2030 St. Louis River Walkers -- This could be the last time

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Record: 14-19, 6th, 5 GB Quad City
Jake Harms and a quartet of relievers combined on a one-hit shutout, as Grand Rapids completed a four-game sweep of St. Louis with a 1-0 win at the Polo Grounds (1926).
The loss was the sixth in a row for the River Walkers, who were outscored 12-3 in the series.
Harms handled the first five innings and allowed the lone St. Louis hit, a two-out single by Jean Carmona in the first inning.
Harms struck out nine and walked three.
The five Grand Rapids pitchers combined for 14 strikes. The Walkers struck out 43 times in the four games.
The game's lone run came in the bottom of the sixth inning off St. Louis starter Trey Benton.
Sean Nettles led off the inning with a single, and moved to second on a ground out.
Alex Freeland scored Nettles with a two-out single.
After Harms' exited, four relievers worked an inning apiece for the Traders.
Cristian Sanchez handled the sixth inning.
He was followed by Ian Hamilton, Alex Lange and Oscar Martinez.
The scoreless ninth gave Martinez eight saves for the season.

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MBL news: Week 5 awards and standings

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The St. Louis River Walkers have maybe the worst offense in the MBL -- having scored just 108 runs in 31 games -- and they decided to see if they could fix it to send to of the biggest culprits, first baseman Cris Rosario and third baseman Jordan Groshans, to AAA Memphis to see if they could figure things out.
Rosario, 28, has batted just .180 with two homers and 11 RBIs in 29 games.
Groshans, 30, is hitting .172 with three homers with nine games in 30 games.
Getting the call up for first baseman/outfielder Rick Scott and infielder Joshua Rivera.
Scott, 25, has batted just .126 with three homers and nine RBIs in 24 games for the Redbirds.
Rivera, 31, has played in 17 games during which he has hit .338 with seven RBIs.

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The game between the Springfield Railers and St. Louis River Walkers scheduled for May 6 at Busch Stadium (1997) has been postponed by rain.
It will be made up as part of a doubleheader on May 7.

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Record: 15-19, 5th (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids), 5.5 GB Quad City
Izzy San Juan allowed one run over seven innings and St. Louis snapped a six-game losing streak with a 4-1 win over Springfield at Busch Stadium (1997).
San Juan (3-1) allowed one run on five hits. He struck out seven and walked one.
The Railers got their lone run in the top of the first on a two-out homer from Riley Greene.
It would not be until the bottom of the fifth when the River Walkers would get on the board, and they would take the lead with a pair of runs off Railers starter Dalvin Rosario.
Jose Segura struck first with a lead-off home run.
Fresh-up from AAA Memphis, Joshua Rivera followed with a single and scored when another callup, Rick Scott, doubled.
St. Louis added another run in the sixth.
Jared Thomas led off with a single off reliever Mario Reyes.
He scored when Jean Carmona and Jose Ramirez followed it with singles of their own.
Ramirez homered off Vladimir Gutierrez in eighth to make it 4-1.
Travis Krogman, Jose Alvarado and Ernesto Barbosa all retired two batters apiece to close out the game for St. Louis.
Barbosa now has five saves.

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Record: 15-20, 6th, 6 GB Quad City
St. Louis rookie starting pitcher Wilson Lara shut out Springfield over the first four innings, but between the fifth and sixth the Railers put up five runs and went on for a 5-3 win in the second game of a doubleheader at Busch Stadium (1997).
A triple by Alberto Checchinato followed by a Hayden Jones double off Springfield starter Eddie Stoneberg in the bottom of the second, led to the River Walkers taking a 1-0.
But Lara, who cruised through the first four innings, went south in the fifth.
Nolan Jones led the fifth off with a double and went to third on a Wander Samuel Franco single.
Franco stole second to put runners at second and third.
Ruben Villanueva chased them both home with a single.
In the sixth, Lara walked the first two batters before allowing an RBI double to Justin Schneider.
Jones followed with a single to make it 5-1.
Stoneberg lasted just three innings, allowing one run on four hits.
Justin Jarvis (3-1) took over and pitched three scoreless innings. He would get the win.
David Marcano, Gerson Moreno and Mike Fagan all worked an inning apiece.
Fagan earned his seventh save.

