We go onto a 2-week road trip out east, which includes both of our two closest competitors. With the way the offense is not working, this could well be a very depressing trip.
Raccoons (41-26) @ Titans (38-32)
Scott Wade started this 3-game series against the struggling Luis De Jesus (5.50 ERA), but De Jesus had no-hit the Thunder two years ago, so he ought to have some nice qualities. Both teams got a run early, and then, in the top 4th, Daniel Hall homered a fair bit over the wall in dead center field, which was 434 feet in the Titans’ park, to make it 2-1. A tack-on run or two would have been neat, but didn’t materialize, and a leadoff triple by Hjalmar Flygt spelled death for Wade’s lead, which evaporated with a Salvador Vargas single. Being strong didn’t help Wade a lick, he got another no-decision, and the game headed into extras. Vinson led off the top 10th with a double, and was on third with two outs, from where he scored on a Neil Reece Texas leaguer into shallow left. Kinnear walked, and Hall banged a double off the wall to score Reece. O’Morrissey singled up the middle, and both runners scored. Suddenly – offense! Up 6-2, we left Daniel Miller in the game, who had collected the last two outs in the ninth, but he put the first two Titans on in the tenth. Grant West was brought in, and loaded the bags with a single, but then collected the three outs we needed – Miller’s runners still scored on groundouts. 6-4 Raccoons. Salazar 2-4, BB; Hall 2-5, HR, 2B, 2 RBI; O’Morrissey 2-5, 2B, 2 RBI; Osanai 2-4, 2B, RBI; Wade 7.0 IP, 7 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 3 BB, 2 K; Burnett 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K; West 1.0 IP, 1 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K, SV (18);
Doubles by Hall and Higgins gave Raimundo Beato a 1-0 lead in the top 2nd of game 2, and in the third, the Coons ate up Titans SP Santiago Perez. Our first three men reached base, and all three were brought in to score. Top 4th, we had the bases loaded with two down. Hall went into a full count, then walked, forcing in the fifth run of the game, and he was the first of three Raccoons to reach base here, as Higgins and Osanai collected RBI singles, 7-0. With Beato pitching, you were never sure what you’d get, but this time he was strong, and was about to complete seven shutout innings before he was whacked by Matt Smith for a solo home run. Smith would have been his last batter. He still finished the inning by getting out SS George Waller. It would be Waller in the ninth to bring the Titans back into the game, as the bullpen again couldn’t finish it on time. Carrillo put two in scoring position with one out, and Waller doubled them in, cutting into a 7-1 lead. Burnett came in and sat down the last two batters. 7-3 Raccoons. Salazar 2-4, BB; Kinnear 2-4, 2 RBI; Hall 2-4, BB, 2B, RBI; Higgins 2-5, 2B, 3 RBI; Osanai 2-5, RBI; Beato 7.0 IP, 7 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, W (5-5) and 2-4;
Now give six runs to Saito, and we’ll be more than fine.
