Harrisburg 3, Binghamton 1

Mark Cohoon didn’t have his best stuff yet turned in a gritty performance which was good enough to win, but good fortune simply didn’t come his way. Cohoon is a thinking pitcher who maximizes his stuff to out smart opposing hitters. Pitch location is a huge part of the winning Cohoon pitching formula, but the B-Met lefty had difficulty spotting his pitches early in the contest. Even so, Cohoon carried a shutout into the Harrisburg fifth.

Senator shortstop Ricky Hague led off the fifth working a 7-pitch at bat lining the final pitch, a 2-2 off speed delivery, just inside the right field foul line into the corner for a triple. Jerad Head pinch hit and lofted a lazy fly to B-Met rightfielder Cesar Puello, which was not deep enough to plate Hogue. The Senators took a 1-0 lead when Brian Goodman grounded a single just past the B-Met infield. In what turned out to be a critical defensive lapse, Cohoon had Goodman picked off, but the B-Mets allowed him to escape a rundown and reach second base. Unnerved, Cohoon caught Sean Nicol looking on a 73 mph curve for the second out.

Lopez used a double switch, lifting Cohoon, who had thrown 92 pitches, in favor of reliever John Church. Anthony Rendon, the Senator’s second baseman, took Church’s third pitch out of the park for a two run dinger that would prove to be the game winner.

Binghamton scored their only run of the game when Richard Lucas, who had entered the game in the double switch, led off the fifth with a double. He later scored on Danny Muno’s infield ground out, the RBI a team leading 19^th for the B-Met second baseman. The B-Mets slammed four doubles in the contest with Josh Rodriguez getting two and Francisco Pena and Lucas one apiece.

Check out Cohoon’s pitching stats: 4.2 IP, 2 R, 2 ER, 4 H, 3 BB, 5 K

• Batters Faced: 20    
• First Pitch Strikes: 14 of 20 – 70%
• Ahead After Three Pitches: 12 of 19 63%
• Total Pitches: 92    Strikes: 57 – 62%     Balls: 35 – 38%
• Strike Breakdown:  Called: 24 – 42%  Fouled: 14 – 25%  Missed: 7 – 12%  In Play: 12 – 21%
• Full Windup: Total Pitches: 55   Strikes: 35 – 64%    Balls: 20 – 36%
• Stretch:  Total Pitches:  37     Strikes: 22 – 57%    Balls: 15 – 43%

Cohoon is more difficult to chart. His fastball range was 86-90 mph, but he only touched 90 on one pitch. Cohoon’s curve ball bites in the low 70′s. He delivers another off-speed pitch the registers in the low 80′s either a change-up or perhaps a slider. With a small differential between this pitch and his fastball, sometimes it makes me think Mark is simply varying the speed of his fastball. The pitch appears to tail at times, but I’m not exactly sure what it is.

I love watching Cohoon pitch. When he’s locked in he delivers pitches with a surgeon’s precision moving knee high pitches along the corners on both sides of the plate.

Key Stats

Josh Rodriguez: 2-for-3, 2 2B

Francisco Pena: 1-for-3, 1 2B

Daniel Muno: 0-for-3, 1 RBI

Richard Lucas: 1-for-1, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 BB

Mark Cohoon: 4.2 IP, 4 H, 3 BB, 2 ER, 5 K

John Church: 1.1 IP, 1 H, 1 HR, 1 ER, 1 K

Shawn Teufel: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 3 K

Binghamton 6, Erie 5

The Binghamton Mets blew a pair of two-run leads, but prevailed on Tuesday night, defeating the Erie SeaWolves, 6-5, at NYSEG Stadium. Danny Muno capped a three-hit game with a go-ahead RBI single in the eighth inning.

For the second straight night, the B-Mets plated the eventual game-winning run in their last turn at bat. Blake Forsythe started the rally by blasting a leadoff double to right against reliever Blaine Hardy. Muno brought him home and broke the tie game by bouncing a sinking line drive single in front of Luis Castillo in right field.

Given a one-run advantage for the second time in as many nights, Jeffrey Walters retired all three SeaWolves he faced in the ninth to collect his league-leading eighth save.

In a contest that pitted a pair of spot-starting southpaws, the B-Mets drew first blood against Erie starter Matt Crouse. With two aboard, Wilfredo Tovar got Binghamton on the board with an RBI single and Alonzo Harris doubled the lead on a sac fly.

B-Mets starter Mark Cohoon made the lead stand through four innings. Making his first start of the season and pitching in his first game since April 14, the lefty faced just one over the minimum over four shutout innings.

