallowish left field, and the runner on third tagged up, looking to score. Huber unleashed a throw , but put it halfway up the first base line, giving the runner clear passage. Again you can see this play on MLB Gameday. The look on Bud Black's face says it all: he was not impressed:

Bud Black looks on after Huber's bad throw allows a run

These latest games, and the impending interleague play have sparked more discussion about what will happen with the Padres' roster, check out some of the comments from the Ducksnorts in game discussion thread for today.

Rowland-Smith and Balfour continue to feature
Following from the big Red Sox vs Rays bench clearing incident on Friday (Thursday in the US), the Rays' starter James Shields was ejected for hitting Coco Crisp with a pitch, and just missing with a right hook! Grant Balfour showed a bit of versatility, coming on for a bit of long relief. He pitched 2.1 innings, and allowed 2 hits, 1 walk, and 2 runs, while getting one strikeout (against the never-easy to get out Manny Ramirez; who he beat with a 96mph as the 9th pitch of the at-bat). He avoided copping the loss, as Shields had allowed 4 runs in the first.

The brawl was easily better than the Mariner's stoush with the Rangers earlier this year, and is worth watching. It resulted in a few suspensions, including Shields for the Rays.

After the game, Balfour spoke about the Rays pitching staff's commitment to stepping up while the suspensions are in affect, as the Rays continue their 9 game road trip: "We're going to do whatever it takes to go after [the Rangers]", he said. You can read the full article here.

Meanwhile, Ryan Rowland-Smith has pitched in a couple of non-save situations against the Red Sox today and yesterday. I remember reading someone saying that they think Rowland-Smith gets better after his first 20 or so pitches. His outings over the last two days support the idea, as he gave up early hits, before coming back strong.

Yesterday, Rowland-Smith came into wrap things up in the bottom of the 9th, with the Mariners up 8-0. He got to 2-2 with Sean Casey, who then smacked a double to centre. Rowland-Smith then shut the gate, getting Jason Varitek to pop out in foul territory; striking out Brandon Moss, and getting Julio Lugo to ground out to third.

Today, Rowland-Smith came into the game with one out in the bottom of the 8th. The Mariners' were trailing 10-3, and there was a runner on third. He faced Kevin Youkilis first, and gave up a double which scored the run. Like he did yesterday though, Ryan really tightened things up. He got Brandon Moss to pop out to short, and had Kevin Cash strikeout swinging to end the inning. The Mariners were unable to change the score in the top of the ninth, and the game ended with the M's losing 11-3.

Rowland-Smith is going alright, he has now appeared in 25 games, pitching 27 innings. His ERA is now a very respectable 2.33, he has 2 saves from 3 opportunities, he has struck out 21, and his WHIP is also very respectable at 1.18. He has shown some good consistency lately, and hopefully will continue to be effective as we head towards the middle of the season.

Aussie Updates (4 Jun 08)

Just one Aussie in action today, Grant Balfour pitched 0.2 innings of relief for the Rays as they met the Red Sox at Fenway park. He came on in the the sixth inning with 1 out and runners on 2 and 3. He started off badly, walking Julio Lugo on four pitches. He bounced back well his next at bat, finding the zone well, but he gave up a sac fly to Jacoby Ellsbury. He then battled Dustin Pedroia before striking him out on a 98mph fastball. The damage had already been done before Balfour came in, and the walk to Lugo was not fatal given that it worked the bases loaded, but it was not an ideal outing for Balfour. The Rays lost 7-4