CUP O' JO: Wednesday, July 8, 2008

LOUIS OTT (A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
Move over Jonny Gomes.  Sweet Lou gets top billing today with a 5-for-5 three RBI night in an 8-3 win over St. Lucie.  His average is up to .347.  And the team awarded him the floral granny panties as The Most Offensive Player Of The Game. He wears them well on his Facebook page. Way to represent Louis!

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
Another huge night for for a PTown Pro.  4-for-5 with 2 home runs and three RBI boosting his average to .268.  Woo!
JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds, MLB):
0-for-3 in last night's 4-3 win over the Phillies.  Good to see them bounce back after Tuesday's 22-1 thrashing.  Some love for Jonno in the local paper today: Link

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AAA Sacramento River Cats, Oakland Athletics Organization)
0-for-4 night.  He's human.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
2-for-4 with a double, a run scored and an RBI in last night's 8-7 win over St. Paul.  Batting .346

SAM BANISTER (IF, Akron Racers Professional Softball)
2-for-3 with two RBIs in last night's 5-4 exhibition loss to Allentown.  Go girl!

CUP O' JO: Tuesday, July 7, 2008

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds, MLB):
Provided the only offense in last night's very offensive loss to the Phillies.  It was a 22-1 rout with PTown's Gomes preventing the ultimate humiliation with one big home run swing.  Worst loss in Reds' franchise history. Ugggghhhh-ly. Thank you Jonny for avoiding the shut out. Gomes is still hitting .329 despite returning to a pinch hitting role... despite his .367 average in the middle of the interleage swing.  Wazzup Dusty?

JOEY GOMES (DH, Edmonton Capitals, Golden League - IND)
3-for-5 with 6 RBIs and a dinger on Sunday. Woo!!! 1-for-4 with a double, a stolen base and a run scored in last night's loss to Victoria.  Batting .291.  Had a great visit with Joey during the Caps series with the Outlaws last week.  He is really enjoying the Caps opportunity and their sleek ride.  The team plane.  If you've ever wondered why the Florida Marlins have more empty seats than fans for an afternoon home game, take in an Outlaws game in Chico.  Words simply can't describe it.  It's a tanning booth, sauna and frying pan all wrapped up in one neat little package.  Good to see so many PTown Fans in the house for Joey despite the miles, the traffic (legendary) and the heat.

LOUIS OTT (A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization) 
0-for-3 in last night's loss breaking up a 5 game hitting streak.  He's still hitting .299 so the regular at bats are working for Louis.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AAA Sacramento River Cats, Oakland Athletics Organization):
1-for-4 in last night's loss. Batting .341 with a 5 game hitting streak. Starting to hear frequent chatter about Tommy during A's games.  Gonna happen 707 fans. I feel it!

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
Wow!  A double short of hitting for the cycle in last night's loss to High Desert.  Way to go Konrad!

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
1-for-4 with his 4th double in a 4-1 loss to St. Paul last night.  Batting .343.

DJ GENTILE (OF, Matsu Miners, Alaska)
DJ was lighting up the scoreboard with his bat in Matsu, but not getting needed time in the outfield.  The Indians selected him in the draft last month and have been evaluating him as a potential outfielder in their organziation so he had to bust a move.  He's headed to Corvallis OR to play for the Knights. Fishing's still good in Oregon DJ. You won't have to go too far.

CUP O' JO: Wednesday, July 1, 2008

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds, MLB):

Struck out in a pinch hit appearance as the Reds produced lackluster offense on an off night for starter Bronson Arroyo.
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JOEY GOMES (DH, Edmonton Capitals, Golden League - IND)

Joey is happy to be back in NorCal and it showed last night.  An RBI fielders' choice and went yard in the 7th to score two and ice the game for the Caps.  He's batting .273 with 3 home runs in 55 ABs for the Caps. PTownJr and I will be in the house tonight to watch Edmonton go for two in a row. Hopefully Joey saved some hits and some crisp D at 1B for the hometown fans.

LOUIS OTT (A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
1-for-3 with a single, a walk, a sac fly and a K in last night's win over Daytona.  Lou's hitting .283.

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners, MLB):
Threw 98 pitches and went 4.2 innings and left the game with a 3-3 tie.  The usually dependable Seattle bullpen hiccuped in the 7th and 8th and the Yanks won 8-3 with reliever White taking the loss.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AAA Sacramento River Cats, Oakland Athletics Organization)
2-for-4 with 2 hits including a two out RBI single and a walk in a 5-2 win over Las Vegas.  Everidge is batting .359 and has 14 RBIs in 78 at bats.  He's slugging .590 and has a .419 OBP. You gotta think this is attracting a fair amount of attention in Oakland where they could sure use some power in the lineup.

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
2-for-5 in a 6-4 win over Bakersfield.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
2-for-4 at 1B in a 4-2 win over Sioux City.  Batting .346.

DJ GENTILE (OF, Matsu Miners, Alaska)
3-for-5 with a run scored, a stolen base, a home run and two RBIs in an 11 inning win over The Fire.  Woo!

