IL news and notes

Published on May 20, 2004 under International League (IL1) News Release

BUFFALO BISONS
A SIX PACK OF HOMERS: For the first time in almost five years, the Bisons hit six home runs in a single game. The Herd put together the long ball barrage on Wednesday night in an 8-5 victory over the Louisville Bats at Dunn Tire Park. First baseman Eric Crozier led the team with a pair of long balls (6,7) while putting together a 3-3 night (he also doubled and walked). Right-fielder Russell Branyan (7), designated hitter Ernie Young (6), third baseman Jhonny Peralta (1) and left-fielder Todd Dunwoody (4) completed the six-homer night with blasts of their own. The last time the team hit that many home runs in a single game was May 1, 1999 when the Bisons launched seven homers in a game at Pawtucket (they hit six homers in a game 6/15/96 vs. Omaha).

GONZALEZ JOINS HERD: Outfielder Raul Gonzalez has joined the Bisons after spending the last year plus in the Mets' organization. In 18 games with the Norfolk Tides this season, he hit .262 (17-65) with one home run and six runs driven in. In 2003, Gonzalez hit .358 (43-120) with three home runs and 19 RBI in 32 games with the Tides. He also made two stints with the Mets that year, where he hit .230 (50-217) with two home runs and 21 RBI in 107 games.

BOBBLE HEAD GIVEAWAYS BEGIN: The Bisons will begin one of their most popular promotions this coming Saturday, May 22. As the Bisons host the Tides for a 2:05 p.m. start, the first 4,000 fans with a ticket through the Swan Street Gate will receive a Nextel Coco Crisp bobble head. The fan-favorite Crisp spent parts of two seasons with the Herd, and in 56 games last year, Crisp hit .360 with 20 stolen bases. Later on this year, the Bisons will give away bobble heads to celebrate Moises Alou (June 6) and Eric Wedge (Aug. 25).

CHARLOTTE KNIGHTS
NO ORDINARY JOE: Since sitting out six games from 5/6-5/11 with a sore back, outfielder Joe Borchard has a hit in all seven games he has played in. Since returning to the lineup, Borchard is hitting .408 (11/27) with 3 home runs and 10 RBI. His home run on 5/16 was his first since homering 4/22 @ Richmond, and the next night at Scranton/WB, Borchard went 2-for-5 with two home runs (including a first inning grand slam) and seven RBI. The seven RBI were the most by a Knights' player since Jeff Liefer had eight in a game on 7/16/99 @ Columbus.

FOUR IS THE MAGIC NUMBER: Thus far in 2004, when the Knights have scored four runs in a game they have been extremely successful. Charlotte is currently 17-4 when scoring four runs or more, and 4-15 when scoring less than four. The Knights currently sit 1.5 games back of Durham for first in the IL South, and picked up three games in the standings over the past week thanks to a four-game winning streak. In all four wins, the Knights scored at least four runs.

BOBBING FOR HITS: Knights infielder Bobby Smith has been on a tear of late, increasing his average 52 points from .241 to .293 over a recent nine-game hitting streak. Smith had seven multi-hit games over the nine contests, and hit .436 (17-39) over the streak. The 29-year-old has played 1B, SS, 3B, and DH so far this season, and currently leads the IL in doubles (17) and is tied for the League lead in extra-base hits (24).

COLUMBUS CLIPPERS
EVERYBODY'S A STAR: The Clippers continue to lead the League in hitting with a .278 average, yet the club has only four .300 hitters, Andy Phillips (.342), Bubba Crosby (.314), Darren Bragg (.304) and Felix Escalona (.303). Phillips is red hot after missing most of last season with a tender elbow and having extended spring training this season after elbow surgery. Escalona has been the big surprise of the season. Felix, who started playing professional baseball at the age of 17, has hit his way from the ninth spot in the batting order to the fifth spot. The shortstop has seen major league action the past two seasons with Tampa Bay and Baltimore.

DOWN BUT NOT OUT: Third baseman Jeff Deardorff has been regulated to the DH spot due to a finger injury to his throwing hand. Despite his injury, Deardorff lit up Buffalo pitching for two home runs, six RBI and scored four runs this past week. Jeff was signed as a free agent this season. He started the season with Rochester last season.

COLUMBUS' CROZIER CORNER: Buffalo first baseman Eric Crozier had a large contingent of home town fans rooting him on at The Coop last weekend. The Columbus Independence High School grad was gracious and popular with both the press and the fans.

