Win: Kyle Lohse (5-6)
Loss: Homer Bailey (5-7)
Save: Francisco Rodriguez (9)

HR: Jonathan Lucroy (11), Chris Heisey (4)

MVPs: Kyle Lohse (.177 WPA)/Jean Segura (.177 WPA)
LVP: Norichika Aoki (-.141 WPA)

Fangraphs Win Expectancy Graph

Boxscore

The Brewers put together a nice team effort to get a win tonight against the.....Ooh, who am I kidding? DID YOU SEE THAT?!?!? CARLOS GOMEZ IS INCREDIBLE!!!

With a good start from Kyle Lohse and solid hitting, the Brewers gave themselves a one-run lead going into the ninth inning. Francisco Rodriguez entered the game and found himself in trouble with the tying run on first base and one of the best hitters on the planet, Joey Votto, up to bat. Votto saw a few pitches and then crushed a ball 400 feet into centerfield. Unfortunately, for Votto, Carlos Gomez plays centerfield for the Brewers and robbed his game-winning home run to record the final out of the game.

Kyle Lohse put together another good start for the Brewers tonight as he pitched 6.2 innings while only giving up three earned runs on nine hits. Lohse was able to limit his damage with two timely double plays and only one walk on the evening.

After giving up an early run in the first inning on three consecutive two-out singles from the Reds, it looked as though Lohse may struggle tonight, but Lohse went on to put together a pretty solid start. In the fourth, Lohse gave up a solo home run to Chris Heisey, but avoided trouble for the most part until the seventh inning.

Offensively, the Brewers gave Lohse just enough support to get the win.

Jean Segura struggled over the weekend against the Mets, but returned to his All-Star form going three for three with a double, HBP and one run scored. Along with his RBI double in the second, Segura singled in the first before stealing second and eventually scoring on Jonathan Lucroy's two-run home run. Lucroy has now hit a home run in three consecutive games.

Rickie Weeks was another bright spot for the Brewers offensively tonight going two for three with a walk and RBI double in the third inning, which gave the Brewers a 4-1 lead.

In the seventh, Lohse gave up a hit to Heisey to start the inning, but quickly recovered with an easy 6-4-3 double play to get himself to the pitcher's spot in the Reds order. Pinch hitter and former Brewer Cesar Izturis singled to keep the inning alive and moved to third on a single from Shin-Soo Choo. Even though Lohse had only thrown 93 pitches, Ron Roenicke opted to bring in John Axford to get the final out of the inning.

With Axford entering the game, Dusty Baker chose to pinch hit for Zack Cosart with Xavier Paul. Paul promptly singled to right field and scored Izturis from third. Axford then had the pleasure of facing Joey Votto in a high leverage situation. After Votto fouled off multiple pitches, Axford struck out Votto swinging on the ninth pitch of the at-bat.

Jim Henderson pitched a shutout inning after putting two runners on base to get the Brewers through the top of the eighth inning. The Brewers threatened in the eighth inning, but ultimately did not score when Ed Sedar put up the stop sign for Logan Schafer roughly ten feet away from home plate in one of the most unusual plays of all-time.

Francisco Rodriguez came in for the save in the ninth inning, but Carlos Gomez was the one that ended up saving the day. After retiring the first two batters of the inning, Rodriguez walked pinch hitter Derrick Robinson to bring up Joey Votto. After working himself into a hitter's count, Votto lifted a ball to center field that looked like a home run coming off the bat and would have cleared the wall if not for the extraordinary timing and athleticism of Carlos Gomez. Gomez tracked the ball back to the wall and timed his leap perfectly to record the final out of the game.

Tomorrow night the Brewers will take on the Reds in the second game of their four game series at Miller Park. Tony Cingrani (3-0) will take the mound for the Reds against the Brewers and Wily Peralta (5-9). Peralta will be making his first start since leaving his July 2nd start against the Nationals early after feeling discomfort in his hamstring in the sixth inning. First pitch will be at 7:10 p.m.

Spent my last day at Memorial Park, catching the Boise Hawks win over the Tri-City Dust Devils. I'll have more to say about that later, but tonight I want to get the Wrap done and get the bed. I'm tired.

I'm going to have to lead off with the Daytona Cubs tonight. I'm sorry I don't have a picture of Matt Loosen.

Daytona Cubs

Matt Loosen threw Daytona's first nine-inning complete game no-hitter in 19 years as the Daytona Cubs beat the Dunedin Blue Jays, 7-0.

Loosen dominated the Blue Jays all game. He walked a batter in the first and fourth innings and one batter reached on an error by shortstop Elliot Soto. He struck out nine batters and he finished the game with 106 pitches.

David Hutcheson threw Daytona's last nine-inning complete game no-hitter on August 4, 1994. Their last combined nine-inning no-no came two years later, when Kerry Wood, Darold Brown and Brandon Hammock threw one on August 24, 1996. Daytona's last seven-inning no hitter came in 2009 when Craig Muschko, Chris Siegfried, Oswaldo Martinez and David Cales combined to throw one.

The Cubs offense staked Loosen to a 7-0 lead after three innings. Right fielder Bijan Rademacher hit his first Daytona home run in the third inning with a man on. He was 1 for 2 with two walks. He scored twice.

First baseman Dusin Geiger was 2 for 4 with a walk and a double. He scored once. Soto was 2 for 5 with a two-run single in the second inning.

Iowa Cubs

The Iowa Cubs zipped past the New Orleans Zephyrs (Marlins), 5-2.

Chris Rusin allowed a home run to Gorkys Hernandez, the first batter he faced. After that, he settled down and collected his eighth win of the season. Rusin allowed two runs on four hits over six innings. He walked four and struck out two.

Yoanner Negrin tossed two innings without allowing a hit. He walked one and struck out two.

Brian Schlitter pitched a perfect ninth inning for his tenth save. He struck out one.

Catcher Luis Flores led off the top of the third with his fourth home run of the season. He also doubled in a 2 for 4 game.

First baseman Brad Nelson was 3 for 4 with a double. He had two RBI.

Second baseman Logan Watkins had two doubles and a walk in a 2 for 4 game. He scored one run and had one RBI.

Tennessee Smokies

The Tennessee Smokies dropped a doubleheader to the Huntsville Stars (Brewers), 2-0 and 6-3 in eight innings.

In game one, Kyle Hendricks lost for the first time this year at home. He allowed two runs on two hits over five innings. He uncharacteristically walked three and struck out five. Both runs scored in the fourth inning on a double after Hendricks hit one batter and walked another.

The Smokies only had two hits in this game.

In game two, starter A.J. Morris took a no-decision after he gave up only one run on six hits over five innings. Morris fanned three and didn't walk anyone.

Frank Batista pitched the top of the eighth inning and allowed three runs on two hits and two walks. One of the two walks was intentional. Batista did not strike anyone out.

First baseman Justin Bour cut Huntsville's lead to 3-2 in the top of the seventh inning with a solo home run, his eighth of the season. Bour was 1 for 3.

Right fielder Rubi Silva sent the game to extra innings when he singled in the seventh and then stole second, stole third and scored on an error on the throw to third base. Silva was 2 for 3 with a double.

Kane County Cougars

Rained out. The game will not be made up. It's probably for the best.

Boise Hawks

The Boise Hawks ended their five-game losing streak by cleaning up the Tri-City Dust Devils (Rockies), 11-3.

Dae-Eun Rhee started and threw three scoreless innings in a rehab assignment. He gave up two hits. He didn't walk anyone and struck out three.

Loiger Padron got his first Boise win, since Rhee didn't go five innings. Padron pitched three innings and allowed two runs on three hits. One of the two runs was unearned. Padron walked one and struck out three.

Second baseman David Bote lead off the bottom of the first inning with a tremendous home run that went over the fence in dead center field. It was his third home run this season. Bote was 1 for 4 and scored twice. He had a second RBI on a sacrifice fly in the fifth inning. He also reach on a hit-by-pitch.

Third baseman Daniel Lockhart was 3 for 4. He scored once and had two RBI.

Right fielder Yasiel Balaguert was 2 for 5 with a walk. He had an RBI single in the fourth inning that just missed being a home run. It banged off the left field wall with such force that he was held to a single.

First baseman Jacob Rogers went 2 for 3 with three walks. He had one RBI and scored three runs. DH Rony Rodriguez was 2 for 5 with a double and scored twice. He was also hit by a pitch.

Center fielder Shawon Dunston Jr. went 2 for 4 with two walks. He scored on Balaguert's single and one of those walks came with the bases loaded.

Dunston walked seven times in the five-game series with Tri-City. Must take after his mother.

AZL Cubs

Day off.