Stayin' Alive, Stayin' Alive

Whew!  Petaluma American Little League's scrappy Jr. Division Round Table team is hangin' tough.  A 4-2 win tonight over Petaluma National's Anderson Team has put them in the championship round.  Three loser's bracket wins in three nights. Gutsy. Kevin George pitched a beautiful game and Anthony Garatti closed it out to preserve the win.  The PALL boys will try to knock off Brodies' tomorrow to force a Championship game on Sunday.  Come on out to Petaluma National's big diamond tomorrow at noon and enjoy the 100 degree heat with us.  If there's any sort of a breeze, you'll get a complimentary dermabrasion facial with your heat wrap.  That Sonoma-Marin Fair kids up a lotta dust :-)

Oh, by the way...  Jonny was 2-for-3 with an RBI single tonight and his average is now .367.  Too bad the Reds lost.  Again.  If Jonny can inspire a sustained winning streak and keep his bat going, I  predict a MLBCBPOTY at the end of the season.  C'mon Redlegs.  Get your poop in a group and win some would ya!

Gomes Batting .351 And Round Table Still Winning

Jonny Gomes had another big night while the Cardiac Kids (PALL Round Table Pizza) battled back through the loser's bracket with a nail biter of a win in the Petaluma Little League Junior Division City Championship Tourney.

Gomes went 2-for-4 with his 6th double, a first inning RBI that scored Joey Votto who went on to become the hero of the night in a real feel good story.   Things are looking up for Willy Taveras who got his bat back after losing it earlier this season. Gomes rounded out his night with a walk and a single off former Rays teammate... and RHP... Sean Camp bumping his average to .351 and his rightie split to .300.  Wow.  It's probably too early to start talking about MLBCBPOTY so I'll just think it for now.  If you've followed Gomes the last few years, you know which post-season thingie I'm thinkin' about. I don't want to violate one of The Unwritten Rules Of Baseball that I might not know about yet.  Better play it safe.  Pretty good book by the way. Reading it on my iPhone via the Kindle App.  A great way to make the cardio time fly at the gym.

PTownJunior's Round Table Pizza team eeked out a 3-2 win over Shotwell's last night.  Trevor Shine had a two hitter going in the sixth before hitting the 95 pitch limit.  Steely nerved Ryan Scherer took the mound and gunned the tying run with a wicked pick off move to second base to end the inning.  The heart of the Round Table order couldn't put insurance runs on the board in the top of the 7th so it came down to good pitching and defense in the bottom of the final inning with the top of the Shotwell's order due up.  The leadoff hitter reached on an error and Scherer fanned the #2 batter.  Shotwell's next hitter flied to right advancing the lead runner to third.  Ryan waivered a bit, walking the next batter but Shotwell's starting pitcher smacked a routine grounder to the sure gloved Kevin George at 1B and kept the Number Two seeded team alive in the double elimination tourney.  Zac Overzet and Kevin George each had two hits for Round Table, and Willy Sullivan (PTownJr) drove in the winning run in the third.

Tonight, Round Table meets Petaluma National's Anderson team for a rematch of Tuesday night's 7-4 loss that sent the American League Champs to the loser's bracket and the rubbermatch of season long competition.  Gametime is 5:30pm at Petaluma National's Aparicio Field next to the Fairgrounds.  Stay to drag the field after the game and you can listen to The Charlie Daniels Concert for free :-)

Top seeded Brodies' (Petaluma Valley LL) will take on tonight's loser's bracket winner tomorrow at noon for the Championship. Unless the losers bracket winner wins again, forcing a Championship game on Sunday.  Wouldn't that be awesome?

CUP O' JO: Thursday, June 25, 2009

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds, MLB):
Good week for Jonny, hitting .333 in his last ten games.  In Saturday's Civil Rights Game, he gave the Reds a 5-0 lead with a 2 run dinger.  But Cueto gave up a truckload of hits and the Reds lost a game they shoulda won. 2-for-3 with his 5th double against the White Sox Sunday.  2-for-4 with his third homerun last night. A combo of lotsa probable LHP for the opposing teams and Jonny's hot bat have made it easier for Dusty to massage the lineup, inserting Dickerson for the struggling CF Willy Taveras the last few days.  Jonny Gomes is leading the team with a .333 average excluding 1B Joey Votto (.346) who is fresh off the DL with stress related issues following his Dad's death.  The Reds have sorely missed Votto's bat. Let's hope it's all good with Joey and that this new lineup grinds out some wins, not just hits.   BTW, Gomes is .391 v LHP and .286 v RHP.

JOEY GOMES (DH, Edmonton Capitals, Golden League - IND)
Joey has really cranked up the Caps' offense.  In just 8 games, he's had 7 extra base hits including 5 doubles, 2 homeruns and 7RBIs. 

LOUIS OTT (A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
Big game for Sweet Lou last night.  3-for-4 with a double and 2 runs scored. Yah!

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners, MLB):
Morrow pitched 5+ in a Mariner's victory last night.  Didn't get the win, but continues to solidify his spot in the rotation throwing 87 pitches, 57 for strikes. Attaboy Brandon.  Keep hummin'.  Brandon's bobblehead sure got a workout in the Seattle Pressbox last Friday night.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AAA Sacramento River Cats, Oakland Athletics Organization)
Tommy's on fire.  His average reached .347 Tuesday before a brief dip in the cool 0-for-4 water last night.  In just 14 games, he's racked up 11 runs on 17 hits with 3 doubles, 3 home runs and 9 RBIs.  Awesome.

