2033 St. Louis River Walkers: And the saga continues

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Record: 69-55, 1st, 8 GA Springfield and Quad City
Bob Saavedra went 3 for 5 with two doubles, a home run and five RBI to power St. Louis to an 8-4 win over Des Moines at Green Valley Park.
Harvesters starting pitcher Dave Vacarri struck out Saavedra to open the game, but that prevent the River Walkers from scoring a pair of first inning runs.
The next batter, Bob Herman, drew a walk and Manuel Coke followed that with his 22nd home run of the season.
St. Louis pushed its lead to 3-0 in the top of the second and this time Saavedra did play a role connecting for a double off Vacarri to score Abdul-Nasser bin Amr who had led off the inning with a single.
Saavedra doubled the Walkers advantage in the fourth hitting his 15th home run of the season, a three-run shot, off Vacarri.
Walkers starting pitcher Josh McDonald limited Des Moines to one hit over the first four innings, but the Harvesters got to him for three runs in the fifth.
Pinch-hitter Josiah Redwine drove in the first two runs with a double.
Joe Allen scored Redwine with another double.
St. Louis picked up its final two runs in the eighth.
Again, Saavedra was involved driving in the second with a double off Jason Dexheimer.
Pinch-hitter Alex Nunez plated the first run with a sacrifice fly off Mark Polzin.
McDonald (7-6) ended up pitching six innings, allowing three runs on six hits. He struck out three and didn't walk a batter.
Jose Tapia and Elvis Pool both made their St. Louis debuts.
Tapia got the first two outs of the eighth and gave up the fourth Des Moines' run.
Pool retired all four batters he faced to wrap up the game.

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Record: 69-56, 1st, 7.5 GA Des Moines
Corey Jordan cracked a two-out double off St. Louis reliver Brett McVey to score Willie Martinez and give Des Moines a 4-3 win at Green Canyon Park.
The win allowed the Harvesters to avoid a three-game sweep.
Martinez had gotten on base when McVey hit him with a pitch with two outs.
Jordan then jumped on the first pitch he saw and drove it over center fielder Mark Waterson's head easily deep enough to allow Martinez to score.
Spurred by Manuel Coke second two-run first inning homer in as many games, the River Walkers jumped out to a 3-0 lead against Des Moines starter Noah Green.
St. Louis rookie starter Matt Wilson shut out the Harvesters over the first four innings, but they got to him for a pair of runs in the fifth.
Martinez led off the inning with his 13th home run of the season.
Wilson retired the next two hitters, but Zigza Mukuru connected for a double.
Pinch-hitter Steve Carroll was given an intentional walk.
But Joe Allen foiled that strategy with a single to right field.
The Harvesters tied it the next inning with another lead-off homer, this one from Leo Cerna off reliever Scott Rissler.
Green lasted just three innings, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out two and walked one.
Trent Wortham pitched two innings of relief for the Harvesters.
Lawrence Caulfield worked a scoreless sixth.
Alex Rodriguez (1-1) earned the win after pitching the seventh and eighth.
Teddy Loetzch walked a batter in the ninth but still earned his second save.

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Record: 70-56, 1st, 8.5 GA Des Moines
Abdul-Nasser bin Amr went 3 for 3 with a triple, a home run and two RBIs to help lift St. Louis to a 4-3 win over Springfield at Busch Stadium (2006).
Tied 2-2, it was bin Amr who drove in the final two runs for the River Walkers to put them ahead 4-2.
The Railers Jason Nolan had connected for an RBI double off St. Louis starting pitcher Ming Xiang to tie it at 2-2.
Two batters into the bottom of the fourth, bin Amr untied it with his fifth home run as he drove a 0-2 pitch from Springfield starting pitcher Marcos Zaragoza over the wall in left center.
The Walkers lead grew to 4-2 in the bottom of the sixth, this time bin Amr doubled with two outs off Zaragoza, scoring Jackson Miller who had singled with two outs.
The Railers pulled to within 4-3 in the top of the ninth when Joseph Hughes homered with one out off St. Louis closer Bobby Westerman.
Armando Cintron replaced Westerman and retired the next two for his sixth save.
Xiang (13-6) worked into the sixth inning before exiting when he got into a two-out jam.
The rookie right-hander allowed two runs on seven hits in 5.2 innings. He struck out seven and walked three.
Elvis Pool making just his second appearance for St. Louis struck out Carlton Randall to end the top of the sixth inning.
Brett McVey (0.2 IP) and Greg Sones (0.1) combined on a scoreless seventh.
Westerman tried for a two-inning save but got into trouble in the ninth.

