High Desert outfielder James McOwen had his 45-game hitting streak snapped on Friday night by the Modesto Nuts. McOwen went 0-for-3 with a walk. In his first at-bat, McOwen struck out. In his second, he walked. In his third at-bat, he grounded into a double play. McOwen came up in the ninth with one last chance to get a hit. But this time, he struck out swinging off of Modesto closer Craig Baker.

Here's the story from the Victorville Daily Press.

Here's the AP Story.

The game was in Modesto and here's the story from the Modesto Bee

Here's a story from Yahoo from before the game with some video.

McOwen’s streak was the longest in minor league baseball since 1954. Only seven other players in the history of minor league baseball had a streak longer with the longest being Joe Wilhoit’s record of 69 straight for Waco in 1919.

Here's alist of the top hitting streaks in minor-league history
69 -- Joe Wilhoit, Wichita, 1919
61 -- Joe DiMaggio, San Francisco, 1933
55 -- Roman Mejias, Waco, 1954
50 -- Otto Pahlman, Danville, 1922
49 -- Harry Chozen, Mobile, 1945
49 -- Jack Ness, Oakland, 1915
46 -- Johnny Bates, Nashville, 1925
45 -- Jamie McOwen, High Desert, 2009
43 -- Howie Bedell, Louisville, 1947
43 -- Eddie Marshall, Milwaukee, 1935
43 -- Orlando Moreno, Big Spring, 1961
43 -- Brandon Watson, Columbus, 2007

UPDATE: It's confirmed, Shelton will be with Mariners on Thursday.

UPDATE: Expect to see Shelton in Seattle tomorrow. No word on who will be sent down.

Well, I'm at a horrifically boring Rainiers game tonight and Chris Shelton, who was 1-for-3 going into the ninth inning as the DH, and surprisingly, he was pinch hit for in his last at-bat by Prentice Redman.

Yes the game is 7-1, but Shelton being pinch hit for? Hmmmm.

We talked earlier today that the Mariners would most likely make a roster move and send a pitcher down and bring up a bench player. Garrett Olson pitched well out of the bullpen, Jason Vargas started today and Shelton pinch hit for? If I had to give guess on the move it would be Vargas being sent down and Shelton being called up. But that's just a guess.

Hmmmmmmm

Unlike last night where he waited till his last at-bat to get a hit, High Desert outfielder James McOwen didn't wait for any possible drama surrounding his lengthy hitting streak.

McOwen beat out an infield single in the first inning to extend his hitting streak to 45 games.

High Desert's manager, Jim Horner, a WSU grad, was on KJR today with Mike Gastineau, talking about McOwen and the impressive streak.

You can listen to the interview here.

My afternoon was Safeco Field and my evening will be at Cheney Stadium where I'm also covering the Rainiers tonight. Normally I wouldn't post from the Rainiers unless something major happened, but since the Mariners shortstop Yuniesky Betancourt is playing second base for the first time in several years.

Also in an added treat tonight, Jeff Clement is playing first base, which I've never witnessed before and my boy Cha Cha Sizzle (Cha Seung Baek) is throwing a rehab outing for Portland.

Anyway, Yuni has looked decent so far at second, fielding two ground balls smoothly and also a pop up in shallow right. He also had a Yuni moment after ripping an RBI double in the first. With one out, Chris Shelton hit a fly ball to right, and Betancourt obviously forgot how many outs there were and took off from second, hustling to score. The Portland right fielder caught the ball and tossed it to second for the inning ending double play.

UPDATED 8:09 -- some things never change with Yuni. He goes back on a shallow pop fly with centerfielder Jerry Owens also coming in. Owens appeared to call for it, but Yuni caught it anyway and nearly took the legs out of Owens, who had a semi-collision with him. Sound familiar?

James McOwen extending his hit streak to 44 games tonight as he picked up as single to left in the eighth inning of High Desert's game in San Jose.

McOwen had been 0-for-3 coming into the at-bat.

High Desert outfielder James McOwen extended his hitting streak to 43 games with a solo home run to right in the fifth inning of High Desert's 10-9 win over Visalia. McOwen wasn't done adding a two-run triple later in the game.

