Jim Goulart

Final: Mobile (Diamondbacks) 5, Huntsville 4 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Two Out Runs Prove Costly in Defeat Stars Lose Game But No Ground in Standings By Brett Pollock / Huntsville Stars Cesar Nicolas drove in a pair of runs and Adam Howard was solid through 5 2/3 innings of work in Mobile's 5-4 win over Huntsville Monday night in the opener of a five-game set at Hank Aaron Stadium. The BayBears improved to 21-30, while the Stars dropped to 31-20 but lost no ground in the North Division standings, as first place West Tenn fell at Mississippi. The Stars also had a season-high six-game road win streak brought to an end. Huntsville has lost nine out of eleven, with eight of the defeats by either one or two runs. Angel Salome broke up a scoreless game with a home run in the fifth inning, his fourth of the season and first on the road, to give starter Steve Hammond the lead. Hammond almost followed Salome's long ball with one of his own, hooking a line drive just foul down the left field line before grounding out. However, he ran into trouble in the bottom half of the frame and wound up giving up four runs, all with two outs. Orlando Mercado walked with one out, advanced on a wild pitch with two outs and scored to tie the game on a single by Chris Rahl, who had been 2-for-18 against the Stars in the first series between the teams. Yunesky Sanchez walked and both runners scored on a Bryan Byrne double to give the home side its' first lead. Byrne then scored when Nicolas singled into center field to cap the rally. Mat Gamel doubled with one out in the sixth against Howard and Chris Errecart's infield single moved Gamel to third base with two outs. Mike Bell tapped a ground ball to Nicolas at third base and his throw sailed over Byrne at first base allowing both runners to score and Bell to advance to third base. Howard walked Cole Gillespie and was taken out of the game and replaced by A.J. Shappi, who struck out Salome to end the inning. Howard grabbed his fifth win, allowing one earned run on six hits, walking one and fanning three. Hammond was taken out after six frames and suffered his first loss since April 9 after giving up four runs on five hits and four walks. Joe Bateman took over in the seventh and induced Yunesky Sanchez to bounce into a double play before Byrne walked and scored on a Nicolas double to make it 5-3. Shappi retired the side in order in the seventh and gave way to Reid Mahon, who set down the Stars in turn in the eighth and retired the lead off man in the ninth before Gillespie belted his ninth home run of the season to cut the lead to 5-4. Mahon then got Salome to ground out and pinch-hitter Carlos Corporan to pop out to end the game and record his 11th save in as many opportunities. The series continues Tuesday night with southpaw Derek Miller getting the starting nod against BayBears' right-hander Brooks Brown. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 pm central time and can be heard locally on SportsRadio 730 WUMP and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com and www.730ump.com. Huntsville Box Score Cole Gillespie on base three times; Matt LaPorta plunked again; Steve Hammond walked four, threw two wild pitches, and balked... Huntsville Game Log

