The Portland Beavers, est. 2001

[Questdog]

Friday, April 13, 2001

I have been told by a very unreliable source that Friday the 13th's in April are not unlucky and are in fact the best days for planting perennials....

Manager Champ Walker (39) has his Astros in town to play us a 2-game series over the weekend. They just split a 4-game set with the Phillies. So far, in the early going, they are 5th in the NL in scoring with 4.9 runs per game (Portland is up to #15 with 2.7!!). They are 9th in runs allowed with 4.5 per game (Portland is #5 with 3.5). If you like home runs, then the Astros are the team for you! They lead the NL with 16 in 10 games and have allowed the 2nd most with 15. If you like stoles bases, then the Beavers are not the team to get you excited. We have yet to attempt one....

Houston Astros (5-5 .500 4 GB tied for 4th place in the NL West) at
Portland Beavers (5-5 .500 4 GB tied for 4th place in the NL West)

Rich Clark, Hou (32 R 1-0 3.75 7.5-1.5-2.3-6.0 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Ricky Chase, Por (30 R 0-2 9.39 12.9-2.3-5.9-3.5)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
HOUSTON
1: CF Alfredo Garcia (22 L .216-0-4-.618 in 37 AB)
2: 1B Dave Brown (31 R .302-2-4-.813 in 43 AB)
3: LF Mike Cane (27 L .324-4-11-1.057 in 43 AB)
4: C Howard Morrell (27 R .206-2-6-.769 in 34 AB)
5: SS Bill McCully (30 R .000-0-0-.222 in 7 AB)
6: 2B Jim Ellison (27 R .243-1-2-.633 in 37 AB)
7: RF David Rodriguez (25 L .273-1-2-.824 in 33 AB)
8: 3B Doug Frain (30 R .242-0-3-.581 in 33 AB)
9: P Rich Clark (32 S .500-0-0-1.000 in 2 AB)

PORTLAND
1: SS Randy Penn (32 L .188-0-1-.528 in 16 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .282-2-4-.795 in 39 AB)
3: LF Rich Babbin (36 L .250-0-1-.607 in 12 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .310-1-5-.762 in 42 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .167-1-2-.574 in 36 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .385-1-4-.887 in 39 AB)
7: CF Scott Setta (34 R .429-0-0-1.029 in 7 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .240-0-2-.705 in 25 AB)
9: P Ricky Chase (30 S .000-0-1-.000 in 2 AB)

The weather is cold, but clear. 47 degrees with a 9 MPH wind blowing right to left.

Alfredo Garcia flies out to left. Dave Brown grounds out to 3rd. Mike Cane takes strike three right down the middle! 1-2-3!

Bottom of the 1st: Randy Penn beats out an infield hit to get us started. Lebron Williams grounds into a force at 2nd, 4-6. Rich Babbin lines a hit to right and Williams makes it to 3rd without a throw. Fred Pariseau lines a hit over the second baseman's head! Williams scores! 1 to 0, Beavers! George Hopkins grounds into a 4-6-3 double play.

Top of the 2nd: A pair of singles from Howard Morrell and Jim Ellison and a 2-out hit by Doug Frain ties the game at 1. P Rich Clark then hits another single to make it 2 to 1, Astros.

Bottom of the 2nd: Masanori Ishii leads us off with a grounder just inside the 3rd base line for a double. Scott Setta reaches on an error by SS Bill McCully to put men at 1st and 3rd with no outs. But no runs are put on the board this inning for the Beavers....

Top of the 4th: With a man on, David Rodriguez homers to right. 4 to 1, Astros.

Bottom of the 4th: With 1 out, Masanori Ishii, hotter than hot, doubles again and then Scott Setta grounds a hit to left and Ishii scores! 4 to 2, Astros. A couple of walks to Alan Spitzer and Randy Penn load the bases up with 2 outs. Lebron Williams singles up the middle and 2 runs score to tie the game at 4! Rich Babbin then doubles to right center to score 2 more! 6 to 4, Beavers! Rich Clark is sent to locker room to ponder his mistakes....

Bottom of the 7th: On the hill: RHP John Holm, beginning his 2nd inning of work. An infield hit by Rich Babbin and a line drive hit by George Hopkins and a walk by Masanori Ishii load the bases up with 1 out. Scott Setta flies out to center. Alan Spitzer bloops one into shallow center that looks like a sure hit, but Mike Cane, now in center, makes a diving, sprawling catch to save runs.

Top of the 9th: Still 6 to 4, Beavers. New Pitcher: LHP Jim Ackley. LF Jose Torres strikes out. RF Don Verrier walks on 4 pitches. Dave Brown lines a hit to right. Mike Cane strikes out looking! Call to the Bullpen: RHP Greg Richey. Howard Morrell swings at the first pitch and grounds out to short! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

5 in a row! Undefeated at home! OVER .500!!!

Won - 6 to 4

Four in a row! We are at .500!

We had 11 hits and made no errors.
The Astros had 12 hits and made 1 error.

Ricky Chase (W 1-2) went 5.2 innings, allowed 4 runs, 11 hits, 1 home run, no walks and struck out 4. At bat, he had the first successful sacrifice bunt by a Beaver pitcher in the annals of history....
RHP Larry Castillo faced 1 batter and retired him.
RHP Ron Beckman pitched 2 perfect innings and struck out 2.
LHP Jim Ackley went 2/3 of an inning, allowed a hit and a walk and struck out 2.
RHP Greg Richey (SV 1) faced 1 batter, threw 1 pitch and retired him.

Rich Clark (L 1-1) went 3.2 innings, gave us 6 runs, 8 hits, 2 walks and struck out 3.

RF Lebron Williams had a hit, scored 2 runs and had 2 RBIs. LF Rich Babbin had 3 hits with a double and 2 RBIs. 2B Fred Pariseau had 2 hits and an RBI. C Masanori Ishii hit 2 doubles, drew a walk and scored a run.

For the Astros, RF/LF David Rodriguez hit his 2nd home run of the season and had 2 RBIs.

Reality Check: This little burst at home is great, but Baseball America has pegged us to lose 100+ games for the season and I do not believe they are far off in their assessment of our talent. I will be very happy if we can finish the season with double digit losses.

[Questdog]

Saturday, April 14, 2001

Houston Astros (5-6 .455 4 GB tied for 5th place in the NL West) at
Portland Beavers (6-5 .545 3 GB in 4th place in the NL West)

Paul McDonald, Hou (32 R 0-0 5.40 11.6-1.5-0.8-3.1 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Tony Ricketts, Por (26 R 0-0 1.29 6.4-1.3-1.3-2.6)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
HOUSTON
1: CF Alfredo Garcia (22 L .225-0-4-.623 in 40 AB)
2: 1B Dave Brown (31 R .292-2-4-.771 in 48 AB)
3: LF Mike Cane (27 L .292-4-11-.950 in 48 AB)
4: C Howard Morrell (27 R .205-2-6-.725 in 39 AB)
5: SS Bill McCully (30 R .091-0-0-.413 in 11 AB)
6: 2B Jim Ellison (27 R .268-1-2-.668 in 41 AB)
7: RF David Rodriguez (25 L .270-2-4-.873 in 37 AB)
8: 3B Doug Frain (30 R .270-0-4-.624 in 37 AB)
9: P Paul McDonald (32 R .000-0-0-.200 in 4 AB)

PORTLAND
1: SS Randy Penn (32 L .200-0-1-.554 in 20 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .273-2-6-.751 in 44 AB)
3: LF Rich Babbin (36 L .375-0-3-.882 in 16 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .326-1-6-.782 in 46 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .175-1-2-.567 in 40 AB)
6: C John McIvor (30 R .222-0-1-.444 in 9 AB)
7: CF Scott Setta (34 R .364-0-1-.864 in 11 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .214-0-2-.655 in 28 AB)
9: P Tony Ricketts (26 R .000-0-0-.500 in 1 AB)

The weather is even colder tonight and overcast. 40 degrees with an 8 MPH wind blowing in from right.

Alfredo Garcia flies out to center on a 3-2 pitch. Dave Brown grounds a hit up the middle. Full count to Mike Cane, too, and he takes ball four. Howard Morrell grounds into a 6-4-3 double play!

Bottom of the 1st: Randy Penn lines a hit to right. Lebron Williams lines out to the pitcher. Rich Babbin plops a little hit to center. On a 1-1 pitch at to Fred Pariseau, at 7:22 PM, the Beavers try to steal a base for the first time ever with both runners taking off in what is commonly referred to as a 'Double Steal'. C Howard Morrell tries for Penn at 3rd base, but his throw is late and the Beavers, who had no steals ever, now have two! The pitch was called a strike on Pariseau, who is now in a 1-2 hole. He strikes out. 2 outs. P Paul McDonald can really hum the ball... George Hopkins flies out to left.

Top of the 5th: Neither team has generated any offense yet, but the Astros look to be in business when David Rodriguez and Doug Frain hit back-to-back 1-out singles to put runners at 1st and 3rd. P Paul McDonald strikes out, but Alfredo Garcia draws a walk on a 3-2 pitch to load the bases up with 2 outs. P Tony Ricketts is already at 90 pitches.... 0-2 pitch to Dave Brown, who absolutely crushes it to left field for a Grand Slam.... 472 ft. 4 to 0, Astros.

Top of the 7th: RHP Greg Richey strikes out the side, 1-2-3.

Lost - 4 to 0

We had 8 hits and made no errors.
The Astros had 5 hits and made no errors.

Tony Ricketts (L 0-1) went 5 innings, allowed 4 runs, 5 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks and struck out 3.
RHP Greg Richey pitched 2 perfect innings and struck out 3.
LHP Steve Mulder went 2 innings, allowed 2 walks and struck out 2. Next bad game by Ricky Chase, Mulder will be in the rotation.

Paul McDonald (W 1-0) went 9 innings (CG), gave us no runs (ShO), 8 hits, 1 walk and struck out 3.

SS Randy Penn had 2 hits and stole a base. LF Rich Babbin had 2 hits with a double and stole a base. C John McIvor had 2 hits.

For the Astros, 1B Dave Brown had 2 hits with a Grand Slam, his 3rd home run of the season.

[Questdog]

Sunday, April 15, 2001

Houston Astros (6-6 .500 3 GB tied for 4th place in the NL West) at
Portland Beavers (6-6 .500 3 GB tied for 4th place in the NL West)

Walt Deckman, Hou (29 R 1-1 1.93 5.8-0.6-3.2-7.1 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Ron Rau, Por (29 R 1-0 1.23 4.9-0.0-1.8-6.8)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
HOUSTON
1: CF Alfredo Garcia (22 L .209-0-4-.596 in 43 AB)
2: 1B Dave Brown (31 R .308-3-8-.845 in 52 AB)
3: LF Mike Cane (27 L .294-4-11-.965 in 51 AB)
4: SS Paul Cook (26 L .265-4-8-.903 in 34 AB)
5: 3B Ron Janeiro (30 R .500-2-4-1.845 in 10 AB)
6: RF David Rodriguez (25 L .275-2-4-.871 in 40 AB)
7: C Roger Bradshaw (30 R .100-0-2-.300 in 10 AB)
8: 2B Bill McCully (30 R .067-0-0-.310 in 15 AB)
9: P Walt Deckman (29 R .000-0-0-.200 in 4 AB)

PORTLAND
1: SS Randy Penn (32 L .250-0-1-.625 in 24 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .271-2-6-.730 in 48 AB)
3: LF Rich Babbin (36 L .400-0-3-.955 in 20 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .300-1-6-.721 in 50 AB)
5: 1B Rick Deveney (28 L .250-0-0-.705 in 8 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .405-1-4-.979 in 42 AB)
7: CF Scott Setta (34 R .333-0-1-.778 in 15 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .188-0-2-.579 in 32 AB)
9: P Ron Rau (29 R .000-0-0-.000 in 5 AB)

Much nicer today than last night: Partly cloudy and 51 degrees with an 7 MPH wind blowing in from right.

Alfredo Garcia pops a 2-2 pitch up to the shortstop. Dave Brown grounds a hit into right. Mike Cane hits one down the right field line and Lebron Williams makes a lunging catch! Paul Cook swings at 3 pitches and goes to get his glove!

Bottom of the first: Randy Penn strikes out. Lebron Williams lines one to left center, but Alfredo Garcia just manages to catch it before it hits the ground. Rich Babbin grounds out to short.

Top of the 3rd: Billy McCully leads off by striking out. P Walt Deckman gets 2 strikes on him, but then grounds a single to right. Alfredo Garcia lines a hit to left and then Dave Brown doubles to the wall in left and both runners score. 2 to 0, Astros. Mike Cane hits another 2 strike pitch up the middle for a hit and Brown scores. 3 to 0, Astros. A walk and another hit, this one by David Rodriguez and yet another run is home. 4 to 0, Astros. The Bullpen is up. Rodger Bradshaw double to the wall in right and another run scores! 5 to 0, Astros. Another walk, this one to the #8 hitter, Bill McCully., who led off the inning. P Walt Deckman grounds out to short to end the nightmare..... I thought Ron Rau might end up to be our ace, the way he pitched in his first two games....

Bottom of the 3rd: With 2 outs, PH Rich Doody hits a home run to right, just barely inside the foul pole. 5 to 1, Astros.

