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SAL1 Hagerstown Suns

Suns Fall Early

July 30, 2009 - South Atlantic League (SAL1)
Hagerstown Suns News Release


HAGERSTOWN, MD - The Hagerstown Suns (13-21) cut a 6-0 deficit in half in the seventh inning on Thursday night and brought the tying run to the plate twice, but it proved too little, too late as the West Virginia Power (18-14) maintained control in an 8-3 Suns loss.

West Virginia starting pitcher Quinton Miller (1-2), who came into the game with an earned-run average of 6.65, shut out Hagerstown over six innings of work, carrying his team to a 6-0 lead. The Suns managed six hits against Miller, but excess aggression on the base paths turned three of those six hits into outs.

Second baseman Valerio Heredia led off Hagerstown's first turn at the plate with a single to left, but was turned away easily at second trying to take an extra base. In the bottom of the fifth, third baseman Nick Arata was beaten to the plate for the final out of the inning trying to score from second on a single by designated hitter Robby Jacobsen. West Virginia picked up its third outfield assist of the evening in the sixth when catcher Derek Norris tried unsuccessfully to turn a leadoff single to the centerfield wall into a double.

Meanwhile, the Power pounced on Suns starter A.J. Morris (0-1) in his Hagerstown debut, after he was called up from the Gulf Coast League Nationals prior to the game. The Washington Nationals' fourth-round pick in the 2009 Major League Baseball Draft in June, Morris lasted just four innings, giving up four runs, three of them earned.

The Suns offense finally got into the game in the bottom of the seventh, once Miller was replaced by reliever Duke Welker. Arata led off the inning with a double off the third baseman's glove and down the left field line, and came around to score on a passed ball. Jacobsen and first baseman Tyler Moore delivered run-scoring singles later in the inning to make the score 6-3 in favor of West Virginia, but both Suns were stranded on the bases as the rally wilted.

The Power bounced right back against Hagerstown reliever Kevin Light in the top of the eighth inning, scoring two runs on a two-out, bases-loaded infield single by Kyle Morgan.

Trailing 8-3, the only remaining highlight for the Suns came in the top of the ninth, when centerfielder Chris Curran made a spectacular catch to rob Jeremy Farrell of extra bases. Diving to his right and back towards the outfield wall, Curran laid out his body on Municipal Stadium's gravel warning track to record the spectacular putout.

Curran was also one of four Suns with two hits on the evening, joining Moore, Jacobsen and Heredia.

Hagerstown will look to pull even in the four-game series on Friday at 7:05 p.m., with a Friday Night Fireworks display following the game, courtesy of The Herald-Mail. The Hagerstown Suns play at Municipal Stadium in Hagerstown, MD and are a Class "A" affiliate of the Washington Nationals. Ticket packages and sponsorships are available by calling the Suns at 301-791-6266. Visit the Suns on the web at www.hagerstownsuns.com. The Suns are owned by Los Angeles based Mandalay Baseball Properties.

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South Atlantic League Stories from July 30, 2009


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