[stevem810]

The middle game belonged to Paris until the middle innings. A 5-1 lead evaporated as the Marseille line up came to life. Mickael Pinon, SS, had a pair of hits and 6 rbi's for the Soleis. It was the Artist bullpen, currently ranked 8th in the league, that surrendered the bulk of the damage.

Paris specifically targeted the pen for improvement as the signing of CL Gerard Gallet was the move to solidify the late inning relief situations. While that actually has happened (Gallet has 5 saves and an 0.59 ERA), its the set up and middle relief that is falling flat. Clement Marchand, 24 years old and pitching lights out for the AAA Orioles, can only wonder when the call will come to bring him to the FBL major league level.

In game 3 Julien Henri had a double, single, and walk driving in three runs. Lamy batted in three runs in spot behind Julien giving the Artists a relatively comfortable 8-5 win. But, the pen made it interesting as they surrendered one in the 8th, three in the 9th, and had the tying run at the plate before a twin killing gave Paris the win.

With the series win the Artists are still tied with the Nice Orchids as SP Herve Villard got the W in the third game of the Expedition series to salvage one win. The Orchids and Artists have the best record in the FBL, 20-13.