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08/22/2008 7:34 PM ET
Smith named Appy Player of the Year
Osterbrock among six Twins on postseason All-Star team
By Danny Wild / Special to MLB.com

NEW YORK -- Curt Smith is literally in another league when it comes to his 2008 dominance.

The Cardinals' prospect on Friday was named Appalachian League Player of the Year and earned a spot on the circuit's postseason All-Star team.

Smith, who leads the league in hitting with a .378 average, was promoted to Class A Quad Cities the day before the All-Star team were unveiled. The former Johnson City first baseman joined Dan Osterbrock, one of six All-Stars on the Elizabethton Twins, as the top two players in the league. Fourteen players, a manager and a trainer were recognized for their performances this season.

Osterbrock, a seventh-round pick by Minnesota in June, was named Pitcher of the Year. The University of Cincinnati product leads the league with 100 strikeouts and 73 innings pitched and ranks second with seven wins. The 21-year-old southpaw is 7-2 with a 3.08 ERA in a dozen starts, was named Pitcher of the Week on July 7 and has held opponents to a .239 batting average.

Osterbrock struck out 12 batters in consecutive starts on July 24-30. He's fanned at least 10 in five of his last seven starts, allowing 15 earned runs in that span.

Smith, St. Louis' 39th-round pick in June, picked up where he left off at the University of Maine. The 21-year-old hit .403 in his final college season and nearly matched that mark in 47 games for the Cardinals. He left Johnson City after hitting eight homers and leading the league with 49 RBIs.

Smith also was selected as All-Star first baseman, while Osterbrock was named the top left-handed pitcher.

Osterbrock was joined by five Elizabethton teammates -- outfielders Evan Bigley and Angel Morales, designated hitter Jonathan Waltenbury, right-hander Brad Tippett and reliever Mark Hamburger.

Elizabethton's Ryan Hedwell was named Trainer of the Year by the Professional Baseball Athletic Trainers Society.

Rob Mummau of the Pulaski Mariners was named Manager of the Year. The first-place Mariners were on the brink of clinching a division title in their first year back in the league.

A pair of Mariners were selected as All-Stars -- catcher Juan Fuentes and utility infielder Mario Martinez. Elias Otero of the Princeton Rays was named an All-Star at second base, with Danville Braves third baseman Jon Gilmore and Kingsport Mets shortstop Wilmer Flores rounding out the infield.

Jordan Kendall of the Bristol Sox and Ronnie Welty of the Bluefield Orioles are the other All-Star outfielders.

Bigley ranks second in the league with 14 homers and 46 RBIs. He hit .394 in June and cemented his spot on the All-Star roster last week when he hit two homers and drove in five runs against Princeton.

Tippett opened eyes last season for the Twins with an 0.93 ERA. The Australian was 8-3 with a 2.63 ERA in 13 this season. Hamburger, a Minnesota native, has 13 saves and 39 strikeouts over 35 2/3 innings.

Morales was the Twins' third-round pick in 2007 and hit .313 in his second Minor League season with Elizabethton. The center fielder leads the Appy League with 15 homers to go with 28 RBIs.

Waltenbury, a 2006 seventh-rounder, is hitting .331 with 10 homers and 43 RBIs.

Fuentes is third in the league in batting at .347 with two homers and 36 RBIs. He was named Topps Appy League Player of the Month for July and was honored as Player of the Week on Aug. 11.

Martinez joined Pulaski after hitting .281 in the Arizona League last season. He is batting .328 with five homers and 32 RBIs in 59 games for the M's.

Otero, the Rays' lone representative, has outshined 2008 No. 1 overall pick Tim Beckham. The Puerto Rico native is batting .340 with five homers, 65 hits and 31 RBIs in 51 games.

Gilmore struggled in a brief callup to Class A Rome but dominated at Danville, batting .333 with three homers and 29 RBIs in 63 games.

The Mets' lone selection, Flores hit .386 in June and was named Player of the Week on June 30. He's batting .329 with eight homers and ranks fifth in the league with 41 RBIs.

