Link Report for Games of Friday, May 20th

[Mass Haas]

http://prodtn.cafepress.com/2/14087852_F_tn.jpg

[Mass Haas]

Friday's Daily Menu: TGIF!

 

All times Central; pitchers subject to change --

 

Nashville: RHP Ben Hendrickson at Tacoma (Mariners), 7:40 PM pre-game; 8:00 PM gametime

 

Audio link:

www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/

 

Huntsville: RHP Dennis Sarfate at home vs. Chattanooga (Dodgers), 6:50 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime

 

Audio link:

www.espn1450.com/

 

If that link is down for bandwidth, use:

 

specs.eyecentric.com/pres...opup.shtml

 

Brevard County: TBD at home vs. Sarasota (Reds), 6:00 PM -- no web audio for this series

 

West Virginia: RHP Robbie Wooley at Asheville (Rockies), 6:00 PM; no web audio for this series

[Mass Haas]

Links to follow Friday night's action as it happens:

 

Nashville:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_tacaaa_1

 

Huntsville:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

 

Brevard County:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_breafx_1

 

West Virginia:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_ashafx_1

[Mass Haas]

Your Link Report Bonus Fun Fact:

 

Milwaukee's trade of Pat Borders to Seattle for cash ends the Brewers' longest current trade drought with another team, as the Mariners and Brewers hadn't been trading partners in over 23 years, since the Crew received pitcher Mike Parrott in exchange for outfielder Thad Bosley on March 5th, 1982.

 

The new drought is with Pittsburgh, since the blockbuster of catcher Ruben Rodriguez to the Crew for outfielder Lou Thornton, March 17, 1989, over sixteen years ago.

 

Thanks, Brewer media guide.

[Mass Haas]

Heading into Fridays action -- Mr. Hendrickson's going to have to eat some innings tonight...

 AM-NORTH DIVISION W L PCT GB MEMPHIS REDBIRDS (ST.LOUIS) 23 16 .590 [b]NASHVILLE SOUNDS (MILWAUKEE) 22 19 .537 2.0[/b] OMAHA ROYALS (KANSAS CITY) 18 23 .439 6.0 IOWA CUBS (CHICAGO CUBS) 16 24 .400 7.5

 NORTH DIVISION W L PCT GB WEST TENN DIAMOND JAXX (CHICAGO CUBS) 29 11 .725 CAROLINA MUDCATS (FLORIDA) 25 14 .641 3.5 [b]HUNTSVILLE STARS (MILWAUKEE) 19 22 .463 10.5[/b] CHATTANOOGA LOOKOUTS (CINCINNATI) 18 23 .439 11.5 TENNESSEE SMOKIES (ARIZONA) 17 23 .425 12.0

 EAST DIVISION W L PCT GB VERO BEACH DODGERS (LOS ANGELES DODGERS) 24 17 .585 DAYTONA CUBS (CHICAGO CUBS) 21 16 .568 1.0 JUPITER HAMMERHEADS (FLORIDA) 20 21 .488 4.0 PALM BEACH CARDINALS (ST.LOUIS) 18 21 .462 5.0 [b]BREVARD COUNTY MANATEES (MILWAUKEE) 16 24 .400 7.5[/b] ST. LUCIE METS (NEW YORK METS) 15 24 .385 8.0

 NORTHERN DIVISION W L PCT GB HAGERSTOWN SUNS (NEW YORK METS) 27 14 .659 LEXINGTON LEGENDS (HOUSTON) 24 16 .600 2.5 KANNAPOLIS INTIMIDATORS (CHICAGO WHITE SOX) 22 19 .537 5.0 LAKE COUNTY CAPTAINS (CLEVELAND) 21 19 .525 5.5 DELMARVA SHOREBIRDS (BALTIMORE) 18 23 .439 9.0 HICKORY CRAWDADS (PITTSBURGH) 17 23 .425 9.5 LAKEWOOD BLUECLAWS (PHILADELPHIA) 14 27 .341 13.0 [b]WEST VIRGINIA POWER (MILWAUKEE) 12 28 .300 14.5[/b]

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Media Notes for Friday (PDF format):

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf

[Athens Badger]

What's up with Mark Rogers? Did I miss something? Why isn't he pitching?

[Mass Haas]

Let me tell you -- it's so hard to get motivated for any type of Link Report update when the parent club is laying such a stink bomb, but here we go...

