Rex Hudler

It is a hard biting downward breaking curveball. It does not have a "loop" like some big breaking curveballs. He has tightened it up some, making it break less than it used to, however it still breaks very sharply. I am not sure if his "slider" is exactly that. It looks more to me that he just throws a harder version of the curveball sometimes. I don't see the horizontal break down and away like a typical slider. Perhaps it is just the angle I see it from.

Rice lost in the regionals...... 4-3 to Texas Southern in the first round, then fought their way all the way back to the If Necessary game and lost when Philip Humber (one of the stud 3) gave up a grand slam in the bottom of the 8th inning to Texas A&M. I think that score was also 4-3, but I could be wrong.

If you can catch it on TV, catch the Vanderbilt-Texas series. Vandy has a scrappy team and an ace in Jeremy Sowers. He will almost definitely go the first game on Friday night. Vandy has a couple of other good pitchers, one named Ryan Mullins. The strange thing is, they also have a pitcher named Greg Moviel who the Sox drafted and couldn't sign, but he rarely ever pitches for them. He was supposed to be one of the "ones that got away" for the Sox last year and certainly hasn't stepped in and contributed yet. Vandy is my sleeper team in this thing. They will have a tall order against Texas. But they had 5 players drafted and several other top players that are sophomores, including Mullins. Antoan Richardson is one of the fastest players I have seen in a long time. They have the pitching, to pull off a surprise. Other teams I have seen that are very good are Arkansas, South Carolina and LSU. Of course, those teams at the top of the SEC aren't hard to imagine being in the CWS. Florida has a shot as well. LSU has Jon Zeringue who the Sox drafted three years ago as a catcher. He is now an All-American OF. Of course, a guy like Weaver with Long Beach State is a given if you get the opportunity to watch them.

Unfortunately, the Josh Fields that is currently in AA blew a save tonight, giving up three runs in the 9th as the Barons lost 4-3.

And my point is, that outing should not seal his fate....... it was only one outing. Plans to send Munoz were already in the works, so in reality, I doubt that outing had anything to do with it, as it should be.

A trade can always be made........ Nothing is official until he steps on the mound Saturday.

Cheat, I think you are being a bit hard on the Beaver...... Diaz has one bad outing in Charlotte all year. Many guys bounce right back from a tough outing with a very good one. Looking forward, I think Arnie deserves a chance. I just wish they would cut the string and lose the game of yo-yo they are playing. But I doubt they will.

Aren't they one in the same??

Pistons?? I thought the NBA went defunct a few years ago?

Agreed

He threw two innings tonight, which will mean he will throw on three days rest, but after a very limited outing.

Barring a trade in the next few days, Arnie will be on the bump for the Sox on Saturday.

Yes, Josh Fields is also a reliever in AA with the Barons. He is a solid pitcher who produces consistently. He doesn't have great stuff, but he is a bulldog type and gets the job done. He is currently 3-1 with a 0.93 ERA in 29 IP. He has given up 20 hits and struck out 31, while walking only 4. He along with Jeff Bajenaru and Matt Smith are why the Barons bullpen has been real solid recently. Shouldn't this be on the Minor League board??

I like Fields, but his stuff is somewhat unimpressive........ He is an aggressive, bulldog type that has no fear. He also consistently produces results. At this point, I like Bajenaru better. Like you said, he is a couple years older, the injury really hurt Baj, so who knows what he will be like two years from now. I think they both have a chance to pitch in the big leagues, but I definitely think Bajenaru is closer now. On that note, don't discount Matt Smith either. He is a workhorse and consistently produces. He isn't quite as dominant as Baj but he gets outs and has solid stuff.

For Chicago........ book it

Diaz is scheduled to pitch tonight which would be right on rotation for a Saturday start. Let's see if the Sox are smart enough to call him up, rather than Munoz, who they will have to pitch out of the bullpen again to get him in line, like they did (and failed) with all the others.

Just a quick draft tidbit...... In 1993, the Sox drafted Carey Schueler, then GM Ron Schueler's daughter (or granddaughter) BEFORE they drafted current A's 2B Frank Menechino, former Sox and Twins 1B Mario Valdez and Placido Polanco. All three have played or play in the Majors now and get drafted after the GM's daughter.

So when do the Sox draft HS OF Kenny Williams out of Illinois??

Munoz on Saturday

He'll be in Chicago within 16 days. Book it!

I thought the Indians were hot on Sowers?

okay........ did i miss something here? why should we care?

now with the Twins.......

Wunsch has ZERO trade value.... His salary has NOTHING to do with anything. Can we move on please??

More than likely he only gave up 6 while on the mound and Castro gave up the runners he inherited......