Top of the 4th: New Pitcher: LHP Jim Ackley. He retires the side, the only base runner a batter he hit with a pitch, but when he comes in to the dugout after the inning, he goes to see the trainer and does not reappear....

Top of the 6th: On the Hill: RHP Larry Castillo, beginning his 2nd inning of work. With 2 outs, Alfredo Garcia hit a home run to right. 6 to 1, Astros.

Bottom of the 6th: Pinch-Hitter: LHB Don Quinney. He gets plunked. Randy Penn reaches on an error by SS Paul Cook. Lebron Williams singles to left and Quinney scores. 6 to 2, Astros. With 1 out, Fred Pariseau singles to center and Penn scores. 6 to 3, Astros.

Bottom of the 8th: New pitcher: RHP Dave Craig. With 2 outs, Rich Babbin homers to right. 6 to 4, Astros.

Bottom of the 9th: New pitcher: RHP Gene Lynch, their closer. Pinch-Hitter: RHB John McIvor. He grounds a 2-2 pitch to right for a hit. Rickey Clayton goes in to run for him. Of course, using a pinch runner guarantees that he will be erased on a double play.... Masanori Ishii grounds one to 3rd: 5-4-3 double play.... Scott Setta work the count full and then draws a walk. Alan Spitzer tales on in the shoulder to put the trying run on base. 1B George Hopkins grounds out to 1st.

Lost - 6 to 4

We had 8 hits and made 2 errors (in succession).
The Astros had 10 hits and made 1 error.

We grounded into 3 double plays.

Ron Rau (L 1-1) went 3 innings, allowed 5 runs, 7 hits, 2 walks and struck out 2.
LHP Jim Ackley pitched 1 inning, but we have no idea when or if he will ever pitch another. He hit a batter with a pitch.
RHP Larry Castillo went 2 innings, allowed 1 run, 2 hits, 1 home run and struck out 2.
RHP Neville Carter went 3 innings, allowed 1 hit, 3 walks and struck out 4.

Walt Deckman (W 2-1) went 7 innings, gave us 3 runs (2 earned), 6 hits, 1 home run, 1 HBP, 1 walk and struck out 6. At bat, he had a hit and scored a run.
RHP Gene Lynch (SV 3) went 1 inning, gave us 1 hit, 1 HBP and 1 walk, but no runs.

RF Lebron Williams had 2 hits and an RBI. LF Rich Babbin drew a walk and hit his first home run of the season. PH John McIvor had a hit. PH Rich Doody hit his 2nd home run of the year. PH Don Quinney was hit by a pitch and scored a run.

For the Astros, CF Alfredo Garcia had 2 hits with his first home run of the season and scored 2 runs. 1B Dave Brown had 3 hits with a double and a walk, was hit by a pitch, scored a run and had 2 RBIs.

[Questdog]

April 16, 2001

Monday Morning Report

AL Player of the Week - Steve Carrillo, 3b, Detroit (27 L .455/.464/.709) Had 17 hits with 1 2B, 1 3B, 3 HR, 8 R, and 8 RBI in 7 G
NL Player of the Week - Jerry Ford, rf/lf, Pittsburgh (30 R .360/.433/.740) Had 11 hits with 1 2B, 5 HR, 5 BB, 9 R, and 11 RBI in 7 G

(Slash lines are for the season, not the week)

April 9: SS Paul Cook of Houston hit 2 home runs at home versus Philadelphia. He had 4 RBIs. The Astros won, 9 to 6.
April 9: 1B Jesus Quintana of San Diego had 5 hits at Chicago (N). He had 3 doubles and a home run and had 3 RBIs. He hit a 2-run double int he top of the 11th and the Padres won, 4 to 1, in 11 innings.
April 9: Steve Carrillo of Detroit had 5 hits at home versus Texas. He scored 2 runs and had and RBI. The Tigers lost, 7 to 6. With 2 outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th, C John Sinks fouled off one 3-2 pitch, but swung and missed the next one to end the game.
April 9: Los Angeles (A) got a 2-out, 2-strike, 3-run home run from SS Bob Waligora in the bottom of the 9th to beat Toronto, 4 to 3. Waligora is a backup infielder and only was in the game because the regular shortstop was pinch-hit for. He only had the one plate appearance in the game and it was his first hit of the season.
April 10: RF Jerry Ford of Pittsburgh (not the one from Michigan who went to Washington) hit 2 home runs at Los Angeles (N). He drew 3 walks and scored 4 runs. The Pirates won, 8 to 4.
April 10: SS Dave Love of New York (A) hit 2 home runs at Chicago (A). He had 3 hits and a walk and scored 3 runs. The Yankees lost, 9 to 6.
April 10: 2B John Klemin of Tampa Bay had 5 hits at Kansas City. He hit a double and a Grand Slam, scored 2 runs and had 6 RBIs. The Rays won, 13 to 6.
April 11: 3B Steve Carrillo of Detroit hit 2 home runs at home versus Texas. He drew a walk and had 3 RBIs. The Tigers won, 7 to 3.
April 11: After losing their first 8 games, the Phillies beat the Astros, 2 to 1, in Houston.
April 12: 1B Don Richins of Arizona hit 2 home runs at home versus Montreal. He also hit a double and had 4 RBIs. The Diamondbacks won, 5 to 3.
April 12: After winning their first 9 games, the Giants lose at home to Cincinnati, 2 to 1, tin 10 innings.
April 12: RF Jerry Ford of Pittsburgh hit 2 home runs at Los Angeles (N) for the 2nd time in 3 days. He had 5 RBIs. The Pirates won, 6 to 3. The Dodgers are now the last team left in the major leagues who have not both won a game and lost one. They have lost all of theirs so far and are 0-9.
April 13: Los Angeles (N) entered the bottom of the 9th of their game at San Diego with a 1 to 0 lead, but the Padres scored a run to tie it and won in the 13th, 2 to 1. The Dodgers have now lost their first 10 games to start the season.
April 13: CF Tommy Kelly of Boston hit 2 home runs at Washington. He had 3 hits. The Red Sox won, 4 to 3, in 10 innings.
April 14: Pittsburgh scored twice in the bottom of the 9th to beat Chicago (N), 2 to 1. RF Jerry Ford hit a 2-run home run with 1 out to win the game. It is his 5th home run of the season and 5th in 5 days and the first time he has hit only 1 home run in a game.
April 14: Los Angeles (N) lost at San Diego, 2 to 1, in 11 innings, to extend their losing streak to begin the season to 12 games.

Random Fact of the Week: We have managed to score 9 runs on our 8 home runs this season. Only Fred Pariseau has hit one with a runner on base.

[Questdog]

Monday, April 16, 2001

Still no word on the condition of LHP Jim Ackley and we cannot wait to find out because our pen is pretty worn out and cannot afford to pitch a man short, especially a lefty. So we went ahead an put him on the Disabled List and called up rookie LHP Pedro Huerta from Indianapolis. SD Eddie Henderson says Huerta is a star reliever in all ways except for one: he is too wild. However, in 6 innings for Indy, he did not walk a batter and struck out 6. Probably, he was saving them all for Portland.

We are in St. Louis to play a short 2-game series with manager Eddie Cape (59) and his Cardinals. They lost 2 of 3 here over the weekend to the Rockies. Through two weeks of the season, they are 11th in scoring with 4.2 runs per game (Portland is #15 with 2.8). They are tied for 5th in runs allowed with 3.8 per game (Portland is #4 with 3.8 - 1 run less than the Cardinals).

Portland Beavers (6-7 .462 4 GB tied for 6th place in the NL West) at
St. Louis Cardinals (6-7 .462 4 GB tied for 6th place in the NL West)

Alan Gross, Por (26 L 0-0 3.46 9.0-1.4-2.8-7.6 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Ron Olson, StL (35 R 0-0 0.00 3.4-0.0-3.4-10.1)

This will be Olson's first start of the season. He has pitched 2.2 scoreless innings in relief.

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: CF Scott Setta (34 R .278-0-1-.687 in 18 AB)
2: SS Randy Penn (32 L .214-0-1-.540 in 28 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .288-2-7-.750 in 52 AB)
4: LF Rich Babbin (36 L .391-1-4-1.070 in 23 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .156-1-2-.522 in 45 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .391-1-4-.938 in 46 AB)
7: 2B Rickey Clayton (31 R .259-0-3-.681 in 27 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .200-0-2-.603 in 35 AB)
9: P Alan Gross (26 L .000-0-0-.250 in 3 AB)

ST. LOUIS
1: RF Doyle Campbell (26 R .255-1-5-.609 in 55 AB)
2: 2B Steve Cargile (30 R .295-0-5-.801 in 44 AB)
3: 1B Miguel Medina (24 R .347-0-7-.791 in 49 AB)
4: 3B Dave Strong (31 R .200-1-1-.733 in 15 AB)
5: CF Willie Cardona (27 R .250-1-8-.840 in 40 AB)
6: LF Al Koets (31 L .206-0-2-.554 in 34 AB)
7: C Rich Eden (30 L .471-1-3-1.324 in 17 AB)
8: SS Mike Ray (38 R .282-0-4-.718 in 39 AB)
9: P Ron Olson (35 R Has not batted this season)

Weather: 47 deg. Clear skies with a 10 MPH wind blowing out to center.

Scott Setta hits a 2-2 pitch off the right field wall for a double. Randy Penn flies out to left. Lebron Williams flies out to left. Rich Babbin grounds out to 2nd.

Bottom of the 1st: Doyle Campbell pops out to short. Steve Cargile grounds out to short. Miguel Medina grounds one just inside the 3rd base line and past the bag for a double. Dave Strong strikes out!

Top of the 2nd: With 1 out, Masanori Ishii lines a hit to center. Rickey Clayton grounds a hit to right and Ishii asks his slow feet to get him to 3rd. RF Doyle Campbell throws the ball away and Ishii scores! 1B + E9. 1 to 0, Beavers.

Bottom of the 2nd: Willie Cardona leads off with a bloop hit to left center and hustles it into a double. But P Alan Gross gets the next three to squash the threat.

Top of the 3rd: Scott Setta leads off with a double to right. After Randy Penn strikes out, Lebron Williams executes an instant replay of Setta's double! 2 to 0, Beavers!

Bottom of the 3rd: With 2 outs, Steve Cargile bloops a hit to right and Miguel Medina does NOT bloop one. He crushes a line drive to left center, but Rich Babbin makes a great running, lunging catch to rob him of extra bases and end the inning!

Bottom of the 4th: Dave Strong leads off with a hit and Willie Cardona follows with a drive to center. Scott Setta goes back to the wall, but runs out of room and watches it carry over the fence. Tie game: 2 to 2.

Top of the 5th: Scott Setta leads off with a line drive single to left center. Randy Penn tries to bunt him over, but they get the force at 2nd. After Lebron Williams flies out, Rich Babbin draws a walk to put runners at 1st and 2nd with 2 outs. George Hopkins hits a 2-2 pitch off the right centerfield wall for a double and both runners score! 4 to 2, Beavers!

Bottom of the 5th: The Cardinals continue their hard contact parade against P Alan Gross when PH Boots Rover doubles to left to lead off the inning. The Bullpen is told to find somebody who can go and get him warmed up. Gross gets the next two batters on ground outs and only one was hit hard. But now #3 hitter Miguel Medina comes to plate. He drives a 2-2 pitch to deep center, but Scott Setta somehow manages to track it down to end the inning!

Top of the 6th: New pitcher: RHP Jim Allen. With 1 out, Alan Spitzer draws a walk. P Alan Gross is allowed to hit, because our bullpen is probably not fresh enough to give us 4 innings of good work today. He bunts the ball and P Jim Allen fields it, but his throw to first is bad and Gross is safe! SH + E-1. Scott Setta, looking for his 3rd double of the day, gets a double of sorts, when he grounds into a 6-4-3 inning-ending double play.

Bottom of the 6th: Dave Strong leads off with a walk. The Bullpen may have to give us 4 innings whether we like it our not. Willie Cardona, who has doubled and homered already, hits a hard one, but on the ground and right to SS Randy Penn! 6-4-3 double play! Al Koets also smashes one, but a line drive right to 1B George Hopkins!

Top of the 8th: New pitcher: LHP Dennis Haan. Rickey Clayton and PH Joe Hartin lead us off with back-to-back singles. PH Fred Pariseau bloops a hit to center and Clayton scores from 2nd! 5 to 2, Beavers!

Bottom of the 9th: On the Hill: EHP Ron Beckman, beginning his 2nd inning of work. With 2 outs, Rich Eden homers to right. 5 to 3, Beavers. Mike Ray follows with a double down the right field line and suddenly the tying run is at the plate in PH Joe Evans, who is 5 for 9 so far this year. He grounds out to 2nd. ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

Won - 5 to 3

We had 12 hits and made no errors.
The Cardinals had 8 hits (and at least twice that many loud outs) and made 2 errors.

Alan Gross (W 1-0) somehow made it through 7 innings. He allowed 2 runs, 6 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk and struck out 4. Not a bad line, actually pretty good, but man were they hitting the ball hard.
RHP Ron Beckman (SV 2) went 2 innings, allowed 1 run, 2 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk and struck out 1.

Ron Olson (L 0-1) went 5 innings, gave us 4 runs, 7 hits, 2 walks and struck out 3.

