Jim Goulart

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Link for Chris Barnwell photo, text follows: tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS Hernandez sparkles, Royals rip Sounds Pitcher for Omaha posts 11 strikeouts By JEFF LOCKRIDGE Tennessean Staff Writer There's something factually incorrect about using the word "ace" in the same sentence with the dreadful Kansas City Royals. But in a manner of speaking, that's what Runelvys Hernandez is. His eight wins in 2005 were tops among Kansas City pitchers. Hernandez played the part of an ace Tuesday, striking out 11 and shutting out the Sounds for 6 1/3 innings in a 5-2 win for the Omaha Royals before an announced crowd of 10,139 at Greer Stadium. "He had good off-speed pitches and his fastball command got better as the game went on," Sounds Manager Frank Kremblas said. "We got a couple of good pitches to hit early in the game and missed them." Nashville scored twice in the ninth to avoid its first shutout since May 8. The Sounds play Omaha at noon today and remain home through Sunday. Hernandez, 28, has split time between Kansas City and Omaha this season. He hasn't enjoyed much success at either place, going 1-4 with a 7.44 ERA in the majors. The Sounds pummeled Hernandez twice in April. But Tuesday was a different story. "He was pitching us backward a little bit," said Sounds third baseman Vinny Rottino, who was 2-for-4. "You're going to have nights like that. It's baseball." Sounds starter Dana Eveland struck out the first four batters he faced before running into two-out trouble in the second. Ricky Bell, sporting a .179 average, sliced a triple down the right-field line to score two Omaha runs. Andres Blanco, the No. 9 batter, followed with an RBI single on the 10th pitch of his at-bat to put Omaha up 3-0. Omaha got runs in the fourth and ninth on hits by Bell and Kerry Robinson, respectively. Zach Sorensen, who entered the game after Sounds second baseman Jermaine Clark was ejected for arguing a called strike in the fifth inning, went 2-for-2 with an RBI double. What they said: "Tonight it just started with trying to get baserunners. I think Hernandez pitched a pretty good game." ? Sorensen. ***Link while active, text follows: tennessean.com/apps/pbcs....328/SPORTS Clark ejected in fifth for protest of ump's call By JEFF LOCKRIDGE Tennessean Staff Writer Sounds second baseman Jermaine Clark made a not-so-subtle exit from Tuesday's game against Omaha at Greer Stadium. After watching a called third strike with a full count in the fifth inning, Clark jogged to first base to protest home plate umpire A.J. Wendel's judgment. Clark made remarks to Wendel on his way past home plate, but it wasn't until he got to the dugout that the fireworks began. Some 15 seconds passed before Wendel ejected Clark for shouting from the dugout. Clark then rushed back onto the field and got nose-to-nose with the umpire. Clark has a .225 batting average this season. Turning point: The Sounds haven't been the same team since losing that team-record 24-inning home game to New Orleans 5-4 on May 5-6. Before that game the Sounds held a 19-8 record. Since that night, the Sounds have gone 16-21. However, the Sounds' divisional lead has increased from 4½ to 6 games since May 5. Division foes Iowa, Omaha and Memphis entered Tuesday with three of the five lowest win totals in the PCL. Day game: It could be a good day for a long lunch break. The Sounds host Omaha at noon. The Sounds' Ben Hendrickson (3-2, 2.29) is set to oppose Omaha's Brian Boehringer (0-2, 3.94). The Sounds are 7-6 in day games (3-2 at home) this season. ?A crowd of 10,139 was announced Tuesday at Greer Stadium on a night that American General purchased and distributed every available ticket. The PCL's New Orleans Zephyrs were dealt a tough hand. Chicago Cubs ace Mark Prior faced the Zephyrs on Tuesday while making a rehab start with the Iowa Cubs. The Zephyrs get seven-time Cy Young winner Roger Clemens, who is working is way up to the Houston Astros after sitting out the first part of the season, when they travel to Round Rock on Friday.

Link while active, text follows: www.nashvillecitypaper.co...s_id=50437 Sounds hushed by Royals By Nate Rau, Nashville City Paper Sports Correspondent The Nashville Sounds waited until the ninth inning to make any noise, and by then it was too less, too little, too late as they fell to Omaha 5-2 in front of 10,139 fans at Greer Stadium. Up until the ninth, when Nashville notched both its runs, the Sounds were muted by Royals starter Runelvys Hernandez, who was dominating. Hernandez took a no-hitter into the sixth inning and allowed just three hits over 6.1 innings of work. He also fanned 11 batters as the Sounds struck out 13 times for the game. Dave Krynzel ended Hernandez?s no-hit bid with a single in the bottom of the sixth. Nashville added two more hits off Hernandez in the seventh, but still couldn?t manage to push a run across. ?He was throwing well,? Krynzel said. ?He was just getting everybody out. It?s not like he was shutting everybody down and making everybody look bad up there. We just didn?t have any hits.? Nashville (35-30) did rally in the ninth when its first three batters reached base to set the table for Zach Sorenson?s RBI double and Mark Johnson?s sacrifice fly. But that?s all the offense the team could manage. ?You don?t want to be in that situation,? Sounds manager Frank Kremblas said of being down five runs in the ninth. ?But [we] did a good job. It?s the only time we got something going.? Sounds starter Dana Eveland (3-2) got off to a running start, striking out the first four batters he faced. But then Eveland stumbled, surrendering three runs in the second ? two of which came on a triple from Ricky Bell. Eveland, who allowed another run in the fourth, was finding the plate. He threw 70 of his 103 pitches for strikes. All four of Eveland?s runs came with two outs. ?He probably threw too many strikes with two-strike [counts] at times,? Kremblas said of Eveland. Clark ejected Sounds second baseman Jermaine Clark was thrown out of the game in the fifth inning for arguing balls and strikes. Clark struck out looking on a full count. After a brief discussion with home plate umpire A.J. Wendel, Clark went back to the dugout. But he continued barking at Wendel after that and was tossed. Krynzel said Wendel?s strike zone, while liberal for both the high and low strike, was consistent throughout the game. Happy birthday, Wilton Sounds reliever Wilton Chavez celebrated his 28th birthday by pitching two scoreless innings out of the bullpen for Nashville.