Erie scratched out their first run in the fifth against reliever Shawn Teufel. Tyler Collins reached on a fielding error by Wilfredo Tovar and took second on an errant pickoff throw by Teufel. James Robbins brought him in with an RBI single to right.

After Binghamton returned serve with a run on a David Kopp wild pitch in the fifth, the SeaWolves tied the game in the sixth against Jack Leathersich. A leadoff walk came back to bite the lefty when Collins threaded a game-tying two-run homer over the left field wall.

Forsythe offered a quick rebuttal in the bottom half of the frame. The B-Mets catcher tattooed a 2-2 offering from Kopp over the left field fence to break the tie. Joe Bonfe extended the lead with a sac fly later in the frame.

The two-run lead did not last for long as Leathersich fell into more trouble in the seventh. The SeaWolves loaded the bases on two singles and hit batsman. Hernan Perez provided a sac fly and Ramon Cabrera capped a nine-pitch at bat with a game-tying RBI single up the middle.

Chase Huchingson (2-0) entered in the eighth and worked around a two-out double to preserve the tie. The southpaw racked up his second consecutive win after the B-Mets took the lead on Muno’s hit. Hardy (0-1) suffered the loss in his SeaWolves debut.

The B-Mets (14-11) continue their series against the SeaWolves (12-11) Wednesday night at 6:35 PM. RHP Rafael Montero (3-1, 1.95) gets the nod for Binghamton against RHP Victor Larez (3-0, 3.43).

Key Stats

Blake Forsythe: 2-for-4, 1 2B, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 2 R

Cesar Puello: 1-for-4, 1 R

Daniel Muno: 3-for-3, 1 2B, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SB

Joe Bonfe: 1-for-3, 1 RBI, 1 R

Wilfredo Tovar: 2-for-4, 1 RBI, 1 R

Mark Cohoon: 4.0 IP, 2 H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 3 K

Shawn Teufel: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 R, 0 ER, 1 K

Jack Leathersich: 2.0 IP, 4 H, 1 HR, 1 BB, 4 ER, 3 K

Chase Huchingson: 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 1 K

Jeffrey Walters: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 BB, 0 ER, 1 K

(Team Report)

Binghamton 6, New Hampshire 3

The B-Mets used the support of two home runs, including a three-run shot from Cory Vaughn, to beat the New Hampshire Fisher Cats 6-3 at NYSEG Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Binghamton got the offense started right away against RHP Austin Bibens-Dirkx. With the bases loaded in the bottom of the first, Allan Dykstra hit a sacrifice fly to centerfield, scoring Darrell Ceciliani.

Blake Forsythe tallied another run the second as he hit a solo home run, his first of the year, over the right field wall. New Hampshire got into the scoring column in the top of the third with an RBI single by Kevin Pillar, but the Binghamton offense was back at it in the bottom half. Cory Vaughn‘s three-run blast to left field put the B-Mets up 5-1. Both teams picked up single runs in the fifth inning; Brad Glenn hit a solo home run for New Hampshire, but Cesar Puello got the run back with an RBI single.

Rafael Montero finished his day after five innings of two-run baseball. The right-hander gave up three hits and struck out six, before handing the ball to Mark Cohoon. Cohoon threw a scoreless sixth and seventh, but ran into trouble in the eighth inning. After giving up one run on two doubles, Jack Leathersich was called upon to end the threat. He retired the side without any further damage. In the ninth, Jeffrey Walters tossed a scoreless frame to record his second save of the season. Montero was awarded his second win in three starts.

The B-Mets (6-4) open up a three-game series against the Portland Sea Dogs at NYSEG Stadium on Monday. RHP Cory Mazzoni (0-0, 0.00) has the ball for Binghamton against RHP Anthony Ranaudo (0-0, 1.80) for Portland.

Key Stats

Rafael Montero: 5.0 IP, 3 H, 1 HR, 1 BB, 2 ER, 6 K

Cory Vaughn: 1-for-3, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB

Rhyne Hughes: 2-for-3, 2 R, 1 BB

Blake Forsythe: 1-for-2, 1 HR, 1 RBI, 1 R, 1 BB

(Team Report)

Colorado Springs 6, Las Vegas 1

Fans who attended Opening Night at Cashman Field Friday were treated to a dominant performance — just not from the home team.

Behind seven strikeouts and only one earned run from former second-round pick Tyler Chatwood, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox downed the Las Vegas 51s, 6-1, in the team’s home opener.

