EL1 Eastern League

Eastern League news

Published on July 19, 2004 under Eastern League (EL1) News Release


Southern Division Wins 2004 Eastern League All-Star Game

The Southern Division All-Stars defeated the Northern Division All-Stars 4-1 in the 3-A-Day of Dairy 2004 Eastern League All-Star Game at Prince George's Stadium in Bowie, Maryland.

The games first runs came in the bottom of the third inning when the Southern Division scored twice. Altoona Curve infielder Jeff Keppinger singled driving in Akron third baseman Scott Pratt from third, Altoona outfielder Chris Duffy scored from second on the play when the left fielder, Norwich's Doug Clark, misplayed the ball.

The game stayed at 2-0 until the bottom of the seventh inning when Akron outfielder Jason Cooper led off the inning with a home run, the only home run of the game for either team, giving the Southern Division the 3-0 lead.

The Southern Division scored once more in the bottom of the eighth when Erie catcher Maxim St. Pierre singled in Bowie first baseman Walter Young.

The Northern Division got their lone run of the game in the ninth inning when Dominic Rich of New Hampshire scored on an RBI single by Norwich's Angel Pagan.

Jeff Keppinger led the Southern Division with three hits, a double and two singles, while Scott Pratt, Maxim St. Pierre and Reading's John Castellano each added two hits apiece for the Southern Division.

Bowie right-hander Dave Crouthers picked up the win for the Southern Division. Crouthers retired all three batters he faced in the third inning.

Binghamton's Neal Musser took the loss for the Northern Division, after giving up two runs on three hits in the top of the third inning.

Jeff Keppinger was selected as the game's Most Valuable Player.

2004 Home Run Derby Results

First Round
Mike Cervenak (NOR) - 3 homers
Val Majewski (BOW) - 5 homers
Kevin West (NBR) - 1 homer
Walter Young (BOW) - 3 homers
Mitch Jones (TRE) - 3 homers
Ryan Howard (REA) - 0 homers
Hit Off
Mike Cervenak (NOR) - 2 homers
Walter Young (BOW) - 1 homer
Mitch Jones (TRE) - 3 homers
Final Round
Mike Cervenak (NOR) - 4 homers
Val Majewski (BOW) - 5 homers
Winner - Mitch Jones (TRE) - 6 homers

Ryan Howard Sets R-Phils Home Run Record

Reading Phillies first baseman Ryan Howard hit his 34th home run of the season on Friday night vs. the Altoona Curve at Altoona's Blair County Ballpark.

Howard surpassed Greg Luzinski, who hit 33 home runs for the R-Phils in 1970, and now has first place in Reading Phillies history to himself.

Howard broke Luzinski's record in the R-Phils 90th game of the season. Luzinski hit his 33 home runs over the course of the entire 142-game season.

Howard's record homer came in his 332nd at bat of the season. Luzinski had 471 at bats during the 1970 season.

The Eastern League record for home runs in a season is 41 and is held by Ken Strong who set the record in 1930 while playing for Hazelton. The record was matched by Rick Lancellotti in 1979 while he was playing for Buffalo.

Ryan Howard's 34 home runs and 92 RBI lead all of Minor League Baseball.

Giants Extend PDC With Navigators

The Norwich Navigators and the San Francisco Giants have reached an agreement that extends the current Player Development Contract through the 2006 season. The Giants have been the Navigators Major League parent organization since 2003. "We're excited to be back," said Bobby Evans, the Giants Director of Minor League Administration.

Navigators General Manager Keith Hallal formalized the agreement Friday afternoon. "We are elated to renew our PDC with the Giants. They have been first class to work with since day one," said Hallal, who also began his tenure as Norwich General Manager in 2003.

