The highlights were victories by Lansing and Bluefield. The lowlights were a couple of one-run losses by the same score, a doubleheader sweep, two extra innings losses and an 11-run beatdown in a 2-6 Monday for the affiliates.
Sacramento 9 Las Vegas 8
Las Vegas, NV - The best the 51s can do is get a split against the first-place River Cats on Tuesday. The A's affiliate is now 5 1/2 games ahead of Las Vegas after winning two of the first three games of the series. Joel Carreno could not hold an early 4-1 lead as he could not find the strike zone with a GPS, a map, a telescope, a magnifying glass or Blue's Clues thanks to a whopping seven walks and four hits that led to six runs in 3 2/3 innings. He only struck out a pair. Clint Everts prevented Carreno's line from getting worse by stranding both of his runners. He worked around two hits and a walk with three strikeouts over 1 2/3 scoreless frames. Lefty Evan Crawford (1-2) suffered the loss as Josh Donaldson ripped a three-run homer in his one inning of work that also included one more hit, a walk and a strikeout. Bobby Korecky racked up two Ks over 1 2/3 perfect frames and Chad Beck overcame two hits and a walk for a scoreless ninth, thanks in large part to Moises Sierra - who cut down a run at the plate for a 9-2 double play.
A Travis Snider fielder's choice and a Sierra single in the first gave Las Vegas a 2-1 lead and they tacked on two more runs in the third on Sierra's two-run double. Jonathan Diaz and Mike McCoy connected for solo homers in the fourth and sixth innings respectively, with McCoy's blast giving Las Vegas a brief 7-6 lead. Yan Gomes had a run-scoring groundout in the fifth and Chris Woodward singled in a run in the eighth. Sierra and Woodward were the hit leaders with two apiece with Sierra also getting a base on balls. Diaz also earned a walk to go along with his homer. Gomes had a double and a walk, Eric Thames had a single and a hit by pitch and Travis Snider had a double. Travis d'Arnaud had a single in his lone trip to the plate before leaving the game with an injury. Paul Phillips had a walk and scored a run while replacing d'Arnaud. Phillips was later replaced behind the dish by Gomes. Anthony Gose got a walk, a plunk and two stolen bases to run his total to 29. Adeiny Hechavarria had a bad night with the stick by going 0-for-5. He also made his 14th error of the year at short.
Harrisburg 9 New Hampshire 8
Manchester, NH - The Fisher Cats offence had their work cut out for them after the Nationals affiliate put a big, fat eight on the scoreboard in the second inning. Fernando Hernandez (1-5) gave up all those runs and only got five outs. The carnage came in the form of eight hits and two walks. He was hurt by two long balls and had just one strikeout. Trystan Magnuson stranded a runner for Hernandez and worked 2 1/3 shutout innings, allowing just two hits and getting two strikeouts. Matt Daly gave up what turned out to be the eventual winning run in the form of a solo homer over his two innings of work that included one punchout. Stephen Marek walked one, plunked one and struck out one in a scoreless seventh and Ronald Uviedo followed up with two more scoreless innings in which he walked only one while striking out three.
New Hampshire chipped away at the eight-run deficit with two runs of their own in the second, courtesy of a Kenen Bailli run-scoring double and a Brian Bocock RBI groundout. They crept closer in the fourth with run-scoring singles by Brian Van Kirk and Bocock and a fielder's choice groundout by Justin Jackson. In the sixth, Bocock went deep for a two-run homer, his first of the year, as part of a three-run outburst but that was as close as the Fisher Cats would get. They had runners at second and third with nobody out in the seventh but the next nine men were retired to end the game. Bailli and Mark Sobolewski led the Fisher Cats charge with three-hit games while Bocock and Ryan Goins had two hits apiece. Bocock also stole a base. Van Kirk drew a walk to go along with his RBI single and Joel Galarraga was plunked twice and stole a base. John Tolisano and Mike McDade were 0-for-5 and Jackson was 0-for-4.
