2032 St. Louis River Walkers -- Growing weary of just coming close

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Record: 2-0, 1st, 0.5 GA Des Moines
Jose Ramirez two-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning scored Matt Fulton to snap a 2-2 tie, and give St. Louis a 3-2 win over Peoria at Busch Stadium (1997).
The hit came off former River Walker pitcher Lenyn Crisp, who went to Peoria in the offseason trade for outfielder Alex Greene.
Fulton had singled off Crisp with one out, and moved to second on a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Jovan Gill.
A single from Daniel Becerra moved Fulton to third, and when Ramirez came through with the third single of the inning, the River Walkers had themselves a victory.
St. Louis probably should have won without batting in the bottom of the ninth.
It led 2-0 going into the top of the ninth, having shutout the Rivermen for 17 innings to start the season, but newcomer Josh Forgy allowed consecutive two-out homers to Cesar Salazar and Anthony Volpe to tie the game.
With three straight left-handed hitters slated to bat in the top of the ninth, the Walkers elected to go with the southpaw Forgy.
He retired the first two before allowing Salazar's longball.
With another lefty on deck after Volpe in Randy Underhill, Forgy was told to pitch around Volpe.
He ended up hitting the ball 415 feet into the left-center field bleachers.
The Walkers had used the long ball to go up 2-0, Ramirez belting a two-run shot off Rivermen starting pitcher Luke Madden to open the scoring.
St. Louis starter Izzy San Juan pitched four scoreless innings allowing fouir hits. He struck out five and walked one.
Josh Grissom worked a scoreless eighth.
Forgy (1-0) had his issues with the two homers in the ninth, but somehow came out with the win.

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Record: 3-0, 1st, 0.5 GA Des Moines
Jose Segura snapped a 3-3 tie with a two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the fifth inning to help give St. Louis a 5-3 win over Peoria at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory gave the River Walkers a three-game sweep of their season-opening series with the Rivermen.
Jose Ramirez, who had hit a solo homer in the bottom of the first inning to give St. Louis an early 1-0 lead, was on base when Segura went deep having doubled with one out off Rivermen starting pitcher Enrique Castillo.
Segura's first homer of the season came on a 1-1 pitch and carried 398 feet over the left-field wall.
St. Louis starting pitcher Jesse McNaboe (1-0) was just good enough, allowing three runs on six hits over six innings. He struck out five and walked one.
Yeison Santos, Cory Tiller and closer Ernesto Barbosa all pitched an inning of scoreless relief, with Barbosa earning his first save of the season.

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Record: 3-1, 2nd (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids), 1 GB Des Moines
Madison battered St. Louis starting pitcher Kaneo Kawamoto for six runs over the first three innings, and the Muskies rode that to a 7-1 win at Comiskey Park (1991).
Kawamoto was making his first start since missing the last month-plus of the 2031 season with a shoulder injury.
In this game, the veteran left-hander allowed six runs on seven hits in six innings.
Down 1-0, Madison took command with three runs in the bottom of the second.
Steve Mann led off the inning with a double off Kawamoto.
Emmanuel Freon later drove in the inning's first run with another double.
Freon scored on a Jason Nolan fly ball.
The third double of the inning, this one from Wyatt Olson, made it 3-1.
IAn inning later, Mann cranked a two-run homer off Kawamoto to key another three-run inning.
Yan C. Dixon also doubled, stole third and scored on a Feron sacrafice fly.
Starting pitcher Mario Martinez lasted just two innings for the Muskies, allowing one run, before exiting with an undisclosed injury.
But the bullpen did all right, with seven scoreless innings.
Casey Owens (3.1 IP) was the first to take the mound.
Former Walkers prospect Ben Schellenger (0.2) followed with a short stint.
Josh Hertel was on the mound for three silent frames, earning himself a save.

