2031 St. Louis River Walkers: The ring is the thing

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Record: 76-46, 1st, 11.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Down 1-0, Jared Thomas gave St. Louis the lead with a two-run homer in the top of the second inning, the River Walkers later exploded for five runs in the top of the seventh as they completed a four-game sweep of the defending MLB champion Cleveland Juke Box Heroes with an 8-5 win at Cleveland Stadium (1980).
Jordan Groshans drew a lead-off walk from Jojo Romero to open the top of the second.
Thomas batted next, and on a 3-2 pitch hammered it 425 feet over the right-field wall.
The St. Louis top of the seventh began with former Walkers pitcher Adonis Medina recording a pair of outs.
But Jean Carmona got things rolling with a single and things really started moving when Nathaniel Dixon hit a two-run homer.
Thairo Estrada kept the line moving with a walk and pitcher Izzy San Juan even contributed with a single which ended Medina's time on the hill.
Juan Munoz took over, and the first pitch he threw was swatted 406 feet over the fence in right center by Ben Thompson to make it 7-1.
The Walkers added an insurance run in the eighth.
Steve Rossi led off with a double off Matt Frisbee and moved to second on a wild pitch.
Thomas scored him with a fly ball to right.
Rookie Kevin Baker made his MBL debut in the eighth in relief of San Juan in the eighth.
He started out fine with a strikeout of Edgar Bustillos.
Things went south after that, as four straight batters reached base capped by a Tony Jackson grand slam, which drew the Heroes within 8-5.
Andres Hernandez came on to complete the inning without another run scoring.
Ernesto Barbosa, despite the big lead, pitched the ninth to earn his 20th save.
San Juan (9-8) had one of his better outings of the season while earning his ninth win.
The left-hander allowed one run on six hits. He struck out four and walked a pair.

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MBL news: Week 20 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 77-46, 1st, 11.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Jose Ramirez tripled with one out in the bottom of the 11th inning and scored on a Jared Thomas single, as St. Louis downed Kansas City 5-4 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The game was a makeup for a contest which had been rained out earlier in the season.
Jose Lazaro was on the mound to begin the 11th for the Monarchs, and he got Jean Carmona to fly out before surrendering Ramirez' triple.
Jordan Groshans was given an intentional walk.
But Thomas hit a ground ball through the middle, good enough to bring Ramirez across the plate.
A grand slam from Logan Tanner off River Walkers starter Zack Hunsicker, helped stake KC to a 4-1 lead.
But St. Louis fought its way back.
Thomas hit a solo homer off Monarchs starter Anderson Parra in the fourth.
Rick Scott doubled off Parra and scored on a Ben Thompson single in the fifth.
The Walkers tied it in the sixth after three straight singles -- from Groshans, Thomas and Steve Rossi -- off Travis Rinker resulted in a run.
Hunsicker recovered after allowing the grand slam, he allowing the four runs on six hits over six innings.
Josh Grissom worked two innings of scoreless relief.
Yeison Santos did the same in the ninth and got the first out of the 10th.
Andres Hernandez finished the 10th, without incident.
The 11th belonged to Elian Acosta (3-3) who would earn the win.

