Tigers Minor League Baseball Blog

Michael Hernandez had a huge day at the plate for the Seawolves in their 12-4 win over Bowie.  He went three for four with two homeruns and six RBIs in the win.  William Rhymes went two for five with a double, two RBIs and two runs while Kody Kirkland went two for three with a double, a homerun, three RBIs and two runs.

Eddie Bonine improved to 14-5 with a solid start.  He gave up four runs on seven hits and one walk in six innings of work.

Erie held on to their slim second half lead as they split a pair of games with second place Akron.  In the first game, Erie edged Akron 6-5 and it was Eddie Bonine who picked up the win with a seven inning complete game in the 6-5 win.  He gave up five runs on eight hits and two walks with one strikeout in seven innings of work.  Matthew Joyce went two for three with a double, a walk, two RBIs and a run.  Kody Kirkland belted a solo homer to help out the cause.

Game two didn’t go quite as well as the offense was held four hits in a 3-1 loss.  Steve Torrealba belted in a solo homerun for the lone run and Corey Hamman took the loss in his first Double A start.  He gave up two runs on three hits and three walks with two strikeouts in just 2 2/3 innings.

Jonathan Connolly fell to 6-5 on the season with a rough start in the Seawolves in 7-5 loss to Connecticut.  He gave up six runs (four earned) on seven hits with three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.

William Rhymes went three for five with two RBIs.  Kody Kirkland went two for four with a run and an RBI in the loss.

Kody Kirkland doubled and drove in three runs to lead the way for the Seawolves in their 10-2 win over Bowie.  Erick Almonte also had a nice day at the plate and he went two for four with a double, two RBIs and a run.

Jair Jurrjens improved to 4-4 on the season with the win.  He gave up one run on five hits and three walks with an impressive nine strikeouts in six innings of work.

Erie got not just one, but two great individual performances in their 9-1 win over Bowie.  Both Michael Hollimon and Jeff Larish belted two homers a piece and they both also drove in three runs each.  Kody Kirkland pitched with a two run shot, his tenth of the season.

Andrew Kown went the distance and he improved to 3-5 on the season. He gave up one run on six hits and five strikeouts.

Matthew Righter fell to 2-2 on the season with a tough start in Erie’s 5-4 loss to Reading.  He gave up five runs on eight hits and two walks with five strikeouts in five innings.

Jeff Larish went two for two with a solo homerun.  Nick McIntyre belted a solo homerun and he scored two runs while Kody Kirkland went two for three with a double and a run.

Jair Jurrjens fell to 2-3 on he season with a rough start in Erie’s 9-6 loss to Trenton.  He gave up six runs on eight hits and three walks with three strikeouts in four innings.

Jackson Melian provided most of the offense for the Seawolves in the loss.  He homered, drew a walk and drove in four runs.  Kody Kirkland singled, drew a walk and scored two runs.

Erie and Altoona played two because of yesterday’s rain out and each team took a game.  Erie lost the first one 4-1 and Erie didn’t score until the final inning Joel Roa drove home Kody Kirkland.  Andrew Kown dropped to 2-4 with the loss and he gave up four runs (three earned) on five hits and a walk with one strikeout in six innings.

Erie won the second game 4-3.  Andres Torres hit a solo homerun and he scored two runs in the win.  Pedro Cotto went two for three with a double and an RBI.  Matthew Rusch pitched a scoreless seventh and he picked up the win.

Kody Kirkland was the hitting star in the Sea Wolves 8-7 win over the Fisher Cats.  He went two for three with a homerun, three RBIs and two runs.  Matthew Joyce made a big contribution with a three run homer.

Jonathan Connolly improved to 3-3 on the season with a decent start.  He gave up four runs on seven hits and one walk with three strikeouts in seven innings.

Eddie Bonine dropped to 4-3 on the season with a tough start in Erie’s 8-4 loss to Portland.  He gave up six runs (five earned) on seven hits and two walks with four strikeouts in 7 1/3 innings.

