AAA Durham Bulls (34-30)

BULLS OFF-Durham had the day off on Monday. They will return to action today against the Rochester Red Wings at 7:05. The game begins a road trip for the Bulls that will see them play three other games in Rochester, as well as four in Buffalo against the Bisons. The Bulls next play at home on June 19th, when they face the Norfolk Tides. Starting for Durham this evening is RHP Chris Mason, who will be opposed by Minnesota Twins phenom Francisco Liriano.

BULLS Up Next-at Rochester, 7:05 EST (RH Chris Mason)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (31-34)

News-The Rays have placed Montgomery RHP Richard De Los Santos and 1B Rhyne Hughes on the seven day disabled list due to a sore pitching shoulder and a left hamstring strain, respectively. De Los Santos missed his scheduled start on Monday night due to the soreness, although since the Rays backdated the move to June 5th, he could potentially make his next start as scheduled on Sunday.

The Biscuits did not immediately make a roster move to replace De Los Santos, instead relying on LHP Jino Gonzalez to make a spot start on Monday evening. Stacy Long of the Montgomery Advertiser speculates that this could mean that RHP Eduardo Morlan is soon to return, and that he will take that spot. Morlan was placed on the DL in late April with a sore right shoulder and is in rehab at Extended Spring Training. The second possibility that Long raises involves the call-up of LHP David Price from High A Vero Beach.

Regardless of the posturing on the De Los Santos move, the Biscuits did move quickly to replace Hughes, re-instating C Alex Jamieson to the active roster. Although Jamieson had traveled with Montgomery for several weeks, he was technically on the roster of the Short-Season Hudson Valley Renegades.

Birmingham 4, BISCUITS 3 (10)-Birmingham drove in the winning run with a walk-off sacrifice fly in the tenth off of RHP Colter Bean to clinch the SL South's first-half division title over second place Montgomery by a 4-3 final. Four Barons personnel, the manager, a coach, and two players, were all ejected over the course of the game by home plate umpire Chris Ward due to their difference of opinion on ball and strike calls.

BISCUITS Up Next-OFF Today

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (32-32)

Ft. Myers 6, V-RAYS 4-LHP Brandon Mann was crushed in Fort Myers' five-run fifth inning, and the Miracle held on to win 6-4. 

V-RAYS Up Next-at Ft. Myers, 7:05 EST (LH Mike Wlodarczyk)

A- Columbus Catfish (24-40)

CATFISH 2, Savannah 1-RHP JESSE DARCY allowed a first inning run, and then he and the two pitchers who followed him did not allow another over the remaining eight innings of the ballgame. The Catfish offense scored just two runs on eight hits, but that would prove to be enough as Columbus won 2-1 for their fourth win in six games following a 12 game losing streak.

CATFISH Up Next-at Savannah, 7:00 EST (RH Jason Ragan)

AAA Durham Bulls (33-30)

Charlotte 6, BULLS 2-Durham starter Jeremy Cummings ceded the lead to division-rival Charlotte by giving up five runs in the fifth and sixth innings, and the Bulls' offense could not keep up as they dropped the first of a two game set to the Knights. 

BULLS Up Next-vs Charlotte, 5:05 EST (RH Ben Hendrickson)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (30-33)

Birmingham 12, BISCUITS 4-RHP Wade Davis was rocked for six runs in just two innings of work, and the Biscuits could never get closer than 7-4 in being thumped by the Birmingham Barons. 

BISCUITS Up Next-at Birmingham, 3:05 EST (LH James Houser)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (31-31)

V-RAYS 7, Sarasota 3-LHP David Price showed that he was mortal, surrendering his first runs in his fourth start as a professional, but the Vero Beach bullpen held the Sarasota Reds at bay while the offense scored six runs in a two inning span late as the Devil Rays won 7-3.

V-RAYS Up Next-vs Sarasota, 1:00 EST (RH Heath Rollins)

A- Columbus Catfish (22-40)

Rome 3, CATFISH 2 (11)-An error by 3B Greg Sexton, one of four Columbus errors and one of seven total in the game, led to the winning run scoring as the Catfish allowed a strong start by RHP Alex Cobb to go for naught in an 11th inning loss. 

