BKN Cyclones ~ Battle of the Boroughs II; Yanks Take Game Two

From the desk of:   THE SURF AVENUE SLUGGERS

BATTLE OF THE BOROUGHS - II

I - Brooklyn Wins Series 3-1

Brooklyn 2; Staten Island 0

Brooklyn 4; Staten Island 1

Brooklyn 7; Staten Island 2

Staten Island 8; Brooklyn 1

II - Series Tied 1-1

Brooklyn 1; Staten Island 0

Staten Island 4; Brooklyn 2

Game Three in St. George

Game Four in Coney Island

 

BROOKLYN CYCLONES:  Baby Bombers Gain Spilt After Game Two.  Teams Head Back Over Verrazano Bridge For Game Three in Staten Island.  Series Wraps Up in Coney Island on Sunday.


In the opening game of their second series together, the visiting first place Cyclones needed fifteen innings In Staten Island to put away the Yankees.  Starting pitcher, Gabriel Ynoa pitched six shutout innings and give up one lone hit to Staten Island batters.  He walked two and struck out three before exiting a scoreless game.  Staten Island's Andrew Benack last four innings for the Yankees and surrendered four hits and no runs before giving way to the bullpen.


For the game, Staten Island's pitching was getting by, somehow managing Brooklyn for fourteen innings.  The Cyclones wrapped eleven total hits, with four doubles in the game.  But the Seaside Sluggers had troubles pushing runs across the plate as they batted a mere 1 for 14 with runners in scoring position.  The Yankees didn't fare much better batting 0 for 7 with runners in scoring position.  Seven Brooklyn pitchers limited the Yankees to four hits all game.


Late in the night, Dimas Ponce led off the top of the fifteenth inning with a double off the fifth Staten Island pitcher, Alex Smith, who was in his third inning of work.  Dimas moved to third on Jonathan Clark's bunt single.  Richie Rodriguez then lifted a fly to center, on which Dimas Ponce tagged-up from third and scored the games only run.


Out of Brooklyn's bullpen came Tyler Vanderheiden to preserve the lead and end the game.  He made it interesting by walking a batter and hitting another.  But with a strike out, and inducing his last batter into a game ending double play, his sixth save of the season was secured, as was the Brooklyn Cyclones' twentieth win.

*

The series crossed over the Verrazano and headed back to Coney Island for Friday night's second game of the series.  Under threatening skies and Fall type weather conditions, Staten Island took an early 1-0 lead after two innings, and a 3-0 lead after three against Boardwalk Bum starter, Luis Mateo, who was making his sixth start this season, and in search of his fifth win.  But the Baby Bombers had other ideas.


The Yankees' Gabriel Encinas managed five innings pitched.  He allowed six hits and one earned run.  He struggled a bit walking for, but also recorded four strikeouts.  Evan DeLuca took over for Encinas and pitched the next two innings, and also allowed Brooklyn one run.  But that's all the Surf Avenue Sluggers would get this night.  Stefan Lopez and Taylor Garrison kept the Cyclones subdued over the last two frames to preserve a 4-2 Yankees victory.


Brooklyn scored lone runs in the fifth and sixth innings.  Kevin Plawecki had an RBI single to put the 'Clones on the board.  In the sixth, Jayce Boyd led off with a double.  The next batter, Eudy Pina, also doubled to drive in Boyd for the home team's second and last run of the evening.  In this game, the Cyclones batted 2 for 10 with runners in scoring position.  That makes them three for their last twenty-four times at bat with RiSP.


Starting pitcher Luis Mateo is now 4-2 on the season.  He pitched six full, and allowed six hits, and four earned runs.  He surrendered one home run, walked three and struck out three.  Beck Wheeler and Ernesto Yanez combined on three stellar innings in relief however.  Wheeler struck out four batters in two innings of work.  Neither allowed Staten Island a hit, and issued no walks.


Brooklyn's lead in the McNamara Division is now just one game over the Hudson Valley Renegades, who defeated the Aberdeen Iron Birds by a 3-2 score Friday evening up in Fishkill, N.Y.  Staten Island's third place standing is unchanged.  They now sport a 13-19 record, and are seven games back of the Cyclones.