Second baseman Eric Farris photo from the Charleston Gazette Link while active, text follows: Home woes continue BlueClaws send Power to sixth straight loss at APP By Michael Polak, Charleston Gazette The West Virginia Power dropped its sixth straight home game, falling 4-3 to Lakewood Monday at Appalachian Power Park. In a game delayed for an hour and 25 minutes in the first inning due to rain, the Power (19-31) stranded nine runners, four in scoring position. "We had some opportunities," Power manager Jeff Isom said. "Good teams find a way to win and we weren't able to today. We couldn't drive in a run." Down 4-2 in the ninth inning, the Power pulled to within a run when Curt Rindal, who led off the frame with a double, scored on Eric Farris' groundout. With two outs, the tying run, catcher Jonathan Lucroy - who was 3-for-5 with a home run - grounded out to end the game. Lakewood (27-24) jumped all over the Power early. With one out in the first inning, Derrick Mitchell hit a solo home run. Dominic Brown doubled and Michael Taylor drove him in with a single to give Lakewood a 2-0 lead. Taylor has gone 8-for-11 n the series. The 6-foot-6, 260-pound left fielder is batting .354 with seven homers and 36 RBIs on the season. "He [Taylor] has been our most consistent player." said Lakewood manager Steve Roadcap. "He's getting better daily." The Power answered Lakewood's quick start in the first as Lucroy hit a two-out home run to cut the lead to 2-1 before the rains came. "It was huge," Roadcap said of the delay. "I lost my starter, we had to get 8 1/3 innings out of our bullpen. If they knew it was going to rain like that, the game never should have started." Isom saw the rain delay as an advantage. "It worked to our advantage," he said. "Their starter got knocked out and it gave us a chance." Reliever Zach Sterner (2-0) picked up the win for the BlueClaws, while Power starter Evan Anundsen (3-4) was tagged with the loss. Anundsen went five innings, allowing eight hits and three runs. The Power missed a golden opportunity to tie the game in the fourth inning. Down 3-1, Rindal hit a two-out RBI triple, scoring shortstop Brent Brewer. Lakewood switched pitchers, bringing in Sterner, who got Power leadoff man Lee Haydel to fly out in foul territory. Lakewood added an insurance run in the ninth when D'Arby Myers tripled home Freddy Galvis, who went 4-for-4 with two bunt singles. The Power play Lakewood in the fourth and final game of the series today at 10:35 AM (9:35 Central). The Power will start left-hander Chris Cody (1-0).

Final: Daytona (Cubs) 9, Brevard County 3 Link while active, text follows: Cubs' bats pound Manatees By RANDY RORRER Daytona News-Journal Staff Writer DAYTONA BEACH --The Daytona Cubs played host to the Brevard County Manatees with a Belly Buster Monday promotion Monday, but it was the Cubs offense that really filled up at the plate. Daytona (25-26) broke the game open with six runs in the fourth inning and went on to post a 9-3 victory over Brevard County (26-25). The Cubs had 13 hits off three Manatees pitchers. Daytona inflicted most of its damage on Brevard County starter Jeremy Jeffress (1-2). The Cubs had 11 hits and scored all nine runs against the 20-year-old right-hander in 4 2/3 innings. Jeffress was a first-round pick (16th overall) by the Milwaukee Brewers in the 2006 amateur draft. He was suspended for 50 games late last season and earlier this season for testing positive for a "drug of abuse." Daytona catcher Welington Castillo and first baseman Russ Canzler each had three hits for the Cubs. "(Jeffress) throws very hard," Castillo said. "He was hitting 99-to-100 mph on some pitches. Everybody just went up there and hacked." Castillo's one-out single ignited the six-run fourth inning. Blake Lalli followed with a single, and Jonathan Wyatt walked with two out to load the bases. Canzler doubled home two runs to put the Cubs on top, and shortstop Darwin Barney doubled home two more to extend the lead to 4-0. Second baseman Tony Thomas capped the inning with a monstrous two-run homer to left. "It was definitely a big boost at that point to get some runs," Canzler said. "When a guy has good stuff and is throwing that hard, you have to be patient. You have to try not to do too much and just put the barrel of the bat on the ball." Brevard County cut the lead to 6-3 with a three-run rally in the fifth inning, but Daytona answered with three runs in the bottom of the fifth to maintain its healthy margin. "I think hitting the ball that well against a guy like that ought to be pretty god for us," Cubs manager Jody Davis said. "I think we clocked him at 99 on one of his high fastballs. It looked like Castillo knew what was coming when he was up there." Esmailin Caridad (4-4) pitched five innings and allowed five hits and three runs to pick up the win for Daytona. Jayson Ruhlman and Rocky Roquest each pitched two scoreless innings in relief. The teams are off today. The Cubs travel to Brevard County Wednesday for a two-game series. Brevard County Box Score Darren Ford on base three times; infielder Jimmy Mojica has really struggled as of late after a torrid start; Taylor Green grounded out in the 8th and was replaced defensively, hopefully just a standard replacement in a lopsided game... Brevard County Game Log

I'm guilty as charged as far as pushing along the Hardy "speed" issue, but let's see if this thread can steer back to Alcides Escobar's 2008 season at some point, thanks.