Game 1 - Bradenton 3 Dunedin 1 (10 Innings)
Dunedin, FL - Asher Wojciechowski pitched well enough for the win but Pirates prospect Colton Cain matched goose eggs with him for the first six innings. "The Big 'Ciechowski" limited the Marauders to two hits and a walk while striking out four and inducing 10 groundball outs. He set down the first 12 hitters in a row. Alan Farina got three ground ball outs in the seventh but Dayton Marze (2-3) took the loss after giving up three runs over three innings, including two in the tenth. The damage was the result of three hits and two hit by pitches. He struck out a pair and four of his six outs stayed in the infield.
The D-Jays offence had just three hits and none of them figured into the tying run in the eighth. Michael Crouse walked and moved up to second on a Kevin Nolan walk before stealing third. He came home on a Jonathan Jones bunt. Ryan Schimpf doubled and walked, Jon Talley doubled and Jones singled for the three Dunedin hits. Kevin Ahrens walked but Jake Marisnick, Marcus Knecht and Jack Murphy were a combined 0-for-12. Marisnick did throw out a runner at second base from center field to end the 10th inning.
Game 2 - Bradenton 6 Dunedin 2 (7 Innings)
Dunedin, FL - Casey Lawrence had his trouble spot in the second inning when he allowed all four of his runs. After plunking the leadoff man in the third, he set down the next nine Marauders in a row to end his start on a good note. Lawrence was hurt by five hits, a walk and a hit by pitch. One of the runs was unearned as a Ryan Schimpf error at second allowed the leadoff hitter to reach base. Lawrence had three strikeouts and eight groundball outs. Evan Englebrook got through the sixth by issuing just one base on balls but Shawn Griffith had a rough seventh as the Pirates affiliate raked him for two runs on three hits and two walks.
A Ryan Schimpf RBI double and an Oliver Dominguez RBI single in the seventh prevented a shutout for Dunedin. Schimpf had two of Dunedin's six hits. The other hits came from Jonathan Jones, Jake Marisnick and Marcus Knecht getting one each. Jon Talley and Kevin Ahrens heard ball four once. Kevin Nolan was 0-for-4 and Koby Clemens went 0-for-3.
Lansing 6 Fort Wayne 2
Fort Wayne, IN - Carlos Perez put the Lugnuts ahead for good with a two-run single in the third inning and Andy Burns followed with a two-run double. Shane Opitz, who pinch-hit for Burns in the fifth, plated home another run with a double in the seventh and K.C. Hobson singled in another tally to cap off the frame. Perez had a double for a two-hit night and Gustavo Pierre was the other Lugnut with a two-hit effort. Kevin Pillar had a single and a walk while Jon Berti had a single and a plunk. Kevin Patterson also made a dent in the hit column. Chris Hawkins and Kenny Wilson were hitless but Hawkins walked twice (once intentionally) and Wilson laid down a sacrifice bunt to set the stage for Perez's two-run single in the third.
Lefty Justin Nicolino (3-0) pitched two-run, six-hit ball over five innings to beat the Padres affiliate. He walked one and struck out seven to go along with three outs on the ground. Nicolino went through one stretch by retiring 10 of 11 hitters, with the one runner reaching on a Burns error at short. CLAP! Aleson Escalonte got the hold by pitching two shutout frames with two hits and two strikeouts on his pitching line. Brandon Berl got the next five outs while giving up a single and a walk while registering a couple of Ks. Ajay Meyer stranded a pair of baserunners with a game-ending strikeout to collect his 22nd save.
Everett 13 Vancouver 2
Everett, WA - The Mariners affiliate rudely welcomed the defending Northwest League champions with one run in the first before leapfrogging their way to nine more runs in the second. Lefty Eric Brown saw three balls go over the fence and was hammered for all 10 runs on nine hits and a walk over 1 2/3 innings while striking out one. Andrew Sikula had nothing but twos in his pitching line as he went 2.2 innings and gave up two runs on two hits and two walks. Ian Kadish had a 4-2 K/BB total over two shutout frames. Philip Brua allowed the final run over his one inning of work on one hit and a wild pitch. Infielder Matt Johnson mopped up with a clean ninth that included a pair of Ks. We may have the next Mike McCoy here!