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Record: 15-21, 6th, 7 GB Quad City
Ruben Villanueva homered twice to power Springfield a 7-3 win over St. Louis at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win gave the Railers victories in the final two games of the three-game series.
Villanueva's first bomb came in the top of the third, a three-run shot off River Walkers ace Angel Tiburcio to put Springfield up 3-0.
He struck again in the seventh with a solo shot off reliver Yeison Santos to make it 7-2.
In between, Matthew Lugo had hit a two-run homer off Tiburcio in the fourth to make it 5-0.
An RBI single from Riley Greene off Tiburcio in the sixth put Springfield up 6-1.
Railers starter John Haynes (3-4) allowed two runs on seven hits over six innings.
David Marcano allowed a pair of runs in the seventh.
But Mario Reyes allowed a trio of hits in the eighth, but didn't allow a run.
The ninth was split between Mike Fagan (0.1 IP) and Vladimir Gutierrez (0.2).

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Record: 15-22, 6th, 7.5 GB Quad City
Down 3-0, Springfield put up five runs on St. Louis starting pitcher Kaneo Kawamoto in the bottom of the fifth inning, and went on to defeat the River Walkers 6-4 at Oracle Park (2020).
A three-run homer from Edward Olivares off Railers starter Jared Kelley staked St. Louis to its early lead.
Kawamoto quickly came unraveled in the fifth allowing the first five batters to reach bases, capped by a three-run homer from Alex Otero.
Dylan Crews preceded Otero's blast with a two-run single.
Otero, who was playing in just his second game of the season after missing the first-month-plus with a broken bone in his cheek, helped make it 6-3 in the seventh.
He doubled with one out off reliever Cory Tiller, and later scored on a passed ball by catcher Jared Thomas on a pitch thrown by Jose Alvarado.
Kelley (2-2) worked the first five innings, allowing three runs on four hits. He struck out seven and walked one.
Mario Reyes and Justin Jarvis both pitched a scoreless inning, before Gus Moreno (0.2 IP) and Victor Gutierrez (0.1) divided up the eighth when St. Louis scored its fourth run on an RBI single from Jean Carmona.
A scoreless ninth earned Mike Fagan his eighth save of the season.
Walkers infielder Thairo Estrada suffered a strained oblique while running the bases. He is expected to miss up to three weeks.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have placed infielder Thairo Estrada on the 10-day injured list with a strained oblique.
Estrada was injured while running the bases in a 6-4 loss to Springfield on May 10. He is expected to miss up to three weeks.
Estrada, 34, had batted .272 with a homer and four RBIs in 32 games in 2030.


Being recalled from AAA Memphis is third baseman Jordan Groshans.
The 30-year-old Groshans had been sent to Memphis at the start of the week after a woeful start to the regular season.
In 30 games with the Walkers, Groshans had hit just .172 with three homers and nine RBIs.
During his brief time with the Redbirds, Groshans had hit .368 in four games with a homer and five RBIs.

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Record: 15-23, 6th, 8 GB Quad City and Springfield
Raul Ahumada took a shutout into the seventh inning and Springfield downed St. Louis 5-2 at Oracle Park (2020).
Ahumada gave up a two-run homer from Jose Segura in that top of the seventh, but it hardly mattered as the Railers already led 4-0.
In his seven innings, Ahumada (3-2) allowed the two runs on five hits. He struck out eight and walked none.
Justin Jarvis pitched a scoreless eighth inning.
Mike Fagan handled the ninth for the second straight game, earning his ninth save.
The Railers broke out front 2-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning against River Walkers starter Trey Benton.
It started badly for Benton, with a lead-off walk to Riley Greene followed by a hit by pitch of Justin Schneider.
Alex Otero made it 1-0 with an RBI single.
Dylan Crews plated Schneider with a two-run single.
That lead grew to 3-0 in the fifth.
Jake Rogers led off with a double and scored on a one-out double by Austin Schultz.
Crews scored in the sixth, after drawing a two-out walk from reliever Ricky Cisneros.
Wander Samuel Franco scored Crew by following with a double.
Daniel Becerra doubled off David Amador to lead off the seventh.
He later scored on a Schneider fly ball.

