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

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Record: 21-16,1st, 1 GA Des Moines and Kansas City
Trailing 1-0, Peoria pummeled St. Louis starting pitcher Rich Haas for seven runs in the bottom of the fourth inning, and that was enough to carry the Rivermen to a 7-1 win at Globe Life Park.
The win allowed Peoria to take two of the three games in their series with the River Walkers.
Haas retired all nine of the batters he faced over the first three innings.
But his second time through the Rivermen's order was very different.
It started with a lead-off single from Johnny Castagnozzi.
That was followed by a single from Jeremiah Jackson and a Mike Clay double which tied the score.
A wild pitch scored Jackson to make it 2-1.
Ryan Palmer then drew a walk to put runners at the corners.
Gabe Dudman followed with an infield single to load the bases.
Randy Underhill unloaded them with a triple to make it 5-1.
Castognozzi later made it 6-1 with a single.
Jackson's second single of the inning, and the Rivermen's seventh overall, made it 7-1.
Peoria starter Enrique Castillo didn't pitch long enough to earn the win, he worked 4.2 innings, allowing one run on three hits.
That victory went to Noah Murdock (1-0), who finished the fifth inning and pitched a scoreless sixth.
After that, it was Carlos Aguirre (1.1 IP) and Joey Simmons (1.2) who shut out the Walkers the rest of the way.

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MBL news: Week 6 -- Awards and standings

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River Walkers ace Angel Tiburcio just sent me a note about wanting to talk about a contract extension, as he's in the final year of his contract.
Tiburcio has been a workhorse for the three of the past four seasons -- an injury limited him to 24 starts in 2030 -- and won Cy Young awards in 2028, 2029 and 2031.
He's also off to a great start this season, sitting at 5-1 with a 2.51 ERA afrer eight starts.
But he's also 31 years old and got a lot of mileage on his tires.
He's asking for an eight-year deal at $30-million plus, which is way too much.
Even for the face of the franchise.
And I don't put much stock into starting pitchers, who are over 35 years old.
This is going to be a tough one.

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Record: 22-16, 1st, 1.5 GA Cedar Rapids
Jesse McNaboe took a shutout into the ninth inning before having to be rescued by Ernesto Barbosa, and St. Louis took the opener of their series with Louisville with a 4-2 win at Dodger Stadium.
McNaboe, who had struggled in his previous two outings, didn't allow a run over the first eight inning and just one hit.
Leading 4-0, he retired the lead-off batter to open the ninth.
But pinch-hitter Chris Hyman singled and Jerrion Ealy and Hisnori Yausda both doubled to make it 4-2.
Hence, time for Barbosa..
It didn't start well, former Walker prospect Steve Kowa singled to put runners at the corners.
But Kevin VanWinkle hit into a double play to end it, earning Barbosa his 10th save.
For McNaboe (6-1), his final line was 8.1 innings, two runs on four hits. He struck out six and didn't issue a walk.
Offensively, the River Walkers went up 1-0 in the top of the third when Jean Carmona led off with a double off Sluggers starting pitcher Jim Martin and later scored on a Nathaniel Dixon fly ball.
A two-run homer from Jose Segura in the fourth off Martin made it 3-0.
Jovan Gill opened the top of the ninth with a homer off Joe Wahl to put St. Louis ahead 4-0.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have called up 23-year-old catcher Mike Winchester from AAA Memphis, and placed 28-year-old third baseman Felxi Acevado.
An injury to starting catcher Jared Thomas hastened the elevation of Winchester.
Thomas is expected to miss three days with a sore shoulder.
His backup, Ricky Liriano, is expected to start all the games Thomas is expected to miss.
But Winchester is needed on the roster as depth at the position.
Winchester, a 19th-round pick in the 2028 draft, is batting .225 with no homers and eight RBIs in 25 games for the Redbirds.
Acevado, who is expected to clear waivers, has gotten into 28 games for the Walkers this season during which he has hit .185 with no homer and no RBIs.
St. Louis continued to get no breaks on the injury front as it has been told left-handed starting pitcher Kaneo Kawamoto is expected to miss to more week as he recovers from a strained oblique.
Kawamoto has not pitched since being injured on May 7.
He has started six games for the Walkers this season, going 1-3 with an 8.54 ERA.,

