Huge Game Tonight versus Blue Jays

Game Time: 7:00pm      Gates Open: 4:30pm

Tonight's Lineup
TBA

Tonight's starting pitcher is Andrew Cruse.

Dollar Dogs
Got a buck? Get a hot dog.

Happy Hour
Drop by Frenchy's Tiki Pavilion tonight and take advantage of some great drink specials. Ladies drink free from 5:00pm-6:00pm.

Road Trip Recap
The Threshers made a quick trip over the bridge to Tampa on Wednesday, August 22 and lost to the Yankees 8-4. Brad Harman, Jeremy Slayden, Matt Thayer, and PJ Antoniato each had two hits. Scott Mathieson made a rehab start and struck out two in two innings.

The Threshers went down the street to Dunedin and swept a doubleheader on Thursday, August 23. Brad Harman had three hits and five RBIs to lead the Threshers to a 12-7 win in Game One. Freddy Garcia made a rehab start and gave up just two hits in three innings. Game Two was much closer, with the Threshers winning by a score of 3-2. Brad Harman was two for two, while Jason Donald had two RBIs. John Suomi provided the rest of the offense with a solo home run (2).

The Threshers traveled back to Dunedin on Friday, August 24 and were beat 6-5 despite two home runs from Brian Burgamy (5) and a blast from Jason Donald (8). Lou Marson and Jake Blalock each also had two hits on the night.

Rain was an issue on the Threshers trip to Ft. Myers. The Threshers ended up playing one game on Sunday and two on Monday. The Threshers lost on Sunday, August 26 by a score of 3-1 despite Zac Stott's four strikeouts in five innings and Jeremy Slayden's RBI double.

The Threshers swept the Miracle in a doubleheader on Monday, August 27. Matt Thayer and Brian Burgamy provided the offense to lead the Threshers to a 9-2 win. Thayer was three for four with two runs scored while Burgamy was two for four and hit his sixth home run of the year. He also had three RBIs in the game. Andrew Carpenter picked up his record-breaking 16th win in Game Two by throwing a seven-inning perfect game. He struck out seven. Brad Harman provided all the offense with an RBI double and his 12th HR of the year.

Quench your Thirst
Tomorrow is our last Thirsty Thursday of 2007. Thirsty Thursday, where all drinks are 2 for 1.

Silver Sharks Club Meets Tomorrow
Tomorrow is the last Silver Sharks Night of the 2007 season. Seniors 55 and over receive 2 for 1 Senior Field Box tickets on Thursdays. That's 2 tickets for just $4.


Special Thursday Giveaway
Bright House Networks is sponsoring the Threshers replica jersey giveaway on Thursday, August 30. The first 1,500 fans through the gates will get this great item!


Bonus Baseball
Due to heavy rains in our region throughout the month of July and August, we are playing a doubleheader here against the Lakeland Flying Tigers on Friday, August 31 and Saturday, September 1. They are seven-inning games. Game 1 on both nights will now start at 5:00pm with Game 2 scheduled to start approximately 30 minutes after the completion of Game 1.

Playoff Picture
The Threshers are still chasing that elusive playoff berth and have it in sight.

Current Standings
The Dunedin Blue Jays (41-24) stand atop the West Division. The Threshers (38-25) are two games back, while the Tampa Yankees (38-26) are just a half game behind the Threshers.

Remaining Schedule (number of games left in parentheses)
Clearwater (7) - The Threshers face Dunedin on Wednesday and Thursday. Lakeland comes in on Friday for five games in three days to close the regular season.

Dunedin (5) - See above. They close with three home games against Ft. Myers.

Tampa (6) - They travel to Lakeland on Wednesday and Thursday. They close their season with four games in three days at Sarasota.

Playoff Schedule
The first round of the playoffs will pit the winner of the first half (Sarasota) with the winner of the second half. The second half winner will host Game One which is scheduled for Tuesday, September 4. Sarasota will host Game Two on Wednesday, September 5 and Game Three on Thursday, September 6 (if necessary).

Noon update

For whatever reason, blogger wouldn't let me update my previous post...

Updated at Noon: After splitting yesterday's doubleheader with Tampa, the Threshers record sits at 3-3 which ties them for second place in the FSL West with Dunedin and Tampa. Sarasota leads the division with a 5-1 record. Sarasota and Dunedin play tonight in Sarasota, while Clearwater and Tampa finish off the series tonight. Gates open at 6:00pm for the 7:00pm game.

