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EL1 Chesapeake Baysox

Baysox Declare Independence in Extras

July 4, 2010 - Eastern League (EL1)
Chesapeake Baysox News Release


BOWIE, Md. - The Bowie Baysox beat the Akron Aeros 6-5 with a bases loaded walk-off single by second baseman Carlos Rojas in the bottom of the 11th inning that sent a raucous Independence Day crowd of 8,864 into jubilation. The victory split the four game series between the Baysox and Aeros as the Baysox finished their eight-game home stand with a 6-2 record and stand at 45-38 on the season. That home stand included four dramatic walk-off wins for the Baysox and five one-run triumphs.

Bowie is still in second place in the Eastern League's Western Division, 7.5 games behind league leaders Altoona and 4.5 games ahead of the third place Aeros. The Baysox are a win away from matching their season high of eight games over .500, which they reached twice very early in the year after getting off to the hottest start in franchise history.

Baysox starter Chorye Spoone surrendered three runs on five hits through 5.0 innings, but had a frustrating lack of control, as he walked five batters for the fourth time this season. Spoone leads all Eastern League pitchers with 56 walks.

"I had everything, I had all my pitches," Spoone said. "I walked five guys, and I was ahead of every batter; 0-2, 1-2 walks are unacceptable. I'm not sure exactly what happened during those guys that I fell apart on them, but when you get ahead 0-2, 1-2, you've got to bury them.

"I had good changeup, good slider, good curveball, throwing them all for strikes," he continued. "Starting off with curveballs for strikes, with sliders for strikes. Pretty much anything I wanted to do with it, I could do it, until I needed to do it. Then I couldn't and I wound up walking them."

"He's just nibbling around," Manager Brad Komminsk said. "He's walking guys, he's hitting guys, he's not pitching very good. You can't walk five guys every time you go out there, give up five hits and hit two guys. It's not conducive to staying out there a long time. We had the bases loaded the first two innings, that's not good."

The Baysox jumped out to a 1-0 lead when third baseman Brandon Waring crushed a 3-1 pitch out of the park to left field with one out in the bottom of the second inning. It was the 13th homer of the year for Waring, who hit 26 home runs last year in his Carolina League MVP season with Single-A Frederick.

Akron answered with a one-out solo shot of their own in the top of the third inning, by first baseman Beau Mills. Mills also knocked one out of Prince George's Stadium on Friday.

Spoone gave up a lead-off single to outfielder Tim Fedroff in the top of the fifth inning before he hit third baseman Lonnie Chisenhall and walked Matt McBride to load the bases with no outs. His control eluded him again, as he filled the count and walked Mills with his seventh pitch to plate Fedroff.

Second baseman Jerad Head grounded into a double play that plated Chisenhall, a run the Baysox gladly conceded to get two outs. Designated hitter John Drennen grounded out to first base to end the inning with the Aeros ahead 3-1.

Bowie mounted a modest rally in the bottom half of the fifth, when outfielder Jonathan Tucker drew a walk with two outs and scored from first when Orioles outfielder Felix Pie drilled a double to right-center field.

Orioles closer Mike Gonzalez took over on the hill after spoone, and pitched a perfect inning with two strikeouts and a ground out.

Down 3-2 in the bottom of the sixth, outfielder Tyler Henson led off with a single to left and was joined on base by designated hitter Robbie Widlansky, who walked. With two outs, catcher Caleb Joseph hit a line drive that screamed over the left field wall for a three-run home run, his seventh long ball of the year. His blast gave the Baysox a 5-3 advantage.

The Aeros trimmed that lead in the seventh inning after former Cincinnati lefty Pedro Viola took over. Fedroff reached base with another leadoff single to right field. He moved to second when Chisenhall grounded out to the pitcher and advanced to third on McBride's single to left. Mills struck for his third RBI when he lined a single to right field, plating Fedroff to cut the lead to 5-4.

Akron erased the lead altogether in the eighth inning on former Orioles reliever Jim Hoey's watch. Shortstop Cristo Arnal reached first with a grounder to left and moved to second on Jordan Henry's groundout. Fedroff drove him in with a single to left to tie the game at five apiece.

Right hander Brandon Cooney took over on the mound in the ninth as the game marched towards extra innings. Cooney has been sensational since joining the Baysox, holding hitters to a .102 batting average since the beginning of June. He did a fine job of holding off the Aeros, allowing three hits with no walks through three shutout innings.

The Baysox came agonizingly close to winning the game in the 10th inning, loading the bases with one out before Widlansky struck out and Waring grounded into a fielder's choice forceout to end the inning. Bowie has struggled mightily with runners in scoring position recently, going 1-for-9 with eight strikeouts and two walks in their last three games in situations with a runner in scoring position and fewer than two outs.

"We've done it all year. If it's an easy fix it'd be fixed," Komminsk said. "You've just got to have discipline at the plate, more than anything. You've got to have some kind of plan, not just swing at everything that leaves his hand, you've got to see the ball first."

After more than three and a half hours of baseball, the Baysox were finally able to put the Aeros away in the bottom of the 11th inning. Shortstop Greg Miclat hit a one out single to left and would have been forced out at second on outfielder Jonathan Tucker's ground ball to third, but the second baseman failed to catch the ball from third base as Miclat slid in. As the ball rolled into center field, Miclat got up and raced to third. Tucker then took second on defensive indifference and center fielder Danny Figueroa walked to load the bases. Facing the same situation that ended the 10th inning in frustration, Rojas hit a walk-off single into right field that plated Miclat as the crowd went wild before celebrating the win and America's independence with the Baysox spectacular fireworks display.

"I've only been here a week, but this was a huge crowd," Miclat said. "It was nice. It's a special day and a special day for America's pastime, and that's why everyone came out. It was just good to see a lot of people and it was good to have a lot of support out there."

The Baysox hit the road on Monday for a four game series at Erie, whom the Baysox swept in four games at home earlier in the week. They return on Friday, July 9, for a four game set with the New York Yankees' Double-A affiliate, the Trenton Thunder. That series will feature fireworks and a comedy and magic show for kids by The Great Zucchini on Saturday, July 10, and Superhero Night on Sunday, June 11, which will have kids' favorite superheroes in costume for a meet-and-greet and autographs.

Think Outside The Box with the Baysox in 2010. The Baysox 18th season as the class Double-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles is underway. Catch all the action in Natural Definition! Baysox full-season and partial-season ticket packages are available now at www.baysox.com or by calling the group sales department at (301) 464-4880.

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Eastern League Stories from July 4, 2010


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