Link Report for Thurs. 5/27 -- Can Kameron Loe continue to build his value prior to June 5th opt-out?

[battlekow]

Final: Birmingham 5, Huntsville 4 (7 innings)

Huntsville box score

This time, it was Huntsville's late-game rally that fell just short. Drew Anderson had a huge three-run homer in the 5th to get the Stars back in the game, but they couldn't quite get over the hill, despite a clutch two-out RBI single from Mat Gamel in the 6th. Gamel was 2-3, putting him at 3-6 on the day in his first rehab action at Huntsville. Brett Lawrie, Lorenzo Cain, and Caleb Gindl were all 0-3, while Lee Haydel was 1-3.

 

Huntsville play-by-play

Gamel picked up Lawrie here:

 

Huntsville Bottom 6th

• Lorenzo Cain strikes out
  swinging.
• Lee Haydel singles on a bunt ground ball to second
  baseman Justin Fuller.
• With Brett Lawrie batting, Lee Haydel
  steals (10) 2nd base.
• With Brett Lawrie batting, passed ball
  by Jared Price, Lee Haydel to 3rd.
• Brett Lawrie strikes out
  swinging.
• Mat Gamel singles on a fly ball to center fielder
  John Shelby III. Lee Haydel scores.
• Zelous Wheeler flies
  out to right fielder Salvador Sanchez.

[battlekow]

BC rallies from three down to top Miracle

Frank Longobardo/Brevard County Manatees

VIERA - The Brevard County Manatees

rallied from a 3-0 deficit in the seventh inning to defeat the Fort

Myers Miracle 4-3 on Thursday night at Space Coast Stadium, in front of

1,502 fans. A walk-off walk drawn by Shawn Zarraga snapped the Manatees

seven-game losing streak.

 

The Miracle got the scoring started in the top of the third, when

Jonathan Goncalves hit a one-out two-run homer off of Manatees starter

Dan Merklinger to give Fort Myers a 2-0 lead.

 

Those would be the only runs that Merklinger would allow as he went

five innings and allowed three hits, while walking four and fanning five

Fort Myers hitters.

 

Brevard County couldn't touch Miracle starter Liam Hendriks as he

threw six shutout innings and allowed just three hits, while walking two

and striking out seven Manatees.

 

Fort Myers tacked on another run in the seventh on a two-out solo

shot by Chris Parmelee off of Manatees reliever Mike Ramlow.

 

The Manatees were finally able to touch up Fort Myers pitching when

they got to the bullpen in the seventh. Two-out RBI singles from Josh

Prince and Matt Cline off of Steven Blevins cut the deficit to 3-2.

 

In the eighth, Kentrail Davis led the inning off with a triple and

then four batters later, the newest Manatee, Scott Krieger came up and

delivered a two-out single to tie the game at 3-3. Brevard County looked

to blow the game open after Juan Sanchez drew a walk to load the bases,

but Prince struck out looking to leave the bases loaded and end the

inning.

 

In his second inning of work, Corey Frerichs retired the Miracle

1-2-3 in the top of the ninth to set up the final comeback by the

Manatees.

 

Cline led off the bottom of the ninth with a single to left and

then moved to second on a perfect sacrifice bunt by Erik Komatsu that

he almost beat out for a hit. Fort Myers decided to pitch to Davis

rather than set-up a double play ball, but they unintentionally set-up a

double play ball when Davis was plunked with a pitch.

 

With runners on first and second with one out, Sergio Miranda struck

out swinging, but with the third strike being a wild pitch from Billy

Bullock, both Cline and Davis moved up a base. Bullock then

intentionally walked Sean Halton to set up the force at any base.

 

Instead of getting a force out, the Miracle ended up forcing in the

winning run as Zarraga drew a five-pitch walk with the bases loaded to

score Cline and end the Manatees losing streak.

Despite stranding 13 runners and going 3-for-13 with runners in

scoring position, Brevard County was able to scratch out its first win

since last Wednesday.

 

Zarraga and Cline combined for five of Brevard County's nine hits in

the game. Frerichs earned his third win of the season in relief.

 

The Manatees and the Miracle will continue their four-game series on

Friday night at 7:05 p.m. in Viera. The first 500 fans through the gates

on Friday night will receive a free Manatees coffee mug, presented by

the Holiday Inn Melbourne-Viera & Conference Center.

[battlekow]

Stars can't dig their way out of early hole, lose second half of double dip

Aaron Morse/Huntsville Stars

 

The Huntsville Stars (23-24) got a one-run

victory in game one of Thursday’s double header, but suffered a one-run

loss by a final score of 5-4 in game two against the Birmingham Barons

(15-31).

 

The Barons took a 1-0 lead in the top of the first

thanks to a sacrifice fly off the bat of Jim Gallagher. That scored

John Shelby III who doubled to lead-off the frame.

 

They’d chase

Stars’ starter Chris Cody in the top of the third due to the long ball.

Shelby III started things by hitting the first homer of the inning.

Greg Paiml quickly followed with a double to left. Then Jim Gallagher

capped the scoring with a two-run bomb. That would be all for Cody as

Mike Guerrero called upon Mark Willinsky to finish the inning. He did,

but it wasn’t easy, as an error and a single put runners at the corners

with nobody out. A strikeout and a 6-4-3 double play got him out of it

though with no further damage.

 

Facing a 4-0 deficit, the Stars

got three of the runs back in a big way in the bottom of the fifth.