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Record: 23-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines and Kansas City
Zack Hunsicker allowed two runs over 6.1, and back-to-back solo home runs in the second inning from Jovan Gill and Jae-hong Chang gave St. Louis the lead in a game where it would go on to defeat Louisville 3-2 at Dodger Stadium.
A scoreless game, Gill struck first with a 384-foot shot off Sluggers starting pitcher Brian Rose.
Two pitches later, on an 0-1 count, Chang launched one 404 feet over the wall in left to make it 2-0.
Kevin Vanwinkle got Louisville on the board with a solo shot of hits own off Hunsicker with one out in the fourth.
St. Louis, however, got that run back in the fifth.
Ricky Liriano singled with one out, and moved to second on a Hunsicker bunt.
Daniel Becerra collected the RBI with a double.
Hunsicker came out for the seventh but exited after allowing a one-out single to Chris Hyman followed by a walk to Jacob Campbell.
Nick Ruffalo took over and allowed a pinch-hit single to former Walkers first baseman Cris Rosario.
But he retired the next two to keep the score 3-2.
Hunsicker (2-2) allowed two runs on four hits over 6.1 innings. He struck out four and walked one.
Ruffalo didn't pitch beyond the seventh.
Josh Forgy pitched a scoreless eighth against his former team.
Ernesto Barbosa worked around a two-out walked in the ninth to earn his 11th save.

Nick Ruffalo was

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Record: 24-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Rookie Jerry Tate shut out Louisville over the first seven innings, and St. Louis scored six runs over the first three -- against from River Walkers pitcher Trey Benton -- paving the way for a 6-2 win over Louisville at Dodger Stadium.
The victory gave St. Louis a sweep of the three-game series.
In his first start in the majors of 2032, Tate (1-1) had allowed four runs on nine hits in 5.2 innings of a 8-1 loss to Peoria.
This time, the 29-year-old scattered five hits over seven scoreless while striking out four and walking none.
The Walkers went to work quickly against Benton with a pair of runs in the first.
Jose Segura proved the first with a two-out solo homer.
Jovan Gill and Nick Shaw kept it going with singles.
A third single in a row, this one from Jae-hong Chang, scored Gill to make it 2-0.
St. Louis added another run in the second, Tate doing the honors.
He singled with one out, and moved to second on a two-out walk to Daniel Becerra.
Segura earned his second RBI of the game with a single.
The Walkers chased Benton with a three-run third.
Jean Carmona scored the first run after reaching on an error by shortstop Bradley Mondesir.
A single by Ricky Liriano moved Carmona to third
Tate then picked up an RBI with a sacrifice fly.
Nathaniel Dixon made it 6-0 with his sixth homer of the season.
Louisville did get runs in the eighth, a Jerrion Early homer off Andres Hernanez, and ninth, Mondesir doubled with one out off Nick Ruffalo and scored on a Cris Rosario fly ball off Josh Grissom, but never threatened to make it close.

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Record: 25-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Tied 7-7, rookie Nick Shaw drove in the go-ahead run with a two-out, RBI single in the bottom of the sixth inning as St.. Louis went on to defeat Akron 12-7 at Busch Stadium (1997).
Daniel Becerra scored the River Walkers' sixth run, after he singled with one out off reliever Orland Claude.
A walk to Jae-Hong Chang moved Beccerra to second and when Jose Segura hit into a fielder's choice he was on third.
Shaw then sent Becerra across the plate with his single on a 3-1 pitch off Claude.
An inning later, the Walkers broke the game open with a grand slam from Nathaniel Dixon off Nick Kahny.
St. Louis looked like it would cruise to the win after it staked ace Angel Tiburcio to leads of 3-0 and 6-2.
But the Flying Feet roared back and eventually tied it at 7-7 on a two-run homer from Zach Arnold off Josh Grissom in the top of the sixth.
Tiburcio lasted just five innings, allowing five runs on seven hits.
Grissom, Ricky Cisneros and Cory Tiller all recorded two outs to get the game to the eighth.
Andres Hernandez pitched a scoreless eighth.
Josh Forgy handled the ninth.
Walkers left fielder Jose Ramirez had to leave the game with a back injury suffered while running the base.
He is expected to miss six games.
It is uncertain if St. Louis will place him on the injured list.