McOwen finished 2-for-4 with a two runs scored and three RBI and a walk. He's now hitting .354 on the season.

The 43-game hitting streak tied him with three other players most recently Brandon Watson (2007). It's the longest minor-league streak since 1954.

McOwen has aways to go.

Check out this story and list from AOL Fanhouse

Top Minor-League Hitting Streaks
Player, Year Games
Joe Wilhoit (Wichita), 1919 -- 69
Joe DiMaggio (San Francisco), 1933 -- 61
Roman Mejias (Waco), 1954 -- 55
Otto Pahlman (Danville), 1922 -- 50
Jack Ness (Oakland), 1915 -- 49
Harry Chozen (Mobile), 1945 -- 49
Johnny Bates (Nashville), 1929 -- 46
Brandon Watson (Columbus), 2007 -- 43
Eddie Marshall (Milwaukee), 1935 -- 43
Howie Bedell (Louisville), 1947 -- 43
Orlando Moreno (Big Spring), 1961 -- 43
James McOwen (High Desert), '09 -- 43

Think about that, Joe Dimaggio hit in 61 straight in the minors and 56 straight in the majors. Unreal.

photo from milb.com

Nothing like having a flair for the dramatic. High Desert's James McOwens (photo from milb.com) extended his hitting streak to 40 games with a single with two outs in the ninth inning of Friday night's game.

He is now 29 games away from the record of 69 held by Joe Wilhoit of Wichita.

Also I forgot to post this the other day, so here it is ....

Tacoma's Chris Shelton and Bryan LaHair were named to the PCL all-star team and will be playing in the 22nd annual Triple A All-Star game in Portland on July 15 and will be televised on ESPN2. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

AUDIO: Shelton was on with Ian Furness about 20 minutes after I did my weekly segment on Friday, you can listen to either interview here.

Shelton was voted the starting designated hitter by league managers, media members, and
fans. He is batting .319 (87x273) with 22 doubles, 12 homers and 61 RBI. LaHair was selected as a reserve and is hitting .283 with 13 home runs and 46 RBI.

The International League will be led by Red Sox prospect Clay Bucholz and Reds outfielder Drew Stubbs. Here's the team.

From the press release ...
The Pacific Coast League roster is filled with league hitting leaders, led by outfielder John Bowker of the Fresno Grizzlies, who second in the PCL in average (.359), fifth in hits (93), first in on-base percentage (.460), third in slugging percentage (.637) and third in runs scored (58). Joining Bowker in the outfield will be Matt Miller (.324, 5 HR, 63 RBI) and Matt Murton (.377, 9 HR, 43 RBI) of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox. Miller is seventh in the league in average and third in RBI (63), hits (96) and doubles (25). The reserve PCL outfielders will be Terry Evans of Salt Lake, Brendan Katin of Nashville and Michael Ryan of New Orleans. Katin and Evans are tied for second in home runs in the league (17) and are in second and third place respectively in extra base hits (42) and (38). Katin is number two in the league leaders in RBI (65). Ryan is tied for fourth in doubles (23).

I've been a little lax on the minor league reports, but we'll try to get them back up with a little more consistently.

A few things ...
1. We talked with GM Jack Zduriencik yesterday and he said they've signed about five to six players, and he was going to have a set of signees released in the coming days. None of the top picks have signed.

Some of those picks won't necessarily be going to Class A Clinton

50th round pick Evan Sharpley out of Notre Dame has been allowed to play football for the Irish this fall and cut short his minor league seaosn.

One of those players, high school catcher Steven Baron, who was thought to have a predraft deal done, is now asking for around $1.3 million or he will go to Duke.

2. Ryan Rowland-Smith's latest outing in Tacoma didn't go so great -- 6 IP, 9 hits, 5 runs, a walk, 4 strikeouts. He's now lost three straight starts. But in this story from Ian Ruder, Rainiers manager Daren Brown said RRS' stuff was better.

3. Clinton's Denny Almonte was named to the Midwest League All-star team.

4. The Everett Herald has already started doing a lot of Aquasox coverage. You can go to it here. We'll add it to the blog roll. But one interesting story is the fact that some of the players may be delayed cause of the new passport rules.

