CATCHING UP WITH THE DURHAM BULLS

This Week’s Schedule: The Bulls conclude an eight-game homestand tonight against Lehigh Valley, after which they'll go on a five-game road trip through Norfolk and Richmond. The Bulls will come home for three games with Charlotte starting on July 1.

Ticket Information: Call (919) 956-BULL or order online at durhambulls.com

Bulls Update: The Bulls are 4-3 through the first seven games of the homestand entering tonight's finale against the IronPigs. Durham took three of four from Norfolk, but has dropped two of the first three against the Pigs. The Bulls' offense blistered the Tides' pitching staff, scoring at least six runs in all four games, but has been shut down by the IronPigs, scoring a total of only seven runs through the first three.

In Monday's opener against Lehigh Valley, the Bulls' offense was handcuffed by IronPigs starter J.A. Happ, who shut them out for six innings while allowing only one hit, two walks and striking out nine. The Bulls bounced back on Tuesday, beating the IronPigs 4-1 behind seven strong innings by starter Jeremy Cummings, who held the IronPigs to one run on five hits while fanning five. Even though the Bulls lost again yesterday, they've managed to open up a 4 ½ game lead on Richmond, who's lost eight of their last 10, in the International League's Southern Division.

Although he's been slowed down by the Lehigh Valley pitching staff, Bulls center fielder Fernando Perez has been the team's hottest hitter in June. Perez is hitting .284/.383/.407 in June out of the leadoff spot. He's also third in the IL in stolen bases with 24 in 35 attempts and he's scored at least one run in seven of the Bulls' last nine games. The switch-hitting Columbian native has been using his speed well in center field as well, having committed only three errors all season while collecting six outfield assists along the way.
Prospect Watch: Lehigh Valley is an affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies. Charlotte is an affiliate of the Chicago White Sox. Here's who to look out for if you head out to see the IronPigs tonight or the Knights starting on Tuesday.

• Jason Jaramillo, c, Lehigh Valley: Jaramillo is in his second season at Triple-A in 2008 after hitting .271/.350/.361 for Ottawa last year. Although Jaramillo, 25, doesn't have the ceiling to be a starter at the major league level, he should be reliable enough offensively and defensively to carve out a career as a big league backup. Jaramillo has a sound approach at the plate and can use all fields with gap-to-gap power, although he's never hit many home runs. Defensively, his skills appeared to slip somewhat in 2006, but he got back on the right track last year and he leads IL catchers in throwing out base stealers this year with a success rate of 41 percent. Jaramillo went 1-for-4 with an RBI single in the first game of the series, but he went 0-for-3 on Tuesday and sat out yesterday's game.

• Chris Getz, 2b/ss, Charlotte: We spotlighted Getz the last time the Knights came to town, and he's continued his strong season since then. Getz, 24, doesn't particularly excel at any one phase of the game, but he's fundamentally strong in all areas. Although Getz was projected as a second baseman at the major league level due to a lack of range at shortstop, he's recently been seeing more time both at short and in left field. Getz tore it up in May, hitting .318/.370/.491 in 110 at-bats for the month. Those numbers have come down a bit this month, but he's still been very solid. His season numbers stand at .303/.354/.436, and his six home runs on the year match his combined total from his first three minor league seasons, when he hit six in 1,024 at-bats from the rookie leagues through Double-A.

Bulls Bits: Just how good has the Durham bullpen been? You won't find a better testament to their efforts than the fact that the Bulls are 33-0 when leading after six innings this season. The Bulls' relief trio of Scott Dohmann–who's 7-for-7 in save opportunites–, Juan Salas and Dale Thayer have combined to post a 1.97 ERA in 77 2/3 innings while holding opponents to a .216 average.

CATCHING UP WITH THE CAROLINA MUDCATS

This Week’s Schedule: The Mudcats have four games remaining in their six-game series at home with Huntsville. They'll then head out on the road for a four-game set in Jacksonville.

Ticket Information: Call (919) 269-2287 or order online at gomudcats.com or etix.com.

Mudcats Update: The Mudcats came home after splitting a six-game series in Chattanooga. Carolina won the first three games of that series by a combined score of 16-2, but the Lookouts reversed the momentum and swept the last three games from the Mudcats by a combined 20-4 margin to split the series. The Mudcats rebounded in the opener of the Huntsville series, notching a thrilling 9-8 victory. However, Huntsville got even last night, scoring the winning run in the top of the ninth to topple the Mudcats 7-6.

The Mudcats' 9-8 win on Tuesday was probably one of the team's most exciting games of the season. Twice the Mudcats rallied from multi-run deficits to take the lead, the last of which came when they scored three runs in the bottom of the eighth to erase an 8-6 deficit. All three of those runs came on after the Mudcats had loaded the bases with two outs. Manuel Mayorson singled up the middle, bringing in the first two runners to tie the game with the winning run coming in after a throwing error on the play by Stars center fielder Michael Bradley. Chris Mobley came in in the top of the ninth and struck out the side to preserve the win.

The Mudcats are 4-4 so far in the second half of the Southern League's season, two games behind first place Tennessee. Huntsville lost a tightly contested first half pennant race against West Tenn, as the two clubs finished the half tied atop the Northern Division standings before West Tenn won the first game between the two clubs after the end of the half to claim the title. The Mudcats finished the first half with a record of 38-32, three games out of first. If the Mudcats finish with the division's best record in the second half, they'll meet West Tenn in the first round of the SL playoffs.

Prospect Watch: Huntsville is an affiliate of the Milwaukee Brewers. The Stars have the SL's best offense, and it's lived up to the billing in the first two games of the series. Here's who to watch for over the next few days:

• Matt LaPorta, of: One of the top power-hitters in the minors, LaPorta's 19 home runs lead the SL, and his 59 RBIs rank second behind teammate Mat Gamel. LaPorta, 23, has power to all fields and is learning to make more consistent contact as well as a willingness to take a walk when pitchers won't give him anything to hit. Primarily a first baseman in college, the Brewers have moved LaPorta to the outfield as a professional. Although LaPorta doesn't have great range, he's learning to take better routes to the ball and has shown improved instincts in the outfield. LaPorta missed four games after crashing into the outfield wall in a game at West Tenn last week. He came back for the first game of the Mudcats series but has gone only 1-for-8 over the last two nights.

• Mat Gamel, 3b: Hitting in front of LaPorta in the Huntsville order, Gamel has been punishing SL pitching all season himself. Gamel, 22, put together a 33-game hitting streak in Class-A last season and has a professional approach at the plate. He knows the strike zone and can use all fields. After hitting only nine home runs a season ago, Gamel has already popped 15 in 2008, although all but two of those home runs has come against righthanded pitchers. The major knock on Gamel is his defense at the hot corner. He has a strong arm, but makes a lot of inaccurate throws that are usually the product of poor footwork. Gamel committed a staggering 53 errors in 2007 to lead the minor leagues. He isn't on pace to duplicate that mark, but he still leads the SL with 21 errors in 76 games. Both Gamel and Matt LaPorta were selected to participate in the Futures Game to take place at Yankee Stadium on July 13, the day before the major league All-Star Game.

Mudcats Musings: Mudcats closer Chris Mobley's 11 saves ranks third in the SL even though he wasn't put into the closer's role until early May. The 24-year-old righthander started the season strong, not allowing a run in his first nine appearances out of the bullpen, and he's converted his last six save opportunities while holding opponents to a .207 average in eight appearances in June.