Link Report for Games of Tuesday, August 8th

[Mass Haas]

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

[Mass Haas]

Tuesday's Daily Menu:

 

All times Central; pitchers subject to change --

 

Nashville: RHP Justin Lehr at Sacramento (A's), 1:15 PM pre-game, 1:35 gametime; the River Cats will counter with undefeated right-hander Jason Windsor (10-0, 3.79), who has won 14 consecutive minor-league decisions since an Opening Day loss for Double-A Midland

 

Audio link:

www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/

 

Huntsville: LHP Manny Parra at Mobile (Padres), 6:50 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.espn1450radio.com/

 

Brevard County: RHP Luis Pena at Sarasota (Reds), 6:00 PM; sorry, no web audio for this series

 

West Virginia: RHP Shawn Ferguson at home vs. Rome (Braves), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.sportsjuice.com/provi...e=wvpower.

 

Helena: TBD at home vs. Missoula (Diamondbacks), 7:50 PM pre-game; 8:05 gametime

 

Audio (click on "Listen Live"):

www.helenabrewers.net/html2/index.php

 

Arizona: TBD at the Rangers' complex to face the Texas kids, 9:00 PM Central time, never any web audio for the Arizona League

[Mass Haas]

Follow Tuesday'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 "Log". 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:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_srcaaa_1

 

Huntsville:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_mobaax_1

 

Brevard County:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_sarafa_1

 

West Virginia:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

 

Helena:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_helrok_1

 

Arizona Rookie:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_rngrok_1

[Mass Haas]

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds and/or Huntsville Stars are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated an hour or two prior to gametime:

 

Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format):

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf

 

Following Nashville's lead, Huntsville now makes its media notes available as well, nice:

 

www.huntsvillestars.com/i...eNotes.pdf

[Mass Haas]

Standings through Monday's action:

 Pacific Coast League (AAA) - American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [b]Nashville 63 54 .538 - 35-25 28-29 L1[/b] Iowa 60 56 .517 2.5 34-26 26-30 W3 Memphis 45 71 .388 17.5 26-33 19-38 L3 Omaha 45 72 .385 18.0 27-31 18-41 L2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Tennessee 25 19 .568 - 15-9 10-10 L2 Chattanooga 24 20 .545 1.0 15-9 9-11 W1 [b]Huntsville 21 22 .488 3.5 12-12 9-10 W1[/b] West Tenn 21 23 .477 4.0 14-6 7-17 L5 Carolina 18 26 .409 7.0 12-7 6-19 W5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Daytona 25 18 .581 - 18-10 7-8 L1 St. Lucie 23 19 .548 1.5 13-9 10-10 W1 Palm Beach 23 22 .511 3.0 12-8 11-14 W4 [b]Brevard County 18 25 .419 7.0 9-9 9-16 L4[/b] Jupiter 18 25 .419 7.0 11-13 7-12 W1 Vero Beach 18 26 .409 7.5 11-14 7-12 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lakewood 29 15 .659 - 14-5 15-10 L1 Lake County 24 18 .571 4.0 12-9 12-9 W1 Hickory 23 21 .523 6.0 11-15 12-6 W2 Greensboro 21 21 .500 7.0 12-11 9-10 L1 [b]West Virginia 21 22 .488 7.5 11-8 10-14 W1[/b] Hagerstown 19 24 .442 9.5 10-15 9-9 L1 Lexington 17 27 .386 12.0 11-11 6-16 W3 Delmarva 14 28 .333 14.0 8-12 6-16 L4 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Pioneer League (R+) - North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Missoula 6 3 .667 - 5-1 1-2 W3 Billings 5 4 .556 1.0 2-1 3-3 L1 [b]Helena 4 5 .444 2.0 3-1 1-4 L3[/b] Great Falls 3 6 .333 3.0 3-2 0-4 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Arizona League (R) - Arizona League Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- AZL Padres 7 1 .875 - 4-0 3-1 W4 AZL Angels 8 2 .800 - 2-0 6-2 W6 AZL Giants 7 3 .700 1.0 3-2 4-1 W2 AZL Royals 7 3 .700 1.0 4-2 3-1 W1 AZL Athletics 4 6 .400 4.0 3-2 1-4 L4 AZL Mariners 4 6 .400 4.0 4-2 0-4 L1 AZL Cubs 3 7 .300 5.0 1-4 2-3 L2 AZL Rangers 2 7 .222 5.5 2-3 0-4 L3 [b]AZL Brewers 1 8 .111 6.5 1-4 0-4 W1[/b]

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat (from Monday) with Infielder and Sacramento Native Jermaine Clark:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...%208-7.mp3

 

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Infielder Andrew Beattie:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...%208-8.mp3

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.al.com/stars/huntsvil...amp;coll=1

 

Covering the bases

Huntsville Times

 

It was an hour after Jeff Eure hustled home with the game-winning run in the bottom of the ninth (after having already hit a two-run homer) and two nights before Eure's three-run, pinch-hit double would give the Stars a win at Mobile.

