2039 and beyond -- St. Louis River Walkers thread

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Record: 84-71, 2nd, 2 GB Cedar Rapids
Manuel Coke hit his 49th home run of the season -- off Ann Arbor reliever Nick Black -- in the top of the seventh inning to snap a 3-3 tie and help St. Louis to a 5-3 win at Crosley Field (1958).
Coke's homer came with one out and on an 0-1 pitch. It carried 392 feet as it landed over the wall in right center.
The River Walkers added an insurance run in the ninth to go up 5-3.
Rich Dodson drew a lead-off walk from Joe Doanhoe.
Dodson stole second and eventually scored on a two-out single by Nick Shaw.
The Walkers jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Wolf Pack starter Adam Weisz in the top of the second inning.
Joe Allen drove in the first run with a double.
Alex Boychuk plated the second with a single.
Pitcher Juan Farias got down a squeeze bunt to score Boychuk and make it 3-0.
Ann Arbor crept back into the game with two runs in the bottom of the third off Farias.
Eric Simpson had an RBI double while pinch hitter Jose Doumani scored the second run with a fly ball to right center.
Farias walked four batters -- yes four batters -- in the bottom of the sixth as the Wolf Pack tied the game without a hit.
Farias went 5.2 innings, allowing three runs on three hits. He struck out three and walked four, all in the same inning.
Carlos Hernandez stepped in to finish the sixth without further damage.
After that it was one scoreless inning each from Alex Rios, Victor Rosiles and Craig Fritzler to close the game.
The victory went to Hernandez (5-1).
Fritzler upped his save total to 26th.

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Record: 84-72, 2nd, 2 GB Cedar Rapids
Tim Wegener hit a walk-off home run with one out in the bottom of the ninth inning to lift Ann Arbor to a 3-1 win over St. Louis at Crosley Field (1948).
The win over the Wolf Pack a split of their four-game series with the River Walkers.
Chris Willett took the mound to begin the bottom of the ninth for St. Louis.
He struck out Aaron Watson to open the inning but followed that with a walk of Hector Tavarez.
Wegner then got ahold of a 1-1 pitch and drove it 384 feet over the left-field wall for his 28th homer of the season.
The game had been tied since both teams had scored in the first inning.
In the top of the inning, St. Louis' Joe Allen had tripled with two outs off Ann Arbor starting pitcher Erik DePasquale.
He scored when Nick Shaw followed with a single.
The Wolf Pack's run came in a similar matter as Watson doubled off Ming Xiang with two outs and scored on a Tavarez single.
DePasquale allowed one run on three hits over the first six innings. He struck out four and didn't walk a batter.
Tom Halverson worked a scoreless seventh for Ann Arbor.
Kyle Gatti (6-6) earned the victory after two scoreless innings.

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MBL news: Sept. 26 -- Week 25 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 85-72, 2nd, 2.5 GB Cedar Rapids
Manuel Coke connected on an RBI single with one out in the bottom of the third inning, scoring Joe Allen to snap a 1-1 tie and St. Louis went on to defeat Springfield 2-1 at Busch stadium (2006).
Allen had doubled with one out off Railers starting pitcher Marcos Zaragoza.
Coke followed with a single to left-center to drive in his MLB-leading 138th run of the season.
The River Walkers went up 1-0 in the bottom of the second when Nick Shaw led off with his 25th homer of the season.
Jason Nolan tied in by leading off the top of the third with a homer off St. Louis starter Kevin Hrdlicka.
It was Nolan's sixth homer.
Hrdlicka (12-8) went seven innings, allowing the one run on five hits. He struck out 11 and walked only one.
Alex Rios (0.2 IP) and Leo Hermosillo (0.1) combined to keep the Railers from scoring in the eighth.
Craig Fritzler notched his 27th save with a scoreless ninth.

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Record: 85-73, 2nd, 3.5 GB Cedar Rapids; Magic No.: 1
Springfield's Joseph Hughes went 3 for 5 with a homer, two runs scored and three RBIs to help lead the Railers to a 4-3 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (2006).
The loss means that Cedar Rapids' magic number to clinch the division is down to one with five games remaining for the River Walkers.
Springfield jumped out to a 3-0 lead with a run in the fourth and two in the fifth off St. Louis starting pitcher Miguel Cisneros.
Hughes scored the fourth-inning run after he singled with one out and scored on a two-out triple by Brendan York.
In the fifth, it was Hughes who delivered a two-run single off Cisneros to make it 3-0.
The Walkers crept back into the game with a run in the fifth -- Alex Boychuk singled off reliever Kerry McIntyre to score Manuel Coke -- to draw within 3-1.
But Hughes hit his 28th homer of the season in the seventh off Brett McVey to put the Railers ahead 4-1.
The Walkers would tally twice in the seventh -- Boychuk with another run-scoring single and Nolan Gorman driving in the other -- but that was all they would get.
Railers starting pitcher Billy Mitchell went 4.1 innings, allowing one run but eight hits. He struck out one and walked one.
McIntyre finished off the fifth for Springfield.
After that, it was an inning apiece for Roger Cresswell, Alan Albanese, Tony Aceves and Jon Santiago.
Albanese (5-1) got his fifth win of the season.
Santiago now has 39 saves.