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
Batting .246 through this week's All Star Break.  Games resume tonight with the Rawhide hosting Modesto.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
Steve's great season continues. He's batting .329 with 9 doubles, 2 home runs, and 20 RBIs. 4-for-5 last night. A tip of the cap to reader Not So Anonymous for his eye witness reporting from the Sioux City Explorers' where the Nuts no-hit the X's Tuesday night.  For the first time ever.

DJ GENTILE (OF, Matsu Miners, Alaska)
Man these box scores are hard to find.  Batting .333 in 5 games played. No fishing report yet.

PETALUMA AMERICAN JR. DIVISION ROUND TABLE PIZZA:
After an first round bye and a second round win, Round Table dropped one to Petaluma National's Anderson team Tuesday night.  Charlie Parnow pitched out of his socks for Anderson and Round Table was flat as a cheese pizza with no toppings.  Fortunately, Round Table rallied and topped Petaluma National's North Bay Construction by a score of 10-0 in six innings last night as they try to battle back through the loser's bracket.  That means baseball every night through Sunday.  I'm up for that :-)  All-Stars begin on July 4th.  What's more All-American than that?

CUP O' JO: Friday, June 19, 2009

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds, MLB):
The Reds bats were a bust yesterday afternoon in Atlanta so no sweep.  Jonny struck out in his pinch hit appearance.  CF Willy Taveras' troubles continued with another 0-for-5 day at the plate.  Gomes has the highest average of any outfielder by .50 points but Dusty is bound and determined not to do any wholesale juggling, lest he hurt Tavera$' feeling$.  Now only a 1/2 game out of 4th place, maybe someone will decide to let Jonny have a go on a daily basis for awhile.  Ya think?

JOEY GOMES (DH, Edmonton Capitals, Golden League - IND)
Off to a great start with a double and a home run among the hits wrapped up in his .294 average as the team's DH.  The Caps are working their way back to Edmonton with a three game series in Victoria beginning tonight.  Gotta say, the scenery in the Golden League can't be beat.

LOUIS OTT (A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
0-for-3 with a run scored and a walk at second base Wednesday night.   Batting .185 and looking for more ABs.

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners, MLB):
Morrow got another start last night and it wasn't bad.  In fact, after a shaky first inning, he settled in and threw well going 4 innings before reaching his pitch limit.  He struck out 6 and walked only one while giving up 5 hits and 2 earned runs.  The M's went on to lose the game to San Diego in extras.  It's sounding more and more like Morrow will stay with the Major League Club during his transition to starter getting to a 100 pitch limit sometime next month.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AAA Sacramento River Cats, Oakland Athletics Organization)

Tommy with a couple of Valley of the Moon Little Leaguers from his hometown. I think Jack swings with Joey at The Coop. 

(Photo by Nancy Murray via the Sonoma Sun.)

Tommy helped make River Cats history as the they hit a team high 8 home runs Wednesday night. Tommy had a dinger and two doubles in his 4-for-5 night at the plate.  Last night he was 0-for-2 with two walks and two runs scored.  Now batting a very sweet .294 and playing every day.  The Cats are still dominating the Division with wins both nights.

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
0-for-3 Wednesday night in a loss to the San Jose Giants.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
0-for-3 in Wednesday's 7-5 loss to Sioux Falls.  No word on whether BBQ sauce is the way to go with Fowl Balls.

DJ GENTILE (OF, Matsu Miners, Alaska)
Off to a hot start in Alaska with a single, a double and a home run in two games.  I hear he might do a little fishing with the local celebrities as well.

CUP O' JO: Thursday, June 11, 2009

Great week for PTown ballplayers.  Jonny Gomes was the hero in last night's game while no one (else) was watching, Tommy Everidge got another step closer to The Show, Joey Gomes is hitting well fresh off the DL, Konrad Schmidt is on a terror, Matt Nadolski was drafted by the Orioles and the final days of PTownJr's Little League regular season were punctuated with an upset win over the Division leaders.  Oh yeah... and School's Out For The Summer!

PETALUMA  AMERICAN LITTLE LEAGUE - JUNIOR DIVISION: 
With one game left to play in the regular season, Round Table has clinched the Petaluma American Junior Title and second place overall in the combined Junior Interleague division with 11 teams from Petaluma Valley, National, and American Little Leagues.  Round Table knocked off Valley's leader, Brodie's, in a 9-5 slugfest last night.  Timely hitting and solid fielding gave PALL a pretty comfy lead throughout the game.  Kevin George pitched a great game against some lethal hitters. It has been a very sweet Worst To First run for the Round Table team.  Next up:  A double-elimination tourney to determine the overall League Champion. It begins next week.  Other Little League Divisions are also winding down their regular seasons with in house AAA tourneys and the Major Division City Tournament.  All-Stars begin in late June.  Maybe this year, a PTown Team will still be playing Little League baseball when school starts in August. 

Oh... and a big shout out to mi amigo Joey Gomes in Joliet.  He would be so proud of PTownJr's work with the bat this season.  8 million swings at the Coop?  Hangin' with the big dogs in the League.  Priceless.