CF Scott Setta had 3 hits with 2 doubles and scored a run. RF Lebron Williams had 2 hits with a double and had an RBI. LF Rich Babbin had a hit and 2 walks and scored a run. 1B George Hopkins hit a double and had 2 RBIs. Editor's Note: I screwed up this game playing it out and had to redo it. I messed up a double switch and put my catcher in to pitch.... Per my custom, any 'mouse mistakes' MUST be replayed, whether we are winning or losing. No other mistakes can be redone. George Hopkins had to pay the biggest price for my idiocy as he had hit 2 home runs in that game, one from each side of the plate. That one was a much easier win than the official game turned out to be.... Rickey Clayton had 2 hits and scored a run. PH Fred Pariseau had a hit and an RBI.

For the Cardinals (I hate the C-a-r-d-i-n-a-l-s for many reasons, not the least of which is that I can NEVER type their nickname out quickly without messing it up....I AWAYS type the final 'a' BEFORE the 'n'), CF Willie Cardona hit a double and his 2nd home run of the season and had 2 RBIs. C Rich Eden hit his 2nd home run, as well.

[Questdog]

Tuesday, April 17, 2001

The diagnosis came in on LHP Jim Ackley: badly sprained ankle and he will be out 7 to 8 weeks. We already put him on the DL, but today two players came off of it: PH Ray Wilson and LF Frank Wiginton. OF Don Quinney was optioned to Indianapolis and 3B Joe Hartin was waived and designated for assignment. He will go to Indianapolis unless he is claimed off waivers.

Portland Beavers (7-7 .500 3.5 GB tied for 5th place in the NL West) at
St. Louis Cardinals (6-8 .429 4.5 GB in 7th place in the NL West)

Edmondo Buenaventura, Por (31 R 1-2 3.38 9.2-0.0-3.9-5.8 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Ron Desmarais, StL (35 R 0-1 3.68 12.3-1.2-4.9-7.4)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S First game)
2: 3B Ray Wilson (37 R First game)
3: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .385-1-4-1.061 in 26 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .309-1-8-.728 in 55 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .160-1-4-.530 in 50 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .380-1-4-.915 in 50 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .182-0-1-.462 in 33 AB)
8: RF Rich Doody (32 L .286-2-3-.763 in 35 AB)
9: P Edmondo Buenaventura (31 R .000-0-0-.000 in 6 AB)

ST. LOUIS
1: RF Doyle Campbell (26 R .237-1-5-.568 in 59 AB)
2: 2B Steve Cargile (30 R .298-0-5-.804 in 47 AB)
3: 3B Guy Forse (24 L .261-3-7-.890 in 46 AB)
4: 1B Miguel Medina (24 R .340-0-7-.790 in 53 AB)
5: LF Al Koets (31 L .184-0-2-.499 in 38 AB)
6: CF Willie Cardona (27 R .273-2-10-.944 in 44 AB)
7: C Al Decker (28 S .286-1-5-.816 in 35 AB)
8: SS Boots Rovner (38 R .385-1-1-1.077 in 13 AB)
9: P Ron Desmarais (35 R .500-0-0-1.000 in 2 AB)

Weather: 49 deg. Cloudy skies with a 14 MPH wind blowing in from center.

Frank Wiginton grounds out to 2nd. Ray Wilson flies out to center. Rich Babbin strikes out.

Bottom of the 1st: Doyle Campbell lines a hit past the shortstop. Steve Cargile grounds into a 6-4-3 double play! Guy Forse (his sister is Girl Power) flies out to left.

Bottom of the 3rd: With 1 out, P Ron Desmarais and Doyle Campbell hit back-to-back singles. With 2 outs, Guy Forse grounds a double over the 1st base bag and both runners score. 2 to 0, Cardinals.

Top of the 5th: Frank Wiginton gets his first hit of the year with a 1-out double and then Ray Wilson follows with his first hit of the year, a run-scoring single to left. 2 to 1, Cardinals.

Bottom of the 5th: With the bases loaded and 2 outs, the skies suddenly open up with a torrential downpour and the game is halted for 80 minutes. When we start back up, a new pitcher takes the hill: RHP Greg Richey. Miguel Medina beats out an infield hit and a run scores. 3 to 1, Cardinals. Al Koets grounds one to 3nd and Fred Pariseau flips it to 2nd, but SS Randy Penn bobbles the ball and the runner is safe and another run scores. E-6. 4 to 1, Cardinals. Willie Cardona walks.... 5 to 1, Cardinals. Al Decker flies out to center to finally end the inning about an hour and 45 minutes after it started....

Lost - 5 to 1

We had 8 hits and made 1 error.
The Cardinals had 10 hits and made no errors.

Edmondo Buenaventura (L 1-3) went 4.2 innings, allowed 5 runs (3 earned), 7 hits, 1 walk and struck out 2.
RHP Greg Richey went 1.1 innings, allowed 1 hit and 2 walks (all of which added runs to Edmondo's total. He inherited 3 base runners and they all scored).
LHP Pedro Huerta, in his major league debut, pitched 2 scoreless innings, allowed 2 hits and struck out 2.

Ron Desmarais (W 1-1) went 5 innings, allowed 1 run, 4 hits, 1 HBP, 1 walk and struck out 4.

LF Fred Wiginton hit a double and scored a run. 3B Ray Wilson had a hit and 2 walks and an RBI. 2B Fred Pariseau had 3 hits. 1B George Hopkins had 2 hits and was hit by a pitch.

For the Cardinals, RF Doyle Campbell had 3 hits and scored 2 runs.

[Questdog]

Thursday, April 19, 2001

After a much needed day off, we are in San Diego to play a 4-game series through the weekend with manager Clyde Black (63) and his Padres. They have won 5 in a row and did not allow the Giants to score a run in their 2-game series on Monday and Tuesday. They are 13th in runs scoring with 3.7 per game (Portland is #15 with 2.9). They are 2nd in runs allowed with 3.1 per game (Portland is #6 with 3.8).

Portland Beavers (7-8 .467 4.5 GB tied for 5th place in the NL West) at
San Diego Padres (9-6 .600 2.5 GB in 4th place in the NL West)

Tony Ricketts, Por (26 R 0-1 3.75 7.5-1.5-2.3-3.8 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Dave Sikes, SD (22 L 1-0 2.29 5.5-1.8-3.7-6.9)

Our infield defense at the corners against lefties is pretty horrible. We have a catcher at 1st and a pinch-hitter at third who does not even own a glove and has to borrow one to play today.....

LF Tom Peterson makes his MLB debut today for the Padres. They had decided in the off-season to give him the starting job, but he got hurt in Spring Training and only played in 3 games. So they sent him on a rehab assignment to AAA to get him in a little better shape. That is why he has only played 5 games in AAA.

Manager Clyde Black thinks the notion than OBP is important at the top of the order is silly. Each of his first 2 hitters has drawn a single walk this season. C Jose Hernandez cannot run either and strikes out a lot. I am not sure what qualities he possesses that entice Black to put him in the #2 spot. He does have a lot of power, so maybe he was tired of seeing him hit his home runs with runners on base....

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .200-0-0-.600 in 5 AB)
2: 3B Ray Wilson (37 R .500-0-1-1.250 in 2 AB)
3: CF Scot Setta (34 R .320-0-1-.814 in 25 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .339-1-8-.779 in 59 AB)
5: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .352-1-4-.849 in 54 AB)
6: 1B John McIvor (30 R .357-0-1-.714 in 14 AB)
7: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .298-2-8-.772 in 57 AB)
8: SS Randy Penn (32 L .162-0-1-.414 in 37 AB)
9: P Tony Ricketts (26 R .000-0-0-.333 in 2 AB)

SAN DIEGO
1: RF Joe Greenslit (26 R .161-0-4-.381 in 62 AB)
2: C Jose Hernandez (30 R .245-3-10-.684 in 53 AB)
3: 1B Jesus Quintana (25 L .295-1-8-.801 in 61 AB)
4: SS Floyd Miller (26 R .305-2-4-.836 in 59 AB)
5: 2B Bob Sargent (28 R .216-3-9-.770 in 51 AB)
6: 3B Dave Watts (31 R .240-0-3-.581 in 50 AB)
7: LF Tom Peterson (25 L MLB Debut .294-0-0-.807 in 17 AB in AAA)
8: CF Ron Shively (23 R .220-0-3-.510 in 50 AB)
9: P Dave Sikes (22 L .167-0-1-.333 in 6 AB)

Weather: 50 deg. Cloudy skies with a 12 MPH wind blowing out to center. This does not feel like San Diego weather! They WOULD have a cold spell when I came to town....

Frank Wiginton grounds out to 3rd. Ray Wilson works the count full than then takes ball four. He then steals 2nd on the 1st pitch to Scott Setta! He's 38 and needs to catch 'em napping to make it these days. He used to be a speedster, though. 0-2 pitch to Setta and he swings and connects and sends it up and over the left field wall!! 2 to 0, Beavers! Fred Pariseau flies out to right, Joe Greenslit making a nice running catch. Masanori Ishii grounds out to the pitcher.

Bottom of the 1st: Joe Greenslit grounds one to short, but Randy Penn boots it. E-6. He cannot hit lefties (or righties much either) and is only there at short today for his defense. This error means he is in there for no good reason at all.... Greenslit steals 2nd. Jose Hernandez walks....I KNEW that would happen, since I mentioned that he and Greenslit hardly ever take free passes before the game.... Jesus Quintana grounds a slow one to short and Penn makes a nice play to get him out at 1st and the runners move up. Floyd Miller flies out to deep right center and Greenslit scores easily. 2 to 1, Beavers. Bob Sargent grounds out to 3rd to end the inning.

Bottom of the 2nd: Dave Watts (who I want to be like) hits a double and with 2 outs, P Dave Sikes knocks him home with a line drive hit to right. 2 to 2.

Bottom of the 3rd: Rain starts to fall! I thought it NEVER rained in San Diego! Only when I am here.... With 1 out, Floyd Miller lines a single past my defensive shortstop.... Bob Sargent drives a double into the left center gap and Sargent tries to scored from first. Scott Setta runs it down and gets it back to SS Randy Penn who fires a strike to the plate to nail Sargent. Miller tries to sneak over to 3rd on the throw home, but Masanori Ishii pegs him out, too! 8-6-2-5 double play to end the inning!!

Bottom of the 4th: 65 minute rain delay. Ricketts says he is fine to keep going....

Bottom of the 5th: Singles by Jose Hernandez and Floyd Miller and then a home run by Bob Sargent. 5 to 2, Padres.

Bottom of the 6th: New Pitcher: RHP Ron Beckman. Ron Shively leads off with a walk and after they bunt him over to 2nd, Joe Greenslit doubles off the wall in right center. 6 to 2, Padres. Jose Hernandez singles him home. 7 to 2, Padres. A walk and an infield hit later and we make a Call to the Bullpen: RHP Larry Castillo. Bases loaded and 1 out. Bob Sargent, who has homered and doubles already is at the plate. He grounds into a 5-4-3 double play!

Bottom of the 8th: New Pitcher: RHP Neville Carter. He walks Jose Hernandez to lead off the inning. Hernandez had only walked once all season before today and has walked twice in this game.... With one out Floyd Miller knocks him home from 2nd with a grounder through the left side for a hit. 8 to 2, Padres. With 2 outs, Dave Watts knocks Miller home from 2nd with a hit to right. 9 to 2, Padres.

Lost - 9 to 2

We had 7 hits and made 1 error.
The Padres had 16 hits and made no errors.

Tony Ricketts (L 0-2) went 5 innings, allowed 5 runs (4 earned), 10 hits, 1 home run, 1 walk and struck out 3. At bat, he had a hit.
RHP Ron Beckman went 1/3 of an inning and allowed 2 runs, 3 hits and 2 walks.
RHP Larry Castillo went 1.2 innings and allowed a hit and a walk and struck out 1.
RHP Neville Carter went 1 inning, allowed 2 runs, 2 hits and a walk.

Dave Sikes (W 2-0) went 6 innings, gave us 2 runs, 5 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks and struck out 3. At bat, he was 2 for 2 with an RBI.

CF Scott Setta hit his 1st home run of the season and had 2 RBIs.

For the Padres, SS Floyd Miller had 4 hits, scored 2 runs and had 2 RBIs. 2B Bob Sargent doubles into a double play and hit his 4th home run of the year and had 3 RBIs.

[Questdog]

Friday, April 20, 2001

Portland Beavers (7-9 .438 4.5 GB tied for 6th place in the NL West) at
San Diego Padres (10-6 .625 1.5 GB tied for 3rd place in the NL West)

Ron Rau, Por (29 R 1-1 3.57 7.6-0.0-2.5-6.6 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Manny Leiva, SD (25 R 1-1 1.59 6.4-0.8-2.8-2.4)

Lefties are 2 for 28 (.071) on the season against Leiva and we have 6 batters in the lineup batting from the left side....

