Results tagged ‘ Eric Hull ’
PREVIEW: Rainiers and Grizzlies Play Two
Tomorrow will be a full day of baseball for the Rainiers and the Grizzlies, as they make up for Tacoma’s lone rainout of the season on May 2.
Last season, Tacoma played in five doubleheaders, including three at home. One of those was against Fresno, in which Tacoma won 12-3 and 2-1.
After the Rainiers and the Grizzlies conclude their first game, the two teams will take half an hour off to rest and recharge before taking the field again in the second half of today’s special twin bill.
Tacoma will send righty Gaby Hernandez (3-9, 6.32 ERA) to the hill in Game 1 opposite the PCL wins leader in Fresno’s Kevin Pucetas (10-2, 3.30).
The Rainiers will start team wins leader Eric Hull (7-3, 6.21) in the second game, with the Grizzlies having yet to announce their starter.
If you haven’t gotten your fill of baseball under the sun, remember that this Tuesday, Tacoma will conclude its series with Fresno in a special 11:30 a.m. game before leaving on an eight-game, nine-day road trip to Round Rock and Albuquerque.
Woah Nelly! Rainiers Win Third Straight
This afternoon at Cheney Stadium, for the third game
in a row, big Brad Nelson took a scenic tour around the bases, and for the
third game in a row the Tacoma Rainiers bested the visiting Las Vegas 51s, this
time by the tally of 14-9. But it may have come at a heavy price.
The Rainiers (49-52) exploded for six
runs in the fourth inning, sparked by a two-run home run from Nelson–his third
longball in the past three games and ninth of the season–and staked
right-handed starter Steven Shell to a very comfortable 7-1 lead.
Through six innings, the Longview, Tex.
native allowed just three runs and was working well despite the 90-degree heat.
But with one out in the top of the seventh, Las Vegas center fielder Buck Coats
lined a 1-2 pitch back up the middle, striking Shell flush in the right cheek.
While Shell made a valiant effort to make
his way over to field the ball, his body did not respond, and after Coats
reached base, the Rainiers training staff and paramedics rushed out onto the field
as the crowd held its breath for nine long minutes.
After Shell was carted off the field–with
a courageous wave drawing thunderous applause–reliever Eric Hull had the
unenviable task of trying to concentrate on getting the next two outs.
The 51s (47-55) capitalized, scoring two
runs in the inning thanks to Randy Ruiz’s league-leading 40th double of the
season, making the score 7-5.
Unwilling to waste the effort of a fallen
teammate, Tacoma charged back in the bottom of the frame. With one out, Nelson
delivered his fifth double of the season on a fly ball to center, and was
lifted in favor of speedy pinch runner Prentice Redman.
Left fielder Bryan LaHair then drew a
walk from lefty Las Vegas reliever Bill Murphy, setting the stage for catcher
Adam Moore, who–like Shell–hails from Longview, Tex. Almost as if to avenge his
batterymate and fellow Texan, Moore crushed the second pitch he saw from Murphy
off the top of the left center field wall for a three-run home run, putting the
Rainiers up 10-5 with his sixth circuit shot of the season.
But alas, the 51s would not go away. They
plated four more runs in the top of the eighth against Hull, pulling to within one
run. Once again, though, Tacoma responded.
With two outs and the bases loaded in the
bottom of the eighth, Redman connected on a soft liner to left center, knocking
in two runs and putting men on first and third. LaHair then came up with his
third hit of the day, lining the 1-1 offering from reliever Brian Wolfe up the
middle for an RBI single. Up next was Moore, who delivered again, singling on a
sharp liner to left field for an RBI single of his own.
Moore had his biggest run-producing
game of the year, going 2-for-4 with a game-high five RBI as part of a 16-hit
Tacoma attack that saw every hitter record at least one base knock.