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Record: 71-56, 1st, 9 GA Quad City
Manuel Coke homered with two outs in the bottom of the 10th inning off Springfield reliever Jon Santiago to give St. Louis a 3-2 win at Busch Stadium (2006).
The homer came on an 0-1 pitch and soared 429 feet over the right-field wall.
It was the third consecutive game Coke has homered. In the previous two, Coke had hit two-run homers in the first inning.
The Railers had forced extra innings by tying the game in the top of the ninth on a one-out homer by Joseph Hughes off River Walkers closer Bobby Westerman.
It marked the ninth blown save of the season for Westerman, tops in the MBL.
Down 1-0, St. Louis had taken a brief lead by scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth.
Alex Nunez led off with a single off Railers relief pitcher Mike LaFramboise.
Bob Saavedra followed with a single to put runners at the corners.
A ground out by Mark Herman moved Saavedra to second.
Coke scored them both with a single to left-center.
Jesse McNaboe turned in one of his best starts of the season for the Walkers, allowing one run on three hits over six innings.
He struck out three and walked two.
Nick Ruffalo and Elvis Pool both pitched scoreless innings to get the game to the ninth.
Westerman got two outs in the ninth before leaving for Armando Cintron.
Cintron (3-0) finished the ninth and set the Railers down in order in the 10th to set himself up to earn the win.

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Record: 72-56, 1st, 9 GA Quad City
Xavier Wigfall came within two outs of a shut out but the St. Louis bullpen finished the job as the River Walkers downed Springfield 7-0 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The win gave the Walkers a three-game sweep and a four-game win streak.
Wigfall (8-10) allowed just three hits over a scoreless first eight innings, but when he allowed a walk and a hit in the ninth (along with throwing his 109 pitch) it was time for him to exit.
The right-hander also struck out 10 and walked just one in his time on the mound.
Greg Sones took over for Wigfall and although he gave up a hit to load the bases he did manage to preserve the shutout.
Wigfall's exploits overshadowed a huge game at the plate for Abdul-Nasser bin Amr, who drove in St. Louis' first five runs of the game.
The 27-year-old shortstop made it 4-0 in the bottom of the second when he hit a grand slam off Railers starting pitcher Ruben Ruiz.
Two innings later, with Marcos Francis on third, bin Amr got down a bunt to score Francis and make it 5-0.
Francis drove in the final two Walkers' runs in the eighth with a two-run double off Brent Dreher.

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MBL news: August 31 -- Week 21 -- Awards and standings

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Record: 72-57, 1st, 9 GA Quad City
Tied 2-2, Kansas City ripped St. Louis starting pitcher Josh McDonald for four runs in the bottom of the fifth inning and the Monarchs went on to defeat the River Walkers 10-2 at Kauffman Stadium.
The loss ended a six-game win streak for St. Louis.
A two-run homer from Manuel Coke, his fifth homer in the last six games, off KC starting pitcher Jeremy Bangs, had put St. Louis ahead 2-0 after a half inning.
The Monarchs tied it with runs in the bottom of the second -- T.J. Latham with a two-out RBI single off McDonald -- and fourth -- Alejandro Crespo and Jose Sotelo with back-to-back doubles -- to tie the score.
KC put its first three hitters on base against McDonald to open the bottom of the fifth.
Nick Kline led off with a double.
A wild pitch with Josh Shuler at the plate moved Kline to third.
Shuler put the Monarchs in front with an RBI single.
McDonald did retire the next two, although Crespo did drive in a run with a sacrifice fly.
But he walked Sotelo and when T.J. Latham followed with a double the Monarchs led 6-2.
A solo homer from Shuler off Jose Tapia in the sixth made it 7-2.
KC made it a lopsided game with a three-run bottom of the eighth.
Scott Rissler allowed all four batters he faced to reach base.
A throwing error by Bob Saavedra at third base allowed the inning's first run to score.
The other two came home on a Nick Kline triple.
Bangs (1-1) worked the first five innings, allowing two runs on five hits. He struck out six and walked one.
Four relievers, Omar Moreno (1.1 IP), Jim Messina (0.2), Andy Carruthers (1.0) and Omar Benitez (1.0), combined to shut out the Walkers the rest of the way.

