SQUIRRELS' STREAK REACHES EIGHT: FROSTB
ITE TAKES OVER EASTERN LEAD
Office of the League Commissioner---As all of the Eastern clubs were on the road in the West, one club (the Frostbite Falls Flying Squirrels) chose this time to get hot, winning nine of ten and eight straight thanks to solid starting pitching, allowing GM Andrew Haynes's club to catch, then "overtake" their slugging rivals in Worcester with a 65-46 record....though, to be fair, the Eliminators still held an advantage in the 'W' column with a 66-48 mark.
Still, after spending most of the summer in third behind both Worcester and Brooklyn, the Squirrels have hit their stride, posting back-to-back 3-0 shutouts of the reeling Black Mesa Anomalies as part of a dominant doubleheader. In the opener, Tim Lincecum (11-7, 3.95) shrugged off talk of 'What's wrong with Timmy?' with a 12-K effort, working out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth, and combining with three relievers on a four-hitter as they got all the offense they needed from rookie Jason Heyward's 15th HR of the year off losing pitcher Barry Zito (7-11, 5.02). In the nightcap, it was 'King' time as Felix Hernandez (12-7, 3.19) combined with Jason Frasor to bamboozle the Anomalies further, with Albert Pujols launching his club-leading 36th bomb of the year off Ted Lilly (3-7, 4.47) to seal the triumph.
The double dip sweep gave the Squirrels a two-game lead in the 'L' column and a half-game overall, as things did not go their rivals way in Yuma. The Firebirds (57-47) have are the defending world champs and boast one of the loop's best rotations, but their offense has come up second this season to the surprising Murlocs, who continue to be the itch that the Arizonans just can't quite reach: Madtown's sweep of Oakland improved them to 60-48, while Yuma would need an epic ninth inning at home to escape with a win against visiting Worcester.
And it was epic! Trailing 7-4 entering the frame, Yuma would score four times to win in walkoff fashion against Craig Breslow (1-3, 3.38), with the clincher being Denard Span's two-run single off the great Mariano Rivera, only the Panamanian's fourth blown save of the year. The rally made a winner of Rafael Betancourt (2-0, 4.15) and kept the club from falling two games behind the hot Murlocs.
In other BARB action:
POTTSYLVANIA 3, CASSELTON 1
WP: Armando Gallaraga (7-10, 6.57)
LP: John Danks (8-5, 3.67)
SV: Fuentes (2)
Carlos Pena hit his BARB-leading 39th circuit shot of the season and fifth starter Armando Gallaraga took a shutout into the seventh before yielding a run as the Creepers (57-55) won their third straight to move two games over .500 for the first time since mid-summer.
ARIZONA 4, ST. FRANCIS 3
WP: Tommy Hanson (5-7, 4.13)
LP: Randy Wells (2-7, 4.50)
SV: Dotel (4)
Andre Ethier's 22nd blast of the season capped a third inning in which the Thunder scored all the runs they would need, rapping out four scores at the expense of Randy Wells, who allowed three straight run-scoring hits to seal his doom.
OAKLAND 4, MADTOWN 3
WP: Derek Lowe (7-10, 5.83)
LP: Hideki Kuroda (12-5, 3.85)
SV: Capps (5)
Matt Capps bailed out a shaky Trevor Hoffman to help preserve a rare win for Derek Lowe, and part-time OF Andruw Jones hit a pair of home runs off Hideki Kuroda as the United squad won on the road in 'Madtown'. Oakland was able to do what so many other BARB clubs of late have not been able to do: get a lead early against a Murlocs starter. The Madtown club is an amazing 56-1 when leading or tied after seven innings, a testimony to their unheralded bullpen.
SQUIRRELS' STREAK REACHES EIGHT: FROSTBITE TAKES OVER EASTERN LEAD
ITE TAKES OVER EASTERN LEAD
Office of the League Commissioner---As all of the Eastern clubs were on the road in the West, one club (the Frostbite Falls Flying Squirrels) chose this time to get hot, winning nine of ten and eight straight thanks to solid starting pitching, allowing GM Andrew Haynes's club to catch, then "overtake" their slugging rivals in Worcester with a 65-46 record....though, to be fair, the Eliminators still held an advantage in the 'W' column with a 66-48 mark.
Still, after spending most of the summer in third behind both Worcester and Brooklyn, the Squirrels have hit their stride, posting back-to-back 3-0 shutouts of the reeling Black Mesa Anomalies as part of a dominant doubleheader. In the opener, Tim Lincecum (11-7, 3.95) shrugged off talk of 'What's wrong with Timmy?' with a 12-K effort, working out of a bases-loaded jam in the fifth, and combining with three relievers on a four-hitter as they got all the offense they needed from rookie Jason Heyward's 15th HR of the year off losing pitcher Barry Zito (7-11, 5.02). In the nightcap, it was 'King' time as Felix Hernandez (12-7, 3.19) combined with Jason Frasor to bamboozle the Anomalies further, with Albert Pujols launching his club-leading 36th bomb of the year off Ted Lilly (3-7, 4.47) to seal the triumph.
The double dip sweep gave the Squirrels a two-game lead in the 'L' column and a half-game overall, as things did not go their rivals way in Yuma. The Firebirds (57-47) have are the defending world champs and boast one of the loop's best rotations, but their offense has come up second this season to the surprising Murlocs, who continue to be the itch that the Arizonans just can't quite reach: Madtown's sweep of Oakland improved them to 60-48, while Yuma would need an epic ninth inning at home to escape with a win against visiting Worcester.
And it was epic! Trailing 7-4 entering the frame, Yuma would score four times to win in walkoff fashion against Craig Breslow (1-3, 3.38), with the clincher being Denard Span's two-run single off the great Mariano Rivera, only the Panamanian's fourth blown save of the year. The rally made a winner of Rafael Betancourt (2-0, 4.15) and kept the club from falling two games behind the hot Murlocs.
In other BARB action:
POTTSYLVANIA 3, CASSELTON 1
WP: Armando Gallaraga (7-10, 6.57)
LP: John Danks (8-5, 3.67)
SV: Fuentes (2)
Carlos Pena hit his BARB-leading 39th circuit shot of the season and fifth starter Armando Gallaraga took a shutout into the seventh before yielding a run as the Creepers (57-55) won their third straight to move two games over .500 for the first time since mid-summer.
ARIZONA 4, ST. FRANCIS 3
WP: Tommy Hanson (5-7, 4.13)
LP: Randy Wells (2-7, 4.50)
SV: Dotel (4)
Andre Ethier's 22nd blast of the season capped a third inning in which the Thunder scored all the runs they would need, rapping out four scores at the expense of Randy Wells, who allowed three straight run-scoring hits to seal his doom.
OAKLAND 4, MADTOWN 3
WP: Derek Lowe (7-10, 5.83)
LP: Hideki Kuroda (12-5, 3.85)
SV: Capps (5)
Matt Capps bailed out a shaky Trevor Hoffman to help preserve a rare win for Derek Lowe, and part-time OF Andruw Jones hit a pair of home runs off Hideki Kuroda as the United squad won on the road in 'Madtown'. Oakland was able to do what so many other BARB clubs of late have not been able to do: get a lead early against a Murlocs starter. The Madtown club is an amazing 56-1 when leading or tied after seven innings, a testimony to their unheralded bullpen.
SQUIRRELS' STREAK REACHES EIGHT: FROSTBITE TAKES OVER EASTERN LEAD
No comments:
Post a Comment