On Deck with….Dejai Oliver
Here’s an interview with Jammers rookie Dejai Oliver. Have to like his approach toward hitters.
Post-game thoughts – July 17
EDIT: Before I get to last night’s thoughts, a few roster moves before today’s game:
Added to Jamestown’s roster from GCL: OF Nate Woods, a free agent signing this year out of Belmont and OF Kentrell Dewitt , the 13th round pick of the Marlins out of Southeastern (N.C.) CC last year.
To Jupiter: IF Alfredo Lopez, who batted .244 in 45 at-bats this season for Jamestown.
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Tough loss to Mahoning Valley, 6-5 in 11 innings.
-We’ll give this to the Jammers – they fight until the end. Down three runs and with one out left, they came back to tie the game 5-5 in the 9th and send it to extras.
-Terrence Dayleg continues his clutch hitting. His 20 RBI are second most in the NYPL behind Auburn’s Hendry Jimenez who has 24.
-It’s tough to follow up a night where you hit for the cycle, but Jobduan Morales did a pretty good job with two more hits to raise his batting average to .338, seventh best in the league.
-Speaking of high batting averages, this lineup missed Brent Keys’ .375 average, second best in the NYPL.
-On that note, injuries are really starting to pile up. Reliever Tyler Topp hit the DL with an elbow issue, Ryan McIntyre has missed the past three games since leaving Thursday’s game against Hudson Valley, Keys was out on Sunday and most likely longer after pulling a hamstring on Saturday night, and Yefri Perez left Sunday’s game with what looked to be a significant ankle injury. Keys and Perez were each injured running the bases following hits.
-Jamestown still has not won a game in which they’ve trailed entering the 9th this year (0-12).
-Batavia won Saturday, meaning its now a three-way tie atop the Pinckney Division as the Jammers, Scrappers and Muckdogs are all 17-13. Batavia has won seven of its last 10. Jamestown will play Batavia for four straight games starting Tuesday – two at home before two on the road. All of those games will be broadcast including Friday night’s game which will be televised live on Jamestown360.com.
-Williamsport is just a game back while struggling Auburn sits two out. Throw a blanket over the top five teams in the division. Poor State College (8-22).
-Big rubber match between the Jammers and Scrappers on the air at 6:55 p.m. on JamestownJammers.com.
Jammers take first-place showdown
Jamestown’s 13-6 win over Mahoning Valley tonight gives the Jammers sole possession of first place in the Pinckney Division at 17-12.
-Tonight was all about Jobduan Morales. He hit for the cycle, going 4-for-4 with four RBI. He needed the easiest part, a single, to complete the cycle in his final at-bat in the 8th inning and punched one through the right side to complete a momentous night. Here’s the summary of his night from the broadcast:
-Good thing the bats were awake tonight as starter Tom Peale had a rare off night, allowing six earned runs. It was only the second time all year he’s allowed multiple runs, and the first time he’s surrendered more than two earned runs. His ERA jumps from 1.50 to 3.33.
-The second biggest story from tonight’s game is Brent Keys. After advancing his hit streak to 16 straight games with a bunt single in the first, he immediately left following an infield hit at first base in the third. Losing Keys to injury would be a big blow and a tough break for the third-year pro enjoying his best stretch as a professional. No word on the prognosis.
-Josh Adams has hits in his first eight games.
-Morales’ four RBI tie the season team best for an individual game, set earlier this year by Terrence Dayleg.
-Tip of the cap to Miguel Mejia, who not only earned the win, but shut the flood gates following Mahoning Valley’s grand slam to chase Peale.
-Tonight saw the most hits on the season for Jamestown in a game, 15.
-Also the most runs in a single inning, seven in the first.
-Batavia also won tonight and is tied with MV at one game out. Auburn is two back. Throw a blanket over the top four teams in the Pinckney.
-The win evens up the season series at two. Back at it tomorrow at 5:55 with the special Sunday start time. Turn us on at jamestownjammers.com.
-EDIT: Here’s the MILB.com story on Morales’ cycle. Pretty cool.
On Deck with….Josh Hodges
Jammers right-hander Josh Hodges has put together his best two starts of the year back-to-back. The latest On Deck interview features Hodges talking about his two years in Jamestown, growth as a pitcher and experience in last year’s pennant race.
Good start to the homestand
A beautiful night for baseball and a good-sized crowd welcomed the Jammers home for the first of eight games at Diethrick Park on Wednesday.
The home team didn’t disappoint, winning 3-0 over Hudson Valley to match the high water mark of the season thus far at six games over .500 (16-10).
It was all about the pitching in this one:
-Josh Hodges has been here for more than a full season and tonight was the best he’s looked. Hodges took a no-hitter 5.1 innings into the game before a single by Raymond Church broke up the no-no. In all, Hodges worked a season-long seven innings of two-hit ball, walked two and struck out five. This was the type of outing you see Hodges having the potential of putting together every time he steps to the rubber.
-Miguel Mejia, who was dominant (see: ERA of just over 1) for Connecticut last year, was nails tonight. He and closer Alfredo Buret would make for a nasty tail-end of the bullpen. Mejia and Buret each throw hard and possess hard sliders that made HV batters look completely off balance.
-Make it 13 straight games with a hit for Brent Keys. A bunt single to third (how many infield hits does he have these past two years?) continued the hit streak before he broke open the 1-0 game with a two-run double in the sixth.