CATFISH Up Next-at Rome, 2:00 EST (RH Jeremy Hall)

AAA Durham Bulls (32-29)

BULLS 3, Richmond 0-Jeff Niemann, Juan Salas, and Scott Dohmann combined on a six hit shutout of the visiting Richmond Braves, while SS Reid Brignac doubled in two of Durham's three seventh inning runs.

BULLS Up Next-vs Richmond, 7:05 EST (RH Mitch Talbot)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (29-32)

Birmingham 3, BISCUITS 1-Montgomery was able to manage just four hits off of Barons pitching, scoring their lone run in the ninth inning. PH John Jaso struck out with runners on the corners to end the game.

BISCUITS Up Next-at Birmingham, 8:05 EST (LH Jake McGee)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (30-30)

V-RAYS 5, Sarasota 1-SP Jeremy Hellickson pitched a perfect five innings, while RF John Matulia and 1B Matt Fields had four and three hits, respectively, to lead the Vero Beach offense.

V-RAYS Up Next-vs Sarasota, 6:30 EST (LH Ryan Morse)

A- Columbus Catfish (21-39)

Savannah 5, CATFISH 0-Columbus reverted back to their losing ways a day after snapping a 12 game losing streak, getting shut out 5-0 by the Savannah Sand Gnats.

CATFISH Up Next-at Rome, 7:00 EST (LH Brian Flores)

AAA Durham Bulls (31-29)

Richmond 8, BULLS 1-SS Reid Brignac had two doubles, the only Durham player with multiple hits, but the team had just five in total and were sacked 8-1 by the Richmond Braves.

BULLS Up Next-vs Richmond, 7:05 EST (RH Jeff Niemann)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (29-31)

BISCUITS 10, Carolina 2-Montgomery rode a six run second inning to a lopsided 10-2 win over the Carolina Mudcats. Carolina Pitcher Matt Yourkin was ejected from the game in the seventh inning along with Mudcats Pitching Coach Scott Mitchell after Sergio Pedroza was hit by a pitch for the second time in the game. Yourkin is no stranger to these types of incidents, having knocked out Rhyne Hughes' front teeth with a pitch last season.

BISCUITS Up Next-vs Birmingham, 8:05 EST (LH Mike Prochaska)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (29-30)

Jupiter 12, V-RAYS 1-Starter Brandon Mann pitched seven strong innings for the Devil Rays, but Wade Townsend failed to record an out as he was tagged for six of Jupiter's nine runs in the eighth en route to a 12-1 blowout loss to the Hammerheads.

V-RAYS Up Next-vs Sarasota, 7:00 EST (RH Jeremy Hellickson)

A- Columbus Catfish (21-38)

CATFISH 2, Savannah 0-The Catfish snapped a 12 game losing streak behind six shutout innings from SP Jessie Darcy and three more from their bullpen, despite a starting lineup that could manage just three hits off of Sand Gnat pitching.

CATFISH Up Next-vs Savannah, 7:00 EST (RH Woods Fines)

AAA Durham Bulls (5-6)

BULLS 2, Scranton/WB 0-CF Fernando Perez doubled in the Bulls' only two runs of the ballgame in the fifth inning off of Yankees LHP Kei Igawa, but it would prove to be enough as the Bulls shut out Scranton/Wilkes-Barre to break a three game losing streak.

BULLS Up Next-at Scranton/WB, 11:05 ET (RH Mitch Talbot)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (3-7)

News-Stacy Long of the Montgomery Advertiser reports that Biscuits LHP Jon Barratt has gone on the voluntarily retired list, ending (for now, at least) his baseball career.

"It's something that he's been thinking about," manager Billy Gardner said after today's loss at Carolina. "He said he just didn't have the passion anymore."

There could be any number of reasons behind Barratt's retirement, and as he enters private life you hate to speculate on what those reasons might be. Maybe he really did lose his passion for baseball and wanted to pursue something else, in which case I commend him and wish him the best luck in the world. Scott Autrey did something very similar several years ago. Still, Barratt was only 23 years old and a fifth round draft pick just five years ago. He most recently found success in with A+ Visalia in 2006, when he posted a 2.93 ERA in 110.2 innings for the Oaks. He regressed to a 5.46 ERA last year with Montgomery, but he fared far worse in 2005, when he posted a 6.59 ERA in Visalia. Still, if you're an ex-fifth round pick retiring from baseball at 23, it probably isn't performance-related. Here's wishing Barratt the best of luck wherever life takes him.

