Link Report for Games of Monday, July 28th

[Mass Haas]

http://www.brewerfan.net/images/store/dailylinkreport.jpg

[Mass Haas]

Monday's Daily Menu:

 

All times Central except Arizona League; pitchers subject to change --

 

Nashville: LHP Lindsay Gulin at home vs. Portland (Padres), 6:45 PM pre-game; 7:00 gametime

 

Audio link via WNSR, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link):

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t556

 

Huntsville: RHP Mike Jones at home vs. Montgomery (Rays), 6:55 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime

 

Audio link via WUMP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link):

http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559

 

Brevard County: RHP Amaury Rivas at home vs. St. Lucie (Mets), 6:00 gametime

 

Sorry, no audio for this series...

West Virginia: RHP R.J. Seidel at Lake County (Indians), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime

 

Audio link via WSWW, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link):

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t525

 

Helena: RHP Liam Ohlmann at Missoula (Diamondbacks), 7:55 PM pre-game, 8:05 gametime

 

Audio link via KCAP, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link):

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/clubs/ip_index.jsp?sid=milb&cid=t433

 

Arizona: TBD at the Angels' complex in Tempe, 7:00 PM local Mountain Standard Time; 2nd half of season means evening action for the kids...

 

Never any audio for the Maryvale Crew

[Mass Haas]

Follow Monday's action as it happens:

Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Open the Nashville Gameday. For the others, choose "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often.

 

Nashville:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_poraaa_nasaaa_1

 

Huntsville:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t559&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_monaax_hunaax_1

 

Brevard County:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=t503&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_sluafa_breafa_1

 

West Virginia:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_wvaafx_lcoafx_1

 

Helena:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_helrok_misrok_1

 

Arizona:

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_07_28_brrrok_angrok_1

[Mass Haas]

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated several hours prior to gametime.

 

Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

 

[Mass Haas]

 Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Iowa 63 45 .583 - 38-18 25-27 L2 Memphis 59 49 .546 4.0 29-24 30-25 W1 Omaha 49 59 .454 14.0 22-29 27-30 W1 Nashville 42 66 .389 21.0 21-31 21-35 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Carolina 20 16 .556 - 10-6 10-10 W3 Tennessee 19 17 .528 1.0 10-10 9-7 L4 Huntsville 18 17 .514 1.5 8-7 10-10 L2 Chattanooga 15 21 .417 5.0 8-12 7-9 L1 West Tenn 15 21 .417 5.0 5-11 10-10 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daytona 19 13 .594 - 9-5 10-8 W1 St. Lucie 19 14 .576 0.5 9-7 10-7 W1 Jupiter 18 15 .545 1.5 9-6 9-9 L1 Palm Beach 17 17 .500 3.0 12-7 5-10 W2 Brevard County 14 21 .400 6.5 6-10 8-11 L2 Vero Beach 12 23 .343 8.5 6-14 6-9 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Virginia 26 10 .722 - 14-4 12-6 L1 Lakewood 22 13 .629 3.5 10-6 12-7 W1 Delmarva 20 16 .556 6.0 7-10 13-6 W1 Hagerstown 17 19 .472 9.0 7-11 10-8 L1 Greensboro 14 22 .389 12.0 7-11 7-11 W1 Hickory 13 23 .361 13.0 3-14 10-9 W2 Lake County 13 23 .361 13.0 6-12 7-11 W1 Lexington 12 23 .343 13.5 7-12 5-11 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Pioneer League (R+) - PIO North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Billings 0 0 - - 0-0 0-0 - Great Falls 0 0 - - 0-0 0-0 - Helena 0 0 - - 0-0 0-0 - Missoula 0 0 - - 0-0 0-0 - ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- 

 Arizona League (R) - Arizona League Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AZL Angels 20 8 .714 - 10-4 10-4 L1 AZL Cubs 18 10 .643 2.0 12-2 6-8 W3 AZL Rangers 18 10 .643 2.0 8-6 10-4 W1 AZL Royals 16 13 .552 4.5 11-4 5-9 W2 AZL Giants 15 14 .517 5.5 8-7 7-7 L2 AZL Padres 14 15 .483 6.5 9-6 5-9 L2 AZL Athletics 11 17 .393 9.0 5-8 6-9 W2 AZL Mariners 9 19 .321 11.0 5-8 4-11 L5 AZL Brewers 6 21 .222 13.5 6-8 0-13 L3 

[Boy Jeenius]

Wow. 3 more hits tonight for recent draftee Logan Schafer. Small sample size maybe, but pretty impressive sample so far. Already in WV and hitting over .350.