MI AMIGO: Jose Contreras had two fine starts with the Clippers this week. He was 2-0, striking out 19 in 13.2 innings of work. Against Buffalo, Contreras allowed two runs on four hits while striking out twelve in seven innings. He did allow Chris Clapinski to steal home on the front end of a triple steal.

DURHAM BULLS
McGRIFF THE MAN: Fred McGriff, just nine homers away at the major league level of joining the magic 500 club, will arrive in Durham today. The 40-year-old McGriff, who was with Tampa Bay in spring training, is expected to get himself into playing shape before joining the Devil Rays. Tampa is the lowest scoring team in the American League.

UPTON UP TO TASK: The Bulls have a bit of young and old with one of the top prospects in the minors now playing shortstop in B.J. Upton. In seven games so far, Upton is 8-for-29 with three homers and seven RBI. Upton was the 2nd overall pick in the 2002 draft. The 19-year-old was only a year old when McGriff broke into the majors with Toronto in 1986.

STRUGGLING TO SCORE: Adding McGriff should also help the Bulls offense. Durham hasn't scored more than five runs in a game since May 7th, when the team shut out Louisville 7-0 at home before a sellout crowd. The Bulls lost their top home run hitter, Jonny Gomes, when he was promoted to Tampa Bay this week.

COLOME CONFIDENT: Reliever Jesus Colome, who was in the majors all of last season, has pitched scoreless ball over his last 15 innings, covering eight outings. Colome hasn't given up a run since April 22nd.

INDIANAPOLIS INDIANS
COOPER VISITS BRICKYARD: Indians manager Cecil Cooper was the official starter for Thursday's practice at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway. Cooper waived the green flag at 10:30 a.m. to begin the Infiniti Pro Series at the track. The Indians public relations staff joined Cooper for a tour of the IMS, which included a visit of pole sitter Buddy Rice's garage. Cooper had an opportunity to meet with Rice, who will visit Victory Field Thursday night and take batting practice with the Tribe.

ESPN-2 MAKES TREK TO VICTORY FIELD: A camera crew from ESPN-2 SportsCenter captured IRL driver Darren Manning spending some time with the Indianapolis Indians at Victory Field, Tuesday morning. The rookie driver from England spent time with Tribe manager Cecil Cooper as the second-year Indians skipper instructed the driver on the finer points of throwing a baseball. Manning also played ping pong with several of the Indians players, teaming up with infielder Luis Figueroa. The segment was aired live on ESPN-2 SportsCenter at 5:50 p.m. Tuesday evening.

INDIANS ON TOP: Indianapolis is 9-9 during the month of May and 11-7 at Victory Field, despite the loss of three key position players to injury (Dave Krynzel, Chris Coste and J.J. Hardy) and Major League promotions to pitchers Matt Wise and Mike Adams.

LOUISVILLE BATS
REHAB OVER: Reds OF Austin Kearns joined Louisville May 10 on a Major League Rehab assignment after suffering a broken left forearm when he was hit by a Ryan Vogelsong pitch on April 26. Kearns played RF in the bottom of the first inning but did not return to the field for the bottom of the second. Yesterday Kearns ended his rehab assignment with Louisville and rejoined Cincinnati. During his time in Louisville, Kearns made eight appearances (10-28, .357, 3 2B, 1 3B, 2HR, 8RBI, 1SB, 8R) and hit safely in six of them. To make room on the Reds roster, Cincinnati outrighted OF Jason Romano to Louisville. Romano went 1-for-16 in 15 appearances, including 1 start, for the Reds. He was claimed off waivers from the Devil Rays on 4/22. Romano is currently not on the Bats active roster.

A SERIES WIN!: With Sunday's victory over Toledo, Louisville won their first series of the season by taking three of four from the Hens. The Bats are now 1-3-8 through 12 series.

WHAT A RELIEF: Since allowing 10 earned runs May 10 versus Charlotte, the Louisville bullpen has gone 24.2 innings, allowing 18 hits, but only 3 earned runs over the span, good for a 1.09 ERA during that time. The bullpen ERA has dropped from a season high 4.45 to its current mark of 3.85.

NORFOLK TIDES
STEARNS TO MISS GAMES: John Stearns left Norfolk this morning to be with his mother while she undergoes triple bypass surgery Friday morning. Stearns is scheduled to miss the games thru Saturday and then return to the team for Sunday afternoon's game in Buffalo.