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Record: 26-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Tied 3-3, Jean Carmona tripled with one out in the bottom of the eighth inning and scored on a Jean Segura fly ball to help lift St. Louis to a 4-3 win over Akron at Busch Stadium (1997).
Carmona's triple came on a 3-1 pitch from Flying Feet relief pitcher Javier Vargas.
Down 2-1, the River Walkers had taken a 3-2 lead in the bottom of the sixth on a two-run homer from Segura off Akron starting pitcher Seth Halvorsen.
The Feet tied it in the top of the seventh.
Zach Arnold led off with a single off reliever Yeison Santos.
Arnold, however, was eliminated when John Polk failed to get a bunt down.
Robby Martin followed with a single to move Polk to second.
After a strike out of Devon Wilson, Adam Vargas drew a walk to load the bases.
With pinch-hitter Freudis Nova at the plate, Santos uncorked a wild pitch allowing Polk to score.
Walkers starting pitcher Rich Haas went 5.1 innings, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out three and walked four.
Ricky Cisneros replaced Haas in the sixth, and allowed all three of the batters he faced to reach on two singles and a walk.
Cory Tiller, however, came in and retired the next two to prevent Akron from scoring.
Santos worked the seventh and got the first two outs of the eighth.
Nick Ruffalo finished off the eighth, keeping the game tied at 2-2.
Ruffalo (1-0) would earn the win.
Closer Ernesto Barbosa issued a two-out walk but did not let it hurt him as he posted his 12th save.

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Record: 27-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Thairo Estrada snapped a 4-4 tie with a solo homer with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning, and St. Louis went on to defeat Akron 5-4 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win was the sixth in a row for the River Walkers.
Estrada's homer came on a 3-2 pitch from Flying Feet reliever Nick Kahny.
Akron jumped out to a 4-0 lead when it scored four times against St. Louis starting pitcher Jesse McNaboe.
Lee Oakley did the majority of the damage with a two-out, three-run homer.,
The Walkers used the long ball to rally.
Jose Segura hit a two-run homer off Feet starting pitcher Jesus Pinto in the bottom of the fourth.
An inning later, Jovan Gill evened matters with a two-run homer off reliever Yuki Matsui.
McNaboe handled the first six innings, allowing four runs on six hits. He struck out four and walked two.
Andres Hernandez worked a scoreless seventh.
Josh Forgy (4-1) earned the win after pitching a scoreless eighth and ninth.

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Record: 28-16, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Akron jumped out to a 5-0 lead, but St. Louis rallied with three runs in the fifth inning and four in the sixth and rolled on for a 10-5 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory gave the Walkers a sweep of the four-game series, and extended their win streak to seven games.
St. Louis starting pitcher Zack Hunsicker allowed a two-run homer to Adam Vargas in the top of the first inning and three more runs in the fifth as the Flying Feet went ahead 5-0.
The Walkers started their comeback with three runs off Akron starter Joe Black in the bottom of the fifth.
They had four hits in the inning, including an RBI single from Jean Carmona and a two-run single from Jared Thomas.
St. Louis surged into the lead with four runs in the sixth.
This time the damage was done against the bullpen of the feet.
Nathaniel Dixon had an RBI triple.
He later scored on a three-run homer from Daniel Becerra, both hits were given up by Mike Reeves.
Dixon hit a homer off Orland Claude in the seventh to make it 8-5.
Jared Thomas cranked a two-run homer off Allen Stephany in the eighth, pushing the St. Louis' advantage to 10-5.
Hunsicker lasted five innings, allowing five runs on seven hits.
Josh Grissom, Nick Ruffalo and Cory Tiller all pitched an inning apiece, none of them allowing a run.
Grissom (1-2) earned his first win of the season.
Ricky Cisneros started the ninth, and walked the only hitter he faced before leaving with an undisclosed injury.
Closer Ernesto Barbosa came on and struck out the next three batters, but it was not a save situation.
In addition to Cisneros exiting the game with an injury, shortstop Jean Carmona had to be pulled after being injured while running the bases.
His injury also is undisclosed.