Friday's loss drops Brooklyn to 8-8 at home.  They have not enjoyed the dominance yet, they are so accustomed toused to in Coney Island.  On the road is where they have played best, to the tune of a 12-4 record.  The hottest team in the League, the Stedler Division leading Tri-Citi Valley Cats are tops in the circuit with twenty-four wins.  The Cyclones are second with twenty.




Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ St. Paul Saints Come Marching In

From the desk of:   THE BRICK CITY NINE

NEWARK BEARS:  The Modern St. Paul Saints Enjoying Their First Ever Visit to Broad Street.  Take First Two Games Over Bears.  Game Three Sunday Afternoon.



Professional baseball in St. Paul, Minnesota, dates back to 1884, when a third league, the Union Association, formed to compete against the established National League, and their rivals, the  American Association of Baseball.  St. Paul later played in the Western League during the 1890's, which was the precursor to the American League we know today.

From 1902 through 1960, St. Paul existed as a (AAA) minor league team in the 20th century version of the American Association, until the league ultimately folded, and it's teams were dispersed to the Pacific Coast League, and the International League.

The modern day St. Paul Saints come to us through the former Northern League of Independent Baseball, which formed in 1993 and ceased after the 2005 season.  The present American Association of Independent Baseball formed in 2006, and the St. Paul Saints have been members since.

For us tri-state area baseball fans, Darryl Strawberry once, and maybe infamously, played for the Saints in a comeback bid to play Major League Baseball again following his suspension from the game.


The St. Paul Saints are in town visiting the Newark Bears for a weekend series, of which, the Saints have already taken the first two games of three.  Call me silly for waxing nostalgic, but the ring of saying - St. Paul Saints versus Newark Bears just sounds classic, and out of another era.  There is indeed a historic connotation, and even significance, to this match-up.  But one that will go unspoken about in the grand scheme of things.


I for one however, am excited the Saints are in town for some Canadian/American - American Association Inter-League play.  That said, I will be at Bears and Eagles Riverfront Stadium today, Sunday, to enjoy the game, and take in what I think is a rather unique match-up of applied team histories.


In Friday's series opener, the Bears dropped this first modern day encounter by a 6-3 final score.  Alex Smith made the start for Newark, and suffered his third defeat of the season.  He pitched six full, allowing six runs, although only were three earned, on eight hits.  Alex only walked two, and struck out  six Saints.  An error by Burt Reynolds at third led to Smith's three unearned runs allowed in a four run second inning.


The Bears scored one in the bottom of the second on an RBI single by Juan Martinez.  But they gave it back in St. Paul's next at-bat, who then held a 5-1 lead.  In the sixth inning, the Saints tacked on one more insurance run when Benji Johnson led off with a homer off Alex Smith.


Eric McGee hit his first home run of the season; a solo shot for Newark in the seventh.  They would score again on an RBI single by Alex Bardeguez to make it a 6-3 game.  But that's as close as Newark would get.


Caleb Cuevas and Damian Sequen finished up Newark's pitching duties with three scoreless innings in relief.


St. Paul's Wes Roemer pitched 7.2 innings, gave up six hits, and allowed the Bears three runs.  He walked none and struck out seven for the win.  Bret Severtson gained the save.


In Game Two of the series played Saturday, St. Paul jumped on Bears pitching yet again to secure a 7-2 win.  Defense failed the Bears again, as five errors on the day helped the Saints score four unearned runs.


The Bears' Pedro Rivera made his third start, and lasted five innings.  He gave up five hits and allowed two earned runs out of four he surrendered.  Rivera issued four walks and struck out six.  Matt Fitton also suffered from the team's defensive lapses in relief.  In four innings pitched, only one of his three runs allowed were earned.  He struck out five Saints in his four innings.


Newark's lone two runs against St. Paul starter, Danny Guitierrez, came on RBI singles by Juan Martinez, and Burt Reynolds.


Three Saints relievers combined to allow six innings and keep the Bears sedated.  St. Paul's Josh Cephus pitched three innings for the win.


