Tue. 9/12 - Playoff Baseball in Zebulon; Shuckers Begin a Huge Week

[markedman5]

Mckendry with no runs 1 hit and 4 ks through 3.

[Joseph Zarr]

Avina goes down swinging on a low off-speed that sunk to his feet. Two down now as the Mudcats look to send Baez across homeplate. When he reached 3B there was nobody out. The Hall chopper to SS and now Avina's K send Barrios to the dish. Barrios lines a one-hopper to deep SS but the Wood Cuks shortsop makes a fantastic stab and throw. Baez is stranded. We move to the 5th and it's 2-0 Mudcats. 

[Joseph Zarr]

We are singing the Natty in Biloxi as we look to get this tantalizing series underway. Meanwhile, we are just about to start the fifth inning in Zebulon. Glory be to meaningful September Minor League baseball!

[markedman5]

 

[Joseph Zarr]

My internet goes down again and I miss a Wilken salami and the Midcats lost their lead?! Is there no baseball justice? 😂

[Joseph Zarr]

The Mudcats tie the game in the 7th on a fielding error at 2B off the bat of INF Jadher Areinamo. Barrios scores from 3rd and we are knotted at 3-3 headed to the 8th. Heck of a First game of the Divisional Round! 

It's important to remember the Wood Ducks led the Carolina League in combined pitching ERA over the entirety of the season. It is their bread and butter. Big run there!

[Joseph Zarr]

Costello has given up the leading runs in the 6th (inherited) and now the 8th innings. Ugh. The once super dependable right-hander has now become highly erratic, unfortunately, in his late season bullpen innings. Wood Ducks back on top 4-3 in the 8th. Man on 2nd. One down.

[Joseph Zarr]

Clarke solo jack. It's 8-1 Shuckers in the 5th. Let's GO!

Mudcats trail 4-3 and see their second opposing runner at 3rd base in two innings. Two down. Runner on 3rd. Top of the 9th. RHP Bayden Root on the hill.

[Joseph Zarr]

Mudcats lose game 1 at Home, 4-3. RHP Chase Costello will take the loss. That's a rough one. AND, to further our punishment in this one we will be given the delicious Texas Rangers Low-A video blackout. It's to the radio call with Greg Young where we will look to lick our wounds and find solace in a hopeful game 2 victory.

[Joseph Zarr]

Vennaro did job one very well: get weak contact off the bat of Junior Caminero. He got an absurdly weak dribbler to the 3B side of the mound. And Vennaro then successfully barehanded the grab. Everything from there was a quagmire. He threw an extremely awkward flat footed and leaning back wild throw up the 1B line off of Caminero's helmet. He goes to 2B and the runner scores from 3B. It's now 8-3 Shuckers. They ruled that a hit. Vennaro had plenty of time to make that play - I once again remain mystified by a scoring decision.

[Joseph Zarr]

C Jeferson Quero goes long in the bottom of the 5th to grab that run right back. A classic Quero rocket. 9-3 now in the top of the 6th. Vennaro is back on the hill. One down. Runner on 1st in a 2-1 count.

 

[Joseph Zarr]

Vennaro gives up another single up the middle. With runners on 1st and 2nd, he gives up a ripped double past a diving Wilken down the LF line. That ball was rocked at 105 mph. It was a 2-2 count. 9-5 Shuckers now. Runner on second base. One down. RHP Ryan Brady to the hill to try and stop further damage. Come on Shuckers bullpen. Let's find that form of late. Shut. It. Down.

[Joseph Zarr]

Boy, Brady missed giving up a 1-2 ripped liner down the deep RF line. That ball landed about 3-6" foul. Yowza. He then gets the weak jam line shot to Martinez at 1B. Runner still on 2nd. Two down.

[Joseph Zarr]

Brady falls behind 3-0. Then, on a 3-1 count he sees a slightly elevated heater make its way under the glove of a diving Wilken. Collins shows off his weak OF arm from LF as the ball lands 12' up the line and the runner scores from 2nd. It's now 9-6. He gets the last out on a sky high fly out to Right CF. On to the bottom of the 6th. 9-6 Shuckers.

[Joseph Zarr]

Old Brewer farmhand RHP Victor Castaneda is getting some work tonight. He's now struck out three consecutive Shuckers and then gets Jackson Chourio reaching and popping up to shallow CF. He ends his 7th inning of work getting Wilken to line out to LF. 

[Joseph Zarr]

Brady gives up a one out deep single to left CF. And, manager Mike Guerrero has seen enough tentative bullpen play and he calls on his trusty utility knife out of the bullpen in RHP James Meeker. He gets a first strike and then throws a massive sweeping pitch to the backstop and the runner moves into scoring position. AND, one pitch later, he hits the batter on the upper lead left arm. Yikes. Now we have runners on first and second inning and I am having flashbacks to the months of Shuckers bullpen rollercoaster. Please, Mr. Meeker, take that breath and find your stuff. 