IT'S NO RANDY JOHNSON, BUT WE'LL TAKE IT: Despite losing 4-3 to the Red Wings Tuesday evening, the Tides held their opponent to 3 hits for the second night in a row. The Tides allowed just 10 hits over 3 games (27 innings). Randy Keisler had a no-hitter over 3 2/3 innings on Sunday. Tyler Yates bettered that on Monday going 5 2/3 innings without allowing a hit. Jason Roach relieved Yates, got out of the inning, but allowed a hit to the first batter in the top of the 7th inning. Aaron Heilman gave up a grand slam in the first inning of Tuesday evening's game, but did not allow another hit until he had recorded 2 outs in the 6th inning.

AND THEY'RE OFF: After trailing at some point in 28 of their first 31, the Tides did not trail at all in 4 consecutive games May 14-17.

HOLDING AT THREE: The Tides are 14-2 when allowing their opponent to score 3 runs or less.

PARRA POWERS ON: Jose Parra has now had positive decisions in his last 9 consecutive appearances. He saved 5 games in a row, won the game on May 9th, and has now recorded 3 more consecutive saves. For the season, he has made 13 appearances recording 9 saves, 2 wins and 2 no decisions. He currently has a streak of 6 2/3 innings of not allowing a run. He has struck out 7 and allowed just one hit in those 6 2/3 innings.

OTTAWA LYNX
WEEKLY WINNER STAYS HOT: Lynx 3B Jose Leon, winner of the IL Batter-of-the-Week, has not let the award get to him Leon has now hit in a current league high 10 straight games, over which time he has hit .472 (17-for-36) with 6 homers and 10 RBI. Leon, the IL leader in slugging (.714), has now hit a team leading 10 homers this year, which ties the team lead for 2003, when Pedro Swann led the team. At this pace, Leon would hit 36 homers, which would destroy the franchise record of 24 set by Hensley Meulens in 1997.

ONE UP, ONE DOWN: After 40 games the Lynx are now 16-24, which leaves them eight games under .500 for the first time since the last day of the 2001 season, when a Lynx loss dropped them to 68-76. An interesting fact about the Lynx slow start is that no Lynx starting pitcher has yet to win two straight games.

BROOM HILDA: Today the Lynx look to avoid their first road sweep of a four game series in Toledo since April of 1996 when they play the final game of their four-game set with the Mud Hens.

ROSTER ROUNDUP: The Lynx have made 42 transactions thus far this season, including several this week. Lynx closer and all-time saves leader Darwin Cubillan had his contract purchased by Baltimore and made his first Major League appearance since 2001 when he pitched 3.1 scoreless innings last Saturday. Replacing Cubillan on the Lynx roster is RHP Kurt Ainsworth, who makes his Lynx debut on Thursday evening when he gets the start for Ottawa in Toledo. Ainsworth was acquired from the San Francisco Giants last year in the trade deadline deal that sent current Oriole Sidney Ponson to the Giants.

OFFENSIVE, BUT NOT IN A GOOD WAY: The month of May has not been a good one for several Lynx hitters. Clay Bellinger (.162), Darnell McDonald (.167), Jack Cust (.175), Chad Mottola (.204) and Mike Fontenot (.207) have yet to hit stride for the Lynx, who have hit .252 as a team this month. Fontenot has yet to score a run this month, and it has now been 16 games in total since he has crossed home plate.

PAWTUCKET RED SOX
TRIPLE-A ALL-STAR GAME UPDATE: The Pawtucket Red Sox held a press conference this past Monday (May 17) to unveil plans for the upcoming Triple-A All-Star Game and Events slated for this July 12-14 in Pawtucket and Providence.

The PawSox announced several of the athletes and celebrities from the world of sports and entertainment who will participate in Celebrity Monday at McCoy Stadium (July 12 at 7:00 pm). Dozens of stars will play for either Team Pesky (led by Red Sox Hall of Famer Johnny Pesky) or Team DiMaggio (led by another Red Sox Hall of Famer Dom DiMaggio) in a Celebrity Homerun Challenge at McCoy. The growing list includes: former Boston Red Sox players Oil Can Boyd, Rick Burleson, Cecil Cooper, Tommy Harper, Bill Lee, Tim Naehring, Rico Petrocelli, Jerry Remy, Luis Tiant, and John Tudor among many others. Several members of the Super Bowl Champion New England Patriots will attend as well as former Boston Bruin greats Gerry Cheevers and Brad Park, basketball figures like Dave Gavitt, Marvin Barnes, and Joe Hassett, and other athletes and entertainers such as boxer Vinny Paz and Hollywood producers Bobby and Peter Farrelly. Many more members from the world of entertainment are close to committing. After the celebrities have had their swings to begin the night, the "real" sluggers from the International League and Pacific Coast League All-Star Teams will take over for a Homerun Derby. When that is complete, the Rhode Island Philharmonic will perform a patriotic concert on the field at McCoy. A spectacular fireworks display will culminate the Monday event.

