By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (32-33, 65-70) rallied from two runs down to tie the game in the seventh, but some bad defense and some bad luck cost them in the eighth as they fell to the Montgomery Biscuits (33-33, 71-63) by a final score of 6-3 Thursday night.
With the defeat, Huntsville finds themselves four games out of the Wild Card race with only five games remaining in the regular season. They must win the remainder of their games and the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx must lose the remainder of their games in order for Huntsville to make the play-offs.
The Stars jumped out to the early lead in the second inning, but it would not last long. Drew T. Anderson lined a single into right field to start things off. After Chris Nowak was hit by a pitch, Taylor Green crushed a ball to deep right field. Unfortunately it was not quite deep enough as John Matulia reeled it in on the warning track. On the play Anderson advanced to third. That’s when Andy Machado delivered a clutch single up the middle to make the score 1-0. Huntsville nearly got another run when Lee Haydel hit a liner to right; Nowak tried to score on the play and Matulia threw him out to end the inning.
The Biscuits came roaring back in the bottom of the frame. Matulia led-off with a triple to right. One out later, Matt Fields delivered a sacrifice fly to center. Caleb Gindl’s throw barely was not in time as Matulia slid around the tag of Anderson De La Rosa. Stars’ starter Amaury Rivas had some uncharacteristic control problems in the game, and they were on full display in the second as he hit Matt Spring and Shawn O’Malley to put runners on first and second with two outs. Rashad Eldridge singled up the middle to drive in the second run of the inning.
Huntsville trailed 3-1 until the seventh inning when Nowak was hit by yet another pitch. Green found a hole on the right side as he singled. But it appeared the rally might be stunted when a sacrifice bunt attempt ended up getting Nowak thrown out at third base. De La Rosa made sure that was not the case as he singled to left to drive in Green and cut the Biscuits’ lead to one. Brett Lawrie beat out an infield single to drive in the second run of the inning and knot the game at three.
Reliever Robert Hinton ran into some bad luck in the eighth. After Matt Spring singled to start the inning, the Biscuits tried to bunt him over. The ball went to first baseman Chris Nowak who fired to Machado covering second. It deflected off his glove and into shallow right field, putting runners at first and second with nobody out. An intentional walk loaded the bases, and one out later things got interesting. Hinton and the Stars clearly felt he was getting squeezed with Jose Ruiz at the plate. Ruiz eventually walked to drive in the go-ahead run. Then Henry Wrigley hit a grounder to Green who threw home to try and get the lead runner. But the home plate umpire ruled that De La Rosa’s foot came off the plate and another run was in. Once again the Stars were displeased with the call. Yet another walk drove in the third run of the inning. Hinton was visibly upset as he shouted at the home plate umpire. Chris Nowak must have said something wrong over at first because the first base umpire ejected him from the game. A ground-out ended the inning but the damage was done as the Stars found themselves down 6-3.
They were unable to push across any runs in the ninth despite a Brett Lawrie two-out triple as they dropped the rubber match in the series.
Huntsville returns to “The Joe” for five must-win games against Mobile starting Friday night at 7:00 p.m. central time. Wily Peralta (1-3, 4.10 ERA) will be on the mound. You can catch all the action on www.huntsvillestars.com.
Friday, September 3, 2010
Thursday, September 2, 2010
The Tools of Ignorance
By Aaron Morse
Anderson De La Rosa squats behind the plate as he awaits a 98 mph fast ball from former first round draft pick Mark Rogers. The ball will arrive at home plate in about four tenths of a second. That’s literally in a blink of an eye. It doesn’t go straight into De La Rosa’s glove. Instead the batter fouls the ball off the 26-year old catcher’s foot. Catchers wear lots of protective gear. A mask, a chest protector, and shin guards make up what’s known in baseball parlance as the “tools of ignorance.” Unfortunately, those protective measures don’t include one’s foot. All De La Rosa has there are his shoes. He hops up and down in pain and bends at the waist to try to will the pain away.
There’s no more physically demanding position in the game of baseball than catcher. No one knows that better than the Stars’ oldest player, nine-year veteran Patrick Arlis. At 29 years of age, Arlis has spent most of his career with the Florida Marlins’ organization. He’s had two stints in independent ball and came to the Brewers’ organization in 2009.
“The main thing people don’t realize is you can’t take a great hitter and turn him in to a catcher just because of the fact that the grind on your legs is unbelievable,” Arlis said. “You can catch nine innings and be not gassed one night. And the next night you catch three innings and you don’t have anything left in the tank.”
That makes hitting rather difficult.
“You’re supposed to go up there and try to turn on a pitch in a situation; it’s tough to do because you don’t have any legs,” Arlis said. “So you have to take care of yourself day in and day out. During the day, at night, during the game, everything, your legs are your most important asset.”
Arlis is the Crash Davis of the Huntsville Stars. He’s been around the game for many years and loves it with a passion. But he realizes that nothing lasts forever.
“Baseball, you want it to be life,” Arlis said. “In the end it’s not always that way. A plan is something not a lot of these guys have. I’ve been released, not like a lot of these guys that I’m playing with now.”
Arlis has a plan. He’s been working the past two years to earn his Master’s Degree in Elementary Education through the University of Phoenix, an online school. He wants to be a middle school Physical Education teacher when his playing days end. When speaking of his younger colleagues in the game of baseball, he emphasizes the need to have a plan of action if baseball does not work out.
“They don’t understand that it’s not that easy to get another job,” Arlis said. “When the game is over, you know, it’s over. If you don’t have anything to do, you’re in trouble. I had a coach my first year tell me, baseball is a suspended state of adolescence. And when it’s over, you wake up, you’re 25 years old, and you don’t have anything.”
Dayton Buller, 29, describes Arlis as the hardest working player on the team. Buller started playing professional ball the same year as his fellow catcher and has also had a stint where he was out of affiliated baseball. The Brewers purchased his contract from Camden of the Atlantic League this year after Martin Maldonado earned a promotion to Triple-A Nashville. He came to the Stars and smashed a home run in only his second game. But hitting is not the primary focus when you’re serving as the captain of the infield.
“Calling a game and handling a staff and just controlling the game; you get so many good things out of it,” Buller said. “When you win you really feel like you did something even if you go 0-4.”
Every detail matters. Fans tend to notice the big events in a game. The 450-foot grand slam, the dominating pitching performance, the spectacular catch, those are the things that make Sports Center. Buller even had a “big moment” this year when he hit a walk-off home run against the Carolina Mudcats. However the catcher is responsible for the stuff that does not necessarily show up in the box score.
“Controlling everything, making sure the infielders know when a bunt situation is on and who bunts, who’s fast, and stuff like that [is important],” Buller said. “Making sure the pitcher knows exactly what the situation is; and who’s on deck and everything. You’ve got to know every single thing that’s going on in the game; you cannot take any pitches off or that one pitch could be the game.”
Not only that, but you have to also manage some pretty interesting personalities when it comes to working with the pitchers. Arlis says the key for the men wearing the tools of ignorance is…knowledge.
“You just learn about everybody,” Arlis said. “You get thrown into the fire; you start talking to a lot of guys, you learn their personality. What they can take, what they can’t. You’ve got to know what guys you have to go out [to the mound] and talk nice to and what guys you go out and be a real jerk to. What’s going to fire them up and make them more successful? The more successful they are the less work you have to do in the end.”
Work is not something the Stars’ catchers are afraid of, that’s for sure. They don’t really get days off. If one guy is not catching a certain day, he’s down in the bullpen helping the relievers warm-up. There’s no such thing as a designated “bullpen catcher” at the Double-A level.
However the Stars are lucky they have three catchers (Buller is currently on the DL, but all three have been active at the same time in previous weeks), instead of the normal two. That brings us to the aforementioned De La Rosa. The 26-year old out of Venezuela has a cannon for an arm. He has thrown out 41 percent of would-be base-runners during his six years as a backstop in the Brewers’ organization.
“[This year] I am focusing more on my defense and blocking everything, working for the pitcher, throwing guys out at the bases,” De La Rosa said. “I feel really good when I throw guys out at second base.”
De La Rosa smiles as he talks about his ability to play a bunch of positions. He says before he signed with the Brewers in 2003 he played a lot of outfield and some corner infield as well. In 2005, Milwaukee asked him if he’d want to try out catcher. De La Rosa had played the position as a young kid so he was very receptive to the idea. But he says it hasn’t been a cakewalk.
“Everything’s hard, when you play catcher, everything’s hard,” De La Rosa said. “You want to be focused on the game so you can call good pitches. You need to study every hitter. Every at bat is different. The pitchers are top prospects so you have to work really hard to help them do well.”
Talking to De La Rosa, one gets the sense that he takes more pride in helping the pitching staff succeed than his own personal accomplishments. This self-less attitude is a quality Arlis and Buller have as well. None of these men are considered prospects to play in “the show”, nor do they put up big offensive numbers at the Double-A level.
But the Stars would be a lesser team without them.
“Too many guys in pro ball are just here because they think they’re going to make it to the big leagues,” Arlis said. “They don’t want to play the game and they don’t play the game properly. Personally, I’ve had a great time.”
De La Rosa shakes off the pain of the foul ball. He gets back behind home plate and gets ready for some more Rogers heat. There are still seven more innings to catch.
Anderson De La Rosa squats behind the plate as he awaits a 98 mph fast ball from former first round draft pick Mark Rogers. The ball will arrive at home plate in about four tenths of a second. That’s literally in a blink of an eye. It doesn’t go straight into De La Rosa’s glove. Instead the batter fouls the ball off the 26-year old catcher’s foot. Catchers wear lots of protective gear. A mask, a chest protector, and shin guards make up what’s known in baseball parlance as the “tools of ignorance.” Unfortunately, those protective measures don’t include one’s foot. All De La Rosa has there are his shoes. He hops up and down in pain and bends at the waist to try to will the pain away.
There’s no more physically demanding position in the game of baseball than catcher. No one knows that better than the Stars’ oldest player, nine-year veteran Patrick Arlis. At 29 years of age, Arlis has spent most of his career with the Florida Marlins’ organization. He’s had two stints in independent ball and came to the Brewers’ organization in 2009.
“The main thing people don’t realize is you can’t take a great hitter and turn him in to a catcher just because of the fact that the grind on your legs is unbelievable,” Arlis said. “You can catch nine innings and be not gassed one night. And the next night you catch three innings and you don’t have anything left in the tank.”
That makes hitting rather difficult.
“You’re supposed to go up there and try to turn on a pitch in a situation; it’s tough to do because you don’t have any legs,” Arlis said. “So you have to take care of yourself day in and day out. During the day, at night, during the game, everything, your legs are your most important asset.”
Arlis is the Crash Davis of the Huntsville Stars. He’s been around the game for many years and loves it with a passion. But he realizes that nothing lasts forever.
“Baseball, you want it to be life,” Arlis said. “In the end it’s not always that way. A plan is something not a lot of these guys have. I’ve been released, not like a lot of these guys that I’m playing with now.”
Arlis has a plan. He’s been working the past two years to earn his Master’s Degree in Elementary Education through the University of Phoenix, an online school. He wants to be a middle school Physical Education teacher when his playing days end. When speaking of his younger colleagues in the game of baseball, he emphasizes the need to have a plan of action if baseball does not work out.
“They don’t understand that it’s not that easy to get another job,” Arlis said. “When the game is over, you know, it’s over. If you don’t have anything to do, you’re in trouble. I had a coach my first year tell me, baseball is a suspended state of adolescence. And when it’s over, you wake up, you’re 25 years old, and you don’t have anything.”
Dayton Buller, 29, describes Arlis as the hardest working player on the team. Buller started playing professional ball the same year as his fellow catcher and has also had a stint where he was out of affiliated baseball. The Brewers purchased his contract from Camden of the Atlantic League this year after Martin Maldonado earned a promotion to Triple-A Nashville. He came to the Stars and smashed a home run in only his second game. But hitting is not the primary focus when you’re serving as the captain of the infield.
“Calling a game and handling a staff and just controlling the game; you get so many good things out of it,” Buller said. “When you win you really feel like you did something even if you go 0-4.”