[twobrewers]

Lucroy is getting to "ridiculous" level.

 

Did he even notice he was promoted?

[battlekow]

Far and away the best start of the year for Mike Jones. Also, Gamel homered off 2007 #1 overall pick David Price.

[brewmann04]

Hopefully Mr Jones has turned the Corner and continues to stay healthy.

i would be ver sad to see Lucroy go to clev.

[TheCrew07]

Wow Bray with a very top top of the 9th for Huntsville. He was jinxed!

[Mass Haas]

Obviously don't feel sorry for yours truly, but it is always hard to get up for six minor league recaps at midnight after a tough Brewer loss.

 

Here goes...

 

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Starting Pitcher Mark DiFelice

One classy guy, funny also -- good banter about trying to remember the last time DiFelice walked two in a game prior to Sunday...

 

Final: Portland (Padres) 4, Nashville 2

Nashville Site Game Summary:

Link for Brad Nelson game photo, text follows --

 

NASHVILLE -- A two-run blast from Brad Nelson was not enough as the Nashville Sounds came up short in a 4-2 loss to the Portland Beavers on Monday night at Greer Stadium.

 

The Sounds offense struggled for a second consecutive night with only two runs on six hits after only managing one run in 11 innings last night against the Beavers. Nashville's average with runners in scoring position dropped to .176 (12-for-66) in the last 10 games since returning from the All-Star break.

 

Portland's starting pitcher Wade LeBlanc (9-7) threw five innings of scoreless ball while striking out six batters and only giving up two hits to earn the win. Sounds starter Lindsay Gulin (5-5) was not as sharp as LeBlanc, pitching five innings and giving up three runs off seven hits and five walks as the losing pitcher for Nashville.

 

The Beavers took an early lead thanks to a solo home run from Max Venable to right-center field. The longball was Venable's 11th on the year and gave him back-to-back games with home runs after hitting a two-run bomb in the 11th inning last night.

 

Portland scored its second run in a more methodical fashion in the top of the fourth inning. After two singles from Justin Huber and Brett Dowdy, Gulin gave up back-to-back walks to Shawn Wooten and Tom King to walk in a run. The Beavers scored again in the top of the fifth inning in a similar fashion when Dowdy walked with the bases loaded to score Peter Ciofrone from third base. Ciofrone reached base earlier in the inning with a single to extend his hit streak to a PCL season-best 25 games.

 

The Sounds cut the lead to one in the bottom of the sixth inning with the help of an opposite field, two-run shot by Nelson off Portland reliever Dirk Hayhurst. The home run was Nelson's 14th of the year and scored Tony Gwynn, who reached on a bunt single in the previous at-bat.

 

AUDIO: Brad Nelson Home Run

 

Paul McAnulty added an insurance run in the top of the ninth inning when he hit a solo shot to right field off Sounds reliever Mitch Stetter. The home run was his third of the year and only the second off Stetter in 19 appearances for the Sounds.

 

Hayhurst pitched two innings of relief and gave up two earned runs on three hits for the Beavers, and Joe Thatcher, Kevin Cameron and Edwin Moreno combined to shut the Sounds out in the final two frames, with Moreno picking up his 14th save of the year for Portland.

 

Sounds reliever Joe Bateman pitched two scoreless innings, and Stetter gave up one run in his two innings of work to keep the Sounds in the game, but the offense was unable to mount a comeback.

 

The teams will wrap up their four-game series with a 12:00 p.m. matinee tomorrow at Greer Stadium. Right-hander Richie Gardner (6-4, 4.91) will start for the Sounds against righty Justin Germano (2-6, 4.77) for the Beavers. After tomorrow's game, Nashville will travel to the West Coast for an eight-game road trip with series against Sacramento and Fresno.

 

Nashville Box Score

Lindsay Gulin still walking too many; 64 of Tony Gwynn's 71 hits at AAA have been singles -- OBP higher than slugging...

