Tag: Josh Harrison

Wednesday's action in the Pirates' lower minors...

The Bradenton Marauders vs. Ft. Myers Miracle, along with a few other Florida State League games, have been postponed due to weather.

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Altoona Curve �6, �Binghamton Mets �3 (box)

Two late-inning rallies gave the Curve the edge over the Mets tonight, and earned Justin Wilson his 6th win of the season. �Wilson allowed 2 runs on 4 hits in his 6 innings of work, while striking out 6 Mets. �Wilson gave up a single and a walk in the 1st inning but left both stranded, then went on to retire the side in the next two innings. �The first Mets' run came in the 4th with two outs, on a double and a single. �A solo home run gave the Mets their second run in the 5th.

The Curve bats were quiet until the top of the 4th inning, when they loaded the bases with a single by SS Chase d'Arnaud, a walk to 1B Matt Hague, and a single by 2B Jordy Mercer. All three were left on base, though, when a fly out ended the inning. �D'Arnaud singled again to lead off the 6th, and this time the Curve were more effective. �CF Gorkys Hernandez followed with a single, and a double by 3B Josh Harrison brought d'Arnaud in to score. �Hernandez scored the tying run on an RBI ground out by Hague, and Harrison came in on a sacrifice fly by Mercer. �The Curve were up 3-2.

For the third time in the game, in the 8th, d'Arnaud led off an inning with a single. �Hernandez was hit by a pitch, and Harrison's sacrifice bunt moved the runners up one base each. �Hague was intentionally walked to load the bases. �A wild pitch brought in d'Arnaud. �Mercer grounded to short for a fielder's choice, as Hernandez was thrown out at the plate. �But singles by C Hector Gimenez and RF Miles Durham grought in Hague and Mercer respectively, and the Curve had increased their lead to 6-2.

Tony Watson relieved Justin Wilson to begin the 7th inning. �Watson retired 6 batters in order, but began the bottom of the 9th by giving up a double and two singles, to bring in a run. �Watson got the next two batters to strike out, then was replaced by Diego Moreno. Moreno struck out the only batter he faced, ending the game and earning his first save of the season.

Five Curve players were named to the Eastern League All-Star team: �LHP Rudy Owens, RHP Derek Hankins, 1B Matt Hague, 2B/3B Josh Harrison, and C Hector Gimenez. That game will be played in Harrisburg on Wednesday, July 14th.

The Eastern League All-Star teams have been announced, and five Curve players will represent Altoona on the Western Division squad. � The EL All-Star game will be played in Harrisburg, PA on Wednesday July 14th.

C Hector Gimenez, the veteran presence on the Curve, is leading the league (now that Alex Presley has been promoted to Indianapolis) with a .327 batting average, and a .627 SLG, and he is second in the league in on-base percentage (.407). �He also leads the Curve with 11 home runs, and he has 16 doubles and 40 RBI.

2B/3B Josh Harrison has a .313 average (second highest on the team) and 22 doubles, one homer, and 42 RBI. �He hit .348 in the month of April and .337 in June.

1B Matt Hague is hitting .295 (third highest on the team), with 12 doubles, 6 home runs, and 43 RBI for the Curve. �He has been rock-solid at first base.

LHP Starter Rudy Owens has a �7-3 record, a 2.75 ERA, and a league-best WHIP of 0.95. �Opponents are hitting .211 off him, third best in the league. �In his 15 starts, Owens has pitched 88.2 innings and has given up 67 hits and struck out 67 batters.

RHP Derek Hankins has pitched in both starting and a relieving roles for the Curve. �His ERA is best in the Eastern League at 1.60, and his WHIP is third best at 1.06. �Opponents hit only .212 off him. �He has earned a 5-1 record with 2 saves, and has 36 strikeouts in a total of 62 innings pitched.