Kendall was the White Sox's 11th-round pick last year but missed the season due to a broken finger. He's made up for lost time, batting .331 with three homers and 25 RBIs and ranks third in the league with 20 stolen bases in 45 games.

Welty struggled in June, hitting just .220, but got hot thereafter. He has raised his overall average to .315 with two homers and 32 RBIs in 52 contests for Bluefield.

Danny Wild is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

News & notes for the week of 8/18/08

Rochester Red Wings (MinnesotaTwins)

THE WEEK IN REVIEW: The Red Wings went 4-2 last week to improve to 69-67. That's good for third in the IL's North Division.

THE PENNANT CHASE: The Red Wings have been eliminated from the Governors' Cup playoff race.

WHO'S HOT AND WHO'S NOT: IF Matt Macri has hit .343 in his last 10 games with five home runs, 12 RBIs and eight runs scored. ... The Wings have batted just .232 as a team in those 10 contests. If you subtract Macri's numbers, the team's average falls to .218. ... Five different position players have hit below the Mendoza Line in the last 10 contests, including OF Bobby Kielty (.194), OF Jason Pridie (.139) and IF/OF Howie Clark (.125).

SIZZLING SWARZAK: RHP Anthony Swarzak has won four of his first five starts for the Red Wings since joining the team July 30. What's more, Swarzak has been very strong in all five starts, allowing just 27 hits and seven earned runs in 30 innings for a 2.10 ERA. Swarzak has not allowed more than three runs in any start, nor has he given up more than two earned runs in a start. It's quite an improvement for Swarzak, who was 3-8 with a 5.67 ERA for Double-A New Britain before his promotion.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "Same old story. We love playing at home. We don't want to pack our bags." -- Red Wings manager Stan Cliburn told the Rochester Democrat & Chronicle Aug. 22 after his team posted a 4-3 comeback win over Pawtucket. That victory was Rochester's 15th victory in its last 16 home games. The Wings are 42-24 at home this season.

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New Britain Rock Cats (Minnesota Twins)

THE SEASON SO FAR: The Rock Cats are 57-74 and in fifth place in the Northern Division.

WHO'S HOT: Despite appearing to be a team destined for last place with a record 30 games under .500, the Rock Cats reeled off six consecutive wins last week and have won eight of their last 10 games to maintain a 1.5-game lead over last-place New Hampshire to rise out of the cellar.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "I think back to May when we won nine straight," Rock Cats outfielder David Winfree told the New Britain Herald. "We were like, 'Man, we knew we could play like this!' And now? It's been a puzzling year for everybody. (Yet) here we are winning (six) games straight, one-run games, we're hitting, we're pitching, we're playing defense. You look back on the season and you're like, man, we should really be up at the top."

DID YOU KNOW: OF David Winfree hit a two-run homer, his fourth in as many games against Akron, and New Britain held off a late rally to earn a 3-2 win over the visiting Aeros before 6,058 fans at New Britain Stadium on Friday night.

TOLBERT REHAB: 2B Matt Tolbert joined the Rock Cats on Tuesday on a Major League rehab assignment for a thumb injury after being sidelined the last two months following surgery. Tolbert was batting .265 for the Twins through 30 games when he injured the thumb on a head-first slide back into first base. With the Rock Cats, Tolbert played seven innings in each of his first two games at second base, going 1-for-3 on Tuesday and then hitless on Wednesday.

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Fort Myers Miracle (Minnesota Twins)

THE WEEK THAT WAS: It was a rough week for the Miracle as Fort Myers won just two of five games. But the winners of the FSL West's first-half title learned who their opponents in the divisional playoffs will be as Dunedin wrapped up the second-half title.

WHO'S HOT, WHO'S NOT: LF Juan Portes is getting hot right when the playoffs are about to begin. The Boston native is in postseason form, hitting .375 in the past 10 games (12-for-32). ... 3B Garrett Olson hasn't been as fortunate as he has just five hits in his last 34 at-bats for a .147 average.

PLAYER TO WATCH: SP Alex Burnett was dominant in an 8-1 road win over Lakeland on Aug. 21. The right-hander from Anaheim, Calif., fanned 10 Flying Tigers while walking just one over six innings for his eighth win of the season.