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Record: 3-2, 2nd (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids and Quad City), 2 GB Des Moines
Leading 2-1, Madison chased St. Louis starting pitcher Zack Hunsicker with four runs in the bottom of the third, and the Muskies went on for a 6-2 win at Comiskey Park (1991).
Former River Walkers third baseman Jordan Groshans put the Muskies on top when he led off the bottom of the second inning with a solo homer off Hunsicker.
Groshans, who hit 43 homers and drove in 106 runs for St. Louis in 2031 only to leave the team in free agency, agreed on a one-year deal with Madison worth $2.84 million on April 9.
Pitcher Bryce Osmand singled and scored in the third, Yan Dixon sending him home with a fly out.
With the score now 2-1, Jose Ramirez led off the fourth with a homer off Osmond, the fourth spelt the end for Hunsicker.
Madison scored four runs on four hits, and were helped by a wild pitch and an error by third baseman Matt Fulton.
Osmond supplied the biggest hit, with a two-run double.
Dixon collected another RBI with a single.
In addition to going 2 for 2 at the plate, with two runs scored and a pair of RBIs, Osmond (1-0) allowed one run on three hits over the firsrt six innings. He struck out four and didn't issues a walk.
The rest of the game belonged to Johnny Kuhn Jr. (2.0 IP) and former Walkers pitcher Ben Schellenger (1.0), who combined to close out the win.

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Originally Posted by rink23

Record: 2-0, 1st, 0.5 GA Des Moines
Jose Ramirez two-out single in the bottom of the ninth inning scored Matt Fulton to snap a 2-2 tie, and give St. Louis a 3-2 win over Peoria at Busch Stadium (1997).
The hit came off former River Walker pitcher Lenyn Crisp, who went to Peoria in the offseason trade for outfielder Alex Greene.
Fulton had singled off Crisp with one out, and moved to second on a sacrifice fly by pinch-hitter Jovan Gill.
A single from Daniel Becerra moved Fulton to third, and when Ramirez came through with the third single of the inning, the River Walkers had themselves a victory.
St. Louis probably should have won without batting in the bottom of the ninth.
It led 2-0 going into the top of the ninth, having shutout the Rivermen for 17 innings to start the season, but newcomer Josh Forgy allowed consecutive two-out homers to Cesar Salazar and Anthony Volpe to tie the game.
With three straight left-handed hitters slated to bat in the top of the ninth, the Walkers elected to go with the southpaw Forgy.
He retired the first two before allowing Salazar's longball.
With another lefty on deck after Volpe in Randy Underhill, Forgy was told to pitch around Volpe.
He ended up hitting the ball 415 feet into the left-center field bleachers.
The Walkers had used the long ball to go up 2-0, Ramirez belting a two-run shot off Rivermen starting pitcher Luke Madden to open the scoring.
St. Louis starter Izzy San Juan pitched four scoreless innings allowing fouir hits. He struck out five and walked one.
Josh Grissom worked a scoreless eighth.
Forgy (1-0) had his issues with the two homers in the ninth, but somehow came out with the win.

Being on the losing end of one of those 9th inning losses at the beginning of a year, always haunted me as a fan. It was just difficult to move on from. In contrast the first week rally for the victor can set the tone for a season--glad your St. Louis team is in that category.

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Record: 4-2, 2nd (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids, 2 GB Des Moines
Making his first start of the season, Nathaniel Dixon slapped a two-run double in the top of the fifth inning to give St. Louis a 2-1 lead over Madison, and neither team scored again as the River Walkers avoided getting swept at Comiskey Park (1991).
An RBI double from Chris Duncan off St. Louis starter Angel Tiburcio in the bottom of the second had staked the Muskies to a 1-0 lead.
That lasted until Thairo Estrada and Jovan Gil led off the fifth with back-to-back singles off Madison starter Danny Munos in the fifth.
A balk moved the runners to second and third.
After a strikeout of Tiburcio, Dixon followed with his double to right-center as St. Louis went in front for good.
Tiburcio, who had to exit his opening day start after just two innings with a back injury, fared much better this time going 6.1 innings, allowing just the one run on six hits. He struck out six and walked one.
Yeison Santos finished the seventh inning and recorded the first out of the eighth.
Josh Grissom was supposed to finish the eighth but was lifted after recording an out because of another back injury.
The right-handed is expected to be out for a week.
Cory Tiller retired the only batter he faced to end the eighth.
Madison put its first two hitters aboard against Walkers closer Ernesto Barbosa in the ninth, but couldn't get either one of them home.
It is the second save of the season for Barbosa.