Carolina 9, BISCUITS 2-LHP Mike Wlodarczyk struggled in his second start of the year for Montgomery, but he was far from alone as the Biscuits dropped their third in a row at the hands of the Carolina Mudcats. 

BISCUITS Up Next-at Tennessee, 7:15 ET (LH Jake McGee)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (3-7)

Yesterday-OFF

V-RAYS Up Next-at Daytona, 7:05 ET (RH Heath Rollins)

A- Columbus Catfish (4-7)

Savannah 11, CATFISH 7-The Columbus offense pounded out ten hits and the Catfish took a 7-2 lead into the bottom of the seventh, but the bullpen was unable to hold it as they were downed by the Sand Gnats.

CATFISH Up Next-at Savannah, 7:00 ET (LH Glenn Gibson)

AAA Durham Bulls (4-3)

BULLS 10, Columbus 4 (11)-The Bulls pounded out 15 hits on the day and scored six in the top of the 11th inning to win their fourth straight game, 10-4 over the Columbus Clippers.

BULLS Up Next-at Columbus, 12:05 ET (RH Ben Hendrickson)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (2-4)

Carolina 7, BISCUITS 1-LHP Jake McGee made a very short start, the Montgomery offense was able to muster up but five hits, and sloppy fielding led to three errors in the line score as the Carolina Mudcats steamrolled the Biscuits, 7-1 in Raleigh.

BISCUITS Up Next-at Carolina, 7:15 ET (RH Wade Davis)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (3-4)

Jupiter 3, V-RAYS 2-RHP Jeremy Hellickson made an excellent start for the Devil Rays, but an offense that produced just four total hits on the night doomed them to their fourth straight loss after a 3-0 start, 3-2 to the Jupiter Hammerheads.

V-RAYS Up Next-at Jupiter, 7:05 ET (RH Josh Butler)

A- Columbus Catfish (2-5)

Rome 10, CATFISH 5-LHP Glenn Gibson got roughed up for a second straight outing as the Catfish continued their slow start to the year, falling 10-5 to the Braves.

CATFISH Up Next-at Rome, 7:00 ET (RH Josh Johnson)

AAA Durham Bulls (1-3)

BULLS 5, Toledo 4-3B Evan Longoria grounded into a double play and remained hitless on the season, but thankfully the other members of the Durham lineup didn't share the same luck as the Bulls won their first game of the year. The good news for Longoria was that he did reach base twice, on his first two walks of the year, and scored a run. Otherwise, the Durham offense was led by DH Fernando Perez and CF Justin Ruggiano, who each had 2 for 4 days. One of Perez's two hits was an RBI double, and he also drew a walk and stole a base. Also going 2 for 4 was LF Joel Guzman, who walked and drove in two of Durham's five runs, including the game winner in the ninth. Unfortunately for Guzman, he also made two errors in left field. SS Reid Brignac grounded into a double play and had just one hit among his five at bats, but it was a double.

Making his debut this season for the Bulls was RHP Chris Mason, who had a relatively successful outing. Throwing 76 pitches on the day, Mason gave up two unearned runs on three hits, one hit batsman, and one walk over 4.1 innings of work, while also striking out four. RHP Nick DeBarr followed him and gave up two runs in 1.1 innings of work, but RHPs Scott Munter and Grant Balfour closed out the game with 3.1 shutout innings.

BULLS Up Next-at Columbus, 7:05 ET (LH Mike Prochaska)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (2-2)

Chattanooga 8, BISCUITS 4 (8)-LHP James Houser had a decent first start for Montgomery, but a relative lack of offense and a sloppy defensive effort relegated the Biscuits to defeat in the first game of a double-header. Houser gave up just one earned run in five innings of work, but he gave up three unearned runs thanks to two Montgomery errors. He gave up just two hits and no walks while striking out five, though he did hit a batter. LHP Jino Gonzalez pitched two scoreless innings following Houser's departure, but RHP Jeremy Flanagan took the loss after giving up the four winning Lookout runs in the "extra" eighth inning.

