2024 St. Louis River Walkers -- Why can't this thing be fixed?

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The St. Louis River Walkers have made a pair of roster moves, promoting first baseman Rhys Hoskins and outfielder Dhlandy Johnson from AAA Memphis and demoting infielder Juan Gill and outfielder Michael Toglia to the Redbirds.
Hoskins, 31, has been on an injury rehab with the Redbirds since June 4. He was sidelined with a hip injury while playing with the River Walkers on a May 19.
It's been a rough season for Hoskins, who is batting just .204 with three home runs and 11 RBIs in 43 games for St. Louis.
The 24-year-old Johnson will be making his first appearance on the St. Louis roster in 2024.
He's played well in AAA, batting .305 with home homers and 30 RBIs in 42 games.
After winning a Silver Slugger as a rookie in 2023, Toglia's season has been nothing but a disappointment.
He missed the first two weeks of the regular season with a fracture finger suffered in spring training and already has spent an earlier stint in the minors.
In the big leagues, Toglia has played in 40 games hitting just .197 with four homers and 15 RBIs.
Gill has bounced back and forth between Memphis and St. Louis.
The 24-year-old middle infielder is batting just .160 with one homer and three RBIs in 17 games.

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Record: 29-38, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 8.5 GB Des Moines
Quad City scored twice in the top of the seventh inning to snap a 2-2 tie and went on to defeat St. Louis 4-3 at Busch Stadium (1997).
Orlando Arcia led off the inning with a double off River Walkers starting pitcher Jimmy Lambert.
A one-out double from Miguel Gomez moved Arcia to third, and he scored on a wild pitch from reliever Jake Brentz.
Gomez later scored on a two-out single from Daniel Johnson Jr., also off Brentz.
The Walkers got a run back in the bottom of the seventh, J.T. Realmuto with a two-out RBI single off reliever Brenan Hanifee.
But with two runners on, Hanifee got pinch-hitter Alek Thomas to fly out and end the inning.
Thunder starting pitcher Adam Haseley (3-1) worked six innings, allowing two runs on five hits.
Three reliever -- Hanifee, Nick Wood and Nick Goody -- all worked an inning apiece to seal the win.
Goody earned his 16th save.

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Record: 29-39, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 9.5 GB Des Moines
Thomas Dillard hit a two-run double off St. Louis reliever Jake Brentz in the top of the ninth inning to break open a scoreless game and help Quad City to a 2-1 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
Jose Ramriez opened the top of the ninth with a single off Brentz.
Daniel Johnson Jr. followed with another single,sending him to third.
Brentz struck out Randolph Thorne for the first out.
But Dillard drilled the first pitch he saw past the third baseman and scored both baserunners.
The River Walkers finally got on the board in the bottom of the ninth when pinch-hitter Chirstian Arroyo homered off reliever Nick Goody.
But Goody retired the next two hitters to earn his 17th save of the season.
Thunder starting pitcher Izzy St. Juan worked 5.1 shutout innings, allowing six hits while striking out five and walking three.
P.J. Conlon finished the sixth inning and worked a scoreless seventh.
Davison Gonzalez kept the Walkers off the board in the eighth, before giving way to Goody who worked the ninth.

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MBL news: All-Star fan voting for June 16, 2024

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The St. Louis River Walkers have announced the promotion of AAA Memphis Redbirds hitting coach Andy Tracy to the major league club.
He replaces Shane Andrews, who was hired by the club on May 16.
The Walkers ranked as the worst in the National League at the time of Andrews' hiring but only proceded to get even worse.
It was feared Andrews' temper may have turned off many of the Walkers before he even arrived with the team.
He is expected to be given the option of being re-assigned the team's minor league system.
The 50-year-old Tracy was in his third season with the Redbirds and had them ranked among the best offense's in the Pacific Coast League.

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Record: 30-39, 5th, 9.5 GB Des Moines
Aaron Nola allowed one run over 6.2 innings to earn his first win of the season and St. Louis downed Quad City 3-1 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory allowed the River Walkers to claim the final game of the three-game series after dropping the first two.
Nola (1-6) allowed one run on five hits over his 6.2 innings. He struck out four and walked one.
Left-hander Caleb Ferguson retired the only batter he faced to end the seventh.
Nick Lodolo worked a scoreless eighth. Edwin Diaz struck out the side in the ninth for his 11th save.
Rookie outfielder Dahlandy Johnson hit his first homer of the season off Thunder starting pitcher Matt Ruppenthal to lead off the second inning.
The St. Louis lead reached 3-0 in the third when Nola led off with a single and scored on a triple by Larry Ernesto.
Bo Bichette then chased Ernesto home with a single.

