Winning streak ends in see-saw game

Published on July 5, 2009 under American Association (AA)
Shreveport-Bossier Captains News Release


EL PASO, Texas. - The Shreveport-Bossier Captains had chances to extend their season-high winning streak to four games Saturday night, but ultimately could not make the big play on either side of the field, losing another close game to the El Paso Diablos, 7-5 in front of a big crowd on Independence Day at Cohen Stadium.

The Captains (21-26) made two errors leading two unearned runs, twice failed to get bunts down, and hit into a pair of double plays. Meanwhile, El Paso (21-26) did give Shreveport-Bossier three unearned runs.

With the warning track roped off to become ground-rule double territory with extra seating, Juan Camacho doubled home the first run of the game off Ronald Lowe (3-5) to that area in the fist inning. However, the Captains immediately got four in the top of the second against lefty Nick Martin (2-4). After a leadoff single by Kevin Griffin, B.J. Wheeler hit a grounder to third. Mike Provencher's throw to second pulled Hector Bernal off the bag, and the Captains had two on and no one out. Tommy Bryant hit an RBI single to tie the game, his first run driven in in five games this season, before Jonathan Reynoso hit a ground-rule double to give the Captains a 2-1 lead.

A strange defensive play then gave Shreveport-Bossier two more runs, as Camacho fielded Dwayne White's slow grounder to first and flipped it to the pitcher Martin covering. Camacho did not look Bryant all the way back to third, and the Captains' catcher got a late break for the plate. Martin's throw was plenty late and wide, and with no one left to cover the plate, Reynoso trotted home to make it 4-1.

But El Paso came right back with a run in the third and two more in the fourth to tie the game. Kennard Bibbs led off with a walk, and then stole second and third, coming home on a groundout. Bibbs had a huge game for the Diablos, as he stole four bases in the game, scored three times on three hits and the walk, and drove in one.

The next inning, Provencher reached on a one-out error by Christopher Garcia at third, and then moved to third on a fly-ball double by Adam Hale that dropped behind White on the fenced-off track in right. Eddy Rodriguez then blooped a single to make it 4-3, before Bernal beat out a potential double-play ball to tie the game.

After a scoreless fifth, the first scoreless inning of the game, the Captains retook the lead in the sixth. With one out, Dan Williams picked up his first Captains hit, and moved to second on a groundout by Bryant. Reynoso followed with his second hit and RBI of the game, a single to make it 5-4 Shreveport-Bossier.

The Diablos came right back in the bottom of the inning, though, to take the lead for good. After a leadoff walk to Hale and a sacrifice bunt, B.J. Wheeler bobbled Bernal's grounder to second, and then threw the ball away to allow Hale to score and tie the game. After Lowe picked off Bernal, Bibbs doubled down the rightfield line and Ponce doubled to the roped-off area in left, just out of the reach of Jose Torres, who crashed through the fence and into the chairs, to give El Paso the lead.

After going down 1-2-3 in the seventh, Griffin hit a leadoff single in the eighth to chase Martin, who pitched past 6 2/3 innings for the first time this season. Righty Mike Cervera came in and he struck out Wheeler on a foul bunt after Wheeler missed his first two bunt attempts. Williams then hit a comebacker for a 1-6-3 double play to end the inning. After El Paso added an insurance run in the bottom of the eighth on a two-out hit by Bibbs, Dane De La Rosa, a former starter, came in to try to get the save, in the ninth.

But De La Rosa started the inning by walking Bryant on five pitches. Reynoso then looked at four more and struck out looking, but White kept his bat on his shoulder and walked on a 3-2 count. Christopher Garcia became the first Captain to swing against De La Rosa, missing a 1-1 pitch, but he then struck out looking. Andres Rodriguez swung at two more, as a wild pitch moved the runners to second and third, but Rodriguez then grounded a 1-2 pitch to second to give the Diablos the win.

De La Rosa became the first El Paso pitcher since closer Chris Thompson was traded for Cervera on June 20 to pick up a save, as he threw 23 pitches in the ninth and saw the Captains take 19 of them.

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American Association Stories from July 5, 2009


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