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Record: 16-23, 6th, 8 GB Quad City
Izzy San Juan took a shutout into the seventh inning and Jordan Gorshans homered twice as St. Louis avoided a three-game sweep at the hands of Springfield with a 7-1 win at Oracle Park (2020).
San Juan (4-1) allowed just three hits over six innings before he began the seventh by allowing a single to Justin Schneider and a walk to Riley Greene.
Overall, San Juan allowed the one run on four hits. He struck out eight and walked two.
Cory Tiller took over after Greene's at bat, and got out of the inning without allowing a run.
Prior to that bottom of the seventh, the River Walkers had built a 4-0 lead.
They struck early with a run in the top of the first.
Alek Thomas led off the game with a double off Railers starter Eddie Stoneberg and later scored on a wild pitch.
Gorshans first homer of the game, a two-run shot off reliever Mario Reyes, in the sixth made it 3-0.
Catcher Hayden Jones drew a one-out walk from Vladimir Gutierrez in the seventh and scored on a Jean Carmona single as the Walkers' lead reached 4-0.
Groshans homered again in the eighth, rookie Rick Scott also hit a two-run homer in the frame,. both off reliever David Marcano, as St. Louis went up 7-0.
Ricky Cisneros took care of the final two innings for the Walkers, allowing a meaningless run in the eighth.

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MBL news: Week 6 -- Awards and standings

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The St. Louis River Walkers have recalled first baseman Cris Rosario from AAA Memphis, and sent 25-year-old first baseman/outfielder RIck Scott back to the Redbirds.
Rosario, 28, was sent to AAA after he batted just .180 with two homers and 11 RBIs in his first 29 games of the season.
In his week with the Redbirds, Rosario hit at a .375 clip in six games with seven homers and 13 RBIs.
Scott got into six games while in the majors, batting .250 with one homer and three RBIs.

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Record: 17-23, 5th (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids), 8 GB Quad City
Rookie Wilson Lara allowed two runs over seven innings and powered by three home runs, St. Louis won 8-3 over Louisville at Dodger Stadium.
Lara (1-3), who earned his first win in the majors, allowed two runs on two hits in his time on the mound. He struck out six and walked two.
The runs Lara allowed came early, as Louisville put together some early baserunners and Kellem Clark (with a ground out) and Brandon Clement (with a single) scored two of them in the bottom of the first.
That put the Sluggers up 2-0.
But the Walkers tied it in the top of the second.
Cris Rosario with a solo homer off Louisville starter Jim Martin, and Lara himself with an RBI double to score Peter Ahn, who had followed Rosario's long ball with a single.
St. Louis went up 4-2 in the fifth.

Martin loaded the bases with two walks and a hit by pitch before exiting.
Jean Carmona greeted reliever Giovanny Gallegos with an RBI single.
Jared Thomas scored another with a single.
A lead-off homer from Jared Thomas, off James Carney, in the eighth made it 5-2.
Jean Carmona cranked a three-run homer in the ninth off Manny Pescosolido to make it 8-2.
Danny Amador (0.2 IP) and Jake Brentz (0.1) combined to limit the Sluggers to one run in the eighth.
Yeison Santos took care of the ninth with an incident.

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Record: 17-24, 6th (Tied/w. Cedar Rapids), 8.5 GB Quad City
Heston Kjerstad singled with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning off St. Louis reliever Jose Alvarado to score Jonathan Vaughns, and help give Louisville a 4-3 win at Dodger Stadium.
Vaughns had reached on a one-out single off Alvarado.
A walk to Kellum Clark moved Vaughns to second.
Kjerstad plated what proved to be the game-winnign run on a 1-1 pitch he hit into left-center field.
The Sluggers led 3-1, before St. Louis tied it with single runs in the sixth and seventh.
Both came via the long ball.
Edward Olivares led off the sixth with a homer off Louisville starter Andres Garcia.
Jose Seguar took Owen White deep in the seventh to tie it at 3.
Garcia didn't get the win, but was effective allowed two runs on four hits over six innings.
White, James Carney and Elian Acosta all pitched an inning apiece.
The win went to Carney (1-2). Acosta notched his sixth save.

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Record: 18-24, 5th, 8 GB Quad City
Kaneo Kawamoto allowed one run over 6.1 innings and St. Louis bashed four home runs to power its way to an 8-2 win over Louisville at Dodger Stadium.
The victory gave the River Walkers victories in two of the three games in the series.
Kawamoto (4-5) allowed a first-inning run -- Joakim Osuna led off the bottom of the first with a single and scored on a throwing error by catcher Jared Thomas on a double steal where he was attempting to swipe third -- but nothing after that as the Walkers piled up the game's next eight runs.
The veteran left-hander allowed four hits while striking out seven and walking one.
St. Louis took the lead for good in the top of the second on back-to-back solo homers by Jose Segura and Cris Rosario off Sluggers starter Zachary Fuller.
The Walkers added their next two runs in the fourth, Peter Ahn greeting new reliever Lawrence Caulfield with a two-run double.
Jared Thomas hit a solo homer off Calufield in the fifth, making it 5-1.
Ahn collected his third RBI of the game in the sixth, as again greeted another reliever, Tony Ramirez, with a single on the first batter he faced.
Edward Olivares hit a two-run homer off Ramirez later in the inning.
Kawamoto exited after allowing a pair of one-out singles in the seventh.
David Amador took over and got out of the inning without allowing a run.
Louisville did get a run off him in the eighth -- Osuna with a one-out single. He later scored on a Jonathan Vaughns triple off Yeison Santos.
Santos struck out the final batter in the eighth, and than the side in the ninth to end it.