With one away and runners at the corners Drew Anderson continued to make

an impressive 2010 Stars debut with a three-run homer.

 

Willinsky

pitched three scoreless innings before giving way to Eduardo Morlan in

the top of the sixth. Morlan, recently acquired from the Tampa Bay

Rays’ organization, gave up a one-out single and a two-out triple as the

Barons extended their lead to 5-3.

 

They would need all five of

those runs as the Stars came storming back again in the bottom of the

frame. With one away, Lee Haydel laid down a beautiful bunt single. He

would steal second and move to third on a passed ball. Then with two

away, Mat Gamel delivered a clutch single to make the score 5-4.

 

But

that’s how the game would end as the Stars went down 1-2-3 in the

bottom of the seventh.

 

Cody (2-5) suffered the loss while Matt

Long (3-4) was perfect through four and ended up going five innings for

the win. Anthony Carter earned his fourth save of the year.

 

The

offensive stars for Huntsville were Gamel and Anderson as Gamel went

2-3 with a run scored and a RBI. Meanwhile Anderson smacked his first

homer for the Stars in 2010, driving in three in the process.

 

The

Stars remain five games back of the Tennessee Smokies in the north

division. Huntsville is back at it Friday night as they’ll send Mark

Rogers (2-3, 3.60) to the mound. You can catch all the action beginning

at 6:45pm central time on the Huntsville Stars Radio Network and online

at www.huntsvillestars.com.

[TheCrew07]

First let me just say that it would be nice if the live box scores would ever actually become "live" again instead of 3 hours behind on a good day.

 

At any rate I liked it much better when Cody was dominant and we were talking about him having to continue to prove himself as he moves up. Why was he so successful last year in AA, and now he's pitching worse this year in AA, than he did last year in AAA? I truly hope he finds whatever he's been missing. Is it an attitude deal because he got bumped back down to AA with the additions of Lofgren, Loe, and Estrada? A mechanical thing? A physical thing? To be honest I figured he'd come back down and dominate the SL until he was recalled to AAA again..

 

edit. BK that was an intentional bad joke, but I appreciate the correction anyways, I just don't like blue font at all for some reason

[battlekow]

Final: Sacramento 5, Nashville 3

Sounds lose to River Cats 5-3 in finale

Nashville Sounds

 

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. - The Nashville Sounds lost to the Sacramento

River Cats, 5-2, on Thursday night at Raley Field in the finale of a

four-game series.

 

Nashville falls to (26-20) after dropping three of the four contests to

Sacramento in the four-game set.

 

 

Graham Godfrey (2-4) earned the win, surrendering two runs on six hits

with six strikeouts over six innings pitched.

 

 

Sacramento jumped on the board in the opening frame, scoring three runs

on Sounds starter Kameron Loe. Corey Wimberly was hit by Loe during the

first at-bat, stole second base, and then came home for the first run on

an Eric Sogard double. Chris Carter singled home Sogard from second for

the club's second score, followed by an RBI-triple from Anthony Recker

for a 3-0 River Cats advantage.

 

 

The River Cats added to the lead in the bottom of the fifth inning with

Joshua Donaldson's sixth home run of the season, a two-run shot to

left-center for a Sacramento 5-0 lead.

 

 

The Sounds cut the lead to 5-2 in the next frame, thanks to RBI singles

from Erick Almonte and Joe Koshansky. Both runs came with no outs in the

inning, but Nashville was unable to capitalize and do further damage in

the inning.

 

 

Henry Rodriguez picked up his fourth save throwing a scoreless ninth.

 

 

 

Loe (4-3) took the loss after allowing five runs on six hits over six

innings pitched, fanning five while walking none. Reliever Mike

McClendon pitched two scoreless frames while giving up one hit.

 

 

The Sounds return to Music City to open an eight-game homestand at 7:05

pm CT at historic Greer Stadium on Friday evening. Left-hander Chris

Capuano (1-1, 2.14) takes the mound against Iowa left-hander J.R. Mathes

(4-4, 5.40).

 

 

Nashville box score

Adam Heether was 0-3 with a walk. Almonte and Ray Olmedo each had two hits.

 

Nashville play-by-play

[DHonks]

Why did Matt Cline miss 2009? He's kind of come out of nowhere this year. Kentrail Davis sure has a nice OBP given that he skipped rookie ball and A-ball. And Zarraga with a nice first 100 AB's in A+

[Mass Haas]

Huntsville doubleheader audio:

 

05/27/10 - HSV v BIR (Game One): - Cain single (1-0) - Anderson single(2-0) - Shelby Triple (2-1) - Lawrie single (4-1) - Wheeler single (5-1) - Marrero single (5-2) - Errecart homer (6-2) - Hudson double(6-4) - Gallagher single (6-5) - Kintzler K(6-5)

05/27/10 - HSV v BIR (Game Two): - Gallagher Sac Fly (0-1) - Shelby homer (0-2) - Gallagher homer (0-4) - Anderson homer (3-4) - Fuller triple (3-5) - Gamel single (4-5)

[JohnBriggs12]

I'm starting to take notice of Shawn Zarraga and wondering why he's getting so few opportunities to catch (he's being used mostly as DH). You would think a 21 year old catcher in high A ball with some offensive skills and a body (6'2" 215) to develop some power would be on the radar and they'd want to develop him.

[pete]

Did anyone listen to the Nashville game? I'm curious how well Loe pitched.