Split

Game 111: Durham Bulls (Rays) 10; Indianapolis Indians (Pirates) 1
Wrap, Box, Indy Week

Game 112: Durham Bulls 1; Indianapolis Indians 4
Season: 69-43
Wrap, Box, Herald-Sun, Indy Week

After the rain, this was a good night at the ball park. Nevertheless, it was very difficult to get a sense of this Indianapolis team. Maybe over the next couple of days. And it was really odd to see former Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura coaching first base near the end of the first game. We saw him here last year on a rehab assignment while he was still with the Rays, so he’s worn a Bulls uniform for a couple of games. He’s had a tough year with the Pirates and is now with the Indians. Not in the lineup for either game last night. Appeared to be exchanging a friendly wave with someone in the Bulls dugout, Dioner Navarro probably. They have played a lot of ball together over the years.

In the first game, the Bulls batted around in the 2nd inning and again in the 4th. More than enough put the game away for Richard De Los Santos. We got our first look at newcomer Leslie Anderson, who played left field and was wearing Dan Johnson’s #24. Does that mean that D.J. isn’t coming back for sure?

It’s too bad we couldn’t just accumulate the runs over the day. After everyone except Jose Lobaton getting at least one hit in the first game, only two Bulls got hits in the second game. Joe Dillon got two doubles, but they really didn’t make a difference. In this game Anderson played first base, so I guess we’re getting a look at his role. Not that different from that played by Richard and Dan Johnson, although Dan played a lot of third base as well.

Should we be worried about Virgil Vasquez’ tendency to give up home runs? Not sure, but between him and Heath Phillips they’ve given up a bunch this year (20 & 9) and it goes a long way toward explaining why they have relatively high FIPs (4.92 and 4.69).

We have not mentioned here the fact that Dale Thayer is off to join the Rays. It’s very hard to say how long he might be there since the Rays are in the midst of quite a bit of roster juggling. I was surprised at the choice of Thayer over Ekstrom, the other member of the 40-man who is with the Bulls, but Dale’s numbers are slightly better. Good luck.

In the meantime, over at Indy Week Adam Sobsey is reporting several interesting tidbits:

• Jeremy Hellickson is going to be held to a 3 inning/45 pitch count for the rest of his season with the Bulls.
• Fernando Perez’ shoulder is acting up and, although we saw him get half-innings in the field, he may not be ready to bat for a while.

On the Anderson/McGee moves, here’s a couple of additional comments here and here.

Indianapolis, by the way, is in the hunt for the International League wild card slot.

Once we finish this series on Sunday, the Bulls only play South Division teams to finish out the year. Charlotte — 6 at home/5 away; Gwinnett — 2 at home/6 away; and Norfolk — 5 at home/5 away. Even with the changes to their rosters, we’re going to get to know those teams very well.

I also have to note that Craig Robinson over at Flip Flop Fly Ball has several great new graphics up on his site. Seems like it has been a while and it’s great to see him back and in superb form.