-Jamestown has been excellent at home: the record is 11-4 at Diethrick Park thus far.
-Tonight was the first game against a non-divisional opponent after 25 straight against the Pinckney Division.
-Unfortunately, Auburn and Mahoning Valley with wins of their own, meaning Jamestown’s advantage in the division remains only one.
-Was great to have former Jamestown Jammer Ernie Banks (not the Cubs Ernie Banks, mind you) in the booth for an inning on the broadcast tonight. Ernie set the franchise record for RBI in a single season with 51 for a time and was a fan favorite during the 2008 season here in Jamestown.
-Great pitching matchup tomorrow for Swedish Heritage Night at the park. RHP Parker Markel (1-0, 0.00) goes for Hudson Valley against RHP Jose Urena (2-1, 2.63). Markel has been perhaps the best pitcher in the NYPL while Urena has perhaps been Jamestown’s best starter this year, and definitely has the most varied repertoire on the mound with five solid pitches.
Start of 8-game homestand
Jammers (15-10) host Hudson Valley (13-10) tonight. Here’s the home team lineup:
1- Goetz- 2B
2- Barnes- C
3- Keys- LF
4- Dayleg- DH
5- Morales- 1B
6- Adams- 3B
7- McIntyre- RF
8- Perez- SS
9- Cooper- CF
First of 8-straight at home, and 10 in a row for us on www.jamestownjammers.com. CLICK HERE FOR THE BROADCAST!
Couple roster moves:
Going up to Greensboro: pitchers Greg Nappo and Kenny Toves.
Joining Jamestown: RHP Brad Mincey
Congrats to Nappo and Toves, who were outstanding here in Jamestown.
On Deck with ….Austin Barnes
Here’s a recent ‘On Deck’ interview with Marlins rookie catcher, Austin Barnes. Austin has major league bloodlines as his uncle, Mike Gallego played in the majors for more than a decade.
On another note, the team is enjoying its first off day of the season today after beginning the NYPL campaign with 25 straight games. The entire league is off today. At the first checkpoint of the season, the Jammers are 15-10, and despite two disappointing losses the past two nights in Auburn, remain in first place of the Pinckney Division by one game.
On the radio side of things: Wednesday’s game against Hudson Valley marks the first of 10 straight online at jamestownjammers.com, so be sure to click in at 6:55. Also, we have two UStream games coming up for future reference: We’ll broadcast the road game at Batavia on Friday, July 22 as well as the 70th anniversary of Diethrick Park special game night on Friday, July 29 at jamestown360.com.
Until tomorrow, have a good one, all….
Back in First Place
Friday night is Bark in the Park night at Diethrick Park. Oh, wait, not this type of dog. The Jammers still ran back into first, though with late heroics.
This one might be the most dramatic victory of the year. Coming from five runs down against Batavia last week to score seven runs between the 7th and 8th innings and win, 8-6, after trailing 6-1 was quite a thrill to watch, but tonight the stakes were even higher. With first place at stake, Jamestown erased a late 5-2 deficit to tie, and then trailing 6-5 entering the bottom of the 8th scored two to take the lead and win, 7-6.
-Just call Nestor Castillo “Mr. Clutch.” A walk off RBI single on Sunday against Williamsport and now the game-winning RBI triple tonight. And he hadn’t played since Sunday! Get this man in the lineup!
-Nice debut for Josh Adams. A rookie out of the University of Florida, Adams’ 2-RBI double to tie the game at 5 in the 6th was quite the way to pick up your first professional hit. I think he’s going to help the lineup a lot.
-Stretch Brent Keys’ hit streak to eight games, second best this year on the team behind Terrence Dayleg’s nine which ended last week. Most impressively, Keys has multiple hits in six of those contests and continues to lead the team with a .349 batting average.
-Couple of roster notes: Adams, of course, joined the roster yesterday and made his MILB debut tonight. Also added to the roster is pitcher Miguel Mejia , a veteran of the NYPL who had a standout year for Connecticut pitching for the Detroit Tigers organization last year. Reliever Albaro Estevez was released by the Marlins.
-If you tried to tune into the late innings tonight and couldn’t, my apologies. Some sort of technical difficulty tonight – still not sure what it was and hope it doesn’t cause an issue tomorrow when we’re back on the air at 6:55.
-Tonight’s win moves Jamestown back into first place in the division, one game up on Auburn. They’ll wrap up the first half of this six-game set at home tomorrow. IT’S BARK IN THE PARK NIGHT! Bring Fido.
-Got questions? Want to see a certain player interview or question asked to a player on this blog? Email: jamestownjammersradio@hotmail.com
On Deck with …..Rand Smith
Here’s the latest interview in our On Deck series, this time our guest is Jammers outfielder Rand Smith, who is working to rehab from a spring training injury and continue his climb through the Marlins organizational ladder.
NYPL Remembers
To honor the many lives lost on Sept. 11, 2001, and the lives lost since in the global war on terrorism, each of the New York-Penn League clubs will bear a special logo and motto on the back of their batting helmets throughout the 2011 season.
The patch, like the one pictured on a Jamestown Jammers batting helmet, states: “9-11-01: Never Forget” with all three sites effected by terrorist attacks that day, the World Trade Center, the Pentagon and Somerset County, Pa. represented within the patch.