The Threshers are currently the hottest hitting team in the FSL with a team batting average of .289. Jeremy Slayden and Greg Golson are leading the team and are still in the FSL Top 10 in batting average. Slayden is batting .400 with six RBIs and Golson is batting .375 with four RBIs through their first six games. Golson's five extra-base hits so far put him in second place in the league.

Clay Harris is tied for the FSL league lead in home runs with two.

We had a couple transactions on our roster yesterday. Pete Shier was promoted to Reading, and Freddy Garcia has officially completed his rehab assignment.

Looking outside of Clearwater, former Notre Dame wide receiver Jeff Samardzija is scheduled to start tonight for the Daytona Cubs in their game at Vero Beach.

Updated at 2:15pm


Just caught a picture (above) of our hat for our give-a-way tomorrow.
The first 1,000 guests receive a hat. The give-a-way is sponsored by Richard's Charter.

Freddy Garcia to start against Yankees tonight

The Clearwater Threshers and Tampa Yankees start a three game series at Bright House Networks Field tonight. The Yankees come into Clearwater with a 2-2 record, which is equal to the Threshers and nearly every other FSL Western Division team at this early date.

The Yankees bring the FSL's leading hitter, Jose Tabata who is hitting .583 through 4 games. Tampa also has the FSL's leading strikeout pitcher, Ian Kennedy. Kennedy struck out eight Flying Tigers in five innings on April 6. Kennedy is scheduled to pitch in Wednesday's ballgame which is scheduled for a 1:30pm start.

Tonight's game is scheduled for a 7:00pm start with Gates scheduled to open at 6:00pm. Freddy Garcia is scheduled to make his second rehab start for the Threshers tonight while the Yankees are expected to send Bryan Villalona to the mound.

Tuesday's are still Lil' Anglers Nights and the popular Parent-Kid Catch is also making a return this season. Be one of the first 1,500 guests through the turnstiles and receive the 2007 Clearwater Threshers Magnet Schedule sponsored by the Buena Vista Resort.

Updated 1:10pm: The tarp is on the field. We ARE planning on playing tonight. Refresh here and check the Official Site for updates.

Updated 1:20pm: Parent-Kid Catch is scheduled for 6:25-6:40pm (weather permitting). Radio Disney is scheduled to be here for a live remote at 5:30pm outside the West Entry near the fountain.

Updated 6:00pm: The Gates are Open! It appears that the Radio Disney live remote was canceled due to the weather. I haven't heard for sure about Parent-Kid Catch, but it doesn't look good since the tarp is still on the field.

Updated 6:15pm: Just got word that tonight's game has been postponed due to the weather. There will be a doubleheader (Two seven-inning games) starting at 1:30pm tomorrow. Check the Official Site for more information.

Standouts from yesterday's game against the Jays

Several Threshers had great nights at the plate yesterday, and they were led by Thresher veterans Greg Golson and Brad Harman. Golson was a home run away from batting for the cycle, and he nearly got an inside-the-park home run before he was held up at third for his first triple of the year. Golson scored one-third of the team's runs yesterday and also picked up an RBI. Harman hit the first Thresher home run of the year which was a two-run shot in the seventh inning.

Patrick Overholt picked up the win in relief of Freddy Garcia. Overholt struck out four, gave up three hits, and walked two, but only one of the three runs he gave up was earned giving him a 1-0 record and a 1.93 ERA to start of the year.

Freddy Garcia update

Bill Conlin has a story on Philly.com about Freddy Garcia's start yesterday against the Dunedin Blue Jays. According to Conlin, Garcia is scheduled to start again on Tuesday. The Threshers are home Tuesday night against the Tampa Yankees, but the story isn't clear whether or not his start is with the Threshers or with the Extended Spring Training squad. I'll update if I hear anything more about it.

Conlin's story also mentions Chris Coste's rehab appearance yesterday which was a late surprise for many of us here.

You can read Conlin's whole story here.

Former Clearwater Top Pitching Prospect Gavin Floyd traded to White Sox

The Phillies and the White Sox completed a trade yesterday at the Winter Meetings at Lake Buena Vista which sends former Clearwater star Gavin Floyd (and a player to be named later who apparently is Double-A pitcher Gio Gonzalez) to the White Sox for Freddy Garcia.

Floyd was with the Clearwater team in 2003. He struck out 115 batters in 138 innings and had a 3.00 ERA in 24 games.

Here are some links from around the country about the trade:

MLB.com

Chicago Sun-Times

ESPN.com's Jayson Stark

Philly.com