Final: Memphis (Cardinals) 9, Nashville 4 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Steve Sollmann photo, text follows -- MEMPHIS - The Nashville Sounds closed out their string of eight straight contests against the Memphis Redbirds with a 9-4 loss on Monday afternoon at AutoZone Park. Nashville (21-29) split the series in Memphis but dropped five of the eight contests against the first-place Redbirds. Memphis third baseman David Freese knocked in a season-high six runs for the Redbirds and went 3-for-4, finishing a triple shy of the cycle. After the Sounds took an early 1-0 lead when Brad Nelson (2-for-5) singled and later scored on a P.J. Walters wild pitch in the top of the second, Freese answered in the home half when he ripped a bases-loaded, three-run double down the left field line off Sounds starter Jeff Weaver to put the 'Birds up 3-1. Memphis plated two more runs in the third inning on a Colby Rasmus homer before Sounds second baseman Steve Sollmann slugged his second home run of the year, a two-run shot in the top of the fifth, to pull Nashville back within a pair at 5-3. Freese struck again in the bottom of the frame when he added a three-run homer off Weaver to extend the lead to 9-3. The home run was his fifth of the year. Nashville outfielder Mel Stocker wrapped up the afternoon's scoring in the eighth when he plated Eric Munson with a two-out RBI single to bring the score to its final 9-4. Walters moved to 3-0 with the Redbirds after five innings of work. The right-hander punched out a season-best nine batters and allowed three runs on seven hits. Weaver (1-3) took the loss for Nashville after giving up nine runs, five earned, on eight hits and five walks over six innings. The Sounds continue their road trip on Tuesday in Albuquerque, when they play the Isotopes in an 8:05 p.m. series opener. Left-hander Chris Narveson (2-6, 4.53) will man the bump for Nashville to face Albuquerque southpaw Chris Seddon (3-3, 4.06). Nashville Box Score Callix Crabbe on base four times; Jeff Weaver threw 107 pitches -- little doubt he was going to throw that many, regardless of his success or lack of it; in the audio interview linked above, Weaver listed all the reasons he "chose" the Brewers -- if I remember correctly, nobody called until the Brewers did, dude... Nashville Game Log

RHP Joe Valentine had his contract purchased from indy ball by the Phillies. OF Travis Ezi part of an indy league trade.

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Starting Pitcher Jeff Weaver Good questions asked by Chuck Valenches regarding the June 1st opt-out...

Jeremy Jeffress was cruising but just couldn't get the final out of the 4th before six runs scored, all with two out -- Jeffress just got the final out, 6-0 after four.

Final: Lakewood (Phillies) 4, West Virginia 3 West Virginia Site Game Summary: BLUECLAWS OUTLAST POWER The West Virginia Power had several chances to tie the Lakewood BlueClaws at Appalachian Power Park on Monday afternoon, but they left the tying run stranded in scoring position three innings in a row and lost their sixth straight home game 4-3. Derrick Mitchell plated the first of two runs for Lakewood in the first inning with his third home run of the series. Dominic Brown followed with a double and scored on Michael Taylor's base hit. Jonathan Lucroy ripped a solo home run with two outs in the bottom of the first inning before a one hour and twenty-five minute rain delay. In the fourth inning, D'Arby Myers grounded into a double play and knocked in Freddy Galvis to give Lakewood a 3-1 edge. Curt Rindal tripled in Brent Brewer in the bottom of the inning to bring the Power back within one. Caleb Gindl began the sixth inning with a double but never got past second base. The Power left runners at the corners in the seventh before Gindl started the eighth inning with another double and got to third base but was again left stranded. Lakewood added an insurance run in the ninth on Myers's RBI triple and the Power got their final run in the ninth when Rindal scored on Eric Farris's groundout. Zach Sterner (2-0) tossed three scoreless innings in relief and held the Power to just two hits while striking out two to get the win. Jared Simon (7) allowed a run on a hit in the ninth to get the save and Evan Anundsen (3-4) was tagged with the loss after allowing three runs on eight hits over five innings. The Power fell to 19-31 with the loss and the BlueClaws improved to 27-24 with the win. The BlueClaws have now won six in a row. The BlueClaws have scored 24 runs on 42 hits in the series. Lucroy, Rindal and Gindl all had multi-hit games for the Power. Lucroy paced the Power with three hits, going 3-for-5. The Power will finish their four game series against Lakewood Tuesday morning. Left hander Chris Cody (1-0, 0.00) will get the start for the Power and the BlueClaws will counter with right hander Chris Kissock (1-2, 5.48). The first pitch is scheduled for 10:35 AM (9:35 Central). West Virginia Box Score West Virginia Game Log