If you're at the game today, Tweet me up.
Credit - St. Paul Saints Scorecard @ SonOfNostalgia.com

Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Brick City Wins Third Game Over Worcester

From the desk of:   THE BRICK CITY NINE

NEWARK BEARS:  Brick City Wraps Up Opening Day Weekend With Three Wins over Worcester Tornadoes.

BEARS WIN OPENING DAY SERIES 3-1

I  -  NWK 9; WOR 2

II  -  NWK 6; WOR 4

III  -  WOR 7; NWK 2

IV  -  NWK 9; WOR 6

Saturday Final:
Tornadoes  7
NEWARK  2


Saturday, the Worcester Tornadoes earned their first victory of the season with a 7-2 victory over the Newark Bears.  After Newark took the first two games of this four game Opening Day series, the Tornadoes jumped on Newark's starter, Sean Campbell early in Game Three.  The Tornadoes whipped up four runs in the top of the second inning.  Worcester scored a fifth run against Campbell in the fifth inning.  Kyle Morrison allowed two more scattered runs during his three inning relief stint giving the Tornadoes their seven runs.

All the Bears could muster against Tornadoes' starter, Dan Sausville and Worcester's bullpen, came in the third inning.  Bryce Lane singled home Burt Reynolds, and Dan Coury later singled home Bryce Lane for Newark's only two runs of the game.  The Bears did however pepper Dan Sausville for twelve hits before he was relieved after six innings pitched.  But over the next three innings, Worcester's bullpen allowed but one hit the rest of the way.

As you can guess, the Bears left fourteen runners on base.  But aside from two doubles by Burt Reynolds and Dan Coury, all the Bears managed were singles.  Burt Reynolds had a big day, going 3 for 5 in the game.  Daryle Ward was 2 for 3 and drew two walks.

After going hitless in his first two games, Jose Canseco was 1 for 5 at the plate for Worcester.

Sunday Final:
Tornadoes  6
NEWARK  9


In Sunday afternoon's final game of the series, the Bears jumped out to an early 3-0 lead.  Quentin Davis scored on a passed ball in the first.  In the second, Courtney Billingslea hit a solo home run, and Norberto Susini scored on a fielder's choice.

After Worcester scored one run in the third, they exploded for five runs in the fifth inning to take a 6-3 lead.  Bears' starter Alex Smith was doing fine through four innings.  He allowed one earned run, on four hits, and a walk.  Then Matt Fitton took over the pitching duties.  An error, a walk, and a single loaded the bases with one out, and the inning went south from there.  A couple of more hits and yet another error lead to Worcester's five run inning.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Bears got one back when Alex Bardeguez doubled home Juan Martinez.  Matt Fitton stayed in the game and pitched another two scoreless innings.  Then in the bottom of the seventh, the Bears broke out for five runs of their own against Tornadoes' starter, Kevin Cooper, who was aiming for a seven inning starting effort, and against reliever Mike Mullen.

Quentin Davis started the scoring with an RBI single.  Off a Burt Reynolds single, Quentin Davis and Bryce Lane both scored unearned runs.  Daryle Ward scored when Norberto Susini was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.  The following batter, Billy Alvino, was also hit by a pitch, which forced home Burt Reynolds from third.

Anthony Pluta pitched a scoreless eighth inning and Jorge Vasquez tossed a scoreless ninth to preserve Newarks' third victory in four tries.  Matt Fitton was credited with the win.

For Worcester, Jose Canseco was 2 for 5 at the plate, with an RBI, and a run scored.





Mike.BTB

The Newark Bears ~ A Resilient Brick City Species

From the desk of:  THE BRICK CITY NINE

The Urban Grizzlies Endured Another Troublesome Summer in an Unfamiliar Environment.   Encroachment, Scarcity, and Long Cold Winters are All Part of Being a Newark Bear.


Offensively speaking, the Quebec Capitales had nary a player rank within the top ten in any of the big three categories; Avg.; HR; RBI.  One Cap player placed eighth in batting.  And one Cap placed tenth in RBI.  That's it.


But when it came to pitching; pitching; pitching; -  Quebec had an abundance.  That said, the Quebec Capitales rode the strength of their hurlers all the way to a championship over the New Jersey Jackals in the 2011 Canadian/American League Finals which concluded back on September 16th.   The title was Quebec's fourth in the seven year history of the CanAm League; and their third consecutive championship.