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MBL news: Week 7 -- Awards and standings

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Neither of the injuries to shortstop Jean Carmona and relief pitcher Ricky Cismeros appear to be serious.
Carmona was dealing with a sore hamstring, and was cleared to play after the scheduled off-day.
Cisneros has a back issue and is expected to be unavailable for four days.
Neither will be placed on the injured list.

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Record: 29-16, 1st, 2.5 GA Des Moines
Rookie Jerry Tate turned in his second straight strong start, allowing two runs over seven innings, to help lead St. Louis to a 7-2 win over Louisville at Busch Stadium (1997).
The victory was the eighth in a row for the River Walkers.
Tate, who in his previous outing had thrown seven shutout innings in a 6-2 win over the Sluggers, this time allowed the two runs on three hits. He struck out six and walked one.
The two runs came on a two-run homer from Hisanori Yasuda in the top of the fifth inning, by which time St. Louis already led 4-0.
The Walkers got their first run in the bottom of the first.
Nathaniel Dixon led off with a double off Sluggers starting pitcher Trey Benton and scored on a Daniel Becerra single.
St. Louis added three more runs in the fourth.
After retiring the lead-off batter, five consecutive Walkers' batters reached base against Benton.
Jean Carmona drove in the first two runs with a single.
Dixon picked up an RBI when the inning's third run scored on a fielder's choice.
The Walkers answered Louisville's two runs in the top of the fifth with two in the bottom.
Jared Thomas drove in the first run with a double off Joe Wahl.
The next batter, Rick Scott, also doubled to make it 6-2.
Following Tate's exit after the seventh inning, Andres Hernandez pitched a scoreless eighth.
Nick Ruffalo ended it by striking out the side in the ninth.

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Record: 29-17, 1st, 2.5 GA Des Moines
Louisville battered St. Louis ace Angel Tiburcio for five runs over the third and fourth innings -- two in the the third and three in the fourth -- and rode that to a 7-4 win at Busch Stadium (1997).
The loss ended an eight-game win streak for the River Walkers.
Masyn Winn led off the top of the third for the Sluggers, and Bobby Chapman followed with the first of his two homers in the game, putting Louisville ahead 2-0.
An inning later, the Sluggers put their first three hitters aboard against Tiburcio.
Winn was the third batter, and his hit was an RBI double.
Chapman then collected his third RBI with a fly balll.
Former St. Louis prospect Steve Kowal made it 5-0 with a run-scoring single.
Walkers rookie Nick Shaw hit a solo homer in the bottom of the fifth off Louisville starter Zachary Fuller to make it 5-1.
But Chapman answered with his second homer of the game, another two-run shot, this one off Andres Hernandez, as the Sluggers lead increased to 7-1.
A three-run homer from Jared Thomas off Rhett Daniel in the bottom of the eighth made it 7-4.
St, Louis, however, never really threatened to tie the game.
Fuller (5-2) earned the win after allowing one run on five hits over six innings. He struck out five and didn't issue a walk.
Former Walker Elian Acosta pitched a scoreless sixth for the Sluggers.
Daniel got the ball to start the eighth, but failed to record an out. He exited after the Thomas homer.
Rafael Espinoza got the first out of the eighth.
Matt Ray got the other two, and also handled a scoreless ninth to earn his ninth save.