 

Nashville Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Final: Montgomery (Rays) 9, Huntsville 2

 

Huntsville Site Game Summary:

 

Biscuits Blast Three Home Runs in Win

Price Puts Together Pretty Impressive Pitching Performance

By Brett Pollock / Huntsville Stars

David Price worked eight sterling innings and a late offensive surge carried Montgomery to a 9-2 win over Huntsville Monday night in the opener of a five-game set at Joe Davis Stadium. The Biscuits won for a fifth time in six games to improve to 19-16 in the second half, while the Stars suffered a third straight loss and sixth defeat in seven games to drop to 18-18 in the half and two and a half games behind first place Carolina in the North Division. The Stars have been held to three runs or less in each of their last seven games.

 

Gaby Martinez hit a two-run home run to give the Biscuits the lead three batters into the game before Mat Gamel cut the lead to 2-1 with a long ball off of Price in the bottom of the first. It was his first home run since June 22 and just his second since June 7. Price then retired 14 in a row before Martin Maldonado's home run in the home sixth tied the game at two. Price has allowed six home runs in his last three starts.

 

Stars' starter Mike Jones was removed after reaching his pitch limit in four innings, allowing two hits, walking three and striking out six. He stranded a runner in scoring position in his last three innings and was replaced by Jason Shiell, who worked scoreless relief in the fifth and sixth innings. Josh Asanovich led off the seventh with a walk, moved to second on a ground out and to third on a single by Ronnie Merrill that chased Shiell from the game. Steve Bray took over and gave up a base hit to Martinez that put the Biscuits on top to stay at 3-2. Shiell suffered the loss and dropped to 3-3.

 

Price retired the next eight batters he faced to close his performance and set down 24 out of the 26 batters he faced. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter in his longest outing as a professional. Price is 5-0 with Montgomery and 9-0 in 13 starts this season.

 

Bray had an 11 2/3 innings scoreless streak snapped by a Rashad Eldridge leadoff long ball in the ninth that made it 4-2 Biscuits. Chris Nowak doubled in a run and Rhyne Hughes blasted a three-run home run before a single by J.T. Hall, the sixth straight hit in the inning, chased Bray, who gave up six runs, five earned, on eight hits.

 

The series continues Tuesday night with left-hander Brae Wright and right-hander Donovan Hand scheduled to start the two games in the doubleheader against Biscuits' right-hander Jeremy Hellickson and a starter to be named. Coverage of the twin bill begins at 5:50 pm central time and can be heard locally on SportsRadio 730 WUMP and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com and www.730ump.com.

 

Huntsville Box Score

At least Huntsville fans will always get to say they saw the amazing David Price pitch...

 

Huntsville Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Final: Brevard County 5, St. Lucie (Mets) 4, 11 innings

Brevard County Site Game Summary:

Manatees Clip Mets in Extras

By Tyler Stover / Brevard County Manatees

(Viera, FL) Brevard County blew a late three-run lead, but recovered to defeat St. Lucie in 11 innings Monday night, 5-4. The Manatees built a 4-1 lead through six innings, helped by Jonathan Lucroy's solo blast, his sixth of the season. Lucroy also drove in a run with his groundout in the third inning. The Mets rallied, hammering Manatees reliever Casey Baron for two runs on six hits. They were then able to tie the game when Peeter Ramos crushed a Derrick Ellison offering for a triple off the top of the wall in left field. Charlie Fermaint made what turned out to be a game-saving effort on the play, getting a glove on the ball and keeping it from leaving the park.

Fermaint was hit by a pitch to start the eleventh inning, and then moved up to second on a botched pickoff attempt by St. Lucie. After a Chuck Caufield walk, Stephen Chapman laid down a perfect bunt for a single. In a desperate attempt to throw out Chapman at first base, Mets pitcher Emary Frederick (1-3) threw the ball into right field, allowing Fermaint to score the winning run.

Mike McClendon (4-5) earned the win after a tremendous effort out of the bullpen. He pitched three hitless innings, allowing just one walk.

 

With the win, the Manatees improve to 7-3 this year against the Mets, who they faced in the FSL Eastern Division Championship last season. In tomorrow's game, Jeremy Jeffress (3-6, 4.63) looks to right the ship at home, where he has struggled recently. Game time is 7:00 PM (6:00 Central).

 

Brevard County Box Score

Jonathan Lucroy throws out 1-of-2 trying to steal; Manatees turn four double plays; Taylor Green 0-for-3, but wait, two walks make for an OBP of .400 for the night; starter Amaury Rivas allowed nine baserunners in his five innings (five hits, four walks), but allowed only one run...