5. High Desert won the first half of the California League season and Jamie McOwen has a 29-game hitting streak.

Yesterday’s Results Standings Winner/Loser/Save
at Portland 5, Tacoma 3 --- 34-32, 3rd, -3.5 --- L-Rowland-Smith (1-3)
Montgomery 5, at West Tenn. 3 --- 25-41, 5th, -13.0 ---- L-Bray (1-4)
Rancho Cucamonga 3, at High Desert 4 --- 42-24, 1st, +5.0 --- W-Mortimore (2-1)/SV-Aumont (12)
at Beloit 1, Clinton 4 --- 38-28, T2nd, -1.0 ---- W-Kasparek (4-4)/SV-Flores (12)

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (Pacific Coast League)
Pitching Lines:
LH Ryan Rowland-Smith 6.1,9,5,5,1,4,HR
RH Jesus Delgado 0.2,1,0,0,0,1
LH Justin Thomas 1.0,1,0,0,0,1
With the Bats:
3B Chris Shelton 3x3, HR, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB
1B Brad Nelson 1x4, RBI, K
Rainiers Notes: Brad Nelson put the Rainiers ahead early with an RBI single in the 1st inning but Portland put together single runs in the 1st, 4th and 5th innings before putting up a two-spot in the 6th inning. Chris Shelton went 3x3 with a home run in the 6th inning and extended his hitting streak to 5 games and has hit safely in 28 of his last 31 games. Ryan Rowland-Smith got his 3rd straight loss. 2B Mike Morse had his 6 game hitting streak snapped by going 0x3 with 3 strikeouts. During the streak he hit .360 (9x25) with 2 doubles, 6 runs, a home run and 5 RBI. RH Randy Messenger has allowed only 3 earned runs in his last 21.0 innings of work and his 2.17 ERA leads the Rainiers. Adam Moore went 1x4 and has hit safely in 12 of his last 14 games and on the season he is hitting .299.
Today’s probable starter:
LH Chris Seddon (4-4, 4.76) vs. Reno

AA West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (Southern League)
Pitching Lines:
RH Steve Bray (L, 1-4) 5.0,5,3,2,1,7
RH Steve Shell 1.0,1,1,1,1,2
RH Josh Fields 1.0,0,0,0,0,1
RH Anthony Varvaro 1.0,1,0,0,0,1
RH Patrick Ryan 1.0,2,1,1,1,2,HR
With the Bats:
DH Thomas Hubbard 1x4, HR, R, RBI
2B David Espinosa 2x4, 2 R, K
LF Gavin Dickey 2x4, 2 RBI, 2 K
D-Jaxx Notes: West Tenn. dropped their third straight and their 4th in the last 5 games after dropping the opening game of a 5-game series against Montgomery. LF Gavin Dickey, appearing in only his 13th game with the Jaxx, drove in 2B David Espinosa in both the 3rd and 5th innings but it wasn’t enough to overcome a 3-1 deficit. DH
Thomas Hubbard homered in the 9th inning, his 4th in his last 7 games and they got two more runners on base in the frame, but Espinosa struck out swinging to end the game. Thomas Hubbard has hit safely in 10 of the last 12 games. Starter Steve Bray allowed only 2 earned runs but failed to win for the 4th consecutive start despite allowing only 5 earned runs in 23.0 innings. RH Josh Fields tossed 1.0 scoreless inning while striking out 1 and has allowed only 1 run in his last 7 appearances (8.0 IP). Also has not walked a batter in his last 7.0 innings after walking 11 in his first 11 appearances.
Today’s probable starters:
RH Kyle Parker (3-3, 3.84) vs. Montgomery