Every detail matters. Fans tend to notice the big events in a game. The 450-foot grand slam, the dominating pitching performance, the spectacular catch, those are the things that make Sports Center. Buller even had a “big moment” this year when he hit a walk-off home run against the Carolina Mudcats. However the catcher is responsible for the stuff that does not necessarily show up in the box score.
“Controlling everything, making sure the infielders know when a bunt situation is on and who bunts, who’s fast, and stuff like that [is important],” Buller said. “Making sure the pitcher knows exactly what the situation is; and who’s on deck and everything. You’ve got to know every single thing that’s going on in the game; you cannot take any pitches off or that one pitch could be the game.”
Not only that, but you have to also manage some pretty interesting personalities when it comes to working with the pitchers. Arlis says the key for the men wearing the tools of ignorance is…knowledge.
“You just learn about everybody,” Arlis said. “You get thrown into the fire; you start talking to a lot of guys, you learn their personality. What they can take, what they can’t. You’ve got to know what guys you have to go out [to the mound] and talk nice to and what guys you go out and be a real jerk to. What’s going to fire them up and make them more successful? The more successful they are the less work you have to do in the end.”
Work is not something the Stars’ catchers are afraid of, that’s for sure. They don’t really get days off. If one guy is not catching a certain day, he’s down in the bullpen helping the relievers warm-up. There’s no such thing as a designated “bullpen catcher” at the Double-A level.
However the Stars are lucky they have three catchers (Buller is currently on the DL, but all three have been active at the same time in previous weeks), instead of the normal two. That brings us to the aforementioned De La Rosa. The 26-year old out of Venezuela has a cannon for an arm. He has thrown out 41 percent of would-be base-runners during his six years as a backstop in the Brewers’ organization.
“[This year] I am focusing more on my defense and blocking everything, working for the pitcher, throwing guys out at the bases,” De La Rosa said. “I feel really good when I throw guys out at second base.”
De La Rosa smiles as he talks about his ability to play a bunch of positions. He says before he signed with the Brewers in 2003 he played a lot of outfield and some corner infield as well. In 2005, Milwaukee asked him if he’d want to try out catcher. De La Rosa had played the position as a young kid so he was very receptive to the idea. But he says it hasn’t been a cakewalk.
“Everything’s hard, when you play catcher, everything’s hard,” De La Rosa said. “You want to be focused on the game so you can call good pitches. You need to study every hitter. Every at bat is different. The pitchers are top prospects so you have to work really hard to help them do well.”
Talking to De La Rosa, one gets the sense that he takes more pride in helping the pitching staff succeed than his own personal accomplishments. This self-less attitude is a quality Arlis and Buller have as well. None of these men are considered prospects to play in “the show”, nor do they put up big offensive numbers at the Double-A level.
But the Stars would be a lesser team without them.
“Too many guys in pro ball are just here because they think they’re going to make it to the big leagues,” Arlis said. “They don’t want to play the game and they don’t play the game properly. Personally, I’ve had a great time.”
De La Rosa shakes off the pain of the foul ball. He gets back behind home plate and gets ready for some more Rogers heat. There are still seven more innings to catch.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Stars Hit Double Digits To Even Series
Connor Shreve
The Huntsville Stars turned in a dominating performance on Wednesday night to get back to within striking distance of the wild card race. The 10-4 win at Montgomery placed Huntsville 3.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the battle to determine the final playoff team that will represent the Northern Division in the 2010 Southern League post season.
Huntsville started early with five second inning hits, four doubles, all of which came with two outs in the inning. The Stars led by four runs after two innings, tacked on one in the fifth and put the contest out of reach with a five spot in the sixth inning. Zelous Wheeler and Chris Nowak teamed up to knock back to back blasts in the sixth. Nowak’s shot was the first against his former squad, sailing out of the ballpark beyond left field and disappearing in to the forest backdrop beyond the train tracks that skirt the state Capitals downtown stadium.
Mark Rogers turned in his second strong outing against the biscuits in as many tries. The only run Rogers allowed came in the fifth thanks to Shawn O’Malley. O’Malley picked up an RBI on his single but the Biscuits stumbled with men on and nobody out. O’Malley was joined by Emeel Salem on base when Rogers struck out Rashaad Eldridge and induced an inning ending double play ball from Jose Ruiz.
With a chance to make Huntsville’s playoff chances slim to none, West Tenn came up short against Mississippi, 10-1. The Diamond Jaxx have led the wildcard chase most of the way but left the door open for the Stars having lost six of the last ten games. West Tennessee finishes the season with four games against Chattanooga in a series running from Sep 3-6.
Huntsville tries for a series victory in the finale Thursday night at 7:05 (CDT).
The Huntsville Stars turned in a dominating performance on Wednesday night to get back to within striking distance of the wild card race. The 10-4 win at Montgomery placed Huntsville 3.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the battle to determine the final playoff team that will represent the Northern Division in the 2010 Southern League post season.
Huntsville started early with five second inning hits, four doubles, all of which came with two outs in the inning. The Stars led by four runs after two innings, tacked on one in the fifth and put the contest out of reach with a five spot in the sixth inning. Zelous Wheeler and Chris Nowak teamed up to knock back to back blasts in the sixth. Nowak’s shot was the first against his former squad, sailing out of the ballpark beyond left field and disappearing in to the forest backdrop beyond the train tracks that skirt the state Capitals downtown stadium.
Mark Rogers turned in his second strong outing against the biscuits in as many tries. The only run Rogers allowed came in the fifth thanks to Shawn O’Malley. O’Malley picked up an RBI on his single but the Biscuits stumbled with men on and nobody out. O’Malley was joined by Emeel Salem on base when Rogers struck out Rashaad Eldridge and induced an inning ending double play ball from Jose Ruiz.
With a chance to make Huntsville’s playoff chances slim to none, West Tenn came up short against Mississippi, 10-1. The Diamond Jaxx have led the wildcard chase most of the way but left the door open for the Stars having lost six of the last ten games. West Tennessee finishes the season with four games against Chattanooga in a series running from Sep 3-6.
Huntsville tries for a series victory in the finale Thursday night at 7:05 (CDT).
Tuesday, August 31, 2010
Stars Playoff Hopes Waning
Connor Shreve
Huntsville failed to rally in Montgomery Tuesday evening and came out on the bottom end of a 3-2 final score.
The loss, with a West Tennessee victory, moved the Stars to four games back in the wild card chase with Huntsville's elimination number now at three games.
The low scoring affair didn't start that way with both squads combining for four of the five total runs in the first two innings. Zelous Wheeler scored Huntsville's first run in the second inning on a play that handcuffed the Stars chances of adding to the total. Wheeler doubled to leadoff the inning and advanced on a wild pitch. He scored on a grounder off the bat of Chris Nowak that wiped the bases clean and accounted for the first two outs of the frame.
Michael Fiers kept Huntsville in the game with four shutout innings of relief. Stars starter Mike Bowman lost his 12th game of the season, allowing three earned runs in four innings.
The Stars and Biscuits play game two on Wednesday evening beginning at 7:05 CDT.
Huntsville failed to rally in Montgomery Tuesday evening and came out on the bottom end of a 3-2 final score.
The loss, with a West Tennessee victory, moved the Stars to four games back in the wild card chase with Huntsville's elimination number now at three games.
The low scoring affair didn't start that way with both squads combining for four of the five total runs in the first two innings. Zelous Wheeler scored Huntsville's first run in the second inning on a play that handcuffed the Stars chances of adding to the total. Wheeler doubled to leadoff the inning and advanced on a wild pitch. He scored on a grounder off the bat of Chris Nowak that wiped the bases clean and accounted for the first two outs of the frame.
Michael Fiers kept Huntsville in the game with four shutout innings of relief. Stars starter Mike Bowman lost his 12th game of the season, allowing three earned runs in four innings.
The Stars and Biscuits play game two on Wednesday evening beginning at 7:05 CDT.
Monday, August 30, 2010
Stars split twin bill with Mobile
By Aaron Morse
Caleb Gindl enjoyed a 5-6 double header and the Huntsville Stars (31-31, 64-68) won game two by a final score of 2-1 after dropping game one 5-3 in Sunday’s twin bill with the Mobile BayBears (35-26, 71-58).
Game one did not go the Stars’ way from the beginning. With one out in the first, Huntsville starter Wily Peralta (1-3) issued back-to-back walks. Konrad Schmidt made him pay as he unleashed a three-run home run to give Mobile a 3-0 lead. Ryan Wheeler followed with a homer of his own to extend the advantage to 4-0.
The Stars clawed back against Mobile starter Joshua Collmenter in the fourth. With two gone, Zelous Wheeler singled to left. Collmenter got a bit wild at that point as he walked the next two hitters. That set up Gindl who crushed a two-RBI double to cut the BayBears’ lead in half.
Mobile chased Peralta from the game in the fifth. Collin Cowgill led-off with an infield single. Peralta walked two batters in a row to load the bases with nobody out. In came Robert Hinton, who got Ryan Wheeler to fly out to shallow center. Then Taylor Harbin hit a tailor-made double play ball to Zelous Wheeler at short. But Wheeler bobbled the ball and his only play was to first. Cowgill scored on the play to make it 5-2 in favor of the BayBears.
Huntsville appeared to be in business in the sixth against new pitcher Josh Ellis. With one away, Chris Nowak and Gindl smacked back-to-back singles. Then with two down, pinch hitter Andy Machado came up big with a RBI single, putting runners at the corners and bringing Lee Haydel to the plate with the score 5-3. The BayBears brought in Daniel Strange to pitch and he immediately picked-off Machado at first to end the threat.
The Stars went down harmlessly in the seventh to dip to under .500 in the second half.
They weren’t under .500 for long as game two was a nail biter, but it was Gindl who once again provided the clutch offense.
With runners on second and third and two outs in the third inning, Gindl doubled to deep center field. The two runs that scored on the play were enough for starter Andre Lamontagne (4-3) and reliever Jeremy Jeffress to hold the lead.
Lamontagne bounced back from his previous start with a strong outing, going 5.2 innings, giving up three hits, one run (earned), while walking two and striking out an impressive nine batters. The sixth inning chased him from the game as with two outs Chris Rahl singled and was driven in by a Bryan Byrne double. Enter Jeffress, who got Sean Coughlin to ground out to third to end the frame with the Stars still up 2-1.
He’d nail down his third save of the year with a 1-2-3 ninth inning to get the Stars to within three games of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, who lost Sunday.
The Stars open a four game series at Montgomery Tuesday night. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. and all the action can be heard on the Stars Radio Network and www.huntsvillestars.com.
Caleb Gindl enjoyed a 5-6 double header and the Huntsville Stars (31-31, 64-68) won game two by a final score of 2-1 after dropping game one 5-3 in Sunday’s twin bill with the Mobile BayBears (35-26, 71-58).
Game one did not go the Stars’ way from the beginning. With one out in the first, Huntsville starter Wily Peralta (1-3) issued back-to-back walks. Konrad Schmidt made him pay as he unleashed a three-run home run to give Mobile a 3-0 lead. Ryan Wheeler followed with a homer of his own to extend the advantage to 4-0.
The Stars clawed back against Mobile starter Joshua Collmenter in the fourth. With two gone, Zelous Wheeler singled to left. Collmenter got a bit wild at that point as he walked the next two hitters. That set up Gindl who crushed a two-RBI double to cut the BayBears’ lead in half.
Mobile chased Peralta from the game in the fifth. Collin Cowgill led-off with an infield single. Peralta walked two batters in a row to load the bases with nobody out. In came Robert Hinton, who got Ryan Wheeler to fly out to shallow center. Then Taylor Harbin hit a tailor-made double play ball to Zelous Wheeler at short. But Wheeler bobbled the ball and his only play was to first. Cowgill scored on the play to make it 5-2 in favor of the BayBears.
Huntsville appeared to be in business in the sixth against new pitcher Josh Ellis. With one away, Chris Nowak and Gindl smacked back-to-back singles. Then with two down, pinch hitter Andy Machado came up big with a RBI single, putting runners at the corners and bringing Lee Haydel to the plate with the score 5-3. The BayBears brought in Daniel Strange to pitch and he immediately picked-off Machado at first to end the threat.