Tim Dillard -- Set-Up Man

By the way, Jeff Weaver still stinks for Nashville...

Thanks for the clarification.

Why the mid-inning honoring of Memorial Day at 3:00 PM exactly?

Prediction -- Game Time 1:55. Of course, it'll help that there won't likely be a bottom of the 9th. Now come on, Mass -- OK, go Crew!

Steve Garrison's Saturday line was saved by a reliever who stranded three runners when there was only one out in the 6th.

The Brewers appear to be as disinterested as our Memorial Day Brewerfan population today.

Link while active, text follows: Hand can't save Stars Area-born pitcher has good debut as Huntsville falls 6-5 By ALAN CLEMONS Huntsville Times Sports Staff, alan.clemons@htimes.com The crowd acknowledged his appearance from the dugout in the fifth inning as he jogged to the mound, then again with his formal introduction as the Huntsville Stars' newest pitcher. These weren't polite cheers and applause. A hometown boy, so to speak, was making his debut and the woo-hooing was loud and lusty. Town Creek is about 50 miles away, a short drive for family and friends in the seats behind home plate. A few warm-up tosses, a signal from the umpire and Donovan Hand's career in Double-A was set to begin Sunday afternoon. First pitch? A ball. Second pitch? A towering, no-doubt, jet-fueled home run that cleared the third wall and left field berm. "Welcome to Double-A, right?" Hand said with a bit of a smile after the game, which the Stars lost 6-5 to the Birmingham Barons at Joe Davis Stadium. It was Huntsville's seventh defeat in eight games and not the way Stars manager Don Money would have liked to end the series before starting a 10-day road trip to Mobile, Birmingham and Chattanooga. "Two more runs, that's what I'd have liked to had," Money said. "They went ahead, we tied it up, they went ahead, we get a run. The most important inning is the half-inning after you score. You get out there, shut them down and don't give up the momentum. We didn't do that." Birmingham took four runs on five hits from Stars starter Mike Jones (0-2), who struck out two in four innings. Three runs came in the fourth when Jones filled the bases as the Barons picked up one on a bunt and then two more on a double to go up 4-1. Huntsville got one in the bottom of the fourth on Matt LaPorta's solo homer. He added a double in the eighth, his 30th extra-base hit in 50 games, and Chris Errecart followed with a two-run homer. But it wasn't enough and Jon Link closed it down for Birmingham in the ninth for his 13th save. Money said Hand, for now, will be tied with Jones in a configuration in which Jones starts every fifth day and Hand comes in, with both on a pitch count. Jones was promoted from Brevard County on May 16. Hand said the tandem plan is fine with him. After pitching in Montana and West Virginia this year, then Brevard to start this season, he's just glad to be up a level. Money had not seen Hand in spring training but was glad his newest hurler settled down Sunday. After allowing the home run, Hand spread out three more hits the rest of the way, striking out four and walking one in five innings. "He did a very good job," Money said. "He gave up that home run and, I think, got shortchanged on a groundball call at first, but he did well, kept us in the game and gave us a chance to win. He gets after them and throws strikes." Friday morning, Hand was getting ready for a Florida State League game in Dunedin when he got the promotion call. He returned home, packed his car and began driving north. "I got into Atlanta about 3 a.m., got up at 8 and came on over here," Hand said, noting he played with several of the Stars teammates in Brevard County and was comfortable settling in. "It's been a whirlwind. It was good to have an idea of who was here. Guys have helped show me the ins and outs, so it hasn't been too bad."