 

Final: Sarasota (Reds) 7, Brevard County 2

 

Brevard County Box Score:

Hey, if you're going to blow a lead, you might as well really blow a lead -- Dan Grybash faces six, retires zero; Steve Moss on base three times; Tim Dillard had only walked 11 in 47 IP prior to this one (four walks)...

 YTD YTD SARASOTA AB R H BI AVG BREVARD COUNTY AB R H BI AVG C.Dickerson CF 4 2 1 0 .271 S.Sollmann 2B 3 1 1 0 .241 H.Tiburcio SS 4 1 2 2 .273 D.Anderson LF 4 1 1 0 .269 J.Votto 1B 3 1 0 0 .258 S.Moss CF 3 0 2 1 .307 J.Ruiz RF 3 1 1 0 .336 J.Eure 1B 3 0 1 0 .241 J.Vavao DH 4 1 3 2 .302 L.Palmisano DH 3 0 0 0 .250 K.Smith LF 4 0 0 0 .274 C.Medlin CAT 3 0 1 1 .300 M.Perez CAT 4 0 1 2 .292 R.Deevers RF 4 0 0 0 .197 M.Schramek 3B 4 0 0 0 .216 C.De La Cruz 3B 4 0 1 0 .200 J.Mejia 2B 4 1 1 0 .237 O.Chavez SS 4 0 0 0 .229 B.Basham PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 T.Dillard PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 K.Edens PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 B.Hall PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 D.Grybash PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 B.Evert PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 34 7 9 6 TOTALS 31 2 7 2 SARASOTA 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 6 0- 7 9 1 BREVARD COUNTY 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0- 2 7 0 E--C.Dickerson. DP--SARASOTA 2, BREVARD COUNTY 2. LOB--SARASOTA 5, BREVARD COUNTY 7. 2B--J.Vavao (5). SB--C.Dickerson (4), J.Mejia (6). CS--H.Tiburcio, S.Sollmann. HBP--S.Sollmann, J.Eure. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SARASOTA B.Basham 5.1 5 2 2 1 6 0 4.13 K.Edens (W,3-1) 3.2 2 0 0 2 5 0 3.82 BREVARD COUNTY T.Dillard 6.0 3 1 1 4 5 0 3.40 B.Hall 1.0 0 0 0 0 1 0 4.10 D.Grybash (L,0-1) 0.0 5 6 6 1 0 0 7.64 B.Evert 2.0 1 0 0 0 2 0 0.00 HB--K.Edens 2. WP--T.Dillard, D.Grybash. SO--C.Dickerson, J.Votto 3, M.Perez, M.Schramek 3, D.Anderson 2, J.Eure, R.Deevers 2, C.De La Cruz 3, O.Chavez 3. BB--C.Dickerson, H.Tiburcio, J.Votto 2, J.Ruiz, S.Moss, L.Palmisano, C.Medlin. T--2:59. A--1949

Brevard County Game Log:

Double plays in the 4th and 7th hurt...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_breafx_1

[Mass Haas]

What's up with Mark Rogers? Did I miss something? Why isn't he pitching?

 

Rogers pitched three solid innings in a piggyback role in Tuesday's blowout loss. He'll start again next time out, probably Sunday.

[Mass Haas]

Final: Asheville (Rockies) 10, West Virginia 4

If there wasn't some serious talent near-ready at AAA, we'd all be looking to jump out windows right about now; we try to accentuate the positive here, but it's impossible to overlook what's been going on...

 

West Virginia Box Score:

Let's not kid ourselves -- Josh Baker is a 4th round college pick who should be more than holding his own at low-A -- instead he is disintegrating; Carlos Corporan was a 12th round pick in '03 -- do we get excited because he reached three times tonight -- I think not...