Transactions

Akron Aeros
Sent C Mario Matulich to Mahoning Valley (A)
Received C Ryan Garko from Kinston (A)
C Brian Luderer Retired
Received C Mario Matulich from Mahoning Valley (A)
Received LHP Carl Sadler from Buffalo (AAA)
Placed LHP Carl Sadler on the DL
Received RHP Kane Davis from Buffalo (AAA)

Altoona Curve
Received LHP Zach Duke from Lynchburg (A)

Binghamton Mets
Sent RHP Micah Mangrum to Capital City (A)
Released LHP Lance Caraccioli
Activated RHP Joey Cole from the DL
Received LHP Royce Ring from Norfolk (AAA)
Sent LHP Neal Musser to Norfolk (AAA)

Bowie Baysox
None

Erie SeaWolves
Sent Mike Rabelo to Lakeland (A)
Received RHP Chris Mears from Toledo (AAA)
Sent OF Jason Knoedler to West Michigan (A)

Harrisburg Senators
Sent RHP Justin Echols to Brevard County (A)
Sent RHP Wilfredo Rodriguez to Brevard County (A)
Received RHP Corey Thurman
Received RHP Shawn Hill from Montreal
Placed RHP Shawn Hill on the DL

New Britain Rock Cats
None

New Hampshire Fisher Cats
None

Norwich Navigators
Sent RHP Brad Hennessey to Fresno (AAA)
Sent INF Julio Cordido to San Jose (A)
Sent RHP Jeremy Accardo to San Jose (A)
Received SS Angel Chavez from San Jose (A)
Received RHP Billy Sadler from San Jose (A)
Received RHP Merkin Valdez from San Jose (A)

Portland Sea Dogs
Sent RHP Joe Rogers to Sarasota (A)
Sent C Edgar Martinez to Augusta (A)
Placed 1B Sean McGowan on the Temporary Inactive List
Received C Clint Chauncey from Augusta (A)
Received RHP Tim Hamulack from Pawtucket (AAA)
Received 1B Stefan Bailie from Sarasota (A)

Reading Phillies
None

Trenton Thunder
Received RHP Kevin Brown from New York

Line of the Week

July 16, 2004
IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA
6 4 1 1 1 14 0 1.50

Scott Baker, New Britain Rock Cats

New Britain Rock Cats right handed pitcher Scott Baker set the franchise record for strikeouts when he fanned 14 Binghamton Mets on July 16. This was accomplished in only six innings - the RHP's outing was cut short as he had pitched an inning in the Eastern League All-Star Game two nights earlier.

Quote of the Week

"The phrase 'off with the crack of the bat', while romantic, is really meaningless, since the outfielder should be in motion long before he hears the sound of the ball meeting the bat."

Joe DiMaggio, New York Yankees

News and Notes From Around The League
Week Ending July 18, 2004

Akron Aeros

RHP Lee Gronkiewicz pitched five shutout innings in three relief appearances last week, Gronkiewicz held opponents to a .063 average and struck out six batters. Joe Inglett hit .458 (11-for-24) with three doubles, one triple, seven runs batted in and seven runs scored last week.

Altoona Curve

LHP Zach Duke made an impressive Double-A debut Saturday night vs. Reading, tossing six scoreless innings and striking out six while earning the win in the 7-0 Curve victory. The Curve set a franchise record by belting five home runs in an 8-7, 10-inning loss at Portland on July 12. Ronny Paulino and Ray Sadler each hit two home runs, while Ryan Doumit hit one.

Binghamton Mets

RHP Scott Kazmir went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA, five strikeouts and a .176 opponents batting average in his one start last week. Ron Acuna hit .304 (7-for-23) with two doubles, four runs batted in and six runs scored last week.

Bowie Baysox

RHP Robert Averette went 1-0 with a 2.35 ERA, three strikeouts and a .233 opponents batting average last week. Walter Young hit .381 (8-for-21) with one double, one home run and six runs batted in last week.

Erie SeaWolves

Ryan Raburn hit .476 (10-for-21) with three doubles, one home run and five runs batted in last week. Curtis Granderson hit .348 (8-for-23) with one triple, four runs batted in and six runs scored last week. Anderson Hernandez hit .333 (8-for-24) with one triple, one home run and six runs scored last week. RHP Preston Larrison went 1-0 with a 0.00 ERA, two strikeouts and a .115 opponents batting average in his one start last week.

Harrisburg Senators

Larry Broadway hit .500 (10-for-20) with three doubles, one home run and five runs batted in last week. In his one start last week RHP Michael Hinckley received a no-decision, he allowed no runs and two hits while striking out six batters.

