Sunday Pebble Report: Kyle Parker homers deep into the night

Triple-A Colorado Springs - W 8-3 (16-11)

The Sky Sox defeated the Giants affiliate in Fresno on Saturday. Starter Jeff Manship earned the win by pitching five shutout innings and allowing only three hits and getting two strikeouts. Manship lowered his ERA to 6.33 on the season.

The Sky Sox took advantage of Fresno's miscues in the fourth inning to score five runs. The Sox did their part with five singles but a wild pitch and a throwing error from Fresno's squad was the difference in the game. First Baseman Ben Paulsen is hot right now, going 4-for-5 with a home run and raising his average to .387. Right-fielder Tim Wheeler (#12 PuRP) had a triple and two walks, he scored two runs and raised his average to .195 for the season. Shortstop D.J. LeMahieu is hitting .381 after going 2-for-5 with two RBI.

Double-A Tulsa - L 3-5 (14-14)

The Drillers lost to the Cardinals affiliate Saturday in Springfield after enduring a wild seventh inning. Starter Dan Houston pitched effectively, going into the seventh and allowing only three earned runs on five hits. Houston began the game by sitting down 14 straight batters before allowing a baserunner, he ended up striking out four and walking just one.

The seventh inning was Tulsa's downfall as Dan gave up a single and then allowed the runner to move up on a wild pitch. Houston then hit a batter, but induced a double play. With two outs the Cardinals scored on a single before Joe Gardner (#19 PuRP) came on in relief. Joe proceeded to serve up a home run to the first batter he faced and then walk batter, before allowing Thomas Phan to double to leftfield. Fortunately for Tulsa, Phan was thrown out at third base by Kent Matthes (#HM PuRP) when he was attempting to stretch the play into a triple.

Rightfielder Kyle Parker (#4 PuRP) hit a massive opposite field home run in the 6th, it was estimated at over 440 feet and was his sixth homer of the year. Kyle was responsible for most of the Drillers runs, as he also drove in Cristhian Adames (#18 PuRP) early in the game on a single to centerfield. Shortstop Adames went 3-for-4 and raised his average to .264 on the season.

High-A Modesto - W 3-2 (11-18)

The Nuts win against the Reds affiliate, was Modesto's second win in a row after previously dropping eight straight. Starter Dan Winkler (#HM PuRP) earned the win against Bakersfield after going six strong innings and allowing only a single run. Winkler held a no-hitter till the fifth and allowed only two hits on the night. Closer Scott Oberg came on in the ninth and slammed the door shut by striking out the side and earning his seventh save of the season. Oberg is currently ranked third in the California league in saves.

After being recently activated from the seven day disabled list, third baseman Sam Mende (#27 PuRP) lead off the game with a single and later scored on a balk. The Nuts managed only three hits off of Reds pitching prospect Carlos Contreras -- one of Cincinnati's better pitchers in a very deep system. The third hit was provided by Tyler Massey in the fourth inning as the ball looped inside the left field foul pole for Massey's second home run of the season. Massey was 1-for-1 with two walks and is hitting .286 in 24 games played. Trevor Story (#3 PuRP) and Will Swanner (#5 PuRP) combined to go hitless in 6 at bats with three strikeouts against the Blaze.

Low-A Asheville - L 9-11(16-12)

The Tourist lost in a shoot-out against the Giants affiliate in Augusta on Saturday. The game was initially delayed 40 minutes due to rain and the first few innings were played in rain soaked conditions. Starter Ben Hughes was knocked from the game early after allowing eight runs on four hits and three walks. Hughes also had a throwing error and hit a batter in the first inning. Ryan Arrowood came on in the first with only one out and pitched 3.2 scoreless innings, allowing four hits and striking out six. Arrowood's ERA dropped to 2.25 through eight appearances and carries a strikeout rate of 10.8 K/9.

The Tourists tied up the game by scoring eight runs through three innings and took the lead in the fifth on a David Dahl RBI, but Alving Mejias and Rayan Gonzalez allowed two runs late to give the Greenjackets the win.

Centerfielder David Dahl (#1 PuRP) had another strong game, going 2-for-5 with a triple and two runs scored. Dahl has reached base in six straight games since returning to Asheville. Cleanup hitter and catcher Tom Murphy (#15 PuRP) extended his hitting streak to 13 games with a two hit performance. He notched another double in the game, giving him 14 extra base hits in 17 games. Tom has a 1.751 OPS through his last 10 games. Rosell Herrera (#16 PuRP) was hitless, but scored twice by earning a pair of walks. First baseman Derek Jones had two RBI from a double in the second inning.