2033 St. Louis River Walkers: And the saga continues

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Record: 50-68, 7th, 13.5 GB Springfield
Trailing 1-0, St. Louis scored three times in the top of the ninth inning to post a 3-1 win and complete a three-game sweep of Des Moines at Green Canyon Park.
The Harvesters got a run off River Walkers starting pitcher Jerry Tate in the bottom of the first inning - Justin Oates drew a lead-off walk and scored on a one-out ground out by Rafael Devers -- but that would be the only scoring until the top of the ninth.
With former Walkers reliever Travis Krogman on the mound, Nick Shaw evened matters with a one-out solo homer, his 18th of the season.
St. Louis was not finished.
Daniel Becerra singled before Jarred Thomas flew out for the second out.
Jose Segura connected on a single to put two runners on.
Nathaniel Dixon followed with a triple, scoring both runners and making it 3-1.
Starting pitcher Jerry Tate worked 6.2 innings for St. Louis, allowing one run on four hits. He struck out eight and walked four.
Josh Forgy and Scott Rissler both recorded two outs to get the game to the ninth.
Rissler (3-3) would be honored with the win.
Kevin Baker retired Des Moines in order in the ninth for his second save.

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Record: 50-69, 7th, 13.5 GB Springfield
Alex Yanez not only limited St. Louis to one run over the first five innings, he also drove in Fort Worth's only two runs of the game with a second-inning two-out double as the Mad Men downed the River Walkers 2-1 at Ebbets Field (1948).
Yanez double off St. Louis starting pitcher Ronald Crossingham scored Ian Happ, who had led off the inning with a double, and Clay Owens, who had singled with one out.
On the mound, the only run allowed by Yanez (10-5) came in the top of the fourth on a two-out double by Crossingham.
Yanez allowed six hits in his five innings. He struck out four and walked three.
After that, it was a scoreless inning apiece from four Mad Men reliever -- Jonathan Loagisiga, Koi-Sho Pai, Eric Warren and Jeremy O'Rourke -- with O'Rourke notching his seventh save of the season.

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Record: 51-69, 7th, 12.5 GB Springfield
Trailing 2-0, St. Louis exploded for six runs in the top of the third inning, and the River Walkers rode that to an 8-3 win over Fort Worth at Ebbets Field (1948).
Kyren Paris got things rolling for the Walkers in that inning, drawing a lead-off walk from Mad Men starting pitcher Ramon Diaz.
A passed ball moved Paris to second, and he scored when pitcher Alex Pazos connected on a one-out single.
Nathaniel Dixon followed with another single.
Diaz got Daniel Becerra for the second out.
But Diaz was never able to record out No. 3.
Jose Segura drew a walk to load the bases.
Nick Shaw followed with a single which scored and put St. Louis in front 3-2.
Jae-hong Chang and Jovan Gill then connected on back-to-back doubles, Chang's scored one and Gill's a pair, as the Walkers lead reached 6-2.
Diaz exited the game after Gill's two-bagger.
St. Louis got insurance runs in the form of solo homers from Dixon, off Lenny Torres in the fourth, and Segura, off Koi-sho Pai in the eighth.
Pazos (1-3) earned his first career win by allowing three runs on five hits over six innings.
Nick Ruffalo handled the seventh and eighth innings.
John Good set the Mad Men down in order in the ninth.

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Record: 51-70, 7th, 12.5 GB Springfield
A four-run outburst in the bottom of the third inning helped stake Fort Worth to a 5-0, and the Mad Men held on to defeat St. Louis 5-3 at Ebbets Field (1948).
Kane Gale homered twice in the win for Fort Worth.
His first long ball was of the solo variety in the bottom of the second off River Walkers starting pitcher Justin Doughtie.
Gale struck again in the bottom of the third, one of two three-run homers in the inning for Fort Worth.
Brian Sheppard's came first and made it 3-0.
After a Chris Champion single, Gale hammered the ball over the left-field fence to up the ante to 5-0.
Doughtie allowed all three Mad Men homers.
Home runs played a role in all three St. Louis runs, which came in the top of the eighth.
Jose Segura ended the shutout with a one-out homer off reliever Jonathan Loaisiga.
Loaisiga was still on the mound when Jared Thomas went deep to make it 5-3.
Mad Men starting pitcher Isaiah Dunlap (3-13) pitched 5.2 shutout innings. He allowed two hits while striking out five and walking a pair.
Mike Fagan finished the sixth and worked a scoreless seventh.
Loaisiga had his issues while recording two outs in the eighth.
Lenny Torres got the final out of the eighth.
Justin O'Rourke struck out the side in the ninth for his eighth save.

