OAKLAND DUMPED FROM PENNANT CHASE
Oakland----The East-leading Squirrels swept their hosts in a three-game set, making official what fans of the United ballclub had known for months: that, despite some obvious talent, there was simply not enough healthy hurling to hang with the 'big boys' in the ultra-competitive East.
Once again, Danny Haren (12-11, 3.93) would pitch just well enough to lose, taking a 4-3 lead into the seventh before he and (the soon to retire?) Trevor Hoffman combined to permit a three-run uprising, the big blow being Adam Lind's 26th boundary belt of the year. It was just the latest in a series of failures of the overworked (and, frankly, over-the-hill) Hoffman, whose changeup is largely indistinguishable from his fastball these days.
Thanks to Lind's poke, Squirrels reliever Chris Perez earned his first win against five losses, and Jason Frasor picking up his seventh save of the year....and Oakland was eliminated in the East, continuing recent trends for a ball club that as recently as 2008 was a playoff club. With only 3B David Wright and 2B Brandon Philips remaining as regulars from the club, and with injuries to aces like Josh Beckett and Brandon Webb, Oakland has fallen on hard times. In fact, if the United club would need to sweep their final 13 games in order to finish at .500.
The Squirrels, meanwhile, are sitting pretty atop the East. They not only have a three-game lead with thirteen games left to play, but due to the unbalanced scheduled they will have a stretch off, allowing them to juggle their rotation for the final week of play. Through 135-odd games, here are the standings:
ROTATION JUGGLES, STUMBLES IN MARATHON
In the final weeks of play in the 2010 BARB season, many clubs fiddled with their rotations, and none more desperately so than the Pottsylvania Creepers.
Eager to defend their 2009 crown, Creepers GM Jeff Moore laid down the law: games against divisional rivals, but especially Central-leading Casselton, would get as much of Pottsylvania's two aces (Cliff Lee and Chris Carpenter) as possible....even if that meant extreme rotation juggling, to the point of short rest!
On Game Day 135, however, that strategy was put to its toughest test as the Creepers (71-67)hosted the West-leading Yuma Firebirds (77-55) with stormy weather in play. Lee started for Pottsylvania, but was spiked at first base by a hustling Denard Span and had to leave after one inning for precautionary evaluation. A cascade of relievers followed for Pottsylvania, while Yuma had the luxury of Matt Cain on the mound, who was unhittable in the first five frames.
In the sixth, however, with a 1-0 lead, Cain gave up a one-out single and (perhaps losing concentration on the loss of the no-hitter) walked the next two batters. DH Hideki Matsui then hit a fly ball deep enough to score Matt Kemp, and the game was tied, 1-1.
So it would remain for.....the next four-plus innings, as Yuma and Pottsylvania played extra innings. Yuma took a 3-1 lead in the top of the 11th after Vladimir Guerrero delivered a two-run single with two out. Hong Chih-Kuo had two lefties to get out, 1B Carlos Pena and Matsui. In the bottom of the 11th, the home-town Creepers pinch-hit righty-swinging Ryan Garko to face Kuo, but the Korean fanned him, then got two strikes on Matsui....who punched a single the opposite way. Yuma summoned Huston Street to retire Aaron Hill, but with two out Street gave up a soft single to Ryan Ludwick. Kelly Shoppach hit for Benji Molina, and the backup delivered a sac fly to make it, 3-2, Yuma.
Aramis Ramirez was intentionally walked to load the bases with two outs, allowing Street to face the less-dangerous Erick Aybar. Aybar came through, however, tieing the ballgame with an RBI single, the first time that Street had blown a save this year in a Yuma uniform. Rafael Soriano retired Kemp, but the damage was done: the game was tied, 3-3, after 11 innings.
And then.....the pitchers dominated. Pottsylvania took the wrappers off hard-throwing lefty Aroldis Chapman, who fanned two Firebirds. Soriano worked two frames for Yuma, and then Rafael Betancourt used 40 pitches over three innings! Not to be outdone, Creepers reliever Tony Pena worked four-plus innings, and despite walking five batters, none of them scored, with Fausto Carmona (4-6, 5.14) bailing him out with the bases juiced to end the 15th.
Yes, the 15th! And then, 16 innings....17 innings....and, finally, the 18th. Denard Span put the pressure on with one out against Carmona, beating out a bunt single. Ryan Braun went the other way for a soft safety, and Joey Votto was walked with one down, putting the winning run just 90 feet away. But both Zimmerman and Guerrero topped sliders softly back to the infield to deny the scoring threat!
In the bottom of the 17th, Yuma's sixth pitcher of the day (Matt Thornton) unraveled: Kemp singled with out out and Felix Pie (who had gotten into the affair in the 12th as a pinch-hitter) drew a walk. Garko hit a ground ball to second that was too slow to force either Kemp or Pie, and (playing the hero once more) Hideki Matsui sliced a sharp single to score Kemp, a walkoff hit to end a marathon affair: POTTSYLVANIA 4, YUMA 3!
A bizarre game like this leaves a box score that has to be seen to be believed....
In other BARB action:
MADTOWN 9, ST. FRANCIS 3
WP: Kevin Correia (6-5, 4.20)
LP: Brett Myers (3-3, 4.97)
Murlocs star Prince Fielder is used to hitting long balls, but not swiping bags. The bulky ball-blaster did it all in this game however, starting a rare 3-5-3 double play, smacking his team-leading 39th home run and (in the first inning), stunned veteran C A.J. Pyrzinski with a steal attempt...that was successful, as the throw was late!
The mouthy Pyrzinski argued that OF Hunter Pence had interfered with him at the plate, and in an unusual move, the starting catcher was taken out of the game by, of all people, a player rather than a coach or a manager! Backup C Jason Varitek, a recent addition, walked out with a lineup card and made a double switch, apparently on the orders of someone in the dugout, and the game continued with Pyrzinski screaming into the showers. What is going on with this ball club?
ARIZONA 7, DARWIN 1
WP: Tommy Hanson (8-7, 3.74)
LP: Max Scherzer (8-7, 5.45)
Tommy Hanson needed 96 pitches to go all the way against visiting Darwin, and the Thunder (led by rookie Jose Tabata) scored plenty against Scherzer and reliever Sean O'Sullivan, keeping their late-season pursuit of Central-leading Casselton in play.
Arizona has won 8 of their last 9, with GM Ronald Melkonian putting his confidence in Tabata in the two-hole, while C Miguel Montero has cinched the starting role over prized phenom Matt Wieters.
CASSELTON 3, BLACK MESA 2
WP: Sergio Romo (2-3, 7.20)
LP: Luis Perdomo (5-4, 6.25)
Barry Zito put up six scoreless frames and left with a 2-0 lead, but Casselton scored solo runs in the 7th, 8th and (in walkoff fashion), the ninth, with J.J. Hardy leading off the bottom of that frame with a solo HR off reliever Luis Perdomo.
With the win, Casselton snapped an eight-game losing streak and held hard-charging Arizona at bay for one more day.
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