There have only been three other teams to win a CanAm Title.  Two of those clubs are no longer in the league. The Worcester Tornados remain as the only other club still in the circuit to claim a title.  Two former champs, the Sussex SkyHawks and the Nashua Pride, have folded since celebrating their titles. 
The Nashua Pride once played in the Atlantic League too; like another team; the Atlantic City Surf.  They both won Atlantic League Championships before switching over to the CanAm League; and inevitably folding operations.


And there-in lies our segway intended for the Newark Bears Baseball Club.


So how did the two time Atlantic League Champions do in their first year playing in the CanAm League? 


Well..., they finished 41-52 overall; good for 6th place.  Their finish was only one win better than the 7th place expansion Rockland Boulders' record.  And the last place New York Federals shouldn't be entered into this conversation as they were pretty much drafted into service.


Offensively, the Bears wound up being a light hitting group after Daryle Ward's contract was purchased and Tim Raines Jr.'s season tailed off.  Daryle Ward was a key slugger right up until his departure.  And after a furious start, fans as well as his team mates; not to mention his Pop; watched Tim Raines Jr.'s production fizzle in the second half of the season. 


If anyone, you'd have to declare Danny Santiesteban the team's offensive MVP.  His .328 batting average was tops on the team and ranked eighth in the league.  His team leading 74 RBI were only six off the top spot.  But 13 home runs; while good enough to lead the Bears; was a distant ten knocks from the CanAm leader.  Danny also finished first on the Bears in games; doubles; and triples.


Brandon Watson still qualifies as a Most Valuable Bear.  He led the Newark Bears in runs scored; at-bats; and hits.  His .323 batting avg. ranked second on the team only a few percentage points behind Santiesteban's mark as well as being second to him in games played.


But Quebec's championship proved you didn't need to slug your way towards a title.  What you needed was pitching; pitching; and more pitching.  Unlike Quebec, that's something the Bears didn't have in abundance.  No; in this department, the Bears were hungry for help.


Twenty-seven year old starting pitcher; Alex Smith was the only berry they really had.  Alex Smith pitched to a 10-3 record for the Newark Bears which ranked him sixth in the circuit.  The CanAm leader had fourteen wins.  His 3.39 ERA was quite remarkable considering he walked more batters that he struck out; fifty-six versus fifty-two.  In 111.2 inning pitched, he allowed 103 hits.  After Alex Smith, pitching was the Bears' Achilles heel all season long.  And many times; too many times; Coach Raines was forced into very unconventional methods of handling his pitchers.


But how did they do?


They joined the CanAm League for a reason; primarily because of their struggles at the gate.  The title goes back to Quebec again; the league attendance champs.  They pulled in three times more fans than the Bears did.  And what of Newark's nearest neighbors?  The expansion Rockland Bouders led the contingent of American based teams.  They along with Quebec were the only clubs to break the 100,000 mark.  New Jersey pulled in 85,000 fans which ranked them 5th in the league and 35,000 fans ahead of Newark.  New Jersey averaged 1,700 fans per game.  Newark was the only team beside Pittsfield, not to average better than 1,000 fans per game.  And in Pittsfield's case, their attendance situation is understandable.


The plan was to switch Independent leagues so as to cut operating costs due to the club's falling on hard times.  The Atlantic League became too costly for them to operate in while faced with an increasingly absent fan base.  And so the CanAm League provided a financially friendlier alternative in which to continue operations.  Did it help?  I have no idea.  I'm not privy to that information.  Do I hope it helped?  Absolutely.


With the conclusion of this past season, the book keepers may have truly realized a tangible and welcome reduction in costs.  But did it put the Bears and Newark Baseball on a safer river bank of survivability; even if just by a few salmon?  Again, I wouldn't know that.  But I still sense the Bears live a precarious existence.



With the recent maelstrom resulting from Fred Wilpon's blocking the N.Y. Yankees from placing their AAA-Scranton club in Newark's Riverfront Stadium for one season now subsided, I for one didn't see how that would have been a good situation for the Newark Bears, outside of some cosmetic upgrades to the park and a token infusion of petty cash. 