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .333-1-4-.929 in 30 AB)
2: LF Rich Doody (32 L .275-2-3-.735 in 40 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .283-2-8-.734 in 60 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .333-1-8-.761 in 63 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .189-1-4-.585 in 53 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .333-1-4-.816 in 57 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .179-0-1-.443 in 39 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .189-0-2-.588 in 37 AB)
9: P Ron Rau (29 R .000-0-0-.000 in 5 AB)

SAN DIEGO
1: RF Joe Greenslit (26 R .179-0-5-.427 in 67 AB)
2: C Jose Hernandez (30 R .268-3-11-.742 in 56 AB)
3: 1B Jesus Quintana (25 L .277-1-8-.763 in 65 AB)
4: SS Floyd Miller (26 R .349-2-6-.901 in 63 AB)
5: 2B Bob Sargent (28 R .232-4-12-.843 in 56 AB)
6: LF Gene Collins (26 R .319-2-5-.921 in 47 AB)
7: 3B Dave Watts (31 R .248-0-4-.641 in 54 AB)
8: CF Ron Shively (23 R .245-0-3-.569 in 53 AB)
9: P Manny Leiva (25 R .125-0-0-.250 in 8 AB)

Weather: 58 deg. Clear skies with a 6 MPH wind blowing out to right.

Rich Babbin swings at the first pitch and drills it off the top of the center field wall for a double. Rich Doody grounds out to 1st and Babbin moves over to 3rd. Lebron Williams walks on four pitches. Fred Pariseau swings at a 3-1 pitch and flies out to the warning track in right center and Babbin trots home. 1 to 0, Beavers. George Hopkins hits the ball on the button, but lines out to short.

Bottom of the 1st: Joe Greenslit rips one to center but Rich Babbin runs back and catches it. Jose Hernandez rips one to right center and no one runs it down and he has a double. Jesus Quintana rips a grounder past short for a hit and Hernandez beats the throw to the plate to to tie the game at 1. Floyd Miller rips one to left for a hit. I think the Bullpen needs to get up.... Bob Sargent strikes out. Gene Collins bloops a hit to right and Quintana scores. 2 to 1, Padres. Dave Watts rips one to right center and out of here.... 5 to 1, Padres. Call to the Bullpen: RHP Ricky Chase. Ron Shively rips a grounder through the hole into left for a hit. P Manny Leiva rips a grounder up the middle for a hit and Shively goes to 3rd. Oh, come on! Rip, rip, rip.... Joe Greenslit ends the inning the way he began it with a kine drive to center than Rich Babbin runs down.

Top of the 2nd: Masanori Ishii leads off with a double. Randy Penn lines a hit to center and Ishii stops at 3rd. Alan Spitzer grounds into a 4-6-3 double play and Ishii scores. 5 to 2, Padres. P Ricky Chase doubles to left, but Rich Babbin pops out to 2nd to end the inning.

Top of the 7th: New pitcher: RHP Jack Helgerson. Alan Spitzer leads off with an infield hit and LF Fran Wiginton draws a walk. New pitcher: LHP Manny Hilerio. Pinch-Hitter: RHB Scott Setta. He flares a hit to right and the bases are loaded with no outs. Rich Doody pops out to 3rd. P Manny Hilerio is injured and has to leave the game. New pitcher: RHP Craig Ayers. Pinch-Hitter: LHB Rich Deveney. He grounds into a 6-4-3 double play and we end the inning with no runs after having them loaded with nobody out....

Top of the 8th: P Craig Ayers strikes us out in order....

Lost - 5 to 2

We had 7 hits and made no errors.
The Padres had 8 hits and made 1 error.

We grounded into three double plays.

Ron Rau (L 1-2) went 2/3 of an inning, allowed 5 runs, 5 hits, 1 home runs, no walks and struck out 1.
RHP Ricky Chase went 3.1 innings, allowed 2 hits, 2 walks and struck out 3. At bat, he hit a double.
RHP Greg Richey went 2 innings, allowed 1 hit, 1 walk and struck out 2.
RHP Ron Beckman went 2 innings, allowed 1 walk and struck out 1.

Manny Leiva (W 2-1) went 6 innings, gave us 2 runs, 5 hits, 2 walks and struck out 2.
RHP Jerry Torres (SV 3) went 1 inning and gave us a walk.

CF Rich Babbin hit a double, drew a walk, stole a base and scored a run. PH/CF Scott Setta had a hit. C Masanori Ishii hit a double and scored a run.

For the Padres, 2B Dave Watts hit his 1st home run of the season and had 3 RBIs.

[Questdog]

Saturday, April 21, 2001

Portland Beavers (7-10 .412 5.5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
San Diego Padres (11-6 .647 1.5 GB tied for 2nd place in the NL West)

Alan Gross, Por (26 R 1-0 3.15 8.6-1.4-2.3-6.8 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Bob Kinney, SD (30 R 0-1 3.15 8.1-1.4-3.6-7.7)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .182-0-0-.580 in 11 AB)
2: CF Scott Setta (34 R .323-1-3-.884 in 31 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .290-2-8-.753 in 62 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .318-1-9-.723 in 66 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .175-1-4-.546 in 57 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .328-1-4-.812 in 61 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .190-0-1-.475 in 42 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .195-0-2-.581 in 41 AB)
9: P Alan Gross (26 L .000-0-0-.167 in 5 AB)

SAN DIEGO
1: RF Howard Travers (28 R .333-0-2-.857 in 12 AB)
2: SS Floyd Miller (26 R .343-2-6-.878 in 67 AB)
3: C Jose Hernandez (30 R .276-3-11-.789 in 58 AB)
4: 1B Jesus Quintana (25 L .279-1-9-.767 in 68 AB)
5: 2B Bob Sargent (28 R .217-4-12-.791 in 60 AB)
6: LF Gene Collins (26 R .314-2-6-.889 in 51 AB)
7: 3B Dave Watts (31 R .263-1-7-.705 in 57 AB)
8: CF Ron Shively (23 R .246-0-3-.564 in 57 AB)
9: P Bob Kinney (30 R .167-0-0-.333 in 6 AB)

Weather: 58 deg. Clear skies with a 7 MPH wind blowing out to left.

Frank Wiginton works the count full but strikes out. Scott Setta grounds one past the bag at 3rd for a double. Lebron Williams works the count full and draws a base on balls. Fred Pariseau flies out to right. George Hopkins strikes out.

Bottom of the 1st: Howard Travers grounds a hit through the hole on the left side. Fred Miller doubles to left. Jose Hernandez flies out to right and the runners hold. Jesus Quintana flies out to deep left and Travers tags up and trots home. 1 to 0, Padres. Bob Sargent lines out to short.

Top of the 4th: Fred Pariseau leads off with a double down the right field line. George Hopkins singles to center and Pariseau stops at 3rd. Masanori Ishii grounds into a 4-6-3 double play and Pariseau scores to tie the game at 1.

Top of the 7th: We load the bases up with 2 outs, but Scott Setta flies out to right.

Top of the 9th: Still 1 to 1. New pitcher: RHP Jerry Torres, their closer. We go down in order.

Bottom of the 9th: On the Hill: RHP Neville Carter, beginning his 3rd inning of work. He issues a 1-out walk, but with 2 outs, P Jerry Torres has to hit because there is no one left on the San Diego bench except pitchers. He strikes out.

Extras!

Top of the 10th: CF Rich Babbin leads off with a soft hit to center. Frank Wiginton bunts him over to 2nd. Pinch-Hitter: LHB Rick Deveney. He gets an intentional walk. Lebron Williams makes the move a brilliant one by grounding into a 4-6-3 double play.

Bottom of the 10th: New Pitcher: RHP Larry Castillo. CF Tim Morton leads off with a grounder past 2B Fred Pariseau for a hit. Floyd Miller swings at a 3-2 pitch and flies out to right. Another full count, this one to Jose Hernandez. With Morton running on the pitch, he grounds out to 2nd. 2 outs and the winning run is now in scoring position. Call to the Bullpen: LHP Pedro Huerta. Not sure about throwing the rookie into a spot like this, but he's the only rested lefty. 2-2 pitch to Jesus Quintana. He swings and misses, but C Masanori Ishii could not catch the ball and Quintana breaks for 1st. Ishii manages to collect himself and make the throw to complete the inning!

Top of the 11th: New pitcher: RHP Jack Helgerson. Fred Pariseau leads off by taking a full count walk. George Hopkins grounds one back to the pitcher, but all they get is the force at 2nd. Masanori Ishii grounds a hit to left. Randy Penn grounds out to 1st and the runners move up to 2nd and 3rd. 2 outs. Alan Spitzer lines a hit to left and both runners score! 3 to 1, Beavers!

Bottom of the 11th: P Pedro Huerta ended the 10th by facing the only lefty in the lineup, but the only other fresh pitch in the pen is another lefty. RHP Greg Richey is the only other one who could even think about going and he is warming up. Bob Sargent hits a 2-2 pitch and grounds out to short. Gene Collins works a walk from a full count. Dave Watts swings a t a 2-2 pitch and grounds one to short for a 6-4-3 double play!!! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

Won - 3 to 1

We had 10 hits and made no errors.
The Padres had 8 hits and made no errors.

Alan Gross went 6 innings, allowed 1 run, 6 hits, 1 walk and struck out 4.
RHP Neville Carter went 3 innings, allowed 1 hits, 1 walk and struck out 3.
RHP Larry Castillo went 2/3 of an inning and allowed 1 hit.
LHP Pedro Huerta (W 1-0) went 1.1 innings, allowed a walk and struck out 1.

Bob Kinney went 7 innings, gave us 1 run, 7 hits, 2 walks and struck out 4.
RHP Jack Helgerson (L 0-1) went 2/3 of an inning, gave us 2 runs, 2 hits and 1 walk.

CF Scott Setta hit a double and drew a walk. 2B Fred Pariseau hit a double, drew a walk and scored a run. 3B Alan Spitzer had 3 hits and 2 RBIs. PH/CF Rich Babbin had 2 hits.

[Questdog]

Sunday, April 22, 2001

Portland Beavers (8-10 .444 4.5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
San Diego Padres (11-7 .611 1.5 GB in 3rd place in the NL West)

Edmondo Buenaventura, Por (31 R 1-3 3.86 10.0-0.0-3.5-5.4 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Phil McPhie, SD (25 R 1-1 4.86 10.8-1.6-4.3-5.4)

In his last start, McPhie shut the Giants out for 8 innings on 3 hits.

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .200-0-0-.561 in 15 AB)
2: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .371-1-4-1.006 in 35 AB)
3: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .314-1-9-.733 in 70 AB)
4: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .177-1-4-.535 in 62 AB)
5: RF Rich Doody (32 L .250-2-3-.669 in 44 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .318-1-4-.781 in 66 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .170-0-1-.427 in 47 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .239-0-4-.644 in 46 AB)
9: P Edmondo Buenaventura (31 R .000-0-0-.000 in 8 AB)

SAN DIEGO
1: RF Joe Greenslit (26 R .181-0-5-.425 in 72 AB)
2: SS Floyd Miller (26 R .338-2-6-.879 in 71 AB)
3: C Jose Hernandez (30 R .254-3-11-.729 in 63 AB)
4: 1B Jesus Quintana (25 L .264-1-10-.722 in 72 AB)
5: 2B Bob Sargent (28 R .215-4-12-.777 in 65 AB)
6: LF Gene Collins (26 R .309-2-6-.872 in 55 AB)
7: 3B Dave Watts (31 R .246-1-7-.671 in 61 AB)
8: CF Ron Shively (23 R .271-0-3-.612 in 59 AB)
9: P Phil McPhie (25 R .167-0-0-.452 in 6 AB)

Weather: Finally, a nice day! 67 deg. Clear skies with an 8 MPH wind blowing out to center.

Frank Wiginton flies out down the right field line, RF Joe Greenslit making a nice catch. Rich Babbin strikes out. Fred Pariseau strikes out.

Bottom of the 1st: Joe Greenslit grounds out to 3rd. Floyd Miller pokes a 2-2 pitch to shallow center and CF Rich Babbin makes a nice running catch. Jose Hernandez strikes out! 1-2-3!

Top of the 3rd: Randy Penn leads off with a ground ball double past the bag at 3rd. With 2 outs, Frank Wiginton lines a hit to center and Penn scores! 1 to 0, Beavers!

Bottom of the 4th: Joe Greenslit leads off with a double, the first hit of the game for the Padres. But P Edmondo Buenaventura sits the next three down!

Bottom of the 6th: Ron Shively leads off with the 2nd hits of the game for the Padres. After P Phil McPhie bunts him over to 2nd, Joe Greenslit gets the 3rd hit, a home run to right. The first of the season for both batter and pitcher. 2 to 1, Padres. With 2 outs, Jose Hernandez singles and Jesus Quintana draws the 1st walk of the game issued by P Edmondo Buenaventura. Bob Sargent lines a hit to center to score another run. 3 to 1, Padres. Bullpen is belatedly alerted. Gene Collins lines out to left to end the inning.

Top of the 9th: New pitcher: LHP Charlie Baird. Pinch-Hitter: RHB Ray Wilson. He beats out and infield hit and Fred Pariseau works a walk. Pinch-Hitter: RHB Rickey Clayton. He grounds a single to right and the bases are loaded with no outs. Pinch-Hitter: RHB Scott Setta. He drives a 1-0 pitch to deep left center, but CF Ron Shively manages to just run it down for the 1st out. Wilson trots home. 3 to 2, Padres. Masanori Ishii grounds into a 6-4-3 double play to end the game.... He is NOT hotter than hot anymore....

Lost - 3 to 2

We had 6 hits and made no errors.
The Padres had 8 hits and made no errors.

