Also of note, Jaime Schultz made his return to Bowling Green, and he's certainly had better outings. Piggybacking him seemed to bring out the best in German Marquez though.
Triple-A Durham Bulls (56-49)
He lasted six innings, but Mike Montgomery wasn't much better Friday in Durham's 5-3 loss to Toledo. Jeremy Moore scored in the second to give the Bulls a 1-0 lead, but the Mud Hens answered two innings later with a two run homer. Moore homered in the sixth to tie, but Montgomery would be charged with two more runs in the seventh without recording an out. He finished with four runs allowed on six hits and a walk in six innings with three strikeouts.
After falling behind 4-2, Vince Belnome's home run to lead off the bottom of the seventh pulled Durham within one, but they couldn't come through with a big hit a couple innings later. Toledo added an insurance run in the ninth, and the Bulls couldn't capitalize with the tying runs on and one out. Moore, Belnome and Jayson Nix had two hit games. Adam Liberatore allowed two inherited runners to score, but he did strike out four in two innings.
Double-A Montgomery Biscuits (19-16)
Montgomery's bullpen had another game to forget in their 8-7 loss to Chattanooga. Holding a 7-3 lead with nine outs to go, Victor Mateo allowed the fourth of four runs against him before being replaced by Jim Patterson. He would get out of trouble that inning, but he allowed a leadoff single in the eighth. Parker Markel not only allowed that runner to score, he was charged with two of his own that tied the game. Bryce Stowell finished the eighth, but he would allow a walkoff win in the ninth.
Mateo had exited with four runs allowed on eight hits and three walks in 6.1 innings with two strikeouts, holding a 7-4 lead. The Biscuits actually only had six hits for the game, but they supplemented them with eight walks. They initially took a 3-0 lead in the second inning on a two run single by Kes Carter and a wild pitch, and after Mateo allowed three runs to tie the game, they scored four over the next three innings. Jeff Malm had two hits, and Carter and Jake Hager reached base three times each.
Class-A Advanced Charlotte Stone Crabs (13-21)
Charlotte outhit Dunedin 10-3, but the entire game came down to just three hits in their 2-1 loss to the Blue Jays. Dunedin didn't get their first hit of the game until the fourth inning, and they wouldn't get their second until the sixth when a Gustavo Pierre home run gave them a 1-0 lead, but Justin O'Conner tied it in the seventh with a home run of his own. In the eighth, Emilio Guerrero's solo home run off Colton Reavis proved to be the game winner.
With a four hit game, O'Conner was actually a triple shy of the cycle. Josh Sale added three hits, and the team was actually 2/5 with runners in scoring position, but they could only get the one run. Jared Mortensen was on rehab for Montgomery and pitched three scoreless innings, and Kevin Brandt followed that with one run allowed in four innings.
Class A Bowling Green Hot Rods (14-19)
Jaime Schultz's return to Bowling Green wasn't great in their 5-4 loss to Cedar Rapids. After only allowing one man to reach the first two innings, the Kernels got to him in the third when the Hot Rods had just taken a 3-0 lead. With two outs and just a runner on first, Schultz walked another, gave up an RBI single and then a three run homer to make it a 4-3 game. He finished with those four runs allowed on three hits and two walks in three innings with four strikeouts.
It was Julian Ridings' three run homer that had given Bowling Green that 3-0 lead. Other than that, they couldn't manage much offense. Ridings would have one of the two hits they got after that, and the team finished with four. In relief of Schultz, German Marquez shined, although he did allow what ended up being the winning run. He struck out seven in five innings.
Short-Season Hudson Valley Renegades (29-12)
Hudson Valley fell in a 5-0 hole they couldn't climb out of in their 7-3 loss to Lowell. All five of those runs were driven in by Jordan Betts, Boston's inferior Betts. Hunter Wood would end up allowing those five runs on seven hits in four innings with four strikeouts and no walks. It tied a season high in runs allowed for Wood, and it was a season high in earned runs. Gerardo Reyes struck out three in two scoreless innings.
Casey Gillaspie's two out single in the sixth got the Renegades on the board, and two of their next three runs would just be conceded by Lowell. Grant Kay's ninth inning double was the one that wasn't. Kay was 1/4, and his average is now down to a meddling .450. Hunter Lockwood hit two doubles, and Braxton Lee and Alec Sole also had two hits.
Rookie Princeton Rays (18-16)
Princeton had a game for the ages in their 12 inning 16-12 win over Pulaski. After the teams traded two run frames in the 11th, the Mariners were forced to go to a position player in the 12th, and the Rays were able to open up their four run lead. Nic Wilson's second home run of the game with one out made it a 13-12 game, and a two out rally was capped by Cristian Toribio's three run homer.
Princeton hammered out 23 hits, nine of which went for extra bases. Only one starter didn't reach base multiple times. Manny Sanchez led the team with five hits, and Wilson and Hec Montes each had four. Nick Ciuffo had a big game with three hits and a walk, and Toribio managed the rare golden sombrero with five RBI game.
