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WP: John Riedling (3-0) HR: IWA Scott McClain (28) off Jeff Fulchino in the 6th inning ALB Joe Dillon (22) off Jon Leicester in the 6th inning TIME: 2:51 Todd Sears reached on a fielder's choice as the game-tying run scored in the 7th inning and Sears doubled home the game-winning run in the 9th inning as the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 5-4 to snap a two game losing streak. The Isotopes also remained a game and a half out of the division lead as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) also won this evening. In the 2nd inning, James Shanks infield singled, stole second base and scored on John Pachot's single to center field as the Isotopes led 1-0. Eric Reed led off the 3rd inning with an infield single, advanced to second base on a throwing error during a pickoff attempt and scored on Joe Dillon's single to center field as the Isotopes extended the lead to 2-0. Iowa tied the game in the 6th inning. Scott McClain solo-homered to left field to lead off the inning. Two outs later, Mike Fontenot doubled and later scored on Iowa Cubs starter Jon Leicester's single to right field. It did not take the Isotopes long to regain the lead as Dillon solo-homered to left-center field in the home half of the 6th inning as the 'Topes led 3-2. Iowa took back the lead in the 7th inning. Ronny Cedeno walked and McClain was hit by a pitch. Ben Grieve followed with a double to right field to drive them both in as Iowa led 4-3. In the bottom of the 7th inning, Drew Niles walked and Reed bunt-singled. Josh Wilson sacrifice-bunted both runners up a base and Dillon was intentionally walked to load the bases. Todd Sears reached on a fielder's choice (with Dillon out at second base) as Niles scored to tie the game at 4-4. Albuquerque won the game in the bottom of the 9th inning. After Chris Ashby and Reed struck out swinging, Josh Wilson reached on an error, Dillon walked and Sears doubled to center field to drive in Wilson with the game-winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/16/05): Joe Dillon 85 G, 70 R, 109 H, 17 2B,
1 3B, 21 HR, 65 RBI, 49 BB, 55 K, 10 SB, .618 SLG,
.353 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.63 ERA, 0 SV, 123.0 IP, 150
H, 92 R, 77 ER, 18 HR, 58 BB, 85 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Blaine Neal massively blew the save as the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) defeated the Isotoeps 13-8 at Isotopes Park. Neal allowed 9 runs in the 9th inning to take the loss (8 of the runs were unearned in the inning). Abraham Nunez and Robert Stratton homered for the 'Topes in the loss. 'Topes Notes: Todd Sears has knocked in the game-winning run in the Isotopes' last at-bat twice this season. It was the 15th Isotope last at-bat win of the season. . . . James Shanks extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Thursday evening are RHP Travis Smith (3-7, 4.99) for the Isotopes and RHP Bobby Brownlie (6-4, 4.26) for the I-Cubs. Filed 08/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Koronka (8-10) HR: IWA Scott McClain (27) off Donovan Osborne in the 6th inning
ALB Mike Colangelo (8) off Russ Rohlicek in the 8th inning TIME: 2:42 Scott McClain and Jerry Hairston, Jr. each drove in a pair of runs and John Koronka hurled seven innings of one-run, four-hit ball in the Iowa Cubs' (AAA Cubs) 6-4 victory over the Isotopes in the series opener on Monday evening at "The Lab". Geovany Soto singled to right field and scored on Hairston, Jr.'s triple to left field as the Cubs took a 1-0 lead. The Cubs extended the lead in the 5th inning. David Kelton solo-homered to left field to lead off the inning. Soto singled to right field, Cubs starter Koronka singled to left field, both runners advanced a base when Isotopes starter Donovan Osborne threw the ball away on a pickoff attempt, and Hairston, Jr. sacrifice flied out to left field to drive in Soto as the Cubs led 3-0. Drew Niles singled to center field to lead off the home half of the 5th inning. Chris Ashby and Donovan Osborne walked to load the bases and two outs later, Joe Dillon walked as Niles trotted home to cut the defecit to two runs at 3-1. The Cubs extended the lead the very next half-inning. Ronny Cedeno walked and McClain followed with a homer to left field as the I-Cubs led 5-1. In the 7th inning, Soto singled to center field and Hairston Jr. singled to left field. Hairston Jr. stole second base and Soto scored on a throwing error on the stolen base attempt. Albuquerque closed out the scoring in the contest in the 8th inning. Jason Wood singled to left field and Mike Colangelo homered to left field. James Shanks singled to left field, moved to second base when Niles walked and scored on Todd Sears' single to center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/15/05): Joe Dillon 84 G, 70 R, 108 H, 17 2B,
1 3B, 21 HR, 64 RBI, 48 BB, 54 K, 10 SB, .623 SLG,
.354 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.63 ERA, 0 SV, 123.0 IP, 150
H, 92 R, 77 ER, 18 HR, 58 BB, 85 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, on a day when Brian Banks announced he would soon retire, he and Ryan Christenson each two-run homered in an Isotopes 9-6 victory over the Iowa Cubs in Des Moines, Iowa. Matt Padgett also homered in the victory. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have finally lost their home field advantage in 2005. With the loss, the Isotopes record at Isotopes Park has evened to 30-30. The Isotopes are 1-6 in August at Isotopes Park and with the poor performance at Isotopes Park, the Isotopes are starting to fade in the standings. . . . The Isotopes are 1.5 games back of the PCL American Conference Southern Division leader Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). . . . Adrian Gonzalez of the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) is the PCL Hitter of the Week. Gonzalez homered five times and drove in 17 runs while hitting .571 for the week. . . . Chris Oxspring of the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) is the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Oxspring threw a complete game shutout on Saturday August 13th against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) in a 6-0 victory in the first game of a doubleheader. . . . Pitching probables for Wednesday evening's contest are RHP Jeff Fulchino (8-7, 5.63) for the Isotopes and RHP Jon Leicester (1-7, 5.85) for the I-Cubs. Filed 08/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Matt White (7-5) HR: NRL Brendan Harris (11) off Frank Castillo in the 4th inning
TIME: 2:42 The Isotopes' rally attempt in the 9th inning was quelled with the game tying run stranded in scoring position as the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) defeated the Isotopes 6-5 in the series finale at "The Lab". The Zephyrs used two-out magic in the 1st inning to build a 3-0 lead. Marlon Byrd and Rick Short singled and Kevin Orie's single drove in Byrd. Dee Brown singled to plate Short and Brendan Harris singled to drive in Orie. Harris homered to left field in the 4th inning as the Zephyrs extended the lead to 4-0. Albuquerque got on the scoreboard in their half of the 4th inning, utilizing the same methodology the Zephyrs used to score in the 1st inning -- a string of two-out singles. Joe Dillon and Jason Wood singled and Mike Colangelo singled to drive in Dillon. Chris Ashby's single brought Wood home as the Isotopes cut the defecit in half at 4-2. New Orleans added their final two runs of the game with two outs in the 7th inning. Byrd solo-homered to left field and Short followed with a triple to right field and scored on Orie's groundout. Albuquerque began their rally in the 8th inning. James Shanks tripled to center field and scored on Josh Wilson's sacrifice flyout to left field. In the 9th inning, Mike Colangelo singled and Larry Barnes drew a walk. Drew Niles reached on a fielder's choice (with Barnes out at second base). After Todd Sears popped out, Eric Reed doubled to right field to drive in Colangelo and Niles as the Isotopes pulled to within a run at 6-5. Shanks struck out to end the game with Reed stranded in scoring position at second base. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/14/05): Joe Dillon 83 G, 69 R, 107 H, 17 2B,
1 3B, 21 HR, 64 RBI, 47 BB, 53 K, 9 SB, .626 SLG,
.354 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.63 ERA, 0 SV, 123.0 IP, 150
H, 92 R, 77 ER, 18 HR, 58 BB, 85 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Jason Wood solo-homered, Kevin Hooper singled home a run and Abraham Nunez scored on an error as the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 3-2 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: New Orleans took three out of the four games in the series. Tonight's game marked the last meeting in 2005 between the Zephyrs and Isotopes and the Zephyrs won 9 out of the 16 contests. 24,536 fans attended the series at Isotopes Park for a per game average of 8,179. There were three gates as one game in the series was postponed due to rain and a doubleheader makeup was played. . . . The Isotopes open up a four-game series against the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) starting Tuesday evening at Isotopes Park. Pitching probables for the opener are LHP Donovan Osborne (4-0, 4.28) for the Isotopes and LHP John Koronka (7-10, 4.71) for the I-Cubs. Filed 08/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (7-5) HR: NRL Dee Brown (3) off Ariel Prieto in the 7th inning ALB Jason Wood (17) off Brian Powell in the 1st inning
TIME: 1:42 Ariel Prieto came within one out of tossing a complete game shutout, but ended up with a complete game, one run, 4 hit effort in a 6-1 Isotopes victory over the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) to split the doubleheader. The Isotopes moved to within a half a game back of the division lead with the victory. Albuquerque took a quick 3-0 lead in the 1st inning. James Shanks singled to center field and Josh Wilson drew a walk. Joe Dillon flew out to right field as Shanks tagged up and advaned to third base and Todd Sears grounded out to bring home Shanks. Jason Wood followed with a homer to left field. The Isotopes added to the lead in the 3rd inning. Shanks tripled into the left-center field gap and scored on Wilson's single to right field. After Wilson stole second base, Dillon served a 2-1 offering over the left field fence for a two-run home run as the Isotopes led 6-0. With two down in the 7th inning, Dee Brown homered to left field to break up the shutout. Prieto then struck out Craig Kuzmic to finalize his complete game effort. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/12/05): Joe Dillon 81 G, 68 R, 105 H, 17 2B,
1 3B, 20 HR, 62 RBI, 46 BB, 53 K, 9 SB, .620 SLG,
.354 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.63 ERA, 0 SV, 123.0 IP, 150
H, 92 R, 77 ER, 18 HR, 58 BB, 85 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) scored three runs in the 8th inning to come back from a 5-3 defecit to defeat the Isotopes in a game played in Des Moines, Iowa. Aaron Small homered for the Isotopes in a losing cause. 'Topes Notes: Ariel Prieto hurled his second complete game of this season and the fourth Isotope complete game of the 2005 season. . . . The Isotopes have split both doubleheaders played in 2005 (one at home and one on the road). In Isotope Park doubleheader history, the Isotopes have split three doubleheaders and sweeped one doubleheader. In franchise history, the Isotopes have sweeped two doubleheaders, been swept twice and split six times. . . . The Isotopes snapped a four-game home losing streak with the win. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Monday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (9-8, 5.25) for the Isotopes and LHP Matt White (6-5, 3.44) for the Zephyrs. Filed 08/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Halama (1-0) HR: NRL Kevin Orie (19) off Travis Smith in the 2nd inning TIME: 2:08 Kevin Orie and Marlon Byrd each drove in a pair of runs as the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) defeated the Isotopes 5-1 in the first game of a doubleheader. Rick Short drew a walk and Orie followed with a homer off the scoreboard in left-center field as the Zephyrs led 2-0 in the 2nd inning. In the 3rd inning, Tyrell Godwin bunt singled and scored on Byrd's single to left field as New Orleans led 3-0. Chris Ashby reached on a two base error and scored on James Shanks' single to right field as the Isotopes avoided the shutout and trailed 3-1. Short and Orie walked in the 6th inning and Brendan Harris was intentionally walked to load the bases. Keith Osik reached on a fielder's choice with Harris out at second base and Short scoring. New Orleans closed out the scoring in the 7th inning. Godwin doubled off the left-center field wall and scored on Byrd's single to left field. 'Topes Notes: Rick Short entered the game hitting .399 and broke the .400 mark during the game, end up with a .401 batting average at the end of the contest. . . . Josh Wilson went 0x3 to snap a 9-game hitting streak. . . . The Isotopes tied their worst home losing streak (4 games). . . . The Isotopes set a season-high for fewest hits in a game at home (3). Filed 08/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Game two of the series against the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) on Saturday evening was postponed due to rain. The game will be made up as a doubleheader (two seven-inning games) on Sunday afternoon. Despite being idle, the Isotopes remain a half-game back of the division lead (trailing the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) as Round Rock defeated the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) to take the divison leadership while Oklahoma fell to a half-game back. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Chad Allen solo-homered and Kevin Hooper singled home a run for the Isotopes in a 2-1 victory over the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) at SBC Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. Gerald Laird's solo-homer provided the only Redhawk run. 'Topes Notes: The rainout was the second one in Isotopes Park history and the third game postponed ever at Isotopes Park (the non-rainout game being a lightbank failure that postponed a game early in the 2003 season). . . . If pitching probables remain on schedule for tomorrow's doubleheader, probables for Game 1 are RHP Travis Smith (3-6, 4.96) for the Isotopes and LHP John Halama (0-0, 3.00) for the Zephyrs and Game 2 probables are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-5, 4.61) for the Isotopes and RHP Brian Powell (7-8, 5.43) for the Zephyrs. Filed 08/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jason Bergmann (2-1) HR: ALB Joe Dillon (20) off Chad Durbin in the 3rd
inning TIME: 3:53 Rick Short drove in five runs, including the game winner in the 12th inning as the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) defeated the Isotopes 10-9 in 12 innings in the series opener at "The Lab". With the defeat, the Isotopes fell out of first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division and are a half-game back of the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). New Orleans struck first in the game. With one out, Juan Melo and Marlon Byrd walked and Short doubled to left field to drive in Melo. Matt Cepicky sacrifice-flied out to center field to drive in Byrd as the Zephyrs led 2-0 before the Isotopes even came up to bat. Albuquerque took the lead in their half of the 1st inning. James Shanks walked and Josh Wilson singled. Joe Dillon's double drove in Shanks and Todd Sears' single brought home Wilson and Dillon as the 'Topes led 3-2. Dillon solo-homered to left field in the 3rd inning to extend the lead to 4-2. Byrd doubled to center field and later scored on Cepicky's single to center field in the 5th inning as the Zephyrs pulled to within a run at 4-3. In the home half of the 5th frame, Wilson homered to lead off the inning. Dillon was then hit by a pitch and an out later, Jason Wood walked. Larry Barnes singled to right field to drive in Dillon and Matt Erickson singled to center field to drive in Wood as the 'Topes led 7-3. New Orleans tied the game in the 6th inning. Jason Bowers walked, Tyrell Godwin singled and Melo singled to center field to drive in Bowers. Byrd walked to load the bases and Short cleared them with a double to right field. Neither team scored until the 11th inning. Byrd doubled and two outs later, Brendan Harris infield singled as Byrd scored. Keith Osik pinch-hit singled to right field and Harris scored when Osik stole second base and Harris scampered home as the Zephyrs led 9-7. Albuquerque was able to tie the game up again in their half of the 11th inning. Dillon singled to right field and Sears followed with a homer to left field. New Orleans won the game in the 12th inning. With two outs, Melo and Byrd singled and Short singled to right field to drive in Melo with the eventual game-winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/11/05): Joe Dillon 80 G, 64 R, 101 H, 16 2B,
1 3B, 19 HR, 60 RBI, 46 BB, 53 K, 9 SB, .605 SLG,
.347 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.57 ERA, 0 SV, 118.0 IP, 142
H, 88 R, 73 ER, 18 HR, 52 BB, 83 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Abraham Nunez struck out with the game-tying run on 3rd base as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) held on to defeat the Isotopes 2-1 in Oklahoma City. Lenny Harris singled in the Isotopes only run. 'Topes Notes: Tonight is the first night the Isotopes have not had a share of or outright led the division since June 18th. . . . The Isotopes now have a blemish in their 2005 extra inning record (6-1). . . . Joe Dillon was a triple short of hitting for the cycle and turned in his third 4-hit game of the season. It was also his second 4-hit game in a row. Dillon also tied a franchise record by scoring four runs in a game. . . . The Isotopes played their longest home game of the season (both in innings - 12; and time - 3 hours, 53 minutes). . . . Josh Wilson and Todd Sears tied a franchise record with 7 at-bats in the contest. . . . Jason Wood went hitless to snap a 10 game hitting streak while Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 9 games. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Saturday evening are RHP Travis Smith (3-6, 4.96) for the Isotopes and LHP John Halama (0-0, 3.00) for the Zephyrs. Filed 08/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Riedling
(2-0) HR: ALB Joe Dillon (19) off Mitch Wylie in the 1st inning FRE Mike Cervenak (17) off Donovan Osborne in the 6th
inning TIME: 3:48 The Isotopes took advantage of three errors, a wild pitch and a passed ball in the 12th inning to score three runs to defeat the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) 5-2 in the series finale. With the victory, the Isotopes remain in a first-place tie atop the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Joe Dillon homered to left-center field in the 1st inning as the Isotopes grabbed the 1-0 lead.Angel Chavez homered to left field in the 2nd inning as Fresno tied the game at 1-1. Albuquerque immediately regained the lead in the 3rd inning. With two outs, Josh Wilson doubled to left-center field and scored on Dillon's single to center field as the 'Topes led 2-1. Mike Cervenak homered to center field in the 6th inning as the Grizzlies tied the game at 2-2. The Isotopes took advantage of all sorts of Grizzlies problems in the 12th inning to win the game. James Shanks reached on a throwing error and Josh Wilson laid down a sacrifice bunt but an error on the play allowed him to reach first base safely. After Dillon struck out, a wild pitch brought home Shanks and Todd Sears walked. A passed ball advanced both runners into scoring position and Matt Padgett was intentionally walked to load the bases. Larry Barnes reached on a fielder's choice with Wilson scoring and noone out on the play due to an error. Matt Erickson reached on a fielder's choice with Sears scoring and Padgett out at third base. Chris Ashby then reached on a fielder's choice with Erickson out at second base to end the inning. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/10/05): Joe Dillon 79 G, 63 R, 97 H, 16 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 46 BB, 52 K, 9 SB, .593 SLG,
.340 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.57 ERA, 0 SV, 118.0 IP, 142
H, 88 R, 73 ER, 18 HR, 52 BB, 83 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) scored eight unanswered runs to defeat the Isotopes 8-4 in Oklahoma City. Albuquerque led 4-0 after their first two at-bats and the Redhawks kept the Isotopes scoreless the rest of the game. Chris Donnels sacrifice flied out and Kevin Hooper two-run singled for the only Isotope RBI's of the contest. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes and Grizzlies concluded their only series of the season tonight with each team winning two games in the series. It was the 9th series split for the Isotopes in 2005. . . . 23,278 fans attended the four games at Grizzlies Stadium for a per-game average of 5,820. . . . The Isotopes and Grizzlies are 6-6 in their all-time series and the Isotopes have a 3-5 record in games played in Fresno. . . . The Isotopes also split their Sacramento/Fresno roadtrip by winning four games and losing four games. 66,895 fans attended the eight games during the California road swing. . . . The Isotopes are a perfect 6-0 in extra inning games in 2005. . . . The 'Topes tied for their longest road game played (12 innings). . . . Joe Dillon had his second 4-hit game of the season. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 8 games, while Jason Wood's hitting streak remained at 10 games since he did not play in the contest. . . . The Isotopes return home for an eight-game homestand. The first four games are against the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). Pitching probables in the opener are RHP Jeff Fulchino (8-7, 5.57) for the Isotopes and RHP Chad Durbin (3-4, 5.56) for the Zephyrs. Filed 08/11/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (9-8) HR: ALB Jason Wood (16) off Seung Song in the 5th inning TIME: 2:43 Frank Castillo tossed seven innings of four-hit, scoreless ball and Jason Wood homered and drove in four total runs as the Isotopes defeated the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) 6-4 on Wednesday evening in Fresno. The Isotopes remained in a first-place tie with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) atop of the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Wood and Matt Padgett singled and Matt Erickson reached on an error to load the bases in the 2nd inning with one out. John Pachot's sacrifice flyout to left field brought home Wood as the Isotopes led 1-0. Josh Wilson and Joe Dillon singled, Wilson advanced to third base on Todd Sears' flyout, and Wood singled to center field to drive in Wilson as the 'Topes extended the lead to 2-0 in the 3rd inning. In the 5th inning, Wilson was hit by a pitch, Dillon ground-rule doubled and Wood homered to left field as the Isotopes led 5-0. Fresno got on the scoreboard in the 8th inning. With one out, Justin Knoedler infield singled and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Doug Clark singled to right field to drive in Knoedler and Mickey Lopez singled to center field to drive in Clark as the Grizzlies cut the defecit to three runs at 5-2. James Shanks singled to right field and later scored on Sears' ground rule double to right field as the Isotopes extended the lead to 6-2 in the top of the 9th inning. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Mike Cervenak flew out to lead off the inning. Brian Dallimore walked and advanced to second on Tony Torcato's groundout. Julio Ramirez infield singled and Knoedler singled to left field to drive in Dallimore and Angel Chavez singled to center field to drive in Ramirez as the Grizzlies cut the defecit to two runs at 6-4. Franklyn Gracesqui entered the game for the Isotopes to relieve John Riedling and got Clark to strike out to preserve the victory. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/09/05): Joe Dillon 78 G, 62 R, 95 H, 15 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 46 BB, 51 K, 9 SB, .593 SLG,
.339 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.57 ERA, 0 SV, 118.0 IP, 142
H, 88 R, 73 ER, 18 HR, 52 BB, 83 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes swept a doubleheader against the Grizzlies at Isotopes Park. In game 1, Joe Dillon sacrifice flied out to drive in the lone Isotope run and Mike Nannini pitched a complete game shutout in a 1-0 victory. In game 2, Ryan Baker made his Triple-A debut with the Isotopes. Baker and Chris Michalak combined on the shutout and Dillon two-run homered in the 6-0 victory. 'Topes Notes: Frank Castillo tied a franchise record for wins by a pitcher in a season when he earned his 9th winning decision of the season. . . . Isotope hitting streaks extended in the contest: Jason Wood to 10 games and Josh Wilson to 7 games. . . . The Isotopes have hit 150 homers in 2005 and are just 15 homers shy of tying the franchise record for homers in a season. . . . Franklyn Gracesqui became the eighth Isotope pitcher in 2005 to record a save. . . . Pitching probables for the final game of the series (and the Isotopes' road trip) are LHP Donovan Osborne (4-0, 4.44) for the Isotopes and RHP Mitch Wylie (1-3, 4.31) for the Grizzlies. Filed 08/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Matt Kinney (5-7) HR: ALB Josh Wilson (16) off Matt Kinney in the 9th inning FRE Todd Linden (30) off Chad Bentz in the 7th inning TIME: 2:22 Matt Kinney went 8 1/3 innings, limiting the Isotopes to one run and five hits while striking out 12 and the Fresno Grizzlies felt rather odd (scoring a single run in the odd numbered innings) as they defeated the Isotopes 4-1 on Tuesday evening. With the loss, the Isotopes have dropped two straight. Doug Clark doubled to left field, advanced to third base on a balk and scored on Mike Cervenak's groundout as the Grizzlies led 1-0 in the 1st inning. Mickey Lopez was hit by a pitch, stole second base and scored on Cervenak's double to left field in the 3rd inning as the Grizzlies extended the lead to 2-0. Cervenak singled to center field, Adam Shabala singled to right field and Brian Dallimore infield singled to drive in Cervenak as the Grizzlies led 3-0. Todd Linden solo-homered to left field in the 7th inning as the Grizzlies built a 4-0 lead. Josh Wilson's solo-homer to left field in the 9th inning insured the Isotopes would not be shut out in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/08/05): Joe Dillon 77 G, 62 R, 95 H, 15 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 46 BB, 51 K, 9 SB, .601 SLG,
.344 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.57 ERA, 0 SV, 118.0 IP, 142
H, 88 R, 73 ER, 18 HR, 52 BB, 83 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes utilized five New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) errors to defeat the Zephyrs 8-4 at Isotopes Park. Abraham Nunez and Gerald Williams drove in a pair of runs for the 'Topes. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes remain tied atop the PCL American Conference Southern Division with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) as the Express also lost this evening. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 9 games and Josh Wilson to 6 games. . . . Corey Hart of the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) was named the PCL Hitter of the Week. Hart drove in 12 runs and hit .455 (10x22) for the week. . . . Chad Durbin of the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) is the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Durbin pitched 14 1/3 innings without allowing a run and struck out 13 as he won both of his starts. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 on Wednesday are RHP Frank Castillo (8-8, 5.55) for the Isotopes and RHP Seung Song (0-0, 3.68) for the Grizzlies. Filed 08/09/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/09/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Matt Cain (9-5) HR: ALB Wilson Delgado (6) off Matt Cain in the 5th inning SAC Todd Linden (29) off Jerrod Fuell in the 7th
inning TIME: 2:36 The Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) hit a pair of solo homers in the 7th inning off Grants, NM native Jerrod Fuell for the game-tying and eventual game-winning runs as the Grizzlies defeated the Isotopes 5-4 in the series opener. In the 1st inning, Julio Ramirez singled, stole second base, moved to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Mike Cervenak's double as the Grizzlies led 1-0. Brian Dallimore doubled and scored on Cervenak's single to center field as the Grizzlies extended the lead to 2-0 in the 3rd inning. Wilson Delgado solo-homered as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard in the 5th inning. The Isotopes took the lead in the 6th inning. James Shanks tripled to center field and scored on Josh Wilson's double. Two outs later, Jason Wood singled to center field to drive in Wilson as the 'Topes led 3-2. Doug DeVore singled and scored on Justin Knoedler's double in the home half of the 6th inning as the Grizzlies tied the game at 3-3. The Isotopes regained the lead in the 7th inning. Delgado walked, moved to second base on Chris Ashby's sacrifice bunt, advanced to third base on a groundout and scored on Shanks' single to right field. Ramirez solo-homered to right field in the 7th inning to tie the game and Todd Linden solo-homered to right field to provide the eventual game-winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/07/05): Joe Dillon 76 G, 62 R, 93 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 45 BB, 50 K, 9 SB, .597 SLG,
.341 AVG Jeff Fulchino 8-7, 5.57 ERA, 0 SV, 118.0 IP, 142
H, 88 R, 73 ER, 18 HR, 52 BB, 83 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Larry Sutton and Josh Wilson each two-run homered in the Isotopes' 7-5 victory over the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: Despite the loss, the Isotopes remained in a first place tie with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 8 games. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Tuesday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-4, 4.56) for the Isotopes and RHP Matt Kinney (4-7, 6.13) for the Grizzlies. Filed 08/08/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino (8-7) HR: SAC Jack Cust (17) off Jeff Fulchino in the 5th inning TIME: 2:55 Jeff Fulchino, Jim Crowell, and Ben Howard combined to keep the River Cats to one run and five hits in the contest as the Isotopes defeated the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) 4-1 in the series finale on Sunday. It was a waste of time to play every inning but the fifth inning since all the scoring occurred in the 5th inning. In the Isotopes half of the inning, Wilson Delgado singled, Matt Erickson was hit by a pitch and John Pachot reached on an error to load the bases. James Shanks reached on an error as Delgado and Erickson scored. Josh Wilson's double brought home Pachot and Todd Sears' groundout drove in Shanks as the Isotopes led 4-0. Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino gave up a solo-homer to Jack Cust in the home half of the 5th inning for Sacramento's only score. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/06/05): Joe Dillon 76 G, 62 R, 93 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 58 RBI, 45 BB, 50 K, 9 SB, .597 SLG,
.341 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-7, 5.75 ERA, 0 SV, 112.2 IP, 138
H, 87 R, 72 ER, 17 HR, 49 BB, 79 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes tallied seven times over the final four frames to come back from a 5-1 defecit to defeat the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) 8-5 at Isotopes Park. Gerald Williams two-run homered and was a single shy of hitting for his second cycle of the season. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes and River Cats split their only series of the 2005 regular season. 43,617 fans attended the games at Raley Field for a per-game average of 10,904. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 7 games. . . . Albuquerque moves on to Fresno to play a four-game series against the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) to conclude the road trip. Pitching probables for the opener are RHP Travis Smith (3-6, 5.01) for the Isotopes and RHP Matt Cain (8-5, 4.61) for the Grizzlies. Filed 08/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Donovan Osborne
(4-0) HR: ALB Larry Barnes (5) off Mike Ziegler in the 2nd inning TIME: 2:32 Larry Barnes three-run homered and the Isotopes bullpen was effective for the first time in four games as the Isotopes defeated the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) 5-3. Todd Sears and Mike Colangelo singled ahead of Barnes' homer to right field as the Isotopes led 3-0 in the 2nd inning. The River Cats trimmed the defecit to a run at 3-2 in their half of the 2nd inning. Shawn Garrett bunt singled and Mike Rouse singled to center field to drive in Garrett. Rouse advanced to second base on an error on the play and scored on Jack Cust's single to left field. In the 4th inning with two outs, Matt Erickson singled to left field, Josh Wilson singled to center field and Joe Dillon's single to center field drove in Erickson and Wilson as the 'Topes led 5-2. Rouse doubled and later scored on Freddie Bynum's infield single as the River Cats closed out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/05/05): Joe Dillon 75 G, 62 R, 91 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 45 BB, 49 K, 9 SB, .601 SLG,
.340 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-7, 5.75 ERA, 0 SV, 112.2 IP, 138
H, 87 R, 72 ER, 17 HR, 49 BB, 79 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost to the River Cats 10-6 at Isotopes Park to drop their ninth straight contest. Sacramento scored eight runs combined in the 6th and 7th innings. Jason Wood three run homered and Matt Padgett drove in a pair of runs in the loss. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes snapped a four-game losing streak and remained in a first place tie with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . John Riedling became the seventh Isotope pitcher to earn a save this season. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale are RHP Jeff Fulchino (7-7, 5.75) for the Isotopes and RHP Seth Etherton (7-5, 2.73) for the River Cats. Filed 08/06/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/06/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Chris Mabeus (7-2) HR: ALB Matt Padgett (17) off Chris Mabeus in the 7th
inning SAC Charles Thomas (4) off Frank Castillo in the 6th inning TIME: 2:47 Shawn Garrett singled home two runs in a three-run 7th inning as the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) snapped a 5-5 tie to defeat the Isotopes 8-5 at Raley Field in Sacramento. The Isotopes remained in a tie for first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division as the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) also lost their contest. In the 2nd inning, Mike Colangelo singled to left field, advanced to second base on Larry Barnes' single to right field and scored on John Pachot's single to left field as the Isotopes led 1-0. Sacramento took the lead in their half of the 2nd inning. Andrew Beattie doubled to left field. An out later, Jack Cust walked and Tom Gregorio doubled to left field to drivein Beattie. Freddie Bynum's groundout plated Cust as the River Cats led 2-1. Joe Dillon walked and Todd Sears followed with a home run to right field as the Isotopes regained the lead at 3-2. For the second inning in a row, the River Cats reclaimed the lead right after the Isotopes took it. Matt Watson singled to left field and Brant Colamarino infield singled. Beattie reached on an error as Watson scored and Garrett doubled to left field to drive in Colamarino as the River Cats held a 4-3 advantage. Charles Thomas solo-homered as the River Cats extended their lead to 5-3. Josh Wilson walked and Matt Padgett followed with a homer to right field as the Isotopes tied the game at 5-5. As was normal for the evening, the River Cats answered an Isotope threat from the prior half-inning right away. In the bottom of the 7th frame, Colamarino doubled to lead off the inning and Beattie reached on a fielder's choice and both runners moved into scoring position utilizing an error on the play. Garrett singled to center field to drive in Colamarino and Beattie. Garrett stole second base and scored on Tom Gregorio's single to center field as the River Cats led 8-5. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/04/05): Joe Dillon 74 G, 61 R, 89 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 44 BB, 48 K, 8 SB, .602 SLG,
.337 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-7, 5.75 ERA, 0 SV, 112.2 IP, 138
H, 87 R, 72 ER, 17 HR, 49 BB, 79 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the highlight for the day was Orbit being honored before the game for being the PCL's best mascot for 2004. In the game itself, the River Cats scored 15 runs in the 5th-7th innings to erase a seven-run defecit to defeat the Isotopes 16-13 at Isotopes Park. The game lasted 3 hours, 54 mintes, the (still) longest 9-inning game at Isotopes Park. Larry Sutton grand-slam homered for the Isotopes in a losing cause. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have tied a season-high by losing four straight games. The Isotopes remain 0-for-August. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 5 games. . . . Saturday's pitching matchup for game 3 of the series should be a good one. LHP Donovan Osborne (3-0, 4.75) is scheduled to take the bump for the Isotopes against reliever-converted-into-starter Juan Cruz (3-1, 2.15) for the River Cats. Many may remember Cruz as a promising Chicago Cubs reliever a couple years ago. Filed 08/05/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Mike Saipe (4-1) HR: ALB Josh Wilson (15) off Ryan Glynn in the 5th
inning TIME: 3:01 The Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) scored nine unanswered runs to erase a five-run defecit and the Isotopes defense did not help matters as the River Cats defeated the Isotopes 12-8 in the series opener Thursday evening in Sacramento. With the loss and a Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) victory, the Isotopes fell into a first-place tie with the Express in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Wilson Delgado tripled to center field to lead off the game and scored on Matt Padgett's sacrifice flyout to right field as the Isotopes took a quick 1-0 lead. Jason Wood solo-homered to left field in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 2-0. With one out in the 3rd inning, Josh Wilson singled and advanced to second base on Padgett's groundout. Joe Dillon was walked intentionally and both batters advanced a base on a wild pitch. Todd Sears drew a walk to load the bases and another wild pitch brought Wilson home. Wood then singled to right field to drive in Dillon and Sears as the 'Topes led 5-0. Sacramento got on the scoreboard in the 4th inning. Matt Watson reached on an error and Brant Colamarino singled to left field. Andrew Beattie's double to left field drove in Watson and Shawn Garrett sacrifice flied out to left field to drive in Colamarino. Jack Cust singled to center field to drive in Beattie as the River Cats trailed by two runs at 5-3. Wilson solo-homered in the 5th inning as the Isotopes doubled up their lead over the River Cats 6-3. Albuquerque scored their final runs in the 6th inning. Wood singled and an out later, Larry Barnes singled. John Pachot doubled to left field to drive in Wood and Barnes as the Isotopes led 8-3. The rest of the game belonged to Sacramento. In the home half of the 6th inning, Garrett walked and Cust reached on an error. John Baker reached on a fielder's choice as Garrett scored. An error on the play allowed Baker to advance to second base. Jermaine Clark singled and Charles Thomas walked to load the bases. Mike Rouse singled to right field to drive in Baker and Matt Watson walked with the bases loaded as Clark trotted home. An out later, Beattie singled to left field to drive in Thomas and Rouse. Garrett reached on another Isotope error as Watson scored. When the inning was over, Sacramento had sent 11 batters to the plate, scored six runs, and led 9-8. In the 7th inning, Baker walked and was replaced by pinch-runner Freddie Bynum. Clark sacrifice bunted to move Bynum to second base and after Thomas walked, Rouse reached on a fielder's choice as Bynum scored. Sacramento closed out the scoring in the 8th inning. With one out, Beattie singled to left field and scored on Garrett's double to right field. An out later, Tom Gregorio doubled to right field to drive in Garrett. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/02/05): Joe Dillon 73 G, 60 R, 89 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 43 BB, 47 K, 8 SB, .609 SLG,
.341 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-7, 5.75 ERA, 0 SV, 112.2 IP, 138
H, 87 R, 72 ER, 17 HR, 49 BB, 79 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Albuquerque tallied for five runs in the 6th inning and four more times in the 7th inning to erase a 7-0 defecit as they defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 9-7 at Isotopes Park. Paul Hoover homered and drove in four total runs in the victory. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes set a franchise record with six errors in the game. The previous franchise record was five errors in a game on June 18, 2003 vs the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies). . . . The Isotopes tied a season-high by relinquishing a five run lead to lose the game. . . . Joe Dillon went 0x3 to snap a 10-game hitting streak. . . . Six of the River Cats' 12 runs were unearned runs. . . . The Isotopes are in a tie for the division lead for the first time since June 19th. . . . The Isotopes gave up the most runs in a game this season on the road (12). . . . Pitching probables on Friday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (8-7, 5.37) for the Isotopes and LHP Dan Meyer (2-6, 5.45) for the River Cats. Castillo can tie an Isotope franchise record for most winning decisions in a season if he can get the victory. Filed 08/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Isotopes and the rest of the PCL have the day off. On Thursday evening, the Isotopes begin an eight-game roadtrip to California to play the Sacramento RiverCats (AAA Athletics) and the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants). The Isotopes find themselves leading the PCL American Conference Southern Division by just one game over the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros). With the just-completed poor homestand (2-6 record), the Isotopes' five game division lead eroded. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: Matt Erickson drew a bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the 11th inning as the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 4-3 at Isotopes Park. Here are the current active team leaders in various categories (through games of 08/02/05): BATTING
Batting Average (min. 20 at-bats): Todd Sears (.352) PITCHING
Wins (Starter): Frank Castillo (8) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Justin Hampson (4-11) HR: CSP Tomas Delarosa (3) off Ben Howard in the 6th
inning ALB Jason Wood (14) off Bobby Seay in the 8th inning TIME: 2:42 The Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) scored all the runs they would need in the 3rd inning as they defeated the Isotopes 7-3 in the series finale at "The Lab" on Tuesday evening. Colorado Springs tallied four times in the 3rd inning. Pascual Matos walked, Sky Sox starter Justin Hampson reached on an error and Jeff Salazar followed with a home run to center field. An out later, Jeff Baker and Tom Wilson singled to center field and Jeff Pickler reached on a fielder's choice. Baker then scored on a passed ball by Chris Ashby. Salazar walked and Ryan Spilborghs singled and Baker grounded out to advance both runners a base. Wilson singled to right field to plate Salazar and Pickler sacrifice-flied out to left field to drive in Spilborghs as the Sky Sox added two more runs to their lead. Tomas Delarosa solo-homered in the 6th inning as the Sky Sox closed out their scoring in the game with a 7-0 lead. Josh Wilson led off the 6th inning by reaching on an error and scored on Matt Padgett's double as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard. In the 7th inning, Larry Barnes doubled and later scored on Josh Wilson's groundout and Jason Wood solo-homered to left field in the 8th inning as the Isotopes closed out the scoring for both teams in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 08/01/05): Joe Dillon 72 G, 60 R, 88 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 42 BB, 47 K, 8 SB, .615 SLG,
.342 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-7, 5.75 ERA, 0 SV, 112.2 IP, 138
H, 87 R, 72 ER, 17 HR, 49 BB, 79 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Abraham Nunez solo-homered in the 8th inning to snap a 4-4 tie and Blaine Neal shut down the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) in the 9th inning as the Isotopes defeated the Redbirds 5-4 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: Since Colorado Springs changed PCL conferences in 2005, this just-completed series was the only series the two clubs have against each other in the regular season. Colorado Springs won three out of the four games. . . . The Isotopes drew 43,223 fans for the four game series and a very impressive 83,704 for the eight-game homestand. It is just too bad the Isotopes went 2-6 on the homestand. Lately, the Isotopes have shown to be road warriors but they need to start winning at home if they want a chance at the division title. The homestand is the final homestand before Albuquerque kids go back to school so the impressive attendance may not continue through the 17 remaining home dates. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 10 games while Josh Wilson went hitless to snap a 8 game streak. . . . After an off day on Wednesday, the Isotopes open up an eight-game road trip with a four-game series in Sacramento against the Sacramento RiverCats (AAA Athletics). Pitching probables for the opener are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-4, 4.43) for the Isotopes and RHP Ryan Glynn (1-1, 1.52) for the RiverCats. Filed 08/02/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: P.J. Bevis (1-0) HR: CSP Tom Wilson (9) off Bryan Corey in the 4th inning ALB Jason Wood (13) off Mike Esposito in the 3rd inning
TIME: 3:18 In a game televised on the Altitude TV regional sports network, Jason Wood's grand slam homer and Josh Wilson's two-run homer was not enough as the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) outslugged the Isotopes 13-8. Colorado Springs began the scoring in the 2nd inning. Tom Wilson doubled to center field and scored on Jeff Pickler's triple to right field. Choo Freeman walked and was erased on Tomas Delarosa's fielder's choice with Pickler scoring. An out later, Sky Sox starter Mike Esposito doubled to right field and Jeff Salazar singled to right field to drive in Delarosa and Esposito as the Sky Sox led 4-0. Tom Wilson doubled and scored when Pickler reached on an error in the 3rd inning as the Sky Sox extended the lead to 5-0. Albuquerque took the lead in their half of the 3rd inning using two-out mojo. Wilson Delgado walked and Josh Wilson followed with a home run to center field. Matt Padgett walked, Joe Dillon singled and Todd Sears drew a walk ahead of Wood's grand-slam home run to left field as Albuquerque led 6-5. Colorado Springs immediately regained the lead for good in the 4th inning. Esposito and Salazar singled and Ryan Spilborghs grounded into a double play with Salazar out at second base. Jeff Baker singled to left field to drive in Esposito and Tom Wilson followed with a two-run homer. Pickler singled and Freeman walked and Delarosa singled to left field to drive in Pickler as the Sky Sox led 9-6. Josh Wilson infield singled in the 5th inning, advanced to second base on Padgett's single, moved to third base on Dillon's flyout and scored on Sears' single as the Isotopes cut the defecit to two runs at 9-7. The Sky Sox increased the lead back to three runs in the 6th inning. Pickler walked, moved to second base on Freeman's single, advanced to third base on Delarosa's double play, and stole home. The Sky Sox scored three more times in the 8th inning. Pickler walked with one out and Freeman infield singled. Delarosa doubled to right field to drive in Pickler and Freeman. An error on the relay throw from the outfield on the play advanced Delarosa to third base and Dan Conway singled to right field to bring Delarosa home as the Sky Sox led 13-7. Padgett singled to right field in the 9th inning, advanced a base on a wild pitch, moved to third base on Dillon's flyout and scoed on Sears' single to center field to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/31/05): Joe Dillon 71 G, 59 R, 86 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 18 HR, 57 RBI, 42 BB, 46 K, 8 SB, .619 SLG,
.341 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.45 ERA, 0 SV, 109.0 IP, 129
