Jim Goulart

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Brevard County Site Game Two Game Summary: Paulk shuts down Manatees Robert Paulk tossed his first career complete game as St. Lucie blanked host Brevard County, 1-0, to split Friday's doubleheader. Paulk (2-0) allowed five hits and a walk while fanning two. It was the 25-year-old right-hander's first win in three starts since returning from Double-A Binghamton, where he went 5-2 with a 2.82 ERA in 26 appearances. The Mets (30-23), who managed two hits, got their lone run in the second when Armand Gaerlan drew a two-out walk and scored on Fernando Martinez's double to right field. Caleb Stewart had a two-out double in the third. Corey Coles walked twice but saw his hitting streak end at 13 games. Brevard County starter Mike Jones (0-2) took the hard-luck loss, allowing one run on two hits over four innings. He struck out three and walked four. Ryan Crew had a hit and a walk for the Manatees (23-31). --Chip Haunss/MLB.com

Helena Independent Record: Errecart, Bouchie help Brewers win Chris Errecart and Andy Bouchie each drove in two runs as the Helena Brewers stopped Casper 7-3 in a Pioneer League contest. Bouchie opened the scoring in the second inning with a triple that plated Errecart and Bill Rowe. Errecart was a perfect 3-for-3 and he drove home Brad Miller and Cole Gillespie with a double in the third inning. Those two runs gave Helena 4-0 lead and they would never be threatened again. Miller was 3-for-4 in the game and Carlos De La Cruz also had two hits. Amaury Rivas pitched six strong innings and he struck out three and allowed two earned runs. Steve Palazzolo picked up his fifth save with two innings of work. He allowed one hit and no runs in that span. Helena was aggressive on the base paths, stealing three bases on the night. Helder Velazquez and Hector Gomez each had two hits for the Rockies. The win kept Helena 2 1/2 games behind North Division Leading Billings. The Mustangs knocked off Orem Friday night. Helena will travel to Idaho Falls today to take on the Chukars in the first meeting of the season between the two teams.