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Record: 29-18, 1st, 2 GA Des Moines
Ed Hardy led off the top of the 10th inning with a homer off St. Louis reliever Josh Grissom, and Louisville went on to defeat the River Walkers 2-1 at Busch Stadium (1997).
The win gave the Sluggers win in two of the final three games of the series.
After hitting two homers in a win the previous day, Bobby Chapman went deep again for Louisville, his two-out homer in the top of the third off St. Louis starter Rich Haas giving the Sluggers a 1-0 lead.
The Walkers tied it in the fifth on a lead-off homer from Jae-hong Chang off Sluggers starter Andres Garcia.
Garcia pitched six innings, allowing one run on three hits.
Four relievers -- Masyn Winn (1.2 IP), Miguel Vincio (0.1), Joe Wahl (1.0) and Matt Ray (1.0 -- combined to shutout St. Louis the rest of the way.
Wahl (1-2) earned his first win of the season.
Ray collected his 10th save.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have added right fielder Alex Greene to the major league roster after a stint on the injured list.
The team's big off-season acquisition, Greene played in 14 games for St. Louis before suffering a quadriceps injury on April 21.
In his 14 games with the Walkers, Greene batted .261 with three homers and 17 RBIs.
He also played in five rehab games at Memphis, hitting .375 with a homer and four RBIs.
Heading to Memphis will be first baseman/outfielder Rick Scott.
While Scott played a big role for the Walkers in 2030 and 2031, this season has been a struggle.
The 27-year-old has played in 33 games and batted .163 with six homers and 11 RBIs.

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Record: 29-19, 1st, 1 GA Des Moines
Down 2-1, Jim Peebles and Robbie Mackie hit back-to-back home runs with two outs in the top of the fifth inning off St. Louis starting pitcher Jesse McNaboe, and that helped carry Twin Cities to a 5-3 win at Busch Stadium 1997).
The Snow Cats added two more runs in the eighth -- Andres Gimenez and Jeff Waddell with RBI single off reliever Ricky Cisneros -- to go up 5-2.
The Walkers did get a run in the ninth, Jose Segura led off with a double off Twin Cities reliever Jesse Gathier and later scored, but Gathier was able to get pinch-hitter Jovan Gill to hit into a double play to end it.
Wisniewski (5-2) earned the win after allowing two runs on five hits over five innings,
John Goulet pitched a scoreless sixth.
Noah Cutrona handled the seventh and eighth without incident -- before giving way to Gaither, who despite giving up the run in the ninth earned his 11th save.

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Record: 29-20, 1st (Tied/w. Des Moines), 1 GA Cedar Rapids and Kansas City
It was a group effort as Twin Cities starting pitcher Avery Williams and five relievers combined on a four-hit shutout of St. Louis at Busch Stadium (1997).
Williams handled the opening 4.2 innings, allowing just two hits while striking out five and walking two.
By the time he left, the Snow Cats led 2-0.
Roc Riggio scored the game's first run, after leading off the game with a double off River Walkers starter Zack Hunsicker.
He scored on a two-out double by Jeff Friedman.
Aaron Watson accounted for the Cats' second run in the top of the fourth.
He reached on a one-out error by third baseman Javon Gil and came around to score following back-to-back singles from Williams and Riggio.
Travis Mayr got the final out of the fifth for Twin Cities, getting Daniel Becerra to fly out with runners at first and second.
John Goulet recorded the first two outs of the sixth, before giving way to Luca Daltari, who set the Walkers down in order in the seventh and got the lead-off batter in the eighth before allowing a single and a walk.
Eric Watkins then took the ball and recorded two straight to keep the shutout intact.
The ninth was a breeze for Eric Watkins, setting St. Louis down in order for his 12th save.
Daltari (3-0) ended up with his third win of the season.

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MBL news: May 30 -- All-Star fan voting update