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Record: 18-25, 5th, 9.5 GB Quad City
Jeremiah Jackson connected on a two-run double off St. Louis reliever Travis Krogman with no outs in the bottom of the seventh inning to lift Peoria to a 4-3 win at Globe Life Field.
The Rivermen trailed 3-2 entering the bottom of the sevnenth, but Bao-qiug Chu got things going with a lead-off single off reliever Jose Alvarado.
Pinch-hitter Jevon Ward followed with another single.
That led to the exit of Alvarado and entrance of Krogman.
Jackson followed with his double on a 3-2 pitch, as Peoria went in front for good.
When Cris Rosario led off the top of the second with a homer off Rivermen starter Shouji Enomto, St. Louis owned a 1-0 lead.
That lead grew to 2-0 an inning later, when pitcher Trey Benton reached on a single and later scored when Peoria left fielder Christian Robinson botched a fly ball hit by Jared Thomas.
A solo homer by Chou off Benton to open the bottom of the third got the Rivermen on the board.
Peoria tied it that same inning after Jackson singled with one out.
Jackson moved to third on a Sam Bianco single, and scored when Alex Greene grounded out.
Edward Olivares hit a solo homer with two outs in the fifth off Enumoto to make it 3-2 River Walkers.
Enumoto worked the first five innings, allowing three runs on five hits. He struck out six and walked none.
Four relievers -- Jose Tapia (1.1 IP), Joey Simmons (0.2), David McLoughlin (1.0) and Omari Gordon (1.0) -- combined to shut out St. Louis the rest of the way.

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Record: 18-26, 5th, 9.5 GB Quad City
Luke Madden pitched six shutout innings, and a quartet of relievers did the rest as Peoria whitewashed St. Louis 1-0 at Globe Life Park.
Madden (2-6) scattered four hits in his six innings. He struck out seven and walked one.
Joey Simmons worked a silent seventh inning.
Kodi Mederios (0.2 IP) and Carlos Aguirre (0.1) combined to do the same in the eighth.
For the second game in a row, the ninth belonged to Omari Gordon who pitched around a walk to post his 12th save.
The game's lone run came in the bottom of the fifth against River Walkers starter Izzy San Juan.
Catcher Kevin Melendez led off with a single, and a bunt by Madden moved him to second.
Jeremiah Jackson reached on an error by San Juan, as Melendez moved to third.
Anthony Volpe followed with a single, as Melendez crossed the plate with the lone tally of the contest.

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Record: 19-26, 5th, 9.5 GB Quad City
St. Louis scored at least one run over each of the first three innings to build a 6-1 lead, and the River Walkers went on to defeat Peoria 10-4 at Globe Life Park.
The win allowed the River Walkers to avoid dropping all three games of the series to the River Men.
The Walkers went up 2-0 in the top of the first thanks to a two-run homer from Jose Sergua off Peoria starter Edwin Cora.
An inning later, Jordan Groshans drew a lead-off walk from Cora and scored on a Peter Ahn fly ball.
Groshans haved moved from first to third when pitcher Wilson Lara reached on an error by Cora.
A homer from Andrew Lee put Peoria on the board in the top of the third, but the Walkers broke it open with three in the bottom half.
Alek Thomas had the big hit with a bases-loaded double which cleared the sacks.
St. Louis added a single runs in the sixth and seventh, making it 8-1.
The Rivermen did slice the deficit to 8-4, with a pair of runs in the seventh and another in the eighth.
But the Walkers got two of those back in the ninth when Groshans hit a two-run homer off reliever Jon Olsen.
Lara (2-3) worked 6.1 innings, allowing three runs on four hits.
Yeison Santos (0.1 IP), Cory Tiller (1.0), Jake Brentz (1.0) and David Amador (1.0) combined to close out the victory.

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MBL news: Week 7 -- Awards and standings