H, 80 R, 66 ER, 17 HR, 47 BB, 78 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Nashville scored three times in the 6th inning to take a lead they would never relinquish as the Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) defeated the Isotopes 4-2 in Nashville. Abraham Nunez and Matt Erickson drove in a run each for the Isotopes. 'Topes Notes: Jason Wood's grand-slam homer was the second Isotope grand-slam homer in as many games and the sixth Isotope grand-slam homer of 2005. . . . Two Isotopes extended their hitting streaks in the contest: Joe Dillon to 9 games and Josh Wilson to 8 games. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is Matt Diaz of the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). Diaz went 20x33 (.606) for the week with eight RBI and seven doubles. . . . The PCL Pitcher of the Week is Kip Bouknight of the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). Bouknight allowed 2 runs in 12 innings of work and earned two winning decisions. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale and the last meeting between the two clubs in the 2005 regular season are RHP Travis Smith (3-5, 4.80) for the Isotopes and LHP Justin Hampson (3-11, 6.55) for the Sky Sox. Filed 08/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 08/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Donovan Osborne (3-0) HR: CSP J.J. Davis (14) off Donovan Osborne in the 2nd
inning ALB Joe Dillon (18) off Jason Young in the 1st inning
TIME: 2:38 Donovan Osborne pitched mostly 6 2/3 quality innings to minimize the need for the bullpen and Joe Dillon grand-slam homered in the Isotopes' 8-5 victory over the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) on Sunday evening at "The Lab". With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a four-game losing streak. Wilson Delgado singled to right field, Josh Wilson singled to left field, and Matt Padgett drew a walk ahead of Joe Dillon's grand-slam homer to left center field as the Isotopes quickly built a 4-0 lead after one inning of play. Donovan Osborne's worst inning was the 2nd inning when he gave up five runs. J.J. Davis solo-homered to left field to begin the inning. Choo Freeman singled to left field and after Elvis Pena struck out, Dan Conway tripled to the right-center field wall as Freeman came around to score. Sky Sox starter Jason Young then two-run homered to the picnic area in left field. Jeff Salazar singled to right-center field and scored on Jeff Baker's single to left field as the Sky Sox led 5-4. In the 4th inning, Todd Sears led off the inning with a homer to left-center field to tie the game at 5-5. Jason Wood followed with a single to left field and Mike Colangelo's fly ball to left-center field was dropped for a two-base error as Wood came around to score the go-ahead run. Albuquerque added insurance runs in the 5th inning. With two outs, Dillon singled to right-center field and Sears walked. Wood's single to left-center field brought home Dillon and Colangelo's double down the left-field line drove in Sears as the Isotopes led 8-5. Other than the 2nd inning, Donovan Osborne did a great job of keeping the Sky Sox at bay. Osborne gave up 9 hits and 5 earned runs in his 6 2/3 innings while walking none and striking out 5. Hopefully Randy Messenger's performance this evening will set the tone to get the bullpen back on track. Messenger finished up the game (2 1/3 innings) and gave up no hits, no runs, walked 3 and struck out 3. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/30/05): Joe Dillon 70 G, 57 R, 84 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 17 HR, 53 RBI, 42 BB, 45 K, 8 SB, .609 SLG,
.339 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.45 ERA, 0 SV, 109.0 IP, 129
H, 80 R, 66 ER, 17 HR, 47 BB, 78 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) scored in each of their final five frames to erase a 4-0 defecit to defeat the Isotopes 8-4 in Tacoma. Mike Colangelo's grand-slam home run accounted for the four Isotope runs. 'Topes Notes: 12,189 fans attended the game -- as impressive as it is, the attendance is not another top 10 Isotopes Park attendance figure like the previous two nights. 38,052 fans attended the Friday, Saturday, and Sunday games. . . . The Isotopes went 15-13 in July (5-8 at home, 10-5 on the road). Considering the Isotopes have more home dates than road dates left, they are going to have to learn to win at Isotopes Park if they want a good shot at becoming division champions. . . . The Isotopes hit 29 homers in July. If the Isotopes can homer more than 26 more times in 2005, they will set the franchise record for homers in a season. . . . The Isotopes scored 142 runs in July, the second highest output for runs in a month this season (May - 198 was the highest). . . . Joe Dillon's grand-slam homer was his first grand-slam homer of 2005 and the team's fifth grand-slam homer this season. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 8 games and Josh Wilson extended his streak to 7 games. . . . Randy Messenger earned his first save since July 2nd at Omaha (AAA Royals). . . . The Isotopes and Sky Sox meet in Game 3 Monday evening, a contest televised by the Altitude TV regional sports network and receiviable in Albuquerque by satellite. Pitching probables are RHP Jeff Fulchino (7-6, 5.45) for the Isotopes and RHP Mike Esposito (7-5, 5.11) for the Sky Sox. Filed 07/31/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Wilton Chavez (1-6) HR: CSP Pascual Matos (4) off Ben Howard in the 8th
inning ALB Wilson Delgado (5) off Zach Day in the 1st inning TIME: 3:00 In front of another Isotopes Park top-10 crowd, the Colorado Springs Sky Sox
(AAA Rockies) tallied for three total runs in the 7th/8th innings off a
continuing ineffective Isotopes bullpen as the Sky Sox defeated the
Isotopes Colorado Springs' Tomas Delarosa was hit by a pitch, stole second base and scored on Jeff Baker's single to center field as the Sky Sox led 1-0 after half an inning of play. Wilson Delgado led off the Isotopes at-bat portion of the game with a solo-homer to tie the game at 1-1. Elvis Pena reached on a fielder's choice and scored on Pascual Matos' double to right field in the 2nd inning as the Sky Sox regained the lead at 2-1. Jeff Pickler and Baker back-to-back homered in the 3rd inning as Colorado Springs extended the lead to 4-1. Joe Dillon singled to lead off the home half of the 3rd inning. After Matt Padgett grounded out, Mike Colangelo was hit by a pitch and Todd Sears doubled to center field to drive in Dillon and Colangelo as the Isotopes trimmed the defecit to a run at 4-3. The Isotopes took the lead at 5-4 in the 4th inning. With two outs, Josh Wilson doubled and Dillon walked and Padgett followed with a double to left field that brought them both home. Colorado Springs did not waste any time regaining the lead. With two outs, Pickler singled, stole second base and scored on Baker's single to center field. Ryan Spilborghs tripled to right field to drive in Baker as the Sky Sox led 6-5. Sears doubled to center field, moved to third base on Larry Barnes' flyout and scored on a passed ball as the Isotopes tied the game at 6-6 in the home half of the 5th inning. Colorado Springs took the lead for good in the 7th inning. Jeff Salazar doubled to right field and two outs later, Baker singled to left field to drive in Salazar. The Sky Sox added insurance runs in the 8th inning. Choo Freeman reached on an error and later scored on Matos' homer to center field as the Sky Sox led 9-6. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/29/05): Joe Dillon 69 G, 55 R, 83 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 17 HR, 53 RBI, 40 BB, 45 K, 8 SB, .612 SLG,
.339 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.45 ERA, 0 SV, 109.0 IP, 129
H, 80 R, 66 ER, 17 HR, 47 BB, 78 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Albuquerque scored five times in the 11th inning to defeat the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) 9-4 at Herschel Greer Stadium in Nashville. Matt Treanor, Chad Allen, Derek Wathan, Jason Wood and Kevin Hooper all drove in a run each in that 11th inning. 'Topes Notes: 13,168 is the 6th largest crowd in Isotopes Park history (5th largest regular season crowd in Isotopes Park history). To put that in perspective, the April 11, 2003 Isotopes Park regular season opener crowd is now the 16th largest regular season crowd. . . . The Isotopes have lost four straight games, tying their season-worst 2005 losing streak. The Isotopes have also tied their season-worst home losing streak (also at 4 games). . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 7 games and Josh Wilson to 6 games. . . . Isotopes pitching has allowed opponent back-to-back homers for the third time this season (Jeff Pickler and Jeff Baker accomplished the feat tonight). . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Sunday evening are LHP Donovan Osborne (2-0, 4.37) for the Isotopes and RHP Jason Young (9-5, 5.13) for the Sky Sox. Another strong Isotope Park crowd is expected, maybe even a top 10 crowd for the third night in a row. Filed 07/30/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Greg Jones (1-1) HR: SLC Luke Allen (20) off Jim Crowell in the 9th
inning ALB Josh Wilson (13) off Clayton Andrews in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:42 Luke Allen's 9th inning homer began a three-run outburst to snap a 3-3 tie as the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) defeated the Isotopes 6-3 in the series finale at "The Lab" on Friday evening. With the loss, the Isotopes have dropped three straight games. Wilson Delgado singled in the 1st inning, advanced to second base on Josh Wilson's groundout and scored on Joe Dillon's single as the Isotopes led 1-0. Wilson solo-homered in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 2-0. Adam Pavkovich solo-homered in the 5th inning as the Stingers cut the defecit to a run at 2-1. Pavkovich reached on an error in the 8th inning, moved to second base when Chris Prieto laid down a sacrifice bunt, and scored on Alberto Callaspo's single to center field as the Stingers tied the game at 2-2. Casey Kotchman walked and an out later, Curtis Pride singled to left field to drive in Callaspo to give the Stingers a 3-2 lead. The Isotopes tied the game in their half of the 8th inning. Chris Ashby infield singled and Delgado singled to right field. Wilson sacrifice bunted both runners into scoring position and Dillon walked to load the bases. Jason Wood flew out before Matt Padgett was hit by a pitch to bring Ashby home. The Stingers won the game with a three-run 9th inning. Allen led off the inning with a home run to left-center field. Brian Specht followed with a bunt single and Pavkovich singled to left field. Prieto laid down his second sacrifice bunt of the night as Specht and Pavkovich moved up a base and Callaspo singled to center field to drive them both in. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/28/05): Joe Dillon 68 G, 55 R, 82 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 17 HR, 52 RBI, 38 BB, 45 K, 7 SB, .613 SLG,
.337 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.45 ERA, 0 SV, 109.0 IP, 129
H, 80 R, 66 ER, 17 HR, 47 BB, 78 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Scott Sanders tossed his second complete game of the season and struck out 11 batters (setting an Isotopes franchise record to that date in franchise history) as the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) 5-2 at Herschel Greer Stadium in Nashville. 'Topes Notes: 12,695 is the 10th largest crowd in Isotopes Park history (or the 9th largest regular season Isotopes Park crowd). It is also the fourth largest crowd of 2005 at "The Lab". . . . The Stingers took three out of the four games against the Isotopes in their only meeting in 2005 and Albuquerque and Salt Lake are tied 6-6 in the all-time series. 40,481 fans came through the Isotopes Park turnstiles for an impressive per-game average of 10,120. . . . Through 50 home dates (yesterday's game), the Isotopes season attendance is running ahead of 2003's franchise record attendance. In 2003 through 50 home dates, the Isotopes drew 390,390 for a per-game average of 7,808. In 2005 through 50 home dates, the Isotopes drew 392,344 for a per-game average of 7,847. The attendance through the weekend series with the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) looks strong as it is the last homestand weekend before the Albuquerque kids return to school. It should be interesting to see if the attendance this weekend will help create enough of a buffer to eventually help the Isotopes set a new season attendance mark with 17 home dates after school is back in session. With kids unable to stay up late on a school night, expect attendance to drop a little bit in August. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Jim Crowell earned his second losing decision out of the last three games. . . . The Isotopes and Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) open up a four-game series starting Saturday evening. Pitching probables for the opener are RHP Frank Castillo (8-7, 5.12) for the Isotopes and RHP Zach Day (no record) for the Sky Sox. Day came to the Colorado organization from the Washington Nationals in the Preston Wilson trade. Filed 07/29/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Joe Saunders (2-1) HR: SLC Chris Bootcheck (9) off Travis Smith in the 8th inning
TIME: 2:32 Casey Kotchman homered twice in the Salt Lake Stingers' (AAA Angels) 5-2 victory over the Isotopes on Thursday evening at "The Lab". Albuquerque's Travis Smith and Salt Lake's Joe Saunders tossed scoreless ball over the first five innings. It wasn't until the sixth inning that the scoreless tie was broken when Salt Lake's Curtis Pride doubled to center field, stole third base and scored on a throwing error during the steal attempt. Salt Lake added to the lead in the 8th inning. Casey Kotchman solo-homered to lead off the inning and Nick Gorneault drew a walk. Gorneault stole second base and Pride walked. Adam Pavkovich sacrifice bunted both runners into scoring position and Brian Gordon was intentionally walked to load the bases. Ryan Budde singled to left field to drive in Gorneault and Pride as the Stingers led 4-0. Albuquerque cut the defecit in half at 4-2 in the bottom of the 8th inning. With one out, Ryan Jorgensen singled to left field and after Wilson Delgado flied out, Josh Wilson doubled to center field to drive in Jorgensen. Wilson took third on an error on the play and Joe Dillon singled to left field to drive in Wilson. Kotchman solo-homered again in the 9th inning to close out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/27/05): Joe Dillon 67 G, 55 R, 81 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 17 HR, 51 RBI, 36 BB, 45 K, 7 SB, .614 SLG,
.336 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.45 ERA, 0 SV, 109.0 IP, 129
H, 80 R, 66 ER, 17 HR, 47 BB, 78 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Gerald Williams homered twice and drove in what is still a franchise-high eight runs as the Isotopes defeated the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) 11-6 at Cashman Field in Las Vegas. With that victory, the Isotopes swept the four-game series against the 51s. 'Topes Notes: The start of the game was delayed 15 minutes due to a rain shower just before gametime. . . . Jason Wood went hitless to snap a six game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Friday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-4, 4.71) for the Isotopes and RHP Chris Bootcheck (4-3, 4.72) for the Stingers. Friday's game marks the final meeting between the two clubs in 2005. Filed 07/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Dusty Bergman (7-3) HR: SLC Nick Gorneault (19) off Clint Sodowsky in the 9th inning ALB Joe Dillon (17) off Eric Cyr in the 1st inning
TIME: 3:15 The Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) tallied for 13 runs in the final three frames to come back from a 5-1 defecit to comfortably defeat the Isotopes 14-7 in the second game of the series at "The Lab" on Wednesday evening. With the defeat, the Isotopes snapped a three-game winning streak. Joe Dillon solo-homered to left field in the 1st inning as the Isotopes quickly led 1-0. Albuquerque added to their lead in the 3rd inning. Larry Barnes tripled and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to left field. Josh Wilson walked and an out later, Jason Wood singled to left field to bring Delgado home as the 'Topes led 3-0. Delgado walked to lead off the 5th inning and Wilson followed with a home run to left field as the Isotopes extended the lead to 5-0. Nick Gorneault singled, advanced to third base on Luke Allen's single and scored on Adam Pavkovich's single to center field as the Stingers got on the scoreboard. The first of the three big Salt Lake scoring innings was the 7th inning. Chris Prieto singled to right field and Alberto Callaspo singled to left field. Casey Kotchman's single to left field drove in Prieto but Callaspo was thrown out at home plate. Gorneault doubled to left field to drive in Kotchman and Allen tripled to right field to drive in Gorneault. Jeff Mathis' single to right field drove in Allen as the Stingers tied the game at 5-5. Albuquerque briefly regained the lead in the 7th inning. Chris Ashby walked to lead off the inning and scored an out later on Wilson's single. Dillon singled to move Wilson to third base and Wilson scampered home on a wild pitch to give the Isotopes a 7-5 advantage. Salt Lake took the lead for good in the 8th inning. With one out, Prieto walked and Callaspo singled to left field. Kotchman's double drove in Prieto and Callaspo. Gorneault singled to right field to drive in Kotchman and Allen doubled to right field. After Mathis struck out swinging, Brian Gordon was intentionally walked to load the bases and Curtis Pride singled to left field to drive in Gorneault and Allen. The Stingers sent 10 men to the plate in the inning and led 10-7. Salt Lake added four insurance runs in the 9th inning. Prieto singled and Callaspo doubled to put two runners in scoring position. Kotchman reached on a fielding error by Isotopes second baseman Delgado as Prieto scored and Gorneault three-run homered to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/26/05): Joe Dillon 66 G, 54 R, 78 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 50 RBI, 36 BB, 44 K, 7 SB, .602 SLG,
.331 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.68 ERA, 0 SV, 103.0 IP, 120
H, 79 R, 65 ER, 17 HR, 46 BB, 73 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Peter Bauer made his Triple-A debut by tossing seven innings of one-run ball and Drew Niles homered and drove in three total runs as the Isotopes defeated the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) 5-1 at PGE Park in Portland, Oregon. 'Topes Notes: The seven Isotopes pitchers in the game gave up 24 hits combined, setting a season-high for most hits allowed in a game. . . . Tonight's game was the fourth game this season that the Isotopes had a five run lead but ended up losing the game. . . . The Isotopes tied a season-high by grounded into four double plays. . . . With their two homers tonight, the Isotopes find themselves 30 homers away from tying a franchise record for homers in a season. A decent homer total in August should be enough to set the record. . . . RHP Travis Smith (3-4, 5.13) is the pitching probable for the Isotopes in Game 3 of the series. Eric Cyr was supposed to be tomorrow's pitching probable for the Stingers, but he made the start tonight so LHP Joe Saunders (1-1, 3.29) is scheduled to start tomorrow for the Stingers. Filed 07/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jim Crowell (2-2) HR: ALB Josh Wilson (11) off Evan Thomas in the 6th inning TIME: 2:48 Todd Sears drove in Joe Dillon with the game winning run in the bottom of the 9th inning as the Isotopes defeated the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) 6-5 in the series opener at "The Lab". Albuquerque has won three straight games. Salt Lake was the first team to get on the scoreboard, tallying twice in the 4th inning. Casey Kotchman doubled to left field and an out later, Jeff Mathis singled to right field. Luke Allen's triple to left field cleared the bases to bring both runs home. Albuquerque took the lead in their half of the 4th inning. With one out, Todd Sears singled to center field and Mike Colangelo singled to right field. Larry Barnes' groundout plated Sears and Chris Ashby and Wilson Delgado walked to load the bases. Josh Wilson's double to left field drove in Barnes and Ashby as the Isotopes led 3-2. Salt Lake regained the lead in the 5th inning. Casey Smith singled to right field and scored on Chris Prieto's triple to right field. Alberto Callaspo's single to center drove in Prieto as the Stingers held a 4-3 advantage. Ashby singled and scored on Wilson's home run to left field in the 6th inning as the Isotopes took a 5-4 lead. Salt Lake's Brian Gordon doubled to center field, moved to third base on Adam Pavkovich sacrifice bunt and scored on Casey Smith's fielder's choice as the Stingers tied the game at 5-5 in the top of the 9th inning. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Dillon singled to center field and Matt Padgett followed with a single to right field. An out later, Sears sealed Albuquerque's 13th last at-bat win of the season with a single to right field that plated Dillon with the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/25/05): Joe Dillon 65 G, 53 R, 77 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 50 RBI, 36 BB, 44 K, 7 SB, .605 SLG,
.330 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.68 ERA, 0 SV, 103.0 IP, 120
H, 79 R, 65 ER, 17 HR, 46 BB, 73 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) defeated the Isotopes 17-8 at Isotopes Park. Isotopes pitching allowed six homers in the game to the Royals, including four homers in just one inning. Omaha tallied eight runs in the 2nd inning and six runs in the 9th inning to account for most of their scoring. 'Topes Notes: With the victory, the Isotopes continue to establish a new franchise record for most wins over the .500 mark, now at 12 games. . . . Albuquerque also tied a franchise record for a division lead when they increased their PCL American Conference Southern Division lead over the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) to 5 games. . . . Wilson Delgado went 0x2 to snap a 10-game hitting streak. . . . Aaron Guiel of the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) is the PCL Hitter of the Week. Guiel belted five homers and drove in 10 runs during the week to earn the honor. . . . Justin Germano of the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week just as he left the league. Germano pitched a complete game shutout against the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) on July 19th, allowing just four hits. Germano leaves the league as the Padres and Reds consummated a trade that sent Joe Randa to San Diego in exchange for Germano and Travis Chick. Germano is now pitching for the Louisville Bats (AAA Reds) in the International League. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Wednesday are RHP Jeff Fulchino (7-6, 5.68) for the Isotopes and LHP Joe Saunders (1-1, 3.29) for the Stingers. Filed 07/26/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (8-7) HR: ALB Mike Colangelo (7) off Matt White in the 6th inning NRL Tyrell Godwin (6) off Bryan Corey in the 7th
inning TIME: 3:01 Mike Colangelo's grand-slam homer keyed a five-run 6th inning as the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) 5-2 to set another high-water mark franchise record. Albuquerque was the first team on the scoreboard in the 6th inning. Eric Reed tripled to right field and Josh Wilson singled to left field to drive in Reed. Joe Dillon singled to right field and Jason Wood sacrifice-bunted both runners into scoring position. Matt Padgett drew a walk to load the bases and Colangelo followed with his grand-slam home run to left-center field. New Orleans' only runs were provided with a pair of solo homers -- Tony Blanco (6th inning, to left field) and Tyrell Godwin (7th inning, to left field). Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/24/05): Joe Dillon 64 G, 52 R, 76 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 50 RBI, 35 BB, 44 K, 7 SB, .606 SLG,
.329 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.68 ERA, 0 SV, 103.0 IP, 120
H, 79 R, 65 ER, 17 HR, 46 BB, 73 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Matt Treanor's two-run homer provided the eventual game winning runs as the Isotopes defeated the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) 4-3 at Cashman Field in Las Vegas. 'Topes Notes: Albuquerque is 11 games over the .500 mark, setting a new franchise record. . . . Albuquerque took three out of the four games in New Orleans during this series. Tonight's game marked the final meeting of 2005 between the Isotopes and Zephyrs at Zephyr Field with the Isotopes winning 5 out of the 8 games. 23,325 fans came through the turnstiles at Zephyr Field during the four-game series and 52,706 fans rooted against the Isotopes during the 12-game roadtrip. . . . Albuquerque went 8-4 during their just-completed franchise-record tying 12-game roadtrip. . . . Wilson Delgado extended his hitting streak to 10 games. . . . Mike Colangelo belted the fourth Isotope grand-slam homer of 2005. . . . Jim Crowell saved three out of the four games in the series. . . . Albuquerque returns home in good shape to begin an eight-game homestand. The first four games are against the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels), the only meeting of the year between the two clubs. Pitching probables for the opener are LHP Donovan Osborne (2-0, 4.18) for the Isotopes and RHP Evan Thomas (3-2, 6.92) for the Stingers. Filed 07/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Howard (5-2) HR: ALB Larry Barnes (4) off Brian Powell in the 2nd inning
NRL Kevin Orie (16) off Ariel Prieto in the 5th inning
TIME: 3:58 The Isotopes tallied three times in the final two frames to snap a 3-3 tie as they defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) 6-3 on Sunday evening. Eric Reed led off the game with a bunt single and advanced to second base on a throwing error on the play. Josh Wilson walked but was removed from the basepaths when Matt Padgett reached on a fielder's choice. Joe Dillon singled into right field to bring Reed home. Larry Barnes solo-homered to right field in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes led 2-0. The Zephyrs tied the game in the 3rd inning. With one out, Craig Kuzmic solo-homered to right field. Zephyrs starter Brian Powell followed with a single to right field. Brandon Watson singled and both runners advanced into scoring position on a passed ball before Tyrell Godwin hit into a sacrifice fly double play to left field with Powell scoring. Kevin Orie solo-homered in the 5th inning as the Zephyrs took a 3-2 lead, but the Isotopes tied the game at 3-3 in the 6th inning. Wilson was hit by a pitch, moved to third base on Padgett's double and scored on Todd Sears' sacrifice flyout to center field. The Isotopes took the lead for good in the 8th inning. Dillon walked and advanced to third base on Sears' double to right field. Wilson Delgado was intentionally walked to load the bases and Jason Wood walked to bring Dillon home. In the 9th inning, Eric Reed inside-the-park homered. An out later, Padgett doubled and later scored on Delgado's single to center field as the Isotopes added insurance runs. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/23/05): Joe Dillon 63 G, 51 R, 75 H, 14 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 49 RBI, 34 BB, 44 K, 7 SB, .610 SLG,
.329 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.68 ERA, 0 SV, 103.0 IP, 120
H, 79 R, 65 ER, 17 HR, 46 BB, 73 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: It was a night of firsts for the Isotopes in 2003 as they defeated the Zephyrs (then an Astros affiliate) 7-4 at Isotopes Park. Gerald Williams became the first Isotope to hit for the cycle and Scott Sanders became the first Isotopes pitcher to hit a home run. Williams' homer in his cycle was of the inside-the-park variety. 'Topes Notes: Eric Reed's inside-the-park home run was the sixth in Isotopes franchise history and the first one accomplished in a road contest. The last Isotope to have an inside-the-park homer was Derek Wathan on June 24, 2004 against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). . . . Tonight's contest was delayed for an hour and 18 minutes by rain in the 4th inning. . . . The 3 hour, 58 minute contest was the longest 9-inning game in Isotopes franchise history. The previous longest 9-inning game was 3 hours, 54 minutes in a contest at Isotopes Park against the Redhawks on 08/05/04. . . . Wilson Delgado extended his hitting streak to 9 games. . . . Pitching probables for the series (and roadtrip) finale are RHP Frank Castillo (7-7, 5.31) for the Isotopes and LHP Matt White (4-4, 3.29) for the Zephyrs. Filed 07/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Stephen Randolph (1-2) HR: NRL Juan Melo (7) off Travis Smith in the 6th
inning TIME: 3:07 A four-run 3rd inning propelled the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) to a 8-4 victory over the Isotopes on Saturday evening in Metarie, Louisiana. The Isotopes took a quick lead in the contest. Joe Dillon, Jason Wood and Matt Padgett each walked to load the bases and Mike Colangelo singled to center field to drive in Dillon and Wood as the Isotopes led 2-0. New Orleans' Tony Blanco solo-homered in the bottom of the 2nd inning as the Zephyrs halved the defecit at 2-1. Dillon walked, advanced to second base on Wood's single, and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to center field in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes led 3-1. New Orleans took a lead they would never relinquish in their half of the 3rd inning. Zephyrs starter Stephen Randolph doubled to center field and Brandon Watson bunt singled. Tyrell Godwin singled to left field to drive in Randolph and an error on a pickoff play advanced both runners into scoring position. Nick Johnson, with the Zephyrs on a rehabilitation assignment, drew a walk to load the bases. Rick Short came into the game as a pinch runner for Johnson. Tony Blanco singled to left field to drive in Watson and, with the bases still loaded, Brendan Harris reached on a fielder's choice as Godwin scored. Juan Melo singled to right field to drive in Short as the Zephyrs led 5-3. Melo solo-homered in the 6th inning to extend the Zephyrs lead to 6-3. The Isotopes scored their final run of the game in the 8th inning -- Matt Padgett infield singled, stole second base and scored when Wilson Delgado reached on an error by Zephyrs left-fielder Godwin. New Orleans closed out the scoring in the game in their half of the 8th inning. Melo walked and advanced to third base on two wild pitches uncorked by Isotopes reliever Franklyn Gracesqui. After getting Hector Ortiz to strike out, Gracesqui intentionally walked Kevin Orie and another wild pitch brought home Melo. Orie moved to third base on Watson's groundout and scored on Godwin's single to center field. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Zephyrs (an Astros affiliate in 2003) 6-3 at Isotopes Park. Derek Wathan drove in two runs, Robert Stratton two-run homered, and Matt Treanor and Wilson Valdez drove in a run each. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have reached the 100 game mark with the best record for that point in franchise history - 55 wins and 46 losses. 44 more games are left in the regular season. . . . Joe Dillon's 7-game hitting streak was snapped while Wilson Delgado extended his streak to 8 games. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-4, 4.84) for the Isotopes and RHP Brian Powell (6-6, 5.74) for the Zephyrs. Filed 07/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Bryan Corey (3-4) HR: ALB Josh Wilson (10) off Chad Durbin in the 1st inning
NRL Dee Brown (2) off Bryan Corey in the 7th inning TIME: 2:38 Josh Wilson singled home the game winning run in the 9th inning as the Isotopes tallied twice to break a 4-4 tie to defeat the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) 6-4 in the series opener. Wilson solo-homered in the 1st inning and Mike Colangelo solo homered in the 4th inning as the Isotopes built a 2-0 lead. In the 5th inning, Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino solo-homered with one out. Eric Reed followed with a single and advanced to second base on a throwing error on the play. After stealing third base, Wilson and Matt Padgett walked to load the bases and Jason Wood sacrifice flied out to center field to bring home Reed as Albuquerque led 4-0. New Orleans began their comeback in their half of the 5th inning. Zephyrs starter Chad Durbin singled to right field and advanced to second base on a pickoff attempt that was thrown wildly by Fulchino to first base. Brandon Watson singled to center to drive in Durbin. In the 7th inning, the Zephyrs tied the game at 4-4. With one out, Kevin Orie tripled to center field and scored on Hector Ortiz's double to center. Dee Brown followed with a two-run home run to right field. Albuquerque went ahead for good in the 9th inning. Joe Dillon pinch-hit singled and Eric Reed sacrifice bunted Dillon to second base. Josh Wilson's single to center brought home Dillon and Wilson advanced to third base on Padgett's single to right field. A wild pitch brought Wilson home as the Isotopes led 6-4. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (an Astros affiliate in 2004) 8-3 at Isotopes Park. A five-run 2nd inning provided all the runs the Isotopes would need for the victory. Jason Wood two-run homered, Ryan Christenson RBI doubled, and Josh Wilson drove in a pair of runs with a single in the inning. 'Topes Notes: Jeff Fulchino became the fourth Isotopes pitcher in franchies history to homer in a game and the first one to do so since Aaron Small homered on August 14, 2004 against the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) in Des Moines. . . . The last at-bat win was the 12th for the Isotopes in 2005. . . . Albuquerque has yet to name a pitching probable for the second game of the series on Saturday. LHP Stephen Randolph (0-2, 10.80) is the scheduled starter for the Zephyrs. Filed 07/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/24/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Donovan Osborne (2-0) HR: ALB Josh Wilson (9) off John Koronka in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:36 With his start pushed up a day, Donovan Osborne tossed six innings of one run ball and Mike Colangelo drove in three runs as the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 5-1 in the series finale Thursday night in Des Moines, Iowa. Iowa's Calvin Murray doubled to left field in the 1st inning, stole third base and scored on an error on the throw as the Cubs scored their only run of the game. Josh Wilson solo-homered in the 3rd inning to tie the game and Jason Wood doubled in the 4th inning and scored on Colangelo's single as the Isotopes took a 2-1 lead. Albuquerque put the game away in the 8th inning, tallying three times. Joe Dillon drew a walk to lead off the inning and Wood and Matt Padgett followed with singles (Padgett's single driving in Dillon). Colangelo doubled to left field to drive in Wood and Padgett as Albuquerque led 5-1. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/20/05): Joe Dillon 60 G, 47 R, 73 H, 13 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 49 RBI, 30 BB, 42 K, 7 SB, .613 SLG,
.329 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.89 ERA, 0 SV, 96.1 IP, 112
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 45 BB, 67 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Larry Sutton doubled and scored on Brian Banks' pinch-hit single to right field in the 9th inning as the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2004) 8-7 at Isotopes Park. Matt Padgett solo-homered and Josh Wilson two-run homered in the contest. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes and Cubs split the four-game series 2-2. Tonight's game marked the final season meeting between the two clubs in Des Moines and Iowa took 5 out of the 8 games in 2005 at Principal Park. Iowa travels to Albuquerque for four games in August to conclude the season series. 29,516 fans attended the four game series in Iowa. . . . Wilson Delgado and Joe Dillon extended their hitting streaks to 6 games. . . . Albuquerque concludes the roadtrip with a four-game series against the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). Pitching probables are RHP Jeff Fulchino (7-6, 5.89) for the Isotopes and RHP Chad Durbin (1-4, 7.19) for the Zephyrs. The game will be regionally televised by COX Sports Louisiana with the ability of Albuquerqueans to receive the feed by satellite. Filed 07/21/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Bobby Brownlie (5-4) HR: ALB Matt Padgett (15) off Rich Hill in the 2nd
inning IWA Corey Patterson (3) off Frank Castillo in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:51 Despite Matt Padgett's two home runs, the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) defeated the Isotopes 9-6 on Wednesday evening in Des Moines, Iowa. In the 1st inning, Iowa's Calvin Murray doubled to right field and Corey Patterson bunt singled. Patterson stole second base and both runners came home on Scott McClain's double to center field as the Cubs led 2-0. The Isotopes tied the game in the 2nd inning. Matt Padgett solo-homered to right field. Mike Colangelo and Wilson Delgado singled and Ryan Jorgensen walked to load the bases before Isotope starter Frank Castillo grounded out to bring home Colangelo. Iowa regained the lead in their half of the 2nd inning. Mike Fontenot singled to right field and advanced to second base on an error. Cody Ransom reached on an error as Fontenot advanced to third base and Mark Johnson singled to center field to drive in Fontenot. Patterson solo-homered in the 3rd inning as the Cubs led 4-2. Iowa took a commanding lead in the 4th inning. Ransom, Johnson and I-Cubs starter Rich Hill each singled -- Hill's single drove in Ransom. Murray singled to center field to drive in Johnson and McClain walked to load the bases. Ben Grieve reached on a fielder's choice (McClain out at second base) as Hill scored and David Kelton singled to center field to drive in Murray as the Cubs led 8-2. Albuquerque scored four runs of their own in the 5th inning to make the game a little closer. Eric Reed was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and Josh Wilson doubled. Joe Dillon's double drove in Reed and Wilson and an out later, Padgett followed with his second homer of the game, a two-run homer, as the Isotopes trailed by two runs at 8-6. Back-to-back doubles by Ransom and Johnson brought home the final run of the contest in the home half of the 5th inning. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/19/05): Joe Dillon 59 G, 46 R, 71 H, 12 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 47 RBI, 30 BB, 41 K, 7 SB, .613 SLG,
.327 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.89 ERA, 0 SV, 96.1 IP, 112
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 45 BB, 67 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes set an Albuquerque professional baseball season attendance record. 397,937 fans came through the Isotope Park turnstiles during the 2003 season to this date in 2003, breaking the largest attendance figure the Albuquerque Dukes ever had in a single season at the Albuquerque Sports Stadium (390,652 in 1993). 576,867 fans eventually came through the Isotopes Park turnstiles during the 2003 regular season. In the game itself, the Isotopes defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 5-4. Robert Stratton drove in two runs with a triple and Matt Treanor, Derek Wathan and Paul Hoover each drove in a run. 'Topes Notes: Matt Padgett had his third multi-homer game of the season. . . . Wilson Delgado and Joe Dillon each extended their hitting streak to 5 games. . . . Albuquerque has yet to name a pitching probable for the final game of the series on Thursday evening, a change necessary due to the promotion of what was the scheduled starter Travis Smith to the Marlins. The Iowa Cubs are expected to send John Koronka (7-7, 4.24) to the mound. Filed 07/20/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Todd Wellemeyer (2-2) TIME: 2:15 Todd Wellemeyer tossed seven scoreless innings and the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) returned the favor from last night as they shutout the Isotopes 2-0 in Des Moines, Iowa on Tuesday evening. With the defeat, the Isotopes snapped a four-game winning streak. The Cubs broke the scoreless game in the 7th inning. With one out, Mike Fontenot tripled high off the right-center field wall and scored an out later on Richard Lewis' double to right field. The Cubs added an insurance run in the 8th inning. Calvin Murray singled to left field and advanced to second base on a fielding error by Isotopes left fielder Larry Barnes. Corey Patterson then doubled to right field to drive in Murray as the Cubs led 2-0. The poor showing by the Isotopes offense spoiled a great start by Ariel Prieto. Prieto went 6 scoreless innings, only giving up 3 hits, no walks and he struck out 3 I-Cubs. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/18/05): Joe Dillon 58 G, 46 R, 69 H, 12 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 47 RBI, 30 BB, 39 K, 5 SB, .615 SLG,
.324 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.89 ERA, 0 SV, 96.1 IP, 112
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 45 BB, 67 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Josh Wilson hit his first Triple-A homer and Larry Sutton homered twice and drove in 4 runs as the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2004) 9-7 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes' 3 hits in the game tied a season low. . . . The Isotopes were shut out for the third time in 2005 and the 14th time in franchise history. . . . Joe Dillon turned in his first multi-steal game of the season. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is Brian Dallimore of the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants). Dallimore went 10x19 (.526) for the week with six RBI. . . . Juan Cruz of the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) is the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Cruz struck out 13 Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) batters and allowed just a run and four hits on July 16th. Cruz did not get the win as the Sky Sox defeated the River Cats 2-1 in 13 innings. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Wednesday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (7-6, 4.87) for the Isotopes and LHP Rich Hill (3-1, 3.66) for the I-Cubs. Filed 07/19/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/19/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ismael Valdez (1-0) TIME: 2:36 Ismael Valdez tossed six innings of scoreless ball in a rehabilitation appearance as the Isotopes shut out the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 4-0. With the victory, the Isotopes established a new franchise high water mark. In the 2nd inning, Matt Padgett singled to left field, advanced to second base on a balk, moved on to third base on Wilson Delgado's infield single and scored on Derek Wathan's fielder's choice as Albuquerque led 1-0. Albuquerque extended the lead in the 3rd inning. Josh Wilson and Joe Dillon singled and Jason Wood reached on a fielder's choice with Wilson out at home plate. Padgett reached on an error to load up the baes and an out later, Wathan walked as Dillon trotted home. Albuquerque closed out the scoring in the 6th inning. Ryan Jorgensen singled to left field and advanced to second base on Ismael Valdez's sacrifice bunt. Eric Reed singled to right field to drive in Jorgensen. Reed stole second base and scored on Wilson's single to left field. Valdez went 6 innings, giving up three hits and no runs. Valdez walked 4 and struck out 4 in what was his final rehabilitation assignment start before re-joining the Marlins. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/17/05): Joe Dillon 57 G, 45 R, 66 H, 11 2B,
1 3B, 16 HR, 47 RBI, 30 BB, 38 K, 5 SB, .611 SLG,
.317 AVG Jeff Fulchino 7-6, 5.89 ERA, 0 SV, 96.1 IP, 112
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 45 BB, 67 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Sean Bergman tossed the first Isotope 9-inning complete game shutout in franchise history as the Isotopes defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 3-0 at Isotopes Park. Matt Erickson, Derek Wathan, and Abraham Nunez each drove in a run in the game. 'Topes Notes: Ismael Valdez became the third Marlin to make a rehabilitation assignment appearance with the Isotopes in franchise history. Due to proximity to Dolphins Stadium, Marlin rehabilitation assignment appearances usually take place with the Class-A Jupiter Hammerheads. . . . Albuquerque is a franchise-record 10 games above the .500 mark. Albuquerque also tied a franchise record for most games leading the division with their 5 game lead. The Isotopes lead the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) in the American Conference Southern Division. . . . Tonight's shutout was the fourth Isotope pitching staff shutout of 2005 and the tenth shutout in Isotopes history. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Tuesday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (6-4, 5.27) for the Isotopes and RHP Todd Wellemeyer (1-2, 4.13) for the I-Cubs. Filed 07/18/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino (7-6) HR: ALB Derek Wathan (5) off Gary Glover in the 2nd inning NSH Prince Fielder (17) off Matt Perisho in the 9th inning TIME: 2:25 Jeff Fulchino pitched 5 2/3 innings of scoreless ball and Derek Wathan continued being homer happy as the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) 5-2 in the series finale in Nashville. In the 2nd inning, Todd Sears reached on an error and two outs later, Derek Wathan homered to right field as the Isotopes led 2-0. Josh Wilson singled to center field and scored on Joe Dillon's triple to center field in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 3-0. Albuquerque closed out their scoring in the 6th inning. Dillon walked and Sears singled to left field and Dillon advanced to third base on an error. Mike Colangelo's infield single drove in Dillon and two outs later, the newest of Isotopes, John Pachot, singled to left field to drive in Sears as Albuquerque led 5-0. The Isotopes were one out away from the shutout when Prince Fielder stepped up to the plate and homered to right field with Chris Barnwell on board. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/16/05): Joe Dillon 56 G, 44 R, 65 H, 11 2B,
0 3B, 16 HR, 46 RBI, 29 BB, 37 K, 5 SB, .605 SLG,
.317 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.25 ERA, 0 SV, 90.2 IP, 106
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 43 BB, 61 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 8-5 at Isotopes Park in the Isotopes first game since the All-Star Break. Chris Donnels two-run homered and Kevin Hooper and Matt Treanor each drove in two runs in the victory. 'Topes Notes: Derek Wathan, who belted his first homer on June 12th, has continued a recent power streak by homering for the fourth time in the last seven games. Wathan is halfway to his 2004 mark of 10 homers. . . . Joe Dillon's triple was his first triple of 2005. . . . The Isotopes took three out of the four games in this series against the Sounds. The Isotopes and Sounds also concluded their 16-game season series with each team winning eight games (Isotopes were 3-5 at Isotopes Park and 5-3 at Herschel Greer Stadium against the Sounds in 2005). 23,190 fans attended the three evening series (doubleheader for the first evening and single games the other two evenings). . . . Nashville holds a 25-23 all-time series advantage in three seasons of competition against the Isotopes. . . . The Isotopes are back to a franchise-record tying 9 games above the .500 mark. Hopefully Monday evening the Isotopes can finally break through and set the franchise record for most games above .500 after several failed attempts this season and last season to do so. . . . Eric Reed tied an Isotope individual season-high with four strikeouts in the game. . . . Albuquerque contines their franchise record-tying longest roadtrip with a trip to Des Moines, Iowa to play a four-game series against the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs). Pitching probables for the series opener Monday evening are RHP Ismael Valdez (no Isotope record, on a Marlins rehabilitation assignment) for the Isotopes and LHP Raul Valdez (5-2, 4.45) for the I-Cubs. Filed 07/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Riedling
(1-0) HR: ALB Derek Wathan (4) off Mitch Stetter in the 8th inning NSH Warren Morris (5) off Donovan Osborne in the 1st inning TIME: 2:50 Donovan Osborne, John Riedling, and Jim Crowell contributed to a franchise record for fewest hits allowed in a game and Derek Wathan's eighth-inning homer snapped a tie ballgame as the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) 6-2 on Saturday evening in Nashville. Eric Reed doubled to left field to lead off the game, advanced to third base on Josh Wilson's double and scored on Joe Dillon's groundout as the Isotopes led 1-0. Warren Morris solo-homered in the home half of the 1st inning as the Sounds tied the game at 1-1. Reed singled to right field to lead off the 3rd inning, stole second base and scored on Dillon's double to left field as the 'Topes regained the lead at 2-1. It was not until the 7th inning that either team scored again. In the bottom of the 7th inning, Corey Hart reached on a two-base error, stole third base and scored on Tony Zuniga's groundout as the Sounds tied the game at 2-2. The game did not stay tied very long. With one out, Larry Barnes and Wilson Delgado singled and Derek Wathan followed with a home run to left field as Albuquerque took a 5-2 lead. The Isotopes added one more run for good measure in the 9th inning. Wilson walked and immediately scored on Dillon's double to right field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/15/05): Joe Dillon 55 G, 44 R, 63 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 16 HR, 43 RBI, 29 BB, 36 K, 5 SB, .600 SLG,