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Record: 52-70, 7th, 11.5 GB Springfield
St. Louis jumped out to an 8-0 lead over the first three innings, and cruised to an 11-4 win over Fort Worth at Ebbetts Field (1948).
The victory gave the River Walkers a four-game split of their series with the Mad Men.
St. Louis jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the top of the first inning -- Jose Segura drove in the first two runs with a homer off Mad Men starting pitcher Gary Snelling -- and pushed it to 7-0 with a four-run second.
Jose Ramirez hit the first of his two home runs in the game with a two-run shot off Snelling.
Nick Shaw drove in the inning's first two runs with a single.
The lead reached 8-0 in the third, Segura drove in the run when he drew a bases-loaded walk from Josh Grissom.
The Walkers did push that lead to 10-0.
Nathaniel Dixon had an RBI double off Lenny Torres in the fifth inning.
Ramirez took Jonathon Loaisiga deep for his second homer of the game in the sixth.
Fort Wayne did pull within 10-4 with a run in the sixth and three more in the bottom of the seventh.
Dixon drove in the game's final two runs with a single off Justin O'Rourke in the ninth.
St. Louis starting pitcher Jesse McNaboe (11-8) lasted six innings, allowing three runs on six hits.
Yeison Santos started the seventh and failed to retire any of the three batters he faced -- walking one and hitting the other with a pitch.
Oscar Martinez ended up recording the first two outs of the seventh.
Scott Rissler finished off the seventh and worked a scoreless eighth.
John Good set the Mad Men down in order in the ninth.

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MBL news: Week 18 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 53-70, 7th, 11 GB Springfield
Daniel Becerra homered twice and drove in all five of St. Louis' runs in a 5-3 win over Cedar Rapids at Busch Stadium (2006).
Trailing 1-0, Becerra put the River Walkers in front when he hit a two-out, three-run home run off Grapplers starting pitcher Rodolfo Cervantez in the bottom of the third inning.
Tied 3-3 after Cedar Rapids had tied it with a pair of runs in the top of the fifth, Becerra untied it in the bottom of the inning with a two-run homer on a 3-2 pitch also off Cervantez.
Starting pitcher Jerry Tate earned the win for the Walkers, allowing three runs on seven hits over the first six innings. He struck out nine and walked five.
After that, it was a scoreless inning apiece from Josh Forgy, Cory Tiller and Kevin Baker to close out the win.
Baker earned his third save of the season.

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Record: 54-70, 7th, 11 GB Springfield
Trailing 2-0, St. Louis exploded for eight runs in the bottom of the seventh innings and went on to defeat Cedar Rapids 8-3 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The game was scoreless into the top of the sixth inning, when the Grapplers got back-to-back homers from Eric Gerhardt and Arnold Hammond off River Walkers starting pitcher Ronald Crossingham.
St. Louis went into the bottom of the seventh inning with just one hit -- a lead-off single form Nick Shaw in the fifth -- off Grapplers starter Ivan Alonzo.
But the Walkers opened the bottom of the seventh with singles off Alonzo from Daniel Becerra and Jose Segura.
Alonzo struck out Shaw for the first out.
He would never record a second out.
Jose Ramirez doubled to score both base runners and tie the game.
Alonzo then issued an intentional walk to Jared Thomas before heading to the shower.
Billy Weiner took over and was promptly rocked.
Dan Hillard greeted him with a two-run double, making it 4-2 St. Louis.
After Kyren Paris flied out, pinch-hitter Glenallen Hill Jr. connected on an RBI single.
Nathaniel Dixon drew a walk.
Becerra followed with a two-run single, making it 6-2.
Lorenzo Macorro tok the mound, and his second pitch eluded catcher Steven Williams allowing another run to score.
Shaw connected for a single to score the eighth run of the inning.
Crossingham worked the first six innings, allowing two runs on six hits. H
Scott Rissler (4-3) earned the win after a scoreless seventh inning.
With a big lead, John Good handled the eighth and ninth, he did allow a homer to Jose Morillo, sealing the win.

