Team: low Class A Augusta (South Atlantic)
Age: 18
Why He's Here: 1-0, 0.00, 7 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 11 SO
The Scoop: Sheer domination. There's no other way to characterize Bumgarner's last three months. Over his last 16 starts, he's allowed more than two runs only twice, and the loss he took on July 10 was his first since April 18, a span of 12 starts with out a defeat. Bumgarner, now 9-3, 1.79 for the year, has few rivals for title of best arm in the Sally League, especially since the Rockies promoted Jhoulys Chacin to high Class A Modesto. The flame-throwing Bumgarner turned in what, for him, was a pretty standard outing on Wednesday against Hagerstown, dominating the Suns for seven innings. Bumgarner had a stretch in that game in which he fanned eight hitters out of 10, and no baserunner got further than second against him. And of the four baserunners he did allow, he picked off two of them.
No. 12 TIM ALDERSON, RHP
GIANTS
Team: high Class A San Jose (California)
Age: 19
Why He's Here: 1-0, 1.50, 6 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HB, 6 SO, 1 BB
The Scoop: This is all just routine for Alderson. Week to week, it's becoming a matter of whereâ€"not ifâ€"he'll make the Hot Sheet. He's won his last three starts and hasn't been tagged with a loss since June 10 when he gave up a run in 5 2/3 innings and received zilch in run support. He's 9-3, 3.24 now and has bounced back from a slight bump a couple months ago. His ERA was 4.02 for the month of May, but he went 1-1, 2.57 in June and is 2-0, 4.09 in 11 innings in July so far.
HELIUM WATCH
MIKE LOREE, RHP
GIANTS
Team: short-season Salem-Keizer (Northwest)
Age: 21
Why He's Here: 20 IP, 1 baserunner (during a three-start stretch)
The Scoop: No one will have a better stretch over three games than Loree this season. In three straight starts, he went six perfect innings, 6 2/3 perfect innings and seven perfect innings. He allowed a solo home run with two out in the seventh in the second start before retiring the next batter he faced. Loree came back to earth in his last start on Wednesday, coughing up three runs on eight hits in five innings. In 34 innings on the season, Loree has a 1.59 ERA and a 32-to-1 K-to-BB ratioâ€"and that walk was intentional. But the best part of his story is that he was a 50th-round pick in 2007, proving that success can come to those who wait . . . to be drafted until the final round.
