2033 St. Louis River Walkers: And the saga continues

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MBL news: June 8 -- All-Star game fan voting update

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Record: 37-22, 1st, 4 GA Springfield
Shane Drogo allowed one run over the opening six innings to help St. Louis to a 4-1 win over Evansville at Yankee Stadium (1988).
The win gave the River Walkers a four-game split of their series with the Bosses.
Down 1-0, St. Louis tied the game in the top of the third inning and took the lead an inning later.
Drogo scored the Walkers' first run after he led off the third with a double off Evansville starter Ray Pocock.
A Bob Saavedra single moved Drogo to third, and he later scored when Manuel Coke hit into a fielder's choice.
An inning later, Pocock hit Chris Duncan with a pitch with one out.
Jose Segura followed with a single, moving Duncan to third.
Duncan was thrown out at the plate on an unsuccessful squeeze play by Drogo.
But Saavedra, who had four hits in the game, scored Segura with a two-out single.
The game's final two runs came in he ninth against the Bosses' bullpen.
Saavedra drove in the first with a single off Stephon Harrison.
Mark Herrman plated the other with a two-out single off Nick Ferretti.
On the mound, Drogo (6-2) went six innings, allowing one run on four hits.
Scott Rissler (0.2 IP) and Nick Ruffalo (0.1) combined to pitch the seventh.
Bobby Westerman and Nick Strother combined to close out the game.
Storther earned his 10th save.

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MBL news: June 8 -- Cincinnati's LaMoureaux no-hits Springfield

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MBL news: Week 10 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 37-23, 1st, 3 GA Springfield
Marcos Zaragoza shut out St. Louis over the first seven innings and the Springfield bullpen did the rest as the Railers downed the River Walkers 5-0 at Busch Stadium (2006).
Zaragoza (4-4) allowed just two singles during his time on the mound. He struck out eight and walked one.
Tony Aceves pitched the final two innings, striking out three.
Springfield posted two runs in the top of the first inning against St. Louis starting pitcher Xavier Wigfall.
A two-out solo homer by Billy Salas opened the second.
Joseph Hughes followed with a double, and Carlton Randall made it 2-0 with a third-consecutive hit to score Hughes.
The Railers didn't score again until the final two innings.
Springfield scored twice in the eighth.
Jason Hillsberg plated the first run with a one-out double off Nick Ruffalo.
Mike Murray then scored Hillsberg with a single off Ruffalo.
Ruben Villanueva capped the scoring when he homered off Scott Rissler to open the top of the ninth.

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Record: 38-23, 1st, 4 GA Springfield
St. Louis pounded out 11 runs on 11 hits -- highlighted by a four-run bottom of the second inning which put it control -- as the River Walkers routed Springfield 11-3 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The Walkers put seven runs on the board before the Railers finally answered with two in the top of the sixth to make it 7-2.
Rookie Mark Herman started the scoring when he led off the bottom of the second with a single off Springfield starter Ewdy Alex.
A walk to Jackson Miller moved Herman to second.
He scored when Yan C. Dixon reached on an error by Railers first baseman Joseph Hughes.
Jose Segura then made it 3-0 with a triple.
Segura scored the inning's final run, scoring on a Abdul-Nasser bin Amr ground out.
After adding a single run in the fourth, the Walkers got back-to-back homers from Manuel Coke and Mark Herman, off reliever Mike Fowler, to open the fifth inning as their lead reached 7-0.
A homer from Billy Salas off Walkers starter Edward Kunselman accounted for the two Railers runs in the sixth.
Chris Duncan hit the third St. Louis homer of the game in the sixth, a solo shot off Fowler.
The Walkers final three runs came an inning later.
Pinch-hitter Alfredo Gomez drove in the first run with a single.
Bob Saavedra earned a pair of RBIs with a double.
Kunselman (5-0) went seven innings, allowing two runs on six hits. He struck out two, and didn't issue a walk.
Ron Cox pitched the final two innings, giving up a meaningless run in the eighth.
Note: St. Louis All-Star right fielder Manuel Coke had to leave the game after being hit by a Fowler pitch in the sixth.
Fowler had just allowed a homer to Duncan, the previous batter.
A diagnosis on the injury was unavailable.