A High Desert Mavericks (California League)
Pitching Lines:
RH Steve Hensley 6.1,5,1,1,2,3
LH Travis Mortimore (W, 2-1) 0.2,1,1,1,0,0
RH Juan Zapata 1.0,0,0,0,0,1
RH Phillippe Aumont (S, 12) 1.0,2,1,1,0,1,HR
With the Bats:
3B Alex Liddi 3x4, HR, 2 R, RBI
CF Tyson Gillies 1x3, R, 2 BB, K
Mavericks Notes: High Desert clinched the first half title and assured themselves of a spot in the playoffs. Mavericks claimed their first-half title since 1993. James McOwen went 1x4 and extended his hitting streak to a career high 28 games, the longest in the minors this year. During the streak, he is hitting .355 with 13 runs, and 16 RBI. The Mavericks broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th inning when Edilio Colina drove in Tyson Gillies with an RBI single and they capped the scoring with 2-out RBI singles from Alex Liddi and Kuo Hui Lo. Liddi got the Mavericks even with a solo-home run in the 6th, his 16th of season, recorded his 3rd multi-hit effort in last 4 games. Gillies has reached base safely (H+BB+HBP) in 56 of 59 games, recording 6 multi-hit games in last 8. Dunigan has recorded 26 RBI over last 25 games including RBI in 9 of last 13 games.
Today’s probable starter:
TBA at Inland Empire

A Clinton LumberKings (Midwest League)
Pitching Lines:
RH Kenn Kasparek (W, 4-4) 5.1,4,1,1,1,4
RH Stephen Penney 1.0,2,0,0,0,1
LH Greg Moviel 0.0,0,0,0,1,0
RH Cheyne Hann 1.2,0,0,0,0,3
RH Ruben Flores (SV, 12) 1.0,0,0,0,1,1
With the Bats:
DH Kris Sanchez 2x3, 2B, RBI, SF
3B Mario Martinez 2x3, R, BB
CF Jacob Shaffer 1x2, 2B, RBI
Lumberkings Notes: Clinton bounced back after having their 6 game winning streak snapped yesterday by taking the lead early and not looking back and they are now tied for the Wild Card lead Terry Serrano and Luis Nuñez both drew walks in the first and came home on back-to-back sacrifice flies from Scott Savastano and Kris
Sanchez. Nate Tenbrink put the game away with a sac fly of his own in the 8th inning. Starter Kenn Kasparek won his 3rd straight decision and has not allowed more than 2 runs in his last 6 games. Reliever Cheyne Hann entered the game in the 7th inning with the bases loaded, but got out of the inning with a lineout and a pop up. Scott Savastano, during June, he is batting .362 (21x58) with 12 runs, a double, home run, 6 RBI and 8 walks.
Today’s probable starter:
RH Aaron Pribanic (6-2, 2.25) at Cedar Rapids

Greetings from Montana, here's the daily minor league report, I've missed a few days, I'll try not to let it happen.

Yesterday’s Results Standings Winner/Loser/Save
at Tacoma 10, Nashville 7 --- 25-20, 3rd, -3.0 --- W-E. Hull (5-2); S-R. Messenger (7)
West Tenn --- (Rained Out) --- 17-26, 5th, -5.5 - - -
High Desert (Off Day) --- 31-14, 1st, +6.0 - - -
Clinton 9, at Peoria 3 --- 24-21, T3rd, -4.0 --- W-C. Hann (2-0)

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (Pacific Coast League)
BOX SCORE
Here' Grant Clark's game story from the TNT.
Curto was also on with KJR's Ian Furness talking Rainiers the other day, you can listen to it here.