Final: Omaha (Royals) 5, Nashville 2 Nashville Site Game Summary: Link for Dana Eveland photo, text follows -- www.nashvillesounds.com/n...ewsId=2002 Sounds Fall To Royals In Front Of Packed House NASHVILLE, Tenn. ? The Nashville Sounds suffered a 5-2 defeat to the division-rival Omaha Royals in front of a sellout crowd of 10,139 fans on Tuesday evening at Greer Stadium. The 10,139 fans in attendance were part of an American General Buyout and marked the fifth crowd of 10,000-plus fans this season. The bottom of the Omaha lineup did in the Sounds on this evening as the top four batters in the Royals order combined to got just 1-for-18 in the contest. The five through nine hitters combined for a 7-for-16 evening and scored all five of the visitors? runs. The Sounds had two players record multi-hit nights: Vinny Rottino (2-for-4) and Zach Sorensen (2-for-2). Sounds starter Dana Eveland started the game off with four straight strikeouts before the Royals offense broke out. In the top half of the second, the Royals were able to plate three runners with two outs to give them an early 3-0 lead. With runners at the corners, Ricky Bell hit a two-run triple that bounced around in the right field corner. Andres Blanco followed with an RBI single into right that scored Bell. The Royals etched across another run in the fourth to extend their lead to 4-0. Mike Aviles reached base on a fielder?s choice and then proceeded to steal second before scoring on a Bell RBI single to center. Omaha starter Runelvys Hernandez held the Sounds silent for most of the evening. Despite having baserunners in the third and fourth innings, Nashville didn?t record its first hit until the home half of the sixth when Dave Krynzel broke up Hernandez?s no-hitter with a line-drive single up the middle. Hernandez (3-3) logged 6 1/3 innings of three-hit baseball and struck out a season-high 11 batters to earn his third win of the year. After Hernandez reached 108 pitches, the Royals brought in reliever Eddie Yarnall to finish the game. The Sounds threatened in the bottom of the seventh with back-to-back hits. With one out, Rottino doubled down the left field line and moved to third on a Sorensen single, which left runners at the corners with one out. The Sounds were unable to put a run on the board, however, as both Mark Johnson and Chris Barnwell popped out to end the inning. Omaha wrapped up its scoring in the top of the ninth with a run off Sounds knuckleballer Jared Fernandez, which came on a Kerry Robinson RBI double. The Nashville offense finally produced a score in the bottom of the ninth as the first three batters of the inning reached base safely against Yarnall. With Graham Koonce on first base, Rottino recorded his second hit of the game in the form of a single that advanced Koonce to second base. Sorensen also notched his second hit of the game with an RBI double to right-center field that scored Koonce from second and advanced Rottino to third. Rottino scored on the next at-bat off a Johnson sacrifice fly to right to bring the score to its final 5-2. AUDIO: Zach Sorensen RBI Double -- www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-13.wma With his 2 2/3-inning effort, Yarnall picked up his first save of the year. He allowed two runs on three hits. Eveland (3-2) took the loss for the Sounds, which is his second of the season, after giving up four runs on five hits in six frames. He fanned seven batters in the outing. The clubs will play game three of the four-game series with a noon matinee at Greer. The Sounds will give right-hander Ben Hendrickson (3-2, 2.29) the nod and the Royals will send right-hander Brian Boehringer (0-2, 3.94) to the mound. Nashville Box Score: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1 Nashville Game Log: Regular umpires didn't help Jermaine Clark, ejected after a called strike three... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1

Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Rehabbing Pitcher Rick Helling (Part 1): www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-13.wma Nashville Pre-Game Audio Chat with Rehabbing Pitcher Rick Helling (Part 2): Part Two a very interesting discussion on banned substances... www.nashvillesounds.com/a...206-14.wma

