Rocky Top---"Anything he can do, I can do better." Or at least, so it seemed early in May, as Brooklyn Moabs 3B Adrian Beltre came out on top against Squirrels OF Jayson Werth, three homers to two, to ensure a split of a twi-night doubleheader on the road against Frostbite Falls.
In the opening game, Jason Heyward proved impossible for C John Buck to corral on the basepaths and Werth proved his...well, mettle. Heyward singled with two down in the third, and launched for second on the first pitch to Werth. Werth drilled the ball over a leaping Ben Zobrist and Heyward, never hesitating, scored on what would be a double. Frostbite Falls led, 1-0! Brooklyn brought things even when Andrew McCutchen singled, swiped second and scored on a groundout in the fourth, then went ahead in the sixth on Ryan Howard's team-leading 5th HR, and appeared ready to send things to the bullpen.
But, again, Heyward and Werth made Yovanni Gallardo (3-1, 3.93) pay. Heyward worked a walk to lead off the bottom of the sixth, and Werth again made hard contact with the runner on the move, a second RBI double that tied the affair at 2-2.
Felix Hernandez couldn't hold it against Brooklyn's bench, however. Pinch-hitter Daric Barton worked a two-out walk, and Hernandez inexplicably hit Gallardo to put Barton at second, where he scored two pitches later on a single by pinch-hitter Ian Stewart. Brooklyn led, 3-2, and seemed ready to put things in the hands of their bullpen, especially since Gallardo had been hit by a pitch. For reasons unknown, Gallardo was instead allowed to start the eighth, and the first two hitters he would face....you guessed it....Hayward and Werth.
Heyward walked on a 3-1 pitch. Gallardo got ahead of Werth, but his 1-2 offering was BELTED well back, over the wall in right center....a two-run poke, and a 4-3 Frostbite lead! Middleman Chris Perez (3-0, 0.79) got the win, and Joakim Soria worked around a walk to Brian McCann to collect his fourth save: Frostbite Falls had one a tough game in the opener, 4-3!
In the nightcap, Werth would supply more offensive juice, hitting his second HR of the day and team-leading 9th overall, driving a pair of runs against Jon Lester (3-0, 3.45). But it wouldn't be enough, because Moabs 3B Adrian Beltre had a career day. Beltre hit a solo homer leading off the second, hit an RBI double in the fourth and scored, and smashed a two-out bomb in the fifth, all at the expense of Cole Hamels (2-3, 3.86). Beltre would cap his big day with another solo shot against reliever Eric O'Flaherty, as he and his club romped to an easy 8-2 win! So, on the day overall, Beltre went 4-for-9 overall, but his four hits, all for extra bases, were the winning margin by a long shot in helping the Moabs salvage a split.
With his big day, Beltre took over the team lead in HR (6) and RBI (19), and is hitting .262 overall after being let go by the Eliminators in favor of younger, cheaper, talent.
In other BARB action:
YUMA 4, CASSELTON 2
WP: Tommy Hanson (5-1, 3.40)
LP: Shawn Marcum (1-3, 4.32)
SV: Soriano (10)
Buster Posey snapped a 2-2 tie with a seventh-inning sac fly, Rafael Soriano collected his BARB-leading 10th save of the season and the visiting Horned Toads hurt their own cause by rapping into three double plays to help keep the defending Central champs below .500 in mid-May.
ST. FRANCIS 8, AC/BC 4
WP: Kevin Correia (1-0, 2.25)
LP: Chad Billingsley (2-3, 4.54)
With both Dallas Braden and Roy Oswalt sidelined, the Friars called up veteran Kevin Correia to make a spot start on the road in Anaheim, and Correia had a strong effort: despite ten hits, the minor-league free agent went eight innings, allowing only two earned, while getting plenty of run support, as both Kevin Youkilis and Jose Bautista homered.
POTTSYLVANIA 4, CENTRAL CALIFORNIA 0
WP: Tony Pena (1-0, 4.05)
LP: Daniel Hudson (1-3, 3.92)
Matt Kemp homered twice, driving in three runs to support Koji Uehara and three relievers, who combined on a six-hit shutout to get Pena a win and escape the cellar in the highly-competitive Central Division. Grant Balfour and Carlos Marmol combined to fan five of the last six .45 hitters, dropping the Central Cal's below .500 in the Western Division, behind both Yuma and AC/BC . . .
PHILADELPHIA 5, NEW ENGLAND 3
WP: Cliff Lee (3-1, 3.15)
LP: Max Scherzer (2-2, 5.40)
SV: Jose Valverde (10)
Former Darwin farmhand Max Scherzer's first start in a New England 'uni' was ruined by poor defense in the fourth, as a passed ball by J.P. Arencibia and a dropped fly led to three unearned runs, while Alex Rodriguez had a perfect day at the plate (3 H, 2 BB) as part of the Rebels 13-hit attack.
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