 

Stars manager Don Money thumbed through stat sheets to confirm what was already evident: The biggest bang for the buck this season has come from Eure, the 25-year-old utility man. "He comes up with big, quality RBI hits," Money said.

 

Eure, who has started in five different positions this year, is batting .269 and Money compares him favorably with Vinny Rottino, whose versatility turned him from a non-drafted free agent into a valuable commodity with a chance to make the majors this fall.

 

Eure leads the Stars with 49 RBIs (and 11 homers) in only 264 at-bats. That's 100 fewer at-bats than Drew Anderson, who is No. 2 on the club, 41 fewer than Ron Acuna, who is No. 3 in RBIs. The numbers in the clutch are more impressive. Eure is batting .299 with runners on base, .325 with 39 RBIs with runners in scoring position and is .351 with 17 RBIs with runners in scoring position and two out.

 

Acuna, .267 overall, is slightly better at .336 and 40 RBIs with runners in scoring position and is .350 with 16 RBIs with two out. The Stars were batting .249 with runners on base, .286 with bases loaded, .248 with men in scoring position and .234 in scoring position with two out going into the weekend. ...

 

The Stars can expand their roster by one in mid-August, and could use another arm in the bullpen. ... He may be a No. 1 pick and a bonus baby, but third baseman Ryan Braun is taking extra work like a man trying to make the club as he continues to improve his footwork. He's making the transition from shortstop to third base - much as Money did with the Phillies when Larry Bowa was coming up through the system. ... Corey Thurman went from April 23 to July 29 without winning a game at home, mostly because of a lack of offensive support. His ERA of 3.06 is still 10th in the league among full-time starters. ... Ballots have been distributed to managers and media for the Southern League postseason All-Star team. ... Circle your calendar. The Stars open the 2007 season on Thursday, April 5, at home with the Mississippi Braves. ... The league will maintain the five-game-series format, as well as the North and South divisions.

 

Around the league

 

A story Friday in The Orlando Sentinel reported that a group of investors want to buy the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx and move them to Orlando. After early success at the gate, the Jaxx have struggled with attendance (the worst in Double-A), have been sold once already and the current ownership "has been in the market to sell" for several years, according to The Jackson (Tenn.) Sun.

 

There would be considerable hurdles to this. The Diamond Jaxx are in the first year of a three-year lease with the city of Jackson that would cost $250,000 per year to break. Tinker Field, a historic old downtown ballpark in Orlando, would need considerable refurbishing, and in a hurry, to meet standards to play there in '07. An alternative might be the Disney Wide World of Sports stadium, but it would likely be an expensive lease and it has a history of drawing poorly. Finally, the league schedule for '07 is set. Don't be surprised, though, to see it happen in 2008. ... That's rocker Todd Rundgren's son Rex who drove in the game-winner for Carolina Friday against West Tenn, ending a 4:28, 13-inning game. ... Jesus Cota snapped a 2-for-11 slump to go 5-for-6 Friday as Tennessee buried Birmingham 15-2 Friday. ... After his slow start, Mississippi catcher Jarrod Saltalamacchia is heating up. He went through a 13-for-25 streak to improve to .233.

 

Brewings (through Friday)

 

Triple-A Nashville Sounds (61-53 before Saturday's play, first place in Pacific Coast League American Division): CF Laynce Nix 15-game hitting streak, 13-for-23 in six games, P Alec Zumwalt team-high 12 saves.

 

Single-A Brevard County Manatees (18-22, fourth in Florida State East Division this half): Ex-Star Milko Jaramillo and 1B Ned Yost IV (.281, 46 RBIs at West Virginia) join club with Steve Sollman on DL.

 

Single-A West Virginia Power (20-20, fourth in South Atlantic League Northern Division this half): 2B Kenneth Holmberg 2 HRs, 5 RBIs Friday against Columbus (Ga.) after 3B Mat Gamel had 7 RBIs Thursday.