Daniel Arcila made sure the AquaSox would not get the shutout as he punched home two with a double but he was thrown out at third. Ian Parmley was the only C's hitter to collect two hits and also worked a walk from the leadoff spot. Derrick Chung pinch-hit for Parmley and got a hit in his lone at-bat. Jorge Flores doubled with the other base hits coming from Tucker Frawley and Nick Baligod. Flores and Frawley were also hit by pitches. Jordan Leyland, Dan Klein and Kellen Sweeney each earned a base on balls. Matt Newman was 0-for-3 and Balbino Fuenmayor was 0-for-2. Dalton Pompey and Leo Hernandez came up empty in their lone at-bats.
Bluefield 10 Burlington 5
Burlington, NC - A two-out error in the first inning by the Royals second baseman opened the door for Art Charles, who blasted a two-run home run to get Bluefield on the board in the first inning. Charles went deep again for another two-run shot in the third inning to cap off a three-run outburst. Jason Leblebijian had an RBI double in the sixth while Matt Dean's two-run double and Carlos Ramirez's RBI single highlighted a four-run ninth. Charles had three hits and a walk and Leblebijian was 3-for-6, including two doubles. Jacob Anderson was 2-for-3 with a walk, a hit by pitch and a stolen base and Ramirez enjoyed a two-hit night. The Juniors, Dwight Smith and Dickie Thon, each collected a base hit in five at-bats. Christian Lopes was 0-for-4 with two walks but Seth Conner was hitless in his five trips to the dish.
Deivy Estrada (1-0) pitched the minimum five innings for the victory. All four runs he gave up came in the fourth after he retired the first nine hitters in a row. The trouble started with a hit by pitch and ended with a three-run homer. He settled down to work a one-hit fifth. Estrada gave up five hits, struck out four and walked no one. Six of his 10 outs in play were of the groundball variety. Lefty Griffin Murphy pitched three shutout frames by scattering two hits and walk and ringing up a couple of strikeouts. He also picked off a runner. Denny Valdez struck out a couple but walked a couple and plunked a couple and that led to a run in the ninth.
GCL Braves @ GCL Blue Jays - Postponed.
DSL Brewers 10 DSL Blue Jays 8 (10 Innings)
San Pedro de Macoris, DR - Angel Rojas had a 4-for-6 day with an RBI, Cesar Barazarte had three hits and a walk with two RBI and Edwin Fuentes reached base four times with a hit and three walks. Deiferson Barreto had a hit, two walks and a stolen base. Gustavo Perinen had a single and a base on balls. Andres De Aza and Luis Martin each had doubles and two runs knocked in. Ronniel Demorizi walked twice and stole a base. Andres Sotillo was 1-for-2 with an RBI and Roberto Vahils was 0-for-2 with a walk from the catcher's position.
Luis De La Rosa pitched no-hit ball for three shutout innings. The bad news was a 1-4 K/BB ratio. Wilmin Lara also went three innings but was nailed for three runs on three hits, including a homer, along with a 1-1 K/BB total. Gilberto Vielma got credited with a hold but nothing else as he retired all of one batter while allowing four runs on two hits and two walks while whiffing one. Manuel Lopez (1-2) got the double whammy with a blown save and the loss thanks to three runs (two earned) on three hits and walk while racking up one K. He also allowed out of Vielma's three runners to score. Eyerys Guerrero stranded two Lopez runners in working a perfect ninth that saw him strike out a batter.
*** 3 Stars!!! ***
3. Asher Wojciechowski, Dunedin - The Dude abides with his fourth quality start over his last six to lower his ERA to 4.28.
2. Art Charles, Bluefield - Hitting .350 with an OPS of 1.519 to start the season.
1. Justin Nicolino, Lansing - A 1.42 ERA and a 55-11 K/BB ratio over 57 innings. Opponents are hitting just .226.
Extra Innings...