Oh, well. Saito left two in scoring position in the first, then fell to a Waller home run, and two runs overall, in the third. Before that, Salazar had been caught way off first when Higgins had lined out to 1B Juan Valentin in the top 3rd. The next Raccoons base runner was Daniel Hall, singling to start the seventh. O-Mo came up and doubled, and the tying runs were in scoring position with no out. Osanai failed again (and at everything) with a lazy grounder at the third base line, and the runners had to hold. Vinson was hit by a pitch, leaving Johnston exposed to Willie Young’s stuff. He grounded out, scoring Hall, but Reece came in as pinch-hitter for Saito and struck out. Oh, greatness. It was right there. Greatness. There came more of it: Carrillo gave up a 2-out triple in the bottom 7th, then had the guts to throw a wild pitch. GREATNESS. Salazar got on to start the top 8th, and was forced out on a Higgins grounder. Kinnear came up and flew a ball past Alejandro Espinoza for 1-out RBI triple. Hall could tie it now, but walked. O’Morrissey did get the game tied up with a sac fly to center. Extra innings once more, where the Raccoons failed to mount meaningful offense again. The Titans were looking to end the game in the 11th with a runner on third, but Daniel Miller wiggled out of his own mess. Salazar and Higgins got on to start the top 12th. At first, Kinnear was supposed to bunt them over, but flailed, and then was told to hit: he doubled to right and the tie was broken. Hall and Rodriguez had RBI singles, and with two out, Johnston found two on and tripled past Espinoza, who had dé-já vús out there in right. Behind him, Miller batted for himself, since our bench was empty, and singled in Johnston. A collapsing Titans pen allowed six runs in the top 12th. And then Miller loaded the bags with no out in the bottom 12th. Oh not …! While Juan Martinez in coming in would save the game, he didn’t do so until AFTER walking in a run on four pitches. 9-5 Raccoons. Salazar 3-5, 2 BB; Kinnear 2-5, BB, 3B, 2B, 2 RBI; Hall 2-5, BB, RBI; Rodriguez 1-2, RBI; Johnston 3-6, 3B, 2B, 3 RBI; Saito 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 0 K; Lagarde 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 1 K;
If Kisho Saito finally snapped and brought his finely crafted sword to work one day for a clubhouse massacre, I would not only understand it, I would encourage it. I’d lock the windows.
However long it took them to outscore slow Titans, they swept them, and with the Canadiens taking two from the Indians, we now had a sound 5-game lead. Daniel Hall’s hitting streak is to 16 games.
Raccoons (44-26) @ Thunder (35-37)
The Thunder were struggling to keep the scoreboard clean, not only with the pitching, which was not that bad, and the rotation even ranking 6th, but also with defense. They were at the bottom end of the pile in many defensive categories, leading them to rank second-to-last in the CL in runs allowed with 360, which was 104 more than the league-leading Raccoons had conceded.
Jason Turner came to bat before he threw a pitch in the opener, as OCT starter Juan Torres was wickedly wild, walking three and hitting Hall (on Dan The Man’s 37th birthday) in the opener, allowing four runs to score, one of them batted in by Turner. But despite Torres continuing his wild ways into the sixth inning, he did not get saddled with any more runs. The Raccoons only got on the board once more, with a 2-out RBI single by Hall in the ninth. Jason Turner was outright electric and had no problems in mowing down the Thunder in this game, going the distance for a shutout: 5-0 Raccoons! Hall 2-4, RBI; Turner 9.0 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 2 BB, 5 K, W (8-4) and 1-3, BB, RBI;
This was Jason Turner’s eighth career shutout, and the second this season. Way to go, Jolly Jason! :-)
Game 2. The Coons went up 2-0 in the top 3rd on a wild pitch on Manuel Garza and a passed ball on Fernando Gonzales. The Raccoons were wholly unable to otherwise get to Garza. Robert Vázquez was dealing for four innings, then put the two leadoff men on in the bottom 5th and collapsed from there, the Thunder tying up the game the same inning, 2-2. Vázquez did get through the seventh in the tied game, putting the go-ahead run on with a bad throw to Osanai himself. Martinez came in to face the next batter, but the runner was gunned down trying to steal by Vinson before that AB resolved. No offense continued into extra innings. A 1-out walk to Vinson in the top 10th prompted us to send Quinn to pinch-run with Lagarde at the plate. Lagarade failed to bunt him over. In a 1-1 count, we then went to a hit-and-run, but Lagarde – while making contact – narrowly hit it foul. He eventually hit into a double play, and then lost the game in the bottom 10th after a leadoff walk to the much-hateworthy Jeff Wagner. 3-2 Thunder. Salazar 2-4;