Link while active, text follows: www.dailymail.com/news/Sp...006061414/ Power has the real last call in Two-for-Tuesday victory Jacob Messer Charleston Daily Mail sportswriter Nestor Corredor had been swinging the bat well since his return to Charleston, but he still hadn't hit his first homer or drove in his first run with his former team. All of that changed with one swing Tuesday when Corredor led off the bottom of the ninth inning with a game-winning solo shot over the left-field fence to give the West Virginia Power a 4-3 victory over the visiting Hagerstown Suns. It was the only at-bat for Corredor, who replaced starting catcher Brad Willcutt in the eighth. "I knew it was gone as soon as I hit it," said Corredor, who has hit .333 in six games since the Milwaukee Brewers demoted him from Brevard of the Class A advanced Florida State League on May 29. "I was so happy. I was smiling as I was running around the bases." A Two-for-Tuesday crowd of 4,464 at Appalachian Power Park watched West Virginia pick up its 13th come-from-behind win this season, including its fifth in its last at-bat. The secret? Don't ask Power Manager Mike Guerrero. Even he doesn't know. "If I could tell you the answer to that question, I would play the lottery," said Guerrero, whose club scored two runs in its last at-bat Monday to rally for a 9-8 win over the Suns. "They are just getting better as the game goes along, and they are getting big hits in clutch situations." Now that group includes the 22-year-old Corredor, a 6-foot-1, 185-pound Venezuelan catcher whom the Brewers signed as an undrafted free agent four years ago. "It feels great," said Corredor, who is 3-for-6 when he leads off an inning this season. "This is an important win for us. It keeps us going (in the race) for the division title." Third-place West Virginia (36-28) remains a half game behind second-place Delmarva (36-27) and five games behind first-place Lexington (41-23) in the South Atlantic League's Northern Division standings. All three teams have five games remaining in the first half. Last-place Hagerstown (25-40) remains at the bottom of the standings. The Power collected 11 hits -- five more than the Suns -- but stranded seven base runners. West Virginia, which leads the league in team batting average (.278), also hit into a pair of double plays and had a pair of base runners thrown out trying to steal. "We could have scored a lot of runs," Guerrero said, "but we wasted a lot of opportunities." Replacing starter Deolis Guerra, who allowed five hits in five scoreless innings, reliever Eric Brown blew the game for the Suns in the seventh. Brown faced six batters and retired none. He beaned Tony Festa to start the inning, then surrendered back-to-back singles to Mike Bell and Ryan Crew to load the bases with no outs. Pinch hitter Nate Yoho, who took Willcutt's turn at the plate, followed with a two-run single to score Festa and Bell. It was the second consecutive game in which Yoho delivered a clutch hit that scored a pair of runs. Again as a pinch hitter, he smacked a two-run homer over the right-field fence in the Power's come-from-behind victory Monday. Crew crossed home plate with the tying run when second baseman Jonathan Schemmel couldn't handle Darren Ford's sharply hit infield single. Crew, Festa and Ford each had two hits. Hagerstown Manager Frank Cacciatore had seen enough from Brown and called upon reliever Grady Hinchman, who retired the next three batters on a flyout, strikeout and groundout to keep the score tied at 3. However, Hinchman (1-2) took the loss after he served up Corredor's walk-off dinger on a one-two pitch. Joe Holden accounted for all of the Suns' runs, hitting two homers (a solo shot in the third and a two-run blast in the fifth) off starter Rafael Lluberes, who yielded five hits in six innings. Holden has dominated Power pitching, against which he sports a .409 batting average, four homers, seven runs and nine RBI in six games compared to a .325 batting average, one homer, 13 runs and 14 RBI in 23 games against other opponents this season. Reliever Patrick Ryan (3-1) got the win after he allowed only one hit in three scoreless innings. Ryan has been brilliant in his last six appearances. He has allowed 10 hits and one run in 17 innings during that stretch, which included a 14-inning scoreless streak. POWER POINTS: The teams will continue their four-game series today and Thursday at Municipal Stadium in Hagerstown. The Suns will start right-hander Jeff Landing (2-9, 4.64) tonight. The Power will counter with left-hander Derek Miller (6-1, 3.90)... West Virginia's four SAL All-Star selections -- Lorenzo Cain (outfield), Mat Gamel (third base), Angel Salome (catcher) and Mike Lum (hitting coach) -- and their counterparts will be introduced and honored Monday before the Major League Baseball game between the Chicago Cubs and the host Cleveland Indians at Jacobs Field... Huntington (W.V.) native Chris Ward was one of the two umpires used during the Power's two-game homestand. Ward was behind the plate Monday and on the bases Tuesday.