Bradenton Marauders �11, �Ft. Myers Miracle �1 (box)

The Marauders scored early, then poured it on with two late-inning rallies to take a big win over Ft. Myers tonight. �Starter Aaron Pribanic earned his 4th win for the Marauders with 6 innings of work, allowing one run on 7 hits, no walks, and 2 strikeouts. �He scattered 4 of the hits over the first 5 innings, then gave up the lone run in the 6th, on a double and an RBI single, plus one more single. � Mike Colla earned his first save with 3 scoreless innings, in which he scattered 3 hits and a walk, while striking out 4 batters.

The Marauders began scoring in the 2nd inning. �CF Austin McClune walked, then scored on 3B Adam Davis' double. �A wild pitch moved Davis to third base, and after a walk, SS Greg Picart brought in Davis with an RBI single. �McClune also walked to led off the 4th inning. �Davis was hit by a pitch, and DH James Skelton moved both runners up one base with a sacrifice bunt. �Picart's RBI ground out brought McClune across the plate. �In the 5th, it was RF �Robbie Grossman who led off with a walk. �Singles by C Eric Fryer and LF Quincy Latimore brought in Grossman, and Bradenton was up 4-0.

Two errors by the Miracle got the Marauders' 8th inning rally started. �Picart reached on a fielding error and a throwing error let 2B Jose De Los Santos reach base on a sacrifice bunt and moved the runners to third and second bases. �Picart scored on a wild pitch, then C Eric Fryer walked and stole second base. �Latimore's grounder fielder's choice brought in De Los Santos, and McClune's single plated Fryer. �Those three runs gave the Marauders a 7-1 lead.

The 9th inning brought another rally, again started with a lead-off single. �It was Skelton who walked, then Picart singled and De Los Santos grounded into a force out at second, which was probably hoping to be a double play, but De Los Santos is too speedy. �The grounder force out brought in Skelton. �Grossman doubled and Fryer tripled, for two more runs, then 1B Calvin Anderson doubled, driving in Fryer with the 4th run of the inning.

Binghamton Mets �7, �Altoona Curve �6 (box)

The Curve thought they were in the drivers' seat going in to the bottom of the 9th. �They were leading the Mets, 6-1. �Their starter Bryan Morris had pitched 7 innings and allowed only that one run on two walks and a single in the 5th, and he had scattered 2 other hits. �Reliever Mike Dubee had retired the Mets in order in the 8th. �Curve batters had scored 3 runs in the 2nd inning, on singles by newcomer LF Brandon Jones and C Kris Watts, an RBI force out by RF Anthony Norman, Morris reaching base on a wild pitch for strike three, and a huge triple by SS Chase d'Arnaud. They scored again in the 3rd on 1B Matt Hague's 2-run homer after 3B Josh Harrison was hit by a pitch. �Harrison also doubled in the 7th and scored on Mercer's RBI single. �So, the Curve thought things were going just fine.

Then the bottom of the 9th. �Diego Moreno came on to relieve Dubee. �He gave up a walk, then a wild pitch put that runner on second base. �After a strikeout, a single and a 3-run homer brought the score to 6-4. �Another walk and a single, and Moreno was relieved by Jeff Sues. Sues struck out the first batter he faced, then gave up an RBI single and a walk. �Now the tying run was on first base, and the winning run was coming to the plate. �Mets' SS Luis Hernandez doubled into left field, scoring two runs to give the Mets the win.

Brandon Jones, who was removed from the Indianapolis Indians' roster when Aki Iwamura was assigned to Indianapolis, was sent to the Curve "on paper" last week. �Now he's there in body too. �Righty reliever Ramon Aguero, who has had an elbow injury, was promoted to the Curve from the Bradenton Marauders. �INF James Skelton was sent to Bradenton to make space on the roster.

