For Cats, 2-out-of-3 ain't bad

The New Britain Rock Cats took 2-of-3 games this weekend against the Binghamton Mets posting a loss on Friday and Wins on Saturday and Sunday.



Friday: Binghamton 4 at New Britain 3

W: R. Parnell (10-6, 4.33); L: K. Aselton (4-5, 4.42); SV: E. Kunz (27)
HR: NBR: B. Peterson (14), E. Lis (11).

Kyle Aselton took the start, allowing 4 runs on 5 hits and 3 walks while fanning 4 over five innings worth of work.

New Britain drew first blood in the bottom of the 2nd, with Brock Peterson putting his 14th home run of the year over the left field wall. The run came off B-Met's starter Bob Parnell, who would allow all three New Britain runs on 7 hits while fanning 2 over six innings.

The lead would not last long though as Jose Coronado singled off Aselton in the top of the 3rd and Jonathan Malo took a walk. Mike Carp tripled the pair in and a throwing error by Toby Gardenhire allowed Carp to cross the plate as well, giving the Mets 3. Aselton would allow a singled to Ambriorix Concepcion one out later, but picked Conception off trying to steal 2nd before taking Shawn Bowman out on strikes to end sent the Cats up to bat.

Jose Coronado doubled in the top of the 5th, and would move to 3rd on a Jonathan Malo sac-bunt. Mike Carp then sacrificed in Coronado to make it 4-1 Mets.

Erik Lis went yard in the bottom half of the inning, the solo shot home run over the left field wall was his 11th of the season. Peterson would follow that up with a single, then steal 2nd. Gardenhire singled Peterson to 3rd, but would be caught stealing 2nd. Drew Butera's ground out plated Peterson to give the Cat's three, cutting the Mets lead to one.

But one would be all they'd need as New Britain managed only 2 hits and a pair of walks in the final three innings of the game.

Dustin Martin and Peterson both went 2-for-4, Martin with a double, Peterson with a pair of runs and a run scored courtesy of the home run. Lis was 2-for-3 with a walk, a run and a RBI. Steve Tolleson was 1-for-3 as was Gardenhire, although Tolleson added a walk as well. David Winfree, pinch hitting for Gardenhire in the ninth was 1-for-1 with a double.

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Saturday: Binghamton 5 at New Britain 8

W: J. Rainville (8-8, 6.19); L: J. Sanchez (10-6, 4.24); SV: Z. Ward (1)
HR: BIN: M. Carp (13).

Jay Rainville would allow only one run, earned, on 4 hits and a pair of walks while striking out six over six innings to pick up his 8th win of the season. Zach Ward would be credited with the save, despite allowing 4 runs on 4 hits and 2 walks in 3 innings. He'd fan four during his time on the mound.

The Cats were more offensively minded on Saturday, taking advantage of B-Met's starter Jose Sanchez early.

Dustin Martin doubled with one out on the board in the bottom of the first and moved to 3rd on Brock Peterson's fly out. David Winfree singled in Martin and Erik Lis advanced Winfree with a single of his own. Danny Valencia then tripled in the pair and would, in turn, be plated by Matt Moses' double.

Mike Carp would take his 13th home run of the season off Rainville in the top of the 3rd, putting a line drive over the right field wall.

New Britain took the point back in the bottom of the stanza when Winfree reached on a fielding error. One out later, Valencia would reach on an error as well that allowed Valencia to score.

Following a double to Felix Molina in the bottom of the six, Casey Hoorelbeke would come in to replace Sanchez. Martin would reach on a fielding error by Carp in the bottom of the 7th and Peterson followed that up with a double. A Winfree ground out brought Martin home, to make it 6-1 Cats.

With Elvys Quezada on the mound in the bottom of the 8th, Valencia doubled. Moses' ground out moved him ot 3rd and Drew Butera sacrificed him in. Felix Molina would single and Steve Tolleson would be hit by a pitch putting two runners on. Martin's line drive got Molina to the plate, but Tolleson would be thrown out at 3rd. to end the inning.

There would be one out on the board in the top of the 9th when Caleb Stewart drew a walk off Ward to begin a B-Met's rally. Ambiorix Concepcion struck out, but Shawn Bowman and Saloman Manriquez both singled, plating Stewart. Josh Peterson then doubled to bring in Bowman and Jonathan Malo would single to drive in Manriguez before Ward could get Jose Coronado to strike out, ending the game.

Valencia and Molina were both 2-for-4 for the Cats, Valencia with a pair of runs and a pair of RBIs, while Molina had a double and a run. Martin finished up 3-for-5 with a double, a pair of runs and a RBI. Tolleson, Peterson, Winfree and Moses were all 1-for-4 at the plate, Winfree with a pair of runs and a pair of RBIs, Moses with a run scored. Peterson had a double, leaving Tolleson to be the one hit wonder, with 3 strike outs on the side.

Lis finished up 1-for-3 with a walk and a run.

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Sunday: Binghamton 5 at New Britain 6

W: B. Julianel (2-2, 2.37); L: T. Lavigne (2-3, 4.86)
HR: None.

The Cats would rally back late to tie up the game in the eighth, and pick up the game winner in the ninth to finish off the first half of their six-game homestand.

Shawn Bowman doubled off Ryan Mullins in the top of the 2nd. Following a fly out to Josh Petersen, Salvador Paniagua singled to drive in Bowman.

Ambriorix Concepcion singled in the top of the fourth, and Bowman took a walk. After a fly out to Petersen and line out to Paniagua, Anderson Machado doubled to plate Concepcion, giving the B-Mets an early 2 run lead.

Bowman would double again, in the top fo the sixth, and Petersen followed it up with a triple. Following a Paniagua ground out, Machado singled to score Petersen. Machado would be taken out at 2nd though, when Jose Coronado ground into a double play.

That was about the time the Rock Cats started feeling feisty. Brian Dinkelman, recently returned from the D.L. (Press Release), doubled a line drive out to left. Steve Tolleson's fly out moved him to 3rd. Dustin Martin would go down on strikes before Brock Peterson doubled in Dinkelman. David Winfree would reach on a fielding error by Coronado that scored Peterson. Erik Lis and Danny Valencia hit back-to-back singles that plated Winfree and also saw the B-Mets replace pitcher Eric Brown with reliever Edgar Alfonzo. Matt Moses would ground into a force out to finish off the inning with the Cats still down by one.

Jason Miller replaced Mullins in the top of the 7th, and walked Jonathan Malo. Mike Carp would ground out, moving Malo to 2nd, and a Caleb Stewart single scored the B-Mets 3rd baseman. Stewart would steal 2nd, but Conception lined into a double play to give New Britain a turn at the plate.

Dinkelman would be hit by a pitch and Tolleson and Martin would draw walks, loading the bags, the but Cats wasted the chance as Rocky Palacios, Peterson and Winfree all struck out.

So it would be Lis' double in the bottom of the 8th that started things rolling again. Valencia reached on a fielding error, but Moses went down on strikes. Felix Molina, pinch hitting for Palacios who has dropped to .200 at the AA level, singled in Lis. Dinkelman's double drove in Valencia for the tying run. Tolleson would pop out and Joe Hietpas would intentionally walk Martin, getting Peterson to pop out to end the inning with the game even.

Ben Julianel worked an uncharacteristically quick top of the 9th, letting Tim Lavigne come up to pitch for the B-Mets in the bottom half of the stanza. Winfree would double and Lavigne would intentionally walk Lis to get at Valencia, who singled to load the bags. Moses ground into a force out that saw Winfree taken out at the plate. Butera would ground into a force out as well, but this time Moses was taken out at 2nd and Lis scored, ending the contest.

Dinkelman finished up 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, a run and a run scored at the bottom of the order. Tolleson and Lis would both go 2-for-4, Tolleson with a walk, Lis with a walk, a double and a pair of runs. Valencia was 2-for-5 at the plate with a run and a RBI, while Peterson and Winfree were both 1-for-5 with a double and a run, Peterson with a run scored as well. Molina was 1-for-1 with a RBI.

The Cats now host the Dunedin Blue Jays New Hampshire Fisher Cats for three games, the first being played Monday night with a 7:05 start time.