The 51s’ bats were non-existent for most of the night, including the first four innings. It wasn’t until they had one out left in the fifth inning that the 51s notched an extra-base hit.

Left fielder Jamie Hoffman doubled and pinch hitter Reese Havens drove him in with a line drive to center field. The 51s offense once again fizzled after that.

Las Vegas’ four most ballyhooed hitters — catcher Travis d’Arnaud, first baseman Josh Satin, second baseman Wilmer Flores and third baseman Zach Lutz — went a combined 1-for-15.

The Sky Sox set the tone with three runs in the first-inning. Third baseman Nolan Arenado, the top prospect in the Colorado Rockies organization according to Baseball America, doubled and drove in a run in his first at-bat.

Colorado Springs scored one run in three of the next four innings, including a solo home run from ex-Chicago Cub Tyler Colvin in the fifth.

A crowd of 9,247 fans watched as Las Vegas fell to 5-4 on the year while Colorado Springs improved to 5-3. The 51s host the Sky Sox for the next three days in a row to complete the series.

Key Stats

Omar Quintanilla: 2-for-4

Carlos Torres: 3 IP, 9 H, 3 BB, 5 R, 3 ER, 1 HR

Greg Peavey: 2 IP, 0 H, 1 BB, 1 K, 0 R

Binghamton 15, New Hampshire 7

The B-Mets tied a franchise record by scoring 11 times in the fourth inning en route to a 15-7 victory over the New Hampshire Fisher Cats Friday night at NYSEG Stadium.

Trailing 5-1 entering the bottom of the fourth, Rhyne Hughes got the inning started by launching his first home run of the season over the left field wall. Hughes was the first of nine consecutive batters to reach base safely to start the inning. They also all eventually came around to score. Binghamton scored eleven times, collected seven hits, and used the help of five walks and two Fisher Cat fielding errors in the decisive inning.

New Hampshire had their way offensively as well. They began the game with three consecutive hits, and scored twice in the first inning. On the night they finished with seven runs on eighteen hits, however they left 16 men on base.

Binghamton’s first run was scored in the bottom of the second inning, as Cory Vaughn doubled home Juan Centeno. Both Centeno and Vaughn finished with three hits and three runs apiece, with Vaughn tallying four RBI as well. As a team Binghamton collected 14 base hits by seven different players, and 14 RBI by eight different players.

Mark Cohoon (2-0) got the win in relief. He pitched two innings after replacing starter Tyler Pill, and gave up one run on four hits.

Key Stats

Alonzo Harris: 2-for-6, 3 RBI, 1 R,

Juan Centeno: 3-for-5, 3 R, 1 3B, 1 RBI

Cory Vaughn: 3-for-4, 3 R, 4 RBI, 1 BB

Tyler Pill: 4 IP, 10 H, 5 ER, 1 BB, 3 K

(Team Reports)

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DARIN GORSKI: Is he officially a reliever now?

Adam Rubin of ESPN New York took to Twitter a short while ago and began posting his projections for the Mets Triple-A roster.

Included in his Las Vegas 51′s rotation he has: Zack Wheeler, Aaron Laffey, Collin McHugh, Chris Schwinden and Carlos Torres.

A month ago I projected the rotation as follows:

1. Zack Wheeler
2. Collin McHugh
3. Mark Cohoon
4. Darin Gorski
5. Aaron Laffey

That was what I had once I removed Mejia, who has been shutdown for at least a month, and Hefner who won a job in the Mets rotation. The biggest difference between what I project and Rubin is that he has Carlos Torres in the rotation and Darin Gorski is nowhere to be seen.

When I posted my projection back on February 21, I did speculate that both Familia and Gorski may not even make the cut and could be relegated to the bullpen because of a numbers crunch:

Jeurys Familia is looking more and more like a reliever now and even Darin Gorski is beginning to trend in that direction lately.

I’m not that surprised that Schwinden makes Rubin’s cut even though I personally saw him as a numbers casualty as well, but the Torres thing surprises me.

The Mets signed the 30-year old free agent back in November and I remember thinking at the time how confusing an addition it was – even as minor league fodder.

Last season, Torres made 31 appearances for the Colorado Rockies and posted a 5.25 ERA and 1.415 WHIP in 53 innings pitched. All of his appearances were in relief. He’s having an awful spring for the Mets, posting a 8.54 ERA in 5.1 innings with nine hits allowed and five runs. I don’t see the value in pushing aside a younger pitcher with higher upside just to give Torres a job. It makes little sense to me.