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MBL news: Week 1 Awards and standings

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Record: 5-2, 2nd (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids), 2 GB Des Moines
Trailing 5-3, St. Louis busted loose for five runs in the bottom of the eighth inning to carry it to an 8-5 win over Rockford at Busch Stadium (1997).
Outside of a one-out walk to Jose Segura, all of the damage came with two outs.
Rick Scott provided the first blow, greeting reliever, and former Walkers ace Alex Faedo, with a two-run homer to tie the game.
He was the first of six consecutive St. Louis batters to reach base.
In that span, Jared Thomas broke the tie with an RBI double.
Jose Ramirez drove in the final two runs with a single.
Faedo was on the mound for all of the runs.
Earlier, the Walkers' Daniel Becerra had broken out of an early-season slump with a pair of solo homers.
Still, the Lightning held a 5-3 late in game, mainly thanks to a three-run homer from Raynel Delgado off Andres Hernandez with two outs in the sixth.
Walkers starter Izzy San Juan worked 5.2 innings, allowing four runs on four hits.
Hernandez relieved San Juan in the sixth, and allowed the Delgado homer, the first batter he faced.
Hernandez than recorded the first two outs of the seventh.
Ricky Cisneros (2-0) got the final out of the seventh, and pitched a scoreless eighth.
Nick Ruffalo earned his first major league save with a 1-2-3 ninth.

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The game between the Rockford Lightning and St. Louis River Walkers on April 13 at Busch Stadium (1997) has been postponed by rain.
It will be made up as part of a doubleheader on April 14.

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Record: 6-2, 2nd, 1.5 GB Des Moines
St. Louis exploded for 12 runs in the bottom of the sixth inning, turning a 1-0 game into a blowout as the River Walkers downed Rockford 13-0 in the opening game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium (1997).
Nathaniel Dixon started the fun by leading off the inning with a homer off Lightning starting pitcher Miguel Cisneros.
The next two batters reached base, Daniel Becerra singled and Jose Ramirez drew a walk, to chase Cisneroes.
Willie Cardona took over and was greeted by a three-run homer from Alex Greene.
But there were still eight runs to score.
Ramirez drove in half of them with a grand slam off Bob Singer.
Jared Thomas also went yard, with a two-run blast.
Before that, however, pitcher Jesse McNaboe had picked up an RBI with a single.
Dixon collected his second RBI of the inning with a double off Cardona.
Overshadowed by the Walkers' offense. McNaboe (2-0) was strong on the mound with seven shutout innings.
He allowed two hits, while striking out five and walking two.
Ricky Cisneroes retired all six batters he faced over the final two innings.

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Record: 6-3, 2nd, 2 GB Des Moines
Former River Walkers prospect Kurt Halter worked seven scoreless innings, and Rockford avoided a three-game sweep with a 6-0 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (1997).
Acquired by the Lightning in a trade which sent Jose Ramirez to the Walkers, Halter (1-0) scattered four hits in his seven innings. He struck out seven and walked one.
Cristofe Tineo, with his team already ahead 6-0, handled the final two innings without much of an issue.
It was another rough start for the Walkers' Kaneo Kawamoto.
He lased just four innings, allowing all six Rockford runs in five hits. He struck out five and walked four.
The Lightning jumped in front 1-0 in the top of the second.
Kawamoto walked the inning's first two batters, and Javy Monjaraz drove in Erik Stowe with a fly ball.
Rockford broke the game open with a pair of homers in the top of the third.
Wade Martin provided the first with a two-run shot.
Blaze Jordan made it back-to-back with a 474-foot bomb.
Two innings later, Jordan chased Kawamoto with a two-run shot to put the Lightning ahead 6-0.

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The game between the St. Louis River Walkers and Detroit Diesels scheduled for April 15 at Tiger Stadium (1980) has been postponed by rain.
It has been rescheduled as part of a doubleheader on April 16.