Offensively, the Biscuits could manage only five hits. 1B Rhyne Hughes had an especially bad day, going 0 for 3 with two of Montgomery's three errors. He did garner a walk and score a run though. 3B Chris Nowak had one hit, a two run homer in the fourth, and scored once more when he reached on a Chattanooga error. DH Gaby Martinez and C Matt Spring each had one hit, while had an RBI single.

BISCUITS 10, Chattanooga 1 (7)-The Biscuits' offense exploded for 10 runs on 11 hits as Montgomery routed the Chattanooga Lookouts in the second game of Sunday's double-header. C John Jaso and 1B Rhyne Hughes had two hits, each of which included a solo home run, and Hughes drew a walk as well to atone for his sins in the first game of the double-header. Even though Montgomery put up prolific numbers on the scoreboard, those two were the only players with multiple hits on the day. DH Sergio Pedroza and 3B Chris Nowak each had one hit, in Nowak's case a double, while LF Gaby Martinez reached base three times on one hit and two walks. He scored each time he reached. 2B Josh Asanovich had a three run homer and drew a walk to round out the lineup.

On the mound, RHP Richard De Los Santos pitched five shutout innings for the Biscuits before ceding control to RHP Wade Townsend and LHP Jon Barratt. Townsend's first appearance of the season was not a successful one, as he gave up one run on a hit and a walk. Barratt closed out the ballgame with a scoreless inning of work.

BISCUITS Up Next-vs Chattanooga, 8:05 ET (LH Mike Wlodarczyk)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (3-1)

Daytona 9, V-RAYS 4-RHP Matt Walker made his return to the mound for Vero Beach, tossing four shaky innings as the V-Rays suffered their first loss of the season. Walker gave up three runs (two earned) over four innings of work, walking two and giving up four hits while striking out three. RHP Chris Kelly and LHP Ryan Morse followed Walker and proceeded to give up the other five Daytona runs in four collective innings. LHP Ryan Owen pitched a scoreless ninth.

Meanwhile on offense, four Vero Beach players had two hits on Sunday. 2B Chase Fontaine, 3B Cesar Suarez, DH J.T. Hall, and C Christian Lopez were those players, though only Lopez had an extra base hit (a double). Suarez drove in a run and walked, though he also had a throwing error. Fontaine walked as well, as did PH Garrett Groce. LF Ryan Royster went hitless, while CF John Matulia went 1 for 5 with a run scored and two RBI.

V-RAYS Up Next-vs Daytona, 7:00 ET (LH Brandon Mann)

A- Columbus Catfish (1-3)

Savannah 4, CATFISH 3 (7)-RHP Josh Johnson gave up all four Savannah runs during his four inning start, and it would be all that the Sand Gnats would need as the Columbus offense mustered up only three hits in the first game of a double-header. Johnson gave up three earned runs on four hits and two walks in his first start of the season, giving way to RHP Jesse Darcy for the final three innings. Darcy pitched three perfect innings for Columbus with two strikeouts.

The Catfish fell just short offensively despite their three hit day, thanks to plenty of walks. CF Emeel Salem went 0 for 3 with a walk and a run scored, while 1B Henry Wrigley hit an RBI double and walked to lead the offense.

CATFISH 5, Savannah 0 (7)-RHP Jason Ragan threw for five of the Catfish pitching staff's seven shutout innings as Columbus notched their first win of the season in the second game of a double-header. Ragan gave up just three hits and a walk while striking out four; two Columbus pitchers combined to go the rest of the way.

On offense, CF Emeel Salem led the way with a walk, a run scored, and three stolen bases. RF Reid Fronk was also productive, hitting a two-run, inside-the-park homer in the third inning as the Catfish took control early. LF Stephen Vogt doubled, while C Michael McCormick went 2 for 3 with a double and a run scored.