Pitching Lines:
RH Andy Baldwin 6.0,9,6,5,0,6,HR
RH Eric Hull (W, 5-2) 1.0,1,0,0,0,2
LH Tyler Johnson (H, 1) 1.0,3,1,1,0,0
RH Randy Messenger (S, 7) 1.0,1,0,0,2,0
With the Bats:
RF Prentice Redman 3x5, 2 R, RBI
CF Michael Saunders 2x5, 2 R
DH Jeff Clement 2x3, 3 R, 3 RBI, BB
3B Chris Shelton 2x4, 2B, RBI, BB
Rainiers Notes: DH Jeff Clement went 2-for-3 with a double, 3 runs scored and 3 RBI leading Tacoma to a 10-7 win over Nashville Tuesday night at Cheney Stadium. RF Prentice Redman had a pair of doubles and scored twice for the Rainiers and RHP Eric Hull picked up his 5th win of the season with a scoreless 7th inning. Clement extended his hitting streak to 14 games (.459/28x61) and is batting .360 (31x86) with 17 runs, 11 doubles, 3 home runs and 21 RBI in 21 games this month. CF Michael Saunders went 2-for-5 with 2 runs scored to extend his hitting streak to 9 games (.425/17x40). Saunders has scored at least one run in 16 consecutive games (21 runs over that streak) and one or more runs in 19 of 21 games this season. Overall, Saunders is batting .361 (30x83) with 26 runs, 6 doubles, 5 home runs and 12 RBI in 21 games. Redman has recorded a hit in 23 consecutive games at Cheney Stadium 9dating back to ’08). 3B Chris Shelton is batting .408 (20x49) with 6 doubles, 4 home runs, 12 runs and 15 RBI over his last 11 games. The Rainiers have won 5 of their last 6 games, and 8 of last 10 at Cheney Stadium. Tacoma leads the PCL in doubles (102) and ranks 3rd in hits (448) and home runs (53).
Today’s probable starter:
RH Gaby Hernandez (3-3 4.89) vs. Nashville

AA West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (Southern League)
Jaxx Notes: Game one of the five game series against the Chattanooga Lookouts was postponed last night due to rain. A doubleheader has been scheduled for today, with the first game beginning at 12:05. The doubleheader will consist of two, seven inning games. The Diamond Jaxx are 17-26 on the year and currently in 5th place in the Southern League's North Division. The pitching matchup in G#1 will be RHP Steve Bray (0-3, 4.87) for the Diamond Jaxx and RHP John Lindblom (2-2, 4.01) for the Lookouts. In G#2, RHP Kyle Parker (1-2, 3.74) will go for West Tenn and RHP Jesus Castillo (1-4, 4.96) takes the mound for Chattanooga. OF Greg Halman is tied for the Southern League lead with 13 home runs and T2nd with 33 RBI. OF Ezequiel Carrera ranks 5th in the league batting .351 (47x134), but was placed on the 7-day disabled list with a right ankle sprain (5/24).
Today’s probable starters:
G#1 - RH Steve Bray (0-3, 4.87) vs. Chattanooga
G#2 - RH Kyle Parker (1-2, 3.74) vs. Chattanooga

A High Desert Mavericks (California League)
Mavericks Notes: The Mavericks took a break from their 8-game winning streak after playing 14 consecutive days (10-4 during that stretch). High Desert returns to action today with a 5-game series against 2nd-place Lake Elsinore at Mavericks Stadium. 3B Alex Liddi continues to lead the California League in hitting (.367/65x177), hits (65), RBI (44) and ranks T2nd in home runs (11) and 2nd in slugging (.672). Liddi, Joe Dunigan (2nd/.359), Juan Diaz (4th/.353) and Travis Scott (10th/.321) dominate the California League batting race. CF Tyson Gillies ranks 3rd in the Cal League with a .434 on-base percentage and has reached base safely (H-BBHBP) in 38 of 39 games. RH Phillippe Aumont ranks 3rd in the league with 7 saves and is T2nd with 21 appearances.
Today’s probable starter:
RH Steven Hensley (0-0, 7.20) vs. Lake Elsinore

A Clinton LumberKings (Midwest League)
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
LH Bobby LaFromboise 4.0,5,2,2,1,5,HR
RH Cheyne Hann (W, 2-0) 1.2,2,1,1,1,3
RH Stephen Penny 1.2,0,0,0,0,1
LH Greg Moviel 1.2,0,0,0,0,0
With the Bats:
RF Denny Almonte 1x4, R, 2 RBI, BB
DH Kris Sanchez 2x3, 3 R, 2 BB
LF Steve Moss 3x5, R, 2 2B, 2 RBI
3B Nate Tenbrink 1x2, 2B, 3 RBI
Lumberkings Notes: Following 1 hour, 35 minutes worth of rain delays, the Clinton LumberKings unleashed a 9-run, 15-hit attack in a 9-3 win over the Peoria Chiefs. Clinton has won 4 of its last 5 games to improve to 24-21 overall. Clinton starter LH Bobby LaFromboise allowed 5 hits and 2 runs in 4.0 innings. He walked one while striking out 5. LF Steve Moss went 3-for-5 2 doubles and 2 RBI. 3B Nate Tenbrink went 1-for-2 with a double, sacrifice fly and 3 RBI. In 7 games with the LumberKings, Moss is batting .370 (10x27) with 6 runs, 3 doubles, one home run and 8 RBI. Today’s starter, RH Kenn Kasparek, has recorded 6 consecutive starts allowing 2-or-fewer earned runs. Over the 6-start stretch he is 2-2 with a 1.45 ERA (5 ER, 31.0 IP)
Today’s probable starter:
RH Kenn Kasparek (2-4, 3.38) at