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Record: 6-4, 2nd (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids, 3.5 GB Des Moines
Francisco Velasco and the Detroit bullpen shutout St. Louis over the first seven innings, helping spur the Diesels to a 4-3 win at Tiger Stadium (1981).
Velasco (2-0) lasted five innings, long enough to earn his second win, allowing just two hits while striking out eight and walking two.
Four relievers combined to finish the game.
Juan Arroyo pitched a scoreless sixth.
Lenny Torres did the same in the seventh, before getting into trouble in the eighth when St. Louis would get all three of its runs.
Those came courtesy of a three-run homer from Jose Segura off Nate Wilson.
Fortunately, for the Diesels the score was 4-0 by that time.
Brian Little pitched a silent ninth for Detroit to earn his first save.
Cade Doughty did much of the work for the Diesels at the plate.
He drove in their first run with a single off River Walkers starter Zach Hunsicker in the second inning.
He added another RBI with a double off Hunsicker in the sixth to make it 3-0.
Before that, Doughty had scored a run in the fifth.
He led off with a single off Hunsicker, and later scored on a Mitch Brneier fly ball.
Doughty also scored Detroit's final run in the sixth, coming home on a Jose Hernandez two-out single off Nick Ruffalo.

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Record: 6-5, 3rd (Tied/w. Kansas City), 4 GB Des Moines
Sean Hopkins tossed five shutout innings and the Detroit bullpen handled the rest, as the Diesels shutout St. Louis 4-0 to complete a doubleheader sweep at Tiger Stadium (1980).
Hopkins (1-0) allowed three hits in his five innings. He struck out fice and walked two.
Four relievers -- Jarrod Hardt (1.0 IP), Juan Arroyo (1.0), Caden Lemons (1.2) and Brian Little (0.1) -- combined to complete the shutout.
Little retired the only batter he faced to earn his second save of the doubleheader.
The Diesels scored a pair of runs off River Walkers ace Angel Tiburcio in the bottom of the fourth.
A pair of singles sandwiched around a walk opened the inning.
The second single, from Cade Doughty, plated Robert Hassell with the game's first run.
A wild pitch by Tiburcio brought Mitch Bernier home with the second run.
A two-run homer from Jimmy Gorman off Yeison Santos in the seventh accounted for the rest of the scoring.

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Record: 6-6, 4th, 4 GB Des Moines
Detroit pounded St. Louis starting pitcher Izzy San Juan for six runs in three innings to power the Diesels to their third straight win over the River Walkers, 7-2 at Tiger Stadium (1980).
San Juan got through the opening inning unscathed but the damage came quickly in the second with Jimmy Gorman leading off with the first of his two homers in the game.
The next two batters also reached, the second, Bill Pena, on an error by second baseman Daniel Becerra.
Izaac Pacheco made the Walkers pay with a two-run triple.
Cady Doughty later scored Pacheco with a two-out single.
An inning later, Gorman clouted his second home, this one a two-run shot to make it 6-0.
That also spelled the end for San Juan, who exited at the end of the inning.
Meanwhile, Detroit starter Chris Terry was dominant with five shutout innings, during which he allowed three hits while striking out 10 and walking three.
Nate Finck pitched the sixth and started the seventh -- during which he allowed solo homers to Becerra and Jose Segura -- as the Walkers did get on the board.
But it never got close.
Caden Lemons pitched two scoreless innings.
Jarrod Hardt took care of the ninth.

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Record: 7-6, 3rd, 3 GB Des Moines
Jesse McNaboe allowed one run over just more than five innings and St. Louis built a 4-0 lead before Detroit got on the board as the River Walkers avoided a four-game sweep with a 4-1 win at Tiger Stadium (1980).
McNaboe (3-0), who has won all three of his starts, allowed the one run on four hits. He struck out six and walked one.
He also drove in his team's final run with a two-out single in the top of the sixth inning off Diesels relief pitcher Juan Arroyo.
That made the score 4-0.
The right-hander did come out to pitch the bottom of the sixth, but exited after allowing a lead-off homer to Mitch Bernier.
Nick Ruffalo stepped in to finish the sixth without incident.
Andres Hernadez got the first two outs of the seventh.
Josh Forgy completed that inning and worked a silent eighth.
Closer Ernesto Barbosa allowed a pair of single to open the ninth, but struck out two of the next three to earn his third save.
St. Louis' other runs came on single tallies in the second, third and fourth innings off Detroit starting pitcher Rich Nelson.
Jean Carmona drove in the game's first run with a one-out single in the second to score Matt Fulton.
Alex Greene doubled and scored on a two-out single by Jared Thomas in the third.
Rick Scott hit his third homer of the season to lead off the fourth.

