Late AirHogs rally sends Captains to defeat

Published on August 8, 2009 under American Association (AA)
Shreveport-Bossier Captains News Release


SHREVEPORT, La. - The Shreveport-Bossier Captains got their best outing from a starter in a week and a half, but their bullpen, which has been excellent all season, failed to protect the lead, as the Grand Prairie AirHogs got two runs in the seventh to tie the game and then five more in the eighth to take the lead, holding on for a 7-2 win in front of 3,102 fans at Fair Grounds Field on Friday night.

Rookie righthander Jimmy Heard was dominant through the first six innings, allowing only two hits while holding on to a 2-0 lead, courtesy of a Christopher Garcia two-run homer in the third - the first Captains lefty to hit a home run in Fair Grounds Field this season. But Heard allowed a leadoff double to Chad Gabriel in the eighth, before a passed ball and a walk to Derek Nicholson ended the righty's night, with Jakob Cunningham (4-1) on his way in.

The rookie reliever, who has been so dominant this season, got JB Tucker to hit into a 6-4-3 double play on the first pitch he saw, bringing in a run but emptying the bases. Jonathan Dziomba then restarted the rally with a double to right, before Aaron Garza brought in the tying run with a double to left-center.

Grand Prairie (38-38, 15-13 2nd half) kept the pressure on in the eighth, with Daniel Berg leading off the inning with a single. After a groundout moved him to second, Javier Brito doubled to give the AirHogs the lead, and Chad Gabriel followed with another double. Nicholson then singled to make it 5-2, and Tucker followed with another hit to chase Cunningham. Matt Petty came in and walked Dziomba to load the bases, and then hit Garza to force in the final run of the inning.

The Captains (37-38, 15-12) had the bases loaded in the eighth with two outs but Angelo Fermin lined out to right against Vinnie Dechristofaro to end the inning. Bryan Sabatella, Richard Paz and Garcia started the ninth inning with singles, knocking out Dechristofaro. But closer James Morrison came in and got Andres Rodriguez to foul out, before striking out Jose Torres and Selwyn Langaigne to pick up his 14th save of the year.

Notes: Garcia's homer was his second off starter Dimitri Camareno this season, and third overall in 2009...The AirHogs had seven runs and 11 hits in the last four innings after no runs and one hit in the first five...Six of the Captains' seven hits came from the top three spots in the order, Sabatella, Paz and Garcia.

The Shreveport-Bossier Captains continue their three-game series with the Grand Prairie AirHogs on Saturday, August 8 with the Willis-Knighton Back to School Bash, featuring Shots for Tots in the parking lot between 1-4 p.m. All games are broadcast on ESPN Radio, KRMD-1340 AM and streamed live on supertalk1340.com, with streaming video provided by NiftyTV on www.sbcaptains.com for all home games and select road games. For information on tickets, promotions, advertising, and other opportunities with the Captains, check out the team's Web site at www.sbcaptains.com, or call the Fair Grounds Field office at (318) 636-5555.

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American Association Stories from August 8, 2009


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