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds): 
What a night for the PTown underdog.  Fresh off PTownJr's win over Brodie's, I was the only Reds fan in the world happy to find them in a two hour rain delay at midnight in Washington, DC.  Closer Francisco Cordero had taken the mound in search of his 30th consecutive save in a streak dating back to July '08. The skies opened in the bottom of the 9th with a 2-0 lead, the speedy Elijah Dukes on board via a free pass, a 2-2 count on Josh Willingham, and no outs.  Following a rain delay that lasted a little over two hours, Dusty decided to put the ball back in Cordero's hand.  Uh oh.  Within minutes, the game was tied at two, it was midnight plus, and we were headed to extras.  The announcers didn't need to remove any shoes for an accurate count of remaining fans.  Including us online lookers I'm sure. In the 12th, Jay Bruce drew a walk and made it to third with some especially heads up baserunning on the heels of some especially bad Nats' ball handling. With a runner on third, the Reds' catcher grounded to second and got caught in a pickle resulting in a double play with Bruce still at third.  Baker went to Gomes who ripped a 1-1 pitch of the.... ahem... right hander... down the third base line for a two out rbi go ahead double.  Wahoo!  Jerry Hairston drove him in for an insurance run and it was the (g)Nats were the bug, not the windshield on a wet night in DC.  Keep it up Jonny.  And we hope you get a chance to use that new 1B glove.

JOEY GOMES (DH, Joliet Jackhammers, IND)
A one-for-four night for the elder Gomes who has been hitting very well since returning from a brief stint on the DL with a tweaked quad. 

LOUIS OTT (A, Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
Louis is batting .238 in 7 games and 21 ABs as the Hammerheads DH.

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners):

The blogs are buzzing with news that Morrow will soon be on his way to Tacoma for an extended stay as he makes another bid for the Mariners' starting  rotation.  I hope they let him stick around in Seattle for his own Bobblehead Night on Friday, June 19th.  Good thing I didn't buy those tickets afterall.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AA Midland Rockhounds, Oakland Athletics Organization)
Well it's about time!!!!!!!!!!!!!!  Tommy's hot hitting in Midland finally earned him a AAA call-up Monday night!  This move was set in motion by the A's Ryan Sweeney (OF) finding himself on the DL after crashing into the wall and spraining his knee.  Daric Barton has improved his average to .245 in Sacto and got the call to replace Sweeney and share time with Giambi at 1B. Everidge's debut with the River Cats didn't go the way anyone hoped with an 0-for-5 night that included 3K's and a fly out to end the game with the tying run on board.  But now he's got that out of the way and we know he's gonna rock it in Sacto. 

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
Konrad has cemented his role as the team's regular catcher and is 8-for-17 in his last 4 games.  He's batting .259 with a .687 OPS on the season.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
Batting .337 for Wichita.  Next post I won't be so lazy ;-)

MATT NADOLSKI (Sonoma County League MVP, Casa Grande High School)
Matt was the 956th player selected in the 2009 MLB Draft.  He was a 32nd round pick.  Matt's headed for San Diego State University in the fall, otherwise, I'm sure he'd have gone much higher.  The old "signability factor" ?

CUP O' JO: Friday, May 29, 2009

JONNY GOMES (OF,Cincinnati Reds):
Day off yesterday for the Reds who aim to overtake second place Milwaukee in a head to head battle on the road.  This 7 game roadtrip ends with 4 against Division leading St. Louis before returning home to face the Cubs.  The next week could really unknot the NL Central.  St. Louis, a team weakened by injuries and a few slumping players, is in San Francisco this weekend. Come on Giants, soften 'em up some more.  For those wondering when Jonny might patrol the outfield in AT&T Park, it won't happen until August 7, 8, and 9.  It's part of my Half-Centurian Celebration as I celebrate a Really Big Birthday that week. 

JOEY GOMES (DH, Joliet Jackhammers, IND)
Joey had a 2-for-3 night with an RBI Triple Wednesday as the Kansas City T-Bones edged the Jackhammers 5-4 in KC.  Gomes pulled a quad sliding hard into third and will miss a few more games.  At least it happened in KC where there's plenty of good food to help pass the time.   He's batting .209.

LOUIS OTT (DH, A Jupiter Hammerheads, Florida Marlins Organization)
Louis signed with the Jupiter Hammerheads where he was 1-for-2 at DH Wednesday night in a 3-0 win over his former team, the Lakeland Flying Tigers.  Drought ending bad weather in Florida suspended play yesterday and it looks like more of the same today.  The team is in third place in the Florida State League South Division, 7 games out.  Attaboy Louis.  Good to see you back!

TOMMY EVERIDGE (3B, AA Midland Rockhounds, Oakland Athletics Organization)
1-for-5 Wednesday and 2-for-5 with a home run yesterday in a pair of wins for Midland.  They are now 2 games ahead of Frisco.  Tommy continues to lead the team in home runs, hits, and total bases as he transitions to 3B defensively.  With injuries continuing to plague Oakland infielders (Garciapara back to the DL... first an ankle, now recurring calf tightness) maybe things will start to shake loose in Sacramento so Tommy can have a shot.