Link while active, text follows: tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS Nix sparks Sounds win, gets call-up by Brewers By MIKE ORGAN Tennessean Staff Writer Nashville came back to life in the Nix of time Friday night against New Orleans. Outfielder Laynce Nix, who, for the second consecutive night hit a home run in his first at-bat, later helped revive the Sounds with a double to the right field wall. Nix then scored from second in the seventh inning on another double to the right field wall, this one by Graham Koonce, in the Sounds' 6-1 victory. After the game, Nix was called up by the Brewers. Nix was acquired from the Rangers in the Carlos Lee deal last month. A Greer Stadium crowd of 5,542 saw Nashville (68-59) wrap up the series with New Orleans (65-61) with a 3-1 edge. The Sounds begin a four-game homestand tonight at 6 against Albuquerque. Nix's first-inning homer Thursday propelled Nashville to a 5-3 win. Friday night's homer over the center field wall was a two-run shot that scored Tony Gwynn and gave Nashville a 2-1 lead in the first inning. Nix homered in four of Nashville's last six games. He extended his hitting streak to seven games. In 13 of the last 28 games Nix has had extra-base hits. "I was just trying to get to them early with the home runs I've had,'' Nix said. "I was looking for something early in the count and getting it. You see the ball well here in the first inning before the lights go on." The Zephyrs, who got a home run from Marlon Byrd in the first, did not get another hit until the fourth inning when Byrd singled. After the Sounds loaded the bases and scored on a walk by Zach Sorensen in the sixth, Nix gave the Sounds' offense the boost it needed in the seventh. The double was his fifth since he's been with the Sounds. "I didn't hit it high enough, but I crushed it,'' Nix said of his double. "I hit it real well on an inside pitch.'' New Orleans didn't get back-to-back hits until the eighth when Alberto Castillo and Josh Labandeira both singled. Sounds pitcher Mitch Stetter, who had relieved Dennis Sarfate, then walked Tyrell Godwin, loading the bases for the Zephyrs with two outs. Allan Simpson replaced Stetter to face Kenny Kelly. Kelly took a full count before flying out to right field. Nashville padded the lead with two runs in the ninth. Gwynn's shot in the gap to left field scored Jermaine Clark. When the ball squirted away from the catcher, Kennard Bibbs also scored. What they said: "We've been hitting well and if this team hits we're going to win (the Pacific Coast League). Because the pitchers are great and we'll shut down the other teams. We just have to hit a little bit, put some runs on the board and take some pressure off the pitchers and we'll do well.'' -- Koonce. ***Link while active, text follows: tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS Four Sounds attend Exhibit open house By MIKE ORGAN Tennessean Staff Writer Four Sounds will be in attendance at the Metro Archives Open House today from 11 a.m.-2 p.m. Sounds mascot Ozzie will also be in attendance. Pitchers Ben Hendrickson, Dennis Sarfate and Mitch Stetter along with outfielder Kennard Bibbs will attend the function. They will sign autographs from 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. A presentation on the history of the old Sulphur Dell ballpark will begin at 1 p.m. The open house, which is free of charge, coincides with Metro Archives' summer-long Grand Slam baseball exhibit of vintage photographs, autographed baseballs, game programs, rare newspaper accounts and other memorabilia. The exhibit runs through Sept. 15 and offers fans a nostalgic look at the history of professional and amateur baseball players, teams and the historic fields in Nashville where they have played. Metro Archives is located next to the Mall at Green Hills at 3801 Green Hills Village Drive. For more information call Metro Archives at 615-862-5880. Walk this way: The Sounds Jermaine Clark was walked all four times he was at the plate Friday. That tied a Nashville record for walks in a game. Clark became the 14th player to be walked four times in a game. Graham Koonce also was walked four times in a game this season. Clark's third walk, which came in the sixth inning, loaded the bases for Nashville, and the Sounds scored later in the inning when Zach Sorensen also was walked. Still streaking: New Orleans' Marion Byrd extended his hitting streak to seven games with a first-inning home run. Byrd's homer gave the Zephyrs a 1-0 lead, which marked the first time New Orleans scored the first run in the series, which ended Friday night. Another steal: Clark got his 29th and 30th steals of the season Thursday night. That mark leads the Sounds. It also marked the fifth time in Clark's 11 pro seasons that he's reached 30 steals or more. TV game: The Sounds will appear on television for the first time this season in a 7 p.m. game Thursday at Memphis. The game will be shown live on CSS as part of the network's Minor League Game of the Week. Matt Stewart will handle the play-by-play and will be joined by former minor league manager Nick Belmonte. Tonight's perks: The first 2,000 fans for tonight's game against Albuquerque will receive free mini-bats. There also will be a fireworks show at the conclusion of the game. And she can sing: Miss Tennessee 2006 Blaire Pancake will make an appearance at Greer Stadium Monday to sing the national anthem prior to the 6 p.m. game against Albuquerque. Pancake, 23, who is from Chattanooga, was crowned Miss Tennessee June 24. ***Can you just picture Homer Simpson saying, "Mmmmmm, Pancake".... http://images.chattanoogan.com/article_images/article_83699.jpg