.315 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.25 ERA, 0 SV, 90.2 IP, 106
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 43 BB, 61 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Chris Aguila set a franchise record by homering three times in an Isotope 9-5 victory over the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) in Oklahoma City. Aguila drove in five total runs with his pair of two-run homers and a solo homer. 'Topes Notes: The two hits allowed set a franchise record for fewest hits allowed in a game by the Isotopes pitching staff. The previous record was 3 hits in a game set on seven different occasions. . . . The Isotopes set a season high by hitting seven doubles. . . .There are rumors going around South Florida that Ismael Valdez will be making his final rehabilitation assignment start on Monday evening as a member of the Isotopes in Des Moines, Iowa against the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs). Valdez has made a couple of rehabilitation assignment starts as a member of the Class-A Jupiter Hammerheads. If the rumors are true, Valdez will be the third Marlins player ever to make a rehabilitation assignment appearance in an Isotopes suit. . . . There is also talk in South Florida that the Marlins think it is time to recall pitcher John Riedling in an effort to shore up their bullpen. . . . Pitching probables for the series (and season) finale between the Isotopes and Sounds: RHP Jeff Fulchino (6-6, 6.25) for the Isotopes and RHP Gary Glover (2-0, 1.32) for the Sounds. Filed 07/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Travis Smith (3-4) HR: ALB Jason Wood (12) off Ben Hendrickson in the 6th
inning TIME: 1:53 Josh Wilson and Jason Wood each solo-homered to power the Isotopes to a 2-1 victory over the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) in the nightcap to earn a split of their doubleheader. Nashville's Tony Zuniga reached on an error and scored on Chris Barnwell's double in the 4th inning as the Sounds led 1-0. Josh Wilson solo-homered to left-center field with one out to tie the game and Jason Wood homered to left-center field an out later as the Isotopes took took a lead they would never relinquish. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/10/05): Joe Dillon 53 G, 44 R, 62 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 16 HR, 43 RBI, 28 BB, 34 K, 5 SB, .610 SLG,
.318 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.25 ERA, 0 SV, 90.2 IP, 106
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 43 BB, 61 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Ryan Snare held the Isotopes to one run in his six innings of work as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) defeated the Isotopes 7-4 in Oklahoma City. Joe Dillon solo-homered and Ryan Jorgensen drove in a pair of runs in the loss. 'Topes Notes: Joe Dillon went 0x2 in the nightcap to snap his 15-game hitting streak. He can be proud of his just-completed streak as it was the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005 and it was just 3 games shy of tying a franchise-record hitting streak. . . . Travis Smith earned his first winning decision since April 12th at Isotopes Park against the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). . . . A pair of Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) took the PCL weekly player honors. John Rodriguez was named the PCL Hitter of the Week. Rodriguez homered 5 times and drove in 15 runs during the week. Chris Gissell was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week for his efforts in tossing a six-hit complete game against the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). Gissell was the starting pitcher and earned the victory for the PCL squad in the just-played Triple-A All-Star Game in Sacramento. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series on Saturday are LHP Donovan Osborne (1-0, 6.19) for the Isotopes and RHP Justin Lehr (7-7, 4.06) for the Sounds. Filed 07/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Rick Helling (8-3) TIME: 2:36 The Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) tallied five times in their final two innings to break a 1-1 tie to defeat the Isotopes 6-1 in the opener of a doubleheader at Herschel Greer Stadium in Nashville on Friday evening. With one out in the 2nd inning, Nelson Cruz singled to right field, Tony Zuniga walked and an out later, Steve Scraborough singled to right field to drive in Cruz as the Sounds led 1-0. Josh Wilson doubled to lead off the 4th inning, advanced to third base on Joe Dillon's single and scored on Todd Sears' sacrifice flyout to center field as the 'Topes tied the game at 1-1. Ryan Knox bunt singled and Dave Krynzel walked to lead off the 5th inning. Both runners advanced into scoring position on Warren Morris' sacrifice bunt and Corey Hart was intentionally walked to load the bases before Prince Fielder singled to right field to drive in Knox and Krynzel to give the Sounds a 3-1 lead. The Sounds capped the scoring in the 6th inning. Mike Rivera singled to right and Scarborough walked. Chris Barnwell sacrifice-bunted both runners up a base and an out later, Morris walked. Hart singled to center field to drive in Rivera and Scarborough and Isotopes reliever Clint Sodowsky uncorked a wild pitch to bring Morris home. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/10/05): Joe Dillon 53 G, 44 R, 62 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 16 HR, 43 RBI, 28 BB, 34 K, 5 SB, .610 SLG,
.318 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.25 ERA, 0 SV, 90.2 IP, 106
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 43 BB, 61 K 'Topes Notes: The defeat snapped a four-game road winning streak. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 15 games, the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005. Filed 07/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Filed 07/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Chris Gissell (Memphis -
STL) HR: IL Jeff Liefer (Buffalo - CLE) off Jim Crowell (Albuquerque - FLA) in the 8th inning Edwin Encarnacion (Louisville - CIN) off Chris Gissell (Memphis - STL) in the 2nd inning PCL Gerald Laird (Oklahoma - TEX) off Jason Scobie (Norfolk - NYM) in the 1st inning Matt Watson (Sacramento - OAK) off Jason Karnuth (Toledo - DET) in the 6th inning TIME: 2:47 Gerald Laird (Oklahoma - TEX) and Matt Watson (Sacramento - OAK) each homered and combined to drive in seven of the PCL's 11 runs in a Pacific Coast League 11-5 victory over the International League in the 2005 Triple-A All-Star Game at Raley Field in Sacramento, California on Wednesday evening. IL's Jake Gautreau (Buffalo - CLE) singled to right field with one out, moved to third base on Mitch Jones' (Columbus - NYY) single to right and scored on John-Ford Griffin's (Syracuse - TOR) sacrifice flyout to center field as the IL took a 1-0 lead after half an inning of play. It did not take the PCL long to take a commanding lead in the game. In the home half of the 1st inning, Esteman German (Oklahoma - TEX) drew a walk, Andy Green (Tucson - AZD) singled to right field and Conor Jackson (Tucson - AZD) singled to right field to drive in German. An out later, Watson drew a walk and Laird followed with a grand-slam home run to left field as the PCL led 5-1. Edwin Encarnacion (Louisville - CIN) solo-homered to left center field in the 2nd inning as the IL trimmed the defecit to three runs at 5-2. The PCL extended their lead in their at-bats in the 2nd inning. German doubled to the right-center field wall and scored on Green's single to right center field. Jackson bloop singled into shallow right field to move Green to third base and Green scored on Watson's sacrifice flyout to center field as the PCL led 7-2. It was not until the 6th inning that either team put more runs on the board. The PCL's J.J. Furmaniak (Portland - SD) singled to left field and Ian Kinsler (Oklahoma - TEX) singled to right field. Ryan Shealy (Colorado Springs - COL) reached on an infield hit to drive in Furmaniak and advanced to second base on an error by IL shortstop B.J. Upton (Durham - TB) while Kinsler moved to third base. Mike Cervenak (Fresno - SFG) sacrifice flied out to bring home Kinsler and Watson followed with a two-run homer to left-center field as the PCL led 11-2. Nate McLouth (Indianapolis - PIT) singled to left field, advanced to second base on a wild pitch, advanced to third base on a flyout and scored on Chris Coste's (Scranton-Wilkes Barre - PHI) sacrifice flyout to right field. The IL closed out the scoring in the game in the 8th inning. B.J. Upton (Durham - TB) drew a walk and an out later, Jim Crowell (Albuquerque - FLA) gave up a home run to Jeff Liefer (Buffalo - CLE) to left-center field. All-Star Game Notes: The Star of Stars for the game: PCL (Gerald Laird - Oklahoma - TEX) and IL (Edwin Encarnacion - Louisville - CIN). . . . Albuquerque's Jim Crowell entered the game in the 8th inning with one out and worked one inning. Crowell faced 4 batters, yielding Jeff Liefer's (Buffalo - CLE) home run, struck out Nate McLouth (Indianapolis - PIT), and got Pete LaForest (Durham - TB) and Brayan Pena (Richmond - ATL) to ground out. Crowell tossed 18 pitches (14 strikes, 4 balls). . . . Gerald Laird's (Oklahoma - TEX) grand-slam home run was the first grand-slam homer in the 18 playings of the Triple-A All-Star Game. . . . Tampa Bay Devil Rays' shortstop prospect B.J. Upton committed both International League errors in the contest. . . . The next time a PCL club hosts the Triple-A All-Star Game, the game will be played at Isotopes Park in Albuquerque in 2007. The 2006 Triple-A All-Star Game will be held in Toledo, Ohio, home of the Toledo Mud Hens (AAA Tigers). . . . Columbus Clippers (AAA Yankees) slugger Mitch Jones took the 2005 Triple-A All-Star Game Home Run Derby title, defeating the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) Ian Kinsler 11-10 in the final round of the derby. Filed 07/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Isotopes are idle due to the Triple-A All Star Break. While most of the team gets to rest for three days, pitcher Jim Crowell will be busy participating in the Triple-A All-Star Game to be played in Sacramento, California on Wednesday evening. The game will be televised by ESPN2 at 8 pm Mountain time. If you have ESPN2 HD, the game will be broadcast in HDTV for a better game experience. In other Isotopes news during the break, broadcaster Mike Roberts has submitted his resignation. Roberts worked two innings of each Isotopes home game on KNML-AM 610. The ALBUQUERQUE JOURNAL reported that Roberts and main Isotopes broadcaster Bob Socci could be at odds over something. Roberts has not given any media outlets an interview over the matter so it's all speculation what went on behind the scenes to cause Roberts to resign. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: On July 11, 2003, the Isotopes lost to the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 11-6 at Isotopes Park. Scott Seabol homered twice and Memphis scored five runs in the final 3 frames to snap a 6-6 tie to win. The Isotopes had led 5-0 at one point before blowing that lead. On July 12, 2003, Albuquerque scored three runs in the bottom of the 9th inning to defeat the Redbirds 5-4 at Isotopes Park. Kevin Hooper's single up the middle brought Wilson Valdez home with the game winning run. Here are the current active team leaders in various categories (through games of 07/10/05): BATTING Batting Average
(min. 20 at-bats): Todd Sears (.340) PITCHING Wins (Starter):
Frank Castillo (7) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Donovan Osborne (1-0) TIME: 2:20 Donovan Osborne pitched six innings of six-hit, three-run ball to earn his first victory in an Isotopes suit and Derek Wathan drove in a pair of runs in Albuquerque's 6-3 victory over the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) on Sunday evening to conclude the three-game series. Albuquerque broke the scoreless tie in the 4th inning. With one out, Joe Dillon singled to left field and stole second base. Jason Wood infield singled and Matt Padgett singled to right field to drive in Dillon. An out later, Derek Wathan doubled to left field as Wood and Padgett scored. Wathan scored when Chris Ashby singled to left field as the Isotopes led 4-0. In the 5th inning, John Nelson reached on a fielder's choice, advanced to second base on Brad Cresse's single to right field and scored on Redbirds starter Bill Pulsipher's single to center field. The Isotopes responded by getting that run back in their half of the 5th inning. Josh Wilson reached on a two-base error, advanced to third base on Dillon's groundout and scored on Padgett's single to right field as Albuquerque led 5-1. Memphis' Brandon Berger doubled to left field to start off the 7th inning and scored on Nelson's single to right field. An out later, Chris Duncan walked and Bo Hart doubled to left field to drive in Nelson as the Redbirds cut the defecit to two runs at 5-3. Wood walked with one out in the 7th inning, advanced to third base on Padgett's single to center field and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to center field to close out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/09/05): Joe Dillon 52 G, 43 R, 61 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 16 HR, 43 RBI, 28 BB, 34 K, 4 SB, .618 SLG,
.319 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.25 ERA, 0 SV, 90.2 IP, 106
H, 76 R, 63 ER, 17 HR, 43 BB, 61 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Mike Colangelo homered twice (including a grand slam homer) and drove in 5 total runs in Albuquerque's 8-2 victory over Memphis at Isotopes Park. Michael Tejera gave up one run in 7 innings of work for Albuquerque. 'Topes Notes: Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 14 games, tying for the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005 (Josh Wilson). . . . Memphis took two out of the three games in the series. 23,113 fans attended the quick series for a per-game average of 7,704. The Isotopes drew 53,519 fans for their 7-game homestand. . . . Matt Padgett had his fourth 4-hit game of the season and the second one of the homestand. . . . The Isotopes have the next three days off for the Triple-A All-Star Break before starting a 12-game roadtrip on Thursday evening in Nashville (Nashville Sounds - AAA Brewers). The 12-game roadtrip ties for the longest roadtrip in franchise history. No pitching probables have been named yet for either team. Filed 07/11/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Josh Pearce (1-1) HR: MEM John Rodriguez (19) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st inning
ALB Joe Dillon (16) off Anthony Reyes in the 1st inning
TIME: 2:42 13,009 fans went home disappointed as the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) used a big seven-run 7th inning to come from behind to defeat the Isotopes 12-10 on Saturday evening at "The Lab". Skip Schumaker singled to center field and later scored on John Rodriguez's home run to left-center field as the Redbirds led 2-0 after a half-inning of play. Eric Reed led off the game for the Isotopes by singling to right field and stealing second base. Josh Wilson singled to drive in Reed but Wilson was thrown out trying to extend the single into a double. Matt Padgett singled to center field and Joe Dillon homered to left field as the Isotopes took a 3-2 lead. Reed bunt singled and advanced to second base on an error to lead off the 3rd inning and Wilson followed with a homer to left field as the Isotopes extended the lead to 5-2. Memphis' Brad Cresse walked and later scored on Schumaker's double to left-center field in the 5th inning. In the 6th inning, Scott Seabol doubled to left field and Chris Duncan was hit by a pitch. Bo Hart's sacrifice bunt advanced the runners into scoring position and Tim Hummel grounded out as Seabol raced home to cut the Isotopes lead to just a run at 5-4. In the 6th inning, Todd Sears reached on an error and Wilson Delgado singled into right field and both scored two outs later on Derek Wathan's pinch-hit homer to right field as the Isotopes built a 8-4 lead. Disaster then struck for the Isotopes in the 7th inning. Hector Luna infield singled and Schumaker doubled to left field. Raul Gonzalez drew a walk to load the bases and Rodriguez followed with a grand-slam homer to right field. Seabol and Duncan then walked and Hart singled to right field to load the bases again. Tim Hummel sacrifice flied out to right field to bring home Seabol and Cresse doubled to right-center field as Duncan and Hart scored. When the inning ended, the Redbirds sent 11 batters to the plate, scored seven runs in the inning, and led 11-8. Albuquerque was able to put some runs on the scoreboard in the home half of the 7th inning. Wilson doubled to right field and moved to third base on a wild pitch. Dillon singled to left field as Wilson scored. An out later, Delgado walked and Larry Barnes singled to right field to drive in Dillon as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 11-10. Hart's solo-homer to left-center field in the 9th inning closed out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/08/05): Joe Dillon 51 G, 41 R, 59 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 15 HR, 40 RBI, 28 BB, 33 K, 4 SB, .608 SLG,
.317 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.27 ERA, 0 SV, 84.2 IP, 100
H, 72 R, 59 ER, 16 HR, 42 BB, 57 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 6-1 in Omaha. Robert Stratton three-run homered and Abraham Nunez solo-homered as the Isotopes swept a four-game series for the first time in franchise history. 'Topes Notes: The 13,009 attendance was the 8th largest attendance in Isotopes Park history (7th largest attendance among regular-season games in Isotopes Park history). . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 13 games, the second longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005. . . . Derek Wathan hit the second Isotope pinch-hit homer in 2005 (and only the third Isotope pinch-hit homer in franchise history). . . . Former-Isotope and fan favorite Kevin Hooper made his MLB debut with the Detroit Tigers on Saturday evening against the Tampa Bay Devil Rays, playing in left field as a late-inning replacement (Hooper's normal position is still in the infield, making the left field debut position very unusual). Hooper went 0x1 at the plate with a groundout to third base. . . . John Rodriguez's grand-slam homer was the second grand-slam homer allowed to an Isotopes opponent in the last four games and the third grand-slam homer allowed to an opponent all season. Rodriguez, by the way, has hit four grand slam homers in his 28 games with the Redbirds. . . . The Isotopes and Redbirds play the final game of their unusual three-game series on Sunday evening before enjoying a three day AAA All-Star Break. The Isotopes will send RHP Donovan Osborne (0-0, 7.20) to the mound as the Isotopes look to avoid the series sweep. Memphis is scheduled to send LHP Bill Pulsipher (3-3, 4.24) to the bump. Filed 07/09/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Kevin Jarvis (7-2) HR: MEM John Rodriguez (18) off Travis Smith in the 5th inning ALB Larry Barnes (3) off Kevin Jarvis in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:30 Despite committing three errors in the game, the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) defeated the Isotopes 4-2 in the series opener on Friday evening at "The Lab". Memphis' Skip Schumaker and Raul Gonzalez singled and John Rodriguez was hit by a pitch to load the bases before Scott Seabol grounded out into a double play with Schumaker scampering home to give the Redbirds a 1-0 lead. Larry Barnes solo-homered to right field in the bottom of the 3rd inning as the Isotopes tied the game at 1-1. With two outs in the 5th inning, Schumaker doubled to left field, Gonzalez tripled to right-center field to drive in Schumaker and Rodriguez homered to center field as the Redbirds regained the lead at 4-1. The Isotopes closed out the scoring in the 6th inning. Matt Padgett singled to right field, advanced to second base when Joe Dillon walked, and scored when Todd Sears reached on a fielder's choice with an error on the play to allow Padgett to score. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/07/05): Joe Dillon 50 G, 41 R, 58 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 15 HR, 40 RBI, 26 BB, 32 K, 3 SB, .609 SLG,
.315 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.27 ERA, 0 SV, 84.2 IP, 100
H, 72 R, 59 ER, 16 HR, 42 BB, 57 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Redbirds 7-5 at Isotopes Park. Matt Padgett two-run homered and Joe Dillon solo-homered in the victory. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes went 1x7 with runners in scoring position in the contest. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 12 games, the second this season he has accomplished a hitting streak of that length. Dillon is 2 games short of tying the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005 (Josh Wilson 14 games). . . . Two PCL clubs are enjoying a very extended AAA All-Star Break. The weekend three-game series between the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) and New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) at Zephyr Field in New Orleans has been postponed due to the threat of Hurricane Dennis. . . . Andy Green of the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) is the PCL Hitter of the Week. Green scored 10 runs, homered twice, tripled twice and had a double during the week. . . . Juan Cruz of the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) is the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Cruz struck out 21 batters, allowed 5 hits and one earned run and compiled a 0.73 ERA for the week. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Sat evening are RHP Jeff Fulchino (6-6, 6.27) for the Isotopes and RHP Anthony Reyes (6-3, 2.93) for the Redbirds. Filed 07/08/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Ariel Prieto (6-4) HR: OKL Ian Kinsler (16) off Ariel Prieto in the 3rd inning ALB Matt Padgett (14) off John Hudgins in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:41 Matt Padgett and Derek Wathan each homered and combined to drive in seven of the Isotopes' runs in an Albuquerque 9-6 victory over the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) in the series finale at "The Lab". Eric Reed led off the game for the Isotopes doing something that will make him a very exciting player to watch in an Isotopes and eventually a Marlins suit. Reed bunt-singled in his first Triple-A at-bat and promptly stole second base. Reed moved to third base on Josh Wilson's groundout and scored on Joe Dillon's single to right-center field. Padgett followed with a homer to left field and Jason Wood walked. Todd Sears singled to right field and Wilson Delgado singled to right field to drive in Wood as the Isotopes led 4-0 after one inning of play. In the 2nd inning, Wilson reached on an error, Dillon singled to left-center field and Wilson scored on Padgett's fielder's choice as the Isotopes extended their lead to 5-0. Oklahoma got on the scoreboard in the 3rd inning. Chris Richard walked, Rashad Eldridge singled to right field and an out later, Ian Kinsler homered to left-center field. Albuquerque matched those three runs in their half of the 3rd inning. Delgado walked with one out, Ryan Jorgensen singled to left field and Wathan homered down the right field line as the 'Topes led 8-3. Oklahoma once again pulled to within two runs with a three-run 5th inning. Eldridge reached on a fielder's choice and Esteban German singled to right field. Kinsler's double to left field drove in Eldridge and Jason Botts' single to right field brought German home. Former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez reached on a fielder's choice as Kinsler scored. Albuquerque added an insurance run in the 7th inning. Wathan doubled to left field, Reed was hit by a pitch, Wilson reached on a fielder's choice (Reed out at second base) and Dillon was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Padgett drew a walk as Wathan trotted home to give the Isotopes a 9-6 lead. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/06/05): Joe Dillon 49 G, 40 R, 55 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 15 HR, 39 RBI, 25 BB, 32 K, 3 SB, .602 SLG,
.304 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.27 ERA, 0 SV, 84.2 IP, 100
H, 72 R, 59 ER, 16 HR, 42 BB, 57 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Scott Sanders pitched 7 innings of 2-run, 5-hit ball and Abraham Nunez drove in three runs as Albuquerque defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 6-2 in Omaha. The victory snapped an eight-game losing streak in contests played against the Royals. 'Topes Notes: The Redhawks and Isotopes split the four-game series 2-2. 30,406 fans attended the four-game series against the Redhawks for a per-game average of 7,602. . . . The Redhawk and Isotopes also concluded their 16-game 2005 season series tonight and Oklahoma won 11 out of the 16 contests (Isotopes were 3-5 at Isotopes Park and 2-6 at SBC Bricktown Ballpark in 2005). Oklahoma hols a 29-19 all-time series advantage over the three seasons both clubs have faced each other. . . . Joe Dillon went 3x3 to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. . . . Jim Crowell earned his first save since April 13th (the opening homestand of the season). . . . The Isotopes welcome the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) for the first time in 2005 to Isotopes Park for a unusual three-game series leading up to the AAA All-Star Break. Pitching probables are RHP Travis Smith (2-3, 6.60) for the Isotopes and RHP Kevin Jarvis (6-2, 3.03) for the Redbirds. Filed 07/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: R.A. Dickey (2-3) HR: OKL Ian Kinsler (15) off Frank Castillo in the 3rd
inning TIME: 2:48 R.A. Dickey tossed a complete game (despite giving up 12 hits and 5 runs) and Gerald Laird went 4x5 with a grand-slam homer and 6 total RBI in the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) 18-5 thrashing of the Isotopes. Esteban German led off the game with a single to right field and an out later, former Isotope Chad Allen singled to right field and Jason Botts singled to left field to load up the bases. After former Isotope Adrian Gonzalez struck out, Marshall McDougall doubled to left field as German and Allen scored to give the Redhawks a quick 2-0 lead. Oklahoma's Chris Richard singled to right field and scored on German's single to left in the 2nd inning. Ian Kinsler solo-homered to left-center field to lead off the 3rd inning as the Redhawks extended the lead to 4-0. In the 4th inning, Matt Padgett and Joe Dillon singled and Todd Sears brought them both home with a double to the left field wall. Chris Ashby infield singled as Sears moved up a base and Sears scored on Larry Barnes double-play groundout as the Isotopes trailed by a run at 4-3. Wilson Delgado singled to center field, took second base on a wild pitch, moved to third base on Josh Wilson's groundout and scored on Padgett's groundout as the Isotopes tied the game at 4-4 in the 5th inning. The first of the two monster Oklahoma innings occurred in the 6th inning. Allen reached on an error and Botts walked. An out later, McDougall walked to load the bases. Manny Alexander singled to left field to drive in Allen and Laird followed with a grand-slam homer to the picnic area in left field. Richard singled to right field and scored on German's double to right-center field. By the time the inning ended, Oklahoma sent 10 batters to the plate to score 6 runs. Oklahoma sent 10 more batters to the plate in the 7th inning and put up a 7-spot on the Daktronics scoreboard. Botts doubled to left field and Gonzalez singled to left field. An out later, Alexander reached on an error as Botts scored and Laird singled to left field as Gonzalez scored. Richard reached on an error to load the bases and German singled to right field as Alexander crossed home plate. After Kinsler struck out swinging, Allen singled to center field to plate Laird and Richard. Both runners then moved into scoring position on a wild pitch and Botts doubled to the hill in center field as German and Allen scored to make it a 17-4 game. Back-to-back doubles by Ryan Jorgensen and Derek Wathan in the 7th inning plated the last Isotope run of the game. Alexander tripled to right-center field and scored on Laird's single to center field as the Redhawks scored the last run of the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/05/05): Joe Dillon 48 G, 39 R, 54 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 15 HR, 39 RBI, 25 BB, 31 K, 3 SB, .610 SLG,
.305 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.27 ERA, 0 SV, 84.2 IP, 100
H, 72 R, 59 ER, 16 HR, 42 BB, 57 K
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Kerry Wood made a rehabilitation start for the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) and tossed 5 scoreless innings in an Iowa 4-1 victory in Des Moines, Iowa. Brian Banks solo homered for the Isotopes' only run. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes set several season-highs in the game: 18 runs given up; 13 run losing margin in a game; and 4 double plays grounded into (unconfirmed on whether that sets a franchise record). . . . The Isotopes tied a season high with 3 errors. . . . Gerald Laird's grand-slam homer was only the second opponent grand-slam homer the Isotopes pitching staff has allowed this season and it turns out Frank Castillo served up both of them. . . . Joe Dillon got a hit to extend his hitting streak to 10 games. . . . Frank Castillo allowed 8 earned runs, tying an Isotope pitching staff season-high for earned runs allowed by a starter. Castillo accomplished the feat for the second time this season tonight. . . . The Isotopes can rejoice that Thursday evening's game is the last contest against the Redhawks in 2005. Pitching probables are RHP Ariel Prieto (5-4, 4.97) for the Isotopes and RHP John Hudgins (2-4, 4.83) for the Redhawks. Filed 07/06/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Justin Thompson (2-1) HR: OKL Jason Botts (15) off Donovan Osborne in the 5th inning
ALB Joe Dillon (15) off Kelvin Jimenez in the 5th inning TIME: 3:24 The Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) outlasted the Isotopes 15-12 in a slugfest at Isotopes Park on Tuesday evening. Wilson Delgado and Josh Wilson back-to-back tripled to lead off the game for the Isotopes and Joe Dillon singled to center field to plate Wilson. After Matt Padgett struck out swinging, Jason Wood reached on a fielder's choice, advanced to second base on Todd Sears' single and scored on Chris Ashby's single to center field as the Isotopes led 3-0. Oklahoma cut the defecit to a run in the 2nd inning. Marshall McDougall singled to right field and former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez doubled to center field. Manny Alexander sacrifice-flied out to center to plate McDougall and Rashad Eldridge doubled to left field as Gonzalez scored. Ian Kinsler singled to left field and later scored on Jason Bott's sacrifice flyout as the Redhawks tied the game at 3-3. Albuquerque put up a four-spot of their own in their half of the 3rd inning to take a 7-3 lead. With one out, Sears was hit by a pitch and Ashby singled to left field. Larry Barnes reached on a fielder's choice as Sears scored (Ashby out at second base) and Barnes advanced to second base on an error on the play. Derek Wathan infield singled and Wilson Delgado's ground-rule double to left field brought Barnes home. Josh Wilson then singled to center field to plate Wathan and Delgado. Alexander doubled, advanced to third base on Eldridge's groundout, Esteban German walked, and Alexander scored on Kinsler's sacrifice flyout to center field. German stole second base and sed on former-Isotope Chad Allen's single to right field. Wood singled to center field and later scored on Barnes' single to right field in the 4th inning as the Isotopes led 8-5. Botts solo-homered to left field as the Redhawks once again pulled to within two runs at 8-6. Delgado doubled to center field, Wilson walked and Dilon followed with a homer to left-center field as the Isotopes extended their lead to 11-6 in the home half of the 5th inning. Oklahoma batted around in the 6th inning, scoring 5 times to tie the game at 11-11. Alexander and Eldridge singled to lead off the inning and German reached on a fielder's choice (Eldridge out at second base while Alexander scored). Kinsler infield singled and Allen singled to center field to load the bases. Botts grounded out into a fielder's choice with Allen out at second base and German scored. McDougall singled to center field to plate Kinsler and Gonzalez doubled to center field to drive in Botts and McDougall. Kinsler was hit by a pitch and Botts homered to right field as the Redhawks took a 13-11 lead in the 8th inning. Ashby doubled, advanced to third base on Barnes' single to right field and scored when Wathan reached on a fielder's choice as the Isotopes pulled to within a run at 13-12. Oklahoma added some insurance runs in the 9th inning. Alexander singled to right field and advanced to second base on Eldridge's sacrifice bunt. Alexander stole third base and scored on German's single to center field. Kinsler singled to left field and Allen walked to load the bases and an out later, McDougall drew a walk as German trotted home. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/04/05): Joe Dillon 47 G, 38 R, 52 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 25 BB, 31 K, 3 SB, .602 SLG,
.304 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 6.27 ERA, 0 SV, 84.2 IP, 100 H, 72 R, 59
ER, 16 HR, 42 BB, 57 K 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes tied a couple season-highs in the game: most runs given up in a home game (15) and largest lead blown in a game that was lost (5 runs). . . . The Isotopes also set several season-highs in the contest: most combined runs for both clubs (27 - 2 short of tying the franchise record); most combined hits for both clubs (41 - 1 short of tying a franchise record); most hits in a game (20); and most hits allowed in a game (21). . . . Each Isotope batter had as least a hit in the contest. . . . John Riedling gave up 6 hits, tying an Isotope individual season-high for most hits allowed by a reliever. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 9 games. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series on Wednesday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (7-4, 4.35) for the Isotopes and RHP R.A. Dickey (1-3, 6.34) for the Redhawks. Filed 07/05/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Howard (4-2) HR: OKL Adrian Gonzalez (11) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st
inning ALB Matt Padgett (13) off Ryan Snare in the 5th inning TIME: 2:43 The Isotopes came back from a five-run defecit to win in front of another record-breaking crowd in a 11-7 victory over the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) on Monday evening at "The Lab". It did not take Oklahoma long to build up a good lead. Esteban German singled to center field and Ian Kinsler doubled to right field. Former-Isotope Chad Allen sacrifice flied out to right field to drive in German. Jason Botts was hit by a pitch and Marshall McDougall singled to right field to drive in Kinsler. Another former-Isotope, Adrian Gonzalez, followed with a home run to left-center field as the Redhawks built a 5-0 lead. With one out in the 2nd inning, Matt Padgett singled to right field and Jason Wood doubled to left field. Todd Sears' groundout scored Padgett and Wilson Delgado's double to left field drove in Wood as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard. Chris Aguila doubled to left field to lead off the 3rd inning and scored on Josh Wilson's single to right field. Wilson eventually scored on Sears' single to right field as the Isotopes drew to within a run at 5-4. Oklahoma's Chris Richard solo-homered to center field in the 4th inning as the Redhawks extended the lead to two runs at 6-4. Joe Dillon drew a walk to lead off the 5th inning and Padgett followed with a home run into the sea of humanity sitting on the jam-packed right field berm area as the Isotopes tied up the contest at 6-6. Albuquerque took the lead and made it comfortable in the 7th inning. Padgett and Wood singled to lead off the inning. Sears flied out and Delgado reached on a fielder's choice (with Wood out at second base). Ryan Jorgensen singled to right field as Padgett scored and Derek Wathan reached on an error as Delgado scored. Aguila's double to the hill in center field brought home Jorgensen and Wathan as the 'Topes led 10-6. In the 8th inning, Oklahoma's Botts doubled to left field and scored on McDougall's single to left-center field, but Albuquerque got that run back in their half of the 8th inning. Dillon singled to left field, advanced to third base on Padgett's single to center field and scored on Wood's sacrifice flyout to center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/03/05): Joe Dillon 46 G, 36 R, 51 H, 9 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 24 BB, 31 K, 3 SB, .611 SLG,
.305 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 5.99 ERA, 0 SV, 79.2 IP, 95 H, 66 R, 53 ER,
14 HR, 41 BB, 55 K 'Topes Notes: 14,744 fans is an all-time Isotopes Park record crowd, eclipsing by 567 fans the previous Isotopes Park attendance record set during the 2004 Marlins/Isotopes exhibition game. Tonight's crowd was also the second largest crowd the Isotopes have played in front of (only last night's 22,023 crowd in Omaha was larger). . . . The Isotopes auctioned off their special red/white/blue uniforms and $3,650 was raised for the American Red Cross - Rio Grande chapter. . . . The Isotopes once again find their season record at 9 games above the .500 mark, tying a franchise record and the 'Topes hope they can break that record by figuring out how to beat Oklahoma again tomorrow evening. . . . Albuquerque turned four double plays in the contest, setting a season-high if not a franchise record. . . . Matt Padgett turned in his third 4-hit game of the season. . . . The Redhawks and Isotopes continue their series on Tuesday evening as LHP Donovan Osborne (0-0, 3.00) makes his first start at Isotopes Park for the Isotopes against Oklahoma LHP Derek Lee (0-1, 2.08). Filed 07/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Shane Nance (2-2) HR: OMA Chris Truby (9) off Travis Smith in the 4th inning TIME: 2:17 Five Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) pitchers combined on a five hit shutout of the Isotopes in a 2-0 victory. With the defeat, the Isotopes snapped a four-game winning streak and were unable to sweep the four game series from the Royals. Adrian Brown tripled into the right-field corner and scored on Denny Hocking's single to right field in the 3rd inning as the Royals snapped the scoreless tie. Chris Truby homered to left field in the 4th inning as the Royals extended their lead to 2-0. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/02/05): Joe Dillon 45 G, 36 R, 50 H, 8 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 24 BB, 31 K, 3 SB, .613 SLG,
.307 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 5.99 ERA, 0 SV, 79.2 IP, 95 H, 66 R, 53 ER,
14 HR, 41 BB, 55 K 'Topes Notes: The attendance of 22,023 was the largest crowd the Isotopes have ever played a contest in front of. . . . Albuquerque took 3 out of the 4 games in the series and 35,564 fans came through the turnstiles at Rosenblatt Stadium for a per-game average of 8,891. The Isotopes played in front of 73,387 fans for the just-completed eight-game roadtrip. . . . Albuquerque and Omaha completed their 16-game season series with the Isotopes having won 12 of those contests. The Isotopes hold a 27-21 all-time series advantage, compiled over 3 seasons, against the Royals. . . . The Isotopes were only shutout for the second time this season and the first since April 26th against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) at Isotopes Park. . . . Albuquerque returns home for a seven game homestand that concludes with the beginning of the AAA All-Star Break. RHP Jeff Fulchino is expected to face the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) Ryan Snare (1-2, 5.15) in the series opener. An Isotopes Park record breaking crowd is expected to attend the fireworks night (box seat, reserved seat, and berm seating is all sold out and only standing-room only tickets are available for sale). Filed 07/03/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (5-4) HR: ABQ Chris Aguila (7) off Chris George in the 5th inning OMA Aaron Guiel (17) off Ariel Prieto in the 9th inning TIME: 2:35 Chris Aguila provided all the Isotopes offense and Ariel Prieto came within three outs of a complete game shutout as the Isotopes fended off the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 2-1 in Omaha on Saturday evening. The Isotopes are rolling on the road with a four-game winning streak. Derek Wathan singled to lead off the 5th inning and Aguila followed with a home run to left field as Albuquerque led 2-0. Prieto entered the 9th inning with a shutout but quickly lost it when he gave up a leadoff solo-homer to Omaha's Aaron Guiel. Randy Messenger immediately came into the game and set down Omaha in order to preserve the Isotope victory. Prieto ended up going 8 innings, giving up 6 hits, the 1 run, walked 1 and struck out 6. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 07/01/05): Joe Dillon 44 G, 36 R, 49 H, 8 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 23 BB, 30 K, 3 SB, .623 SLG,
.308 AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 5.99 ERA, 0 SV, 79.2 IP, 95 H, 66 R, 53 ER,
14 HR, 41 BB, 55 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: Matt Padgett homered twice and the Isotopes came back from a six-run defecit to defeat the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 10-9 at Isotopes Park. The 'Topes belted four homers in the game, setting what was then a franchise record. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes' season mark is 9 games above .500, tying a franchise record for most games over .500. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Ariel Prieto snapped a two-decision losing streak with his victory tonight. . . . The Isotopes send RHP Travis Smith (2-2, 7.50) to the mound on Sunday evening looking for the series sweep. Omaha is scheduled to send RHP Denny Bautista (0-1, 4.91) to the bump. Filed 07/02/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (7-4) TIME: 2:36 Josh Wilson drove in a pair of runs with sacrifice flyouts as the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 3-1 for their third straight victory. Joe Dillon doubled to right-center field, advanced to third base on Matt Padgett's groundout and scored on Jason Wood's single up the middle as the Isotopes broke the scoreless tie to lead 1-0 in the 4th inning. In the bottom of the 4th inning, Omaha's Paul Phillips doubled to left field and scored on Chris Truby's single to right field as the Royals tied the game at 1-1. Albuquerque regained the lead for good in the 5th inning. Chris Aguila infield singled and advanced to second base on an error on the play. Aguila stole third base and scored on Wilson's sacrifice flyout to right field. The Isotopes added an insurance run in the 7th inning. Derek Wathan singled to left field, stole second base and moved to third base on an error during the stolen base attempt and scored on Wilson's sacrifice flyout to right field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/30/05): Joe Dillon 43 G, 35 R, 48 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 23 BB, 30 K, 3 SB, .626 SLG, .310
AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 5.99 ERA, 0 SV, 79.2 IP, 95 H, 66 R, 53 ER,
14 HR, 41 BB, 55 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Derek Wathan hit for the cycle but the Isotopes lost to the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 16-11 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes pitching staff allowed five homers in the game, including three homers to the Sky Sox's Jorge Piedra. 'Topes Notes: Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 5 games with his double. . . . Here are some Isotopes figures for the month of June as the team showed signs of going into a swoon: 13-15 record (4-7 at home; 9-8 on the road), 136 runs scored, and 28 homers hit in June, well short of the franchise record of 50 homers hit in May. . . . The Isotopes turned three double-plays and grounded into three double plays, both tying season highs. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Saturday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (4-4, 5.53) for the Isotopes and LHP Chris George (6-4, 4.76) for the O-Royals. Filed 07/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 07/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Howard (3-2) HR: ABQ Chris Aguila (6) off Danny Tamayo in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:45 Donovan Osborne pitched six innings, giving up 6 hits, 2 runs, walked 1 and struck out 3 in his Isotopes debut; the Isotopes took the contest over the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 6-2 as Osborne ended up getting a no-decision. Chris Aguila solo-homered in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes took a 1-0 lead. In the 6th inning, Josh Wilson singled to center field, advanced to second base on Joe Dillon's single to left field, moved to third base when Matt Padgett walked to load the bases, and scored on Todd Sears' sacrifice flyout to left-center field as the 'Topes led 2-0. In the Omaha half of the 6th inning, Cory Aldridge doubled to right field and Adrian Brown singled to right field. Paul Phillips sacrifice flied out to right field to drive in Aldridge and Aaron Guiel doubled to right-center field to drive in Brown as the Royals tied the game at 2-2. Albuquerque took the lead and put the game away in the 8th inning. Jason Wood reached on an error and Todd Sears singled to left field. Wilson Delgado sacrifice-bunted both runners into scoring position and a wild pitch by a major-league rehabilitating Jeremy Affeldt brought Wood home. Chris Ashby walked and once again Affeldt uncorked a wild pitch as Sears scampered home. Derek Wathan then doubled to left field to drive in Ashby as the Isotopes led 5-2. Dillon walked to lead off the 9th inning and later scored on Delgado's single to left field as the Isotopes closed out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/28/05): Joe Dillon 42 G, 34 R, 46 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 35 RBI, 21 BB, 30 K, 3 SB, .625 SLG, .303
AVG Jeff Fulchino 6-6, 5.99 ERA, 0 SV, 79.2 IP, 95 H, 66 R, 53 ER,
14 HR, 41 BB, 55 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In Albuquerque's longest 9-inning game to this date in 2003 (3 hours, 50 minutes), Omaha put up an eight-spot in the 5th inning and scored six more runs in the final 3 innings to defeat the Isotopes 17-9 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: With the Isotope victory and an Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) loss on Thursday evening, the Isotopes extended their lead in the PCL American Conference Southern Division to four games. The Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) won their contest on Thursday evening to keep their pace of being four games back of the Isotopes (Round Rock and Oklahoma being tied for second place in the division). . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series are RHP Frank Castillo (6-4, 4.61) for the Isotopes and RHP Dennis Tankersley (5-6, 4.84) for the O-Royals. Filed 06/30/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/30/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Isotopes and the rest of the PCL have the day off. The Isotopes resume action on Thursday evening in Omaha when they take on the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). The four games mark the end of the current roadtrip the Isotopes are on as well as concludes the season series between the 'Topes and Royals. LHP Donovan Osborne, a major-league veteran who is fresh off of several fantastic starts for the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League before being signed to a free agent contract by the Marlins, is getting ready to make his Isotopes debut against Omaha's RHP Danny Tamayo (4-5, 5.27). With Josh Beckett expected to be activated from the Marlins' disabled list in the next day or two, a player may be sent to Albuquerque. More details will be posted here when the Marlins figure out what player move to make to free up roster room for Beckett. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Doug Sessions tossed 8 innings of 2-hit ball as the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) defeated the Isotopes 5-1 in New Orleans. The game went well into the evening as the start of the game ws delayed by 2 hours, 9 minutes.