Yesterday’s Results --- Standings --- Winner/Loser/Save
Tacoma, 0, at Oklahoma City 3 (G1) --- L-L. Muñoz (0-3)
Tacoma 1, at Oklahoma City 9 (G2) --- 20-19, 3rd, -4.5 L-C. Seddon (1-3)
Birmingham 3, at West Tenn 5 --- 14-22, 5th, -4.0 --- W-M. Rivera (4-3); SV-A. Varvaro (1)
Stockton 3, at High Desert 4 --- 24-14, 1st, +3.0 --- W-D. Hume (4-1); SV-S. Richard (2)
at Wisconsin 14, Clinton 7 --- 20-17, 4th, -3.0 --- L-W. Suriel (0-4)

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (Pacific Coast League)
Here's Mike Curto's game story
BOX SCORE GAME 1
BOX SCORE GAME 2
Pitching Lines (Game 1):
RH Luis Muñoz (L, 0-3) 6.0,6,3,3,1,7,HR
RH Brodie Downs 2.0,1,0,0,1,0
With the Bats (Game 1):
1B Mike Carp 1x2, 2 BB
SS Mike Morse 1x3, BB
Pitching Lines (Game 2):
LH Chris Seddon (L, 1-3) 4.0,8,6,6,3,2,HR
RH Eric Hull 1.0,3,2,2,1,0
RH Jared Wells 1.0,1,0,0,2,1
LH Justin Thomas 1.0,2,1,1,2,0
RH Randy Messenger 1.0,2,0,0,0,1
With the Bats (Game 2):
SS Mike Morse 2x4, 2B, K
LF Michael Saunders 1x3, R, BB, K
DH Jeff Clement 1x3, BB
Rainiers Notes: The Rainiers were swept in the double header and failed to score in the first 17 innings. Prentice Redman drove in Michael Saunders in in the 9th inning of G2. DH Jeff Clement has an 8-game hitting streak. During streak he is batting .429 (15x35) with 6 doubles and 2 home runs. Prentice Redman had his 9 game hit streak snapped in G1 but has hit safely in 10 of 11 (18x53/.340). Mike Morse went 3x7 during the double-header.
Thursday’s probable starter:
RH Andy Baldwin (2-2, 3.43) vs. Memphis

=> Read more!

Sorry I got to this so late ...

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (Pacific Coast League)
Here’s Mike Curto’s game story
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
RH Andrew Baldwin (L,2-2) 5.2,12,6,6,0,3,4HR
RH Brodie Downs 2.1,3,2,2,0,2
With the Bats:
LF Michael Saunders 3x5, R, 2B, K
DH Jeff Clement 2x4, 2B, BB
3B Chris Shelton 2x4, R
Rainiers Notes: The Rainiers lost their 2nd in a row to New Orleans despite solid performances at the plate. Andrew Baldwin allowed a season high 6 runs including 4 home runs. DH Jeff Clement is starting to heat up; he collected his 4th extra-base hit in last 3 games with a double off the right field wall and during those games is batting (.462/6x13). Chris Shelton extended his hitting streak to 5 games (8x20/.400) and has recorded multi-hit efforts in 8 of his last 18 games. LF Michael Saunders tied a season-high with 3 hits. Recently promoted C Adam Moore went 1x3 with a BB and threw out 1 of 2 attempted base stealers. Over his last 10 games, Bryan LaHair is hitting .333 (12x36) with 8 runs, 4 home runs, 3 doubles, 8 RBI. Prentice Redman and LaHair both rank 5th in the PCL with 9 home runs. Mike Carp ranks 9th in league with 19 walks.
Today’s probable starter:
RH Josh Hall (0-0, 4.15) at New Orleans

=> Read more!