 

Brevard County Game Log

Amaury Rivas pitched five strong innings, but it took extras for Brevard County to defeat St. Lucie Monday night. (MiLB.com Photo by Dennis Greenblatt)

 

http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/images/2008/07/28/WClMZGFi.jpg

[Mass Haas]

Final: Lake County (Indians) 6, West Virginia 5, 13 innings

 

West Virginia Site Game Summary:

POWER DROP FINALE TO CAPTAINS IN 13

 

The West Virginia Power played their longest game of the season at Classic Park on Monday night and despite out-hitting the Lake County Captains 18-9, the Captains pulled away with a 6-5 victory in 13 innings to earn a series split.

 

The Captains struck first in the bottom of the first inning when Richard Martinez smacked a two-out single into right field with Roman Pena on first base. Pena was on his way to third when Caleb Gindl's throw from right field hit the infield dirt and then took a strange hop into the crowd, allowing Pena to score. The Power tied it up a half inning later when Zelous Wheeler scored on Curt Rindal's groundout. Eric Fryer delivered a two-out RBI single in the third to give the Power their first lead of the night.

 

Adam Davis tied the game in the bottom of the third on his third home run of the season. The Power scored twice in the fourth to regain the lead. With runners at the corners and nobody out, Logan Schafer was tagged out in a rundown between first and second which allowed Wheeler to score. The Power used the squeeze to score their next run as Lee Haydel dropped a bunt down the third base line to score Rindal. Haydel struck again with an RBI single in the sixth inning to give the Power their largest lead of the night.

 

R.J. Seidel issued back-to-back walks to Richard Martinez and Matt Brown in the sixth inning before Chris Nash singled to load the bases. Ron Rivas ripped a bases clearing double to tie the game at 5-5.

 

Mark Thompson walked to begin the 13th inning and stole second base. He moved to third on Matt Brown's groundout before the Power intentionally walked Chris Nash and Jeff Hehr to load the bases. Wes Etheridge struck out Ron Rivas but Cristo Arnal delivered the game winning single to bring Thompson home.

 

Josh Judy (9-1) pitched a scoreless top half of the 13th to get the victory. Etheridge (0-1) allowed a run on a hit over two and two-thirds and was tagged with the loss. The Power bullpen allowed just a run over seven and two-thirds innings of relief.

 

The Power fell to 58-48 on the year and 26-11 in the second half with the loss. The Captains improved to 55-52 on the year and 14-23 in the second half with the win. Four Power players turned in multi-hit games. Logan Schafer paced the Power with a 5-for-6 performance. Eric Farris went 0-for-7, snapping his 12-game hitting streak. Steffan Wilson doubled in the fifth to extend his road hitting streak to 22 games. Matt Cline reached three times to bring his on-base streak to 17 games and Gindl went 1-for-6, extending his on base streak to 20 games.

 

The Power will begin a four game series against the Lakewood BlueClaws at First Energy Park in Lakewood, New Jersey on Tuesday night. The Power will start right hander Michael Bowman (1-0, 2.00) and the BlueClaws will counter with right hander Vance Worley (1-0, 1.50). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central).

 

West Virginia Box Score

10 of Logan Schafer's 22 West Virginia hits have gone for extra bases -- 21-year-old 3rd round picks who rake are fun, y'know? Lee Haydel 4-for-6 leading off, including a double; Zelous Wheeler 3-for-5 with a double of his own; lefty Lucas Luetge with a real pretty line and a still-maintained 0.00 ERA, but all the runners he inherited in a bases-loaded, no out jam scored; Brewer pitchers were wild up and down the chain tonight...

 

West Virginia Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Final: Missoula (Diamondbacks) 8, Helena 1

2nd half starts out badly...

 

Helena Box Score

Michael Marseco had both the H-Crew's hits -- he stole two bases and scored the run; otherwise, it's Bleaksville, baby...

 

Helena Game Log

[Mass Haas]

RHP Cody Scarpetta manages three more scoreless innings despite allowing five baseunners -- the A-Crew leads a road game, 4-1, in the 7th; I may have been mistaken earlier, this appears to be a "first-half" schedule game; more in the AM...

[wibadgers23]

David Price...I wish he was Brewers property. Wow. Nice to see Gamel hit a homerun off of him though.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Should Price expect call-up soon?

Former Vandy star remains dominant in Double-A

By BRAD SHEPARD

For The Huntsville Times

 

When he's on the mound, Montgomery Biscuits pitcher David Price spends nearly every moment in complete control.

