PCL1 Albuquerque Isotopes

'Topes drop third straight to O-Royals

Published on April 12, 2009 under Pacific Coast League (PCL1)
Albuquerque Isotopes News Release


The Albuquerque Isotopes' (1-3) bats came alive in the bottom of the ninth but it was too little, too late as the Omaha Royals (3-1) left the Duke City with a 10-4 victory and a series win on Easter Sunday at Isotopes Park.

Down 10-2 in the bottom of the ninth, the ‘Topes' bats finally showed some life, as Luis Maza belted a two-run shot to at least end the 10-4 defeat on a positive note.

At the start of the game, the battery of knuckleballer Charlie Haeger and catcher A.J.Ellis had a hard time getting on the same page. After reaching on a lead-off single in the very first frame, Mitch Maier moved to second on a passed ball. Later, following an RBI triple by Tommy Murphy that scored Maier, Ellis had another knuckleball pass him that allowed Murphy to trot home and give the O-Royals a 2-0 lead. .

After Maier struck again with an RBI single in the top of the second to make the score 3-0 Omaha, the Isotopes answered in the bottom of the frame when Valentino Pascucci was plated on a single by Dee Brown. That run broke an 11-inning scoreless streak for Albuquerque that dated back to the tail-end of Friday's game against Omaha.

Other than that single tally in the second, Royals starter Brandon Duckworth held the ‘Topes at bay, surrendering just one hit and a walk until his exit before the fifth. In all, Duckworth allowed just three hits while striking out six. He was relieved by Tim Hamulack (1-0), who was rewarded the win for pitching two scoreless innings.

More trouble arose for Haeger in the fifth. After yielding two singles and hitting a batter, Tug Hulett snuck a groundball down the first base line, scoring two runners. Luis Hernandez followed with another RBI single, giving the Royals a 7-1 advantage and chasing Haeger (0-1) from the game after the knuckleballer threw four-plus innings in which he gave up seven runs on 11 hits. The damage could have been worse if not for the exploits of Erick Threets, who entered the game with runners on first and second with nobody out but coaxed a pop-out and double-play to end the threat.

Omaha struck again with a run in the seventh on an RBI single by Hulett, but again the bullpen mitigated the damage. With runners on the corners and nobody out, Dwayne Pollok entered the game for Threets and got Luis Hernandez to pop out before getting Maier to hit into another inning-ending twin killing.

The O-Royals would have the last laugh, however, as Hulett hit a towering home run that ricocheted off the right field foul pole to extend the lead to 10-1 Omaha.

Lenny DiNardo (1) pitched the final three innings for the Royals and gave up Maza's home run in the ninth to earn his first save of the season.

Albuquerque will look to stop its three-game skid when the Iowa Cubs, Triple-A affiliate of the Chicago Cubs, come to town tomorrow, April 13. Veteran southpaw Shawn Estes (0-0, No ERA) takes the mound for the Isotopes against former University of Notre Dame football and baseball standout, Jeff Samardzija (0-0, No ERA) when the Cubs visit Isotopes Park at 1:35 PM.

More great promotions continue the opening homestand as the Isotopes play their first game of the new series. The beginning of it on Monday, April 13, will feature a special on one of the essentials of baseball: hot dogs. Fans will be able to purchase 50-cent hot dogs with a limit of six per trip. Tickets for any Isotopes game may be purchased at the Isotopes Park Box Office, at Ticketmaster outlets, by phone at 1-800-745-3000, or on-line at www.albuquerquebaseball.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

Check out the Albuquerque Isotopes Statistics

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Pacific Coast League Stories from April 12, 2009


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