Link while active, text follows: www.wvgazette.com/section...2006081845 Inman?s strong effort wasted in Power loss By Christopher Wade For Saturday Charleston Gazette-Mail Just as it has nearly all season, the West Virginia Power got yet another solid outing from ace Will Inman. However, the bullpen couldn?t hold the lead after Inman left the game in the sixth inning, and Hickory took full advantage, earning a 6-3 victory over the Power at Appalachian Power Park Friday night in front of a crowd of 4,819. Inman threw 5 2/3 innings of shutout ball, allowing just three hits and striking out eight, but didn?t factor in the decision. It was the second straight outing that Inman pitched well but earned a no-decision. In his last outing at Delmarva, he pitched 6 1/3 innings, allowing one run on one hit and struck out a season-high 11. Inman?s record remains at 9-1 and he lowered his earned run average to 1.38. ?The last two outings, Will has thrown really well. He pitched great again but the guys just didn?t pick him up,? said Power manager Mike Guerrero. With Inman out of the game, Hickory began its comeback from a 2-0 deficit in the seventh inning against reliever Dane Renkert. With one out, Wanell Macia doubled and scored on a single by Eddie Prasch. Cameron Blair followed with an infield single, and Shelby Ford?s infield out left runners at second and third. After a walk, Brad Corley hit a grounder that bounced over the head of Power third baseman Mat Gamel, bringing home two runs and giving the Crawdads 3-2 lead. The Power was charged with just one error, but Guerrero was not pleased with his team?s defense. ?The routine plays,?? he said, ?if you can?t make them, they?re going to cost you. Defensively, we didn?t make the plays, and they took advantage of their opportunities.?? Two more runs in the eighth inning off Renkert gave Hickory a 5-2 lead. The Power scored a run in the bottom of the eighth on a RBI double from right fielder Lorenzo Cain, and Hickory added a run in the ninth. The Power scored in the second inning on a hit-and-run single by catcher Nestor Corredor, bringing home Tony Festa. Ryan Barba delivered a two-out RBI double in the inning. Corredor and Barba each had two of the Power?s seven hits. Corredor left with an ankle injury in the seventh inning. ?Nestor hit the ball well tonight,?? said Guerrero. ?He twisted his ankle a little bit, but he?ll be OK [today]. We just didn?t hit the ball as well tonight. We missed some opportunities when we did have them.? With the loss, the Power is 26-27 in the second half of the season and 65-57 overall. The Power opens a four-game series at Appalachian Power Park against the Hagerstown Suns starting at 7:05 tonight (6:05 Central).

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/stars/huntsvil...amp;coll=1 Stars score early and often Huntville routs Carolina 13-5; 1 1/2 games out of first By SKIP VAUGHN For The Huntsville Times, skipv@htimes.com At this time last year, the Huntsville Stars were 23-32 for the second half of the season and 9 1/2 games out of first place. Now they're contending for a playoff berth. Before the game, Stars manager Don Money described the difference between being in a playoff race and just finishing out the schedule. "Every player down in the clubhouse comes to the ballgame basically with a reason - to win the night's game," he said. "And when you're out of it, you basically do it for yourself (for the individual stats). When you're in a pennant race, basically that's secondary. Now you're trying to do it for the team." Sparked by a seven-run fourth, the Stars did it again to Carolina with a 13-5 win before an announced crowd of 3,558 at Joe Davis Stadium. Huntsville moved to within 1 1/2 games of Tennessee because the Smokies lost 8-7 to Mississippi. "We scored early, got a lot of hits," Money said. "You score early, you try to take the other team out of their game." The Stars (30-23) took a 2-0 lead in the second inning. Steve Moss' groundout with the bases loaded scored Drew Anderson. Guilder Rodriguez scored the second run on a wild pitch by Mudcats starter Adam Brandenberg (1-2). Huntsville starter Tim Dillard (9-7) helped himself at the plate by going 3-for-3 with an RBI single in the fourth and a run-scoring double in the fifth. The Stars' seven-run outburst included Ryan Braun's grand slam, Brad Nelson's homer and Callix Crabbe's RBI hit. Nelson's followup to Braun's shot marked the third time this year Huntsville has had back-to-back homers; and it produced a 9-0 lead. The Stars made it 11-2 in the sixth and 12-5 in the seventh. "It was a total team effort today," said Braun, who went 3-for-5 with a double and five RBIs. "I was just happy to be able to contribute." Dillard went six innings with six strikeouts, two runs, four hits, one walk and hit one batter. "We had great defense and we had great offense," Dillard said. "That pretty much sums it up right there. You're going to win a lot of ballgames when you have that working."