Pacific Coast League (AAA) - PCL American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Memphis 26 25 .510 - 10-13 16-12 L2 Iowa 24 25 .490 1.0 15-10 9-15 W1 Omaha 23 25 .479 1.5 13-13 10-12 L1 Nashville 21 28 .429 4.0 11-12 10-16 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - SOU North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- West Tenn 32 18 .640 - 19-6 13-12 W2 Huntsville 31 19 .620 1.0 19-11 12-8 L1 Carolina 29 21 .580 3.0 14-11 15-10 L1 Chattanooga 25 25 .500 7.0 14-11 11-14 L2 Tennessee 18 32 .360 14.0 8-17 10-15 W2 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - FSL East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Palm Beach 30 20 .600 - 17-8 13-12 L1 Brevard County 26 24 .520 4.0 16-10 10-14 W1 Daytona 24 26 .480 6.0 10-14 14-12 L1 Jupiter 24 26 .480 6.0 15-10 9-16 W2 Vero Beach 24 26 .480 6.0 16-9 8-17 W1 St. Lucie 11 39 .220 19.0 5-20 6-19 W1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - SAL Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lake County 31 19 .620 - 14-12 17-7 W1 Delmarva 27 22 .551 3.5 18-11 9-11 L1 Hagerstown 26 23 .531 4.5 12-12 14-11 W1 Greensboro 26 24 .520 5.0 11-13 15-11 W1 Lakewood 26 24 .520 5.0 15-13 11-11 W5 Hickory 26 25 .510 5.5 10-15 16-10 L2 West Virginia 19 30 .388 11.5 7-15 12-15 L2 Lexington 15 34 .306 15.5 6-17 9-17 L1

Follow Monday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Open the Nashville Gameday. For the others, choose "Log" or "Recap". While you're listening to your minor league game of choice (or watching/listening to the big league Crew when they are playing), simply refresh your game log browsers every so often. Nashville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_05_26_nasaaa_mrbaaa_1 Huntsville: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_05_26_hunaax_mobaax_1 Brevard County: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_05_26_breafa_dbcafa_1 West Virginia: http://web.minorleaguebaseball.com/milb/stats/stats.jsp?sid=milb&t=g_box&gid=2008_05_26_lwdafx_wvaafx_1

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated several hours prior to gametime. Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format): www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf

Monday's Daily Menu: Thank you to all who have served our country, and our thoughts to those families who have lost loved ones... All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: RHP Jeff Weaver at Memphis (Cardinals), 12:50 PM pre-game; 1:05 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: LHP Steve Hammond at Mobile (Diamondbacks), 6:50 PM pre-game; 7:05 gametime Audio link via WUMP (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t559 Brevard County: RHP Jeremy Jeffress at Daytona (Cubs), 5:05 PM gametime Audio link via Cubs' broadcast (game will also archive at this link): http://www.minorleaguebaseball.com/multimedia/audio.jsp?sid=t503 West Virginia: RHP Evan Anundesn at home vs. Lakewood (Phillies), 11:50 AM pre-game, 12:05 PM gametime Audio link via WSWW, be sure to select the proper date (game will also archive at this link): www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp

