AirHogs battery combine to beat Cats again

Published on July 2, 2011 under American Association (AA)
Grand Prairie AirHogs News Release


FORT WORTH, Texas -- Like Friday's series opener in Grand Prairie, both starting pitchers for the Grand Prairie AirHogs and Fort Worth Cats were very good. Also like Friday, Chris McMurray came through with the eventual game-winning hit, as the AirHogs beat the Cats. After Friday's 3-1 Grand Prairie win, the AirHogs took Saturday's contest 5-3 at LaGrave Field.

Both starters, Josh Rainwater (8-2) for the AirHogs (33-15) and Phillip Bartleski were not especially dominant, but were able to keep the lineups off the board through the first five innings. Rainwater got out of a two-out jam in the first, second and fourth, while Bartleski got out of a two-on situation in the first and a runner at third, one-out pickle in the third inning.

But in his first start of the year, Bartleski was pulled after five innings and 82 pitches, and reliever Will Calhoun (0-1) immediately had trouble throwing strikes. He walked David Espinosa on five pitches, and Guillermo Martinez bunted Espinosa to second. Cesar Nicolas got a green light on 3-0 but grounded out to third with the infield in, but Calhoun then proceeded to walk Greg Porter, John Alonso and Tyler Henley in succession to force in the game's first run.

Reliever Tim Haines then came in, and thought he had strike three to Chris McMurray on a borderline pitch. But it was called ball one and McMurray smashed the next pitch over the leftfield wall for a grand slam to give Grand Prairie a 5-0 lead.

The Cats (20-27) got to Rainwater in the sixth, but only managed to score once after loading the bases with none out. The DeRidder, La., native departed after getting out of the sixth, and Jon Fulton pitched a 1-2-3 seventh. Trent Lockwood hit his 11th home run of the year leading off the eighth against Fulton, but the righty got out of further trouble after a one-out single by inducing a 6-4-3 double play off the bat of Travis Metcalf.

Jon Hunton allowed a one-out home run in the bottom of the ninth to pinch-hitter Johnathon Moore, but he rebounded to strike out Brian Fryer and Jeremy Sauceda to pick up his 14th save of 2011.

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