Other top offensive performers were
LaHair–who went 3-for-4 with an RBI and two runs scored–and designated hitter
Jeff Clement, who chipped in with a 2-for-5, two-RBI day. Clement now owns a
.301 batting average in 22 July games this season, with four home runs and 22
RBI. Nelson went 3-for-3 on the day and drew a walk, and is now hitting a
scorching .348 in the month of July, reaching base safely in his past 11 games.
League Leaders at the Break
As the Pacific Coast League and the International League All-Stars get set to duke it out in Wednesday’s Triple-A All-Star Game in Portland, Ore., several Tacoma Rainiers sit among the best in the PCL in a multitude of offensive categories.
Rainiers Flex Muscle in Second Straight Win
The Triple-A All-Star Home Run Derby
won’t officially start for another 10 days–141 miles away in Portland. But don’t
tell any of that to the Tacoma Rainiers. Last night, Tacoma hitters staged
their very own longball contest, with Cheney Stadium serving as ground zero.
The Rainiers played “anything you can
do, I can do better,” as they belted four home runs for the third time this
season en route to a booming 5-3 win over the Portland Beavers.
Right fielder Prentice Redman was the
first contestant, launching the first pitch he saw from Portland starter Will
Inman–an 87-mph fastball over the heart of the plate–onto the roof of the
visiting clubhouse beyond the left field wall for his 11th bomb of the year.
From 6-foot-3 Redman, the scoring then
shifted to the shoulders of 5-foot-7 second baseman Callix Crabbe, who struck
for his team-leading fourth triple in the bottom of the fourth to score catcher
Adam Moore.
The next slugger in Tacoma’s long-drive
contest was designated hitter Jeff Clement, who took out his Big Bertha driver
with one down in the bottom of the fifth, tagging the Charles River Clinical
panel of Cheney Stadium’s brand new scoreboard in deep right center field well over 400 feet away to put Tacoma
up 3-0.
Clement’s 11th circuit shot of the
season was his fourth in his last 10 games. Over that span, Clement has hit a
scorching .385, with nine extra-base hits and eight RBI.
Big first baseman Brad Nelson saw
Clement’s mammoth scoreboard shot and raised him one, leading off the bottom of
the sixth with his own titanic blast that rattled off the top of the
sixth-inning lights, square in the middle of the board to stake the Rainiers to
a 4-1 lead.
After being bludgeoned by longballs, the
Beavers (37-44) did their best to make the game interesting in the top of the
seventh off of reliever Eric Hull, who walked Brett Dowdy and Mike Baxter to
lead off the frame. After a sacrifice grounder from Craig Stansberry, Tacoma
relief ace Denny Stark took the hill inheriting a one-out, two-on jam.
Slugger Val Pascucci lofted a sacrifice
fly to center to plate Dowdy, and with designated hitter Chad Huffman’s RBI
single to left, Portland pulled to within one.
After that brief interlude, the
home-run-hitting contest resumed. All-Star left fielder Bryan LaHair did his
best to tune up for a possible Home Run Derby appearance, leading off the
bottom of the seventh with his team-leading 14th jack of the season to put the
Rainiers ahead for good.
Tacoma closer Randy Messenger then came
on for a four-out save–his 15th of the season–to nail down a second straight
win for the Rainiers (38-42).
NOTES: The Rainiers have now won four out
of five games against Portland this season, and 12 of the past 13 dating back
to last year … Callix Crabbe went 2-for-3 with a double and a triple, the first
time he has collected both a two- and three-bagger in the same game since the
season opener on April 9 at Sacramento … First baseman Brad Nelson went
2-for-3, raising his average to .259 … In his last 10 games, Nelson is hitting
.342 … Ryan Rowland-Smith, back from a five-game suspension, went 5.1 innings, allowing eight hits and one run while striking out three to earn his second win of the season for the Rainiers.
Las Vegas Evens Season Series
For as much offense as
the Las Vegas 51s and Tacoma Rainiers have generated over their season series
(60 combined runs and 110 combined hits in the first five games), last night’s
contest was all about pitching, as the 51s hurlers out-dueled the Rainiers in a
closer-than-the-score 4-1 win.