New Britain Rock Cats

The New Britain Rock Cats welcomed their 200,000th fan of the season to New Britain Stadium on Sunday. It is the quickest the team has reached the 200,000 attendance mark in franchise history. Garrett Jones hit .400 (6-for-15) with one triple, one home run and three runs batted in last week.

New Hampshire Fisher Cats

RHP Chris Baker allowed one run in five innings of work on Monday ending a personal 11-game losing streak. Baker had not received a win since August of 2003. On Sunday, New Hampshire tied its franchise-record by scoring seven times in the ninth inning. Dominic Rich extended his hitting streak on Sunday by going 2- for-3.

Norwich Navigators

The complete game shutout by LHP Pat Misch on Sunday was his third of the season and set a new Norwich franchise record. 3B Mike Cervenak went 0-for-4 on Sunday snapping his 8-game hitting streak. The Grand Slam by Derin McMains last week was the second by a Norwich player this year. The most Grand Slams by the Navigators in a season is nine, done in 1997.

Portland Sea Dogs

OF Brett Roneberg will play for the Australian Olympic Team during the Summer Games in Athens next month. The Sea Dogs rallied from a 6-run ninth inning deficit to win on Monday. It was the largest ninth inning comeback in Sea Dogs franchise history.

Reading Phillies

Kevin Barker has started every game since June 11th and is hitting .287(39-136) with 27 runs scored, 13 doubles, six home runs and 20 runs batted in. John Castellano has hit safely in his last sixteen games (23-for-59, .390).

Trenton Thunder

RHP Chien-Ming Wang went 1-0 with eight strike outs, a 2.57 ERA and a .222 opponents batting average in one start last week. Andy Cannizaro hit .438 (7-for-16) with two doubles, two runs batted in and two runs scored. In a rehab start last week RHP Kevin Brown only lasted two innings, he gave up seven hits and five runs.

Eastern League Player of the Week

JASON COOPER, an outfielder for the Akron Aeros, is the Eastern League's Player of the Week for the week ending July 18th. Cooper, a native of Richland, Washington, had an outstanding week for the Aeros, hitting .444 (8-for-18) with three doubles, three home runs, 10 RBI, seven runs scored and a 1.111 slugging percentage in five games. The 6'2", 220 lb. slugger also played for the Southern Division in the 2004 Eastern League All-Star Game in Bowie, Maryland last week. He represented the Aeros well in the contest, hitting the only home run of the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. Jason was selected by Cleveland Indians in the 3rd round of the June 2002 draft out of Stanford University.

Jason Cooper's Batting Line for the week ending June 18, 2004:
G Avg. AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R SB BB SLG%
5 .444 18 8 3 0 3 10 7 0 6 1.111

Year to Date:
G Avg. AB H 2B 3B HR RBI R SB BB SLG%
88 .249 338 84 22 4 11 57 40 2 36 .435

Eastern League Pitcher of the Week

PATRICK MISCH, a lefthanded pitcher for the Norwich Navigators, has been named the Eastern League's Pitcher of the Week for the week ending July 18th. The 6'2", 170 lb. hurler was 1-0 with seven strikeouts and a 0.00 ERA for the Navigators last week. In his first and only appearance of the week Misch, a native of Northbrook, Illinois, struck out seven batters and did not allow a walk while tossing a complete game five-hit shutout against Bowie Baysox at Dodd Stadium. Misch currently has a league-best three shutouts this season. He is also currently ranked among the league leaders in innings pitched (116), ERA (2.48) and strikeouts (92). Patrick was selected by the San Francisco Giants in the 7th round of the June 2003 draft out of Western Michigan University.

Patrick Misch's Statistics for the week ending June 18, 2004:
G W L S IP H R ER K BB ERA
1 1 0 0 9 5 0 0 7 0 0.00

Year to Date:
G W L S IP H R ER K BB ERA
18 4 3 0 116 96 37 32 92 20 2.48

Check out the Eastern League Statistics

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Eastern League Stories from July 19, 2004


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