June 24: Fleetwood 1, Metropolis 3
The opening game of this series featured two hot pitchers, Esteban Loazia for Fleetwood (winner of his previous 5 starts) and Randy Johnson for Metropolis (a winner in 5 of his last 6 decisions).
Both pitchers were sharp, throwing 3 scoreless innings each to begin the game. In the 4th, Fleetwood grabbed an early lead on a Miguel Cabrera solo home run.
Following a lead-off single by Rafael Furcal in the 6th, Fleetwood manager Rube Foster surprisingly lifted Esteban Loaiza in favor of Juan Dominguez. The move would indeed prove questionable, as Brian Roberts quickly greeted Dominguez with a 2-run blast. After retiring the next batter, Dominguez hit the showers in favor of Fernando Cabrera. Cabrera also surrendered a home run to his first batter faced (Vladimir Guerrero). Metropolis now led 3-1.
Meanwhile, Johnson continued to cruise for Metropolis until finally making way for Cliff Politte an Joaquin Benoit in the late innings. Both relievers pitched well, and Metropolis earned an opening-game victory.
June 25: Fleetwood 4, Metropolis 3The second game of this four-game set featured Greg Maddux for Fleetwood and Jason Schmidt for Metropolis. Both pitchers have had their ups-and-downs in 2006, and would have their work cut out for them on this day.
Fleetwood grabbed an early lead by scoring 3 runs in the 3rd inning (including a 2-run homer from Derrek Lee) and another in the 4th (on an RBI double by Bobby Crosby). Meanwhile, Maddux held the Avengers scoreless through 4 innings.
In the 5th inning, Metropolis scored its first run on a Jorge Posada single. The Avengers then added two more runs in the 6th on a Guerrero single and an Eric Chavez sacrifice fly. Fleetwood's lead was now just 4-3.
While the lead was small, Fleetwood's bullpen was up to the challenge. Fernando Cabrera pitched 2.2 scoreless innings, followed by a scoreless inning from Derrick Turnbow in the 9th. Fleetwood had earned a tough road win.
June 26: Fleetwood 4, Metropolis 5Fleetwood jumped out to an early lead, scoring twice in the 2nd inning on a Jim Edmonds home run (his 12th in June alone). The score would remain 2-0 until the 5th inning, when Metropolis would tie the game on an RBI double by Rafael Furcal and a sacrifice fly from Brian Roberts.
In the bottom of the 7th inning, Metropolis grabbed a commanding 3-run lead. Key to these runs was a 2-run single by Vladimir Guerrero, who batted with the bases loaded following an intentional walk to Bobby Abreu. An RBI groundout by Richie Sexson scored the 3rd run of the inning.
Metropolis entered the 9th with a seemingly insurmountable 5-2 lead, but Javier Valentin connected with a Michael Wuertz offering for a 2-run shot. Metropolis now led by just one run. With only 1 out, Marcus Giles then walked and Luis Matos added a single. The tying run was now on 3rd base and the go-ahead run on 1st.
Metropolis quickly summoned its closer, Jason Isringhausen. Even with Barry Bonds on his bench, Fleetwood manager Rube Foster stuck with Jermaine Dye in this key situation. Not only did Dye fail to come through with an RBI, but he grounded into a game-ending double play.
When questioned about his decision to not pinch-hit with Bonds in that key situation, Foster said he simply liked Dye's matchup better. "Isringhausen has been murder on left-handed batters all season," explained Foster. "I'm still confident in my choice...but sometimes your moves work, sometimes they don't. That's baseball."
Regardless, Metropolis had hung on by the skin of its teeth and earned its second win of the series.
June 27: Fleetwood 2, Metropolis 5In a running theme, Fleetwood again grabbed an early lead. Barry Bonds hit a solo home run in the 2nd, and David Wright a solo blast in the 3rd. The Walkers led 2-0.
Fleetwood's lead would not last, as Metropolis scored multiple runs in the middle innings. After 6 full innings, Metropolis now led 3-2.
In the bottom of the 7th, the Avengers threatened once again with a lead-off single by Brian Roberts. With the top of the Metropolis lineup now scheduled, Fleetwood manager Rube Foster sensed the importance of the situation and called on his best reliever, Derrick Turnbow. Foster hoped Turnbow could keep his team within one run in this important game.
While a noble idea, the move did not work out. Turnbow walked Jason Michaels, putting runners at 1st and 2nd. Following a sacrifice bunt by Furcal, Richie Sexson hit a double that drove in both runners. Metropolis now led by a score of 5-2, which is how the game and series would end.
Metropolis wins the series 3 games to 1. Box scores are below.
