MVN - Most Valuable Network

Lincoln’s Lynchburg Debut; More Affiliate Games

Potomac Nationals 13, Lynchburg Hillcats 5
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Brad Lincoln, the Pirates’ first-round draft pick in 2006, made his first start with the Lynchburg Hillcats last night. It was not the debut he might have liked, as he gave up 5 runs on 7 hits and 2 walks in 4 innings, with one strikeout. Potomac put up two runs in the bottom of the 1st inning. The first two batters Lincoln faced both singled, putting runners on first and third bases. A double steal brought in one run, and a sacrifice fly scored the second run. Lincoln gave up a lone single in the 2nd inning and put the Potomac batters down in order in the 3rd inning.

Lincoln started the 4th inning by giving up a single, which was followed by back-to-back homers — a 2-run homer by National’s Aaron Seuss, and a solo homer by Trevor Lawhorn. Lincoln recovered to get the next two batters to ground out, then gave up a walk, and then struck out the final batter of the inning.

The Hillcats scored one run in the top of the 2nd inning. DH Kent Sakamoto led off with a double, and RF Miles Durham singled, moving Sakamoto to third base. Durham stole second base, moving him into scoring position. C Kris Watts singled up the middle, easily scoring Sakamoto. Durham rounded third and headed for the plate, but the throw in from center field was right on target, and Durham was out. Unfortunately, his slide into the plate was awkward, and Durham tumbled and then collided with the umpire. He ended up on his back, clutching his right knee, though he was able to walk off under his own power. Eddie Prasch replaced Durham in right field.

Sakamoto and Prasch singled to begin a rally in the 4th inning. A walk to Watts loaded the bases with one out. LF Jared Keel’s sacrifice fly plated Sakamoto. 3B Jim Negrych’s solo homer added one more run in the 5th inning, bringing the score to 5-3.

Brian Holliday took over for Lincoln after a walk to begin the 5th inning. After a scoreless 5th, the wheels came off in the 6th and 7th innings. Potomac sent 10 batters to the plate in the 6th, toting up 5 runs. A single, a sacrifice bunt, another single and a walk loaded the bases with one out. Two more singles and a triple brought in 5 runs before any more outs were recorded. After another walk, Jacob Cuffman relieved Holliday and ended the inning. Dustin Molleken came in to pitch in the 7th. He walked two, then gave up a 2-run double. Moises Robles was next on the mound, and he gave up a single, scoring one more, though that run was charged to Molleken, giving Potomac a 13-3 lead.

The Hillcats made one more valiant effort in the 9th inning, with some help from the Potomac infielders. Jared Keel reached base on a throwing error, and CF Alex Presley bounced to shortstop, but both were safe on a fielder’s choice. A wild pitch moved them to second and third bases. Ground outs by SS Jose De Los Santos and 2B Angel Gonzalez brought Keel and Presley home, but that was all the Hillcats could do.

Negrych’s two hits raised his average to .367. Sakamoto and Prasch also had two hits each.
The Hillcats are currently in second place in the Northern Division of the Carolina League, with a 14-14 record for the second half.

Other games last night…

Lakewood Blue Claws 4, Hickory Crawdads 1
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The Crawdads put up 8 hits, including 2 each by CF Austin McClune and DH Derek Huber, but they could only bring one of those base runners home, as they left 7 runners on base in the game. The one run came in the 5th inning, when 3B Danny Bomback singled up the middle, and was sacrifice bunted to second base by 2B Greg Picart. A ground out by LF Keanon Simon moved Bomback to third base. He scored on LF Albert Laboy’s RBI single.

Hickory starter Matt McSwain pitched 5 innings and allowed only two hits — a lone single in the 2nd inning, and a solo home run to Matthew Rizzotti in the 5th inning. He struck out 6 Lakewood batters. Adam Simon relieved McSwain, and he allowed only one hit, a double, over his two innings of work, while striking out 4 batters.