Hall extended his streak to 19 games at the first opportunity in game 3 with a 1-out RBI double that also put two in scoring position in the top 1st. Osanai and Morales both struck out. Greatness. Right there. The only truly great Raccoon in this game was Scott Wade, who while not being flawless held the Thunder off the scoreboard through six. Top 7th, Hall found Wade, who had singled, and Salazar on second and first with two down. He dropped a double into deep left, from which it hopped out over the wall – which was too bad, since Salazar might have had scored from first, but had to hold on the ground rule double. But Osanai at one point had to come through, and did so here, with a 2-out, 2-run single to right. Up 4-0, Wade looked safe, and even hit a 2-out triple in the top 8th, but wasn’t scored by Salazar, who was retired by Jeff Wagner, that rat. After Jason Turner had gone the distance two days ago, Scott Wade followed suit, shutting out the Thunder in the process. 4-0 Raccoons! Reece 2-5; Hall 2-3, BB, 2 2B, 2 RBI; Wade 9.0 IP, 5 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 3 K, W (5-3) and 2-4, 3B;
Raccoons (46-27) @ Knights (40-35)
We opened the series against Jim Harrington, who was inexplicably 1-9 with a 5.62 ERA after more than a decade as a reliable starter. Like Jason Turner a few days ago, Raimundo Beato batted before ever pitching in the game, as the Raccoons put five runs on Harrington in the first inning, although three were unearned after an error by SS Tony Diaz. Daniel Hall batted in the first run for back-to-back days. Harrington was pinch-hit for in the second inning already. Beato’s outing was not without struggles either: he allowed a run in the first, and then loaded the bags in the fourth, before emerging unscathed because O-Mo made a nifty play. The Coons left five runners on between the fifth and sixth innings, getting only a run from a Quinn sac fly. Up 6-1, Nelson surrendered a leadoff single in the bottom 9th, and a Higgins error created a bad spot with two on and no outs, but Nelson struck out PH Jack Jackson and Martinez got the final two outs in the game. 6-1 Coons. Reece 2-5; Hall 3-4, BB, RBI; Osanai 2-5; Quinn 2-3, BB, RBI; Beato 7.2 IP, 5 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 3 BB, 4 K, W (6-5) and 1-3, 2 RBI;
And that’s a 20-game hitting streak for Daniel Hall!!
Hall-le-lujah!!
Game 2, second inning. The Raccoons had runners on the corners with one out, but Morales struck out and Osanai was then caught napping at first and was picked off. The Knights responded with a run in the bottom 2nd. Of course, Saito was pitching, so a 1-0 deficit was not miraculous. Turned out, Saito didn’t necessarily have it that day. A leadoff walk to Jack Jackson had pitcher Jesse Carver bunt Jackson over, and from there Saito threw not one, but two wild pitches to score Jackson in the third inning. O-Mo re-tied the game with a 2-run shot in the top 4th (Hall was the runner collected). Carver hit Vinson in the thumb in the fifth inning, and the Coons catcher had to come out, which would almost certainly spell roster calamities in short time. Hall was on base again for O-Mo in the top 6th, and while O-Mo went a good way again, he didn’t hit it out, but it was enough for a double to center. Two in scoring position, no outs. The Knights put Osanai on intentionally, and here I brought Johnston to bat for Morales. Johnston struck out, but Rodriguez, replacing Vinson, came through for a 2-run single. Saito became much better after the fourth and had a few very quick innings, going eight frames in total. West got something to save, and did so 1-2-3. 5-2 Furballs! Reece 2-5, 2B; Hall 3-5, 2 2B; O’Morrissey 3-3, BB, HR, 2B, 3 RBI; Rodriguez 2-2, 2B, 2 RBI; Saito 8.0 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB, 1 K, W (5-6);
David Vinson would be out for a week with a thumb contusion. That’s a problem, because we need a catcher. We had to waive Elmer Hawley, because nobody with options was expendable and to be honest, Hawley was no big league player anyway. Catcher Bob Armstrong was called up from AAA. Armstrong was our second-round pick in the 1987 draft. He’s nothing special, but we need somebody with a mask.