David Weiser's www.starsboxscore.com/ YOU CAN'T SCORE RUNS WITH DEFENSEFinal series of the 1st half........ You have the team with the best pitching in the league against the team with the weakest hitting and least power........ Whaddya expect to happen? Actually, this was a pretty good game and the Stars, despite losing their 8th straight ballgame, did not embarrass themselves at all and played defense as if there was something on the line....... More was at stake for the Diamond Jaxx, though, as it gave them a chance to gain a half-game on idle Chattanooga, who beat Mississippi, Monday night. West Tenn is now a game in back of the Lookouts as they try to overtake them and win the 1st half title in the Northern Division. The forecast was for 0% rain, but there were ominous clouds and lightning out toward right as you look out in the direction of Chapman Mountain........ As Prince might have said tonight, "the sky was purple and people were everywhere" Offensively, the Stars couldn't get a runner to third base all night, and only three times in this 10-inning game, did they get a runner to second.......... With one out in the 2nd inning, Brad Nelson hit a hard liner on a 1-0 pitch to right-center. On 2-and-1 from starter J.R. Mathes, Ron Acuna hit a hard liner to shortstop Carlos Rojas, who made a sensational pick on the short hop, turned, and then made an off-line throw to first baseman Brian Dopirak who had to make the tag on Acuna. Nelson moved to 2nd, but Lou Palmisano grounded to short to end the inning........ In the 3rd, Steve Moss walked on a full count. On a pickoff attempt with Callix Crabbe at the plate, Dopirak threw the ball away, allowing Moss to move up, but Crabbe grounded out to third to end the inning........ Finally, in the 6th, Drew Anderson dropped in a two-out double to left-center and was stranded by Adam Heether on a grounder to third. The Diamond Jaxx had a little more luck getting on base, but the Stars' defense kept them from scoring........ They loaded the bases in the 2nd, 7th, 8th, and the 10th, where they ran out of luck........ With two out in the 2nd inning, Scott Moore singled through the infield to right-center. Two walks followed, but in a 21-pitch frame for Corey Thurman, Mathes hit a slow grounder to Crabbe who came in on the infield, throwing on the run to throw him out by a couple of steps. It was the first of several excellent defensive displays for the Stars tonight. In a 1-2-3 3rd inning, Drew Anderson made a fine diving catch to get the second out of the inning off Eric Patterson........ In another 1-2-3 inning in the 5th, Steve Moss made a diving catch in shallow straightaway center, spearing a low liner off the bat of Carlos Rojas....... The Diamond Jaxx loaded the bases off Thurman in the 7th -- his last inning. This time with one out, Rojas hit a fly ball not too deep to right. Ron Acuna cranked and threw a bullet to Lou Palmisano, who wheeled around to tag the leg of the sliding Dopirak for what everybody hoped was to be a game-saving double play for the Stars. It wasn't......... But another one of those "game-saving" moments that could well have been looked upon as an tide-turning omen came in the 9th inning. Scott Moore hit Brett Evert's first pitch hard for a line-drive single to right. A sacrifice bunt moved him to second and a grounder in the hole to short moved him to third........With one out and the potential winning run on 3rd base, Gary Cates lined a 3-2 pitch hard over short and heading toward no man's land in shallow left-center, but out of nowhere, Moss, playing in, raced over and spreading his body like a flying squirrel, made a diving catch, falling to the ground for the 3rd out......... But the Stars, like the 7th and 8th innings, and later the 10th, were retired in order in the 9th. The Diamond Jaxx loaded the bases again in the 10th, with Chris Walker reaching on a bunt single, then a sacrifice, and an intentional walk for the 2nd time to Nic Jackson........ Evert hit Dopirak in the helmet with his 2nd pitch and Miguel Negron, the New Hampshire teammate of Ron Acuna who won a game for the Diamond Jaxx with a grand-slam HR on May 28, hit a long fly ball to Moss. This time, Moss had to concede the run, and he threw to third, not in time to get Jackson....... Scott Moore then hit a room-service high-hopper to Brad Nelson to end the inning. For the Stars, it's their 9th shutout loss of the season and their 8th straight loss, their 30th in 38 games since May 3......... The Milwaukee Brewers are well aware of out plight. In a Huntsville Times article, Tuesday, Gord Ash, the Brewers' assistant general manager was quoted as saying "...it's a strong possibility a couple of players could move up (from Brevard County). We obviously know the Huntsville club could use a boost, and there are some players (at Brevard) who could benefit from an increased level of competition."........Ash declined to mention names, but high on the list are FSL leader in doubles Brendan Katin and 3rd baseman Ryan Braun. Also Yovani Gallardo appears to have accomplished beyond what was expected of him, and is deserving of a boost......... But any news will have to wait at least another week, after the Florida State League plays its All-Star Game on the 18th......... Even then, it's no guarantee the hired guns are the cure. The step up to Double-A, particularly this league which has been extraordinarily strong in pitching this year, is daunting. Stepping onto a major league field for the first time, Brandon Gemoll delivered a game-winning double in the 10th inning at Citizens Bank Park in Philadelphia to give his new team, the Reading Phillies, a 5-4 Eastern League victory over Altoona, Monday...... Altoona battled back from a 4-1 deficit to tie the game in the top of the 9th. A potential game-ending double play was booted by Reading shortstop Angel Chavez. The tying run was singled in two batters later........ Chavez, making up for the error, doubled to open the 10th, then Gemoll hit a drive to left that drifted away from Altoona left fielder Brett Roneberg for his 11th double and the game-winner. Former Huntsville Stars outfielder Ernie Young, one of the heroes of the 1994 (A's system) Championship team, hit his 300th minor league home run on the first pitch he saw from Charlotte's Brian Slocum, Monday afternoon, to spark the Knights to a 9-6 victory over Buffalo........ Young's blast came with two out in the 1st inning. It was his 7th of the season......... Young hit 14 HRs and drove in 84 runs for the '94 Stars to lead the team in both categories, and hit .346 as well to take the club's triple crown........ Ernie also has 27 home runs in 796 major league at-bats. Kade Johnson had just signed with the Nashua Pride in the independent Can-Am League when he notified his club Sunday of his retirement........ Citing extreme discomfort in his throwing arm, he threw in the towel and plans to go back to school in the fall as well as giving lessons and catching clinics. He flew back to Houston, Monday morning........ Another former Star who of late was attempting a comeback through the independent circuit, pitcher Jose Mieses, is taking a year off from baseball........ Mieses was once the # 6 prospect in the Brewer organization in 2001. After just five games and a 2.22 ERA for the Stars early in the season, he was promoted to Indianapolis, but a congenital back problem put the ice on his career........... He struck out 35 and walked just three in 24 1/3 innings for the Stars. The Milwaukee Brewers signed more of their draft picks tonight........ 5th round choice outfielder Chris Errecart, 6th rounder pitcher Brae Wright, 11th pick outfielder Zach Clem, 14th rounder from El Paso, shortstop Hector Bernal, 15th rounder catcher Brett Whiteside, and 33rd round pick shortstop Eric Newton. Now an updated comparison between this 8-game losing streak and the earlier record 13-gamer (scroll to center of linked page)....... www.starsboxscore.com/

