Joshua Mills his life in Baseball

[amead17]

Today we play the Lake Charles Express for game 2 of the 3 game series. We are just hoping to manage to get some hits today after our last 2 games saw us not score a run and only get 7 hits for the whole ball club.

Seversons injury was not a bad as first feared and he is d.t.d for a few days. This didn't stop the Black Cats from making a minor change. They promoted pitcher Nick Hill back to the Triple A Tulsa Aggies after only a couple of days with us and sent Left Fielder Cooper Houghton down from the Single A Erie Phantoms to help our batting. Houghton was my first room mate before he got promoted preseason so I know him a little bit.

Houghton gets an immediate start as the manager goes for the following line up today.

SS Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
DH Steve Bielecki
3B Joshua Mills
RF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
LF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala
1B Jose Becerra

Pitching for us today is Tyler Crostic. Crostic had a 3-1 record for the team this year and only gave up 2 hits in his last outing against the Express on the 24th June. We are hoping he can have the same type of game today.

Top of the first and Mendoza gets to lead off. Mendoza gets to take a base on a walk for the start of the game. McCauley then gets strike out number 20 for the year as he goes down swinging. Bielecki also strikes out to mean I am up to try and help get the first hit for the team. I get bat on ball but fire straight to second for a ground out that see the side retired.

Bottom of the first and Crostic starts by giving Blodgett a walk. I get a an infield pop up from Gilberds that lands nicely in my glove for the first out. We fall behind again as De Regt gets one out to centre field that lands wide of Severson for a double. Blodgett rounds third and makes home without a throw. De Regt moves to third after Wedlow sees a long one to right centre fall into the glove of Severson for out number 2. Potts tries a little one that rolls towards second McCauley charges in and makes the pick up that gets the out at first and ends the inning with the Express leading 1-0.

Top of the second and Houghton is up for his first bat for us. It doesn't go well as he joins the strike out club and goes down swinging. Severson also strikes out for our fourth of the day. Out first hit of the day comes from a Rice roller towards third. He makes first base without being challenged by the throw from third. Ayala then strikes out to leave Rice stranded and our batting woes continue.

Bottom of the second and Crostic is facing Brittain. We manage to get Brittain as Becerra at first manages to cover the hole and pick up the grounder for the tag at first. Crostic then gives Crager a base hit to left centre after building a full count. We give up another base hit as Severson cannot reach one at short centre. Reich gets on base and Crager moves to second. Bellefeuille moves Reich to second and Crager to third after grounding out to Mendoza at short. We get lucky as Blodgett sends a grounder straight back to Crostic on the mound for the final out of the inning that leaves the score 1-0 in the Express' favour.

Top of the third and Becerra is our lead off. Becerra becomes the sixth of 9 batters to strike out as we get a serious case of the swing and miss ball. Mendoza follows up with strike out number 7 to see our second out. McCauley makes it 3 in the inning and 8 overall as we go down 1, 2, 3.

Bottom of the third and Crostic will face Gilberds. Gilberds gets one to fall in to short left for a base hit. Gilberds moves to second as De Regt grounds out to McCauley at second. Wedlow puts a pop up over McCauley at second for out number 2. We get the inning ended as Potts grounds out to Mendoza at short stop.

Top of the fourth and we really need to get control of our bats. Bielecki finally gets bat on ball and it drops into centre field for a base hit. I am up next trying to get my game turned around. I catch the swing and miss bug as I become strike out number 9. We finally break our duck as Houghton shows why he has been at single a level before today. He connects with one that goes down the right line falling safe before drifting over to foul territory. This gives Bielecki time to round third and run home to score. Houghton turns his hit into an RBI Double. Severson becomes strike out number 10 for the Express starter as we continue to give him easy outs. Rice ends the inning with an easy return grounder to the pitcher that sees him tagged at first. We have tied the game up at 1-1.

Bottom of the fourth and Brittain will be first to face Crostic. Brittain starts the inning with a base hit to left field. Crager gets a grounder out to second. McCauley fields and tags at second before attempting the double play at first. Crager beats the throw to be safe. We get Brittain but not Crager. I get a nice catch from Reich up next as he tries to find the left side. Bellefeuille smacks one into right field that lands for a base hit. Crager moves to third. Crostic gets Blodgett to go down swinging and end the inning with the score still tied at 1-1.

Top of the fifth and Ayala comes up first. Ayala gets a hard one out to deep left centre that lands safe. He goes for 2 and beats the throw with a head first slide. Becerra keeps our strong strike out progress going as he becomes number 11 of the game. Mendoza gets an intentional walk to move on base. McCauley hits out to right field but finds the fielder for out number 2. The bases become loaded as Bielecki gets a walk moving Ayala to third and Mendoza to second. I am up next and if ever I needed a hit it was now to help the team. I am facing a new pitcher. I cannot make contact and am struck out for the second time to strand 3 players on base.

Bottom of the fifth and we replace Crostic with Jesus Nunez on the mound. Gilberds is first up but hits a line drive towards McCauley who grabs the catch. De Regt fires a long one out to right field but Houghton manages to get under it for the second out. Wedlow puts one up towards right that drifts foul and Houghton gets the catch to end the inning and leave the score tied at 1-1.

Top of the sixth and Houghton is our lead off man. Houghton strikes out as we keep going down swinging. Severson gets a grounder towards third but it is quickly fired to first and the out. Rice then strikes out to make our inning quickly over.

Bottom of the sixth and Nunez continues to Potts. He gets him to strike out. Brittain puts a grounder out towards first that Becerra picks up but then makes a bad throw to Nunez at first allowing Brittain to make base. Crager puts one out towards McCauley at second. He picks it up and gets the ball to second base to tag Brittain. There is no throw for the double play and Crager is safe at first. We fall behind again as Reich gets one out to the right corner that falls in for a double. Crager makes the run for home. We fall further behind as Bellfeuille gets one to land in front of Houghton in right field. Reich scampers from second to home base for the 3rd Express run. Nunez gets pulled for Jose Juarez. Blodgett grounds to Mendoza at short and that ends the inning when he is tagged at first. We are now losing 3-1.

Top of the seventh and Ayala is our first batter. Ayala gets his second hit of the game as the ball bounces off the end if the left fielders glove to land safe. Becerra gives a soft fly out to centre field for out number 1 of the inning. We are retired as Mendoza grounds into a double play at third. That sees both himself and Ayala out.

Bottom of the seventh with Juarez continuing. Juarez gets Gilberds to strike out. De regt then gets one out to left field for a base hit. Juarez then puts one on a plate for Wedlow that he gets to go 431 feet and score a 2 run homer. Juarez gets pulled and Dashawn McKinzy comes in. Potts is the first to face McKinzy and goes down swinging. Brittain then puts a little pop up out to second to see the side retired but move into a 5-1 lead over us Wasps.

Top of the eighth and we need to find something if we are to get anything from the game. McCauley is up first and manages to get 1 back as he hits a bad ball 389 feet for a solo home run. Bielecki then gets a line drive out to centre field to fall in for a base hit. This brings me up to bat but I continue my very poor form as I strike out again. Houghton also strikes out for the second. We end up with only the one run as Severson grounds out to short. Game score now 5-2 in the Express favour.

Bottom of the eighth and McKinzy will continue. Crager is up first and McKinzy loses one to ping Crager and give him a base. Crager moves to second on a Reich bunt that sees Reich out at first. McKinzy loses another one and hits Bellfeuille to give up another base. McKinzy is pulled and Cesar Arocho comes in. Arocho gets Blodgett to strike out. Arocho is pulled and Donte Conston is sent in. We get the inning over as Conston gets Gilberds to strike out. Score still 5-2

Top of the ninth and we need something big to get back in the game. Rice is up first facing the Express closer. Rice goes down swinging for the first out. Ayala also strikes out as we seem to be struggling. Becerra ends the game with an infield pop up that the pitcher catches.

We lose another game, this time 5-2. Our batting was slightly better with 6 hits and 2 runs but my own personal form goes backwards with 0-4 and 3 strike outs. I also left 6 people on base.

Tomorrow sees the final game of the series in Lake Charles and we just have to hope we can get it together for at least 1 win. I myself need to seriously look at my batting as I fall back to .217 as an average.

[amead17]

We are playing the final game of the 3 game series against the Lake Charles Express today. I am hoping I can find some form and break my barren spell with the bat.

The manager has decided on the following line-up for today's game

SS Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
3B Joshua Mills
RF Cooper Houghton
DH Angel Espinal
CF Chris Severson
LF Tanner Rice
1B Scot Noftall
Catcher Josh Pittman

On the mound for us today is Antonio Torres. Torres has a 1-2 record with his only win being on the road. Hopefully we can add to that record.

Top of the first and we lead off with Angelo Mendoza. Mendoza starts us off with a strike out which is not good. McCauley is up second and he also strikes out. This brings me up for go number 1 with an empty diamond and 2 out. I go down swinging as well to give the Express' pitcher 3 strike outs in the first.

Bottom of the first and Torres faces Blodgett for the first time. I am in the action early as Blodgett puts a grounder my way which I fire to first for the out. Crager gives McCauley at second an easy grounder to make out number 2. De Regt then sends a grounder straight to first to end the inning with the score tied at 0-0.

Top of the second and Cooper Houghton is first up for us. Houghton becomes strike out number 4 as we continue to miss. We finally get bat on as Espinal pops a line drive out to centre field but it falls into the fielders glove for the out. Severson thinks he has one through near third base only to see the fielder lunge and make an excellent catch to end our inning.

Bottom of the second and Torres is facing Pena up first. Pena gets the first hit of the game as he gets one to bounce past Mendoza at short. Gilberds becomes the first out of the inning for the Express as he strikes out. I pick up a grounder from Wedlow and fire to second to get Pena bu tMcCauley cannot make the throw to first for the double play allowing Wedlow on base. We end the inning when Tennant fires a grounder straight to McCauley at second for the side to be retired with the score remaining 0-0.

Top of the third and Rice is our lead off man. Rice strikes out to show we still have a big issue with trying to connect with the ball. Noftall gets one off the bat and towards short but it is picked up and sent to first to tag him out. Pittman makes it a quick inning for us again as he flies out to centre for 9 up and 9 down in order.

Bottom of the third and Torres has his sights on Brittain first of all. Brittain sends a strong one towards the left side but Rice is there to haul it in for the catch. Roethler then strikes out for number 2. Blodgett follows up with another strike out to leave the game scoreless after 3.

Top of the fourth and we again start with Mendoza. Mendoza goes down for his second strike out of the game. McCauley gets bat on ball but sends the grounder straight to second who gets him tagged at first. I am up for my second go just trying to put bat on ball. I miss again to see my second strike out of the game.

Bottom of the fourth and Crager is up first but he keeps up the procession of batters who are out as he grounds to first. De Regt is out on a pop up fly to Severson at centre field. Pena makes base for a second time as he is given a walk. The inning ends when Gilberds hits one to Mendoza at second who then tags Pena for the third out. Game remains scoreless.