Sacramento 9 Las Vegas 8
Las Vegas, NV - The best the 51s can do is get a split against the first-place River Cats on Tuesday. The A's affiliate is now 5 1/2 games ahead of Las Vegas after winning two of the first three games of the series. Joel Carreno could not hold an early 4-1 lead as he could not find the strike zone with a GPS, a map, a telescope, a magnifying glass or Blue's Clues thanks to a whopping seven walks and four hits that led to six runs in 3 2/3 innings. He only struck out a pair. Clint Everts prevented Carreno's line from getting worse by stranding both of his runners. He worked around two hits and a walk with three strikeouts over 1 2/3 scoreless frames. Lefty Evan Crawford (1-2) suffered the loss as Josh Donaldson ripped a three-run homer in his one inning of work that also included one more hit, a walk and a strikeout. Bobby Korecky racked up two Ks over 1 2/3 perfect frames and Chad Beck overcame two hits and a walk for a scoreless ninth, thanks in large part to Moises Sierra - who cut down a run at the plate for a 9-2 double play.
A Travis Snider fielder's choice and a Sierra single in the first gave Las Vegas a 2-1 lead and they tacked on two more runs in the third on Sierra's two-run double. Jonathan Diaz and Mike McCoy connected for solo homers in the fourth and sixth innings respectively, with McCoy's blast giving Las Vegas a brief 7-6 lead. Yan Gomes had a run-scoring groundout in the fifth and Chris Woodward singled in a run in the eighth. Sierra and Woodward were the hit leaders with two apiece with Sierra also getting a base on balls. Diaz also earned a walk to go along with his homer. Gomes had a double and a walk, Eric Thames had a single and a hit by pitch and Travis Snider had a double. Travis d'Arnaud had a single in his lone trip to the plate before leaving the game with an injury. Paul Phillips had a walk and scored a run while replacing d'Arnaud. Phillips was later replaced behind the dish by Gomes. Anthony Gose got a walk, a plunk and two stolen bases to run his total to 29. Adeiny Hechavarria had a bad night with the stick by going 0-for-5. He also made his 14th error of the year at short.
Harrisburg 9 New Hampshire 8
Manchester, NH - The Fisher Cats offence had their work cut out for them after the Nationals affiliate put a big, fat eight on the scoreboard in the second inning. Fernando Hernandez (1-5) gave up all those runs and only got five outs. The carnage came in the form of eight hits and two walks. He was hurt by two long balls and had just one strikeout. Trystan Magnuson stranded a runner for Hernandez and worked 2 1/3 shutout innings, allowing just two hits and getting two strikeouts. Matt Daly gave up what turned out to be the eventual winning run in the form of a solo homer over his two innings of work that included one punchout. Stephen Marek walked one, plunked one and struck out one in a scoreless seventh and Ronald Uviedo followed up with two more scoreless innings in which he walked only one while striking out three.
New Hampshire chipped away at the eight-run deficit with two runs of their own in the second, courtesy of a Kenen Bailli run-scoring double and a Brian Bocock RBI groundout. They crept closer in the fourth with run-scoring singles by Brian Van Kirk and Bocock and a fielder's choice groundout by Justin Jackson. In the sixth, Bocock went deep for a two-run homer, his first of the year, as part of a three-run outburst but that was as close as the Fisher Cats would get. They had runners at second and third with nobody out in the seventh but the next nine men were retired to end the game. Bailli and Mark Sobolewski led the Fisher Cats charge with three-hit games while Bocock and Ryan Goins had two hits apiece. Bocock also stole a base. Van Kirk drew a walk to go along with his RBI single and Joel Galarraga was plunked twice and stole a base. John Tolisano and Mike McDade were 0-for-5 and Jackson was 0-for-4.
Game 1 - Bradenton 3 Dunedin 1 (10 Innings)
Dunedin, FL - Asher Wojciechowski pitched well enough for the win but Pirates prospect Colton Cain matched goose eggs with him for the first six innings. "The Big 'Ciechowski" limited the Marauders to two hits and a walk while striking out four and inducing 10 groundball outs. He set down the first 12 hitters in a row. Alan Farina got three ground ball outs in the seventh but Dayton Marze (2-3) took the loss after giving up three runs over three innings, including two in the tenth. The damage was the result of three hits and two hit by pitches. He struck out a pair and four of his six outs stayed in the infield.
