Scranton 4, Toledo 3
Brennan Boesch: 1 for 4, 2 R
Ronnier Mustelier: 3 for 5, 2B, 3 RBI
Dan Johnson: 1 for 4, R
Josh Bell: 0 for 2, 2 BB
Addison Maruszak: 0 for 2, 2 BB, R
Graham Stoneburner: 6 IP, 5 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 SO (99/57)
Sam Demel: 2.2 IP, 2 H, R, ER, 3 BB, 3 SO (51/29)
Clay Rapada: IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, SO (17/11)
Cody Eppley: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO (2/2)

Bowie 2, Trenton 1
J.R. Murphy: 1 for 4
Slade Heathcott: 1 for 4, 3B
Neil Medchill: 1 for 4
Casey Stevenson: 1 for 4
Jose Ramirez: 5 IP, 3 H, R, ER, BB, 7 SO (79/52)
Danny Burawa: 1.1 IP, 0 H, R, 0 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO (35/17)
Jeremy Bleich: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO (20/13)
Matt Daley: IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, 0 SO (25/14)

Tampa 4, Clearwater 3
Angelo Gumbs: 1 for 6, R
Ben Gamel: 3 for 6, R, SB
Rob Refsnyder: 1 for 5, RBI, BB
Gary Sanchez: 1 for 4, 2 BB
Carmen Angelini: 2 for 6, R, RBI, SB
Anderson Feliz: 2 for 6, R, RBI
Dan Fiorito: 3 for 6, 2B, SB
Saxon Butler: 1 for 4, 2B
Scottie Allen: 6 IP, 5 H, R, ER, 0 BB, 7 SO
Cesar Cabral: IP, 2 H, R, ER, 4 BB, 0 SO
Taylor Garrison: 3 IP, H, R, ER, 0 BB, 2 SO
Rigoberto Arrebato: 3 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO

Greenville 7, Charleston 6
Jake Cave: 2 for 5, 2 2B, R
Cito Culver: 1 for 4, 2 R
Greg Bird: 1 for 5, HR, 2 RBI
Peter O'Brien: 1 for 5, 2 R, BB
Dante Bichette: 1 for 4, 2B, R, BB
Yeicok Calderon: 1 for 5, 2B, R
Rey Nunez: 1 for 4
Evan Rutckyj: 4.2 IP, 8 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 8 SO (92/59)
Adam Smith: 1.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, ER, BB, 3 SO (43/26)
Ben Paullus: 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 4 SO (49/31)
Dietrich Enns: IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, SO (25/15)
Alex Smith: 0.2 IP, 2 H, R, ER, 0 BB, SO (17/12)

Final score: Bowie 2, Trenton 1

Synopsis: For once, a pitching duel delivered. Jose Ramirez and Kevin Gausman were brilliant -- they combined for 17 strikeouts over 11 innings -- and put on a show for everyone who knew what they were watching. Unfortunately for the Thunder, Ramirez's night was rendered moot just a few hitters after he left. Danny Burawa opened the sixth by walking two hitters, the first of which scored the eventual game-winner when Brandon Waring's in-between line drive slipped under Casey Stevenson's glove. 

What went right: Ramirez was fantastic. He coupled his fastball with his usual devastating change-up and slider, and turned in another terrific outing. Over his first four appearances with Trenton, he's allowed four earned runs in 24 innings, walked five and struck out 33. 

Jeremy Bleich also turned in a nice night out of the bullpen. After getting rocked for 10 runs over 4 1/3 innings on April 21 and May 5 (a DL stint in between), the lefty has settled down. Over his last three outings he's pitched 6 2/3 innings, allowed two hits, no runs, walked one and fanned five. 

What went wrong: Obviously, the Stevenson error was huge. Granted, it was his first time playing second base this season, but it hurt nonetheless. It was Trenton's 52nd error of the season (second to last in the Eastern League), which is a big reason why the team's play has been so inconsistent this season. For more on that, see the link to my notes below.

Picks to click: Here are my game story and notes from Friday.

Flicks to click: Here are videos of all seven of Jose Ramirez's strikeouts and all 10 of Kevin Gausman's strikeouts. 

Pitching matchup: RHP Jose Ramirez (0-1, 1.42) vs. RHP Kevin Gausman (1-4, 3.35)

In the standings: Trenton is in third place, three games behind first-place Portland and one game back of Binghamton for the wild card. Bowie is in fourth in the West, 6.5 games back of first-place Erie and 1.5 games behind second-place Richmond. 