Top of the fifth and we start with Houghton. Houghton puts a little grounder to second that sees him out at first. Espinal thinks he has one through the gap between third and short only for their third baseman to make a diving catch for the out. Severson then gets one out to deep centre field only to see the fielder dive and make the catch for the third out.

Bottom of the fifth with Wedlow coming in to face Torres. Wedlow gets only the second hit of the game as he gets one to go out to short left. Tennant hits a long one out to deep left that makes it t the wall. This gives him a double and sends Wedlow to third. We fall behind as Brittain gets a single out to short centre that scores Wedlow and moves Tennant to third. We slip further back as Roethler gets a single out to right field. Tennant scores and Brittain moves to second. Torres finally gets his control back to strike out Blodgett for number 1 in the inning. We get lucky as Torres sends one in the dirt but it is picked up by Pittman who tags Crager for the out. We finally get out of the inning only 2-0 down as De Regt flies out to right centre.

Top of the sixth and we need to get hitting or else the game could already be over. Rice is up first and gets a walk for our first base of the game. Noftall puts a little flare out to left but is caught for the first out of the inning. We end up going down with only 3 batters again as Pittman hits into a double play at second that sees both himself and Rice out.

Bottom of the sixth and Pena is up first against Torres. We get very lucky as a strongly hit one to right side holds up in the wind and Houghton manages to grab it before it goes over the fence. That is it for Torres as Jose Juarez is sent in to relieve. Juarez gets Gilberds out first up as a grounder to Mendoza is sent to first for the out. Wedlow gets a base hit as his right side club falls away from Houghton. We get out of the inning without any damage as Mendoza picks up a grounder from Tennant and gets Wedlow tagged at second. Score remains 2-0 in the favour of the Express.

Top of the seventh and we are starting only our third go around, our batting has been that bad. Mendoza is up first and his return grounder to the pitcher sees our first out of the inning. McCauley nearly makes base after a wild pitch is missed but he is beaten by the throw to first to be out. This brings me up and I am not hopeful with the way I have been playing. I finally manage to get bat on ball but only for it to fall into the glove of the left side fielder to retire the side.

Bottom of the seventh and Juarez continues against Brittain. McCauley gets an easy catch at second to take Brittain. Roethler sends a hopper to McCauley for the second out. Blodgett tries to bunt but to near to Juarez who sends it to first to end the inning and leave the score 2-0.

Top of the eighth and we are now in dire need of a hit. Houghton is up first but his grounder rolls straight to second base for the first out. Espinal then flies out to left field for number 2. Severson puts a long one out to the right fielder and we again go down 1, 2, 3.

Bottom of the eighth and we need to keep it tight to stand any chance in the game. Crager is up first and his bouncer to Juarez on the mound sees him being the first out. De Regt hits a grounder to Mendoza who makes it out number 2. We remain only 2 down as Pena fires a grounder to McCauley for out number 3.

Top of the ninth and we are desperate for a hit to get back into the game. We finally break the Express starting pitchers no hitter as Rice gets one to go out to left field and land in for our first hit of the game. This brings in the Express closer and we decide to pinch hit with LaBuff. Rice moves to second as LaBuff gets a line drive out to left centre and our second hit of the game. Bielecki pinch hits for Pittman and gets a hit out to the left corner this allows the pinch running Kiritsis and LaBuff to both sprint for home and tie the game up at 2-2. Bielecki tried for third but is out sliding. Mendoza comes up with 1 out and the game now in the balance. Mendoza fails as he hits a grounder to second. The inning ends when McCauley hits a grounder to third and we finish the inning tied at 2-2.

Bottom of the ninth and we are somehow still in the game. We need to keep it tight to take it to extras. The manager has decided to call on closer Danny Burns to get the job done. Gilberds is up first and he sends a grounder straight back to Burns who gets him out at first. Burns then strikes out Wedlow to make it 2 down. Tennant gets the go ahead run on base by making a hit out to right field. Brittain hits one towards short and McCauley fields but miscues his throw and allows Tennant to move to second and Brittain on base. We get away with it as Roethler chases a bad one to leave the game 2-2.

Top of the tenth and I am getting a bat I didn't expect. I now just need to find a way of connecting. I fail again as I strike out for the third time in the game. Houghton follows me up with a strike out as our struggles return. Espinal then grounds out to short to end the inning.

Bottom of the tenth and Burns will have to go again. Blodgett grounds out to second for the first out. Crager gets a walk to see the winning run on base again. I help to retire the side as I pick up a De Regt grounder and send it to second before it goes to first and completes the double play. 2-2 and we are going into the eleventh

Top of the eleventh and Severson is up first against a new pitcher. Severson goes down swinging for out number 1. Kiritsis sees his grounder to second sent over to first for the second out. Ayala then strikes out to end our inning.

Bottom of the eleventh and Cesar Arocho is bought in to pitch. He faces pinch hitter Glacken who gets a base hit up the middle. Arocho is swapped with Donte Conston and he will face Gilberds. Gilberds hits one out to centre that falls in for a base hit with Glacken moving to second. No sooner is Conston in then he is out after he hurts his right foot and the trainer pulls him. Trevor Farner is bought in to pitch. He faces Wedlow first up who smacks one to right centre for a base hit. Glacken moves to third and then runs for home to win the game for the Express.

We lost a game that ended much closer than it should have been 3-2. Up until the ninth we couldn't buy a hit but still took it to extras somehow. I myself had a disaster with the bat going 0-4 with 3 strike outs. I am now hitless in 3 games and am starting to stare at a cold spell that I really need to break.

We are back home tomorrow to face the Biloxi Jackals but with our current form nothing is certain and we could very easily continue our losing streak.

[amead17]

Today see's us back to home comforts, hoping that it will help us turn around the dreadful run we are in hit wise. There have been no changes to playing staff so the manager goes with the following line-up in the first game against the Biloxi Jackals

CF Chris Severson
2B Casey McCauley
DH Steve Bielecki
3B Joshua Mills
RF Cooper Houghton
SS Chris LaBuff
LF Tanner Rice
1B Scot Noftall
Catcher Tomas Ayala

On the mound today is Dave Ziobro. Ziobro is having a tough year with a record of 0-3 from his 6 starts. Hopefully we can get 1 in the win column for him but it will be tough.

Top of the first and Ziobro faces Harman Eteldrum from the Jackals. Eteldrum starts the game off with a little fly out to right field where Houghton takes the catch. Ziobro then gets Shartzer to strike out for the second. Ziobro loses control up next and clips Warsaw with one to give him a base. Saintlouis puts one up over right field for an easy catch by Houghton to end the inning.

Bottom of the first and we lead off with Severson. Severson grounds to short for an easy out on the shuttle to first. McCauley puts a slow grounder to third but the fielder still gets the ball into first for the out. Bielecki is the first of us Wasps to go down to a strike out to end the inning and leave the game scoreless.

Top of the second and Selewski is up first for the Jackals. He puts one out over the left field but Rice is there for an easy catch. Ziobro uses the old fast ball to get Valdez to swing and miss for strike out number 2 of the game. Uitermarkt is up as the third batter but his grounder to second sees him easily retired to end the Jackals inning.

Bottom of the second and I will be leading off. I am just hoping to have found form so I don't go hitless for a fourth game. I get bat onto ball but send it towards third in the air where it is grabbed for the first out. Houghton strikes out trying to watch the ball. The Jackals pitcher injures himself on the pitch so LaBuff will be facing a new pitcher. We get a base hit as LaBuff finds the gap out to left field and the game is now started. Rice gets a solid line drive out to centre field for our second hit. This sends LaBuff to second before he scampers over to third. We fail to score as Noftall hits a weak one to third that is sent to first for the final out of the inning. The game remains scoreless.

Top of the third and Hinds comes in to face Ziobro. Ziobro puts one dead centre of the plate and Hinds connects to send it 417 feet and a solo home run to start the scoring. Ladewig comes in and decides to bunt but Ziobro gets it and fires the out to first. Eteldrum then grounds out to second for the second. Shartzer gets one to go over the head of Severson in centre and gets a double by beating the relay throw. We get out of the inning with only 1 run against us as Warsaw puts one into foul territory for Noftall to take. Game is 1-0 in the Jackals favour.

Bottom of the third and Ayala is first up. Ayala hits a liner towards short and the catch is nicely taken. Severson manages to get a slapped single out towards left field to get onto base. Severson moves up to second as McCauley manages to get a little base hit out to wide left field. Bielecki is the second out of the inning after putting a fly ball out to centre field. I am up for my second try just hoping to get something. I get something on the ball but send it straight to the short stop who gets McCauley at second to end the inning. We still trail 1-0.

Top of the fourth and Ziobro will face Saintlouis. Ziobro hits a second batter in the game as his fastball clips Saintlouis and gives him a base. Saintlouis then steals second as Ayala juggles a ball from Ziobro. Selewski then tries to get one out to left field but the slide from Rice sees the catch made. Saintlouis advances to third after Valdez sends one to LaBuff at short who gets him at first with the throw. Uitermarkt gets a walk after a full count. Severson then gives up a run by dropping an easy catch from Hinds to see him with a double and Saintlouis home for run number 2 for the Jackals Uitermarkt moves to third. Our poor form continues as Ladewig gets one out to centre for a base hit with Uitermarkt coming home for run number 3. Hinds then runs for home as well to make it 4. Our fielding then collapses further as Eteldrum gets one into left field. Hinds makes it round to third as Rice tries to find me with the throw. The throw is wide and that lets Hinds score. Eteldrum gets a double and we are well and truly down again. Shartzer takes a strike and Ayala spots Eteldrum going. He fires to me and I get the tag to retire the side on a failed steal attempt. We are now 5-0 down and struggling again.

Bottom of the fourth with Houghton starting off for us. Houghton gets hit by one and will take a base. LaBuff goes down swinging for the first out. Houghton gets to move to second as Rice clips a base hit out to short left. Noftall is the second out after giving up an infield pop up fly. Ayala gives a return grounder to the Jackals pitcher that sees us retired and still 5-0 behind.

Top of the fifth and Ziobro gets to continue. Shartzer is easily taken on a grounder to short with LaBuff making the play. Ziobro then gets Warsaw to strike out. Saintlouis follows with another strike out to make the fifth quick for the Jackals.

Bottom of the fifth and Severson is up first for us. Severson sends one long out to deep right only to see the fielder get there and make the catch. McCauley gets a slow roller out towards third and gets a base hit as the fielder decides not to risk the throw. Bielecki jabs at one that sees him struck out for number 2. I come in for go number 3 facing a new pitcher. I strike out to leave the game 5-0 in the Jackals favour.