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MBL news: June 10 -- Ann Arbor's Kunda no-hits Detroit

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Record: 38-24, 1st, 3 GA Springfield
Alejandro Pena limited St. Louis to one run over the opening 6.1 innings, and Springfield defeated the River Walkers 3-1 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win gave the Railers victories in the first and third games of the three-game series.
Pena (4-2) allowed one run on six hits over his 6.1 innings. He struck out six and walked one.
The lone run he allowed came in the bottom of the seventh.
Marcos Francis led off the inning with a single and later scored on an Abdul-Nasser bin Amr two-out single off reliever Nick Thiel.
Francis' run made it 3-1.
Springfield went up 1-0 in the top of the first against Walkers rookie starter Kevin Hrdlicka.
Jason Hillsberg drew a walk to lead off the game.
Hillsberg stole second and scored on a two-out single by Justin Schneider.
Schneider also drove in Springfield's second run in the top of the fourth.
This time, he doubled off Hrdlicka..
The hit scored Joseph Hughes, who also had drawn a lead-off walk.
Carlton Randall led off the seventh with a home off Hrdlicka to cap the scoring.
Theil entered the game in the seventh after Francis' hit.
He finished off the inning.
Tony Aceves pitched around a pair of hits in the eighth.
Jon Santiago did the same in the ninth for his 19th save.

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Record: 39-24, 1st, 4 GA Springfield
St. Louis jumped out to a 5-1 lead, and held on to defeat Louisville 6-5 at Dodger Stadium.
The River Walkers did the most of their damage in the second (two runs) and third innings (three runs) as they built their 5-1 advantage.
Nathaniel Dixon had a two-run, two-out single in the second off Sluggers starting pitcher Esteban Serna.
It's lead now 2-1, Marcos Francis had an RBI triple off Serna to drive in the first run of the third.
Francis scored on a Serna wild pitch.
Mark Herman later double.
A Jose Segura single moved Herman to third, and he scored on an Abdul-Nasser bin Amr.
An RBI single by David Morales with two outs in the bottom of the sixth off St. Louis starter Josh McDonald pulled Louisville within 5-2.
A Jose Segura two-out homer in the fifth off Travis Pooler got that run back.
The Sluggers notched three runs in the bottom of the fifth.
Dan Boyle had an RBI double off McDonald to score the first run.
Boyle would score on an error by bin Amr at shortstop on a ball hit by Bobby Chapman.
Tom Blevins drove in the third run, scored by Lance Brown, who had walked, on a ground out
A walk to Will Banfield loaded the bases with two outs.
But McDonald got David Morales to ground out to keep St. Louis in front.
Six Walkers relievers -- Brennan Weldon (0.2 IP), Ron Cox (0.2), Scott Rissler (0.2), Bobby Wsterman (0.2), Nick Ruffalo (0.1) and Nick Strother (1.0) -- combined to shutout Louisville the rest of the way.
Strother earned his 11th save.
McDonald (7-2) got the win for allowing five runs on five hits in the first five innings. He struck out three and walked four.

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Record: 40-24, 1st, 4 GA Springfield
St. Louis jumped on Louisville starting pitcher Corey Wood for three runs in the top of the first inning, and the River Walkers went on to defeat the Sluggers 6-2 at Dodger Stadium.
Yan C. Dixon drew a lead-off walk from Wood, and scored when Jackson Miller followed with an RBI double.
After a Marcos Francis ground out, Mark Herman scored Miller with a single.
Jose Segura doubled to move Herman to third base.
Chris Duncan scored Francis with a fly ball to left center.
After Louisville drew back to within 3-2, the Walkers added another run in the fourth.
Duncan drew a lead-off walk but was eliminated when Nathaniel Dixon hit into a fielder's choice.
Dixon moved to second on a deep fly ball by Abdul-Nasser bin Amr.
Pitcher Shane Drogo picked up the RBI with a single up the middle.
St. Louis added an insurance run in the eighth.
Herman singled off Tom Floria to lead off the inning, and moved to third on a Segura double.
Herman scored when Nathaniel Dixon was hit by a Floria pitch with the bases loaded.
Drogo (7-2) went five innings. allowing two runs on six hits.
Brennan Weldon and Bobby Westerman both pitched two scoreless innings to close out the game.
The save was Westerman's second of the season.

