2039 and beyond -- St. Louis River Walkers thread

[rink23]

Record: 17-23, 5th/(Tied/w. Louisville and Springfield), 7.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Ming Xiang took a shutout into the eighth inning and St. Louis squeaked out a 3-2 win over Milwaukee at Miller Park (2020).
Xiang (3-5) went 7.2 innings, allowing one run on five hits. He struck out five and didn't walk a batter.
The lone run he allowed came in the eighth when Corey Flowe doubled with two outs.
Flowe scored when Angel Ontiveros followed with a single.
That made the score 3-1.
Juan Munoz stepped in and struck out Andy Burhoe to end the inning.
Munoz returned to pitch the ninth but gave up a homer to Jose Morillo to lead off the inning.
Arnold Hammond then followed with a single.
Tom Floria took over and struck out Joseph Hughes before getting Dylan Crews to hit into a double play to notch his fourth save.
A pair of runs in the top of the second off Crushers starter Josh Galarza put St. Louis in front.
Quiang Chang doubled with one out and Daniel Lopez drew a walk.
Mark Waterson scored Chang with a single.
Xiang then collected an RBi with a two-out single, scoring Lopez.
The other Walkers' run came in the fifth.
Galarza walked Adam Stewart to open the inning.
A wild pitch then moved Stewart to second.
A sac bunt by Xiang placed him on third.
Stewart scored, making it 3-0, on a Tom Porter ground out,

[rink23]

Looking to shore up their bullpen, the St. Louis River Walkers have acquired right-handed relief pitcher Curt Donaldson from the Milwaukee Crushers in exchange for minor reliever Alex Rios and infielder R.J. Gomez.
Donaldson, 30, has pitched in 11 games for the Crushers this season posting no record or saves along with a 3.21 ERA.
He has pitched a total of 14.0 innings, during which he has struck out 14 and posted a 0.93 WHIP.
Donaldson broke into the majors with Milwaukee in 2034.
Since that time, he has pitched in 243 games going 8-7 with one save and a 3.16 ERA. He has worked a total of 316.1 innings, during which he has struck out 321 and posted a 1.19 WHIP.
Rios, 34, started the season in St. Louis but struggled going 1-0 but with an 11.57 ERA in nine games. He struck out five and had a 5.00 WHIP.
At AAA Memphis, Rios has pitched in four games and posted a 0.00 ERA. He has pitched 3.1 innings, striking out two and posted a 1.20 WHIP.
Rios broke into the majors in 2034 with Peoria.
He played with the Chiefs until being acquired by St. Louis via trade during the 2038 season.
In his career, Rios has pitched in 167 games/2 starts at the major-league level going 13-5 with four saves and a 3.55 ERA. He has pitched 164.2 innings, during which he has struck out 63 and had a 1.65 WHIP.
Signed as a free agent by St. Louis before the 2039 season, the Walkers looked at the 26-year-old Gomez as their future shortstop.
But in the chances he has played with the Walkers, he has struggled hitting .236 with two homers and 15 RBIs in 42 games.
This season, Gomez played in 14 games/13 starts for St. Louis and hit .233 with no homers and six RBIs.
At AAA, Gomez has played eight games for the Redbirds and hit .296 with one homer and two RBIs.
In order to make room for Donaldson on the roster, St. Louis has optioned right-handed reliever Evan Palmer to Memphis.
Signed as a free agent in the offseason, Palmer has worked in 15 games this season going 1-0 with a 4.19 ERA. He has pitched 19.1 innings, striking out 20 and posting a 1.19 WHIP.

[rink23]

Record: 17-24, 6th/(Tied/w. Louisville), 8.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Down 3-2, Milwaukee scored four times in the bottom of the fourth inning off St. Louis starting pitcher Kevin Hrdlicka and went on to defeat the River Walkers 7-6 at Miller Park (2020).
Arnold Hammond led off the inning with a single and scored when Jim Carr followed with his eighth home run of the season.
Singles from Jose Flores and pitcher Justin Buck put runners on first and second with two outs.
Angel Ontiveros drove in Flores with the third single of the inning.
Andy Burhoe followed by connecting to the fourth, as Buck scored making it 6-3.
St. Louis tallied twice in the top of the fifth -- Esteban Gomez drove in the first run with a double and Rich Dodson plated the other with a single -- to drove within 6-5.
Gomez went 5 for 5 in the game with a double, a homer, two runs scored and three RBIs.
But the Crushers got one of those runs back when Dylan Crews greeted Chris Willett with a solo homer with one out in the fifth.
Gomez connected on his solo homer in the seventh to again bring St. Louis back to within a run at 7-6.
That, however, was the end of the scoring.
Milwaukee starting pitcher Justin Buck lasted four innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. He struck out two and walked one.
After that, it was an inning apiece from five different pitchers -- Jorge Rodriguez, Pat Recate, Luis Colon, Adam Disney and David Araya -- to close out the game.
Recarte (1-0) earned his first win of the season.
Araya now has seven saves.

