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League News

Pedro Martinez is the first story, making history by pitching the first opening day no-hitter in league history. He pitched the 7th perfect game in league history in 1997.

Thursday 5/1/2003: Dallas' John Mabry clears fence three times
DENVER - Hitting a homerun is fine, but hitting three of them in one game is something special. Dallas' first baseman John Mabry accomplished that feat in a 10-9 win over Denver. In the 6th inning he unloaded a solo homerun off Albie Lopez. A 366 foot drive to right field marked his 2nd bomb, a two-run homerun off Stan Belinda in the 8th inning. His 3rd blast, a solo homerun off Luis Vizcaino in the 10th inning, landed an estimated 419 feet from home plate. Overall he finished 4 for 5, scoring three runs and driving in 5 runs. So far this season he is batting .292 with 4 homers and 12 RBI. Todd Helton was the last player to hit 3 homeruns in a game, doing it 4/24/2003.

Thursday 5/1/2003: St. Louis' Gagne earns Pitcher of the Month award
Eric Gagne pitched like a legend in April, and the Continental League named him Pitcher of the Month for his extraordinary performance. His record of 5-0 in 5 was among the leagues best this month. In 30.2 innings of work he allowed just 27 hits while striking out 35, compiling an ERA of just 2.35. Miami's pitcher Pedro Martinez is the Atlantic League winner of the Pitcher of the Month award in April. He started 5 games in April, going 4-0 and compiling an ERA of 0.88 in 41 innings. Pedro fanned 45 hitters. Pedro fired two shutouts!

Thursday 5/1/2003: Red hot Clark and Pujols win Batter of the Month award
The Batter of the Month award in the Continental League goes to Minneapolis' Tony Clark this time, as the first baseman displayed the best offensive perfomance in his league. He had an on base percentage of .512 and hit .373, while driving in 20 runs. It's the 2nd time that the Atlantic League Batter of the Month award goes to Baltimore's first baseman Albert Pujols. He had an on base percentage of .500 and hit .368, while driving in 27 runs.

Wednesday 4/30/2003: Dave Fleming quiets D.C. bats with shutout
D.C. - Dave Fleming had an unexpectedly great performance against D.C. on Wednesday, pitching a 2-hitter for his 1st shutout of the season. Fleming (1-1) struck out 4 and issued 2 BB, throwing 58 of 116 pitches for strikes. 'Today I just felt fine. I had a good feeling while warming up.' Aramis Ramirez provided New York with the offense Fleming needed as he finished 1 for 4, blasting a homerun, and driving in 4 runs. New York improved its record to 7-15, scoring 6 runs on 7 hits.

Tuesday 4/29/2003: Seattle's Jon Nunnally gets the cycle
CINCINNATI - Jon Nunnally led Seattle to a 22-4 win over Cincinnati by squeezing five hits out of his bat. That's not the best part, though. He hit for the cycle as well! A pitch from Terry Adams in the 1st inning left his bat for a RBI double. A RBI double off Carlos Pulido in the 5th inning accounted for his 2nd hit. A single in the 6th off Greg Maddux accounted for his 3rd hit. His 4th hit, off Tim Crabtree in the 7th inning, was a two-run homerun and cleared the fence in center field. His 5th hit was a RBI triple off Steve Cooke in the 9th inning. That drive completed the cycle, causing a smile on his face! Jon scored 5 runs, and he collected 6 RBI as well! He now has a total of 21 hits this season, accounting for a .276 batting average. 165 players in league history have so far hit for the cycle, including Jon. On 8/24/2002, Adam Everett was the last player to hit for the cycle.

Monday 4/28/2003: Baltimore's Pujols wins Player of the Week award
Bernie Williams wins his 10th Player of the Week award. Continental League pitchers couldn't figure out how to retire this guy all week long. Bernie went 9 for 22 (.409), while hitting 3 HR and collecting 6 RBI. Baltimore's first baseman Albert Pujols had some reason to celebrate as well, as the league named him the Atlantic League Player of the Week. He had an on base percentage of .481 and hit .417, while driving in 14 runs. His season features a batting average of .362 (25 hits in 69 AB), 7 doubles, no triples and 8 homeruns. Pujols collected 24 RBI and 15 runs as well. He's 5th in the Atlantic League in batting, 1st in homeruns and 1st in RBI!

Thursday 4/24/2003: Todd Helton on fire, crushes three
NEW YORK - Todd Helton was in a groove, and the results spoke for themselves. He powered Miami to a 19-2 win over New York by homering three times. A pitch from Mark Dewey in the 6th inning left his bat for a two-run homerun, landing 339 feet from home plate in left field. His 2nd shot, off Robert Constance in the 7th inning, was a two-run homerun and cleared the fence in right field. His 3rd blast, a two-run homerun off Dave Veres in the 9th inning, landed an estimated 399 feet from home plate. Todd went 5 for 6, with FOUR runs scored with 6 RBI. His homerun total this year is 7, along with 17 RBI. On 4/22/2003, Sean Berry was the last player to hit 3 dingers in a single game.

Wednesday 4/23/2003: Cliff Brantley fires NO-NO against New Orleans
NEW ORLEANS - Cliff Brantley had his best stuff going, and New Orleans hitters were chanceless. Toronto's right-hander fired a NO-NO, his 1st shutout of the season. 'Well, the ball went where I wanted it. I was able to hit the corners with all of my pitches. I'm so happy that it was enough to pitch such a great game.' Brantley (1-1) struck out 1 and walked 3, throwing 55 of 100 pitches for strikes. Scott Rolen helped Brantley at the plate, he got 2 hits in 4 AB, doubling once. Toronto scored 5 runs on 11 hits.

