Aeros Lose 1-0 Heartbreaker to Erie
May 22, 2009 - Eastern League (EL1)
Akron RubberDucks News Release
AKRON, OH - It was a pitcher's duel throughout but the visiting Erie SeaWolves came out on top with a 1-0 victory in front of 8,331 fans at Canal Park on Friday night. Left-handers Chuck Lofgren of Akron and Jon Kibler of Erie battled to the bitter end, but the Aeros were unable to manufacture any runs before the second-largest home crowd of the season. The Aeros fell to 29-10 on the season but retained a 5.5-game lead over the second place SeaWolves, who improved to 24-16 with the win.
The only run on the night came in the top of the second inning for Erie, as all of the damage came with two outs already on the board. Andy Dirks grounded a ball to first, but Lofgren dropped the throw from Beau Mills while covering first base as the error extended the inning. Dirks then proceeded to steal second, and a throwing error by catcher Carlos Santana moved him over to third. Shawn Roof then plated Dirks with a bunt single down the third base line, giving Erie the 1-0 advantage.
Akron hit into a pair of double plays on the night, Kibler picked Cristo Arnal off second base in the third, and the team as a whole went 0-6 with runners in scoring position. The Aeros squandered good opportunities in the late going as Matt McBride socked a one-out double in the seventh and Arnal opened the eighth with a two-bagger of his own, but both men were left stranded at third. It was the fourth time this season that Akron has not scored a single run and they fell to 3-7 in games when they score less than three runs total (they are 26-3 otherwise).
Kibler (2-3) was phenomenal for Erie, shutting out the Aeros over 8.2 innings while allowing seven hits and two walks while striking out six. The 2008 Minor League Pitcher of the Year in the Detroit Tigers organization was an out shy of his third complete game this season before Brett Jensen replaced him and notched the final out for his sixth save. Lofgren (3-1) finished with his team-leading fifth quality start of the season, delivering six innings while permitting just the one unearned run in the second. He allowed only four hits and one walk, and struck out a season-high eight batters. He lowered his ERA to 1.35 on the year, the second-lowest mark in the Eastern League.
On the offensive side of things, Jose Constanza and Arnal both had two hits on the night, while Santana finished 1-3 with a walk. Constanza extended his hitting streak to five games, while Arnal picked up his second two-hit performance in just two games with Akron. Arnal was received from Class AAA Columbus on Thursday and is batting .423 (11-26) in his last eight games played between Columbus, Akron and Class A Kinston.
This three-game series continues Saturday night at 7:05 p.m. The fun begins at 4 p.m. as the Principal Financial Group Family Fun Fest will take place outside the gates of Canal Park on South Main Street, and the first 500 fans in attendance once the ballpark gates open will receive complementary Aeros t-shirts from the National Institute of Technology in Cuyahoga Falls. Southpaw Ryan Edell (1-0, 0.00 ERA) will make the start for the Aeros against Alfredo Figaro (2-1, 2.61 ERA) of the SeaWolves. The broadcast begins at 6:50 p.m. on SportsRadio 1350 WARF-AM and online at www.akronaeros.com. For more information, please call the Aeros at (330) 253-5151.
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