 

Maybe that's what is most difficult about his time off the field. Rumors are swirling that last year's No. 1 overall pick could provide an immediate boost to AL East-leading Tampa Bay, and Price can't do anything about it.

 

So every five days he dominates ... then waits.

 

"He's anxious, we're anxious, his brother's anxious, the people we go to church with are anxious," said his father Bonnie Price, who drove two hours from Murfreesboro, Tenn., to watch Monday night's game at Joe Davis Stadium.

 

"But he works for the Rays. When they say it's time, it's time."

 

With a 9-2 win over the Huntsville Stars, Price improved to 5-0 at Double-A. He allowed two hits - both solo home runs - and struck out seven with no walks in eight innings - his longest outing as a professional. He showcased a mid-90s fastball and a nasty slider from a repertoire that made him just the fourth left-handed pitcher ever chosen first overall in the MLB draft.

 

Monday was just another leap toward a big-league career that seems destined to start sooner rather than later.

 

"I just take it one game at a time down here and expect a call every morning saying I'm going to Tampa," Price said. "Until I get that call-up, I'm working hard, anxious. I want it more than anything.

 

"Every day, it crosses my mind. Every time I see professional baseball on TV, I say I can play with those guys and compete against those guys."

 

After Price won the Golden Spikes Award last year given to college baseball's top player, the 22-year-old former Vanderbilt standout signed a six-year, $8.5 million contract and received a $5.6 million signing bonus. He has done nothing but impress since. Price started the year 4-0 at Single-A Vero Beach with a 1.82 earned-run average, and he's still undefeated as a pro.

 

Though stats like that suggest Price should surge to the big leagues, he would likely start as a reliever if he did, and four of the six homers he has allowed have been to left-handers.

 

Still, he did plenty to impress the Stars.

 

"I'd put him in my top two I've faced," said Cole Gillespie, who also noted Los Angeles Dodger Clayton Kershaw. "He's got a great slider, a good fastball, works inside a lot. He gets that cutter in on your hands, and it's hard to hit."

 

A forearm strain in spring training set Price back 10 weeks, and he didn't pitch his first game until May. He has regained his strength, and is beginning to get into a groove similar to his days as a Commodore.

 

"The biggest thing to me is he's a gamer," Biscuits catcher Matt Spring said. "He's got unbelievable stuff, and he wants to win - that's his best quality. He has a good idea what he wants to do out there. He doesn't just go through the motions."

 

For instance, Stars third baseman Mat Gamel slammed a 400-plus foot home run off Price in the first inning Monday. The next time he came up, Price struck the league-leading hitter out looking.

 

Another welcome sign for Price is that he worked in 11 change-ups - seven for strikes - on Monday. With every start, he said he is gaining confidence in his third pitch.

 

"He's a pretty polished guy, and there are not a lot of glaring weaknesses in his game," Montgomery manager Billy Gardner Jr. said. "But because his fastball and his slider are so dominant, he doesn't really have to throw his change-up much. He understands that he needs that change-up and needs to learn to go back-and-forth between speeds."

 

With his two-hit gem, Price has now thrown 73 2/3 innings and allowed just 56 hits with 69 strikeouts. He set a single-season record last year with 194 strikeouts in 133 1/3 innings at Vanderbilt, and his confidence is stronger than ever.

 

"I felt good tonight," Price said. "I think I threw 91 pitches through eight innings - very efficient. I don't feel any pressure at all. My expectations for myself exceed everybody's expectations for me."

 

Those expectations have him envisioning a September scenario with him on the mound for the Rays in the pennant race. It doesn't seem so far away for Price.

 

But he knows he can only control what happens on the mound. Price thinks he's ready, and games like Monday's only solidify that feeling.

 

"I think he's close," Gardner said. "There are some things he needs to work on, but if you look at the overall package, he has the stuff and the makeup."

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

Pitching problems send Sounds to another defeat

By STEVE SILVER

Tennessean Staff Writer

 

Wild pitching plagued the Nashville Sounds once again Monday night.

 

Starter Lindsay Gulin walked in two runs and gave up a solo home run to bury the Sounds in a three-run hole by the fifth inning. The Sounds never recovered and dropped their second straight game to the Portland Beavers, 4-2 at Greer Stadium.

