Columbus Catfish game notes

Published on June 23, 2005 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Columbus Catfish News Release


Tonight at Golden Park: The Columbus Catfish (29-42 overall, 1-1 2nd half) complete a threegame series by taking on the Greenville Bombers (36-34 overall, 1-1 2nd half), the Single-A affiliate of the Boston Red Sox. Last night the Catfish beat the Bombers 7-1, evening the series at one game each and their second half record at 1-1. The Catfish have not been above .500 at any point this season in either half. The Catfish have won six of ten games against the Bombers this year including three of four from May 30-June 2 in the only road series victory of the 2005 season for Columbus. RHP Chris Malone takes his team leading seven wins to the hill tonight in the rubber game of the three game set against Greenville RHP Scott Shoemaker. First pitch at Golden Park is scheduled for 7:00 PM.

Yesterday: RHP Blake Johnson did not allow a run over six innings and LHP Carlos Alvarez gave up just an unearned run over three innings of relief as the Catfish evened their second half record at 1-1 with a 7-1 victory over Greenville at Golden Park. Johnson, a South Atlantic League 2005 All-Star, struck out seven and Alvarez earned his third save while he struck out five Bomber batters in three innings. 3B Blake DeWitt had an RBI double and an RBI triple in the Catfish victory, and 2B Brandon Carter and 1B Dan Batz added multi-hit games. The Catfish stand at 1-1 in the second half and 29-42 with the win, as Greenville (Boston Red Sox) drops to 36-34 overall and 1-1 in the second half.

First Half Recap: The Catfish started slowly en route to their eventual 28-41 record and eightplace finish in the SAL-Southern Division. Starting on the road this season, the Catfish came home to Golden Park with a 1-5 record after the initial road trip. Away from Golden Park, the Fish finished the first half 10-25. At home, however, the Catfish provided an number of exciting moments, including an opening night 12th inning victory and an eight HR game on June 16th, finishing with a 18-16 record on the banks of the Chattahoochee. The Catfish were 13-31 on May 23rd, riding a 7-game losing streak but proceeded to peel off five straight wins and finished the last 25 games 15-10. RHP Blake Johnson (5-3, 3.18 ERA) and 2B Travis Denker (.273, 11 HR, 38 RBI, .400 OBP) were named to the SAL All-Star Game for their outstanding first-half performances, while Johnson and RHP Chris Malone (7-2, 2.86 ERA, 17 G/8 GS) were named Dodger Co-Pitchers of the Month for May. The Catfish finished the first half with the league's sixth best batting average (.263), were 13th in runs (306), hit 47 HR (T-7th), and had a 3.93 ERA (9th).

The Greenville Bombers: The Bombers wrapped up their first half of play with a 35-33 record, and are now 12-6 mark in the month of June after the loss last night. The Red Sox affiliate split a four-game series with the Fish in April but lost three of four to the Catfish in late May-early June in Greenville. Greenville has the second best batting average in the SAL at .269 and is led offensively by 1B John Otness (.349, 4 HR, 28 RBI) who is second in the league in batting average. 3B Andrew Pinckney adds a .308 average with 8 HR and 47 RBI to lead the Bombers in HR and RBI. Both have been named to the SAL All-Star Team. The Bombers are 9th in the league in ERA at 3.95.

Home Sweet Home: Overall, the Catfish are 10-25 on the road in 2005, while they sport a 19- 17 record at Golden Park. Columbus has won just one of nine road series this season. The Fish have hit the ball better at home, posting a .288 home batting average with an average of 5.17 runs per game while hitting just .235 on the road and averaging just 3.63 runs per game. Columbus has hit 28 of 47 HR at home this season. The Fish play the final game of a sevengame homestand today (Rome Braves for four, Greenville Bombers for three).

Hitting Notes: The Catfish have a team batting average of .262 (5th in the SAL) and are now 12th in the SAL in runs with 313. The Catfish have hit 47 HR, ninth in the SAL. CF Jamie Hoffmann leads the team with a .297 batting average and is fourth in the league with 84 hits. SS Lucas May leads the club with 42 RBI. 2B Travis Denker's three HR last Thursday give him a team best 11 this season. 3B Blake DeWitt's numbers (.277, 7 HR, 41 RBI) are either second or third in each of the triple crown categories on the team.

Pitching Notes: The Catfish team ERA stands now at 3.89 after 71 games (7th SAL). The Catfish did have the league's highest ERA as recently as May 2nd. RHP Chris Malone has a 2.86 ERA, as he has a team best 7-2 record. LHP Carlos Alvarez leads the pitching staff out of the bullpen with a 1.01 ERA, having allowed just four earned runs in 38.2 innings and striking out 63 batters to lead the team. RHP Albenis Castillo has pitched well out of the bullpen lately and leads the team in saves with four.

Team Defense: The Catfish have committed 93 errors in 71 games this season. The Catfish made one error last night in the 7-1 win. Since May 23rd: The Catfish entered Saturday, May 23rd's contest against Savannah having lost seven straight games and sporting a 13-31 record. On the 23rd, the Catfish started a season-best five-game winning streak, and in the last 27 games the Fish are 16-11, including a 10-5 mark at Golden Park. The Catfish have improved their batting average 16 points during the stretch, as an improved offense has been a major part of the turnaround.

All-Stars: South Atlantic League Commissioner John Moss named the 2005 South Atlantic League All-Star Team, with the Catfish claiming two roster spots on the Southern Division squad. 2B Travis Denker will start at second base for the Southern Division. The Brea, CA native has played in each game for the Catfish and he leads the SAL in BB (52). Denker is the team leader with 11 HR, a .398 OBP, and a .472 slugging percentage. He adds a .272 average and 39 RBI. RHP Blake Johnson (6-3, 2.90 ERA, 13 GS) was named to the Southern Division squad as well and will pitch out of the bullpen in the All-Star Game in Augusta. Charleston led the league with six All-Star Selections, and the Southern Division will be managed by the RiverDogs Manager, Bill Mosiello. The Greenville Bombers send 1B John Otness and 3B Andrew Pinckney to the game.

Roster Changes: The Los Angeles Dodgers promoted INF Cole Bruce to High-A Vero Beach on Tuesday and sent C Juan Apodaca to Advanced-Rookie (SS) Ogden. In their stead, the Catfish add INF Dom Laurin and C Chris Westervelt to the latest roster. Laurin played in a Catfish uniform last season and hit .233 with 4 HR and 28 RBI in 65 games. He played in 16 games for Vero Beach and hit .118 this season. Westervelt has yet to play in 2005 due to an injury suffered in Spring Training but was one of the leading hitters in Ogden in 2004, hitting .341 with 10 HR and 37 RBI.

Hoffmann's Hot Streak: Since a hitless game on June 10th against Kannapolis, CF Jamie Hoffmann has raised his batting average 23 points to .297 with hits in eight of ten games. The second-year pro from New Ulm, MN leads the Catfish in batting average and is fourth in the league with 84 hits. Hoffmann is 18 for his last 37 in that period of game with five multi-hit games in the ten game stretch.

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South Atlantic League Stories from June 23, 2005


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