And here's why.


Newark baseball needs a permanent solution.   And it needs to be untethered from affiliated baseball. They need an incredibly original thought that does not take Gotham City into account.   That’s every-one’s problem.   They are Newark; not NYC.   They need something done independently with the concentration focused wholly on Newark and where the fan base should be coming from.  Their base gate must come from the nearby neighborhoods in order for any team to survive there.   They are surrounded by organizations respectively pulling in healthy gate receipts.; including a once gate challenged S.I. Yankees club just few years ago, who are now coming off their three best years attendance wise.


A one year stop in Brick City by a prospecting travelling road show would have done more harm to Newark than good.   The more I think about it, the worse I think the idea of having upper-level minor league ball around here is.   It’s akin to allowing Wal-Mart into the city and effectively putting Mom-and-Pops out of business.  Why snub noses at the Law of Diminished Returns?   Minor League Baseball teams are very important pieces of local economies outside the NY metro area.   It’s best if they remain on the outskirts of town.   We need to stop being so centric about where we live and how much clout we think it brings.


So with the Scranton Yankees planned invasion safely behind them now, the Bears need minds who can make Baseball work in Brick City and get them standing on their own four paws again.  Carpet Baggers need not apply.  Newark needs a Newark inspired solution.


Perhaps, until then, hibernation will go well for the resilient urban Bears, and a season of plenty finally comes their way next Spring.





Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Trying To Claw Their Way Back Above .500

From the desk of:  THE BRICK CITY NINE



NEWARK BEARS:  Even Series With Quebec; Game Three Tonight.


The Bears have played the Quebec Capitales well this season.  And they continued Friday night with a win against Quebec in game two of a four game series up in the Great White North.


After getting shut-out 4-0 Thursday night in the series opener, it took eleven innings to gain victory Friday.  Three runs in the top of the frame sealed the deal for visiting Newark and spoiled things for the home crowd.  Sacre Bleu!  The game was a step in the right direction against a good team, as the Bears are struggling to get above .500 again.  They are currently two games under the mark and perhaps they can get things going in a more positive direction during the rest of this trip in Canada.


I guess you can say; Bears' starter; Alex Smith did it again.  He walked a bunch of batters; which is his custom; but yet, was relatively effective over 5.2 innings.  Quebec scored one time in the second inning.  The Bears staked Alex Smith to a 3-1 lead after five innings on RBI singles by Brad Jackson and Brandon Watson.  Then Alex got into trouble in the bottom of the sixth and surrendered the tying runs.


Newarks' bullpen was stellar and kept the Capitales scoreless in relief of Smith until Quebec scored one time in the bottom of the 11th inning.  Anthony Pluta; TJ Hose; and Matt Fitton; combined on four innings; no runs; two hits; 2 walks; and five strikeouts.  Newly signed Gregory Lane finished the game for Newark.  He allowed Quebec one run, but was credited with the win.


Back-to-back doubles by Brandon Watson and Paddy Matera drove home all three Newark runs in the top of the 11th inning to get the Bears on the winning side.

TONIGHT

Canadian/American League of Baseball

GAME THREE of FOUR

NEWARK BEARS (1-1)

vs.

Quebec Capitales (1-1)

From

North of the Border, Canada

 

MIKE.BTB

Newark Bears ~ End July With Win

From the desk of:  THE BRICK CITY NINE





NEWARK BEARS: Bears Shut-Out Brockton To Close July Above The .500 Mark.

Second Half - The first place team; Brockton Rox; came into Newark Friday night and had their way with the Bears, defeating them in the first two games of a three game series by a combined score of
24-9.  Today, in the last game of July, the Bears salvaged game three of the series by shutting-out the Rox 5-0 and by doing so, kept themselves above the .500 mark (31-30) and two games out of first place in the second half race.


Newarks' number one starter, Alex Smith, played stopper in shutting down Brockton over his six innings pitched.  He allowed the Rox only three hits, but walked three while only striking out one.  He improved his record to 7-2 on the season which is only two wins behind the CanAm League leader.  His now 2.93 ERA is the League's sixth best.  Three Bear relievers chipped in with an inning apiece to complete the shutout.


