FINCHES DEAL, RECALL WAKEFIELD

The Darwin Finches have made a deal with the Pottsylvania Creepers to get RHP Gil Meche, widely-regarded as the best starter still available on the open market. Meche (10-11 with a 2.77 ERA in 25 starts with the Creepers) will no doubt step into the rotation. Pottsylvania also parted with LHP Hideki Okajima and a player to be named. To get the pair, Darwin sent the Central Division doormats OF Jeff Francouer, reliever Jonathan Broxton, starter Josh Johnson and a player to be named.

Creepers GM Jeff Moore had this to say, "We are a sad to see Gil and Hideki go, but they haven't got the run support they deserve here. The fact is our offense has been junk, even for the Central division. We needed to make a move for next year and sending Gil and Hideki, both having pitched well, to Darwin seemed like the right move. The next season is what we have to think about now and Broxton will go a long way toward shoring up our pen. Jeff will move into the outfield and provide some offense hopefully. Getting some youth and guys healthy is going to be key for next season, then we roll the bones and see what happens."

More details on Darwin's blog!

To set up their rotation, the Finches recalled 41-year-old knuckleballer Tim Wakefield (4-4, 4.44 ERA in 24 games) to make a spot start against the Lexington Rebels and indicated they may keep the veteran depending on how their middle relief shakes out. Wakefield certainly did his part, overcoming a two-run first by the host Rebels which was keyed by Curtis Granderson's leadoff triple. But the Finches hung around against Brandon Webb (13-8, 3.52) in the third, kicking across three runs after a bad throw by Granderson allowed Chipper Jones to score and the Finches went on to beat Lexington by a 4-2 score, with Okajima working a scoreless eighth to get the ball to J.J. Putz, who overcame a pair of singles to post his 13th save of the season.

With the win, Darwin pulled within one game of Eastern-leading Frostbite Falls (76-49) with 27 games left to play.

In other BARB action:

YUMA 4, BROOKLYN 3

WP: Rafael Perez (7-2, 1.41)
LP: Rafael Betancourt (7-4, 3.07)

Nick Markakis hit a two-run homer in the sixth, a game-tying double in the eighth, and was on deck when Francisco Rodriguez walked in the winning run with one down in the bottom of the ninth, as the Freebirds came all the way back from trailing 3-0 in the fifth to win at home in Yuma. With the win, their third straight, Yuma has pulled two games ahead of sibling rival Lexington with 23 games left to play in the Western Division.

WORCESTER 14, CASSELTON 9

WP: Heath Bell (7-7, 3.44)
LP: Clay Hensley (0-2, 9.75)

Kendy Morales hit two home runs to give the Horned Toads a 9-8 lead after seven innings, but the Casselton pen melted down in the eighth, allowing six runs as Jason Bay and Alex Rios each smacked run-scoring singles off Hensley and Mark Teixeira drilling a two-run double off Kevin Correia.

BLACK MESA 7, FROSTBITE FALLS 2

WP: Ted Lilly (8-13, 4.61)
LP: Cole Hamels (7-9, 3.60)
SV: Bailey (1)

Adam Dunn singled in the go-ahead run, and when Jeff Kent's throw to home plate bounced away from Mike Napoli, the Anomalies would go on to score four unearned runs and knock out Cole Hamels. Much-punished (9.45 ERA) rookie Homer Bailey, the bearer of so much unrealized expectations, finally had a positive moment in BARB by pitching three scoreless frames in relief to earn a save.

LAS VEGAS 6, OAKEYLAND 2

WP: Erwin Santana (7-12, 5.08)
LP: Bobby Howry (7-3, 3.86)

Erwin Santana outlasted Daisuke Matsuzaka, using just 117 pitches to go TEN innings, only the second-such outing this year by a BARB hurler (Tim Hudson, now on the DL, was the other). Once 'Dice-K' was out, the Luchadores went to work on their divisonal rival. Prince Fielder reached with one out on a throwing error by rookie 3B Andy LaRoche, and Joey Votto then drilled a two-run double for the go-ahead runs. Vegas would go on to score four times, and so Santana was allowed to work the bottom of the tenth....with the result being that Las Vegas (67-62) would win its ninth straight game. The Luchadores now lead the moribund Central by five games with 23 games to play.