 YTD YTD WEST VIRGINIA AB R H BI AVG ASHEVILLE AB R H BI AVG A.Escobar SS 5 1 1 0 .299 J.Drgicevich 3B 5 0 1 0 .286 H.Iribarren 2B 4 0 2 1 .291 J.Valdez 2B 3 1 2 1 .226 W.Lewis DH 4 0 0 0 .292 J.Koshansky 1B 3 1 1 1 .324 J.Brady 3B 4 0 0 0 .327 M.Miller LF 5 2 2 3 .372 D.Bates RF 4 0 2 0 .239 J.Nelson RF 4 1 3 1 .235 C.Lozada CAT 4 0 0 0 .077 D.Hahn DH 5 1 1 2 .293 F.Parejo CF 3 0 1 0 .270 N.Robledo CAT 4 2 2 1 .292 C.Corporan 1B 2 2 1 0 .196 P.Strop SS 4 0 0 0 .250 A.Septimo LF 4 1 1 2 .233 J.Restrepo CF 4 2 2 1 .227 R.Wooley PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 R.Mattheus PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 J.Baker PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 F.Morales PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 B.Stanczyk PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Daley PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 S.Beresford PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 R.Hinton PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 34 4 8 3 TOTALS 37 10 14 10 WEST VIRGINIA 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 0 0- 4 8 2 ASHEVILLE 0 0 0 1 0 7 2 0 X-10 14 1 E--J.Brady, C.Corporan, P.Strop. DP--WEST VIRGINIA 1, ASHEVILLE 1. LOB--WEST VIRGINIA 7, ASHEVILLE 10. 2B--H.Iribarren (5), M.Miller 2 (14), J.Nelson (9), N.Robledo (8). HR--A.Septimo (1), D.Hahn (2). SB-- J.Restrepo (4). CS--F.Parejo. SF--J.Koshansky. SH--P.Strop. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA WEST VIRGINIA R.Wooley 5.0 6 1 1 1 2 0 4.72 J.Baker (L,1-3) 0.2 5 7 7 2 1 1 10.13 B.Stanczyk 0.1 1 0 0 0 0 0 4.05 S.Beresford 1.0 2 2 0 1 1 0 5.66 R.Hinton 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2.84 ASHEVILLE R.Mattheus (W,2-0) 6.0 6 2 2 2 3 1 2.55 F.Morales 2.0 2 2 1 1 2 0 1.80 M.Daley 1.0 0 0 0 1 0 0 5.48 WP--R.Mattheus, F.Morales. SO--A.Escobar 2, J.Brady, F.Parejo, A.Septimo, J.Drgicevich, J.Koshansky, P.Strop 2. BB--H.Iribarren, F.Parejo, C.Corporan 2, J.Valdez 2, J.Koshansky, J.Nelson, N.Robledo. T--2:48. A--1914

West Virginia Game Log:

Not sure if Robbie Wooley will ever have overpowering K or hit-to-IP numbers, but he has a chance to be Ben Hendrickson, which isn't bad...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_ashafx_1

[Mass Haas]

In progress: Chattanooga (Reds) 2, Huntsville 1, bottom of the 7th in Huntsville

It's 10:15 Central -- tune in and root on the Stars. Still trying to learn why Nelson Cruz left the game after hitting his 9th HR of the season in the 4th inning...

[Mass Haas]

Final: Chattanooga (Reds) 3, Huntsville 2, 10 innings

 

Huntsville Box Score:

Another quality Dennis Sarfate start -- this, as we get closer to another Andy Pratt start for Nashville; but what is going on with these first-inning runs allowed by the Stars?