Edmondo Buenaventura (L 1-4) went 7 innings, allowed 3 runs, 6 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks and struck out 8.
RHP Greg Richey went 1 inning, allowed 2 hits and struck out 1.

Phil McPhie (W 2-1) went 8 innings, gave us 1 run, 4 hits, no walks and struck out 9.
LHP Charlie Baird (SV 3) went 1 inning, gave us 1 runs, 2 hits and 1 walk.

LF Frank Wiginton had 2 hits and an RBI. PH Ray Wilson had a hit and scored a run. PH Rickey Clayton had a hit. PH Scott Setta had a SF. SS Randy Penn hit a double and scored a run.

For the Padres, RF Joe Greenslit hit a double and his first home run of the season, drew a walk, scored a run and had 2 RBIs.

[Questdog]

April 23, 2001

Monday Morning Report

AL Player of the Week - Raul Valadez, 1b, Chicago (A) (27 R .364/.456/.652) Had 10 hits with 4 2B, 3 HR, 9 R, and 10 RBI in 6 G
NL Player of the Week - Al Soto, c, Chicago (N) (33 S .333/.373/.594) Had 11 hits with 4 HR, 7 R, and 10 RBI in 6 G

(Slash lines are for the season, not the week)

April 16: LF Benton Bedard (now THERE's a name!) of Colorado hit 2 home runs at Houston. He also hit a double and drew a walk, stole a base and scored 4 runs. The Rockies won, 5 to 4.
April 16: LF Ray Ambler of Minnesota hit 2 home runs at Texas. He had 3 hits and a walk. The Twins won, 8 to 4.
April 17: 3B Walt Carr of Cleveland hit 2 home runs at home versus Boston. He drew two walks and had 3 RBIs. The Indians won, 4 to 3, in 10 innings. Carr knocked in all of Cleveland's runs except the last one. A 2-out bases-loaded walk ended the game.
April 17: Los Angeles (A) scored twice in the bottom of the 9th to beat Kansas City, 4 to 3. A bases-loaded double by 3B Diego Rueda with 1 out ended the game.
April 18: C Al Soto of Chicago (N) hit 2 home runs at Cincinnati. He had 3 hits and 2 walks and 4 RBIs. The Cubs won, 12 to 6. They rapped out 20 hits.
April 18: 3B Willie Enos of Miami hit 2 home runs at home versus Atlanta. He had 3 hits, scored 3 runs and had 5 RBIs. Down 10 to 4, he Marlins scored 7 times in the bottom of the 8th and won, 11 to 10.
April 18: Los Angeles (N) entered the 9th at home against Arizona with a 5 to 4 lead, but the Diamondbacks scored twice in the top of the 9th to win, 6 to 5. 1B Tom LaBorde batted in 5 of Arizona's 6 runs, including both in the top of the 9th with a 2-out single. He had 3 hits with a home run. The Dodgers are now 0-14 to begin the season.
April 18: 1B Raul Valadez of Chicago (A) hit 2 home runs at Milwaukee. He also hit a double, but his teammates only managed 2 other hits and the White Sox lost, 7 to 2.
April 19: C Dwight Smith of Montreal hit 2 home runs at home versus New York (N). The Expos lost, 5 to 4, when the Mets scored a run in the top of the 9th.
April 19: Los Angeles (N) won at Houston, 3 to 0, for their first win of the season. They are now 1-14. RHP Gary Taylor went 6 innings, allowed 4 hits, 5 walks and struck out 8 to get the win.
April 19: Arizona got a 1-out, 2-run home run from 1B Tom LaBorde in the bottom of the 9th to beat Colorado, 7 to 6. C Gary Stanley had 2 home runs and 2 walks for the Diamondbacks.
April 20: Milwaukee won at Los Angeles (A), 4 to 2, in 19 innings. The Angels did not score after the 7th inning. In 13 innings of work, the Brewer bullpen held the Angels scoreless on 5 hits, 1 walk and 9 strike outs.
April 21: LF Mike Cane of Houston hit 2 home runs at home versus Los Angeles (N). He had 3 hits and 4 RBIs. The Astros won, 8 to 1.
April 21: RF Donnie Hernandez of Texas hit 2 home runs at home versus Seattle. He drew a walk and had 4 RBIs. The Rangers won, 4 to 2.
April 22: 1B Les Joyce of Miami hit 2 home runs at Cincinnati. He also drew a walk. The Marlins won, 4 to 1.
April 22: RHP Rich Davison of New York (N) pitched a 5-hit shutout at Montreal. He did not walk a batter and struck out 8. The Mets won, 4 to 0. He is now 1-2 with a 2.57 ERA on the season.
April 22: 1B Marv Helton of Pittsburgh hit 2 home runs at Philadelphia. He also drew a walk. The Pirates won, 4 to 3.
April 22: CF Brett McDonald of Seattle hit 2 home runs at Texas. He drew 2 walks, scored 3 runs and had 4 RBIs. The Mariners won, 12 to 1.

Random Fact of the Week: Our offense is not very good. Our team OPS of .651 is better than only the Phillies (.604) and the Dodgers (.533). The Dodgers are unbelievably bad. They are hitting .198 as a team. The NL is batting .255 with a .711 OPS as a unit. We are the only team yet to hit a triple and we are last in steals with 4. The Mets have stoles 43 bases, a pace to give them 367 on the season!

[Questdog]

Editor's Note: Unbelievably, I screwed up another game with a mouse click. Well, that is not unbelievable, but what is is that 1B George Hopkins again hit 2 home runs in the game! He must thoroughly hate me by now. I have erased 4 home runs of his this season! In kosher games, he has only connected once.

[Questdog]

Tuesday, April 24, 2001

We are in Los Angeles to play manager (for now) Jim Griffith (44) and his struggling Dodgers in a 2-game set. They lost 3 of 4 in Houston over the weekend, but that is the best series they have had so far this season! Only three weeks into the schedule and already they are 11.5 games back of first. They are an amazing 1-17 and I really do not want to play them and give them their 2nd and 3rd wins. They 16th (last) in the NL in scoring with 2.3 runs per game (Portland is MUCH better at #15 with 2.7 per game!). They are 15th in runs allowed with 5.3 per game (Portland is #6 with 3.9).

Portland Beavers (8-11 .421 5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Los Angeles Dodgers (1-17 .056 11.5 GB in 8th (last) place in the NL West)

Tony Ricketts, Por (26 R 0-2 4.76 10.6-1.6-2.1-4.2 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Gary Taylor, LAN (34 R 1-0 0.93 6.5-0.5-5.1-9.8)

Only a 2-game series and we would have to hit their one pitcher who is doing well. Taylor has not allowed a run in his last two starts.

The Dodgers offense is remarkable for how awful EVERYONE has been. There is only one player in the lineup today with an OPS over .600! And he is only at .630!

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .263-0-1-.649 in 19 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .269-2-8.708 in 67 AB)
3: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .378-1-4-1.006 in 37 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .301-1-9-.713 in 73 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .169-1-4-.512 in 65 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .300-1-4-.738 in 70 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .180-0-1-.461 in 50 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .224-0-4-.607 in 49 AB)
9: P Tony Ricketts (26 R .333-0-0-.833 in 3 AB)

LOS ANGELES (N)
1: SS Ralph Burlett (28 R .218-0-5-.579 in 55 AB)
2: C Mike Haman (28 R .161-0-3-.413 in 56 AB)
3: 1B Don Russo (30 R .159-3-6-.499 in 69 AB)
4: CF Dave Leonard (31 R .204-1-2-.492 in 54 AB)
5: 3B Steve Gustafson (33 S .246-1-5-.630 in 69 AB)
6: LF Larry Smith (27 L .103-0-2-.450 in 29 AB)
7: 2B Gilberto Marquez (31 R .192-1-3-.493 in 26 AB)
8: RF Dennis Kossmann (24 R .135-0-1-.435 in 52 AB)
9: P Gary Taylor (34 R .167-0-0-.333 in 6 AB)

Weather: 54 deg. Partly Cloudy with an 8 MPH wind blowing out to right.

Frank Wiginton lines a hit to center. Lebron Williams doubles over the center fielder's head and Wiginton stops at 3rd. Rich Babbin strikes out. Fred Pariseau grounds one to short, but SS Ralph Burlett boots it and Wiginton scores. 1 to 0, Beavers. George Hopkins flies out to right and Williams holds at 3rd. 2 outs. Masanori Ishii walks on four pitches to load the bases. Randy Penn grounds a hit to right and 2 runs score! 3 to 0, Beavers! Alan Spitzer flies out to right.

Bottom of the 1st: Ralph Burlett grounds a 2-2 pitch past 2B Fred Pariseau for a hit. Mike Haman bloops a hit to right center and Burlett easily motors to 3rd. Don Russo floes out to shallow left and the runners hold. Dave Leonard strikes out! Steve Gustafson, statistically their best hitter at .246 with a .630 OPS, lines one hard, but right to Fred Wiginton in left to end the inning!

Bottom of the 4th: Don Russo and Dave Leonard lead the inning off with back-to-back singles. P Tony Ricketts then plunks Steve Gustafson with a pitch to load the bases up with nobody out. The Bullpen is alerted. Larry Smith doubles to left center and 2 runs scores. 3 to 2, Beavers. Gilberto Marquez homers to left. 5 to 3, Dodgers. Call to the Bullpen: RHP Larry Castillo. He gets the next three out in order.

Top of the 5th: With 2 outs, George Hopkins beats out an infield hit and then Randy Penn doubles over the 1st base bag. Hopkins tries to score from 1st, but is thrown out.

Bottom of the 6th: New Pitcher: LHP Pedro Huerta. Steve Gustafson leads off with a double and Larry Smith walks. Call to the Bullpen: RHP Ron Beckman. Gilberto Marquez grounds into a 6-4-3 double play. Gustafson is at 3rd with 2 outs. We walk a .130 hitter intentionally!!! Dennis Kossmann is put on first so that we can face pinch-hitter, RHB Todd Arnoult. This is his first at bat of the season, but he was hitting .324 in AAA before they called him up. He grounds a hit up the middle and a run scores. Idiocy!! 6 to 3, Dodgers.Ralph Burlett lines a hit to right and Kossmann, the intentional pass, scores. 7 to 3, Dodgers. Idiocy!!

Top of the 7th: New pitcher: LHP Paul Shelton. With 2 outs, Masanori Ishii lines a hit to left center. Randy Penn doubles to left and Ishii tries to score from first. He is very slow, but manages to beat the throw! 7 to 4, Dodgers.

Top of the 8th: Pinch-Hitter: RHB Scott Setta. He leads off with a grounder to left for a hit. New pitcher: RHP Orlando Solorio. With 1 out, Lebron Williams singles and Rich Babbin walks to load the bases up. Fred Pariseau flies out to center and everyone stays put. 2 outs. George Hopkins grounds out to first and we have no runs....

Lost - 7 to 4

We had 13 hits and made no errors.
The Dodgers had 12 hits and made 1 error.

Tony Ricketts (L 0-3) went 3+ innings, allowed 5 runs, 7 hits, 1 home run, 1 HBP, no walks and struck out 2. At bat, he had a hit.
RHP Larry Castillo went 2 perfect innings and struck out 1.
LHP Pedro Huerta faced 2 batters and gave up a run, a hit and a walk.
RHP Ron Beckman went 2 innings, allowed 1 run, 3 hits, 1 intentional walk and struck out 2.
LHP Steve Mulder faced 1 batter and retired him.
RHP Greg Richey went 2/3 of and inning and allowed 1 hit.

Gary Taylor (W 2-0) went 6 innings, gave us 3 unearned runs, 9 hits, 3 walks and struck out 5. He now has the only two Dodger wins on the season!
RHP Joe Healey (SV 1) went 1 inning, sat us down in order and struck 1 out. This is his first save after 3 blown and 3 losses.

RF Lebron Williams had 3 hits with a double and a walk and scored a run. 1B George Hopkins had 2 hits. SS Randy Penn had 3 hits with 2 doubles and 3 RBIs. He only had 1 RBI coming into this game. PH Scott Setta had a hit.

For the Dodgers, 2B Gilberto Marquez hit his 2nd home run of the season and had 3 RBIs.

[Questdog]

Wednesday, April 25, 2001

Portland Beavers (8-12 .400 5.5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Los Angeles Dodgers (2-17 .105 11 GB in 8th (last) place in the NL West)

Ron Rau, Por (29 R 1-2 5.89 9.8-0.5-2.5-6.9 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Jim Salle, LAN (25 R Major League Debut 3-1 1.03 5.1-0.3-5.5-4.1 in AAA)

After pitching great in his first start of the season, Rau has only lasted a total of 3.2 innings in his last two, giving up 10 runs.

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .261-0-1-.651 in 23 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .296-2-8-.773 in 71 AB)
3: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .341-1-4-.925 in 41 AB)
4: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .282-1-10-.668 in 78 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .186-1-4-.531 in 70 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .297-1-4-.734 in 74 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .218-0-4-.562 in 55 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .231-0-4-.610 in 52 AB)
9: P Ron Rau (29 R .000-0-0-.000 in 5 AB)

LOS ANGELES (N)
1: SS Ralph Burlett (28 R .237-0-6-.606 in 59 AB)
2: C Mike Haman (28 R .183-0-3-.451 in 60 AB)
3: LF Larry Dunn (29 R .235-0-2-.510 in 51 AB)
4: 1B Don Russo (30 R .164-3-6-.499 in 73 AB)
5: CF Dave Leonard (31 R .207-1-2-.493 in 58 AB)
6: 2B Hector Molina (29 R .194-1-3-.560 in 62 AB)
7: 3B Steve Gustafson (33 S .250-1-5-.655 in 72 AB)
8: RF Dennis Kossmann (24 R .145-0-1-.458 in 55 AB)
9: P Jim Salle (25 R Major League Debut .400-0-1-.900 in 10 AB in AAA)

Weather: 61 deg. Partly Cloudy with a 14 MPH wind blowing from right to left.

