AKRON, Ohio - Former Bradley Baseball player Dan Brewer drew a walk and stole second base against former Chicago Cubs star pitcher Kerry Wood during an Eastern League baseball game Monday night at Canal Park.
Making his first rehab appearance of the season for the Cleveland Indians affiliate, Wood (0-1) gave up six runs on four hits and the walk to Brewer in the sixth inning, allowing Trenton to break away from a 10-10 tie for an eventual 20-11 victory. Brewer went 2-for-6 overall at the plate, driving in two runs and scoring twice.
An eighth-round selection by the New York Yankees in the 2008 Major League Baseball amateur draft, Brewer has quickly advanced to the Double-A level. He is batting .232 thus far for the Thunder, but leads his team with two triples and shares the team lead with nine stolen bases.
Tuesday's sixth-inning walk against Wood marks at least the second time Brewer has faced off against a star Major League pitcher. Playing for the Single-A Charleston RiverDogs last season, Brewer singled off future Hall of Famer John Smoltz, who was pitching for the Boston Red Sox affiliate Greenville (S.C.) Drive on a rehab assignment. As Monday's game opened a four-game series between Trenton and Akron, Brewer may get another shot at Wood, who is expected to make more than one rehab appearance as he recovers from a back strain below his right shoulder.
Elsewhere around the minors, second-year pro pitcher Rob Scahill has been sterling in his last three appearances for the Colorado Rockies affiliate Modesto Nuts in the California League. Boasting a 2-1 overall record with a 2.00 earned run average in five overall starts, Scahill has allowed only one run in his last three outings. Most recently, Scahill tossed 6.0 scoreless innings in a no-decision Sunday in what wound up a wild 8-1 victory against the San Jose Giants. All nine of the game's runs were scored in the ninth inning. Scahill has allowed only one run on 12 hits in 19.0 innings in his last three starts, good for a 0.47 ERA.
Back at the Double-A level, second baseman Ryan Curry is batting .235 for the Florida Marlins Southern League affiliate Jacksonville Suns.
Meanwhile, a pair of former Bradley battery-mates are on the disabled list. A catcher for the Kansas City Royals Double-A affiliate Northwest Arkansas Naturals, Ryan Eigsti was placed on the DL April 17 with a right forearm fracture. Also at the Double-A level, former Bradley hurler Brandon Magee remains sidelined with an arm injury since being placed on the DL July 2, 2009, by the Toronto Blue Jays affiliate New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
