SAL1 Kannapolis Cannon Ballers

Kannapolis, Greensboro Brawl Overshadows Intimidators' Ninth-Inning Comeback

Published on August 30, 2007 under South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Kannapolis Cannon Ballers News Release


Greensboro, NC - Chris Carter's swollen left eye served as a reminder to the Kannapolis Intimidators of the pitch that hit him in the face in the ninth inning of Tuesday night's game against the Greensboro Grasshoppers. Even after Wednesday's off day, it was clear by the bottom of the first inning the Intimidators did not forget.

Taking the liberty of baseball's unwritten rules of "you hit our best guy, we will hit your best guy," the Intimidators struck back against Greensboro's Logan Morrison, who leads the team with 22 home runs.

Kannapolis starting pitcher Jose Zazueta missed inside with the first pitch to Morrison, the fourth batter of the bottom of the first. However, Zazueta hit his mark on the second pitch, causing both dugouts and both bullpens to spill out onto the field. No punches were thrown. Only words spewed out and order was restored relatively quickly. Both dugouts were issued warnings.

With the retaliation seemingly performed, Morrison stepped up to the plate again in the bottom of the third inning. In the same pitch sequence, Zazueta threw inside on the first pitch and then plunked Morrison on the second pitch. Neither side was in the mood for peace after that.

Morrison charged the mound and both dugouts and both bullpens emptied once again. Having already done this once before, both teams added punches and pile-ups the second time around. Haymakers were tossed around the infield. Hats, gloves, shoes, and uniforms were strewn across the grass. Extracurricular activities lasted a couple minutes.

Finally, umpires Matt Abbott and Barry Lee, along with manager Chris Jones and Edwin Rodriguez, found their way to the middle of the melee and separated the two clubs. The game was delayed for nearly an hour (45 minutes on the box score) as the umpires went back into the clubhouse to view the tape from the closed-circuit TV at First Horizon Park and to talk to the league office about how to proceed after the delay.

When play resumed, Zazueta was ejected for throwing the second bean ball and Jones was tossed as the manager of the club who threw the bean ball after the warning was issued. Everybody else was re-inserted into the game. Anybody not on the field or coming up to bat in the current inning was told to retreat to the clubhouse.

With the brawl certainly drawing the headlines, it took away from a second straight ninth-inning rally for the Intimidators. Trailing 3-1 to start the ninth, Greensboro closer Blake Jones came in to close it out. In two-thirds of an inning Tuesday night, Jones allowed four runs (three earned) on four hits as the Intimidators walked off with a 10-9 win. Thursday, Jones allowed a one-out double to Brandon Allen, an RBI single to Archie Gilbert, and a line-drive, opposite-field home run to Lee Cruz.

Kanekoa Texeira pitched for the first time since August 1st, striking out two and earning his 16th save of the year.

It was the 11th time this season Kannapolis has won a game in its final at-bat.

The Intimidators (34-31, 66-69) ran their winning streak to five games, the second longest of the season. At 34-31, Kannapolis is three games over .500 for just the second time in the second half.

Kannapolis and Greensboro will face each other again Friday night at First Horizon Park. It is the final game of the four-game series. Game time is set for 7:00 pm.

Season Ticket & Advertising information is available now for the 2007 season. For more information or to join the hometown champs call the Intimidators front office at 704.932.FANS (3267) or visit www.intimidatorsbaseball.com.

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South Atlantic League Stories from August 30, 2007


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