Baltimore Sun

Search the Baltimore County community newspaper archives

>> Click here to search for stories published AFTER 2011

>> Use this search box to find stories published prior to 2011.

Note: All Words is a more strict search. Implied operator is "AND."
Ex: Charles Dickens"

news

home

Slide ends with shutout win

Victory over Staten Island ends losing skid

BY DEWEY FOX

Posted 8/04/10

(Enlarge) IronBirds third baseman Sammie Starr slides safely into second on a steal during the first inning of Monday night's game against the visiting Staten Island Yankees. (Russell Tracy for The Aegis)

With his team desperate to snap a five-game losing skid that had landed it in a tie for last place, Aberdeen hurler Tim Adleman came through with a gem Monday night, tossing seven no-hit innings in the IronBirds’ 6-0 victory over the Staten Island Yankees.

Before the game, Aberdeen manager Gary Kendall said, the players and coaching staff met to talk about the recent losing snap.

“We needed some good baseball,” Kendall said. “We had a little meeting today. Our guys talked, communicated, and I said I was proud of them, [because] we’d already won a bunch of ball games coming from behind, but that lately I hadn’t seen the fire and determination. We talked about getting back to the basics, having fun and enjoying the experience. It looked like [they] had some fun tonight.”

The players responded, and the victory put the IronBirds at the .500 mark going into Tuesday night’s game.

“It’s nice when you go out there and score a couple runs, pitch well and catch the ball,” Aberdeen manager Gary Kendall said after the game. “[Adleman] got ahead of hitters, and he was making really good pitches ahead in the count. He was a joy to watch.”

At 22-22 to start play Tuesday, Aberdeen was in a two-way tie for third place in the New York-Penn League’s McNamara Division. Tied with the IronBirds in last was Staten Island (20-20), while second-place Hudson Valley (21-20) was just a half game ahead. Brooklyn (30-14) led the division by 7.5 games.

Through the first six innings of Monday’s game, Adleman was perfect, retiring 18 Yankee batters in a row. In the seventh, Adleman allowed a leadoff walk, but then coaxed a double-play grounder out of the next batter, and ended the inning with a strikeout after a Staten Island hitter reached on an error.

Through seven hitless frames, Adleman (2-2) struck out seven.

“I just tried to keep them off-balance,” Adleman said. “I thought [catcher Joe] Oliveira called a really good game. I had good control of my two-seam [fastball], had some movement on it, and was able to keep them from squaring on a lot of pitches. The infield had a phenomenal game. It seemed like every ball that was hit, they made a good play on it.”

Taking over in the eighth, Aberdeen reliever T.R. Keating allowed one a single and struck out a pair over the last two frames to complete the one-hit shutout.

Aberdeen did not have a hit until the fourth frame, when Austin Knight led off with a single to center. After taking second on a wild pitch, Knight eventually scored on Joel Polanco’s two-out single up the middle.

It was the only run the IronBirds needed, but they added five more to seal the win.

In the sixth, Sammie Starr, after leading off with a single, scored Aberdeen’s second run on an infield error.

Later in the sixth, with teammates Austin Rauch and Kipp Schutz on base, Oliveira nailed a double to score both his teammates, then came around when the Yankee left fielder made a poor relay.

“I got to second, turned and saw that throw was rolling on the infield,” Oliveira said. “No one was around it, and I thought, ‘I can make third,’ so I took off. The throw got by the third baseman and I was able to score.”

Aberdeen’s sixth tally came in the seventh, when Trent Mummey, who led off with a triple, made it home on Knight’s single.

Fifth straight loss

After coming back from four runs down with a fourth-inning rally to tie the host-team Hudson Valley Renegades Sunday night, the IronBirds gave up eight runs in the final four innings to lose 12-4.

The Renegades started scoring right out the gates, tagging Aberdeen starter Tyler Sexton for one run on a pair of hits. In their next turn at bat, the Renegades were on Sexton again, this time posting three runs on four hits and a walk to go up 4-0.