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Former Rock Cats manager Stan Cliburn has been named by Major League Baseball to manage the Phoenix Desert Dogs in the Arizona Fall League when his season (when) the Rochester Red Wings conclude.

Cliburn will manage a team of prospects stocked by the Twins, A's, Diamondbacks, Rockies and Blue Jays.

"It's me representing the Minnesota Twins which means the most to me because Major League Baseball selects this," Cliburn said. "You only have six teams and to be one of six managers named out of all the managers in Minor League Baseball is quite an honor." (NB Herald)

Cats split first two games of homestand

Monday: Reading 3 at New Britan 1

W: T. Brummett (2-3, 4.05); L: J. Manship (1-5, 4.50); SV: J. Pope (4)
HR: None.

Jeff Manship gave up 2 runs, only 1 earned, in six innings worth of work, while fanning 4, but got little help from the New Britain Rock Cats' lazy offense, which only managed three hits as they fell, 3-1 to the Reading Phillies in game one of the four-game homestand.

Luke Appert singled and Jason Donald reached on a Felix Molina fielding error. Appert would advance to 3rd on a missed catch by Rock Cats' 3rd baseman Danny Valencia. Greg Golson would then sacrifice him in for an unearned Phillies run to start off the contest.

Neil Sellers singed in the top of the 2nd but Manship got Brad Harman and Mike Eylward to ground out. Sellers would move to 2nd and Kevin Nelson would knock a line drive to center to plate him, before Manship could get Appart to ground out as well to retire the Phillies.

Drew Butera and Dustin Martin took back-to-back walks off Phillies starter Tyson Brummett in the bottom of the 3rd. After Matt Moses popped out, Valencia would single to plate Butera. Erik Lis would go down on strikes however, and David Winfree would ground into a force out to strand the Cats' runners.

Zack Ward would take over for Manship in the top of the 7th, and walk Harman. The Aussie second baseman then stole 2nd. Mike Eylward would ground out and Kevin Nelson and Appert both draw walks which moved Harman to 3rd. Donald's sac-fly would bring him in for Reading's 3rd run of the game.

Aside from Valencia, Dustin Martin (1-for-3) would add a single and walk twice, and Winfree would double to lead off in the bottom of the 8th.

Rob Delaney worked the mound for the eighth and Ben Julianel struck out one during a scoreless ninth.

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Tuesday: Reading 6 at New Britain 7

W: A. Gabino (5-4, 3.07); L: P. Overholt (3-6, 5.09); SV: B. Julianel (21)
HR: REA: J. Blalock (2). NBR: D. Butera (6), F. Molina (2).

The pitching was slightly suspect as Jay Rainville lasted only 3-2 innings, surrendering 4 runs on six hits and 3 walks while striking out 3, but the New Britain Rock Cats used some steady batting to down the Reading Phillies, 7-6 in game two of the four-game series at New Britain Stadium.

Drew Butera opened up the game in the bottom of the 3rd by taking his sixth home run of the season of Reading starter Edgar Garcia.

Rainville allowed 3 straight walks in the top of the 3rd, but got Jeremy Slaydon to strike out to strand the runners in the bases loaded situation. He would not fair quite so well in the 4th.

After getting Neil Sellers to pop out, he allowed back-to-back singles to Brad Harman and Clay Harris. Jake Blalock then put his 2nd home run of the season over the left field wall to make it 3-1 Phillies. After Luke Appert flew out, Jason Donald and Greg Golson took back-to-back doubles off Rainville, resulting in another run, before Armando Gabino was brought in to replace the Rock Cats struggling starter.

The Cats took one back in the bottom of the 4th, with Danny Valencia singling then moving to 3nd on a wild pitch by Garica. Erik Lis would strike out swinging and David Winfree would line out before a Brock Peterson single plated the Cats' third baseman.

Slayden singled and Sellars doubled in the top of the fifth, while Harman took a walk to load the bags. Clay Harris ground into a double play that scored Slayden, making it 5-2 Phillies.

Valencia walked in the bottom of the sixth and moved to 2nd on a Lis single. A wild pitch by Garcia moved the pair, and Winfree would sacrifice in Valencia. Peterson then doubled to scored Lis and also to prompt a pitching change, with Pat Overholt coming in to relieve Garcia. Toby Gardenhire singled to plate Peterson and the Phillies found themselves with a tied up ballgame.

Matt Moses singled in the bottom of the 7th and stole 2nd. After Dustin Martin when down on strikes, Felix Molina put his 2nd home run of the season over the right field wall to give the Rock Cats two more runs. Brett Harker would come in to replace Overholt and after walking Winfree and Peterson, got Gardenhire to strike out to end the inning.

With Ben Julianel on the mound in the top of the 9th, Golson would walk with one out on the board. Lou Marson and Jeremy Slayden hit back-to-back singles to plate Golson, but Sellers would fly into a double play to end the game.

Valencia was 2-for-1 at the plate with a pair of walks and pair of runs. Peterson was 2-for-3 with a walk, a run and a pair of RBIs. Lis was 2-for-4 with a run. Gardenhire, Molina and Moses were both 1-for-4, Gardy with a RBI, Molina with a run and 2 RBIs, and Moses with a run. Butera was 1-for-3 with a walk a run and run scored.

Gabino picked up his fifth win of the season in 3.1 innings worth of work. Frank Mata worked a scoreless eighth, while Julianel's one-run ninth gave him his 21st save of the season.

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While it's probably not surprising to find the New Britain Rock Cats down near the bottom of the league in team pitching, it is surprising to note that both New Hampshire, who recently took three straight from New Britain, and Reading, both trail the Rock Cats in that category. Notably though, the Cats have give up a team total of 102 home runs, six more than Reading and 54 more than inner-state rival Connecticut.

Connecticut however trails the league in team batting average with .251. Erie, Bowie and Altoona also trail the cats, who are hitting .264 as a team in 2008.

Rock Cats "Rain" over Harrisburg

New Britain 4 at Harrisburg 1

W: J. Rainville (6-7, 6.45); L: A. Alaniz (0-2, 4.24); SV: B. Julianel (18)
HR: HAR: B. Rhinehart (2).

Harrisburg's Bill Rhinehart homered in the bottom of the sixth inning, but was the only run the Senators would get as the New Britain Rocks Cats downed the Harrisburg Senators 4-1.

Jay Rainville worked six innings scattering 4 hits and a pair of walks whil striking out 4 to pick up his sixth win the of season. The Cats offense came out to support him as well, finding 4 runs on 10 hits.

Danny Valencia singled in the top of the second inning, then came home on a Matt Moses double. A throwing error by the Sens' William Bergolla moved him to 3rd. David Winfree triple to drive in Moses and, following a ground out to Toby Gardenhire, Rodolfo Palacios singled to plate Winfree, giving the Cats a 3 runs lead.

They'd hang on to it until Rhinehart's solo shot in the sixth, made it 3-1.

New Britain added an extra run in the ninth when Steve Schmoll walked Winfree, then hit Gardenhire with a pitch. After Palacios was retired on strikes, Luke Hughes singled to bring in Winfree.

Ben Julianel replaced Rob Delaney for the bottom of the 9th and allowed a single and a walk, but former Miracle Garrett Guzman would be taken down at 2nd by Palacios, and Julianel would use a pair of fly outs to end the contest.

Winfree was 1-for-2 on the evening with a pair of walks, a pair of runs, and a RBI. Moses finished up 2-for-4 with a run and a run scored; Hughes and Brock Peterson were both 2-for-5, Hughes with a RBI as well. Gardenhire would be the one hit wonder of the night, while Palacios had a single and a RBI, and Valencia had a single and a run.

The Cats return home on Friday to face the Portland Sea Dogs for a four-game series.

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Rochester 14 at Durham 1

W: F. Liriano (7-2, 3.53); L: B. Hendrickson (7-6, 4.52)
HR: ROC: R. Ruiz (12), D. McDonald (11), S. Santos (3).

Randy Ruiz advanced his hitting streak to 19 games with a with a 2-run home run in the first inning to help lead the Rochester Red Wings on a 14-run rampage over the Durham Bulls.