Tuesday 4/22/2003: Sean Berry punishes Norfolk with three dingers
D.C. - Hitting a homerun is fine, but hitting three of them in one game is something special. D.C.'s third baseman Sean Berry accomplished that feat at age 37, in a 11-1 win over Norfolk. In the 1st inning he unloaded a two-run homerun off Dave Burba. His 2nd shot, off Mike Ignasiak in the 4th inning, was a GRAND SLAM and cleared the fence in right field. A 385 foot drive to right field marked his 3rd bomb, a two-run homerun off Mitch Williams in the 6th inning. Sean finished 4 for 4, scoring FOUR runs with 8 RBI.

Tuesday 4/22/2003: Milwaukee's Nen severely injured, out for season
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee's right-hander Robb Nen experienced probably the worst case scenario for a pitcher, a season ending injury. After pitching in the 9th inning of the game against Kansas City, Nen complained about serious pain in his throwing arm. He had to leave the game. After being examined by several specialists the diagnosis is clear: Torn Ligament Elbow. This season Nen compiled an ERA of 1.29, going 0-0 in 0 starts. He fanned 12 while giving up 4 hits in 7 innings.

Monday 4/21/2003: Baltimore's Pujols wins Player of the Week award
Jim Thome wins his 7th Player of the Week award. Continental League pitchers couldn't figure out how to retire this guy all week long. Jim went 14 for 27 (.519), while hitting 7 HR and collecting 10 RBI. He now has homered in 4 consecutive games as well! It's the 4th time that the Atlantic League Player of the Week award goes to Baltimore's first baseman Albert Pujols. Albert went 11 for 27 (.407), while hitting 3 HR and collecting 7 RBI. This year Pujols drove in 10 and scored 11 runs while batting .333 with 4 homeruns. He's 10th in the Atlantic League in RBIs and 4th in homeruns!

Sunday 4/20/2003: Detroit's Chipper Jones ropes five hits
DETROIT - Chipper Jones is among the best pure hitters in the game, but his 5 hit performance seemed to surprise even himself. His 1st hit, off Brian Fisher in the 2nd inning, was a solo homerun and cleared the fence in right field. A RBI double off Brian Fisher in the 4th inning accounted for his 2nd hit. The game was tied, 3-3, after the blast. A 451 foot drive to left field marked his 3rd hit, a solo homerun off Doug Bochtler in the 6th inning. A pitch from David Holdridge in the 6th inning left his bat for a RBI double. He collected a single in the 8th, driving in one run. Chipper did drive in 5 while scoring 3 runs on his own. He's having a very good season so far, batting .372. Detroit scored 22 runs on 23 hits.

Friday 4/18/2003: Dallas' Ontiveros out for 4-5 weeks
DALLAS - When it rains, it pours. Dallas' ace Steve Ontiveros will not pitch for at least 4-5 weeks, handing the team a huge setback. He suffered a serious injury in a game against Cincinnati where he left the field in the 6th inning. After x-rays were taken the diagnosis did not surprise many: Torn Bicep Muscle. Surgery will be performed next week.

Wednesday 4/16/2003: Season ending injury strikes Los Angeles' Mussina
LOS ANGELES - Los Angeles' right-hander Mike Mussina experienced probably the worst case scenario for a pitcher, a season ending injury. After pitching in the 6th inning of the game against Cincinnati, Mussina complained about serious pain in his throwing arm. He had to leave the game. After x-rays were taken the diagnosis did not surprise many: Torn Tricep Muscle. Surgery will be performed next week.

Monday 4/14/2003: Green (DET) and Suzuki (MIA) win P.O.W. award
Detroit's rightfielder Shawn Green had some reason to celebrate, as the league named him the Continental League Player of the Week. Shawn went 12 for 25 (.480), while hitting 4 HR and collecting 10 RBI. He hit in every game this week and extended his hitting streak to 13 games. The Player of the Week award in the Atlantic League goes to Miami's Ichiro Suzuki this time, as the rightfielder displayed the best offensive perfomance in his league. Ichiro was on fire, hitting .577 with 1 HR and 9 RBI.

Saturday 4/12/2003: David Wells blanks Milwaukee with a 1-hitter
CINCINNATI - All you need to win is a dominating pitching performance. And Cincinnati's David Wells did so today, in a 1-hit shutout against Milwaukee. Wells (1-0) fanned 2 and walked 2, throwing 103 pitches. 'Giving my team a chance to win is the most important thing for me. I was able to do it today.' The hitting star for Cincinnati was first baseman Sean Casey, he went 3 for 4, hitting a homerun, stroking a double, scoring twice. Cincinnati scored 4 runs on 7 hits.

Friday 4/11/2003: Jeffrey Hammonds out for 6-7 weeks
MILWAUKEE - Milwaukee's players were scared when they had to watch Jeffrey Hammonds suffer a serious injury when he dove for a ball in the game against Cincinnati. He collapsed in pain and was helped off the field. Hammonds will probaby miss 6-7 weeks. Torn Rib Cage Muscle was the diagnosis after x-rays were taken in a nearby hospital. The message shocked teammates and team officials.

Monday 4/7/2003: Pedro Martinez NO-HITS Philadelphia
PHILADELPHIA - Pedro Martinez had his best stuff going, and Philadelphia hitters were chanceless. Miami's right-hander fired a NO-NO, his 1st shutout of the season. 'I really like to play baseball, and I love the way I was able to play it today. I still cannot believe I did it.' Martinez (1-0) was overpowering, fanning 12 while walking none, throwing 110 pitches. The hitting star for Miami was rightfielder Ichiro Suzuki, he finished 2 for 4. Miami scored 1 run on 5 hits.