Three affiliates managed five runs in their three losses. The other scored ten and won in a 1-3 night on the farm.
Las Vegas, NV - Much like the game at Camden Yards Tuesday night, this one got away from the Jays affiliate in the middle to late innings. Fabio Castro gave up two doubles and a walk in the first inning, all with two outs, that produced the game's first run. The lefty set down the next seven in a row but he loaded up the bases with three straight singles in the fifth. Two of those runners came in to score on a pair of ground outs. Castro set down the Marlins affiliate in order in the fifth but he could only get one out in the sixth as he yielded two runs on a double and two singles. T.J. Beam relieved Castro and gave up another single and double in the fifth that led to another run and a 6-0 Zephyrs lead. It was not a good night to be anyone named Romero in the Jays organization. Lefty Davis Romero got to the mound in the seventh and was torched for three runs on two doubles, a single, a walk and a sacrifice fly. Romero struck out two in a three-up, three down eighth but gave up the tenth run in the ninth on a double, single and ground ball.
The 51's finally realized they could step on home plate too in the seventh. Travis Snider was plunked by a pitch, went to second on a groundout and scored on a Jonathan Diaz single. On that same play, Angel Sanchez was thrown out trying to reach third for the final out after he got on board with a walk. Las Vegas added their second run in the eighth when J.P. Arencibia knocked home Howie Clark with a single. Yes, another two-out clutch hit! I mean that sincerely.
Clark and Arencibia had the only two-hit games for the 51's with Arencibia hitting .382 in his last 10 games. Arencibia also brrought his slugging percentage up to .500 on the season. He also committed a passed ball but that didn't figure into the scoring. In case you missed it, "J.P.A." received some mad props from Baseball America. Also, Sanchez had a hit and drew the only walk while Travis Snider had a single and was plunked but also struck out twice. He's batting .300 so far in his Lost Wages stint. Buck Coats singled and stole an unclutch base in the third when the game was still 1-0 New Orleans. What was he trying to prove?
Pitching-wise, Castro did give up six runs in 5 1/3 innings on eight hits and a walk but did record 11 outs on the ground along with three punchouts. Romero punched out four in three innings but also gave up the other four runs on five hits and a walk.
Manchester, NH - The prolific offence also showed up at the AA level. Is there really a need to sound the sarcasm alert at his point? Randy Boone worked a perfect first inning for the Fisher Cats but gave up a three spot in the second on two singles, a hit by pitch, a wild pitch and a double all figuring into the equation along with an error by Adam Calderone in right field that allowed a runner to advance. Boone settled downed nicely when he got through a leadoff double in the third and set down the next ten hitters in a row. He left the game after 5 2/3 innings by punching out his final batter but he left a couple of singles for lefty Rommie Lewis to deal with and Lewis was able to strand the two runners with an inning-ending strikeout. Lewis pitched a one-walk seventh but left after plunking the leadoff man in the eighth. Adrian Martin came in and served up a two-run bomb to Aaron Bates. Martin gave up three more singles over two innings but he didn't allow anyone else to score.
The only New Hampshire run came in the third when Todd "Charlie" Donovan singled and managed to come home on a triple by Calderone. This all came against some guy named John Smoltz, who left after 3 1/3 innings. The F-Cats had at least one runner on from the fifth inning forward but they couldn't manage to score against the bullpen of the Red Sox affiliate.
Todd Donovan, Brad Emaus and Luis Sanchez had two hits apiece to account for most of the Fisher Cats eight hits on the night. Donovan, the former Ottawa Lynk, also had a stolen base. The four-through-seven hitters were a combined 0-for-15 with David Cooper drawing a lone walk.
On the mound, Boone took the loss as he gave up three runs in 5 2/3 innings on six hits and a plunk. His K/BB total was 4-0 and got eight ground ball outs. His ground out/fly out ratio is almost 2.5 to 1.
Dunedin 10 Sarasota 3 (Rain Shortened - 5 1/2 Innings)
Sarasota, FL - Jays win! Jays win! Wow, it feels good to type that again! John Tolisano got things going with a one-out triple and he scored on a Moises Sierra sac fly in the first. The Reds would respond with single runs in the first and second against lefty Ryan Page. He gave up on a walk, single and ground ball for the first run and a double, walk and single led to the second run. Kevin Ahrens did throw out a runner at home from third to prevent the inning from getting out of kilter.
The D-Jays went to the running game to open the third as Darin Mastroianni singled, stole second and then stole third as part of a double steal with Tolisano after he walked. They were cashed in by a Sierra single to make it 3-2 Dunedin. Adam Loewen and Justin Jackson had the other two-RBI hits in the inning with Loewen connecting for a double while Jackson hit a single. Sierra drove home his fourth run of the game by plating a Jonathan Jaspe double in the fourth, Mastroianni picked up an RBI in the fifth on a fielder's choice and Ahrens singled home a Sierra walk in the sixth. It was after that half-inning the game was called.
Dunedin reached double-digits in the hit column led by Sierra going 2-for-2 with a walk and four RBI. With that effort, Sierra is hitting .309 on the season. Tolisano and Ahrens also got aboard three times with a hit and a pair of walks. Ahrens is hitting .429 over his past 10 games while Jackson is batting .419 during the same span.
The beneficiary of the Dunedin offence was Page, who also gave up a run in the third on a double and single but he didn't allow a run in the fourth and fifth innings for the "complete game". He gave up three runs (two earned) in five innings on seven hits and two walks. He also rang up three to earn his first win of the season. Hopefully, it's onward and upward for Page as he is 1-6 with a 5.95 ERA on the season.
Lansing, MI - Back to the limp offence again! Lefty John Anderson started this one for the Lugnuts and managed to survive three singles in the first thanks after picking off a runner at first. He struck out two in the second inning and overcame a single, stolen base and walk in the third. The Royals affiliate did get on the board first in the fourth inning on two singles and a walk but the inning came to end when Brian Van Kirk threw out a runner at the plate from left field.
Yorman Mayora took over for Anderson in the fifth and overcame a leadoff walk. He would give up a run in the sixth on a double and walk to make it 2-0 Burlington. Lefty Hunter Moody had to rescue Mayora in the seventh by striking out Eric Hosmer with a runner on third to end the inning. Moody got through the eighth by allowing just a walk while whiffing three over 1 1/3 innings to give the Lansing offence another chance.
Up to this point, the Lugnuts best chance to score was in the third when they had runners at second and third with one out but they could not score. They finally broke through in the eighth as Van Kirk homered with Tyler Pastornicky aboard on a single and stolen base to tie the game at 2-2. Burlington would take the lead for good with a three-run ninth against Dustin Antolin thanks to a walk, a two-out single that scored the winning run and a pair of doubles. The Lugnuts could only muster a Balbino Fuenmayor infield single in the ninth. The good news is he's batting .364 over his past 10 contests but the bad news is his K/BB total is an ugly 29-1!
The Lugnuts were 3-for-3 in stolen bases with Pastornicky stealing twice for numbers 16 and 17 and Markus Brisker swiping one. Brisker is 12-for-15 in the SB department but is hitting a woeful .102 on the campaign.
*** 3 Stars!!! ***
3. Brian Van Kirk, Lansing
2. John Tolisano, Dunedin
1 . Moises Sierra, Dunedin
Extra Innings........
* The Las Vegas Sun speaks with David Purcey.
* The Las Vegas Review-Journal has a word with Travis Snider.
* The New Hampshire Union Leader reports on the hoopla surrounding the rehabbing John Smoltz in Manchester.