Wednesday's action in the rest of the Pirates' minor league organization. �The West Virginia Power had the day off, wrapping up the South Atlantic League's All-Star break

Altoona Curve �8, �Portland Sea Dogs �1 (box)

Bryan Morris pitched into the 7th inning in his 4th win of the season, allowing only one run on 6 hits and 3 walks, while striking out 4 for the Curve. �The first batter Morris faced doubled to open the gam, and Portland's second batter lined a single into center field, complicated by a fielding error by CF Gorkys Hernandez, to score a run. �Morris gave up a walk, but ended the inning with 2 strikeouts, and put up zeros after that. �He retired the next 7 batters, before allowing two singles in the 4th, then getting out of that jam with a double play. �He breezed through the 5th and 6th innings, then gave up a single and a walk in the 7th, and was relieved by Jeff Sues. Sues finished the 7th inning, but loaded the bases in the 8th on a walk and two singles (one by former Curve Ray Chang). �He got out of that mess with two pop outs (all three of the outs that inning were pop outs). Diego Moreno, fresh off the Disabled List, pitched the 9th inning, allowing a walk amid three strikeouts.

The Curve batters provided Morris with plenty of run support, beginning with 4 runs in the bottom of the 1st. �With one out, the next 5 batters reached base on hits. �Singles by Gorkys Hernandez and 3B Josh Harrison were followed by a double by 1B Matt Hague, which brought in two runs. �2B Jordy Mercer singled, scoring Hague. �C Hector Gimenez doubled, moving Mercer to third base. �LF Alex Presley bounced to first base for a fielder's choice, as Hague was tagged out at the plate. �Gimenez scored the fourth run of the inning on a passed ball. �RF Miles Durham got in on the act in the 4th inning with a 2-run homer, after a walk by Presley. �Gimenez led off the 6th with a solo homer, then Presley scored on a double and a fielding error on DH Shelby Ford's ball to first.

Tuesday's action in the Pirates' lower minor league organization

GCL Yankees �11, �GCL Pirates �4 (box)

Chris Jakubauskas, who suffered a concussion while pitching for the Pittsburgh Pirates back in April, made his first appearance in a real game today, with the GCL Pirates. �He pitched 3 innings, and suffered the loss as he gave up 4 runs on 6 hits and a walk. �He did strike out 5 batters. �Jakubauskas retired the Yankees in order in the 1st inning, then gave up a run on a triple and a sacrifice fly in the 2nd. �He allowed a lone walk in the 3rd inning, but began the 4th with a single, a double, and a 3-run homer, followed by another single.

Joan Montero finished the 4th for Jakubauskas, then gave up a run on a single, a wild pitch, and four walks in the 5th. �Dovydas Neverauskas completed the 5th, and gave up 2 runs in the 6th, ona double, a walk, and a 2-RBI single. �The Yankees scored 4 runs in the 8th, though only one was earned. �The inning began with a throwing error b 2B Luis Solano, then a double and a single both brought in a run. �Another fielding error and two more singles gave the Yankees a total of 11 runs. �Rinku Singh pitched a scoreless 9th inning for the Pirates, allowing a single and a walk, then getting a line-out into a double play before ending the inning with a strikeout.

The Pirates' bats could not keep up with the Yankees. �They scored one run in the 2nd, when C Elias Diaz led off with a double, was sacrifice bunted to third, and scored on a fielder's choice by Solano. �The Pirates added a run in the 4th. �RF Gregory Polanco led off with a single up the middle. �A grounder by LF Exicardo Cayonez forced Polanco out at second but left Cayonez at first. �Cayonez stole second base and advanced to third on a throwing error by the Yankees' catcher. �He scored on a wild pitch. �Another error contributed to the Pirates' run in the 6th. �SS Kevin Mort singled and 3B Eric Avila and Diaz both walked. �The fielding error on Solano's ball to short allowed Mort to score. �Polanco scored the Pirates' final run in the 8th, when he doubled, moved to third on a ground out, and scored on Cayonez's RBI single.

Sunday's action in the Pirates' minor league organization. �The Gulf Coast League season begins on Monday. �The GCL Pirates open against the GCL Yankees at noon.

The Bradenton Marauders have a scheduled day off today.