 YTD YTD CHATTANOOGA AB R H BI AVG HUNTSVILLE AB R H BI AVG N.Hopper RF 5 1 1 0 .331 K.Bibbs LF 5 0 2 0 .294 C.Denorfia CF 4 1 2 1 .337 A.Gwynn CF 5 0 1 0 .316 A.Fernandez LF 5 0 1 0 .309 V.Rottino CAT 5 0 1 0 .294 S.Perez 3B 5 0 2 0 .278 N.Cruz RF 2 1 1 1 .269 K.Howard 2B 4 0 0 1 .281 T.Ezi RF 3 0 0 0 .240 J.Bannon SS 5 0 1 0 .261 T.Zuniga 3B 5 0 1 0 .256 B.Anderson 1B 3 0 0 0 .243 B.Gemoll 1B 3 1 0 0 .198 L.Caraccioli PIT 0 0 0 0 .091 C.Crabbe 2B 5 0 2 1 .238 J.Andrew PIT 0 0 0 0 .500 E.Cruz SS 3 0 0 0 .279 R.Asadoorian PH 1 0 1 0 .224 D.Sarfate PIT 2 0 0 0 .000 J.Schmidt PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 G.Rodriguez PH 1 0 0 0 .125 B.Nelson PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 M.Dewitt PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 B.Peterson CAT 4 1 1 0 .215 M.Ford PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 E.Valdez PIT 1 0 0 0 .000 J.Winchester PH 1 0 0 0 .259 K.Nichols 1B 1 0 0 0 .237 A.Zumwalt PIT 0 0 0 0 .400 TOTALS 38 3 9 2 TOTALS 40 2 8 2 CHATTANOOGA 1 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 1- 3 9 3 HUNTSVILLE 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 0- 2 8 1 E--S.Perez, B.Nelson, E.Valdez, C.Crabbe. DP--CHATTANOOGA 0, HUNTSVILLE 0. LOB--CHATTANOOGA 9, HUNTSVILLE 11. 2B--S.Perez (9), B.Peterson (7), C.Crabbe (8). HR--C.Denorfia (7), N.Cruz (9). CS--C.Denorfia. HBP-- B.Gemoll. SH--E.Valdez. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA CHATTANOOGA E.Valdez 5.0 5 1 1 1 4 1 4.81 L.Caraccioli 2.2 2 1 1 1 2 0 4.17 J.Andrew 0.1 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.60 J.Schmidt (W,2-3) 1.0 0 0 0 0 0 0 4.67 B.Nelson (S,7) 1.0 1 0 0 0 2 0 3.20 HUNTSVILLE D.Sarfate 6.0 5 2 2 2 4 0 3.16 M.Dewitt 1.0 1 0 0 0 1 0 3.98 M.Ford 2.0 1 0 0 1 1 0 3.57 A.Zumwalt (L,1-2) 1.0 2 1 1 0 1 1 4.28 HB--L.Caraccioli. WP--E.Valdez, D.Sarfate 2. SO--C.Denorfia, S.Perez 2, K.Howard, J.Bannon, E.Valdez, K.Nichols, V.Rottino, T.Ezi 2, T.Zuniga, C.Crabbe 2, D.Sarfate, G.Rodriguez. BB--C.Denorfia, K.Howard, K.Nichols, B.Gemoll, E.Cruz. T--3:13. A--4029

Huntsville Game Log:

Callix Crabbe strikes out looking to end it, but the key AB in the inning was Travis Ezi's failure to get down a bunt, fouling off three attempts; wow, Santiago Perez is still around...

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Pre-Game Audio with Rickie Weeks:

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/a...205-20.mp3

[Mass Haas]

In progress: Tacoma (Mariners) 3, Nashville 1, bottom of the 8th in Tacoma

Currently a wet 54 degrees rain delay, lovely...

 

Ben Hendrickson two earned runs in seven innings, can we please say goodbye to Gary Glover and hello to lil' Ben?

[Mass Haas]

West Virginia Site Game Summary:

 

ASHEVILLE, NC (May 20, 2005) ? The Asheville Tourists trailed the West Virginia Power 2-1 going into the bottom of the sixth inning, but the Tourists changed the game sending 11 batters to the plate, scoring seven runs on six hits to take the lead and they went on to beat the Power by the final of 10-4 on Friday night at McCormick Field.

 

The Tourists took the lead on an RBI single from Nelson Robledo in the bottom of the fourth inning. The Power took their only lead of the game on Agustin Septimo?s first home run of the season. It was a two-run homer in the top of the fifth inning and gave the Power a 2-1 advantage.

 

Dustin Hahn brought in the first two runs of the seven-run sixth inning on a two-run homer to make it 3-2 Tourists. John Restrepo?s RBI single gave the Tourists a two-run lead and Matt Miller broke the game open with a three-run double. Justin Nelson knocked in the final run of the inning on an RBI single and made it 8-2 Asheville.

 

In the top of the seventh inning Hernan Iribarren brought in a run on a groundout and Will Lewis reached on an error to bring in Alcides Escobar. It was an 8-4 game going into the bottom of the seventh inning when Asheville scored the final two runs of the game. The Tourists got their first run of the inning when Jose Valdez drew a bases loaded walk and Joe Koshansky followed with a sacrifice fly.

 

Ryan Mattheus (2-0) earned the victory, and Josh Baker (1-3) obtained the loss. The Power fall to 12-29 with the loss and the Tourists are 23-18 after the win.

 

The Power will begin a four game series on Saturday night with the Delmarva Shorebirds at Appalachian Power Park. RHP Josh Wahpepah (2-2, 3.29) will throw for the Power and the Shorebirds will counter with RHP Kevin Hart (2-1, 2.42).

[Mass Haas]

Final: Tacoma (Mariners) 5, Nashville 1

It's official -- a sucky night top to bottom...