BOWIE

Xavier Avery - CF

Ty Kelly - 3B

Niuman Romero - SS

Caleb Joseph - DH

Henry Urrutia - RF

Brandon Waring - 1B

Garabez Rosa - 2B

Brian Ward - C

Kyle Hudson - LF

Kevin Gausman - RHP

TRENTON 

Ramon Flores - CF

Tyler Austin - RF

Kyle Roller - 1B

JR Murphy - C

Slade Heathcott - DH

Ali Castillo - SS

Neil Medchill - LF

Kevin Mahoney - 3B

Casey Stevenson - 2B

Jose Ramirez - RHP

Notes: Well, if you like baseball, and you're in the Northeast, you should probably be here tonight. I can't imagine you'll get a better pitching matchup in the Eastern League than what you have tonight. Arguably the top arm in both systems, a clear Friday night. Both come with upper-90s gas and filthy change-ups, so there should be a ton of swing-and-miss in the house. ... Jose Pirela is 6 for his last 37, so it's probably good that he's getting a day off. 

Toledo 4, Scranton 1

Corban Joseph: 1 for 4

Ronnier Mustelier: 2 for 5

Dan Johnson: 2 for 3, 2B, BB

Melky Mesa: 1 for 4, HR

Jeff Farnham: 1 for 3, BB

Chien-Ming Wang: 6.2 IP, 12 H, 4 R, 4 ER, BB, 3 SO (100/66)

Mark Montgomery: 1.1 IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, SO (24/14)

Altoona 6, Trenton 2

Ramon Flores: 0 for 3, BB

Jose Pirela: 0 for 3, BB

Slade Heathcott: 1 for 3, HR

Neil Medchill: 1 for 3, HR

Matt Tracy: 4.1 IP, 7 H, 6 R, 4 ER, 3 BB, 6 SO (90/58)

Fred Lewis: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, SO (17/14)

Tommy Kahnle: 2 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, SO (28/19)

Jupiter 9, Tampa 4

Angelo Gumbs: 3 for 5, 2 2B, 2 R

Rob Refsnyder: 1 for 4

Gary Sanchez: 2 for 4, 2 RBI

Dan Fiorito: 1 for 3, R

Saxon Butler: 1 for 4

Eduardo Sosa: 1 for 3, RBI

Cody Grice: 1 for 3, R

Sean Black: 3 IP, 4 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 2 BB, 4 SO

John Brebbia: 3 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 0 SO

Joel De La Cruz: 2 IP, 5 H, 3 R, 2 ER, BB, 2 SO

Dan Mahoney: IP, H, 0 R, 0 ER, BB, 0 SO

Charleston 6, Greenville 3

Cito Culver: 3 for 4, R, RBI, 2 SB

Greg Bird: 2 for 3, 3B, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB

Dante Bichette: 2 for 4, HR, 2 RBI

Taylor Dugas: 1 for 3, R, BB

Wes Wilson: 2 for 4, R

Rafael DePaula: 6 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER, BB, 11 SO (89/59)

Phil Wetherell: 1.2 IP, 4 H, R, ER, BB, 0 SO (37/22)

Alex Smith: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 3 SO (11-10)

Pitching matchup: RHP Jose Ramirez (0-0, 0.69 ERA), LHP Sean Nolin (0-0, 5.40)

In the Standings: The Thunder are tied for second, two games back of first-place Portland. New Hampshire is in fifth place, 6.5 back of Portland.

NEW HAMPSHIRE
Kevin Pillar - CF
Ricardo Nanita - DH
Ryan Schimpf - 3B
Clint Robinson - 1B
Brad Glenn - RF
Adam Loewen - LF
John Tolisano - 2B
Jack Murphy - C
Amadeo Zazueto - SS
Sean Nolin - LHP

TRENTON
Ramon Flores- LF
Jose Pirela - 2B
Tyler Austin - DH
Kyle Roller - 1B
Slade Heathcott - CF
Ali Castillo - SS
Casey Stevenson - 3B
Shane Brown - RF
Nick McCoy - C

Notes: As you can see above, Shane Brown is in the lineup. He was on the DL yesterday, which means a transaction of some kind is coming. You'll find out when I do.

Update - 12:34: So, Reegie Corona is going to Scranton, as is Nik Turley. Turley will make one start with the RailRiders before coming here, I'm told. He gets to face a Gwinnett lineup that will boast (I think) Jason Heyward, so that should be fun for him. Also hearing (not confirmed yet, but hearing) that Brett Marshall will be recalled for the second game of tomorrow's double-dip with the Indians. 

Final score: Trenton 6, New Hampshire 2

Synopsis: After some juggling because of the rain, Jeremy Bleich got the start instead of Matt Tracy. The rain never came, and Bleich pitched brilliantly for three innings before handing the ball to Tracy for 5 2/3 innings. Matt Daley got the final out. 

Trenton drove home its first five runs on two sac flies, an RBI groundout and a fielder's choice that Kevin Nolan threw wildly to the dish and allowed a second run to score. Its final tally came on a mammoth Kyle Roller homer, just the fourth the Thunder have hit at home this season. 

What went right: Obviously, the pitching. Tracy followed up his boffo start against Binghamton with four no-hit innings against New Hampshire before Nolan touched him up for a solo bomb. In his first five starts this year, Tracy allowed 24 runs on 33 hits. In his last two, he's kept the opposition to two runs on three hits. 