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
1-for-3 with a double in Wednesdays 3-1 win over San Jose. 0-for-3 last night in a 6 hit squeaker of a 2-1 win.  The Rawhide lead the Division by a two game margin.  Konrad is batting .255.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
2-for-4 hitting in last night's 5-2 win over St. Paul.  Wichita is off to a red hot start with an 11-2 record and a five game lead in the Division.  Steve is batting .362, just a few points shy of the league Leader Board.

SAM BANISTER (1B, Senior, Arizona Wildcats Softball)
The top seeded Florida Gators shut out the nations' top scoring offense 3-0 last night in the opening round of the Women's Softball College World Series, limiting Arizona to just two hits in a dominant appearance by pitcher Stacy Nelson. The Cats got something going in the first with back-to-back hits, but a strikeout and a pop out by PTown's Banister ended the Wildcats only rally. PHS Grad, Samantha Banister had seven put outs at first base on the night.  Arizona will face Alabama in an elimination game for the second straight season on Saturday at 1 p.m. CT .  Whew.  PTownJr's game will be in the books by then!

DJ GENTILE (DH, Sophomore,  Cal Poly Mustangs)
What a season for Casa Grad, DJ Gentile.  For the first time at the Division I level, the Mustangs, ranked 26th nationally, have earned an NCAA Playoff berth.  They face Oral Roberts University today at 2pm in the West Regional:  Bracket  DJ is batting .311 in 49 games with 16 extra base hits including 5 home runs and two triples.  He leads the team with 11 sac flies.  Earlier this week, DJ was awarded All-Conference Honorable Mention honors.

CHAD KRIST  (C, Freshman, University of California Golden Bears)
PHS Grad and Valley Vista Elementary Alum, Chad Krist, saw a lot of action as a Freshman, with 16 starts in 27 appearances.  He batted .197 with 12 hits including 4 doubles and two home runs. Defensively, he had a .993 fielding percentage with 115 put outs, 22 assists and only 1 error in his first college season.

CASA GRANDE HIGH SCHOOL GAUCHOS
Uggghhh.  Clayton Valley got an early lead and never looked back Wednesday night.  I'll let Gauchos Beat Writer John Jackson tell you all about it: Bad Beginning Ends Casa Grande Baseball Season

Gomes Cleans Up Pretty Good

Jonny did PTown proud today.  3-for-4 batting clean-up with 3 RBIs. He worked a bases loaded walk out of an 0-2 count. Off a RHP. Sweet.  But the highlight of the game was his defense.  Yep, you read that right.  He made a sliding catch with two out and two on to end the 9th with the Astros threatening.  Take a look.  That's two days in a row that the guy who "can't play defense" was the defensive talk of the town. 

Pearlacious... Potentially

Huge irrigation project to conquer in the back 40 today so the Cup O' Jo is just a sip today. 

Gotta lead off with this one.  Jonny Gomes almost had the defensive play of his season... maybe his career... yesterday, gunning Grady Sizemore at the plate after a heads up back up of an errant relay throw.  But an interference call on the Reds' 3B bumped Jonny's awesome play from Web Gem to simply whooped up on the Reds Website and Phront Page Pheature in PTown's Pearls of Wisdom.  You really do have to see it to appreciate it so here ya go: Obstruction Call Affects Indians Reds Reds Robbed.  Nevertheless, if there are any Little Leaguer's watching, this is why the Skipper is always reminding you to back up the throw.  Good things could happen. Jonny's had a hit in each of his appearances and the Reds already seem like a more energetic team.

Thanks to Anonymous for Commenting In a first hand report of Steve Pearson's weekend.  Looks like another PTown Product is off to a good start for the Wichita Wingnuts batting .343 in 35 ABs early in the season.

Joey Gomes is finding his groove with a handful of weekend hits and a pair of RBIs.  He's had two stolen bases so far. The Jackhammers are having a tough time stringing together some wins.  But it's early.

Tommy Everidge continues to hit north of .300 for the Midland Rockhounds.  He's got 12 doubles and leads the team with 39 RBIs. Already.  Yo... Billy...  let's see what he can do in Sacto? Whaddayasay?

Konrad Schmidt is batting .270 for the Visalia Rawhide, sharing time at Catcher with the recently promoted Jhoan Pimentel. He's got 6 doubles and 11 rbis so far this season.

And how 'bout those Casa Grande Gauchos!  They topped Brentwood's Heritage High School Saturday by a score of 4-1 to advance to the semi-finals of the Division II Northern California Section Championship Tourney.  They play Clayton Valley Wednesday in Concord at 5pm. Go Gauchos!

2000 feet of irrigation tubing awaits.  Ugghhh.  At least there are a lot of ballgames to pipe into the outdoor speakers today :-)

Gomes Puts A Charge In His First At Bat For The Reds

Scorched a double on his first pitch as a Red in an 8th inning pinch hit appearance in a tied game.  Dusty inserted speedy Chris Dickerson as a pinch runner who became the go ahead run when rookie infielder busted an 0-14 streak, driving in the run with a double of his own. 

Way to light a fire under 'em Jonny!

He's b-a-a-a-a-a-a-a-c-c-c-c-k-k-k-k!