Adam Eaton continues to move closer to returning to major league action with a new assignment in his rehab to Reno. he started in center field and played the entire game going 1 for 4 with a home run. I don't have an accurate count of rehab games but I know the number of games allowed is limited though I doubt he's about to reach that imminently. My guess is he's a bout a week away health-wise. Now whether that means he'll actually get called up in a week, or optioned down to Reno to extend his rehab naturally, or push his rehab to the limit and wait to see if anything develops with the roster is unknown.

If no new injuries develop in the outfield it's hard to figure what they'll do since they already have Parra, Pollock, Ross, Kubel and Prado able to play the outfield now. We know Parra and Ross aren't going anywhere. Kubel or Pollock could be moved to make room for Eaton, and with the trade deadline approaching that's always a possibility. It's hard to imagine them casting Pollock aside as one of the right handed options in the outfield. Parra has cooled off of late so it's possible his role gets reduced a little. The Dbacks are about to have too many position players and something's going to have to give.

Snake Stars
3 Stars: Daniel Watts, South Bend 7.2 IP, 3 H, 1 BB, 6 K, 1 ER
2 Stars: Mike Freeman, Mobile 2 for 3, 1 BB, 1 DBL, 1 RBI
1 Star: Ender Inciarte, Mobile 2 for 5, 1 R, 2 SB (27)
0 Stars: Dallas Newton, AZL Dbacks 2.1 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 2 K, 8 R

Triple A: Reno 2 @ Fresno 6.Michael Bolsinger got bounced around a little allowing 6 runs (5 earned) on 11 hits over 7 innings of work. The offense didn't have it producing just 6 hits and never really threatening in this one. Adam Eaton hit a solo home run and Ed Easley had a double and an RBI.

Double A: Game 1. Mobile 1 Montgomery 4.Archie Bradley didn't have his best stuff getting knocked out in the 6th inning after allowing 4 runs on 7 hits and 4 walks while striking out 3. The offense never was in it getting 6 hits with 2 coming from Nick Ahmed.

Double A: Game 2. Mobile 5 Montgomery 4. In the other half of the doubleheader David Holmberg was just okay allowing 3 runs in 6 innings on 7 hits and 2 walks. The offense did enough to lead heading into the 7th but jake Barrett couldn't seal the deal giving up a solo home run that tied the game. The game extended into the 10th when the BayBears won it on a bases-loaded walk to Ryan Stovall who went 2 for 4 with 3 RBI. Ender Inciarte had 2 hits and stole 2 bases. Mike Freeman was solid going 2 for 3 with a walk, a double and an RBI.

High A: Visalia 1 @ Stockton 6. Keith Hessler only went 3 innings and allowed 3 runs though none were earned as Kevin Medrano and Mike Freeman committed errors. Robert Coe went the rest of the way giving up 3 runs in 5 innings. The offense was ice cold picking up just 3 singles and 1 run.

Low A: South Bend 3 @ Dayton 4. Daniels Watts put together another stellar start but the bullpen gave it up and they lost 4-3. Watts had a shutout going through 7 innings on just one hit but ran into a little trouble in the 8th giving up a double and an RBI single before being replaced by Chris Capper, who got the final out. The 9th didn't go so well as Thomas Brendel tried to nail down the save but surrendered a 2-out, 2-run double that tied the score. Brendel continued in the 10th and allowed a single sandwiched around 2 outs. Jose Jose was called on to quiet things but allowed back-to-back hits for the walk-off loss. The offense managed just 4 hits on the night.

Short Season A: Hillsboro 6 Vancouver 8.Jose Martinez didn't have one of his better outings going just 4 innings allowing 4 runs on 3 hits, 3 walks and 2 home runs. Ross Gerdeman did pretty much the same allowing 4 more runs in his 4 innings of work. That was more than the offense could cover even though they produced 10 hits and 6 runs. Josh Parr, Ryan Gebhardt and Elvin Soto each had 2 hits.

AZL Rookie: Dbacks 3 Brewers 14. Starter Dallas Newton got rocked and the offense was no match with 5 hits. Phildrick Llewelyn went 2 for 3 with a double and a triple to pace the limited offense.

With last night's 7-4 victory over the Twins the Rays winning ways continued, and allowed them sole possession of second place in the AL East by the end of the night. On June 23rd, just 15 days ago, the team was in last place in the division. Yes, they've played some of the worst teams in the American League this year the past few series, but wins are wins nonetheless.

Who to credit for their recent success? The offense, defense and the pitching. Over their last nine games, the Rays have outscored opponents 52-18, outhit them 75-44 and have not committed an error in nine straight games. Yunel Escobar has been especially flawless, going 46 consecutive games error-free, the second-longest streak by a shortstop in team history. Meanwhile, the starting rotation has worked at least six innings in 17 of the last 19 games.

Roberto Hernandez helped keep the rotation's numbers going last night, recording his third straight quality start in six innings with eight hits, three runs, three walks, three strikeouts and a home run. It wasn't his sharpest outing, but the bullpen stepped in and protected the tie, only allowing two hits and one run, all from Jamey Wright, in the three innings of relief from Alex Torres, Joel Peralta, Wright and Fernando Rodney

The Rays offense struck first, taking an early 2-0 lead, then tying up the game in the fifth after the Twins were ahead 3-2. The seventh provided three runs via a Yunel Escobar solo homer followed by a triple from Desmond Jennings, which was succeeded with a two-run shot from Ben Zobrist. In their past 31 games the Rays have outhomered their opponents 38-22, and Escobar's home run last night was their 100th on the season.

Oh, and the cherry on top of the winning sundae? The Rays notched their 50th win last night, in their 90th game, the third fastest time they have done so in franchise history. The only two times they have reached 50 faster? 2008 and 2010, both years that they won the AL East. Yes, the division is a very different beast this year, so who knows if it really matters; but you can't hate history.

All Star Game Updates

The hitters for the Home Run Derby were announced yesterday, with the following players:

NL: Captain David Wright selected Carlos Gonzalez, Michael Cuddyer and Bryce Harper.

AL: Captain Robinson Cano chose Prince Fielder and Chris Davis, and has yet to announce his third pick.

Yesterday Danny shared his guesses pre selection, picking at least Chris Davis and Jose Bautista; only one of which who were chosen, and the final spot still remains. He suggested Wil Myers for that Derby slot... thoughts?

Oh hey, 2008!

Garza with a 0.97 ERA over his last five starts, all with Navarro behind the plate.

— Paul Sullivan (@PWSullivan) July 9, 2013

Links:

- The All Star Game selection snubs continue to be discussed, this time on Sports Illustrated's The Strike Zone, with no Longo remaining one of the most agreed upon glaring errors.

- Only eight players 21 or younger have appeared in the majors this year, but four of them are All Stars: Manny Machado, Mike Trout, Bryce Harper and Jose Fernandez. There have never been four players that young who have appeared in the same All Star game.

- Freddie Freeman versus Yasiel Puig in the ASG "Final Vote" is extremely unfair and swung by the media, according to Braves players.

- I mean, why not: all of Chris Davis' 33 home runs this year, in one glorious GIF.

- Carlos Gomez ended last night's Reds-Brewers game with one heck of a Joey-Votto-two-run-homer-robbing catch:

I know what you’re thinking: why ask a question with such an easy answer? The fans booed Travis Ishikawa because they’re jerks. But that’s no fun. Let’s delve into the reasoning behind the boobirds making a scene two plate appearances into T-Ishi’s(my creation) Yankee career by looking at why Yankees fans normally boo players.

The player has played for the Boston Red Sox

Ishikawa was drafted by the San Francisco Giants and has spent time with the Brewers and Orioles. No word if he’s a Red Sox fan, though. So this is not a likely reason.

The player makes too much money

One of the "Alex Rodriguez Reasons". Even at the league minimum salary of $490,000, Ishikawa would figure to pocket about $3,000 for his 6 ½ innings of work. Considering the median US income is around $40,000, I guess this could be a reason. But then again, Travis Hafner was even more useless and makes much more money, and he was spared. I'll file this one under "maybe".

The player isn't "clutch"

Both of Ishikawa's at-bats followed leadoff singles by Vernon Wells. He struck out both times. It could be argued that two two-run homers in those spots could have changed the outcome of this game completely. That's pretty unclutch of you, T-Ishi. This is a definite possibility.

The player isn't meeting expectations

If any fans had any expectations of Ishikawa, then they obviously have no idea who he is and have been comatose for the appearances of the other "great" Yankees pickups this year. Very unlikely.

The player isn't a "True Yankee"

It's a simple fact that when you cut Travis Ishikawa, he bleeds red, normal human blood. Not a pinstripe to be found in his veins. That's just unacceptable. This reason is definitely the frontrunner.

So it's all pretty cut and dry, Travis: hit a home run in your next at bat and all will be forgiven. And if you're cut before then, you'll always have the glorious memories of your Yankees debut.