Top of the sixth and the manager replaces Ziobro with Trevor Farner. Selewski is first up to face him and he gets a base hit into right field past McCauley at second. Valdez gets one straight down the middle and through McCauley for a base hit to centre. Selewski makes it to third. Uitermarkt gets one out to deep centre that Severson catches but Selewski tags up and runs for home beating the throw to get the sixth run for the Jackals. We fall even further behind as Farner gives an easy one to Hinds who gets home run number 2 of the game scoring himself and Valdez. Ladewig then picks up a base hit to centre field as Farner continues to struggle with his control. Eteldrum also gets a single to left field and moves Ladewig to second. Farner finally gets control by striking out Shartzer. Warsaw gets a grounder to McCauley at second that sees the inning end but we are now 8-0 behind and being trounced again.

Bottom of the sixth and Houghton is starting off. Houghton sees his long one to right field land in the glove of the fielder for out number one. LaBuff gets something going for us with a double out to the left wall as he beats the throw. LaBuff moves to third after Rice hits a grounder out to right which sees him out at first. Noftall then strikes out to leave LaBuff standed and end the inning with us down 8-0.

Top of the seventh and for some reason Farner continues. Saintlouis goes down swinging for the first out. Farner then hits Selewski with one too give him a base. Valdez gets one out into right field that lands in for a base hit. Selewski manages to get round to third without a throw being made. Valdez makes a move on a ball to Uitermarkt and beats the throw home to steal second. Uitermarkt then gets a grounder out towards second that sees him out but Valdez moves to third and Selewski runs for home to add to the Jackals score. Hinds gets another RBI as he finds a double out to right centre to score Valdez. I finally do something in the game as Ladewig pops one up over my way. I take the catch and end the Jackals seventh inning. We now trail 10-0 and are going down to a huge loss by the looks of it at home again.

Bottom of the seventh and we will start with Ayala. Ayala strikes out for number 1. The pitcher injured himself so there is a change on the mound for the Jackals. Severson grounds out over to first for out number 2. McCauley gets a single out to left field to give us a base hit. Bielecki strands McCauley by putting up a pop up fly to second base. We are still 10-0 down

Top of the eighth and Farner still continues on the mound. Houghton gets the first out as Eteldeum puts a long one out to him in right field. Shartzer is ground out at short as LaBuff picks up an easy one. Warsaw then gives an easy catch to Severson in centre field to end the inning.

Bottom of the eighth and I am up first. I am not expecting much the way my game is going. I get bat on ball and put it out towards short left but their fielder is there to make the grab and I am out again. Houghton gets a base hit out to right field to get the inning going. LaBuff puts a fly ball out to left that the fielder takes for out number 2. Rice gets one to go out to right centre that the fielder misses. This allows Houghton to round second and take third. Rice gets a base hit. We fail to score again when in position as Noftall hits one straight at the third baseman for the catch to end the inning. We still trail 10-0.

Top of the ninth and with the game gone Jesus Nunez comes in to pitch. Saintlouis is the first out of the inning as he grounds out to McCauley at second. Selewski gets a base hit to shallow centre. Nunez throws a weird one at Valdez that he gets into centre field for a base hit. Selewski moves to second. It turns out that Nunez has hurt his back on the pitch and has to be taken out of the game. In to pitch now is Dashawn McKinzy. McKinzy gets the pinch hitting Saenz for the second out. Hinds gets a walk as McKinzy loads the bases. Ladewig gets a solid hit to right field that lands in for a base. Selewskiand Valdez run for home to add a further 2 runs to the score. We get out of the inning as McKinzy strikes out Eteldrum but we now trail 12-0.

Bottom of the ninth and we are not expecting much. Ayala grounds out to first for number 1. Mendoza pinch hits for Severson but hits a fly ball to left field for out number 2. McCauley then strikes out to end the game.

We lose big 12-0 and it was never close. I myself went 0-4 and only touched the ball once in the field to have an awful game. I am now hitless in 4 and looking at a very cold streak for hitting.

We are proving we cannot bat or pitch either at home or away as we sink to 11-21 for the year. We had 10 hits but just could not string them together for the runs to be scored.

We will face the Jackals again tomorrow and we are hoping just to make it look respectable.

[amead17]

We start game 2 of the 3 game home series against the Biloxi Jackals very down and there is nothing that the management staff can seem to do to get us up. We really need a win and I really need a hit to get the horrible feeling that the locker room has to go away.

The injury to Jesus Nunez is not to serious but will see him sidelined for 7 days. This has allowed the Black Cats to send AAA relief pitcher Carlos Moreno down to us from the Tulsa Aggies.

The manager has decided on the following line up for today's game.

SS Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
DH Steve Bielecki
3B Joshua Mills
LF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
RF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala
1B Jose Becerra

Eric Hinkley gets the start but with his 0-3 record it does not bode well for us.

Top of the first and Hinkley will face Eteldrum who leads off for the Jackals. Eteldrum is the first out as he fires a line drive to McCauley at second for the catch. Shartzer gives Hinkley a return grounder to get the second out. Warsaw then goes down swinging to be the first strike out of the game.

Bottom of the first and Mendoza will lead off for us. Mendoza gets a grounder out towards third and manages to get close enough to first that the fielder doesn't make the throw. This gives us our first hit of the game. Now we need to turn it into runs. McCauley is up second. We get lucky up next as a grounder by McCauley reaches their second baseman but his throw to first is off line. This allows the base hit which McCauley turns into a double. Mendoza moves to third on the error. Bielecki hits one out to right field that fall safe for a base hit. This allows Mendoza to hussle home for our first run of the game. McCauley moves to third. I am up next and just hoping I can turn the batting form round. I hit a grounder towards short which is fielded and turned into a double play that sees Bielecki and myself out. McCauley moves home for run number 2 but I do not get the RBI. Houghton becomes out number three as he strikes out but we have an early 2-0 lead in the game.

Top of the second and Saintlouis is up first. Saintlouis gets the Jackals hitting going by putting a base hit into short centre. Bellinger takes a ball but Ayala spots Saintlouis going for second. He makes a quick throw and that is him out caught stealing. Bellinger then flies out to short centre next ball to make it 2 down. Schulze puts one out to right field that Rice handles comfortably to retire the side

Bottom of the second and we will start with Severson. Severson strikes out to start the inning. Rice gets a hot grounder out to centre field that sees him take a base hit. Ayala then gets a roller to go past first base and stay fair. It rolls to the corner giving him a double and allowing Rice to move to third. We get run number 3 on a ground out to short by Becerra. Rice makes it home after tagging up. Mendoza comes in for go number 2 but puts a little pop up fly over to third base to see us retired. We lead 3-0.

Top of the third with Hinkley facing Uitermarkt. Uitermarkt goes down as out number 1 after he strikes out. Hinkley then gives Hinds a walk. Ladewig proceeds to strike out for number 2. Hinds gets to move to second base as Eteldrum gets an infield hit towards second base. Shartzer strikes out to see us get out of the inning without any damage.

Bottom of the third and McCauley will be the first up. McCauley gets hit by a loose one that will see him take a base. Bielecki then drives one out to left field that goes safe. McCauley moves to second on the hit. I am up again still looking for that elusive hit. On the 1-2 pitch I see a wild one that the catcher misses. This advances McCauley to third and Bielecki to second. I then go and strike out on the 2-2 pitch to be the first out of the inning and keep my barren spell up. Houghton then puts a fly ball out to right field that the fielder catches for out number 2. This does not stop McCauley from tagging up and then running for home to score run number 4 for us. Severson sees the side retired when he puts a fly ball out to centre to be caught. We lead 4-0.

Top of the fourth and the Jackals will lead off with Warsaw. Warsaw strikes out for the second time in the game. Saintlouis then also strikes out for number 2. Bellinger gets the Jackals into the game by hitting a long one 357 feet out over the left fence to score a solo homer. Schulze gets one out to right field that sees Rice make the catch and end the inning. We now lead 4-1.

Bottom of the fourth and we go with Rice up first. Rice is taken in centre field as the fielder makes a tumbling catch of the fly ball. Ayala gives a return grounder to the pitcher to be out number 2. Becerra then strikes out to make it a quick inning and leave the score 4-1 in our favour.

Top of the fifth with Uitermarkt facing Hinkley. Uitermarkt becomes out number one after a string grounder to McCauley at second. McCauley gets the second out as well after picking up a grounder from Hinds. Ladeig then strikes out for a quick 1, 2, 3 for the Jackals.

Bottom of the fifth and we lead off with Mendoza. Mendoza gets a walk from a full count. Mendoza then steals second base as the pitch to McCauley is in the dirt. McCauley is somehow caught out in left field as the fielder just reaches on the dive. Bielecki goes down swinging for out number 2. This brings me up to try and get the barren spell over. I get one to roll towards short and the fielder makes the throw to first that just beats me in. This ends the inning with our lead still 4-1.

Top of the sixth with Hinkley facing Eteldrum again. Hinkley gets the first out on strikes as he continues his good work. Shartzer gets a base hit on a bouncer out to centre field. Warsaw gets one out to centre field and allows Shartzer to move to third. This prompts a pitching change and sees Hinkley replaced by Jose Juarez. Juarez faces Saintlouis up forst but gives him a walk moving Warsaw to second and loading the bases. Mendoza then makes a mess of an easy grounder allowing Bellinger onto base. Shartzer comes home as everyone moves up a base. Shulze sees a fly ball drift foul and it gets taken but it allows Warsaw home to close the game to 1 run. Juarez has gone down on that pitch holding his leg and has to be taken from the ball game. Dashawn McKinzy is sent in to replace him. Uitermarkt will be the first batter to face McKinzy. McKinzy strikes him out and ends the inning with our lead down to 4-3.

Bottom of the sixth and we are leading off with Houghton. Houghton gets a slow roller towards first but cannot beat the throw. Severson hits a ground ball to short that sees him out as well. Rice then strikes out to leave the game poised at 4-3 in our favour.

Top of the seventh and McKinzy continues against Hinds. Hinds sends a line drive up the middle but McCauley is there to get the out. Ladewig then sends a hopper to second for McCauley to fire the ball to first and the out. McCauley then gets number 3 as well as he grabs a line drive from Eteldrum to end the inning.

Bottom of the seventh and Ayala will lead off facing a new pitcher. Ayala is the first out as he strikes out. Becerra follows with another strike out for number 2. Mendoza gets the first hit off the new pitcher as he squeezes one out to right field. Mendoza gets to move to second as McCauley gets a hit out to shallow left field. Bielecki then strands Mendoza and McCauley as he hits one out into right field for the fielder to catch.

Top of the eighth and we change pitchers with Arocho coming in. Shartzer is first up but hits straight to Bonier at first who is in as a replacement fielder. Arocho is pulled and Donte Conston is bought in to pitch. Warsaw gets the first pitch away to left field for a base hit. Mendoza takes a fine catch at short off of Saintlouis for out number 2. Bellinger ends the inning by putting up a pop up fly towards first for Bonier to take. We continue to lead 4-3.