Jason Pridie, Darnell McDonald and Sergio Santos were all 2-for-5 at the plate with a pair of runs each, McDonald and Santos each with 4 RBIs as well. Garrett Jones, Ruiz and Matt Macri were all 2-for-5 with a run, Macri with 1 run scored and Ruiz with 3.

Howie Clark was 4-for-4 in the contest with 4 runs and a double. Tommy Watkins laced a triple out to right in the top of the 8th, coming home on a McDonald ground out, while Ryan Jorgenson kept the hits coming with a single, a walk, and run scored.

Francisco Liriano held the Bulls to 3 hits and a walk over 7 innings while striking out 8. Carmen Cali gave up the lone Bulls run in the bottom of the 8th by allowing a double to Fernando Perez and a triple to Jon Weber.

Ruiz’s 19-game hitting streak is tied for the 2nd longest in Triple-A this season (Omir Santos of Norfolk had a 21-game hitting streak).

The Wings and Bulls continue their series at 7:05 p.m. tonight. Righthander Julio DePaula (1-3, 5.86 ERA) is expected to start against Durham's Mitch Talbot (7-7, 4.85).

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Infielder Trevor Plouffe is day-to-day after fouling a ball off his foot in Charlotte.

Minnesota Twins shortstop Adam Everett will begin a rehab stint with the Class A Ft. Myers Miracle on Saturday. The infielder is scheduled to play in three games during the Miracle’s upcoming home stand.

Photos from the Red Wings' Fourth of July game against the Buffalo Bisons can be found online at Flickr I ran across this yesterday. DHPhoto has a number of Wings pictures in her photostream baseball collection so be sure to stop by and visit.

A tale of two shut outs (Part II)

Connecticut 5 at New Britian 0

W: N. Bump (4-3, 3.06); L: J. Rainville (5-7, 6.88); SV: J. Hedrick (2)
HR: CT: A. Witter 2 (12), A. Richardson (2).

The sad truth is, Jay Rainville is used to pitching in front of a team that gives him no offensive support. He dealt with this all of last season with the Fort Myers Miracle. And he'll tell you himself that the solution is that he needs to pitch better.

Rainville gave up 3 runs on 4 hits and a pair of walks over five innings worth of work. Jay Miller added a pair more on 3 hits and 2 walks over 3 innings while striking out 2.

And the New Britain Rock Cats managed just three hits against Nate Bump and the Connecticut Defenders.

Danny Valencia was 1-for-4 with a double; Drew Butera was 1-for-2 with a walk, and Matt Moses was the one hit wonder of the night, with a single.

Antoan Richardson knocked a homer run over the right field line in the top of the first inning, given Rainville a warm welcome back to Double A.

In the bottom of the second, Adam Witter would go yard over the right field fence. After Carlos Sosa flew out, Simon Klink would get hit by a pitch. Kyle Haines ground into a force out, but Olmo Rosario and Ben Copeland hit back-to-back singles that served to plate Haines.

Rainville settled down after that, giving up only a pair of walks over the next three innings.

Miller would take over in the top of the sixth and allow a second home run to Witter, this one going over the center field wall. He'd then walk Sosa before getting Klink out on strikes. Haines doubled in Sosa, to make it 5-0 Defenders.

The inner-state rivals continue their series Sunday July 6th at New Britain Stadium with a 1:35 contest. Anthony Swarzak (3-6, 5.96) gets the start for New Britain against Connecticut's Garrett Broshuis (7-6, 3.49).

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Buffalo 0 at New Britain 2

W: F. Liriano (6-2, 3.80); L: F. Herrmann (0-1, 2.57); SV: B. Korecky (12)
HR: ROC: R. Jorgensen (6).

In Frontier Field it was a different story as Rochester Red Wing starter Francisco Liriano worked through six innings, scattering 3 hits and a walk while striking out 7 to keep the Buffalo Bison's sedated.

The Wings also managed a bit more offense than their AA counterparts, coming up with a pair of runs on 8 hits. The first came in the bottom of the 3rd, then Trevor Plouffe doubled, then came home on Darnell McDonald's single.

The insurance run came in the bottom of the 5th, when Ryan Jorgensen went yard over the left field line. It was the catcher's sixth home run of the season.

Jorgenson finished up 2-for-3 with a run and a run scored and has stepped up to the plate for the Wings in the absence of former Miracle Jose Morales, who will be having season ending ankle surgery. Howie Clark was 2-for-4 for the Wings, but did not factor into the scoring.

Tommy Watkins had a single and a walk in the contest, while Randy Ruiz picked up a double to go along with the hits by Plouffe and McDonald to round out the batting. The double extended Ruiz hitting streak to 14 games.

Rochester plays in Charlotte on Sunday, July 6, with a 5:15 PM start.

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Ovalle leads Miracle to 7th Straight

Fort Myers 2 at Lakeland 1

W: B. Erickson (2-0, 2.25); L: N. Martin (2-3, 4.05)
HR: FTM: E. Ovalle (7).

A lot of so called experts have written that Cole Devries is not a legitimate MLB prospect because he doesn't have a "money" pitch. The former Golden Gopher does have great control and terrific mound poise however, and evidently didn't get the memo about not being a "real" prospect. If he's not real, then all I can say is he's doing a great imitation of one.

Devries surrendered only 3 hits and one walk over six innings while fanning six. He'd take a no decision against the Lakeland Flying Tigers as the Fort Myers Miracle could not find the game winning run until the 14th inning of a very long game at Joker Marchent Stadium.

The Miracle had only six hits in the contest, and Edward Ovalle at least showed some love for his starter by going yard in the 4th inning, bashing a fly ball over the right field wall. It would be the Miracle first hit of the game, as Tiger's starter Guillermo Moscoso only allowed 3 over the seven innings he'd work. He'd walk one - Danny Berg in the second inning - and fanned six.

The only thing marring Devries performance would be Cale Iorg's ground rule double in the bottom of the first. Ozzie Sosa would take over in the 7th inning and after getting Ryan Strieby out on strikes, allowed back-to-back-to-back singles to Michael Bertram, Santo De Leon, and Justin Justice to give the Tigers a run. Carmelo Jaime would ground into a double play however ending the inning before Lakeland pushed a few more runners over the plate.

And the game would stay tied at one each for another 7 innings.

Jose Lugo would work the next three, allowing 2 hits to go with his pair of strike outs. Blair Erickson took the next four, walking four and fanning 2.

Derek Witt and Jay Sborz would work one each for the Tigs, before Ramon Garcia came in to pull the long haul of the next four.

Lakeland field manager Andy Barkett would get Nick Martin out of the bullpen for the top of the 14th inning. Steve Singleton's fly ball to right got him on base, and he'd follow that up by stealing 2nd. Ovalle then whipped his own fly ball, this one to center to drive in Sing for the game winning run. Martin would walk Danny Berg to get at Yangervis Solarte and was able to induce the Miracle rookie to line into a double play to retire the side.

Erickson however, would take De Leon and Justice down on strikes and get pinch hitter Devin Thomas to ground out to end the game.

The two teams rematch tomorrow for Firework's game #2, with a start time of 6:00 PM (Eastern).

Earlier in the day, Dunedin defeated Clearwater 8-6, so the Miracle still trail by one game in the standings, despite winning their seventh straight. While the Miracle already have their playoff berth locked up, it would be nice to face a team other than Dunedin in the playoffs for once.

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Jay Rainville was promoted to New Britain Friday while former Miracle Steve Tolleson and Frank Mata were placed on the DL. Rainville is expected to start Saturday's game at New Britain Stadium against the Connecticut Defenders. (Press Release)

The Miracle Charity Golf Classic will be held Aug. 24 at a site to be determined. The tournament benefits the Foundation Fighting Blindness. For information, contact Terry Simon at 239-768-4210 or tsimon@miraclebaseball.com

Rain helps Miracle on Water Day #3

Brevard County 3 at Fort Myers 5

W: J. Rainville (1-1, 2.87); L: Z. Braddock (3-5, 5.04); SV: A. Slama (16)
HR: BRE: S. Chapman (10), C. Caufield (2). FTM: G. Olson (1).

A steady drizzle in the second inning helped the Fort Myers Miracle take four runs from the Brevard County Manatees who could not control a slippery ball.