 

Nashville Box Score:

Hendrickson allowed first two batters to reach in the 8th; someone tell us why this team has to go with 11 pitchers and have Matt Erickson essentially as a mascot...

 YTD YTD NASHVILLE AB R H BI AVG TACOMA AB R H BI AVG D.Krynzel CF 5 0 0 0 .273 J.Strong CF 4 0 0 0 .265 R.Weeks 2B 2 1 1 0 .319 S.Choo LF 3 0 1 0 .283 P.Fielder 1B 4 0 1 0 .236 C.Snelling RF 4 1 3 1 .412 K.Orie DH 4 0 1 1 .330 R.Christenso CAT 4 1 1 0 .295 C.Hart RF 3 0 1 0 .221 G.Jacobs DH 3 0 1 0 .263 T.Durrington 3B 3 0 0 0 .277 M.Morse SS 4 1 1 0 .265 J.Mosquera CAT 3 0 0 0 .232 A.Rifkin 1B 3 0 0 1 .247 R.Knox LF 3 0 0 0 .235 H.Brown 3B 3 1 2 1 .221 S.Scarboroug SS 3 0 0 0 .237 R.Santiago 2B 3 1 2 1 .217 B.Hendrkson PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 D.Moss PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 C.Weibl PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 J.Heaverlo PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 G.Sherrill PIT 0 0 0 0 .000 TOTALS 30 1 4 1 TOTALS 31 5 11 4 NASHVILLE 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0- 1 4 2 TACOMA 0 2 0 0 1 0 0 2 X- 5 11 1 E--J.Mosquera, B.Hendrkson, J.Strong. DP--NASHVILLE 2, TACOMA 1. LOB--NASHVILLE 12, TACOMA 7. 2B--P.Fielder (7), K.Orie (9), C.Snelling (9), M.Morse (11), H.Brown (5), R.Santiago (5). HBP--R.Knox. SF--A.Rifkin. SH--R.Santiago. YTD IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA NASHVILLE B.Hendrkson (L,1-4) 7.0 10 5 4 2 5 0 4.53 C.Weibl 1.0 1 0 0 1 1 0 5.91 TACOMA D.Moss (W,2-3) 5.0 3 1 1 6 2 0 3.52 J.Heaverlo 3.0 1 0 0 2 0 0 9.55 G.Sherrill 1.0 0 0 0 1 3 0 2.04 HB--D.Moss. WP--C.Weibl. SO--D.Krynzel, P.Fielder 2, K.Orie, T.Durrington, J.Strong, S.Choo, R.Christenso, G.Jacobs, M.Morse, A.Rifkin. BB-- R.Weeks 3, P.Fielder, K.Orie, C.Hart, T.Durrington, J.Mosquera, S.Scarboroug, S.Choo, G.Jacobs, H.Brown. T--2:50. A--7108

Nashville Game Log:

 

www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_tacaaa_1

[brewmann04]

this is starting to get a little tiresome

the big league club and now watching thee minor legue clubs loose daily

[BillScottCanRake]

Another nice outing from Dennis tonight. I love the consistancy he's shown from start to start this year.

[Mass Haas]

Nashville Site Game Summary:

 

Link for Kevin Orie photo, text follows --

 

www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=1576

 

TACOMA ? The Tacoma Rainiers evened their series with Nashville on Friday evening at Cheney Stadium, holding the Sounds to four hits in posting a 5-1 victory in the second game of a four-game series.

 

With the win, Tacoma (18-22) snapped a six-game losing streak. Nashville (22-20) left 12 runners on base in the contest, including at least one man in scoring position in five of the frames.

 

With the game scoreless, the Sounds missed a golden opportunity to jump out to an early lead in the top of the second inning. After loading the bases with only one out, Tacoma starter Damian Moss induced consecutive infield pop-ups from Steve Scarborough and Dave Krynzel to escape the jam unscathed.

 

The Rainiers used three doubles to grab a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second. With one out, shortstop Mike Morse ripped a two-bagger to left. After Sounds starter Ben Hendrickson fanned Aaron Rifkin for the second out, Hunter Brown and Ramon Santiago delivered back-to-back RBI doubles to left and center, respectively.

 

Nashville halved the lead in the fifth when Rickie Weeks (1-for-2, three walks) led off with a single against Moss, moved to second on an error by centerfielder Jamal Strong, and scored Nashville?s lone run later in the frame on Kevin Orie?s one-out RBI double.