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MBL news: Week 11 awards and standings

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The June 18 game between the Cedar Rapids Golden Grapplers and St. Louis River Walkers scheduled for Busch Stadium has been postponed by rain.
It will be made up as part of a doubleheader on June 19.

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Record: 31-39, 5th, 10.5 GB Des Moines
Alex Faedo allowed one run over seven innings and St. Louis downed Cedar Rapids 3-1 in the opening game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium (1997).
Faedo allowed four hits in his time on the mound. He struck out seven and walked two.
Jake Brentz and Edwin Diaz both recorded scoreless innings, in the eighth and ninth, respectively. They both struck out two of the three batters they faced.
Down 1-0, the River Walkers tied it in the fifth inning against Golden Grapplers starter Rick Atkinson.
Andrew Benintendi and Rhys Hoskins opened the inning with consecutive singles.
Jared Thomas scored Benintendi with a third straight single.
St. Louis added another run in the sixth, again consecutive singles opened the inning, this time from Larry Ernesto and Bo Bichette.
A sacrifice bunt from Benintendi moved the runners up a past.
After an intentional walk to Hoskins, Thomas earned his second RBI with a run-scoring single.
It became 3-0 in the seventh.
Alek Thomas led off with a single off Grapplers reliever Thomas Burrows.
An Arroyo bunt moved Thomas to second.
Romy Gonzalez planted him on third with a single..
An Ernesto single made it 3-1.

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Record: 31-40, 5th, 10.5 GB Des Moines
Dominic Smith's two-out single in the top of the 12th inning scored Victor Robles in what was the winning run in Cedar Rapids 4-3 win over St. Louis in 12 innings in the second game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium (1997).
Robles had reached on a two-out walk from River Walkers reliever Caleb Ferguson.
Brentz then came on only to have Robles steal second on the first pitch he threw.
On the next pitch, Smith laced a single between the first and second baseman to score Robles.
Earlier, Smith had homered in the sixth inning off Walkers starting pitcher Argenis Batista to give his team a 3-2 lead.
St. Louis had tied it in the eighth when Andrew Benintendi doubled with one out off reliever Zach Schellenger and scored when Dahlandy Johnson singled.
Golden Grapplers starting pitcher Jake Woodford worked five innings, giving up two runs on six innings.
Five relievers followed him to the mound.
David Cullison threw a scoreless sixth.

Schellenger handled the seventh and eighth, allowing the tying run.
David Grigg (1.0 IP), Durbin Feltman (1.0) took care of the next two innings.
Wilman Madera (2-2) did not allow a baserunner in the 11th or 12th to set himself up for the win.

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Record: 31-41, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 11.5 GB Des Moines
Dominic Smith was 2 for 5 with a double, a homer and five RBIs to power Cedar Rapids to a 7-5 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory lifted the Golden Grapplers to a second win in the three-game series.
Cedar Rapids pounded River Walkers starting pitcher Jimmy Lambert for six runs in the first two innings.
Smith belted a two-run homer in the first inning.
The second was ugly with four runs scoring.
Smith drove in two with a double.
Terrin Vavra and Noah Taylor both had RBI singles.

Matt McLain plated a run with a sacrifice fly.
Jared Thomas got the Walkers on the board with a lead-off homer in the third off Cedar Rapids starter Carlos Martinez.
The Grapplers got that run back in the fourth, when McLain doubled off reliever Thad Ward and scored on a Smith sacrifice fly.
St. Louis made it interesting with four runs in the bottom of the fourht.
Rhys Hoskins had the big hit with a two-run homer off Martinez.
But St.Louis did not score again over the final five innings.
Martinez (5-2) ended up going five innings, surrendering five runs on six hits.
David Cullison, Wilman Madera, Tyler Bashloer and Danny Grigg all worked a scoreless inning apiece to close out the win.
Grigg collected his 17th save.