Here are the current active team leaders in various categories (through games of 06/28/05): BATTING Batting Average (min. 20 at-bats): Todd Sears
(.360) PITCHING Wins (Starter): Jeff Fulchino, Frank Castillo
(6) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino
(6-6) HR: ABQ Matt Padgett (12) off Tim McClaskey in the 6th inning RR Royce Huffman (3) off Jeff Fulchino in the 5th inning
TIME: 2:54 Albuquerque was finally able to get their first victory in a game played in the state of Texas and avoided the series sweep with a 4-3 victory over the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) on Tuesday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a three-game losing streak. The Express got on the scoreboard in the 3rd inning. Royce Huffman drew a walk to lead off the inning, advanced to second base on a wild pitch and two batters later, scored on Mike Coolbaugh's single to center field. With two outs in the 5th inning, Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino singled to center field and scored on Mark Little's triple to right-center field. Josh Wilson's single to left field brought home Little as the 'Topes led 2-1. Huffman solo-homered to left field to lead off the home half of the 5th inning as the Express tied the game at 2-2. The tie did not last very long as Matt Padgett homered to center field to lead off the 6th inning and give the 'Topes the lead again at 3-2. Jason Wood walked and later scored on Joe Dillon's single to left field as the Isotopes added an insurance run in the 9th inning, a run it turns out they would need as Alex Eckelman pinch-hit solo-homered in the bottom of the 9th inning as the Express drew to within a run at 4-3. Isotopes reliever Chad Bentz then got Huffman to fly out to right field to end the contest and earn his first save. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/27/05): Joe Dillon 41 G, 34 R, 45 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 14 HR, 34 RBI, 21 BB, 30 K, 3 SB, .639 SLG, .306
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) at Zephyr Field 3-2. The Isotopes scored three runs in the 8th inning to break a scoreless tie. Aaron Small entered the 9th inning with a 1-hit shutout before falling apart. The Zephyrs scored twice in the inning and had the bases loaded with two outs before the Isotopes were able to get that precious third out of the inning to quell the rally to win the game. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes kept their perfect record of not being swept in a series in 2005 alive, although they lost the series to Round Rock 3-1. 37,823 fans attended the four-game series at Dell Diamond for a per-game average of 9,456. . . . Todd Sears drew 3 walks, tying an Isotope season-high for walks in a game. . . . After an off day on Wednesday, the Isotopes play a four-game series in Omaha against the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) to close out the season series with the Royals and conclude the current roadtrip. Pitching probables for the opener on Thursday night are LHP Donovan Osborne (no record) for the Isotopes and RHP Danny Tamayo (4-5, 5.27) for the Royals. Filed 06/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Brandon Duckworth (2-2) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (14) off Brandon Duckworth in the 6th
inning RR Luke Scott (10) off Travis Smith in the 4th
inning TIME: 2:56 Royce Huffman turned in a four-hit game with a homer and four RBI and Luke Scott added three runs batted in as the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) defeated the Isotopes 9-3 as the Isotopes continued winless at Dell Diamond in Round Rock. All three Isotope runs were scored on solo homers (Todd Sears to left field in the 4th inning, Wilson Delgado to right field in the 5th inning and Joe Dillon to left field in the 6th inning). Round Rock scored the first run of the game in the 1st inning - Scott tripled to center field and scored on Danny Klassen's single. In the 2nd inning, Chris Tremie reached on a fielder's choice and a batter later, scored on Huffman's single to left field. In Round Rock's third inning, Mike Coolbaugh singled to left field and Todd Self walked. After a double steal, Coolbaugh scored on Tremie's single to right field as the Express led 3-0. A pair of back-to-back Express solo homers (Huffman and Scott) gave the Express a 5-1 lead. In the 5th inning, Self, Barry Wesson and Express starter Brandon Duckworth all singled to load the bases. Huffman singled to left field to drive in Self and Scott sacrifice flied out to left field to drive in Wesson as Round Rock led 7-2. Round Rock closed out the scoring in the 7th inning. Tremie reached on an error and Charles Gipson bunt singled. Huffman's double brought home Tremie and Scott's groundout plated Gipson to make it the final score of 9-3 Express. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/26/05): Joe Dillon 40 G, 33 R, 44 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 13 HR, 33 RBI, 21 BB, 29 K, 3 SB, .629 SLG, .308
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Aaron Small tossed seven innings of one run ball in the Isotopes' 3-1 victory over the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2004) at Zephyr Field. The Isotopes' runs were scored on Ryan Jorgensen's sacrifice flyout and Matt Padgett and Jason Wood RBI singles. 'Topes Notes: Wilson Delgado hit the first pinch-hit homer of the season for the Isotopes and only the second pinch-hit homer in franchise history. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is Scott McClain of the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs). McClain hit four homers, six doubles and drove in 15 runs during the week. . . . The PCL Pitcher of the Week is Kevin Correia of the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants). Correia went 2-0 with a 0.75 ERA for the week, allowing just 1 run in 12 innings of work and striking out 9. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale at Dell Diamond on Tuesday evening as the Isotopes look to avoid the series sweep are RHP Jeff Fulchino (5-6, 6.15) for the Isotopes and RHP Jared Gothreaux (3-7, 4.28) for the Express. A video webcast of the contest is available at www.roundrockexpress.com. Filed 06/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ezequiel Astacio (4-3) HR: RR Carlos Rivera (6) off Ariel Prieto in the 2nd inning TIME: 2:26 Carlos Rivera homered and drove in two runs as the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) defeated the Isotopes 4-2 on Sunday evening. The Isotopes remain winless in their first two games in franchise history at Dell Diamond. In the 1st inning, Mark Little was hit by a pitch on the second pitch of the game, Chris Aguila doubled to left field to move Little to third base and Joe Dillon, in his first at-bat back with the Isotopes after his recent option to Albuquerque from the Marlins, singled to left field to drive in Little as the Isotopes led 1-0. Rivera solo-homered to left field in the 2nd inning as the Express tied the game at 1-1. Round Rock gave themselves some breathing room in the 3rd inning. Express starter Ezequiel Astacio singled to right field and moved up a base on a wild pitch. Isotopes starter Ariel Prieto then threw the ball away on a pickoff play to second base as Astacio advanced to third base. After Royce Huffman grounded out, Luke Scott doubled down the first base line as Astacio scored. An out later, Mike Coolbaugh singled to left field to drive in Scott and Coolbaugh proceeded to steal second base. Carlos Rivera doubled to right field to plate Coolbaugh as the Express led 4-1. Aguila tripled to right field in the 9th inning and scored on Dillon's sacrifice flyout to left field to end the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/25/05): Joe Dillon 39 G, 33 R, 43 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 13 HR, 31 RBI, 20 BB, 29 K, 3 SB, .631 SLG, .305
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, The Isotopes held off the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) 7-6 at Zephyr Field. Albuquerque was up 7-0 but New Orleans made a game of it, scoring 6 runs in the 7th inning. There were 8 Isotope stolen bases in the contest, a franchise record that still stands. Gerald Williams stole 3 of those, also a individual franchise record for steals in a game that still stands today. 'Topes Notes: Jason Wood went 0x4 in the game to snap a 7 game hitting streak. . . . The Isotopes and Express meet for Game 3 of the series on Monday evening with a video webcast available at www.roundrockexpress.com. Pitching probables are RHP Travis Smith (2-1, 6.75) for the Isotopes and RHP Brandon Duckworth (1-2, 4.42) for the Express. Filed 06/26/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Fernando Nieve (1-1) HR: RR Danny Klassen (12) off Frank Castillo in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:35 Danny Klassen grand-slam homered and drove in six total runs to key a 8-3 Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) victory over the Isotopes in the Isotopes' first ever game played in franchise history in the state of Texas. With the loss, the Isotopes snapped a five-game road winning streak. In the 2nd inning, Round Rock's Carlos Rivera walked, advanced to third base on Todd Self's double and scored on Barry Wesson's groundout as the Express led 1-0. Mark Little walked and eventually scored on Jason Wood's single to left field as the Isotopes tied the game at 1-1 in the 3rd inning. In the bottom of the 3rd inning, Express starter Fernando Nieve and Royce Huffman singled to left field and Luke Scott walked ahead of Klassen's grand-slam homer to left field as the Express led 5-1. In the 4th inning, the Express extended the lead to 8-1. Chris Tremie was hit by a pitch and Nieve sacrifice bunted Tremie into scoring position. Huffman walked and an out later, Klassen tripled to the warning track in right-center field to bring home Tremie and Huffman. Mike Coolbaugh then singled to left field to drive in Klassen. Albuquerque closed out the scoring in the 8th inning. With one out, Wood walked and Matt Padgett singled to left field. Wilson Delgado walked to load the bases and Josh Wilson singled to right field as Wood scored and Padgett scored on an error on the play. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/24/05): Joe Dillon 39 G, 33 R, 43 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 13 HR, 31 RBI, 20 BB, 29 K, 3 SB, .631 SLG, .305
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Nick Regilio no hit the Isotopes for 8 1/3 innings and ended up tossing a one hitter in the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) 6-0 victory over the Isotopes at Isotopes Park. Regilio struck out 10 in the game. 'Topes Notes: Danny Klassen's grand-slam homer was the first grand-slam homer allowed by an Isotope pitcher this season. . . . Frank Castillo tied an Isotope individual season high by giving up eight earned runs in a game. . . . Ryan Jorgensen's 7-game hitting streak came to an end with an 0x4 performance while Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to seven games. . . . The Isotopes and Express meet each other for Game 2 of the series on Sunday evening with an internet-streamed video broadcast available at www.roundrockexpress.com. Pitching probables for the game are RHP Ariel Prieto (4-3, 5.36) for the Isotopes and Ezequiel Astacio (3-3, 2.96) for the Express. Filed 06/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Patrick Flury (1-1) HR: ABQ Mark Little (18) off Mike Adams in the 8th inning MEM Warren Morris (3) off Bryan Corey in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:42 The Isotopes sure found a great time to come up with their largest scoring inning of the season. Down 5-1 in the 8th inning, the Isotopes put up an eight-spot on the scoreboard to defeat the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) 9-5 in the series finale Friday night at "The Lab". Tony Zuniga doubled to center field in the 2nd inning and eventually scored on Julio Mosquera's double-play groundout as the Sounds led 1-0. Trent Durrington bunt singled and scored on Warren Morris' homer to right field in the 3rd inning as the Sounds extended the lead to 3-0. In the home half of the 3rd inning, Derek Wathan bunt singled and advanced to second base on an error on the throw trying to get him out at first base. Todd Sears followed with a single to center field as Wathan raced home to get the Isotopes on the scoreboard. In the 4th inning, Mosquera singled to center field and scored on Dave Krynzel's triple to center field. Durrington's single to left field brought Krynzel home as the Sounds led 5-1. Albuquerque won the game with yet another last at-bat rally in the 8th inning. Mark Little singled to left field and Wathan popped out. Sears singled to right field to advance Little to third base and Wood singled to left field as Little scored. Both runners advanced into scoring position on a wild pitch and Matt Padgett walked to load the bases. Wilson Delgado reached on a fielder's choice as Sears scored. Josh Wilson walked to load the bases and Ryan Jorgensen singled to center field to drive in Wood and Delgado as the Isotpoes tied the game. Chris Aguila entered the game as a pinch hitter and singled to center as Wilson scored to give the Isotopes the lead and Little followed with a homer to center field to give the Isotopes some insurance runs and a 9-5 lead. When the inning was over, the Isotopes sent 11 batters to the plate to score the eight runs. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/23/05): Joe Dillon 39 G, 33 R, 43 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 13 HR, 31 RBI, 20 BB, 29 K, 3 SB, .631 SLG, .305
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Edmonton Trappers (AAA Expos) 2-1 at Isotopes Park. Nate Bump went 7 innings,giving up 7 hits and a run. Kevin Hooper scored on a wild pitch and Chad Allen scored on Jason Wood's double to account for the two Isotopes runs scored in the contest. 'Topes Notes: Nashville and Albuquerque split the series 2-2. The contest also marked Nashville's last game at Isotopes Park in 2005 and Nashville took five out of the eight games at "The Lab" in 2005. Albuquerque travels to Nashville for one more four-game series to conclude the 16-game season series between the two clubs. . . . 29,537 fans attended the four-game series/homestand for a per-game average of 7,384. The Isotopes, through 40 home dates, are approaching the 300,000 mark in home attendance (297,482). . . . Ryan Jorgensen extended his hitting streak to 7 games, while Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Albuquerque begins a nine-day, eight-game roadtrip with their first trip in franchise history to the Dell Diamond in Round Rock, Texas to play the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros). Isotope fans can pay to watch an internet-streamed video broadcast of the game by going to www.roundrockexpress.com around gametime. Pitching probables for the first game of the four-game series are RHP Frank Castillo (6-3, 4.04) for the Isotopes and RHP Fernando Nieve (0-1, 4.50) for the Express. Filed 06/24/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/24/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Justin Lehr (7-6) HR: NSH Tony Zuniga (1) off Carlos Martinez in the 7th inning ALB Ryan Jorgensen (2) off Justin Lehr in the
3rd inning TIME: 2:50 Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) Warren Morris and Tony Zuniga each drove in four runs in the Sounds' 11-5 victory over the Isotopes on Thursday evening. Nashville's Corey Hart doubled to left field, advanced to third base on an error on the play and scored on Zuniga's groundout in the 2nd inning as the Sounds led 1-0. Sounds starter Justin Lehr infield singled in the 3rd inning with one out. An out later, Ryan Knox was hit by a pitch and Trent Durrington singled to left field as Lehr scored. Morris' triple to the hill in center field cleared the bases as the Sounds led 4-0. In the home half of the 3rd inning, Ryan Jorgensen solo-homered to left field to lead off the inning. Isotopes starter Peter Bauer followed with a single to center field, advanced to second base on Mark Little's infield single and scored on Chris Auila's single to right-center field as the Isotopes cut the defecit in half at 4-2. Nashville put the game away with a five-run 5th inning. Lehr and Dave Krynzel singled to lead off the inning and both advanced into scoring position when Knox sacrifice bunted. Durrington was hit by a pitch to load the bases and Morris singled to right field as Lehr and Krynzel scored. Hart doubled to left-center field to plate Durrington and Zuniga singled to left field as Morris scored. Mike Rivera sacrifice flied out to left field to bring home Hart as the Sounds led 9-2. Jason Wood singled to right field and later scored on Jorgensen's single to right field in the 6th inning as the Isotopes put another tally on the scoreboard. Hart tripled to right-center field and Zuniga followed with a home run to left-center field in the 7th inning as the Sounds concluded their scoring in the contest and led 11-3. Albuquerque finished out the scoring in the game in the 9th inning. With one out, Mark Little homered to left-center field. An out later, Chris Aguila doubled to center field and scored on Todd Sears' single to left field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/22/05): Joe Dillon 39 G, 33 R, 43 H, 7 2B,
0 3B, 13 HR, 31 RBI, 20 BB, 29 K, 3 SB, .631 SLG, .305
AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.15 ERA, 0 SV, 74.2 IP, 92 H, 64 R, 51 ER,
13 HR, 39 BB, 50 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost to the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 10-9 at Isotopes Park. Oklahoma scored four runs (former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez's two run double and Jason Jones' two run homer) in the 9th inning as Isotope reliever Michael Neu blew the save opportunity. 'Topes Notes: Nashville's Warren Morris had his second four-RBI effort of the series tonight. . . . Nashville reliever Clint Weibl pitched the final three innings for the rulebook save. . . . The eight earned runs Peter Bauer allowed in the game tied an Isotope individual season-high mark. . . . Trent Durrington extended his hitting streak to 15 games. . . . The Isotopes and Sounds close out the series on Friday evening at "The Lab". The Isotopes have yet to officially name a spot-starter to take the place of Les Walrond, whose contract was purchased by a Korean baseball club. It is believed RHP Bryan Corey (2-3, 7.45) may make the spot start against Sounds RHP Gary Glover (1-0, 0.82). Filed 06/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Filed 06/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Howard (2-2) TIME: 2:45 Maybe the Isotopes should wear Albuquerque Duke uniforms more often. Mark Little's exciting base hit brought the game winning run home in the 9th inning as the Isotopes/"Dukes" defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) 3-2 on Albuquerque Dukes retro night at "The Lab". In the 1st inning, Dave Krynzel singled to left field and stole second base before scoring on Trent Durrington's single to right field. Warren Morris infield singled as Durrington moved to second base, a Corey Hart flyout moved Durrington to third base and Durrington scored when Brad Nelson reached on a fielder's choice as the Sounds led 2-0. The Isotopes tied the game in the 6th inning. Todd Sears and Jason Wood singled and Josh Willingham was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Matt Padgett singled to right field to plate Sears and an out later, Josh Wilson sacrifice flied out to center field as Wood scored. The Isotopes won the game in the bottom of the 9th inning. Wilson singled to center field and Ben Howard struck out on a missed bunt. Mark Little followed with what was ruled a triple to left field, a ball ripped down the left field line that interacted with the rolled up tarp as Wilson raced around the bases with the winning run. The Sounds disputed that the ball should have been a dead ball when it appeared a ball boy trying to get out of the way interfered with the Sounds' ability to get to the ball but the umpires decision stood and the 'Topes won the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/21/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.42 ERA, 0 SV, 68.2 IP, 85 H, 62 R, 49 ER, 13 HR, 38
BB, 49 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: This day in 2004 was a day to forget for the Isotopes. The Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) banged out 31 hits and 24 runs at Isotopes Park in thumping the 'Topes 24-4. Former Isotope Adrian Gonzalez homered twice and drove in 6 runs in the 'Topes worst defeat in franchise history to this date. The 31 hits allowed and 24 runs allowed are also Isotope franchise records to this date. 'Topes Notes: The last at-bat win was the Isotopes' 10th one of the season. . . . Chris Aguila went 0x4 to snap a 6 game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for Thursday evening's contest are RHP Peter Bauer (3-4, 6.44) for the Isotopes and RHP Justin Lehr (6-6, 4.95) for the Sounds. Filed 06/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Housman (3-6) HR: ABQ Chris Aguila (5) off Jeff Housman in the 3rd inning MEM Warren Morris (1) off Ariel Prieto in the 3rd
inning TIME: 2:46 Warren Morris homered twice and drove in four runs as the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) snapped the Isotopes' five-game winning streak with a 7-3 victory over the 'Topes in the series opener Tuesday evening. Dave Krynzel doubled to left field and scored on Warren Morris' homer to left-center field in the 3rd inning as the Sounds led 2-0 .In the home half of the 3rd inning, Isotopes starter Ariel Prieto doubled to left field, advanced to third base on Mark Little's groundout and scored on Wilson Delgado's groundout. Chris Aguila followed with a home run to left field as the Isotopes tied the game at 2-2. The game remain tied until the 5th inning. Trent Durrington singled, stole second base and scored on Morris' single to center field. Prieto committed an error on a pickoff attempt as Morris advaned to second base and Brad Nelson singled to center field to drive in Morris as the Sounds led 4-2. In the 6th inning, Aguila doubled to center field, advanced to third base on an error on the play and scored on Josh Willingham's sacrifice flyout to right field as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 4-3. Morris belted his second homer of the game in the 7th inning as the Sounds increased the lead to two runs. In the 8th inning, Nelson doubled to left field and later scored on Julio Mosquera's sacrifice flyout to left field. The Sounds closed out the scoring in the 9th inning when Durrington walked, advanced to second base on Morris' single to right field and scored two outs later on Sounds reliever Jose Capellan's single to right field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/20/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.42 ERA, 0 SV, 68.2 IP, 85 H, 62 R, 49 ER, 13 HR, 38
BB, 49 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes lost to the Edmonton Trappers (AAA Expos) 8-3. Edmonton had six runs on the scoreboard by the end of the 3rd inning and Seung Song improved his record to 2-0 for the Trappers. 'Topes Notes: Even with the loss, the Isotopes remain in sole possession of first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) lost this evening. . . . Chris Aguila extended his hitting streak to 6 games and has homered in each of the last two games. . . . Two Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) players won the PCL weekly awards. Former-Isotope Abraham Nunez was named the PCL Hitter of the Week. Nunez hit .591 for the week with four home runs. Masao Kida won the PCL Pitcher of the Week award. Kida earned a save in all five appearances for the week. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series are RHP Jeff Fulchino (5-6, 6.42) for the Isotopes and RHP Rick Helling (5-3, 4.30) for the Sounds. Filed 06/21/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jim Crowell (1-2) HR: ABQ Chris Aguila (4) off Tyler Johnson in the 9th inning MEM John Rodriguez (11) off Matt Perisho in the 7th inning TIME: 3:32 The Isotopes had to really work for their steak dinner on Monday evening. The 'Topes capped a six-run comeback with a Chris Aguila grand-slam homer in the 9th inning and won it in the 11th inning with a Jason Wood sacrifice flyout in a 7-6 victory over the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) in the series finale. With the win, the Isotopes have won five straight games and took over sole possession of first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Chris Duncan singled to right field, advanced to second base on John Nelson's groundout, moved to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Cody McKay's groundout as the Redbirds took a 1-0 lead in the 5th inning. In the 7th inning, the Redbirds scored enough runs that you would think they put the game away. Raul Gonzalez doubled to right field and John Gall singled to center field. Duncan reached on a fielder's choice as Gonzalez scored and an out later, McKay was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Bo Hart sacrifice flied out to left field to plate Gall and pinch-hitter John Rodriguez three-run homered to right field as the Redbirds scored five runs to take a 6-1 lead. The Isotopes offense finally woke up in the 9th inning. Tyler Johnson entered the game in relief for the Redbirds and Matt Padgett greeted him with a double to right-center field to lead off the inning. Wilson Delgado singled to left field to bring Padgett home and Josh Wilson walked. Pinch-hitter Derek Wathan reached on an error to load the bases and Mark Little singled to left field to bring Delgado home. With the bases still loaded, Aguila grand-slam homered to left field to tie the game at 6-6. With one out in the 11th inning, Aguila walked and Todd Sears singled to right field to advance Aguila to third base. Wood followed with a sacrifice flyout to right field as Aguila scored the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/19/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.42 ERA, 0 SV, 68.2 IP, 85 H, 62 R, 49 ER, 13 HR, 38
BB, 49 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004) 4-3 at Isotopes Park. Chris Aguila's 7th inning homer provided the winning margin. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes are the sole division leader for the first time since May 31st. . . . The Isotopes swept the series to earn the traditional steak dinner. Three out of the four wins was decided by a single run. 47,894 fans attended at Autozone Park for an impressive 11,973 per-game average. The Isotopes lead the all time series by 10 games (23-13) and in this series broke the all-time tie in the games played at Autozone Park (now a 12-8 advantage at Autozone Park) . . . With the conclusion of the game, the Isotopes have played 72 games and are halfway through the 2005 campaign with a 40-32 record, 8 games above the .500 mark. 264,172 fans (7,338 per-game average) have attended the 36 games at Isotopes Park, while 217,272 fans (6.035 per-game average) have watched the 'Topes in 36 road contests. Total attendance is 481,444. . . . Chris Aguila's homer made sure that the Isotopes would not tie the franchise record for consecutive games without a homer (snapped at five games tonight). . . . Aguila's grand-slam homer was the third Isotope grand-slam homer of the season. . . . The five-game road winning streak is the longest of the season. . . . Until Memphis scored in the 5th inning, the Isotopes pitching staff had held the Redbirds scoreless in the previous 15 2/3 innings. . . . The Isotopes are 5-0 in extra inning contests in 2005. . . . Randy Messenger earned a save in three out of the four games in the series. . . . Albuquerque returns home for a quick four-game homestand against the Nashville Sounds. The series marks the final four games that Nashville plays at Isotopes Park in 2005. Pitching probables are RHP Ariel Prieto (4-2, 5.36) for the Isotopes and LHP Jeff Housman (2-6, 5.27) for the Sounds. Filed 06/20/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Les Walrond (4-5) TIME: 1:51 What a way to end a personal three-game losing streak! Les Walrond tossed a complete-game, 3 hit shutout and Matt Padgett came through in the 9th inning with a run-scoring sacrifice flyout as the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 1-0 in a pitching duel that lasted an Isotopes franchise record shortest 9-inning game time of 1 hour 51 minutes. With the victory, the Isotopes have won four straight games and have moved into a first-place tie with the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) atop the PCL American Conference Southern Division. In the 9th inning, Chris Aguila singled to left field with one out and Jason Wood followed with a single to right field to advance Aguila to third base. Padgett then sacrifice flied out to left field to bring Aguila home with the only run of the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/18/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.42 ERA, 0 SV, 68.2 IP, 85 H, 62 R, 49 ER, 13 HR, 38
BB, 49 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes and Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) split a doubleheader in Colorado Springs: 7-3 Isotopes in Game 1; 3-2 Sky Sox in Game 2. Albuquerque scored five times in the 6th inning to aid their game 1victory. Paul Hoover struck out as the last out of the game with Gerald Williams at third base representing the tying run in the 7th inning as the Sky Sox quelled the 'Topes rally in game 2. 'Topes Notes: Les Walrond must like pitching on Sundays. Walrond became the first Isotope to pitch two nine-inning complete game shutouts and both of those shutouts this season were tossed on a Sunday. . . . Walrond tied a franchise-record for the fewest hits allowed in a game - 3 and faced only three batters over the minimum. . . . There have been three Isotope shutouts in 2005, tying a franchise mark for shutouts in a season set in both 2003 and 2004. . . . The 'Topes last at-bat win is the eighth of the season (and the third one accomplished with a sacrifice flyout). . . . The Isotopes' road winning streak is at a season-tying high of four games. . . . The Isotopes have been held homerless in five straight games, one short of the franchise record. . . . The Isotopes are expected to send RHP Frank Castillo (6-3, 4.29) to the mound as the 'Topes look for the series sweep to end the roadtrip. RHP Chris Gissell (6-5, 2.78) is expected to take the bump for the Redbirds. Filed 06/19/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Peter Bauer (3-4) HR: MEM Raul Gonzalez (9) off Peter Bauer in the 7th inning TIME: 2:40 The Albuquerque Isotopes scored twice in two different innings and held off a Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) rally in a 4-3 victory on Saturday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes have won three straight games. In the 4th inning, Wilson Delgado doubled to left field and scored on Chris Aguila's double to right field. An out later, Jason Wood walked and both executed a double-steal. Aguila scored on a throwing error on the double-steal (Redbirds catcher Cody McKay tried to get Aguila out at third base and threw the ball into left field) as the Isotopes took a 2-0 lead. The Isotopes extended the lead to 4-0 in the 6th inning. Delgado led off the inning with a single to center field and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Chris Aguila singled to left field and stole second base to put both runners in scoring position. Wood walked to load the bases and Matt Padgett singled to left field to drive in Delgado and Aguila. Memphis made a game of it in the 7th inning. Raul Gonzalez solo-homered to right field to lead off the inning and an out later, John Nelson singled to right field. Mike Mahoney singled to center field and John Gall singled to right field to load the bases. Former-Albuquerque Duke Wilton Guerrero flied out to center field, but not deep enough to bring a run home. Bo Hart then drew a walk as Nelson trotted home and Roger Cedeno, with the Redbirds on a rehabilitation assignment, walked as Mahoney jogged in to cut the Isotopes led to 4-3. John Rodriguez struck out swinging to end the threat and the inning. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/17/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 5-6, 6.42 ERA, 0 SV, 68.2 IP, 85 H, 62 R, 49 ER, 13 HR, 38
BB, 49 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes scored 11 runs in the 6th inning (a franchise record for most runs scored in an inning that still holds to this day) in a 11-8 victory at Colorado Springs against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies). 'Topes Notes: The crowd of 13,941 was the largest crowd the Isotopes have played in front of in 2005. . . . Chris Aguila turned in his first multi-steal game of the season, and the Isotopes' fourth multi-steal game this season. His two steals were one short of tying the franchise record of 3 steals in a game set by Gerald Williams and Wilson Valdez in separate games in 2003. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Sunday afternoon are LHP Les Walrond (3-5, 5.10) for the Isotopes and LHP Bill Pulsipher (1-2, 5.05) for the Redbirds. Filed 06/18/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino (5-6) HR: MEM John Rodriguez (10) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:48 Chris Aguila went 2x4 with four RBI as the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 7-4 in the first matchup between the two clubs in 2005. John Rodriguez solo-homered to center field in the 1st inning as the Redbirds led 1-0. Todd Sears singled to right field, advanced to second base on Jason Wood's single to left field, advanced to third base on Matt Padgett's groundout and scored on Josh Wilson's sacrifice flyout to right field in the 2nd inning as the 'Topes tied the game at 1-1. In the 3rd inning, Memphis' Mike Mahoney singled to left field and scored on rehabilitating outfielder Roger Cedeno's double to left field. An out later, Raul Gonzalez homered to left field as the Redbirds led 4-1. In the 5th inning, Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino doubled to center field and Mark Little walked. Aguila doubled to right field to plate Fulchino and Little as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 4-3. Ryan Jorgensen singled to right field to lead off the 7th inning and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Little was hit by a pitch and Derek Wathan singled to left field to load the bases. Aguila doubled to left field to drive in Jorgensen and Little as the Isotopes took a 5-4 lead. The Isotopes added insurance runs in the 8th inning. Jason Wood walked to lead off the inning and Padgett singled to left field. A wild pitch advanced both runners into scoring position and Jorgensen was intentionally walked to load the bases. Pinch-hitter Wilson Delgado singled to left-center field as Wood and Padgett scored. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/16/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-6, 6.46 ERA, 0 SV, 62.2 IP, 78 H, 58 R, 45 ER, 11 HR, 35 BB,
46 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost to the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 15-5 at Isotopes Park. Iowa scored 5 runs in the 7th inning and 9 runs in the 9th inning in the rout. Off the field, Wilson Valdez was traded from the Marlins to the White Sox. 'Topes Notes: The contest was played in front of 12,003 fans, the second largest road attendance game for the Isotopes this season and the third largest crowd the Isotopes have played in front of in 2005. . . . Memphis' John Rodriguez homered in his first ever at-bat at Autozone Park. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series are RHP Peter Bauer (2-4, 6.94) for the Isotopes and RHP Mark Nussbeck (0-2, 2.65) for the Redbirds. Filed 06/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Randy Messenger (4-1) HR: NSH Trent Durrington (4) off Ariel Prieto in the 3rd inning TIME: 3:08 Albuquerque came up with a three-run comeback in the later innings and then celebrated by scoring four runs in the 10th inning to win a 8-4 contest against the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) on Thursday evening. Wilson Delgado doubled into the left field corner and two outs later scored on Mark Little's double to left field as the Isotopes led 1-0 in the 3rd inning. Trent Durrington leadoff homered in the home half of the 3rd inning to tie the game at 1-1. Nashville went to work in the 4th inning to take the lead. Warren Morris ledoff with a walk and Corey Hart singled to center field. An out later, a double steal put both runners in scoring position and Brad Nelson walked to load the baes. Mike Rivera singled to left field to drive in Morris and Hart and Durrington's groundout brought Nelson home as the Sounds led 4-1. Albuquerque tied the game in the 7th inning with a three-spot of their own. Jason Wood infield singled and two outs later, Delgado and Josh Wilson drew walks to load the baes. Pinch-hitter Derek Wathan doubled to the center field wall to clear the bases. In the 10th inning, Chris Ashby popped out to lead off the inning. Little walked and Chris Aguila singled to left field as Little advanced to third base. Todd Sears reached on a fielder's choice (Little out at home plate) and Aguila stole third base. Jason Wood was hit by a pitch to load the bases and Josh Willingham drew a walk as Aguila trotted home with the go-ahead run. Pinch-hitter Ryan Jorgensen singled up the middle to drive in two and an error on the play allowed the third run to come home as the Isotopes added insurance runs. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/15/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-6, 6.46 ERA, 0 SV, 62.2 IP, 78 H, 58 R, 45 ER, 11 HR, 35 BB,
46 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Matt Padgett grand-slam homered and Aaron Small pitched a complete game, allowing 5 hits and 1 run, as the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 6-1 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes are 4-0 in extra inning games with tonight's victory. . . . The Isotopes and Sounds split the series 2-2. 26,740 fans watched the Isotopes and Sounds in Nashville for a per-game average of 6,685. 433,550 fans have watched the Isotopes at home and away in 2005 so far. . . . The Isotopes conclude their road trip with four games against the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals). Traditionally, these two clubs have met in the opening series of the season, so this year it is extremely late that the Isotopes and Redbirds are meeting each other for the first time in 2005 (Isotopes' game #69 of the season). Pitching probables for the series opener at Autozone Park in downtown Memphis are RHP Jeff Fulchino (4-6, 6.46) for the Isotopes and RHP Kevin Jarvis (5-2, 2.61) for the Redbirds. Filed 06/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Hendrickson (3-5) TIME: 2:45 Corey Hart and Kevin Orie drove in three runs each as the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) cruised to a 8-1 victory over the Isotopes on Wednesday afternoon in Nashville. Nashville's Warren Morris ground-rule doubled to right field, advanced to third on Hart's groundout and scored on Orie's single to center field as the Sounds led 1-0 in the 1st inning. Morris singled to center field in the 3rd inning and scored on Orie's double to center field as the Sounds built the lead to 2-0. Former Isotope Matt Erickson singled to right field to lead off the 4th inning. Chris Barnwell singled to left field and Morris walked to load the bases. Hart cleared the bases with a triple to right field as the Sounds led 5-0. Hart walked with two outs in the 6th inning and Orie doubled to right field to bring Hart home. Brad Nelson walked and Mike Rivera doubled to center field as Orie and Nelson scored to make it a 8-0 contest. Back-to-back doubles by Jason Wood and Matt Padgett in the 9th inning provided the lone Isotope run in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/14/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-6, 6.46 ERA, 0 SV, 62.2 IP, 78 H, 58 R, 45 ER, 11 HR, 35 BB,
46 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Scott Sanders pitched eight innings of 6 hit, 1-run ball as the Isotopes defeated the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) 7-1 at Isotopes Park. Sanders helped his cause with a two-run single and Paul Hoover added a two-run homer and Chris Wakeland, Matt Erickson and Anthony Iapoce added run-scoring hits. 'Topes Notes: Todd Sears went 0x7 to snap a seven-game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Thursday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (4-2, 5.50) for the Isotopes and LHP Jeff Housman (2-6, 5.54) for the Sounds. Filed 06/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Gary Glover (1-0) HR: ABQ Mark Little (16) off Kane Davis in the 7th inning NSH Kevin Orie (12) off Les Walrond in the 2nd inning TIME: 3:00 A six-run 4th inning was all the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) needed to assure a comfortable win over the Isotopes 11-3 on Tuesday evening in Nashville. In the 1st inning, Mark Little reached on an error and then stole second base and advanced to third base on a throwing error by Sounds catcher Julio Mosquera. An out later, Chris Aguila walked and Matt Padgett singled to right-center field as Little scored (and Aguila scored during an error on the play) to give the Isotopes a 2-0 lead. Kevin Orie solo-homered to left-center field in the 2nd inning as the Sounds got on the scoreboard. Infield singles doomed the Isotopes in the big six-run 4th inning. Corey Hart walked and Orie singled to left field. Trent Durrington high-chopped an infield single to load the bases and Brad Nelson high-chopped an infield single as Hart scored. An out later, Steve Scarborough infield singled off Isotope starter Walrond's glove as Orie scored. Sounds starter Gary Glover bunt singled as Durrington scored and Dave Krynzel reached on a fielder's choice as Nelson scored. Warren Morris infield singled with a high chopper to first base as Scarborough scored and Hart doubled to center field to drive in Krynzel as the Sounds took a 7-2 lead. Mark Little solo-homered to left-center field in the 7th inning for the final Isotopes run of the ballgame. Nelson walked in the 7th inning, advanced to third base on Mosquera's single and scored on Scarborough's sacrifice flyout to left field. Nashville added their final three runs in the 8th inning. Krynzel singled and Morris singled to center. Hart walked to load the bases and Orie singled to center field to drive in Krynzel and Morris. Durrington reached on a fielder's choice to advance Hart to 3rd base and Mosquera's ground-rule double to left field brought Hart home.Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/13/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-6, 6.46 ERA, 0 SV, 62.2 IP, 78 H, 58 R, 45 ER, 11 HR, 35 BB,
46 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Joe Dillon was named the PCL Hitter of the Week and celebrated by hitting for the cycle. Chris Aguila contributed a three run homer to the cause in the Isotopes' 11-9 victory over the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: Josh Willingham is the PCL Hitter of the Week - see the separate news item. . . . Chris Oxspring of the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) is the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Oxspring worked 15.1 innings of work in two starts this week and gave up only 3 earned runs and struck out 16. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Wednesday afternoon are RHP Frank Castillo (6-2, 3.93) for the Isotopes and RHP Ben Hendrickson (2-5, 4.30) for the Sounds. Filed 06/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Nate Bump (1-0) HR: ABQ Chris Aguila (3) off Justin Lehr in the 1st inning TIME: 2:44 Chris Aguila had a hand in all three of the Isotopes' runs in a 3-2 victory over the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) in the series opener in Nashville on Monday night. Aguila solo-homered to left field in the 1st inning to give the Isotopes a 1-0 lead. In the 4th inning, Nashville's Trent Durrington bunt singled and scored on Corey Hart's double down the third base line. In the 5th inning, Ryan Jorgensen and Mark Little walked and Aguila drove a fly ball to deep center field. Sounds outfielder Dave Krynzel caught the ball but then dropped it as Jorgensen and Little raced around to score on the two- base error. In the 6th inning, Durrington singled and stole second base. Hart singled as Durrington advanced to third base and Durrington scored on Kevin Orie's sacrifice fly to center field. Nate Bump went 5 innings in his first start after being optioned from the Marlins to the Isotopes and gave up one run, four hits, walked none and struck out six. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/12/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-6, 6.46 ERA, 0 SV, 62.2 IP, 78 H, 58 R, 45 ER, 11 HR, 35 BB,
46 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) 11-9 at Isotopes Park. A three-run 8th inning gave the Isotopes the lead and the Isotopes relief corps held off a two-run 9th inning Beavers rally. 'Topes Notes: Wilson Delgado and Josh Willingham each went 0x2 to snap seven-game hitting streaks. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Tuesday are LHP Les Walrond (3-4, 4.50) for the Isotopes and RHP Gary Glover (no record) for the Sounds. Filed 06/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Brandon Duckworth (1-2) HR: RR Mike Coolbaugh (15) off Jeff Fulchino in the 2nd
inning ABQ Josh Willingham (19) off Brandon Duckworth in the 4th
inning TIME: 3:11 A big eight-run 6th inning broke wide open a 3-3 contest as the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) defeated the Isotopes 12-6 on Sunday evening at "The Lab". Mike Coolbaugh solo-homered to left field in the 2nd inning as the Express led 1-0. In the bottom of the 2nd inning, Wilson Delgado doubled down the right field line, advanced to third base on Derek Wathan's groundout and scored on a wild pitch. Coolbaugh walked to lead off the 4th inning, advanced to second base on Luke Scott's single, advanced to third base on Barry Wesson's double-play groundout and scored on Alex Eckelman's single down the left field line. Express starter Brandon Duckworth doubled to the hill in center field as Eckelman raced around the bases to score and give the Express a 3-1 lead. Josh Willingham and Derek Wathan solo-homered in the 4th inning as the Isotopes tied the game at 3-3. The disastrous inning for the Isotopes struck in the 6th inning. Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino got Coolbaugh to fly out to center field before walking Scott. A string of singles to center field (Wesson, Eckelman, and pinch-hitter Brooks Kieschnick) brought home two runs. Randy Messenger entered the game to relieve Fulchino and got Charles Gipson to ground out before allowing a two-run single to right field by Brooks Conrad. Danny Klassen singled to left field before Messenger gave way to Joe Rodriguez. Rodriguez allowed a RBI single to center field by Carlos Rivera before Coolbaugh line-drive homered to left field, a three run shot. Scott was then walked before Bryan Corey entered the contest and got Wesson to fly out to center field to end the inning as the Express led 11-3. In the 8th inning, Rivera singled to right field, advanced to third base on Isotope left fielder Chris Ashby's error and scored on Wesson's single to left field. In the home half of the 8th inning, Wathan singled to center field with one out and Ryan Jorgensen reached on a fielding error. An out later, Chris Aguila infield singled and Wathan scored when Express reliever Mike Gallo committed an error (scoop tossing the ball away just as Aguila reached first base safely). Gallo's wild pitch brought Jorgensen home as the Isotopes put two runs on the scoreboard in the inning. Jason Wood solo-homered to left-center field in the 9th inning to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/11/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-5, 5.97 ERA, 0 SV, 57.1 IP, 68 H, 51 R, 38 ER, 10 HR, 31 BB,
42 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: Dressed in camouflage uniforms in 2004, Joe Dillon homered and drove in two runs as the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004) 4-3. 12,287 fans attended the game at Isotopes Park, the largest crowd of 2004 to that point in the season. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes and Express split their first series against each other 2-2. 28,816 fans came through the turnstiles during the short four-game homestand for a per-game average of 7,204. . . . The Isotopes allowed a season-high eight runs in an inning to the Express (6th inning). . . . The Isotopes tied season-highs: three double plays turned in a game and most hits allowed to an opponent in a game (18). . . . The Isotopes hit the road for an eight-game series with the first four games against the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers). Pitching probables for the series opener are RHP Nate Bump (no record) for the Isotopes and RHP Justin Lehr (5-5, 6.38) for the Sounds. Filed 06/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (4-2) HR: ABQ Wilson Delgado (3) off Brooks Kieschnick in the 7th inning TIME: 2:36 In front of the 3rd largest regular-season crowd in Isotopes Park history on a fireworks night, the Isotopes scored in every inning except for two in a 10-3 victory over the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros). With the victory, the Isotopes have pulled to within two games of American Conference Southern Division leader Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). Mark Little walked, stole second base and scored on Todd Sears' single to right field in the 1st inning as the Isotopes led 1-0. Matt Padgett walked with one out in the 2nd inning and later scored on a fielder's choice as the Isotopes extended the lead to 2-0. Round Rock tied the game in the 3rd inning. Express starting pitcher Chris Fussell walked and Charles Gipson reached on a bunt single. Two outs later, Mike Coolbaugh singled to left-center field as Fussell scored and Carlos Rivera singled to left field to drive in Gipson. Albuquerque regained the lead in the home half of the 3rd inning. Chris Aguila and Sears singled and Jason Wood walked to load the bases. Josh Willingham drew a walk as Aguila trotted home and Padgett grounded out to plate Sears. Wilson Delgado sacrifice flied out to left field to drive in Wood and Josh Wilson doubled to left-center field to bring home Willingham as the 'Topes led 6-2. In the 5th inning, Wood reached on a fielder's choice and Willingham singled to left field. Padgett's double to right field brought home Wood and Delgado sacrifice flied out for the second time in the contest as Willingham scored. Royce Huffman walked in the 6th inning, advanced to third base when Tommy Whiteman reached on an error, and scored on Chris Tremie's groundout as the Express scored their final run of the contest. In the Isotopes' 6th inning, Little singled to left field with one out. Little stole second base before Sears walked and Wood was hit by a pitch to load the baes. Willingham infield singled as Little raced home to give the Isotopes a 9-3 lead. Delgado solo-homered to right field in the 7th inning to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/10/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-5, 5.97 ERA, 0 SV, 57.1 IP, 68 H, 51 R, 38 ER, 10 HR, 31 BB,
42 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004) scored three times in the 8th inning to defeat the Isotopes 8-5. The Isotope highlight was Joe Dillon's homer; it marked the fifth game out of the last six games that Dillon homered. 'Topes Notes: Todd Sears had his second four-hit game in a row, which ties an Isotope individual season-high for most hits in a game. . . . Wilson Delgado became the first Isotope in 2005 to have more than one sacrifice flyout in a contest. . . . Mark Little has his third multi-steal game of the season with all 3 occurring at Isotopes Park. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Sunday evening are RHP Jeff Fulchino (4-5, 5.97) for the Isotopes and RHP Brandon Duckworth (0-2, 5.40) for the Express. Filed 06/11/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (6-2) HR: RR Luke Scott (8) off Frank Castillo in the 1st inning
TIME: 3:08 The Isotopes were able to respond to a couple of Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) threats in the Isotopes' 10-4 victory on Friday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a four-game losing streak. Luke Scott homered to right field as the second batter in the game as the Express took a 1-0 lead. In the home half of the 1st inning, Mike Colangelo reached on a fielder's choice, Todd Sears singled to elft and Josh Willingham followed with a double to left field to drive them both in as the 'Topes led 2-1. Danny Klassen solo-homered to left field in the 3rd inning to tie the game at 2-2. In the 4th inning, Willingham infield singled and Jason Wood walked. Wilson Delgado doubled to left field to drive in Willingham and Josh Wilson singled to left field to plate Wood. Soon after, Chris Aguila sacrifice flied out to center field to bring Wilson home as the Isotopes led 5-2. Scott reached on a three base error in the 5th inning and scored on Klassen's sacrifice flyout in the 5th inning for the Express. Royce Huffman walked in the 6th inning and later scored on Express relief pitcher Brooks Kieschnick's double to right field as the Express pulled to within a run at 5-4. The Isotopes responded in their half of the 6th inning to give themselves some breathing room. Aguila walked with one out and stole second base. Matt Padgett's groundout moved Aguila to third base before Aguila scored on Todd Sears' single to left field. Willingham walked and Wood singled to left field to drive in Sears as the 'Topes extended the lead to 7-4. In the 8th inning, Aguila singled to right field and Padgett reached on an error. Sears singled to left field to load the bases and after Willingham was retired via the infield fly rule, Wood infield singled to plate Aguila and Delgado singled to center to drive in Padgett. After Wilson was retired by the second infield fly rule play of the inning, Isotopes reliever J.B. Miadich infield singled as Sears raced home to make it the final score of 10-4. Frank Castillo made his first appearance in the starting rotation since rejoining the Isotopes and went 5 2/3 innings, giving up 4 hits, 4 runs (3 earned), walked 4 and struck out 5. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/09/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Jeff Fulchino 4-5, 5.97 ERA, 0 SV, 57.1 IP, 68 H, 51 R, 38 ER, 10 HR, 31 BB,
42 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 7-6 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes had blown a four-run lead earlier in the contest, but won the game when it counted as Kevin Hooper infield singled with the bases loaded in the 8th inning to break the 6-6 tie. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes left a season-tying high 12 runners on base in the game. . . . J.B. Miadich has driven in two runs this season (and his first RBI since May 15th). Miadich is tied with Frank Castillo for most RBIs by a pitcher this season. . . . Todd Sears tied an Isotope individual season-high with a 4-hit game. . . . The Isotopes were held homerless tonight, snapping a five-game consecutive homer streak. . . . Pitching probables for the third game in the series are RHP Ariel Prieto (3-2, 6.16) for the Isotopes and LHP Carlos Hernandez (2-5, 7.11) for the Express. Filed 06/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Taylor Buchholz (3-0) HR: RR Mike Coolbaugh (14) off Les Walrond in the 6th inning
ABQ Josh Willingham (18) off Taylor Buchholz in the 4th