 

Single-A Helena Brewers (4-2, first in Pioneer League North second half) OF Stephen Chapman 13 SBs (2nd in league), .318.

 

On deck

 

The Stars continue their trip to Mobile through Tuesday, then play five at Mississippi before returning to Huntsville Aug. 15. Only 10 home games remain.

[Mass Haas]

Final: Sacramento (A's) 6, Nashville 1

 

Nashville Site Game summary:

Link for Justin Lehr photo, text follows --

 

Sounds Drop Second Straight To River Cats, 6-1

 

WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif. ? The Nashville Sounds suffered a 6-1 defeat at the hands of the Sacramento River Cats on Tuesday afternoon at Raley Field.

 

The loss was the second in a row for Nashville (63-55), which had its lead temporarily reduced to two games over Iowa pending the result of the Cubs? game against Portland on Tuesday evening.

 

River Cats starter Jason Windsor (11-0) continued his undefeated string in Pacific Coast League play, holding Nashville to one run on seven hits over 6 2/3 innings. He struck out eight batters while walking only one in his outing.

 

Kennard Bibbs paced the Nashville offense by matching his career high with four hits on the afternoon. The remainder of the Sounds? lineup collected only four cumulative knocks.

 

The Sounds? struggles in scoring opportunities continued. One day after leaving eight men on second or third, Nashville left six of its nine stranded in scoring position.

 

Sacramento grabbed a 3-0 lead against former River Cat Justin Lehr, who pitched for the club in 2003 & 2004, in the bottom of the first inning. Scott McClain and Jason Perry (team-best 3-for-4) each contributed RBI singles and Jeremy Brown added a sacrifice fly in the frame.

 

Nashville left the bases loaded in the third as Windsor struck out Laynce Nix and induced an inning-ending groundout from Graham Koonce to escape the jam. It was the third time in the last two games that the Sounds left the bags full.

 

River Cats left fielder Doug Clark upped the home team?s lead to 5-0 in the fourth with a two-out, two-run homer to right-center on a 3-2 pitch from Lehr. The blast, which scored Mike Rouse, was Clark?s 10th of the year.

 

The Nashville defense had its season-best stretch of 56 1/3 consecutive innings without an error snapped in the bottom of the fifth inning on a failed pickoff attempt. McClain, who was on second, advanced to third when shortstop Chris Barnwell was unable to glove Lehr?s throw and scored an unearned run on Perry?s second run-scoring single of the afternoon to up the lead to 6-0.

 

The Sounds finally registered a run in the top of the seventh when Bibbs? third hit of the afternoon, a single to left, scored Mark Johnson from third to chase Windsor and make it a 6-1 game.

 

Barnwell singled in the third inning to extend his hitting streak to seven games, matching Vinny Rottino (DNP) for the club?s longest active streak.

 

Jermaine Clark singled in the seventh to pull within one knock of the 1,000-hit plateau in his minor-league career.

 

Johnson, who went 2-for-3 at the plate, made his first career appearance in the outfield, starting in left field for the Sounds. He successfully handled both fly balls hit his way on the afternoon. The catcher had previously appeared at first base and third base in his 13-year career.

 

Lehr (3-6) suffered his third straight losing start for the Sounds after surrendering a season-high six runs (five earned) on eight hits over five innings of work in his first career outing against his former club.

 

Dennis Sarfate turned in his second consecutive strong relief outing for Nashville, working two scoreless innings including three strikeouts to close out the game.

 

The teams will enjoy a scheduled mid-series off day on Wednesday before wrapping up the four-game set on Thursday evening with a 9:05 p.m. CT finale. Right-hander Ben Hendrickson (9-5, 2.18) will toe the rubber for the Sounds and square off against Sacramento right-hander Ben Fritz (4-4, 5.69).

 

Nashville Box Score and Game Log Link:

Looks eerily like a lot of recent Milwaukee box scores...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_srcaaa_1

[Mass Haas]

In progress: Missoula (Diamondbacks) 1, Helena 1, after one inning

RHP Amaury Rivas your starter; Cole Gillespie not in the lineup again...

[dhirt23]

MANNY goes yard!!!!! also pitching great

[DKM4Boston]

Good news seeing Mark Rogers name in the boxscores again. He was Arizona's starter this evening.

