Scranton/WB 8, Durham 7 (Scranton leads 1-0). Scott Dohmann blew a 1-run lead in the bottom of the 9th, allowing the winning run on a 2-out single...David Price worked 6 innings, but left trailing 4-2. He gave up 3 runs in the first inning, with the big blow being a 2-run home run. Price cruised through the middle innings before giving up one more run in the 6th. He was pulled after 6, striking out 9 and walking just 1...Elliot Johnson drove in 2 with a double in the 3rd...The Bulls rallied to take the lead with 5 in the 7th. Rashad Eldridge who was added just prior to the game, drove home 2 in the inning with a double.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM...

• In case you missed it late last night, David Price was named USA Today's Minor League Player of the Year...And with his season complete, if Price is going to be called up, it could happen as early as tonight. [Rays Index]
  
• If you missed it yesterday, Michel Hernandez and Dan Johnson were promoted to the Rays. Rashad Eldridge and Craig Albernaz were promoted from Montgomery to fill the roster spots. [Rays Index]
• Gaby Martinez will also join the Bulls but will not be activated unless needed. [Biscuits' Batter]
• Whomever wrote the press release for the above moves may have been a tad upset at the Rays. According to Stacy Long, the release original seemed to take a slight shot at the Rays for taking key members of the Bulls just prior to the Championship series. The press release was subsequently changed and now includes less vitriolic language. [Biscuits' Batter]

The Original Release: Hours before the first pitch of Game One of the Governors' Cup Playoffs, the Tampa Bay Rays have taken three of Durham's key position players.

• The Bulls have set their rotation for the Governor's Cup Finals. Mitch Talbot will go in game 2 and will be followed by Jeff Niemann and Wade Davis. Of an interesting note is the Yankees game 5 starter...Victor Zambrano. Great googly moogly. [Durham Bulls]
  

Marc Topkin is reporting that Dan Johnson and Michel Hernandez have been added to the 40-man roster and will report to the Rays. To make room on the 40-man roster, Joel Guzman has been designated for assignment.

Johnson will start tonight in left field, with Eric Hinske in right and Gabe Gross in center. Sweet Fancy Moses. That might be the worst defensive range ever for a major league outfield.

Johnson was originally added to the Rays' roster in April, when he was claimed off of waivers from the A's, but was with the Rays for less than a week, appearing in only 1 game. He was designated for assignment and assigned to Durham. At Durham, Johnson led the IL in OBP (.424) and OPS (.980), hitting 25 home runs. Johnson also expanded his defensive range. Prior to this season, Johnson had only played first base as a pro, but has seen time at third base and the outfield in Durham.

Hernandez is a journeyman minor leaguer who has only appeared in 5 major league games (with the Yankees in 2003) in 11 professional seasons. He was only recently acquired by the Rays to fill the void on the Durham roster after the promotion of John Jaso and release of Mike DiFelice.

Guzman, the Dodgers' former top prospect, was originally acquired (with Sergio Pedroza) for Julio Lugo. The former shortstop flashed a good glove at several positions and immense power, but never was able to command the strikezone. This season Guzman had 103 strikeouts and only 19 walks in 116 games.

With the Durham Bulls playing game 1 of the IL championship series tonight, Craig Albernaz and Rashad Eldridge have been added to the active roster. Both players were most recently with double-A Montgomery.

C Hernandez, INF/OF Johnson called up [The Heater]

Louisville 6, Durham 3. Wade Davis had his worst start since moving to triple-A, giving up 5 runs in 4 innings on 6 hits and 3 walks. He struck out 4...Dan Johnson homered for the 3rd time in 5 games and the 23rd time since being demoted to triple-A. He finished 2-4 with 2 RBI and a double...Jonny Gomes was 2-4 with 2 doubles.

Tennessee 2 Montgomery 1. James Houser pitched 4 hitless innings, allowing only 1 walk and a hit batter. He struck out 3. This was just Houser's second start since his return from knee surgery...Erold Andrus drove in the only run with his 7th home run...Matt Spring had 2 of the Biscuits' 4 hits.

Daytona @ Vero Beach (gm 1; ppd rain)
Daytona @ Vero Beach (gm 2; ppd rain)

Charleston @ Columbus (gm 1; ppd rain)
Columbus @ Charleston (gm 2; ppd rain)

Hudson Valley 3, Oneonta 1.

Johnson City 4, Princeton 2. Tim Beckham finished 0-4.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM...

• Rashad Eldridge was out of the lineup with a bruised hip after colliding with JT Hall on a flyball in the previous game. He is not expected to miss much time. [Biscuits' Batter]
  

Louisville 9, Durham 8 (10). Mitch Talbot struck out 8, but walked 3 and was pulled after 6 innings with 102 pitches. He allowed 2 runs on 6 hits and 3 walks...Fernando Perez was 3-5 with a triple and his 5th home run...Dan Johnson homered for the 22nd time and drove in 3...Jonny Gomes finished 1-4 with a double, walk and a strike out. He drove in 1.

Tennessee 4, Montgomery 2. Heath Rollins was solid again in his second double-A start, striking out 7 and walking only 1 in 7 innings. He allowed 3 runs on 5 hits, including a 2-run home run...Ryan Reid pitched the final 2 innings, striking out 3 and walking 1. He gave up 3 hits and a run...Sergio Pedroza hit a 2-run home run in just his second game back from the DL.