The Stars went down harmlessly in the seventh to dip to under .500 in the second half.
They weren’t under .500 for long as game two was a nail biter, but it was Gindl who once again provided the clutch offense.
With runners on second and third and two outs in the third inning, Gindl doubled to deep center field. The two runs that scored on the play were enough for starter Andre Lamontagne (4-3) and reliever Jeremy Jeffress to hold the lead.
Lamontagne bounced back from his previous start with a strong outing, going 5.2 innings, giving up three hits, one run (earned), while walking two and striking out an impressive nine batters. The sixth inning chased him from the game as with two outs Chris Rahl singled and was driven in by a Bryan Byrne double. Enter Jeffress, who got Sean Coughlin to ground out to third to end the frame with the Stars still up 2-1.
He’d nail down his third save of the year with a 1-2-3 ninth inning to get the Stars to within three games of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, who lost Sunday.
The Stars open a four game series at Montgomery Tuesday night. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. and all the action can be heard on the Stars Radio Network and www.huntsvillestars.com.
Friday, August 27, 2010
Stars edged by BayBears
By Aaron Morse
Collin Cowgill drove in all three Mobile runs including a go-ahead two-run home run in the seventh inning as the BayBears (34-25, 70-57) came from behind to knock off the Huntsville Stars (30-30, 63-67) by a final score of 3-2 Thursday night.
Huntsville took the early lead in the first inning against Mobile starter Ryan Cook. With one out, Brett Lawrie drew a walk. He proceeded to swipe his 30th base of the year and Drew Anderson, the franchise’s all-time leader in career doubles, doubled him home.
The put Cook on the ropes again in the second as the Stars got runners on second and third with one out. A pop-out and a strike-out ended the threat though.
Anderson got things going in the third with his second double of the night. Zelous Wheeler followed with a RBI single and it was 2-0 Stars.
The bottom of the fourth was noteworthy due to a spectacular over the shoulder catch from Caleb Gindl in deep center field to rob Taylor Harbin of an extra base hit.
Mobile finally got to Huntsville starter Amaury Rivas in the fifth as Ryan Cook smacked a one-out single to left. Then with two away, Cowgill doubled to center and advanced to third on the throw to the plate as Cook scored. Rivas walked the next batter but struck-out Konrad Schmidt to end the inning.
That ended up being his last frame of work as the right-hander went five innings, giving up one run on four hits. He walked four, matching his season high in that category and struck-out six in the no-decision.
Mobile burned reliever Jim Henderson (4-5) in the seventh. With one out, Sean Coughlin singled to right. After Henderson struck-out Evan Frey, Cowgill struck again, this time with a two-run home run to give Mobile the 3-2 lead.
On the bright side for the Stars, reliever Jeremy Jeffress followed Henderson in to the game and struck-out all four batters he faced.
The Stars nearly rallied to tie the game in the ninth as Andy Machado got things going with a single to right. After Lee Haydel bunted him to second, Lawrie hit a hot smash to short. Harbin made a nice leaping grab and threw back to second to double off Machado and end the game.
Huntsville left nine men stranded in the contest and was 2-9 with men in scoring position. Anderson and catcher Anderson De La Rosa tallied multi-hit games.
With the loss, the Stars remain 4.5 back of the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card race with 10 games to play. Huntsville looks to bounce back Friday night as they send Wily Peralta to the hill in game two of the four game set with Mobile. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. central time and all the action can be heard only on www.huntsvillestars.com.
Collin Cowgill drove in all three Mobile runs including a go-ahead two-run home run in the seventh inning as the BayBears (34-25, 70-57) came from behind to knock off the Huntsville Stars (30-30, 63-67) by a final score of 3-2 Thursday night.
Huntsville took the early lead in the first inning against Mobile starter Ryan Cook. With one out, Brett Lawrie drew a walk. He proceeded to swipe his 30th base of the year and Drew Anderson, the franchise’s all-time leader in career doubles, doubled him home.
The put Cook on the ropes again in the second as the Stars got runners on second and third with one out. A pop-out and a strike-out ended the threat though.
Anderson got things going in the third with his second double of the night. Zelous Wheeler followed with a RBI single and it was 2-0 Stars.
The bottom of the fourth was noteworthy due to a spectacular over the shoulder catch from Caleb Gindl in deep center field to rob Taylor Harbin of an extra base hit.
Mobile finally got to Huntsville starter Amaury Rivas in the fifth as Ryan Cook smacked a one-out single to left. Then with two away, Cowgill doubled to center and advanced to third on the throw to the plate as Cook scored. Rivas walked the next batter but struck-out Konrad Schmidt to end the inning.
That ended up being his last frame of work as the right-hander went five innings, giving up one run on four hits. He walked four, matching his season high in that category and struck-out six in the no-decision.
Mobile burned reliever Jim Henderson (4-5) in the seventh. With one out, Sean Coughlin singled to right. After Henderson struck-out Evan Frey, Cowgill struck again, this time with a two-run home run to give Mobile the 3-2 lead.
On the bright side for the Stars, reliever Jeremy Jeffress followed Henderson in to the game and struck-out all four batters he faced.
The Stars nearly rallied to tie the game in the ninth as Andy Machado got things going with a single to right. After Lee Haydel bunted him to second, Lawrie hit a hot smash to short. Harbin made a nice leaping grab and threw back to second to double off Machado and end the game.
Huntsville left nine men stranded in the contest and was 2-9 with men in scoring position. Anderson and catcher Anderson De La Rosa tallied multi-hit games.
With the loss, the Stars remain 4.5 back of the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card race with 10 games to play. Huntsville looks to bounce back Friday night as they send Wily Peralta to the hill in game two of the four game set with Mobile. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. central time and all the action can be heard only on www.huntsvillestars.com.
Wednesday, August 25, 2010
Stars salvage series finale with Biscuits
By Aaron Morse
Chuckie Caufield doubled in Drew Anderson in the sixth to break a 3-3 tie and the Huntsville Stars (30-29, 63-66) won on get away day Wednesday afternoon by a final score of 5-3 over the Montgomery Biscuits.
The Stars jumped out to the early lead in the bottom of the first. With one away, Brett Lawrie drew a walk. He showed off his trademark aggressiveness with a stolen base, his 29th of the year. Zelous Wheeler singled to left to move Lawrie to third and put runners at the corners with one out. That’s when Drew Anderson nearly smacked a three-run homer as the ball went off the top of the right field wall. He settled for a two-RBI triple to give the Stars a 2-0 lead. Andy Machado hit a ball hard to center to score Anderson. Taylor Green struck-out to end the inning, a sign of things to come for the Stars.
In fact, between the first and sixth innings, Montgomery starter Alex Cobb (6-5) could not have been more dominating. He struck-out two in the second inning and sent the side down in order via the K in the third and fourth innings respectively.
Meanwhile, the Biscuits came back to tie the game. With one out in the third, Rashad Eldridge singled to left off Stars’ starter Mark Rogers. The hard throwing right-hander was able to get John Matulia to hit a tailor-made double play ball to second baseman Brett Lawrie. Lawrie’s feed to Wheeler was true, but Wheeler dropped the ball and everyone was safe. With two away, more bad luck hit Rogers as a shattered bat caused him to have to try field a slow roller while avoiding the sharp barrel. He successfully did the latter, but the ball squeaked past him for an infield single. At that point, Rogers walked in two runs and the Biscuits cut the score to 3-2 in favor of the Stars.
They got one more run in the fifth. With one out, Jose Ruiz singled to center. After a walk, Rogers struck-out Matt Spring for the second out of the inning. But Mike Folli delivered a clutch RBI single to center.
Rogers got a ground-out to end the inning and his night. The former first round pick went five innings, giving up three runs (one earned), on six hits. He walked four and struck-out eight.
Speaking of strike-outs Cobb sent down 13 Stars’ hitters via the K. However Huntsville got to him for the eventual winning run in the sixth. With one away, Drew Anderson doubled to left field. Cobb struck-out the next batter and then the Biscuits decided to intentionally walk Taylor Green to get to Caufield.
Big mistake. The Biscuit-killer laced a double to right center field to drive in Anderson and give the Stars a 4-3 lead.
The Stars tacked on an insurance run in the eighth thanks to a RBI double off the bat of Taylor Green.
Chris Cody (7-7) tossed two scoreless innings out of the bullpen to get the win. Michael Fiers finished things off for his first save of the year with two scoreless frames of his own.
Despite the win, the Stars remain 4.5 games back of the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx in the wild card race with 11 games to play. They head to Mobile to open a four game series Thursday. Amaury Rivas (11-6) will be on the mound. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. central time and all the action can be heard on the Stars Radio Network.
Chuckie Caufield doubled in Drew Anderson in the sixth to break a 3-3 tie and the Huntsville Stars (30-29, 63-66) won on get away day Wednesday afternoon by a final score of 5-3 over the Montgomery Biscuits.
The Stars jumped out to the early lead in the bottom of the first. With one away, Brett Lawrie drew a walk. He showed off his trademark aggressiveness with a stolen base, his 29th of the year. Zelous Wheeler singled to left to move Lawrie to third and put runners at the corners with one out. That’s when Drew Anderson nearly smacked a three-run homer as the ball went off the top of the right field wall. He settled for a two-RBI triple to give the Stars a 2-0 lead. Andy Machado hit a ball hard to center to score Anderson. Taylor Green struck-out to end the inning, a sign of things to come for the Stars.
In fact, between the first and sixth innings, Montgomery starter Alex Cobb (6-5) could not have been more dominating. He struck-out two in the second inning and sent the side down in order via the K in the third and fourth innings respectively.
Meanwhile, the Biscuits came back to tie the game. With one out in the third, Rashad Eldridge singled to left off Stars’ starter Mark Rogers. The hard throwing right-hander was able to get John Matulia to hit a tailor-made double play ball to second baseman Brett Lawrie. Lawrie’s feed to Wheeler was true, but Wheeler dropped the ball and everyone was safe. With two away, more bad luck hit Rogers as a shattered bat caused him to have to try field a slow roller while avoiding the sharp barrel. He successfully did the latter, but the ball squeaked past him for an infield single. At that point, Rogers walked in two runs and the Biscuits cut the score to 3-2 in favor of the Stars.
They got one more run in the fifth. With one out, Jose Ruiz singled to center. After a walk, Rogers struck-out Matt Spring for the second out of the inning. But Mike Folli delivered a clutch RBI single to center.
Rogers got a ground-out to end the inning and his night. The former first round pick went five innings, giving up three runs (one earned), on six hits. He walked four and struck-out eight.
Speaking of strike-outs Cobb sent down 13 Stars’ hitters via the K. However Huntsville got to him for the eventual winning run in the sixth. With one away, Drew Anderson doubled to left field. Cobb struck-out the next batter and then the Biscuits decided to intentionally walk Taylor Green to get to Caufield.
Big mistake. The Biscuit-killer laced a double to right center field to drive in Anderson and give the Stars a 4-3 lead.
The Stars tacked on an insurance run in the eighth thanks to a RBI double off the bat of Taylor Green.
Chris Cody (7-7) tossed two scoreless innings out of the bullpen to get the win. Michael Fiers finished things off for his first save of the year with two scoreless frames of his own.
Despite the win, the Stars remain 4.5 games back of the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx in the wild card race with 11 games to play. They head to Mobile to open a four game series Thursday. Amaury Rivas (11-6) will be on the mound. First pitch is at 7:05 p.m. central time and all the action can be heard on the Stars Radio Network.
Stars blanked by Biscuits
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (29-29, 62-66) managed only four hits in a 7-0 defeat at the hands of the Montgomery Biscuits (27-31, 65-61) Tuesday night.
Despite the low hit total, the Stars did get runners on base in every inning except the second. They left nine men stranded, and went 0-7 with runners in scoring position. The Stars also hit into three double plays.
Alex Torres (10-6), Justin Dowdy, and Matt Gorgen combined to shutout the Stars.
