Stars use a huge sixth inning to smash the Diamond Jaxx

By Aaron Morse

The Huntsville Stars (13-10, 46-47) scored seven runs in the sixth inning on their way to a 13-6 victory over the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (7-16, 46-46) Saturday night.

The top of the order got things going in the first as Brett Lawrie and Caleb Gindl tallied back-to-back singles against Diamond Jaxx starter Blake Beavan. A Zelous Wheeler fly ball to deep center moved them up 90 feet. After Drew Anderson was hit by a pitch, Chris Nowak picked up a RBI when he grounded in to a fielder’s choice. With runners at the corners and two away, Taylor Green came up large with a two-run double to deep left.

The second inning started just like the first, as the Stars picked up back-to-back singles. This time it was Dayton Buller with a grounder up the gut and Lee Haydel laying down a beauty of a bunt to reach base. A Brett Lawrie ground-out moved both runners up a base and Gindl smacked a sacrifice fly to score Buller and advance Haydel to third. Haydel would score on a wild pitch and the Stars had a 5-0 lead.

But West Tennessee being the power-hitting team they are, came back forcefully as Carlos Triunfel drilled a two-run homer off Chris Cody in the third.

In the fourth they continued to chip away as Alex Liddi led-off with a double to left. One out later fellow MLB Futures Game participant Carlos Peguero doubled down the right field line, plating Liddi and cutting the Stars’ lead to two.

Beavan went four innings for West Tenn., giving up five runs on six hits. He struck-out three while walking one.

Huntsville had a golden opportunity in the fifth, loading the bases against former Star (2006 and 2008) Steve Bray with no outs. Chris Nowak hit a fly ball to left that Joe Dunigan caught and gunned to the plate to nail Gindl for the double play. Bray got Green to ground out and the Stars came away empty handed.

Meanwhile Cody was excellent, going 5.2 innings and striking out a season-high nine while walking only one. He gave up three runs, all earned on five hits.

Huntsville got all the insurance they needed and then some in the sixth. With one out, Buller tripled off the glove of a hustling Dunigan, and Haydel followed with a chopper through the right side to make the score 6-3 in favor of the Stars. Lawrie flew to right for the second out of the frame.

Then, the wheels came off for Steve Bray and the Diamond Jaxx. Gindl singled to left, advancing Haydel to second. Wheeler followed with a RBI single, and advanced to second when the throw came in to third in an attempt to get Gindl, which failed as the ball got away from Liddi.

With runners at the corners and two away, West Tenn. decided to intentionally walk Anderson. That didn’t work out so well as Nowak continued his hot hitting with the Stars, drilling a double to left, clearing the bases and making the score 10-3.

But they weren’t done as Green followed that with a two-run bomb, extending the advantage to 12-3.

The Diamond Jaxx got one back against Nick Green in the eighth, but Anderson went yard to make the score 13-4 in the bottom of the frame.

Reliever Mark Willinsky gave up a couple of runs in the ninth, but West Tenn. really didn’t have a chance as he finished the 13-6 victory off with Matthew Lawson ground-out.

Everyone in the Stars’ lineup tallied a hit and every player with the exception of Chuck Caufield scored a run. Nowak and Green drove in four runs each while Haydel and Gindl tallied three hits apiece.

Cody (5-7) earned the victory while Beavan (0-1) suffered the loss. With the victory, the Stars once again take sole possession of first place in the Southern League North.

Amaury Rivas (8-5, 2.66 ERA) takes the mound Sunday afternoon against Mauricio Robles (6-5, 4.31 ERA) as it’s a battle of Southern League Mid-Season All-Stars. You can hear the action only on www.huntsvillestars.com beginning at 12:45 p.m. central time with the Window World Pre-Game Report.