http://www.brewerfan.net/images/store/dailylinkreport.jpg

Link while active, text follows: A Handy-dandy outing Except for one mistake pitch, former Hatton standout impressive Double A debut with Stars By Gregg Dewalt, TimesDaily.com Sports Editor HUNTSVILLE - Leaning against the clubhouse wall at Joe Davis Stadium late Sunday afternoon, Donovan Hand, still wearing his Huntsville Stars uniform minus his No. 39 jersey, was smiling about his second pitch in a Double A Southern League game. Birmingham's David Cook deposited the fastball more than 400 feet away, a long home run to left field. "Welcome to Double A," Hand said, laughing. Hand, a former Hatton High School star, was called up to Huntsville on Friday from Brevard County, the Milwaukee Brewers Single A club in Florida. After packing his things in Florida, Hand made it home to Hatton in time Saturday for he and his family to attend Saturday's game. On Sunday, he was thrust into the heat of battle in relief of Mike Jones. Cook's home run not withstanding, Hand acquitted himself nicely in his first appearance in Double A. He pitched the final five innings of a 6-5 loss to the Barons, and his final line was two runs, four hits, one walk and four strikeouts. He did not factor into the decision, but came close to getting the win as Huntsville rallied from a 6-3 deficit to get within 6-5 in the eighth. Huntsville put the tying run on in the ninth, but couldn't get it in. Hand did his good work in front of what looked like most of the Hatton community. A large turnout of between 100 and 200 family members, relatives and friends took up a large portion or the boxseats behind home plate and down the third baseline. Hand got the loudest ovation of the day when he was introduced to start the fifth inning. Hand's first pitch to Cook was a fastball inside. Cook launched the second offering for his home run. "After the second pitch, I saw him take a deep breath," said Hand's mother, Betty, who was wearing a Huntsville Stars t-shirt. "Hopefully, all of that is behind him." "I had a few butterflies the first two innings, but after that it's just baseball - 60 feet, 6 inches, throw it in there and try to help us win the game. That's what they are paying me to do." Hand impressed Don Money, his new manager. "He came in and did a very good job," Money said. "He gave up the home run to the first hitter. He got shortchanged on the ground ball down to first, but after that I thought he did outstanding. He kept us in the ballgame and gave us a chance to win." Money said Hand will continue in his current role of splitting time with Jones, Sunday's starter. "Mike will stick with his 65 pitches and Donovan will go just like he did today," Money said. "Unless something changes." Hatton baseball coach Brent Gillespie was there to watch his former player make his Stars debut. He got a call from Hand on Friday. "He asked me what I had planned for Sunday at 2 p.m.," Gillespie said. "I told him nothing. I asked what he had going on, and he told me he was pitching in Huntsville." Gillespie said he thought Hand might get called up after having a conversation with the scout that signed him. "He told me there were some roster changes coming and was bragging on how well Donovan was doing," Gillespie said. Gillespie said he has noticed some changes in Hand's delivery. "He made a lot of changes when he went to Jacksonville State. He's got his hands lower. And he's made some changes since he got into pro ball. But he's still got that easy delivery. That still looks the same." Hand said he hopes to pitch well enough to stay with the Stars for the remainder of the season or move up another level. Huntsville is his fourth stop since being drafted last summer in the 14th round by the Brewers. "I'm not surprised how fast he's moved up," Gillespie said. "It's the result of a lot of hard work." http://images.timesdaily.com/apps/pbcsi.dll/bilde?Site=FT&Date=20080526&Category=NEWS&ArtNo=805260324&Ref=AR&MaxW=600&border=0&quality=100