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The St. Louis River Walkers have placed infielder Chris Duncan on the 10-day injured list after he suffered a rib cage injury during a 6-2 win at Louisville on May 14.
Duncan, 33, has played in 24 games for the Walkers this season, and has hit .327 with two homers and nine RBIs.
Getting the callup from AAA Memphis is 24-year-old infielder Rich Dodson.
A second-round pick in the 2033 draft, Dodson has hit .313 with five homers and 35 RBIs in 59 games this season for the Redbirds.
It is the first time Dodson has been been on a major-league roster.

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MBL news: May 15 -- All-Star game fan voting update

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Record: 40-25, 1st, 3 GA Springfield
Tied 1-1, Bobby Chapman connected on a three-run triple in the bottom of the fifth inning to help lift Louisville to a 5-1 win over St. Louis at Dodger Stadium,
The win allowed the Sluggers to avoid being swept in the three-game series.
Vince Jackson had led off the bottom of the fifth with a double off River Walkers starting pitcher Xavier Wigfall.
A one-out single by Jario Diaz moved Jackson to third.
Chris Zoltan then drew a walk to load the bases.
Dan Boyle hit into a fielder's choice with Jackson being retired at home.
Chapman connected on his triple, putting the Sluggers ahead 4-1.
Louisville added an insurance run in the bottom of the sixth on a Mike Courtney solo homer off Wigfall.
It was Courtney's second solo shot of the game, as he also took Wigfall deep in the fifth to tie the game at 1-1.
Sluggers starting pitcher John Fiefield (2-1) went 5.2 innings, allowing one run on two hits.
Matthew Libertore finished off the fifth for the Sluggers.
After that, it was an inning apiece for Travis Pooler, Ryan Wimbush and Matt Whitmore, with Wimbush allowing a run in the eighth.
Whitmore notched his 11th save.

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MBL news: June 16 -- Week 11 - Awards and standings

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Record: 40-26, 1st, 2 GA Springfield
Bobby Dotson snapped a 3-3 tie by leading off the top of the ninth inning with a pinch-hit home run, and Milwaukee went on to defeat St. Louis 4-3 at Busch Stadium (2006).
Dotson's homer, his fourth of the season, came on the first pitch of the game from River Walkers relief pitcher Greg Sones.
Corey Flowe hit a two-run homer off St. Louis starting pitcher Edward Kunselman as part of a three-run top of the fourth, as the Crushers took a 3-1 lead.
The Walkers tied it in the bottom of the fourth against Walkers starter Justin Buck.
St. Louis put four of its first five batters of the inning on base.
Yan C. Dixon plated the first run with a deep fly ball to left.
Nathaniel Dixon tied it with a one-out single.
Buck worked the first six innings, allowing three runs on six hits.
Brett McVey, Ed Sutherland and Brian Stewart all pitched scoreless innings.
Sutherland (5-2) earned the win.
Stewart notched his 20th save.

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Record: 40-27, 1st, 1 GA Springfield
Milwaukee cranked five home runs -- including a pair of solo homers by Petr Crowe-Armstrong -- as the Crushers defeated St. Louis 7-3 at Busch Stadium (2006).
Solo homers in the top of the second (by Bret Baty) and third innings (by Crowe-Armstrong) helped stake Milwaukee to a 2-1 lead.
The River Walkers, however, scored a pair of runs in the bottom of the fourth off Milwaukee starter Justin Wrobelski to take a 3-2 lead.
Yan C. Dixon tripled to drive in a run. He scored on a sacrifice fly by Nathaniel Dixon.
Milwaukee waited until the eighth to take the lead on a two-run homer by Tyler Carter off Walkers reliever Ron Cox.
Cox then surrendered a two-run homer to Crow-Armstrong in the ninth to make it 6-3.
Bobby Westerman replaced Cox, only to give up a solo homer to Corey Flowe, which capped the scoring.
Wrobelski went 5.1 innings, allowing three runs on five hits. He struck out six and walked one.
Bobby Dellinger finished the sixth for the Crushers.
After that, Caleb Walker, Dave Araya and Ed Sutherland, all three scoreless innings to complete the win.
Araya (3-2) earned the victory.