Altoona Curve �6, �Richmond Flying Squirrels �2 (box)

A 4-run 6th inning boosted the Curve to a sweep of their 3-game series with the Flying Squirrels. �Starter Tim Alderson pitched 7 innings and allowed 2 runs on 9 hits and a walk, with 4 strikeouts for his 6th win of the season. �Alderson gave up a run in the 5th, on a single, a sacrifice bunt, and another single. �A single, a double, and a ground out brought in another run for the Squirrels in the 6th. �Alderson worked around runners on base in each of the rest of his innings, and took advantage of two double plays turned behind him.

The Curve also put runners on base in each of the first 5 innings but were unable to bring any of them around to score. �They loaded the bases in the 5th, on a double by C Hector Gimenez and walks to LF�Alex Presley and RF Miles Durham, but a double play ended their inning.

Presley sparked the rally in the 6th. �With one out, CF Gorkys Hernandez and 3B Josh Harrison hit back-to-back singles, and a fielding error put 1B Matt Hague on base to load the bases. �2B Jordy Mercer's sacrifice fly brought in Hernandez, to tie the score. �Gimenez was intentionally walked, again loading the bases. �Then Presley cleared the bases with a triple into center field, and the Curve had a 4-1 lead.

Richmond got one of those runs back in the bottom of the inning, but the Curve added two more in the 7th. �SS Chase d'Arnaud walked, and after a pitching change, Hernandez also walked. �Harrison's double drove in both of them, to bring the lead to 6-2.

Derek Hankins took over for Alderson in the 8th. �He retired the side in that inning. �The bottom of the 9th began with Hankins hitting a batter. �He got two outs, then gave up another single. �Danny Moskos came on to relieve Hankins, and he got the only batter he faced to ground out, earning the save. �Moskos now leads the Eastern League with 16 saves.

Saturday's games for the Pirates' lower minor league affiliates

Williamsburg Crosscutters �5, �State College Spikes �3 (box)

A full house sell-out in State College went home disappointed tonight, as the Spikes lost their home opener. �The Crosscutters scored 2 runs off starter Zack Dodson in the 2nd inning, on a walk, a single, a double, and a sacrifice fly. �Dodson gave up only one other hit in 3 more innings of work, and erased that runner with a double play.

The Spikes tied the score with a run in the bottom of the 2nd and another run in the 3rd. �A walk to 1B Gerlis Rodriguez open the inning. �A single by DH Kelson Brown, and a fielding error on CF Justin Bencsko's ball to first base loaded the bases for the Spikes. �C Miguel Mendez drove in Rodriguez with an RBI ground out. �Another fielding error put SS Walker Gourley on second base to begin the 3rd. �He scored on 3B Chase Lyles' line drive single into left field.

Mitch Fienemann took over from Dodson to begin the 4th. �After getting two outs, He gave up a single, a stolen base, and an RBI single to take a 3-2 lead. �The Spikes tied it up again in the bottom of the inning, on a double by Mendez, a passed ball, and a single by LF Melvin De La Cruz.

But the Crosscutters kept hammering at Fienemann, scoring a run in the 7th on two singles and a double, and another run in the 8th on four singles. �Sandobal Septimo finished the 8th for Fienemann, then pitched a scoreless 9th, despite giving up a double and a single.

Chase Lyles had two singles for the Spikes, and Justin Bencsko also had a single. �The Spikes collected 6 hits, while the Crosscutters posted 14 hits.

Williamsport Crosscutters �5, �State College Spikes �3 (box)

The Spikes opened their season on the road tonight, unfortunately on the losing end. �Starter Zack Von Rosenberg, who had pitched just one inning in the 2009 season, was charged with the loss. �He pitched 4 innings, and allowed 4 runs on 7 hits and a walk, with 2 strikeouts.

Williamsport struck first, with a run in the bottom of the 1st inning, on two doubles. �The Spikes took the lead in the top of the 3rd, with a 2-out rally. �SS Walker Gourley doubled, and 2B Gift Ngoepe singled, driving in Gourley. �Ngoepe stole second base, and he scored on 3B Chase Lyles' RBI single (his first professional hit), giving the Spikes a 2-1 lead.