Second baseman Joe
Inglett led off the game with a ground ball single to right field on Seddon’s
2-0 offering, and came around to score on a two-out RBI double by slugging
first baseman Randy Ruiz. The two-bagger was Ruiz’s 27th of the season.
The Rainiers were in a
position to give as good as they got in the bottom of the frame, with a one-out
single by Michael Saunders and a two-out walk to Jeff Clement setting the table
for the team’s hottest hitter, third baseman Chris Shelton.
Shelton however proved
unequal to the task, becoming the second of nine strikeout victims who fell at
the feet of 51s lefty Mark “Eye Chart” Rzepczynski.
Las Vegas inched ahead
again in the top of the second, getting yet another clutch two-out RBI hit–this
time a single on a soft grounder up the middle from shortstop Jonathan Diaz.
That was the last run
that lefty starter Chris Seddon would allow, as he tossed a very strong six
innings, scattering seven hits and notching three strikeouts on 97 pitches.
But Rzepczynsky was
just that much better, surrendering just two hits over his 5.2 innings of work.
After some solid relief work on the parts of both bullpens, the Rainiers looked
like they might just break through in the bottom of the eighth. With one swing
of the bat, Saunders cut the lead in half with his ninth home run of the year,
and just like that, Tacoma was back in the game.
But the 51s responded
in the top of the ninth, when reliever Justin Thomas was unable to hold the
line after entering the game for Eric Hull with one out and one on. Thomas
promptly allowed two straight singles and a run-scoring fielder’s choice, as
Las Vegas pulled ahead for good.
Notes: There is still time to vote your favorite Tacoma Rainiers into the Triple-A All-Star Game! Polls close at 11:59 p.m. on June 26, so make your voices heard. With first baseman Mike Carp out of the picture thanks to a call-up to the Seattle Mariners (who is hitting .429 in seven at-bats over his first four big league games), leading Rainiers candidates still in the mix include third baseman Chris Shelton (.321 average, 10 HR, 54 RBI), designated hitter Jeff Clement (.277, 8, 41) and outfielder Michael Saunders (.288, 9, 24).
Rainiers Trade in Bats for Clubs
Yesterday at McCormick Woods Golf Course,
16 Tacoma Rainiers players and coaches traded in their lumber and leather for
drivers and nine irons in the annual Rainiers Golf Tournament, with proceeds
benefiting Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital.
Along with the Tacoma coaching staff–manager
Daren Brown, hitting coach Alonzo Powell and pitching coach Dwight Bernard–outfielders
Prentice Redman, Jerry Owens and Bryan LaHair, catcher Fleming Baez, infielders
Callix Crabbe and Erick Monzon and pitchers Eric Hull, Doug Fister, Josh Hall,
Jared Wells, Andy Baldwin and Justin Thomas all teed it up for charity.
Several Rainiers players participated in
the pre-round putting contest, with LaHair turning in the closest putt to the
pin, rolling his shot to within a foot and a half of the cup.
On the first hole, Parkland Chevrolet’s
Ron VanGeystel parked his ball closest to the flag at five and a quarter
inches, just beating out Thomas (eight inches) to take home a prize package
including a PCL hat and shirt, as well as a Paint the Park Purple Jersey.
The second hole was the site of the
Rainiers long-drive contest, with Powell narrowly beating out Baldwin for the
longest drive of the day on that hole.
The 12th hole featured the Rainier
Connect Marshmallow Drive contest, which was won by D.J. Cobb, who whacked a
marshmallow 134 feet, eight inches.
For much of the afternoon, the team of
Brown, Jeff Sadler, Marty Boscos, John Combs and Jason Stockton paced the field
in the scramble-play format, but they were edged out by one stroke in the end
by the team of Hull, Dan Koch, Adam Knoll, Rick Adams, Jerry Isaksen and BZ
Zenczak for the tournament’s top honors.