Meanwhile, Huntsville starter Michael Bowman (9-11) got off to a good start, shutting down the Biscuits for the first three innings. But he ran into some trouble in the fourth. With one away, Nevin Ashley drew a walk. John Matulia followed with a ground-rule double, putting runners at second and third with only one away. Henry Wrigley drove in the first run of the game with a single to left. Matulia advanced to third, putting runners at the corners with still only one down. Drew M. Anderson drove in the second run of the frame with a RBI ground-out.
The same part of the order did more damage in the sixth. With one away, Matulia singled to right. After Wrigley drew a walk, Anderson doubled in a run to make the score 3-0. Bowman got the second out of the frame, but the Stars brought in Eddie Morlan to try and get the final out. He would, but only after giving up a three-run homer to Mike Folli.
Bowman’s final line ended up being: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, and 5 K’s. He would take the loss as the Stars could get no offense going.
Montgomery added one more run in the eighth against Robert Hinton as Matt Spring doubled home Anderson.
With the loss, the Stars remain 4.5 games out of the Wild Card race behind the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx. They drop to eight back in the division with 12 to play of the Tennessee Smokies.
Tune in Wednesday afternoon for a matinee as the Stars look to salvage the finale of the three-game set. Mark Rogers (5-8, 3.93 ERA) takes the mound beginning at 1:00 p.m. central time. You can catch all the action on www.huntsvillestars.com.
The Huntsville Stars (29-29, 62-66) managed only four hits in a 7-0 defeat at the hands of the Montgomery Biscuits (27-31, 65-61) Tuesday night.
Despite the low hit total, the Stars did get runners on base in every inning except the second. They left nine men stranded, and went 0-7 with runners in scoring position. The Stars also hit into three double plays.
Alex Torres (10-6), Justin Dowdy, and Matt Gorgen combined to shutout the Stars.
Meanwhile, Huntsville starter Michael Bowman (9-11) got off to a good start, shutting down the Biscuits for the first three innings. But he ran into some trouble in the fourth. With one away, Nevin Ashley drew a walk. John Matulia followed with a ground-rule double, putting runners at second and third with only one away. Henry Wrigley drove in the first run of the game with a single to left. Matulia advanced to third, putting runners at the corners with still only one down. Drew M. Anderson drove in the second run of the frame with a RBI ground-out.
The same part of the order did more damage in the sixth. With one away, Matulia singled to right. After Wrigley drew a walk, Anderson doubled in a run to make the score 3-0. Bowman got the second out of the frame, but the Stars brought in Eddie Morlan to try and get the final out. He would, but only after giving up a three-run homer to Mike Folli.
Bowman’s final line ended up being: 5.2 IP, 5 H, 5 R, 5 ER, 3 BB, and 5 K’s. He would take the loss as the Stars could get no offense going.
Montgomery added one more run in the eighth against Robert Hinton as Matt Spring doubled home Anderson.
With the loss, the Stars remain 4.5 games out of the Wild Card race behind the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx. They drop to eight back in the division with 12 to play of the Tennessee Smokies.
Tune in Wednesday afternoon for a matinee as the Stars look to salvage the finale of the three-game set. Mark Rogers (5-8, 3.93 ERA) takes the mound beginning at 1:00 p.m. central time. You can catch all the action on www.huntsvillestars.com.
Stars fall short in comeback attempt
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (29-28, 62-65) scored the last five runs of the game but it wasn’t enough as they fell by a final score of 6-5 to the Montgomery Biscuits (26-31, 64-61) Monday night.
Things did not start well as the Biscuits scored five unearned runs in the first against Stars’ starter Andre Lamontagne (3-3). Emeel Salem started things off with a single to center. Lamontagne walked the next batter before striking out Jose Ruiz. Huntsville’s defense has been poor all year and a Zelous Wheeler error on what should have been a double play ball, loaded the bases with one out. John Matulia smacked a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0 Biscuits. After Lamontagne walked his second batter of the inning, Matt Spring delivered the big blow with a grand slam to make it 5-0 in Montgomery’s favor.
Walks continued to hurt Lamontagne as he issued a free pass to the lead-off man in the second. A passed ball moved the runner to second and a grounder to the right side moved him to third. Rashad Eldridge hit a sacrifice fly to extend the Biscuits’ lead to 6-0.
The next two innings saw the Stars fight back as Drew Anderson crushed a two-run bomb in the third to cut the Biscuit’s advantage to 6-2. A big fourth inning led to the Stars drawing to within one. With one out, Andy Machado doubled to right. Anderson De La Rosa singled him home. After Lee Haydel reached on a force attempt that turned into a Biscuits’ error, Brett Lawrie singled home De La Rosa to make the score 6-4. Back-to-back walks ended up pushing across the Stars’ fifth and final run of the contest.
The Stars only managed three base-runners the rest of the way as the Biscuits won the series opener.
The Huntsville Stars (29-28, 62-65) scored the last five runs of the game but it wasn’t enough as they fell by a final score of 6-5 to the Montgomery Biscuits (26-31, 64-61) Monday night.
Things did not start well as the Biscuits scored five unearned runs in the first against Stars’ starter Andre Lamontagne (3-3). Emeel Salem started things off with a single to center. Lamontagne walked the next batter before striking out Jose Ruiz. Huntsville’s defense has been poor all year and a Zelous Wheeler error on what should have been a double play ball, loaded the bases with one out. John Matulia smacked a sacrifice fly to make it 1-0 Biscuits. After Lamontagne walked his second batter of the inning, Matt Spring delivered the big blow with a grand slam to make it 5-0 in Montgomery’s favor.
Walks continued to hurt Lamontagne as he issued a free pass to the lead-off man in the second. A passed ball moved the runner to second and a grounder to the right side moved him to third. Rashad Eldridge hit a sacrifice fly to extend the Biscuits’ lead to 6-0.
The next two innings saw the Stars fight back as Drew Anderson crushed a two-run bomb in the third to cut the Biscuit’s advantage to 6-2. A big fourth inning led to the Stars drawing to within one. With one out, Andy Machado doubled to right. Anderson De La Rosa singled him home. After Lee Haydel reached on a force attempt that turned into a Biscuits’ error, Brett Lawrie singled home De La Rosa to make the score 6-4. Back-to-back walks ended up pushing across the Stars’ fifth and final run of the contest.
The Stars only managed three base-runners the rest of the way as the Biscuits won the series opener.
Monday, August 23, 2010
Stars stymied by Barons
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (29-27, 62-64) managed only three hits on their way to a 5-1 defeat Sunday night against the Birmingham Barons (23-33, 47-79).
Stars’ starter Wily Peralta was cruising along until the fourth where it all came undone. He walked the lead-off man and Christian Marrero followed with a single to right. A ground-out moved both runners up 90 feet and Salvador Sanchez singled home the first run of the game. After a hit by pitch loaded the bases, Dale Mollenhauer delivered the dagger with a triple to deep center field. A Tyler Kuhn sacrifice fly drove him home and all of a sudden it was 5-0 Barons.
Peralta (1-2) ended up going four innings, giving up the five runs on five hits. He walked three and struck-out three as well.
The Stars managed their lone run in the seventh inning, but they should have gotten more. Brett Lawrie led-off with a walk. Zelous Wheeler followed with a single to left. After Drew Anderson walked, the Barons took starter Johnnie Lowe out of the game. New pitcher Deunte Heath got Chris Nowak to strike-out. Taylor Green managed to get his team-leading 79th RBI with a ground-out. But the Stars got nothing else as Andy Machado popped out to end the inning.
Back-to-back walks started the eighth inning and Lee Haydel singled to load the bases with nobody out. But Lawrie struck-out and Wheeler popped out to leave it up to Drew Anderson. Anderson struck-out as well and the Barons were out of the jam.
The Stars went down harmlessly in the ninth as all three batters struck-out. With the defeat, Huntsville falls to 3.5 games out of the Wild Card race behind the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx with 14 games to play.
Huntsville returns home Monday night to open a three game set against the Montgomery Biscuits. First pitch is at 7 p.m. If you can’t make it to “The Joe” you can tune in on www.huntsvillestars.com.
The Huntsville Stars (29-27, 62-64) managed only three hits on their way to a 5-1 defeat Sunday night against the Birmingham Barons (23-33, 47-79).
Stars’ starter Wily Peralta was cruising along until the fourth where it all came undone. He walked the lead-off man and Christian Marrero followed with a single to right. A ground-out moved both runners up 90 feet and Salvador Sanchez singled home the first run of the game. After a hit by pitch loaded the bases, Dale Mollenhauer delivered the dagger with a triple to deep center field. A Tyler Kuhn sacrifice fly drove him home and all of a sudden it was 5-0 Barons.
Peralta (1-2) ended up going four innings, giving up the five runs on five hits. He walked three and struck-out three as well.
The Stars managed their lone run in the seventh inning, but they should have gotten more. Brett Lawrie led-off with a walk. Zelous Wheeler followed with a single to left. After Drew Anderson walked, the Barons took starter Johnnie Lowe out of the game. New pitcher Deunte Heath got Chris Nowak to strike-out. Taylor Green managed to get his team-leading 79th RBI with a ground-out. But the Stars got nothing else as Andy Machado popped out to end the inning.
Back-to-back walks started the eighth inning and Lee Haydel singled to load the bases with nobody out. But Lawrie struck-out and Wheeler popped out to leave it up to Drew Anderson. Anderson struck-out as well and the Barons were out of the jam.
The Stars went down harmlessly in the ninth as all three batters struck-out. With the defeat, Huntsville falls to 3.5 games out of the Wild Card race behind the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx with 14 games to play.
Huntsville returns home Monday night to open a three game set against the Montgomery Biscuits. First pitch is at 7 p.m. If you can’t make it to “The Joe” you can tune in on www.huntsvillestars.com.
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Stars prevail in low-scoring battle with Barons
By Aaron Morse
Drew Anderson, the franchise’s all-time leader in doubles, doubled home the eventual winning run in the top of the eighth inning as the Huntsville Stars (29-26, 62-3) edged the Birmingham Barons (22-33, 46-79) by a final score of 2-1 Saturday night.
Stars’ starter Chris Cody struck-out the first four batters he faced. Meanwhile the offense gave him some support in the top of the third. With one down, Anderson De La Rosa singled off opposing pitcher Charles Leesman. Lee Haydel was hit by a pitch and with two away Zelous Wheeler came up big with a single to right that scored De La Rosa to put Huntsville up 1-0.
The Barons knotted things at one thanks to a Cole Armstrong solo homer in the fifth.
The seventh inning was key for the Stars as Birmingham loaded the bases with only one away against Cody. Mike Guerrero called upon Eddie Morlan, who got a line-out and a fly-out to get out of the jam. Cody ended up going 6.1 innings, giving up only three hits and one run on the home run; he walked one and struck-out eight in the no-decision.
Huntsville rewarded Morlan for getting out of the jam in the seventh with the go-ahead run in the eighth. With one out, Wheeler tripled to right. That’s when Anderson doubled him home to give the Stars the 2-1 lead.
Morlan (3-2) tossed another scoreless frame and Robert Hinton pitched the ninth to earn his fourth save of the year.
Despite the win, the Stars actually lost ½ a game on the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx who swept their double header Friday. So Huntsville is now three games back in the Wild Card race.
They will attempt to win the finale Sunday night. Wily Peralta is the scheduled starter. First pitch is at 5:05 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
Drew Anderson, the franchise’s all-time leader in doubles, doubled home the eventual winning run in the top of the eighth inning as the Huntsville Stars (29-26, 62-3) edged the Birmingham Barons (22-33, 46-79) by a final score of 2-1 Saturday night.
Stars’ starter Chris Cody struck-out the first four batters he faced. Meanwhile the offense gave him some support in the top of the third. With one down, Anderson De La Rosa singled off opposing pitcher Charles Leesman. Lee Haydel was hit by a pitch and with two away Zelous Wheeler came up big with a single to right that scored De La Rosa to put Huntsville up 1-0.
The Barons knotted things at one thanks to a Cole Armstrong solo homer in the fifth.