Bottom of the eighth and I am up for my fourth go just hoping I get a hit. I am facing a new pitcher which is never good for me. I strike out again chasing one. Houghton then also strikes out as the jackals try to keep the game tight. Severson is then gone on a ground out to second to leave the game 4-3.

Top of the ninth and we are looking to finish it here. Donte Conston continues to pitch. Schulze is the first out as the grounder to McCauley sees him continue his good game in the field. Uitermarkt then strikes out for number 2. We wind our first game for a while as McCauley picks up a Hinds grounder for the final out.

We take the game 4-3 but I am still struggling with the bat going 0-4 with 2 strike outs. I also did not touch the ball in the field for the second game in a row. Hinkley took player of the game honours.

I am now officially listed as a cold bat and really need to get something going before it becomes a chronic issue.

We will face the Jackals again tomorrow hoping we can keep up the momentum of the win today.

[amead17]

We face the Biloxi Jackals for the final time in the 3 game series hoping to make it 2 wins out of 2. I myself am just trying to break my long hitless streak of 5 games.

The loss of Jose Juarez in the last game has seen the Black Cats send us relief pitcher Miguel Puga from the AAA Tulsa Aggies.

The manager has decided on the following line-up for today's game

SS T. J. Kiritsis
2B Casey McCauley
1B Chris LaBuff
3B Joshua Mills
DH Steve Bielecki
RF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
LF Tanner Rice
Catcher Josh Pittman

On the mound today is Matt Hood. Hood lost his last outing and is now 1-2 for the year. We are hoping to give him his second win from today's game.

Top of the first and Eteldrum will be the Jackals lead off man. Eteldrum gets a strike out to start the game well for Hood. Shartzer is the second out as McCauley grabs a little infield pop up. Warsaw manages to get a base hit past first to get the Jackals going. Warsaw then steals second after a ball to Bellinger. Bellinger puts a grounder back to Hood on the mound for out number 3 to retire the Jackals.

Bottom of the first and we will lead off with Kiritsis. Kiritsis is the first out as he grounds to second. McCauley then gets a base after a fastball plunks him hard. LaBuff is the second out as he goes down swinging. This will bring me up and I am nervous about how this is going to play. I get the ball into play and it is a slow roller towards third. I run for first and the fielder doesn't have time to make the throw. I have done it I have managed to get my first hit for over 5 games. Bielecki then leaves me and McCauley stranded as he strikes out to leave the game scoreless.

Top of the second and Saintlouis is the first out of the inning as he strikes out on a full count. Schulze takes a walk as Hood looses control. Uitermarkt is out number 2 as he puts a fly ball out to centre field for Severson to take. Hinds comes in to face Hood and takes a strike. Schulze makes a run for second but Pittman sees it and gets the ball there to get the out and end the inning.

Bottom of the second and Houghton is our first man up. Houghton strikes out to be the first man down as well. Severson also strikes out for number 2. The game remains scoreless as a long slow fly ball from Rice ends up in the left fielders glove.

Top of the third and Hood will face Hinds again. Hinds gets one out towards second but McCauley makes a quick grab and throw to first for the out. Ladewig then goes down swinging for out number 2. Eteldrum puts a grounder out towards right but LaBuff at first grabs it and makes the easy tag for the out.

Bottom of the third and Pittman is up first for us. Pittman is out after a grounder to third sees him cut down at first. Kiritsis pops one up into foul territory on the right that their first baseman takes for out number 2. McCauley then puts a grounder out to short that is sent to first to keep the game scoreless.

Top of the fourth and Hood will be up against Shartzer. Shartzer sends a return ball to Hood who fires to first to get him out. Warsaw then strikes out for number 2. Bellinger gets one to float out to right field for a base hit but he gets stranded at first when Saintlouis strikes out for number 3.

Bottom of the fourth and LaBuff will be our lead off hitter. LaBuff puts a grounder out to short right field that sees him get onto first base comfortably. This brings me up for my second go of the game with more confidence after the hit in the first. I get one to go out to deep centre field but the fielder ranges under it to make the catch. Bielecki then flies out to right field for the second out of the inning. Houghton strikes out for the second time to leave LaBuff stranded and the game scoreless. After 4.

Top of the fifth and Hood will continue against Schulze. Kiritsis gets a hard hit grounder at short that he fires to first to get Schulze. Houghton then makes the second out by hustling in to take a line drive in right field from Uitermarkt. McCauley then ends the inning by taking Hinds' little roller at second and getting the out at first with the throw.

Bottom of the fifth and we will start off with Severson. Severson puts a little bouncer out towards first and then beats the throw for an infield hit. Rice comes in next but can only put a fly ball out to the left fielder for out number 1. Pittman then comes in but grounds straight to short where the Jackals make a regulation double play to take Pittman and Severson and leave the game scoreless.

Top of the sixth and Hood continues facing Ladewig. Ladewig gets a grounder to go past second for a base hit. Ladewig then moves to second as Eteldrum grounds out to McCauley at second base. Hood then gets another strike out as Shartzer goes down swinging for out number 2. That is all Hood will get as the manager sends in Miguel Puga to pitch for the first time for us. Puga faces Warsaw up first. Warsaw puts one out to left field and Rice has to make a diving catch that just lands in his glove for a spectacular catch to retire the side.

Bottom of the sixth and Kiritsis will be in the batters box first for us. Kiritsis goes down swinging for the first out. McCauley flies out to right field to be the second out. LaBuff cannot keep the inning alive as his shallow pop up is taken by the Jackals right fielder. The score remains 0-0.

Top of the seventh and Puga will continue for us. Bellinger is up first and strikes out to give Puga his first one at short A level. Pittman makes an error on a Saintlouis pop up above home plate but it doesn't hurt as it falls foul. Puga then gets Saintlouis to a full count before striking him out for number 2. That will be it for Puga as Arocho comes in to face the pinch hitting Selewski. Selewski puts one straight to short along the ground and it is fired to LaBuff at first for the out. That retires the side.

Bottom of the seventh and I will be our lead off man. I get the inning going with a nice little base hit out to short right centre. Bielecki comes in next facing a new pitcher. I hustle to second as Bielecki gets one to fall safe in short right centre as well. Houghton is up third but he can only send a line drive straight to the short stop for the first out. Mendoza pinch hits for Severson and gets a walk that sees me move to third and Bielecki move to second. We now have the bases loaded with Angel Espinal coming in to pinch hit for Rice. Espinal gets a walk on a full count that sees me come home for the games first run. Bielecki moves to third and Mendoza to second to leave the bases loaded. Pittman becomes out number 2 as he strikes out. Kiritsis comes in and gets one he really likes. He cracks it good and it sails over the fence for a GRAND SLAM to score 4 for us. The ball was measured at 426 feet. We now lead 5-0. McCauley is up next with a new pitcher on the mound. The Jackals finally end our inning as McCauley grounds out to the third baseman. We lead 5-0

Top of the eighth and we go with Carlos Moreno on the mound for the first time. Moreno gets Uitermarkt to swing away first up for his first K of the game. Hinds gets lucky as Kiritsis miss handles a grounder allowing him to make base. Ladewig puts one out to right centre where substitute fielder Queen is waiting to make the catch for out number 2. Houghton then ends the inning by hustling into grab a short fly ball from Eteldrum to retire the side.

Bottom of the eighth and we are leading off with LaBuff. LaBuff strikes out bringing me up to the plate for the fourth time in the game. I take it to a full count but then go and swing at a fast one that I miss for the strike out. Bielecki also strikes out to leave the game set at 5-0 in our favour.

Top of the ninth and Carols Moreno will continue on the mound. Shartzer is first up and puts a grounder my way that I fire to first and the out. My first active action in the field for some time. Warsaw strikes out for number 2 as the Jackals start to go down tamely. Bellinger shows some fight as he gets a base hit out to left field but Saintlouis goes and strikes out for a third time to end the inning for the Jackals and the game.

We win a second game on the trot and this time it was a 5-0 win. I also finally got going again with a 2-4 day and a run scored. Matt Hood got player of the game honours. Arocho got the win.

We are on the road tomorrow, travelling to the Gulfport Riptides. It will be the basement dwellers series as our 13-21 record will be going up against the Riptides 11-23 record.

[amead17]

We have made the 4 hour trip to the coast to face the Gulfport Riptides. We stand a good chance of taking some wins from the series as both ourselves and the Riptides are bottom of our divisions.

The Black Cats have decided that the one performance by Puga for us yesterday warranted a recall back to the AAA Tulsa Aggies. They have instead sent us Darius McKithen from the AA Birmingham Bobcats.

The game today has seen the manager make the following call for the line-up.

SS Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
LF Cooper Houghton
3B Joshua Mills
DH T.J. Kiritsis
RF Tanner Rice
CF Chris Severson
1B Scot Noftall
Catcher Tomas Ayala

Pitching for us today is Tyler Crostic. Crostic has the best record for us this year at 3-1 with a 1-1 road record. Hopefully he can keep up the good work.

Top of the first and Mendoza will lead off for us today. Mendoza gets a solid hit out into left field that falls safe for our first base of the game. McCauley keeps the good start going as he gets one to go out to deep centre that rolls to the wall. This gives him a double and sees Mendoza coming home for run number 1. Houghton becomes out number 1 as he swings and misses at a fast ball. I am up next but cannot get the ball down as I fly out to left field to be out number 2. Kiritsis gets a solid hit out to left field that avoids the fielder and rolls to the wall. This gives him a solid double and also brings McCauley home to double our early lead. Rice comes in next and gets one to roll past second base and into centre field. This gives him a single on which Kiritsis makes the run for home. No throw is made and we go 3-0 up early. We are finally retired from the 1st when Severson puts a fly ball out to centre field that is taken on the run. We have an early 3-0 lead.

Bottom of the first and Crostic will be facing Melsom up first. Melsom becomes Crostics first victim as he gets him with a fast ball for the K. Crostic gets strike out number 2 as Hudgens can't hold back his swing. We make it 3 from 3 as McCauley picks up Haglund's grounder to get the ball to first and the out. We lead 3-0 after the first.

Top of the second and we will be leading off with Scot Noftall. Noftall gets a base hit to start the inning as the ball falls safe in left field. Ayala builds a full count but then floats one into foul territory to be the first out of the inning. Mendoza comes in for his second outing of the game and is given a walk allowing Noftall to move to second. We are retired next play up as McCauley puts one to second where Mendoza is tagged before McCauley is taken at first for a double play.

Bottom of the second and MacKay is first to face Crostic. Crostic gives him a walk for the first base the Riptides get. Crostic then walks Ruiz as he struggles to find his range. Rodrigues comes in next and gets a little roller out towards first. He beats the throw to load the bases. Out number 1 is taken by Houghton as Lopez flies out to left field. Goodman comes in next but can only put a short fly ball out to right field where Rice is ready for the catch. Strassner comes in and puts one down just in front of the plate. Ayala makes an error trying to pick up the ball and gives away a single. This scores Mackay as all bases move up 1 to remain loaded. We get away with only 1 run against us as Melsom comes in and strikes out to leave the score 3-1 in our favour.

