Following three straight losses, including two to open the series with Worcester, the IronPigs won their third straight and continue to sit atop the entirety of the International League.
About Last Night
And, they did it behind the arm of RHP Mick Abel. “Is he back?” was the question posed on social media. My reply: “He has arrived.” He has had good outings before, including several recently. His numbers have looked good. He did some great things at the lower levels. Nothing is ever perfect in baseball. However, last night Mick Abel dismantled a good-hitting Red Sox lineup which included a couple top prospects and a couple ex-major leaguers. And he did it just like you would expect a Major League pitcher to do it. He filled up the strike zone, mixed pitches, moved his fastball, and kept hitters off balance. He struck out nine, but also generated a bunch of ground balls. He went seven full innings and faced the lineup three times. His lone mistake came with a guy on base and two outs. He left a fast ball middle-in to IronPigs Killer Blake Sabol which he roped into right field for a run-scoring double. He had just generated two strikes with his change-up–Junior was keeping score and charting pitches–and Junior (ex-catcher) said to go back to the change a third time because Sabol wasn’t seeing it. A former college player sitting in front of us agreed. I called fastball away–and perhaps that’s what was called by catcher Payton Henry and Abel just missed the spot. No mind, Abel came right at the next batter and got a ground-out to shortstop to end the inning.
At the plate, Rincones had a three-hit night with two doubles, although it didn’t always look pretty. He’s due for a couple home runs right about now. Kennedy did get a home run, as well as another hit. Zuniga gave up a run on two hits and a walk while striking out two, in the eighth. Newcomer Daniel Robert pitched a clean ninth as the IronPigs coaching and managerial staff resisted getting cute and trying to send Zuni out for a second inning.
Standings
The IronPigs remain 2.0 games ahead of Durham in the global International League standings. Durham is on a 7-3 run, while the ‘Pigs are 6-4 in their last 10. Jacksonville lost to drop to 3.0 games back, and have been a poor 2-8 in their last 10. In the West, which we still have to compete with even though we don’t play most of them and have very few common opponents, and no, it doesn’t make sense, Nashville and Memphis both lost putting them 4.0 games back. They have both been playing .500 ball lately.
Looking Ahead: It’s probably too early to be looking at this kind of thing, but we just can’t help ourselves here at IronPigs Today. After today, there are six series between now and the conclusion of the fist half of the season, when the playoff team and playoff host get locked in. Let’s look at how the schedules compare:
IronPigs (26-12):
at Syracuse (.474)
BUFFALO (.389)
at Norfolk (.378)
at Charlotte (.474)
WORCESTER (.486)
ROCHESTER (.278)
Durham (24-14):
at Rochester (.278)
at Worcester (.486)
MEMPHIS (.583)
at Jacksonville (.605)
CHARLOTTE (.474)
at Omaha (.444)
Conclusion: There are a couple common opponents, in last-place Rochester as well as Worcester, and Charlotte. Each team has a two-series road trip to deal with–be that good or bad. BUT, the IronPigs do not play a team currently above .500, while the Bulls have Memphis and at Jacksonville–and with Jacksonville being the next-closest contender, somebody has to lose. The IronPigs also get to play the last two series before the half-way point at home, while Durham has to travel to Omaha for the final series.
Of course, anything can happen. It’s not a two-team race and Jacksonville could re-find their winning ways, Memphis or Nashville could come on strong, or another team could go on an absolute tear, like Iowa or, egads, Scranton.
Roster / Transactions
Nothing since Tuesday. Here is the latest printable roster: 050625 LHV Roster
For Worcester, 2B Nick Sogard got recalled to Boston.
Game Day!
Happy Mother’s Day to Mothers of all sorts!
First Pitch: 1:35PM; Main/East/Center Field Gates: 12:15PM; Club/West Gates: 12:00PM
Promotions:
- Mother’s Day Celebration
- Cap Giveaway (Women)
- Mother’s Day Lunch Special (Still Available?)
- Mother’s Day Brunch (Sold Out)
- Post-game Kids Run Bases
- Post-game throw the ball with Mom on the field
Weather: 74° and sunny at game time. Breezy.
Pitching: A rematch of Tuesday’s game the RHP Nabil “The Crizzler” Crismatt versus RHP Josh Winckowski. Tuesday’s game went to extras, when Michael Mercado gave up the lead and then Kuhnel was asked to do too much and yielded a 4-spot in the 10th on a grand slam to Sabol.
See you at the park,
@Kram207
Featured Image by Cheryl Pursell. It was cropped to fit the space.
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