BOXSCORE: 2006 Fleetwood Walkers At 2006 Metropolis Avengers 6/24/2006
Walkers AB R H RBI AVG Avengers AB R H RBI AVG
M.Giles 2B 3 0 1 0 .256 R.Furcal SS 4 1 2 0 .339
D.Wright DH 4 0 0 0 .326 B.Roberts 2B 4 1 1 2 .348
D.Lee 1B 3 0 0 0 .269 B.Abreu LF 3 0 0 0 .199
M.Cabrera 3B 4 1 1 1 .329 V.Guerrero RF 4 1 1 1 .343
J.Edmonds CF 3 0 0 0 .230 R.Sexson 1B 3 0 1 0 .243
J.Dye RF 2 0 1 0 .276 E.Chavez 3B 3 0 0 0 .286
R.Castro C 2 0 0 0 .284 M.Mora DH 2 0 0 0 .263
A-B.Bonds PH,LF 1 0 0 0 .000 C-J.Michaels PH 1 0 0 0 .276
B.Crosby SS 3 0 0 0 .301 J.Posada C 1 0 1 0 .201
L.Matos LF 2 0 0 0 .284 V.Wells CF 2 0 0 0 .181
B-J.Valentin C 1 0 0 0 .286
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 28 1 3 1 Totals 27 3 6 3
A-Pinch Hit For Castro In 7th Inning
B-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Matos In 7th Inning
C-Pinch Hit For Mora In 8th Inning
Walkers......... 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 - 1 3 0
Avengers........ 0 0 0 0 0 3 0 0 - 3 6 0
Walkers (41-23) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
E.Loaiza 5 2 1 1 3 2 0 3.31 A1 C1
J.Dominguez L(1-2)B(2nd) 0 1/3 1 1 1 0 0 1 4.45 C2 C3
F.Cabrera 1 1/3 2 1 1 1 1 1 3.37 C4 D1
A.Rhodes 1 1/3 1 0 0 1 0 0 0.00 D2
Totals 8 6 3 3 5 3 2
Avengers (38-19) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
R.Johnson WIN(9-0) 6 1/3 3 1 1 3 6 1 2.01 A1 C6
C.Politte HOLD(2nd) 1 2/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 2.31 C7 D1
J.Benoit SAVE(5th) 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.31 D2
Totals 9 3 1 1 3 6 1
ATTENDANCE- 11,581 DATE- Tuesday, June 24th 2006 TIME- Night WEATHER- Bad
T- 2:43
LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 3 Avengers: 7
DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 2 Avengers: 2
DOUBLES- R.Sexson(17th)
HOME RUNS- M.Cabrera(13th), B.Roberts(9th), V.Guerrero(10th)
STOLEN BASES- M.Giles(4th), J.Dye(2nd), R.Furcal(20th)
SACRIFICE HITS- V.Wells
WALKS- M.Giles, D.Lee, J.Dye, B.Abreu, R.Sexson, E.Chavez, M.Mora, J.Posada
HIT BY PITCH- J.Posada
STRIKE OUTS- M.Giles, D.Wright, J.Edmonds, B.Crosby-2, L.Matos, R.Furcal,
B.Roberts, R.Sexson
GIDP- M.Cabrera, B.Bonds, V.Wells-2
BOXSCORE: 2006 Fleetwood Walkers At 2006 Metropolis Avengers 6/25/2006
Walkers AB R H RBI AVG Avengers AB R H RBI AVG
M.Giles 2B 3 0 0 0 .252 R.Furcal SS 4 0 0 0 .333
B.Bonds DH 4 0 0 0 .000 B.Roberts 2B 4 1 1 0 .346
D.Lee 1B 4 1 1 2 .269 B.Abreu LF 4 1 1 0 .200
M.Cabrera LF,3B 4 0 1 0 .328 V.Guerrero RF 4 0 2 1 .346
J.Valentin C 2 0 0 0 .278 R.Sexson 1B 4 0 1 0 .243
A-L.Matos PH,LF 0 0 0 0 .284 E.Chavez 3B 3 0 0 1 .282
C-D.Dejesus PH,LF 1 0 1 0 .268 M.Mora DH 3 1 1 0 .264
D.Wright 3B 2 0 0 0 .324 J.Posada C 4 0 2 1 .209
B-R.Castro C 0 0 0 0 .284 V.Wells CF 3 0 0 0 .179
J.Edmonds CF 3 1 0 0 .227 D-R.Branyan PH 1 0 0 0 .205
J.Dye RF 3 1 1 0 .277
B.Crosby SS 2 1 1 1 .304
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 28 4 5 3 Totals 34 3 8 3
A-Pinch Hit For Valentin In 6th Inning
B-Subbed Defensively (C ) For Wright In 6th Inning
C-Pinch Hit For Matos In 9th Inning
D-Pinch Hit For Wells In 9th Inning
Walkers......... 0 0 3 1 0 0 0 0 0 - 4 5 2
Avengers........ 0 0 0 0 1 2 0 0 0 - 3 8 0
Walkers (42-23) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
G.Maddux WIN(5-2) 5 1/3 6 3 1 0 2 0 5.11 A1 C5
F.Cabrera HOLD(1st) 2 2/3 1 0 0 1 0 0 1.69 C6 D5
D.Turnbow SAVE(10th) 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 2.73 D6