Top of the third with Houghton leading off for us. Houghton gets one to miss the fielder in deep centre and roll to the wall. This gives him a double as the throw cannot get in to the base in time. This brings me up for my second attempt of the day. I chase a bad one and get my first strike out for the day. Kiritsis makes it 2 from 2 for his day as he gets an infield single towards first base. This moves Houghton to third. Kiritsis then steals second on a ball to Rice. Rice becomes out number 2 by striking out. Severson puts a roller out to second that is easily scooped up and sent to first to end the inning.

Bottom of the third and Crostic will face Hudgens. Hudgens sends one straight to Mendoza at short for the easy ground out. I then make a silly mistake as Haglund sends a grounder my way. I pick the ball up cleanly but my throw to first is off target allowing him to make base. Mackay puts a fly ball out to right field to become out number 2 in the glove of Rice. We maintain our 3-1 lead as Ruiz puts a tickler to Second that McCauley scoops and sends to first to retire the side.

Top of the fourth and we will start off with Noftall. Noftall builds a full count and then watches as the pitcher gives him ball 4 for a base. Noftall moves up to second on a soft hit from Ayala that gets past the fielder in centre field. Mendoza moves Noftall and Ayala up a base after hitting a grounder to right field. Mendoza does not make base himself as he becomes the first out. McCauley hits a solid base hit to left field that sees Noftall come home and Ayala move to third to give us our 3 run lead again. Houghton becomes out number 2 as his little blooper goes to third base. I am up again for my third try as we quickly go round the line up. I build a full count but cannot lay off the fast ball that sees me strike out for a second time in the game. I strand Ayala and McCauley as we go to 4-1 in the lead.

Bottom of the fourth with Crostic facing Rodrigues. Rodrigues gets a long one out to deep centre but Severson is there to make the catch and bring up out number 1. Lopez gets a single out to left field with a little tapper. Goodman cannot follow that lead as his hit to left field falls into the glove of Houghton for out number 2. Strassner comes in next but can only send one out to centre field where Severson is waiting to make the catch and retire the side to maintain out 4-1 lead.

Top of the fifth and Kiritsis is up first for us. He is facing a new pitcher and he gets a little pop up but it falls into the glove of the second baseman for the out. Rice is out number 2 as he puts a fly ball out to the centre fielder. Severson gets on base as his little tickler towards first is not sent to the base in time to get him. Noftall strands Severson as he strikes out on a fast ball.

Bottom of the fifth and Crostic will continue against Melsom. Crostic gives up an easy hit to Melsom that avoids Severson in centre field. It rolls to the wall giving him a double. We get away with one up next as Hudgens gets a base hit to deep left centre. Melsom decides to try fot home but the throw from Houghton is right on the money and we get Melsom at home plate for the first out. We get out of the inning still leading 4-1 as Haglund sends a grounder to McCauley at second. He tags Hudgens for the first before sending the ball to first to get Haglund in a double play.

Top of the sixth and we will lead off with Ayala. Ayala puts one out to centre field but is caught for the first out. Mendoza gets our first hit of the inning as a little blooper falls safe down the left field line. McCauley hits a long one out to deep centre that the fielder cannot reach. It rolls to the wall giving him a double. Mendoza decides to go for home and scores run number 5 for us. Houghton gets a walk as the pitcher loses control. I am up for go number 4 hoping to get a hit after 3 misses up to now. I get a solid tap on the ball and send it into left field where it falls in for a base hit. This sees McCauley round third and run for home to score. Houghton is set at second. Kiritsis follows me up. I am out on the play as Kirtsis sends a grounder to second. I am tagged at second before the double play is completed with Kiritsis out at first. We end the inning 6-1 up.

Crostic gets to continue into the Bottom of the sixth. Mackay is first up and he hits a grounder to Mendoza at short. Mendoza makes the throw to first for the out but then pulls up holding his upper body. The trainer comes on and takes a look. He escorts Mendoza from the field as he will take no further part in the game. Ruiz is out number 2 as he puts a deep one out to left field where Houghton gets under it for the catch. Rodrigues gets a solid double as he puts a deep one out to left centre. Severson cannot reach it and it rolls to the wall to allow the double. Crostic ends the inning by getting Lopez to swing and miss at a fast one for a strike out. We lead 6-1.

Top of the seventh and Rice will be the first man up for us Wasps. Rice grounds out by sending an easy one straight to short. Severson gets a base hit as a little bloop out to short left falls in for a hit. Severson then makes a move for second on a ball to Noftall and beats the throw to steal second. Noftall continues our excellent day as he gets one out to deep right field where the fielder cannot make the play. He gets a double to the wall and sees Severson add to the run tally by making it home. Ayala then gets a base hit with a weak one to left field. This allows Noftall to move to third base. Bielecki, who is in to replace Mendoza, then sees a wild pitch that the catcher misses. This allows Noftall to come home and Ayala move to second base. Ayala moves up to third and Bielecki makes base as his little slap to short centre finds the grass. McCauley becomes the second out as his line drive is taken excellently by the Short Stop. Houghton is up next but his solid grounder is straight at first and that ends the inning. We now lead the game 8-1.

Bottom of the seventh and Crostic will get another go. Goodman is up first and he goes down swinging for the first out. The manager decides that's enough for Crostic and sends for McKithen to give him his first outing on the mound for us. Strassner is the first to face McKithen and he grounds it to Second for the easy out at first. We retire the side as Severson makes a good knee high catch in short centre after some good hustle to get to the lofted ball from Melsom.

Top of the eighth and I will be leading off for us. I am facing a new pitcher and I always seem to struggle when I do that. For once I manage to avoid the strike out by hitting a strong one out towards left field. It takes a hop just as it passes the left fielder and bounces to the wall. I round first and make for second, just beating the throw on the slide for a double. Kiritsis strikes out to be the first down in the inning. Rice comes up next and hits a base hit out to left field. I round third and scamper for home. I beat the tag with a slide to score but I get up very gingerly as I seem to have hurt myself. The trainer checks me over but tells me that is it for the game for me and to head to the locker room.

I do not see the rest of the game but can tell you that Rice scored in the eighth on a Severson triple. Before 2 strike outs saw our lead 10-1.

The rest of the eighth saw a quick 1, 2, 3 for the Riptides.

The ninth was scoreless as we won the game 10-1. My game was solid with 2 hits from 5 at bats. I also had a run scored and an RBI. The only issue was my throwing error but that didn't cost the team anything. Crostic got player of the game honours and the win.

We are now 14-21 as a team.

After the game my injury was assessed by the training staff and it was not good news. I have strained an intercostal muscle and will be out for 2 weeks. I have been placed on the 7 day DL and will miss some playing time just as I was starting to get my swing back.

I am being sent back to Tuscaloosa to spend time recovering and will rejoin the team once I am fit.

This will mean that I will not be able to report on the games played during the time I am away from the team but will still bring you all the scores and news as best I can.

[amead17]

I have spent today getting my sore intercostal muscle iced to try and reduce the inflammation from the injury. While this was being done I had time to try and listen to the game between my team mates in the Tuscaloosa Wasps and the Gulfport Riptides.

The first thing to report was that my DL designation did not bring a new batter into the club. Instead the Black Cats sent pitcher Puga down again to cover for me.

My injury has also seen a re-alignment of our infield for the game as the manager went with the following line-up for the game.

3B Angelo Mendoza
SS Casey McCauley
2B Steve Bielecki
1B Chris LaBuff
RF Cooper Houghton
DH Angel Espinal
CF Chris Severson
LF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala

We had Antonio Torres on the mound for the game. Torres has a 1-2 record going into the game.

The game was scoreless after 1 with only Bielecki getting on base for us with a walk.

The second saw Houghton pick up a double before moving to third on a fly out from Espinal. He then scored the first run of the game as Severson singled. The Riptides bounced straight back as Hudgens sent a solo home run 404 feet to tie the game up at 1-1.

We managed to get the lead back in the top of the third as Mendoza singled before moving to second on a McCauley ground out. Bielecki got a base from a hit by pitch. LaBuff then put a double out towards centre that bought Mendoza home. The lead did not last long as a single from Melsom and Mackay along with a sacrificial ground out by Rodrigues saw Melsom tie the game up at 2 apiece at the end of the third.

We went behind in the fourth as a double by the Riptides Ruiz combined with a walk, a fielders choice from Lopez and a triple from Strassner saw both Ruiz and Lopez home to score. This gave the Riptides a 4-2 lead that they would not relinquish as the pitching took over and limited the hitting to almost nothing for the rest of the game.

We lost 4-2 and drop to 14-22 for the season.

The team will play the final game of the series in Gulfport tomorrow while I continue my treatment for my injury.

[amead17]

I continue my treatment for the Intercostal Strain I have. The Ice packs are bringing the swelling down and the docs think I will soon be able to start trying to do some light stretching with it to get the muscle moving again.

The guys are still down in Gulfport facing the Riptides and I caught the game on the radio again.

The manager went with the following line-up for the game.

3B Angelo Mendoza
SS Casey McCauley
2B Steve Bielecki
1B Chris LaBuff
RF Chris Houghton
DH Pat Bonier
CF Chris Severson
LF Tanner Rice
Catcher Josh Pittman

On the Mound for today is Dave Ziobro. Ziobro has been struggling of late and has a record of 0-4.

The game started O.K. for us with a hit for Angelo Mendoza but it didn't lead to anything. Ziobro was in good form in the first to get all 3 batters of the Riptides.

The Second saw another single, this time for Chris Houghton but again it didn't go anywhere. The Riptides also managed a single from Hudgens but they also failed to capitalise.

We had another 2 hits in the third but we still failed to score as Rice and Mendoza were stranded by the team. Ziobro kept up the good form to limit the Riptides to only 3 batters in the third.

We again managed a hit in the fourth but our troubles with turning them into runs continued as Bonier was stranded. Ziobro again went through the 3 batters of the Riptides quickly to keep the score at 0-0.

Mendoza got another hit in the fifth with a triple but, as before, the rest of the team did not help him and he was stranded. The Riptides woes also continued as they again failed to register a hit in the fifth.

Houghton picked up a single in the sixth but we continued to be wasteful with them as we didn't score again. This wastefulness finally caught up with us as the Riptides managed to get loose in the sixth. Ziobro was pulled early in the sixth after giving a single to Brewer. Brewer went on to score the first runs as Moreno, Ziobros replacement, gave up singles to Melsom and Mackay along with a Rodrigues walk. This saw us 1-0 behind and the run charged to Ziobro even though he had left the game at that point.