The game would be delayed for close to 2 hours while a storm swept through the area, with the first pitch finally being thrown at 8:50 PM.

Zach Braddock was the hard luck pitcher who was on the mound when the drizzle started. He would hit Edward Ovalle with a pitch, then issue walks to Juan Portes and Eli Tintor to load the bases. Steve Singleton knocked a line drive to left that brought in a pair. Chuck Caufield would be charged with an era despite playing in weather not fit for a duck on a very skiddish outfield surface. Yangervis Solarte would then get hit by a pitch and Danny Lehmann would walk to force in a run. John Axford then came in for the Manatees. He would get Garrett Olson to hit into a force out that scored Singleton to spot the Miracle a four run lead.

Despite being named for an aquatic animal, the Manatees probably aren't very water friendly right now.

Steve Chapman would take a walk in the top of the 7th, and Chuck Caufield would follow that up with his second home run of the season, over the left field fence to cut the Miracle lead in half.

However, with Travis Wendte on the mound in the bottom of the inning, Garrett Olson would follow suite, clocking his first ball out of the yard for the Miracle.

Jose Lugo would allow a home run to Chapman in the ninth, his 10th yard ball of the season, which went over the right field wall. Anthony Slama would come in to take the last two outs.

It is very questionable as to how many of the announced 3,224 fans were actually in attendance to enjoy the midnight fireworks display.

The Miracle managed only three hits in the game. But who needs hits when you can just swim your way to victory?

The series concludes on a hopefully drier Sunday, with a rather interesting match up between Alex Burnett (6-2, 3.56) on the mound for the Miracle and Jeremy Jeffress (3-3, 4.75) throwing for the Manatees.

Due to the lengthy rain delay to start Saturday’s action, fans with ticket stubs for Saturday’s game can hold on to them, using them for free admission to any remaining Miracle Sunday-Wednesday home game in 2008.

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Cedar Rapids 8 at Beloit 4

W: J. Walden (4-5, 2.42); L: M. Tarsi (4-8, 5.71); SV: E. McKiernan (7)
HR: CED: J. Perez (8), C. Fuller (3). BEL: G. Yersich (5).

Despite the addition of Rene Leveret and Andrew Schmiesing to their roster, the Beloit Snappers would still fall, 8-4 to the Cedar Rapids Kernels.

Mike Tarsi would take the loss, giving up 6 runs, 5 earned, on 8 hits and 1 walks while striking out 5.

The Snappers offense would not get into gear until the bottom of the six, when Chris Armstrong replaced Jordan Walden on the mound. Rene Leveret would double, and Greg Yersich would hammer his fifth home run of the season over the center field wall to give the Snappers two. Following a strike out to Schmiesing, the Kernels got Ismael Carmona from the bullpen. He would issue walks to Mark Dolenc and Estarlin De Los Santos. Chris Cates would fly out, but Ben Revere singled to drive in Dolenc for the 3rd snappers run. Deibinson Romero would draw a walk as well, but A.J. Ford stepped into the game, getting Ozzie Lewis out on strikes to end the inning.

Yersich would double in the bottom of the seventh, and following a ground out to Schmiesing, come home on Dolenc's line drive single. That would be it for the Snappers though who never could overcome the initial deficit.

Yersich had the only multi-hit game for Beloit, going 2-for-5 with a pair of runs and a pair of runs scored.

The series continues on Sunday with a 2:00 PM matinee game.

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Miracle bats lack pop, lose 4-2 to Cards

Fort Myers 2 at Palm Beach 4

W: B. Dickson (5-5, 3.45); L: J. Rainville (0-1, 3.12); SV: F. Samuel (13)
HR: None.

Jay Rainville gave up 4 runs, 3 earned, on 9 hits while fanning 7 to suffer his first loss back in a Fort Myers Miracle uniform. The Miracle bats also lacked the necessary zip to overcome the early deficit.

In the bottom of the opening inning, James Rapoport doubled to lead off for the Red Birds. Donovan Solano would strike out, but a ground out to Tony Cruz moved the runner to 3rd. A Brandon Buckman single would plate him to the put the Cards on the board.

Rapoport would again take a single in the 3rd, and Solano would single as well putting two runners on. Following a line out by Cruz, Buckman would single a ground ball out to left field to plate Rapoport for the second Red Birds run.

Wilson Ramos would single in the top of the 4th and Yangervis Solarte doubled to move him to 3rd. Eli Tintor sacrificed in Ramos to cut the Cards lead in half.

I was just remarking on Saturday night that Whit Robbins has been a much better choice at first base, defensively, than Johnny Woodard. Robbins however would allow Rapaport to reach on a fielding error.* Solano then doubled to bring him in. A Cruz single plated Solano to double up the Red Birds total.

Ramos would draw a walk in the top of the sixth, and one out later, Tintor walked as well. Danny Lehmann singled to score Ramos. Unfortunately, that was all the Miracle would put in the runs scored column.

The tying runs would make it to second and third in the top of the ninth with two outs, but Juan Portes went down swinging to end the game.

Steve Singleton was 2-for-5, but did not factor into the scoirng. Ramos was 1-for-2 with a pair of walks, and both Mirale runs. Edward Ovalle, Robbins and Solarte were all 1-for-4, Solarte with the double, the other two qualifying as one hit wonders. Lehmann was 1-for-3 with a run scored.

Jose Lugo would finish up the game, going 1.1 inning, allowing only 1 hit.

Game two of the series is Monday. Cardinals Brad Furnish (6-3, 4.23) will throw out the first pitch at 7:05, while Deolis Guerra (7-3, 4.83) will attempt to out duel him on the mound.

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* Sorry, but I do not miss Woody. I do not miss his bat either. I do however, happen to know that Woody is missing his little buddy Danny Valencia something fierce.

Errors cost Miracle

Fort Myers 1 at Dunedin 3

W: K. Rodriguez (5-6, 3.58); L: C. Devries (5-6, 2.99); SV: C. Falkenbach (8)
HR: FTM: J. Portes (6).

For once, the Fort Myers Miracle lost a pitching duel. Fort Myers' Cole Devries would allow 2 runs, 1 earned, on 7 hits and a pair of walks. He'd fan 7 over six inning.

Kenny Rodriguez held the Miracle to 4 hits over six, giving up 1 run while fanning 6.

Adam Calerone, Brad Emaus and Brian Dopirak all singled in the first inning to put one run on the board. Jesus Gonzalez would reach on a fielding error by Yancarlos Ortiz, which brought Emaus over the plate before Devries could get Marcos Cabral out on strikes to end the inning.

Juan Portes would put a fly ball over the left field fence for this sixth home run of the year in the top of the six.

Recently demoted Jay Rainville would see Calderone reach on a throwing error by Yangervis Solarte who was working 2nd base for the game. Calderone would move to 2nd on Emaus' ground out. Jesus Gonzalez would then double Calderone in. Gonzalez would be taken out at third when he tried to stretch the hit for a triple to end the inning.

Chad Blackwell, who was not with the Jays the last time they were in town, worked one inning, as did Edward Rodriguez and Conner Falkenbach, who recorded his 8th save of the year.

Portes and Danny Berg were both 2-for-4, Portes with 1 run and 1 RBI on the home run, while Berg had a double. Eli Tintor also doubled for the Miracle, as did Juan Portes, they just couldn't get together and do them all in the same inning. Solarte and Eddie Ovalle were the one hit wonders of the night.

The two teams play the rubber match tomorrow, with Deolis Guerra (7-2, 4.83) going up against Adrian Martin (3-2, 5.88) on a Wet-N-Wild Wednesday at Knology Field. The game starts at 12:00 Noon.

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Cats fall, Wings win

Binghamton 3 at New Britain 2

W: E. Brown (4-5, 6.53); L: Z. Ward (2-2, 3.05); SV: T. Lavigne (5)
HR: BIN: R. Arroyo (2).

Jay Rainville worked six innings, limiting Binghamton to 1 run on 4 hits and 2 walks while striking out six. Unfortunately, his bullpen gave up a pair more, and the New Britain Rock Cats could only squeeze two runs out of the B-Mets.

Dustin Martin and Felix Molina hit back-to-back singles to get the Rock Cats started in the bottom of the first. Brock Peterson took a walk, and Erik Lis would hit a sac-fly to drive in Martin. (Funny, he couldn't do that when Boles was managing him...)