[rink23]

The St. Louis River Walkers have placed right-handed reliever Adam Tressider on the 14-day injured list after he suffered a torn rotator cuff while pitching in a 7-6 loss to Milwaukee on May 16.
Signed in the offseason, Tressider, 35, has pitched in 13 games this season posting no record but a 2.02 ERA. He has worked a total of 13.1 innings, during which he has struck out four and posted a 0.53 WHIP.
Getting called up from AAA Memphis is 26-year-old right-hander Josh Joyce.
He has worked in eight games for the Redbirds, going 0-1 with a 5.40 ERA. Joyce has pitched 11.2 innings, posting eight strikeouts and a 1.71 WHIP.
During the 2039 season, Joyce did get a call up to the Walkers pitching in eight games. In 9.2 innings, he struck out seven and posted a 1.03 WHIP.

[rink23]

Record: 18-24, 4th, 8.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Juan Farias tossed a three-hit shutout and Mark Waterson homered three times as St. Louis routed Milwaukee 9-0 at Miller Park (2020).
The win was the second of the three-game series for the River Walkers.
Farias didn't allow a hit until Dylan Crews singled for the Crushers with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning.
The only other hits he allowed were a double by Crews to lead off the eighth and an Andy Burhoe single with one out in the ninth.
For the game, Farias (2-5) allowed no runs on three hits. He struck out five and walked two. It is his first career shutout.
For Waterson, it's been a tough season but he finally busted loose in this contest.
Waterson homered in the second and fourth innings off Crushers starter Caleb Walkers.
The first was a two-run homer, the second a solo shot.
He later took reliever Mike Harney deep in the eighth, another solo shot, for the first three-home run game for St. Louis since Manuel Coke pulled it off on Oct. 1, 2039 against Madison.
Waterson, who finished 4 for 5 with four runs scored and six RBIs, also accomplished the feat on July 9, 2039, against Toledo.
As for the game, Waterson's first two-run homer put the Walkers in front 2-0.
They would add single runs in the third, fourth, sixth and seventh innings before scoring three times in the eighth.

[rink23]

Record: 18-25, 4th, 9.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Tied 4-4, Pete Crow-Armstrong drew a lead-off walk in the top of the ninth inning and came around to score without the benefit of a hit to help lift Akron to a 5-4 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (2006).
Crow-Armstrong drew his walk from Curt Donaldson, who was making just his second appearance for the River Walkers since being acquired in a trade with Milwaukee.
A ground out by Sergio Contreras moved Crow-Armstrong to second.
When Jimmy Johnson lifted a fly ball into left, Crow-Armstrong moved to third.
Donaldson's first pitch to pinch-hitter Chris Clark eluded catcher Alex Stewart allowing Crow-Armstrong what would be the game-winning-run.
St. Louis had tied the game with a pair of runs in the bottom of the eighth,
Mark Herman drove them both home with a double off Santiago Snyder.
Flying Feet starting pitcher Danny Aviles worked 6.1 innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out five and didn't walk a batter.
Kyle Hanks got the final out of the seventh for Akron.
Andre Johnson only lasted 0.1 innings in the eighth setting up St. Louis' two-run outburst.
Snyder (3-6) gave up the two runs to blow the save. He also came out of the game with the win.
Dave Crocker struck out the side in the ninth for his eighth save.

[rink23]

Record: 19-25, 4th, 9.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Down 3-2, St. Louis scored four runs in the bottom of the third inning to take the lead and the River Walkers went on to defeat Akron 8-4 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The Flying Feet had taken the lead in the top of the second inning when it scored three runs off St. Louis stating pitcher Brent Autin.
Harry Cummings contributed the big blow with a two-run homer.
In the bottom of the inning, the Walkers tallied twice Mark Waterson driving in one with a double off Akron starter Dave Gomez.
The other scored on a Quiang Chang fly ball.
An inning later, the Walkers took charge scoring four times on just two hits.
Gomez walked four batters, including two with the bases loaded.
Chang also picked up another RBI with a sacrifice fly.
Autin drove in the inning's final run with a single off reliever Mat Alfaro.
The Flying Feet pulled within 6-4 in the top of the fourth when a run scored on an error by Tommy Gardner at third base.
Manuel Coke capped the scoring with a two-run homer off Bill Webb in the bottom of the sixth.
Autin (7-2) wasn't great but was helped by plenty of support from his offense.
He allowed four runs on eight hits in 6.2 innings. He struck out five and walked one.
Leo Hermosillo got the final out of the seventh.
Carlos Hernandez worked the eighth.
Josh Joyce made his first appearance of the season and set the Feet down in order in the ninth.

