It seems odd too me that barbecue has not become the defacto food of baseball. Both barbecue and baseball are all about patience, timing, preparation, practice, and summer. The two seem to be perfect complements of each other.
Unfortunately, it seems to be rare to find real barbecue anywhere in some stadiums. Oh, sure, you can generally get a hunk of dead pig with sauce dumped on it, but that’s no more real barbecue than Carlos Zambrano is a cleanup hitter. The real thing sits patiently for hours upon hours in the smoker, the minor leagues of meat, until it is at last proclaimed ready and served on a major league bun. If you rush it, you run the risk of it being too raw and becoming more a miss than a hit.
And now that I’ve roasted that analogy to death (and made myself very hungry), let’s get to the games.
Scores From Yesterday
Iowa – Iowa rallied to tie things up in the top of the ninth, but they finished with a 4-3 loss. Tennessee – Tennessee kept the game close, but they fell in the ninth 4-3. Daytona – Daytona had trouble capitalizing on their chances in this game, and it led to an 8-5 loss. Peoria – Peoria committed three errors en route to a 10-5 loss. Boise – Boise is on a role. The won again, this time by a final of 11-8. Arizona – The AZL Cubs’ offense was essentially shut down in this 7-3 loss.
Performances of the Day
[Iowa] Michael Bowden pitched another inning and a third of hitless relief for Iowa. Look for him in Chicago in a few weeks.
[Iowa] Tony Campana, batting leadoff, doubled and singled as part of a two hit night.
[Tennessee] Eric Jokisch struck out six in six good innings. He left with a no decision.
[Tennessee] Matthew Szczur tripled for the third time in four games as part of his two hit night. Logan Watkins and Nelson Perez each doubled and had two hits.
[Daytona] John Andreoli stole his 50th base of the season. Andreoli was not a guy we were talking about before the season started, but he is definitely on my radar now. With 50 steals in 67 tries and a High-A OBP of .402 in his first full season as a professional, he has become a player to watch.
[Peoria] Jorge Soler singled and drove in two in his Midwest League debut. The Chiefs, and Soler, return home to Peoria on Wednesday, August 15. Tickets are available.
[Boise] Daniel Vogelbach tacked on home runs number seven and eight in this game. That’s homers in five straight games (seven total during those five games). When he gets hot, it seems he gets really, really hot.
[Boise] Marco Hernandez also homered, his fourth for the Hawks this season.
[Boise] Jeimer Candelario had one of his best nights in some time. He finished the game 4 for 5 with two doubles and three runs scored. On the downside, he also committed two errors.
[Arizona] Shawon Dunston reached three times on two hits and a walk. His was the only multi-hit game for the Cubs.
[Arizona] Alvido Jimenez struck out three over three innings of no-hit relief to finish this game.
Other Minor League Notes
In the six games since he was promoted to Daytona, Javier Baez has hit .091/.167/.136 and has struck out in roughly a third of his at bats. So, how worried do you think we should be about this? The correct answer is “Not at all.” Players routinely struggle, even this badly, when they are promoted to a new level. It is normal. If he doesn’t hit another pitch for the rest of the season he will still be in contention to be the Cubs’ number one overall prospect heading into next season.
The Boise Hawks’ lead over the second place team is now four games. They continue to be on track for the playoffs.
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NEWSLETTER
It seems odd too me that barbecue has not become the defacto food of baseball. Both barbecue and baseball are all about patience, timing, preparation, practice, and summer. The two seem to be perfect complements of each other.