Wow, talk about a playoff push -- 23-year-old Brendan Katin, he of the .815 OPS and league-leader in doubles with 34 (darn impressive in the Florida State League), has been promoted to AA Huntsville. It should be noted Katin had also struck out 112 times prior to Friday, but still a fine season-to-date. No corresponding move (yet) for Brevard County, which has only Ryan Crew, Charlie Fermaint and Freddy Parejo left as outfield candidates (Hasan Rasheed on the D.L.). Would someone (Drew Anderson?) move from AA to AAA to fill Laynce Nix's spot? We'll see... Congrats to Brendan...

Wow, talk about a playoff push -- 23-year-old Brendan Katin, he of the .815 OPS and league-leader in doubles with 34 (darn impressive in the Florida State League), has been promoted to AA Huntsville. It should be noted Katin had also struck out 112 times prior to Friday, but still a fine season-to-date. No corresponding move (yet) for Brevard County, which has only Ryan Crew, Charlie Fermaint and Freddy Parejo left as outfield candidates (Hasan Rasheed on the D.L.). Would someone (Drew Anderson?) move from AA to AAA to fill Laynce Nix's spot? We'll see... Congrats to Brendan...

While my previous Mark Rogers post was fairly dramatic, I should note that it was RHP Shane Hill, not Rogers, who walked two batters to open the third inning. The A-Crew has lost its 6-1 lead, it's now 7-7 after seven and a half, Jeremy Jeffress with a scoreless 8th inning. The boys have been outscored 353-264 in only 46 games, that's hard to do.

Final: Huntsville 13, Carolina (Marlins) 5 Huntsville Site Game Summary: Speaking of wonderful game detail, thanks as always, Huntsville! Link, text follows -- www.huntsvillestars.com/n...newsId=972 Stars' Offensive Onslaught Continues Tim Dillard pitched six solid innings and etched his name in the team record book with three hits and Ryan Braun collected three hits and drove in five, as Huntsville pounded Carolina 13-5 Friday night in the fourth game of a five-game series at Joe Davis Stadium. The Stars have taken all four games of the set, won five straight overall, improved to 30-23 in the second half and moved to within a game and a half of the North Division lead after Tennessee fell 8-7 at home to Mississippi. The Mudcats fell to 22-32 in the second half and for a nineteenth time in their last 22 road games. The Stars established a season-high with a sixth consecutive win at home, dating back to August 1. The Stars scored twice in the second inning against spot starter Adam Brandenburg and broke the game open with seven runs in the fourth. Dillard singled home a run, Callix Crabbe knocked in a run with a base hit before Braun launched a grand slam that was followed on the next pitch by a Brad Nelson home run that chased Brandenburg from the game. Nelson has hit all three of his home runs at home and all three against left-handed pitchers, while Braun has homered in consecutive games and has an extra base hit in 21 of the 43 games he has started since joining the team. Dillard doubled home a run in the sixth inning to pick up his third hit of the night and 13th of the season to establish the single season record for pitchers. Travis Smith had totaled a dozen hits in 2000 while toiling for Huntsville. The Stars tallied single runs in the 6th, 7th and eighth innings and scored in six of their eight at-bats against four Carolina pitchers. Braun finished a triple shy of hitting for the cycle, Nelson finished with three hits and two runs scored and Drew Anderson picked up four hits to pace a 17-hit attack, which matched a season-high. The Stars also scored 13 runs against West Tenn on June 29 and at Birmingham on July 4. Dillard lasted six innings, giving up two runs on four hits, walking one and fanning six to earn his ninth win and fourth at home. The Stars have scored 37 runs in those four home victories and have tallied at least nine times in three of them. Huntsville has outscored the Mudcats 38-11 in the series and has picked up 51 hits in comparison to the visitors? 22. The series wraps up Saturday night with southpaw Manny Parra taking the hill for Huntsville against Mudcats? right-hander Jose Garcia. Coverage of the game begins at 6:50 p.m. central time and can be heard locally on ESPN Radio 1450 AM and through the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville Box Score and Game Log: Ozzie Chavez was lifted from last night's rout, but his absence today throws up a red flag perhaps? How about a shout out to hitting coach Sandy Guerrero, who stayed with these guys through that dreadful first half, when this offense was just putrid... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Tim Dillard photo via the Stars' site: http://www.huntsvillestars.com/images/news/dillardt.JPG

Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Laynce Nix photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2117 Nix Called Up After Leading Sounds To 6-1 Win NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? Outfielder Laynce Nix made the most of his Nashville farewell on Friday evening at Greer Stadium, pacing the Sounds? 6-1 win over the New Orleans Zephyrs by going 2-for-5 with two RBIs and slugging his team-leading 17th home run. He was promoted to Milwaukee following the game. With its third win in a row, Nashville (68-59) increased its lead over Iowa to five games in the PCL American Conference Northern Division. The Cubs dropped their sixth straight contest, falling at Round Rock. Sounds starter Dana Eveland (4-4) put together his fourth quality start in his last six outings, hurling six innings of one-run, two-hit baseball en route to picking up his fourth win of the season. The win snapped a 14-start winless stretch for the southpaw, which included five starts for Milwaukee and nine starts with Nashville. The Nashville offense was paced by Nix, but Jermaine Clark had a night for the record books at the plate despite not recording an official at-bat. Clark tied the franchise record for most walks in a game with four. He is the 14th Sound to accomplish this feat in the club?s 29-year history and the second this year; Graham Koonce walked four times on July 13 versus Memphis. For the first time this series, the Zephyrs jumped on the board first by plating a run in the top half of the first. With two outs, Marlon Byrd hit a 2-2 Eveland offering over the left-center field fence giving the Zephyrs an early one-run lead. The Zephyrs? lead was short lived as the Sounds etched two runs in the home half of the first. After Tony Gwynn led the inning off a walk, Nix belted his second home run in as many contests against the Z?s to give the Sounds a 2-1 lead. AUDIO: Another Game, Another Nix Homer -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...208-18.mp3 For the second night in a row, the Sounds took the lead off a Nix first at-bat home run. The home run was his team-leading 17th of the season, his fourth longball in his past six games, and his seventh in his 18 games with Nashville. The roundtripper increased his current hitting streak to seven games. Nix finished his Nashville tenure with a .412 average (28-for-68) and 13 RBIs in his 18 games. Thirteen of his Sounds hits went for extra bases. On the year at the Triple-A level, Nix batted .297 (105-for-354) with 17 home runs and 68 RBIs in 95 games split between Nashville and Oklahoma (AAA-Rangers). The Sounds increased their lead to three runs by notching a single run in both the sixth and seventh inning. In the sixth, New Orleans brought in rehabbing Felix Rodriguez in relief of starter Steve Watkins. Rodriguez was unable to help the Zephyrs as he loaded the bases after intentionally walking Clark to get to Chad Moeller. With one out and the bases loaded, Moeller was unable to produce any runs as Rodriguez struck him out for the second out. Pinch-hitter Zach Sorensen followed with a walk on six pitches, allowing Koonce to cross home giving the Sounds a two-run lead. The Sounds increased their lead to 4-1 in the seventh with back-to-back doubles off the bats of Nix and Koonce. With one out, Nix hit a ground-rule double over the right field fence and then crossed home on a Koonce double to right-center. Dennis Sarfate came into the game in the seventh inning in relief of Eveland and threw 1 2/3 innings of shutout baseball. The Z?s attempted to climb back into the game in the eighth inning with their first multiple-hit inning of the game. With two outs, Alberto Castillo singled and then advanced to second on a Josh Labandeira single. With two outs and runners on first and second, Mitch Stetter came into the game and hit Tyrell Godwin to load the bases. Allan Simpson was then summoned in relief of Stetter and was able to get Kenny Kelly to pop out to right field to get the Sounds out of the inning untouched. The Sounds? offense never rested, plating two runs in the bottom of the eighth inning. With runners on first and second and Gwynn at the plate, the Sounds called for a hit and run that resulted in two runs. As the runners took off, Gwynn slapped a single in between the third baseman and the shortstop. Ladandeira, the shortstop, was able to track the ball down in shallow left field and attempted to throw Clark out at home, but the throw bounced just short of the dish and skipped past the catcher, allowing both Clark and Kennard Bibbs, the trailing runner, to score. Gwynn?s single snapped an 0-for-16 hitless streak and brought the score to its final 6-1. Watkins (6-6) took the loss for New Orleans after allowing two runs on two hits over five innings. Simpson recorded the final four outs for Nashville to notch his tenth save of the year, joining Alec Zumwalt (14) in double digits in that department. The Sounds continue their homestand on Saturday evening when they begin a four-game series versus the Albuquerque Isotopes at 6 p.m. Nashville will send right-hander Justin Lehr (3-6,4.18) to the bump and the Isotopes will give the ball to southpaw Chris George (3-5, 5.68). NOTE: Just an incredible job by Nashville's Media Staff with the roundup once again -- we may as well have had first-row seats with all the detail we get -- thanks! -- Mass Haas

