Watched Durham slam Yankees 8-1

I made the 70 minute trip down to Scranton to watch the Durham Bulls take down Scranton 8-1 tonight.  Jeff Niemann got the start for Durham and threw 7 solid innings.  By my count he gave up 1 earned run, scattered 6 hits, struck out 5 or 6, and hit a batter.

The Bulls got out of a bases loaded 1 out jam in the 7th when Niemann got a ground ball.  Ben Zobrist made an excellent play on the ball, and turned a 6-4-3 DP (Zobrist-Johnson-Bankston) to thwart a rally attempt.

Speaking of Zobrist, he was great at shortstop.  He showed good range and a very soft glove.  Ben made a few difficult plays look routine.  More good news is his batting average is nearly up to .250.  Remember it was at the Mendoza Line a month ago.  He also has 4 HR's in 85 AB prior to tonight's game.  Zobrist had one hit and walked 2 times (Mr OBP returns).

The star of the night was CF Dustin Mohr.  Mohr doubled and hit 2 home runs.  His first HR was truly a monster shot.  The CF wall measures 408, and Mohr hit it just left of straight away center way, way, way over the wall.  If you have MILB.TV check it out.  I saw someone out there with measuring tape after the ball landed.  

Niemann looked good.  He looked like he was a step above what the Yankees were used to seeing, and he got a lot of called third strikes against baffled batters.  Scott Dohmann and Seth McClung finished the 8th and 9th innings, respectively, without giving up a hit.

McClung was still McClung.  His stuff was missing Yankees bats, but his control was fleeting as usual.  He walked a batter with 2 outs which left me groaning.  The game was academic at that point, but I wanted to see him throwing the ball over the plate.  Granted he might be a better option at this point than some of the guys we have at the MLB level.  But his sub 2.00 ERA should be looked at critically.  He has walked 20 batters in 34.1 innings through tonight - which is really bad.  Same old Seth unfortunately.

Guzman had a good smash hit, but he also looked lost a couple of times and struck out at least once.  Bankston looked "okay."  Certainly not MLB ready, and does not project to be an impact guy at this point.  Jonny Gomes hit DH tonight out of the cleanup position.  He walked once, and I think he hit a single too.

It was a helluva fun time. The SWB Yanks have a nice stadium, my family had a good view of the game, and I got to see some good young talent on the Bulls.