Frank Wiginton beats out an infield hit to get us started. Lebron Williams grounds a 2-2 pitch up the middle for a hit. Rich Babbin bloops a hit to right and Wiginton scores from 2nd without a throw. 1 to 0, Beavers! Fred Pariseau grounds into a 4-6-3 double play and Williams goes to 3rd. George Hopkins works the count full and then walks. Masanori Ishii, once hotter than hot, but now colder than cold, strikes out looking.

Bottom of the 1st: Ralph Burlett grounds out to short. Mike Haman strikes out. Larry Dunn grounds out to short! 1-2-3! P Ron Rau did not make it out of the 1st inning in his last start.

Top of the 2nd: 2 innings and 2 GDP's for the Beavers....

Top of the 3rd: No GDP this inning because the first two batters are put out. Rich Babbin then hits a home run to right! 2 to 0, Beavers!

Bottom of the 4th: The first hit of the game by the Dodgers clears the center field fence. A home run by Mike Haman. 2 to 1, Beavers. With 2 outs, Dave Leonard and Hector Molina single and then Steve Gustafson doubles to score a run and tie the game at 2. Dennis Kossmann walks to load the bases. warm up the Pen! P Jim Salle flies out to center.

Top of the 5th: Frank Wiginton gets a 2-out single and then scores on a double by Lebron Williams! 3 to 2, Beavers!

Top of the 6th: Fred Pariseau leads off with a hit and George Hopkins doubles. Masanori Ishii , who has struck out in both of his previous trips to the plate, is walked intentionally to load them up with no outs. Randy Penn lines a hit to center and everyone moves up a base! 4 to 2, Beavers! New pitcher: RHP Mike Ellison. 20 hits allowed in 12.1 innings. Alan Spitzer strikes out. Pinch-Hitter: LHB Rich Doody. He walks on four pitches to force in a run! 5 to 2, Beavers! Frank Wiginton hits a fly ball down the left field line and Larry Dunn makes a diving catch to rob him of extra bases, but Ishii trots home with another run. 6 to 2, Beavers.

Bottom of the 9th: On the Hill: RHP Greg Richey, beginning his 2nd inning of work. With 1 out, he issues a walk to Steve Gustafson and then Dennis Kossmann singles. Pinch-hitter: RHB Gilberto Marquez. He hits a home run to left. 6 to 5, Beavers. Get 'em up in the Pen!! Pinch-hitter: LHB Terry Tompkins. He grounds out to 2nd. 2 outs. Mike Haman, who homered earlier, is up. He grounds out to short! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

Won - 6 to 5

We had 11 hits and made 1 error.
The Dodgers had 8 hits and made no errors.

Ron Rau (W 2-2) went 5 innings, allowed 2 runs, 5 hits, 1 home run, 1 HBP, 2 walks and struck out 2. He is the first Beaver starting pitcher to win 2 games.
RHP Neville Carter went 2 scoreless innings, allowed 1 hit and struck out 1.
RHP Greg Richey went 2 innings, allowed 3 runs, 2 hits, 1 home run and 1 walk.

Jim Salle (L 0-1) went 5 innings, gave us 6 runs, 10 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks (1 INT) and struck out 4.

LF Fred Wiginton had 2 hits, scored 2 runs and had an RBI. RF Lebron Williams had 2 hits with a double and an RBI. CF Rich Babbin had 2 hits with his 2nd home run of the season and had 2 RBIs. 1B George Hopkins hit a double, drew a walk and scored a run. SS Randy Penn had 2 hits and an RBI. PH Rich Doody drew a bases-loaded walk.

For the Dodgers, C Mike Haman hit his 1st home run of the year. PH Gilberto Marquez hit a 3-run home run, his 3rd of the season and 2nd in 2 days.

[Questdog]

Thursday, April 26, 2001

We are in Phoenix to play manager Ramiro Herrera (51) and his Diamondbacks a 4-game series through the weekend. They were just knocked out of first place by losing two games here to the Padres on Monday and Tuesday. They are 6th in scoring in the NL with 4.8 runs per game (Portland is #15 with 3.0 - rounded up from 2.95!). They are 12th in runs allowed with 5.0 per game (Portland is #10 with 4.1).

Portland Beavers (9-12 .429 5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Arizona Diamondbacks (13-8 .619 1 GB in 3rd place in the NL West)

Alan Gross, Por (26 L 1-0 2.77 8.7-1.0-2.1-6.6 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Don Saylors, Arz (26 R 2-1 1.93 5.8-0.0-4.5-7.7)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .296-0-2-.688 in 27 AB)
2: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .303-2-9-.788 in 76 AB)
3: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .280-1-10-.660 in 82 AB)
4: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .348-2-6-.977 in 46 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .192-1-4-.559 in 73 AB)
6: C John McIvor (30 R .353-0-1-.801 in 17 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .237-0-5-.591 in 59 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .232-0-4-.603 in 56 AB)
9: P Alan Gross (26 L .000-0-0-.143 in 6 AB)

ARIZONA
1: 3B Dan White (26 R .250-2-11-.683 in 88 AB)
2: SS Mario Saucedo (25 R .232-1-9-.704 in 82 AB)
3: 1B Don Richins (34 L .322-3-11-.939 in 59 AB)
4: 2B Angel Montero (36 R .368-1-4-.946 in 68 AB)
5: RF Tommy Sheehan (27 L .243-4-13-.804 in 74 AB)
6: C Gary Stanley (34 R .178-3-8-.573 in 73 AB)
7: CF Tom Cooper (26 R .391-5-10-1.163 in 64 AB)
8: LF Alex Person (27 R .217-0-5-.503 in 69 AB)
9: P Don Saylors (26 R .500-0-1-1.000 in 2 AB)

Weather: 75 deg. Partly Cloudy with a 5 MPH wind blowing from right to left.

Frank Wiginton strikes out on three pitches. Lebron Williams grounds out to 3rd. Fred Pariseau grounds out to 2nd.

Bottom of the 1st: Dan White lines out to 3rd. Mario Saucedo triples to right center. Don Richins pops out to 1st. Angel Montero works the count full and takes ball four. Tommy Sheehan works the count full and swings and misses for a strikeout!

Bottom of the 3rd: Angel Montero draws a 2-out walk and the Tommy Sheehan singles. Gary Stanley doubles to left and both runners score. 2 to 0, Diamondbacks.

Top of the 4th: Lebron Williams leads off with a four pitch walk. Fred Pariseau bloops a hit to left center. Rich Babbin draws a four pitch walk to load the bases up with nobody out. George Hopkins swings at a 2-0 pitch and doubles down the left field line to tie the game at 2! John McIvor grounds out to 3rd and Babbin scores. 3 to 2, Beavers! Hopkins stayed put at 2nd. He goes to 3rd on a ground out and with 2 outs, they walk Alan Spitzer intentionally to get to P Alan Gross. He bloops a hit into center and Hopkins scores! 4 to 2, Beavers! Frank Wiginton then swings at a 1-2 pitch and puts it in the seats in right center! 3-run home run! 7 to 2, Beavers! That sends Saylors packing. New pitcher: RHP Lou Kubiak. He gives up a hit to Lebron Williams and walks Fred Pariseau before getting Rich Babbin to fly out to center to end the inning. 7 run inning! New Beaver Record!

Bottom of the 4th: P Lou Kubiak bats and raps a hit to center. Dan White walks. P Alan Gross is already at 89 pitches and he has only gotten 9 outs! Bullpen gets up. Mario Saucedo lines out to right. Don Richins walks to load the bases up. Angel Montero walks on four pitches. 7 to 3, Beavers. Tommy Sheehan is a lefty, so Gross gets one more batter.... Full count pitch.... Sheehan swings and grounds one to SS Randy Penn: 6-4-3 double play to end the inning! Gross is now at 110 pitches! I don;t think he can make it through another inning to get the win.... We'll let him try though.

Bottom of the 5th: Gary Stanley leads off with a double to right center. Okay, he's not going to make it. Call to the Bullpen: RHP Ron Beckman. C Masanori Ishii comes in on a double switch. Editor's Note: I was VERY careful not to put Ishii in to pitch! Beckman sits the side down ion order!

Bottom of the 7th: New Pitcher: RHP Larry Castillo. Angel Montero leads off with a triple. Tommy Sheehan double to right. 7 to 4, Beavers. Get 'em up! Gary Stanley walks. Tom Cooper strikes out, but another walk to Alex Person loads the bases up. Pinch-hitter: SHB Doug Baker. Call to the Bullpen: LHP Pedro Huerta. Baker is not supposed to hit lefties well, but kills right-handers. He grounds one to short and we get the force at home, but that is all. 2 outs. Dan White grounds out to short!

Bottom of the 8th: Mario Saucedo leads off with an infield hit and Don Richins singles to right and Saucedo goes to 3rd. Angel Montero flies out to right and Saucedo tags and beats the throw to the plate. 7 to 5, Beavers. Tommy Sheehan strikes out. 2 down. Gary Stanley strikes out!

Bottom of the 9th: New Pitcher: RHP Neville Carter. Tom Cooper leads off with their 3rd triple of the day. We have to stick with Carter as their is no one else rested in the pen other than SP Ricky Chase, who has stunk it up anyway. We could maybe use LHP Steve Mulder to face one batter. Pinch-hitter: LHB Gene Hardin. He works the count full and then lines one to 1st where George Hopkins makes a leaping grab! 1 out. Pinch-hitter: RHB Tom LaBorde. He walks on 4 pitches and the tying run is on base. Dan White pops out to 2nd. 2 outs. Mario Saucedo is up. He has one of their three triples. Wild pitch! 7 to 6, Beavers and the tying run is in scoring position. 2-2 pitch and Saucedo takes it for strike three!!! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

Won - 7 to 6

We had 9 hits and made no errors.
The Diamondbacks had 12 hits and made 1 error.

Alan Gross went 4+ innings, allowed 3 runs, 6 hits, 7 (!) walks and struck out 4. At bat, he had a hit, scored a run and had an RBI.
RHP Ron Beckman (W 1-0) went 2 innings, allowed 1 hit and struck out 2.
RHP Larry Castillo went 1/3 of an inning, allowed 1 run, 2 hits, 2 walks and struck out 1.
LHP Pedro Huerta went 1.2 innings, allowed 1 run, 2 hits and struck out 2.
RHP Neville Carter (SV 1) went 1 inning, allowed 1 run, 1 hit, 1 walk and struck out 1. He threw 1 WP.

Don Saylors (L 2-2) went 3.2 innings, gave us 7 runs, 5 hits, 1 home run, 3 walks (1 INT) and struck out 3.

LF Fred Wiginton had 2 hits with his first home run of the season and had 3 RBIs. 1B George Hopkins had 2 hits with a double and a walk, scored a run and had 2 RBIs. PH Rich Doody had a hit.

For the Diamondbacks, 2B Angel Montero hit a triple and walked 3 time, scored 2 runs and had 2 RBIs. C Gary Stanley had 3 hits with 2 doubles, drew a walk and had 2 RBIs.

Down on the Farm: The Jacksonville Suns of the Southern League (AA), our best minor league team, did not get a hit and lost 5 to 0 to the Mississippi Braves. Emory Chatelain (23 L) went the distance and walked 1 and struck out 5. He retired the first 19 batters of the game before walking 1B Danny Hernandez with 1 out in the 7th. He is now 3-2 with a 2.78 ERA. Not sure how his ERA can be so high, since in 35.2 IP he has allowed only 13 hits and 11 walks and only 1 home run. I think he may be ready to try AAA hitters....

[Questdog]

Friday, April 27, 2001

Portland Beavers (10-12 .455 5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Arizona Diamondbacks (13-9 .591 2 GB tied for 3rd place in the NL West)

Edmondo Buenaventura, Por (31 R 1-4 3.86 9.5-0.3-3.3-6.5 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Dave Rogers, Arz (30 R 3-1 2.33 9.7-0.7-1.0-5.3)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .313-1-5-.799 in 32 AB)
2: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .320-2-6-.914 in 50 AB)
3: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .279-1-10-.661 in 86 AB)
4: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .300-2-9-.781 in 80 AB)
5: 1B Rick Deveney (28 L .133-0-0-.483 in 15 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .282-1-4-.713 in 78 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .234-0-5-.576 in 64 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .220-0-4-.585 in 59 AB)
9: P Edmondo Buenaventura (31 R .000-0-0-.000 in 10 AB)

ARIZONA
1: 3B Dan White (26 R .247-2-11-.675 in 93 AB)
2: SS Mario Saucedo (25 R .239-1-9-.725 in 88 AB)
3: 1B Don Richins (34 L .317-3-11-.921 in 63 AB)
4: RF Tommy Sheehan (27 L .253-4-14-.816 in 79 AB)
5: C Gary Stanley (34 R .208-3-10-.655 in 77 AB)
6: 2B Angel Montero (36 R .377-1-6-1.001 in 69 AB)
7: CF Tom Cooper (26 R .382-5-10-1.162 in 68 AB)
8: LF Mike Zamarron (35 L .133-1-2-.533 in 15 AB)
9: P Dave Rogers (30 R .250-0-2-.500 in 8 AB)

Weather: 72 deg. Clear skies with a 7 MPH wind blowing out to left.

