Pawtucket comes from behind to win 5-4. How did they do it?
Kevin Millwood pitched five innings for Pawtucket. He didn't give up any runs until the fifth inning, when he led it off by giving up three consecutive singles, which allowed Syracuse to score their first run. A sac bunt by center fielder Gregor Blanco moved everyone over like teddy bears. And the Steve Lombardozzi, second baseman, hit a two-run single. Seth Bynum subsequently homered, but Lombardozzi never made it home, because he'd been picked off by Millwood. Oooh, bad luck!
Chiefs starter Craig Stammen pitched six innings, and gave up three runs, one unearned. Pawtucket scored first in the first inning. Che Hsuan Lin got on first with a single, and then with two outs Lars Anderson drove him in with a single. Alex Valdez hit a solo home run in the top of the fifth to make the score 2-0. But then came Millwood's aforementioned messy half, which put the Red Sox behind 4-2.
INNING SEVEN. Stammen was still pitching, but got the hook after he walked Khoury to lead things off. Colin Balestar jumped into the fire, got Bermudez out but walked Valdez. A passed ball by catcher Jhonatan Solano moved the runners up for Lin, who grounded out to third. Khoury scored and it was 4-3 Chiefs!
Have we ever really gotten to know lefty Lee Hyde? Hyde came in to start the eighth inning, ostensibly to get left-handed hitter Lars Anderson out. Anderson did not comply, deciding to double to right instead. Hyde was done for the night. Jeff Mandel was next in line. Mandel got a couple of outs, but then faced Mighty Mouse and his little cape and his little cleats. Yes, it's Ryan Khoury, who... Please don't make me say good things about him. Ugh. Okay, Khoury tripled, and I love triples, so even though I cannot explain how that happened, I'm glad it did. Anderson scored. And then Bermudez reached first on an error from third baseman Tug Hulett. Khoury scored. 5-4 PawSox. Remarkable.
Michael Bowden pitched the eighth and ninth, earning himself a save. That's more like it, Bowden. Hideki Okajima also pitched tow scoreless innings, no surprise there. Okajima's too good for triple-A. Poor kid.
Two things:
1. Lars Anderson went 3-5 with a double and an RBI.
2. "Millwood should really get into watercolors when he does retire." - Game summary, with video, and some mangled pronunciations.
3. Seth Bynum on his home run: "Guess that's kind of cool. Those guys know how to pitch for sure." Bynum later stated, "Millwood is real nice. I like his hat. We have a soda machine in the clubhouse."
4. "What does Syracuse reliver Lee Hyde do after he warms up, but before his first pitch?" - How have I never come across this blog before?
5. Also found on the blog: Some snapshots of Dan Hoard, h(o)ard at work in Syracuse.
6. Short story on Craig Stammen here, with steely-eyed pictures. Stammen's kinda... Um, he's very... Hello, nurse!
7. Craig Stammen audio. What's with the background noise? It sounds like he's at a St Patrick's Day parade.
TONIGHT. Pawtucket returns home. It's Jeremy Kehrt or Tony Pena v Buffalo's Pat Misch. Game's at six. What, me? Dude, you know I don't go to weekend PawSox games. Too crowded.
By the way, the accompanying Syracuse ballpark photo is all mine. I hope you see the reason I don't take many pictures.
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