[rink23]

Record: 19-26, 4th, 10.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Lenyn Crisp handled the first 4.2 shutout innings and the Akron bullpen did the rest as the Flying Feet downed St. Louis at Busch Stadium (2006).
Crisp, who came up through the River Walkers' farm system, allowed two singles in is time on the mound. He struck out four and walked two.
Dustin Urman finished the fifth inning for the Feet.
Bobby Bowden (2-0) earned the win for going 2.1 innings.
Andre Johnson got the final two outs of the eighth.
Robert Chacon took care of the ninth.
Akron got the only run it would need in the top of the first inning thanks to an error by first baseman Esteban Gomez which allowed lead-off hitter Bill Savage to reach base.
A walk to Pete Crow-Armstrong moved Savage to second.
Savage moved to third on a fielder's choice.
Zach Arnold made it 1-0 with a deep fly ball to left.
Three walks by St. Louis starting pitcher Ming Xiang opened the door for a three-run fourth for Akron.
With the bases loaded, two of the runners having reached on walks, Crisp drove in the first two runs with a two-out single.
Crow-Armstrong drove in the third run with another single.
Another walk, this one to Crow-Armstrong, led to the final Flying Feet run in the seventh.
Carlos Hernandez put Crow-Armstrong aboard.
A Jimmy Johnson single moved him to second.
Arnold then connected for his second sacrifice fly of the game, making it 5-0.

[rink23]

For the second straight season, the St. Louis River Walkers have signed free agent outfielder Joe Allen as a free agent.
The 34-year-old Allen agreed to a one-year contract worth $11 million.
St. Louis signed Allen on April 19 during the 2039 season.
He stepped in to hit .236 with 24 homers, 72 RBIs and 84 runs scored in 138 games.
For his career Allen, who broke in with Dayton in 2228, is a lifetime .263 hitter with 281 homers, 809 RBIs and 933 runs scored.

[rink23]

Record: 20-26, 4th, 9.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Kevin Hrdlicka shut out Akron over the first six innings and St. Louis defeated the Flying Feet 3-1 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win gave the River Walkers a split of the four-game series.
Hrdlicka (3-4) did pitch into the seventh -- giving up a lead-off double to Wilfredo Sotolongo, he then left the contest -- for the game he was credited with going slx innings, allowing one run on four hits. He struck out and walked one.
Sotolongo would score on a Harry Cummings ground ball hit off Leo Hermsillo.
It made the score 2-1.
Hermosillo finished the seventh inning.
Juan Munoz worked the eighth.
Tom Floria handled the ninth for his fifth save.
The Walkers went up 2-0 against Akron starter Alfonso Zamora in the bottom of the fifth.
Tommy Gardner opened the inning with a lead-off walk,
After a strikeout, a single by Hrdlicka followed by a walk to Porter loaded the bases.
Joe Allen, making his first start since being signed by St. Louis, then drew the inning's third walk to force in a run.
Manuel Coke hit a deep fly ball to right, scoring Hrdlicka.
St. Louis added an insurance run in the eighth.
Mark Herman tripled with one out off Santiago Snyder.
He scored on a two-out single by Gardner.

[rink23]

Walkers news: May 21 -- Week 7 -- Awards and standings

[rink23]

Record: 20-27, 4th, 10 GB Cedar Rapids
Los Angeles scored a pair of runs in the top of the first inning off St. Louis starting pitcher Juan Farias, and the Turtles never trailed in a 2-1 win at Busch Stadium (2006).
L.A. started quickly with a lead-off single from Josh Ames followed by an RBI triple from Bobby Scheid.
Scheid later scored on a Gerardo Bernal sacrifice fly.
That lead became 3-0 in the sixth when Schuler led off with a double off Farias.
He later scored on a Juan Ortiz single.
Turtles starting pitcher Josh Fields (5-4) allowed just one hit over five shutout innings. He struck out three and walked two.
Jose Patricio faced just one batter in the sixth -- Tom Porter led off with a single and later scored on a Tommy Gardner double -- before having to exit with a neck injury.
Mike Christie took over and gave up Gardner's double.
He later allowed St. Louis to load the bases with one out.
But Jorge Aristizabal took over and retired Joe Allen (strike out) and pinch hitter Mike Vaughan (fly out) to keep L.A. up by two runs.
Aristizabal returned to pitch a scoreless seventh.
Jim Messina worked the eighth and got the first out of the ninth.
Teddy Loetzch took over in the ninth with a runner on first and got Vaughan to hit into a double play to end it.
It was the Loetzch's first save of the season.

