Down on the Pond: April 19th

Record for the Day: 2-1 / Record for the Year: 27-20

Rochester Red Wings:

Rochester won both games of their doubleheader to pull their record back to 0.500. Each game lasted 7 innings with the dominant Red Wings pitching the main story. Game one ended with score of 3-1 (Box Score) and Game two ended with a score of 2-0 (Box Score)

Game 1: DH Dustin Martin and LF Brandon Roberts each went 2-3. RF Rene Tosoni went 1-3 with his 5th double to account for the team’s only other hit, and only XBH, of the game. Former Red Wing, Jason Pridie hit his 3rd HR of the season to account for St. Lucie’s only run in either game.

5 hits and 3 runs was more than enough support for RHP Anthony Swarzak who threw a complete game on 96 pitches (7.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 1 BB and 3 SO). It was his 3rd strong start on the year giving him a 2.30 ERA, 1.09 WHIP and 2.75 SO/BB in 15.2 innings of work. I’m hopeful he can continue to pitch at this level and once again earn a shot to pitch in the majors. If nothing else, it’s wonderful to see him have some early success after a forgettable 2010 with the Red Wings (6.21 ERA, 1.62 WHIP in 111.2 IP).

Game 2: If you missed the first inning you missed the only runs of the game. CF Ben Revere led off with a single and scored when SS Trevor Plouffe – hitting 2nd – smacked a HR over the left field fence. In addition to his 4th HR, TP also added a BB and a SB to his stats last night. 2B Brian Dinkelman followed Plouffe’s HR with a single. Despite the early outburst, it wound up being last Red Wings hit in the game.

Obviously when a team wins 2-0, their pitching is getting the job done. That was certainly the case in this game as 5 pitchers combined on the 5-hit shutout. RHP Anthony Slama made his 2nd relief appearance since returning from the DL and threw 1.1 innings with 1 BB and 1 SO. Veteran lefty Chuck James continues to be unimpressive. Though he didn’t give up a run, he lasted just one-third of an inning and allowed 2 hits.

Current Record: 6-6

New Britain Rock Cats:

Inclement weather necessitated the postponement of their scheduled game against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. It is the second time in four days that the weather prevented New Britain from playing.

Current Record: 7-4

Fort Myers Miracle:

Lost 11-2 to the St. Lucie Mets (Box Score)

Sometimes in baseball, and in all sports for that matter, you are on the wrong end of a good old fashioned beat-down. Such was the case on Tuesday for Fort Myers. LF Jason Bay, assigned to St. Lucie on a rehab assignment, was the primary cog in the destruction of the Miracle pitching staff, but he wasn’t alone. Bay went 4-4 with 2 HR while the rest of the St. Lucie lineup piled up another 14 hits. As a team they scored in 5 of the 8 innings they came to the plate.

With 18 hits and 11 runs on the board for St. Lucie, it was not the best of days for the Fort Myers pitching staff. Lefty Ryan Mullins started and gave up 6 H, 5 R, 4 ER, and 2 HR while getting 2 SO in 3.0 innings. Next came lefty Matthew Tone who fared only slightly better (3.0 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 2 SO). Shooter Hunt (1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 0 BB, 2 SO) was the only Miracle hurler that left the game unscathed. LHP Edgar Ibarra, who had – up until this appearance – allowed just 1 run in 6.1 innings had the worst night of all. In just 1.0 inning he allowed 6 hits, 4 runs and 1 walk.

On the offensive side of things, Fort Myers only scored twice but they did have 11 hits. CF Aaron Hicks went 2-5 with a triple. 1B Nathan Hanson went 2-4 and notched his 5th multi-hit game in his last 6. Over the last 10 games the “Pride of Chanhassen” is hitting 0.381/.400/.595 with 3 2B and 2 HR. LF Chris Herrmann went 3-4 with his 4th double and has hit in 9 of his last 10 games. On the year he’s hitting 0.370/.423/.565 with 4 2B, 1 3B and 1 HR. Beyond the slash stats, Herrmann has struck out just twice in his 46 at bats, and has drawn 5 walks on the year as well.

Current Record: 7-6

Beloit Snappers:

Yet another Snappers game has been postponed. Up to a foot of snow is expected to fall in this latest storm so the team has prudently cancelled their scheduled game for today (April 20th) as well. Both games will be made up as part of doubleheaders on May 18th and 19th.

Current Record: 7-4