PERFORMANCE OF THE WEEK: In a 15-1 road win at Sarasota on Aug. 17, DH Johnny Woodard nearly beat the Reds all by himself. The Oakland, Calif., native had three hits in four at-bats with four RBIs. Woodard singled in a run in the second inning with a fly ball to left field. In the third he got an RBI on a groundout to second. In the fifth Woodard got his third and fourth RBIs when he belted a drive over the right-field wall for a two-run homer.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "I jumped over two levels -- Advanced Rookie and Low A," SP Joe Testa told the Brick Township Bulletin (N.J.) of how he was promoted to Fort Myers. "It's exciting, and I got my first start. At first, I was surprised to get the start. I just pitched my game, and that was the best defense playing behind me, ever. All the plays they made looked routine. When they [other team] hit ground balls off me, they were harder than in the Rookie league and the guys made the plays for me. I had to adjust. Mentally, I was fine, because I had done this before, but physically, it was different," said Testa. "In the past few weeks, I was throwing only one or two innings when I'd go out there, so this was definitely different. I just made sure I loosened up."

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Beloit Snappers (Minnesota Twins)

THE SEASON SO FAR: The Snappers are 29-31 in the second half and tied with Kane County for fifth place in the Western Division.

WHO'S HOT: RF Yangervis Solarte is hitting .293 (10-for-41) with six runs scored and five RBIs in his last 10 games. Solarte went 2-for-4 with two runs and two RBIs Tuesday in the Snappers' 11-1 rout of host Cedar Rapids.

WHO'S NOT: 1B Rene Leveret is hitting .194 (7-for-36) over his last 10 games. ... RHP Shooter Hunt walked five and gave up six hits in four innings in a 4-2 loss to Burlington Saturday -- the Snappers' fifth loss in their last six games.

DID YOU KNOW: The Snappers wrap up the season by hosting Kane County in a four-game series, followed by a four-game visit from Burlington. Beloit took three of four games from Kane County earlier this month.

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Elizabethton Twins (Minnesota Twins)

WEEK IN REVIEW: Elizabethton only went 3-3 last week, but it was enough to clinch the West for a fourth consecutive season. The Twins will face Pulaski in the postseason.

ALL-STARS: Having the best record in the league usually translates to high representation on the All-Star team, and that held true this season as the Twins featured six All-Stars. OFs Evan Bigley and Angel Morales, DH Jonathan Waltenbury, RHPs Brad Tippett and Mark Hamburger, and LHP Daniel Osterbrock were all named All-Stars. Morales and Bigley led the league with 15 and 14 home runs, respectively, while each hitting .301. Waltenbury hit .322 with 10 long balls. Tippett was 8-3 with a 2.63 ERA while Hamburger led the league with 13 saves.

PITCHER OF THE YEAR: Osterbrock earned more than just an All-Star berth; the Cincinnati product was named the league's Pitcher of the Year on Friday. The southpaw went 7-2 with a 3.08 ERA in a dozen starts for the Twins, with his only defeats coming back-to-back in mid-July. More impressive, though, is his strikeout total: the 21-year-old led the league with 100 punchouts in 73 innings. Osterbrock has fanned at least 10 batters in five of his last seven starts.

QUOTE OF THE WEEK: "This year we were more offensive-oriented than we have been in the past. And we had just enough pitching and defense to win. These guys put in a lot of work, a lot of effort. This doesn't just happen." -- Manager Ray Smith to MLB.com after Elizabethton clinched the West division Friday night. --- MiLB

08/29/2008 11:05 PM ET
Osterbrock pitches Twins to another title
Elizabethton captures third Appy championship in four years
By John Torenli / Special to MLB.com

Dan Osterbrock provided a fitting ending to his brilliant season and yet another Appalachian League championship for the Elizabethton Twins.
The 21-year-old left-hander struck out 11 over seven innings Friday night as the Twins captured their second straight title and third in four years with a 7-0 blanking of the Pulaski Mariners at Joe O'Brien Stadium.