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Record: 55-70, 7th, 10 GB Springfield
Daniel Becerra continued his hot-hitting going 3 for 5 with a homer and three RBIs to help lead St. Louis to a 6-4 win over Cedar Rapids at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win gave the River Walkers a sweep of their series with the Grapplers. It also extended their win streak to four games.
After homering twice in their previous game, Becerra wasted little time going deep again hitting a two-run homer off Cedar Rapids starter Edwin Rivera in the bottom of the first inning to stake St. Louis to a 2-0 lead.
The Walkers lead grew to 3-0 in the third.
Kyren Paris led off the inning with a single, one of his three hits in the game.
He scored on a Nick Shaw double,
Shaw had to leave the game with an undisclosed injury suffered when he ran into the shortstop while sliding into second base,
Single runs in the fourth and fifth innings allowed the Grapplers to pull back within 3-2.
St. Louis starting pitcher Alex Pazos also had to exit the game after the fourth inning with an obilque strain.
He is expected to miss about a week.
The Walkers banged out five singles in the bottom of the sixth off reliever Edwin Rivera to go up 5-2.
Paris and Becerra both drove in runs with their hits.
Paris picked up another RBI in the seventh, when he drew a bases-loaded walk from Cristofe Tineo.
With Pazos going just four innings, he allowed one run on five hits, before departing, the win went to Scott Rissler (5-3).
Rissler held the Grapplers scoreless in the fifth and sixth innings.
Cory Tiller worked a scoreless seventh.
Nick Ruffalo gave up a run in the eighth.
Kevin Baker allowed a homer to Dane Finch in the ninth.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have placed first baseman Nick Shaw on the 10-day injured list after he pulled a muscle in his back during a 6-4 win over Cedar Rapids on August 24.
In his first full season as the Walkers' first baseman, Shaw, 24, has busted out batting .314 with 18 homers and 68 RBIs in 119 games.
He will be replaced on the roster, by the player he replaced as the first baseman for the Walkers, Rick Scott.
Scott, 29, seems well on his way to being MVP of the Pacific Coast League for the AAA Memphis Redbirds.
In 112 games, he is batting .321 with 45 homers and 118 RBIs.
Memphis leads the South Division of the Atlantic Conference South Division of the PCL by 21 games, owning a record of 82-44.
In 268 games with the Walkers, Scott has hit .237 with 66 homers and 151 RBIs.

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Nice little win streak going. A lot of work to do in the offseason!

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Definitely, outside of Shaw team is pretty much underperforming across the board.
Position players, pitchers, coaches are all on the bubble.
AAA team at Memphis is an offensive juggernaut, although how much of that is due to the PCL being a hitter's league has yet to be determined.
Question is, do I call up a handful of them after Sept. 1, to help a team that is going no where, or let them go after the league title which they so richly deserve after a dominating regular season.