Rainiers' third baseman Matt Tuiasosopo has yet to play a game at third base this season because of an aching throwing elbow. And what was first thought to be tendinitis is now something more serious. Just today, I heard some whispers that Tuiasosopo may need season-ending surgery.

However, a quick call to Mariners' director of minor league operations Pedro Grifol cleared up some of the rumors.

Grifol confirmed that Tuiasosopo's elbow issues are something "more serious than tendinitis." But he wasn't allowed to go into further detail. However, he did say that Tuiasosopo was meeting with Mariners team orthopedic surgeon Dr. Edward Khalfayan today and within the next 24 hours, we'll know more about what will happen with Tuaisosopo next.

It's never good when a player visits an orthopedic surgeon, but Grifol said that the injury didn't seem to be serious enough where it would keep Tuiasosopo from playing this season or hindering his progress as a player.

The pain in the elbow started in spring training and carried over into the season. Tuiasosopo never played a game at third during his brief stint with the Mariners to start the season and when he returned to the Rainiers, he DH'd only until being placed on the disabled list.

So there's that. I guess we may know more tomorrow. I'll try and talk to GM Jack Zduriencik about Tuiasosopo as well as the situation with Jeff Clement and Adam Moore, which was mentioned earlier in the day.

Here's the minor league report ...

Yesterday’s Results --- Standings -- Winner/Loser/Save
Tacoma 3, at New Orleans 4 --- 17-16, 3rd, -4.0 --- L-L. Muñoz (0-2)
West Tenn 2, at Tennessee 3 --- 12-18, 4th, -3.5 --- L-S. Bray (0-1)
High Desert 7, at Rancho Cucamonga 3 --- 23-10, 1st, +5.0 --- W-D. Hume (3-1)
Beloit 5, at Clinton 2 --- 18-13, 2nd, -2.0 --- L-W. Suriel (0-3)

AAA Tacoma Rainiers (Pacific Coast League)
Here's Mike Curto's game story
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
LH Chris Seddon 3.0,5,3,3,1,1
RH Luis Muñoz (L, 0-2) 5.0,5,1,1,1,3
With the Bats:
3B Chris Shelton 2x4, HR, R, 2 RBI, K
DH Jeff Clement 1x4, HR, R, RBI, K
SS Mike Morse 1x3, BB, K
Rainiers Notes: The Rainiers 4-game winning streak was snapped by the Zephyrs despite a solid relief appearance by Luis Muñoz who tossed 5.0 innings of 1-run ball. DH Jeff Clement homered for the 2nd straight day in the first inning, his 6th of the year. Chris Shelton also homered, his 4th extra-base hit during 4-game hit streak (6x16/.375) and has recorded multi-hit efforts in 8 of his last 17 games. Starter Chris Seddon had his shortest start of the year, tossing only 3.0 innings. OF Jerry Owens went 0x4 for the second straight game following a 5-game hitting streak that included 4 multihit games. Over his last 9 games, Bryan LaHair is hitting .375 (12x32) with 8 runs, 4 home runs, 3 doubles, 8 RBI. Prentice Redman and LaHair both rank 4th in the PCL with 9 home runs. Mike Carp ranks 7th in league with 19 walks.
Today’s probable starter:
RH Andrew Baldwin (2-1, 2.41) at New Orleans