The D-Jays offence had just three hits and none of them figured into the tying run in the eighth. Michael Crouse walked and moved up to second on a Kevin Nolan walk before stealing third. He came home on a Jonathan Jones bunt. Ryan Schimpf doubled and walked, Jon Talley doubled and Jones singled for the three Dunedin hits. Kevin Ahrens walked but Jake Marisnick, Marcus Knecht and Jack Murphy were a combined 0-for-12. Marisnick did throw out a runner at second base from center field to end the 10th inning.
Game 2 - Bradenton 6 Dunedin 2 (7 Innings)
Dunedin, FL - Casey Lawrence had his trouble spot in the second inning when he allowed all four of his runs. After plunking the leadoff man in the third, he set down the next nine Marauders in a row to end his start on a good note. Lawrence was hurt by five hits, a walk and a hit by pitch. One of the runs was unearned as a Ryan Schimpf error at second allowed the leadoff hitter to reach base. Lawrence had three strikeouts and eight groundball outs. Evan Englebrook got through the sixth by issuing just one base on balls but Shawn Griffith had a rough seventh as the Pirates affiliate raked him for two runs on three hits and two walks.
A Ryan Schimpf RBI double and an Oliver Dominguez RBI single in the seventh prevented a shutout for Dunedin. Schimpf had two of Dunedin's six hits. The other hits came from Jonathan Jones, Jake Marisnick and Marcus Knecht getting one each. Jon Talley and Kevin Ahrens heard ball four once. Kevin Nolan was 0-for-4 and Koby Clemens went 0-for-3.
Lansing 6 Fort Wayne 2
Fort Wayne, IN - Carlos Perez put the Lugnuts ahead for good with a two-run single in the third inning and Andy Burns followed with a two-run double. Shane Opitz, who pinch-hit for Burns in the fifth, plated home another run with a double in the seventh and K.C. Hobson singled in another tally to cap off the frame. Perez had a double for a two-hit night and Gustavo Pierre was the other Lugnut with a two-hit effort. Kevin Pillar had a single and a walk while Jon Berti had a single and a plunk. Kevin Patterson also made a dent in the hit column. Chris Hawkins and Kenny Wilson were hitless but Hawkins walked twice (once intentionally) and Wilson laid down a sacrifice bunt to set the stage for Perez's two-run single in the third.Lefty Justin Nicolino (3-0) pitched two-run, six-hit ball over five innings to beat the Padres affiliate. He walked one and struck out seven to go along with three outs on the ground. Nicolino went through one stretch by retiring 10 of 11 hitters, with the one runner reaching on a Burns error at short. CLAP! Aleson Escalonte got the hold by pitching two shutout frames with two hits and two strikeouts on his pitching line. Brandon Berl got the next five outs while giving up a single and a walk while registering a couple of Ks. Ajay Meyer stranded a pair of baserunners with a game-ending strikeout to collect his 22nd save.
Everett 13 Vancouver 2
Everett, WA - The Mariners affiliate rudely welcomed the defending Northwest League champions with one run in the first before leapfrogging their way to nine more runs in the second. Lefty Eric Brown saw three balls go over the fence and was hammered for all 10 runs on nine hits and a walk over 1 2/3 innings while striking out one. Andrew Sikula had nothing but twos in his pitching line as he went 2.2 innings and gave up two runs on two hits and two walks. Ian Kadish had a 4-2 K/BB total over two shutout frames. Philip Brua allowed the final run over his one inning of work on one hit and a wild pitch. Infielder Matt Johnson mopped up with a clean ninth that included a pair of Ks. We may have the next Mike McCoy here!
