Curve Clinch in Bowie
August 31, 2010 - Eastern League (EL1)
Chesapeake Baysox News Release
BOWIE, Md. - The Bowie Baysox missed a valuable opportunity to move into second place in their division with a listless performance Tuesday against the Altoona Curve as Bowie fell 9-1. The Baysox drop to 72-64, but remain half a game out of second place and the playoffs thanks to Harrisburg's second consecutive loss. The Curve, meanwhile, clinched the Eastern League Western Division pennant with the win.
Baysox starting pitcher Steve Johnson fell to 7-8 on the year, giving up four runs on eight hits and two walks through 5.0 innings. Johnson struck out five batters in the loss, bringing his season total to 122 strikeouts, fifth-most in the Eastern League. He has struck out more batters than any Baysox pitcher since 2008, when a wave of pitching prospects passed through Bowie and Jason Berken, David Hernandez and Chris Tillman struck out 125, 166 and 154 batters, respectively.
"I felt probably the best I felt all year," Johnson said. "I had real good stuff, just haven't pitched well with it all year. Tonight I got a little unlucky and I just didn't pitch well."
"You can't really worry about [Altoona winning the division]," he said. "We're still only half a game back. Harrisburg has a big doubleheader coming up on Friday, and that could swing things either way but we just need to keep pace with them and hopefully it comes down to the last series in Richmond and we can put a couple games together there."
"They've got to clinch somewhere," Manager Brad Komminsk added.
Johnson escaped a bases loaded situation in the top of the first inning with two strikeouts to retire the side, and Bowie missed an opportunity to score in the bottom half when second baseman Carlos Rojas was thrown out at the plate trying to score from second base on designated hitter Joel Guzman's single to right field.
Altoona scored the opening run in the top of the second inning. Outfielder Miles Durham hit a one-out single to right field and moved to second base on a wild pitch to Anthony Norman. Norman drove him in with a triple to the right-field wall for a 1-0 lead, but was held at third base as a pair of fly outs retired the side.
The Curve expanded their lead in the top of the third inning. Johnson hit first baseman Matt Hague to put a man on first with two outs, and advanced Hague to second on another wild pitch. Hector Gimenez hit a single to right field to plate Hague and Gimenez pulled into second base on the throw. Jim Negrych drove in another run with a single to right field that sent Gimenez across home from second base.
The visitors hung one more run on Johnson when Hague hit a solo home run to left-center field in the top of the fifth inning, the league-leading 24th home run Johnson has conceded this year.
As Altoona built their 4-0 lead, Eastern League ERA leader Rudy Owens set about picking apart the Baysox, retiring 11 batters in a row from the second inning to the fifth. His streak finally ended on an infield single by Baysox catcher Caleb Joseph in the bottom of the fifth inning with two outs. Though shortstop Greg Miclat followed Joseph with another base hit, nothing came of the inning as right fielder Danny Figueroa struck out swinging.
"You've just gotta keep pitching," Johnson said. "What [Owens was] doing doesn't really matter. He wasn't giving me a lot of time between innings, but you've got to believe that your guys are going to make something happen."
The Curve kept rolling against reliever Raul Rivero in the top of the sixth inning. Norman drew a one-out walk and moved to second base when Rivero failed to cleanly field Jose de los Santos' comebacker. Third baseman Josh Harrison hit a bloop to center field that bounced off Miclat's glove, turning the hit into a double as the Baysox outfield scrambled to react and Norman crossed the plate. De los Santos moved to third on the double, and scored when Jordy Mercer grounded out to third base for the second out, leaving the Baysox in a 6-0 hole.
Hague reached on a throwing error by third baseman Ryan Adams in the top of the seventh inning and advanced to second base on a groundout. Negrych notched his second RBI of the night with a single to left field that plated Hague for a commanding 7-0 lead.
Owens finally departed after six innings, giving up four hits and no walks as he struck out nine batters. Guzman led off the bottom of the seventh inning against reliever Derek Hankins and hit a long fly ball down the right field line that crashed into the foul pole for his league-leading 31st home run of the season. Guzman is now three away from breaking Walter Young's single-season Baysox record of 33 home runs, set in 2004.
With Owens mercifully gone, the seventh inning represented Bowie's best chance to get back in the game. First baseman Brandon Waring hit a one-out single to left field and two batters later, Miclat pushed him to second base with a single to right field. Figueroa loaded the bases with the fourth hit of the inning, a line drive to right field, but the rally was cut short when center fielder Xavier Avery struck out swinging.
Not content with their 7-1 lead, the Curve came back for more in the top of the eighth inning, facing reliever Sean Gleason. Mercer hit an infield single to third base with one out and with two outs, Hague hit his second home run of the night, a two-run shot to left field, giving Altoona a 9-1 lead. Hague went 2-for-4 on the night with his pair of homers, driving in three runs as he scored four.
Joseph reached first base on an error with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning, but would get no further as Miclat struck out and Figueroa grounded into a forceout to end the game.
The Baysox take on Altoona again Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. and play the Curve once more in their final regular-season home game, on Thursday at 7:05. The club closes out their third consecutive winning season in Richmond, with four games against the Flying Squirrels beginning Friday.
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