TCU Baseball now has 25 former Frogs playing professional throughout different leagues in the United States. By my count, that is the most we have ever had at any one point in program history. These 25 athletes are spread across 18 different major league teams and affiliate minor league clubs, as well as one independent league club.

Wow.

When you talk about trophies on the wall, this is the one I am most proud of. Not Omaha, or super regionals, or conference championships.... What I am most proud of is the talent this program has produced, especially the last 10 years, and how far these guys have pushed their careers. It is truly impressive, and something we should always be happy to boast about.

Scott Atchison

- Scott came off the DL for one game last month, only to jump right back on it with a different minor injury... He is pitching in the minors right now on a rehab assignment, and is looking to get back to the Mets within the next few weeks.

Matt Carpenter

- Matt Carpenter = 2013 All-Star. A few months ago, Matt was the best kept secret in professional baseball. Now, he is the opposite of that, everybody knows his name. Playing mostly at 2B (66 games) & 3B (30 games), Matt has solidified himself as a steady everyday player for the Cardinals, hitting mostly in the leadoff spot since he got a tryout their in June.

The above stats are pretty awesome, but think about these numbers:
OPS+ of 142 = Good for #1 on the Cardinals Roster
TB of 163 = Good for #1 on the Cardinals Roster
oWAR of 3.3 = Good for #1 on the Cardinals Roster (and equal to approx. $16 million+ in value in salary terms)
dWAR of 0.6 = Good for #3 on the Cardinals Roster
RAR of 36 = Good for #1 on the Cardinals Roster

- In essence, he has been the Cardinals best offensive player so far this year, he is their third best defensive player, and you can attribute at least 17% of the Cardinals offensive success to him so far in 2013... And we are only half way through the season. I can't wait to see him take the field next week for the NL, what a big moment for TCU and their favorite son.

Andrew Cashner

via cdn.fangraphs.com

- It seems like we have been saying the same thing forever... As soon as Cashner is healthy and given a chance to start, he is going to kill it. Well, that is exactly what is happening in San Diego. After getting a spot start back in May, Cash is now a central component in the Padres rotation, and their future plans.

The big difference? Cashner appears to have grown up. He doesn't throw as hard as he can every time, he instead looks to use his solid fastball command and movement to induce a lot of ground balls, only going to the hot stuff and that devastating slider when he needs a punch-out. So long as he is healthy and keeps his walk total down, he will be really really good. Here are some advanced metrics as well: .286 BABIP, 52.9% GB rate, 3.78 FIP, 4.02 xFIP, 0.5 WAR in 2013 so far.

Jake Arrieta

- Tough year so far for Jake, who bounced up and down between starting/not before being sent down to AAA in Baltimore. The recent trade for Scott Feldman moved Arrieta to Chicago for a fresh start, but Jake is starting to run out of time and opportunities... He was quickly labeled a reclamation project by Cubs beat writers, which may not be fair, but it does speak to the perspective of those around the game. I hope Jake can get his command down soon, he has a great opportunity to break in with a weak MLB club right now.

Sam Demel

- Demel has had a rough year in AAA for the Yankees, rough as in he was pitching great until he went on the DL in June. The Yankees could be in need of bullpen help soon, you would have hoped that might be Demel. Hopefully he makes it back soon.

Bryan Holaday

- Bryan has been hot lately, hitting above .280 in AAA but still not slugging a whole lot... He is on the 40 man and has spent a fair amount of time in the majors so far this year. He may get a shot at pro ball yet, I am just not sure it will be in Detroit.

Chad Huffman - Stats

- Chad is killing it in AAA for the Cardinals, but so far he has not had any luck breaking into the ML roster... Why? He isn't on the 40 man, and the 40 man trumps all. Still, a nice rebound year for Chad, who still has a chance to make it back to the majors if he continues to fight.

Matt Curry - Stats

- Matt returned to AA Altoona this year, with similar results. Despite a hot start, Curry just can't seem to be consistent at the plate, sporting a slash line of .248/.286/.400 through the end of June. At some point, you hope he heats it up and gets back on track, but it appears the jump to AA (the second hardest level-to-level jump in baseball) may have been exceptionally unkind to Matt.

Greg Holle - Stats

- After getting an early season callup to AA, Greg has been pitching fairly well. He has a 4.42 ERA and a .301 opponents batting average which don't look great, but are mostly influenced by a few really bad appearances. Overall, Greg has done well, and the Brewers continue to show faith in the pseudo-veteran.

Josh Elander - Stats

- All the talk in May/June was, "When is Josh getting called up to high-A" after his crazy performance to start the year. Well, he got the callup, and things haven't gone well so far. But, he only has eight games under his belt as of yet, and the newly minted outfielder still has plenty of room to grow.

Taylor Featherston - Stats

- Not a horrible year for the 2B in high-A so far, but you would expect more offense from a guy at this level and this position. Featherston has always flashed plus offensive potential, and has shown that promise at times in the pros, this year just doesn't appear to be his.

Jerome Pena - Stats

- No such luck for Jerome Pena either... I could essentially copy the Featherston paragraph and put it here, neither guy is killing it thus far at this pro level.

Matt Purke - Stats

- Purke finally got on the mound for the Nationals this year and was quite good through 30 innings in A ball, so the Nationals got aggressive and moved him up to high-A. Two starts in, one good and one bad, Purke still has a ton of promise. After getting his shoulder scoped last year, Purke's velocity, feel, and control have returned, and the lefty appears to be "back." Good news too, the Nationals need to capitalize on their major investment sooner rather than later.

Kevin Allen - Stats

- Allen started the year in extended spring training but has made his way up to A ball for the Royals, where he is doing quite well... Only five games in so far for Allen, but good results to show for it, I wouldn't be surprised if the Royals are also aggressive with this former Frog, high-A could be just around the corner.

Jason Coats - Stats

- Coats has recovered from knee surgery to a successful start in 2013... He has cooled of a bit as of late, but I like what I am seeing out of Coats... He still has a ton of promise, just needs to continue to log innings and ABs in pro-ball.

Kaleb Merck - Stats

- Well, I was going to talk about Merck heading from extended spring training to A-ball in June, but we learned today he has now been given his outright release from the Twins and is a unrestricted minor league free agent... Nothing more to add at this time, I have no idea what his plans are. I spoke with Kaleb Merck today, he is thinking about heading back to school to finish his degree... He also wouldn't rule out a return to pro-ball in the future. Best of luck Kaleb!

Kyle Winkler - Stats

- Kyle has spent time in a few leagues this year, mostly as a starter, as the Diamondbacks continue to work him back into a healthy role. So far so good in A-Ball for Kyle, where he is sporting a 3.90 ERA through 30+ innings pitched. If he stays healthy and continues to get better, the sky is the limit for this kid, his stuff has never, ever been in question.

Paul Hendrix - Stats

- After signing relatively quickly with the Indians, Hendrix reported to the college heavy short season-A ball league, where he is playing quite well so far (through 11 games), primarily at SS. Short was always his future pro spot, he has the most potential there long term... It will be interesting to see how he progresses this fall.

Kyle Von Tungeln - Stats

- Kyle has had a tough year... He has bounced around three different development levels, landing in short season-A ball for the Rockies... The numbers aren't good for the former TCU outfielder, which is disappointing based off of his hot start in the summer of 2012... Hopefully he can get things jump started in the second half of season.

Andrew Mitchell - Stats

- So far so good for Mitchell in the rookie league... The Sox are ramping up his arm, he should report to short season-A ball (or higher) within a few weeks as long as nothing major goes wrong.

Jantzen Witte - Stats

- Just 12 games for Witte so far in rookie ball, but not bad so far. Again, short season-A ball is a likely home in August.

Stefan Crichton, Nick Frey, Trevor Seidenberger

- All have signed (as I reported yesterday), none have logged any innings yet... Frey is hurt of course, but I would expect Crichton and Seidenberger to head off to Rookie ball and short season-A ball in the coming weeks, just as their fellow teammates have.

Joe Weik - Stats

- Joe is playing mostly 1B in the American Association independent league (Amarillo Florida), and he is killing it... So far, Weik is sporting a .337/.386/.492 slash line with 39 RBIs... You have to admire a guy willing to chase his dream this far, I hope Joe gets a shot with a major league team soon.