The itinerary for Providence Tuesday (July 13 from 5:00 – 10:00 pm) was also unveiled. On Tuesday, July 13, downtown Providence will take center stage for a free Baseball Block Party featuring a Fan Festival and Waterfire. Members of the baseball world will be invited to an exclusive gala at the Rhode Island State House before leading the parade to light Waterfire. A host of other activities will take place throughout the entire downtown area as players and fans will mingle in a number of area hot spots. Among the many highlights of the night will be a Free Concert featuring Joey McIntyre (former lead singer for New Kids on the Block) along with the group Hanson, and Evan & Jaron. In addition, the Major League All-Star Game will be shown on large screen televisions.

Finally, on Wednesday, July 14, the RI Convention Center in Providence will stage the Annual All-Star Luncheon at 12:00 Noon featuring The Teammates – as Boston Red Sox legends Johnny Pesky, Dom DiMaggio, and Bobby Doerr will be the guest speakers moderated by ESPN broadcaster Sean McDonough. After that, the national sporting spotlight shines on McCoy Stadium as the PawSox host the 17th Annual Triple-A All-Star Game at 7:00 pm on ESPN2.

Tickets for Celebrity Monday and the Triple-A All-Star Game are virtually sold-out. Providence Tuesday is a free event for the public. Tickets are now available to the public for the luncheon on Wednesday.

RICHMOND BRAVES
SWEET 16: Charles Thomas enters Thursday as the International League's batting leader with a .359 average. Thomas, who has a .396 on-base percentage, has reached base safely in 16 consecutive games since game two of a May 3 doubleheader at Durham. Thomas has collected a hit in 14 of those 16 games, going 27-for-65 (.415) at the plate with 8 2B, 2 3B, HR, 12 RBI, and 11R.

BE LIKE MIKE: Mike Hessman has homered in 10 of his 18 games with Richmond this season and is averaging one home run per 7.1 at-bats. Hessman, who is tied with Ottawa's Jose Leon and Rochester's Michael Restovich for fourth in the International League with 10 home runs, now has 52 home runs in a Richmond uniform. He needs four home runs to move into a tie with Paul Runge (1981-84, 1986-87) for fifth in franchise history. Hessman's teammate, Damon Hollins, ranks third on the all-time home run list with 67.

ROCHESTER RED WINGS
PUT ME IN COACH: Infielder Augie Ojeda has really answered the call since infielder Jason Bartlett went on the disabled list with a broken bone in his right wrist. Ojeda is batting .367 (11-for-30) since May 9 (10 games) when he took over the starting shortstop position. Ojeda really struggled being a utility player, batting just .113 (6-for-53) in the month of April but has turned it up batting .340 (16-for-47) in the month of May.

THERE'S A NEW SHERIFF IN TOWN: Red Wings closer Jesse Crain has been very impressive during the month of May, going 0-0 with seven saves and a 0.87 ERA in eight games. In 10.1 innings of work, Crain has allowed just one run on seven hits while walking four and striking out 11. Crain hasn't allowed a run in his last seven appearances (last run he allowed was on May 2nd) and opponents are batting just .138 (4-for-29) against him in those seven appearances.

GOOD STARTS: The Red Wings starters have done a nice job the last 12 games, going 7-3 with a 2.55 ERA. In 74.0 innings of work, the starters have allowed just 25 runs (21 earned) on 58 hits while walking just 13 and striking out 55. The Wings opponents are batting just .193 (58-for-301) against them.

SCRANTON/WILKES-BARRE RED BARONS
FLOYD DOESN'T ALLOW HIT BUT READING LOSES: Phillies top pitching prospect Gavin Floyd did all he could do last night for the Double-A Reading Phillies but still lost the game. Floyd had a no-hitter through eight innings but Danny Solano's RBI single in the bottom of the ninth proved to be the difference, as the New Hampshire Fisher Cats defeated the Reading Phillies, 1-0. Floyd was dominating in his eight innings of work. He allowed three walks and struck out five to earn the no-decision. Floyd's 1.76 ERA is good for second in the Eastern League. Tyrell Godwin led-off the ninth inning with a triple after Floyd was relieved by Eude Brito. Solano followed with his single to give the Fisher Cats the decision.