inning TIME: 2:27 If you dig the long ball, Isotopes Park was the place for you Thursday evening. All the runs in the contest were scored on homers in the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) 5-4 victory over the Isotopes in the historic first meeting between the two clubs. With the defeat, the Isotopes have dropped four straight games, tying a season high losing streak. Wilson Delgado singled to begin the 3rd inning and an out later Mark Little homered to center field. After Josh Wilson grounded out, Chris Aguila homered to left field as the 'Topes led 3-0. Round Rock responded in the 4th inning. Danny Klaussen solo homered to left-center field and after Mike Coolbaugh drew a walk, Royce Huffman homered to left field. Brooks Conrad followed with a homer to left-center field as the Express led 4-3. Josh Willingham solo-homered to lead off the 'Topes 4th inning to tie the game at 4-4. Coolbaugh solo-homered in the 6th inning for what ended up being the game winning run. Les Walrond, fresh off being added back to the Isotopes roster after having been assigned to the Marlins extended spring training camp, allowed all four homers to the Express. In 5 innings of work, Walrond gave up 9 hits, the 5 runs, two walks and he struck out 3. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/07/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 7.50 ERA, 0 SV, 12 IP, 14 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 3 HR, 8
BB, 9 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 13-10. Albuquerque rallied from a 9-2 defecit at one point in the game to win. Gerald Williams homered twice and Jason Wood and Robert Stratton also homered in the contest. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have lost four straight home contests, tying a season-high for longest home losing streak in 2005. . . . With Taylor Buchholz's winning decision for the Express, Buchholz remains the only Express starter to remain without a loss this season. . . . Surprisingly, the 7 homers in a game by both teams was not a season high. The Isotopes and Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) erupted for 9 homers in an April 24, 2005 contest at Isotopes Park. . . . Les Walrond tied an Isotope individual season-high by allowing four homers in a game. . . . Scott Hairston of the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) is the PCL Hitter of the Week. Hairston, hit 13x32 (.406) for the week with 6 homers and 10 RBI. . . . Brad Baker of the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) won the PCL Pitcher of the Week award. Baker earned four saves this past week and leads the PCL in saves (18 as of the day the award was announced). . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Friday are RHP Peter Bauer (2-4, 6.94) for the Isotopes and RHP Jared Gothreaux (3-5, 3.21) for the Express. Filed 06/09/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Isotopes and the rest of the PCL had the day off today. Albuquerque opens a short four-game homestand against the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) on Thursday evening. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost to the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 13-8 in Oklahoma City. Former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez homered twice and drove in 7 runs. Joe Dillon homered twice for the Isotopes (a two-run homer and a grand slam homer). Here are the current active team leaders in various categories (through games of 06/07/05): BATTING Batting Average (min. 20 at-bats): Chris Aguila
(.341) PITCHING Wins (Starter): Frank Castillo (5) (lately a
reliever) or Jeff Fulchino (4) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Wasdin (9-2) HR: ABQ Josh Wilson (6) off John Wasdin in the 3rd
inning OKL Jason Botts (12) off Ben Howard in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:43 Different night but same result. For the second night in a row, Ian Kinsler drove in four runs and the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) won by the exact same score as last night in a 10-5 victory over the Isotopes. The Isotopes leave Oklahoma City behind the Redhawks by four games in the standings and have dropped three straight games. Esteban German drew a leadoff walk for the Redhawks in the 1st inning and two outs later, Jason Botts homered to center field as the Redhawks led 2-0. Josh Willingham doubled to left field and Todd Sears followed with a homer to center field as the 'Topes tied the game at 2-2 in the 2nd inning. Josh Wilson solo-homered to left field in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes took the lead at 3-2. Will Smith and German singled and Kinsler followed with a homer to left field as the Redhawks took a 5-3 lead. The Redhawks put more runs on the scoreboard with two outs in the 4th inning. Chris Richard walked and stole second base. Will Smith walked and Richard advanced to third base on a wild pitch before German doubled to right-center field to plate Richard and Smith. Kinsler was hit by a pitch and Jason Conti singled to center field to drive in German as the 'Hawks built the lead to 8-3. Manny Alexander infield singled and scored on Richard's triple to right field as the Redhawks led 9-3. With one out in the 7th inning, Wilson Delgado infield singled but was erased on the basepaths when Ryan Jorgensen reached on a fielder's choice. Wilson singled to right field. A passed ball advanced both runners a base and Mark Little's single to center field drove in Jorgensen and Wilson as the 'Topes pulled to within four runs at 9-5. Richard singled to right field and eventually scored on Kinsler's groundout in the 8th inning as the Redhawks closed out the scoring in the contest. Redhawks starter John Wasdin was not as dominating over the 'Topes as he has been recently. He went 5 innings, giving up 4 hits and 3 runs while walking 1 and striking out 3. Wasdin improved his record against the Isotopes to 4-0 with tonight's victory. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/06/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 7.50 ERA, 0 SV, 12 IP, 14 H, 10 R, 10 ER, 3 HR, 8
BB, 9 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: One year ago tonight, John Wasdin shut out the Isotopes in a complete game, 3 hit effort in a speedy 1 hour, 55 minutes as the Redhawks defeated the Isotopes 3-0 in Oklahoma City. 'Topes Notes: The Redhawks took three out of the four games against the Isotopes in the series. The Redhawk and Isotopes played their last game of the season in Oklahoma City tonight and the Redhawks won six out of the eight contests. 24,353 fans attended the four game series for a per-game average of 6,088. There is one more four-game series at Isotopes Park later in the season to conclude the season series between the two clubs. . . . Chris Aguila went 0x3 to snap a six-game hitting streak. . . . Oklahoma's Ian Kinsler extended his hitting streak to 13 games. . . . Ben Howard gave up the most earned runs of any Isotope starting pitcher in a start this season - 8 runs; Howard also lost his second start in a row. . . . After an off day on Wednesday, the Isotopes return to Isotopes Park for a four-game series against the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros). Round Rock is the franchise formerly known as the Edmonton Trappers as is part-owned by baseball Hall-of-Famer Nolan Ryan. Albuquerque has yet to name a pitching probable for the series opener, while RHP Taylor Buchholz (3-0, 4.23) is scheduled to start for the Express. Filed 06/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Josh Rupe (1-0) HR: ABQ Josh Willingham (17) off Josh Rupe in the 3rd
inning OKL Esteban German (3) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st inning TIME: 3:11 Ian Kinsler drove in four runs, including a bases-loaded triple, in the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) 10-5 victory over the Isotopes. With the defeat, the Isotopes have lost two straight games. Oklahoma's first batter of the evening, Esteban German, solo-homered to left-center field in the 1st inning as the Redhawks quickly led 1-0. Josh Willingham doubled to center field and an out later, Jason Wood homered to left field as the 'Topes led 2-1 in the 2nd inning. Oklahoma got the runs back in their half of the 2nd inning. Manny Alexander singled to center, Chris Richard and German walked to load the bases. Kinsler drew a walk to plate Alexander and Jason Botts walked as Richard trotted home to give the Redhawks the lead again at 3-2. In the 3rd inning, Chris Aguila tripled to center field and scored on a wild pitch. Mike Colangelo walked and Matt Padgett reached on a fielder's choice with Colangelo out at second base. Willingham homered to left field as the Isotopes led 5-3. The rest of the game was all Redhawks. In the 4th inning, Will Smith tripled to center field and scored on German's single to left field. Kinsler reached on an errorand Botts reached on catcher's interference to load the bases. Former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez sacrifice flied out to right field to plate German and Gerald Laird singled to right field to drive in Kinsler as the Redhawks regained the lead at 6-5. Alexander doubled and scored on Smith's double to the right field corner in the 5th inning as the Redhawks extended the lead to 7-5. The Redhawks closed out the scoring in the 7th inning. Alexander singled to left and stole second base. Richard drew a walk and both runners executed a double steal. German walked to load the bases and Kinsler followed with a bases-clearing triple to left field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/05/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 7.84 ERA, 0 SV, 10.1 IP, 12 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 3 HR, 6
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Redhawks defeated the Isotopes 5-1 in Oklahoma. Ryan Snare pitched 6 innings of 3 hit, 1 run ball and the Redhawks scored all five runs in the first 5 frames. Joe Dillon's solo homer accounted for the lone Isotopes run. 'Topes Notes: The Redhawks currently hold a 3 game lead over the Isotopes in the PCL American Conference Southern Division race. . . . The five-run losing margin was the largest losing margin in a road game this season. . . . Chris Aguila extended his hitting streak to 6 games. Oklahoma's Ian Kinsler extended his hitting streak to 12 games. . . . The Isotopes have committed six errors in this series so far. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Tuesday are RHP Ben Howard (1-1, 5.23) for the Isotopes and RHP John Wasdin (8-2, 4.90) for the Redhawks. Wasdin has mastered the Isotopes over the last few seasons, including a perfect game against the 'Topes in 2003 when Wasdin was a member of the Nashville Sounds. Filed 06/06/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Justin Thompson (1-1) HR: ABQ Todd Sears (2) off John Hudgins in the 4th inning TIME: 3:26 Jason Conti bloop singled in the bottom of the 9th inning to drive in the game winning run as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) defeated the Isotopes 10-9 on Sunday evening in Oklahoma City. The Redhawks extended their lead in the division race over the Isotopes to 2 games with their come-from-behind victory. In the 2nd inning, Jason Botts and former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez singled and Keith McDonald doubled into the right field corner to drive in Botts and Gonzalez. Chris Richard's single to right field moved McDonald to third base and Rashad Eldridge grounded out to plate McDonald as the Redhawks led 3-0. Mark Little walked, advanced to second base on an error during a pickoff attempt, and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to right field as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard. Albuquerque tied a season-high for runs scored in an inning by sending 12 batters to the plate to score 7 runs in the 4th inning. Mike Colangelo led off the inning with a double and after Matt Padgett grounded out, Josh Willingham infield singled to drive in Colangelo. Todd Sears followed with his second homer of the season, a two-run homer to left field. Jason Wood singled and Little singled and both runners advanced a base on a balk. Josh Wilson's double to left field plated Wood and Little. Wilson Delgado reached on a fielding error and Chris Aguila singled to left field to drive in Wilson. Colangelo stepped up to the plate for the second time in the inning and doubled to right field, driving in Delgado as the Isotopes led 8-3. Richard singled to right field and later scored on Manny Alexander's sacrifice fly to center field in the home half of the 4th inning. In the 6th inning, Aguila, Colangelo and Padgett singled to load the bases and Josh Willingham followed with a single to left field to drive in Aguila. Colangelo was tagged out at home plate trying to score on the play as the Isotopes led 9-4. In the home half of the 6th inning, Oklahoma's McDonald walked and an out later Rashad Eldridge and Esteban German walked to load the bases and Alexander reached on a fielder's choice as McDonald scored. Jason Botts singled, advanced to second base on McDonald's single and scored on Richard's single to left-center field in the 7th inning as the Redhawks trimmed the defecit to three runs at 9-6. The Redhawks tied the game in the 8th inning. German walked and an out later, Conti bunt singled. Marshall McDougall reached on an error as German scored. Botts reached on a throwing error as Conti scored and Gonzalez grounded out to plate McDougall. Eldridge walked to lead off the 9th inning. After Isotopes reliever J.B. Miadich struck out German and Alexander, Conti came up to the plate. Willingham was charged with an error trying to pick off Eldridge at first base and Eldridge advanced to second base on the play. Conti then singled to shallow left field as Eldridge raced around the bases for the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/04/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 7.84 ERA, 0 SV, 10.1 IP, 12 H, 9 R, 9 ER, 3 HR, 6
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Rich Harden and two relievers combined on a 5-hit shutout as the Isotopes lost to the Sacramento River Cats (AAA Athletics) 3-0. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes suffered their sixth last at-bat loss of the season and the second one out of the six games played in Oklahoma so far this season. . . . The Isotopes' five-run blown lead in a game they lost tied a season-high. . . . The Isotopes set a season-high with 3 errors in the game. . . . The 3 hour, 26 minute game was the longest 9-inning road game the Isotopes have played this season. . . . Chris Aguila extended his hitting streak to 5 games. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Monday are RHP Jeff Fulchino (4-4, 5.67) for the Isotopes and RHP Josh Rupe (no Triple-A record; in Double-A: 4-3, 3.74) for the Redhawks. Filed 06/05/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: J.B. Miadich (3-1) HR: ABQ Mike Colangelo (5) off R.A. Dickey in the 1st
inning TIME: 3:13 Chris Aguila's RBI single in the 10th inning gave the Isotopes a 3-2 victory over the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) in the series opener. With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a three-game losing streak and pulled to a game behind Oklahoma in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. A pair of solo homers (Mike Colangelo in the 1st inning and Aguila's first homer of 2005 in an Isotopes suit in the 4th inning) gave the Isotopes a 2-0 lead. In the home half of the 4th inning, Esteban German walked with two outs, stole second base and scored on Manny Alexander's double to left field as the Redhawks cut the defecit in half. In the 7th inning with two outs, Marshall McDougal singled to center field and scored on Jason Botts' double to right-center field as the Redhawks tied the game at 2-2. In the 10th inning, Josh Wilson doubled to right field and Aguila singled up the middle to bring Wilson home for the eventual game-winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/03/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15
RBI, 3 BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 7.84 ERA, 0 SV, 10.1 IP, 12 H, 9 R,
9 ER, 3 HR, 6 BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2004) scored in each of the final two frames to defeat the Isotopes 5-3 at Isotopes Park. Chris Burke solo-homered in the 8th inning for the go-ahead homer and Eric Bruntlett RBI doubled in the 9th inning for an insurance run. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes are now 3-0 in extra inning contests in 2005. . . . The start of the game was delayed one hour, 28 minutes by rain. It was the longest rain delay of the season the Isotopes have had to wait through. . . . Peter Bauer set an Isotopes franchise record by walking 7 Redhawks in the contest. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Sunday are RHP Ariel Prieto (3-2, 5.74) for the Isotopes and RHP John Hudgins (2-2, 3.00) for the Redhawks. Filed 06/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 06/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jose Capellan (4-2) TIME: 2:48 The Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) scored early and often in an easy 8-2 victory over the Isotopes in the series finale. With the defeat, the Isotopes have lost 3 straight games, going "0-for-June" after an impressive 6-game winning streak to end May. In the 2nd inning, Nashville's Brad Nelson walked and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Mike Rivera doubled to left-center field to drive in Nelson and Steve Scarborough singled to center field to drive in Rivera as the Sounds led 2-0. In the 3rd inning, Rickie Weeks walked with one out and Prince Fielder reached on a fielding error. Kevin Orie doubled to left field to drive in Weeks and Fielder. Nelson singled to left field to plate Orie as the Sounds extended the lead to 5-0. Scarborough walked, advanced to third on Jose Capellan's sacrifice bunt and error on the play, and scored on Ryan Knox's groundout as the Sounds led 6-0. Josh Willingham doubled to elft field, advanced to third base on Todd Sears' single and scored on Jason Wood's single to right field as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard. With two outs in the 9th inning, Nashvile's Knox singled to right field and Weeks tripled to right field to drive in Knox. Fielder doubled down the first base line to plate Weeks as the Sounds built the lead to 8-1. The Isotopes scored their final run of the night in the bottom of the 9th inning with two outs. Matt Padgett, Willingham and Sears drew walks to load the bases and Padgett scored on a wild pitch. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/02/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 6.75 ERA, 0 SV, 9.1 IP, 9 H, 7 R, 7 ER, 3 HR, 5
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Trey Lunsford singled to left field to drive in Tony Torcato in the 10th inning with the game winning run as the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) defeated the Isotopes 2-1. The Isotopes had a 1-0 lead going into the 9th inning but gave up the game-tying run in the 9th inning to send the game to extras. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes lost three out of four games to the Sounds in the series. 28,007 fans came through the Isotopes Park turnstiles during the series for a per-game average of 7,002. . . . The Isotopes did have a successful homestand overall, going 5-3. The attendance over the homestand was great enough to increase the per-game attendance average by 348 fans. The Isotopes have now drawn 224,085 fans over 32 home dates for a per-game average of 7,003. . . . The Isotopes went homerless to snap a 10-game homer streak. . . . Nashville's Corey Hart went hitless to snap a 11 game hitting streak. . . . The Isotopes begin a quick four-game roadtrip/series on Saturday night in Oklahoma City against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). The Redhawks lead the PCL American Conference Southern Division with a two game lead over the Isotopes. With a series win, the Isotopes can return to Albuquerque as division leaders. Pitching probables for the series opener are RHP Peter Bauer (2-4, 7.38) for the Isotopes and RHP R.A. Dickey (0-0, 3.00) for the Redhawks. Filed 06/03/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Justin Lehr (5-4) HR: NSH Justin Lehr (1) off Ben Howard in the 4th
inning ABQ Josh Willingham (16) off Justin Lehr in the 2nd inning TIME: 2:40 Nashville's Justin Lehr was a master of all trades as the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) defeated the Isotopes 8-3 on Thursday evening at "The Lab". The Isotopes fell out of a first-place tie in the PCL American Conference Southern Division with the defeat. In the 2nd inning, Brad Nelson and Corey Hart singled and Julio Mosquera grounded out into a force play with Nelson out at home plate. An out later, Sounds starter Lehr singled to right field as Hart and Mosquera scored to give the Sounds a 2-0 lead. Josh Willingham solo-homered to center field in the home half of the 2nd inning as the Isotopes cut the defecit in half at 2-1. Hart tripled to right-center field and scored on Ryan Knox's sacrifice flyout to left-center field. Lehr followed with a homer to right-center field as the Sounds led 4-1. Rickie Weeks homered to right-center field in the 5th inning as the Sounds extended the lead to 5-1. In the 6th inning, Hart singled to center field and Mosquera walked. Knox walked to load the bases and Lehr singled to center field as Hart and Mosquera scored. An out later, Weeks singled to center to drive in Knox as the Sounds closed out their scoring in the contest and led 8-1. In the 8th inning, Mark Little infield singled and Wilson Delgado singled to right field. Chris Aguila doubled to left field to drive in Little and Jason Wood sacrifice flied out to center field to plate Delgado Lehr was 3x3 with a homer and 5 RBI on the night with the stick and with his arm, he tossed six innings, giving up a run and 5 hits. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 06/01/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.86 ERA, 0 SV, 9.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 3
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, four Isotopes homered in a 13-5 victory over the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) in Fresno. A 7-run 1st inning was highlighted by a Robert Stratton 3-run homer and Matt Erickson's two-run homer. Jason Wood and Paul Hoover also went deep in the contest. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have a chance to regain first place soon. After tomorrow night's series finale with the Sounds, the Isotopes head to Oklahoma City to play a four-game series against the division-leading Redhawks. . . . Nashville's Corey Hart went 5x5 to extend his hitting streak to 11 games. . . . Jason Wood's 7-game hitting streak ended with his 0x3 night. . . . Prince Fielder of the Sounds was named the PCL Hitter of the Week. Fielder hit .360 (9x25) with 7 homers and 16 RBI during the week. Ricardo Rodriguez of the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Rodriguez went 17 innings in two starts and allowed just one run, 10 hits and struck out 9. One of the starts resulted in a complete game shutout. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Friday evening are LHP Les Walrond (3-2, 3.94) for the Isotopes and RHP Jose Capellan (3-2, 4.74) for the Sounds. Filed 06/02/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Rick Helling (4-2) HR: NSH Kevin Orie (9) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st inning
ABQ Jason Wood (9) off Jeff Bennett in the 9th inning TIME: 3:17 If the 50 cent hot dogs did not give Isotopes fans indigestion, the game certainly did. Nashville connected for five homers, accounting for 11 runs, in a 15-7 victory over the Isotopes on Wednesday evening. The defeat snapped a six-game winning streak and dropped the Isotopes out of sole possession of first place and into a tie with the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Rickie Weeks singled to center field and an out later Kevin Orie homered to right field as the Sounds led 2-0. With one out in the home half of the 1st inning, Derek Wathan walked and Chris Aguila singled to left field. Matt Padgett sacrifice flied out to center field to plate Wathan and Josh Willingham doubled to left field to drive in Aguila as the 'Topes tied the game at 2-2. Nashville put up a five-spot in the 2nd inning. Corey Hart reached on an error and Mike Rivera singled to center field. After Sounds starter Rick Helling advanced both runners with a sacrifice bunt, Dave Krynzel homered to right field. Weeks was hit by a pitch and advanced to second base on a wild pitch before Prince Fielder homered to right-center field as the Sounds led 7-2. Brad Nelson doubled to center field and scored on Hart's homer to left field in the 3rd inning as the Sounds extended the lead to 9-2. The Sounds put up two more runs on the scoreboard in the 5th inning. Hart doubled to right-center field and scored on Rivera's triple to right field. Helling then sacrifice flied out to center field to drive in Rivera. In the bottom of the 5th inning, Wathan walked, Aguila doubled to center field and Willingham drew a walk one out later to load the bases. Todd Sears reached on a fielding error as Wathan and Aguila scored and Jason Wood's groundout brought home Willingham to make it 11-5 in favor of the Sounds. Orie walked and Nelson followed with a homer to right center field as the Sounds led 13-5. The Sounds used two-out magic in the 7th inning to add two more runs to the scoreboard. Sounds reliever Clint Weibl walked and Krynzel singled to center field. Weeks singled to left field to drive in Weibl and Fielder doubled to right field to plate Krynzel. With two outs in the 9th inning, Chris Ashby singled to right field and scored on Wood's homer to center field to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/31/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.86 ERA, 0 SV, 9.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 3
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: With field temperatures reaching 116 degrees in Fresno in 2003, the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants) broke no sweat in shutting out the Isotopes 5-0. Fresno scored four runs in the 8th inning to break open a 1-0 game. 'Topes Notes: Nearly 28,000 hot dogs were consumed during the 50 cent hot dog promotion. . . . The Isotopes snapped a 9-game home winning streak with the defeat. . . . The Isotopes also failed to move to 10 games above the .500 mark for the first time in franchise history. . . . The 15 runs were the most runs the Isotopes have given up in a game this season. . . . Jeff Fulchino became the second Isotope in 2005 to allow four homers in a game. . . . Nashville set a season-high with 5 homers in a game. . . . Mike Colangelo went 0x1 as a pinch hitter to end his 6-game hitting streak while Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 7 games. . . . Nashville's Corey Hart extended his hitting streak to 10 games. . . . Bryan Corey's five innings of relief was the longest Isotope relief outing of 2005, eclipsing Matt Blank's four inning effort earlier in the season. Corey also gave up hte most earned runs (6) and hits (6) of any reliever in an outing this season. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series on Thursday evening are RHP Ben Howard (1-0, 4.88) for the Isotopes and RHP Justin Lehr (4-4, 6.40) for the Sounds. Filed 06/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (3-2) HR: ABQ Jason Wood (8) off Jeff Housman in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:22 Jason Wood went 2x4 with a homer and 4 RBI as the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) 6-3 in the series opener at Isotopes Park. With the victory, the Isotopes moved to a franchise-record-tying 9 games above the .500 mark as well as extended their home winning streak to 9 games and their consecutive game winning streak to 6 games. Prince Fielder doubled to left-center field in the 1st inning and scored on Corey Hart's double to right field in the 1st inning as the Sounds led 1-0. Wilson Delgado walked, stole second base and scored on Wood's single to left field in the home half of the 1st inning to tie the game at 1-1. Mark Little ground-rule doubled to left field and Delgado reached on a fielder's choice with Little put out. Mike Colangelo singled and an out later, Wood homered to left field to give the 'Topes a 4-1 lead in the 3rd inning. With one out in the 4th inning, Hart singled to left field and stole second base. An out later, Julio Mosquera walked and Ryan Knox doubled to left-center field to drive in Hart and Mosquera as the Sounds trimmed the defecit to a run at 4-3. Little doubled to left field and scored on Colangelo's double to center field in the 5th inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 5-3. Delgado singled to center in the 8th inning, advanced to third base on Colangelo's single to center field and scored on Matt Padgett's sacrifice flyout to right-center field as the Isotopes concluded the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/30/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 4.50 ERA, 0 SV, 8 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 Hr, 3
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Kevin Witt homered twice and Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) starter Dan Haren homered in the Redbirds 4-1 victory over the Isotopes in Memphis. Wilson Valdez's RBI double in the 7th inning assured the Isotopes would not be shut out. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes finished May with a 19-11 record, tying a franchise record for most wins in a month. The 'Topes were 12-5 at home in May and 7-6 on the road in May, The Isotopes finished with 50 homers in May (shattering the previous franchise record for homers in a month that was 40) and the Isotopes are halfway to the franchise record for homers in a season and there are still 19 games left to go until the halfway point of the season. . . . Former Isotope Matt Erickson, returning to Isotopes Park as a member of the Sounds, has not been a good one. Erickson has been placed on the minor-league disabled list with right knee tendinitis. . . . The Isotopes pitching staff has not allowed a homer in the last four games. . . . Brewers Prospect Rickie Weeks saw his 7-game hitting streak end. Mike Colangelo and Jason Wood extended their Isotope hitting streaks to 6 games. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Wednesday evening are RHP Jeff Fulchino (4-3, 5.26) for the Isotopes and RHP Rick Helling (3-2, 4.43) for the Sounds. Helling is fresh off a start in which a three-inch piece of a broken, splintered bat impaled his non-pitching arm, removing him from the game and sending him to the hospital. Filed 05/31/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Peter Bauer (2-4) HR: ABQ Mike Colangelo (4) off Dennis Tankersley in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:45 The Isotopes are getting used to steak dinners. The Isotopes held off a 9th inning rally to defeat the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 6-5 to sweep the series and earn yet another free steak dinner for coming through with a series sweep. With one out in the 1st inning, Derek Wathan singled to right field, Mike Colangelo singled to center field and Matt Padgett doubled to left field to drive in Wathan. Colangelo scored on Jason Wood's groundout as the Isotopes led 2-0. In the 3rd inning, Omaha's Adrian Brown was hit by a pitch and Denny Hocking followed with a double to left field to drive in Brown. Hocking moved to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Aaron Guiel's sacrifice flyout to center field as the Royals tied the game at 2-2. Colangelo quickly gave the Isotopes the lead with a solo-homer to left field in the home half of the 3rd inning. Alejandro Prieto singled to center field, advanced to third base on Brown's double to right field and scored on Hocking's groundout as Royals tied the game at 3-3 in the 5th inning. Once again, the Isotopes quickly responded to take back the lead. Ryan Jorgensen walked to lead off the inning and two outs later stole second base before scoring on Wilson Delgado's single to center field. Colangelo walked and Padgett singled to center field as Delgado raced around to score to give the 'Topes a 5-3 lead. Prieto singled to left field in the 7th inning and later scored on Hocking's single to right-center field as the Royals trimmed the defecit to a run at 5-4. Wood singled to right field and scored on Todd Sears' double to left-center field in the 7th inning as the Isotopes extended the lead back to two runs at 6-4. The Isotopes' defensive stand in the 9th inning won the game for them. J.B. Miadich entered the game for the Isotopes looking for the save. Jaime Jones singled to right field and Prieto walked. Isotopes manager Dean Treanor did not like the call for ball four and argued with the home plate umpire about it and was tossed from the contest. Brown reached on a bunt single to load the bases and Hocking sacrifice flied out to left-center field to drive in Jones. Brown stole second base and Miadich got Guiel and Scott Walter to strike out to end the game and to strand what would have been the game-tying run at third base. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/29/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 4.50 ERA, 0 SV, 8 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR,
3 BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 7-2 at Isotopes Park. Matt Treanor, Jason Wood and Robert Stratton all homered in the victory. 12,415 fans attended the game for the largest home crowd in franchise history to that date. 'Topes Notes: $4,060 was raised when the Isotopes auctioned off special camouflage game-used jerseys to benefit the Kirtland Air Force Base Morale, Welfare and Recreation Fund. The highest bid on a single jersey was $540 for Mark Little's jersey. . . . The Isotopes are a season-high 8 games over the .500 mark and are in the midst of a season-best 8 game home winning streak. With a win tomorrow night, the Isotopes will tie a franchise mark for the most wins in a month (19 wins). . . . The Isotopes have swept three series' in 2005, all at Isotopes Park. Today's game was the last match up at Isotopes Park between the Royals and Isotopes in 2005 and the Isotopes took seven of those eight matchups. The Isotopes travel to Omaha for one more four-game series to conclude the season series between the two clubs. . . . The Isotopes are now 24-20 in franchise history against the Royals after having started out the series at 20-20 alltime. The four wins moved the Isotopes to an even 12-12 recorde all-time against the Royals at Isotopes Park. . . . Isotopes fans really supported their team in the series. Over the Memorial Day weekend, 27,323 fans attended for a per-game average of 6,831. The Isotopes raised their per-game attendance average from 6,655 to 6,898 utilizing the four-game weekend series. . . . Peter Bauer earned his first victory since April 9th versus Iowa (AAA Cubs). . . . Mark Little saw his 6-game hitting streak end while Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 7 games. . . . Omaha's Scott Walter extended his hitting streak to 16 games. . . . The Isotopes welcome the new-look Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) to Isotopes Park for their first meeting in 2005. Nashville has undergone affiliate change (Pirates to Brewers) and they offer a prospect-laden roster as almost half of the club are Top 30 Brewers prospects according to BASEBALL AMERICA. Prospects to watch in the series are Rickie Weeks (1), Prince Fielder (2), Jose Capellan (4), Corey Hart (6), Ben Hendrickson (7), Brad Nelson (8), Dave Krynzel (10), Jeff Housman (17), and Justin Lehr (21). Matt Erickson also makes his return to Isotopes Park to face his former team. Probables for the series opener are LHP Jeff Housman (2-3, 5.21) for the Sounds and RHP Ariel Prieto (2-2, 6.00) for the Isotopes. Filed 05/30/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Les Walrond (3-2) HR: ABQ Matt Padgett (10) off Jimmy Gobble in the 6th
inning TIME: 2:26 Les Walrond tossed a complete game, 4-hitter and Matt Padgett homered twice as the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 8-0 on Sunday evening at "The Lab". Jason Wood homered to left field in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes scored the only run they would need in the game. Mark Little singled to lead off the 3rd inning, stole second base and scored on Mike Colangelo's single to center field. Colangelo singled to left field in the 6th inning and scored on Padgett's homer to left field as the Isotopes led 4-0. In the 7th inning, Josh Wilson singled to center and Little singled to left field. After executing a double-steal two outs later, Padgett homered to right field to extend the 'Topes lead to 7-0. In the 8th inning, Wilson Delgado reached on a fielder's choice, advanced to second base on a wild pitch and scored on Chris Aguila's single to center field to close out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/28/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 4.50 ERA, 0 SV, 8 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 3 BB,
6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 5-1 in Memphis. Kevin Olsen, Ben Howard and Michael Flannery combined on a 3-hitter; Joe Dillon solo homered and drove in two runs. Scott Seabol's 8th inning homer broke up the shutout. 'Topes Notes: Les Walrond's effort was the second 9-inning complete game shutout tossed by an Isotope in franchise history (Sean Bergman 7/18/03 vs TAC). Walrond's complete game was the second of the season by an Isotope (Ariel Prieto 8 inning complete-game loss on May 2nd at Oklahoma) and the second shutout tossed by the Isotopes staff this season (April 21 at Omaha, Jeff Fulchino, Ben Howard, Randy Messenger, and Jim Crowell combined for the shutout). Walrond also pitched the most innings of any starter this season - 9 innings. . . . The Isotopes have tied their season-best home winning streak (7 games) and their season-best for most games over the .500 mark (7 games). . . . Josh Willingham's five-game hitting streak came to an end while Mark Little and Jason Wood extended their hitting streaks to 6 games. . . . Matt Padgett tied an team-high with 5 RBI in the game -- previously set by Mark Little (4/9 vs Iowa), Joe Dillon (5/9 vs New Orleans), and Jason Wood (5/19 at Las Vegas). . . . The Isotopes' 8-run winning margin tied a season high for largest winning margin. . . . The Isotopes look for the series sweep on Sunday afternoon as they send RHP Peter Bauer (1-4, 7.58) to the mound to face Omaha's Dennis Tankersley (2-4, 6.14). Filed 05/29/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ben Howard (1-0) HR: ABQ Mark Little (13) off Ryan Baerlocher in the 3rd
inning TIME: 2:53 Mark Little homered twice and the Isotopes broke the game wide-open facing a New Mexican pitcher as the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 8-3. With the victory, the Isotopes have won 3 straight games and are in the midst of a six-game home winning streak. Little got the scoring started in the game with a solo-homer to left-center field in the 3rd inning. In the 4th inning, Matt Padgett walked and Josh Willingham infield singled. Todd Sears grounded into a double play as Padgett advanced to third base and Jason Wood's infield single brought home Padgett as the 'Topes led 2-0. Chris Truby doubled and later scored on Paul Phillips' groundout in the 6th innng as the Royals got on the scoreboard. Albuquerque got that run back and extended their lead back to two runs in their half of the 6th inning when Padgett solo homered to right field. In the 7th inning, New Mexican Gabe DeHoyos took the mound for the Royals. DeHoyos walked Derek Wathan and Josh Wilson to lead off the inning before Little followed with a home run to center field. Chris Aguila doubled to left field and Mike Colangelo reached on an error. After Padgett flied out, Willingham walked to load the bases and DeHoyos was pulled from the game. Santiago Ramirez replaced DeHoyos and gave up a a single to Sears that plated Aguila and Colangelo as the Isotopes led 8-1. Joe Rodriguez made his first appareance in the 9th inning since being activated off the disabled list. Jaime Jones singled and Alejandro Prieto walked. After Adrian Brown struck out swinging, Denny Hocking singled to right field to load the bases and Aaron Guiel doubled to right field to drive in Jones and Prieto as the Royals closed out the scoring in the game. Artesia, New Mexico resident DeHoyos was just promoted to the Royals from Kansas City's Class-A club the Burlington Bees and made his Triple-A debut tonight (presumably in front of his family that lives in the Artesia area and some relatives that happen to live in the Albuquerque area). DeHoyos went 1/3 of an inning, giving up 2 hits, 5 runs (4 earned), walked 3 and struck out 0 as he saw his ERA become 108.00. Ben Howard pitched great (5 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 3 BB, 5 K) in his spot-start in place of Travis Smith, who was promoted to the Marlins for what the Isotopes media department said was to back up A.J. Burnett should he have a bad bullpen session on Saturday. The Marlins reported Saturday evening that Burnett's bullpen session went good and that Burnett is ready to make his next start. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/27/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 4.91 ERA, 0 SV, 7.1 IP, 7 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 3 HR, 3
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, A.J. Burnett made a rehabilitation assignment start for the Isotopes in the Isotopes' 7-6 victory over the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) in Memphis. Burnett went 3 1/3 innings (92 pitches thrown), giving up 4 earned runs, 7 hits, and struck out 6. Joe Dillon, Matt Treanor, Brian Banks and Derek Wathan homered in the game (Wathan's homer being a two-run 9th inning homer). 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes as a team lead the PCL in homers with 77. In second place in the PCL are the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) with 71. . . . The attendance of 9.058 was the second largest home attendance of the season. . . . Josh Willingham, Mark Little, and Jason Wood all extended their hitting streaks to 5 games. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is Jorge Piedra of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies). Piedra hit .444 (12x27) for the week with 4 doubles and 11 RBI. The PCL Pitcher of the Week is Anthony Reyes of the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals). Reyes tossed a one-hit complete game against the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) on May 19th. Reyes struck out 2 and walked none in the 2-0 victory. . . . Pitching probables for Sunday evening's game are LHP Les Walrond (2-2, 4.58) for the Isotopes and LHP Jimmy Gobble (1-5, 7.61) for the O-Royals. Filed 05/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 05/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino (4-3) HR: OMA Adrian Brown (3) off Jeff Fulchino in the 3rd inning ABQ Josh Willingham (15) off Danny Tamayo in the 4th inning
TIME: 2:40 Drew Niles went 3x4 with a homer and 3 RBI as the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 5-2 in the series opener at "The Lab" on Friday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes are riding a five-game home winning streak and have taken over sole possession of first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division for the first time since April 25th. Adrian Brown put the Royals on the scoreboard in the 1st inning. Brown bunt singled, stole second base, advanced to third base on Aaron Guiel's flyout and scored on Chris Truby's single to left-center field as the Royals led 1-0 before the Isotopes batted for the first time in the game. Brown solo-homered to left field as the Royals extended their lead to 2-0 in the 3rd inning. In the home half of the 3rd inning, Chris Ashby singled to left field, Josh Wilson walked and Mark Little followed with a single to center field to drive in Ashby. Niles singled to right field as Wilson and Little scored to give the Isotopes a 3-2 lead. Josh Willingham solo-homered to left field in the 4th inning and Niles hit his first Isotopes homer of 2005, a homer to left field, in the 7th inning as the Isotopes closed out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/26/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Mike Nannini, Michael Neu, and Josias Manzanillo combined to toss the first Isotopes shutout of 2004 in a 5-0 victory over the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) in Tucson. Chris Ashby sholo-homered and three out of the other four runs in the game were scored on Sidewinders' wild pitches. 'Topes Notes: With two Isotope homers tonight, the Isotopes set a franchise mark for the most homers in a month (currently at 42 this month). The old record was 40 homers set in May 2004. . . . Josh Willingham remains in the PCL home run lead after his homer tonight. Willingham has homered in the last four games. . . . Jeff Fulchino has won his third straight pitching decision and set a personal season-best by going 7 1/3 innings in his outing. . . . . Omaha's Chad Santos went 0x4 to snap a 12-game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Saturday are RHP Travis Smith (2-1, 6.75) for the Isotopes and RHP Ryan Baerlocher (0-0, 2.70) for the O-Royals. Filed 05/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Randy Messenger (3-1) HR: ABQ Josh Willingham (14) off Mark Freed in the 5th inning TUC Conor Jackson (4) off Michael Flannery in the 5th
inning TIME: 3:14 Mark Little, Josh Willingham, and Chris Ashby each drove in a pair of runs in the Isotopes' 9-6 victory over the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) in the series finale in Tucson on Thursday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes moved into a first place tie in the PCL American Conference Southern Division with idle-team Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). In the 1st inning, Little singled, avoided being caught stealing on a pick off play due to a two-base error and scored on Mike Colangelo's sacrifice flyout to center field as the 'Topes led 1-0. The Sidewinders tied the game in the 1st inning. Brian Barden singled and later scored on Carlos Quentin's single to left field. In the 2nd inning, Kelly Stinnett doubled to left field and scored on Andy Green's single to left field. Barden doubled to right field to drive in Green as the Sidewinders led 3-1. Willingham walked with one out in the 4th inning and Jason Wood doubled to left-center field to drive in Willingham. Ashby singled to center field to drive in Wood and Josh Wilson doubled to left-center field to drive in Ashby as the Isotopes led 4-3. Matt Padgett singled to left field in the 5th inning and scored on Willingham's homer to left field as the Isotopes extended their lead to 6-3. Conor Jackson solo-homered to left field in the home half of the 5th inning. Quentin followed with a walk, moved to second base on Josh Kroeger's single to right field and scored on Corey Myers single to center field as the Sidewinders trimmed the defecit to a run at 6-5. Albuquerque gave themselves breathing room in the 8th inning. Willingham walked and Wood reached on a fielding error as Willingham advanced to third base. Ashby sacrifice flied out to left field as Willingham scored. Wilson walked and Isotopes reliever Chad Bentz sacrifice bunted Ashby and Wilson up a base. Little singled to center field to drive in Ashby and Wilson as the Isotopes led 9-5. Stinnett homered to left-center field in the 9th inning to close out the scoring in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/25/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 2.84 ERA, 0 SV, 6.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR, 1
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes blew a six run lead at Isotopes Park to fall to the Sidewinders 12-7. Tucson scored 11 unanswered runs beginning in the 6th inning. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes and Sidewinders split the only series between the two clubs in 2005 2-2. Tucson holds a 8-4 all-time advantage against the Isotopes. 10,890 fans came through the Tucson Electric Park gates for a per-game average of 2,723. 38,612 fans saw the Isotopes play on the just-completed 8-game roadtrip. . . . Josh Willingham took over the PCL home run lead with his 14th homer of the season. Willingham has homered in three out of the four games in the series. . . . The Isotopes tied a franchise record with their 40th home run this month. The 40 homers in a month mark was first set in May 2004. . . . The Isotopes return home for a eight-game homestand with the first four games against the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). Pitching probables for the series opener are RHP Jeff Fulchino (3-3, 5.73) for the Isotopes and RHP Danny Tamayo (3-2, 4.38) for the O-Royals. Filed 05/26/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 05/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Edgar Gonzalez (5-1) HR: ABQ Matt Padgett (8) off Randy Choate in the 8th inning
TUC Josh Kroeger (5) off Peter Bauer in the 3rd inning
TIME: 2:43 Despite the Isotopes scoring 7 runs in their final 3 frames, the Isotopes were unable to overcome the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) scoring in the first 7 innings as Tucson took the contest 9-7 on Wednesday evening. In the 1st inning, Andy Green tripled to left-center field and scored on Josh Kroeger's groundout. In the 2nd inning, Alan Zinter singled to right field, advanced to third base on Sergio Santos' ground-rule double to right-center field and scored on Sidewinders starter Edgar Gonzalez's single to center field. In the 3rd inning, Kroeger solo-homered to right-center field and Alan Zinter homered to right field in the 4th inning as the Sidewinders led 4-0. In the 5th inning, Green bunt singled but was forced out at second base when Kroeger reached on a fielder's choice. Carlos Quentin and Doug DeVore walked to load the bases and Brian Barden doubled to left field to drive in Kroeger and Quentin. Zinter was intentionally walked to load the bases and DeVore scored on Santos' fielders choice as the Sidewinders led 7-0. Back-to-back doubles by Kroeger and Quentin gave the Sidewinders a 8-0 lead in the 6th inning. In the 7th inning, the Isotopes finally were able to get on the scoreboard. Drew Niles singled to right field, Mike Colangelo walked and Matt Padgett singled to left field to load the bases. Josh Willingham sacrifice flied out to left field to plate Niles and Todd Sears singled to left field to drive in Colangelo. In the home half of the 7th inning, Tucson's Barden solo-homered to left field as the Sidewinders increased their lead to 7 runs at 9-2. In the 8th inning, Albuquerque put up a five-spot. Pinch-hitter Derek Wathan walked and scored on Mark Little's triple to center field. An error on the play allowed Little to race home. Niles singled to right field and an out later, Matt Padgett homered to right-center field. Willingham then homered to left-center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/24/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 2.84 ERA, 0 SV, 6.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR, 1
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: The Sidewinders defeated the Isotopes 9-4 at Isotopes Park in 2004. The game seemed very unimportant to Isotopes fans' memories compared to the fight between Albuquerque's Matt Treanor and Tucson's Luis Terrero. Terrero tripled in the 1st inning with the bases loaded and in his next at-bat, 'Topes starter Aaron Small threw a pitch up and in to Terrero that sailed to the backstop. Terrero started charging the mound and Treanor got in his way to keep him from getting to the mound. Both players started throwing punches. As the fight wound down, Terrero threw a baseball at a fan near the Tucson dugout and yelled at several other fans. The Diamondbacks management suspended Terrero and made him take anger management courses before being reinstated. Terrero and Treanor both received undisclosed fines from the PCL and game suspensions for their parts in the fight. 'Topes Notes: Josh Wilson went 0x4 to snap a 14-game hitting streak, the longest by an Isotope this season. . . . The Isotopes moved into second place along with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) as the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) swept a doubleheader from the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) to move into first place by half a game in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. . . . For the second time in five games, Matt Padgett and Josh Willingham have back-to-back homered. . . . The Isotopes have hit 39 homers in May, one homer short of the franchise record for homers in a month, set in May 2004. The Isotopes have also taken over the PCL team homer lead with 71 homers. . . . Tonight's contest was the second time this season the Isotopes have allowed runs to an opponent in seven straight innings. . . . Josh Willingham moved into a first place tie in the PCL in home runs with his 13th homer (tied with Joe Dillon). Willingham is the PCL active player leader, however, as Dillon is currently with the Florida Marlins. . . . Peter Bauer has given up 7 earned runs in a start for the second time this season. . . . Pitching probables for the series (and roadtrip) finale on Thursday evening is emergency starter RHP Ariel Prieto (2-2, 5.50) for the Isotopes and LHP Mark Freed (4-1, 3.77) for the Sidewinders. Prieto gets the start as RHP Frank Castillo was promoted to the Marlins to take A.J. Burnett's spot in the starting rotation for what is expected to be just one start. Filed 05/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Les Walrond (2-2) HR: ABQ Mark Little (12) off Bill Murphy in the 5th
inning TIME: 2:34 Mark Little and Josh Willingham homered in the 5th inning as the Isotopes powered into the lead and eventually won 6-2 over the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) on Tuesday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes move back into a first-place tie with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) in the PCL American Conference Southern Division as well as snapping a two-game losing streak. Sergio Santos singled to center field and scored on Kelly Stinnett's double to left-center field in the 2nd inning as Tucson took a 1-0 lead. Little reached base on a two-base error, advanced to third base on Derek Wathan's sacrifice bunt, and scored on Mike Colangelo's sacrifice flyout to center field as the Isotopes tied the game at 1-1 in the 3rd inning. In the home half of the 3rd inning, Andy Green doubled to left field and scored on Brian Barden's double to center field as the Sidewinders regained the lead at 2-1. In the 5th inning, Little homered to left field to begin the inning. Wathan infield singled and two outs later scored on Willingham's homer to right-center field as the Isotopes took a 4-2 lead. Willingham walked and later scored on Josh Wilson's double to left field in the 8th inning and Wathan tripled to center field and scored on Matt Padgett's single in the 9th inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 6-2. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/23/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 2.84 ERA, 0 SV, 6.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR, 1