PROFESSIONAL FROGS

(Name, Team, Separated by current professional level)

Major Leagues
Scott Atchison (Mets) [DL]
Matt Carpenter (Cardinals)
Andrew Cashner (Padres)

Triple AAA
Jake Arrieta (Cubs)
Sam Demel (Yankees)
Bryan Holaday (Tigers)
Chad Huffman (Cardinals)

Double AA
Matt Curry (Pirates)
Greg Holle (Brewers)

High A
Josh Elander (Braves)
Taylor Featherston (Rockies)
Jerome Pena (Orioles)
Matt Purke (Nationals)

Low A
Kevin Allen (Royals)
Jason Coats (White Sox)
Kaleb Merck (Twins)
Kyle Winkler (Diamondbacks)

Low A Short Season
Paul Hendrix (Indians)
Kyle Von Tungeln (Rockies)

Rookie League
Stefan Crichton (Orioles)
Nick Frey (Cardinals)
Andrew Mitchell (White Sox)
Trevor Seidenberger (Brewers)
Jantzen Witte (Red Sox)

Independent League
Joseph Weik (Amarillo Sox [Pensacola, Florida]) - American Association League

I am working on revising my top prospect list. The first step is to kick off everyone who has graduated to the majors and will lose rookie eligibility (I use 130 at-bats, 50 innings for starters, 30 for relievers), or who is on the verge of doing so.

Here are the graduates, with the number indicating where they ranked on my pre-season Top 150 Prospect list. I am listing the original ETAs so you can see who ended up in the majors sooner than I expected: Jose Fernandez, Yasiel Puig, Oswaldo Arcia, and Marcell Ozuna were the main ones.

GRADUATED

1) Jurickson Profar, SS, Texas Rangers, ETA 2013: Holding his own considering the circumstances.
6) Shelby Miller, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals, 2013: One of the best pitchers in the National League.
8) Jose Fernandez, RHP, Miami Marlins, 2014: One of the best pitchers in the National League.
16) Tyler Skaggs , LHP, Arizona Diamondbacks, 2013: Over 50 innings now, should continue to improve.
26) Yasiel Puig, OF, Los Angeles Dodgers, 2014: The Most Interesting Man in the World asked Puig for his autograph.

27) Trevor Rosenthal, RHP, St. Louis Cardinals, 2013: Extremely effective in bullpen.
33) Anthony Rendon, 3B, Washington Nationals, 2013: Just needs to stay healthy.
35) Aaron Hicks, OF, Minnesota Twins, 2013: Was rushed but gradually pulling himself out of hole.
36) Oswaldo Arcia, OF, Minnesota Twins, 2014: Very solid rookie campaign and I think he'll get even better.
38) Jedd Gyorko, 2B-3B San Diego Padres, 2013: Easy to overlook due to other NL rookies but very solid.

40) Nick Franklin, SS, Seattle Mariners, 2013: Everything the Mariners could have hoped.
41) Julio Teheran, RHP, Atlanta Braves, 2013: Jedd Gyorko of pitchers: effective, but overlooked due to others
53) Nolan Arenado, 3B, Colorado Rockies, 2013: I think he'll improve with time.Skipping Triple-A shows in this case.
65) Tony Cingrani, LHP, Cincinnati Reds, 2013: Who cares about breaking balls?
78) Leonys Martin, OF, Texas Rangers, 2013: Another very solid rookie, stealing ability stands out.

90) Wily Peralta, RHP, Milwaukee Brewers, 2013: Has made 18 starts with unattractive results.Can he improve?
96) Dan Straily, RHP, Oakland Athletics, 2013: I still like him.
97) Brandon Maurer, RHP, Seattle Mariners, 2013: Beat up in 10 starts but will be back.
105) Martin Perez, LHP, Texas Rangers, 2013: Over 50 innings now. To be honest, I still don't know what to make of him.
116) Marcell Ozuna, OF, Miami Marlins, 2014: Has held his job but needs better command of the strike zone

119) Avisail Garcia, OF, Detroit Tigers, 2013: Right at 130 AB. I'm assuming he'll pick up a few more. Profile similar to Ozuna.
134) Matt Adams, 1B, St. Louis Cardinals, 2013: He was a 23rd round pick, remember.
136) Didi Gregorius, SS, Arizona Diamondbacks, 2013: Hmm. Maybe the Diamondbacks knew what they were doing?
148) Justin Grimm, RHP, Texas Rangers, 2013: Wily Peralta of the American League.

SPECIAL CASE: Hyun-Jin Ryu, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers: Unusual case due to Korean professional background, age, and size of contract. The optimistic scouting reports were the correct ones.

There are some borderline cases I haven't decided what to do with yet: Gerrit Cole, Wil Myers, Kevin Gausman, Brad Miller, Zack Wheeler, and Mike Zunino most notably, who haven't exceeded limits yet but should. I might include them on the revised list for one last time but I am undecided. Would you prefer a list with those guys, or one with just guys in the minors?

We could be looking at the future of a pair of franchises tonight.

For the Brewers, Wily Peralta (5.27 ERA, 4.49 FIP) takes the mound for the 19th time. His up-and-down season took an upturn last time out, when he shut Washington out on three hits for 5.1 innings, walking two and striking out five. He left that game early with a hamstring strain, which is why he's pitching tonight on seven days' rest.

Unfortunately, Peralta is on an "every other" trend right now that doesn't bode well for tonight's start. He was very good in his 12th, 14th, 16th and 18th starts of the season (5 ER over 25.1 IP for a 1.78 ERA) but struggled in his 11th, 13th, 15th and 17th (14 ER over 20.1 innings for a 6.20 mark). Not surprisingly, the Brewers are 3-1 in the even games listed above but 0-4 in the odds.

This is Peralta's third start against the Reds this season, and he's allowed a combined nine runs (seven earned) over 11.1 innings in the other two, both Brewer losses. He's issued four walks and struck out just five Cincinnati batters over that time. No current Reds have faced him ten times or more.

He'll face 24-year-old lefty Tony Cingrani (3.40 ERA, 4.24 FIP), making the 14th appearance and ninth start of his rookie campaign. Cingrani last started against the Giants on Wednesday, allowing two runs on four hits over 5.2 innings with four walks and five strikeouts. Before that, he spent most of the month of June as a reliever.

Control has been an issue for Cingrani lately, so it'll be interesting to see if the Brewers take advantage of that tonight. He walked just eleven batters in his first 43.1 innings this season, but has walked ten in his last 9.2. He'll throw a low-90's fastball over 80% of the time with an occasional curve and changeup.

Cingrani pitched four innings against the Brewers on May 10, allowing two runs on five hits over four innings. No current Brewers have faced him ten times or more.

Tonight's starting lineup features Ryan Braun for the first time in a month:

Norichika Aoki RF
Jean Segura SS
Ryan Braun LF
Carlos Gomez CF
Rickie Weeks 2B
Sean Halton 1B
Martin Maldonado C
Yuniesky Betancourt 3B
Wily Peralta P

And in the bullpen:

• John Axford pitched .1 innings (12 pitches) last night, and also pitched on Sunday.
• Jim Henderson pitched one inning (22 pitches) last night.
• Francisco Rodriguez pitched one inning (21 pitches) last night.
• Brandon Kintzler pitched 1.1 innings (20 pitches) on Sunday.
• Michael Gonzalez pitched .2 innings (13 pitches) on Sunday.
• Tyler Thornburg and Burke Badenhop last pitched on Friday.

It's humid in Milwaukee tonight, but expect a game time temperature in the mid 70's under cloudy skies and an open roof.

You'd think the sanctity of the pennant races would matter more to Major League Baseball than retribution for some perceived or actual wrongdoing by individual players, but time and time again, Baseball has put other considerations ahead of the outcome of its championship season. I'm not sure who the Lords of the Game thought they were punishing -- other than the fans, that is -- when they reacted to the 13-day player strike that delayed the start of the 1972 season by simply wiping the lost games off the schedule, regardless of whether the teams would have an equal number of games. Resultantly, the Red Sox lost the American League East title to the Tigers by half a game.

The same arbitrary lack of care affected the weird split-season format decided upon in the aftermath of the 1981 strike, one that left the two National League teams with the best records, the Cardinals and Reds (who had the best record in all of baseball) out of the playoffs, as well as the 1994 decision to abort the remainder of the season and postseason, cowboy Bud Selig riding the fatal A-bomb groundward like some schlubby middle-aged version of Slim Pickens in "Dr. Strangelove," shouting that in order to save baseball he had to destroy it.

On Tuesday evening, ESPN reported that Ryan Bruan, Alex Rodriguez, and "as many as 20 players" could be suspended sometime after the All-Star break. As Mike Bates recently suggested in these pages, these decisions could have a serious impact on the races now unfolding in baseball's six divisions and could raise issues of basic fairness. To name but one example, the Brewers have 12 games to go against the Reds, but only nine against the Cardinals and six against the Pirates. Ryan Braun has already played 10 games against the Cards and hit .300, and nine against the Pirates and hit .351. He's played only three against the Reds and might only have time to get in a couple more before he disappears again. Thus the Reds would face a substantially weakened Brewers team, whereas their opponents had to win against a team that had the former MVP in its midst. Sure, the Pirates have lost only three game to the Braun-ified Brewers, but in a close race, winning that one extra game might against a softer opponent could, hypothetically, make all the difference.