 

Another Rainiers two-out RBI double increased the Tacoma lead to 3-1 in the fifth. Santiago opened the inning with a single and moved to second on a failed pickoff attempt by Hendrickson. Two outs later, PCL batting leader Chris Snelling (3-for-4) ripped a line-drive two-bagger to left to plate Santiago and moved his average above .400 for the year.

 

Tacoma tacked on a pair of insurance run to extend the lead to 5-1 in the bottom of the eighth. Rifkin plated Snelling with a sacrifice fly then Ryan Christianson scampered home on a wild pitch by Nashville reliever Clint Weibl.

 

Sounds outfielder Corey Hart (1-for-3) extended his hitting streak to a season-best four games with a second-inning single. Prince Fielder went 1-for-4 for Nashville, producing his fourth double in the last three games.

 

Moss (2-3) walked six batters in his five innings but allowed only one runs on three hits to pick up the victory. Hendrickson (1-4) took the loss after surrendering five runs (four earned) and striking out five over a season-high seven frames.

 

The teams meet in the third game of the series on Saturday afternoon at 3:35 p.m. CT. Left-hander Jeff Housman (2-1, 3.66) takes the hill for the Sounds to face Tacoma right-hander Cha Seung Baek (2-1, 4.50).

[Mass Haas]

One note not mentioned earlier -- Nashville did walk nine times (and scored one run). Rickie Weeks walked three times, nice.

[Mass Haas]

Huntsville Site Game Summary:

 

Chris Denorfia?s leadoff home run in the tenth inning carried Chattanooga to a 3-2 win over Huntsville Friday night in the second game of a three-game series at Joe Davis Stadium. The Lookouts have taken the first two games of the series to improve to 19-23 overall and 12-11 on the road, while the Stars dropped their fourth game in a row to slide to 19-23 overall and 11-8 at home.

 

Alec Zumwalt opened the tenth inning on the hill and Denorfia sent his 1-1 offering over the wall in left-center field for his seventh long ball of the year. Santiago Perez doubled with one out but was stranded when Zumwalt struck out Kevin Howard and retired Jeff Bannon on a ground ball out.

 

Bubba Nelson took over on the mound for Chattanooga in the bottom of the tenth and allowed a lead off single to Vinny Rottino, who then moved to second base on an errant pickoff attempt. Travis Ezi struck out trying to bunt Rottino to third and Tony Zuniga reached on a fielder?s choice when his ground ball was fielded by Nelson, who threw behind Rottino in an unsuccessful attempt to catch the Stars catcher going back to second base. Brandon Gemoll flied out to right field for the second out and Callix Crabbe was called out on strikes to end the game. The Stars left 11 runners on base, including multiple runners in the third, fourth, sixth and tenth innings.

 

Kevin Howard walked with the bases loaded and one out in the first inning to force in the game?s first run and Huntsville starter Dennis Sarfate?s wild pitch allowed Brian Peterson to score from third base with two outs in the fourth. The Stars have been scored on in the first inning in 16 of their last 29 games.

 

Nelson Cruz ended an 11 at-bat drought without a hit with a leadoff home run in the fourth inning, his ninth of the year, that sliced the Lookouts lead to 2-1. Chattanooga starter Eddie Valdez went five innings, giving up a run on five hits and fanning four. Lance Caraccioli took over and worked scoreless relief in the sixth and seventh innings and was one out away from a shutout eighth inning before he hit Gemoll and gave up a double to Crabbe that chased Gemoll home to tie the game at two.

 

Sarfate lasted six innings, marking the sixth time in nine his starts he has gone at least that long, and allowed a pair of runs on five hits. The right-hander struck out four and walked two and has not allowed the last 11 batters he has put on via walk to score. Matt DeWitt worked a scoreless seventh and Matt Ford tossed two scoreless frames in relief.

 

Tony Gwynn, Jr. finished with one hit in five tries to extend his hitting streak to a season-long eight games, while Kennard Bibbs went two-for-five and has now hit safely in seven in a row.

 

The series concludes Saturday night with left-hander Manny Parra taking the hill against Lookouts s left-hander Phil Dumatrait. Coverage of the game gets underway at 6:50 p.m. central time on ESPN 1450 AM and via the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com.

[Past Member]

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[Past Member]

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[Past Member]

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