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...amp;coll=1 Stars' loss extra tough Struggling team falls 1-0 in 10 innings By BRAD SHEPARD For The Huntsville Times The umpires may have changed, but the Huntsville Stars' woebegone offense remained the same Tuesday. For the first time all season, professional umpires called a game at Joe Davis Stadium, ending their long strike just in time for the Stars to host West Tenn after a 10-game road trip. For seemingly the thousandth time this season, Huntsville couldn't muster any run production for the 1,864 fans. The Diamond Jaxx finally broke through in the top of the 10th inning with Miguel Negron's sacrifice fly to hand the Stars a 1-0 loss, their 21st in 24 games. Despite a handful of defensive gems worthy of SportsCenter highlights, Huntsville (23-41) never found the offense to match. "We definitely played solid defense tonight," said Steve Moss, who had two dazzling catches in center field, "but defense doesn't put runs on the board." West Tenn almost didn't score, either. But the Diamond Jaxx - who entered the game 1 1/2 games back of Chattanooga in a chase for the Southern League North Division first-half title - kept mounting late-inning threats until one in the 10th became a promise. It was the fourth consecutive inning that they had gotten at least a runner on third base, and Negron finally found a way to dodge the Stars' defense. His fly ball was deep enough into left-center field that Moss could not throw him out at the plate. The way Moss and the other Stars' outfielders had played earlier, it was almost surprising that he couldn't come up with a career throw. "Yeah right," Moss said with a small smile. "I'd have thrown my arm out." An inning earlier, Moss extended the game with a spectacular diving catch to his right that robbed Gary Cates of an RBI single with Scott Moore trying to score from third. It was Moss' second great catch of the night, but not the only great play for Huntsville. Despite taking a one-hitter into the seventh inning, Stars starter Corey Thurman loaded the bases with one out in the seventh inning. That's when Carlos Rojas lofted a fly ball into shallow right field in Ron Acuna's direction. He circled under the ball and caught it before gunning out Brian Dopirak trying to score with a one-hop strike that prompted a brief celebration, but no spark. Thurman was magnificent yet again. But his reputation as one of the hardest-luck pitchers in the Southern League remained true. His record stayed at 2-5 with another no-decision. In his seven innings of work, Thurman allowed three hits and lowered his already stellar 2.22 ERA. As excellent as Thurman was, West Tenn lefty J.R. Mathes was just as good. He went 6 1/3 scoreless innings, striking out nine. "The only thing you can do is to keep trying to do what you do and hope the rest will take care of itself," Thurman said.

Much more on Huntsville, and the Nashville updates by mid-morning...

Final: West Tenn (Cubs) 1, Huntsville 0, ten innings Huntsville Site Game Summary: Link, text follows -- www.huntsvillestars.com/n...newsId=876 Stars Struggles at Home Continue Miguel Negron knocked in the only run of the game with a tenth inning sacrifice fly to lead West Tenn to a 1-0 win over Huntsville Tuesday night in the first of a six-game set at Joe Davis Stadium. The Diamond Jaxx improved to 39-26 and pulled to within one game of idle Chattanooga for the North Division lead with five games to go in the first half, while the Stars lost their eighth in a row and for the 21st time in their last 24 games to fall to 23-41. The Stars were shutout for a seventh time at home and ninth time on the season and did not advance a runner past second base for a second straight game. Chris Walker led off the tenth with a bunt single, moved to second on an Eric Patterson sacrifice bunt, stayed put when Nic Jackson was intentionally passed and advanced to third base when Brian Dopirak was hit by a Brett Evert pitch. Negron then hit a fly ball deep enough to center field to score the speedy Walker and drive in his fifth run with the bases loaded against the Stars, having hit a game-winning grand slam on May 28 in the eighth inning in the first game of the last series between the teams. Rocky Cherry retired all six hitters he faced to earn his third win of the year and has thrown five scoreless frames against the Stars in three appearances. West Tenn starter J.R. Mathes blanked Huntsville on three hits and fanned a season-high nine over 6 1/3 innings in his third start against the hosts. Carlos Vasquez worked a scoreless inning and two-thirds in relief and yielded one hit. The Stars have dropped 13 games in a row at home and remain winless at the Joe since May 7 against Montgomery. Stars? starter Corey Thurman worked seven shutout frames and has blanked the Diamond Jaxx over 13 innings in his last two turns against them. The right-hander permitted three hits and walked three and did not strike out a batter for the first time all year. He got Mathes to ground out with the bases loaded and two outs in the second and avoided trouble in the seventh when he got Carlos Rojas to fly out into an inning-ending double play, with Dopirak getting thrown out at the plate by Ron Acuna. Stars? reliever Steve Bray struck out Negron with the bases loaded and two outs in the eighth. The series continues on Wednesday afternoon with right-hander Tim Dillard taking the hill for Huntsville against Diamond Jaxx right-hander Bobby Brownlie. Coverage of the game begins at 11:50 a.m. central time and can be heard locally on ESPN Radio 1450 AM and via the internet at www.huntsvillestars.com. Huntsville Box Score: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Huntsville Game Log: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1