The seventh inning was key for the Stars as Birmingham loaded the bases with only one away against Cody. Mike Guerrero called upon Eddie Morlan, who got a line-out and a fly-out to get out of the jam. Cody ended up going 6.1 innings, giving up only three hits and one run on the home run; he walked one and struck-out eight in the no-decision.
Huntsville rewarded Morlan for getting out of the jam in the seventh with the go-ahead run in the eighth. With one out, Wheeler tripled to right. That’s when Anderson doubled him home to give the Stars the 2-1 lead.
Morlan (3-2) tossed another scoreless frame and Robert Hinton pitched the ninth to earn his fourth save of the year.
Despite the win, the Stars actually lost ½ a game on the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx who swept their double header Friday. So Huntsville is now three games back in the Wild Card race.
They will attempt to win the finale Sunday night. Wily Peralta is the scheduled starter. First pitch is at 5:05 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Barons steal one from Stars
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (28-26, 61-63) smacked a season-high nine doubles but it wasn’t enough as the Birmingham Barons (22-32, 46-78) came back from eight runs down to beat the Stars 11-10 Friday night.
The two teams combined for 13 doubles, the most ever in one game in Southern League history.
With the loss the Stars stay 2.5 games back of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for the Wild Card play-off bid. They also remain six games back of the Tennessee Smokies in the north division.
They gave plenty of run support to Amaury Rivas who did not have his A-game. The right-hander gave up five runs (all earned) over his five innings of work. He surrendered nine hits, walked two and struck-out three.
The Stars had no problem hitting Barons starter Kyle McCullough. They scored four runs in the first inning. Lee Haydel got things going with a single to right. After Brett Lawrie smacked his team-leading 35th double of the year, Zelous Wheeler drew a walk. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Drew Anderson singled sharply to right field, scoring Haydel and moving everyone else up 90 feet. A Chris Nowak RBI grounder made the score 2-0. Then with two down, Andy Machado continued his recent hot hitting with a two-RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0.
They seemingly put the game out of reach when they scored four more runs in the top of the third. With two outs and nobody on, the Stars unleashed an incredible five consecutive doubles to take an 8-0 lead.
Birmingham got two runs back in the bottom of the frame on a two-RBI single from Josh Phegley, but the Stars still had a comfortable 8-2 advantage.
A Caleb Gindl RBI double in the fifth made the score 9-2. However, the Barons managed to plate three against Rivas in the bottom of the frame.
A four run lead became a five run lead in the seventh when Gindl hit his third double of the night to drive in Taylor Green.
All seemed well until the bottom of the eighth when the Stars managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Reliever Jim Henderson issued back-to-back walks to start the inning. Tyler Kuhn followed with a RBI double to make the score 10-6 and put runners on second and third with nobody out. A RBI grounder from Eduardo Escobar was the end of Henderson’s outing as Jeremy Jeffress (1-1) came on in relief. He was greeted with an infield single, putting runners at the corners. Jeffress was his own worst enemy as he threw the ball away on a pick-off attempt to first, allowing another Barons’ run to score. He then had control problems, walking Christian Marrero and hitting Phegley with a pitch to load the bases. The Stars’ defense let Jeffress down at that point as a chopper to first base off the bat of Cole Armstrong resulted in a throwing error by Chris Nowak as he attempted to get the runner at the plate. Two runs scored and the game was tied at ten. C.J. Retherford provided the eventual game winning hit as he singled to left to drive in Phegley and give the Barons the 11-10 lead.
Anthony Carter worked another 1-2-3 ninth to get his second save in as many days and his 21st of the season. Kyle Bellamy (1-2) picked up the win in relief for the Barons.
The Stars will look to even the series Saturday evening as they send Andre Lamontagne to the hill. You can hear all the action beginning at 6:15 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
The Huntsville Stars (28-26, 61-63) smacked a season-high nine doubles but it wasn’t enough as the Birmingham Barons (22-32, 46-78) came back from eight runs down to beat the Stars 11-10 Friday night.
The two teams combined for 13 doubles, the most ever in one game in Southern League history.
With the loss the Stars stay 2.5 games back of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for the Wild Card play-off bid. They also remain six games back of the Tennessee Smokies in the north division.
They gave plenty of run support to Amaury Rivas who did not have his A-game. The right-hander gave up five runs (all earned) over his five innings of work. He surrendered nine hits, walked two and struck-out three.
The Stars had no problem hitting Barons starter Kyle McCullough. They scored four runs in the first inning. Lee Haydel got things going with a single to right. After Brett Lawrie smacked his team-leading 35th double of the year, Zelous Wheeler drew a walk. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Drew Anderson singled sharply to right field, scoring Haydel and moving everyone else up 90 feet. A Chris Nowak RBI grounder made the score 2-0. Then with two down, Andy Machado continued his recent hot hitting with a two-RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0.
They seemingly put the game out of reach when they scored four more runs in the top of the third. With two outs and nobody on, the Stars unleashed an incredible five consecutive doubles to take an 8-0 lead.
Birmingham got two runs back in the bottom of the frame on a two-RBI single from Josh Phegley, but the Stars still had a comfortable 8-2 advantage.
A Caleb Gindl RBI double in the fifth made the score 9-2. However, the Barons managed to plate three against Rivas in the bottom of the frame.
A four run lead became a five run lead in the seventh when Gindl hit his third double of the night to drive in Taylor Green.
All seemed well until the bottom of the eighth when the Stars managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Reliever Jim Henderson issued back-to-back walks to start the inning. Tyler Kuhn followed with a RBI double to make the score 10-6 and put runners on second and third with nobody out. A RBI grounder from Eduardo Escobar was the end of Henderson’s outing as Jeremy Jeffress (1-1) came on in relief. He was greeted with an infield single, putting runners at the corners. Jeffress was his own worst enemy as he threw the ball away on a pick-off attempt to first, allowing another Barons’ run to score. He then had control problems, walking Christian Marrero and hitting Phegley with a pitch to load the bases. The Stars’ defense let Jeffress down at that point as a chopper to first base off the bat of Cole Armstrong resulted in a throwing error by Chris Nowak as he attempted to get the runner at the plate. Two runs scored and the game was tied at ten. C.J. Retherford provided the eventual game winning hit as he singled to left to drive in Phegley and give the Barons the 11-10 lead.
Anthony Carter worked another 1-2-3 ninth to get his second save in as many days and his 21st of the season. Kyle Bellamy (1-2) picked up the win in relief for the Barons.
The Stars will look to even the series Saturday evening as they send Andre Lamontagne to the hill. You can hear all the action beginning at 6:15 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
Barons steal one from Stars
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (28-26, 61-63) smacked a season-high nine doubles but it wasn’t enough as the Birmingham Barons (22-32, 46-78) came back from eight runs down to beat the Stars 11-10 Friday night.
The two teams combined for 13 doubles, the most ever in one game in Southern League history.
With the loss the Stars stay 2.5 games back of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for the Wild Card play-off bid. They also remain six games back of the Tennessee Smokies in the north division.
They gave plenty of run support to Amaury Rivas who did not have his A-game. The right-hander gave up five runs (all earned) over his five innings of work. He surrendered nine hits, walked two and struck-out three.
The Stars had no problem hitting Barons starter Kyle McCullough. They scored four runs in the first inning. Lee Haydel got things going with a single to right. After Brett Lawrie smacked his team-leading 35th double of the year, Zelous Wheeler drew a walk. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Drew Anderson singled sharply to right field, scoring Haydel and moving everyone else up 90 feet. A Chris Nowak RBI grounder made the score 2-0. Then with two down, Andy Machado continued his recent hot hitting with a two-RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0.
They seemingly put the game out of reach when they scored four more runs in the top of the third. With two outs and nobody on, the Stars unleashed an incredible five consecutive doubles to take an 8-0 lead.
Birmingham got two runs back in the bottom of the frame on a two-RBI single from Josh Phegley, but the Stars still had a comfortable 8-2 advantage.
A Caleb Gindl RBI double in the fifth made the score 9-2. However, the Barons managed to plate three against Rivas in the bottom of the frame.
A four run lead became a five run lead in the seventh when Gindl hit his third double of the night to drive in Taylor Green.
All seemed well until the bottom of the eighth when the Stars managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Reliever Jim Henderson issued back-to-back walks to start the inning. Tyler Kuhn followed with a RBI double to make the score 10-6 and put runners on second and third with nobody out. A RBI grounder from Eduardo Escobar was the end of Henderson’s outing as Jeremy Jeffress (1-1) came on in relief. He was greeted with an infield single, putting runners at the corners. Jeffress was his own worst enemy as he threw the ball away on a pick-off attempt to first, allowing another Barons’ run to score. He then had control problems, walking Christian Marrero and hitting Phegley with a pitch to load the bases. The Stars’ defense let Jeffress down at that point as a chopper to first base off the bat of Cole Armstrong resulted in a throwing error by Chris Nowak as he attempted to get the runner at the plate. Two runs scored and the game was tied at ten. C.J. Retherford provided the eventual game winning hit as he singled to left to drive in Phegley and give the Barons the 11-10 lead.
Anthony Carter worked another 1-2-3 ninth to get his second save in as many days and his 21st of the season. Kyle Bellamy (1-2) picked up the win in relief for the Barons.
The Stars will look to even the series Saturday evening as they send Andre Lamontagne to the hill. You can hear all the action beginning at 6:15 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
The Huntsville Stars (28-26, 61-63) smacked a season-high nine doubles but it wasn’t enough as the Birmingham Barons (22-32, 46-78) came back from eight runs down to beat the Stars 11-10 Friday night.
The two teams combined for 13 doubles, the most ever in one game in Southern League history.
With the loss the Stars stay 2.5 games back of the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for the Wild Card play-off bid. They also remain six games back of the Tennessee Smokies in the north division.
They gave plenty of run support to Amaury Rivas who did not have his A-game. The right-hander gave up five runs (all earned) over his five innings of work. He surrendered nine hits, walked two and struck-out three.
The Stars had no problem hitting Barons starter Kyle McCullough. They scored four runs in the first inning. Lee Haydel got things going with a single to right. After Brett Lawrie smacked his team-leading 35th double of the year, Zelous Wheeler drew a walk. With the bases loaded and nobody out, Drew Anderson singled sharply to right field, scoring Haydel and moving everyone else up 90 feet. A Chris Nowak RBI grounder made the score 2-0. Then with two down, Andy Machado continued his recent hot hitting with a two-RBI double to extend the lead to 4-0.
They seemingly put the game out of reach when they scored four more runs in the top of the third. With two outs and nobody on, the Stars unleashed an incredible five consecutive doubles to take an 8-0 lead.
Birmingham got two runs back in the bottom of the frame on a two-RBI single from Josh Phegley, but the Stars still had a comfortable 8-2 advantage.
A Caleb Gindl RBI double in the fifth made the score 9-2. However, the Barons managed to plate three against Rivas in the bottom of the frame.
A four run lead became a five run lead in the seventh when Gindl hit his third double of the night to drive in Taylor Green.
All seemed well until the bottom of the eighth when the Stars managed to snatch defeat from the jaws of victory. Reliever Jim Henderson issued back-to-back walks to start the inning. Tyler Kuhn followed with a RBI double to make the score 10-6 and put runners on second and third with nobody out. A RBI grounder from Eduardo Escobar was the end of Henderson’s outing as Jeremy Jeffress (1-1) came on in relief. He was greeted with an infield single, putting runners at the corners. Jeffress was his own worst enemy as he threw the ball away on a pick-off attempt to first, allowing another Barons’ run to score. He then had control problems, walking Christian Marrero and hitting Phegley with a pitch to load the bases. The Stars’ defense let Jeffress down at that point as a chopper to first base off the bat of Cole Armstrong resulted in a throwing error by Chris Nowak as he attempted to get the runner at the plate. Two runs scored and the game was tied at ten. C.J. Retherford provided the eventual game winning hit as he singled to left to drive in Phegley and give the Barons the 11-10 lead.
Anthony Carter worked another 1-2-3 ninth to get his second save in as many days and his 21st of the season. Kyle Bellamy (1-2) picked up the win in relief for the Barons.