The Cats had plenty of scoring opportunities. Martin would make it to third base in the bottom of the 3rd, but Peterson would be taken out on strikes to leave him stranded. Toby Gardenhire's force out and a pair of walks got Gardenhire to 3rd in the bottom of the fifth, but Peterson ground out, stranding the runners with the bases load.

In the top of the sixth, Rafael Arroyo went yard off Rainville, over the center field wall, to put the B-Mets on the board. Lis would double for New Britain in the bottom of the stanza but never got past 3rd as Drew Butera ground out to end the inning.

Yohan Pino would replace Rainville in the top of the 7th. Recently activated off the disable list, he would allow a single to Caleb Stewart. Josh Peterson ground into a force out then moved to 2nd on Jonathan Malo's ground out. Emmanual Garcia then doubled Peterson in.

The Cats would respond in the bottom of the 8th with Lis and David Winfree both singling. A Matt Moses ground out advanced the runners, and Butera would sacrifice in Lis to tie up the game.

Zach Ward would come in to close the game in the 10th inning, but gave up a walk to Jose Coronado. Following a strike out to Nick Evans, Mike Carp singled to push Coronado to 3rd. Caleb Stewart's sac-fly would plate him for the game winning run.

Molina and Lis were both 2-for-4, Lis with a run, a run scored and a double, the only extra base hit for the Rock Cats.

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The Cats were playing a little short handed after sending Trevor Plouffe and Jeff Christy up to AAA Rochester. They would receive catcher Rocky Palacios from Fort Myers in return.

LEN3 is reporting that Jeff Manship, Danny Valencia and Brian Dinkelman as well as either Rob Delaney or Anthony Slama (but not both) will be moved to AA following the Florida State League All-star game on Saturday. My initial reaction was that catcher Wilson Ramos would go as well, but in retrospect, I believe the Twins would rather have him stay in Fort Myers as the main catcher, then go up to AA to back up Butera. After all, the goal is to develop the players, and they are not developing when they are sitting on the bench.

Palacios was 0-for-4 in his first AA game.

Durham 0 at Rochester 1

W: C. Cali (4-0, 2.73); L: J. Salas (3-3, 3.15); SV: B. Korecky (7)
HR: None.

Darnell McDonald would single in the bottom of the sixth inning, steal 2nd and 3rd and come home on a Garrett Jones blooper for the lone run in the contest as the Rochester Red Wings topped the Durham Bulls, 1-0.

Jones was 2-for-4, the only player with multiple hits, although both Randy Ruiz and Chris Barak would double.

Kevin Mulvey worked only 4 innings, giving up 1 hit and 1 walks while striking out 7. Carmen Cali picked up the win, working 3 innings, allowing 1 hit and striking out 3. Bobby Korecky picked up this 7th save of the season.

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The Minnesota Twins have signed outfielder Aaron Hicks, their first round pick (14th overall) in the 2008 First-Year Player Draft. Hicks, who is a switch-hitter and throws righthanded, batted .473 (44-for-134) with 12 doubles, five triples, 50 runs scored, 37 walks, four home runs, 23 rbi and 37 stolen bases in 34 games. The righthander also had a record of 8-2, 1.16 (72.1 ip, 12 er) with 112 strikeouts and a batting average against of .157 (41-for-261) as a senior for Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California. Hicks has been assigned to the Rookie level Gulf Coast League Twins.

Twins right fielder Michael Cuddyer left Friday night's game against the Brewers in the second inning after being hit in the right hand by a pitch.

Not unexpectedly, right-hander Juan Rincon has rejected the Twins' offer to assign him outright to Triple-A Rochester.

Fans going to the Florida State League All-star game might want to go a little early and watch the Space Shuttle as it comes in for a landing at nearby Cape Canaveral at 11:15 AM.

Former Miracle Kevin Slowey worked 8 innings, allowing only 2 runs on 5 hits while fanning 5 as the Twins defeated the Brewers, 10-2. Fort Myers alumni Alex Casilla, Joe Mauer and Jason Kubel were all 2-for-5 in the game. Casilla accounted for 3 RBIs, while Kubel hit a single shot home run, his ninth of the season, in the eighth inning.

Cats crushed by B-Mets

New Britain 4 at Binghamton 17

W: E. Brown (3-5, 6.83); L: J. Rainville (5-6, 7.58)
HR: NBR: D. Winfree (11), B. Peterson (6). BIN: M. Carp 2 (9), E. Garcia 2 (2), R. Arroyo (1).

Oh, unhappy day! Jay Rainville got pummeled by the Binghamton Mets, allowing 11 earned runs on 10 hits (2 home runs) and 2 walks in 1.2 innings. Jason Miller and Jay Sawatski faired only slightly better in the New Britain Rock Cats worst blow out of the season.

After a turn around that saw Rainville turning in win after win, the young hurler got off to a very rough start with Eric Reed singling and Nick Evans doubling in the bottom of the 1st. Dan Murphy sacrificed in Reed for the first of many B-Mets runs. Caleb Stewart doubled to bring in Evans. Following a pop out to Mike Carp, Josh Peterson doubled in Stewart. Jose Coronado would take a walk, and Emmanuel Garcia went yard over the right field wall to bring in Peterson and Coronado. Rafael Arroyo lined out to finish the inning. If Mr. Rainville felt relieved at that point, it ws because he had no idea what was coming.

David Winfree went yard over the center field fence in the top of the 2nd to put the Rock Cats on the board. It was his 11th home run of the season.

Reed started off the 2nd with a walk then stole 2nd. He'd try to steal 3rd, but got caught by catcher Drew Butera. Evans, Murphy, and Stewart all singled to load the bags so that Carp put hit a grand slam over the right field wall. Peterson would fly out to left before Coronado doubled. Jason Miller came in from the bullpen at that point. The Sarasota, Florida, native promptly gave up back-to-back home runs to Garcia and Arroyo, then hit Reed by a pitch, probably out of frustration. Evans and Murphy both doubled before Stewart ground out to end a very brutal inning.

(Dear Mr. Manship, are you sure you want to get promoted into the middle of that mess?)

Dustin Martin took a walk in the top of the 3rd and Brock Peterson homered him in, but the Cats had a lot of cat-ching up to do.

The B-Mets would give them a bit of break though. Toby Gardenhire singled out to left. Following a fly out by Butera, Steve Tolleson doubled that put Gardenhire at 3rd. He'd be plated by Dustin Martin's ground out.

Jay Sawatski would replace Jason Miller in the bottom of the 5th. Since they hadn't scored off him yet, Stewart took a walk and Carp went yard to bring him in. Happily the B-Mets decided to give it a rest after that.

Unhappily, the Rock Cats would get Winfree to 3rd base in the top of the 6th and strand him there. They'd find little offense over the remainder of the game.

Winfree finished up 2-for-4 with a run and a run scored. Trevor Plouffe was also 2-for-4 with a pair of doubles. Peterson was 1-for-4, with a run and 2 runs scored on the yarder, but he also struck out 3 times. Tolleson had a pair of strike outs to go with his fifth inning double.

Thoroughly whipped, the Pussy Cats got on the bus, tails tucked, and headed for home, where they will host the Altoona Curve for a three-game series starting Tuesday.

(Monday they'll be playing poker to see which one of their unlucky lot gets to pitch, since it appears that anyone who gets on the mound up there is going to get lit up.)

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Rochester 4 at Lehigh Valley 5

W: M. Childers (3-2, 3.38); L: B. Korecky (3-2, 3.26)
HR: ROC: R. Ruiz (7).

Randy Ruiz seventh home run of the season was not enough for the Rochester Red Wings to overcome the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs Sunday afternoon.

The Red Wings put 14 hits on the board to Lehigh's 10, but it's the runs that count, not the hits.

Ruiz opened up the top of the 4th by going yard. Following a pair of outs, Sergio Santos singled and moved to 2nd on a wild pitch by Lehigh starter Travis Blackley. Chris Basak would take a walk before Tommy Watkins' fly ball to right plated Santos.