Link while active, text follows: www.wvgazette.com/section...2006061340 Power wins again in ninth, 4-3 By Jim Workman For The Charleston Gazette The best way to describe the West Virginia Power of late? Clutch. Pinch-hitter Nestor Corredor nailed a game-winning solo home run to lead off the bottom of the ninth inning Tuesday to lift the Power over Hagerstown 4-3 in a South Atlantic League game at Appalachian Power Park. Before a Two For Tuesday crowd of 4,464, the Power finished a two-game sweep with ninth-inning heroics each night. ?It was an exciting ballgame,? Power manager Mike Guerrero said. ?I?m glad it finished this way. It?s fun when you have the clutch at-bats. Early in the game, we left a lot of men on base.? There wasn?t much thought of the game going extra innings as the Power came up in the ninth. ?[Corredor] was swinging for the fences,? Guerrero said. ?It was a good pitch. He swung through it and made good solid contact.? As has been the norm, the Power had to work itself out of an early deficit. Joe Holden smacked a solo home run for the Suns in the top of the third to make it 1-0. He struck again in the fifth with a two-run shot. ?He likes this ballpark,? Guerrero said of the Suns leadoff hitter. ?He saw a couple of good pitches. You have to give him credit.? The Power bats came to life in the seventh. Nate Yoho singled in two runs, and Darren Ford smashed a bases-loaded grounder to second that was too hot for the Suns infielder to handle, allowing another run to score to tie it at 3. That was it, as the Power stranded three runners. It marked the second night in a row that Yoho delivered a late-inning clutch RBI hit. Even though the first half is coming to a close, Guerrero does not anticipate much movement with his roster. ?I don?t think it will change much,? he said. ?Our organization looks to have a good season in one place. It?s good for the players to have a full season in one place. You don?t have to start over again. But if someone moves up, we?ll be happy for them.? POWER POINTS: Pitcher Robbie Wooley was placed on the disabled list Monday for the second time this season. Right-hander Josh Louis was called up from extended spring training to take Wooley?s roster spot. Wooley posted a 1-3 record with a 4.86 earned run average over six starts and 13 appearances. Louis had a 1-2 mark with Helena last year and a 5.14 ERA with five saves in 17 appearances. ... Tuesday night?s victory marked West Virginia?s fourth win this season that came in its final at-bat and the 12th in the two-year history at The APP. ... The Power and Suns travel to Hagerstown tonight to begin a two-game series. The Power returns home on Friday to wrap up the first half of the season with a three-game series against Hickory. Hagerstown first baseman Nick Evans bobbles an attempt to pick off West Virginia Power?s Ryan Crew. Crew did not advance on the play. Charleston Gazette Photographer: Kenny Kemp http://www.wvgazettemail.com/images/stories/SAFEP1.jpg

Final: West Virginia 4, Hagerstown (Mets) 3 West Virginia Site Game Summary: CORREDOR WALKS OFF IN POWER WIN Nestor Corredor had only seven home runs in his five year minor league baseball career and he had not homered since the 2004 season. On Tuesday night at Appalachian Power Park, Corredor hit a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to push the Power over the Hagerstown Suns 4-3. Hagerstown scored their runs on a pair of home runs from Joe Holden. Holden?s first home run was a solo shot in the first inning and his second was a two-run blast in the fifth to put Hagerstown up 3-0. Holden has four home runs at Appalachian Power Park in four games. The Power came back and tied the game in the bottom of the seventh inning. Nate Yoho provided a pinch-hit two-run single and Ryan Crew scored the tying run on Darren Ford?s single. Corredor led off in the bottom of the ninth inning, and hit his first homer un of the year as the Power won in their final at-bat for the second night in a row. Corredor?s walk-off home run was the sixth walk-off homer in Appalachian Power Park history and it marked the fifth time that the Power have won in their final at-bat this season. Patrick Ryan (3-1) earned the victory providing three scoreless innings of relief, and Grady Hinchman (1-2) obtained the loss. The Power are 36-28 after the win and the Suns fell to 25-39 with the loss. Attendance for the game was 4,464. The Power will continue the four-game series against the Suns in Hagerstown, Maryland on Wednesday night. Hagerstown will start right hander Jeff Landing (2-9, 4.64) and the Power will counter with left hander Derek Miller (6-1, 3.90). The first pitch is scheduled for 7:05 PM (6:05 Central). West Virginia Box Score: Another nice effort by LHP Rafael Lluberes; Nate Yoho clutch off the bench for the scond night in a row; Darren Ford on base three times -- his season is moving from "solid" to "sparkling"; Lorenzo Cain and Mat Gamel's averages dipping a bit... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1 West Virginia Game Log: The three-run Power 7th should have been more, but the Suns' new reliever worked out of a bases-loaded, no out situation... www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

Nice work, mls4. I've been meaning to post about Jarrad Page, the kid who chose to play safety for UCLA football, and was drafted in the 7th round by the Kansas City Chiefs -- wonder where he'd be today in the Brewers system had he signed out of high school. I really wanted to see Andrew Bailey, the RHP out of Wagner University, signed last summer prior to his senior year. Let's hope there's not another Nomar Garciaparra or Matt Morris (former Brewer draft picks) in that group.

Backup catcher Nestor Corredor with a leadoff walkoff home run in the 9th as the Power win, 4-3, to please the home folks once again. It's a darn shame the first half will end about one week too early for the boys to take the division. Angel Salome off again this evening. Details in a bit as reliever Patrick Ryan may be the team's most obscure but deserving MVP candidate.

Word out of Oral Roberts media coverage: Junior catcher Andy Bouchie, who batted a team-high .376 with 12 homers and 53 RBIs, could return. He was drafted in the seventh round by the Milwaukee Brewers, but has been tabbed by some scouts as a potential first- or second-round selection if he comes back and has another strong season in 2007.