[strawbossisevil]

Gillespie not in the lineup tonight for Helena. Is he finally getting promoted?

[pogokat]

Final: West Virginia 11, Rome (Braves) 4

 

West Virginia Site Game Summary:

 

FESTA KNOCKS IN SIX, POWER WIN

 

Tony Festa went 5 for 5 and drove in six runs for the second time this season as the West Virginia Power defeated the Rome Braves 11-4 at Appalachian Power Park on Tuesday night.

 

Jamie Romack ripped a two out RBI double in the top of the first inning to put the Rome Braves on top 1-0. Festa?s first hit was a two out, two run triple that gave the Power a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Festa came through again with a big two out RBI single in the bottom of the third to give the Power a two run lead. Rome would score the next two runs of the game to tie the contest. Quentin Davis made it a one run game after a Sac Fly RBI in the fourth inning and Elvis Andrus scored on a wild pitch in the fifth inning to tie the game at 3-3.

 

West Virginia regained the lead, scoring three times in the fifth inning. Mat Gamel ripped an RBI triple, and he scored later in the inning on Festa?s second RBI single of the game. Kenny Holmberg completed the three run frame on an RBI triple. Cody Clark?s RBI single in the seventh inning brought the Braves within two, but that was as close as they would get the rest of the night.

 

In the eighth inning the West Virginia Power sent nine batters to the plate, and scored five runs on four hits. Lorenzo Cain knocked in the first run with a double, Mike Bell ripped a bases loaded two run double and Tony Festa completed the inning with a two run single, his fifth hit of the night.

 

Tony Festa and Lorenzo Cain accounted for nine of West Virginia?s 14 hits, while Lorenzo Cain and Mat Gamel combined to score seven of West Virginia?s eleven runs. The six RBI game for Tony Festa was his second of the year, he accomplished that feat against the Hickory Crawdads on June 16th.

 

Ryan Marion (1-0) got the win, Kevin Roberts (3) pitched two and a third scoreless innings out of the bullpen to get the save and Jairo Cuevas (6-9) obtained the loss. The Power are 61-52 overall and 22-22 in the second half after the win while the Braves fell to 61-53 overall and 19-25 in the second half after the loss.

 

The Power will finish the four game series against the Rome Braves at Appalachian Power Park on Wednesday night. Left hander Beau Jones (4-3, 4.65) will make the start for Rome and the Power will counter with left hander Rafael Lluberes (4-6, 3.68 ). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM.

 

West Virginia Box Score and Game Log Link:

Lorenzo Cain with a great night. Is Tony festa a prospect or not? Probably not---but it's great to have guys who can help the teams win...and sometimes that stuff carries over into the players career longevity

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c..._wvaafx_1

[DHonks]

Rogers showing he still knows how to handle pitching in AZ.

 

Nice to see Hill in there, as he's my sleeper for this year, like that Hun fella last year

[pogokat]

Final: Huntsville 5, Mobile (Padres) 2

 

Huntsville Site Game Summary:

Link, text follows --

 

www.huntsvillestars.com/n...newsId=955

 

Four-Run First Fuels Stars' Victory

 

Manny Parra worked five solid innings on the hill and belted a home run to help his own cause, as Huntsville hung on to down Mobile 5-2 Tuesday night in the final game of a five-game set at Hank Aaron Stadium. The Stars won their second straight, improved to 22-22 in the second half but remain in third place in the North Division, three and a half games behind first-place Tennessee, which beat Birmingham. Mobile dropped to 22-23 in the second half and stays four games behind South Division-leading Jacksonville, which fell 3-1 at Chattanooga.

 

Callix Crabbe singled with one out in the first inning, moved to third on a Ryan Braun double and scored on a Brad Nelson ground ball out that also pushed Braun to third base. Jeff Eure hit a slow ground ball to shortstop that was charged by Juan Ciriaco, who made a throw to first base that pulled Vincent Sinisi off the bag, allowing Braun to score and Eure to reach safely. Drew Anderson and Lou Palmisano drew walks from starter Dirk Hayhurst to load the bases before Ozzie Chavez singled to right field to score Eure and Anderson to make it 4-0 Stars.

 

Parra retired the first seven hitters he faced and allowed only a Julius Matos single through the first four innings. The southpaw walked Colt Morton and Jeremy Cleveland and gave up a base hit to Drew Macias to load the bases with one out in the fifth. Pinch-hitter Brett Bonvechio then grounded into an inning-ending double play, the second straight frame that Parra ended with a twin-killing. Hayhurst lasted five innings, giving up four runs, one earned, on six hits, while walking three, striking out three and suffering the loss to fall to 3-4 .