 

Gulin, who entered Monday's game with the Pacific Coast League's second-lowest ERA at 3.48, surrendered three earned runs in his five innings. Already trailing 1-0, Gulin walked in one run in both the fourth and fifth innings to extend the Beavers' lead to three.

 

"Usually Gulin does a good job to pitch out of that stuff, but it came back to bite him tonight there," Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas said.

 

"But as bad as he looked, he still played pretty well and kept us in the game."

The Sounds' offense, though, did not provide any support for Gulin. Nashville registered only two hits off of Portland starter Wade LeBlanc in the first five innings. One of those hits was a single by Gulin - his first in more than one year.

 

Nashville scored both of its runs in the sixth inning after LeBlanc left the game. With Tony Gwynn on first after a bunt, Brad Nelson crushed his 14th home run to left-center field to narrow Portland's lead to 3-2.

 

The Sounds had an opportunity to tie the game in the eighth inning with two runners on base and only one out. But Nelson grounded into a double play to end the inning.

 

"Overall we are just not swinging the bats as a team very well," Kremblas said. "We are not hitting the ball enough consistently and that puts a lot of pressure on our pitching staff."

 

Nashville is batting just .176 (12-for-68) with runners in scoring position since the All-Star break.

 

The Sounds will close out their series with the Beavers today at noon.

 

"Right now I can predict one thing - it's going to be hot," Kremblas said.

 

Nix streaking: Laynce Nix's single in the fourth inning extended his hitting streak to six games - the longest running stretch among current Sounds. In his last six games Nix is batting .435 (10-for-23) with five extra base hits (two home runs, three doubles).

 

Bad case of the Mondays: The Sounds are 5-11 on Mondays this season - their worst day of the week.

 

Pinch-hitting pitcher: Left-hander Sam Narron made his second pinch-hitting appearance of the season when he batted for Gulin in the fifth inning. Narron, the only pitcher to pinch-hit for the Sounds this season, flied out to left field in his only at-bat Monday, but is hitting .333 (8-for-24) this year.

 

What they said: "He kept us off balance and he changed speeds with his changeup too, which really throws you off," - Kremblas about Portland starting pitcher Wade LeBlanc, who allowed two hits in five innings.

[Mass Haas]

Final: Arizona Brewers 4, Arizona Angels 2

Arizona Box Score

Middle infielders Carlos George (two-run double) and Luis Sanchez had big two-out RBI knocks in the 6th when it looked like a rally might sputter, to give the A-Crew a 4-1 lead at the time; RHP Luis Guerrero allowed only one run over the final four innings for a well-earned save; how good were Cody Scarpetta, Ben Jeffers and Guerrero on the mound? 13 K's and no fly ball outs between them...

 

Arizona Game Log

[Mass Haas]

Missoula tosses two-hitter in 8-1 rout of Helena

Helena Independent Record

 

The Missoula Osprey handed the visiting Helena Brewers an 8-1 defeat in the Garden City Monday.

 

Osprey pitchers Taylor Sinclair, Justin Mace and Miles Reagan combined to throw a two-hitter against the Brewers. The non-drafted Sinclair started and went 6.2 innings for the win, striking out seven batters.

 

Missoula scored two runs apiece in the first, third and fifth innings, and one each in the seventh and eighth frames.

 

The Osprey were led offensively by Jacob Elmore, Kyle Greene and Nelson Gomez. Elmore and Greene rapped four and three hits, respectively, each stroking a double and driving in two runs. Greene also belted a home run and crossed home plate three times. Gomez was 2-for-3, with a two-bagger and four runs batted in.

 

The Brewers plated their lone run in the fourth inning. Michael Marseco singled on a ground ball to left field. He then stole second base and advanced to third on the catcher's errant throw. Erik Komatsu brought home the run with a sacrifice fly. Marseco was 2-for-4, producing Helena's only two hits of the game.

 

Liam Ohlmann pitched the first four innings for the Brew-crew, giving up four runs and taking the loss.

 

The Brewers play in Great Falls today at 7:00 PM (8:00 Central).

[Mass Haas]

Helena Pre-Game Audio Interview with Athletic Trainer Aaron Hoback

Click on the KCAP archive of July 28th, then browse to the 19:00 minute mark; young man is "father to 40 people"...

[Mike]

This kid has been flying under the radar for a long time and I think the scout who found him is going to be rewarded not to mention the Crew. A very sweet swing. We shall see.

[Mike]

This kid could be a good one. Very sweet swing.