I would also think that Mark Cohoon was more deserving of a spot on the Vegas rotation, especially after his solid season in Binghamton where he posted a 3.62 ERA and 1.207 WHIP in 23 starts, 18 of them quality starts.

And while I did speculate Gorski would go to the pen, my thinking at the time was because he’d be squeezed out because of the numbers crunch and not because a determination would be made that he was finished as a starter.

If we can give Gorski another season in the rotation, I’d be all for it. I would most rather see that than to push him aside because of someone like Torres.

Update: Right after I posted this Adam Rubin DMed me and said that yes, Familia is now officially a reliever.

Mark Cohoon

Welcome to the second edition of Who’s Hot, Who’s Not – Upper Minors. Today we take a look once again at the hottest and coldest players from St. Lucie, Binghamton, and Buffalo.

Who’s Hot

• Alonzo Harris LF, St. Lucie – Harris is making a name for himself with an incredible stretch for St. Lucie. Harris is hitting .419 over his last ten games with two home runs and seven runs batted in. He also has a .457 on-base percentage and .674 slugging percentage.
• Wilmer Flores INF, Binghamton – Flores is catching fire once again. His adjustment period to Double-A seems to be over,  as he is catching fire once again. He is batting .359 over his last ten games to go along with a .405 on-base percentage and .513 slugging percentage. Flores, 21, is on track to be in Buffalo sooner rather than later with the way he’s been hitting.
• Mark Cohoon P, Binghamton – Cohoon hasn’t gotten the attention he deserves for the way he’s been pitching in Binghamton this season. On the year, he has a 3.44 ERA in 120.1 innings with the B-Mets, and had his best outing of the season on Friday, throwing a two-hit shutout against Harrisbugh. He was recognized this week by the Eastern League as the pitcher of the week.

Who’s Not 

• Pedro Beato P, Buffalo – After pitching very well earlier in the season for Buffalo, Beato has struggled recently. Over his last three outings, he has allowed ten runs in five innings.
• Jefry Marte 3B, Binghamton – Marte was having a good season with the B-Mets up until a few weeks ago, when he started slumping. Over his last ten games, he has just a .194 batting average and has only walked once during that span. Hopefully, Marte can turn it around and earn himself a Triple-A roster spot for next season.
• Eric Campbell 3B, Binghamton – After a fantastic first half, in which he hit well over .300 and earned himself All-Star honors, Eric Cambell has cooled down lately. Campbell is batting .219 over his last ten games and .211 in the month of August.

ROCHESTER 5, BUFFALO 3

Matt Harvey made his second Triple-A start of the season in difficult weather conditions. Harvey battled for five innings, allowed seven hits, two runs (both earned) and struck out four and issued one walk. His ERA in two starts is 5.79. Harvey exited the game after five with a 3-2 lead, but Jeff Stevens allowed three runs (zero earned) in the bottom of the sixth inning. Red Wings left fielder Brian Dinkleman hit a three-run homer to right field. Valentino Pascucci went 1-for-4 but drove in two runs. Jordany Valdespin, who continues to bat leadoff and get work in center field, went 1-for-5. Buffalo (3-3) opens at home Wednesday at 2:05 p.m. against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees. BOX SCORE

ERIE 6, BINGHAMTON 1

After mashing 11 hits last night, the B-Mets were held to just three hits and one run Tuesday. Sea Wolves starting pitcher James Avery (1-0) went five innings, allowing three hits, struck out three hitters, walked three and gave up zero runs. Mark Cohoon (0-1) started for the B-Mets. Cohoon went five innings and gave up three hits, two runs and had three strikeouts. Erie third baseman Bryan Pounds went 2-for-3, including two home runs. He drove in three runs. Matt den Dekker went 1-for-4 for the B-Mets and had a stolen base. Bingamton went 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position. The B-Mets (2-3) continue their three-game series against Erie 6:35 p.m. Wednesday. BOX SCORE

ST. LUCIE 6, CHARLOTTE 2

Cory Vaughn went 2-for-4 for the St. Lucie Mets (4-1) to defeat Charlotte, 6-2. St. Lucie exploded for four runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to stretch its lead to five runs. Charlotte scored a consolation run in the top of the ninth inning. Daniel Muno led the inning off with a double and then stole third base. Robbie Shields drew a walk and then Vaughn mashed a double to center field, plating two runs. Angel Cuan (1-0) picked up the win for the Mets. In seven innings of work, Cuan allowed just two hits and one walk while striking out four batters. Wilmer Flores went 2-for-3. St. Lucie continues its three-game series with Charlotte 6:30 p.m. Wednesday. BOX SCORE