In the show.  Jonny Gomes was just called up to Cincinnati to replace Darnell McDonald who was designated for assignment.  Just in time for interleague play against the Tribe this weekend.  Jonny's swinging a mean stick, batting .282 and killin' lefties.  He's likely to platoon with Nix in LF. Good night for dinner at Beyond The Glory to see the game on TV :-)

Show 'em what you've got Jonny. Cincinnati, get ready to have some fun!

CUP O' JO: Friday, May 22nd

JONNY GOMES (OF, AAA Louisville Bats, Cincinnati Reds Organization):
1-for-3 with a double and a run scored in yesterday's loss to Syracuse as the Bats continue their skid.  They play again this afternoon at 4:05 PTown time.  Let's tune in and send some mojo across the airwaves to the Bats.  It's worked before ;-)  Good news for Cincy fans.  Joey Votto's dizziness has been diagnosed as a tricky inner ear infection that should clear up within a few days.

JOEY GOMES (DH, Joliet Jackhammers, IND)
Joey's had a hit in each of the last three games at DH.  Joliet has a 3-3 record in their weekold season.

LOUIS OTT (Florida Marlins Organization)
Haven't seen him assigned to a roster yet.

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners):
Good game for Brandon last night out of the bullpen.  Fanned 6 in a row: Some Positives But Not Enough Results For The Mariners

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AA Midland Rockhounds, Oakland Athletics Organization)
Midland's bats are cooling off, but they're holding onto a 1 game Division lead.  Tommy continues at 3B.  Here's a first hand report from a blogger that spent some time in Midland recently: 5/16 Athletics

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, High A Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
1-for-4 with a single against Modesto on Wednesday. Visalia has a 1 game lead.

STEVE PEARSON (1B, Wichita WingNuts, IND)
2-for-4 in yesterday's 4-0 loss to Sioux Falls as the teams' 5 game win streak came to an end.  Steve is batting .391 in 7 games with a double and 4 rbis.  Maybe Anonymous will Twitter us some udpates from Sioux City when the Wingnuts come to town.

Gomes Tries To Prevent Bats From Caving

Aye yae yae.  Or however you spell it.  The AAA Louisville Bats have lost seven straight and dropped from a cushy Division lead to 1.5 games out.  Through it all, Jonny Gomes is on fire.  Again.  Absolutely killin' left handed pitching.  He's hitting .387 vs lefties and a respectable .247 vs righties.  His .935 OPS (1.403 vs LHP) is 7th in the league and his .578 SLG is 5th in the International League. Gomes leads the Bats in hits (36), HR (9), RBI(27), total bases (74) and one other category we won't mention cuz you surely know what it is and I don't wanna talk about it.

With Cincinnati dropping to 4.5 games out in the NL Central, the "Free Jonny Gomes" chants have begun in earnest.  And Alice In Chains' "The Rooster" is high on everyone's play list.  While Cincinnati's Tavaras and Nix have gotten it done in the outfield but lack power for the Reds, Dickerson, McDonald and Hairston have been rather underwhelming.  The only one hitting well against lefties is McDonald (.300) but he's only .059 vs RHP. No power and no stolen bases.  This trio isn't making up for it with defense either, combining for 5 errors. 1B Joey Votto has missed several games with undiagnosed dizziness forcing Rosales to slide over. The team may need someone that can play an occasional 1B off the bench until we know what's up with Votto whose production is sorely missed.

Time to get back in this thing.  Free Jonny Gomes.

CUP O' JO: Thursday, May 14th

Two PTown Area Pros have big night:

JONNY GOMES (OF, AAA Louisville Bats, Cincinnati Reds Organization):

Gomes received his American League Championship ring from Rays President Stuart Steinberg last night and went 1-for-4 with a double and a run scored in a 4-3 loss to his old club, the Durham Bulls.  People sometimes ask if Joe Dillon, a 1990 something Cardinal Newman grad, is still around.  He was recently traded by the A's to the Rays and is playing 3B for the Durham Bulls.  I've always wondered if his dad is the Joe Dillon I worked for at Firemans Fund a decade ago.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AA Midland Rockhounds, Oakland Athletics Organization)
Tommy blasted a 3 run homer off the left field foul pole in the 4th last night to give the Rockhounds a lead they held onto the rest of the night.  Another hit in the 5th drove in two more runs for a 5 rbi night.  Here's the complete story: Everidge's Three Run Homer The Difference.


 13 Inning Marathon On 5/13 Unlucky For The Gauchos

What a game. 13 innings and a tough loss for the Gauchos after a hard fought pitchers' duel. Fortunately, one that shouldn't matter too much in the scheme of things as the SCL Tourney really only influences seeding for the Northern California Section playoffs.  PollyAnna chooses to think that a one run 13 inning game can't hurt the Gauchos' position much, if at all. 

The Dragons fire breathing pitcher, Ben Graff, went 11 innings last night giving up 6 hits and notching 15 strikeouts before Nate Swanson took the mound for the final three innings.  Graff retrieved his arm from somewhere in Sonoma Plaza after throwing just under 150 pitches.  Pretty efficient, but woo... That's a herculean hurlin' effort.