Daniel Arcila made sure the AquaSox would not get the shutout as he punched home two with a double but he was thrown out at third. Ian Parmley was the only C's hitter to collect two hits and also worked a walk from the leadoff spot. Derrick Chung pinch-hit for Parmley and got a hit in his lone at-bat. Jorge Flores doubled with the other base hits coming from Tucker Frawley and Nick Baligod. Flores and Frawley were also hit by pitches. Jordan Leyland, Dan Klein and Kellen Sweeney each earned a base on balls. Matt Newman was 0-for-3 and Balbino Fuenmayor was 0-for-2. Dalton Pompey and Leo Hernandez came up empty in their lone at-bats.
Bluefield 10 Burlington 5
Burlington, NC - A two-out error in the first inning by the Royals second baseman opened the door for Art Charles, who blasted a two-run home run to get Bluefield on the board in the first inning. Charles went deep again for another two-run shot in the third inning to cap off a three-run outburst. Jason Leblebijian had an RBI double in the sixth while Matt Dean's two-run double and Carlos Ramirez's RBI single highlighted a four-run ninth. Charles had three hits and a walk and Leblebijian was 3-for-6, including two doubles. Jacob Anderson was 2-for-3 with a walk, a hit by pitch and a stolen base and Ramirez enjoyed a two-hit night. The Juniors, Dwight Smith and Dickie Thon, each collected a base hit in five at-bats. Christian Lopes was 0-for-4 with two walks but Seth Conner was hitless in his five trips to the dish.Deivy Estrada (1-0) pitched the minimum five innings for the victory. All four runs he gave up came in the fourth after he retired the first nine hitters in a row. The trouble started with a hit by pitch and ended with a three-run homer. He settled down to work a one-hit fifth. Estrada gave up five hits, struck out four and walked no one. Six of his 10 outs in play were of the groundball variety. Lefty Griffin Murphy pitched three shutout frames by scattering two hits and walk and ringing up a couple of strikeouts. He also picked off a runner. Denny Valdez struck out a couple but walked a couple and plunked a couple and that led to a run in the ninth.
GCL Braves @ GCL Blue Jays - Postponed.
DSL Brewers 10 DSL Blue Jays 8 (10 Innings)
San Pedro de Macoris, DR - Angel Rojas had a 4-for-6 day with an RBI, Cesar Barazarte had three hits and a walk with two RBI and Edwin Fuentes reached base four times with a hit and three walks. Deiferson Barreto had a hit, two walks and a stolen base. Gustavo Perinen had a single and a base on balls. Andres De Aza and Luis Martin each had doubles and two runs knocked in. Ronniel Demorizi walked twice and stole a base. Andres Sotillo was 1-for-2 with an RBI and Roberto Vahils was 0-for-2 with a walk from the catcher's position.
Luis De La Rosa pitched no-hit ball for three shutout innings. The bad news was a 1-4 K/BB ratio. Wilmin Lara also went three innings but was nailed for three runs on three hits, including a homer, along with a 1-1 K/BB total. Gilberto Vielma got credited with a hold but nothing else as he retired all of one batter while allowing four runs on two hits and two walks while whiffing one. Manuel Lopez (1-2) got the double whammy with a blown save and the loss thanks to three runs (two earned) on three hits and walk while racking up one K. He also allowed out of Vielma's three runners to score. Eyerys Guerrero stranded two Lopez runners in working a perfect ninth that saw him strike out a batter.
*** 3 Stars!!! ***
3. Asher Wojciechowski, Dunedin - The Dude abides with his fourth quality start over his last six to lower his ERA to 4.28.
2. Art Charles, Bluefield - Hitting .350 with an OPS of 1.519 to start the season.
1. Justin Nicolino, Lansing - A 1.42 ERA and a 55-11 K/BB ratio over 57 innings. Opponents are hitting just .226.
Extra Innings...
- The Toronto Star went down to the farm for a recent look at the Las Vegas 51s.
- MLive.com delivers another Lugnuts profile, this time on outfielder Kenny Wilson.
- The Vancouver Province has a feature on C's slugger Balbino Fuenmayor and catches up with Kellen Sweeney.
- The Vancouver Sun has an article on MIssissauga's Dalton Pompey.
- The Globe & Mail has a chat with C's owner Jake Kerr.
- The Bluefield Daily Telegraph talks to manager Dennis Holmberg.