Kevin Mulvey worked four relatively quiet innings before the Iron Pigs got started in the bottom of the 5th. With one out on the board, Jon Knott walked. John Suomi poped out before Knott stole second. Brennan King then singled out to left to score Knott.

In the bottom of the 6th, Mike Rouse singled and Brandon Watson doubled. Rich Thompson brought the pair in with a single to center field. Mike Cervanak flew out before back-to-back singles to Andy Tracy and Knott signaled the end of Mulvey's tenure on the mound. Ricky Barnett would come into get John Suomi to hit into a double play to end the inning.

With Jason Anderson on the mound for the Iron Pigs, Ruiz doubled with two outs on the board. Robert Swindle would replace Anderson, and Brian Buscher greeted him with a line drive single that scored Ruiz. Jose Morales and Santos hit back-to-back singles that scored Buscher before Chris Basak poped out to end the inning with the game tied.

Tim Lahey worked 1.1 innings for the Wings, allowing 1 hit and 2 walks while striking out 1 to take the game into the ninth. Bobby Korecky would come in to get the final two outs in the bottom of regulation gametime. Thompson would greet him with a single in the bottom of the 10th. Mike Cervenak ground into a force out which took out Thompson, but Tracy would double out to right to plate Cervanak, ending the game.

Darnell McDonald was 3-for-6 in the game. Watkins, Ruiz, Busher and Santos were all 2-for-5, Ruiz with a double, a pair of runs and a run scored on the yarder, Buscher and Santos each with a run and a RBI and Watkins with a run scored. Basak was 2-for-4 with a double.

The Red Wings offense has hit at least one home run in 11 straight games. Rochester left 17 runners on base for the second straight game. The Twins triple-A affiliate fell to a 4-14 in games played on Saturday and Sunday.

The two teams rematch Monday with Brian Duensing (2-5, 3.96) taking on Les Walrond (1-4, 3.09) in a battle of the lefties with a 7:05 start.

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New Britain Edges Thunder in pitcher's duel

Trenton 1 at New Britain 2

W: J. Rainville (5-5, 6.02); L: A. Aceves (1-1, 0.78); SV: B. Julianel (10)
HR: None.

Lots of pinstripes this weekend as the Fort Myers Miracle take on the Tampa Yankees, the Rochester Red Wings take on the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees and of course the New Britain Rock Cats are hosting the Yankees AA farm team, the Trenton Thunder.

Jay Rainville has been excellent over his past couple of starts and he continued to carry that performance against the Eastern League's Northern Division leader. Not that the Thunder were lax in the pitching area, having Alfredo Aceves, who was recently named to the FSL All-star team, on the mound.

Edwar Gonzalez singled off Rainville to start out the top of the 2nd inning. Cody Ehlers would be taken out on strikes before Jose Tabata ground into a force out. Kevin Russo's single would move Tabata to 2nd, and Joseph Muich would hit a fly ball to left to plate him. Reegie Corona would draw a walk before Ramiro Pena flew out to end the inning.

Rainville would work 6.1 innings, allowing only 1 run on 6 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3. Zach Ward came in for 1.2 innings of relief, giving up only 2 hits to the Yankees farm. Ben Julianel worked the last inning for this 10th save of the season.

The Cats would manage 10 hits in total, but the only two runs came in the bottom of the 4th. With one out on the board, Brock Peterson doubled out to left. Steve Tolleson would pop out before David Winfree singled to move Peterson to 3rd. Dustin Martin then tripled to drive in the pair. Martin would be left stranded however, when Toby Gardenhire struck out.

Peterson and Winfree were both 3-for-4 in the contest with a run. Erik Lis, Tolleson, Martin and Gardenhire had the other four hits for New Britain.

The two teams rematch tomorrow at 6:35 PM. It's Yohan Pino's (1-2, 3.25) start, but as he seems to still be on the D.L., the Cats will likely go with lefty Errol Simonitsch (0-2, 10.67). Trenton will counter with southpaw Phil Coke (4-1, 3.38).

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Portland "Rained" out, 6-3

New Britain 6 at Portland 3

W: J. Rainville (4-5, 6.61); L: K. Johnson (3-2, 3.40); SV: B. Julianel (8)
HR: POR: A. Bates (4).

Jay Rainville is back, ladies and gentleman! For the second straight outing Rainville dominated, this time limiting the Portland Sea Dogs to 2 hits and 3 walks over six innings while fanning 3.

Meanwhile, Luke Hughes led the New Britain Rock Cats offense going 3-for-4 at the plate with a walk, 2 runs and 2 RBIs.

The Cats would get on the board first, in the bottom of the 3rd. With 2 outs on the board, Steve Tolleson, Matt Moses and Hughes all hit singles which plated Tolleson.

Hughes would walk in the top of the sixth, and move to second on a wild pitch by Kris Johnson. An Erik Lis ground ball single saw Hughes to 3rd, and he'd come hom on a David Winfree double.

The top of the 7th would be a big inning for New Britain, as Jeff Christy doubled and Tolleson singled. Moses walked to load the bags. A fly ball single by Hughes plated Christy and Tolleson, and Lis sacrificed in Moses. Winfree would ground out, moving Hughes to 3rd. and Trevor Plouffe would be intentionally walked. Dustin Martin's fly ball single to right brought in Hughes to give the Cats a 6-0 lead.

Southpaw Kyle Aselton replaced Rainville on the mound for the bottom of the 7th. Ryan Khoury doubled off him, a line drive to left. Mickey Hall took a walk. Iggy Suarez's line drive plated Khoury, while Jeff Corsaletti's single brought in Hall.

Zach Ward replaced Asleton for the bottom of the 8th, allowing a home run to Aaron Bates, his 4th of the season. That would be it for the Dogs though, as the Cats got themselves a big win, right when they needed it.

Tolleson and Lis were both 2-for-4 in the contest, Tolleson with a walk and 2 runs and Lis with a run scored.

Ben Julianel worked the 9th inning to pick up the save, his 8th of the season.

More Cats and Dogs on Monday at Hadlock Field, with the first pitch going out at 1:00 PM.

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---

I told Jeff Manship I wasn't taking any more pictures of him and he said "Never? Not ever?"

"Well, I was looking through the photos from last year," I explained, "and it's all Jeff Manship-Jay Rainville, Jeff-Manship-Jay Rainville, Jeff Manship-Jay Rainville. I mean, did we have anyone else in the pitching rotation?"

"Zach Ward," he laughed, "but he only pitched three innings a game."

"Errol Simonitsch," I offer.

"SIMONitsch," he corrects. Evidently one of those words with various pronunciations.

"Simo," I settle on.

"Yeah, Simo," he agrees. "And Waldrop."

"Oh yeah, Whining Wally," I said. "I forgot about him."

"Whining Wally?"

"Yeah, when he came back down all he did was complain about everything. He was on the whinny side to start, but they taught him AA level complaining in New Britain."

He was, he was being a real sissy pants.

Miracle fall to Hammerheads

Fort Myers 2 at Jupiter 4

Record: 28 - 16

W: G. Taylor (5-3, 3.96); L: A. Burnett (3-2, 3.18); SV: R. Wolf (1)
HR: None.

The rally monkeys, and bats,were not evident Monday night as the Fort Myers Miracle allowed Jupiter to double them up, 4-2.

Florida Marlins prospect Graham Taylor held Fort Myers to only 5 hits and 1 walk over 7 innings, allowing 2 runs in the that span, and striking out 4. Ross Wolf would baffled them for the final two stanzas.

As noted after the last time he pitched, Alex Burnett needs to start watching the number of hits he gives up. Smelin Perez would take the first hit off him with one out in the first inning. Burnett would get Logan Morrison out on strikes, before Perez got impatient and stole 2nd base. Kevin Randel's line drive brought him in, and Randel took an extra base on a fielding error by Eddie Ovalle. Spike McDougall then hit a grounder to Juan Portes that scored Ranel. McDougall would try to make it to second, but was taken out before he got there to end the inning.

The Miracle would take one back in the top of the 3rd. Yancarlos Ortiz and Yangeris Solarte both singled with one out on the board. Ortiz would come home on a Whit Robbins' force out and Portes would strike out to end the inning.

Back-to-back singles by James Guerrero and Christopher Dunn turned into two more Hammerheads runs when Agustin Septimo doubled off Burnett to plate the pair in the bottom of the fourth.