 

Ryan Klatt took over for Hayhurst in the sixth and struck out Chavez to start the frame. Parra then crushed a 2-1 pitch for a home run that cleared the clubhouse building behind the wall in right field for his second home run at the double-A level to give the visitors a 5-0 lead.

 

Ciriaco opened the home sixth with a single, Julius Matos walked and Sinisi singled to load the bases with nobody out and chase Parra from the game. Travis Phelps took over and struck out Stephen Smitherman, who had hit a grand slam on Saturday, for the first out before Luis Cruz singled into center field to score Ciriaco and Matos to trim the lead to 5-2. Travis Ezi threw Sinisi out trying to advance to third base for the second out and Phelps fanned Colt Morton to end the frame. Phelps retired the side in order in the seventh and Joe Valentine set down all six hitters he faced to earn his fourth save in seven chances. Parra was charged with two runs on four hits and four walks and picked up his first win with Huntsville and his second of the season.

 

The Stars travel to Jackson, Mississippi Wednesday to open a series with the Braves. Right-hander Corey Thurman gets the starting nod for Huntsville against Mississippi left-hander Francisely Bueno. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 p.m. central time and can be heard locally on ESPN Radio 1450 AM and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com.

 

Huntsville Box Score and Game Log Link:

Ryan Braun's Slg. % is still well over .550. One has to wonder what he's gonna be like in the majors. I've seen scouts and writers mention that Braun should only hit about 20 hr's a year in the majors, but he's shown much more power than that in the minors---in 357 ab's this year, he's got 14 hr's...and that's in two extreme pitchers parks and leagues. not to mention he had 10 bombs in 189 ab's last year. I think Ryan could be a 30 plus guy in the majors...I don't know if he will be Chipper Jones, but his run in AA has been very similar to Chip's run in 1992. Actually, Braun's minor league career has been very similar to Chipper's, a player who also had huge defensive questions...By the way, Braun is a year and a half or so older than Chipper was at this level, but the similarities are remarkable

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c..._mobaax_1

[pogokat]

Final: Brevard County 3, Sarasota (Reds) 2

 

Milb Game Wrap:

link, then text:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...=t503

 

Heether's single nips Reds

 

Adam Heether's single in the ninth inning knocked in the go-ahead run as Brevard County edged Sarasota, 3-2, on Tuesday.

 

With the score knotted in the final frame, 2-2, reliever Zac Stott plunked Brendan Katin, who moved to second on Hernan Iribarren's single. Carlos Bohorquez replaced Stott, and Heether greeted him with a base hit to center field that gave the Manatees (19-25) the lead for good.

 

Brevard County reliever Josh Alliston (3-2) allowed one hit over two scoreless frames and fanned two. Starter Luis Pena yielded one run on four hits in five innings, striking out three and walking a batter. Ben Stanczyk tossed a perfect sixth, but gave up a run on a pair of doubles in the seventh.

 

Iribarren singled to lead off the fifth and scored on starter Ramon Ramirez's throwing error to help the Manatees halt a four-game skid. Ned Yost IV also singled and scored in the frame.

 

Stott (1-2) struck out four over 3 1/3 innings but was charged with the decisive run. Ramirez surrendered two runs on five hits over five frames, fanning three and walking one.

 

Chris Koskie roped an RBI single in the fourth and doubled and scored on Cody Strait's two-bagger in the seventh for the Reds (23-22). --Christopher Heine/MLB.com

 

Brevard County Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c..._sarafa_1

[pogokat]

Final: Helena 5, Missoula (Diamondbacks) 1

 

Helena Website Game Wrap:

 

Brewers End Three Game Skid

 

The Helena Brewers ended a three game losing streak Tuesday night, as they overtook the Missoula Osprey 5-1. Amaury Rivas got the starting nod for the Brewers, pitching a gem, as he went five innings, only giving up one run on one hit. The lone run was a first inning homer by Matt Oxendine. Helena responded quickly, scoring one in the bottom half, from a Zach Clem RBI single. The Brewers struck again in the bottom of the fifth scoring two, and then tacked on two more in the bottom of the eighth to put the game at its final score. Mike McClendon and Brae Wright each came on in relief, giving up a total of no runs on four hits. The two teams will square off again tomorrow at 7:05.