Totals 9 8 3 1 1 3 0
Avengers (38-20) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
J.Schmidt LOSS(5-5) 5 4 4 4 5 3 1 4.95 A1 C4
C.Hammond 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1.61 C5 C5
J.Benoit 3 0 0 0 0 4 0 1.14 C6 D4
T.Mulholland 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3.26 D5 D5
M.Wuertz 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 2.49 D6 D6
J.Isringhaus 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4.64 D7
Totals 9 5 4 4 6 7 1
ATTENDANCE- 18,544 DATE- Wednesday, June 25th 2006 TIME- Night WEATHER- Average
T- 3:12
LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 4 Avengers: 6
DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 1 Avengers: 3
ERRORS- D.Wright, J.Edmonds
DOUBLES- B.Crosby(10th), M.Mora(5th), J.Posada(7th)
TRIPLES- V.Guerrero(1st)
HOME RUNS- D.Lee(12th)
SACRIFICE FLIES- E.Chavez
WALKS- M.Giles, D.Wright, R.Castro, J.Edmonds, J.Dye, B.Crosby, M.Mora
HIT BY PITCH- L.Matos
STRIKE OUTS- M.Giles, B.Bonds, D.Lee, M.Cabrera, D.Wright, J.Edmonds, J.Dye,
R.Furcal, B.Abreu, E.Chavez
GIDP- B.Bonds, J.Edmonds
WILD PITCHES- D.Turnbow
BOXSCORE: 2006 Fleetwood Walkers At 2006 Metropolis Avengers 6/26/2006
Walkers AB R H RBI AVG Avengers AB R H RBI AVG
D.Dejesus LF 4 0 1 0 .271 R.Furcal SS 3 1 2 1 .337
D.Wright DH 4 0 1 0 .306 B.Roberts 2B 2 0 0 1 .362
D.Lee 1B 4 1 1 0 .263 B.Abreu LF 2 1 0 0 .248
M.Cabrera 3B 4 0 0 0 .324 V.Guerrero RF 3 0 2 2 .362
J.Valentin C 4 1 1 2 .265 R.Branyan 1B 3 0 0 0 .177
M.Giles 2B 1 1 0 0 .236 A-R.Sexson PH,1B 1 0 0 1 .227
J.Edmonds CF 3 1 1 2 .233 M.Mora DH 4 0 0 0 .253
C-L.Matos PH 1 0 1 0 .306 J.Posada C 4 0 0 0 .242
J.Dye RF 4 0 0 0 .279 E.Chavez 3B 4 1 2 0 .277
N.Perez SS 2 0 1 0 .271 V.Wells CF 4 2 2 0 .191
B-B.Crosby PH,SS 1 0 0 0 .283
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 32 4 7 4 Totals 30 5 8 5
A-Pinch Hit For Branyan In 7th Inning
B-Pinch Hit For Perez In 8th Inning
C-Pinch Hit For Edmonds In 9th Inning
Walkers......... 0 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 - 4 7 0
Avengers........ 0 0 0 0 2 0 3 0 - 5 8 0
Walkers (36-23) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
A.Burnett LOSS(8-4) 6 7 4 4 3 5 0 3.33 A1 D1
A.Rhodes 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 0.82 D2 D6
J.Dominguez 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 4.66 D7
Totals 8 8 5 5 4 5 0
Avengers (50-30) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
O.Hernandez 6 4 2 2 0 4 1 3.51 A1 C4
A.Otsuka WIN(2-0) 1 2/3 0 0 0 1 2 0 3.69 C5 D1
M.Wuertz 0 2/3 2 2 2 1 0 1 2.91 D2 D6
T.Mulholland 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 3.77 D7 D7
J.Isringhaus SAVE(11th) 0 2/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 4.50 D8
Totals 9 7 4 4 2 6 2
ATTENDANCE- 25,039 DATE- Thursday, June 26th 2006 TIME- Night WEATHER- Good
T- 3:12
LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 4 Avengers: 7
DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 0 Avengers: 2
DOUBLES- R.Furcal(20th), V.Guerrero(21st)
HOME RUNS- J.Valentin(4th), J.Edmonds(10th)
STOLEN BASES- D.Wright(5th)
SACRIFICE HITS- B.Roberts
SACRIFICE FLIES- B.Roberts
WALKS- M.Giles-2, R.Furcal, B.Abreu-2, V.Guerrero
HIT BY PITCH- M.Giles
STRIKE OUTS- D.Dejesus, D.Wright, D.Lee, J.Edmonds-2, J.Dye, R.Furcal,
B.Roberts, R.Branyan, M.Mora, J.Posada
GIDP- D.Wright, J.Dye
WILD PITCHES- M.Wuertz
WEB GEMS- Top 8th: Rafael Furcal robbed David Wright of a base hit.