The Miracle would not answer back until the top of the 7th when Edward Ovalle tripled and came home on a Danny Berg single. Sadly it was all the answer the Miracle could muster, leading to the loss in game two of the four game series.

With Brian Dinkelman, Danny Valencia and Rene Tosoni out of the line up, the Miracle were short most of their big bats. Ovalle was 2-for-4 with 1 run, the only Miracle with a multi-hit game. Portes, Wilson Ramos and Danny Santiesteban were all 0-for-4 with a pair of strike outs each.

Dinkelman was given the night off after an early exit from Monday's game, while the voice of the Miracle, Sean Fox, reports that Valencia's thumb is still banged up, but that he will try to play on Tuesday.

Big lefty Tyler Robertson (1-2, 3.53) will get the start Tuesday night for the Miracle. Jeff Allison (2-4, 2.47) will throw out the first pitch for the Hammerheads at 6:35 P.M.

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Minnesota sports writer Joe Christensen noted in his blog that Scott Baker was flown to Florida on Friday. He's scheduled to throw 2 bullpen sessions at the Sportsplex and will "likely pitch in an extended spring training game next Thursday. He has been on the DL with a strained right groin."

The GCL Twins are playing the O's in Sara next Thursday, and while it's entirely possible that Baker will hop in a little white SUV and drive over to Twin Lakes Park, it seems somehow unlikely.

If he needs to pitch Thursday, well...the Miracle are at home that night. Otherwise, he could pitch Friday at Extended depending upon which the Twins would prefer.



Harrisbug 1 at New Britain 5

Record: 22 - 21

W: J. Rainville (3-5, 7.53); L: T. Crawford (1-1, 4.81)
HR: None.

Jay Rainville got just his third win of the season, but held the Harrisburg Senators to only 1 run -unearned - on three hits while striking out 8 over 7 innings for a quality start that should do wonders for his confidence.

Trevor Plouffe was 3-for-4 in the contest with a run and an RBI. Steve Tolleson, Luke Hughes, David Winfree, Felix Molina and Drew Butera all had hits for the Cats with Butera driving in 3 runs on his sixth inning double.

The Cats faced several former teammates/Miracle on the Senators squad in starter Tristan Crawford, who surrendered 5 runs on 8 hits and 3 walks while striking out 3 over 5.1 innings and reliever Levale Speigner, who worked one inning of hitless baseball. Garrett Guzman served as the Senators designed hitter, going 0-for-3 at the plate, while Luis Jimenez worked 1st base for the Washington Farm.

Ofilio Castro would reach in the top of the 3rd on a throwing error by Trever Plouffe. He took 2nd base when the ball bounced into the bullpen. One out later, Mike Daniel's ground ball single would plate him for the only Senators run.

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Rochester 0 at Syracuse 5

W: M. MacDonald (1-0, 3.81); L: K. Mulvey (2-6, 4.36)
HR: None.

The Rochester Red Wings were shut out in the conclusion of the Cooperstown Classic on Monday night. Kevin Mulvey suffered the loss for the Wings, his 6th of the season.

Former Miracle Jose Morales was 2-for-3 at the plate while Matt Macri returned to the line up, going 2-for-4. Brian Buscher was 0-for-2 with 2 walks.

Dunedin Blue Jays almuni Ricky Romero had taken the start for Syracuse but lasted only 2 innings before the rains came down on Sunday.

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Rochester 7 at Syracuse 6

W: T. Lahey (2-3, 4.08); L: M. Gallo (0-1, 13.50); SV: C. Cali (1)
HR: ROC: R. Ruiz (3). SYR: C. Cannon (3).

The Wings bounced back in game two however, taking an early lead 5-2 lead and holding off a late inning Chiefs rally.

Denard Span would reach on a fielding error by Erik Kratz to get things started. Two outs later, Brian Buscher would be hit by a pitch. Randy Ruiz then put his 3rd home run of the season over the left field wall to give the Wings 3.

The Chiefs took two back in the bottom of the inning, but a double by Ryan Jorgensen in the top of the 2nd helped the Wings get the runs back.

Chris Basak went 3-for-4 at the plate with a run, Randy Ruiz was 2-for-4 with 2 runs and 4 RBIs. Aside from the home run, he also hit a double in the top of the 5th.

Brian Duensing would give up 3 runs, earned on six hits and 1 walk while striking out 2. Julio Depaula gave up 2 runs on 2 hits and a walk in .1 inning, while Tim Lahey earned both a blown save and the win, giving up 1 run on 1 hit and walk in 1.2 innings. Naples resident Carmen Cali earned his first save for the Wings.

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Beloit 6 at Clinton 5

W: M. McCardell (1-1, 2.70); L: H. Nelo (1-2, 4.32); SV: S. Steedley (3)
HR: CLI: M. Moreland (4), R. Osuna (3).

Beloit used a 3-run ninth inning to rally past the Division leading Clinton Lumber Kings to take game one of the four game series. Mike McCardell, recently returned off the disabled list, picked up the win, working 2 innings of relief and allowing 1 run on 1 hit and 2 walks while striking out 5.

Ben Revere returned to the line up, going 3-for-4 at the plate with 2 runs scored. Garrett Olson was also 3-for-4 with a pair of runs. Ozzie Lewis, Sean Singleton, Joe Benson, Greg Yersich, and Ramon Santana also recorded hits.

Trailing 3 runs at the top of the 8th, Santana doubled his way onto base, then came home on Revere's ground ball single.

Chris Cates would ground out to start the top of the 9th, but Olson and Lewis hit back-to-back singles. Mark Dolenc would replace Lewis as a pinch runner, and Singleton's ground ball to right would rive in Olson and advance Dolenc to 3rd. Joe Benson would draw walk. A fielding error by Clinton's Jonathan Greene allowed Dolenc and Singleton across the plate to give the Snappers the lead.

Spencer Steedly would allow 2 singles and a walk to load the bases for the Lumber Kings in the ninth, but he got Engel Beltre to strike out and Renny Osuna to line out to end the inning and the game.

Game two of the series is Tuesday with a 7:00 PM central time first pitch. Danny Berlind (3-3, 3.62) will start for the Twins farm team. Beloit (23-20) trails Clinton by 7.5 games in the Midwest League standings.

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Rally fails, Rock Cats win streak haulted

Bowie 9 at New Britain 7

Record 19 - 13

W: J. Berken (3-2, 3.26); L: J. Rainville (2-4, 10.01); SV: J. Manon (10)
HR: BOW: J. Nettles (6), L. Montanez (5), R. Finan (4).
NBR: E. Lis (3), M. Moses (2).

Despite home runs by Matt Moses and Erik Lis, the New Britain Rock Cats failed in their come from behind attempt Thursday afternoon, falling 9-7 to the Bowie Baysox.

Rock Cats starter Jay Rainville struggled in his start, allowing 7 earned runs on 8 hits and 2 walks while striking out 3.

The Baysox drew first blood in the second inning when Noland Reimold drew a walk. Ryan Finan then went yard over the right field wall to bring in two.

The Cats would not stay down long however. Lis opened the bottom of the 2nd with a fly ball single and David Winfree doubled out to left to drive him in. Trevor Plouffe would single to bring in Winfree after Molina's ground out moved the Rock Cats' right fielder to 3rd. A Toby Gardenhire ground out saw Plouffe to 2nd and a wild pitch by Bowie starter Jason Breken got him to 3rd. Jeff Christy drew a walk and Steve Tolleson doubled to drive in the pair.

Following a ground out to Blake Davis to start the top of the 3rd, Mike Rodriguez and Carlos Rojas got back-to-back singles off Rainville. Luis Montanez and Jeff Nettles then hit back to back homers off the Rock Cats' starter to give them a 2 run lead.

Mike Pierce took a talk in the top of the 4th and Davis' single moved him to 2nd. A force out by Rodriguez found Pierce at 3rd and a sac-fly by Rojas brought him over the plate to add to the Baysox lead. Montanez would single before Sarasota native Jason Miller was brought in to throw in relief.