 

Helena Box Score and Game Log Link:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c..._helrok_1

[wibadgers23]

Lorenzo Cain and Festa go a combined 9 for 10 with 3 doubles, 1 triple, and 7 rbi's. Iribarren and Braun with 2 more hits apiece. Good to see Rogers back as well.

[Mass Haas]

Final: Arizona Rangers 9, Arizona Brewers 7

 

Arizona Brewer Box Score and Game Log Link:

Three doubles for Anthony Wycklendt, who had cooled after a powerful start to the season; Brett Whiteside also slowing his early-season pace; Andrew Lefave reaches base three times; Brent Brewer two more hits; five Brewer errors -- ugh; Jeremy Jeffress' relief appearance -- um, not good; welcome back, Mark Rogers -- two K's, a walk and a wild pitch in his inning...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_rngrok_1

[Mass Haas]

Complete newspaper summaries and updates at mid-day Wednesday...

[filthyfrog]

Jeremy Jeffress' relief appearance -- um, not good

 

According to the game log it probably wasn't as bad as it looks. He gave up 6 hits, but 4 of them were on ground balls (including one infield hit) and one appeared to be a bloop. All in all he struck out one, walked none, got 8 ground balls, one pop up, and allowed one line drive. Two wild pitches didn't help, but it looks more unlucky than bad.

 

And it's nice to see Brewer and Goetz--two guys I thought would have more success in Arizona--slowly climbing out of the caverns they dug themselves.

[Mass Haas]

Link while active, text follows:

 

www.wvgazette.com/section...2006080846

 

Festa?s big night sparks Power

By Jim Workman

For The Charleston Gazette

 

Tony Festa doesn?t dare dream of having an offensive night like he had on Tuesday.

 

Maybe he should.

 

Festa provided the offensive firepower, going 5-for-5 with three singles, a double, triple and six RBIs as the West Virginia Power defeated Rome 11-4 in a South Atlantic League game at Appalachian Power Park.

 

?You don?t even think about having a night like that,? Festa admitted. ?You just try to help the team as much as you can and get as many hits as you can. I just went up there looking to attack a fastball. I got some I could hit in some clutch situations. When it?s going good, the ball finds the holes.?

 

?He had a great day and swung the bat real well,? Power manager Mike Guerrero said of Festa. ?He?s feeling pretty good at the plate.?

 

Lorenzo Cain also swung a hot stick, going 4-for-5.

 

The Power is 22-22 in the second half, fourth in the Sally League?s Northern Division and 61-52 overall.

 

Rome got on the board first, tallying a run in the first inning when Jamie Romak doubled in Eric Campbell.

 

The Power struck back in a hurry. Festa smacked a two-run triple to center, scoring Cain and Mat Gamel to give West Virginia a 2-1 advantage in the bottom of the first.

 

Festa struck again in the third, drilling a single that scored Gamel from second base to raise the Power lead to 3-1.

 

Rome trimmed the Power advantage in the fourth, plating a run on a Quentin Davis bases-loaded sacrifice fly.

 

The Braves tied it at 3 in the fifth when Elvis Andrus scored from third base on a passed ball.

 

The Power regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth as Gamel tripled to center, scoring Cain, who led off the inning with the double. Festa followed with an RBI single to center to lift the Power to a 5-3 advantage. Kenny Holmberg pounded a double down the left-field line to score Festa to make it 6-3 Power.

 

Rome picked up another run in the seventh as Cody Clark stroked a RBI single to left, cutting the Power lead to 6-4.

 

?They have a pretty good team,? Guerrero said of Rome. ?They?ll always battle you.?

 

West Virginia received some insurance in the eighth with a five-run rally. Cain plowed an RBI double down the right-field line, Mike Bell doubled in two runs and Festa singled in a pair to stretch the Power lead to 11-4.

 

Bell redeemed himself after striking out in his previous four times to the plate.

 

Power reliever Ryan Marion (1-0) got the win with 3 2/3 innings of work. Rome starter Jairo Cuevas (6-9) was tagged with the loss.

 

Rome visits the APP again tonight to close a four-game series. The Power, winner of five of its last seven contests, will travel then to Delmarva for a four-game series and return home Tuesday to play host to Hickory.

 

***

Charleston Daily Mail:

 

Rome won the South Atlantic League's first-half Southern Division title, but Braves' pitchers were the only ones feeling a hangover after West Virginia hitters pounded 14 hits in taking a 2-1 lead in the four-game series at Appalachian Power Park before a crowd of 3,528.