The Stars will look to even the series Saturday evening as they send Andre Lamontagne to the hill. You can hear all the action beginning at 6:15 p.m. central time on the Stars Radio Network.
Friday, August 20, 2010
Stars take early lead, fall to Barons late
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (28-25, 61-62) took a 3-0 edge in the second, but the Birmingham Barons (21-32, 45-78) came back to win 4-3 as Christian Marrero hit the go-ahead single in the eighth inning Thursday night.
With one away in the second, Chris Nowak singled on a line drive that deflected off of Barons’ starter Matt Long in to center field. Long was okay, but immediately gave up a two-run shot to Taylor Green. It was Green’s team-leading 12th homer of the year. Huntsville kept the pressure on when Andy Machado tripled down the right field line. After Caleb Gindl walked, Dayton Buller hit a fly ball to left field that Jim Gallagher caught for the second out of the inning. Machado was able to score on the play, but Gindl got thrown out at second base by catcher Cole Armstrong as he tried to advance to end the inning.
The Barons got one back in the bottom of the frame against Stars’ starter Mark Rogers. With one down, Armstrong singled to center. Salvador Sanchez followed with a double to left-center to cut the score to 3-1.
Rogers worked around trouble in the third and fourth but was not as fortunate in the fifth. John Shelby III got things going with a single to left. A wild pitched moved him to second. That’s when Eduardo Escobar laid down a bunt that Rogers fielded; his throw sailed down the right field line and Shelby III came around to score. It was ruled a bunt single for Escobar and he went to second on the error. Rogers proceeded to issue his first and only walk of the night when he gave Gallagher a free pass. Christian Marrero foreshadowed his game-winning hit by tying the game with a single to right.
Rogers was able to get out of the inning without any further damage. He’d get a no-decision, going five innings, scattering nine hits, giving up three runs (all earned), walking one and striking out five.
The Stars loaded the bases with only one out in the sixth, but Buller hit into a 6-3 double play to end the threat. The Stars were 0-5 with runners in scoring position on the night and left seven men stranded.
Birmingham took the lead against Robert Hinton (4-3) in the eighth. With one away, Shelby III drew a walk. Escobar followed with a single up the middle. Hinton got two strikes on Gallagher but hit him with the pitch. Marrero stepped to the plate and delivered his second clutch hit of the night with a single to right, scoring Shelby III and giving the Barons a 4-3 lead.
Anthony Carter had no problem nailing down his 20th save of the year in the ninth. Gregory Infante (2-2) picked up the win in relief for Birmingham.
West Tenn also lost Thursday night so the Stars remain 2.5 games back in the Wild Card race. The Smokies won so Huntsville falls to six back in the division.
The Huntsville Stars (28-25, 61-62) took a 3-0 edge in the second, but the Birmingham Barons (21-32, 45-78) came back to win 4-3 as Christian Marrero hit the go-ahead single in the eighth inning Thursday night.
With one away in the second, Chris Nowak singled on a line drive that deflected off of Barons’ starter Matt Long in to center field. Long was okay, but immediately gave up a two-run shot to Taylor Green. It was Green’s team-leading 12th homer of the year. Huntsville kept the pressure on when Andy Machado tripled down the right field line. After Caleb Gindl walked, Dayton Buller hit a fly ball to left field that Jim Gallagher caught for the second out of the inning. Machado was able to score on the play, but Gindl got thrown out at second base by catcher Cole Armstrong as he tried to advance to end the inning.
The Barons got one back in the bottom of the frame against Stars’ starter Mark Rogers. With one down, Armstrong singled to center. Salvador Sanchez followed with a double to left-center to cut the score to 3-1.
Rogers worked around trouble in the third and fourth but was not as fortunate in the fifth. John Shelby III got things going with a single to left. A wild pitched moved him to second. That’s when Eduardo Escobar laid down a bunt that Rogers fielded; his throw sailed down the right field line and Shelby III came around to score. It was ruled a bunt single for Escobar and he went to second on the error. Rogers proceeded to issue his first and only walk of the night when he gave Gallagher a free pass. Christian Marrero foreshadowed his game-winning hit by tying the game with a single to right.
Rogers was able to get out of the inning without any further damage. He’d get a no-decision, going five innings, scattering nine hits, giving up three runs (all earned), walking one and striking out five.
The Stars loaded the bases with only one out in the sixth, but Buller hit into a 6-3 double play to end the threat. The Stars were 0-5 with runners in scoring position on the night and left seven men stranded.
Birmingham took the lead against Robert Hinton (4-3) in the eighth. With one away, Shelby III drew a walk. Escobar followed with a single up the middle. Hinton got two strikes on Gallagher but hit him with the pitch. Marrero stepped to the plate and delivered his second clutch hit of the night with a single to right, scoring Shelby III and giving the Barons a 4-3 lead.
Anthony Carter had no problem nailing down his 20th save of the year in the ninth. Gregory Infante (2-2) picked up the win in relief for Birmingham.
West Tenn also lost Thursday night so the Stars remain 2.5 games back in the Wild Card race. The Smokies won so Huntsville falls to six back in the division.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Stars Close To Wild Card
Connor Shreve
The Huntsville Stars set season highs Wednesday night at Regions Field in beating up on the Birmingham Barons 17-4.
Taylor Green extended his team RBI lead, now at 75, with six runs knocked in as part of a perfect 5-5 night from the plate. Green helped spur the team to the seasons best run output (17) and hit total (22).
Birmingham attempted to take advantage of two Stars miscues in the second which built a 2-1 home club lead. But the Barons luck was not enough for a bullpen that has been shaky all season long. The Stars brought ten batters to the plate in a six run fifth inning that only proved to be the beginning of the Stars scoring frenzy.
Greens 11th home run added three runs to the sixth inning total of five. The rest of the offense would not be outdone, continuing to gush through the nozzle that is the Barons pen until the final out mercifully ended a contest that neared the three and one half hour mark. Not one offensive player left the field without at least one hit.
Overshadowed perhaps was the work of Huntsville hurler Mike Bowman, who rebounded from a rough performance last time out to pick up his ninth win of the year. Bowman gave up only the two unearned runs on seven hits. He picked up three punch outs and gave out two free passes to first base.
Huntsville also received some help from the division and wild card leaders and now sit 2.5 games back of the wild card heading in to Thursday's game two. The Stars rotation is set up well; Mark Rogers and Amaury Rivas are set to throw at some point in the next three days.
Thursdays game begins at 7:05 (CDT) on the Stars Radio Network and www.huntsvillestars.com
The Huntsville Stars set season highs Wednesday night at Regions Field in beating up on the Birmingham Barons 17-4.
Taylor Green extended his team RBI lead, now at 75, with six runs knocked in as part of a perfect 5-5 night from the plate. Green helped spur the team to the seasons best run output (17) and hit total (22).
Birmingham attempted to take advantage of two Stars miscues in the second which built a 2-1 home club lead. But the Barons luck was not enough for a bullpen that has been shaky all season long. The Stars brought ten batters to the plate in a six run fifth inning that only proved to be the beginning of the Stars scoring frenzy.
Greens 11th home run added three runs to the sixth inning total of five. The rest of the offense would not be outdone, continuing to gush through the nozzle that is the Barons pen until the final out mercifully ended a contest that neared the three and one half hour mark. Not one offensive player left the field without at least one hit.
Overshadowed perhaps was the work of Huntsville hurler Mike Bowman, who rebounded from a rough performance last time out to pick up his ninth win of the year. Bowman gave up only the two unearned runs on seven hits. He picked up three punch outs and gave out two free passes to first base.
Huntsville also received some help from the division and wild card leaders and now sit 2.5 games back of the wild card heading in to Thursday's game two. The Stars rotation is set up well; Mark Rogers and Amaury Rivas are set to throw at some point in the next three days.
Thursdays game begins at 7:05 (CDT) on the Stars Radio Network and www.huntsvillestars.com
Monday, August 16, 2010
Stars pull off dramatic comeback win
By Aaron Morse
Brett Lawrie hit a two-out, two-RBI double and the Huntsville Stars (27-24, 60-61) scored seven runs in the sixth inning to rally from a five run deficit on their way to a 9-7 victory over the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (24-27, 63-57) Monday afternoon.
The victory made a winner out of Wily Peralta (1-1) who went six innings, giving up six runs (three earned) on seven hits. He walked one and struck-out seven.
The 21-year old right-hander had to work around some shaky Stars defense in the first inning. With one out, Johan Limonta doubled sharply down the right field line. Peralta got Alex Liddi to ground right back to the mound; he had Limonta caught dead to rights between second and third but his throw to second was dropped by shortstop Andy Machado. That allowed Limonta to go to third and everybody was safe.
Then he was hit with some bad luck as a Carlos Peguero chopper up the middle was hit so slowly that no play was available for Machado to make. The infield single drove in Limonta and West Tenn grabbed the early 1-0 lead. Scott Savastano followed with a grounder that Machado booted, loading the bases with only one down. The Stars paid for their bad defense as Joe Dunigan singled in two runs to extend the West Tenn lead to 3-0.
West Tennessee tacked on an insurance run in the top of the second on a two-out RBI single from Liddi.
However the Stars were able to get that run back in the bottom half of the frame when Taylor Green doubled in Drew Anderson, who’d drawn a lead-off walk.
Peralta and his counterpart Jarrett Grube were lights out for the next three innings before the Diamond Jaxx struck again in the sixth. With one out Joe Dunigan reached on an infield single. Bonilla followed with his second homer of the afternoon to extend the advantage to 6-1.
It was not Peralta’s best outing but the Stars made him a winner thanks to their epic comeback in the bottom of the sixth. Lee Haydel provided the spark Huntsville needed with a perfect bunt single down the third base line. Brett Lawrie followed with a double to the left field corner. That’s when the Z-man, Zelous Wheeler singled home both runners to cut the deficit to 6-3. A Drew Anderson double put runners at second and third with still nobody out. It also chased Grube from the game as the Diamond Jaxx brought in Wes Littleton. He was greeted by a Chris Nowak chopper to short that Carlos Triunfel mishandled, allowing everyone to be safe as the Stars cut the lead to 6-4. Littleton walked Taylor Green to load the bases. His control continued to escape him as he walked Andy Machado and Caleb Gindl as well and all of a sudden the game was tied at six. Nick Hill entered the game and struck-out two batters before Lawrie hacked at the first pitch and doubled in two runs to give the Stars an 8-6 lead.
Robert Hinton tossed a scoreless seventh, but Michael Fiers gave up a homer to Bonilla in the eighth to cut the Stars’ lead to one. Huntsville responded immediately in the bottom half of the frame when Lee Haydel hit a sacrifice fly to score Gindl from third.
The 9-7 lead held up as Jeremy Jeffress nailed down his second save of the year with a scoreless ninth inning.
The win moves Huntsville to within 3.5 games of the Wild Card lead. They have an off day Tuesday before taking on the Birmingham Barons on Wednesday. Michael Bowman will be on the mound and you can catch all the action on the Stars Radio Network.
Brett Lawrie hit a two-out, two-RBI double and the Huntsville Stars (27-24, 60-61) scored seven runs in the sixth inning to rally from a five run deficit on their way to a 9-7 victory over the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (24-27, 63-57) Monday afternoon.
The victory made a winner out of Wily Peralta (1-1) who went six innings, giving up six runs (three earned) on seven hits. He walked one and struck-out seven.
The 21-year old right-hander had to work around some shaky Stars defense in the first inning. With one out, Johan Limonta doubled sharply down the right field line. Peralta got Alex Liddi to ground right back to the mound; he had Limonta caught dead to rights between second and third but his throw to second was dropped by shortstop Andy Machado. That allowed Limonta to go to third and everybody was safe.
Then he was hit with some bad luck as a Carlos Peguero chopper up the middle was hit so slowly that no play was available for Machado to make. The infield single drove in Limonta and West Tenn grabbed the early 1-0 lead. Scott Savastano followed with a grounder that Machado booted, loading the bases with only one down. The Stars paid for their bad defense as Joe Dunigan singled in two runs to extend the West Tenn lead to 3-0.