CROWELL OPTIONED: Jim Crowell was optioned to the Red Barons following last night's Phillies game when Roberto Hernandez was activated off the DL. Crowell pitched in four games for the Phillies going 0-0 with a 3.00 ERA (3.0 IP, 6H, 2R, ER, 0BB, 1K). Prior to his call up 5/5 he was 1-0, 2 saves, 0.75 ERA for the Red Barons in 5 games.

A NOTE THAT EVEN SURPRISED THE PR GUY: When the Red Barons scored nine runs Monday night vs. Charlotte and lost it sent PR Director Mike Cummings to the record books searching for how many times that happened. Incredibly it had happened just eight times previously in 15 seasons. That's right, since 1989 the Red Barons were an eye-popping 258-8 (.969) when scoring nine or more runs. More recently they were 72-1 over the past four plus seasons. Other interesting facts (at least we think so): they have had nine seasons when they were undefeated scoring nine and only one year, 1991, when they lost more than one time (twice).

SYRACUSE SKYCHIEFS
SAINT BENARD: Former Major League outfielder Marvin Benard joined the SkyChiefs on Tuesday and made his presence felt right away. Benard had two hits, including a three-run homer, as the SkyChiefs snapped a four-game losing streak with a 9-4 victory over Richmond. Benard also singled home a run in the game to give him a total of four RBI, tying a team season high.

EVERYONE JOINS THE PARTY: In Wednesday's 9-8 victory over Richmond, every Syracuse player in the starting lineup had at least one hit. Jeff Guiel had a pair of singles and eight other players added one hit each for a total of ten. The game marked the third time this season that all nine SkyChiefs starters had at least one hit in the same game. The other two occurrences were April 14 in the first game of a doubleheader at Ottawa and April 23 at Pawtucket.

SOUTHERN LIVING: Shawn Fagan had at least one hit in seven of the SkyChiefs' eight games on the team's recent road trip to Richmond and Norfolk. On the trip, Fagan batted .375 (12-for-32) and raised his batting average on the season from .227 to .276. Gabe Gross also had a productive trip, batting .389 (7-for-18).

TOLEDO MUD HENS
CAREER MILESTONE REACHED: Wednesday, May 19, was a great day for Warren Morris and Mud Hens fans alike. Morris went 1-3 in the contest versus Ottawa in front of a sold-out crowd at Fifth Third Field. While 1-3 is not spectacular, the "one" is what's important. Morris' one hit was all he needed to reach 1,000 hits in his professional baseball career. He began his pro career in 1997 and has played in six different organizations: Texas, Pittsburgh, Minnesota, St. Louis, Boston, and Detroit.

IT'S FOR THE KIDS: On Tuesday, May 18, and Wednesday, May 19, the Mud Hens awakened early to face the Ottawa Lynx for a 10:30 AM game each day. The game times were not too early for area students, however. Both days marked a sold-out Hen House, featuring 10,300 cheering school kids from around the Toledo area. Pepsi School Kids Celebration Education Days were the third and fourth of their kind held during the 2004 season. The Education Days give students a chance to see their favorite team in action and also learn about the educational aspects needed in the game of baseball, such as math and science.

HISTORY MADE AT FIFTH THIRD FIELD: The Toledo Mud Hens are excited to announce the first-ever scheduled day/night doubleheader in the history of Fifth Third Field. On Saturday, May 22, the Mud Hens will take on the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Red Barons twice in one day for the middle of a four-game series. The first game is scheduled to begin at noon with the nightcap following at 7:00 PM. The Pharm Post-Game Fireworks display will follow the second game and the second Boy Scout Sleepover of 2004 will also take place on the field after the doubleheader.

WHO CAN TAME THAMES? Through games of May 19, Marcus Thames is swinging through the competition, ranking among top IL hitters in eight categories. Thames ranks tenth overall in batting average (.331), first in runs scored (31), tied for first in extra-base hits (24), second in home runs (12), second in slugging percentage (.669), tied for fourth in RBI (31), fifth in hits (47), and tied for fifth in doubles (12).

International League Stories from May 20, 2004

• Bats Prevail over Bisons, 11-1 - Louisville Bats
• Buffalo Downs Louisville 8-5 - Louisville Bats
• IL news and notes - IL1
• SkyChiefs add Bobby Estalella - Syracuse Mets
• Sergeant Slaughter to headline annual armed forces celebration - Syracuse Mets
• Raul Gonzalez Joins Herd - Buffalo Bisons

The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.