Frank Wiginton swings at the first pitch of the game and grounds out 1st. Rich Babbin grounds out to 2nd. Fred Pariseau grounds out to short.

Bottom of the 1st: Dan White strikes out on three pitches. Mario Saucedo walks on four. Don Richins grounds out to 2nd and Saucedo goes to 2nd. Tommy Sheehan lines a hit to right and Saucedo scores. 1 to 0, Diamondbacks. Gary Stanley walks. Full count to Angel Montero and with the runners on the move, he doubles to left and both score. 3 to 0, Diamondbacks. Tom Cooper, 2nd in the NL in hitting, grounds out to third.

Bottom of the 2nd: Mike Zamarron leads off with a hit and after P Dave Rogers bunts him to 2nd, Dan White doubles to the wall in center. 4 to 0, Diamondbacks.

Top of the 3rd: P Edmondo Buenaventura leads off with a hit, but Frank Wiginton grounds into a force out and then gets himself picked off first. 2 outs. Rich Babbin and Fred Pariseau both single and the Lebron Williams doubles to left to score a run. 4 to 1, Diamondbacks. Rick Deveney walks to load the bases with 2 outs for the ice-cold Masanori Ishii. He works the count full and takes ball four to force in a run! 4 to 2, Diamondbacks. P Dave Rogers came into the game averaging only 1 walk per 9 innings! randy Penn also works the count to full, but swings and misses to end the inning.

Top of the 5th: P Dave Rogers does not come out to start the inning. He was at 92 pitches already through 4, but I don't know if he was hurt or just replaced because of the pitch count or maybe just because he looked so bad the last inning. New pitcher: RHP Manny Martinez. They also have a Manny Rodriguez in their pen and are rumored to be looking to trade for Manny Hernandez and Manny Fernandez. Martinez sits us down in order.

Top of the 6th: P Manny Martinez strikes us out in order....

Top of the 7th: Alan Spitzer leads off with a hit. Pinch-Hitter: SHB George Hopkins. He beats out an infield hit. Frank Wiginton walks on four pitches to load them up with no outs. Rich Babbin flies out to deep center and Spitzer trots home and Hopkins tags up at 2nd and moves to 3rd. 4 to 3, Diamondbacks. Wiginton steals 2nd. Full count to Fred Pariseau and he swings and misses. 2 outs. Lebron Williams strikes out.

Bottom of the 8th: On the Hill: LHP Steve Mulder, beginning his 2nd inning of work. He strike out Don Richins for the 2nd out of the inning but has to come out with an injury. The trainer said it is just a minor muscle pull and he will be fine in a couple of days.

Top of the 9th: Still 4 to 3, Diamondbacks. New pitcher: RHP Billie Zoghby, their closer and he has been great so far. 7 saves and a 2.02 ERA. 1 walk and 11 SO in 13.1 IP. Only blemish is that he has allowed a pair of home runs. Alan Spitzer flies out to left. C John McIvor works the count full and then flies out to right. 2 outs. Frank Wiginton grounds a hit up the middle. Rich Babbin strikes out to end the game.

Lost - 4 to 3

We had 9 hits and made no errors.
The Diamondbacks had 6 hits and made no errors.

Edmondo Buenaventura (L 1-5) went 6 innings, allowed 4 runs, 4 hits, 3 walks and struck out 4. At bat, he had a hit.
LHP Steve Mulder went 1.2 innings, allowed 1 hit and struck out 2.
LHP Pedro Huerta went 1/3 of an inning and allowed a hit and committed a balk.

Dave Rogers went 4 innings, gave us 2 runs, 5 hits, 3 walks and struck out 4.
RHP Manny Martinez (W 1-0) went 3 innings, gave us 1 run, 2 hits, 1 walk and struck out 6.
RHP Billie Zoghby (SV 8) went 1 inning and gave us a hit and struck out 1.

RF Lebron Williams hit a double and had an RBI. 1B Rick Deveney had a hit and 2 walks. PH George Hopkins had a hit.

[Questdog]

Saturday, April 28, 2001

Portland Beavers (10-13 .435 6 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Arizona Diamondbacks (14-9 .609 2 GB in 2nd place in the NL West)

Ricky Chase, Por (30 R 1-2 6.48 13.0-1.6-3.8-5.4 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Alfredo Cardenas, Arz (25 R 3-1 2.97 9.8-0.6-2.4-5.0)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .306-1-5-.783 in 36 AB)
2: 2B Rickey Clayton (31 R .286-0-3-.696 in 35 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .298-2-10-.780 in 84 AB)
4: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .315-2-7-.878 in 54 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .218-1-6-.619 in 78 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .284-1-5-.719 in 81 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .221-0-5-.543 in 68 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .222-0-4-.580 in 63 AB)
9: P Ricky Chase (30 S .250-0-1-.700 in 4 AB)

ARIZONA
1: 3B Dan White (26 R .247-2-12-.679 in 97 AB)
2: SS Mario Saucedo (25 R .233-1-9-.722 in 90 AB)
3: 1B Don Richins (34 L .299-3-11-.869 in 67 AB)
4: RF Tommy Sheehan (27 L .265-4-15-.824 in 83 AB)
5: C Gary Stanley (35 R .200-3-10-.639 in 80 AB)
6: 2B Angel Montero (36 R .375-1-8-1.003 in 72 AB)
7: CF Tom Cooper (26 R .380-5-10-1.156 in 71 AB)
8: LF Alex Person (27 R .211-0-5-.509 in 71 AB)
9: P Alfredo Cardenas (25 R .250-0-2-.583 in 12 AB)

Weather: 72 deg. Partly cloudy with a 6 MPH wind blowing out to right.

Frank Wiginton swings at the first offering from P Alfredo Cardenas and launches it to right field and over the wall! 1 to 0, Beavers! Rickey Clayton strikes out looking. In his defense, the pitch was right down the middle.... Lebron Williams hits the third 3-2 pitch and grounds out to short. Rich Babbin walks. George Hopkins works the count full and then swings and foul tips one into the catcher's mitt for a strikeout.

Bottom of the 1st: 0-2 pitch to Dan White and he grounds out to the pitcher. Mario Saucedo walks. On the first pitch to Don Richins, Saucedo breaks for 2nd, but manager Bobby Crider has a pitch-out called and C Masanori Ishii throws him out easily! Richins works the count full and then flies out to center.

Bottom of the 4th: With 2 outs, Don Richins gets the first hit of the game for the Diamondbacks, a double into the right field corner, but he comes up lame at 2nd and has to be removed. Pinch-runner: Tom LaBorde. Full count to Tommy Sheehan and he grounds out to 2st to end the inning.

Meanwhile, since Frank Wiginton led off the game with a home run, we have gotten absolutely nothing. Since issuing a 2-out walk in the 1st inning to Rich Babbin, P Alfredo Cardenas has retired 13 in a row through the 5th inning, striking out 5 of the 13.

Bottom of the 5th: Gary Stanley and Angel Montero lead the inning off by both getting 2-strike singles. With 2 outs, P Alfredo Cardenas lines one down the line in right and Lebron Williams makes a diving catch to save runs!

Top of the 6th: With 1 out, Frank Wiginton ends the streak of outs at 14 with a hit up the middle. After he goes to 2nd on a grounds out, Lebron Williams grounds a hit to left and Wiginton scores! 2 to 0, Beavers!

Bottom of the 6th: Dan White leads off with a grounder to 3rd, but Alan Spitzer throws it away for a 2-base error. E-5. Mario Saucedo flies out to deep center and White moves over to 3rd. 1B Tom LaBorde get plunked. The Bullpen is up. Tommy Sheehan lines a 2-2 pitch to right for a hit. 2 to 1, Beavers. Mike Campoverde goes in to run for LaBorde at 2nd. LaBorde is very slow and Campoverde is an average runner, but they have already used two first baseman this game. A little extravagant to pinch-run here, I think. Gary Stanley bounces a slow one down to 3rd and this time Spitzer makes a great play to get the out at 1st. Runners at 2nd and 3rd with 2 outs now. Angel Montero pops out to 3rd to end the inning!

Bottom of the 7th: New Pitcher: RHP Greg Richey. He gives up a 1-out single to Alex Person, but PH Doug Baker grounds into a 4-6-3 double play!

Bottom of the 8th: Mike Zamarron hits a 2-out double, but Tommy Sheehan flies out to right.

Bottom of the 9th: The Bullpen is up from the get go. Gary Stanley strikes out on three pitches. Angel Montero works the count full and then grounds out to short, 1B George Hopkins making a nice scoop on the throw in the dirt. 2 outs. Pinch-hitter: LHB Gene Hardin. He swings at the firs pitch and sends it to deep center. Rich Babbin races back but runs out of room. Home run. Tie game. 2 to 2. Alex Person grounds a double past the bag at 3rd. P Don Charles has to hit due to the extravagant use of substitutes earlier, so we leave P Greg Richey in the game. If he lets the pitcher win the game, he can go pack his bags.... Charles grounds out to short.

Extras!

Top of the 10: On the hill: RHP Don Charles, beginning his 3rd inning of work. Frank Wiginton gets a 1-out hit. Rickey Clayton grounds a hit up the middle and Wiginton beats the throw to 3rd. New pitcher: Manny Rodriguez. 19 hits allowed in 10 innings so far. Lebron Williams is up. 1-1 pitch is wild and past the catcher! Wiginton scores! 3 to 2, Beavers! Williams flies out to left. 2 outs. Rich Babbin strikes out to end the inning. He has become a strike out machine of late. 4 in his last 7 at bats.

Bottom of the 10th: New pitcher: RHP Ron Beckman. Dan White strikes out! Mario Saucedo lines one to the right side and 1B George Hopkins makes a leaping catch! Deja vu from yesterday! 2 outs. 1B Mike Zamarron lines out to short! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers!

Won - 3 to 2 in 10 innings

We are 3-0 in extra innings, scoring exactly 3 runs in each game.

We had 5 hits and made 1 error.
The Diamondbacks had 8 hits and made 1 error.

Ricky Chase went 6 innings, allowed 1 unearned run, 4 hits, 1 HBP, 1 walk and struck out 2. He saved his spot in the rotation for another go round or two.
RHP Greg Richey (W 3-0) (vultured) went 3 innings, allowed 1 run, 4 hits, 1 home run and struck out 3.
RHP Ron Beckman (SV 3) went 1 inning and sat them down in order with a strikeout.

Alfredo Cardenas went 7 innings, gave us 2 runs, 3 hits, 1 home run, 1 HBP, 2 walks and struck out 8.
RHP Manny Rodriguez (L 0-2) went 1 inning, gave us 1 run, 2 hits and struck out 1. He threw a WP.

LF Fred Wiginton had 3 hits with his 2nd home run of the season (and 2nd in 3 games) and scored 3 runs. CF Rich Babbin walked twice and struck out twice.

For the Diamondbacks, PH/CF Gene Hardin hit his 2nd home run of the year. No word given by the Diamondbacks on the condition of 1B Don Richins.

Down on the Farm: The Indianapolis Indians of the International League (AAA) got 20 hits at home against the Bridgeport Bears, but only scored 8 runs and lost, 10 to 8 in 12 innings.

[Questdog]

Sunday, April 29, 2001

Portland Beavers (11-13 .458 5 GB in 7th place in the NL West) at
Arizona Diamondbacks (14-10 .583 2 GB tied for 3rd place in the NL West)

Tony Ricketts, Por (26 R 0-3 6.30 12.2-1.8-1.8-4.5 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Don Benz, Arz (33 R 0-2 6.87 13.7-0.5-5.4-3.9)

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .341-2-6-.903 in 41 AB)
2: 3B Ray Wilson (37 R .333-0-1-.944 in 9 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .295-2-11-.775 in 88 AB)
4: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .298-2-7-.853 in 57 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .210-1-6-.605 in 81 AB)
6: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .278-1-10-.654 in 90 AB)
7: SS Randy Penn (32 L .208-0-5-.514 in 72 AB)
8: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .274-1-5-.694 in 84 AB)
9: P Tony Ricketts (26 R .400-0-0-.900 in 5 AB)

ARIZONA
1: 3B Dan White (26 R .235-2-12-.647 in 102 AB)
2: SS Mario Saucedo (25 R .223-1-9-.699 in 94 AB)
3: 1B Tom LaBorde (37 R .286-2-11-.823 in 28 AB)
4: RF Tommy Sheehan (27 L .264-4-16-.809 in 87 AB)
5: C Gary Stanley (35 R .202-3-10-.633 in 84 AB)
6: 2B Angel Montero (36 R .368-1-8-.979 in 76 AB)
7: CF Tom Cooper (26 R .365-5-10-1.111 in 74 AB)
8: LF Alex Person (27 R .227-0-5-.547 in 75 AB)
9: P Don Benz (33 L .000-0-0-.000 in 4 AB)

Weather: 79 deg. Partly cloudy with a 6 MPH wind blowing out to left.