BB, 6 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Andy Green had a 5 hit night including a homer and Edgar Gonzalez no-hit the Isotopes for 5 2/3 innings in Tucson's 13-1 victory over the Isotopes at Isotopes Park. Michael Tejera started for the Isotopes and gave up 12 hits and 10 earned runs in 3 1/3 innings pitched. Gonzalez is scheduled to pitch for the Sidewinders against the Isotopes on Wednesday evening. 'Topes Notes: Mark Little and Josh Willingham each hit their 12th homers of the season, moving them into a first place tie with Fresno's Todd Linden among active PCL players in homers. Joe Dillon still leads the PCL in homers with 13 but he is inactive as he is currently with the Florida Marlins. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 14 games, an Isotope season-best hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for Wednesday evening's game are RHP Peter Bauer (1-3, 6.90) for the Isotopes and RHP Edgar Gonzalez (4-1, 2.97) for the Sidewinders. Filed 05/24/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Chris Michalak (2-3) HR: TUC Carlos Quentin (6) off Bryan Corey in the 8th inning TIME: 2:34 Tucson's Carlos Quentin went 2x4 with a homer and 3 RBI as the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) defeated the Isotopes 7-3 in the series opener at Tucson Electric Park. The Isotopes have dropped two straight games after having won seven in a row. Tucson's Conor Jackson doubled to right-center field and scored on Josh Kroeger's double into the right field corner and Juan Brito singled to center field to drive in Kroeger in the 2nd inning as the Sidewinders led 2-0. In the 4th inning, Mike Colangelo was hit by a pitch, Matt Padgett singled to right field and Josh Willingham walked to load the bases. Todd Sears singled to right field to drive in Colangelo and Padgett as the Isotopes tied the game at 2-2. The Sidewinders regained the lead in their 4th inning at-bats. With one out, Jackson doubled and Quentin tripled to left field to drive in Jackson. Sergio Santos singled to right field as Quentin scored to give the Sidewinders a 4-2 lead. Derek Wathan singled and later scored on Padgett's single to left field in the 5th inning as the Isotopes trimmed the defecit to a run at 4-3. The Sidewinders got that run back in their half of the 5th inning as Andy Green tripled to left field and scored on Scott Hairston's single to left field. Jackson walked and Quentin followed with a home run to left field off Isotope reliever Bryan Corey in the 8th inning to close out the scoring in the contest. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/22/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.38 ERA, 0 SV, 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR, 1 BB, 5
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Mike Judd's wild pitch with the bases loaded allowed the winning run to score as the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) defeated the 'Topes 4-3 in Memphis. 'Topes Notes: Josh Wilson went 1x4 to extend his hitting streak to 13 games, an Isotope season-best hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the second game of the series on Tuesday evening are LHP Les Walrond (1-2, 4.78) for the Isotopes and LHP Bill Murphy (1-0, 4.80) for the Sidewinders. Filed 05/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Aquilino Lopez (3-3) HR: ABQ Mark Little (11) off Harold Eckert in the 1st inning TIME: 2:51 Chin-Feng Chen drew a bases loaded walk in the bottom of the 9th inning as the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) defeated the Isotopes 7-6 to avoid the series sweep. The Isotopes snapped a season-tying high 7-game winning streak with the loss and also dropped into second place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Mark Little homered to left field on the first pitch of the game and Derek Wathan and Mike Colangelo followed with singles. Wathan stole third base and scored on a wild pitch. An out later, Jason Wood singled to left-center field as Colangelo scored to give the Isotopes a 3-0 lead. In the home half of the 1st inning, Henri Stanley singled to left, moved to third base on Nick Theodorou's single and scored on Willy Aybar's sacrifice flyout to right field. In the Las Vegas' 5th inning with one out, Carlsbad, NM native Cody Ross singled to left field and Joe Thurston singled to right field. 51s starter Harold Eckert sacrifice bunted to advance both runners a base and Stanley infield singled as Ross scored. Theodorou doubled to left field to plate Thurston and Aybar singled to center field to drive in Stanley as the 51s took a 4-3 lead. Albuquerque regained the lead in the 8th inning. Chris Ashby walked, Ryan Jorgensen singled to right field and Josh Wilson singled to left field to drive in Ashby. Pinch-hitter Todd Sears drew a walk to load the bases and Little sacrifice flied out to right field as Jorgensen scored. Wilson scored when Wathan laid down a bunt as the Isotopes took a 6-4 lead. The 51s won the game in the bottom of the 9th inning. Thurston grounded out to lead off the inning, Norihiro Nakamura singled off the left field wall and Henri Stanley singled to center field. Theodorou struck out and Aybar bloop infield singled to load the bases. Mike Rose doubled to right field to plate Nakamura and Stanley and pinch-hitter Tony Schrager was hit by a pitch to load the bases. J.B. Miadich entered the game to relieve Ariel Prieto and immediately walked Chen as Aybar trotted home with the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/21/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.38 ERA, 0 SV, 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR,
1 BB, 5 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Las Vegas 51s 8-5 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes had a pair of four run innings in the contest. Joe Dillon three-run homered in the game, his first Isotopes homer, and drove in four runs. 'Topes Notes: The Las Vegas 51s won for the first time in 12 meetings between the two clubs in Isotopes franchise history. Albuquerque took this series (and the only series between these two clubs in 2005) 3-1. 27,722 fans attended the series at Cashman Field for a per-game average of 6,931. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 12 games, a personal career best for him. His current streak also ties for the longest hitting streak of any Isotope player in 2005 (Dillon 12 games). . . . The Isotopes have lost 5 games in their opponent's last at-bats, with two of those losses coming from bases-loaded walks. . . . Albuquerque travels to Tucson, Arizona to play four games against the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) at Tucson Electric Park. Pitching probables for the series opener are RHP Travis Smith (2-0, 6.00) for the Isotopes and former-Isotope Chris Michalak (1-3, 5.44) for the Sidewinders. Filed 05/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (5-2) HR: ABQ Matt Padgett (6) off Edwin Jackson in the 3rd
inning LVG Norihiro Nakamura (5) off Frank Castillo in the 6th inning TIME: 3:12 No extra innings for the Isotopes tonight. After dramatic extra inning games the previous two nights, the Isotopes decided to take care of business early and often as the defeated the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) 10-2. The Isotopes have won seven straight games and are looking for the series sweep on Sunday afternoon. The win also moves the Isotopes into a first place tie with the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. In the 2nd inning, Josh Willingham was hit by a pitch with one out. Todd Sears singled to center and Jason Wood infield singled to load the bases. Josh Wilson's single to left field brought home Willingham and Sears. Isotopes starter Frank Castillo reached on an error as Wood scored. Mark Little singled to center field to drive in Wilson and Derek Wathan reached on a fielder's choice as Castillo scored to give the Isotopes a 5-0 lead. In the 3rd inning, Matt Padgett and Willingham back-to-back homered to lead off the inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 7-0. Sears was then plunked by a pitch from 51s starter Edwin Jackson and Jackson was immediately ejected from the game. Isotopes manager Dean Treanor became irate over something and was also tossed from the game. The 51s got on the scoreboard in their half of the 3rd inning. Former Isotope and current 51s reliever Michael Neu doubled to center field and scored on Henri Stanley's single to right field. In the 5th inning, Little walked, advanced to third base on Wathan's double to right field and scored on Mike Colangelo's sacrifice flyout to left field. In the 6th inning, Willingham doubled to left field, Sears singled to left field and Wood grounded into a double play as Willingham raced home to give the Isotopes a 9-1 lead. Norihiro Nakamura solo-homered to right-center field in the 6th inning as the 51s added another run to the scoreboard. Padgett homered to right field, his second homer of the game, in the 8th inning to pad the Isotopes lead back to 8 runs at 10-2. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/20/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.38 ERA, 0 SV, 5.1 IP, 4 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 HR, 1 BB, 5
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Astros in 2003) 2-1 in 10 innings. The deciding run was Robert's Stratton's sacrifice flyout in the 10th inning that plated Gerald Williams with the game-winning run. 'Topes Notes: Joe Dillon hit his first big-league homerun for the Florida Marlins today and it was very important - the pinch-hit solo home run was the eventual game winning run in the Marlins' 4-3 victory over the Tampa Bay Devil Rays. . . . Frank Castillo became the first Isotopes pitcher to earn 5 victories. . . . Las Vegas' Jose Flores joined teammates Tom Farmer and Heath Totten in serving 15 game suspensions for violating the Minor League Drug Treatment and Prevention Program. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 11 games, tying for his career best hitting streak (2001, Class-A Kane County). . . . The Isotopes have back-to-back homered in two instances this season. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Sunday afternoon are RHP Jeff Fulchino (3-3, 5.84) for the Isotopes and RHP Harold Eckert (2-2, 5.93) for the 51s. Filed 05/21/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 05/21/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (2-1) HR: LVG Mike Rose (2) off Peter Bauer in the 2nd
inning TIME: 4:11 The Isotopes are getting good at extra inning affairs. After playing the first 40 games without an extra inning game, the Isotopes have played extra inning games the last two nights. Josh Willingham's sacrifice flyout in the 12th inning put the 'Topes ahead as they went on to win 10-7 over the Las Vegas 51's (AAA Dodgers). The Isotopes have won six straight games. Matt Padgett singled, advanced to second base when Jason Wood walked, and scored on Chris Ashby's single to left field in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes led 1-0. Mike Rose homered to right field in the bottom of the 2nd inning as the 51s tied the game at 1-1. Padgett doubled to lead off the 4th inning, Willingham reached on an error, and Wood singled to right field to load the bases. Ashby's single to left field drove in Padgett while Willingham was nailed at home plate trying to score. Josh Wilson's single to center field plated Wood and Isotopes starter Peter Bauer walked to load the bases. Mark Little sacrifice flied out to right field as the Isotopes led 4-1. With two outs in the home half of the 4th inning, Brian Myrow doubled and Carlsbad, NM native Cody Ross reached on an error ahead of Rose's second homer of the game. Tony Schrager infield singled and 51s starter and former Isotope Pat Mahomes walked before Henri Stanley singled to right field to drive home Schrager as the 51s took a 5-4 lead. Myrow solo-homered in the 8th inning to pad the 51s lead to 6-4 heading into the 9th inning. In the top of the 9th inning, Mike Colangelo doubled with one out and Padgett reached on an error. Willingham was hit by a pitch to load the bases and Wood singled to right field to drive in Colangelo while Padgett was tagged out at home plate trying to score. Ashby's infield single plated Willingham as the Isotopes tied the game at 6-6. In the 11th inning, Padgett doubled to left field and scored on Wood's double to left field as the Isotopes led 7-6, but in the bottom of the 11th inning, Schrager walked to lead off the inning and later scored on Stanley's single to left field to tie the game at 7-7. The Isotopes once again took the lead quickly. In the 12th inning, Little walked, stole second base and Drew Niles walked and Colangelo reached on a sacrifice bunt to load the bases. After Padgett struck out, Willingham sacrifice flied out to right field to drive in Little. Wood doubled to left field as Niles and Colangelo scored to provide some insurance runs heading into the bottom of the 12th inning. Isotopes reliever Ariel Prieto, just activated off of the minor league disabled list, retired the 51s in order in the bottom of the 12th inning to preserve the Isotope victory. LAST NIGHT'S GAME REVISITED: Since last night's game ended very late and the summary had to be posted very quickly, here are a few followup items from that great Isotope 14-11 victory in 11 innings over the 51s. The Isotopes set several season highs in the game: Most runs allowed in a game on the road (11); most combined hits for both teams (32) and most combined runs for both teams (25); most hits allowed to an opponent in a game (18); and most pitchers used in a game in 2005 (8 pitchers, although only 7 faced one batter or more since Patrick Flury became injured while warming up upon officially entering the contest). The Isotopes also tied several season highs in the game: Most runs scored on the road in a game (14), most team hits in a game on the road (14); and most hits allowed to an opponent in a game (18). Franchise records were set for the longest road contest in franchise history (4 hours, 11 minutes) and for the most walks allowed in a game by the Isotopes pitching staff (11 walks). Derek Wathan tied a team individual season high for most at-bats in a game (6); Jason Wood tied a team individual season high for RBI in a game (5); and Todd Sears tied a franchise record for most runs scored in a game (4). Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/19/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 2.08 ERA, 0 SV, 4.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR, 1
BB, 3 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) 16-9 at Isotopes Park. A 9-run 6th inning helped the Isotopes win. Home plate was well worn that day as 51 runs were scored at Isotopes Park (25 in the Triple-A contest and earlier in the day the UNM Lobo college baseball team defeated UNLV 14-12). 'Topes Notes: The 4 hour, 11 minute game tied an Isotopes franchise record (set in last night's 11 inning contest) for the longest road contest time-wise and the Isotopes pitchers tied a franchise record by striking out 16 Las Vegas batters in the game. . . . Albuquerque set a season-high with 17 hits and 10 walks in the game and tied a season-high with 6 doubles in the contest. The Isotopes also left 17 men on base, a season high. . . . The office of the commissioner announced Las Vegas pitchers Heath Totten and Tom Farmer have been suspended 15 ganes for violating the Minor League Drug Treatment and Prevention Program. . . . Las Vegas' Willy Aybar went 0x4 to snap a 17 game hitting streak. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 10 games. . . . Matt Padgett, Jason Wood and Chris Ashby tied an Isotope individual season-high with 4 hits in a game and Peter Bauer set a Isotope individual season-high with 9 strikeouts and J.B. Miadich tied the individual season-high that he set with a 5-strikeout relief performance. . . . Pitching probables for Saturday's contest are RHP Frank Castillo (4-2, 3.97) for the Isotopes and RHP Edwin Jackson (2-3, 6.37) for the 51s. Jackson was scheduled to go this evening but had his start pushed back a day, leading the way for former-Isotope Pat Mahomes to start tonight. Filed 05/20/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Randy Messenger (2-1) HR: ABQ Jason Wood (5) off Buddy Carlyle in the 2nd inning
LVG Cody Ross (5) off Les Walrond in the 2nd inning
TIME: 4:11 Jason Wood homered twice, Todd Sears had a super Isotopes debut, and the Isotopes put a six-spot on the scoreboard in the 11th inning to defeat the Las Vegas 51s 14-11 at Cashman Field on Thursday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes extended their winning streak to 5 games. In the Albuquerque 2nd inning, Josh Willingham doubled to left field and the newest of Isotopes, Sears, doubled to left-center field to drive in Willingham. Wood followed with a homer to left field as the Isotopes led 3-0. That lead quickly vaporized. In the Las Vegas 2nd inning, Carlsbad, NM native Cody Ross homered to center field to lead off the inning. Dioner Navarro singled to center field and Brian Myrow doubled to center field before 51s starter Buddy Carlyle grounded out to plate Navarro. Jose Flores walked and Myrow and Flores advanced a base on a passed ball by Isotopes catcher Willingham. Jayson Werth, with the 51s on a rehabilitation assignment, singled to center as Myrow and Flores scored to give the 51s a 4-3 lead. Albuquerque regained the lead in the 3rd inning. With one out, Mike Colangelo singled to right field and scored on Matt Padgett's double to left field. Willingham singled to left field as Padgett scored as the 'Topes led 5-4. In the home half of the 3rd inning, Navarro singled to right field and was out at second base on Carlyle's sacrifice bunt attempt. Flores singled to advance Carlyle to third base and Werth singled to center field to drive in Carlyle as the 51s tied the game at 5-5. In the 4th inning, 51s' Norihiro Nakamura drew a walk to lead off the inning. Chin-Feng Chen walked and Ross singled to load the bases. An out later, Myrow singled to right field as Nakamura and Chen scored to give the 51s a 7-5 lead. Sears doubled to left field and two outs later scored on pinch-hitter Chris Ashby's infield single as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 7-6 in the 6th inning. Sears homered to right field to lead off the 8th inning as the Isotopes tied the game at 7-7. Things looked promising for the Isotopes in the 10th inning. With one out, Willingham and Sears walked and Wood was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Josh Wilson sacrifice-flied out to right-center field to drive in Willingham as the 'Topes led 8-7. The 51s were not ready to roll over and die. Lopez started off the home half of the 10th inning by hitting a liner off of the pitching rubber that caromed into shallow left field and Lopez reached second base on the play. Two outs later, Nakamura tripled off the right field wall to drive in Lopez and on the relay throw back to the infield from the outfield, an errant throw hit 51s third base coach/skipper Jerry Royster and Nakamura decided to try to score. Nakamura was thrown out at home plate (third-baseman Wood to catcher Willingham) for the final out of the inning and the Isotopes were able to preserve the tie. In the top of the 11th inning, Mark Little was hit by a pitch to reach base and advanced to third base on a pair of passed balls. An out later, Mike Colangelo drew a walk before Matt Padgett singled to left field to drive in Little to give the Isotopes a 9-8 lead. Willingham tripled high off the wall in right-center field to drive in Colangelo and Padgett to give the Isotopes some insurance runs and extend the lead to 11-8. Sears drew an intentional walk before Wood homered to left field to make it a 14-8 ballgame. The 51s once again made things difficult for the Isotopes in their last at-bat. With Messenger on the mound, Chen singled to center field and Ross drew a walk. Pinch-hitter Henri Stanley followed with a homer to right field to trim the Isotopes lead to 14-11. Ben Howard came into the game for the Isotopes and walked Myrow and gave up a single to Rose and walked Flores to load the bases with no outs. Howard then struck out Werth, Willie Aybar flew out to left field and Nakamura's high chopper was fielded by Wood who stepped on third base for a force out to end the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/17/05): Jason Stokes (DL) 13 G, 12 R, 13 H, 1 2B, 1 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 3
BB, 16 K, 2 SB, .674 SLG, .283 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 3.86 ERA, 0 SV, 2.1 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 HR,
1 BB, 2 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: The Isotopes has the day off in 2004, but there was some off-field activity that day. Larry Sutton earned a promotion to the Marlins, while Kevin Hooper was designated for assignment (and Hooper eventually was claimed by the Yankees and sent to their Triple-A club in Columbus, Ohio). 'Topes Notes: Todd Sears went 3x4 with a solo homer, 4 runs scored, 2 RBI, a pair of doubles and 2 walks. . . . The Isotopes played their first extra-inning game of the season. . . . Isotopes reliever Patrick Flury entered the game in the 4th inning but did not face a batter as he injured himself while warming up and had to leave the game. . . . Eight pitchers were used by the Isotopes, a season high. . . . Jason Wood tied an Isotope season-high by driving in 5 runs. . . . Josh Wilson got a hit to extend his hitting streak to 9 games. . . . Pitching probables for game 2 of the series on Friday evening are RHP Peter Bauer (1-3, 7.68) for the Isotopes and RHP Edwin Jackson (2-3, 6.37) for the 51s. Filed 05/19/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The Isotopes and the rest of the PCL have the day off. On Thursday night, the Isotopes begin a 8-game roadtrip, starting with four games in Las Vegas and continuing their string of playing Pacific Conference foes. Pitching probables for the series opener are LHP Les Walrond (1-2, 3.91) for the Isotopes and RHP Buddy Carlyle (0-1, 4.50) for the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers). THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) 6-3 at Isotopes Park. New Isotope Wilson Valdez two-run singled and Robert Stratton belted his league-leading 15th homer of the season in the contest. Here are the active Isotope leaders (and excluding Joe Dillon who was promoted to Florida) in various categories (through games of May 17, 2005): BATTING Batting Average (min. 20 at-bats): Matt Padgett (.356) PITCHING Wins (Starter): Frank Castillo (4) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Matt Blank (3-0) HR: TAC Jose Lopez (1) off Michael Flannery in the 7th inning
TIME: 2:46 The Isotopes plated all the runs they needed in a single inning and earned themselves a steak dinner with a series sweep as they defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 5-2. The Isotopes seem to have gotten back on the right track as they have won six out of their last seven games. In the 2nd inning with one out, Josh Willingham infield singled to third base and Mike Colangelo singled to left field. Chris Ashby drew a walk to load the bases and Drew Niles smacked a liner off Rainier starter Felix Hernandez as Willingham scored. With Hernandez removed from the game, Mark Little sacrifice flied out to plate Ashby and Derek Wathan doubled to center field as Niles and Wilson scored to give the Isotopes a 5-0 lead. Jose Lopez had a pair of solo homers (in the 7th and 9th innings) to provide the only Tacoma runs. The Mariners highest rated propsect, Hernandez left the game after 1 1/3 innings after being hit by a batted ball for precautionary reasons. Hernandez gave up 4 runs (all earned), 3 hits, walked one and struck out 3. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/16/05): Joe Dillon 38 G, 33 R, 43 H, 7 2B, 0 3Bm 13 HR, 31 RBI, 20 BB,
28 K, 3 SB, .650 SLG, .314 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 SV, 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 BB, 1
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Albuquerque's Kevin Olsen came within one out of a complete game shutout as the Isotopes defeated the Edmonton Trappers (AAA Expos in 2004) 4-1. In the Edmonton 9th inning with two outs, Brian Harris walked and Jorge Toca doubled off the left-center field wall to drive in Harris. Franklyn Gracesqui entered teh game and struck out Ryan Church to end the game. 'Topes Notes: The series sweep was the second Isotopes series sweep of 2005 (the other against Iowa at Isotopes Park) and is the only series to be played between the Isotopes and Rainiers in 2005. The Isotopes lead the all-time series 8-4 (Albuquerque swept the four games in 2003 at Isotopes Park, Tacoma returned the favor with a 4-0 series win at Cheney Stadium in 2004 and another Isotope series sweep completed today). 28,007 fans came through the games during the four-game series for a per-game average of 7,002. . . . The Isotopes ended their franchise-tying longest homestand at 7-5 and improved their May record to 9-8. . . . Joe Dillon went 0x4 to snap a 12-game hitting streak, the longest for any Isotope this season. . . . The Isotopes also went homerless to snap a 12 consecutive-game homer streak, the longest in franchise history. . . . Josh Wilson extended his hitting streak to 8 games. . . . After a day off on Wednesday, the Isotopes open up an eight-game roadtrip starting with four games at Cashman Field in Las Vegas, site of a 2003 Isotope series sweep in the only four games the Isotopes have played there. The opponent is the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) and the Isotopes have traditionally had their number (a four-game sweep in 2003 in Las Vegas and a four-game sweep in 2004 at Isotopes Park to hold a 8-0 all-time series advantage). Pitching probables for the opener are LHP Les Walrond (1-2, 3.91) for the Isotopes and RHP Buddy Carlyle (0-1, 4.50) for the 51s. Filed 05/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Jeff Fulchino (3-3) HR: TAC Chris Snelling (5) off Jeff Fulchino in the 1st inning ABQ Mark Little (10) off Cha-Seung Baek in the 3rd
inning TIME: 2:17 The Isotopes scored all their runs on home runs and set a record in the process as they defeated the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 3-2 on Monday evening. Chris Snelling solo-homered to center field in the 1st inning as the Rainiers led 1-0. In the 3rd inning, Josh Wilson singled to right field, stole second base, and Mark Little homered to left field as the 'Topes led 2-1. The Isotopes extended the lead in the 4th inning when Joe Dillon blasted his league-leading 13th home run of the season to center field. Tacoma closed out the scoring in the 5th inning. Jose Lopez doubled to left field, advanced to third base on Mike Morse's double to right field and scored on Jamal Strong's groundout. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/15/05): Joe Dillon 37 G, 32 R, 42 H, 7 2B, 0 3B, 12 HR, 30 RBI, 20 BB,
27 K, 3 SB, .634 SLG, .313 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 SV, 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 BB, 1
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes rallied in the bottom of the 9th inning to defeat the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) 6-5. Gerald Williams doubled off the right field wall and Matt Treanor belted a walk-off home run to left field. 'Topes Notes: The record the Isotopes set in the game was a franchise mark for most consecutive games with a homer. The Isotopes have homered in 12 straight games, breaking the mark set twice in 2004 of homering in 11 games in a row. . . . Mark Little's 10th homer in the contest moved Little into a second place tie on the PCL Home Run leaderboard. Little is tied with teammate Josh Willingham while Joe Dillon leads the league with 13 homers. . . . Randy Messenger earned his first save of the season in the game, becoming the third Isotope reliever to earn a save in a game this season. . . . Joe Dillon extended his team-leading 2005 hitting streak to 12 games, while Josh Wilson extended his streak to 7 games. . . . Jeff Fulchino went 7 innings, his longest outing of the season. Fulchino has also won back-to-back outings, improving what was a 1-3 record to 3-3 currently. . . . The Isotopes' season record is above the .500 mark for the first time since May 7th. . . . The Isotopes only had 4 hits in the game, tying for the season-worst hits mark in a game at home. . . . Pitching probables for the series (and homestand) finale on Tuesday afternoon are LHP Matt Blank (2-0, 3.41) for the Isotopes and RHP Felix Hernandez (5-2, 2.30) for the Rainiers. Hernandez is the highest ranked prospect in the Mariners system according to BASEBALL AMERICA and many who rate minor leaguer players regard him as the best pitching prospect in the whole minor leagues. Hernandez features three above-average pitches (fastball, curveball and changeup). He is said to have an above-average slider, but Seattle is restricting him from throwing sliders in the interest of keeping him healthy. Filed 05/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (4-2) HR: TAC Chris Snelling (4) off Frank Castillo in the 3rd inning ABQ Josh Wilson (5) off Damian Moss in the 5th inning TIME: 3:02 The Isotopes scored ten unanswered runs to defeat the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) 10-2 on Sunday afternoon. With the victory, the Isotopes have moved their season record back to the .500 mark. Tacoma's Jose Lopez doubled to left field to lead off the 2nd inning and later scored on Mike Morse's double to the right field wall as the Rainiers led 1-0. In the 3rd inning, Chris Snelling solo-homered to right field with two outs as the Rainiers extended the lead to 2-0. Josh Wilson walked with one out in the home half of the 3rd inning, advanced to second base on Mark Little's sacrifice bunt, and scored on Derek Wathan's double to left field as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 2-1. In the 5th inning with two outs, Chris Ashby reached on a error and Wilson followed with a homer to left field as the Isotopes took a 3-2 lead. The Isotopes extended the lead in the 7th inning. Jason Wood and Mike Colangelo led off the inning with walks and Ashby was hit by a pitch to load the bases. Wilson grounded into a double play (with Wood out at home plate and Wilson out at first base) as Colangelo and Ashby moved up a base. Little then infield singled to shortstop as Colangelo scored. The Isotopes decided to make the game a rout with a six-run 8th inning. Wathan walked and Joe Dillon doubled to center field to drive in Wathan. Matt Padgett doubled to right field as Dillon scored and Josh Willingham walked. An out later, Colangelo doubled to left field to drive in Padgett. Isotopes reliever J.B. Miadich singled to right field to plate Willingham and Wilson sacrifice flied out to left-center field to drive in Colangelo. Little's triple to the hill in center field drove in Miadich to finish the scoring in the inning. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/14/05): Joe Dillon 36 G, 31 R, 41 H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 12 HR, 29 RBI, 20 BB,
26 K, 3 SB, .643 SLG, .318 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 SV, 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 BB, 1
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2003) 11-7 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes scoring was highlighted by a 7-run 6th inning where 7 consecutive hits and a wild pitch led to scoring the 7 runs. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have homered in 11 straight games, tying a franchise record accomplished twice in 2004. . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 11 games, adding to his mark for the longest hitting streak of any Isotope player in 2005. . . . J.B. Miadich is hitting .500 (1x2) in his career at the plate (1x1 with the Isotopes with an RBI). He became the third Isotope pitcher to knock in a run in a game this season, but Frank Castillo holds the 2005 pitcher mark for most runs batted in for a single game (2; 5/10 vs Portland). . . . The Isotopes tied a season-high for largest winning margin in a game (8 runs). . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series on Monday evening are RHP Jeff Fulchino (2-3, 6.60) for the Isotopes and RHP Cha-Seung Baek (2-0, 4.20) for the Rainiers. Filed 05/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: J.B. Miadich (2-1) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (12) off Rich Dorman in the 5th
inning TIME: 3:19 Josh Wilson's sacrifice flyout in the bottom of the 9th inning gave the Isotopes a 8-7 victory over the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) in the series opener at "The Lab" on Saturday evening. Tacoma built a quick 4-0 in the 1st inning. Jamal Strong and Shin-Soo Choo singled and a wild pitch by Isotopes starter Peter Bauer allowed Strong to scamper home from third base while Choo advanced to second base. Two outs later, Ryan Christianson walked and Mike Morse doubled to the hill in left-center field to plate Choo and Christianson. Hunter Brown's single to right field drove in Morse to conclude the scoring in the Rainiers first frame. In the 2nd inning, Chris Ashby reached on a fielder's choice and advanced to second bae on an error before scoring on Wilson's single to right field. Josh Willingham homered to left field with Joe Dillon on base in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes trailed the Rainiers by a run at 4-3. Dillon led off the 5th inning with a solo homer to tie the game at 4-4 and then Matt Padgett doubled to right field and scored on Jason Wood's single to center field as the Isotopes took the lead at 5-4. In the 6th inning, Morse infield singled, Jose Lopez reached on an error, and Brown singled to load the bases. Ramon Santiago grounded into a double play as Morse scored to tie the game at 5-5. Padgett singled, Willingham walked and Mike Colangelo was intentionally walked to load the bases in the 7th inning before Ashby was hit by a pitch to bring home Padgett as the 'Topes regained the lead at 6-5. In the 8th inning with Isotopes reliever Ben Howard on the mound, Lopez and Brown singled and Santiago reached on a fielder's choice with Lopez out at home plate. An out later, Choo walked to load the bases and Chris Snelling singled to right field to drive in Brown and Santiago as the Rainiers led 7-6. In the bottom of the 8th inning, Mark Little was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning. Little advanced to second on Derek Wathan's groundout, moved to third base on Dillon's groundout, and scored on Padgett's single to center field as the Isotopes pulled even with the Rainiers at 7-7. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Wood singled to center field and was replaced on the basepaths by pinch-runner Drew Niles. Colangelo singled to left field and Ashby sacrifice bunted both runners up a base before Wilson sacrifice flied out to left-center field to plate Niles with the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/13/05): Joe Dillon 35 G, 29 R, 38 H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 11 HR, 28 RBI, 20 BB,
26 K, 3 SB, .621 SLG, .306 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 SV, 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 BB,
1 K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: On Larry Sutton's birthday in 2004, Sutton solo-homered in the 10th inning as the Isotopes defeated the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) 11-10 at Franklin Covey Field in Salt Lake. The Isotopes had blown a six-run lead earlier in the game. 'Topes Notes: Tonight's victory was the Isotopes' third win in their last at-bat this season. . . . While Joe Dillon continues to lead the PCL in homers, Josh Willingham's homer this evening moved him into a tie for second place in the PCL in homers. . . . Dillon extended his hitting streak to 10 games, the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005 so far. . . . If the Isotopes can homer in tomorrow's game, they will tie the franchise-record for most consecutive games with a homer. The Isotopes have homered in 10 straight games through tonight's action. . . . Tonight's contest was the 13th game this season the Isotopes have not allowed a homer. . . . Tacoma closer George Sherrill will not be facing the Isotopes in the series as he learned of his promotion to the Mariners right around game time. Tacoma starter Jorge Campillo left the game prematurely, pitching 2 1/3 innings and leaving without injury, so he may have been told of an pending promotion to Seattle in the next few days. Mariners pitcher Joel Pineiro was optioned to Tacoma to work on his pitching mechanics but is not expected to play in the series against the Isotopes. . . . Pitching probables for game 2 of the series on Sunday afternoon are RHP Frank Castillo (3-2, 4.20) for the Isotopes and LHP Damian Moss (1-2, 3.66) for the Rainiers. Filed 05/14/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Justin Germano (1-4) HR: POR Jon Knott (5) off Les Walrond in the 4th inning ABQ Jason Wood (4) off Justin Germano in the 2nd inning TIME: 2:23 The Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) plated the eventual game winning run utilizing a three-base Isotope error in their 3-2 victory over the Isotopes on Friday evening in a swift 2 hour, 23 minute contest. Kerry Robinson led off the game with an infield single, stole second base, advanced to third base on J.J. Furmaniak's groundout and scored on Jon Knott's groundout as the Beavers took a 1-0 lead. Jason Wood homered to left field with two outs in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes tied the game at 1-1 and the 'Topes took a 2-1 lead in the 3rd inning when Derek Wathan doubled to right field and scored on Joe Dillon's single to right field. Knott homered to left field to lead off the Portland 4th inning as the Beavers tied the game at 2-2. In the 6th inning, Furmaniak singled to right field and scored all the way from first base on a throwing error by Isotopes third baseman Joe Dillon as the Beavers scored the eventual game winning run. The Isotopes made things interesting in the 9th inning. With two outs, Wood singled to left field and Mike Colangelo worked the count full before singling to right field to advance pinch-runner Drew Niles to third base. Josh Wilson then flew out to right-center field to end the contest with an Isotope runner stranded just 90 feet away at third base. Les Walrond started for the Isotopes and pitched great for an outing at Isotopes Park. In 8 innings, Walrond gave up 3 runs (2 earned), walked one and struck out 2 while allowing 5 hits. Justin Germano started for the Beavers and finally earned his first winning decision of the season. In 7 innings of work, Germano struck out 10 Isotopes, gave up 6 hits and allowed two runs and walked none. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/13/05): Joe Dillon 34 G, 29 R, 37 H, 6 2B, 0 3B, 11 HR, 27 RBI, 20 BB,
25 K, 3 SB, .633 SLG, .308 AVG Michael Flannery 1-0, 0.00 ERA, 0 SV, 1 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 0 HR, 0 BB, 1
K THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 8-6 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes were aided in the win by a five-run 5th inning. Kevin Hooper inside-the-park homered in the 6th inning for the first Isotope inside-the-park homer in franchise history. 'Topes Notes: The Beavers and Isotopes split the season series 2-2. Portland (former Dukes franchise) holds a 7-5 all-time advantage over the Isotopes. . . . 25,565 fans came through the turnstiles during the series for a per-game average of 6,391. . . . .Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 9 games, tying the season-best hitting streak for any Isotopes player. . . . Portland's Ben Johnson's five-game hitting streak was snapped with an 0x4 evening, while Jon Knott extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Next up for the Isotopes is a four-game series against the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) for the only four matchups of the season. The series also concludes a franchise-tying longest homestand (12 games). Pitching probables for the opener are RHP Peter Bauer (1-3, 7.99) for the Isotopes and RHP Jorge Campillo (2-1, 3.00) for the Rainiers. Filed 05/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Michael Flannery (1-0) HR: POR J.J. Furmaniak (1) off Matt Blank in the 4th inning ABQ Josh Willingham (9) off Marty McLeary in the 1st
inning TIME: 3:01 The Isotopes scored seven unanswered runs to turn a four-run defecit into a 10-7 victory over the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) on Thursday evening at "The Lab". Albuquerque has now strung together two consecutive victories. With two outs in the Albuquerque 1st inning, Joe Dillon singled to left field, stole second base, Matt Padgett walked and Josh Willingham followed with a homer to left-center field off former Isotope Marty McLeary as the Isotopes quickly led 3-0. That lead did not last long as Portland came up with two out magic of their own. After two quick outs to begin the inning, Ben Johnson singled to center field and Bobby Scales tripled to the right-center gap wall as Johnson scored. Benjamin Risinger walked and McLeary helped his own cause with a triple to right field as Scales and Risinger scored. Kerry Robinson's single to center field drove in McLeary as the Beavers took a 4-3 lead. Jon Knott doubled to right field and scored on Johnson's single in the 3rd inning as the Beavers extended the lead to 5-3. Robinson singled and scored on J.J. Furmaniak's first homer of the season, to center field, in the 4th inning as the Beavers increased the lead to 7-3. In the home half of the 4th inning, Jason Stokes singled, stole second base, advanced to third base on Josh Wilson's single to right field and scored when Drew Niles reached on an error by Beavers first baseman Knott on an errant trying to get the force at second base. In the 5th inning, Dillon doubled to left field and scored on Padgett's single to center field. Willingham doubled to right-center field as Padgett scored and Stokes was hit by a pitch. Mike Colangelo singled to center field as Willingham scored and Wilson singled to right field to load the bases. Two outs later, Derek Wathan singled to right field as Stokes and Colangelo scored to give the Isotopes a 9-7 lead. Dillon solo-homered to left field in the 8th inning to end the scoring in the contest. McLeary pitched 4 innings for the Beavers, giving up 8 runs and 8 hits while walking 3 and striking out 4 against his former team. Matt Blank made a start in replace of the injured Ariel Prieto and gave up 9 hits and 7 runs in 4 innings. Blank walked one and struck out 2. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/11/05): Joe Dillon 33 G, 26 R, 33 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 10 HR, 26 RBI, 20 BB,
25 K, 2 SB, .591 SLG, .287 AVG Michael Flannery (no stats yet) THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes scored 13 runs in the final 3 innings to come back to defeat the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) in Salt Lake City. Matt Padgett homered twice and Larry Sutton once in the contest. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have won two straight games for the first time since April 20-21 at Rosenblatt Stadium against Omaha (AAA Royals). . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 8 games and took over the PCL Home Run lead with his 11th homer of the season. . . . Portland's Ben Johnson and Jon Knott extended their hitting streaks to five games. . . . Scott Seabol of the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) is the PCL Hitter of the Week. Seabol went 15x29 (.517) during the week with a triple, four homers and 12 RBI. . . . Ricardo Rodriguez of the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) was named the PCL Pitcher of the Week. Rodriguez won both of his starts during the week and hurled a complete game shutout against the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros). . . . Pitching probables for the series finale (and last game between the two clubs in 2005) are LHP Les Walrond (1-1, 4.26) for the Isotopes and RHP Justin Germano (0-4, 5.28) for the Beavers. Filed 05/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Jeff Fulchino (2-3) HR: ABQ Josh Willingham (8) off Roger Deago in the 5th inning TIME: 2:35 Jeff Fulchino pitched six innings of two-run, four-hit ball to earn his first victory since April 21st in the Isotopes 8-2 victory over the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) on Wednesday evening. With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a three-game losing streak. With one out in the 2nd inning, Albuquerque's Mike Colangelo singled to left field and scored on Jason Wood's double to the hill in center field. Portland tied the game at 1-1 in the 3rd inning. With two outs, J.J. Furmaniak tripled to right-center field and scored on Jon Knott's single to left field. The tie was broken in the home half of the 3rd inning. Mark Little singled to begin the inning and an out later, Joe Dillon singled to right field. Matt Padgett's single to right-center field plated Little and Josh Willingham's ground-rule double to left-center field brought Dillon home. Colangelo reached on a fielder's choice as Padgett scampered home to give the 'Topes a 4-1 lead. The Isotopes went up 5-1 in the 4th inning when Little walked, stole second base and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to left field. Portland put their last run on the scoreboard in the 5th inning. Kerry Robinson reached on a fielder's choice, advanced to third base when Furmaniak and Knott drew walks, and scored when Adam Hyzdu was hit by a pitch. Willingham solo-homered to left field in the 5th inning as the 'Topes regained a three-run advantage at 6-2. Albuquerque put their final runs on the scoreboard in the 8th inning. Colangelo led off the inning by reaching on a fielding error by Beavers third baseman Bobby Scales. Colangelo stole second base and Josh Wilson singled to left field to drive in Colangelo. Little singled to left field to advance Wilson to second base and Wilson scored on Delgado's single to right field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/10/05): Joe Dillon 32 G, 25 R, 32 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 10 HR, 26 RBI, 18 BB,
25 K, 2 SB, .598 SLG, .286 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) pounded out 17 hits and had a pair of 3-run innings in a 9-3 victory over the Isotopes at Isotopes Park. Clint Sodowsky gave up 4 runs and 10 hits in 4 1/3 innings and reliever Jason Secoda gave up 5 runs and 6 hits in 2 2/3 innings of relief. 'Topes Notes: Jeff Fulchino's six innings was his longest outing of the season. . . . Joe Dillon went 1x3 to extend his hitting streak to 7 games. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Thursday evening are LHP Matt Blank (2-0, 1.44) making a rather last-minute spot start (filling in for the just-placed-on-the-disabled-list Ariel Prieto) and former-Isotope RHP Marty McLeary (1-1, 3.73) for the Beavers. Filed 05/11/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Angel Tovar (1-3) HR: POR Ben Johnson (2) off Bryan Corey in the 6th inning ABQ Joe Dillon (10) off Chris Oxspring in the 3rd
inning TIME: 3:32 Despite seven Isotope homers in the contest, the Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) edged the Isotopes 12-11 in a series-opener slugfest at "The Lab". The Isotopes have dropped three straight games with the defeat. Kerry Robinson led off the game with an infield single ricocheting off of Isotopes starter Frank Castillo. Robinson stole second base and J.J. Furmaniak laid down a sacrifice bunt. A throwing error on the play by Albuquerque's Jason Stokes allowed Robinson to score. Jon Knott's double to center field plated Furmaniak and Adam Hyzdu followed with a walk. Josh Barfield drew a walk to load the bases and Ben Johnson singled to center field as Knott scored. Bobby Scales walked with the bases loaded as Hyzdu trotted home and Michel Hernandez sacrifice flied out to center field as Barfield scored to give the Beavers a 5-0 lead. In the Beavers' 2nd inning, Knott reached on a throwing error by Isotope third baseman Joe Dillon. An out later, Barfield singled to center field and a wild pitch advanced both runners into scoring position. Johnson walked to load the bases and Scales drew a walk with the bases loaded for the second inning in a row as Knott scored. Hernandez walked as Barfield came home to increase the Beavers lead to 7-0. Josh Willingham singled to lead off the home half of the 2nd inning and Stokes singled to right field. Beavers starter Chris Oxspring's wild pitch advanced both runners a base and Josh Wilson sacrifice flied out to center field as Willingham scored to get the Isotopes on the scoreboard. Mark Little homered to left field to lead off the Isotopes 3rd inning. After Derek Wathan flied out, Dillon homered to center field. Matt Padgett singled to right field and Willingham walked ahead of Stokes homer to left field as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 7-6. Little homered to center field to open the Isotopes 4th frame as the Isotopes tied the game at 7-7. The Beavers regained the lead and gave themselves some breathing room in the 6th inning utilizing some two out mojo. Bryan Corey entered the game in relief for the Isotopes and promptly got two outs before encountering trouble. Barfield doubled to left field ahead of Johnson's homer to left field. Scales walked, Hernandez singled to right field and Beavers reliever Angel Tovar doubled to right field as Scales and Hernandez scored. Robinson's single to center field drove in Tovar as the Beavers led 12-7. In the Isotope 7th inning, Willingham homered to left field and an out later, Barnes homered to right-center field. Wilson infield singled to third base and stole second base before scoring on Little's double to center field as the Beavers led 12-10. Wilson solo-homered to left field in the 9th inning to try to begin a rally to tie or win the game. Beavers reliever Brad Baker then got Jason Wood to ground out, Little to fly out, gave up a single to Wathan, but then got Dillon to strikeout to end the threat and the game. Neither pitcher was very effective in the contest. Castillo went 5 innings, giving up 5 hits, 7 runs (4 earned), walked 7 and struck out 5 while allowing no homers. Oxspring went 4 innings, giving up 8 hits, 7 runs, 3 walks and struck out 4. Oxspring allowed four homers in the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/09/05): Joe Dillon 31 G, 24 H, 31 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 9 HR, 25 RBI, 17 BB, 24
K, 1 SB, .589 SLG, .290 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, Robert Stratton three-run homered in the 7th inning to break a 2-2 tie as the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 6-4 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: The three Isotope homers in the 3rd inning sets an Isotope franchise record for most homers in an inning. The seven Isotope homers in the game was also a franchise record for most Isotope homers in a single game. . . . Every Isotope starter in the batting order except for the pitcher had at least a hit in the contest. . . . Chris Oxspring's four homers allowed was a Portland season high for homers allowed by a single pitcher in a game. . . . The Beavers also set a season-high in runs scored in a game (12) and homers allowed in a game (7) and tied a season-high for most runs scored in an inning (5 - done twice tonight). . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 6 games and has four homers in his last three games. . . . Portland holds a 6-3 all-time series lead over the Isotopes with tonight's victory. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Wednesday evening are RHP Jeff Fulchino (1-3, 7.50) for the Isotopes and LHP Roger Deago (no record in Triple-A; 1-0, 1.38 with the Padres Double-A Mobile club) for the Beavers. Filed 05/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Josh Karp (1-0) HR: NRL Melvin Nieves (1) off Peter Bauer in the 1st
inning ABQ Joe Dillon (8) off Brian Powell in the 1st
inning TIME: 3:12 The New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) put nine runs on the scoreboard in the final two frames to defeat the Isotopes 14-10 on Monday afternoon at "The Lab". Both teams swapped two-run homers in the 1st inning (Melvin Nieves with Jason Bowers on-base for the Zephyrs; Joe Dillon with Mark Little on-base for the Isotopes). Isotopes starter Peter Bauer singled and came home on Mark Little's homer to left field in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes led 4-2. In the 4th inning, Josh Willingham walked, moved to third base on Larry Barnes single and scored on Josh Wilson's sacrifice fly to left field as the Isotopes extended the lead to 5-2. New Orleans' Hector Ortiz singled and Tyrell Godwin was hit by a pitch before Nieves homered to left field as the Zephyrs tied the game at 5-5 in the 5th inning. Matt Padgett tripled into the right field corner to lead off the 6th inning, Willingham was hit by a pitch and Mike Colangelo walked to load the bases. Larry Barnes singled to right field to plate Padgett and Jason Wood's sacrifice flyout to right field drove in Willingham as the Isotopes regained the lead at 7-5. New Orleans put up a six-spot on the scoreboard in the 8th inning to take a 11-7 lead. Bowers walked to lead off the inning and an out later, Dee Haynes singled to left field and Matt Cepicky followed with a single to left-center field as Bowers scored. Brendan Harris tripled to center field to clear the bases and scored on Dan Dement's double to right-center field. After Ortiz struck out, Rick Short homered to left field. New Orleans wasn't done scoring in the contest when the 9th inning arrived. Bowers was hit by a pitch and he then stole second base. Two outs later, Cepicky walked and Harris homered to left field as the Zephyrs extended their lead to 14-7. Albuquerque made the score a little bit more respectable in their last at-bat. Little doubled to right field, pinch-hitter Jason Stokes walked and Dillon followed with his second homer of the day, a homer to left-center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/08/05): Joe Dillon 30 G, 22 R, 29 H, 5 2B, 0 3B, 7 HR, 20 RBI, 17 BB, 22
K, 1 SB, .539 SLG, .284 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: On Mother's Day afternoon in 2004 at Isotopes Park, the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) scored 8 runs in the 1st inning en route to a 14-6 victory over the Isotopes. Isotopes starter Aaron Small only lasted 2/3 of an inning, the shortest Isotope starting pitcher outing in franchise history. 'Topes Notes: The Zephyrs took three out of the four games from the Isotopes in the series. The Isotopes have now lost four series' this season. . . . 30,351 fans came through the turnstiles in the series for a per game average of 7,588. Over 100,000 fans have now attended a game at Isotopes Park (106,143). . . . Joe Dillon extended his hitting streak to 5 games. . . . The Portland Beavers (AAA Padres) (a.k.a. Portland "Dukes") come to town for the only four games against the Isotopes in 2005. It should be interesting to see what performance the prospect-laden Beavers team will give against the Isotopes tomorrow night -- the Beavers game was rained out on Monday so they might be rested or they might be tired from the travel day coming to town from Portland, Oregon. The good news for the struggling Isotopes is that many of the Padres prospects are batting in the low .200's but the altitude could inflate their stats quite rapidly. RHP Frank Castillo (3-2, 3.79) will take the mound for the Isotopes against Beavers RHP Chris Oxspring (1-2, 4.55). The Padres prospects on the Beavers club as ranked by BASEBALL AMERICA and their stats through games of May 8, 2005: : P Chris Oxspring (#17) 1-2, 4.55; | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ed Yarnall (2-1) HR: NRL Dee Haynes (2) off Les Walrond in the 2nd inning
ABQ Joe Dillon (7) off Ed Yarnall in the 6th
inning TIME: 2:45 The New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) strung together enough single-run innings early on to provide enough runs to defeat the Isotopes 5-3 on Mothers Day afternoon. The Zephyrs scored in four consecutive innings, beginning with the 2nd inning. Dee Haynes solo-homered to center field to lead off the inning. In the 3rd inning, Zephyrs starter Ed Yarnall, Rick Short and Jason Bowers consecutive-singled to load the baes and Melvin Nieves drew a bases-loaded walk to plate Yarnall. In the 4th inning, Brendan Harris solo-homered to right field and in the 5th inning, Short solo-homered to left field as the Zephyrs built a 4-0 lead.