BOXSCORE: 2006 Fleetwood Walkers At 2006 Metropolis Avengers 6/27/2006
Walkers AB R H RBI AVG Avengers AB R H RBI AVG
M.Giles 2B 4 0 0 0 .231 J.Michaels DH 2 1 0 0 .258
B.Bonds DH 3 1 1 1 .125 R.Furcal SS 3 0 0 0 .333
A-L.Matos PH 1 0 0 0 .303 R.Sexson 1B 2 0 1 3 .229
D.Lee 1B 4 0 1 0 .263 V.Guerrero RF 4 0 0 0 .357
M.Cabrera LF 3 0 1 0 .324 T.Pratt C 4 0 2 0 .221
J.Valentin C 3 0 0 0 .254 B.Abreu LF 4 1 1 0 .248
D.Wright 3B 4 1 1 1 .305 V.Wells CF 4 1 3 1 .199
J.Edmonds CF 4 0 0 0 .227 E.Chavez 3B 4 0 1 1 .276
J.Dye RF 2 0 0 0 .276 B.Roberts 2B 3 2 2 0 .365
B.Crosby SS 3 0 0 0 .276
-- -- -- --- -- -- -- ---
Totals 31 2 4 2 Totals 30 5 10 5
A-Pinch Hit For Bonds In 8th Inning
Walkers......... 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 - 2 4 0
Avengers........ 0 0 0 1 1 1 2 0 - 5 10 0
Walkers (36-24) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
M.Buehrle LOSS(3-5) 6 9 4 4 2 4 1 5.65 A1 C9
D.Turnbow 1 1 1 1 1 0 0 2.96 D1 D5
S.Downs 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 3.62 D6
Totals 8 10 5 5 3 5 1
Avengers (51-30) IP H R ER BB SO HR ERA SCORESHEET
R.Clemens WIN(8-5) 7 1/3 3 2 2 3 8 2 1.76 A1 D1
T.Mulholland 0 1/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 3.72 D2 D2
J.Benoit SAVE(6th) 1 1/3 1 0 0 0 1 0 2.68 D3
Totals 9 4 2 2 3 9 2
ATTENDANCE- 8,110 DATE- Friday, June 27th 2006 TIME- Day WEATHER- Bad
T- 2:53
LEFT ON BASE- Walkers: 5 Avengers: 6
DOUBLE PLAYS- Walkers: 1 Avengers: 0
DOUBLES- R.Sexson(20th), V.Wells-2(13th)
HOME RUNS- B.Bonds(1st), D.Wright(12th), V.Wells(6th)
STOLEN BASES- M.Cabrera(1st)
SACRIFICE HITS- R.Furcal
SACRIFICE FLIES- R.Sexson
WALKS- M.Cabrera, J.Valentin, J.Dye, J.Michaels-2, R.Sexson
STRIKE OUTS- D.Lee-2, J.Valentin-2, D.Wright-2, J.Edmonds, J.Dye, B.Crosby,
J.Michaels, R.Furcal, T.Pratt, E.Chavez-2
GIDP- B.Abreu
WEB GEMS- Bot 4th: Javier Valentin blocked the plate, saving a run!
3B David Wright
In Fleetwood's otherwise dismal 2005 season, Cabrera provided a ray of hope with an amazing season (.308 avg, 44 hr, 125 rbi). He's now showing that his 2005 season was no fluke with another great season this year. He is among the NL's top 10 in batting average (10th), runs scored (6th), hits (6th), and doubles (2nd with 30). His rate stats are equally impressive, as he owns the NL's 9th best slugging percentage, 12th best on-base percentage, and 6th best in runs created per 27 outs. Finally, Cabrera also leads the NL in game-winning RBI with 12.
RHP A.J. Burnett
C Ramon Castro
OF Jim Edmonds