[Joseph Zarr]

And another slow as heck roller finds a man on base with an all too casual approach. It was a bang-bang play so I don't want to make this seem like it was egregious - it wasn't. BUT, Zamora waited for the weak dribbler instead of charging it and firing it on the run. He was forced to throw a rocket but it still wasn't in time. Ugh. Bases juiced now. Still two down and Meeker falls behind again 1-0.

[sveumrules]

Sounds go off for a 5-3 victory.

Blake Perkins (1-3, 2B, BBx2), Jesse Winker (1-5, HR, BB), Darin Ruf (0-2, BBx2), Jahmai Jones (3-4, 2B, BB, SB), Cam Devanney (3-4, 2B, BB), Chris Roller (1-4, BB) and Brian Navarreto (0-3, BBx2) all reached multiple times.

Evan McKendry finished up at 6 IP | 2 ER | 6 H | 1 BB | 5 K and JB Buskauskas finished with four strikeouts against only one hit over two scoreless frames.

[Joseph Zarr]

Meeker gets the swinging miss on a 91 mph outer stripe cutter! Whewwwwww. He leaves them dripping and becomes the first bullpen arm of the night to strand his inherited runner. Huge work right there in a tricky spot! On to the bottom of the 7th. 9-5 ballgame still.

[Joseph Zarr]

3 minutes ago, sveumrules said:

Sounds go off for a 5-3 victory.

Blake Perkins (1-3, 2B, BBx2), Jesse Winker (1-5, HR, BB), Darin Ruf (0-2, BBx2), Jahmai Jones (3-4, 2B, BB, SB), Cam Devanney (3-4, 2B, BB), Chris Roller (1-4, BB) and Brian Navarreto (0-3, BBx2) all reached multiple times.

Evan McKendry finished up at 6 IP | 2 ER | 6 H | 1 BB | 5 K and JB Buskauskas finished with four strikeouts against only one hit over two scoreless frames.

Nashville will gain on Lehigh Valley and St. Paul that I currently know of (ahead of them in the Standings, obviously). However, the currently unbeatable Durham Bulls (seriously, Tampa - give everyone else a rest in Double and Triple A please) are leading the Redbirds 17-8 in the 8th inning. We are going to stay 5.5 GB. 11 games remain. Durham has been on a tear.

[Joseph Zarr]

Quero takes an inside heater that got away from Castaneda right off his throwing hand. He shakes it off for a few moments and walks down the line and gives the thumbs up. Phew. Men on 1st and 2nd in the 7th here with one down. 

[Joseph Zarr]

On a 2-2 count, Carlos D. Rodriguez hits a weak chopper up the middle but the Biscuits fail to turn the DP when the throw to 1st carries the first baseman just off the bag. Runners on the corners now. Two down. Zamora to the dish. In a 1-1 count, Freddy is caught looking at a dead center hanging change-up at 78 mph - I don't know if he'll see a more hittable pitch. He then protects on a 1-2 slider fouling 1B side. And, on the next pitch he flies out to middle RF on the foul line. 9-6 Shuckers and we head to the 8th inning.

[Joseph Zarr]

I love RHP James Meeker. It's no secret. He is not as sharp as he typically is tonight. Too many pitches are sailing way wide of the plate. He nearly hits OF Tristan Peters on his first pitch here in the bottom of the 8th. And, Will Schierholz is visiting the mound yet again. He's had a lot of work chatting to his bullpen arms tonight. Meeker began this inning with a weak ground out to Martinez at 1B. He then gave up a flare single to right CF. And, with a runner on first base, he now trails Peters in a 2-0 count.

[Joseph Zarr]

Meeker walks Peters on 5 pitches. AND, this puts two men on base for the uber-dangerous Junior Caminero. With Meeker absolutely not sharp tonight, we are making the emergency early call to closer RHP Cam Robinson. Sheeesh, the bullpen is back to <hyperventilating gif here> tonight. Not a single arm has come in sharp. And, now we will lead on the Southern League Saves leader in Robinson and hope his continued resurgence, well, continues. He knocked a 10.60 ERA from July 6th to 5.13 here in late September. That's an absurdly impressive run for Robinson. Let's hope he keeps the sizzle streak sizzlin'!

Still 9-6 Shuckers. One down. Two men on. Caminero to the dish. 

[wiguy94]

Gulp Shuckers have left themselves with Caminero up to the plate as the tying run. Bullpen just too leaky today.