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Record: 78-46, 1st, 11.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Ben Thompson hit the first pitch of the bottom of the 11th inning 447 feet over the wall in left-center field to give St. Louis a 4-3 win over Springfield at Busch Stadium (1997).
The pitch was thrown by former River Walkers farmhand TJ Darr, and extended St. Louis' win streak to five games.
Down 3-2, the Walkers had forced extra innings with a run in the bottom of the ninth.
Steve Sullivan scored it after he replaced Steve Rossi as a pinch-runner.
Rossi led off the inning with a single off Mario Reyes.
Sullivan stole second, but remained there while the next two batters grounded out.
Rick Scott, however, got him across the plate with a single.
At one time, St. Louis owned leads of 1-0 and 2-1 only to have the Railers take the lead with a pair of runs in the top of the seventh.
Austin Wells tied with with a one-out homer off Yeison Santos.
Rookie Kevin Baker continued to have trouble, allowing three straight batters to reach to load the bases.
In his two outings since moving to the majors, Baker has allowed seven straight batters to reach bases.
Ricky Cisneros took over and surrendered a fly ball to Carlos Garcia, which was deep enough to score Wander Samuel Franco from third.
Walkers starting pitcher Kaneo Kawamoto was again impressive -- allowing one run on one hits over 5.1 innings -- but was forced to exit in the sixth with an undisclosed injury.
It took seven relievers to finish the game for St. Louis.
They were Cory Tiller (0.1 IP), Yeison Santos (0.2), Baker (0.0), CIsneros (0.2), Argenis Batista (1.2), closer Ernesto Barboa (0.1) and Elian Acosta (1.0) -- with Acosta (4-3) coming out of it with the win.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have called up 25-year-old right-handed pitcher Rich Haas from AAA Memphis, to replace Jesse McNaboe in their starting rotation.
McNaboe, 23, suffered a back injured on August 22, and it is uncertain when he might return.
In 17 starts for St. Louis this season, McNanboe has gone 10-4 with a 4.15 ERA.
Haas put together a 14-6 record with a 2.71 ERA in 26 starts for Memphis in 2031.
His start against Springfield will be his major league debut.
Kevin Baker will be sent down to Memphis, after making two relief appearances.
They were not good, after striking out the first batter he faced Baker allowed seven straight to reach leaving him with an 135.00 ERA.
St. Louis is still awaiting word on the status of veteran left-handed starter Kaneo Kawamoto, who had to exit their 4-3 win, in 10 innings over Springfield on August 26 with an undisclosed injury.

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Record: 79-46, 1st, 11.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Rookie Rich Haas made his Midwest Baseball League debut an impressive allowing two runs over 5.2 innings to help lead St. Louis to a 7-2 win over Springfield at Busch Stadium (1997).
Haas, who joined the River Walkers rotation after Jesse McNaboe went down with an injury allowed the two runs on four hits. He struck out seven and walked three.
The two runs came in the second inning on two-run homer from Matthew Lugo.
Haas (1-0) exited the game in the sixth after the Railers loaded the bases with two outs.
Cory Tiller took over and struck out Lugo to keep the score 5-2.
The Walkers wasted no time taking the lead scoring three times in the bottom of the first off former St. Louis pitcher Wilson Lara.
St. Louis traded Lara to Springfield in the offseason in a deal which netted it second base Daniel Becerra.
Lara retired the Walkers first two batters of the game, before hitting Jose Ramirez with pitch.
Steve Rossi kept things going with a double, putting runners at second and third.
Ramirez scored when Jean Carmona followed with a sigle.
Jared Thomas then score Rossi and Carmona with a third straight hit, a double.
It's lead 3-2, St. Louis added two more runs in the fifth.
This time Lara put three straight runners aboard after opening the inning with a out.
Becerra drew a walk, followed by a single by Ramirez and Rossi's second double of the game.
Thomas later scored Ramirez with a single off Stiward Aquino.
The final two Walkers runs came via solo homers off Edwin Cora.
Becerra took Cora deep in the seventh. It was Jordan Groshans who did the job in the eighth.
After wrapping up the sixth inning, Tiller pitched a scoreless seventh and got the first out of the eighth.
Ricky Cisneros retired the final two batters of the eighth.
Andres Hernandez was spotless in the ninth.