The Seventh went the same way for us as Severson singled only to be done on a double play. Moreno gave up another 3 runs in the Seventh as the Riptides cut loose with Ruiz, Tiger and Buckle scoring while Brewer also had a hit. This left us 4-0 behind and struggling.

The eighth saw 2 more singles from us but again nobody crossing home plate as we again came up short. The Riptides went quiet as Puga came in to pitch.

The ninth saw Bonier hit by a pitch but nothing else as we went down 4-0 for the game.

We drop to 14-23 as we struggle to find any runs again. The Loss went to Ziobro to make him 0-5 for the year.

There are now a few days off as the Mississippi League goes into its All Star game. As you can imagine I didn't make the list due to injury though I am not sure I would have made it anyway.

The lads that did make the grade for us were Tyler Crostic and Matt Hood for Starting Pitchers. Jose Becerra made it at Left Field and Chris Severson was called up for the Centre Field position.

After the few days rest the guys will be back on the road to the Hattiesburg Ospreys. That will be a tough trip as they lead the North Division on 20-17.

[amead17]

American Baseball League

It is not looking good for the Big Club as they sit bottom of the AC North Atlantic Division




Mississippi League

It also doesn't look good for us Wasps as we remain rooted to the bottom of the North Division table.

[amead17]

I am healing up nicely and the medical staff think I might be able to start some light work out s in a day or 2. They still see me 7 days away from making it back into the line-up but at least I am getting there.

There were some major moves by the Black Cats on the 31st July and today.

The first move saw Jesus Nunez return from the DL allowing Miguel Puga to return to the Erie Phantoms at single A level.

Today's moves could hurt the club more as starters Tyler Crostic and Dave Ziobro along with Angel Espinal were all promoted to the Single A Erie Phantoms. We also saw relief pitchers Darius McKithen, Carlos Moreno and Trevor Farner demoted to the Rookie Rock Hill Ducks.

In return we received relief pitcher Eric Holleman from Triple A Tulsa Aggies, relief pitcher Nelson de los Santos from single A Erie Phantoms and relief pitchers Andres Sevilla, Enrique Vallejo, Centre Fielder Diego Mares and First Baseman Chris Klika from the Rookie Rock Hill Ducks.

This is going to give our pitching set up a whole new look that could either really hinder or help us. It is yet to be seen which. While they didn't bring anybody in for my position at third I am a little worried if I will get my spot back as another infielder joined the team.

Today's game saw us in Hattiesburg to play the Ospreys. It is going to be a tough game with them leading the way in the North Division. I was listening closely on the radio at out club house during my continuing treatment.

The manager went with the line-up of

3B Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
SS Steve Bielecki
DH Chris LaBuff
LF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
1B Chris Klika
Catcher Tomas Ayala
RF Jose Becerra

On the mound for us today is Danny Burns who is getting his first start after being a relief pitcher and closer for us through most of this year.

The first 3 inning of the game were quiet for us as we only managed 2 hits. The Ospreys also only managed 1 hit so it kept the game tight.

The Fourth is where the game sparked to life. Bielecki doubled nicely and then moved to third on a LaBuff ground out. A Single from Severson saw him home to put us 1-0 up. The lead did not last long though as a single from Carder and a double from Watts saw Carder home to score the Ospreys first run. Lecain then picked up a single to score Watts and give the Ospreys a 2-1 lead.

The fifth saw us fall further behind as we could not turn our 2 hits into any runs. The Ospreys managed to get a walk for Thorstad and singles from Carder and Pickens to see Thorstad home. We trailed 3-1 at this point.

The Seventh saw us get back into the game with a 2 run inning. This came about as Mendoza singled before McCauley hit one 333 feet to see it over the fence and out for a 2 run homer.

The Ospreys finally took the game away from us in the eighth as a Pickens double and a walk for Maytubby put 2 on base. Alicea then came in and gave an almighty swing to dump the ball 333 feet for a 3 run homer to make the score 6-3 in the Ospreys favour.

We couldn't get it back in the ninth as we lost again to go to 14-24.

Tomorrow sees us have to play the Ospreys again. I am hoping the game is better to listen to than today's was as I try to get myself fit as quickly as possible to help the lads out of the slump we are now in.

[amead17]

The team are down in Hattiesburg still to face the Ospreys while I come closer to being back on the field of play as my recovery steps up a little. I have been allowed to start some light aerobic movements with the shoulders and chest to test how the muscle feels before I go back onto the field to get ready for my return.

The Black Cats tweaked the line up again sending Eric Holleman down to the rookie league and bringing Gus Flores back up to our level.

The team for the game today looked like this

3B Angelo Mendoza
SS Casey McCauley
2B Steve Bielecki
DH Chris LaBuff
RF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
1B Chris Klika
LF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala

On the mound for us today was Antonio Torres. Torres has gone 1-3 before today and is not having a good time of it.

The game was a disaster for us as we went down 10-1. This wasn't helped by Torres being injured in the 3rd inning.

We managed 7 hits during the game but only 1 run.

We were 0-1 behind after the first as a double by Thorstad and a single by Pickens scored Thorstad.

3 of our hits came in the second but with the bases loaded we failed badly. Watts scored for the Ospreys to double the lead after he singled along with Lecain and Colombo.

The third saw Mendoza get a walk before he Stole second and moved to third on a Ground out by Bielecki. LaBuff then singled him home to cut the Ospreys lead. This didn't last as the Ospreys used 10 batters in the bottom of the third to score 6 runs and completely demoralise us.

The Ospreys scored again in the sixth and then in the eighth, Both Solo homers. To complete the slaughter 10-1.

The lads have another game against the Ospreys and I am fearful for how that could go. I really wish I was there to help them get through this.

[amead17]

I am continuing to make progress with my recovery from injury. The light aerobic work has not seen any reaction from the injury so I am being allowed to continue with that work with a view to starting to throw a few balls tomorrow to see how things are going and to judge if I am fit enough to start swinging a bat again in readiness for my return in 5 days time.

Yesterdays game saw Antonio Torres hurt his wrist and he has now been placed on the DL as well. That means we are now 4 players down as he joins myself, Jesus Nunez and Pat Palin on the DL.

The Black Cats made a few changes to the pitchers to cover for Torres' injury. They have demoted Sevilla back to the Rock Hill Ducks while Ray Petty comes the other way. They have also sent Gene Pickup down from the Single A Erie Phantoms to help us out.

The team is finishing the series in Hattiesburg with the final game against the Ospreys. I am just hoping it doesn't go as badly as yesterday went.

The line-up for the game is

3B Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
SS Steve Bielecki
DH T.J. Kiritsis
LF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
1B Chris Klika
RF Tanner Rice
Catcher Josh Pittman

On the mound for us today is Eric Hinkley. Hinkley has struggled this year but won his last outing to move to 1-3.

The game started slowly as the first was scoreless before we suddenly burst to life in the second. Kiritsis picked up a single, as did Houghton. A single from Rice then saw Kiritsis round third and make home for the first run of the game. Our lead didn't last long as the Ospreys bounced straight back with 2 runs of their own. A walk for Pickens and a double from Maytubby saw Pickens home. Maytubby then managed to score on a fielders choice against Torres after a Watts Single. We trailed 2-1 after the second.

We struck back immediately in the top of the third as Mendoza got a walk and McCauley then sent a screamer 414 feet to bring home 2 runs on the homer. The lead went very quickly again as the Ospreys repeated the second inning dosage. Lecain scored after he singled and Thorstad and Pickens made base. Maytubby and Watts then either singled or made base on a fielders choice to bring Thorstad home for run number 2. The Ospreys continued to lead now with a game score of 4-3.

There was no scoring in the 4th or the 5th but we levelled the game in the top of the sixth as Severson singled then made second on a wild pitch. A single from Pittman then saw him run for home to tie the game up. Again we could not hold the ospreys after scoring. A solo home run in the bottom of the sixth from Brundy gave the Ospreys their lead back at 5-4.

The bottom of the eighth saw the Ospreys put the game to bed as Brundy scored his second run of the game after singling. Alicea and Quintana bought him home with singles of their own.

We lost the game 6-4 but it was much closer than the day before.

We are now 14-26

The lads will continue our road trip tomorrow by travelling to the Bossier City Rhinos while I continue my rehabilitation. This will be another tough road trip as the Rhinos are on 21-19.

[amead17]

I am getting close to when I can return to the line-up. I have stepped up my recovery work outs and have been on the practice field throwing balls and running to get my fitness up. Hopefully the trainers will allow me to start swinging a bat again tomorrow as I get ready to rejoin the lads in 3 days time.

The lads themselves are all down in Bossier City to face the Rhinos. We are on a 5 game losing streak and need to find a way to break it.

The manager went with the following line-up today.

3B Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
SS Steve Bielecki
DH Chris LaBuff
LF Cooper Houghton
CF Chris Severson
1B Chris Klika
RF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala

On the mound for us today was Donte Conston. This will be Constons first start for us as we re-shuffle the pitching rotation following promotions.

The first 3 innings were quiet for both sides but the Rhinos finally got the game going in the fourth. A single from Salinas, a double from Apple and an error by us against Kranz saw both Salinas and Apple cross the plate to give the Rhinos a 2-0 lead.

We managed to get the game all tied up in the top of the fifth as Mendoza made base with a single before McCauley blasted one 367 feet for a 2 run homer.

The bottom of the sixth saw the Rhinos re-take the lead as Daniels was first man up and scored a solo homer.

We managed to keep the game alive in the top of the eighth as a single from LaBuff and a triple from Severson saw LaBuff home.

The game then went quiet again as the pitchers got back on top sending it into extras. Both teams were starting to run a little short of rested relievers as the game went to the thirteenth. The top of the thirteenth saw Severson make base for a walk. Klika then gave up a sac bunt to get him to second. Manriquez then had a ground out moving Severson to third. Becerra then hit a single to left field that bought Severson home to give us the lead 4-3.

Gene Pickup was going into his third inning of relief pitching as we went into the bottom of the thirteenth. He managed to keep it tight giving up only a single and a walk for the 3 outs needed to bring home the win for us 4-3.

We are now 15-26 and have broken our losing streak. Hopefully we can keep winning tomorrow.

We had some bad news as Tanner Rice picked up an injury during the game but the docs don't think it will be to bad and he will remain with the side as they have listed him DTD with back stiffness.

The lads will face the Rhinos again tomorrow while I hopefully get back to swinging a bat, even if just for practice.

[amead17]

I am now only 2 days away from returning to the team. I have been allowed to take some practice swings today to try and get my rhythm back but they limited my work just to make sure there was no problems with the muscle. They will check again tomorrow to confirm no reaction and if I pass that I should be back the day after.

The guys are still down in Bossier City to face the Rhinos for a second game.

The manager went with the following line-up for the game

3B Angelo Mendoza
2B Casey McCauley
SS Steve Bielecki
DH Chris LaBuff
LF Copper Houghton
CF Chris Klika
RF Tanner Rice
Catcher Tomas Ayala

On the mound for us today was Matt Hood. Hood has a 1-2 record in the games he has pitched for us with a no decision last time out.