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MBL news: Sept. 1 -- Players and Pitchers of the Month for August

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MBL news: Sept.1 -- Rookies of the Month for August and standings

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MBL news: Sept. 1 -- American League leaders

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MBL news: Sept. 1 -- National League leaders

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Walkers news: Sept. 1 -- Team statistics for August

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Walkers news: Sept. 1 -- Team statistics for 2037 season

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Player of the Month: Manuel Coke -- The 24-year-old outfielder batted .386 with 11 homers, 32 RBIs and 20 runs scored in 27 games. Coke got on base at a .423 clip and slugged .746.
Starting Pitcher of the Month: Xavier Wigfall -- The 28-year-old right-hander was 1-1 with a 3.11 ERA in six starts. He pitched a total of 37.2 innings, during which he struck out 44 and had a 1.19 WHIP.
Relief Pitcher of the Month: Brett McVey -- The 32-year-old right-hander got into 12 games going 0-2 with one save and a 2.63 ERA. McVey pitched a total of 13.2 innings, during which he struck out nine and had a 1.24 WHIP.

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Walkers news: Sept. 1 -- Player Development Report

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With major-league rosters expanding to 28 players, the St. Louis River Walkers have recalled pitchers Kevin Hrdlicka and Ron Cox to the major league roster.
Both pitchers started the season in the majors, Hrdlicka in the starting rotation and Cox in the bullpen.
Hrdlicka, 25, won his first five decisions before he began to struggle.
The right-hander was sent to AAA Memphis after taking the loss in a 6-4 setback against Memphis on July 28.
In 17 starts with the Walkers, Hrdlicka went 5-6 with a 4.87 ERA.
At AAA, Hrdlicka wasn't great, going 4-2 with a 4.44 ERA in 10 starts, but good enough to warrant a spot on the major league roster in September.
Hrdlicka could be used as a starter or reliever during the final four games of the season.
Cox, 25, has been on the Walkers' major league roster since the start of the 2035 season.
But something went wrong around mid-season resulting Cox being sent to AAA on August 21, following a 6-4 loss to Dayton.
In 45 games with St. Louis this season, Cox has gone 4-1 with one save and owned a 4.03 ERA.
During his brief time in Memphis, Cox got into two games and pitched five scoreless innings.

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Record: 72-58, 1st, 7 GA Quad City
Kansas City jumped out to a 5-0 lead over the first five innings and held on for a 5-4 win over St. Louis at Kauffman Stadium.
All five of the Monarchs runs came against River Walkers rookie starting pitcher Matt Wilson.
They struck first for a pair of runs in the bottom of the second, when Wilson opened the inning by walking the first two batters.
Those walks were followed by a pair of singles.
The first, from Gerald Bernal, loaded the bases.
The second, by Amari Simpson, scored two runs.
KC added another runs in the third.
This time it was a one-out error by left fielder Mark Herman which set the tone.
Herman's error put Josh Shuler on base.
Wilson then allowed singles to Nick Jernigan and Jim Peebles to load the bases.
Bernal made it 3-0 with a deep fly to right.
The Monarchs finally chased Wilson in the fifth.
Shuler led off the inning with his 11th home run of the season.
After a strikeout, Peebles singled, sending Wilson to the shower.
Brett McVey took over.
He retired the first batter he faced, but a passed ball with Simpson at the plate moved Peebles to second.
Simpson then scored Peebles with a double.
KC got a strong start from Jose Buenrostro (7-11), who allowed two runs on five hits over the first six innings. He struck out three and walked two.
St. Louis two runs off Buenrostro didn't come until the sixth, when Zach Wenman connected on an RBI double.
David Ruffillo pitched the seventh and eighth, surrendering a two-run homer to Coke in the seventh.
Jose Patricio set the Walkers down in order in the ninth for his 25th save.