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Record: 79-47, 1st, 11 GA Cedar Rapids
Springfield jumped on St. Louis ace Angel Tiburcio for five runs over six innings, and the Railers held on for a 7-6 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win allowed Springfield to claim the finale of the three-game series after dropping the first two games.
A lead-off homer from Steve Rossi off Railers starting pitcher Jimmy Haynes in the bottom of the second inning gave St. Louis an early 1-0 lead.
That advantage disappeared quickly in the top of the third when the first two batters, Austin Wells and Matthew Lugo, both took Tiburcio deep.
Springfield added another run that inning, after Kyren Paris reached on an error by shortstop Jean Carmona.
Another error, this one by center fielder Nathaniel Dixon, move Paris to third, and he scored on a Ruben Villanueva ground out.
St. Louis pulled to within 3-2 in the bottom of the fourth --Jose Ramirez was hit by a John Haynes pitch to open the inning and scored on a Ricky Liriano single -- but the Railers responded with two runs in the top of the fifth.
Lugo led off with a single and moved to second on a bunt.
Paris scored Lugo with a double.
Paris later scored when Tiburcuio uncorked a wild pitch.
Ramirez led off the sixth with a homer off Haynes, pulling St. Louis to within 5-3.
Rick Scott led off the seventh with a homer, this one off Jaden Foster, to make it 5-4.
The Railers picked up two insurance runs in the ninth.
Wells led off with his second homer of the game, this one off Argenis Batista.
Riley Greene later singled with one out.
Paris followed with a single off new reliever Andres Hernandez as Greene moved to third.
Greene scored on a Hernandez wild pitch.
St. Louis almost came all the way back in the bottom of the ninth.
Thairo Estrada led off with a single off Mario Reyes.
Reyes retired the next two batters before Daniel Becerra doubled, moving Nathaniel Dixon, who had replaced Estrada on the bases via fielder's choice, to third.
Ramirez scored Dixon with a single.
Steve Rossi then drew a walk.
The Railers then put former St. Louis farmhand T.J. Darr on the mound.
He gave up a single to Jean Carmona, scoring Becerra and leaving the bases loaded.
Darr struck out Liriano to end it.
Haynes (11-7) allowed three runs on five hits over six innings. He struck out six and didn't walk a batter.
Foster and Mike Fagan both pitched an inning apiece.
Reyes got the first two outs of the ninth.
Darr's strike out of Liriano earned him his first major-league save.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have announced that left-handed starting pitcher Kaneo Kawamoto will miss up to six month after suffering a shoulder injury in a 4-3 win over Springfield on August 26.
Kawamoto, 34, had gone 12-6 in 25 starts this season with a 3.14 ERA.
The native of Japan has been with the Walkers since 2028, and gone 57-36 in 122 starts posting a 3.54 ERA.
With Jesse McNaboe already on the injured list, it is uncertain how the Walkers will fill Kawamoto's spot in their rotation.

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Record: 80-47, 1st, 12 GA Cedar Rapids
Izzy San Juan allowed one run on two hits over eight innings and St. Louis held off a ninth-inning rally to defeat Peoria 5-4 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The only run San Juan (10-8) allowed came in the top of the fifth inning and it was unearned -- Levi Usher drew a lead-off walk, moved to third when pitcher Luke Madden reached on an error by catcher Jared Thomas and scored on a Johnny Castagnozzi ground out -- while he struck out two and walked two.
Leading 5-1, the River Walkers put Elian Acosta on the mound to close out the game, and he almost let Peoria come all the way back.
Gabe Dudman hit a one-out homer.
After a strike out, he then walked Anthony Volpe, gave up a double to Levi Usher and a triple to William Contreras which made it 5-4.
Closer Ernesto Barbosa got the call, and he struck out Jose Reyes to end it and up his save total to 21.
St. Louis seized control early with a three-run bottom of the first.
Jared Thomas drove in the game's first run with a single off Madden.
Rick Scott followed that with another single, this one scoring a pair.
Steve Rossi provided the rest of the scoring for the Walkers, with a two-run homer off Madden in the fifth.

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Record: 80-48, 1st, 11 GA Cedar Rapids
Tied 5-5, Peoria pounded St. Louis closer Ernesto Barbosa for three runs in the top of the ninth inning, and the Rivermen rode that to an 8-5 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
Once down 5-2, the River Walkers had tied it in the bottom of the eighth.
Jared Thomas led off the inning with a single off James Bowman.
A wild pitch moved him to second, and he stole third on a botched hit-and-run.
Rick Scott scored Thomas with a fly ball.
Barbosa got the call to pitch the ninth and responded with his worst outing of the season.
Levi Usher opened the inning with a single, and after a groundout, he hit Anthony Volpe with a pitch to put two runners aboard.
Bao-qing Chou put Peoria in front with a single.
Pinch-hitter Je'Von Ward did the rest of the damage with a two-run double.
The Rivermen jumped in front with a three-run first, highlighted by a two-run homer by Dudman off St. Louis starting pitcher Zack Hunsicker.
Peoria starting pitcher Shouji Enomoto worked the first five innings, allowing two runs on eight hits.
Jack Flaherty worked a scoreless sixth inning.
James Bowman (6-4) handled the seventh and eighth, and earned the win.
Liu's scoreless ninth earned him his first save.
Walkers left fielder Jose Ramirez had to leave the game after injuring himself running the bases.
No diagnosis of his injury has been made.