Baldwin’s team of Kale and Wayne Larkin,
Jeremy Balzarini and Alex Schilter came in third, shooting a 57 on the day.
The Rainiers return to action today
against the Las Vegas 51s, the Triple-A Affiliate of the Toronto Blue Jays.
The last time Tacoma squared off with the
51s, in a June 6-9 set at Cashman Field, the two squads split the four-game
series, with the Rainiers coming out on top 9-2 in the opener and 6-3 in the
finale.
The last time
these two teams clashed, there was offense aplenty, with Tacoma and Las Vegas combining for 42
runs on 85 hits during their four-game set earlier in the month, with the
Rainiers going 44-for-147 (.299) against 51s pitching.
Las Vegas starter Brian Burres is 0-1
this season against Tacoma, allowing five runs on eight hits in 6.2 innings on
June 6.
VOTE RAINIERS! Triple-A All-Star Game Voting Open
The ballots are out, and now is your time to shine! Go to the homepage of Minor League Baseball and click the “VOTE NOW” button at the top of the page, because you–the fans–get a say-so in who starts this year’s Triple-A All-Star Game, just down the road in Portland, Ore.
Heether Halts Streak at Four
It took the Nashville Sounds 25 innings,
but they finally managed to solve the rolling Rainiers. Well actually,
Nashville shortstop Adam Heether did most of the solving. The 6-foot-2,
190-pound infielder was a one-man wrecking crew today at Cheney Stadium,
hitting two home runs and driving in six en route to dealing Tacoma an 8-6
loss.
The Rainiers (25-21) got on top early
against Issaquah High grad Lindsay Gulin, touching him up for five runs on
seven hits in his five innings of work. For the second game in a row, Tacoma
put a three-spot on the board in the bottom of the first, thanks an two singles
by Brad Nelson and an RBI double by second baseman Mike Morse.
They put up another two in the bottom of
the fifth on an RBI single by third baseman Chris Shelton and a bases-loaded
walk to Morse.
But the usually reliable Tacoma bullpen
was unable to hold the lead for starter Gaby Hernandez, who gave up just two
runs in six innings of work, scattering seven hits.
Nashville (26-21) began to creep back
with a run in the top of the sixth with a sacrifice fly off the bat of Heether,
who, as it turned out, was just getting started.
Already sitting pretty with three RBI on
the game, Heether keyed a three-run Nashville eighth with a one-out two-run
home run to chase Tacoma reliever Jared Wells, tying the game at 6-6 heading
into the final frame.
Alcides Escobar–who committed his ninth
error of the season and third of the series–led off the inning with a ground
ball single to left, and took third on a sacrifice bunt by Hernan Iribarren. A
walk to first baseman Joe Koshansky spelled the end for Rainiers reliever
Justin Thomas, putting Tacoma wins leader Eric Hull on the hill.
Hull got the dangerous Brendan Katin to
fly out harmlessly to right field, bringing Heether to the plate.
With the count 1-1, Heether pounced on
Hull’s hanging curve, sending it high into left field. Tacoma’s Jerry Owens
retreated to the wall and seemed to have a bead on the high drive, but it
carried just enough to scrape the back of the wall for a three-run home run,
spelling the end of the Rainiers four-game winning streak.
Tomorrow, Ryan Rowland-Smith will make
his second rehab start for the Rainiers, as they try to finish off the
homestand with a win.
The last time Rowland-Smith took the
hill, he allowed just two hits and one run over four innings in a 10-6 Tacoma
win over the Memphis Redbirds on May 23.
Notes: After registering 11 hits in today’s contest, the Rainiers have now reached double digits in four of their
past five games … Jeff Clement’s one-out double in the
first extended his hitting streak to 15 games … Brad Nelson’s two-run single
extended Michael Saunders’ run-scoring streak to 17 games … By holding Prentice Redman 0-for-4 with
one run scored, the Sounds snapped the Tacoma right fielder’s 23-game home
hitting streak.
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