Alternatively, the Washington Nationals, still very much alive in both the NL East and wild card races, would have a very serious hole blown in the side of their chances should Gio Gonzalez abruptly vanish. The Tigers and Rangers, both in tight races, would be similarly wounded by the suspensions of Nelson Cruz and Jhonny Peralta. The Yankees, as much as they might not want Alex Rodriguez to come back on the publicity or payroll side, have also gotten less production out of third base than any team in the American League and would find even the diminished version of Rodriguez who hit only .272/.353/.430 last year a major boost to their chances.

You might be tempted to say, "Hey, players disappear from the races all the time. We call that ‘injuries.'" Yes, injuries do happen, but those are, for want of a better term, acts of God. We have no control over when someone's hamstring is going to tear or their elbow explode. The timing of these penalties are purely discretionary. They can be administered at any time -- in the offseason, for example, when teams and their general managers can arrange adequate replacements for the banished players.

PED Puritanism: The Haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be juicing

With apologies to H.L. Mencken, but not to Rick Reilly. Those who would portray themselves as guardians of the game are really out to destroy it by undermining faith in its integrity.

Players have been suspended during pennant races before, in ways that altered seasons. However, a mass suspension like the one apparently contemplated here has really only one appropriate precedent: the banishment of the eight Black Sox, not by Commissioner Landis after their acquittal by a Chicago jury, but by owner Charles Comiskey, who, in the absence of a functioning central authority in baseball, took it upon himself to suspend his own players as of September 27, 1920. The White Sox were then half a game behind the league-leading Indians with three games to play. Without Shoeless Joe Jackson, Hap Felsch, and the rest, they couldn't make it.

Surely that is not a memory Commissioner Selig wants to evoke at this late date, or at any time, during the remainder of his reign. No comparably severe betrayal of the fans has taken place that would allow for Major League Baseball to countenance its own betrayal in kind. Baseball's rules, its Joint Drug Agreement, have been broken, yes, but that is all -- despite the predominant narrative of PEDs and baseball, even if there is convincing proof that the players attempted or intended to cheat, there will never be any evidence that they actually succeeded in doing so.

In other words, the 2013 season remains honest in every way that matters -- for now.

More from SB Nation:

• Rick Reilly basically accuses Chris Davis of PEDs

• MLB forgives, forgets, puts Colon on All-Star team

• Video: Wade Boggs on futuristic baseball and angry hippos

• Wrigley Renovations: Selling every bit of space

• AL All-Star rosters | NL All-Star rosters | More coverage

Win: Wily Peralta (6-9)
Loss: Tony Cingrani (3-1)

HR: Logan Schafer (1)

MVP: Wily Peralta (.606 WPA)
LVP: Carlos Gomez (-.102 WPA)

Fangraphs Win Expectancy Graph

Boxscore

It happened. It finally happened. After 407 consecutive games without one, the Brewers finally had a pitcher throw a complete game. Not only did Wily Peralta pitch a full nine innings, he shut out one of the best teams in the National League.

Peralta was in complete control tonight. Throughout the game, he did a great job getting ahead in counts, throwing 20 first pitch strikes to the 29 batters he faced. Throwing early strikes and keeping his fastball down in the zone allowed Peralta to induce 13 ground outs.

Peralta paired those 13 ground outs with six strikeouts to hold the Reds scoreless tonight. Though Peralta walked four batters, he limited the damage by allowing only one runner past second base.

That runner was Derrick Robinson. In the top of the seventh, the Brewers removed Ryan Braun from the game and replaced him with shortstop turned utility infielder turned left fielder Jeff Bianchi. With two outs, Robinson smacked a ball down the left field line, which Bianchi misplayed terribly. With the ball bouncing off the side railing and over Bianchi's head, Robinson attempted to score. After a bobble near the wall, Bianchi fired a throw directly to cutoff man Jean Segura, who cut down Robinson at home plate to preserve the shutout.

For the most part, the bats of the Brewers remained quiet as well tonight besides a few exceptions. After a walk from Jean Segura in the first, Ryan Braun announced his return from the disabled list with a single to right center on the very first pitch he saw. With only one out and runners on first and third, the Brewers were unable to do any damage.

The Brewers would continue to fail to do much of anything offensively until the bottom of the fifth inning. Martin Maldonado led off the inning with a walk and Logan Schafer followed him with a no doubter to right center. The home run was the very first of Schafer's career.

Brewers hitters looked lost at the plate tonight and Tony Cingrani held them to only three hits while also striking out 10 batters. Schafer's home run would be the only two runs the Brewers would muster against Cingrani and the Reds tonight, but ultimately the only two runs they would need.

The Reds will stick around for one more game in Milwaukee before heading out of town tomorrow. Johnny Hellweg will make his third career start and hope for some help from his teammates defensively. Hellweg has given up 14 runs in his two starts, only eight of the runs have been earned. Since the Reds will be on their way out of town, first pitch will be in the afternoon tomorrow at 1:10 p.m.

We received another chapter in the Ryan Braun/Biogenesis saga today, as usual via ESPN. They're reporting that Braun met with MLB investigators on June 29 but refused to answer questions, and that MLB is preparing to suspend Braun and others for refusal to cooperate with their investigation.

If Braun is suspended, he likely won't be alone: The ESPN story says that ten players have met with MLB and refused to answer questions. One of them is Alex Rodriguez, of course. A "source with knowledge of the situation" told ESPN that Braun and others are expected to be suspended following next week's All Star break.

For what it's worth, an MLB spokesperson told Tom Haudricourt the report is "premature" and no decision to suspend has been made.

The report cast a dark cloud over Braun's return to the lineup tonight following a month off with a thumb injury. After the game, Braun issued the following brief statement to reporters:

"In regards to that whole crazy situation, the truth still hasn't changed," Braun said. "I'm still going to continue to respect the process and not discuss anything in the media. Beyond that, the vast majority of stories that have come out are inaccurate. But aside from that I'm not going to say anything else tonight."

Here's the usual caveat that all of this is speculation until MLB actually has something to announce. And none of us can say with any certainty when that will happen.

On this day in 2003 the Rockies beat the Giants 11-3 at Coors Field. Greg Vaughn entered the game as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning and remained in to play left field, going 0-for-1 with a walk and a run scored. It was his final appearance in the major leagues.

Years earlier, the Brewers had made Vaughn the #4 overall pick in the 1986 June Secondary draft. He made his big league debut as a 23-year-old in 1989 and played parts of eight seasons in Milwaukee, hitting .246/.333/.459 with 169 home runs, the eighth most in franchise history.

The Brewers traded Vaughn to the Padres in 1996 and he had his best year there, hitting 50 home runs in 1998 for a team that reached the World Series. He retired as one of just 29 players in major league history with 350 home runs, 1000 RBI, 1000 runs scored and 100 stolen bases. Vaughn, Hank Aaron and Gary Sheffield are the only former Brewers on that list.

With help from Brewerfan.net, happy birthday today to Nashville Sound Miguel De Los Santos. He turns 25.

Today is also the 55th anniversary of Milwaukee Braves pitcher Lew Burdette homering twice in an 8-4 win over the Dodgers in 1958, which we covered in this space last year, and the Mariners trading Yuniesky Betancourt to the Royals in 2009, which we covered in this space two years ago.

BOISE, ID -- Even though the Hawks are gone, I'm still here. I'll head back in a couple days.