Added June 13th: 32nd rounder Nick Tyson (a draft-and-follow)

Brandon Gemoll with a big night on a big league field, if not a big league uniform: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...;fext=.jsp

Link while active, text follows: www.dailymail.com/news/Sp...006061336/ Rally sparks Power Jacob Messer Charleston Daily Daily Mail sportswriter With an offense capable of collecting hits and scoring runs in bunches, the West Virginia Power always has a chance to win regardless of the deficit it faces. And its chances are even greater when the club is on its home field. The Power recorded another come-from-behind victory Monday with a four-run rally in its final two at-bats against the Hagerstown Suns. Ryan Crew capped the comeback with a one-out single that easily scored Tony Festa from third base for a 9-8 win in front of a crowd of 3,504 at Appalachian Power Park, where West Virginia has a better record (18-12 to 17-16), a higher batting average (.315 to .238) and more home runs (26 to 16) than it does at opponents' stadiums. "We are comfortable here," said Crew, who finished with three of the Power's 16 hits and two of its nine runs. "We are used to it. We know where we want to hit the ball." Reliever Brandon Nall, a left-handed pitcher with a three-quarter delivery, couldn't clinch the victory for the Suns. Pinch hitter Nate Yoho started the surge with a two-run homer off Nall in the bottom of the eighth inning in a matchup of left-handers. "It's easier for a lefty to hit a lefty," said Yoho, who turned on a changeup down the middle. "I had pinch hit before. I like it. I think it's easier to hit that way. You don't have time to worry about it." Third-place West Virginia (35-28) trails second-place Delmarva (35-27) by a half game and first-place Lexington (40-23) by five games in the South Atlantic League's Northern Division standings. All three teams have six games remaining in the first half. Oddly enough, last-place Hagerstown (25-39) has a 6-3 lead in the season series despite the fact that West Virginia entered the game with a higher batting average (.274 to .240) and a lower earned run average (3.91 to 4.44). The Suns hit four homers - a solo shot by Jonel Pacheco in the third, a two-run blast by Pacheco in the fifth, another solo shot by Leivi Ventura in the seventh and another two-run blast by Nick Evans in the eighth. Plus, the Power committed four errors. "Those mistakes can come back to haunt you," said Power Manager Mike Guerrero, whose club leads the league in team batting average (.277). "That's the reason we were behind. Our offense picked up our defense." The Power scored one in the second and four in the fourth. Ned Yost crossed home plate for West Virginia's first run on a 6-4-3 double play. A walk to Crew, followed by a single from Nestor Corredor, a single by Scotty McKnight, an infield double by Darren Ford and a single by Lorenzo Cain - all with two outs - accounted for its next four runs, giving the home team a 5-2 lead that the visitors erased over the next four innings. Ford finished with three hits. Yost and McKnight added two hits apiece. Nall (1-3) took the loss. Steve Palazzolo (1-0) got the win after he pitched a three-up-and-three-down ninth. * * *LOOK FOR the Milwaukee Brewers, the Power's parent club, to promote catcher Angel Salome after the first-half finale Sunday. "That would be my guess," Power General Manager Andy Milovich said. "The series with Hickory this weekend will probably be his last here." The Brewers likely will send Salome to Brevard, a high class A club in the Florida State League. He would be reunited with Manatees Manager Ramon Aviles, who was the Power skipper last season. Salome didn't play Monday, which was the first time this season he didn't start or appear in a game. He leads the team in batting average (.295). Entering Monday, he also ranked first in the league in doubles (22), second in RBI (50), third in hits (72) and third in extra-base hits (29). * * *POWER POINTS: The teams continue their four-game set tonight at Appalachian Power Park. Hagerstown will start right-hander Deolis Guerrera (1-3, 4.20). West Virginia will counter with left-hander Rafael Lluberes (3-3, 3.00). The series will shift to the Suns' Municipal Stadium on Wednesday and Thursday ... Coaches and players from the North-South All-Star football teams attended the game, with the North representatives wearing their blue jerseys and the South representatives wearing their red jerseys ... The Power placed right-handed pitcher Robbie Wooley on the disabled list for the second time this season Monday. The club called up right-handed pitcher Josh Louis from extended spring training to replace Wooley, who has suffered from soreness in his right elbow ... Monday marked the return of the minor-league umpires who had been striking since the season began. The Association of Minor League Umpires and Professional Baseball Umpire Corporation reached an agreement May 30. The West Virginia Power?s Darren Ford slides safely at home in the fourth inning as the ball gets past Hagerstown catcher Tony Piazza during their game at Appalachian Power Park on Monday night. Charleston Daily Mail Photo: Craig Cunningham http://www.dailymail.com/images/Power0613.jpg