We started the game well with a run scored in the second inning by Chris LaBuff. He singled to get on base and was then bought home by a single from Copper Houghton, a sacrifice grounder by Severson and then a wild pitch to Tanner Rice.

Hood kept things tight on the mound and we then went further ahead in the 4th with a Cooper Houghton score. He Doubled and then scored on a Severson Double.

We went 3-0 up in the fifth as McCauley got a walk. He then moved to Third on a double by Bielecki and then scampered for home to make it a third run for us.

It was all going so well and then the wheels fell off for Hood in the sixth. He gave a single to Hyman who then stole second base. Archambault then drove him home with a single. Archambault moved to third on a Rodriguez single. They both then scored when Crown walked and Kranz put a double into play. This left the game tied at 3-3.

Hood got through the seventh before being pulled but the game went deadly quiet and we went into extras for the second game running.

After the previous day's exertions our bullpen was really struggling when we got to the 13th with the game still tied at 3-3. Gene Pickup was back in for his first inning of the game after his 3 from the previous day.

He couldn't deliver the goods today as a single from Archambault and Rodriguez bought Crown to the plate. Crown hit a sweet one for 427 feet to score 3 runs on the homer and give the Rhinos a 6-3 victory.

That loss has put us down to 15-27 and the lads will need to pick up before tomorrows game against the Rhinos.

[amead17]

I am now only 1 day away from returning to the line up. I have been allowed a full practice batting session today to try and get my timing back before I rejoin the lads tomorrow.

The Black Cats made some changes to the squad today after Jose Juarez returned from injury. They decided to promote Tanner Rice and bring 1B Luis Ortega down from Single A. Juarez's return saw Gus Flores demoted back to rookie level. They big club also decided to promote Gene Pickup back to Triple A Tulsa and bring closer Latrell Angton back to the club from Single A.

These moves meant that the line-up for today's game against the Bossier City Rhinos had a different look to it.

2B T.J. Kiritsis
RF Cooper Houghton
3B Angelo Mendoza
SS Casey McCauley
CF Chris Severson
DH Scot Noftall
Catcher Carlos Manriquez
1B Chris klika
LF Jose Becerra

Jose Juarez was given the start straight back from injury. His first start for the club.

He did not start to well as the Rhinos made big gains in the second inning. Hyman picked up a double, Medellin got a walk and Holdorf a single to load the bases. Feldman then put in a single that saw Hyman and Medellin score from. Holdorf scored when Narvaez also singled.

We couldn't find any consistency and our singles were just not backed up by anybody else as the game into the bottom of the sixth with the score still 3-0 to the Rhinos

The Rhinos made more gains in the sixth as they had a double from Daniels and Rodriquez to see Daniels score. 2 walks then loaded the bases. A single from Feldman then saw both Rodriquez and Hyman home to make the score 6-0 in the Rhinos favour.

The game went dead again after that and we ended up being blanked on 10, yes 10, hits to lose the game 6-0. We should have done better as the Rhinos only had 9 hits but managed to get 6 runs.

We are now 15-28. Chris Severson was injured in the game and will miss 2-3 weeks after being diagnosed with wrist tendinitis.

I am back tomorrow and will have to travel to Dothan to meet up with the lads as we play a 3 game series away to the Dothan Oilers. Hopefully I can help the team get back on the winning track after 2 losses.

[amead17]

I am back. I have re-joined the team ready to get my season back on track. I have replaced Chris Severson who has been moved onto the DL with his wrist tendinitis. The Black Cats have also demoted Ray Petty back to the Rookie level and sent us Gene Pickup again from the AAA Tulsa Aggies.

We are on the road against the Dothan Oilers for the start of a 3 game series and the manager went with the following line up for the first game.

2B Casey McCauley
RF Cooper Houghton
3B Joshua Mills
DH Chis LaBuff
SS Steve Bielecki
1B Scot Noftall
LF Chris LaVacca
Catcher Josh Pittman
CF Jose Becerra

On the mound for us today is Danny Burns. He had a no decision in his first start for us and goes for his second start today.

Top of the first and Casey McCauley is leading off. McCAuley grounds out to second base for the first out off the game. Houghton puts up a soft pop up in the infield to be out number 2. This brings me up for my first at bat since returning from injury. I get a solid piece of one and it falls safe in centre field for a base hit. I then move up to second base as LaBuff puts a soft one into short left centre for the second base hit of the game. The teams problems with hits and no runs continues as Bielecki then goes down swinging to strand myself and LaBuff on base.

Bottom of the first and the Oilers start with Bedlecom. We do not start well on defence as Bedlecom gets one into left field for a base hit. Bedlecom his first steal of the year as Pittman cannot get the ball to second in time. Purcell is struck out by Burns for out number 1. Pittman continues to struggle to find his range as Bedlecom steals another base from a Marsh Strike. Marsh then strikes out. Burns then manages to get Cheatom to strike out to strand Bedlecom on third. The game is tied 0-0.

Top of the second and we will lead off with Noftall. Noftall gets a bouncing ball to go past short and out to the out field for a base hit. LaVacca cannot move Noftall on as he hits a high one out to right field where it is caught. Pittman smacks one out to right field for a base hit that sees Noftall round second and run for third. No throw is made. Becerra becomes out number 2 as he pops one up to the short stop. McCauley is in for his second go of the game and he gets one out to left field where it falls in for a base hit. Noftall scores and Pittman moves to second. Houghton is up next but goes down swinging to end the inning. We lead the game 1-0.

Bottom of the second and Burns is facing Moncada. Moncada takes it to a full count but is struck out as he fails to hold up. Blalark pops one up to the right foul area that Noftall takes for out number 2. Pittman then catches Stodolka in left foul territory to end the inning. We still lead 1-0.

Top of the third and I am leading the inning off. I hit a soft one out to right field but it is caught to make me the first out of the inning. LaBuff then sees his attempt down the right line drift foul and caught by the right fielder. Bielecki then sends a grounder straight to second to be out number 3.

Bottom of the third and Burns will face Hinton first up. Hinton sends one to first base where Noftall makes the tag for the out. Sena gives McCauley and easy pop up over the infield to make it 2 out. Bedlecom then puts a grounder to Bielecki at short to be out number 3. We still lead 1-0.

Top of the fourth and up for us is Noftall. Noftall gets his second single of the game as he puts one out to right field. LaVacca backs Noftall up nicely with a single into centre field. This allows Noftall to round second and take third. Pittman is the first out of the inning after his fly ball out to short left. Becerra strikes out to become the second out. McCauley also strikes out stranding Noftall and LaVacca.

Bottom of the fourth and Purcell is the first to face Burns. I get my first defensive action since injury as he grounds towards me and I send it to first for the easy out. Marsh grounds out to short for number 2. Cheatom also puts a ground ball towards short but he beats the throw to get an infield base hit. Moncada gets a walk on a full count moving Cheatom to second. Blalark then sends a long one out to centre field and it looked to all in the stadium that it was going to be a homer until it held up in the wind and fell into Becerra's glove as he stretched for it. We remain 1-0 up after 4.

Top of the fifth and we will be leading off with Houghton. Houghton tries to get one up the middle but a diving catch by the second baseman stops that play. I come in next looking to add to my hit in the first. I swing and miss to get my first strike out of the game. LaBuff puts one out to short left centre that falls in for a base hit. Bielecki gets one to short centre for a base hit sending LaBuff to second. Noftall cannot make it 3 out of 3 as his hit to short centre is caught after some hustle by the centre fielder. We end the inning with 2 more base runners stranded.

Bottom of the fifth and Burns will continue against Stodolka. Stodolka is out number 1 as a deep ball to centre is taken by Becerra. Hinton puts a little grounder towards first that Noftall has to rush to get. He picks it up and sends it to the covering Burns for the out. I make the third out as Sena puts a ground ball towards the left hall. I pick it up and send it to first in time to get the out. We still lead 1-0.

Top of the sixth and LaVacca will be our lead off. LaVacca shows how its done as he doubles our lead with a solo homer of 353 feet. Pittman is in facing a new Oilers pitcher. Pittman goes down swinging for the first out. Becerra then gets a walk to make base. McCauley gets one to go down the left line that the left fielder has to struggle to get. This gives him a double. Becerra takes his chance and rounds third and pushes for home to score our third run of the game. Houghton gets a good piece of a pitch and sends the ball to the centre field wall. This allows McCauley to run for home while Houghton has himself a double. The run scoring sees me come in next to try and keep things going. I am facing a new pitcher. I get a good shot out to left field where it falls safe. Houghton rounds third and easily makes it home. I run for second and beat the throw on the slide for a double. LaBuff comes in next and he gets a single out to centre field. I round third and go for home. There is no throw and I score my first run after my injury. LaBuff moves to second on a wild pitch. LaBuff then moves to third as Bielecki puts a long fly ball out to right field where he is caught. Noftall sees the inning end when he strikes out stranding LaBuff at third. We have stretched our lead very well in the inning as we are now up 6-0.

Bottom of the sixth and Burns gets to go again. Bedlecom is up first and he sends a line drive straight back to Burns who makes the catch. The game ends for Burns on the next hitter as he gives Purcell a walk. Burns looks to have hurt his arm and the trainer takes him out of the game. Jesus Nunez replaces Burns. Marsh is the first batter he faces and he is out in Left Field caught by LaVacca. Cheatom becomes Nunez's first strike out of the game as we end the inning still with a 6-0 lead.

Top of the seventh and LaVacca leads off. After his homer last time up he fails this time, striking out. Pittman sends a grounder back to the mound to be out at first. Becerra strikes out to see us have a fast inning after our long one last time up.

Bottom of the seventh and Nunez will continue. Moncada is his first victim as he strikes out on a full count. Our pitching injury woes deepen as Nunez also leaves the game with a shoulder injury. Pickup gets the call to come in to pitch next. Blalark is first to face him but grounds out to short. Stodolka is up next but his small grounder towards left sees me rush in to pick it up and throw all in one motion to just get the ball to the bag before him to end the inning. We still lead 6-0.

McCauley will be our lead off at the top of the eighth. McCauley is the first out as the pitcher gets him to swing and miss. Houghton also swings and misses a bad one to be struck out. This brings me up for my 5th at bat of the game. I get a piece of the pitch but send it to the short stop who sees me out at first with the throw.

Bottom of the eighth and Pickup will get to continue. Hinton goes in first against him but can only send a fly ball out to Becerra in Centre field for the first out. Pickup gets his first strike out as Sena goes down swinging. Bedlecom is out number 3 as we take the team shut out into the ninth on a return grounder to Pickup. We lead 6-0.

