Fort Worth Drops Final Matchup Between Cats and Dogs
August 27, 2012 - North American League (NAmL)
Fort Worth Cats News Release
FORT WORTH -- It was not easy for Woods Fines, but the right hander was able to grind through six innings on the way to capturing his fifth victory of the season. The Prairie Dogs offense pieced together two big innings as Abilene ran away from the Cats in an 8-3 win at LaGrave Field on Sunday night.
Left-hander James Giulietti started for Fort Worth and struggled with his command all night en route to his seventh loss of the year. The southpaw walked five batters and hit one, allowing eight runs (six earned) on eight hits over five innings.
After stranding four runners over the first two frames, Abilene used four hits an error a piece by Jon Dziomba and Jose Ruiz to post four runs in the top of the third. Clint Stroud collected an RBI single and Dan Pembroke knocked in a run with a sacrifice fly in an inning that saw all nine Abilene starters come to the plate.
In the sixth, Giulietti walked the first three men he faced before manager Curtis Wilkerson called for right-hander Rick Bauer. The former Big-leaguer allowed a pair of sacrifice flies, hit a batter, and gave up a run-scoring single to Pembroke as the Prairie Dogs scored three more times and widened their lead to 8-0.
Fines faced only 11 batters over the first three innings but ran into command issues in the fourth. After hitting Chuck Caufield and walking Jose Ruiz to start the inning, the righty from North Carolina struck out three straight batters, stranding two aboard in the fourth.
Fines again dished out a pair of free passes in the bottom of the fifth, walking both R.J. Harris and Dziomba with two outs, before getting a ground out to strand two more.
C.J. Beatty blasted a two-run homer off the righty to draw the Cats to within six, 8-2, in the bottom of the sixth. In total, Fines gave up two runs on four hits while walking four and hitting a batter over six innings of work.
Derrick Dingeman and Kevin Gelinas teamed up to keep the Cats off the board in the seventh and eighth innings before Wade Morrison took the hill for the ninth.
Aiming to protect a six-run lead, Morrison walked three batters and allowed a run as he recorded two outs in the innings. However, with the bases loaded and the lefty Jose Ruiz coming to the plate, Bobby Brown called for southpaw Steve Merslich out of the 'pen. The lefty quickly got the power-hitting Ruiz to ground into a game-ending fielder's choice.
It was the final matchup between the two squads, as the Cats now begin an eight-game home and home series against the San Angelo Colts. The Colts are going to be the Cats' first round playoff opponent, as the postseason is just nine days away. Tickets to all remaining home games, as well as postseason, can be purchased online at FWCats.com or by phone at (817) 332-CATS.
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