Charlotte 3 Toledo 8
Josh Rainwater picked up the suspended game and allowed 3 runs on 7 hits in 3 innings. Caniel Schlereth continues to rack up the strikeouts (3) and walks (2) in a 2 inning effort. Clete Thomas homered before the rain. Angel Flores, up for the injured Mike Rabelo had 2 hits, as did Jeff Larish. Larish added 2 walks as well.

Charlotte 1 Toledo 3
Phil Dumatrait was 2 outs shy of the 7 inning complete game. He allowed 1 unearned run on 4 hits and a walk. Wil Rhymes doubled and singled. Jeff Frazier singled and homered.

Binghamtom 4 Erie 3
Justin Henry had a triple and a single. Jeff Kunkel homered. Andy Oliver allowed 3 runs on 3 walks, 5 hits, and 4 K’s.

Daytona 3 Lakeland 7
Gustavo Nunez went 3 for 4 with a double. Rawley Bishop doubled and singled. Twenty year old Julio Rodriguez homered and singled in his Lakeland debut. Charlie Furbush fanned 7 and allowed 1 run on 3 hits and 3 walks in 7 innings.

West Michigan 5 Great Lakes 4
Mike Gosse had 2 doubles. Wade Gaynor and Alexis Espinoza each had 2 hits. Trevor Feeney had a strong 8 inning start where he allowed 3 runs on 6 hits, 2 walks and 7 K’s.

Dombrowski Q & A

Dave Dombrowski is in Erie to watch the AA prospects. Nick Underhill caught up with him and they discussed the decision to send Wilkin Ramirez to AA, Cale Iorg, and Cody Satterwhite. And there was good news on the Jacob Turner front and he will make his next start.

Two of the Tigers top pitching prospects are injured, or at least experiencing enough discomfort to disrupt the starts to their respective seasons. Cody Satterwhite has  landed on the disabled list for the Erie Seawolves and Casey Crosby will miss his first start with the Lakeland Flying Tigers.

Casey Crobsy

Crosby is going to miss his first turn after reporting pain in his pitching elbow. That would be the elbow that was surgically repaired during the 2008 offseason.

Crosby was on a strict work limit last year, his first season post surgery. With outstanding peripherals and stuff for the West Michigan Whitecaps he was rated as one of the top 2-3 prospects in the system.

This is a relatively new ligament for Crosby so it is probably premature to worry at this point. The Tigers are likely being ultra-conservative with the young lefty and hopefully he is back on the  mound shortly.

Cody Satterwhite

The news for Satterwhite certainly seems to be more troublesome. He is starting the year on the disabled list for Erie and there are mixed reports on the severity of the injury to his shoulder. Mark Anderson of Tigstown.com tweeted that Satterwhite had a torn labrum. The team painted a more optimistic picture saying it was a posterior impingement and a rotator cuff injury that they would try and rehab.

Seawolves beat writer Nick Underhill learned today though the situation is likely more dire. According to Phil Nevin the original treatment plan was surgery, but a visit to Dr. James Andrews recommended a cortisone shot, rehab, and a two week follow-up.

Satterwhite had a decent shot to pitch out of the Tigers pen at some point this season. But this is certainly a set back. He was to pitch in the Arizona Fall League last October but missed that due to shoulder soreness as well.

Just because the regular minor league seasons are over doesn’t mean there isn’t news coming out about the Tigers prospects. The instructional league is in full swing, the Arizona Fall League is starting, and post season awards are being handed out.

Instructional League

Jacob Turner

The IL games are underway. Mark Anderson of TigsTown is on site and filing daily reports. The first one was free, but the subsequent ones are premium content. Based on the 2 reports so far Audy Ciriaco has been a star.

The IL is also a chance to see many of the Tigers 2009 draftees in Tigers uniform for the first time. Lakeland resident Roger DeWitt has been hanging around the fields and posting his pictures on Flickr. As has been the case the last few years, Roger was the first to get shots of the Tigers first round picks in action and he has Jacob Turner throwing on one of the practice mounds.

Arizona Fall League

The Tigers have had to make some adjustments to their AFL roster due to the arm problems of Cody Satterwhite and the lingering wrist problem of Ryan Strieby. In a surprise move (at least I was surprised), 2nd round pick Andrew Oliver will take Satterwhite’s spot.

What isn’t known is if Oliver is going because he has really impressed so far and the Tigers want to see what he does against advanced competition in preparation for an aggressive assignment next year, or if he is going by default.