Miracle pitcher Jeff Manship had said that he thought that Rainville's struggles was due to a lack of confidence, and certainly this game did nothing to help the matter. His ERA, which had fallen after his last start, is back up to 10.01 and with Manship performing well for Fort Myers and big lefty Errol Simonitsch ready to come off the DL, you have to wonder how long Rainville will have to find a place in New Britain.

Finan drew a walk off Miller with one out in the 5th, then zipped over to 3rd base on Kennard Jones' grounder to right. Pierce would sacrafice him in for add to the Bowie lead, making it 8-4 Baysox.

Lis would double in the bottom of the sixth, move to 3rd on Winfree's ground ball single to ceter and score on a Felix Molina sac-fly to start the Rock Cats rally.

The 7th saw the come back kids add two more on Moses and Lis' yarders to give the Cats 7. That's all they'd get though as Bowie reliever Julio Manon used 4 strike outs over 2 innings to close down the game.

Back-to-back singles to Nettles and Reimold earned them an insurance run off former Miracle lefty Kyle Aselton when Jones singled out to right to drive in Nettles.

Aselton, who has pitched well out of the Cats' pen so far this season, allowed 3 hits and struck out no one over 2 innings worth of work.

While the Cats were without the services of reining Eastern League Player of the Month Luke Hughes, they were not without offense as Lis went 3-for-4 with 3 runs and 1 RBI. Winfree was also 3-for-4, but with 1 run and 1 RBI. Plouffe was 2-for-4 with 1 run. Tolleson was 1-for-5 at the plate but picked up 2 RBIs.

Brock Peterson was held hitless, striking out 3 of his 5 at bats, while Moses struck out twice but did have the 1 hit, run, and RBI by virtue of his second home run of the season.

The Cats will try to get back in the win column as they travel to New Hampshire to face the Fisher Cats with the game starting at 6:35 PM on Friday. Oswaldo Sosa (1-2, 6.39) is expected to start against Toronto farm hand Ricardo Romero (1-2, 5.51) in a pitching rematch from earlier this week.

Boxscore
Log

Numerology

I hadn't actually occured to me what Jon Waltenbury was wearing for the games until I was uploading the pictures - better late then never - from Spring Training. So, I had to ask...

"You wearing that number because of Morneau?" He allows that he is repping Justin a bit.

"That's Rainy's old shirt," I tell him.

"Oh, I'll take good care of it," he says. Yeah, sure he will.

"He's wearing number 38 with the Miracle," I continue. "He thinks he's Curt Schilling."

"He looks like Schilling," Walt notes. Yeah well...

In sitting on the bench with the shaggers and in talking to Nelson Prada, I had made the comment that I like the GCL because I don't have to pay money to watch them. Unlike the Miracle.

Mike Rogers says he can believe that none of the guys leaves me free tickets. Right. Let's see if he leaves me free tickets when he get to the Miracle. Bet I'll still be paying for my season tickets like everyone else.

It is very annoying to have plunked down the money, only to watch them suck the way they have. I don't care if they win every game, they don't have to be championship callibere, but they should at least be competative. And when the team is getting 3 hits a night, that's hardly competative.

Most of the discussion involved how to feed 70 guys on $500 (the annual break camp dinner). If they go to Smokey Bones, which I think is where they went last year, it's over $900.

Nelson was exhonarating them to be good at all the levels they play at...you have to be good to get to E-Town, you have to be good to get to Beloit, you have to be good to get to Fort Myers...

To which I said "No, you just have to suck to get on the Miracle" which sent the GCL bench into a fit of laugher. They are all well aware of how bad the Fort Myers squad is this year. Yet these are guys that won a championship in E-Town and made the play offs in Beloit?

"Can't do anything with those guys," Marzan tells me. More like we can't do anything with that coach we've got.

Yes, he took us to a half-season championship last year, but I also remember him flip-flopping Winfree between 1st and 3rd and how we won when Winfree played at 3rd and lost when he played at 1st. We needed both Brock's and David's bats in the line up to win. But suddenly, they needed to rest Brock...every other game? Yeah, that made a lot of sense to me at the time.

Well, there's really nothing anyone can do. It's not like they are going to get rid of Boles half way through the season. It just breaks my heart though to watch guys like Eli Tintor and Matt Betsill struggle, when I know they are better players than what we've seen out of them. Something's going on there, and no, it's not the guys.

Anyway, a bit of Mr. Walterbury from Saturday...

Rainy Season

I love Jay Rainville. I'd already made up my mind that the Miracle were going to lose last night. Kevin Boles is not Jose Marzan. Marzan would not give up on a one run game. He'd have the guys bunt their way onto base, he'd manufacture the runs, he'd get the win.

Kevin Boles pulls his line ups from a fish bowl and lets them sink or swim on their own. We're not trying to win games here. So must easier to just assume we're going to lose and get on with it.

So I might as well go and enjoy the pitching. It was kind of a comfort thing. Especially with the team on the road most of the start of the season, every time they were home we saw Kyle Waldrop, Ryan Mullins and Ozzie Sosa. Nothing wrong with those three, and I love them all. But not with the kind of passion I adore Mr. Rainville with.

It's been that way since I first saw him pitch. Love at first strike out or something like that. So I finally get Jay at home and went and just settled down with my little camera. The baseball Gods were kind and sent dramatic lighting, which I'd sort of given up on with this new roof they put on the stadium. And Jay pitched.

So there are lots and lots of pictures.



Brian wanted to know if the digital had changed the way I shoot and I said not really. The digital is more of a knock about camera so I get some fun shots off of it, but for the serious work, I still reach for a roll of film and the old Nikon.

In this case, I figured if I walked out with like 50 shots of Jay Rainville, I'd be happy. Everyone else will think I'm crazy, but I'd be happy. So...



The ones of Whit Robbins were only because the light was starting to go and I needed to finish off the roll. Nothing against poor Whit, but he's the last guy on the team that's going to evoke any sort of sense of passion in me.

I suppose on the whole if we wanted to get into it, most of the organization is kind of light weight in that department. I mean, Jay and Anthony Swarzak are probably my two favorite pitchers in the whole organization.

There's really no one in Beloit right now that fits into the mold - not even Jeff Manship, although he does throw quite well. Maybe I will feel this way about Tyler or Bromberg in a couple of years, but right now...



Both Swarz and Rainy came into the organization around the same time and both made the Miracle at the age of 19. They liked loud music and nice cars. They play good old fashion hardball. They're aggressive and they go after hitters. They make the other team take swings.

Swarz played last season had a tremendous year, went up to New Britain and needless to say sort of screwed himself for this season. Jay meanwhile had medical problems that required surgey at the start of last season and which left him sitting out the year. So he's back in Fort Myers this year and maybe doesn't have the fast ball he had.

He's still good though, and the used the time off to good advantage. He's still looking for the 90+ MPH fastballs. He's getting there.



Rainville can pitch, that's for sure. He's got a nice spin on his curveball. He can change speeds, go his change up, come back to the heater. With the time off, he says he learned how to pitch better.

Right now he's just hoping to get back to where he was. Last night wasn't a bad outing. A "quality start" in baseball is defined as completing six innings and giving up no more than three earned runs. Jay went six and gave up three earned runs on 7 hits and 2 walks while striking out 5. A quality start.

His first of the season, as he'd not gone more than five innings in his past starts. So he's coming around. The rehab is progressing.

Someone, I think it was the one grapher I was talking to Monday night, wanted to know when he was going to New Britain. Not yet, I think, although I'm sure he'd like the chance to pitch at a higher level, I'm not sure he's ready.



And as I told him before the season starts, he's perfectly welcome to spend the whole season here. We're not sending him off anywhere until he's ready. Although he'd probably feel better about the whole situation if the team could find the win column a bit more frequently. After all, more like than not, he's the one that gets saddled with the loss.



In any case, lots of pictures of Jay Rainville, including quite a few really excellent pitching faces too.

Tonight I will see Yohan Pino pitch. He throws quite well too. Looked very good in spring training. But he still doesn't evoke the kind of passion in me that watching Jay Rainville does.

Which also puts me in a bad position come Sunday, as it's Jay's next start, yet the GCL Twins are playing at home against Pittsburgh. Decisions, decisions. Because I really need to watch the Twins.

But man, do I love Jay Rainville.