PCL1 Nashville Sounds

Sounds One Win Away From PCL Finals After Marathon Victory

Published on September 6, 2003 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Nashville Sounds News Release


ALBUQUERQUE – The Nashville Sounds pulled within one win of advancing to a date with the Sacramento River Cats in the PCL Championship Series with a come-from-behind, come-from-ahead 12-10 victory over the Albuquerque Isotopes in 12 innings in late Friday evening at Isotopes Park the third game of the best-of-five American Conference finals.

After blowing a three-run lead in the bottom of the eleventh inning, the Sounds offense came back with a two-out rally in the twelfth, posting a pair of runs to reclaim a 12-10 lead. Tomas de la Rosa drew a four-pitch walk from Albuquerque reliever Allen Levrault. Chris Snusz followed with an RBI double down the left-field line. Dave Doster provided an insurance run by following with an RBI single up the middle.

Nashville opened the night's scoring early due much in part to Albuquerque starter Jason Grilli's control problems in the first inning. The right-hander walked four batters and hit another in the frame, throwing 39 pitches but only 16 for strikes.

Tony Alvarez was hit by the first pitch of the ballgame and moved to second when Doster walked. After a J.J. Davis strikeout, Adam Hyzdu (4-for-7, 4 RBI) singled through the left side to plate Alvarez with the game's first run. Doster was thrown out at third by Isotopes leftfielder Chad Allen on the play, however. Grilli then issued three consecutive walks to Jorge Toca, Bobby Hill, and Aaron Holbert to force home Hyzdu with the second run of the inning before fanning Blake Barthol with sacks full to escape the jam.

Albuquerque wasted no time in getting their offense going, plating six runs of their own on six hits in the bottom of the frame to take a 6-2 advantage. The big blow came when Rob Stratton hit a three-run, inside-the-park home run off Nashville starter Dave Williams. Stratton, who paced the PCL with 32 longballs during the regular season, launched a high fly ball that drove Sounds centerfielder Tony Alvarez up the sharply-inclined hill in dead center, causing him to lose his footing. The 250-pound Stratton lumbered around the bases and beat the throw home with a sliding effort at the dish.

Williams was done following the six-run, 28-pitch inning; reliever Pat Mahomes pinch-hit for him in the top of the second. Justin Reid came on in relief and tossed two scoreless innings. He received solid defense behind him in the third, when Hyzdu, in left field, and shortstop Aaron Holbert combined on a relay to nail Abraham Nunez at the plate while trying to score from first on a Stratton double.

Both teams were scoreless in the second and third before Holbert pulled Nashville within 6-3 in the top of the fourth when he touched Grilli for his second homer of the postseason, a solo shot down the left-field line.

The Isotopes again responded quickly, getting the run back in the home half of the frame against Sounds reliever Jeff Bennett. Matt Hoover led off the frame with a double to center, was sacrificed to third, and came plateward on an infield single by Matt Erickson.

Nashville knotted the contest at 7 all with a four-run fifth that included a pair of moonshot home runs. Hyzdu brought Nashville back to within a run at 7-6 with a three-run blast that chased Grilli. The outfielder's second roundtripper of the playoffs plated Doster and Davis, who had doubled and singled, respectively, to open the inning.

Albuquerque reliever Marty McCleary replaced Grilli and was greeted with a massive Jorge Toca solo blast to right-center, the first sacker's initial homer of the postseason.

The game remained deadlocked over the next five innings as the clubs entered the eleventh in a 7-7 tie.

Tomas de la Rosa led off the Nashville eleventh with a triple to deep left-center off Isotopes closer Blaine Neal and broke a 7-7 tie one batter later when he trotted home on Chris Snusz's sacrifice fly to right. Dave Doster increased the lead two batters later with one swing of the bat, crushing a Neal offering to deep left to give the Sounds a 10-7 cushion. Doster's blast, his first of the playoffs, was the Sounds' fourth of the contest – a new Nashville postseason record.

The Isotopes pulled victory from the Sounds' grasp by touching closer Jim Mann for three two-out runs in the bottom of the inning to even things back up at 10-10. After Hooper drew a two-out walk, Derek Wathan smacked an RBI triple over Alvarez's head in center. Wood – the former Sound – stepped to the plate next and hit a 3-1 Mann pitch high and deep to left for his first home run of the playoffs and perhaps his most meaningful hit of the entire season.

Mann (1-0) picked up the victory despite the blown save, while Levrault (0-1) was tagged with the loss after giving up the decisive runs in the eleventh.

Nashville used 22 of the 24 players on their active roster in the contest; only Saturday starter Matt Guerrier and pitcher Ryan Vogelsong did not make an appearance. The teams used a total of 15 pitchers in the contest (eight by Nashville, seven by Albuquerque – both playoff records for the respective clubs) and tallied seven cumulative longballs.

Sacramento, which held the PCL's best record during the regular season, completed a three-game sweep of the Edmonton Trappers with a 5-1 victory earlier in the evening to advance to the PCL finals and will face the winner of the Nashville-Albuquerque series.

The Sounds will look to fill the other spot in the championship round when the series continues with an 8:11 p.m. CDT meeting on Saturday evening at Isotopes Park. Right-hander Matt Guerrier (4-6, 4.53 in the regular season) takes the hill for the Sounds. He'll face a yet-to-be-named Isotopes starter.

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Pacific Coast League Stories from September 6, 2003


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