• We're back to talking about the Biogenesis Scandal, as an ESPN report last night said that MLB would announce suspensions sometime after the All-Star Break. Now, "sometime after the All-Star Break" is a wide period of time, and MLB denied the ESPN report, saying that they were "still in the midst of an active investigation."
• In any case, both ESPN and now Yahoo! confirm that Ryan Braun refused to talk to MLB investigators. Jeff Passan of Yahoo! thinks that for someone who keeps saying he has nothing to hide, Braun is acting like someone who is hiding something.
• MLB is scheduled to interviewAlex Rodriguez on Friday in connection to the scandal.
• Scandal or not, A-Rod is awfully popular with his minor league teammates.
• Matthew Pouliot wonders what happens after MLB announces suspensions in the Biogenesis scandal.He thinks that its unlikely any of the suspensions will be served this season.
• Michael Hunt thinks the accusations against Braun put Brewers fans in a difficult position.
• Speaking of someone who's already been suspended, Manny Ramirezwent 2 for 4 with a home run for Round Rock.
• It doesn't make much sense that Bartolo Colonis having perhaps the best season of his career at age 40, but let's just enjoy the ride anyway.
• The Athletics are calling Sonny Gray up from Triple-A Sacramento. He'll pitch out of the bullpen in Oakland.
• Danny Knobler says that fans who think the hitting coach is the problem are wrong. So he's pretty embarrassed to say that George Brett has made a huge difference in the Royals turnaround.
• Speaking of Brett, here's five fun facts about the Pine Tar Game. Did you know Don Mattingly played second base?
• Rob Neyer thinks that Greg Hollandis the best pitcher no one has ever heard of.
• Teams will start calling the Rockies about Michael Cuddyer, writes Ken Rosenthal.
• The Rockies acquired Mitchell Boggsfor international cap space, which I believe is the first deal for cap space that didn't involve the Cubs.
• Phillies management was unhappy with the team clowning around during a 13-4 loss to Atlanta.
• Michael Baumann writes Ryan Howard's obituary, as least as far as baseball is concerned. I don't think Howard is actually dead. It is hard to tell sometimes.
• Matt Kemp got an injection of platlet-rich-plasma for his injured shoulder. That is never a good sign, as it's usually the last resort before surgery.
• David Schoenfield thinks the Dodgersaren't going to make the playoffs without Kemp.
• The Red Soxneed a day off.
• The Marlins can't sell tickets to see their team, so they've resorted to "special" promotions to see players on the visiting team.
• Padres President and CEO Tom Garfinkel has resigned. He was temporarily kept on after the new ownership group took over.
• Justin and B.J. Upton's reunion in Atlanta hasn't been a happy story so far. Except for that whole Braves being in first place anyway thing. But in case you haven't noticed, Justin hasn't been very good since April either.
• Manny Machadois the best defensive player in the majors, at least according to some metrics. Oh, and he can hit a little, too.
• Brandon Beltdid not have the worst game ever with his 0 for 8 with five strikeouts Monday night. But it was close
• Nick Swisherlearns that you should always run out the play.
• I'm not a Black Keys fan, although I don't change the channel when they come on the radio, so I guess that's a compliment. But I may have to become one after the band decided to sponsor a Little League team in their hometown of Akron, Ohio. The jerseys are naturally collectors items, already. Or at least they would be if the team wasn't currently using them.
• Finally, be sure to check out this SBNation article by Jorge Arangure Jr. on Brooklyn's Zorrilla Baseball League, where former professionals, mostly Dominicans, play for the love of the game. Especially since it is just a game for them now, rather than a job.

And as always, tomorrow will be a better day than today, Buster.

With the July 31 trade deadline fast approaching, we want to make sure you're up-to-date on all the latest happenings around the rumor mill. The last thing we want is for you to be blindsided at the water cooler when Fred tells you that your favorite player is being offered up to your least favorite club. Freakin' Fred...

Tuesday was a pretty active day on the rumor front:

• The deadline's hottest commodity, Matt Garza, headlined the rumor-mongering once again, as the Cubs right-hander was scouted by several clubs -- including the Rangers, Indians, Pirates, Blue Jays, and Padres -- during his solid seven-inning effort against the White Sox on Monday. Though they weren't reported to be at his most recent start, the Dodgers are also believed to be "heavily scouting" the right-hander. Chicago continues to discuss a long-term contract extension with Garza -- so a deadline trade is not a foregone conclusion -- but the right-hander believes that his trade/extension odds currently sit at "50/50."
• The Cleveland Indians are in the hunt for a top-of-the-rotation starter and, at the moment, are focusing exclusively on Garza and Brewers right-hander Yovani Gallardo. No deal is close between the Tribe and either player, but the team seems bent on not settling for a lesser starter. The Indians are listed on Gallardo's limited no-trade clause, so they may have a tough time convincing the right-hander to approve to the move if they're able to come up with a package that interests Milwaukee. Gallardo has one guaranteed year and an option year remaining on his contract, so his asking price is likely to be pretty steep.
• Speaking of Brewers pitchers, a trio of Milwaukee's relief corps is drawing a lot of interest of late. John Axford, Francisco Rodriguez, and Mike Gonzalez are being scouted by the Dodgers this week, per Danny Knobler of CBS Sports, and have also been scoped out in recent days by the Tigers, Diamondbacks, and Orioles, according to Jon Morosi of FOX Sports. The D'Backs are also interested in right-hander Jim Henderson, but the Brewers have told teams he's staying put.
• The Brewers bullpen isn't the only one drawing interest around the league. The Philadelphia Phillies have reportedly expressed interest in Yankees reliever Joba Chamberlain, joining the Giants and Braves in pursuit of the right-hander. While Michael Young and/or Carlos Ruiz can presumably be had, Yankees GM Brian Cashman's interest in dealing with Philly is "lukewarm at best," so a Joba trade appears unlikely at the moment.

More from SB Nation:

• PED suspensions may come soon | Goldman: Timing worse than juicing

• Neyer: Maybe Braun and A-Rod are on their own?

• Longread: Brooklyn’s field of broken dreams

• The Phillies want Joba Chamberlain

• Video: Wade Boggs on futuristic baseball and angry hippos

According to ESPN's Outside the Lines, Major League Baseball requested to interview Milwaukee Brewers outfielder Ryan Braun to discuss his involvement with Biogenesis and its founder Tony Bosch. Braun is said to have "refused to answer questions" during this meeting. In 2011, he also took a urine test which showed high levels of testosterone which may have been caused by a performance-enhancing drug. Ryan Braun then issued statements in early 2012 claiming he had not done anything wrong and many believe he got away with it because of minor technicalities.

As for Alex Rodriguez, he is expected to meet with the league this week (OTL says Friday) and the Yankees third baseman is, of course, no stranger to these rumors. The fourteen-time All-Star and three-time MVP has even admitted to his use of steroids in 2009, saying he used them sometime during his tenure with the Texas Rangers.

But the names don't end with just Braun and Rodriguez, Outside the Lines' sources have said they are as many as twenty players who are linked to Biogenesis. Some of them are currently in the minors or are free agents. The following are reportedly involved:

• Everth Cabrera (Padres)
• Melky Cabrera (Blue Jays)
• Francisco Cervelli (Yankees)
• Bartolo Colon (Athletics)
• Nelson Cruz (Rangers)
• Gio Gonzalez (Nationals) *May have received only legal substances
• Yasmani Grandal (Padres)
• Fernando Martinez (Yankees)
• Jesus Montero (Mariners)
• Jordan Norberto (Free Agent)
• Jhonny Peralta (Tigers)
• Cesar Puuello (Mets)
• Fautino de los Santos (Free Agent)

Source: ESPN Outside the Lines

Win: Mike Leake (8-4)
Loss: Johnny Hellweg (0-3)

HR: Sean Halton (1)

MVP: Jeff Bianchi (.09)
LVP: Rickie Weeks (-.21)

Box

Win Expectancy Chart

It just hasn't been Johnny's season. Hellweg actually improved on his 12.79 ERA today, but still allowed 4 earned runs over 4.1 innings. He was done in by a combination of walks (5) and timely Reds hitting, and struck out only a single batter. After the game, it was announced he was optioned to Low-A Appleton, purportedly to stay on his regular turn.

The bullpen was serviceable in relief, the only real blemish being Donovan Hand allowing two runs over his two innings of work. Hand has now allowed two or more runs in his last three appearances (two starts).

Leake held the Brewers to just 4 hits over 8.1 innings, though he did walk 4. Logan Schafer scored in the first on a Carlos Gomez sac fly. The Brewers only other run came when Sean Halton mashed a changeup into the Brewers bullpen for his first major league home run.

Although Leake came out for the ninth, he was pulled for Aroldis Chapman when Jonathan Lucroy singled with one out. The game ended with Yuniesky Betancourt facing Aroldis Chapman, which just seems like a really, really unfair matchup. Chapman fired five straight fastballs and touched 102 miles per hour, and Yuni could only stand and watch as the game-ending pitch sailed right by him at 101.

There are three schools of thought on Ryan Braun at this point. There are those people who absolutely know he is guilty. There are people who absolutely know he is innocent. And then there are those people who have no idea what happened, but just have to sit back and shake their head at the whole circus.

I fall into the third category. Jeff Passan pretty clearly falls in the first.

In his latest piece slamming Braun, Passan takes the young slugger to task for proclaiming, "I have nothing to hide," and then refusing to answer questions MLB put to him regarding Biogenesis. Labeling Braun "Mr. Fifth Amendment," Passan argues that if the truth really were that important to Braun, he would just tell everyone he's guilty or explain how synthetic testosterone ended up in his urine. But Braun hasn't done either, and that doesn't sit well with Passan. He doesn't come right out and say it (how's that for hiding?), but the clear inference from Passan's writing is that MLB is fully justified in its pursuit of Braun, because it is really a pursuit for the truth.

