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From the Archives: May 4


Fresno 5 Las Vegas 4 (11 inn.) – 2019
• Copeland 6IP, 8H, 3R, 2ER, 3BB, 8K, HR, 2WP
• Bacus (W, 2-0) 2IP, 0H, 0R, IBB, 2K
• Marmolejos 2-4, R, BB, HR, RBI
• Hernandez 2-5, R, HR, 2RBI
• Cowgill 1-4, 2R, HR, RBI, HBP

José Marmolejos homered in 8th to tie the game and Yadiel Hernandez homered in the 9th to take a 4-3 lead, but Jimmy Cordero was up to his old tricks and served up a two-out tying HR to send the game into extras. After both teams failed to score in the 10th, Alec Keller tapped a grounder slowly enough for the runner at third to come home for the game-winning run as Fresno beat Las Vegas, 5-4 in 11 innings. Dakota Bacus put up goose eggs in both the 10th and the 11th to earn the win. Scott Copeland got the start and went the first six, allowing three runs (two earned) on eight hits and three walks while striking out eight. Collin Cowgill also homered and scored the winning run, though the Grizzlies were a woeful 1-for-11 with RISP and left on 12.
This would be the second win in a 10-4 spurt that would put the Grizzlies into 1st place by 2½ games by mid-May, which was a welcome change of pace after Washington’s AAA entry finished dead last in two of its last three seasons in Syracuse.

Harrisburg 5 New Britain 4 – 2012
• Demny (W, 2-1) 6IP, 4H, 2R, 2ER, 2BB, 5K, HR
• Nelo (SV, 2) ⅓ IP, 0H, 0R, 0BB, K, 2-0 IR-S
• Rahl 2-3, R, 2B, BB, RBI
• Hood 2-4, R, 2B, 2RBI
• Kobernus 2-4, 2R, SB

A 122-minute rain delay scratched Chien Ming-Wang’s rehab start, but Paul Demny survived a rocky first inning to pitch six in 5-4 Harrisburg win over New Britain. The 22-y.o. Texan allowed two runs on four hits and two walks while striking out five. Both Rock Cats runs came on a two-run homer to the second batter of the game. Chris Rahl, Destin Hood, and Jeff Kobernus each had two hits as the Sens hammered out nine for the contest. After a 2-5 homestand, Harrisburg heads to the bustling environs of Binghamton for the weekend before returning to City Island on Monday to host Richmond. One of the hardest/wildest throwers to ever come through the Nats system, Hector Nelo may be one of several victims of the current pandemic. He returned from a one-year layoff to pitch the Puerto Rican Winter League this past offseason after pitching parts of four seasons in the indys from 2014 to 2017. The 2012 season was his best in affiliated ball, as he racked up 16SV and 63K in 52⅔ IP with a line of 2.73/3.73/1.39/

Potomac 10 Carolina 3 – 2013
• Cole (W, 1-1) 6IP, 3H, 0R, 0BB, 9K
• Meza 2IP, 1H, 1R, 0ER, 2BB, 2K
• Leonida 2-3, 2R, HR, 4RBI
• Burns 3-4, BB, RBI
• Oduber 1-3, 3B, 3RBI

A.J. Cole struck out a season-high nine as the P-Nats broke into double digits for the fourth time this season Last Night In Woodbridge.
Despite having not played for the Suns since 2012, you can still see Leonida on the Hagerstown website, though that’s prolly more function of how lazy the Hagerstown front office is as opposed to how beloved he was. As the LNIW predicted, the 2013 P-Nats would become a contender and win both halves. Alas, they would swept in the Mills Cup series by the Salem Red Sox, a team which finished the 2013 season with 23 wins in its last 26 games, including the last 12 in a row.

Hagerstown 8 Rome 3 – 2017
• M. Mills (W, 4-1) 5IP, 6H, 2R, 1ER, 2BB, 7K, HR
• Simonds (SV, 1) 2IP, 0H, 0R, 1BB, 0K
• Johnson 3-4, R, 2B
• Noll 3-4, 2R, RBI
• C. Kieboom 2-4, R, 2B, RBI

Hagerstown rallied for five in the 4th to erase an early 2-0 deficit and cruised to an 8-3 win over Rome. McKenzie Mills picked up his fourth win with five innings of two-run ball on six hits and two walks while setting down seven on strikes. Hayden Howard was dinged for the third run but earned the hold while Kyle Simonds threw two scoreless to garner the save. Daniel Johnson and Jake Noll both went 3-for-4 to lead the Suns’ 14-hit parade. Johnson, along with Jefry Rodriguez, would be traded to Cleveland for Yan Gomes in the 2018-19 offseason. Like 2017, Johnson played at two levels in 2019 – 39 games at AA Akron with an .872 OPS, and 84 Games at AAA Columbus with an OPS of .867. He was added to the Indians’ 40-man roster last November.