Jason Wood doubled to left field and scored on Wilson Delgado's single to center field as the Isotopes got on the scoreboard in the 5th inning. In the 6th inning, Josh Wilson and Joe Dillon back-to-back homered (both to left field) to lead off the inning as the Isotopes pulled to within a run at 4-3. Matt Cepicky doubled into the right field corner, advanced to third base on a sacrifice bunt, and scored on Wesley Carroll's sacrifice flyout to left-center field in the 9th inning to provide an insurance run. The Isotopes had a good opportunity to score some runs in the bottom of the 9th inning. Wood and Delgado led off the inning with walks and Ryan Jorgensen's sacrifice bunt placed both runners in scoring position. Josh Willingham and Mark Little then struck out to end the threat and the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/07/05): Joe Dillon 29 G, 21 R, 26 H, 4 2B, 0 3B, 6 HR, 19 RBI, 17 BB, 21
K, 1 SB, .490 SLG, .265 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 12-7 at Isotopes Park. The Isotopes scored ten unanswered runs to overcome a five-run defecit to win. Larry Sutton homered twice and extended his hitting streak to 14 games. 'Topes Notes: With pitching coach Jeff Schwarz still away from the team for personal reasons, John Duffy has joined the Isotopes as temporary pitching coach. Duffy will be the pitching coach for the short-season Class-A Jamestown Jammers when the short-season league starts up in June. . . . Josh Wilson and Joe Dillon's back-to-back homers was the first time the Isotopes have homered back-to-back in 2005. . . . Every Isotope starter struck out at least once in the contest. In all, 13 Isotopes struck out in the game. . . . Josh Willingham went 0x1 as a pinch-hitter to end his four-game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Monday afternoon are RHP Peter Bauer (1-3, 7.81) for the Isotopes and RHP Brian Powell (0-1, 4.38) for the Zephyrs. Filed 05/08/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Bryan Corey (2-2) HR: ABQ Jason Wood (3) off Roy Corcoran in the 8th inning TIME: 2:50 The Isotopes came up with the big inning when needed most as they defeated the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) 7-3 on Saturday evening at "The Lab". With the victory, the Isotopes snapped a four-game home losing streak and moved their season record back to the .500 mark. In the Zephyrs' 2nd inning, Brendan Harris singled to center field and Rick Short doubled to right field. Dan Dement's single to center field plated Harris. Short scored.when Isotope starter Ariel Prieto threw the ball away on a pickoff attempt to first base for an error. Jason Wood and Josh Wilson led off the Isotope 3rd inning with singles off Nationals' minor league Pitcher of the Month Sunny Kim and Prieto laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners a base. Mark Little's single to left field plated Wood as the Isotopes cut the defecit to a run at 2-1. Joe Dillon walked in the 6th inning with two outs, advanced to third base on Matt Padgett's double into the right field corner and scored on Josh Willingham's single to left field as the Isotopes tied the game at 2-2. The game remain tied until the 8th inning. Harris doubled to right field and later scored on a passed ball as the Zephyrs led 3-2. Albuquerque then went to bat in the home half of the 8th inning to win the game. Mark Little was hit by a pitch to begin the inning and advanced to second base on Mike Colangelo's sacrifice bunt. Dillon infield singled to third base and Little scored on a throwing error on the play. An out later, Willingham infield singled to shortstop as Dillon scored and Willingham moved into scoring position on a throwing error on the play. Wilson Delgado doubled down the left field line as Willingham scored and Wood followed with a homer to center field as the Isotopes put a five-spot on the scoreboard. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/06/05): Joe Dillon 28 G, 19 R, 25 H, 4 2B, 0 3B, 6 HR, 19 RBI, 16 BB, 21
K, 1 SB, .495 SLG, .263 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes fell to the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) 4-1. Chris Wakeland's solo-homer was the only run the Isotopes would get. Tucson's Steve Neal drove in two runs with a single, Mike Bell drew a bases loaded walk and Matt Kata drove in a run with a single in the contest. 'Topes Notes: New Orleans' Tyrell Godwin failed to reach base safely, snapping a 26-game streak. . . . The Isotopes last at-bat win was their second last at-bat win of the season (also 4/11 vs Omaha Royals (AAA Royals)). . . . Josh Willingham extended his hitting streak to four games. . . . The Zephyrs are now 1-15 in 2005 when they allow their opponents to score more than four runs. . . . The Washington Nationals named Zephyr outfielder Tyrell Godwin and Zephyr pitcher Sunny Kim their minor league players of the month for April. In April, Godwin hit .381 with 1 homer and 6 RBI. Kim went 3-1 with a 2.49 ERA. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series on Sunday afternoon are LHP Les Walrond (1-0, 3.82) for the Isotopes and LHP Ed Yarnell (1-1, 4.82) for the Zephyrs. Filed 05/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Claudio Vargas (2-2) HR: ABQ Josh Willingham (6) off Claudio Vargas in the 2nd
inning
OKL Dee Haynes (1) off Jeff Fulchino in the 6th inning TIME: 3:01 A pair of Isotope solo-homers provided the only thing worth rooting for in the Isotopes 7-2 defeat at the hands of the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) on homestand opener night at "The Lab". New Orleans' Matt Cepicky singled to center field and scored on John Wilson's double to left field in the 2nd inning as the Zephyrs scored the first run of the game. Josh Willingham solo-homered to right-center field in the home half of the 2nd inning to tie the game at 1-1. The game wasn't tied for very long. In the next half inning, Henry Mateo walked with one out, stole second base and moved to third on a wild pitch before scoring on Dee Haynes' single to center field as the Zephyrs led 2-1. The Zephyrs broke the game open in the 6th inning. Melvin Nieves was hit by a pitch to open the inning and Haynes followed with his first homer of the season to left-center field. An out later, Brendan Harris walked, advanced to third base on Jason Bowers single and scored on Wilson's groundout as the Zephyrs extended the head to 5-1. In the top of the 9th inning, Wilson walked and advanced to second base on Zephyr reliever Christopher Schroder's sacrifice bunt. Tyrell Godwin singled to right as Wilson moved to third base and Mateo's single to right field plated Wilson while Godwin advanced to third base. Nieves' sacrifice fly drove in Godwin as the Zephyrs led 7-1. Jason Stokes, fresh off the disabled list, homered to left field in the bottom of the 9th inning for the Isotopes final run of the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/05/05): Joe Dillon 27 G, 19 R, 24 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 6 HR, 19 RBI, 15 BB, 21
K, 1 SB, .484 SLG, .258 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: in 2003, Diamondbacks prospect Edgar Gonzalez made his Triple-A debut as the Tucson Sidewinders (AAA Diamondbacks) defeated the Isotopes 11-1. Gonzalez held the Isotopes to 5 hits and one run in 7 innings of work. The Sidewinders put the game away early by scoring six runs on two-out consecutive hits in the 2nd inning. 'Topes Notes: Pitching probables for the second game of the series are RHP Ariel Prieto (1-1, 4.91) for the Isotopes and RHP Sunny Kim (3-1, 2.49) for the Zephyrs. Filed 05/06/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Frank Castillo (3-2) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (6) off Lou Pote in the 1st inning OKL Jason Botts (7) off Frank Castillo in the 2nd
inning TIME: 2:42 The Isotopes took advantage of a hit by pitch and a wild pitch in the 8th inning to break a scoreless game and defeat the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 5-4 on Thursday evening in the series finale. With the victory, the Isotopes avoid being swept in the series. Joe Dillon solo-homered to left field in the 1st inning to get the Isotopes on the scoreboard. Jason Botts' solo homer in the bottom of the 2nd inning tied the game at 1-1 Josh Wilson tripled to right field and scored on Derek Wathan's sacrifice flyout to right field in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes led 2-1. In the 4th inning with two outs, Josh Willingham singled and stole second base. Jason Wood drew a walk and Mark Little reached on an error to load the baes. Wilson's single to left field plated Willingham and Wood as the Isotopes extended their lead to 4-1. In the home half of the 4th inning, Jason Conti tripled and scored on Gerald Laird's single to right field. Laird stole second base and scored on Greg Colbrunn's double to left field as the Redhawks once again cut the defecit to a run at 4-3. Will Smith homered to center field to lead off the 5th inning as the Redhawks tied the game at 4-4. In the 8th inning, Mike Colangelo was hit by a pitch with one out. A wild pitch moved Colangelo to second base and Willingham singled to left field as Colangelo scored the eventual game-winning run. Isotopes starter Frank Castillo pitched7 innings, giving up 8 hits and 4 runs. He walked one and struck out 4 and allowed two homers. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/04/05): Joe Dillon 26 G, 19 R, 23 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5 H, 18 RBI, 15 BB, 20
K, 1 SB, .466 SLG, .261 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 10-4 in Colorado Springs. Larry Sutton homered twice and Sutton and Matt Treanor each drove in three runs in the Isotope victory. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes broke a six consecutive-matchup winless streak against the Redhawks. The Redhawks had won the last three games recently in Albuquerque and the first three games of this series. . . . The Redhawks took three out of the four games in the series. For the series, 28,616 fans came through the SBC Bricktown Ballpark turnstiles for a per-game average of 7,154. The Isotopes played in front of 48,381 fans on the road for the eight games of the roadtrip. . . . Oklahoma's Manny Alexander went hitless to end his hitting streak at 13 games. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) Aaron Rifkin. Rifkin hit .520 for the week with 4 homers and 14 RBI. . . . The PCL Pitcher of the Week is Matt Cain of the Fresno Grizzlies (AAA Giants). Cain pitched 7 1/3 innings against the Las Vegas 51s (AAA Dodgers) and gave up only one hit and one walk while striking out 10. The Grizzlies won the contest 2-0. . . . Albuquerque returns home for a 12-game homestand, the longest homestand of 2005 and a franchise-record-tying longest homestand. Pitching probables for the first game of the four-game series against the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) are RHP Jeff Fulchino (1-2, 7.58) for the Isotopes and rehabilitating RHP Claudio Vargas (1-2, 5.14) for the Zephyrs. Filed 05/05/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: John Hudgins (1-0) TIME: 2:41 On school field trip day in Oklahoma City, the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) top of the order drove in all three runs as the Redhawks edged the Isotopes 3-2. The Isotopes have dropped the last six matchups between the two clubs and are looking to avoid the series sweep with a win tomorrow night Wilson Delgado led off the game with a double to left, moved to third base on Derek Wathan's groundout, and scored on Joe Dillon's sacrifice flyout to center field as the Isotopes led 1-0. With one out in the 3rd inning, Keith McDonald singled and Will Smith doubled. Esteban German's single to right field drove in McDonald while Smith was thrown out trying to score. Manny Alexander tripled to the left-center field gap as German scored and Jason Conti's double into the right field corner plated Alexander as the Redhawks scored all the runs they would need in the contest. The Isotopes closed out the scoring in the 4th game. Matt Padgett singled to right field and scored on Josh Willingham's double to center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/03/05): Joe Dillon 25 G, 18 R, 23 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 17 RBI, 15 BB, 19
K, 1 SB, .482 SLG, .271 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: Mike Colangelo had another monster game in 2004. The Isotopes defeated the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 11-5 in Colorado Springs. Colangelo homered twice and drove in 6 runs in the victory. In his last four games, Colangelo homered 5 times, drove in 13 runs and had a .700 average). 'Topes Notes: The crowd of 13,066 was the largest crowd the Isotopes have played in front of in 2005 so far. . . . Oklahoma's Manny Alexander extended his hitting streak to 13 games. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Thursday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (2-2, 3.45) for the Isotopes and RHP Kameron Loe (2-0, 4.07) for the Redhawks. Filed 05/04/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Vladimir Nunez (1-0) TIME: 2:48 The Oklahoma Redhawks scored the game-winning run in the 8th inning on a botched strikeout to defeat the Isotopes 5-4 on Tuesday evening in Oklahoma City. With the defeat, the Isotopes season record falls to the .500 mark for the first time this season. In the 1st inning, Wilson Delgado led off the game with a double and Mike Colangelo drew a walk. Joe Dillon's single to right field loaded the bases for Matt Padgett, who singled to center field as Delgado and Colangelo scored to give the Isotopes a 2-0 lead. In the home half of the 1st inning, Esteban German tripled to right-center field and scored on Manny Alexander's single as the Redhawks cut the defecit to a run at 2-1. Oklahoma's Gerald Laird walked to lead off the 7th inning. Two outs later, former-Isotope Adrian Gonzalez singled to center and each advanced a base on an error during the play. Rashad Eldridge's single to right field plated Laird and Gonzalez as the Redhawks regained the lead at 3-2. Albuquerque wasn't out of the lead for very long. With one out in the 8th inning, Josh Willingham and Mark Little walked, advanced a base on a wild pitch and scored on Jason Wood's single to center field off former-Isotope Vladimir Nunez as the 'Topes led 4-3. Oklahoma regained the lead for good in their half of the 8th frame. German walked to lead off the inning and Alexander laid down a sacrifice bunt. Isotopes catcher Ryan Jorgensen fielded the ball and threw to second base to try to get the force out. The throw was wild for an error allowing German to advance to third base and Alexander to second base. Jason Conti bloop singled to center field to plate German and advance Alexander to third base. Isotope reliever J.B. Miadich struck out Jason Botts, but Botts was able to reach first base on a wild pitch while Alexander raced home with what turned out to be the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/02/05): Joe Dillon 24 G, 18 R, 22 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 17 RBI, 14 BB, 19
K, 1 SB, .488 SLG, .268 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes won 9-5 against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) in Colorado Springs. Matt Treanor, Larry Sutton and Matt Padgett each belted two-run homers in the contest. 'Topes Notes: Oklahoma has now defeated the Isotopes in the last five meetings. . . . Isotopes opponents have defeated the Isotopes in their last at-bats for the second time in less than a week (4/28 at New Orleans and 5/3 at Oklahoma). . . . The Redhawks Manny Alexander extended his hitting streak to 12 games with his first-inning single. . . . A pair of Isotopes had zero hit games to snap hitting streaks -- Mike Colangelo's 5 game streak and Josh Willingham's 6 game streak. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Wednesday morning are RHP Peter Bauer (1-2, 7.99) for the Isotopes and RHP John Hudgins (0-0, 3.38) for the Redhawks. Filed 05/03/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ricardo Rodriguez (3-2) HR: ABQ Josh Willingham (5) off Ricardo Rodriguez in the 6th inning OKL Jason Botts (6) off Ariel Prieto in the 3rd inning TIME: 2:24 One swing of the bat was all it took to provide all the runs the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) would need in a 3-1 victory over the Isotopes in the series opener in Oklahoma City on Monday evening. The Isotopes move into second place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division with the loss, coupled with a Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) victory on Monday evening, In the 3rd inning, Ian Kinsler singled to left field and scored on Jason Botts homer to right field. An out later, Esteban German walked and scored on Manny Alexander's double to right-center field as the Redhawks led 3-0. Josh Willingham homered to left-center field in the 6th inning to ensure the Isotopes would not be shut out. Ariel Prieto made his first start for the Isotopes this season and went 8 innings, giving up 6 hits, 3 runs, a walk and struck out 6. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 05/01/05): Joe Dillon 23 G, 18 R, 21 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5
HR, 17 RBI, 14 BB, 18 K, 1 SB, .500 SLG, .269 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, Mike Colangelo belted two homers (one of them a grand slam homer) and drove in six runs as the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 12-2 at Isotopes Park. 'Topes Notes: Ariel Prieto pitched the first Isotopes complete game of the season. . . . Josh Willingham has homered once in three out of the last four games. . . . The Redhawks have won the last three meetings between the two clubs (the last 3 in Albuquerque and the game tonight). . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series in Oklahoma City on Tuesday evening are LHP Les Walrond (1-0, 4.10) for the Isotopesnd RHP Jason Standridge (2-2, 4.60) for the Redhawks. Filed 05/02/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Matt Blank (2-0) HR: ABQ Matt Padgett (5) off Claudio Vargas in the 5th
inning TIME: 3:07 Matt Padgett and Josh Willingham each homered to drive in five of the Isotopes runs in a 9-4 Isotopes victory over the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) in the series finale in Metarie. The Albuquerque victory, combined with a Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) defeat this afternoon, means the Isotopes have moved back into a first place tie in the PCL American Conference Southern Division with the Express In the 1st inning, the Zephyrs' Tyrell Godwin singled, advanced to second base on a groundout, moved to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Jeffrey Hammonds' double to left-center field. Hammonds scored on Matt Cepicky's single to right field as the Zephyrs built a quick 2-0 lead. John Wilson singled, advanced to second base on a sacrifice bunt and scored on Godwin's single to left field in the 2nd inning as the Zephyrs increased the lead to 3-0. Albuquerque went to town in the 5th inning off Zephyr pitching. Josh Wilson struck out to lead off the inning but reached first base on a wild pitch. Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino and Derek Wathan followed with walks to load the bases. Mike Colangelo sacrifice flied out to right field to plate Wilson and Joe Dillon's single to center field drove in Fulchino and Wathan. Padgett then two-run homered to the right field pole as the Isotopes took a 5-3 lead. Brendan Harris reached on an error to lead off the Zephyr half of the 5th inning. Harris stole second base and scored on Cepicky's single to left field as the Zephyrs trimmed the defecit to a run at 5-4. In the 7th inning with two outs, Dillon was hit by a pitch and Padgett singled ahead of Willingham's homer to left field as the Isotopes padded the lead to 8-4. Albuquerque closed out the scoring in the 9th inning when Dillon reached on an error, advanced to second base on a Padgett single, advanced to third base when Willingham walked and scored on Larry Barnes' sacrifice fly to center field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/30/05): Joe Dillon 22 G, 15 R, 20 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 13 BB, 18
K, 1 SB, .507 SLG, .267 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes fell 5-4 to the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) at Isotopes Park. An Albuquerque three-run 8th inning rally fell short of tying the game. 'Topes Notes: New Orleans and Albuquerque split the series 2 games apiece. 19,565 fans came through the Zephyr Field turnstiles for a per-game average of 4,891. . . . Jason Wood went 0x5 to end his hitting streak at 9 games, the longest Isotope hitting streak so far this season. . . . Matt Blank earned both of his winning decisions in this series. . . . Josh Willingham has three-run homered twice in the series. . . . Albuquerque moves on to Oklahoma City to play a four-game series against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) to close out the roadtrip. Pitching probables for Game 1 of the series on Monday evening are RHP Ariel Prieto (1-0, 5.40) for the Isotopes and RHP Ricardo Rodriguez (2-2, 3.33) for the Redhawks. Filed 05/01/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Tony Armas, Jr. (1-2) TIME: 2:45 Tony Armas Jr. tossed six scoreless innings in a pitching duel with Albuquerque's Frank Castillo in a contest that saw the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals) edge the Isotopes 2-1 on Saturday evening in Metarie, Louisiana. Jason Bowers led off the 6th inning for New Orleans by singling and advanced to second base on a wild pitch. Armas Jr. laid down a sacrifice bunt to advance Bowers to third base and Bowers scored on Endy Chavez's single to right field as the Zephyrs led 1-0. New Orleans extended the lead to 2-0 in the 7th inning. With one out, Matt Cepicky singled to center field, stole second base and scored on Bowers' double off the right field wall. The Isotopes avoided being shutout in the 8th inning by scoring a run. Derek Wathan drag bunt singled, stole second base and scored on Ryan Jorgensen's single. Castillo went 7 innings, giving up 5 hits, 2 runs (both earned), walked 2 and struck out 6. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/29/05): Joe Dillon 21 G, 15 R, 20 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 5 HR, 15 RBI, 13 BB, 17
K, 1 SB, .514 SLG, .270 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost 13-1 to the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) at Isotopes Park. Isotopes starter Scott Sanders was battered for 10 earned runs allowed. Jason Dubois belted three homers in the game and drove in 7 runs for the Cubs. 'Topes Notes: Isotopes management announced on Friday that Albuquerque and Isotopes Park will host the 2007 AAA All-Star Game. The festivities are expected to last 3-5 days and the game itself is scheduled to be televised on ESPN2. It will be the second time Albuquerque has hosted the AAA All-Star Game (Albuquerque Sports Stadium in 1993) and Albuquerque will be the first city that will host the game twice. . . . Dean Treanor's first-place leadership streak ended at 61 games. On Saturday night, the 'Topes loss, combined with a Round Rock Express (AAA Astros) win, moved the Express into first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Treanor had guided the Isotopes to a share of first place or sole possession of first place in the last 39 games of the 2003 season and in the first 22 games of the 2005 season. . . . The Isotopes left a runner in scoring position on base at the end of the inning six times. . . . The start of the game was delayed 30 minutes due to the tarp being on the field longer than normal because of a threat of rain. . . . The Isotopes went 12-11 in April with a 8-4 home record and a 4-7 road record. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale in Metarie on Sunday afternoon are RHP Jeff Fulchino (1-1, 5.68) for the Isotopes and rehabilitating RHP Claudio Vargas (1-1, 3.78) for the Zephyrs. Filed 04/30/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Matt Blank (1-0) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (5) off Sun-Woo Kim in the 3rd
inning NRL Matt Cepicky (5) off Peter Bauer in the 2nd inning TIME: 3:20 On fireworks evening in New Orleans and a game where the Isotopes needed a must-win to remain in first place in the division as well as avoid falling to the .500 mark, the Isotopes provided early fireworks with a 7-run 7th inning en route to a 14-7 victory over the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). With the victory, the 'Topes snapped a four-game losing streak. In the 2nd inning, New Orleans' Jeffrey Hammonds was skimmed on the top of his batting helmet with a pitch and Matt Cepicky followed with a home run to right field as the Zephyrs led 2-0. Albuquerque responded immediately in the 3rd inning. Mike Colangelo doubled to right field and scored on Joe Dillon's homer to left-center field to the game at 2-2. In the 5th inning, New Orleans' Endy Chavez reached on a two base error (grounder to Isotopes first baseman Larry Barnes who tossed the ball to covering Isotopes starter Peter Bauer who dropped the ball for an error) and a batter later, Tyrell Godwin singled to right field to plate Chavez as the Zephyrs led 4-2. In the 7th inning, pinch-hitter Mark Little singled to center field and Wilson Delgado singled to right field to put runners on the corners. Colangelo's single to left field plated Little. After Dillon struck out for the second out of the inning, Matt Padgett singled off the glove of Zephyrs third baseman Brendan Harris into the Isotopes bullpen in left field foul territory as Delgado scored. Josh Willingham followed with a grounder to Harris that was booted into shallow left field for an error as Colangelo scored. Jason Wood drew a walk to load the bases and Barnes grand-slam homered to right-center field to make it 9-4 Albuquerque. Albuquerque poured more runs on in the 8th inning. Isotopes reliever Ben Howard doubled off the center field wall and two outs later, Dillon walked and Padgett doubled to right field as Howard raced around to score. Willingham followed with a three-run homer to right-center field as Albuquerque led 13-4. Albuquerque scored their final run in the 9th inning. Barnes led off with a walk, moved to third base on Derek Wathan's double high off the right-center field wall and scored on Jason Hill's sacrifice flyout to center field. In the 9th inning with Albuquerque's Joe Rodriguez on the mound and one out, Harris singled to center and Dan DeMent singled to left-center field. Hammonds drew a walk to load the bases and Cepicky reached on an error as Harris scored. Rick Short was hit by a pitch on the forearm as DeMent scored and Jason Bowers drew a walk as Hammonds trotted home to finish out the scoring. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/28/05): Joe Dillon 20 G, 13 R, 19 H, 3 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 12 BB, 16
K, 1 SB, .486 SLG, .271 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 5-4 at Isotopes Park. What proved to be the game tying and winning runs were scored off a rehabilitating Antonio Alfonseca, pitching for Iowa on his way back to rejoining Chicago. 'Topes Notes: Cox Sports Louisiana televised the game on various cable systems throughout Louisiana and Albuquerqueans could watch the game by satellite. . . . Larry Barnes grand-slam was the second Isotope grand-slam homer hit this season (Jason Stokes, 4/12/05 vs Omaha). . . . Albuquerque's second baseman Joe Dillon left the game in the bottom of the 8th inning after rolling over his gloved hand while diving for a ground ball in shallow right field. It is unknown if his removal was due to injury or for precautionary reasons. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 9 games with a single. Wood currently holds the longest Isotope hitting streak of 2005. . . . Joe Dillon's homer ended New Orleans' Sun-Woo Kim's 15 consecutive inning scoreless streak. . . . The Zephyrs' Tyrell Godwin extended his hitting streak to 7 games. . . . Isotopes Pitching Coach Jeff Schwarz was not with the team on Friday night as he is on leave for personal reasons. . . . Going into Friday's game, Matt Padgett led the PCL in hitting with a .425 average. No updated stats were available as of the posting of this summary to know if Padgett retained his lead in the PCL batting race after tonight's game. . . . The Isotopes have their first 10-run plus game since April 12th against Omaha at Isotopes Park. . . . With the Isotopes victory and a Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) defeat to the Round Rock Express (AAA Astros), the three-way tie for first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Divison heading into Friday's games became a two-way tie at the top between the Isotopes and the Express. . . . Pitching probables for the third game in the series on Saturday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (2-1, 3.74) for the Isotopes and RHP Tony Armas, Jr., (0-2, 7.11) on a rehabilitation assignment with the Zephyrs. Filed 04/29/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Travis Hughes (1-0) HR: ABQ Mike Colangelo (3) off Brian Powell in the 4th inning NRL Chris Cepicky (4) off Bryan Corey in the 8th inning TIME: 2:44 A bases-loaded walk plated the winning run in the bottom of the 9th inning in the New Orleans Zephyrs' (AAA Nationals) 4-3 victory over the Isotopes on Thursday evening in Metarie, Louisiana. With the defeat, the Isotopes have lost four straight games. In the 4th inning with two outs, Matt Padgett singled to center and scored on Mike Colangelo's homer to left field. Josh Willingham tripled off the center field wall and scored on Larry Barnes' single as the Isotopes built a 3-0 lead. In the home half of the 4th inning with one out and Isotope starter Les Walrond pitching, Jeffrey Hammonds reached on an error by Albuquerque's Joe Dillon and Rick Short singled to left field. Larry Broadway drew a walk to load the bases and Jason Bowers reached on a fielder's choice (Hammonds out at home plate). Hector Ortiz singled to center field as Short and Broadway scored to pull the Zephyrs to within a run at 3-2. Chris Cepicky solo-homered off Isotope reliever Bryan Corey in the 8th inning to tie the game at 3-3 and in the 9th inning, Hammonds drew a walk off Isotope reliever J.B. Miadich with the bases loaded to give the Zephyrs the true "walk-off" win. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/27/05): Joe Dillon 19 G, 13 R, 18 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 11 BB, 15
K, 1 SB, .478 SLG, .269 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 8-3 at Isotopes Park. Albuquerque's Robert Stratton belted two homers in the game to become the first Isotope in franchise history to have a multi-homer game. The Isotopes scored seven times in the first 3 innings. 'Topes Notes: Dean Treanor's streak of guiding a first place team continues for another night. After the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) lost this evening, the Isotopes and Redhawks remain in a first-place tie in the PCL American Conference Southern Division. Dating back towardes the end of the 2003 season and all of 2005 to-date, Treanor has led a first place Isotopes team for 60 games. . . . The Isotopes have lost six of their last nine road contests. . . . The PCL Hitter of the Week is Gerald Laird of the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). Laird hit .765 for the week with 2 homers, 3 doubles, a triple and 8 RBI. . . . The PCL Pitcher of the Week is Sun-Woo "Sunny" Kim of the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). In 11 innings pitched, Kim won both of his starts and allowed no runs and only five hits. He walked four and struck out 11 in those starts for the week. . . . Friday evening's contest will be televised by Cox Sports Louisiana (viewable in Albuquerque via the large backyard dish or in New Orleans and surrounding area on cable television). Pitching probables for the game are RHP Peter Bauer (1-2, 9.00) for the Isotopes and reigning PCL Pitcher of the Week Sun-Woo "Sunny" Kim (3-1, 2.11) for the Zephyrs. Filed 04/28/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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The entire Pacific Coast League has the day off. The Isotopes resume play on Thursday evening in Metarie, Louisiana (Zephyrs Field) to play the New Orleans Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). Pitching probables for the series opener are LHP Les Walrond (1-0, 5.31) for the 'Topes and LHP Ed Yarnell (1-1, 4.61) for the Zephyrs. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: The Isotopes defeated the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies) 5-4 in 12 innings in 2003 at Sky Sox Stadium in Colorado Springs. Kevin Hooper scored the game winning run on an error. Filed 04/27/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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WP: Ricardo Rodriguez (2-2) HR: OKL Esteban German (1) off Ariel Prieto in the 5th inning TIME: 2:49 Ricardo Rodriguez and Lou Pote combined on a four-hit shutout in a 10-0 Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) win over the Isotopes on Tuesday afternoon at "The Lab". With the defeat, the Isotopes fall into a first-place tie with the Redhawks in the American Conference Southern Division. Esteban German led off the game with a single to right and Jason Conti followed with an infield single. Two outs later, Ian Kinsler singled to right field to drive in German and Conti as the Redhawks led 2-0. Oklahoma put four more runs on the scoreboard in the 2nd inning. Keith McDonald walked and Manny Alexander singled. Rashad Eldridge reached on a fielder's choice (Alexander out at second base) and German's single to right field plated McDonald. Conti walked to load the bases and Eldridge scored on McDougall's groundout. Adrian Gonzalez followed with bouncer to Isotopes first baseman Jason Wood. Wood tossed the ball to Isotopes starter Jeff Fulchino for the out but Fulchino missed the toss for an error. German and Conti scored (one on the infield single and the other on the error). In the 5th inning with Eldridge and Alexander on base, German homered to left-center field to make it 9-0 Redhawks. Oklahoma's last run came in the 9th inning -- McDonald doubled to right field and later scored on German's infield single. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/25/05): Joe Dillon 18 G, 13 R, 18 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 8 BB, 15
K, 1 SB, .485 SLG, .273 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: The Isotopes swept their first doubleheader in franchise history in 2004 in Omaha against the Royals (AAA Royals) -- 5-2 in Game 1 and 9-6 in Game 2. A five-run 7th inning in Game 2 helped in achieving the sweep. 'Topes Notes: Oklahoma took three out of the four games in the series. 28,593 fans attended the series at Isotopes Park for a per-game average of 7,148. Over 100,000 fans have watched the Isotopes home and away in 2005 (107,087) and 75,795 of those fans attended games at Isotopes Park in 2005. . . . Dean Treanor's first-place streak at the helm of the Isotopes (dating back towards the end of the 2003 season and all of 2005 so far) is at risk. After today's game, the Isotopes have had a share of the lead or have outright led their division for 59 straight games. . . . Albuquerque was shut out for the first time this season while the Redhawks tossed their first shutout of the season. . . . Jason Wood went 1x4 to extend his hitting streak to 8 games. . . . Esteban German extended his hitting streak to 13 games with his monster day (4x5, 5 RBI, 3 runs scored). . . . Former Isotope Adrian Gonzalez went 7x17 (.412) in the series with 3 homers, 7 RBI and 3 runs scored. . . . After a day off on Wednesday, the Isotopes open up an eight-game roadtrip starting with four games in New Orleans versus the Zephyrs (AAA Nationals). Filed 04/26/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Wasdin (3-1) HR: OKL Jason Conti (6) off Frank Castillo in the 1st inning
TIME: 3:35 The Redhawks for the second day in a row scored seven runs off an Isotopes starter. Unlike yesterday, however, the Redhawks were able to rout the Isotopes 13-4 at "The Lab". Jason Conti solo-homered to right field for the Redhawks in the 1st inning to begin the scoring. Albuquerque answered with a run of their own in the bottom half of the 1st inning to tie the game at 1-1. Wilson Delgado walked with one out, moved to second base when Joe Dillon walked, advanced to third base on a wild pitch and scored on Mike Colangelo's single to left field. Jason Botts belted a homer to right field in the 2nd inning as Oklahoma regained the lead at 2-1. Conti drew a walk to lead off the 3rd inning and scored on Adrian Gonzalez's single to right field and in the 4th inning, the Redhawks continued the run-scoring outbreak when Rashad Eldridge doubled with a hard comeback liner off of Isotope starter Frank Castillo, moved to third base on Esteban German's bunt single and scored on Conti's groundout. Oklahoma put up their first of three multi-run innings in the 5th inning. Gonzalez and Ian Kinsler singled and Botts reached on a fielder's choice as Gonzalez scored. An out later, Eldridge singled to right field and a passed ball by Ryan Jorgensen allowed Botts to score. German's single up the middle plated Eldridge as the Redhawks led 7-1. In the 6th inning, Oklahoma's Gerald Laird infield singled and Marshall McDougall followed with a home run to left field. Kinsler solo-homered to left field an out later to make it 10-1 Oklahoma. Back-to-back doubles by Matt Padgett and Colangelo got the Isotopes on the scoreboard again in their half of the 6th inning. Oklahoma scored their final three runs in the 7th inning. Eldridge tripled and scored on German's single to left field. Two outs later, McDougall and Gonzalez drew walks and Kinsler doubled to left field to drive in German and McDougall. Padgett singled and scored on Jason Wood's single in the 8th inning and in the 9th inning, Josh Wilson singled to left, advanced to third base on Mark Little's single and scored when Delgado grounded into a double play. Castillo went 4 2/3 innings for the Isotopes, giving up 11 hits, 7 runs (6 earned runs), walked 4 and struck out 3 as he earned his first defeat of the season. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/24/05): Joe Dillon 17 G, 13 R, 18 H 2 2B, 0 3B, 4 HR, 13 RBI, 7 BB, 14
K, 1 SB, .516 SLG, .290 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) defeated the Isotopes 6-2 in Omaha. The Royals scored three insurance runs in the 8th inning. Jed Hansen had a three-run homer in the game for the Royals. 'Topes Notes: On 50 cent hot dog night, Isotopes fans consumed 21,312 hot dogs. . . . Although it may have seemed the 3 hour, 35 minute game was the longest 9-inning game in Isotopes Park history, it was not (3 hour, 54 minute game on 8/5/2004 vs Sacramento (AAA Athletics). . . . Oklahoma scored in seven consecutive innings in the game (innings 1-7). . . . Joe Dillon went 0x4 to snap a six-game hitting streak while Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 7 games with a 1x4 performance. . . . Oklahoma's Esteban German extended his hitting streak to 12 games. . . . Rashad Eldridge was a homer shy of hitting for the cycle, becoming the second Redhawk in the series to come up just short of hitting for the cycle. Jason Conti was a homer short of hitting for the cycle in game 1 of the series. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Tuesday afternoon are RHP Jeff Fulchino (1-1, 5.68) for the Isotopes and RHP Ricardo Rodriguez (1-2, 4.05) for the Redhawks. Filed 04/25/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Kameron Loe (2-0) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (3) off Kameron Loe in the 3rd inning
TIME: 3:13 Although it wasn't quite the Isotopes Park Sunday afternoon epic game played between these two clubs (just over two years ago, an 18-10 Isotopes victory), Adrian Gonzalez continued to do damage against his former club in the Oklahoma Redhawks' (AAA Rangers) 12-9 slugfest victory over the Isotopes at "The Lab". Albuquerque took a quick 2-0 lead. With one out, Wilson Delgado infield singled and scored on Matt Padgett's double to left-center field. Jason Wood's double to center field drove in Padgett. Oklahoma tied the game at 2-2 in the 2nd inning. Marshall McDougall doubled and scored on Gonzalez's homer to right field. Joe Dillon homered to left field with two outs in the 3rd inning as the Isotopes regained the lead at 3-2. Oklahoma regained the lead (and this time for good) with a huge 4th inning. Gonzalez led off the inning by homering to left field. Jason Botts singled to left field and scored on Ian Kinsler's homer to left field. Manny Alexander then made it back-to-back homers with a homer to left-center field. Esteban German walked and scored on Gerald Laird's double to right-center field. McDougall followed with a homer to left field as the Redhawks led 9-3. With two outs in the 5th inning, Andres Torres doubled to left field and scored on German's double into the left field corner as the Redhawks extended the lead to 10-3. The Redhawks closed out their scoring in the 6th inning. McDougall reached on a fielder's choice and scored on Gonzalez's third homer of the game, a homer to left field. The Isotopes began to mount their late-inning comeback attempt in the 8th inning. Delgado and Dillon walked to lead off the inning and Padgett followed with a homer to right field. Jason Wood doubled down the right field line and two outs later, Josh Willingham walked. After a Redhawk pitching change, Josh Wilson tripled to the hill in center field to plate Wood and Willingham. Joe Dillon homered to left field to lead off the 9th inning, but the Redhawks were able to quell the late-innings rally by retiring the next three Isotopes in order to end the game. Peter Bauer was the Isotopes starter and he lasted 3 1/3 innings, giving up 7 hits, 7 runs (all earned), walked four and struck out 1. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/23/05): Joe Dillon 16 G, 10 R, 15 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 6 BB, 14
K, 1 SB, .397 SLG, .259 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: This day in Isotopes history has seen a lot of idle activity. In 2003, the Isotopes game in Colorado Springs against the Sky Sox was postponed due to unplayable grounds. In 2004, the Isotopes game at Rosenblatt Stadium in Omaha against the Royals (AAA Royals) was postponed due to rain. The history of rainouts almost continued today had the rains in Albuquerque continued on into the afternoon/evening 'Topes Notes: Oklahoma's Adrian Gonzalez has three multi-homer games against his former club in the last two seasons, and today was his first three-homer game against the Isotopes. Gonzalez also became the third opposing player to have a three homer game against the Isotopes, which ties the Isotope franchise record for most homers given up to a single player in a contest. All three players had their three-homer games at Isotopes Park (Iowa (AAA Cubs) Jason Dubois on 4/30/04 and Colorado Springs' (AAA Rockies) Jorge Piedra on 7/1/04). . . . The Isotopes tied two club records today - most homers given up in an inning (4) and most homers given up in a game (6). . . . Even though he gave up four Redhawk homers, Peter Bauer did not set the Isotopes franchise record for most homers given up in a contest (Matt Blank, 5 homers allowed, 7/26/04 vs. Omaha (AAA Royals). . . . 11 of the 14 Redhawks hits were extra-base hits. . . . Jason Wood extended his hitting streak to 6 games. . . . Oklahoma's Esteban German extended his hitting streak to 11 games. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series on Monday evening are RHP Frank Castillo (2-0, 1.59) for the Isotopes and RHP Joaquin Benoit (NR) for the Redhawks. Benoit is making a rehabilitation-assignment start for Oklahoma. Filed 04/24/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 04/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Ariel Prieto (1-0) HR: OKL Manny Alexander (2) off Les Walrond in the 2nd inning ABQ Wilson Delgado (2) off John Hudgins in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:58 Jason Wood provided heroics to see to it that the Isotopes would not lose their divisional opener against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). Wood's home run provided the game tying and winning runs as the Isotopes defeated the Redhawks 4-3 in the series opener at Isotopes Park on Saturday evening. Jason Conti tripled to the hill in left-center field and scored on Marshall McDougall's flare single to left-center field in the 1st inning as the Redhawks led 1-0. Albuquerque tied it up with one swing of the bat - Wilson Delgado powering a ball out to right field. The Isotopes had opportunities to put more runs on the board with two outs. Matt Padgett and Wood drew consecutive walks and Larry Barnes infield singled to the pitcher to load up the bases. Derek Wathan proceeded to strike out to end the inning and in anger of not coming through in the situation, Wathan broke his bat in two. Manny Alexander solo-homered to left-center field in the 2nd inning as Oklahoma regained the lead, but the Isotopes quickly responded in their half of the 2nd inning. Ryan Jorgensen singled to center field, moved to third base on Josh Wilson's single to left-center field and scored on Delgado's single to left field. With two outs in the 4th inning, Esteban German singled to left-center field, and scored on Conti's double to right-center field as the Redhawks regained the lead at 3-2. Joe Dillon singed to right field off former Isotope Michael Tejera in the 7th inning. An out later and after having stole second base, Wood homered to left-center field to give the Isotopes the lead they would never relinquish. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/22/05): Joe Dillon 15 G, 9 R, 14 H, 2 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 6 BB, 13
