Wednesday’s News & Notes
| Team | Yesterday | Today | Probable Pitchers |
| Syracuse | Lost, 5-1 | @ Rochester, 7:05 p.m. |
J. Ross (0-2, 4.15) vs. Berrios (10-5, 2.44) |
| Harrisburg | Won, 3-1 | @ Bowie, 7:05 p.m. |
Fedde (2-1, 4.63) vs. Barker (5-6, 4.43) |
| Potomac | Lost, 17-10 | @ Frederick, 7:00 p.m. |
Martin (0-2, 6.00) vs. Romero (6-4, 6.16) |
| Hagerstown | Won, 2-0 | @ Charleston, 7:05 p.m. |
Reyes (0-1, 1.64) vs. Cedeno (7-9, 3.83) |
| Auburn | Won, 5-0 | @ Brooklyn, 7:00 p.m. |
Acevedo (2-4, 3.27) vs. H. Gonzalez (6-2, 1.57) |
Abbreviated writeups until I get back up to speed…
Rochester 5 Syracuse 1
• Lopez (L, 2-2) 7IP, 3H, 3R, 3ER, 3BB, 4K, 2HR
• Severino 2-4, R
• Collier 1-2, 2B, 2BB
Syracuse coughed up HR’s in the 7th and 8th innings to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 5-1 loss in the series opener against Rochester.
Bowie 7 Harrisburg 6
• Valdez (W, 5-4) 7⅔ IP, 8H, R, ER, BB, 2K, HR
• Robinson (SV, 8) 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 0K
• Ballou 2-3, 2R, BB
• Bautista 2-4, BB, RBI, SB
The Sens got back in the win column with a 3-1 triumph, highlighted by Philips Valdez pitching into the 8th for the second straight start to win his 5th AA decision. Unfortunately, the RubberDucks won to keep pace and remain 2½ games ahead for the E.L. West wildcard.
Frederick 17 Potomac 10
• Williams 3⅔ IP, 8H, 6R, 6ER, 2BB, 2K, HR
• Holland (L, 1-3) ⅔ IP, 8H, 8R, 0ER, 0BB, 1K
• Abreu 2-4, R, HR, BB, 4RBI
• Robles 2-4, 2R
• Davidson 2-5, R
Frederick eviscerated the Potomac ‘pen for 11 runs, including eight in the 8th, to win a 17-10 slugfest and stave off playoff elimination. The P-Nats also blew a chance to climb back into a first-place tie in the C.L. North with the Hillcats, who lost 1-0 in 11 innings to the C.L. South-leading Pelicans.
Hagerstown 2 Charleston 0
• Baez (W, 8-7) 5IP, 2H, 0R, 4BB, 4K
• Borne (H, 4) 3IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 3K
• Peterson (S, 8) 1IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, 1K
• Wiseman 2-4, R, 2B, HR, 2RBI
Three Suns pitchers combined on a three-hit shutout of the RiverDogs, making Rhett Wiseman’s two-out, two-run HR in the 1st stand up for a 2-0 win, their fourth straight. Hagerstown’s first-round opponent, the Lakewood BlueClaws, also won to clinch a playoff spot and lower its magic number to win the second half to four with six games to play. Roster move: CF Blake Perkins promoted from Auburn.
Auburn 5 Brooklyn 0
• Ramirez (W, 4-2) 5IP, 3H, 0R, BB, 3K, WP, HBP
• Simonds 2IP, 1H, 0R, 0BB, 0K
• Johnson 3-4, R, 3SB (9,10,11)
• Panaccione 3-5, 2R, 3B, SB
• Banks 2-5, RBI
Four Auburn pitchers combined to blank Brooklyn on seven hits for a 5-0 win to even the series at 1-1.
Congratulations to Blake Perkins, it will be good for him to get a taste of Low A before the instructs.
Banks is struggling at Auburn, a .650 OPS with no power. The instructs are crucial for guys like him as they try and get rid of 15 years of aluminum bats out of his swing.
That Potomac game looks like a little league score.
As much as i think that the Nats have a great scouting department, I am not getting what they see in Perkins and the reason for his promotion. With all the pre-season hype about his great swing, his numbers are pretty bad (2hr’s, 28 rbis’, .222 ba). Is it just a question of time and getting more comfortable or is there cause for concern?
Guessing that the Nats just want to get at bats for Perkins, and Hagerstown will play post-season games next week while Auburn will not. In the past, the Nats have moved their prospects around so that they can get post-season playing time.
BTW, is Andrew Stephenson hurt or did H’burg just give him the night off yesterday?
The Suns have two OFs on the DL, leaving only three healthy ones for the playoffs. I don’t know why Perkins got the call over Banks or Johnson, other than perhaps he’s better in CF. He has been worse at the plate than either of the college guys.
Wiseman got his 11th HR yesterday. For this power-starved organization, that’s at least something. His 101/42 K/BB ratio needs some work, though.