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Record: 55-71, 7th, 11.5 GB Springfield
Trailing 2-1, Springfield scored three runs in the top of the fifth inning and went on to defeat St. Louis 5-2 at Busch Stadium (2006).
Ben Rortvedt tied the game when he led off the inning with his second homer of the season off River Walkers starting pitcher Justin Doughtie.
Pitcher Raul Ahumada followed with a single, and moved to second when Doughtie uncorked a wild pitch.
Austin Schultz then drew a walk.
After a fly out, Billy Salas put the Railers in front with a single.
Another single, this one from Justin Schneider, made it 4-2.
Springfield added an insurance in the seventh against the St. Louis' bullpen.
Riley Greene led off with a single off Yeison Santos.
A one-out single from Schneider moved Greene to third.
Alex Otero made it 5-2 with a deep fly out to center.
Ahumada (9-7) earned the win, allowing two runs on six hits in 6.1 innings. He struck out four and didn't issue a walk.
Nick Theil finished off the seventh inning for the Railers.
Jon Santiago held the Walkers in check in the eighth.
Mario Reyes was perfect in the ninth for his 30th save.

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Record: 56-71 7th, 11.5 GB Springfield
St. Louis jumped on Springfield starting pitcher Chris Hensley and rode that to a 10-2 rout of the Railers at Busch Stadium (2006).
The River Walkers put five of their first six batters of the bottom of the first inning on base.
The only batter who didn't reach, Kyren Paris, got down a sacrifice bunt.
Included in that run were a pair of walks, including one to Daniel Becerra which scored the game's first run.
Jovan Gill also had an RBI single. Dan Hillard plated the final two runs of the inning with the third single of the inning.
The River Walkers lead would grow to as big as 8-0.
Hensley walked three straight batters to begin the bottom of the fourth.
A run then scored on a passed ball.
Hillard led off the bottom of the sixth with a double off reliever Joseph Hughes.
He scored on a Kevin Melendez single.
Rick Scott, who had drawn a walk from Hughes, later scored on an Argenis Batista wild pitch.
St. Louis starting pitcher Jesse McNaboe didn't allow a run until the top o the seventh inning.
McNaboe (12-8) would pitch into the eighth -- he exited after allowing a lead-off single to Mike Murray -- allowing two runs on four hits in seven innings. He struck out three and didn't issue a walk.
Yeison Santos finished off the eighth inning, and was on the mound when the Railers scored their second run..
John Good set Springfield down in order in the ninth.

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Record: 56-72, 7th, 11.5 GB Springfield
Springfield starting pitcher Ewdy Alex took a no-hitter into the bottom of the seventh inning, and after being staked to a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning, it was easy as the Railers routed St. Louis 9-0 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win gave Springfield wins in the first and third games of the three-game series.
Ewdy (3-0) held the River Walkers hitless until the bottom of the seventh when Jose Ramirez led off with a single.
Ewdy exited with two outs in the seventh after issuing a walk to Jared Thomas.
He struck out two and walked during his time on the mound.
Argenis Batista completed the seventh without incident.
Cole Duensing worked a scoreless eighth inning and got the first out of the ninth.
The final two outs of the game belonged to Coleman Huffman, as the Walkers finished with just the one hit for the game.
Springfield seized control from the get-go with its four-run first against St. Louis starter Jerry Tate.
After a one-out walk to Adan Valette, Billy Salas made it 2-0 with a home run.
After a ground out by Alex Otero, Tate gave up three straight singles -- along with throwing a wild pitch - to pave the way for the other two runs.
Ruben Villanueva and Matthew Lugo both earned RBIs with their singles.
Villanueva scored a run in the third with a two-out single off Tate.
He stole second and scored on Lugo's second single of the game.
The Railers made it real ugly with a three-run sixth.
Tate allowed the inning's first three batters to reach -- including an RBI single by Alex -- before heading to the shower.
Oscar Martinez took over and allowed a pair of runs, including an RBI single by Austin Schultz.
Villanueva earned another RBI with a run-scoring fielder's choice against Scott Rissler in the ninth.