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Record: 85-74, 2nd, 4 GB Cedar Rapids; eliminated from playoff contention
Springfield scored three runs in the top of the third inning, St. Louis scored two in the bottom and that was it as the Railers downed the River Walkers 3-2 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win was the second for Springfield to close out the three-game series. The loss eliminated St. Louis from playoff contention as Cedar Rapids claimed the title of the National League South Division.
The Railers opened the top of the fourth with three consecutive hits off Walkers rookie starter Juan Farias -- Joseph Hughes and Hideaki Taguchi both singled and Jose Chavez picked up an RBI with a double -- and Luke Leto later connected on the big hit with a two-out, two-run double.
St. Louis used the long ball to get its runs off Railers starter Pascal Marcovicci in the bottom half.
Manuel Coke opened the inning with his MBL-leading 50th homer of the season.
Two batters later Mark Waterson hit his 16th of the season to make it 3-2.
But St. Louis would not score again.
Marcovicci (6-13) went five innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out three and walked two.
Kerry McIntyre worked a silent fifth inning and got the first two outs of the seventh.
Alan Albanese finished off the seventh for the Railers.
The eighth belonged to Blake Schwartz.
The ninth belonged to Jon Santiago, who registered his 40th save.

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On a day they didn't have a game, the Cedar Rapids Grapplers clinched the National League South Division title when the St. Louis River Walkers fell to the Springfield Railers 3-2 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The loss left the Grapplers, who are 89-70 with a four-game lead over St. Louis with three games left on the schedule.
Cedar Rapids has stood near the top of the NL South standings most of the season, including a long stretch starting in mid-June which saw it lead by up to seven games.
The Walkers did make a second-half charge, and actually owned a half-game lead on Sept. 18.
But by the end of Sept. 19, the teams were tied again.
The Grapplers then pulled away by going 7-2 over their next nine games, while St. Louis dropped six of nine.
It is the third division title in Grapplers history, their other NL South championships coming in 2021 and 2035. They advanced to the World Series in '35 but lost to the Detroit Diesels.
In the race for home-field advantage in the National League championship series, Cedar Rapids leads NL North co-leaders Milwaukee and Rockford by two games.
Defending World Series champion Columbus, which long ago wrapped up the American League East crown, has already clinched the league's best record by sitting at 99-60.

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Record: 86-74, 2nd, 4 GB Cedar Rapids
In perhaps his final game as a River Walker, Xavier Wigfall came within two batters of a shutout as he worked 8.1 innings in St. Louis 5-1 win over Madison at Busch Stadium (2006).
The 30-year-old Wigfall (6-7), who is expected to become a free agent at season's end, joined the St. Louis rotation during the 2032 season.
In 179 career games, all starts, he has gone 56-64 with a 4.20 ERA. He has pitch 1,103 innings, during which he has struck out 903 and posted a 1.37 WHIP.
This contest saw Wigfall work eight shut-out innings against the Muskies before he seemed to run out of gas in the ninth when he loaded the bases with two singles and a walk leaving the game with one out.
Leo Hermosillo took over and lost the shutout when a run scored while Anthony Ward was hitting into a fielder's choice.
Nate Stewart then grounded out to end it.
Hermosillo earned his third save.
Wigfall's line for the game, 8.1 innings, one run on five hits. He struck out seven and walked five.
The Walkers took control of the game with a four-run bottom of the second against Madison starting pitcher Lee Twersky.
Mark Waterson got it going by hitting his 17th home run of the season, a solo shot, with one out.
Twersky then walked Nolan Gorman and Ryan Wibbenmeyer before Wigfall got a bunt down to put runners on second and third.
Rich Dodson drove them both home with a single.
A single by Tom Porter followed by hit by pitch to Jose Allen then reloaded the bases.
Dodson scored when Ramon drew the fourth walk of the inning.
Waterson scored the Walkers' other run in the fifth when he tripled off Jonathan Brady and scored on a Gorman fly ball.