CATFISH Up Next-at Rome, 7:00 ET (RH Jeremy Hall)

AAA Durham Bulls (0-3)

Toledo 6, BULLS 1-3B Evan Longoria totaled up another hitless day for Durham as the Rays' AAA affiliate dropped their third straight to open the season. Longoria, who has not yet drawn a walk or garnered a hit through the Bulls' first three games, joined a parade of Durham hitters that were unable to muster much of an offensive effort off of Mud Hens pitching. Also going hitless on the day for Durham was CF Fernando Perez, who finished 0 for 4. RF Justin Ruggiano had an RBI single and LF Joel Guzman had the only extra base hit of the game, a double, for Durham.

On the hill, RHP Jae Kuk Ryu got the start for the Bulls and took the loss, surrendering three Toledo runs on four hits in four innings of work while walking one and striking out three. Two of the runs that he surrendered came on a two-run homer in the first, and his outing concluded with him having thrown just 73 pitches. Ryu was followed up by RHPs Dale Thayer and Scott Munter, who each threw 1.1 scoreless innings. LHP Brian Henderson made his first appearance in Triple A after multiple years at Double A Montgomery, and things didn't go so well for him. After getting one out in the seventh, he came back on to start the eighth only to be greeted by an onslaught from the Toledo lineup. He ended up up surrendering three runs on four hits in the eighth, including a two-run homer, and allowed Toledo to grab some extra insurance runs to seal away the ballgame. RHP Calvin Medlock relieved him and pitched a perfect eighth inning following his departure to prevent any further damage.

BULLS Up Next-at Toledo, 2:00 ET (RH Chris Mason)

AA Montgomery Biscuits (1-1)

BISCUITS 8, Chattanooga 5-Montgomery rebounded from a washed-out day off on Friday and evened up their record at 1-1 as Wade Davis threw a shaky five innings of work for the Biscuits. The Rays' highly touted pitching prospect gave up four runs on seven hits and two walks in five innings of work, striking out just one in the process. Nonetheless, Davis picked up his first win of the season in his debut start of 2008. The Biscuits' bullpen was able to hold the lead following his departure up until the ninth, when RHP Eduardo Morlan threw a perfect inning to pick up his first save of the year.

Offensively, the Biscuits lineup produced a fairly solid collective line, even if their individual marks in the box score weren't quite as pretty. C John Jaso and DH Gaby Martinez each had RBI singles for Montgomery, while RF Sergio Pedroza drew two walks to reach base a total of three times on the evening. Pedroza was also caught stealing, however, and Jaso committed his first miscue of the year on a throwing error. 3B Chris Nowak and 1B Rhyne Hughes were each held hitless for Montgomery, though Nowak did drive in a run via a sacrifice fly and Hughes drew a walk.

BISCUITS Up Next-Double-header vs Chattanooga, 3:05 ET (LH J. Houser, RH R. De Los Santos)

A+ Vero Beach Devil Rays (3-0)

V-RAYS 4, Daytona 3-Vero Beach rallied for three in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat the Daytona Cubs on Saturday night, thus preserving their standing as the only undefeated team in the Rays organization. CF John Matulia had two hits for the Devil Rays, one of which was a double, and stole two bases while LF Garrett Groce went 1 for 4. RF Ryan Royster went two for four with a solo home run; he also drove in the tying run and scored the winning run on a phenomenal night for him. C Nevin Ashley added a hit for V-Rays.

On the hill, RH Josh Butler made his season debut for the Vero Beac and tossed a good ballgame. The second round pick of the Rays in the 2006 draft gave up just three runs (two earned) on six hits while walking one and striking out four. He recorded a 9:4 groundball to flyball ratio. RH Wilton Noel tossed the final three shutout innings for Vero Beach to earn the win.

V-RAYS Up Next-vs Daytona, 1:00 ET (LH Ryan Morse)

A- Columbus Catfish (0-2)

Savannah at CATFISH, PPD-Saturday night's game between the host Columbus Catfish and the visiting Savannah Sand Gnats at Golden Park was postponed due to inclement weather. The game will be made up as part of a double-header this afternoon in Columbus, with the first game starting at 1pm EDT. The second game will begin approximately thirty minutes following the conclusion of the first. Both games will last seven innings.

CATFISH Up Next-Double-header vs Savannah, 1:00 ET (RH Josh Johnson, RH Jesse Darcy)