 

For the Power (21-22), first baseman Tony Festa was flawless at the plate in going 5-for-5, including a triple, double and six RBI.

 

"You hope to get a couple of hits, but five for five is better than I could have expected," Festa said.

 

"I'm seeing the ball well now and I noticed that their pitcher (Jairo Cuevas) challenging guys with his fastball.

 

"In my first at-bats, that's what I went up there looking for and whenever you get that first hit out of the way, you seem to feed off it.

 

"I was fortunate to battle him enough to see a lot of his pitches, and when it's going good for you the ball definitely finds a hole."

 

Cuevas was touched up for eight hits and six earned runs in just 4 1/3 innings, while reliever Rudy Quinonez was touched up for four hits and five earned runs in one inning of work.

 

Power right fielder Lorenzo Cain continued his chase of the single-season hit record for Class A baseball in Charleston with four hits, including two doubles, in five at bats.

 

Cain now has 133 hits, in pursuit of Bobby Perna's record of 150 hits in 1992.

 

West Virginia will finish its four-game series against Rome and eight-game homestand tonight at 7:05 (6:05 Central).

 

Lefty Beau Jones (4-3) will start for Rome, while the Power will counter with southpaw Rafael Lluberes (4-6).

[Mass Haas]

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Brewers even up record

By TOM COTTON - Independent Record Sports Editor

 

What started out as a slugfest between the Missoula Osprey and Helena Brewers turned into a nice little pitchers duel Tuesday night.

 

The Brewers evened their second-half record at 5-5 as they got past Missoula 5-1 thanks to superb pitching by Amaury Rivas.

 

Rivas gave up one earned run in five innings of work. He struck out three over that span. The one earned run came in the first inning when Matt Oxendine cracked a solo home run. After that point, however, the Osprey offense was held completely in check.

 

?He keeps challenging (hitters),? said Helena pitching coach Mark Littell. ?He keeps coming at you any way he can.?

 

Littell said that Rivas kept his cool on the mound after the shot by Oxendine and didn?t over throw his pitches.

 

Rivas kept batters off balance by mixing his pitches well. His control was shaky at times, as he issued four walks over five innings, but he seemed to get stronger as the game went on, putting down the Osprey 1-2-3 in both the fourth and fifth inning.

 

Littell said he is pleased with how the Brewers starting pitching is rounding into shape.

 

?They are mixing their pitches well,? he said. ?They are trying to throw their off speed pitches and are more knowledgeable in the second half about what is going on.?

 

Faced with an early 1-0 deficit. Helena responded in the first frame with an RBI single by Zach Clem.

 

Clem has tormented the Osprey as of late, going 4-8 at the plate in the previous two meetings between the two clubs. He reached base three times Tuesday night. Clem, an 11th round pick from the University of Washington, has raised his batting average over the past several games from under .100 to .161.

 

He has been plagued by a concussion to start the season and recently a virus has slowed him down.

 

?He never had a chance to get some playing time, because this is really the only time that he has been healthy,? said Brewers manager Ed Sedar.

 

After both teams posted a run in the first inning, their bats went quiet until the middle of the contest.

 

Helena broke through with two runs in the fifth and two more in the eighth to salt the game away. The fifth saw Chris Errecart drive in a run with a double. He would later come home on a passed ball.

 

Helena could have put more up on the scoreboard, if it wasn?t for an unconventional 5-2-6-4 double play. With the bases loaded, Jordan Swaydan hit a ground ball, snagged by Missoula third baseman Andrew Fie. That started a run-down that eventually netted Clem. After Clem was put out, Missoula catcher Julio Parra threw to second to nab Swaydan, who was trying to advance to second in the confusion.

 

Swaydan, however, would later single and score a run in the eighth.

 

Helena is now one game out of first place in the Northern Division of the Pioneer League.

 

They continue the four-game set with Missoula today at 7:05 PM (8:05 Central). Dan Fournier will start for Missoula. Brandon Parillo is the scheduled starter for Helena.

 

Jon Ebelt Independent Record Staff Photographer - Helena Brewer Stephen Chapman, left, beats the pickoff throw to Missoula first baseman Shea McFeely as the Osprey work at keeping the speedy Chapman honest during Pioneer League action Tuesday at Kindrick Legion Field.

 

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