[rink23]

Record: 21-27, 4th, 10.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Brent Autin allowed one run over the first six innings and Tom Blevins homered twice to lead St. Louis to a 7-4 win over Los Angeles at Busch Stadium (2006).
Autin (8-2), who sent the front office an e-mail earlier in the week demanding to be traded, allowed one run on four hits -- two doubles and two singles -- over his six innings. He struck out seven and walked two.
The lone run he allowed came in the top of the first on a Rick Koenig double, which put the Turtles ahead 1-0.
The River Walkers tied it in the bottom of the inning.
Tommy Gardner doubled off L.A. starter Yushio Onishi with one out and scored when Mark Herman singled.
St. Louis took the lead an inning later.
Quiang Chang drew a leadoff walk.
A bunt by Autin moved him to second.
A wild pitch by Onishi advanced Chang to third.
Tom Porter drove him home with a walk.
Blevins hit his first homer of the game in the third, a two-run shot off Onishi to make it 4-1.
Blevins made it 5-1 when he led off the fifth with his second homer, also off Onishi.
Teddy Loetzch relieved Onishi after the homer and gave up another run.
Mike Vaughan doubled and scored on a Chang single.
The Turtles would climb back into the game with a pair of runs in the seventh.
Bobby Scheid driving them both in with a double off Josh Joyce.
An inning later, Jose Sotelo connected on an RBI single off Chris Willett, making it 6-4.
St. Louis got that run back in the bottom of the inning.
Porter leading off with a double off Jose Patricio.
He later scored on a wild pitch.
After Autin left, the Walkers used four relievers.
Joyce worked the seventh, giving up two runs.
Leo Hermosillo got the first two outs of the eighth and was charged with L.A.'s final run.
Willett completed the eighth.
Closer Tom Floria let the Turtles load the bases in the ninth, but he didn't let them score to collect his sixth save.

[rink23]

The St. Louis River Walkers have placed catcher Mike Vaughan on the injured list after he 14-day injured list after he suffered a back injury in a 7-4 win over Los Angeles on May 24.
Vaughan is expected to miss a week.
In 35 games/27 starts this season, Vaughn has hit .224 with no homers and two RBIs.
Getting called up from AAA Memphis, is 24-year-old Travis Benson.
In 23 games with the Redbirds, Benson has hit .192 with one homer and 12 RBIs.

[rink23]

Record: 21-28, 4th, 11.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Tied 2-2 in the top of the seventh inning, Eric Marion hit a pinch-hit two-run home run off St. Louis reliever Chris Willett to help lift Los Angeles to a 5-3 win at Busch Stadium (2006).
The victory was the second of the three-game series for the Turtles.
The River Walkers had tied the game in the bottom of the sixth on an RBI single from Manual Coke off L.A. reliever Jim Messina.
A walk to Quiang Chang then loaded the bases but Mike Christie replaced Messina and got Adam Stewart to ground out and keep the game tied.
Willett took the mound to start the seventh.
D.J. Saffels reached on an error by Tommy Gardner to open the inning.
Marion followed with his fourth homer of the season -- a 368 shot on a 1-0 pitch over the right-field wall -- to put the Turtles in front for good.
The Walkers did get a run in the bottom of the eighth -- Mark Herman led off with a double off reliever Omar Moreno and scored on a Joe Allen sacrifice fly -- but the Turtles answered with a run in the top of the ninth.
Leo Hermosillo gave up two singles and two walks, including one with the bases loaded to score a run.
L.A. starting pitcher Luis Jimenez went five innings, allowing one run on one hit. He struck out eight and walked four.
Messina (0.2 IP) and Christie (0.1) combined to pitch the sixth.
Christie (2-0) would get his second win of the season.
Moreno worked a pair of innings.
Jorge Aristizabal set the Walkers down in order in the ninth for his third save.