Vero Beach (off-day)

Columbus (off-day)

Hudson Valley (off-day)

Princeton 10, Elizabethton 1. Tim Beckham was 1-4 with a walk and scored 2 runs. He added his 5th stolen base and was the middleman on 2 double-plays.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM...

• Rashad Eldridge was never asked to steal bases before he joined the Rays organization this past off-season. In the last 3 seasons, he totals were 6, 4 and 7. This season the Rays wanted him to steal more bases and he has responded with 21. [Montgomery Advertiser]
  

Charlotte 7, Durham 3.

Mississippi 7, Montgomery 5.

Palm Beach @ Vero Beach (ppd)

Columbus 10, Hickory 4.

Batavia 5, Hudson Valley 2.

Bluefield 6, Princeton 2.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM...

• Three of the Biscuits named to the All-Star team will be starters including John Jaso, Wade Davis and Rashad Eldridge. [Biscuits' Batter]
  

Durham 7, Charlotte 1. Jeff Niemann may have used the motivation of Mitch Talbot's promotion to fuel his best start of the year, a complete game effort in which he allowed 1 run while striking out 12 and walking only 1 batter. Niemann threw 107 pitches, 74 for strikes...Justin Ruggiano was 3-4 with 2 solo home runs, his 6th and 7th...Dan Johnson added his 12th home run...Reid Brignac was 2-4 and struck out twice.

Mississippi 6, Montgomery 4. Jeremy Hellickson's second double-A start went much better than his first, giving up 2 runs in 4 innings. He struck out 3 without walking a batter and gave up 5 hits including a home run...Chris Nowak drove in 2 with 2 doubles in 4 at bats.

Palm Beach 11, Vero Beach 2 (gm 1). Ryan Morse gave up 9 runs (5 earned) in 3 innings. He gave up 7 hits and 4 walks...Wade Townsend came off the DL and pitched 1 perfect inning in relief...The D-Rays made 5 errors in the 7 inning contest and managed only 3 hits including a solo home run from Ryan Royster his 5th.

Vero Beach 4, Palm Beach 3 (gm 2). Chuck Tiffany made his second straight start working 4 innings and allowing 3 unearned runs. He struck out 4 and walked 2.

Hickory 3, Columbus 2. Jason Ragan pitched 5 scoreless innings for Columbus...Chase Fontaine finished 2-5 with his 1st home run, a solo shot...Maiko Loyola was 2-4 with a triple and 2 stolen bases. He now has 33 steals on the season, which is 3rd most in the SALy.

Batavia 12, Hudson Valley 0.

Princeton 9, Bluefield 5.

NOTES FROM DOWN ON THE FARM...

• The Durham Bulls had 4 players named to the IL Al-Star team including Reid Brignac, Chris Richard, Jeremy Cummings and Dale Thayer. [Durham Bulls]
  
• 6 members of the Montgomery Biscuits were named to the SL South All-Star squad. The players include Wade Davis, Jakes McGee, James Houser, Gaby Martinez, Rashad Eldridge and John Jaso. Jaso will be making his second straight appearance on the team, something we assume doesn't happen very often. McGee will obviously not be able to participate due to his injury. Also, Gaby Martinez will not make the game due to a personal matter. [Biscuits' Batter]
  

Tampa Bay Rays (66-96)


DEVIL RAYS WEBTOPIA...

• The Rule 5 draft was held yesterday and the Rays selected Tim Lahey from the Minnesota Twins and then traded him to the Cubs. The Rays lost one player, as Evan Meek was taken with the second pick by the Pirates. [Baseball America]
• In the AAA phase of the Rule 5 Draft, the Rays selected Rashad Eldridge from the Twins. Eldridge was a 5th round pick in 2000 and has had a very unimpressive career to date. The Rays selected two other players in the Rule 5 draft that will never wear a Rays uniform so there names are unimportant. [Baseball America]
• Rays Anatomy takes a look at the players selected by the Rays in the Rule 5 Draft, including the two unnamed players from above. [Rays Anatomy]
  
• Most of us are familiar with the Rule 5 draft (not Rule V), but did you know that baseball's amateur draft held in June is actually the Rule 4 draft? Baseball Prospectus takes a look at the Rule 4 draft and projects the first 10 selections, predicting that the Tampa Bay Rays will take Pedro Alvarez, a 1B/3B from Vanderbilt. The most eye-opening line is the last one, in which BP projects that Alvarez would eventually be the best bat in the Rays lineup. It isn't like the Rays don't have any good bats and Evan Longoria is knocking on the door. [Baseball Prospectus]

Pedro is still the class of this draft, but the top high schoolers closed the gap over the summer. You can bet Alvarez is going to have some huge bonus demands — if he regresses at all as a junior (like Matt Wieters did), Tampa will explore other options. In the end, though, this should be their guy. He could be great at first and probably even work in right, and he’ll be the best bat in their lineup at some point.

• Yahoo! Sports has named the Tampa Bay Rays as one of the winners of the Winter Meetings. Keep in mind that the Matt Garza trade was made prior to the Winter Meetings. [Yahoo! Sports]

The Elijah Dukes Experiment, which went about as well as metal in a microwave, is finally over, and GM Andrew Friedman even managed to procure a decent prospect from Washington in the trade. For too long, the Rays tolerated Dukes' sociopathic behavior because his talent. His Crazy Factor – the formula for which is DTTW+JPD/BA (death threats toward wife plus joints per day divided by batting average) – finally spiked too high even for their liking, though, and somehow they found a willing buyer in the Nationals. This is six months late, yes, but better than never.