EL1 Altoona Curve

Altoona Curve Game Information: May 14, 2013

Published on May 14, 2013 under Eastern League (EL1)
Altoona Curve News Release


ABOUT SUNDAY...: The Curve secured their third series win of the season (second in a row) with a walk-off, 2-1, win on Sunday afternoon versus the Richmond Flying Squirrels. With the game tied at one and the winning run at sec- ond base, Charlie Cutler hit a high drive to deep left-center field that Richmond's CF Jarrett Parker appeared to have a beat on. He had the ball pop in and then out of his glove and land on the warning track, which allowed Andrew Lambo to score from second base to secure the club's 16th win of the season. It was a pitcher's duel between the two starters on Sunday with Jameson Taillon going six shutout frames (2 H, 3 BB, 8 K). His mound opponent Chris Gloor was also solid, dealing 6.2 innings of scoreless ball. Neil Walker made his final rehab start for the Curve on Sunday and was 2-for-3 with a game-tying RBI in the eighth.

CURVE/THUNDER SERIES: Trenton visits Curve, Pa. for the first time this year with this three-game series Tuesday- Thursday. It is the first of three total series that the teams will play against one another in 2013. The Thunder will roll back into Peoples Natural Gas Field June 14-16 and the Curve will only make one trip to visit the Thunder (July 22-24).

FOR ALTOONA: Luis Sanz takes to the bump for the Curve in the lid lifter with the Trenton Thunder on Tuesday night and will be making his second start of the season. Sanz began the 2013 season in the bullpen serving as the team's closer for the first month of the season before being moved into the starting rotation. The native of Venezuela made his first start his last time out in Harrisburg on May 8 at Metro Bank Park. He allowed three runs (two earned) on four hits in three innings with three walks and three strikeouts. Since he began the season in the bullpen, Sanz was removed after three innings and reaching 74 pitches in that start at Harrisburg. As a starter in 2011 with the Lakeland Flying Tigers (FSL), Sanz was 10-3 with a 2.69 ERA In 16 games (78 strikeouts in 90.1 IP). For more on Sanz, see page two.

FOR TRENTON: RHP Zach Nuding takes the bump for the Thunder in the series opener on Tuesday and will be making his eighth start of the season. In his first season at Double-A, Nuding spent all of 2012 with High-A Tampa where he was 8-3 with a 3.89 ERA (16 games, 14 starts) and struck out 86 batters in 85.2 IP. Following his 2012 season, Nuding was sent to the Arizona Fall League where he went 1-3 with a 5.82 ERA while pitching for the Scottsdale Scorpions (which was the same team that Pirates prospects were assigned to in the AFL in 2012). This season, he's felt right at home on the the road, going 1-1 with a microscopic 0.57 ERA in three starts (one ER in 15.2 IP). He was originally drafted 30th round of the 2010 draft out of Weatherford (Texas) College and was a non- roster invitee to Spring Training this season.

CHARLES IN CHARGE, AGAIN: It was announced on Tuesday that Pirates RHP Charlie Morton will once again don a Curve uniform and make a rehab start this Thursday in the series finale with Trenton. Morton, who is recovering from Tommy John Surgery, made a pair of rehab starts (1-0, 0.90 ERA, 10.0 IP, 1 ER, 7 K) for the Curve at the end of April before having his rehab moved to Triple-A Indianapolis. The New Jersey-born Morton was working in the fourth inning of his rehab start with Indy on May 3 when he felt some discomfort in his throwing shoulder, which was later diagnosed as shoulder tightness in his back. He threw a bullpen down in Bradenton on Monday and is set to go for Altoona on Thursday.

BIG LEAGUE CHEW: The Curve have had their fair share of Major League rehabilitation assignments or former Major Leaguers in their ranks for a few weeks now. Francisco Liriano made one rehab start for the Curve on Saturday, April 20 while reliever Jose Contreras also pitched for the Curve that weekend in Harrisburg on his way to Pittsburgh. Morton joined the Curve the following week for a pair of rehab starts on April 23 and 28 and was followed by Neil Walker's rehab appearance this past weekend vs. Richmond.

DROUGHT SEASON?: Altoona was held without a homer for the fourth straight game on Sunday in the win over Richmond, which is uncommon for a team that has hit its fair share of homers to start the season. It's only the sec- ond time this year that the Curve did not homer at least once in a series and the four games without a homer is the longest drought of the season. Altoona began the year homering in seven straight games and also ran off a six-game homer streak from 5/3-5/8.

HE EATS HIS WHEATIES: OF/1B Andrew Lambo worked a pivotal walk in the ninth inning on Sunday and eventually came around to score the game-winning run for the Curve. The Newbury Park, Calif. native has reached base safely in all but three of his 37 games this season and leads the team in home runs, RBI, hits and is tied for the team lead in walks. His seven home runs are tied for second-most in the EL while his HR/AB ratio of one homer every 18.66 AB is fifth-best in the circuit.

ZACK ATTACK: Reliever Zack Thornton made his Curve debut on Saturday night in game two and worked out of a jam in the sixth inning to strand the tying runs on the bases for Richmond. Thornton is in his first season with the Pirates organization after being acquired this offseason for pitcher Chris Resop in a deal with the Oakland A's. The California native converted on three of six save tries with the Marauders before being promoted earlier this week. Last season with Stockton of the California League, Thornton registered 16 saves.

TAKING AWAY THE RUNNING GAME: Catcher Carlos Paulino has been a force to be reckoned with behind the plate this season, throwing out 44.1 percent (15-of-34) of base stealers in 2013 entering play today. That's third-best in the circuit behind Portland's Christian Vazquez, who has thrown out 47.1 percent of base stealers, and Trenton's J.R. Murphy (46.7%).

Check out the Altoona Curve Statistics

Share: Facebook | Twitter/X | LinkedIn | Reddit | Email



Eastern League Stories from May 14, 2013


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.

OurSports Central