Final: Helena 7, Casper (Rockies) 3 Helena Box Score and Game Log: Big night for Chris Errecart, as our friend colbyjack noted above -- looks like a sweet 5th rounder this year; similarly impressive night for shortstop Brad Miller, nice to see -- he's had a tough go of it this season; no doubt he's an obscure name, but RHP Amaury Rivas has been impressive at times; the Casper starter, Brandon Hynick, has a 65-to-7 K-to-BB ratio, so nice job by the H-Crew batters... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...k_casrok_1

In progress: Arizona Brewers 7, Arizona Giants 3, after three innings The A-Crew hit for the cycle as a team in the first inning -- very cool; not cool -- Mark Rogers, really laboring; too bad we all didn't have a dollar for every time Rogers has walked the leadoff man in an inning in his pro career -- he's inducing plenty of ground balls tonight, nice, and yes, this is a rehab start, but boy, I now know to look for words like "polish" and "command" on those draft day scouting reports -- see "Gallardo" and "Inman". And that says "polish", not "Polish" -- nothing against our friends the Poles...

Final, Game Two: St. Lucie (Mets) 1, Brevard County 0 Brevard County Game Two Box Score and Game Log: Mike Jones walks four in four innings, Ben Stanczyk three shutout innings behind him; it was the one walk in the 2nd inning that did in Mike -- he walked the bases loaded in the first but got out of it; best and only serious scoring threat came in the Manatee first inning, but Ryan Crew was thrown out at home on a Brendan Katin ground ball fielder's choice... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_2

Jim Powell just told us that Matt Wise hits the disabled list, and red-hot Laynce Nix is now a Brewer.

Jim Powell just told us that Matt Wise hits the disabled list, and red-hot Laynce Nix is now a Brewer.

Final: Nashville 6, New Orleans (Nationals) 1 Details from Sounds site shortly -- does Frank Kremblas make his way to the big league staff in some capacity in 2006? Hard to see where, unless Davey Nelson doesn't come back at age 62; anyway, the Milwaukee connection has been nothing but a plus for the Nashville ownership team... Nashville Box Score and Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1

Brevard County Site Game One Game Summary: Katin, Manatees edge Mets Brendan Katin blasted a walk-off three-run homer in the bottom of the seventh inning as Brevard County rallied past St. Lucie, 6-5, in the opener of Friday's doubleheader. With the Manatees (22-31) trailing in the seventh, 5-2, Carlos Corporan ripped a leadoff single and Ned Yost walked. After Ryan Crew's single loaded the bases, Alcides Escobar lifted a sacrifice fly and Katin slugged his 13th homer to end the game. Crew went 3-for-4 and Adam Heether smacked a solo homer in the fourth for Brevard County (22-31), which snapped a two-game skid. Reliever Brandon Harmsen (1-0) tossed a perfect seventh for his first win. Jamar Hill drove in two runs and Mike Carp knocked in one for the Mets (29-23). Caleb Stewart went 2-for-4 with a run scored and Corey Coles singled in the fifth to extend his hitting streak to 13 games. St. Lucie's Carlos Muniz (4-3) blew his fifth save, allowing four runs on three hits and a walk over 1 1/3 innings. -- Chip Haunss/MLB.com