West Tennessee tacked on an insurance run in the top of the second on a two-out RBI single from Liddi.
However the Stars were able to get that run back in the bottom half of the frame when Taylor Green doubled in Drew Anderson, who’d drawn a lead-off walk.
Peralta and his counterpart Jarrett Grube were lights out for the next three innings before the Diamond Jaxx struck again in the sixth. With one out Joe Dunigan reached on an infield single. Bonilla followed with his second homer of the afternoon to extend the advantage to 6-1.
It was not Peralta’s best outing but the Stars made him a winner thanks to their epic comeback in the bottom of the sixth. Lee Haydel provided the spark Huntsville needed with a perfect bunt single down the third base line. Brett Lawrie followed with a double to the left field corner. That’s when the Z-man, Zelous Wheeler singled home both runners to cut the deficit to 6-3. A Drew Anderson double put runners at second and third with still nobody out. It also chased Grube from the game as the Diamond Jaxx brought in Wes Littleton. He was greeted by a Chris Nowak chopper to short that Carlos Triunfel mishandled, allowing everyone to be safe as the Stars cut the lead to 6-4. Littleton walked Taylor Green to load the bases. His control continued to escape him as he walked Andy Machado and Caleb Gindl as well and all of a sudden the game was tied at six. Nick Hill entered the game and struck-out two batters before Lawrie hacked at the first pitch and doubled in two runs to give the Stars an 8-6 lead.
Robert Hinton tossed a scoreless seventh, but Michael Fiers gave up a homer to Bonilla in the eighth to cut the Stars’ lead to one. Huntsville responded immediately in the bottom half of the frame when Lee Haydel hit a sacrifice fly to score Gindl from third.
The 9-7 lead held up as Jeremy Jeffress nailed down his second save of the year with a scoreless ninth inning.
The win moves Huntsville to within 3.5 games of the Wild Card lead. They have an off day Tuesday before taking on the Birmingham Barons on Wednesday. Michael Bowman will be on the mound and you can catch all the action on the Stars Radio Network.
Sunday, August 15, 2010
Stars miss multiple opportunities in game two loss
By Aaron Morse
The Huntsville Stars (26-24, 59-61) gave up four runs with two outs, Alex Liddi hit a home run over the scoreboard, and the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (24-26, 63-56) prevailed 6-2 in game two of Sunday’s double header.
The two-out trouble started in the very first inning. With two away, Huntsville starter Andre Lamontagne (3-2) gave up a line drive single to Liddi up the middle. A wild pitch moved him to second and Lamontagne walked Johan Limonta. He got a little unlucky when Scott Savastano’s weak chopper bounced over the mound for an infield single to load the bases. That’s when Carlos Peguero provided the two-out lightning with a two-RBI double to left.
Huntsville got two on with only one away in the bottom half of the frame, but West Tenn starter Cesar Jimenez worked out of the jam.
That’d be the theme of game two as the Stars got a one-out walk in the second and were unable to score as well.
Meanwhile, Liddi cranked a mammoth homer over the left-center field scoreboard to extend the West Tenn lead to 3-0 in the third.
Jimenez hit Caleb Gindl with a pitch in the bottom of the frame, and this being his first start after rehabbing in Arizona, that signaled the end of the southpaw’s day. Robert Rohrbaugh (4-2) came on in relief and was greeted by a sharp Lawrie liner to left. Unfortunately the hard hit ball was right at Peguero for out number one. Then, with Zelous Wheeler at the plate, Gindl inexplicably tried to steal second in a three-run game and was promptly picked off by the lefty Rohrbaugh. Wheeler proceeded to strike out and that was that.
The fourth inning proved to be more two-out trouble for the Stars. Brandon Bantz led-off with a double to deep left. One out later Joe Dunigan drew a walk. Stars’ manager Mike Guerrero opted to bring in Nick Green at that point. Green blew three heaters past Nate Tenbrink for the second out of the frame. But Liddi struck again, this time with a double down the right field line. On the play Bantz scored, but the Diamond Jaxx tried to hold Dunigan at third. A base-running mistake by Liddi, who was not looking at the fact Dunigan had been held up at third, forced Dunigan to head home. The Stars had him dead for rights, but Lawrie’s throw sailed over everyone’s head, scoring another run and giving West Tenn a 5-0 advantage.
Huntsville finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. Drew Anderson singled to left to get things started. One out later, Taylor Green hit into a force out and two were away. Luckily Andy Machado came up big with a double, driving in Green and cutting the score to 5-1.
The Stars left a man in scoring position in the fifth and loaded the bases in the sixth. Singles by Green, Machado, and Caufield put runners on every base with two away. Unfortunately, manager Mike Guerrero opted not to pinch hit with Lee Haydel. Instead he allowed the sub-.100 hitting Arlis to bat for himself. He grounded out to third and the threat was neutralized.
Johan Limonta tacked on another run in the top half of the seventh with a homer that snuck over the right field fence by mere inches.
Caleb Gindl started the seventh with an infield single. One out later Wheeler worked a great AB and doubled home Gindl to the cut the score to 6-2. But that’d be it for Huntsville as they dropped game two of the twin bill.
Huntsville left nine men on base and they only managed a 3-11 clip with runners in scoring position. They out-hit West Tenn 9-8 to no avail. Wheeler and Machado both tallied multi-hit games.
With the loss the Stars are 4.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card Race. They play the finale of the five game set Monday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. central time. Tune in to www.huntsvillestars.com beginning at 12:45 for the Window World Pre-Game Report.
The Huntsville Stars (26-24, 59-61) gave up four runs with two outs, Alex Liddi hit a home run over the scoreboard, and the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (24-26, 63-56) prevailed 6-2 in game two of Sunday’s double header.
The two-out trouble started in the very first inning. With two away, Huntsville starter Andre Lamontagne (3-2) gave up a line drive single to Liddi up the middle. A wild pitch moved him to second and Lamontagne walked Johan Limonta. He got a little unlucky when Scott Savastano’s weak chopper bounced over the mound for an infield single to load the bases. That’s when Carlos Peguero provided the two-out lightning with a two-RBI double to left.
Huntsville got two on with only one away in the bottom half of the frame, but West Tenn starter Cesar Jimenez worked out of the jam.
That’d be the theme of game two as the Stars got a one-out walk in the second and were unable to score as well.
Meanwhile, Liddi cranked a mammoth homer over the left-center field scoreboard to extend the West Tenn lead to 3-0 in the third.
Jimenez hit Caleb Gindl with a pitch in the bottom of the frame, and this being his first start after rehabbing in Arizona, that signaled the end of the southpaw’s day. Robert Rohrbaugh (4-2) came on in relief and was greeted by a sharp Lawrie liner to left. Unfortunately the hard hit ball was right at Peguero for out number one. Then, with Zelous Wheeler at the plate, Gindl inexplicably tried to steal second in a three-run game and was promptly picked off by the lefty Rohrbaugh. Wheeler proceeded to strike out and that was that.
The fourth inning proved to be more two-out trouble for the Stars. Brandon Bantz led-off with a double to deep left. One out later Joe Dunigan drew a walk. Stars’ manager Mike Guerrero opted to bring in Nick Green at that point. Green blew three heaters past Nate Tenbrink for the second out of the frame. But Liddi struck again, this time with a double down the right field line. On the play Bantz scored, but the Diamond Jaxx tried to hold Dunigan at third. A base-running mistake by Liddi, who was not looking at the fact Dunigan had been held up at third, forced Dunigan to head home. The Stars had him dead for rights, but Lawrie’s throw sailed over everyone’s head, scoring another run and giving West Tenn a 5-0 advantage.
Huntsville finally got on the board in the bottom of the fourth. Drew Anderson singled to left to get things started. One out later, Taylor Green hit into a force out and two were away. Luckily Andy Machado came up big with a double, driving in Green and cutting the score to 5-1.
The Stars left a man in scoring position in the fifth and loaded the bases in the sixth. Singles by Green, Machado, and Caufield put runners on every base with two away. Unfortunately, manager Mike Guerrero opted not to pinch hit with Lee Haydel. Instead he allowed the sub-.100 hitting Arlis to bat for himself. He grounded out to third and the threat was neutralized.
Johan Limonta tacked on another run in the top half of the seventh with a homer that snuck over the right field fence by mere inches.
Caleb Gindl started the seventh with an infield single. One out later Wheeler worked a great AB and doubled home Gindl to the cut the score to 6-2. But that’d be it for Huntsville as they dropped game two of the twin bill.
Huntsville left nine men on base and they only managed a 3-11 clip with runners in scoring position. They out-hit West Tenn 9-8 to no avail. Wheeler and Machado both tallied multi-hit games.
With the loss the Stars are 4.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card Race. They play the finale of the five game set Monday afternoon at 1:00 p.m. central time. Tune in to www.huntsvillestars.com beginning at 12:45 for the Window World Pre-Game Report.
Stars shine Sunday morning
By Aaron Morse
Chris Nowak drove in three runs, Amaury Rivas (11-6) pitched well, and eight Huntsville Stars (26-23, 59-60) collected hits on their way to 13 of them in a 10-1 romp over the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (23-26, 62-56) Sunday morning.
The Stars took advantage of some shaky West Tenn defense in the first inning. Lee Haydel drew a lead-off base-on-balls against Steven Hensley (7-11). They played some small ball as Brett Lawrie bunted Haydel to second base. That’s when Zelous Wheeler singled to left. Initially manager Mike Guerrero opted to hold Haydel at third. But Joe Dunigan’s throw to the plate sailed over everyone’s head, allowing Haydel to cross the plate for a 1-0 Stars lead.
They tacked on two more in the fourth. Once again it was a lead-off walk that started things as Drew Anderson reached on the free pass. Chris Nowak made Hensley pay as he drilled a two-run home run to deep left.
Rivas was dominant through four, surrendering only a lone Alex Liddi single in the second. However the fifth inning was a rocky one. Nate Tenbrink led-off with a walk, the first of the game issued by Rivas. Guillermo Quiroz followed with a chopper up the middle. Zelous Wheeler ranged to his left and looked like he’d be able to turn the double play. But the ball snuck under his glove for a single and Tenbrink went to third on the play. Rivas got Carlos Peguero to hit into a 6-3 double play as Wheeler made a nice play behind the bag at second. The twin killing did push across the first one of the game for West Tenn as they cut the Stars’ lead to 3-1.
Rivas had to work hard to get out of the frame without any more damage as he walked Dunigan and surrendered a single to Carlos Triunfel. He struck-out pinch hitter Leury Bonilla to get out of the jam.
It’d be his final frame of work as he finished with a line of five innings pitched, three hits, one run, two walks, and seven strike-outs.
Huntsville got all the insurance they needed and more in their half of the fifth. Haydel doubled to deep right center on a ball that Peguero badly misjudged. Lawrie followed with a ringing double off the top of the wall in left-center to drive in Haydel and extend the lead to 4-1.
The Stars’ got lucky when Wheeler hit a chopper to third that Alex Liddi gloved. Brett Lawrie had started towards third and appeared to be caught dead to rights. But he managed to avoid Liddi’s tag and dive head-first in to third safely. Everyone was safe, setting up a Drew Anderson RBI single that made the score 5-1.
That was all for Hensley as the Diamond Jaxx brought on Nick Hill to put out the fire. He was unable to as he immediately gave up a single to Chris Nowak. That plated Wheeler to give the Stars a 6-1 edge. Hill got a little wild as he hit Taylor Green and walked in a run when Andy Machado drew a base-on-balls. A Chuckie Caufield RBI grounder completed the scoring as the Stars put across five runs in the frame to take an 8-1 lead.
Huntsville greeted new pitcher Aaron Jensen rather rudely in the bottom of the sixth. Lawrie smacked another double to lead things off. One out later Anderson singled him home. Then with two away Green singled in the hole to right field. Machado continued his hot hitting with a RBI double down the right field line to complete the scoring as the Stars grabbed a commanding 10-1 advantage.
Meanwhile Eddie Morlan was untouchable out of the bullpen, striking out all six batters he faced.