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Record: 32-41, 5th, 11.5 GB Des Moines
St. Louis jumped out to a 5-0 lead and held on as Rockford tried to rally late for a 5-4 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The River Walkers got their first three runs early, Rhys Hoskins with a three-run homer off Lightning starter Michael Wacha in the bottom of the first.
A two-run shot from Tanner Kohlhepp in the fifth, also off Wacha, made it 5-0.
Then began the Rockford rally -- all of it coming in the ninth,.
Willi Castro hit a two-run homer off St. Louis starter Steven Brault, making it 9-2.
Closer Edwin Diaz stepped in.
It's been a rough season for the highly paid closer and it continued to be a bust.
Drew Mendoza greeted him with a double but was thrown out at third trying to stretch it to a triple.
That proved important.

Drew Ellis followed with a single, and after Gage Canning struck out, Bobby Gulden cranked a two-run homer to make it 5-4.
Jake Brentz replaced Diaz, and sealed the win with a strike out of Evan Skoug.
Brault (3-5) worked eight innings, allowing two runs on four hits.
Brentz earned his third save.

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Record: 33-41, 5th, 11.5 GB Des Moines
Aaron Nola allowed one run over seven innings and Tanner Kohlhepp and Dehiandy Johnson hit two-run homers to power St. Louis to a 5-1 win over Rockford at Busch Stadium (1997).
Nola (2-6) alowed just four hits over his seven innings. He struck out six and walked none.
The Lightning's lone run came on a Ezequiel Pagan homer in the top of the fourth, making it 4-1.
Caleb Ferguson did not allow a baserunner as he worked the final two innings for the River Walkers.
Joihnson put St. Louis up 2-0 in the second with a homer off Rockford starting pitcher Gunnar Hoglund.
Kohlhepp got to Hoglund for a two-run shot of his own in the third.

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MBL news: All-Star fan voting update for June 23

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Record: 33-42, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 12.5 GB Des Moines
St. Louis' Larry Ernesto broke up a no-hit bid with a two-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning off Rockford reliever Josh Fleming, in a game the Thunder won 7-0 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory allowed Rockford to take the final game of the three-game series after dropping the first two.
Konnor Pilkington (9-1) carried the heavy load for the Thunder, pitching the first 5.1 innings during which he didn't allow any hits while striking out six and walking three.
Jaden Foster recorded the final two outs of the sixth.
The seventh and eighth, also hitless, belonged to Sean Lugo.
Josh Fleming issued a walk to Andrew Benintendi in the ninth but still had the no-hitter going when Ernesto came to the plate with two outs.
But Ernesto laced a ball into right field which managed to elude Ezekiel Pagan and end the no-hitter.
The Lightning used the long ball to put up their seven runs, putting the ball over the all five times.
Bobby Gulden opened the scoring with a solo shot off River Walkers starting pitcher Alex Faedo in the seconde.
Rio Ruiz cranked a solo blast off Faedo in the seventh.
Later in the same inning, with Nick Lodolo on the mound, Pagan hit a two-run homer.
Drew Mendoza led off the eighth with a homer off Lodolo.
Dylan Cozens opened the top of the ninth with a homer off Thad Ward.

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MBL news: Week 12 awards and standings
(Standings are a day ahead due to OOTP time out).

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Record: 34-42, 5th, 11.5 GB Des Moines
Aaron Judge hit a two-run homer in the second inning off St. Louis starter Argenis Batista, but that was all Green Bay would get as St. Louis rallied for a 5-2 win at War Memorial Stadium.
The River Walkers waited until the seventh inning to begin their comeback.
Rhys Hoskins got them on the scoreboard with a solo homer off reliever Kelvin Herrera.
Jared Thomas later reached on an error by first baseman Bobby Bradley and scored on Jean Carmona's triple off Mike Goodkin to tie it at 2.
St. Louis snatched the lead in the eighth, thanks to a lead-off double from Andrew Benintendi and an RBI single from Tanner Kohlhepp.
The Walkers added two more runs in the ninth.
Kohlhepp drove in the first run with a sacrifice fly.
A Michael Toglia RBI single made it 5-2.
Batista lasted 5.2 innings, giving up two runs on six hits.
Phil Maton recorded the final out of the sixth,
John Curtiss (4-1) pitched around a pair of hits in the seventh.
Jake Brentz (0.2 IP) and Edwin Diaz (0.1) combined to keep the Long Haulers off the scoreboard in the eighth.
Kenley Jansen struck out two of the three batters who took the plate in the ninth for his third save.