"Nonsense" just doesn't seem like it's quite strong enough a word for that notion.

MLB, and Passan, aren't interested in the truth, because they already know it. Passan says as much in his column. MLB believes it had a valid sample - chain of custody be damned! - and "believes Braun is guilty of the same things as A-Rod - using PEDs and lying about it." That's a direct quote from Passan.

If there was any doubt about what MLB and Passan consider "the truth," Passan then argues the better course would be for Braun to just admit to doping. This, he suggests, would ultimately help Braun's career. As evidence he cites two admitted PED users who are still playing in their 40s. I'm sure Braun appreciates the career advice, but it would probably be more persuasive if it wasn't coming from a guy playing the good cop. "Be like them, Ryan. Just tell us the truth, and this can end and the whole thing will blow over."

To be sure, Passan is right about one thing. Braun has hardly been an open book, and I've criticized Braun for that in the past. He hasn't explained his firing away at the urine collector's character in his "victory speech" in spring training, nor has he explained his vague statements about the truth having yet to be revealed. Most importantly, he hasn't explained how synthetic testosterone wound up in his urine. But it's a long leap to interpret Braun's refusal to answer questions, particularly to an organization that has declared him public enemy number one, as proof of guilt.

There's no room for ambiguity in Passan's world, though. Those of us who decline to take a position on whether Braun is a cheater are "Braun truthers" who are more concerned with MLB's vendetta or Bosch's credibility. These matters Passan labels "peripheral aspects" of the case. If being concerned with motive and evidence is a "peripheral aspect" of player discipline, then we can be pretty certain MLB and the Player's Association got it completely wrong in the JDA. Just think about this: a national writer has just called the evidence against an accused player irrelevant. What century is this?

What's ironic about Passan is that he has little tolerance for a rule-breaker like Ryan Braun, but would cast nary a batted eye at MLB exacting its own sort of vigilante justice. Paid informants, envelopes stuffed with cash, sham lawsuits, personal security for drug dealers; Passan doesn't care about any of this, as long as it leads to "the truth" that he and MLB have already settled upon.

And this is how it is for some people. Braun is a cheater, and MLB is fully justified in however it chooses to pursue them, rules and process be damned. It's a look into a world of black and white, when I'm here standing in a world of gray.

The Boston Red Sox announced that they have acquired left-hander Matt Thornton and cash considerations from the Chicago White Sox in exchange for minor league outfielder Brandon Jacobs.

Thornton, 36, has been one of three White Sox pitchers that the Red Sox have pursued in recent days, joining Addison Reed and Matt Lindstrom. Because of Andrew Miller's recent season-ending injury, there was a need for left-handed help in the Red Sox bullpen, so Thornton was an obvious fit.

The Braves were also interested in Thornton, according to Ken Rosenthal of FOXSports.com. Boston also has been linked to Brewers' relievers Mike Gonzalez, John Axford and Francisco Rodriguez, as well as Phillies' closer Jonathan Papelbon and Marlins' closer Steve Cishek. Because of the injuries and struggles that the Sox' bullpen has endured all season, it is too early to rule out another bullpen move for the first place team.

In 40 appearances with Chicago on the season, Thornton is 0-3 with a 3.86 ERA, 6.8 K/9, and 3.2 BB/9. He has been with the White Sox since they acquired him from the Mariners in 2006, and posted a 31-35 record and 3.28 ERA in 512 appearances. In 586 career major league appearances with the Mariners (2004-2005) and White Sox (2006-2013), Thornton is 32-41 with a 3.53 ERA in 553 innings of work.

The Red Sox will receive $750,000 in the deal and will pay Thornton about $2.5 million for the remainder of the season, according to Sean McAdam of CSNNE.com. He is a free agent after this season, and will no longer be eligible to receive a qualifying offer due to the midseason trade.

Jacobs, 22, was Boston's tenth round pick in the 2009 draft, and was promoted to Double-A Portland yesterday. In 81 games with High-A Salem on the season, the speedster has hit .244 with 11 HR, 44 RBI, and 10 steals. He projects as a left fielder at the major league level, and is widely regarded as having high power potential. Although he is a below average defensive outfielder, his offense is considered strong enough to outweigh his defensive struggles.

As MassLive.com's Evan Drellich points out, Jacobs would have been eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter, and the Red Sox were unlikely to protect him due to their multitude of eligible outfielders.

This move is the first of the trading season for the White Sox, who are known throughout the league to be one of the league's most aggressive sellers in advance of the trade deadline. They are shopping assets such as Reed, Lindstrom, Alex Rios, Jake Peavy, and the injured Jesse Crain.

Record: 49-44. Pace: 85-77. Change: +4.

There are times when the winner of a game is clearly better. There are times when the two sides play at about the same level, but a lucky bounce goes the victor's way. And then there are games like this evening. Let's take a look at the stats for the two sides, and see if you can figure out who won.

Yeah, how the hell did the Diamondbacks come away with the win in this one? The answer is, they took advantage of a couple of errors at the beginning of the game, scratched across a couple of unearned runs, and then held on the rest of the way, as a procession of visitors made their way around the bases, only to stall in scoring position. Milwaukee went 1-for-12 with RISP tonight - and even that hit failed to score a run, coming with a man on second and giving them runners on the corners to start off the seventh. But they couldn't score from the first and third, no out situation, leaving the bases loaded instead. Nice to be on the receiving end of that for once.

The game started off with the team exchanging presents, each side gift-wrapping a run for the other in the first inning. Patrick Corbin allowed a one-out single, which was then bunted over to second - however, Corbin then uncorked a pair of wild pitches, which allowed the runner to score. After having only four of those in his first 18 outings, Corbin had three wild pitches tonight: perhaps more relevantly, that gives Miguel Montero 33 of those behind the plate, before we even reach the All-Star Break. That already surpasses his tally for all 2011, when he had 30, and is closing in on 2012's tally, of 38.

Milwaukee were kind enough to reciprocate in the bottom half, however. After Adam Eaton singled to get things going, one out later, starter Tom Gorzelanny uncorked a wild pickoff throw which let Eaton scamper around to third. Paul Goldschmidt took advantage, grounding out to drive in his 77th RBI of the year. More defensive hi-jinkx gave us the lead in the second: with two outs and Cody Ross on second, Cliff Pennington hit a sharp one hopper to the Brewers' 3B, who tried to backhand it, but only ended up deflecting the ball into the no-man’s land of foul territory, and Ross scored all the way from second. [Hat-tip Dallas D'Back Fan for the description!]

And that was it. 13 scoreless half-innings followed, and the Diamondbacks ran out victors. Funnily enough, it wasn't quite as easy as that. Our offense didn't exactly help. After Ross's single leading off the second, we sent two batters over the minimum to the dish from there until the bottom of the eighth. The only hit was a Goldschmidt double with one out in the sixth, and he was erased on an attempt immediately afterward to steal third - the Brewers got a break on the call, as the tag appeared to miss Goldzilla. Pennington's bunt single led off the eighth, but A.J. Pollock fell just short of a two-run homer to close the book on our offense.

After the wild first, Corbin settled down fairly nicely too, though the fifth was his only clean inning - not helped by an apparently abstract strike zone. He stranded a man on third with no outs in the fourth. But the seventh was truly Houdini-esque, as noted above: he put men on the corners with no-one out, and got another K, then got lucky with a bunt attempt that went foul, but in the air, allowing Goldschmidt to snag it for the out. He issued his second walk, and that was it. His final line: 6.2 IP. 7 H, 2 BB, 10 K, just the one earned run, and 113 pitches thrown. Another excellent outing with his curve apparently working especially well, in addition to the usual slider.

Those who wanted to see Will Harris in higher-leverage situations got their wish, as the reliever came in with the tying run on third. But he was up to the task, striking out Carlos Gomez with a full-count pitch. The eighth was even more dramatic, as the unholy trinity of J.J. Putz, Tony Sipp and Heath Bell combined for a buffet of digestive stress. Putz got the first two outs, but put two men on. Birthday boy Sipp was called on to face the left-hander, and walked him, loading the bases again. Bell then arrived, got ahead 0-2, but then let the hitter bloop one into center. Fortunately, Pollock showed his excellent range, running in to make a diving snag that undeniably saved the game.

David Hernandez pitched the ninth, and it was remarkably without drama, as he retired all three batters faced, on a fly-ball and two strikeouts. It appears to be only the second 1-2-3 ninth inning to save a game for Arizona this year - the first was by Heath Bell, against the Dodgers on May 7. It was interesting to see him in the ninth, and not J.J, but Putz appears still to be a little short on velocity, with his fastball hovering around 90 mph for most of this outing, which is definitely lower than it should be. Will we see more of Hernandez going forward? Only Gibby knows for sure...