Scott Harkin went 9 innings.  He gave up 4 hits, but a few of those may go down officially as something else ;-)  He fanned 8 batters and walked 3.  Spencer Finkbohner took the mound for the final 4 innings and cruised through the 10th and 11th with 5 strikeouts before Sonoma, the visiting team, finally pushed one across in the top of the 13th. Steven Filippi, who led the league with a .482 average this season, got on base for the second time with a one out drive to center.  Graff struck out for the second out and Rose, the Sonoma catcher, laced an 0-2 pitch up the middle moving Fillippi into scoring position.  On a steal attempt, Rose was caught in a rundown and Filippi scored from third on a play that many will rewind several times to see if it was a run scored or actually the third out.

The bottom third of the order was due up for the Gauchos in the 13th, but the crowd had witnessed lead off hitter RJ Busse, a freshman call-up from the JV team, lace a sharp two strike gounder into the left center gap to start the 11th as a pinch hitter.  The shot sparked a rally and Busse nearly beat out a two out ground out by Sean Purtell which would have won the game. In the 13th, Busse worked a full count for a walk.  Cardona struck out, but Matt Gallo drove a ball to right for his third hit of the night to put runners at the corners.  Coach Maytorena sent Busse but the throw beat him by inches.  Beaudry tried to get it going again with two outs and one on, but couldn't push Gallo across, striking out to end the marathon game.

On the bright side, the Pearls of Wisdom live blog worked out pretty well.  Looks like the iPhone can Twitter about 20 innings if need be during the NCS Playoffs.  God forbid.

Let's go Gauchos.  Bring the Bling.

CUP O' JO: Wednesday, May 13th

Live Blog From SCL Tourney: Gonna try something new tonight. A live blog from the Sonoma County League Tournament in Sonoma. The SCL Champ Gauchos face Sonoma at 7pm. I'll post updates here from the trusty iPhone. And we'll give Twitter a go as well and see how quickly I can figure it out ;-) (Follow me at PTownFan)  Hard to know how long the battery will last and hopefully the connection is good. If this works out, the Argus Courier will include future live blogs of Casa playoff games on Petaluma360.com via RSS feed. Don't you love technology? When it works.

Here's an update on how PTown Area Pros are doing on the diamond these days. Will catch up with the Up And Comers wrapping up their college seasons later this week.

JONNY GOMES (OF, AAA Louisville Bats, Cincinnati Reds Organization)
Jonny has settled in and is swinging a powerful stick, leading the team in home runs.  Hit #7 last night off Tampa Bay World Series closer, David Price.  He was the hero of that game as the Bats battled back from a 6-2 deficit in the 9th and went ahead on Gomes' two out double. On a two strike count.  Yah Jonno. He's batting .250 with an .866 OPS.  Louisville is on top of the International League West with a 3.5 game lead over Toledo.  I'm trying to get a pic of that timely hit and will add it if the photographer shows the Pearls some love.  The Reds still own the third best record in the National League with a 10-14 record.  OF Darnell McDonald has really cooled off and OF Chris Dickerson is below the Mendoza so perhaps the Reds will get hungry for a power bat off the bench soon.

BRANDON MORROW (P, Seattle Mariners)
After a 15 day stint on the DL for biceps stiffness, Morrow is back as the Mariners' closer.  He returned Saturday with a flair for the dramatic, loading the bases and putting the winning run on first before notching his 6th save with a Brendan Harris ground out.  Whew.  After a hot start, the Ms have dropped to 14-17 with Morrow's save ending a 6 game skid.

ERIC BRUNTLETT (IF, Philadelphia Phillies)
Santa Rosa's Bruntlett is not getting many ABs off the bench, but we'll keep an eye out for any surge in playing time or stats. 

KONRAD SCHMIDT (C, HighA Visalia Rawhide, Arizona Diamondbacks Organization)
Konrad is batting .279 with 7 extra base hits and 11 rbis in 22 games.  He had a huge game last week going  2-for-5 with a double, home run, two runs scored and five RBIs in a big win over the Stockton Ports for the Rawhide's 6th consecutive win.  The Rawhide, in their swanky new stadium, are atop the Cal North Division with a 3.5 game lead over Modesto and a 4 game lead over pre-season favorite San Jose.  Head 'em up and move 'em out boys.

TOMMY EVERIDGE (IF, AA Midland Rockhounds, Oakland Athletics Organization)
Tommy is leading the Rockhounds in hits with 40 and is second in rbs with 27 in 31 games.  He's belted 3 home runs so far this season and is batting .305 for the hot hitting Hounds with a team average of .302.  They lead the Division by 1.5 games over Corpus Chrisi with an 18-14 record.  Though listed as a 1B, Tommy's been playing a lot of 3B as the organization seems determined to give prospect Chris Carter more time at first.

JOEY GOMES (OF, Joliet Jackhammers, IND)
Joey's season starts Friday against Schaumberg.  The Jackhammers have had a perfect Spring and Gomes had a home run in Monday's 6-3 win over the Flyers. 