Top of the ninth and we lead off with LaBuff. LaBuffs high infield pop up is taken by the second baseman for out number 1. Bielecki grounds out to short for out number 2. Noftall then strikes out to end our regulation 9 innings with the bat.

Bottom of the ninth and we continue with Pickup to try and close out the game without a run against us. Purcell is up first and Pickup gives him a walk. Marsh becomes out number 1 as his line drive is taken by LaVacca in left field. Becerra then keeps the shut out alive by hustling over to deep left centre to catch one from Cheatom. Moncada comes in and puts one up out to right field but substitute fielder Mares gets under it and we get the shut out.

We win 6-0 and it is our best win for a while. Seems that I had a good game back after injury as well as I went 2-5 with an RBI and a run scored along with a double. Danny Burns got the win and the player of the game honours.

We are now 16-28 and facing the Oilers again tomorrow. Hopefully we can weather the reactions from them to this loss and come out winners again.

[amead17]

Day 2 of my return from injury and we continue to our trip to Dothan with game 2 of the series. We are hoping to get a second win today.

We have had to have some changes to the pitching unit today as both Danny Burns and Jesus Nunez going to the DL list for a week or 2 with injury. This has meant changes from the Black Cats again. For some reason Gene Pickup is not really liked by the big club as he has been demoted. 3 pitchers have come back to us from the Rookie league Rock Hill Ducks. They are Gus Flores, Ray Petty and Nick Thompson.

The manager has decided to go with the following line-up for the game against Dothan.

CF Luis Ortega
SS Casey McCauley
LF Cooper Houghton
3B Joshua Mills
DH Steve Bielecki
2B Chris LaBuff
1B Chris Klika
Catcher Carlos Manriquez
RF Jose Becerra

On the mound today is Eric Hinkley. Hinkley has not had a good year so far going 1-3 with an ERA of 7.30. His last outing was a no decision with a win prior to that. Hopefully we can get another win for him today.

Top of the first and wow what a start for us. Ortega is in for his first game with us after playing at single A level. It showed how much better he is than most of us as he hit only the second pitch of the game 421 feet for a solo homer to give us a very early lead. McCauley strikes out as the second batter up. Houghton also goes down swinging with 3 strikes and no balls. This brings me in for my first go of the game. I build a full count but then swing and miss to be struck out. We lead 1-0 after the first.

Bottom of the first and Bedlecom is first to face Hinkley. Bedlecom puts a fly ball out to left where Houghton makes the first out. Moncada puts one out to right field for a base hit. Hinkley then gives Marsh a walk on a full count to move Moncada to second. Culver is up next and puts a slow roller my way. I pick it up and send it to first for the out. Moncada moves to third and Marsh goes to second. I then make a solid catch off of a Cheatom drive to end the inning and maintain our lead at 1-0.

Top of the second and Bielecki will lead off for us. Bielecki tries a fly ball out to deep left centre but the fielder is there to catch it. LaBuff gets a soft flare out to left field to drop in for a base hit. LaBuff moves to second as Klika gets a grounder to second which sees him out at first. LaBuff is stranded as Manriquez plays a tame grounder to short for the third out.

Bottom of the second and Hinkley will be facing Blalark. I take Blalark in the left foul territory for the first out. Stodolka gets a base hit out to left field to get the inning started. Larson also goes to the left side but his fly ball is taken by Houghton for out number 2. Briand strikes out to leave Stodolka on base while we maintain our 1-0 lead.

Top of the third and Becerra will be up first for us. Becerra gets a small tapper out towards first but manages to beat the throw and pick up an infield base hit. Ortega comes in for his second at bat but cannot do the same as with his first. He puts a long one out to centre field but the fielder takes an easy catch. McCAuley is struck out for the 40th time this season as he becomes out number 2. Houghton also strikes out as we leave Ortega out there.

Bottom of the third and Hinkley will have to face Bedlecom for a second time. Bedlecom gets an infield base hit as his little tap in front of home plate cannot be picked up and set to first in time. Moncada ruins Bedlecoms good start as he grounds to McCauley at short who starts the double play that takes them both out. Hinkley then gets Marsh to chase a bad one to strike him out and maintain our 1-0 lead.

Top of the fourth and I will be leading off. I hit a solid one out to left field that avoids the fielder and rolls to the wall. I make it round first and go for second. There is no throw and I make it easily but pull up in pain as I reach second. The trainer comes on and takes a look at my hip. There is no issue and I manage to shake the issue off and will continue. Bielecki is up next and hits a solid base hit out to centre field. This allows me to round third and sprint for home. I get home without a throw being made to score our second run. LaBuff hits one straight to third which sees a double play take out both Bielecki and LaBuff. Klika keeps the inning alive with a flare shot out to left field for a base hit. Manriquez doesn't help as he fires one straight to second to see Klika tagged out and end the inning with our lead up to 2-0.

Bottom of the fourth and Hinkley will go again. Culver is first up and he is struck out chasing a slider. Cheatom gets the first base hit of the Oilers inning with a nice hit to left field. In 2 batters we find our lead wiped out as Blalark gets all of one from Hinkley to send it 389 feet over the left wall. This sees a 2 run homer and a 2-2 tied game. Ortega gets the second out of the inning as Stodolka puts one out to deep centre. Larson gets a strong hit to deep centre that Ortega cannot get to and allows Larson the double. Hinkley then gives a wild pitch which sees Larson move to third. Briand cannot bring Larson home as his pop up over the infield sees him out. Game tied at 2-2.

Top of the fifth and we have to start all over again. Becerra is up first for us but he is struck out on a splitter. Ortega gets a walk as the pitcher loses control. Ortega moves to second as McCauley gets a base hit out to right field. Houghton then loads the bases as he gets one past the pitcher and into centre field for a base hit. This brings me up for my third go. I put one out towards third and get it past the fielder into left field for a base hit. This sees Ortega and McCauley home to score 2 runs and see our lead restored. Houghton moved to second. I get to move to second when Bielecki sees his grounder dropped by the third baseman. Houghton also moved up to third and we have the bases loaded again. We get nothing from it as LaBuff sends a grounder straight back to the pitcher who starts a double play to take Houghton and LaBuff. We now lead 4-2.

Bottom of the fifth and Hinkley continues against Bedlecom. Hinkley gives a nice one to Bedlecom that goes out to the centre wall and he picks up a triple. Moncada is the first out as he puts one out to Becerra in right field. Marsh comes in next and he puts a small grounder out in front of home plate. I run in to grab it and send to first for the out but it allows Bedlecom to score. Culver puts one out to centre field but Orteg is there to end the inning and sees us maintain a lead but down to 4-3.

Top of the sixth and Klika comes in facing a new pitcher. Klika is caught in foul territory on the third base side. Manriquez then grounds out to third as he is out number 2. Becerra gets a single out to centre field as the ball drops in front of the fielder. Ortega puts a long one out to left field that goes into the corner. This allows Becerra to round third and head for home to add to our lead. Ortega goes to second for the RBI double. McCauley strikes out to strand Ortega but we now lead 5-3.

Bottom of the sixth and Hinkley is allowed to continue. Cheatom is up first but his grounder comes straight to me and I send to first for the out. Blalark puts a line drive towards centre field but LaBuff at second makes a great grab to get the out. Stodolka sees the inning end as his pop up in foul territory is taken by Klika near first. We lead 5-3.

Top of the seventh and Houghton will be our lead off. Houghton fires one into the right field and it runs into the corner allowing him to make the base hit a double. I am up next and the Oilers decide to walk me. Bielecki doesn't get the same consideration and the pitcher strikes him out. LaBuff puts one out to shallow right but the fielder is there to make the catch. Both Houghton and myself are then stranded as Klika sends a grounder straight to first to end the inning.

Bottom of the seventh and Hinkley gets another go. Hinkley gives Larson a walk first up. This leads to a change of pitcher as Deshawn McKinzy is bought in to pitch. Briand is first to face him and gets a base hit to right centre. This allows Larson to move to third. Bedlecom hits one my way and I make the pick up and hold Larson at third. I send the ball to first for the out. Brian moves to second. McKinzy does not do well up next as he gives an easy base hit to pinch hitting Campos. This scores both Larson and Briand to tie the game up again at 5-5. Marsh strikes out for the second and Culver then flies out to Ortega in Centre to end the inning. Game tied at 5-5.

Top of the eighth and we will start with Manriquez. Manriquez sends a grounder straight to first to be out. Mendoza pinch hits for Becerra but his grounder is picked up at second for the out. Ortega then strikes out to end our inning.

Bottom of the eighth and McKinzy is allowed to continue. He gets Cheatom to strike out with a questionable call on the pitch. Blalark sends a hopper straight back to McKinzy on the mound to be out number 2. We keepthe game tied as Stodolka sends a grounder straight to first for the out. Game at 5-5.

Top of the ninth with the game in the balance. McCauley will be leading off against the Oilers closer as they try to stop anymore runs. McCauley strikes out for number 1. Houghton becomes out number 2 with a return grounder to the pitcher. This brings me in to try and get the lead back before we go into the bottom of the ninth. I try a line drive out to centre but it is taken by the second baseman and we don't advance the score.

Bottom of the ninth and we need to keep it tight to take it to extras. The manager has called on closer Latrell Angton to keep the game alive. Angton gets Larson to strike out first up. Briand is given a walk. Bedelcom sends one to Mendoza at short and he goes to LaBuff at second to get Briand out. There is no relay to first as LaBuff pulls up injured. He has had to be taken out of the game with a foot injury. Bedlecom then steals second on a strike to Campos. Campos strikes out to end the inning and we go into extras. Game tied at 5

Top of the tenth and Bielecki will go in first. Bielecki strikes out. Bonier pinch hits for LaBuff after his injury but he strikes out. Kiritsis also pinch hits for Klika. He also strikes out as we fail to connect.

Bottom of the tenth and Angton will continue. Marsh is up first and gets a base hit out to centre field. Marsh moves to second as Culver hits straight to first to be the first out. Cheatom gets a walk. Purcell comes in as a substitute runner for Marsh but Blalark strikes out for the second out of the inning. Stodolka comes in next and his hit to left field is taken by Houghton to keep the game alive at 5-5.

Top of the eleventh and Mariquez will lead off for us facing a new pitcher. Manriquez gets a base hit out to right field to start the inning. Mendoza strikes out for number 1. Manriquez moves to second on a weak Ortega grounder that sees him out. McCauley cannot keep the inning alive as he sends one to right field and it is caught by the fielder.

Bottom of the eleventh and Nelson de los Santos is bought in to pitch for us. Larson sends a slow bouncer my way and I make the grab and throw to get him at first. Briand is given a walk. We then see the game taken away from us as Bedlecom comes in and finds the sweet spot. His 366 foot home run scores 2 and we lose 7-5 in a game we were always ahead in.

I had a good game with 2 from 4 with a run scored and 2 RBI's. We drop back to 15-29 for the year.

We face the Oilers again tomorrow for the final game of the series.