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Record: 80-49, 1st, 10 GA Cedar Rapids
Peoria pounded Ron Peterson for six runs over 5.2 innings, and the Rivermen rode that to a 6-5 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win gave Peoria wins in the final two games of their three-game series with the River Walkers.
The Rivermen built a 5-1 lead by scoring two in the second inning, one in the third and two in the fourth inning.
Gabe Dudman got things going in the second when he drew a lead-off walk from Peterson.
An Anthony Volpe double moved Dudman to third and he scored when Levi Usher grounded out.
William Contreras made it 2-0 when his single scored Volpe.
Alex Greene hit a two-out solo homer off Peterson in the third, making it 3-1.
Contreras cranked a two-run homer in the fourth to push the Peoria advantage to 5-1.
St. Louis sliced the margin to 5-3 when Rick Scott hit a two-run homer off Jon Velez in the fourth.
Usher made it 6-3 when he hit another homer, again off Petersen in the sixth.
Jordan Groshans made it 6-5 with a two-run homer off Danny Gomez in the sixth.
But the Walkers would not score again.
Velez (7-8) worked five innings, allowing three runson five hits.
Danny Gomez, Noah Murdock, Joey Simmons and Cai-fei Liu all pitched an inning apiece to seal the win.
Liu earned his 16th save.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have announced that left fielder Jose Ramirez will miss the remainder of the season after suffering a broken hand in an 8-5 loss to Peoria on August 30.
Ramirez, 28, is expected to miss up to three months. He had signed a four-year extension with the Walkers during the 2030 season worth $70 million.
Ramirez was having another impressive season at the time of his injury, batting .268 with 33 homers and 82 RBIs in 120 games.
The Walkers will decide later how they will replace Ramirez on the roster as the season enters its final month.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have made a pair of roster changes tied to the injury to left fielder Jose Ramirez and the Sept. 1 expansion of rosters.
Joining the roster for the September stretch drive are switch-hitting outfielder Steve Kowal.
The 25-year-old Kowal has been enjoying a good first season above Class A, having batted .288 with 26 homers and 64 RBIs in 99 games.
This will mark his first time in the majors.
Also moving up is right-handed starting pitcher Lenyn Crisp.
The 24-year-old Crisp part much of the 2030 season in the MBL rotation, going 4-1 with a 3.82 ERA in 20 starts.
But during spring training, he was beat out for the No. 5 spot by the recently injury Jesse McNaboe.
At Memphis this season, Crisp, a right-hander, has gone 7-4 with a 3.16 ERA in 20 starts.
Crisp actually will be taking the spot in the Walkers' rotation formerly-filled by Kaneo Kawamoto, who was recently lost for the season with an elbow injury.
McNaboe's role has been taken by Rich Haas.
Ron Peterson got the first opportunity to take Kawamoto's role, but was hit hard in a 6-5 loss to Peoria on August 31.
In that game, Peterson pitched 5.2 innings allowing six runs on seven hits.
Peterson, 25, has appeared in 10 games for St Louis this season, two of them starts, going 2-2 with a 6.94 ERA.
Peterson will return to AAA.
The Walkers still have two open spots on their MBL roster, one of which will likely go to veteran outfielder Peter Ahn, who is expected to be out for a few days with a back injury.
With a big lead in the National League South Division, 10 games with 33 remaining, St. Louis would like to keep Memphis' roster as steady as possible as the Redbirds make a run of their own at a Pacific Coast League title.

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Walkers news: Sept. 1 -- Player Development Report

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MBL news: Week 21 -- Awards and standings

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MBL news: August awards -- Players and Pitchers of the Month

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MBL news: August awards -- Rookies of the Month

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MBL news: Sept. 1 -- American League leaders

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MBL news: Sept. 1 -- National League leaders

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Walkers news Sept. 1 -- Team statistics for August