MWL1 Quad Cities River Bandits

Quad Citites Split Doubleheader with Peoria

Published on May 12, 2009 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Quad Cities River Bandits News Release


Arquimedes Nieto flirted with perfection and Osvaldo Morales homered twice in a 4-0 win by the Quad Cities River Bandits in game two of a doubleheader, splitting the twin bill after the Peoria Chiefs won the opener, 8-2, on Tuesday at O'Brien Field.

Quad Cities (17-14) tossed a one-hit shutout in the game two win, as Nieto tossed five scoreless frames and Morales went 3-for-3 with three RBI. Peoria (17-14) started the day with a comfortable win in game one, putting five runs on the board in a third-inning rally that was helped along by a pair of errors.

Nieto (1-2) was masterful in game two, taking a perfect game into the sixth inning before being removed following a leadoff single by David Macias. The 20-year-old righty from Panama retired 15 of the 16 batters he faced and used just 47 pitches to last into the sixth, yielding only one hit over five scoreless frames while fanning three and walking none.

Meanwhile, Morales shouldered the offensive load.

The slugging Dominican first baseman started the scoring with a two-out, RBI-single in the first inning. Peoria righty Justin Bristow (0-2) then retired the next nine batters he faced in order, a streak that Morales broke up with a solo homer in the fourth. Two innings later, Morales belted a two-out solo blast to center, giving the River Bandits a 3-0 lead with his fifth bomb of the year and increasing his RBI total to 29, good for second in the Midwest League.

Quad Cities tacked on another run in the seventh thanks to a two-out triple by Alex Castellanos, who later scored on a double off the bat of Paul Cruz to push the advantage to 4-0.

Out of the bullpen, Ramon Delgado and Casey Mulligan each added a scoreless frame to complete the one-hit shutout that Nieto started.

In game one, the hot-hitting Chiefs - second in the league in offense - opened up a big 7-0 advantage after just three innings.

Peoria put two runs on the board in the opening frame, but sent 10 men to the plate during a five-run third inning to blow the game open. The third-inning rally started with a fielding error by Niko Vasquez at shortstop. Men were at second and third with one out when Nelson Perez lined a two-run double past Jon Edwards in left, and Junior Lake followed with a triple to the bushes at the base of the center field wall. Michael Brenly plated Perez with a bloop-single over a drawn-in infield that barely reached the grass in right-center, and later in the frame Ryan Flaherty capped the rally with a run-scoring double that gave the Chiefs a 7-0 advantage.

Quad Cities got on the board moments later. Chris Swauger led off the top of the fourth with a solo shot that caromed off the batter's eye in center, while Morales singled and scored on a groundout by Frederick Parejo to cut the deficit to 7-2.

Peoria's Michael Brenly added a sacrifice fly in the fourth to reach the 8-2 final. Marcus Hatley (2-1) earned the win for the home team with five solid innings of two-run ball, while Scott McGregor (1-2) suffered the loss after yielding eight runs - six earned - on 10 hits over three innings of work.

UP NEXT:

The River Bandits continue a five-game, four-day series at O'Brien Field in Peoria with game three against the Chiefs on Wednesday night. Quad Cities will return to Modern Woodmen Park for a season-long 10-game homestand that begins on Saturday with Blues Night, which will include a post-game concert by The Special 20's on a Rockin' Saturday. A U.S. Bank Family Sunday follows with Make-A-Wish day at the ballpark while Monday will feature a special 11:00 a.m. start for graduates of the River Bandits Book Buddies program. Every Tuesday is an Economic Stimulus Tuesday with 2-for-1 tickets and a free meal for kids 12 and under, but this Tuesday will also have fun with daytime TV on Soap Opera Night. And all of this is just the start of the fun, as the homestand will continue with Autographed Baseball Night on a Wacky WINS-day and run through Monday, May 25!

ABOUT THE BANDITS:

Under new ownership and management in 2008, the Quad Cities River Bandits topped 207,000 fans for only the sixth time in team history and the first time in 12 years. Having recently completed one of the most successful seasons in the history of the franchise - and with a renewed dedication to fans, sponsors and the Quad Cities community - the return of the River Bandits has brought a resurgence of support for the team. BanditWear, season tickets and mini-plans, and individual game tickets are on sale for the 2009 season by calling (563) 3-BANDIT or heading to www.RiverBandits.com. But hurry - good seats are going fast!

Check out the Quad Cities River Bandits Statistics

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Midwest League Stories from May 12, 2009


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