[rink23]

Record: 21-29, 4th, 11.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Pinch-hitter Francisco Montoya singled on a 3-2 pitch with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning off St. Louis reliever Curt Donaldson to drive in Val Moreno with the tying run, as the G-Men defeated the River Walkers 2-1 at Wrigley Field (1938).
Moreno had reached on a one-out single off reliever Juan Munoz.
Alfredo Cano followed with another single to put runners at first and second.
Donaldson replaced Munoz and got Ramiro Hernandez to fly out.
But Montoya lined a pitch past the shortstop to bring Moreno home.
G-Men starting pitcher Lenyn LaMoureaux went five innings, allowing one runs on seven hits. He struck out three and walked one.
Jonathon DiGiovanni and Andres Garcia both pitched scoreless innings of relief before Juan Gomez handled the final two.
Gomez (4-0) collected his fourth win of the season.

[rink23]

Record: 21-30, 5th/(Tied/w. Louisville), 12.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Mark Waterson hit a grand slam in the top of the first inning to help stake St. Louis to a 5-0 lead, the River Walkers didn't score again until the ninth by which time they trailed 10-5 in a game Chicago went on to win 10-6 at Wrigley Field (1939).
Waterson's grand slam came off G-Men starting pitcher Cory Maddox.
Maddox (3.2 IP) and three relievers Brett McVey (2.1) and Jorge Ariza (2.0) combined to keep the Walkers from scoring again until the ninth by which time the game was well in hand.
McVey (2-1), who had spent the previous three seasons in St. Louis, earned the win.
Jonathan DiGivanni gave up a meaningless homer to Jose Ramon in the ninth.
In between, Chicago had tied the game with two runs off Walkers starter Kevin Hrdlicka in the third and three more in the fourth.
Dave Hutchison and Jessie Willoughby both had RBI single in the third.
Chris Gibbs drove in a run with a triple in the fourth.
Hutchison made it 5-4 with a sacrifice fly.
A Josh Rosbough double scored Kyrien Paris, who had drawn a walk, to make it 5-5.
Hrdlicka walked six batters in 4.2 innings.
The G-Men busted the game open by scoring five times in the sixth.
Hutchison got it going when he led off with a homer off Josh Joyce.
Rosborough and Willoughby then delivered back-to-back triples providing another run.
After a one-out walk to Ramiro Hernandez, Leo Hermosillo took over,
Frederic Billet greeted him with a double to score the inning's third run.
Pinch-hitter David Schlumpf picked up an RBI with a fly ball to left.
Gibbs finally made it 10-5 with a single between third and short.

[rink23]

Record: 21-31, 5th/(Tied/w. Louisville), 12.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Chicago scored three times in the bottom of the first inning off St. Louis starting pitcher Juan Farias and that was enough to lift the G-Men to a 4-2 win at Wrigley Field (1938).
The victory gave Chicago a sweep of the three-game series.
The damage came quickly for the G-Men against Farias to start the game as they put their first four batters on base.
Kyren Paris led off the game with a single.
A passed ball by catcher Alex Stewart advanced Paris to second.
Ken Turner reached on a single, putting runners at the corners.
Paris scored when Dave Hutchison reached on an error by shortstop Tommy Gardner.
Josh Rosborough then doubled, as Turner scored.
Alfredo Cano drove in the third run with a fly ball to left.
The River Walkers' Mark Waterson connected on an RBI single off Chicago starting pitcher Greg Sadler in the top of the third.
The G-Men got that run back in the fourth, Paris connecting on a two-out RBI single off Farias.
The game's final run came in the top of the fifth.
Quiang Chang driving in Waterson with a two-out double off Sadler.
Sadler, who left after giving up Chiang's double, didn't last long enough to earn the win pitching 4.2 innings.
He allowed two runs on nine hits. He struck out five and walked one.
Jorge Ariza finished off the fifth, stranding Chiang at second, and then also worked a scoreless sixth.
Juan Gomez, Devin Eyre and Craig Fritzler all pitched an inning to close out the win.
Fritzler earned his 10th save of the season.

[rink23]

The St. Louis River Walkers have announced the hiring of Lloyd Turner as their new hitting coach. He replaces Phillip Cerreto who was hired by the team during the 2039 season.
Turner, 60, has never worked in the majors before. His last assignment was with the Vermont Lake Monsters of the New York-Penn League.
Cerreto took over as the team's hitting coach in June of 2039.
The Walkers ended up hitting .252 as a team last season.
This season, through 52 games, it is hitting .241.

[rink23]

MBL news: May 28 -- Week 8 - Awards and standings