Cameron Varga got a wake-up call in his Princeton debut. After cruising through the GCL, he ran into trouble quickly, allowing two runs in the second and then four more in the third. He allowed six runs (five earned) on six hits and two walks in 2.1 innings with a strikeout. Princeton once trailed 8-1, but they scored the next seven runs of the game to tie it. Only the game's winner, Bret Dahlson, wouldn't be charged with a run.
Rookie Gulf Coast League Rays (19-12)
For the first time in his rehab, Tim Beckham took the field in the GCL Rays' 6-5 loss to the GCL Orioles. Like a big league spring training game, he took three at-bats as their shortstop and left, going 1/3 with a double and a strikeout. Despite scoring five runs on 10 hits, they never had the lead during the game. They scored three runs in the seventh, including a solo home run by Matt Reida, and had the tying run in scoring position with one out, but two batters couldn't come through. Cade Gotta reached base three times and stole two bases.
Starter Angel Yepez pitched okay, allowing two runs on six hits in five innings with two strikeouts and no walks. The game was tied when he left, but not for long. Cristopher Crisostomo made his first appearance of the year after Yepez left, and the Orioles scored three runs against him with one out in the sixth. Tommy Lawrence would allow what proved to be the winning run an inning later.
Star of the day- Wilson has found his power stroke again for Princeton.
Goat of the day- I'm sure Varga's future outings will go a little better.
Today's games (probables courtesy of milb.com)
Durham v. Toledo 7:05 PM (MiLB.TV, radio stream)
Enny Romero (4-10, 5.34) v. Mike Belfiore (2-5, 3.60)
Montgomery v. Jacksonville 7:35 PM (MiLB.TV, radio stream)
Mike Colla (6-9, 4.73) v. Jose Urena (8-7, 4.11)
Charlotte @ Dunedin 6:30 PM (Radio stream)
Jordan Harrison (0-2, 4.96) v. Taylor Cole (7-5, 2.90)
Bowling Green v. Quad Cities 8:05 PM (Radio stream)
D.J. Slaton* (0-0, 5.40) v. Edison Frias* (6-5, 5.59)
Hudson Valley @ Lowell 5:05 PM (Radio stream)
Enderson Franco* (3-1, 3.79) v. Heri Quevedo (3-3, 9.08)
Princeton @ Pulaski 7 PM (Radio stream)
Freddy Alvarez (2-2, 4.23) v. Daniel Missaki* (2-0, 0.95)
GCL Rays @ GCL Orioles 10 AM
TBA v. TBA
*Listed as TBA on milb.com
Scouting the opposition
Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit)
53-55 (3rd in IL West)
Offense: 459 R (9th) .714 OPS (9th)
Pitching: 3.91 ERA (8th) 1.39 WHIP (8th)
Top 30 Prospects: LHP Robbie Ray (5), 2B Hernan Perez (9), C James McCann (11), RHP Drew VerHagen (12), RHP Jose Ortega (13), RHP Melvin Mercedes (16), LHP Casey Crosby (17), 1B Jordan Lennerton (19), OF Tyler Collins (20), OF Daniel Fields (22), LHP Kyle Lobstein (23)
Jacksonville Suns (Miami)
21-14 (T-1st in SL South)
Offense: 453 R (6th) .683 OPS (10th)
Pitching: 3.76 ERA (5th) 1.28 WHIP (2nd)
Top 30 Prospects: LHP Justin Nicolino (4), RHP Jose Urena (7), C J.T. Realmuto (10), RHP Nick Wittgren (18), OF Brent Keys (19), C Austin Barnes (20), RHP Tyler Higgins (25)
Dunedin Blue Jays
16-19 (4th in FSL North)
Offense: 461 R (4th) .704 OPS (6th)
Pitching: 3.07 ERA (2nd) 1.22 WHIP (3rd)
Top 30 Prospects: LHP Daniel Norris (6), C Santiago Nessy (23), OF Dwight Smith Jr. (27)
Quad Cities River Bandits (Houston)
17-16 (6th in MWL West)
Offense: 480 R (4th) .758 OPS (1st)
Pitching: 3.80 ERA (9th) 1.32 WHIP (9th)
Top 30 Prospects: RHP Michael Feliz (9), RHP Andrew Thurman (15), LHP Chris Lee (22), RHP Jandel Gustave (28), OF Brett Phillips (30)
Lowell Spinners (Boston)
18-23 (3rd in Stedler)
Offense: 193 R (4th) .712 OPS (3rd)
Pitching: 4.90 ERA (14th) 1.51 WHIP (14th)
Top 30 Prospects: 1B Sam Travis, RHP Karsten Whitson
Pulaski Mariners
18-16 (T-2nd in APP East)
Offense: 185 R (1st) .703 OPS (3rd)
Pitching: 3.94 ERA (8th) 1.33 WHIP (5th)
Top 30 Prospects: RHP Ugueth Urbina
GCL Orioles
13-16 (3rd in GCL South)
Offense: 90 R (16th) .589 OPS (15th)
Pitching: 2.77 ERA (3rd) 1.13 WHIP (1st)
Top 30 Prospects: C Jonah Heim (26)