The game remained tied at 1-1 going into the 8th inning. With Serguey Linares on the mound for the Crawdads, the lead-off batter walked. The next two Lakewood batters dropped down sacrifice bunts, and 1B Tom Hagan made a fielding error on the first bunt and a throwing error on the second. One unearned run scored, and a sacrifice fly brought in a second unearned run. A walk, a throwing error by Linares, and a single scored another unearned run for Lakewood in the 9th inning.

You can bid on autographed game-worn Crawdads’ jerseys — check here for details!

Tri-City 7, State College 1
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The Spikes were held to 4 hits, 2 by Andrew Biela including a double, a triple by Jeremy Farrell, and a single by Cole White. Their only run came in the 4th inning, on Ferrell’s triple and Biela’s single. Their only other threat, which was mild, was when Matthew Payne was hit by a pitch and Ciro Rosaro walked in the 6th inning. Both runners were left stranded on a strikeout to end the inning.

Starter Ryan Kelly pitched 4 innings, allowing only one run on 2 hits with one walk and 6 strikeouts. The two hits, the walk, and the run came in the first inning, and after the RBI single, Kelly retired the next 11 batters in order. Gary Amato relieved Kelly to begin the 5th inning, and he gave up two singles and a sacrifice fly, then another single and a 3-run homer to give Tri-City a 5-1 lead. A double, a single, and a triple brought in two more runs in the 6th inning, and Tri-City was up by 6 runs. Alan Knotts pitched the final three innings for the Spikes, allowing only one hit, which was erased on a double play, while striking out three batters.

It was “Going Green Night”, and the Spikes wore jerseys made of hemp, which were auctioned off to fans and presented after the game.

Harrisburg Senators 7, Altoona Curve 3
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The Curve’s 3-game winning streak came to an end, as the Senators were fueled by two homers. Altoona RF Brad Corley also homered, a 2-run blast in the first inning, which got the Curve on the scoreboard first. The Curve added another run in the 6th inning, when LF Anthony Webster led off with a single and stole second base. Corley walked, but was forced out when 1B Jason Delaney bounced into a double play, as Webster moved to third base. 3B Jason Bowers’s RBI single scored Webster. C Miguel Perez had two hits for the Curve. Corley’s homer was the only extra-base hit for the Curve.

Luis Munoz started the game for the Curve. He gave up a solo homer to Marvin Lowrance in the 2nd inning, but the big damage came in the 4th inning, when the Senators batted around. Four consecutive singles to begin the inning brought in two runs. A sacrifice bunt and a walk and a wild pitch scored one more. A sacrifice fly plated the 4th run of the inning. One more walk, and Christian Castorri came on to replace Munoz. Castorri ended the 4th with a fly out, then pitched the next 3 innings. He gave up a lead-off walk followed by a 2-run homer to Bill Rhinehart in the 7th, and Harrisburg had the game out of reach. Dave Davidson pitched the final two innings. He struck out the first 4 batters he faced, all swinging. He gave up a single, and then erased that batter with an inning-ending double play.

An article about Brad Corley, talking about his season so far.

This entry was posted on Saturday, July 19th, 2008 at 7:13 pm and is filed under Miguel Perez, Anthony Webster, Jason Bowers, Angel Gonzalez, Jason Delaney, Albert Laboy, Serguey Linares, Kent Sakamoto, Brian Holliday, Jose De Los Santos, Jacob Cuffman, Matt McSwain, Christian Castorri, Adam Simon, Dustin Molleken, Alexander Presley, Jared Keel, Rookie - GCL Pirates, Pittsburgh Pirates Prospects, Brad Lincoln, A - State College Spikes, A - Hickory Crawdads, AA - Altoona Curve, A - Lynchburg Hillcats, Dave Davidson, Brad Corley, Kristopher Watts, Eddie Prasch, Austin McClune, Miles Durham, Keanon Simon, Erik Huber, Pittsburgh Pirates Minor-League Affiliates. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.