AA West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (Southern League)
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
LH Daniel Christensen 6.0,6,2,2,2,3
RH Steve Bray (L, 0-1) 1.2,0,1,1,2,3
LH Nicholas Hill 0.1,1,0,0,0,0
With the Bats
LF Brent Johnson 2x3, 2B, RBI
CF Ezequiel Carrera 0x2, R, 3 BB, 2 K
DH Thomas Hubbard 1x3, RBI, BB
Jaxx Notes: The Diamond Jaxx lost a close game, giving up the winning run in the 8th inning when Jim Adduci plated his 3rd run of the game for the Smokies. Starter Daniel Christensen tossed a season-high 6.0 innings and has allowed only 3 earned runs over his last two starts (10.1 IP) for a 2.61 ERA. Brent Johnson went 2x3 with a double and an RBI, his first multi-hit game since April 20 and his 2nd double of the year. Johan Limonta went 1x3 with a walk and now has a season-high 4-game hitting streak (.462/6x13). CF Ezequiel Carrera was 0-for-2 but recorded a season high 3 walks (27 BB, 21 K) and has reached base in 28 of his last 29 games (.330, 35x106/.470 OBP). Carrera currently ranks T9th in the Southern League batting race. Mangini has hit safely in 13 of his last 16, batting .328 (20x61) with 6 runs, 4 extra-base hits, 12 RBI. OF Greg Halman leads Southern league in RBI (28), 2nd in home runs (10).
Today’s probable starter:
RH Ryan Patrick (1-2, 9.00) at Tennessee

A High Desert Mavericks (California League)
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
LH Donald Hume (W, 3-1) 5.0,7,1,1,2,2,HR
LH Edward Paredes 2.0,1,0,0,0,0
RH Juan Zapata 1.0,3,2,2,0,0
RH Steven Richard 1.0,0,0,0,0,3
With the Bats:
DH Carlos Peguero 2x4, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI
C Travis Scott 1x4, HR, R, RBI, K
3B Alex Liddi 2x4, 2 2B, R, 2 RBI
Mavericks Notes: The Mavericks used a 3-run rally in the 4th innin to take the lead for good over the Quakes as Ian Bladergroen’s RBI groundout was followed by a two-run double to center field by Alex Liddi. High Desert has not lost a series this season and leads the California League South Division by 5.0 games. Starter Donald Hume has only allowed 3 earned runs in his last two starts on the road (13.2 IP). Juan Zapata allowed 2 runs in the 8th but the Mavs put the game away in the 9th with home runs from Travis Scott and Carlos Peguero. Peguero also homered in the 7th inning, marking his first multi-homer game of the season. OF Tyson Gillies currently has 13-game hit streak (.392/20x51). 3B Alex Liddi (.373/3rd), OF Joe Dunigan (.356/7th) and Diaz (.349/8th) are ranked in the top 10 in the California League in batting. Dunigan, Seattle 5th round selection in 2007, leads the league in home runs (12), RBI (36) and slugging (.742). He leads all minor leaguers with 26 extra base hits. Mavs lead league batting .307 overall with league-best 51 home runs.
Today’s probable starter:
RH Nathan Adcock (3-2, 3.71) at Rancho Cucamonga

A Clinton LumberKings (Midwest League)
GAME STORY
BOX SCORE
Pitching Lines:
RH Walter Suriel (L, 0-3) 5.0,4,3,3,3,4
RH Chris Kirkland 4.0,3,2,2,2,2,HR
With the Bats:
RF Denny Almonte 1x4, HR, R, 2 RBI
CF Maximo Mendez 2x4, R, 2B, 3B, K
Lumberkings Notes: The LumberKings game was delayed by rain in the 6th inning, when play resumed, Beloit took the lead on a Nathan Hanson 2-run homer off reliever Chris Kirkland. Clinton briefly took the lead in the 3rd with a solo homer from Denny Almonte. Maximo Mendez collected a double and a triple but on the double was thrown out trying to stretch it at third, Almonte followed with homer. Kirkland tossed 4.0 innings, his 2nd straight outing of at least 3.0 innings. OF Denny Almonte has hit safely in 25 of 29 games this season (.292) and ranks 2nd in the Midwest League with 8 home runs. OF Maximo Mendez ranks 2nd in the Midwest League with 14 stolen bases. RH Brett Lorin makes 7th start of season today and has thrown at least 5.0 innings in each start (34 K, 6 BB in 36.0 IP).
Today’s probable starter:
RH Brett Lorin (3-0, 1.00) vs. Beloit