ROME 3, SAVANNAH 1

Rome starting pitcher Rafael Briceno (1-0) went 5.2 innings, allowing just two hits and struck out two batters. The game was scoreless until the fifth inning. In the top of the fifth, the Braves had back-to-back doubles. Left fielder Chase Larsson hit a double and then scored when Felix Marte hit a two-bagger to right field. The Sand Gnats scored their only run in the bottom of the seventh inning when Gregory Pron stole third base and then stole home as Albert Cordero struck out swinging. Second baseman T.J. Rivera went 2-for-4. Savannah (3-3) continues its series with Rome 7:05 p.m. Wednesday. BOX SCORE

Compiled from team reports.

Follow @aobrien7 on Twitter for daily minor league tweets and information. 

Last week, I posted about Mets pitching prospect Mark Cohoon who currently heads the starting rotation for the Savannah Sand Gnats. At the time, Cohoon had thrown his second consecutive shutout allowing just three hits and a walk over nine innings while striking out five. I ended that post with the following,

Keep an eye on this one, because he is ripe for a promotion to Binghamton and could advance through the minors quickly.

At the beginning of this week he won his second consecutive “Player of the Week” award for the South Atlantic League.

So what does Cohoon do for an encore?

He throws another shutout as the Gnats topped the Rome Braves 7-1 last night.

That’s his third straight shutout, a 4-hit masterpiece in which he struck out seven and improved to 7-1 on the season with a league leading 1.30 ERA.

“I had my whole arsenal,” he said. “When I got in tight spots, I just trusted my two-seam fastball and threw it over the plate for ground balls. I was able to throw all my pitches for strikes, and when I got ahead of the count I put guys away with my curveball.”

Cohoon’s arsenal includes a two and four seam fastball, a plus curveball and a very effective circle-change, and he throws all of them for strikes.

He now has a 0.94 WHIP and has struck out 75 batters (third best in the Sally Lg.) while walking just 17 in 90.1 IP. Quite an impressive K/BB ratio, to say the least.

Cohoon has not allowed an earned run since May 22, nearly a month ago.

Making his achievements even more notable is that on May 5th, Cohoon threw nine shutout innings, but didn’t get the decision in a 12 inning 1-0 win for the Gnats. He could have very easily earned a shutout victory for this game as well.

No pitcher in any league, Majors or Minors, can boast three shutouts as of today.

Well done, Mark, well done indeed…

Last season, while pitching for the Brooklyn Cyclones, Cohoon also had a solid season season finishing with a 9-2 record and a 2.15 ERA and earned a nod on the All Star team. Batters hit just .210 against him and he had an impressive 20 BB to 70 K ratio.

He was selected in the 12th round of the 2008 draft out of North Central Texas College, and he has been nothing short of spectacular since signing with the organization.

It won’t be long until Cohoon gets promoted to Class-AA Binghamton where I expect him to continue to pitch at this level against some of the better prospects in the minors. Once that happens, you will see Cohoon begin to climb up those top prospects charts as more scouts take notice.

Last night while Jon Niese was throwing a complete game shutout against the San Diego Padres, another young southpaw was doing the same thing for the Mets Single-A affiliate, the Savannah Sand Gnats.

Starting pitcher Mark Cohoon tossed his second consecutive complete game shutout on Thursday night to beat the Greensboro Grasshoppers 7-0.

Cohoon allowed just three hits and a walk over nine innings while striking out five.

He currently leads the SAL league with a 1.44 ERA and in 81 innings pitched this season, Cohoon has a 0.91 WHIP and has walked just 15 while striking out 68 batters, the third best mark in the league.

Just last week Cohoon was named the “Player of the Week” in the South Atlantic League for tossing the first of his back-to-back shutouts, and he could become the first player to win the honor in consecutive weeks. In that game, Cohoon struck out ten batters while walking one. Wow!

On May 5th, Cohoon threw nine shutout innings, but didn’t get the decision in a 12 inning 1-0 win for the Gnats.

Last season, while pitching for the Brooklyn Cyclones, Cohoon also had a solid season season finishing with a 9-2 record and a 2.15 ERA and earned a nod on the All Star team. Batters hit just .210 against him and he had an impressive 20 BB to 70 K ratio.

He was selected in the 12th round of the 2008 draft out of North Central Texas College, and he has been nothing short of impressive ever since signing with the organization.

Keep an eye on this one, because he is ripe for a promotion to Binghamton and could advance through the minors quickly.