The Finches entered the week with a BARB-leading winning percentage (61-41, .598), but went down prettily handily in the opening game of a three-game series with the Squirrels: Frostbite Falls scored four times in the first against winless John Smoltz (0-4, 7.22), and never looked back, giving Matt Garza (11-7, 3.42) plenty of run support. Jayson Werth smacked his 15th longball in a platoon role, Evan Longoria added his 20th, and not even a late rally against Garza propelled by Adam LaRoche's 20th belt of the year could help the Finches, as their bullpen coughed up six late runs. Joe Nathan then got the last five outs, two of those with the bases juiced, to earn his 26th save of the season: FROSTBITE FALLS 10, DARWIN 5!
In the second game, Tim Lincecum (11-7, 2.74) was close to unstoppable. Darwin's only real threat came in the sixth, when Chipper Jones singled to load the bases with one out, only of only five safeties surrendered by the youthful Squirrels ace. But this time LaRoche struck out and Aaron Rowand hit a can of corn to Nate McLouth. Lincecum would end up going all the way, his fourth complete game and third shutout in this year's campaign. Meanwhile, his teammates Mark DeRosa and Magglio Ordonez collected RBI singles against Chad Billingsley (6-3, 3.75). FROSTBITE FALLS 2, DARWIN 0!
The finale of the three-game set, however, featured Darwin's ace, 14-game winner Zack Greinke, matched against resurgent lefty Cole Hamels, who had posted five straight wins during the middle of the summer to take the lead in wins on Frostbite's staff. With Lincecum and Garza equalling his 11th tally, would he do better?
Not on your life. Hamels was pounded for six runs and never made it out of the third, and when the dust had cleared, the Finches had handed Greinke a 9-1 lead after four innings, getting a pair of two-run singles from veteran Chipper Jones (now hinting at retirement) as well as Jeff Francouer's third bomb of the season. But, brimming with confidence, the Squirrels made things interesting, scoring four runs aginast a guy with an eight-game winning streak. Albert Pujols hit his 29th, and the Squirrels actually loaded the bases in the ninth against Hideki Okajima before getting the last out: DARWIN 11, FROSTBITE FALLS 5!
In all, the Squirrels had scored four runs off the hurler who is arguably the league's best. Greinke improved to 15-3 with a 3.18 ERA, while Hamels remained stuck at 11-7, tied with Lincecum and Garza for the team lead in wins. But you would never know there was gloom in the Squirrels clubhouse after the final out. "Let's start another nine-game winning streak," clipped an ebullient J.J. Hardy.
In other BARB action:
YUMA 3, WORCESTER 1
WP: Roy Halladay (12-5, 2.45)
LP: Brandon Morrow (3-3, 4.21)
Roy Halladay used 104 pitches to notch his BARB-leading 10th complete game to help the Firebirds overcome Mark Teixeira's 25th home run of the year. With the win, Yuma pulled within three games of West-leading Darwin, who lost two of three from Frostbite Falls. Worcester, meanwhile, finally gave up sole possesion of the lead in the East.
FRESNO 4, MADTOWN 3
WP: Matt Capps (4-5, 4.42)
LP: Kerry Wood (4-4, 3.29)
Matt Capps blew the save by giving up a game-tying solo shot in the eighth to Matt Holliday, but 'vultured' a win when Kerry Wood coughed up an RBI single in the bottom of the frame to former batterymate Jorge Posada, and the Regulators (60-55) stayed within six games of the wild card lead.
TEXAS 3, ST. FRANCIS 2
WP: Derek Holland (3-3, 4.72)
LP: Edwin Jackson (6-9, 5.20)
SV: Rodney (9)
The youthful Tornadoes got solo shots from Alex Rodriguez, Elvis Andrus and (in the first of his career with Texas) Travis Snider, and rookie Derek Holland worked eight strong innings, and St. Francis lost their first series in more than two weeks. The Friars are rumored to be shopping OF Shin Soo-Choo.
CASSELTON 8, LOS ANGELES 2
WP: Joe Saunders (5-8, 4.53)
LP: Jordan Zimmerman (1-7, 8.22)
Streaky Mike Napoli, his average below .250, collected three hits and drove in four runs to lead the Horned Toads, snapping an 0-for-17 skid, and Joe Saunders worked into the 8th to nail down a rare victory as Casselton (59-50) won its third straight to stay close in the Central Division.
WILL FIREBIRDS MAKE A MOVE?
Yuma gets two big bats (RF Vlad Guerrero and 1B/DH Lance Berkman) back this week, and if ever there was a time for the Firebirds to make a move in the West race, this might be it. Darwin, still looking for offensive help, has lost two of their last three series and seem to be sputtering in the bullpen as well. Yuma almost never misses the playoffs, so it will interesting to see if they finally start shopping their top prospects.
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