A 2-run homer, followed by a walk and an RBI double gave the Crosscutters 3 more runs and the lead in the 4th inning. �Another single nearly brought in another run, but RF Andury Acevedo's throw in to the plate to C Miguel Mendez had the lead runner out at the plate. �Those 4 Williamsport runs were all charged to Von Rosenberg.

The Spikes got within one run again in the 6th. �DH Kelson Brown and CF Justin Bencsko's each collected his first professional hit -- a single for Brown, and an RBI triple for Bencsko.

Ryan Beckman took over on the mound for Von Rosenberg for the 5th inning. �He gave up a single and hit a batter, but did not allow a run to score. �Eliecer Navarro pitched the next 2 innings. �He loaded the bases in the 6th with a walk and two singles, but struck out the next batter to end the inning without a run scoring. �Navarro gave up a solo home run in the 7th, giving the Crosscutters an insurance run. �Justin Ennis made his pro debut with a perfect 8th inning -- a strikeout and two ground outs.

Lots of home runs in the minor leagues tonight, including Jim Negrych's 2-run homer that won the game for the Indianapolis Indians.

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Bradenton Marauders �9, �Jupiter Hammerheads �7 (box)

A 5-run inning boosted the Marauders in the early part of the game, and then the Marauders had to use three home runs to make up for making 4 errors in the field. �The two teams combined for 27 hits in the game, with the Marauders accounting for 16 of them.

Bradenton starter Nate Adcock gave up a run in each of the 2nd and 3rd innings. �Two singles and two throwing errors brought in a run in the 2nd, and a double, a single, and an RBI ground out plated the run in the 3rd.

The newest Marauder, 2B Jorge Bishop, got the party started in the bottom of the 3rd with a lead-off triple. �A single by SS Greg Picart brought in Bishop. Another single by CF Robbie Grossman and a double by rehabbing DH Steve Pearce plated Picart. �LF Quincy Latimore singled to score Grossman and Pearce. �Two more singles, by 1B Calvin Anderson and 3B Adenson Chourio scored Latimore. �The Marauders almost had another run, but Adenson Chourio was throw out at the plate after C Andrew Walker's single. �The Marauders came out of the inning with a 5-2 lead.

Adcock got into trouble in the 5th, when a fielding error began the inning. �A double, a single, a passed ball, and two RBI ground outs brought in three more runs, only one of which was earned. �Another double, a fielding error, two singles and a sacrifice fly brought in an earned run and an unearned run in the 6th.

The Marauders kept up with the help of the homers. �Calvin Anderson smacked a solo homer in the 5th. �A double by Bishop, a stolen base, and a wild pitch added another run in the 6th, to tie the score at 7-7. �Back-to-back homers by Quincy Latimore and Calvin Anderson in the 7th gave the Marauders the go-ahead run and one more for insurance.

Tyler Cox, Ramon Aguero, and Noah Krol each pitched one scoreless inning of relief, with 5 strikeouts between them. �Cox earned the win, since he was the pitcher of record when Latimore and Anderson homered in the 7th. �Aguero was credited with a Hold, and Krol earned his 16th save of the season, tying him for the lead in the Florida State League.

Rehabbing Steve Pearce went 1-for-3 with an RBI double, a walk, and a strikeout in the game.

The Indianapolis Indians had a scheduled day off today.

Reports are that 1B/OF Steve Pearce, who is working his way back from a sprained ankle, played in an extended Spring Training game today in Bradenton. �He went 1-for-5 at the plate.

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West Virginia Power �5, �Hickory Crawdads �3 (box)

The Power snapped their losing streak with a win in Hickory tonight, led by DH Kyle Morgan and his two home runs. �After two quiet innings, Morgan got things started in the top of the 3rd with a solo home run over the right-center field wall. �SS Benji Gonzalez followed the homer with a single, then stole second base (his 9th steal of the season). �A double by CF David Rubinstein plated Gonzalez, and a single by 2B Jarek Cunningham brought in Rubinstein. �Cunningham also stole second base (his 3rd of the year).

