The affiliates won both games that went into extra innings but lost every game that didn’t. Fabio Castro and Scott Gracey turned in strong starts while Henderson Alvarez did not. Andrew Liebel took another loss despite not pitching too badly. Brian Dopirak had a forgettable night while two fast-rising relievers pitched scoreless innings. However, the biggest story may have been in New Hampshire where the Fisher Cats came within two outs of being no-hit.
Las Vegas 2 @ Omaha 0 (11 innings) – Boxscore
Fabio Castro and Heath Phillips duelled on the mound in a low-scoring Triple-A contest. Each went 8 innings and gave up three walks. Castro allowed 4 hits and struck out 4 while Phillips allowed 7 and struck out 5. Victor Marte and Rommie Lewis ensured that the game remained scoreless through 9. Marte through a scoreless tenth and Lewis got two outs in the tenth but allowed a runner to reach base. Dirk Hayhurst came in and allowed a single to JR House before an intentional walk to Kila Ka’aihue allowed Hayhurst to face and retire Jordan Parraz.
Four consecutive singles in the eleventh by Angel Sanchez, Aaron Mathews, Howie Clark and Randy Ruiz scored two runs in the top of the eleventh. Bubbie Buzachero came in for the save and threw 8 of 9 pitches for strikes and got three groundouts. Mathews was 4-for-6 and Clark was 3-for-4. Ruiz and Sanchez each had two hits, while Brian Dopirak had one of his worst games of the season with an 0-for-6.
Bowie 7 @ New Hampshire 1 – Boxscore
Brandon Erbe threw 8 innings of no-hit ball against the Fisher Cats. New Hampshire drew three walks, but couldn’t touch Erbe. I don’t know how many pitches he had thrown, but I assume it was a bunch as he was lifted for Jim Hoey to begin the ninth. Hoey couldn’t complete the combined no-hitter as Todd Donovan, Adam Calderone and Brad Emaus hit consecutive singles. Emaus drove in Donovan to put New Hampshire on the scoreboard, but after David Cooper struck out Darin Mastroianni walked to load the bases. However, Brian Jeroloman grounded out to end the incredibly faint hopes of a comeback.
The BaySox scored three runs in 5 innings off starter Adrian Martin and didn’t let up aginst the relievers. They touched both Leon Boyd and Nathan Starner for two runs each before Danny Farquhar threw a scoreless ninth.
Dunedin 3 @ Clearwater 4 – Boxscore
Another day another loss for Andrew Liebel. Not much else to say as he fell to 4-12. Liebel went 6.2 innings and gave up 4 runs on 9 hits. Daniel DeLucia escaped the seventh and stranded one of Liebel’s runners. Tim Collins pitched the eighth and walked a batter, but struck out three.
Dunedin had nine hits, but none went for extra-bases. Moises Sierra, Manny Rodriguez and Adam Loewen each had two singles and John Tolisano, Jonathan Jaspe and Kevin Ahrens each added a hit. Brad McElroy went 0-for-2 but drew three walks and scored a run.
Lansing 6 @ Fort Wayne 12 – Boxscore
This game was even more lopsided than it appears as it was 10-1 Fort Wayne after three innings were complete. Henderson Alvarez didn’t make it out of the second and allowed six runs, five earned, over 1.2 innings. Jonas Cuotto stranded both of the runners he inherited from Alvarez but couldn’t get out of third himself and ended up allowing four runs, three earned, over 0.2 innings. Dustin Antolin threw 2 scoreless frames The Wizards also got to Ryan Koch for a pair of runs over 1.2 innings before Yorman Mayora got through the last two frames without damage.
Chris House led the Lugnuts with three hits in the game and he only entered the game as a pinch-hitter. Chris Emanuele, Johermyn Chavez and Mark Sobolewski each had two hits with Sobolewski hitting a double and triple. Every Lugnut who started the game got a hit, except for Brian Van Kirk who made way for House in the fourth. Every Lansing batter from the third to the eighth in the lineup had one and only one RBI.
Vermont 2 @ Auburn 3 (10 innings) – Boxscore
Scott Gracey went 7 innings and struck out five. Gracey surrendered six hits and two unearned runs as Auburn made three errors in the top of the fifth. Kyle Gilligan had trouble adjusting to 3B as he made errors on consecutive throws and Wellinton Ramirez also made one on a throw by the outfield. Zach Anderson went 1.2 innings and gave up a single hit and Casey Beck wound up with his first win of the year with three strikeouts over 1.1 innings.
The Doubledays had eight hits on the afternoon and half of them came from Ryan Goins. Wellinton Ramirez had a double and single, Gilligan added a double and Ryan Schimpf had a single. Gilligan and Shimpf scored in the third, the former on Schimpf’s fielder’s choice and the latter on Schimp’s triple. Marcus Brisker walked to lead the bottom of the tenth and, as so often happens, this came back to haunt Vermont. Schimpf sacrificed Brisker to second, but he couldn’t score on Goins’ fourth hit of the day. Sean Ochinko was intentionally walked to load the bases and then Ramirez singled to third base, scoring Brisker.
GCL Blue Jays @ GCL Pirates – Postponed.
Postponed.
Three Stars:
3rd Star – Ryan Goins, 4-5, 3B, RBI, 6 TB
2nd Star – Scott Gracey, 7 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 0 ER, 0 BB, 5 K
1st Star – Fabio Castro, 8 IP, 4 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 4 K
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