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MBL news: Week 19 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 56-73, 7th, 12.5 GB Springfield
Trailing 3-1, Madison scored three runs in the bottom of the seventh inning and added an insurance run in the eighth to defeat St. Louis 5-3 at Comiskey Park (1969).
River Walkers rookie starter Ronald Crossingham pitched well through the first six innings -- allowing one run on seven hits -- but he exited after allowing a lead-off single to pinch-hitter Trevor Candelaria in the bottom of the seventh.
That's when the Muskies went to work.
St. Louis reliever Josh Forgy came into the game coming off a string of good performances.
This game ended that.
Wyatt Olson greeted Forgy with a double, moving Candelaria to third.
Yan C. Dixon drove in Candelaria with a ground out, making it 3-2.
Armando Trevino evened the game with a single, which also featured an error by right fielder Dan Hillard.
Forgy intentionally walked former Walker Jordan Groshans to put runners at first and second.
Cesar Salazar flew out for the second out.
John Good got the call to replace Forgy.
It didn't work out as Chris Duncan single, scoring pinch-runner Mitch Bernier to put Madison in front.
Olson scored the Muskies' insurance run in the eighth.
He singled off Nick Ruffalo with two outs.
Cory Tiller took over and hit Dixon with a pitch.
Pinch-hitter Jose Reyes followed with a single making it 5-3.
Muskies starting pitcher Efrain Garcia (8-11) allowed three runs on four hits in seven innings. He struck out five and didn't issue a walk.
Brock Cummins pitched a silent eighth inning.
Bobby Westerman held St. Louis at bay in the ninth for his 23rd save.

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Record: 56-74, 7th, 12.5 GB Madison
Travis Hailey limited St. Louis to one run over the first five innings, while Madison was building a 4-1 lead, and the Muskies went on for a 5-3 win at Comiskey Park (1969).
Madison jumped in front with single runs in the second and third innings off River Walkers starting pitcher Alex Pazos.
The second inning run was put together with two outs.
Former Walker prospect John McCaskey singled off Pazos with two outs.
Another single, this one from Aramis Ademan, moved McCaskey to third,
A wild pitch sent McCaskey across the plate.
An inning later, Wyatt Olson led off the inning with a double off Pazos.
He moved to third when Yan C. Dixon reached on a fielding error by Pazos.
Armando Trevino scored Olson with a fly ball to center.
An RBI single from Jared Thomas in the top of the fourth off Hailey made it 2-1.
The Muskies, however, responded with a pair of runs off Pazos in the bottom of the inning.
McCaskey again played a role with a lead-off single.
He stole second just before Hailey grounded into the inning's second out.
Olson then reached on an error by third baseman Thairo Estrada, putting runners at the corners.
Dixon then powered a double into left-center, scoring a pair to make it 4-1.
Back-to-back homers from Glenallen Hill Jr. and Jose Ramirez off Hailey, did put the Walkers to within 4-3.
St. Louis would not score again, while the Muskies added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth.
Ademan drew a lead off walk from Pazos.
He later scored on a Dixon single off Nick Ruffalo.
Hailey (2-3) worked six innings, allowing three runs on six hits. He struck out three and didn't walk a batter.
Dakota Franc pitched two scoreless innings.
Bobby Westerman handled the ninth for his 24th save.

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Record: 56-75, 7th, 13.5 GB Springfield
Tied 3-3, Madison scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the sixth inning and went on for a 5-3 win over St. Louis at Comiskey Park (1969).
The win no-only completed a three-game sweep for the Muskies, but all three games were won by the score of 5-3.
John McCaskey, a former River Walkers prospect, got things going for the Muskies with a lead-off single off St. Louis starter Justin Dougtie in the bottom of the seventh.
A batter later, he scored when Trevor Candelaria doubled into the gap in right-center.
Yan C. Dixon kept it going, with a single to put runners at the corners.
Armando Trevino followed that by scoring Candelaria with a fly ball to right.
Muskies starting pitcher Luis Bahena lasted just 1.2 innings, they were scoreless, before exiting with an undisclosed injury.
Alex Ochoa, 22, took over and worked 3.1 innings during which he allowed all three of the Walkers' runs.
Former St. Louis prospect Ron Peterson followed with a scoreless sixth inning.
Peterson (3-3) would get the win.
Jorge Juarez pitched a scoreless seventh inning.
Brock Cummins did not allow a base runner in the eighth or ninth, to earn his second save.

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Walkers news: Sept. 1 -- Player Development Report