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MBL news: Oct. 1 -- Players and Pitchers of the Month for September

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MBL news: Oct. 1 -- Rookies of the Month for September and standings

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MBL news: Oct. 1 -- American League leaders

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MBL news: Oct. 1 -- National League leaders

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Walkers news: Oct. 1 -- Team statistics for September

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Walkers news: Oct. 1 -- Team statistics for 2039 season

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Player of the Month: Manuel Coke -- The 26-year-old outfielder batted .303 with 10 homers, 15 RBIs and 18 runs scored in 26 games. He got on base at a .367 clip and slugged .677.
Starting Pitcher of the Month: Kevin Hrdlicka -- The 28-year-old went 1-1 in six starts with a 3.15 ERA. He pitched a total of 34.1 innings, during which he struck out 45 and had a 1.22 WHIP.
Relief Pitcher of the Month: Craig Fritzler -- The 31-year-old closer got into 10 games during which he recorded seven saves and had a 0.00 ERA. He pitched a total of 13.0 innings, during which he struck out 17 and had a 1.00 WHIP/

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Walkers news: Oct. 1 - Player Development Report

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Record: 87-72, 2nd, 3 GB Cedar Rapids
Manuel Coke homered three times while going 5 for 5 to power St. Louis to a 14-3 win over Madison at Busch Stadium (2006).
Coke went deep in the second inning off Muskies starting pitcher Bryce Jaksic, a two-run shot, in the second inning.
He hit a two-run homer off reliever Bryant Adler in the fourth.
In the seventh, Coke hit a solo shot off Preston Brewer.
His other hits were singles in the first (off Jacksic) and sixth innings (off reliever Jonathan Herrada).
For the game, Coke was 5 for 5 with five runs scored and five RBIs.
He now has a MBL leading 53 homers and 144 RBIs for the season.
In the eight innings it batted, St. Louis scored in six of them.
The River Walkers scored each of the first four, building a 8-0 lead.
They then scored three in both the sixth and seventh.
Mark Waterson as 1 for 4 with a homer and three RBIs.
Mike Vaughan and Kerry Fackelman both had two hits and two RBIs.
Joe Allen was one for three and scored three runs.
Nick Shaw was two for four and also scored three times.
All the offense overshadowed the first quality start for Nate Simmons (1-1).
The 23-year-old left-hander went six innings, allowing three runs on eight hits. He struck out three and walked one.
Relievers Frank Jimenez (1.1 IP), Victor Roisles (0.2) and Chris Willett (1.0) combined to finish the lopsided win.

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Record: 88-74, 2nd, 3 GB Cedar Rapids
Kevin Hrdlicka pitched deep into the eighth inning before running out of gas -- but the St. Louis bullpen completed the shutout -- as St. Louis closed its season with a 4-0 win over Madison at Busch Stadium (2006).
The victory completed a three-game sweep of the Muskies to wrap up the season for the River Walkers.
Hrdlicka (13-8) didn't allow a run on two hits in his 7.2 innings. He struck out 10 and didn't walk a batter.
The right-hander left the game with two on and two outs in the eighth after throwing 117 pitches.
Leo Hermosillo got Rodolfo Inda to ground out to end the inning.
Closer Craig Fritzler set the Muskies down in order to end it in a non-save situation.
The game was scoreless until the bottom of the sixth when Nick Shaw hit hits 26th homer of the season, a two-run shot, off Madison reliever Andy Prewitt.
The Walkers added another run later in the inning.
Mark Herman reached on an error by Muskies third baseman Mike Laskey.
Tom Porter replaced Herman at first and stole second.
He scored on a double by Mike Vaughan.
St. Louis final run of the season was fittingly scored by Manuel Coke, who hit his MBL leading 54th homer of the season in the top of the eighth, a solo shot off Jonathan Herrada.
The RBI gave Coke 145 for the season, also a league best.

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The Rockford Lightning defeated the Quad Cites Thunder 6-2 on the final day of the season to claim the National League Division title by a single game over second-place Milwaukee.
The Crushers also won their season-finale 3-1 over Chicago but trailed Rockford by a game going into the season's final day.
Rockford finished the season 89-73, one game better the Milwaukee.
It is the third division title for the Lightning, the others coming in 2033 and 2036.
They made the World Series both years but lost to Grand Rapids in 2033 and Detroit in 2036.
Rockford will open the postseason on the road, as Cedar Rapids, with hits 91-71 record, will own home-field advantage in the NL championship series.

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The Grand Rapids Traders had to wait a day, but they claimed the American League West Division title with an exciting 2-1 win in 11 innings over Evansville.
The game was a makeup for a contest rained out earlier in the season. The victory gave the Traders a one-game lead over second-place Ann Arbor with 162 games in the books.
Grand Rapids finished the season 91-71. Ann Arbor clocked out a 90-72.
The Traders won the game in the bottom of the 11th when an RBI single from Edwin Palos off Bosses reliever Jeremy Pottenger.
The hit scored Jake Klingenstein, who had reached on a fielder's choice.
Kilingenstein then stole second putting him in position to score on the single by Palos.
The division title is the seventh for the Traders (2019,
21, '23. '30, 33 and '34).
They have made the World Series twice (2033 and '34), but have never won the championship.
Grand Rapids will open the postseason on the road at Columbus, who owns the MBL's best record at 101-61.