"Never in my wildest dreams would I imagine being in this position," said Osterbrock, who was named Appalachian League Pitcher of the Year earlier this month after going 7-2 with a 3.00 ERA in 13 starts.

"I had never been a part of a winning team or jumped on top of a dogpile. I thought I'd have a decent year, but nothing like this."

After the Twins used five pitchers en route to a 7-4 victory in Thursday's series opener, Osterbrock (1-0) made sure the bullpen got a breather in the clincher. He gave up a season-high nine hits but escaped trouble throughout the night via his favorite weapon: the strikeout.

Osterbrock, who registered a league-leading 104 strikeouts and only eight walks during his first professional campaign, fanned Deybis Benitez with runners on second and third in the sixth. The University of Cincinnati product struck out Dwight Britton and Gabriel Noriega to close out the seventh after yielding a one-out double to Jonathan Arias.

"I've never really been a strikeout pitcher," Osterbrock said. "I'm not sure how it happened this year. A lot of times they just swing and miss. I've been throwing a slider down and in on righties, and that's really been working for me."

Thomas Wright allowed a hit and struck out one in the eighth before Steven Blevins fanned one in a perfect ninth to spark yet another celebration for the Twins.

"It was the greatest feeling I've ever had in sports," Osterbrock said. "We're not allowed to have champagne yet, but we had some non-alcoholic stuff to spray around."

Jonathan Waltenbury staked Osterbrock to a lead in the opening frame with a two-run homer, his first of the series after hitting 10 during the season. He also capped a four-run second with an RBI single as Elizabethton opened a 6-0 cushion.

Dominic De La Osa drove in a pair of runs and Nicholas Romero went 2-for-5 with an RBI for the Twins, who became the league's first repeat champions since Bluefield in 1996-97.

Elizabethton defeated Danville to win last year's crown after falling to the Braves in the 2006 Championship Series. The Twins beat Danville for the title in 2005.

"They made it clear in the very first meeting of the year that they haven't had a losing season here since 1989," Osterbrock said. "Coming in here, we had some big shoes to fill from previous teams. We did a good job sticking together and playing well."

Pulaski's Brooks Mohr, who went 6-4 with a 3.27 ERA in 13 regular-season starts, lasted 1 1/3 frames and surrendered six runs on six hits and a walk with two strikeouts.

Arias went 3-for-4 and Mario Martinez and Juan Fuentes had two hits apiece for the Mariners, who went 40-27 this season to end the Braves' four-year run as East Division champions.

John Torenli is a contributor to MLB.com. This story was not subject to the approval of the National Association of Professional Baseball Leagues or its clubs.

Miracle players named to the 2008 Florida State League All-Star Team

Wilson Ramos C
Anthony Slama rhp
Jeff Smith coach

Miracle win, advance to finals

Alex Burnett couldn't have picked a better time to shut down the Florida State League's most productive offense.

Burnett (1-0) allowed just two hits over six shutout innings and the Fort Myers Miracle held on to top the Dunedin Blue Jays, 3-1, on Wednesday to sweep the best-of-3 series and advance to the Florida State League Finals for the first time since 1995.

Fort Myers had been eliminated by Dunedin in its three previous playoff appearance -- 2000, '03 and '06. The Miracle's last Finals appearance ended in a loss to the Daytona Cubs.

Burnett, who struck out three and walked three, allowed a two-out double in the first and a one-out single in the second before retiring 12 of the final 15 batters he faced.

Blair Erickson allowed an unearned run on two hits over two innings, and Anthony Slama worked around a single and a walk in the ninth for his second save of the series.

The Blue Jays averaged 5 1/3 runs per game during the regular season, and Burnett allowed 10 earned runs on 18 hits over 14 1/3 innings in three starts against them. He finished the regular season strong, giving up just one run while striking out 17 over his final 12 innings.

As they did a night earlier, the Miracle put two early runs on the board, scoring twice in the second inning. Whitney Robbins doubled to lead off the frame and scored one out later on Johnny Woodard's single. Woodward stole second, took third on a wild pitch and crossed the plate on a double by Juan Portes.

Wilson Ramos provided a late insurance run with a two-out RBI single in the seventh. --- MiLB