The Diamond Jaxx managed only three hits in the game, while the Stars had a multitude of players have big days. Four of the first five hitters in the order had multi-hit games. Haydel and Lawrie were 2-3 with two runs scored each. Anderson went 3-4 with three runs scored and two RBI. Nowak had a solid day as well, going 2-4 with two runs scored, the homer, and three RBI. Andy Machado only had one hit but drove in two runs in the contest.
Chris Nowak drove in three runs, Amaury Rivas (11-6) pitched well, and eight Huntsville Stars (26-23, 59-60) collected hits on their way to 13 of them in a 10-1 romp over the West Tennessee Diamond Jaxx (23-26, 62-56) Sunday morning.
The Stars took advantage of some shaky West Tenn defense in the first inning. Lee Haydel drew a lead-off base-on-balls against Steven Hensley (7-11). They played some small ball as Brett Lawrie bunted Haydel to second base. That’s when Zelous Wheeler singled to left. Initially manager Mike Guerrero opted to hold Haydel at third. But Joe Dunigan’s throw to the plate sailed over everyone’s head, allowing Haydel to cross the plate for a 1-0 Stars lead.
They tacked on two more in the fourth. Once again it was a lead-off walk that started things as Drew Anderson reached on the free pass. Chris Nowak made Hensley pay as he drilled a two-run home run to deep left.
Rivas was dominant through four, surrendering only a lone Alex Liddi single in the second. However the fifth inning was a rocky one. Nate Tenbrink led-off with a walk, the first of the game issued by Rivas. Guillermo Quiroz followed with a chopper up the middle. Zelous Wheeler ranged to his left and looked like he’d be able to turn the double play. But the ball snuck under his glove for a single and Tenbrink went to third on the play. Rivas got Carlos Peguero to hit into a 6-3 double play as Wheeler made a nice play behind the bag at second. The twin killing did push across the first one of the game for West Tenn as they cut the Stars’ lead to 3-1.
Rivas had to work hard to get out of the frame without any more damage as he walked Dunigan and surrendered a single to Carlos Triunfel. He struck-out pinch hitter Leury Bonilla to get out of the jam.
It’d be his final frame of work as he finished with a line of five innings pitched, three hits, one run, two walks, and seven strike-outs.
Huntsville got all the insurance they needed and more in their half of the fifth. Haydel doubled to deep right center on a ball that Peguero badly misjudged. Lawrie followed with a ringing double off the top of the wall in left-center to drive in Haydel and extend the lead to 4-1.
The Stars’ got lucky when Wheeler hit a chopper to third that Alex Liddi gloved. Brett Lawrie had started towards third and appeared to be caught dead to rights. But he managed to avoid Liddi’s tag and dive head-first in to third safely. Everyone was safe, setting up a Drew Anderson RBI single that made the score 5-1.
That was all for Hensley as the Diamond Jaxx brought on Nick Hill to put out the fire. He was unable to as he immediately gave up a single to Chris Nowak. That plated Wheeler to give the Stars a 6-1 edge. Hill got a little wild as he hit Taylor Green and walked in a run when Andy Machado drew a base-on-balls. A Chuckie Caufield RBI grounder completed the scoring as the Stars put across five runs in the frame to take an 8-1 lead.
Huntsville greeted new pitcher Aaron Jensen rather rudely in the bottom of the sixth. Lawrie smacked another double to lead things off. One out later Anderson singled him home. Then with two away Green singled in the hole to right field. Machado continued his hot hitting with a RBI double down the right field line to complete the scoring as the Stars grabbed a commanding 10-1 advantage.
Meanwhile Eddie Morlan was untouchable out of the bullpen, striking out all six batters he faced.
The Diamond Jaxx managed only three hits in the game, while the Stars had a multitude of players have big days. Four of the first five hitters in the order had multi-hit games. Haydel and Lawrie were 2-3 with two runs scored each. Anderson went 3-4 with three runs scored and two RBI. Nowak had a solid day as well, going 2-4 with two runs scored, the homer, and three RBI. Andy Machado only had one hit but drove in two runs in the contest.
Stars salvage split of twin bill as Anderson rewrites the record books
By Aaron Morse
Drew Anderson set the Stars’ all time record for career doubles and his hit turned out to be the difference as the Huntsville Stars (25-23, 58-60) snuck by the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (23-25, 62-55) by a final score of 4-3 in game two of Saturday’s double header.
West Tenn took the early lead for the second game in a row on a Carlos Peguero RBI double in the second inning. This time though the Stars struck back in a big way. In the bottom of the frame, Chris Nowak, Taylor Green, and Andy Machado smacked back-to-back-to-back singles with one away. Up stepped Lee Haydel, who hit a chopper to second base. The Diamond Jaxx got the force at second, but Carlos Triunfel’s throw to first was low and got away. Two runs crossed the plate to give Huntsville the 2-1 edge. Dayton Buller followed with a clutch RBI single to extend the lead to 3-1.
The Diamond Jaxx chipped away against Stars’ starter Chris Cody. Matt Lawson led-off the third with a single to right. Nate Tenbrink followed with a single of his own and Lawson went corner to corner. One out later, Johan Limonta legged out a grounder as the Stars’ got the lead runner at second but no more. Lawson scored on the play to cut the lead to 3-2.
In the bottom of the frame, Zelous Wheeler doubled to center with one down. That’s when Drew Anderson hit his record-setting 72nd career double as a Huntsville Star, driving in Wheeler to provide some much needed insurance.
Back-to-back doubles off the bats of Leury Bonilla and Brandon Bantz in the fourth cut the Stars’ lead to a slim one run.
The Diamond Jaxx chased Cody from the game in the fifth thanks to two singles. But Robert Hinton (4-2) bailed the Stars out when he forced Scott Savastano to hit into a 6-4-3 double play.
Cody’s final line was 4.1 IP, 9 hits, three runs, all earned, no walks and six strike-outs.
Hinton tossed a scoreless sixth and Jeremy Jeffress nailed down his first save of the year with a perfect seventh.
With the victory, the Stars salvaged a split in the twin bill and remain 4.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card race heading into Sunday’s double header. All the action can be heard on www.huntsvillestars.com beginning at 10:45 a.m. central time with the Window World Pre-Game Report.
Drew Anderson set the Stars’ all time record for career doubles and his hit turned out to be the difference as the Huntsville Stars (25-23, 58-60) snuck by the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (23-25, 62-55) by a final score of 4-3 in game two of Saturday’s double header.
West Tenn took the early lead for the second game in a row on a Carlos Peguero RBI double in the second inning. This time though the Stars struck back in a big way. In the bottom of the frame, Chris Nowak, Taylor Green, and Andy Machado smacked back-to-back-to-back singles with one away. Up stepped Lee Haydel, who hit a chopper to second base. The Diamond Jaxx got the force at second, but Carlos Triunfel’s throw to first was low and got away. Two runs crossed the plate to give Huntsville the 2-1 edge. Dayton Buller followed with a clutch RBI single to extend the lead to 3-1.
The Diamond Jaxx chipped away against Stars’ starter Chris Cody. Matt Lawson led-off the third with a single to right. Nate Tenbrink followed with a single of his own and Lawson went corner to corner. One out later, Johan Limonta legged out a grounder as the Stars’ got the lead runner at second but no more. Lawson scored on the play to cut the lead to 3-2.
In the bottom of the frame, Zelous Wheeler doubled to center with one down. That’s when Drew Anderson hit his record-setting 72nd career double as a Huntsville Star, driving in Wheeler to provide some much needed insurance.
Back-to-back doubles off the bats of Leury Bonilla and Brandon Bantz in the fourth cut the Stars’ lead to a slim one run.
The Diamond Jaxx chased Cody from the game in the fifth thanks to two singles. But Robert Hinton (4-2) bailed the Stars out when he forced Scott Savastano to hit into a 6-4-3 double play.
Cody’s final line was 4.1 IP, 9 hits, three runs, all earned, no walks and six strike-outs.
Hinton tossed a scoreless sixth and Jeremy Jeffress nailed down his first save of the year with a perfect seventh.
With the victory, the Stars salvaged a split in the twin bill and remain 4.5 games back of the Diamond Jaxx in the Wild Card race heading into Sunday’s double header. All the action can be heard on www.huntsvillestars.com beginning at 10:45 a.m. central time with the Window World Pre-Game Report.
Saturday, August 14, 2010
Stars drop game one of Saturday’s double dip
By Aaron Morse
Anthony Vazquez (1-2) dominated on the mound as the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (23-24, 62-54) knocked off the Huntsville Stars (24-23, 57-60) by a final score of 4-1 in game one of Saturday’s double header.
Vazquez went 6.2 innings, giving up only four hits and a lone run while striking out six. A big key for Vazquez was that he did not walk anyone.
Meanwhile after a routine first inning, Michael Bowman (8-10) surrendered an unearned run the very next frame.
With one away in the second, Nate Tenbrink doubled to center. Then Guillermo Quiroz gave the ball a ride to deep right that Chuckie Caufield dropped for an error. Tenbrink scored on the play to give West Tenn the 1-0 lead.
Bowman settled down and tossed two straight scoreless innings. The long ball got to him in the fifth though. Joe Dunigan led-off with a single up the middle. The ever-dangerous Carlos Triunfel followed with a bomb to left and West Tenn extended their lead to 3-0.
A Brandon Haveman single followed by a deep fly-out from Matthew Lawson signaled the end of the day for Bowman. The right-hander went four and a third, giving up three runs (two earned) on six hits. He walked one and struck-out six.
Lucas Luetge entered and got the Stars out of the inning. He would give up a solo shot to Carlos Peguero in the sixth though as West Tenn took a 4-0 advantage.
The Stars finally got to Vazquez in the last half inning, the bottom of the seventh. Zelous Wheeler started things with a single to left. Two outs later Andy Machado doubled home Wheeler a ball that Joe Dunigan misplayed to cut the deficit to 4-1. But that’d be it for the Stars as Wes Littleton entered and got pinch hitter Taylor Green to pop out to third to end the game for his third save of the season.
Machado tallied the only multi-hit game for the Stars as he went 2-3 with a RBI. Michael Fiers made his first appearance since coming off the DL and tossed an inning of scoreless ball. Haveman and Tenbrink each smacked two base hits for the Diamond Jaxx.
Anthony Vazquez (1-2) dominated on the mound as the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx (23-24, 62-54) knocked off the Huntsville Stars (24-23, 57-60) by a final score of 4-1 in game one of Saturday’s double header.
Vazquez went 6.2 innings, giving up only four hits and a lone run while striking out six. A big key for Vazquez was that he did not walk anyone.
Meanwhile after a routine first inning, Michael Bowman (8-10) surrendered an unearned run the very next frame.
With one away in the second, Nate Tenbrink doubled to center. Then Guillermo Quiroz gave the ball a ride to deep right that Chuckie Caufield dropped for an error. Tenbrink scored on the play to give West Tenn the 1-0 lead.
Bowman settled down and tossed two straight scoreless innings. The long ball got to him in the fifth though. Joe Dunigan led-off with a single up the middle. The ever-dangerous Carlos Triunfel followed with a bomb to left and West Tenn extended their lead to 3-0.
A Brandon Haveman single followed by a deep fly-out from Matthew Lawson signaled the end of the day for Bowman. The right-hander went four and a third, giving up three runs (two earned) on six hits. He walked one and struck-out six.
Lucas Luetge entered and got the Stars out of the inning. He would give up a solo shot to Carlos Peguero in the sixth though as West Tenn took a 4-0 advantage.
The Stars finally got to Vazquez in the last half inning, the bottom of the seventh. Zelous Wheeler started things with a single to left. Two outs later Andy Machado doubled home Wheeler a ball that Joe Dunigan misplayed to cut the deficit to 4-1. But that’d be it for the Stars as Wes Littleton entered and got pinch hitter Taylor Green to pop out to third to end the game for his third save of the season.
Machado tallied the only multi-hit game for the Stars as he went 2-3 with a RBI. Michael Fiers made his first appearance since coming off the DL and tossed an inning of scoreless ball. Haveman and Tenbrink each smacked two base hits for the Diamond Jaxx.
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