Bleich's first start at Trenton in nearly three years went swimmingly. He was only supposed to go three innings no matter what (they figured the rain would come right around that time), but he held New Hampshire at bay while he was out there. Before Tracy took over, he'd gone three innings and allowed two hits and no walks. 

The hitting also seems to be coming around. Ramon Flores collected two his, Tyler Austin hit a couple of balls hard, and the outs they did make with RISP were hit solidly as well.

What went wrong: Even while hitting more balls solidly, the Thunder were just 1 for 10 with RISP, and that hit only pushed a runner to third. Over the last three days, the team is 6 for 38 with men in scoring position. 

Picks to click: Here are my game story and an interview with pitching coordinator Gil Patterson from Saturday. 

TRENTON – Earlier this week, The Trentonian had the opportunity to sit down with Yankees pitching coordinator Gil Patterson at Arm & Hammer Park for a discussion about all things arms within the organization. With the exception of a few items saved for later use, here is that conversation.

JN: When it comes to promotions, what kind of factors does the organization look at before pulling the trigger?

GP: Being my first year here, and every organization is different, sometimes need determines whether a guy goes up or not, and then also who goes up. There’s different thoughts in it. Maybe a guy’s age, maybe a guy’s performance that season. Let’s just take as an example (Mikey) O’Brien’s case.

O’Brien was here last year, and when the (Caleb) Cotham thing became available, it opened up a spot for him. He’s pitched for well for us. In that case, that was kind of an easy fix.

Sometimes other ones are a little more difficult to figure out. There were thoughts involved, and it’s a careful decision. A lot of times, the person who makes the ultimate decision gets a lot of input from just about everybody involved, except the player.

JN: How quickly does it take you to identify what kind of role a pitcher could have when he reaches the major leagues?

GP: For the most part, that is decided once you get to the big leagues. Here in the last 15 years, there’s not too many guys around who are going to take Rivera’s spot. That means the Robertsons and Chamberlains are going to be very effective in that seventh- and eighth-inning role.

All we try to do is just get them ready. We might have where they can pitch and what role, but I’m not sure if anyone knows – especially me – what’s actually going to happen at the big league level until they get there.

JN: So if Brian Cashman calls you and says, ‘Hey, we’re going to select, say, Burawa’ what would you say to him?

GP: I would say he is showing signs of being quite ready, because of his stuff. That’s the physical side, and I think that everyone knows that the mental side is just as important as the physical -- if someone can handle the pressure of pitching in the big leagues first, pitching in New York second. Our biggest goal now, mentally, is being able to focus on one pitch at a time and not letting anything bother that, not letting anything bother our next pitch.

I think if a lot people just read Roy Halladay’s quotes this week, and the book that he read is a book that we read, as far as the mental side. Getting guys that mental toughness and discipline is extremely important for us, along with the physical.

JN: How has teaching mental readiness evolved since you’ve been in this game?

GP: It’s something that people, I think, for the most part, don’t practice enough. Going back to the Halladay article, here’s a guy with two Cy Youngs and 200 wins, and he mentioned how he got away from it a little bit and now has to go back and refresh himself. If someone of that magnitude has to do it, then I think all of us have do it.

As a staff and as pitchers, they’ve got to be able to (be mentally ready). Sometimes it’s having meetings on pitching, and pitchers and pitching coaches have meetings on a daily basis to go over the game, the mental and the physical side. Then we also have the book that we read from. The kids read it and talk about it amongst themselves and talk about it in front of the group. They do a nice job, the pitching coaches that the Yankees have, do a nice job of making sure the mental side is covered.

JN: With Rondon moving out of the rotation, did you guys as an organization see what you wanted to see from him, results aside? Was the goal, long-term, to develop him as a starter or was it to develop him in different situations for an eventual role in the pen?

GP: Sometimes you never know. He’s athletic, and he does have three pitches. And a lot of times when you’re talking about a starter, those are some of the qualities they have to have: Three pitches, and in his case fastball with some life on it, tight slider and a change-up.

It seems like, for him to be focused for those 100 pitches was maybe a little bit difficult. And we already know that he’s been pretty good out of the bullpen. Sometimes you can catch lightning in a bottle. And in this case we tried it. It didn’t work as well as I had hoped.

So he’s back in the bullpen, and in speaking with him, he’s happier about it as well.

JN: Will the experience make him a better reliever?

GP: I think it should. I think it will at least teach him that he doesn’t have to go in and just fire fastballs all the time, that he does have two other, quality pitches that he can use to get himself out of situations with guys on base. He doesn’t have to just rear back and try to throw the ball as hard as he can.

JN: With Jose Campos in Charleston, what does he have to do to get his workload ramped up past what he’s been at in the early part of this season?

GP: When someone misses a full season, as he did last year, you’re always cognizant of the fact that you want to give him enough work that next year, but not too many (innings) to overload him. I’m not sure if anyone knows the exact number of innings to give someone after a year of being missed, but we pretty much have him on a three- to four-inning stint. And we’re hoping that if we get those 25 starts or so, to get him close to that 85- to 90-inning range.