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Record: 34-43, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 11.5 GB Des Moines
St. Louis relief pitcher Nick Lodolo surrendered consecutive home runs to Green Bay's Bobby Bradley and Chance Cisco in the botton of the seventh inning to help the Long Haulers rally for an 8-7 win at War Memorial Stadium.
Andrew Benintendi had hit a solo homer off Haulers reliever Ryan Zeferjahns in the top of the seventh to open a two-run frame for the Walkers.
Jared Thomas drove in the other run with a single off Kelvin Herrera.
But the St. Louis bullpen couldn't hold on to that lead.
Phil Maton walked Mike Trout with one out and Aaron Judge followed that with a single.
Lodolo took the mound and Bradley smacked the first pitch he saw 327 feet over the fence in right field.
Sisco followed with a 324 foot blast, also to right, to put the Haulers up 8-7.
Earlier, St. Louis had led 4-2 only to have Trout tie it with a two-run homer off Walkers starting pitcher Jimmy Lambert in the fifth inning.
Green Bay starter Victor Santana allowed three runs on six hit overs four innings.
Five relievers followed him to the mound -- Mike Goodkin (1.0 IP), Zeferjahn (1.2), Herrera (0.1), Richard Loveland (1.0) and Luis Angel Medina (1.0) -- with Herrera (3-1) earning the win. Medina notched his first save of the season.

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Record: 34-44, 5th (Tied/w. Kansas City), 11.5 GB Des Moines
Kyle Cueller hit a grand slam off St. Louis reliever Jake Brentz to wipe out a 3-2 deficit and help lift Green Bay to a 7-5 win at War Memorial Stadium.
The win allowed the Long Haulers to take the final two games of the three-game series with the River Walkers.
Walkers starter Steven Brault was still on the mound to start the sixth, but was finished after issuing a lead-off walk to Aaron Judge.
Thad Ward took the ball and struck out the next two batters before issuing an intentional walk to Chance Sisco to put runners at first and second.
Judge had stolen second base.

The plan didn't work, as Scherzer reached on an error by third baseman Tanner Kohlhepp, to load the bases.
Brentz then took over and saw his 0-1 pitch pounded 366 feet over the left-field wall to make it 6-3.
The Walkers' Dahiandy Johnson led off the seventh with a homer off Scherzer, making it 6-4.
The Haulers got that run back in the eighth.
Again the pitcher figured in, reliever Richard Lovelady reaching on a single off Nick Lodolo.
He scored when Anthony Rendon singled with two outs off closer Edwin Diaz
Christian Arroyo hit a solo homer off Lovelady in the ninth, but it didn't make a bit of a difference.
Scherzer (7-5) allowed four runs on eight hits in seven innings. He struck out seven and walked two.
Bill Warson got the first two outs of the eighth before Lovelady took over and went the rest of the way earning his second save.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have traded right-handed reliever Thad Ward to the Cleveland Guitar Heroes in exchanged for left-handed reliever Sean Doolittle.
It's been a poor season for the 27-year-old Ward, who in 25 games has gone 0-2 with a 7.04 ERA. He has pitched a total of 23.0 innings.
The veteran Doolittle, 37, had worked in 36 games for the Heroes going 3-1 with one save. He boasted a 3.35 ERA over the 37.2 innings.
It is the second go-around with St. Louis for Doolittle.
He was the primary closer for the 2018 championship team, going 2-2 with 21 saves and a 1.78 ERA over 37 games.
In a corresponding move, left-hander Nick Lodolo was sent to AAA Memphis.
The 26-year-old Lodolo has going 2-3 in 38 games for the Walkers this season. He posted a 5.14 ERA over 35 innings.
Getting the call up is 33-year-old right-hander Jason Jester.
He started the season with Green Bay's AAA team before the Walkers claimed him on waivers on June 22.
In 21 games in AAA, Jester had gone 1-2 with 12 saves, posting a 4.91 ERA over 22 innings.