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Record: 72-59, 1st, 7 GA Quad City
Pinch-hitter T.J. Peterson jot a two-run homer with two outs in the bottom of the ninth inning off St. Louis reliever Brett McVey to give Kansas City a 6-5 win over the River Walkers at Kaufman Stadium.
The win gave the Monarchs a sweep of the three-game series.
Armando Cintron started the inning on the mound for St. Louis.
He walked Nick Kline to open the inning but then retired the next two batters.
With the right-handed Gerald Bernal scheduled to bat and the left-handed Cintron having thrown 30 pitches, McVey was brought into the game to get the final out.
All he did was allow the final two runs as Peterson blasted a 2-1 pitch 406 feet over the wall in right center for his fourth home run of the season.
St. Louis jumped out to a 3-0 lead over the first two innings against Monarchs starter Alexis Yanez.
Bob Saavedra played a big role in that.
He led off the game with a triple and later scored.
In the second inning, he hit a two-run homer.
KC got on the scoreboard against Walkers starting Ming Xiang in the bottom of the second.
Jim Peebles drew a lead-off walk and went to second when Bernal followed with a single.
Juan Ortiz later scored Peebles with a two-out single.
The Monarchs made it a 3-2 game an inning later.
Josh Shuler led off the inning with a double and scored on a Bernal single.
The Walkers, however, would eventually build a 5-2 lead.
Eddie Estrella led off the fourth with a homer off Yanez.
Xiang drew a lead-off walk from Jim Messina in the sixth and scored on a Marcos Francis fly ball.
The St. Louis bullpen, however, continued to have trouble holding leads allowing the Monarchs to pull within a run by scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth.
Scott Rissler set the tone for the damage by hitting Bernal to lead off the inning.
Pinch-hitter Eric Marion followed with a double.
After Rissler got a fly out, Cintron took over only to be greeted by a two-run single by Juan Ortiz.
Yanez lasted just 3.2 innings for the Monarchs, allowing four runs on seven hits. He struck out five and walked two.
Messina finished the fourth inning, worked a scoreless fifth and got the first out of the sixth.
Daniel Reid finished the sixth and worked a scoreless seventh.
Omar Benitez pitched a scoreless eighth.
Omar Moreno (6-2) did the same in the ninth to earn the win.

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Record: 73-59, 1st, 7 GA Quad City
Jesse McNaboe allowed one run on one hit -- a solo homer from Ellis Parr in the fourth inning -- to help St. Louis to a 3-1 win over Toledo at Busch Stadium (2006).
McNaboe (8-8) allowed just two base runners in his time on the mound, the other coming on a walk. He struck out two batters.
Scott Rissler, Elvis Pool and Bobby Westerman all pitched a scoreless inning in relief.
Westerman earned his 21st save.
The River Walkers jumped in front in the top of the first inning against Mud Hens starting pitcher Josh Stauffer.
Bob Saavedra led off the game with a walk.
Marcos Francis moved him to third with a single.
Saavedra scored when Manuel Coke hit into a double play.
After Parr's solo homer tied it in the top of the fourth, St. Louis regained the lead in the bottom of the fifth.
Mark Herman scored the run after leading off the inning with a single off Stauffer.
A walk to Jackson Miller moved Herman to second.
Abdul-Nasser bin Amr hit into a double play but Herman moved to third.
Herman scored when Stauffer threw a wild pitch.
Coke capped the scoring with a homer off Aaron Kirkaldy with two outs in the sixth.
It was Coke's 28th home run of the season. He has homered in the last three games and six of the last seven.

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Record: 74-59, 1st, 7 GA Quad City
Marcos Francis and Manuel Coke went a combined 6 for 9 with four runs scored and two RBIs to help St. Louis defeat Toledo 7-6 at Busch Stadium (2006).
The River Walkers scored four runs over the first three innings to go up 4-1.
They also led 7-3 after five but still had to hold on for the win.
Coke hit a homer in the first to tie it at 1-1.
It was the fourth game in a row he has homered and the eighth time in the last nine.
Rookie Mark Waterson hit his 17th homer of the season, a two-run shot off Mud Hens starting Chris Ebarb, to give the Walkers a 3-1 lead.
That lead reached 5-1 in the third.
Francis drove in the inning's first run with a single.
Zach Wenman plated the other when he was hit by a Ebarb pitch with the bases loaded and two outs.
Toledo got single runs off St. Louis starter Xavier Wigfall in the fourth -- Quiang Chang with an RBI double and fifth on a solo homer from Chris Gibbs to climb back into the game.
The Walkers upped their lead back to 7-3 in the fifth with two runs off reliever Cameron Timmerman.
Waterson collected his third RBI of the game with a single.
Wenman earned his third RBI with a run-scoring fly ball.
The Mud Hens tallied three times against the always shaky Walkers' bullpen in the seventh.
Ellis Parr plated two runs with a triple off Brett McVey.
Tyler Dahlquist scored Parr with a single.
However, the St. Louis bullpen would step up over the final two innings.
Elvis Pool set the Hens down in order in the eighth.
Bobby Westerman allowed two hits, but no runs, in the ninth for his 22nd save.
Wigfall (9-10) earned the win.
He went six innings, allowing three runs on nine hits. He struck out seven and walked one.
McVey was not good in his one inning, allowing three runs to make it close.