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Record: 41-27, 1st, 1 GA Springfield
Josh McDonald pitched seven shut-out innings and St. Louis took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, and the River Walkers went on to defeat Milwaukee 3-0 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win allowed St. Louis to avoid getting swept in the three-game home series.
Yan C. Dixon provided the Walkers with the only run they would need in the bottom of the first.
He led off with a triple off Crushers starting pitcher Jason Mucci, and he scored when Abdul-Nasser bin Amr grounded out.
The Walkers other two runs would come in the bottom of the eighth against Milwaukee's bullpen.
Dixon collected the first RBI with a single off Dave Araya, scoring Mark Herman who had led off with a single.
bin-Amr followed with a single, the fourth of the inning for the Walkers, off Tony Lujano to score Nathaniel Dixon.
McDonald (8-2) scattered four singles over his seven innings. He struck out four and walked two.
Scott Rissler set the Crushers down in order in the eighth.
Greg Sones did the same in the ninth for his fourth save.

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Record: 42-27, 1st, 0.5 GA Springfield
Manuel Coke homered twice and drove in three runs while St. Louis hit four home runs altogether to pave the way for a 9-2 win over Milwaukee at Miller Park (2020).
Down 1-0, the River Walkers took the lead for good in the top of the fourth inning against Crushers starting pitcher George McCardel.
Marcos Francis struck first with a one-out homer over the wall in center field.
Jackson Miller and Bob Saavedra followed with consecutive singles.
Miller scored when Abdul-Nasser bin Amr reached on an two-out error by third baseman Jim Sukut.
St. Louis increased its lead to 3-1 in the top of the fifth when Coke hit his first homer of the game.
It came off McCardel.
A homer by the Crushers Jose Nieto off Walkers starting pitcher Shane Drogo in the bottom of the fifth made it 3-2.
But Milwaukee would not score again.
While the Walkers would.
Nathaniel Dixon had an RBI single off McCardel in the seventh.
Dixon later scored on a two-run homer by rookie Mark Herman off reliever Tony Lujano.
St. Louis busted it open with a three-run eighth.
Herman had an RBI single off Brian Stewart to score the first run.
Coke later hit a two-run homer off Stewart to cap the scoring.
Drogo (8-2) lasted just five innings, he exited after allowing a lead-off double to Rogelio Mercado in the sixth, and allowed two runs on four hits. He struck out eight and walked one.
Brennan Weldon took over in the sixth and got out of the inning without allowing Mercado to score.
Nick Ruffalo retired all six batters he faced in the seventh and eighth.
Scott Rissler pitched a scoreless ninth.

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Record: 42-28, 2nd, 0.5 GB Springfield
Bobby Dotson hit a pinch-hit, two-run home run off St. Louis reliever Bobby Westerman in the bottom of the eighth inning to help lift Milwaukee to a 6-5 win over St. Louis at Miller Park (2020).
Tyler Carter had led off the bottom of the eighth with a single.
Westerman got Jose Nieto to fly out, but Dotson followed with his fifth homer of the season, a 386-foot shot on a 1-0 pitch that went over the wall in right field.
The River Walkers, who earlier had trailed 4-1, had taken a 5-4 lead in the top of the eighth on Jackson Miller’s one-out solo homer off Crushers relief pitcher Caleb Walker.
St. Louis had tied it 4-4 with three runs in the top of the sixth.
It all happened with two outs beginning with a single by Bob Saavedra.
The Walkers wrapped out two more singles after that, including one by Manuel Coke which scored a run.
Marcos Francis then tied it with a two-run double.
A three-run bottom of the third against Walkers starter Edward Kunselman helped boost the Crushers to their 4-1 lead.
Pete Crow-Armstrong drove in the inning’s first run with a single.
Rogelio Mercado plated the next with a double.
Crow-Armstrong made it 4-1 when he scored on a Nicolas Tibault ground out.
Crushers starting pitcher Josh Galarza worked the first six innings, allowing four runs on seven hits.
Caleb Walker handled the seventh and eighth innings.
Walker (4-2) would earn the win.
Brian Stewart set St. Louis down in order in the ninth for his 21st save.

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MBL news: June 22 -- All-Star game fan voting update