Frank Wiginton swings at the first pitch of the game and grounds out to 1st. Ray Wilson grounds a hit through the left side. Lebron Williams grounds into a force at 2nd, 5-4. 2 outs. Rich Babbin beats out an infield hit. George Hopkins beats out and infield hit to load the bases. Fred Pariseau hammers one, but SS Mario Saucedo leaves his feet and snags it to end the inning.

Bottom of the 1st: Dan White grounds out to short. Mario Saucedo swings at a 3-2 pitch and doubles to left center. Tom LaBorde strikes out. Tommy Sheehan hits a harmless fly to right to end the inning!

Top of the 4th: George Hopkins leads off with a walk and goes to 2nd on a grounds out. With 2 outs, they decide to walk Masanori Ishii intentionally to get to P Tony Ricketts. He grounds a hit through the right side and Hopkins scores! 1 to 0, Beavers! Frank Wiginton grounds a hit through the left side and Ishii scores! 2 to 0, Beavers! I just LOVE it when those intentional walks score runs!

Top of the 5th: George Hopkins gets a 2-out hit and Fred Pariseau doubles over the center fielder's head and Hopkins scored from 1st! 3 to 0, Beavers!

Top of the 8th: On the hill: RHP Scott Jefferson, beginning his 2nd inning of work. Masanori Ishii leads off by grounding a full count pitch up the middle for a hit. P Tony Ricketts is not asked to bunt since he looked so bad last time and he grounds out to 3rd and Ishii moves up to 2nd, accomplishing the same thing. Frank Wiginton then hits our first triple of the season! 4 to 0, Beavers! Ray Wilson works the count full, but then taps one right back to the pitcher for the 2nd out. Lebron Williams connects solidly with a 2-2 pitch and sends it to deep right and maybe it could be?.....caught to end the inning.

Bottom of the 9th: Still 4 to 0, Beavers. P Tony Ricketts still on the mound with 97 pitches under his belt. I know I am jinxing him, but I have to report events, don't I? He has retired the last 12 Diamondback hitters in order. Yep, well I won't report events anymore until after the fact.... He walks lead-off hitter Mario Saucedo on 4 pitches. The Bullpen was warming up before the inning started. Tom LaBorde swings at the first pitch and sends it to the warning track in right center where Rich Babbin catches it. Cleanup hitter Tommy Sheehan grounds one to 2nd: 4-6-3 double play!!!! ....and THIS Ballgame Belongs to the Beavers

First complete game ever by a Beaver! First shutout ever by the Beavers! Needless to say, Ricketts, whose spot in the rotation was in serious jeopardy, has spared his own professional life for at least a little while!

Won - 4 to 0

We are undefeated now in games in which the opposition fails to score (1-0).

We had 12 hits and made no errors.
The Diamondbacks had 4 hits and made 1 error.

Tony Ricketts (W 1-3) went 9 innings (CG), allowed no runs (ShO), 4 hits, 1 walk and struck out 3. 105 pitches. At bat, he had a hit and an RBI.

Don Benz (L 0-3) went 6 innings, gave us 3 runs, 10 hits, 2 walks (1 INT) and struck out 4.

LF Fred Wiginton had 3 hits for the 2nd day in a row and had our first triple of the season and had 2 RBIs. 1B George Hopkins had 2 hits and a walk and scored 2 runs. 2B Fred Pariseau hit a double and had an RBI. C Masanori Ishii went 3 for 3 with a double and an intentional walk and scored 2 runs.

For the Diamondbacks, PH/CF Gene Hardin hit his 2nd home run of the year. No word given by the Diamondbacks on the condition of 1B Don Richins.

Down on the Farm: The Indianapolis Indians of the International League (AAA) got 18 hits at home against the Bridgeport Bears the day after they got 20 and lost, but won this time, 12 to 2. P Jay Cook went 4 for 4 with a double, scored 2 runs and had 4 RBIs.

[Questdog]

April 30, 2001

Monday Morning Report

AL Player of the Week - Mike Campbell, 2b, New York (A) (30 R .407/.414/.704) Had 7 hits in 10 AB with 1 3B, 1 HR, 2 R, and 6 RBI in 6 G, but only 1 start, which is mentioned below
NL Player of the Week - Stan Brown, c, San Francisco (29 R .289/.433/.602) Had 9 hits with 1 2B, 5 HR, 8 BB, 7 R, and 11 RBI in 6 G

(Slash lines are for the season, not the week)

April 24: RHP Dennis Shaw of Colorado pitched two scoreless innings of relief at home versus San Francisco. The other 7 Colorado pitchers used in the game each gave up at least 1 run and altogether gave up 28!!! No non-pitchers were used in the game. The Giants had 27 hits and drew 12 walks. SS Herman Taylor had 6 hits with a double in 8 trips to the plate, scoring 5 runs and knocking in 4. 2B Dave Guillory had 4 hits with a double and 2 home runs and a walk with 4 runs scored and 4 RBIs. C Stan Brown had 3 hits with 2 home runs and 3 walks with 4 runs scored and 5 RBIs. PH Paul DeWeese batted twice in the 9th and knocked in 1 run with a single and 4 more with a Grand Slam. RF Jeff Johnson of the Rockies hit 2 home runs. He also hit a double and scored 3 runs. The Giants won, 28 to 5.
April 25: RHP Norm Mahoney of Los Angeles (A) pitched a 7-hit shutout at home versus Texas. He walked 1 and struck out 6. He is the first major league pitcher to toss his 2nd shutout of the season. He is now 3-1 with a 1.91 ERA on the year. The Angels won, 9 to 0.
April 26: LF Stan Cook of Oakland hit 2 home runs at Kansas City. He also drew a walk. The A's lost, 5 to 4.
April 27: CF Ron Vayo of Cincinnati hit 2 home runs at home versus Philadelphia. He drew a walk and scored 3 runs. The Reds lost, 9 to 7.
April 27: RHP Manny Fernandez of Montreal pitched a 6-hit shutout at Atlanta. He walked no one and struck out 6. At bat, he had 2 hits with a double and scored a run. He is now 2-2 with a 2.31 ERA. The Expos won, 4 to 0.
April 29: 2B Mike Campbell of New York (A) had 5 hits at Baltimore. He hit a triple and a home run, missing the Cycle by a double, but had the same total bases as a Cycle, since he had 2 singles instead. He was the lead-off batter of the game, but only scored 1 run, but had 5 RBIs. The Yankees won, 8 to 4.
April 29: RF Alex Tamayo of Milwaukee hit 2 home runs at home versus Texas. The Brewers won, 4 to 3.

Random Fact of the Week: We are last in the National League in home runs hit, but are also tied for 2nd best in fewest home runs allowed (Montreal), despite the fact that our pitching has the 2nd lowest ground out to fly out ratio in the league. We have hit 12 home runs and allowed 17. The Dodgers have hit the 2nd fewest with 16 and the Marlins have allowed the fewest with 16.

[Questdog]

Monday, April 30, 2001

We are back in Portland to kick off a week-long home stand with a 2-game series against manager Champ Walker (39) and his Astros. They lost 3 of 4 over the weekend in Houston to the Giants, though they were only out-scored 16 to 15. They beat us 2 of 3, April 13-15, right here in Multnomah Park. They are 4th in the National League in scoring with 4.8 runs per game (Portland is #15 with 3.2). They are tied with the Cubs for the most home runs with 35 in 25 games. They are 5th in runs allowed with 3.8 per game (Portland is #6 with 4.0). Their pitchers have walked the second fewest batters with 71, though the Giants are miles ahead of them with only 52. They only have one lefty on their whole staff, a middle reliever who leads them in relief innings, though his results have not be very good.

Houston Astros (13-12 .520 3 GB in 5th place in the NL West) at
Portland Beavers (12-13 .480 4 GB in 6th place in the NL West)

Paul McDonald, Hou (32 R 2-1 2.33 7.7-0.7-1.2-4.7 H/9-HR/9-BB/9-K/9) vs Ron Rau, Por (29 R 2-2 5.40 9.6-0.8-2.7-6.2)

McDonald shut us out on April 14 here in Portland, giving us 8 hits, 1 walk while striking out 3.

Lineups: Pos Name (Age Bats BA-HR-RBI-OPS)
HOUSTON
1: CF Alfredo Garcia (22 L .253-1-8-.655 in 99 AB)
2: 1B Dave Brown (31 R .247-3-11-.713 in 97 AB)
3: LF Mike Cane (27 L .277-8-25-.895 in 101 AB)
4: C Howard Morrell (27 R .212-6-15-.826 in 80 AB)
5: SS Ed Larson (26 R .250-0-0-.650 in 4 AB)
6: 3B Ron Janeiro (30 R .333-3-8-1.042 in 42 AB)
7: RF David Rodriguez (25 L .233-2-8-.682 in 86 AB)
8: 2B Jim Ellison (27 R .247-3-10-.723 in 81 AB)
9: P Paul McDonald (32 R .071-0-0-.205 in 14 AB)

PORTLAND
1: LF Frank Wiginton (30 S .370-2-8-.977 in 46 AB)
2: 2B Fred Pariseau (31 R .277-1-11-.665 in 94 AB)
3: RF Lebron Williams (32 L .280-2-11-.734 in 93 AB)
4: CF Rich Babbin (36 L .290-2-7-.819 in 62 AB)
5: 1B George Hopkins (29 S .224-1-6-.630 in 85 AB)
6: C Masanori Ishii (32 R .299-1-5-.755 in 87 AB)
7: SS Rickey Clayton (31 R .275-0-3-.660 in 40 AB)
8: 3B Alan Spitzer (26 L .212-0-4-.564 in 66 AB)
9: P Ron Rau (29 R .000-0-0-.000 in 7 AB)

Weather: 50 deg. Partly cloudy with a 7 MPH wind blowing right to left.

Alfredo Garcia flies out to right. Dave Brown grounds out to 3rd. Mike Cane, a big reason the Astros are tied for the league lead in home run (he is 2nd in the NL with 8), drives one to right center that hits off the wall about 3 feet short of a home run. He settles for a double. Howard Morrell flies out to center.

Bottom of the 1st: Frank Wiginton flies out to deep center. Fred Pariseau flies out even deeper to center. Lebron Williams grounds out to 2nd.

Top of the 3rd: With 2 outs, Dave Brown homers down the left field line. 1 to 0, Astros.

Through four innings, we have yet to reach base....

Bottom of the 5th: With 1 out, George Hopkins pokes a hit to right for our first base runner. He ends up on 2nd when David Rodriguez overruns the ball. A wild pitch sends him to 3rd. Masanori Ishii grounds a hit up the middle to tie the game! 1 to 1.

Top of the 6th: After the first two batters are put out, Howard Morrell singles and Ed Larson draws a walk. Ron Janeiro doubles to left center to plate a run. 2 to 1, Astros. Bullpen is alerted. David Rodriguez walks on a 3-2 pitch in the dirt that Masanori Ishii was fortunate to block and prevent a run scoring on a wild pitch. Jim Ellison bloops a hit to center and another run scores. 3 to 1, Astros. The pitcher is up and P Ron Rau is scheduled to lead off the bottom of the inning, so we will give him one chance to end the inning. Of course, if he fails, the game is basically over.... P Paul McDonald strikes out.

Bottom of the 7th: With 1 out, Rich Babbin connects for a no-doubter to right center! 3 to 2, Astros.

Top of the 8th: New Pitcher: RHP Neville Carter. SS Randy Penn is in on a double switch. With 1 out, Ed Larson singles. Pinch-hitter: RHB Roger Bradshaw. With the count dull, Larson takes off with the pitch. Bradshaw strikes out, but the throw to 2nd is too late and Larson is safe with a steal. With 2 outs, David Rodriguez grounds an 0-2 pitch through the right side for a hit and Larson scores. 4 to 2, Astros. Jim Ellison doubles down the right field line and Rodriguez tries to score from 1st. The ball is picked up by Lebron Williams, fired to 2B Fred Pariseau and then pegged to C Masanori Ishii, who puts the tag on Rodriguez to end the inning!

Top of the 9th: The anticipation of a walk-off win is gone.... Mike Cane drills a hit to left off LHP Steve Mulder with runners at 2nd and 3rd to score 2 more runs. 6 to 2, Astros.

Lost - 6 to 2

We had 4 hits and made no errors.
The Astros had 16 hits and made 1 error.

Ron Rau (L 2-3) went 6 innings, allowed 3 runs, 10 hits, 1 home run, 2 walks and struck out 4.
LHP Pedro Huerta pitched 1 perfect inning with a strikeout.
RHP Neville Carter went 1.1 innings, allowed 3 runs, 5 hits and struck out 2.
LHP Steve Mulder faced 1 batter and threw a WP to put 2 runners in scoring position and then gave up a hit to score them both.
RHP Larry Castillo faced 2 batters and retired them both.

Paul McDonald (w 3-1) went 8 innings, gave us 2 runs, 4 hits, 1 home run, no walks and struck out 5. He threw a WP. At bat, he had a hit.

CF Rich Babbin hit his 3rd home run of the season. C Masanori Ishii had 2 hits and an RBI.

For the Astros, 1B Dave Brown hit his 4th home run of the year. They had 16 hits, but no one had more than 2. 6 players had 2.