Final: Nashville 8, Memphis (Cardinals) 7, 12 innings Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Brad Nelson photo, text follows -- 12th-Inning Nelson Slam Lifts Sounds Over 'Birds MEMPHIS - Brad Nelson belted a two-out grand slam in the top of the twelfth inning, his second home run of the evening, and the Nashville Sounds withstood a three-run Memphis rally in the bottom of the frame to post a dramatic 8-7 victory over the first-place Redbirds on Sunday evening at AutoZone Park. Nelson, who hadn't homered in a month entering the contest, drilled former Sound John Wasdin's first offering over the right field wall for his eighth home run of the year and Nashville's second slam of 2008. Ozzie Chavez, who opened the twelfth with a double, and Adam Heether and Laynce Nix, who each drew a walk, all scored on the game-winning blast. AUDIO: Brad Nelson's Grand Slam Memphis didn't go down without a fight, however, as Josh Phelps made it a one-run contest in the bottom of the inning when he belted a towering one-out, three-run homer to left off Sounds reliever Erasmo Ramirez, his eighth longball of the season. Ramirez recovered to retire the next two hitters in order to preserve the victory. The teams had exchanged a pair of tenth-inning runs earlier in the extra frames. The contest was the fourth extra-inning affair for Nashville this season (2-2). The Sounds (21-28) took their second straight from the Redbirds after losing four in a row to the division frontrunners. Redbirds right fielder Joe Mather gave the home team a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when he belted a two-out solo homer to left-center off Sounds starter Lindsay Gulin. The roundtripper was his team-leading 12th of the year and third in the last three games. Memphis starting pitcher Anthony Reyes helped his own cause in the third when he slugged a one-out solo homer to straightaway center off Gulin, doubling the Redbirds' lead to 2-0. The Sounds broke through in the fifth as an inning-opening walk to Eric Munson came back to haunt Reyes. Ozzie Chavez halved the Memphis lead to 2-1 when he plated the third baseman with a one-out RBI single to right, only the second hit in the shortstop's last 18 at-bats. After recording only two hits over the first six innings against Reyes, the Sounds took immediate advantage of the right-hander's departure in the top of the seventh. Nelson ended a month-long homerless drought when he led off the seventh inning with a solo blast to right that greeted Memphis reliever Ron Flores and knotted the score at 2-2. The longball was his seventh of the year. The Sounds took their first lead of the evening later in the frame against Flores. Eric Munson and Vinny Rottino followed Nelson's homer with back-to-back singles before Brendan Katin ripped an RBI double off the base of the left field wall. Memphis worked out of the frame with no further damage after having runners on second and third and no outs. Flores struck out Chavez before Mark Worrell took over on the hill and fanned pinch-hitter Steve Sollmann then induced an inning-ending flyout from Callix Crabbe to keep the Redbirds within a run. The Redbirds tied the contest with an unearned run in the bottom of the seventh against Sounds reliever Jason Shiell, who made his first appearance since rejoining the club from Double-A Huntsville on Friday. Jarrett Hoffpauir and Colby Rasmus started things with a pair of singles before Rottino, the Nashville catcher, misplayed Bryan Anderson's sacrifice bunt in front of the plate to load the bags with none out. Hoffpauir crossed home when Shiell induced a double-play grounder from pinch-hitter David Freese, knotting things at 3-3, before the right-hander retired Brian Barden on a groundout to escape the frame without further damage. With one out in the tenth, Crabbe ripped a double down the right field line off Wasdin and moved to third on Hernan Iribarren's infield single before scoring the go-ahead run on Laynce Nix's RBI single. Memphis quickly responded against Nashville closer Luis Pena, snapping a string of eight straight scoreless outings (7.1 IP) for the fireballer. Freese led off with a triple off the wall in right-center then scored the tying run one batter later when Crabbe couldn't handle a Barden grounder at second. Pena worked out of further damage in the tenth after walking the bases full with only one out, inducing a popout from D'Angelo Jimenez before fanning Wasdin to close the frame. Ben Howard (2-1) earned the win following Nelson's heroics after working a scoreless inning of relief for the Sounds. Wasdin (4-5) took the loss after giving up five runs on five hits in his three innings of work for the Redbirds. Neither starting pitcher factored in the decision despite a pair of solid efforts. Gulin turned in his second quality start of the year, holding Memphis to two runs on four hits while walking four batters and striking out five in a season-high-tying six frames. Both of his runs allowed came via the longball. Reyes took a no-decision for the Redbirds following a solid outing. He allowed one run on two hits while fanning six over his six innings of action. The teams wrap up the four-game set with a 1:05 p.m. Memorial Day matinee on Monday afternoon, the last of eight consecutive meetings between the clubs. Right-hander Jeff Weaver (1-2, 6.52) will toe the rubber for the Sounds to face Memphis right-hander P.J. Walters (2-0, 4.91). Nashville Box Score Brad Nelson at third base in Russell Branyan's absence... Nashville Game Log Luis Pena was fortunate to face pitcher John Wasdin with the bases loaded in the 10th...

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Coaches Chat with Pitching Coach Stan Kyles Interview focus all on Derrick Turnbow, unfortunately...