The Crawdads tied it up with 3 runs of their own in the bottom of the inning. �Kyle McPherson had the first batter reach on an error by 3B Jesus Brito, then gave up back-to-back singles to load the bases. �A double cleared the bases, and those 3 runs tied it up.

But the Power were not done. �Both RF Jose Hernandez and Morgan blasted solo homers (not back-to-back) in the 4th inning, and the Power had the lead again.

That was all the scoring in the game. �Brito and Cunningham were the only Power batters to reach base over the remaining 5 innings, both on walks. �The Crawdads did not fare any better --�McPherson retired the next 11 batters he faced over the 4th through the 7th innings. �He gave up a 2-out triple in the 7th, but got the next batter to strike out. �Ryan Kelly pitched a perfect 8th inning, and Duke Welker pitched a perfect 9th, including two strikeouts. �McPherson was credited with his 5th win, and Welker with his 4th save.

The Bradenton Marauders and the Florida State League had a scheduled day off today, after yesterday's All-Star Game. �The West Virginia Power also had a scheduled day off. � That leaves just the Curve...

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Altoona Curve �6, �New Britain Rock Cats �5 (box)

The Curve broke a 4-4 tie in the bottom of the 8th inning, then had to hold off a Rock Cats' rally in the 9th to preserve the win.

The Rock Cats' began the scoring with a run on a single, a ground out, a stolen base, and an RBI ground out in the 1st inning. �The Curve answered with 2 runs in the bottom of the inning. �RF Miles Durham led off with a walk, and LF Anthony Norman lined a single into right field. �SS Chase d'Arnaud dropped down what he thought would be a sacrifice bunt, but he beat the throw, claiming a hit to load the bases with no outs. �A wild pitch scored Durham from third base, and moved both Norman and d'Arnaud up a base. �Then a grounder to short allowed Norman to score, and the Curve were ahead, 2-1.

They repeated the same run pattern in the 4th inning. �The Rock Cats scored one run in the top of the inning, on a double, a wild pitch, and a sacrifice fly. �Then the Curve came back with 2 runs in the bottom of the frame. �This time it was 2B Jordy Mercer who led off with a walk, and he scored on C Kris Watts' double. �Watts moved to third base on a ground out, and he scored on Durham's single up the middle.

Curve starter Justin Wilson kept the Rock Cats from scoring in the 5th, but gave up another 2 runs in the 6th. �A lead-off single, plus back-to-back doubles brought in the 2 runs, tying the score at 4-4. �Wilson exited after that inning, allowing the 4 runs on 10 hits, no walks, with 2 strikeouts. �He left the game with the score tied, so was not going to factor into the decision.

Mike Dubee pitched a perfect 7th inning, preserving the tie. �He gave up a single in the 8th, and after a bunt and a throwing error by SS d'Arnaud, the Rock Cats had runners on the corners with two outs. �Dubee was relieved by Danny Moskos, who finished the inning with a ground out, preserving the tie.

The Curve couldn't get much going in the 6th or 7th inning, but they broke the tie in the 8th. �CF Gorkys Hernandez opened the inning with a single, and 3B Josh Harrison beat out a bunt for another single. �1B Matt Hague bounced into a 6-4-3 double play, which erased Harrison, but let Hernandez move to third base. �Mercer's double easily brought Hernandez in from third to take the lead. �After a pitching change, Watts lined a single into center field, and Mercer also scored, to give the Curve an insurance run they would need.

Moskos came back out to pitch the 9th inning. �He began the inning by giving up a single and a walk. �A double play put the lead runner on third with two outs, and a single drove that runner across the plate. �But Moskos held on to get a ground out, ending the game and giving the Curve the win. �Moskos earned his second win of the season. �Hernandez, Mercer, Watts, and Norman all had 2 hits in the game (the Curve had a total of 11 hits), and Watts also contributed 2 RBI.

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