Link while active, text follows: www.al.com/sports/huntsvi...amp;coll=1 Realignment of Stars' roster expected soon Single-A standouts may get promoted to Huntsville By MARK McCARTER Huntsville Times Sports Staff, markcolumn@aol.com After a dismal first half in which the Huntsville Stars have endured a 13-game losing streak, a roster shakeup is likely during the 10-game homestand that opens tonight. The Stars will close out the half with six games against West Tenn, which is battling Chattanooga for the Southern League North title, starting with tonight's 7:05 game. Wednesday will be a 12:05 start and Thursday is a 6:05 doubleheader, with resumption of a game suspended June 1. The second half begins June 18 - the day after six Brevard County Manatees, Milwaukee's Single-A affiliate, will play in the Florida State League All-Star Game. After that, "we'll assess things," said Gord Ash, the Brewers' assistant general manager. "But it's a strong possibility a couple of players could move up. We obviously know the Huntsville club could use a boost, and there are some players (at Brevard) who could benefit from an increased level of competition." Asked which players might be promoted, Ash declined to mention names. "I hate to do that. As soon as you do, something's going to go wrong. You can look at the stats and draw your own conclusion,'' he said. First on the list would have to be pitcher Yovani Gallardo, who pitched 8 1/3 innings of perfect baseball on Friday. Milwaukee manager Ned Yost said he was highly impressed with Gallardo, who had just turned 20 when the Brewers used him in a spring training game against the Japanese national team. "Mike (Maddux, pitching coach) is already on me about him," Yost said. Third baseman Ryan Braun, Milwaukee's 2005 No. 1 pick out of the University of Miami, is another possibility. He has been hovering around the .300 mark and is considered one of the Brewers' top prospects. Outfielder Brendan Katin has some power, something drastically missing from the Stars' lineup. Two infielders, second baseman Hernan Iribarren and utility man Steven Sollman, brother of ex-Star Scott Sollman, were also named to the all-star team. However, it's worth at least a caution light to note that several members of this offensively challenged Huntsville team posted gaudy numbers in the Florida State League in 2005. "The jump from A-ball to Double-A is a significant jump," said Ash. "It's probably the most difficult jump in all of baseball, even including from the minor leagues to the big leagues. It's certainly the separator.'' Promotions or not, Ash still expects Huntsville to be more competitive in the last half. "I think you'll see some internal improvement just by the fact there is some experience," he said. "We knew that club was going to struggle going in. It is our weakest club. But we didn't think we were going to struggle that much offensively. We thought the pitching might be spotty, but it's not been bad. We just haven't hit the ball at all. "I know, offensively, the league is down significantly and ours is obviously last by a large margin (Huntsville has a league-worst .228 average and its 24 home runs are the fewest among the 30 Double-A teams). "That's not something we forecast."

Keep in mind that Brevard County needs to be within three games of St. Lucie as of the end of Thursday's action. The two teams wrap up the first-half season with three games against each other (the first two in St. Lucie, the final meeting at Brevard) coming out of this weekend's All-Star Break.

Standings through Monday's action: Pacific Coast League (AAA) - American North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- [b]Nashville 35 29 .547 - 22-11 13-18 W2[/b] Iowa 27 36 .429 7.5 14-16 13-20 L2 Omaha 25 39 .391 10.0 16-19 9-20 L5 Memphis 23 40 .365 11.5 11-18 12-22 L1 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Southern League (AA) - North Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Chattanooga 40 25 .615 - 24-11 16-14 L1 West Tenn 38 26 .594 1.5 18-17 20-9 W2 Tennessee 31 34 .477 9.0 18-12 13-22 L1 Carolina 30 35 .462 10.0 19-16 11-19 L1 [b]Huntsville 23 40 .365 16.0 9-19 14-21 L7[/b] ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Florida State League (A+) - East Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- St. Lucie 38 26 .594 - 20-14 18-12 L2 [b]Brevard County 34 27 .557 2.5 18-13 16-14 W1[/b] Palm Beach 34 30 .531 4.0 19-14 15-16 W5 Daytona 31 32 .492 6.5 19-11 12-21 W1 Jupiter 28 34 .452 9.0 13-17 15-17 L1 Vero Beach 23 40 .365 14.5 13-17 10-23 L5 ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- South Atlantic League (A) - Northern Division Standings ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Team W L PCT GB HOME ROAD STREAK ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Lexington 40 23 .635 - 24-12 16-11 W4 Delmarva 35 27 .565 4.5 18-15 17-12 L3 [b]West Virginia 35 28 .556 5.0 18-12 17-16 W1[/b] Lakewood 33 30 .524 7.0 18-13 15-17 W2 Greensboro 33 31 .516 7.5 21-11 12-20 W1 Hickory 30 33 .476 10.0 16-14 14-19 W1 Lake County 27 37 .422 13.5 13-20 14-17 L2 Hagerstown 25 39 .391 15.5 13-14 12-25 L1

This link will be included in each daily report when the Nashville Sounds and/or Huntsville Stars are scheduled to play. Normally it is updated an hour or two prior to gametime: Nashville Media Notes (Adobe .pdf format): www.nashvillesounds.com/pdf/notes.pdf Following Nashville's lead, Huntsville now makes its media notes available as well, nice: www.huntsvillestars.com/i...eNotes.pdf

Follow Tuesday's action as it happens: Here's what you do, right click on each of the links below and choose "Open in New Window". Activate the Nashville Gameday. For the other links, choose "Log". 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. It's sweet! Nashville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_nasaaa_1 Huntsville: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_hunaax_1 Brevard County Game One: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_1 Brevard County Game Two: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...a_breafa_2 West Virginia: www.minorleaguebaseball.c...x_wvaafx_1

Tuesday's Daily Menu: All times Central; pitchers subject to change -- Nashville: LHP Dana Eveland at home vs. Omaha (Royals), 6:40 PM pre-game, 7:00 gametime Audio link: www.nashvillesounds.com/listenlive/ Huntsville: RHP Corey Thurman at home vs. West Tenn (Cubs), 6:50 PM pre-game, 7:05 gametime Audio link: www.espn1450.com/ Brevard County: LHP Steve Hammond and RHP Mark Rogers in a doubleheader at home vs. Vero Beach (Dodgers), 5:00 PM Audio link (opponent's) -- games will also archive at this link: www.minorleaguebaseball.c.../audio.jsp West Virginia: LHP Rafael Lluberes at home vs. Hagerstown (Mets), 5:55 PM pre-game, 6:05 gametime Audio link: www.sportsjuice.com/provi...e=wvpower.

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