CUP O' JO: Friday, April 24th

I admit it.  Dusty dispatched PTown's Pro Jonny Gomes to the AAA Louisville Bats and I became cranky.  No wishing to share my foul mood with ya'll and stir up bad karma, I threw myself into fundraising mode and conjured up monetary mojo instead. Now that 25 raffle winners have gone home happy and Casa Grande Baseball's coffers are replenished, I'm in better spirits.  And back in Cup O' Jo mode.  Let's see how the PTown Area Pros are faring three weeks into the season.

JONNY GOMES (OF, Louisville Bats, AAA Cincinnati Reds Organization) 
Gomes pounded the ball the first half of Spring Training.  He seemed a lock to make the team.  The Reds even put him through a 1st base boot camp in an attempt to create some roster flexibility.  A few weeks before Opening Day, Jonny's bat became unproductive as the Reds broke camp in a teamwide slump that may have finally bottomed out this week. At the roster deadline, Cincy decided to make Gomes an Opening Day Outfielder in AAA Louisville.  He started out well enough, but his bat went from unproductive to downright uncooperative.  Longtime fans know that he is prone to awe inspiring streaks of greatness and gut wrenching slumps. Happily, Jonny started hitting this week. With a 3-for-4 day at the plate yesterday, Gomes is now batting .262 with 2 doubles, a triple and a home run and a stolen base.  Yesterday's big win moved Louisville into a tie with Toldeo for the International League West Division lead 1.5 games in front of Indianapolis. They play "pants high" every day in Louisville and it's just not very Gomesian.  Hit your way outta that place Jonny. Remarkably, the 9-6 Reds have won 8 of the last 11 games while hitting at the bottom of the Majors with a .229 average. They were happy to hand the "worst hitting team" distinction to the Diamondbacks yesterday.   The Reds are in second place, 1.5 games back of MLB's best hitting team, the St. Louis Cardinals, batting .303.  Pitching and defense I guess.

Check back in a day or two for a look at Brandon Morrow's season so far.  He's back to a closer role with the Seattle Mariners and doin' fine.

Over the next week, we'll also check up on PTown's other Pros including Joey Gomes (Joliet Jackhammers - Northern League IND), Konrad Schmidt (Visalia Rawhide, High A, Diamondbacks Organization) and Tommy Everidge (Midland Rockhounds, AA, Oakland Athletics Organization).  A few of  PTowns up-and-comers are having terrific seasons including DJ Gentile (Cal Poly San Luis Obispo) and Samantha Banister (University of Arizona Wildcats).  Stay tuned...

Fowl Ball!

A pair of perplexing roster moves were made in professional baseball yesterday.  In support of the PTown talent that has been temporarily sidetracked, I propose we fry up some Fowl Balls at the Casa Grande vs. Petaluma game tomorrow afternoon on Bob Leslie Field.  Award Winning Poultry Plated in Protest is so very Petaluma, don't you think?  Lightly breaded turkey "parts" dusted with a little cayenne pepper.  Take that Dusty Baker, ya big turkey! 

They'd be a sure fire hit on Santa Rosan Guy Fieri's “Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives” show on Food Network.  A great way for a PTown Snack Shack posing as a DD&D to break onto the scene.  

If you're wondering what's got PTown's pheathers all phlustered, grab a hanky and a beer and keep reading.

Not only was PTown's Jonny Gomes pruned from the Red's 25 man for Opening Day, he was passed over for the 40 man as well.  Got to tell you I did not see that coming. Especially in light of a well placed "little bird" twittering into the ear of a Hall Of Fame reporter that Gomes had made the team a few weeks back.  I worried that his near drought of hits the last ten days of Camp might bump him to the longer list.  I sure didn't think leading the team in home runs and co-owning the RBI title at the end of Spring Training would be rewarded with a Major League pink slip.  Guess it doesn't pay to be an aircraft carrier engine in a fleet of jet skis.  Guess the Reds are 100% committed to small ball and defensive excellence.  Sometimes it's nice to get runs two or three at a time and the club is pretty light in their ability to do that on any given day.  We'll have to see how well that works out for them.

Phurther perturbing PTownFan (and REALLY fowling her mood) is the Detroit Tigers' Organization.  Seems our perfectly delightful and multi-talented Louis Ott was lacking some ingredient considered essential to the Powers That Be.  TigsTown.com is reporting that Sweet Lou's services are no longer needed. We'll have an ear to the ground to see where he turns up... because he will turn up in Pro Ball somewhere.

Seven stages of grief.  I am a bit stuck on "Anger" but looking to move toward "Acceptance".  Cooking has always been very therapeutic for me ;-)

The Little Bird Is A Big Turkey

Several weeks a ago, a "little bird" told Dayton Daily News reporter, Hank McCoy that Jonny Gomes had made the team.  But the Powers That Be had a change of heart and have gone another direction.  More later.  Once the Stresstab kicks in.

Update:  Here's Dusty's official explanation...  CF Tavarez is sick, and a little hurt, so they need a CF with McDonald getting the nod.  He's told Jonny to go to Louisville and focus on hitting, not just slugging.  Cincinnati and much of America's heartland is left scratching their heads on how Nix makes the roster and Gomes does not.  Yes Nix is a lefty off the bench but when hitting well below the Mendoza, doesn't seem like that's saying much. Both Hairston and Dickerson are injury prone so there are likely to be opportunities in Cincy if Jonny decides to accept the assignment to Louisville.