Casper Wells will take Strieby’s spot, but that isn’t so much of a surprise.

Player of the Year Honors

Congratulations to Scott Sizemore and Casey Crosby who took home organizational Player of the Year and Pitcher of the Year honors. (As predicted by Take 75 North).

Both had outstanding seasons. Crosby was kept on the 75 pitch limit which did hold down his innings but he still managed 117 strike outs in 104.1 innings. I’d imagine he’d start out in Lakeland next year with an 85-90 pitch limit but he could very well end up at Erie before the year is out.

Sizemore just raked the ball all season. He hit in Erie and continued hitting as he spent the 2nd half of the year in Toledo and he may be pushing Placido Polanco out the door.

Louisville 3 Toledo 2
Wilkin Ramirez and Wil Rhymes each had 2 hits. Nate Robertson started and went 6.2 innings, he allowed 3 hits, no runs, 2 walks, and he fanned 9 – and it only took him 68 pitches to do it. Jeremy Bonderman didn’t fare as well allowing 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk in 1 inning.

Erie 5 Reading 8
Michael Bertram was a single short of the cycle. Casper Wells had 3 hits including 2 doubles. Jared Gayhart got another start and lasted 4 innings with 5 K’s, 2 walks, 4 hits, and 1 run.

Lakeland 4 Daytona 6
Devin Thomas and Jeramy Laster each had 2 doubles. Lauren Gagnier allowed 2 homers and 4 runs on 8 hits, 2 walks, and 5 K’s in 5 innings. Austin Wood pitched a scoreless inning with a strike out.

West Michigan 3 Lansing 4
Billy Nowlin homered for 1 of his 3 hits. Ben Guez and Luis Salas each had 2 hits, and Salas added 2 walks. Luke Putkonen fanned 8 in 6 shutout innings allowing 2 walks and 4 hits. Jade Todd was lit up for 4 runs in 2.1 innings.

Oneonta 1 Staten Island 4
Jamie Johnson doubled and walked. Alexis Espinoza doubled an singled. Mark Newman pitched 4 shutout innings with 4 hits, no walks and 2 K’s.

GCL Tigers 1 GCL Blue Jays 4
Brett Anderson went 2 for 4. Rayni Guichardo pitched 6 shutout innings and fanned 5 against 3 walks and 3 hits. Melvin Mercedes picked up his 15th save with a scoreless inning.

Minors Notes

The Tigers preliminary Arizona Fall League roster was announced. Robbie Weinhardt, Cody Satterwhite, Thad Weber, Ryan Strieby, Cale Iorg, and Scott Sizemore will represent the Tigers. Take 75 North breaks down the selections.

Also of note, Jeff Larish is done for the year as his wrist required surgery. Larish did pretty much nothing at the plate the latter part of the year and at least with an injury there is some explanation.

Rick Porcello - cr Roger DeWitt

It’s another one of those rites of the offseason, the Baseball America top 10 list. The list itself is available to anyone, but for additional information (like scouting reports) you need to be a subscriber.

As for the list, here it is:

1. Rick Porcello, rhp
2. Ryan Perry, rhp
3. Cale Iorg, ss
4. Casey Crosby, lhp
5. Jeff Larish, 1b/3b
6. Wilkin Ramirez, of
7. Scott Sizemore, 2b
8. Cody Satterwhite, rhp
9. Dusty Ryan, c
10. Guillermo Moscoso, rhp

Usually when the list comes out I look back to the previous year’s list to see who stayed and who left. Hopefully the list changes because guys graduate and lose prospect status. In the Tigers case there are only 4 players carrying over from the ’08 last. As for the other 6? Only one graduated and that was Matt Joyce.

Yorman Bazardo and Francisco Cruceta flamed out. Danny Worth and Mike Hollimon had their development hindered due to injuries. Brandon Hamilton struggled in West Michigan, and while he’s still a prospect he’s no longer in the top 10.

Ryan Perry - cr Roger DeWitt

The flip side of guys losing status is that some other earned their way into the top 10. Wilkin Ramirez built on a strong spring training and exploded for AA Erie. Guillermo Moscoso had an outstanding season, and Dusty Ryan played himself into the Tigers 09 plans. And Ryan Perry and Cody Satterwhite were new draftees who cracked the top 10.

So it’s not that the Tigers system is without talent – guys who stand a decent chance to play at the big league level. What it lacks is enough players who could excel at the big league level.