K, 1 SB, .407 SLG, .259 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes lost 4-2 in Nashville against the Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004). All four Sounds runs were scored by the longball -- Luke Allen, Carlos Rivera and Daryle Ward all homered off Isotope starter Aaron Small. 'Topes Notes: Albuquerque improved their home record in 2005 to 8-1. . . . J.B. Miadich has recorded the last two Isotopes saves (including a two inning save tonight) -- it may signal that Miadich has replaced Jim Crowell as the primary closer. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Sunday afternoon are RHP Peter Bauer (1-1, 6.89) for the Isotopes and RHP Kameron Loe (1-0, 4.15) for the Redhawks. Filed 04/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 04/23/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Wes Wilkerson (2-1) TIME: 2:32 The Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) were able to score three times in their final two at-bats to defeat the Isotopes 3-1 to earn a split of the four-game series on a windy, cloudy night in Omaha. In the 2nd inning, Joe Dillon singled to center field, advanced to third base on Josh Willingham's single and scored on Larry Barnes' sacrifice flyout to center field as the Isotopes led 1-0. In the 7th inning, Omaha's Ken Harvey singled and an out later, Luis Ugueto reached on a two-base error by Mike Colangelo to put runners at second and third. Jaime Jones' triple down the right-field line cleared the bases as the Royals led 2-1. Omaha tacked on their last run in the 8th inning. Aaron Guiel doubled and scored on Paul Phillips' single to right field. The Isotopes had a golden opportunity to tie or win the game in the 9th inning. Dillon led off with a double to right-center field, Matt Padgett drew a walk, and Willingham infield singled to load the bases with no outs. Barnes grounded into a double play with Dillon out at home plate as Padgett and Willingham moved up a base. Derek Wathan then struck out to end the threat and the game. Matt Blank made the spot-start for the Isotopes in place of scheduled starter Travis Smith -- Smith had his contract purchased by the Florida Marlins earlier in the day. Blank went 5 innings, giving up 2 hits, no runs, a walk and he struck out 4. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/21/05): Joe Dillon 14 G, 8 R, 12 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 6 BB, 13
K, 1 SB, .380 SLG, .240 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, The Isotopes defeated the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 4-0 in Oklahoma City. Justin Wayne, Tommy Phelps, and Toby Borland combined to toss the first shutout in Isotopes history. 'Topes Notes: 6,869 fans attended the series at Rosenblatt Stadium (1,717 per game average) and 31,292 fans saw the 'Topes during the 8 game roadtrip for a per-game average of 3,911. . . . The Isotopes went 3-5 on the first roadtrip of the season. . . . Albuquerque returns home to begin a short four-game homestand against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). Pitching probables for the first game of the series on Saturday evening are Les Walrond (1-0, 5.28) for the Isotopes and RHP John Hudgins (NR at the AAA level in 2005; 1-2, 4.69 at the Double-A level) for the Redhawks. Filed 04/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Filed 04/22/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jeff Fulchino (1-1) HR: TIME: 2:45 A quartet of Isotopes pitchers tossed the first shutout of the season in an 8-0 Isotopes victory over the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) on Thursday afternoon in Omaha. In the 4th inning, Mike Colangelo singled to left-center field, advanced to third base on Joe Dillon's single and scored on Matt Padgett's sacrifice flyout to left field. The Isotopes put the game away in the 6th inning. Colangelo and Dillon were both hit by pitches and Padgett singled to right field to drive in Colangelo. Josh Willingham sacrifice flied out to left field to plate Dillon. Larry Barnes walked and an out later, Josh Wilson doubled to left-center field as Padgett and Barnes scored. Mark Little walked and Wilson Delgado's single to left field brought home Wilson as the Isotopes led 6-0. Barnes singled, advanced to second base on a wild pitch, moved to third base on Derek Wathan's flyout and scored on Wilson's single to left field in the 8th inning and Matt Padgett solo-homered just inside the left-field foul pole in the 9th inning to close out the scoring in the game. Jeff Fulchino, Ben Howard, Randy Messenger, and Jim Crowell combined for the shutout, only allowing 5 hits, walking 3 and striking out 6 as a combo. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/20/05): Joe Dillon 13 G, 7 R, 11 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 11 RBI, 6 BB, 13
K, 1 SB, .391 SLG, .239 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes spoiled a "Guaranteed Win Day" promotion in Nashville by defeating the Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004) 12-4. Highly regarded Pirates prospect John VanBenschoten was roughed up by the Isotopes for the second time in a week (VanBenschoten 2 1/3 IP, 7 H, 6 ER). Matt Treanor reached base safely five times for the Isotopes. 'Topes Notes: The start of the game was delayed by rain for 43 minutes. . . . Jeff Fulchino picked up his first Triple-A win today. . . . Pitching probables for the series (and roadtrip) finale are RHP Travis Smith (2-0, 6.00) for the Isotopes and Omaha will send RHP D.J. Carrasco (2-1, 1.46) to the mound. Filed 04/21/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (2-0) TIME: 2:53 The Isotopes went the unconventional route on Wednesday evening to snap a four-game losing streak. Taking advantage of Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) pitching wildness, the Isotopes defeated the Royals 3-2. Omaha quickly grabbed the lead with a 1st inning run. Adrian Brown singled, stole second and third base and scored on Ken Harvey's two-out infield single to Isotope third baseman Joe Dillon. Albuquerque took advantage of Omaha pitching woes to take the lead in the 5th inning. Jason Wood led off the inning with a single and Matt Padgett drew a walk. Ryan Jorgensen reached first on a fielder's choice (with Wood out at third base). Josh Wilson walked to load the bases and Mark Little reached on a fielder's choice (with Wilson out at second base) as Padgett scored to tie the game. Wilson Delgado was hit by a pitch to load the bases again and Mike Colangelo walked as Jorgensen trotted home. Dillon drew a walk to plate Little as the Isotopes led 3-1. Omaha's rally attempt in the 9th inning was not good enough to tie the game. Luis Ugueto flared a hit to left field for a double and later scored on a wild pitch. Frank Castillo started for the 'Topes and gave up 1 run in 6 innings while walking 2 and striking out 4 as he improved his record to 2-0 and ERA to 1.59. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/19/05): Joe Dillon 12 G, 7 R, 10 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 4 BB, 13
K, 1 SB, .386 SLG, .227 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates in 2004) 8-5 in 10 innings in Nashville by scoring three unearned runs in the 10th inning. An error allowed the game winning run to score and Derek Wathan's two-run single provided insurance runs. 'Topes Notes: J.B. Miadich joined Jim Crowell as the only Isotope pitchers to record a save this season. . . . Matt Diaz went 0x4 to snap a 10-game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for the third game of the series, a Thursday afternoon contest, are RHP Jeff Fulchino (0-1, 9.39) for the Isotopes and RHP Dennis Tankersley (0-1, 10.29) for the O-Royals. Filed 04/20/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Byron Embry (1-0) HR: OMA Ken Harvey (1) off Peter Bauer in the 4th
inning TIME: 2:30 Albuquerque's late-game rally went for naught as the Royals took advantage of struggling Isotopes closer Jim Crowell in a 6-5 victory over the Isotopes in the series opener at Rosenblatt Stadium on Tuesday evening. The Isotopes have dropped five out of their last six games. In the 3rd inning, Omaha's Luis Ugueto was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and scored on Justin Gemoll's double to left field. An out later, Gemoll scored on a groundout as Omaha built a 2-0 lead. Omaha extended the lead to 4-0 in the 4th inning when Matt Diaz drew a leadoff walk and scored on Ken Harvey's homer to left field. Mark Little homered to right field in the 6th inning and Jason Wood homered to right field in the 7th inning as the Isotopes pulled to within two runs at 4-2. Albuquerque drew to within a run at 4-3 in the 8th inning. Wilson Delgado reached on a three-base error to deep center field and scored on Mike Colangelo's sacrifice flyout to right field. Iowa responded in the 8th inning to provide a two-run margin going to the 9th inning. With one out, Adrian Brown infield singled and scored on Diaz's double. In the 9th inning with one out, Josh Willingham singled up the middle and Matt Padgett followed with a single off the right field wall. Josh Wilson came into the game as a pinch runner to replace Padgett and Derek Wathan grounded out as Wilson advanced to second base. Little's infield single to third base plated Willingham and Wilson came around to score when the ball was thrown away wildly on the attempt to get Little out at first base. In the bottom of the 9th inning, Chad Santos greeted Isotopes reliever Jim Crowell by homering to left-center field to end the game. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/18/05): Joe Dillon 11 G, 7 R, 8 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 4 BB,
12 K, 0 SB, .375 SLG, .200 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, The Isotopes defeated the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 4-2 at SBC Bricktown Ballpark in Oklahoma City. Kevin Hooper, Chris Wakeland, and Adrian Gonzalez had an RBI each in the victory. 'Topes Notes: The Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) lost to the Nashville Sounds (AAA Brewers) on Tuesday evening so the Isotopes remain by themselves in first place in the PCL American Conference Southern Division by one game. . . . After having converted all five save opportunities to start the season, Crowell blew a save and was the losing pitcher on Sunday against the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) and then was the losing pitcher in a non-save opportunity tonight, his next outing after the blown save Sunday. . . . The Isotopes have lost their last three games by a single run. . . . Omaha's Paul Phillips went hitless in four at-bats to end his hitting streak at 6 games. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series are RHP Frank Castillo (1-0, 1.64) for the Isotopes and RHP Danny Tamayo (1-0, 7.27) for the O-Royals. Filed 04/19/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jose Mercedes (1-0) HR: ABQ Wilson Delgado (1) off Renyel Pinto in the 1st inning IWA David Kelton (3) off
Randy Messenger in the 7th inning
TIME: 2:47 In front of Iowa schoolchildren during a Monday afternoon matinee in Des Moines, the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) came up with a a big 7th-inning to wipe out a four-run defecit to defeat the Isotopes 7-6. The Isotopes have lost three straight games. Albuquerque got off to a quick start against Cubs starter Renyel Pinto. PCL Hitter of the Week award-winner Mark Little led off the game getting hit by a pitch and Wilson Delgado followed with his first homer in an Isotopes suit, a homer to left field. Mike Colangelo, Jason Wood and Joe Dillon then walked to load the bases before even one out was recorded. Josh Wilson struck out before Derek Wathan sacrifice-flied out to left field as the Isotopes led 3-0. Ryan Jorgensen struck out to end the inning and the threat. Iowa got on the scoreboard in the 2nd inning. Scott McClain doubled into the left-field corner and later scored on Ricky Bell's single to right-center field. In the 4th inning, Bell singled with one out and Nate Frese walked. Geovany Soto singled to center field to plate Bell as the Cubs cut the defecit to a run at 3-2. Albuquerque put their final runs of the game on the scoreboard in the 6th inning. Derek Wathan one-out singled to left field and stoke second base. Jorgensen's single to center drove in Wathan. After Matt Padgett popped out, Little hit a fly ball down the right field line. The ball bounced off of second-baseman Frese's glove in fair territory for an error as Jorgensen scored and Little scored on Delgado's single to center field as the 'Topes led 6-2. The inning that doomed the Isotopes was the 7th inning. Micah Hoffpauir singled to right field to lead off the inning. After Calvin Murray flied out to center, Ronny Cedeno singled to center. David Kelton followed with a home run to center field to pull the Cubs to within a run at 6-5. An out later, pinch-hitter Angel Echevarria homered to center field to tie the game. After J.B. Miadich entered the game to relieve Randy Messenger, Bell walked and Frese singled to advance Bell to third base. Soto singled to right field to plate Bell with what turned out to be the game winning run. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/17/05): Joe Dillon 10 G, 7 R, 8 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 2 HR, 10 RBI, 3
BB, 10 K, 0 SB, .417 SLG, .222 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes completed the first homestand in Isotopes Park history with a 11-2 victory over the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies). Robert Stratton provided all the runs the Isotopes would need with a three-run homer. 55,684 fans came through the turnstiles during the first homestand. 'Topes Notes: Albuquerque's Mark Little earned the Pacific Coast League's first Hitter of the Week award. Little belted five homers and drove in 12 runs in a stretch that lasted from opening night (April 7th) to April 17th. Little hit .436 with a .872 slugging percentage in that span. . . . Cha Seung Baek of the Tacoma Rainiers (AAA Mariners) won the first PCL Pitcher of the Week award. Baek won both starts, pitching a complete game in one of them and allowing five hits in 11 innings pitched and compiling a 1.64 ERA. . . . 15 Isotopes struck out in the contest. . . . Albuquerque moves on to Omaha for a four-game series to conclude the first roadtrip of the season. Pitching probables are RHP Peter Bauer (1-0, 7.71) for the Isotopes and LHP Chris George (1-0, 2.53) for the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals). Filed 04/18/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Jermaine Van Buren (1-0) HR: ABQ Joe Dillon (2) off Bobby Brownlie in the 1st inning
TIME: 2:52 The Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) used 9th inning heroics to defeat the Albuquerque Isotopes for the second straight day, this time by a 8-7 final. The Isotopes have dropped two straight games in a row for the first time this season. Albuquerque scored quickly in the contest. With two outs, Mike Colangelo singled and Larry Barnes walked. Joe Dillon followed with a home run to left field as the 'Topes led 3-0 after a half-inning of play. Albuquerque extended the lead to 5-0 in the 3rd inning. Mark Little singled to left and Derek Wathan tripled to the right field wall as Little scored. Colangelo's single off the left field wall plated Wathan. Iowa got on the scoreboard in the 3rd inning. After Isotopes starter Travis Smith got two quick outs, Cubs starter Bobby Brownlie doubled to left field and scored on Calvin Murray's single to left field. In the 4th inning, David Kelton singled and Ben Grieve walked. Kelton advanced to third base when Scott McClain grounded into a double play and Ronny Cedeno's single up the middle brought home Kelton. Richard Lewis and Geovany Solo followed with walks to load the bases and Cubs pinch-hitter Angel Echevarria was hit by a pitch on the right arm as Cedeno scored. With one out in the 5th inning, Kelton was hit by a pitch and Grieve drew a walk ahead of McClain's homer to left-center field as the Cubs took a 6-5 lead. The Isotopes regained the lead in the 6th inning. Josh Wilson and Jason Wood singled and Little walked to load the bases with one out. Wathan followed with a single to center field as Wilson and Wood scored to give the 'Topes a 7-6 lead. In the 9th inning, Jim Crowell entered the game for the Isotopes looking for the save. Murray greeted Crowell with a homer to tie the game at 8-8. After Crowell struck out the next two batters, Grieve homered to end the game and send the Iowa fans home happy. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/16/05): Joe Dillon 9 G, 6 R, 6 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 2 BB, 10
K, 0 SB, .313 SLG, .188 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) at Isotopes Park by a 4-3 score. Three of the four Isotope runs were scored on sacrifice flyouts (Mike Colangelo, Kevin Hooper, and Chris Aguila). 'Topes Notes: After having been 5-for-5 in save opportunities this season, Isotopes reliever Jim Crowell blew his first save. . . . Albuquerque set a season-high for the largest lead surrendered in a game this season - 5 runs. . . . Pitching probables for the series finale on Monday afternoon in Des Moines are LHP Les Walrond (1-0, 6.10) for the Isotopes and LHP Renyel Pinto (0-2, 16.88) for the I-Cubs. Filed 04/17/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: John Koronka (1-1) HR: IWA David Kelton (2) off Jeff Fulchino in the 5th
inning ABQ Josh Willingham (2) off Roberto Novoa in the 6th inning TIME: 2:38 In a game where all the runs were scored utilizing the long ball, the Isotopes suffered their first road loss of the season with a 7-3 defeat at the hands of the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) on Saturday evening. With one out in the 4th inning, Iowa's Ben Grieve singled and Scott McClain followed with his first homer of the season as the Cubs led 2-0. Cubs starter John Koronka singled up the middle and Micah Hoffpauir walked before David Kelton homered to center field in the 5th inning as Iowa extended the lead to 5-0. Albuquerque got back into the game in the 6th inning. Derek Wathan led off the inning with a double to left field. After Mike Colangelo foul-popped out and Jason Wood struck out, Joe Dillon was hit by a pitch. Roberto Novoa entered the game for the Cubs to relieve Koronka and Willingham rudely greeted him by stroking a three-run home run to left-center field. Iowa immediately responded in their half of the 6th inning with more runs. Richard Lewis tripled and Mark Johnson immediately proceeded to homer to right-center field to make it the final score of 7-3. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/15/05): Joe Dillon 8 G, 5 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 7 RBI, 2 BB, 9 K, 0
SB, .310 SLG, .172 AVG
THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Memphis Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) 4-3 at Isotopes Park. An error allowed the winning run to score in the bottom of the 9th inning. 'Topes Notes: The start of the game was delayed about 14 minutes due to rain. . . . I-Cubs infielder Nate Frese rejoined the team today after having been on the disabled list since last Saturday evening when he collapsed in the dugout at Isotopes Park after suffering a seizure. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series in Des Moines on Sunday afternoon are RHP Travis Smith (2-0, 3.60) for the Isotopes and RHP Bobby Brownlie (0-0, 1.50) for the Cubs. Filed 04/16/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Frank Castillo (1-0) HR: IWA Ben Grieve (2) off Patrick Flury in the 7th inning TIME: 2:32 The Isotopes passed their first road test, albeit against a struggling Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) squad. Albuquerque cruised to a 5-1 victory over the Cubs in the Cubs' season home opener on Friday evening. Albuquerque scored all five of their runs in the 4th inning. Wilson Delgado reached on an error and moved to second base on a wild pitch. Mike Colangelo and Larry Barnes drew walks to load the bases. Joe Dillon walked as Delgado trotted home and Matt Padgett singled to right field to drive in Colangelo as the bases remained loaded. An out later, Josh Wilson cleared the bags with a triple into the right field corner. In the 7th inning, Ben Grieve solo-homered to right field as the I-Cubs avoided being shutout. Frank Castillo started for the 'Topes and pitched 6 scoreless innings, giving up 2 hits, walking none and striking out 4. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/14/05): Joe Dillon 7 G, 4 R, 5 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 6 K, 0
SB, .346 SLG, .192 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the first postponement in Isotopes Park history occurred in a game scheduled against the Colorado Springs Sky Sox (AAA Rockies). A bank of lights failed to operate properly and it was decided it was too much of a player safety issue to be able to play the night game. 'Topes Notes: The 9,035 attendance at Principal Park is the second largest opening day crowd in Cubs history -- second only to the season opener in 1992 when the stadium saw its first game after renovations. . . . Mark Little went 0x3 to snap an eight-game hitting streak. . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series on Saturday are RHP Jeff Fulchino (0-0, 9.00) for the Isotopes and LHP John Koronka (0-1, 14.54) for the I-Cubs. Fulchino is looking for his first Triple-A victory. Filed 04/15/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Chris George (1-0) HR: OMA Justin Gemoll (1) off Randy Messenger in the 7th
inning ABQ Matt Padgett (2) off Byron
Embry in the 9th
inning TIME: 2:45 The inevitable happened on Thursday afternoon at Isotopes Park - the Isotopes lost. The Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) defeated the Isotopes 10-6 to prevent a series sweep. The Isotopes snapped a 9-game winning streak (with 2 games from the 2004 season in the streak). Paul Phillips singled to right field and scored on Ken Harvey's triple to left-center field as the Royals took a quick 1-0 lead in their first at-bats. In the 5th inning with one out, Aaron Guiel singled and Matt Diaz and Phillips followed with walks to load the bases. Harvey singled to left field to plate Guiel and Jaime Jones singled to right field to drive home Diaz. Luis Ugueto sacrifice-flied out to center field to drive in Phillips and Chad Santos doubled to left field as Harvey scored. The Royals led 5-0. Guiel drew a walk and eventually scored on Phillips' single in the 6th inning as the Royals extended their lead to 6-0. Omaha tacked on more runs in the 7th inning. Jones singled to lead off the inning and Ugueto tripled to right field to drive in Jones. Santos' groundout scored Ugueto and Justin Gemoll followed with a solo-homer to left field. Albuquerque finally got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the 7th inning. Wilson Delgado singled to left and Mike Colangelo reached on a fielder's choice with Delgado out at second base. Jason Wood walked and Joe Dillon singled to left field to load the bases. Matt Padgett drew a walk as Colangelo trotted home. Derek Wathan doubled down the right field line as Wood and Dillon came home. Santos solo-homered for the Royals in the 9th inning to close out the Royals scoring in the game. Albuquerque tacked on three "too-little-too-late" runs in their first time batting this season in the bottom of the 9th inning. With one out, Padgett solo-homered to right field. Wathan reached second base on a two base error on a flyball to left-center field and scored an out later on Josh Wilson's homer to left field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/13/05): Joe Dillon 6 G, 3 R, 4 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 5
K, 0 SB, .364 SLG, .182 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004, the Isotopes defeated the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates) 8-7 at Isotopes Park when Wilson Valdez drove in the tying and winning runs in the bottom of the 9th inning with a triple. 'Topes Notes: The Marlins placed starting pitcher Ismail Valdes on
the disabled list Thursday, but haven't decided whether to activate someone
off the major league disabled list or promote someone from the minor leagues. .
. . The Isotopes/Royals series drew 19,799 fans, fewer than the opening
Isotopes/Cubs series (22,844). For the first homestand of the season, the
Isotopes drew 47,202 fans for a per-game average of 5,900. It is off the
pace the Isotopes set in their record-breaking attendance year (55,684 over 7
games, 7955 per) and in 2004 (48840, 6105 per) through the first 8 home
games. . . . The Pacific Coast League inducted seven people into the
league's Hall of Fame. Former league presidents Clarance "Pants" Rowland
and Bill Cutler were joined by outfielders Joe Brovia and John Frederick and
pitchers Elmer Jacobs, Ray Prim, and Jack Salveson. . . . Albuquerque hits
the road for eight games with the first four to be played in Iowa (AAA Cubs)
against the struggling Cubs. Pitching probables for the opener are RHP
Todd Wellemeyer (NR) for the Cubs and RHP Frank Castillo (0-0, 3.60) for the
Isotopes. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Bryan Corey (1-0) HR: OMA Luis Ugueto (1) off Les Walrond in the 4th
inning ABQ Josh Wilson (1) off Ryan Jensen
in the 4th
inning TIME: 2:35 The Isotopes juggernaut keeps on rolling. In a very close game, the Isotopes defeated the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 5-4 on Wednesday evening to continue their franchise-best start to a season, now at 7 wins without a defeat. With one out in the 4th inning, Matt Diaz doubled to right field and scored on Paul Phillips' double down the left field line one out later. Luis Ugueto followed with a home run to left field as Omaha took a 3-0 lead. Albuquerque responded in their half of the 4th inning to tie the game at 3-3. Larry Barnes led off the inning with a single and Matt Padgett doubled to left-center field to drive in Barnes. After Josh Willingham grounded out, Josh Wilson homered to left field. In the top of the 5th inning, Mike Colangelo solo-homered to left field to break the tie and give the Isotopes the lead. Omaha tied the game up again the very next half-inning. Matt Diaz led off with a single, stole second base and later scored on Phillips' single to left field. Once again, Albuquerque came through to break the tie the very next at-bat after losing the lead. With two outs, Wilson drew a walk and stole second base. Mark Little's single to left field plated Wilson as the 'Topes led 5-4. Albuquerque came up with a great defensive stand in the top of the 9th inning to preserve the victory. Luis Ugueto and pinch-hitter Scott Walter led off the inning with singles off Isotopes closer Jim Crowell. Rudy Gomez dropped a sacrifice bunt to advance both runners a base. Andres Blanco reached on a fielder's choice as Isotope third-baseman Jason Wood fielded the ball and threw home to Josh Willingham who tagged out Ugueto. Adrian Brown then lined out to left field to end the game. Les Walrond went 6 innings, giving up 4 runs, walked 2 and struck out 5. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/12/05): Joe Dillon 6 G, 3 R, 4 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 6 RBI, 1 BB, 5
K, 0 SB, .364 SLG, .182 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: Albuquerque won a slugfest at Isotopes Park in 2003 against the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers) 18-10. An 11-run Isotope 5th inning was highlighted by grand-slam homers from Derek Wathan and Robert Stratton. Adrian Gonzalez was activated off the disabled list to make his Isotopes debut in that contest. 'Topes Notes: Pitching probables for the series finale on Thursday afternoon are RHP Peter Bauer (1-0, 5.40) for the Isotopes and LHP Chris George (0-0, 0.00) for the O-Royals. Filed 04/13/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Travis Smith (2-0) HR: ABQ Mike Colangelo (1) off Jimmy Gobble in the 3rd
inning TIME: 3:15 Albuquerque should ask the PCL office to schedule them to open at home every season from now on. Behind the strength of four homers, the Isotopes thumped the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) 14-7 to continue their franchise-best start to a season. Mike Colangelo doubled and scored on an error as the Isotopes took a 1-0 lead in the 2nd inning. In the 3rd inning, the Isotopes extended the lead. Josh Wilson doubled to left-center field and advanced to third base on a wild pitch. Wilson Delgado's double to left field drove in Wilson and an out later, Colangelo homered to left-center field. Jason Stokes and Matt Padgett singled ahead of Josh Willingham's first Triple-A homer, a blast over the left-center field scoreboard, as the Isotopes led 7-0. Albuquerque added even more to the scoreboard in the 4th inning. Wilson led off the inning with a double to left and Mark Little and Delgado drew walks to load the bases. Joe Dillon sacrifice flied-out to center field to plate Wilson. Colangelo walked to load the bases again and Stokes made the O-Royals pay by belting a grand-slam homer to left field as the 'Topes went on top 12-0. Omaha got on the scoreboard in the 5th inning. With two outs, Chad Santos drew a walk and scored on Scott Walter's double to left field. Albuquerque put their final runs on the scoreboard in their half of the 5th inning. With one out, Mark Little hit his fifth home run of the season, a shot to left field. Delgado followed with a double to left and later scored on Colangelo's single to center field. Omaha added runs to the scoreboard in the 6th inning. Adrian Brown infield singled, Aaron Guiel drew a walk and Matt Diaz singled to right field to load the bases. Ken Harvey's single to right field drove in Brown and Paul Phillips singled to center field to plate Guiel and Diaz. Phillips walked in the 8th inning and scored on Luis Uguetos's triple in the 8th inning as the O-Royals added another run to the scoreboard. The Royals closed out the scoring in the game in the 9th inning when Diaz drove in a pair of runs with a single to left field. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 04/11/05): Joe Dillon 5 G, 3 R, 4 H, 1 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 0 BB, 5 K, 0
SB, .421 SLG, .211 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2004 against the Nashville Sounds (AAA Pirates) at Isotopes Park, Chris Ashby's two-run single capped a bottom-of-the-ninth inning comeback as the Isotopes won in dramatic fashion 6-5. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes are the lone undefeated team in the PCL with a 6-0 record. . . . Pitching probables for Game 3 of the series are RHP Ryan Jensen (0-1, 4.50) for the O-Royals and LHP Les Walrond (1-0, 5.40) for the Isotopes. Filed 04/12/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: JB Miadich (1-0) HR: ABQ Mark Little (4) off Wes Wilkerson in the 8th inning TIME: 3:03 The Isotopes remained on the path to a 144-0 season with a 9-7 victory over the Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) on Monday evening at Isotopes Park. In the 1st inning, Adrian Brown led off the game with a walk and Joe McEwing and Aaron Guiel followed with walks to load the bases. Ken Harvey grounded out with Brown forced out at home plate for the first out. Matt Diaz reached on Joe Dillon's fielding error as McEwing and Guiel scored to give the Royals a 2-0 lead. Albuquerque tied the game at 2-2 in the 2nd inning. Mike Colangelo led off the inning by reaching on an error. An out later, Matt Padgett drew a walk and both runners advanced a base on Josh Willingham's groundout. Josh Wilson walked to load the bases and Mark Little's single to left field plated Colangelo and Padgett. The 'Topes took the lead in the 3rd inning. With one out, Colangelo doubled to left field and Jason Stokes singled to put runners on the corners. Stokes stole second base and and out later, Willingham walked to load the bases. Josh Wilson infield singled as Colangelo scored and a throwing error on the play allowed Stokes to score. Little singled to right field to drive in Willingham. Omaha regained the lead in the 4th inning. Paul Phillips reached first base on strikeout with no putout and Luis Ugueto and Chad Santos followed with singles to load the bases. Andres Blanco reached on a fielding error by Josh Wilson as Phillips and Ugueto scored. Brown's single to right field plated Santos and Brown then stole second base. McEwing drew a walk and Blanco scored when Guiel grounded into a double play. Harvey doubled to left field to drive in Brown as the Royals led 7-5. Little led off the 6th inning by reaching on an error and advanced to second base on that error. Wilson Delgado grounded out to advance Little to third base and Joe Dillon's sacrifice flyout to right field drove in Little as the 'Topes cut the defecit to a run at 7-6. Albuquerque tied the game in the 7th inning. Colangelo doubled into the right field corner and later scored on Padgett's single to center field. Little homered to give the Isotopes the lead they would not relinquish. An out later, Dillon doubled and scored on Colangelo's triple to right-center field to provide an insurance run. In Jeff Fulchino's Triple-A debut, he went 4 innings, giving up 7 hits, 4 runs (4 earned), walked 4 and struck out 3. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 4/10/05 ): Joe Dillon 4 G, 2 R, 3 H, 0 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 4 RBI, 0
BB, 3 K, 0 SB, .400 SLG, .200 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: The Isotopes had their first regular season game at brand new Isotopes Park in 2003 and lost 4-3 to the Oklahoma Redhawks (AAA Rangers). Jason Hart's homer was the eventual game-winning run for the Redhawks. 'Topes Notes: Pitching probables for Game 2 of the series are RHP Travis Smith (1-0, 1.80) for the Isotopes and LHP Jimmy Gobble (1-0, 1.59) for the Royals. Filed 04/11/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Randy Messenger (1-0) HR: ABQ Jason Stokes (2) off Jimmy Anderson in the 4th
inning TIME: 2:14 Albuquerque continued their franchise-best start of a season with a 3-2 victory over the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) on Sunday afternoon at "The Lab". In the 3rd inning, Albuquerque's Ryan Jorgensen singled and advanced to second base on Isotope starter Frank Castillo's sacrifice bunt. Jorgensen went to third base on Mark Little's bunt single, Josh Wilson walked to load the bases and Joe Dillon sacrifice-flied out to plate Jorgensen. Jason Stokes solo-homered in the 4th inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 2-0. Iowa tied the game at 2-2 in the 5th inning. With two out and Richard Lewis on base due to being hit by a pitch, Cubs starter Jimmy Anderson doubled to drive in Lewis and Calvin Murray singled to plate Anderson. The Isotopes got the game-winning run in the 7th inning. Jorgensen singled to left field and moved to second on pinch-hitter Les Walrond's sacrifice bunt. An out later, Wilson walked and Dillon singled to right field as Jorgensen scored. Prospect / High Interest Watch (through games of 4/09/05): Joe Dillon 3 G, 2 R, 2 H, 0 2B, 0 3B, 1 HR, 2 RBI, 0
BB, 3 K, 0SB, .417 SLG, .167 AVG THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: In 2003, the Isotopes lost 7-3 in Memphis against the Redbirds (AAA Cardinals) to go 0-3 to begin the season. Memphis struck for five runs in the 1st inning off Scott Sanders in the victory. 'Topes Notes: Despite morning snow, the game was not delayed as the groundskeepers were able to get the field in playable order. . . . Albuquerque remains the only undefeated club in the Pacific Coast League as the Salt Lake Stingers (AAA Angels) lost today for the first time this young season. . . . Jim Crowell is a perfect 3-for-3 in save opportunities this season. . . . The Cubs kept the Isotopes scoreless in the 1st inning for the only time in the series. The Isotopes had scored 5 runs in the 1st inning in Game 1, 1 run in the 1st inning in Game 2 and 5 runs in the 1st inning in Game 3. . . . The Omaha Royals (AAA Royals) comes into town to try to break the Isotopes winning streak on Monday. Pitching probables for the series opener at Isotopes Park are RHP Dennis Tankersley (NR) for the O-Royals and RHP Jeff Fulchino (NR) for the Isotopes. Filed 04/10/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Peter Bauer (1-0) HR: IWA David Kelton (1) off Peter Bauer in the 2nd
inning ABQ Mark Little (1)
off Sergio Mitre in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:34 Albuquerque took advantage of five home runs to power their way over the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 11-3 on a windy Saturday evening at Isotopes Park. With the victory, the Isotopes are off to the best start in franchise history with a 3-0 record (breaking the franchise best start set in their 2003 inaugural season). Albuquerque put up a five-spot on the board in the 1st inning. Mark Little led off with a solo homer to right-center field. An out later, Joe Dillon singled and Jason Wood drew a walk. Jason Stokes doubled to left-center field to drive in Dillon and Wood. Matt Padgett followed with a home run to right field as the Isotopes built a 5-0 lead. In the top of the 2nd inning, David Kelton solo-homered as Iowa got on the scoreboard. Micah Hoffpauir singled, Ronny Cedeno walked and Mark Johnson reached on a fielder's choice with Cedeno retired. Cubs starter Sergio Mitre drew a walk to load the bases and Calvin Murray reached on a fielder's choice as Hoffpauir scored. In the bottom of the 3rd inning, Wood tripled to right-center field and scored on Stokes' single to left as the Isotopes increased the lead to 6-2. Iowa got that run back in the 4th inning. Hoffpauir doubled and eventually scored on Murray's infield hit. Both teams were held scoreless until the bottom of the 7th inning when Little homered again, this time to left field. The Isotopes put the exclamation mark on the game in the 8th inning. Stokes hit his first Triple-A homer with one out. Derek Wathan and Josh Wilson walked and Little hit his third homer of the game to make it the final 11-3 score in favor of the Isotopes. THIS DAY IN ISOTOPES HISTORY: This date has not proven to be very good for the Isotopes. The Isotopes started both campaigns prior to this season in Memphis and lost both games on this date. In 2004, Adam Wainright tossed six innings of no-hit ball in his Triple-A debut as Memphis went on to defeat Albuquerque 3-0. Chris Ashby saw his 16-game hitting streak (dating back to the 2003 campaign) end in the loss. 'Topes Notes: There was a health scare in the Iowa Cubs dugout during the game. In the 5th inning, Iowa utility infielder Nate Frese fainted and suffered a seizure. Frese was responsive when medical personnel arrived in the dugout to attend to him and he was taken to a nearby hospital for further examination. . . . Mark Little tied a franchise record for most Isotope homers in a game (3). Chris Aguila belted three homers in a game 7/16/04 at Oklahoma. . . . The Isotopes set a team record with 5 homers in a contest. . . . Peter Bauer is 2-0 in Triple-A level outings in his career (once with Albuquerque last season in his one start on the road in Portland and again tonight in his first start of the season). . . . Pitching probables for the series finale as the Isotopes go for the series sweep are RHP Frank Castillo (NR) for the Isotopes and LHP Jimmy Anderson (NR) for the I-Cubs. Filed 04/09/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Les Walrond (1-0) HR: IWA Ronny Cedeno (2) off Les Walrond in the 2nd
inning ABQ Ryan Jorgensen (1) off Renyel Pinto
in the 2nd
inning TIME: 2:58 The Isotopes made it two for two in the young 2005 season as they defeated the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) 9-6 on Friday evening at "The Lab". In the 1st inning, Albuquerque's Les Walrond gave up a double to Scott McClain with two outs. Angel Echevarria followed with a base hit to left field as the Cubs took a 1-0 lead. In the home half of the 1st inning, Mark Little drew a leadoff walk and Wilson Delgado singled. An out later, Jason Wood infield singled to drive in Little as the 'Topes tied the game at 1-1. Cubs prospect Ronny Cedeno homered for the second time in two nights, a shot to left field, as the Cubs regained the lead at 2-1 in the top of the 2nd inning. Derek Wathan infield singled, stole second base, advanced to third on a groundout and scored on Ryan Jorgensen's home run to left field as the Isotopes took a 3-2 lead. In the top of the 4th inning, David Kelton leadoff singled, Mike Fontenot drew a walk, Cedeno bunted for a base hit, and Geovany Soto walked to plate Kelton as the I-Cubs tied the game at 3-3. Albuquerque put away the Cubs in the home half of the 4th inning. Wathan reached on an error and scored on Josh Wilson's double to right-center field. Little singled to drive in Wilson. Little stole second and third bases and scored on Delgado's double to left field. After Joe Dillon was hit by a pitch, Wood singled to right to drive in Delgado as the Isotopes built a 7-3 lead. In the 6th inning, Fontenot solo-homered as the Cubs trimmed the defecit to three runs at 7-4. In the 7th inning, Calvin Murray singled, moved to second base on a passed ball and scored on Echevarria's single. Jorgensen tried to pick off Echevarria at first base and threw the ball wildly for an error as Echevarria moved to second base. Kelton singled to drive n Echevarria as the Cubs drew to within a run at 7-6. After the 7th inning stretch, Wathan reached first base on a dropped third strike and scored on Wilson's double to left field. Dillon solo-homered, his first hit of the season, in the 8th inning to close out the scoring in the game. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes have tied for their best start in franchise history (2-0). . . . Pitching probables for the third game in the series are RHP Peter Bauer (NR) for the Isotopes and RHP Sergio Mitre (NR) for the Cubs. Filed 04/08/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
WP: Travis Smith (1-0) HR: IWA Ben Grieve (1) off Travis Smith in the 1st
inning TIME: 2:33 The Albuquerque Isotopes were not afraid of Mark Prior in their first home season-opener, hitting him hard in the early innings en route to a 7-5 victory over the Iowa Cubs (AAA Cubs) on Thursday evening at The Lab. Isotopes starter Travis Smith struggled early. In the 1st inning, Calvin Murray led off by reaching base on Joe Dillon's error. After Richard Lewis struck out, Ben Grieve homered to left-center field to give the Cubs a 2-0 lead. Angel Echevarria struck out and Mike Fontenot followed with a triple to left-center field. Micah Hoffpauir's single to left drove in Fontenot to make it 3-0 Iowa. Albuquerque immediately struck against Prior in their half of the 1st frame. Mark Little greeted Prior with a double off the left field wall and Wilson Delgado singled to drive in Little. Joe Dillon struck out before Larry Barnes bloop singled to center. Josh Willingham singled to drive in Delgado and Jason Stokes tripled to the center field wall to drive in Barnes and Willingham. Matt Padgett's flare single to left-center field brought home Stokes as the Isotopes led 5-3. Little doubled and scored when Dillon reached on an error in the 2nd inning as the Isotopes extended the lead to 6-3. The Isotopes tacked on their final run of the night in the 4th inning. Smith infield singled with one out and later scored on Delgado's sacrifice flyout to left field. In the 6th inning, the Cubs closed out the scoring in the contest when Hoffpauir singled and Ronny Cedeno followed with a homer to left-center field. 'Topes Notes: The Isotopes set a franchise record for most opponents struck out in a game (16). . . . Pitching probables for Game 2 on Friday evening are LHP Les Walrond (NR) for the Isotopes and LHP Renyl Pinto (NR) for the Cubs. Filed 04/07/2005 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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