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MBL news: Week 2 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 8-6, 3rd (Tied/w. Kansas City), 3 GB Des Moines
Kaneo Kawamoto wasn't great., but he was good enough to earn his first win of the season as St. Louis rallied for a 3-2 in over Louisville at Busch Stadium (1997).
Majorly roughed up in his first two starts of the 2032 season, Kawamoto (1-2) lasted six innings in this game and although he did allow seven hits, it amounted to just two runs.
And that proved the difference when the River Walkers scored twice in the top of the seven inning to seize the lead.
The game was scoreless into the top of the fifth, when the Sluggers Hisanori Yasuda hit a two-out, two-run homer off Kawamoto to put his team in front.
St. Louis halved that lead in the bottom of the fifth on a homer from Jared Thomas off Louisville starting pitcher Myles Wilson.
Wilson returned to the mound in the sixth, and allowed a lead-off walk to Jean Carmona followed by a Thairo Estrada single.
He was still out there when Nathaniel Dixon hit a fly ball to score Carmona and tie the game.
Wilson was again the victim when Jose Ramirez to score Estrada.
Three relievers -- Cory Tiller (1.1 IP), Josh Forgy (0.2) and Ernesto Barbosa (1.0) -- combined to close out the win for the Walkers.
Barbosa earned his fourth save.

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Record: 9-6, 2nd (Tied/w. Kansas City), 3 GB Des Moines
Jose Segura's two-run, two-out homer in the bottom of the eighth inning capped a six-run inning for St. Louis, as the River Walkers rallied to defeat Louisville 8-7 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The Sluggers' Jacob Campbell hit a two-run homer in the top of the eighth off St. Louis reliever Andres Hernandez to put his team ahead 7-2.
That didn't prove to be enough.
Thairo Estrada led off the bottom of the inning with a single off Louisville reliever Owen White.
Five pitches later, Jovan Gill hit his first home run of the season to make it 7-4.
Matt Fulton kept it going with a walk, and when Jose Ramirez doubled, there were runners at second and third.
Matt Ray took over for the Sluggers, and got Nathaniel Dixon to ground out, although Fulton scored to make it 7-5.
Jared Thomas followed with a double, scoring Ramirez as the deficit shrunk to 7-6.
Ray retired Jae-hong Chang for the second out.
Segura, however, pounded a 1-1 pitch 362 feet over the wall in right to put St. Louis in front.
Walkers starting pitcher Zack Hunsinker cruised through five scoreless innings, before getting torched for five runs in the sixth, during which he recorded just one out.
Nick Ruffalo finished off the sixth and worked a scoreless seventh.
Hernandez (1-0) allowed the Campbell homer while pitching the eighth.
The comeback in the bottom of the inning, allowed him to earn the win.
Once again, Walkers closer Ernesto Barbosa allowed the opposition's first two batters to reach in the bottom of the ninth but again did not allow any of them to score.
He struck out the next three hitters for his fifth save.
Walkers outfielder Alex Greene had to leave the game after becoming injured while running the bases.
A diagnosis of the injury is unknown.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have placed outfielder Alex Greene on the 10-day injured list, after he suffered a quad injury in an 8-7 win over Louisville on April 21.
Acquired in the offseason from Peoria, the 30-year-old Greene had batted .261 with three homers and seven RBIs in 14 games with the Walkers.
While the injured is deemed minimal, it could sideline Greene for up to three weeks.
Getting the callup from Memphis is outfielder Ben Thompson, who spent a good part of the 2031 season in St. Louis.
This season at Memphis, Thompson, 22, has hit .296 with three homers and 12 RBIs in 13 games.