17 Commments

  1. A Destin Hood memory, he parlayed a scholarship offer from Alabama to get a $2 million bonus from the Nats as a 2nd round pick. When asked in an interview how serious he was about going to Alabama, he said “I didn’t want to play football, it hurts to play football”.

    He got his cup of coffee in 2016 getting 25 AB’s for the Marlins. I hope he invested well. At least he’ll be able to tell his grandchildren stories of his major league adventures.

  2. Hood was one of those in a long line of Nat draftees who filled out a uniform really well, but who weren’t particularly adroit at the game of baseball. He had one really promising season: 2011 at Potomac, with a 131 wRC+, 13 HRs, 83 RBIs in only 128 games, and 21 SBs. That promise didn’t carry over to AA, though, where he had wRC+ seasons of 76 and 66, while both power and speed dried up.

    1. It reinforces the old adage that there is nothing harder in all of sports than hitting a curveball.

  3. And let’s not forget that Mills and his hot 2017 start brought in return Nat forever-legend Howie Kendrick. Who knows, he might have even had a chance to be a legend in 2017 if he’d gotten to start Gm 5 vs. Cubs in LF . . .

  4. I had forgotten how fast Cole came back to the organization, literally the next offseason, in the Morse three-way deal to Seattle I think. He really bombed his season in the A’s organization. Milone, Peacock, Norris (until his domestic issues) all turned out to be half-decent major-leaguers for a time, though.

  6. There is a series of you tube videos speaking about abandoned old stadiums especially Bush Stadium in Indpls which was turned into a luxury apt complex taking the U shape of the concrete backbone of the entrance .
    What with the affiliation scissors cutting with Miilb in the near future .. one has to wonder how many parks will turn into parking lots , kids parks or shopping areas ???

  7. I have no idea what they’ll do with the Pfitz in Woodbridge with the P-Nats gone. That’s a big chunk of land in a developing area.

    1. There is a guy who does videos walking through old places with nostalgia . Bush Stadium in Indpls is one which caused me to wipe away many cosmic cobwebs of old memories ( to borrow a phrase from James Earl Jones character in Field of Dreams .)
      Numerous videos one can find on old forgotten baseball history . One narrated by Jon Hamm on the forgotten St Louis Browns .
      Loved the “Colorful Montreal Expos “ which included a round table discussion with Cromartie, Dawson , Rock Raines and Rondell White.
      Even the old history in the Boston Braves especially the transformation of the old park into Boston Univ Nickerson Park was very interesting .
      There has to be a link between the old Braves to the Expos since Ebba St Claire played for the Braves pre-Milwaukee and his son Randy was drafted by the Expos whose first GM came over from the Braves…hmmm.. what you think , Forinsicane??

      1. Oh yeah. The Phitz could turn into a luxury apartments/ condo complex like Bush Stadium , Ebbetts Field 2 and even the Manhattan area where Polo Grounds3 stood

  8. The Fredericksburg Nationals have their roster on the website – milb.com/Fredericksburg and there are a couple of odd things there.

    Like Jackson Tetreault and Tim Cate, who almost for sure will start in Harrisburg. Just sayin….

    1. Ask BOSSman. Big Board Boss.. lol…
      not many people have says this but after watching old expo games from various years especially how Steve Rogers adrenaline was too amped up against Rick ($&@@@$?!) Monday … I have to say that when Howie hit that GS vs Dodgers and silenced every fan in LaLa land who could recall 1981 .. Blue Monday was erased…

  9. Mark — I suspect that’s a roster placeholder for FredNats, as are posted for all the teams. Cate certainly will be in AA, and Tetreault likely will. This roster shows Troop and Irvin moved up from Hagerstown, but not others who likely will be.

    Whenever FredNats actually take to their new field, they should have an interesting team, particularly a heck of a rotation. Rutledge and that man of mystery, Seth Romero, should be at the top of it. The rest of the rotation is anyone’s guess: Troop, Irvin, Adon, Alastre, Schaller, Alfonso Hernandez, maybe even the much-touted Yean. Cronin figures to be in the ‘pen, with Mendoza at 1B and in the middle of the lineup. I would think Antuna will get a social promotion as well.

    1. Antuna most interesting prospect to watch in next two years no mattter what type of season upcoming …????

    2. KW, you’re getting me excited just reading about the pitching at Fredericksburg. A lot to root for.

      FWIW, I think Cronin starts in Harrisburg.

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