[Click to enlarge, at fangraphs.com]
Xanax: Patrick Corbin, +23.6%
Paxil: Bell, +17.6%; Hernandez, +17.0%; Harris, +14.6%; Pennington, +10.2%
No negative award tonight. Pollock had the lowest WPA, but his catch in the 8th more than balanced that.

The Gameday Thread was...interesting. We laughed, we cried, we discussed the morality of commentators picking out hot chix at the ballpark. TolkienBard and BulldogsNotZags tussled for the top spot, the former coming out ahead by a couple of comments, with Clefo in third. Also taking part were AJV19, AzRattler, Baseballdad, EzioExManAZ, GuruB, Jim McLennan, Rockkstarr12, Stumpy657, The so-called Beautiful, TylerO, UAwildcats, asteroid, azshadowwalker, benhat, coldblueAZ, cole8865, hotclaws, piratedan7, preston.salisbury, snakecharmer and soco. As often, I award Comment of the Night to woefully-inaccurate pessimism, this coming at the start of the ninth.

Hahaha! Wrong! Everyone laugh and point at Debbie Downer! Thank you for your co-operation. In fact, with the win, and the Dodgers being shutout by the Rockies, the D-backs extend their lead in the NL West back to 2.5 games, which means we are now certain to be in sole possession of first place until at least next Thursday. But, really: if we're going to win, I wouldn't mind if we were able to do so in a less stressful manner.

You are sick of watching Yuniesky Betancourt play baseball. You are sick of talking about Yuniesky Betancourt. I, along with several of us here at Brew Crew Ball, are absolutely sick of writing about Yuniesky Betancourt. And you are sick of reading about Yuniesky Betancourt.

Most of all, we are all sick of persistently roasting a person who has never truly wronged us in any way. And we are even sicker of prefacing every anti-Yuni comment with a variant of "I've got nothing against the guy, BUT..."

Just a few weeks ago I composed this joke of an essay that exhibited a recycled interest in replacing Yuniesky Betancourt with any player or object. Resident photoshopper extraordinaire nullact already captured this sentiment more exquisitely in perhaps the most highly recommended comment in the blog's history nearly two years ago, during Betancourt's first of two stints with the Milwaukee Brewers.

But it hasn't been substantial enough. He remains in a Brewers uniform.

The purpose of this essay is to make a final, comprehensive argument advocating the immediate release of Brewers infielder Yuniesky Betancourt.

My first goal is to wipe the slate clean and focus on the here and now. Become truly objective. Forget everything you have ever felt for Betancourt and think about the current state of the Milwaukee Brewers. As I write this sentence the Brewers sit at 37-55, 19.5 games behind the first-place St. Louis Cardinals. It is a major league team who is flirting with a top 3 overall pick in next year's draft while part of an organization which boasts one of the nearly universally-agreed upon worst farm systems in all of baseball.

Like it or not, the Brewers took an important step this season. They found out quite a bit about their pitching depth by gambling on in-house options in the starting rotation, and are now testing the positional ranks as well due to several injuries to key players. It is an organization in transition. In the coming weeks up until the trade deadline we may see dramatic turnover. The Brewers' plans for the future are being scribbled furiously by the likes of previous unknown quantities such as Alfredo Figaro, Donovan Hand, Caleb Gindl, or newly acquired Juan Francisco. The way the team is constructed will depend on the way these in-house options handle these new major league roles.

Is Juan Francisco capable of an everyday role? Is Johnny Hellweg starter material? Was Michael Fiers' terrific post-call-up success a fluke? How will Logan Schafer handle a bench role? It's very important to find an answer to these questions while the opportunity presents itself - when wins lose their value.

This brings us to Yuniesky Betancourt. Betancourt is currently playing in his 9th major league season. He is currently 31 years old. He has matured past the peak of his career. He is no longer a prospect. We cannot reasonably expect sudden improvement or a behavioral overhaul of any kind. To tweak a popular baseball cliche: He is what he is.

I am first going to focus on Betancourt's defense, for it is likely his versatility in the infield that is his most attractive ability. With 315.1 innings at first base this season, Betancourt now has the capability of playing every infield position. I had previously stated that I would only speak in present terms, but when it comes to defense, the larger the sample, the better. These are career totals (courtesy of Fangraphs):

Yes, Betancourt has experience at all four infield positions. Yes, defensive metrics are not perfect. But there is plenty of anecdotal evidence to back up the statistical claim that Yuniesky Betancourt is a below average defender, mainly due to his range. He does possess a reasonably strong arm, which is likely a part of the reason the numbers show him adequately at third base. Third base requires less range than shortstop, and he can use his only defensive strength - his arm - to his advantage once he manages to get the ball into his glove. However, his limited athleticism hurts when he's up the middle, and his arm becomes nearly obsolete at first base.

In short - he is not a good defender. In order to keep him on a major league roster, he must contribute something positively in another facet of the game.

Offensively, the story concerning Betancourt has always been plate discipline. Let's temporarily ignore the results completely and focus entirely on swing tendencies. Here is PITCHf/x data from the past three seasons, once again courtesy of Fangraphs:

I'm going to explain these percentages as plainly as I possibly can. Most are obvious.

1. Yuniesky Betancourt swings a lot at pitches outside of the zone (O-Swing%).
2. Yuniesky Betancourt swings a lot at pitches inside of the zone (Z-Swing%).
3. Yuniesky Betancourt swings a lot at everything (Swing%).
4. Yuniesky Betancourt makes a lot of contact (Contact%).
   

So, why on earth does he see so many strikes? In 2011 he actually saw a higher than average percentage of strikes despite swinging at 9% more balls than the average batter. The answer is that pitchers fear him so little they don't even bother going out of the zone to get him out. They know that more often than not, Betancourt will swing and get himself out no matter where the ball is pitched. There's no reason to go out of the zone and waste pitches when the pitcher knows an out is coming even if he lays one over the heart of the plate.

In 2012 he only swung at 32.4% of pitches outside the strike zone, a career-low which led to an increase in the amount of strikes he saw. Despite this conscious-or-unconscious adjustment, he finished with a miserable slash line of .228/.256/.400, with a wOBA of .245 and a wRC+ of just 73, playing mostly second base for the Royals. Even with an increased number of strikes seen, Betancourt could not provide anywhere near average league production. This season he has regressed back to his career swing tendencies, and his production is plummeting even further.

Because of his complete lack of interest in taking pitches and the resulting scarcity of walks, Betancourt's entire offensive output rests on how often he hits, and on the quality of those hits. Unfortunately, Betancourt has not aged well, and has hit progressively less often as each year has gone by (click to expand):

via www.fangraphs.com

What's kept Betancourt in the league is his perceived "pop." This was deemed particularly valuable when he was a viable middle infield option - finding legitimate power at second base or shortstop is not easily done. However, his slugging percentage has never really exceeded league average, and has taken a sharp dive this season (click to expand):

via www.fangraphs.com

Now, with Betancourt playing for the Brewers at primarily first base and third base, the value of this power decreases. Instead of theoretically making up for lost defensive runs by providing "pop" in the middle infield, this "pop" isn't even a wash with the typical corner infielder, and the accompanying lost defensive runs make him a major negative value. Last year he posted a -1.0 WAR with the Royals, and he has already accumulated -1.3 WAR for the Brewers this season.

He provides negative wins offensively. He provides negative wins defensively.

Of course, these two statements are only important if wins are important. Right now, given the aforementioned state of the Brewers, they very well may not. Which means that there must be something else Betancourt provides to the team that can't be quantified in terms of wins or value in order to possibly justify keeping him around.

Perhaps he represents an organizational philosophy of stockpiling free-swinging faux power hitters who can't play a lick of defense. Or, more likely, he is being kept because his teammates are dropping like flies and he's a warm body who has experience standing on four different parts of the diamond. Maybe he works harder off the field than any other player in the dugout, and management considers that to be a trait a young player like Jean Segura might acknowledge and acquire due to Betancourt's example. Ultimately, I can't speak to that, and it's up to the decision makers to negotiate amongst themselves the trade-off between the value of his experience and leadership and the incredible negative value of his on-field performance.

However, as fans, we are subject only to the quantifiable evidence and what we see on the field. We see Yuniesky Betancourt and we see a player who will never be valuable to a contending major league team. We see a player whose symbolic significance far outweighs even the heaviness of his negative value.

Basically - I see Yuniesky Betancourt, and I feel the organization has given up. And that's not a good feeling.

I've said all I have to say. I think we all have. This my final plea. Please, Milwaukee Brewers - release Yuniesky Betancourt, and restore our faith.

Oh, and for God's sake, whatever you do - don't sign him again.