In the seventh inning of a 0-0 ballgame, Jeff Hoffman allowed only the second Reno Aces player to get past second base. Peter O'Brien hit a triple to deep center field and the Isotopes right handed pitcher, who had struck out five the previous six innings, was in arguably his first true jam. Any contact from the next batter and the run would surely score, leaving Hoffman on the short end of a 1-0 deficit and knocking a perfect start into the realm of "pretty good". Hoffman didn't falter, however. He struck out Kyle Jensen for the second out and forced Zach Bornstein into a fly ball out to end the inning.
This final inning placed a perfect capstone on Hoffman's seven innings of shutout pitching in Reno on Sunday, only allowing three hits and walking zero. Aces hitters were consistently off balance throughout the start as Hoffman's off-speed mix of pitches worked both in and out of the zone and never allowed hitters to find a rhythm. Hoffman finished with 99 pitches, 68 being strikes and at this point it's more about the details with Hoff as he looks MLB ready in just about every aspect of his pitching.
Here are the rest of the news and notes from Sunday in the minors:
Triple-A: Reno Aces 1, Albuquerque Isotopes 0 (12 innings)
Brandon Barnes: 3-for-6
Jason Gurka: 2 IP 0 ER 3 K
Class A Advanced: Stockton Ports 3, Modesto Nuts 2
Wes Rogers: 1-for-2 2B, RBI, BB
Sam Howard: 6 IP 4 H 3 K 1 ER
Class A: Asheville Tourists 4, West Virginia Power 2
No. 4 PuRP Brendan Rodgers: 2-for-4, 2B, RBI, R
Jack Wynkoop: 6 2/3 IP 8 H 4 K 2 ER
Class A (Game Two): Asheville Tourists 6, West Virginia Power 1
No. 4 PuRP Brendan Rodgers: 1-for-3, R
Hamlet Marte: 2-for-3 HR, 3 RBI
Possible Infant Peter Lambert: 4 IP 4 H 4 K 1 ER
Double-A Hartford rained out
Monday Probables:
Albuqerque Isotopes: Shane Carle vs. Sacramento
Hartford Yard Goats: Carlos Hernandez @ Harrisburg
Modesto Nuts: Carlos Polanco vs. Lake Elsinore
Asheville Tourists: Trey Killian @ West Virginia