With only a single and a walk in the previous four innings, Aberdeen got the spark it was looking for in the fifth. Polanco led off with a double to left, and after Blair Dunlap earned a one-out walk, Oliveira brought Polanco around with a double. Mummey made it a one-run ball game with a base-clearing single up the middle. Before Hudson Valley could get out of the frame, Starr evened Aberdeen with the hosts by bringing Mummey home via a base hit into left.

Over the last four innings, Aberdeen’s only hit was a Knight single

Hudson Valley quickly took back the lead in the bottom of the fifth, with the Renegades leadoff man smacking one of Sexton’s offerings over the left field wall. Sexton (1-4) left the game after five innings, allowing four earned runs on eight hits, striking out three and walking two.

Taking over for Sexton in the bottom of the sixth, reliever Blake Mechaw walked in a run after loading the bags with a single and two bases on balls. Jose Barajas relieved Mechaw and promptly walked in the second run of the inning. The Renegades scored twice more before Barajas could retire the side on a sacrifice fly and an infield error.

Hudson Valley scored once on Barajas in the seventh and touched the reliever for two more runs in the eighth. In two innings of work, Barajas surrendered three earned runs on seven hits, struck out three and walked one. Jason Gurka retired the final two Hudson Valley hitters, striking out one and walking one.

Beaten by one

In the opening contest of their two-game road set with Hudson Valley, the IronBirds matched the Renegades in total hits and held their hosts to just a pair of runs, but it proved not to be enough — Aberdeen lost 2-1 Saturday.

Aberdeen did not have to wait long for its first and only run. Mummey kicked off the game with a leadoff double to the gap in right center, then scored on Adam Gaylord’s single up the middle.

The Renegade hitters could not figure out Aberdeen hurler Scott Copeland through the first five innings. He IronBird starter held the hosts to a pair of hits and surrendered one walk.

With Aberdeen still up 1-0 in the bottom of the sixth, and Copeland still on the mound, Hudson Valley’s leadoff man knocked a triple to right, and the next hitter tied the contest with an RBI double.

When Copeland was pulled after allowing a single, Kam Mickolio came out of the bullpen with no one out and runners on first and third. The first hitter Mickolio faced ground into a 4-6-3 double play, but what turned out to be the winning run was allowed to cross the plate.

Through five full innings, Copeland (1-4) allowed two earned runs on five hits, struck out four and walked two batters. Mickolio worked through a pair of frames, not allowing an earned run and striking out two. Steven Mazur struck out two, walked two and allowed one hit in an inning of scoreless relief.

‘Birds thumped

The visiting Brooklyn Cyclones completed a series sweep Friday, topping Aberdeen 11-3.

The host IronBirds didn’t score until the seventh, when Dunlap lofted a sacrifice fly that allowed Starr to tag and score from third, making the score 9-1.

Starr roped a single with the bases loaded in the eighth, scoring Dashenko Ricardo and Michael Rooney for Aberdeen’s final runs.

Aberdeen starter Justin Anderson (3-2) took the loss after going 4 1/3 innings in which he allowed six earned runs on eight hits.

Will Startup tossed 2 2/3 innings of relief, striking out two and surrendering three earned runs on four hits. Ashur Tolliver pitched the final two frames, striking out one, walking one and letting up two earned runs on two hits.

Beaten by Brooklyn

Tied 2-2 with Brooklyn heading into the last frame of Thursday night’s home game, the IronBirds were handed a 4-2 loss after their guests’ two ninth-inning runs.

Keating (2-3) was charged with the loss after surrendering two runs on four hits during Brooklyn’s final at bat.

Bruno Sanchez started for Aberdeen and went six frames, allowing one earned run on four hits and striking out three. Gurka tossed two innings, picking up two strikeouts and walking one.

Aberdeen went up 1-0 in the first when Mummey scored from second on Schutz’s single.

Gaylord led off Aberdeen’s half of the fourth with a double to center, moved to third when Polanco’s bunt was misplayed, and scored his team’s final run on Jeremy Nowak’s sacrifice fly.