Stars of the Day: May 8

Easily the best  hitter in the Texas League,  Max Ramirez (.398 / .480 / .722) got back to the business of being Max in Frisco's 12-8 victory over Corpus Christi, going 3-4 with a double, his eighth homer of the year and a base on balls, jacking his league-leading OPS up to 1.203.    He also leads the Texas league in both OBP and slugging percentage and is now second in batting average.

In Clinton,  Neftali Feliz (3-1;  3.13) blanked Peoria for 5.1 innings, holding the Chiefs to two hits and fanning five while walking three.    Feliz -- the subject of a recent Baseball Prospectus profile by my friend Kevin Goldstein -- is averaging 11.09 strikeouts per nine innings. 

Goldstein took in Feliz's May 2 start against Kane County and was treated to five shutout innings during which the lanky Domincan fanned eight.    An unnamed scout with whom Goldstein watched the game had this to say afterwards:

He was very impressive. The arm is electric, and he established his fastball early in the game. He certainly flashed some average breaking balls, and that changeup has a good chance to be plus. He should end up with average command and control, as he's smooth and repeats his delivery very well. The things I really liked was how he could turn it up a notch when he needed it--that's what big leaguers do.

Jason Botts reported to Oklahoma after clearing waivers and picked up right where he left off last year when he hit .320 / .436 / .545, going 2-3 with a homer in his first game for the Redhawks this year.   It was Oklahoma's only run in the nightcap of a twinbill at the Brick swept by Sacramento.

Bakersfield's Julio Borbon (.321 / .370 / .404)  continues to light up the Cal League, extending a 13-game hitting streak with a 3-4 outing that included his 9th double of the year in the Blaze's 7-3 victory over Modesto.  

And finally, keep your fingers crossed that this little run has some long-term significance:   Blaze catcher Manny Pina (.282 / .333 / .333) went 2-4, giving him five multi-hit games in his last seven outings.