Game 3, and in stepped Jason Turner, recently accoladed again (see below). He faced Carlos Asquabal, who was 9-5 despite a 3.89 ERA (slightly above league average). O’Morrissey led off with a triple in the game, before Reece and Higgins made poor outs to stall him. Dan The Man came up, 2-2 against Asquabal, but the fifth pitch of the at-bat was a single to right. DAN THE MAN!!! 1-0 Coons. The lead didn’t hold up long, a Morales error helped the Knights to tie the game in the bottom 1st, the run being unearned. Both starters lost a few more feathers early on, and the Coons led 3-2 from the third inning on, but both teams missed scoring chances in both the third and the fourth. Asquabal and Turner then met head-to-head in the top 5th. Osanai on second, Quinn on first, two out, Asquabal threw a wild pitch to advance the runners, then put two strikes on Turner, and then hung one that Turner took to left for a 2-run single! O-Mo’s infield single brought up Neil Reece. Asquabal to Reece – SOCKED!! DRILLED!! LONG – WAY – GONE!!! Carlos Asquabal, one of the most dominating starters of the last five plus years – SHATTERED by the Raccoons for eight runs in five innings! Turner went six innings after two errors (the other by Osanai) causing extra work and stress on him. The Raccoons were comfortably ahead, and the win was only tainted by Daniel Miller’s inability to complete the ninth inning, him allowing two runs. 9-4 Raccoons! O’Morrissey 2-5, 3B; Reece 2-4, BB, HR, 3 RBI; Osanai 2-5, 2 RBI; Rodriguez 2-5; Quinn 2-5; Turner 6.0 IP, 6 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 2 BB, 3 K, W (9-4) and 2-3, 2 RBI; Nelson 2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 0 K;
We’re now 4-2 against Atlanta. If we can win one game in the last series against them, we will take the season series for the first time since 1986(!), which sounds desirable.
In other news
June 23 – VAN 2B David Brewer (.395, 6 HR, 51 RBI) first collects two singles in a game against the Indians, which brings his hitting streak to 20 games, then has to come out of the game with a tight hamstring. The Canadiens prevail to win 9-6.
June 25 – SFW INF Esteban Areizaga (.289, 5 HR, 40 RBI) has suffered an oblique strain and will be out for three weeks.
June 26 – WAS CL Domingo Rivera (3-2, 2.10 ERA, 17 SV) may be out for the season with a ruptured finger tendon. Will the 32-year old’s injury derail the Capitals train?
June 28 – 21-year old MIL OF/1B Jerry Fletcher (.386, 0 HR, 15 RBI) manufactures himself a 20-game hitting streak with a sixth inning single in a 1-0 win over Atlanta.
June 28 – BOS SP Santiago Perez (7-8, 4.35 ERA) 3-hits the Falcons in a 4-0 win. Yes, that’s the Perez the Raccoons have just torn up.
June 30 – Not distracted by the nagging hamstring, Vancouver’s David Brewer has run up a 25-game hitting streak, getting the job done early with a first-inning single in his team’s 7-2 win over Tijuana.
Complaints and stuff
Daniel Hall Superstar!! Hitting streak!! Home runs!! Clutch hits!! I’m constantly wetting my pants with all the giddy happiness!!! At age 37 he’s having the summer of his life. It is so sweet, I think I’m gonna cry :-) :-)
More great news: Jason Turner was named the Pitcher of the Month in the Continental League for June (which ended with game 2 in Atlanta), going 5-0 with a 2.52 ERA in his five starts. That’s some pitching!
That was a very good road trip so far, close to being fantastic, but we have four in Indy left. However, unless we get swept, we still hold a 6-game lead, which doesn’t evaporate that easily. And here we’re the best team in baseball!
So, let’s here some more
Hall-le-lujah! 