West Virginia Site Game Summary: CRAWDADS ESCAPE POWER SWEEP The Hickory Crawdads erased a 2-0 deficit by outscoring the West Virginia Power 6-1 in the last three innings of Friday night?s game as they avoided the Power sweep, defeating the Power 6-3 at Appalachian Power Park. The Power took an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the second inning. Nestor Corredor singled into center field with Tony Festa on first base, and the ball was bobbled by center fielder Wanell Macia, allowing Festa to score. Two batters later Ryan Barba brought Corredor in on a run-scoring double. In the seventh inning the Crawdads took the lead. Eddie Prasch ripped an RBI single to cut the lead in half and Brad Corley gave the Crawdads the lead on a two-run single. In the eighth inning Macia and Shelby Ford chipped in with RBI singles to give Hickory a 5-2 lead. The Power scored their final run in the bottom of the eighth inning on Lorenzo Cain?s RBI double. Hickory scored their last run in the ninth inning on Macia?s second RBI base hit. Cain went 2 for 4 to extend his hitting streak to seven games and give him 147 hits on the year, three hits shy of the franchise record. Michael Brantley did not reach in the game, putting an end to his 22 game on base streak. Will Inman was fantastic as usual for the Power, but for the second start in row, he left the game with a two-run lead and did not get the decision. Inman pitched five and two third scoreless innings, allowed only two hits and struck out eight. Todd Redmond (10-6) got the victory, Justin Vaclavik (13) earned the save and Dane Renkert (5-8) suffered the loss. The Power are 65-57 on the year and 26-27 in the second half after the loss while the Crawdads improved to 61-62 overall and 28-26 in the second half after the win. The Power will begin a four game series against the Hagerstown Suns at Appalachian Power Park on Saturday night. Right hander Zach Clement (0-2, 5.02) will make the start for Hagerstown and the Power will counter with right hander Shawn Ferguson (1-2, 7.59). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central).

Thank goodness for that 13th pitcher so you can't pinch-run for Rivera earlier this inning -- what's the chances Corey Hart was going to get doubled up with his speed? What's Robin Yount telling Ned in that situation? And they agreed on the bunt? Ugh...

Final: Hickory (Pirates) 6, West Virginia 3 West Virginia Box Score and Game Log: Don't blame Will Inman; Lorenzo Cain a double and triple -- what a stud, sure to be a big Power 50 lift in his future; Nate Yoho got a huge opportunity in 2006 as an undrafted signee from 2005 -- 217 AB's this year with lots of playing time as of late while Darren Ford was out, and now with Angel Salome out (Power catchers almost always served as the DH), but Yoho's OPS is barely over .500 -- he can't say he didn't get his pro chance... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

Friday night's always see a huge dropoff here, even moreso than Saturday's. I guess I'm just an old man, but it's obvious that Friday night, even when school's not in session, is a huge night out for our readers. Anyway, good game, amazingly all the right teams are losing again tonight -- this wild card "race" is the most amazing confluence of sub-mediocrity ever.

About to begin in Maryvale tonight -- Mark Rogers making his third Arizona start...

In progress: Huntsville 9, Carolina (Marlins) 0, after four innings Ryan Braun grand slam -- put me on your back, boys! Tim Dillard dealin'... EDIT: You know you're into this Southern League race when you're double-checking the results of Mississippi - Tennessee; the Braves just went ahead of the Smokies, 6-5 in the 8th -- great news if Tennessee indeed loses tonight...

Final, Game One: Brevard County 7, St. Lucie (Mets) 6 Walk-off two-out three-run home run from Brendan Katin keys a four-run final inning comeback! Good for the 'Tees -- they deserve a little fun, it's been a tough second half... Brevard County Box Score and Game Log: Ryan Crew three singles; Adam Heether goes deep; Carlos Corporan reaches all three appearances; Hernan Iribarren picked off 2nd to end the 6th inning in this seven-inning game... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_1