Andres Torres went two for four with a double, a triple and two RBIs in the loss.  Kody Kirland went three for four with a double, a homerun and two runs.

Erie edged Akron 5-4 and the big hit of the game was a three run homer by Kody Kirkland.  He finished the game two for three while Andres Torres singled, drove in one and scored a run.

Dallas Trahern improved to 7-1 on the season. He gave up four runs (three earned) seven hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings.

Eddie Bonine gave up four runs on seven hits and two walks with two strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings in Erie’s 5-3 loss to Akron.  Bonine gave up runs in three of the five innings that he pitched.

Kody Kirkland drove in two and scored a run despite not getting hit.  He drew one walk and he hit two sac. flies. 

The Seawolves put only one run on the board and a terrific start by Andrew Miller went to waste in a 2-1 loss.  Miller gave up one run on four hits and three walks with five strikeouts in eight innings.  Matthew Righter gave up two walks and a hit in the ninth inning and he took the loss.

Kody Kirkland drove in the only Seawolve run.  He went two for four with a solo homerun.

The Seawolves took a 7-0 lead into the bottom of the ninth inning and after a total collapse by starter Jonathan Connolly and some poor relief pitching by Kyle Sleeth, an automatic win turned into a disappointing loss.  Kevin Ardoin only gave up the losing run and while he took the loss, there was plenty of blame to go around.

Andres Torres homered and drove in two runs.  Kody Kirkland went two for five with a homerun and two runs scored.

Jair Jurrjens picked up his first win of the season with six solid innings against Bowie.  He gave up just two runs on seven hits and two walks with five strikeouts.

Jeff Larish picked up three RBIs despite going 0 for 4.  Both Clete Thomas and Kody Kirkland had two hits and two runs in the 8-4 win.

Dallas Trahern had another nice start and he gave up just one run on six hits and a walk with four strikeouts in 6 1/3 innings.  He improved to 2-0 and he’s given up just one earned run in 12 1/3 innings.  Even more impressive is he’s walked just one batter.  John Sickels called him a breakout candidate and so far, he’s nailed this one.

Kody Kirkland and Jackson Melian drove in two runs a piece in the 6-1 win.  Michael Holliman went three for five with a double and two runs.

Erie was blown out and by the time the fourth inning was over, this game was out of reach.  The final was 16-3 and starter Jonthan Connolly was responsible for half of those.  He gave up eight runs (six earned) on nine hits and two walks with three strikeouts in 3 2/3 innings.  Including Connolly, all four Erie pitchers gave up at least one run.

Jeffrey Larish and Jackson Melian both had two hits and a homerun.  Kody Kirkland went yard with a solo shot.

The Sea Wolves dropped to 1-1 with a twelve inning loss to Binghamton tonight.  Erie scored their two runs in the fourth but they didn’t score the rest of the way as they eventually gave up the lead and then lost it in extra frames.  Kody Kirkland had two singles and a run while but he made two errors while Brent Dlugach singled and scored the other run.

Jair Jurrjens made his first start of the season and he threw four shutout innings.  He gave up four hits, two walks and he struck out four.  Andrew Kown gave up the first run to Binghamton but he struck out five in just three innings.

Baseball America ran through a final look at Tigers spring training from a minor league perspective yesterday.  Of course, Cameron Maybin was in the spotlight but Brent Clevlen got some love as well.  Kody Kirkland was the guy who fell into the “Who’s Not” section and they agree he needs more time at Double A.

Yorman Bazardo, the pitcher the Tigers acquired this offseason from the Mariners, was recently sent down to the minors.  I couldn’t find what level he’ll be starting at but my guess would be either a repeat of Double A or a bump to Triple A Toledo.

I also read a snippet about Kody Kirkland being sent down as well but couldn’t confirm it.  Either way, neither of these are a big surprise.