The Pittsfield Colonials will be visiting The Den for a three game series to begin the August schedule.  The regular season ends Labor Day Weekend.  The Quebec Capitales have already clinched a spot in the 2011 playoffs.  Thirty-three games remain in the Newark Bears' season.





Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Looking To Finish 1st Half Strong

From the desk of:  GROWLINGS FROM BROOKLYN


NEWARK BEARS:  Still Trying To Get A Piece Of
Fourth Place.


The Bears will end the season's first half against none other than the CanAm's first half clincher; Quebec Capitales in a three game series at The Den in Newark.


A hot start by the Bears this season turned into a tail spin which dropped them below .500 at times.  They've been hovering around that mark ever since.  Facing the League's first place club Thursday, the Newark Bears gained an inconsequential game on Quebec, and scratched their way to a game above .500 again.


The Bears tail-spin came on the heals of rising to second place with an 18-11 record.  Since then they have gone 5-11 and currently sit in fifth place; and after tonight, drew within 10.5 games of Quebec.


In game one of this last first half series, Tim Raines Jr. and Daryle Ward both homered, supplying Bears' starter, Alex Smith, with all six runs he'd need tonight.  They gave him an early 2-0 in the first when Tim Raines Jr. hit the Capitales' Matthew Rusch's seventh pitch of the inning out for his 8th home run, scoring Brandon Watson who singled to lead off the game.


In the sixth inning, Daryle Ward blasted a two run homer, scoring Tim Raines Jr., to give the Bears a 4-0 lead.  The lead became 6-0 in the seventh when Daryle Ward drove in two more unearned runs with a single.


Starter, Alex Smith gave Coach Raines what this team has needed so desperately; a starting pitcher who can pitch into the late innings of a game.  Thursday evening, Alex Smith gave his team 7.2 innings against the League's best team.  He walked five batters to give the Capitales hope.  But he surrendered only one hit.  They scored twice off him, but only one run was earned.


The bullpen preserved the Bears' twenty-second victory of the season versus twenty-one losses.


Matt Fitton pitched 0.2 innings following Smith.  He gave up three hits and allowed Quebec's third run of the game.  But Mikey Mehlich was called on to close the game.  After taking a tough loss Wednesday night against New York, he pitched the final 0.2 innings; no runs; no hits; no walks; one strikeout - earning him his seventh Save of the season.


Pittsfield sits 0.5 games ahead of Newark; in fourth place.  The Bears with try and gain way against Quebec again tomorrow in game two of this series, while the Pittsfield Colonials will play at Rockland.  Newark is 2.5 games behind third place Brockton.




Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Whoa Canada

From the desk of:  THE BRICK CITY NINE



NEWARK BEARS:  CanAm League's Top Team Sweeps the Brick City Nine in Forgettable First Trip to Canada.


Last week's CanAm LHP of the Week; Alex Smith of the Bears; couldn't corral the Capitales earlier this afternoon in Quebec.  As a result, Newark lost to the Capitales completing a three game sweep on their Northern road. 


Hoping to go into Canada and close the gap between them and the CanAm League's top club, the Bears wound up losing three more games in the standings and today remain tied for third place with the Pittsfield Colonials.  Both teams have identical 16-14 records; 7.5 games out of first.  New Jersey is solidly in second place.


Poor defense in the first inning dropped the Bears and Alex Smith into an early hole.  Two unearned runs were part of a 3-0 start for Quebec.  On the other side, one of Quebec's many quality starters; Matthew Rusch; took his turn on the mound and started out well before Newark caught up to him also.  And after six innings, both teams were tied at five apiece.

With the game turned over to the bullpens, Newark's T.J. Hose was charged with pitching the eighth inning.  Two singles and a double later, the Bears were trailing by a run again.


T.J. Stanton pitched the ninth inning for Quebec and retired the Bears in order to gain the Save.  Dexter Bobo pitched the eighth inning for the Capitales and was the game's winning pitcher.



BEAR CLAWS:
Daryle Ward ~ 1 for 4; Home Run; 2 RBI.
Danny Santiesteban ~ 2 for 4; Home Run; 2 RBI.



The Bears get a day off Monday to travel back home to The Den where they'll host the Pittsfield Colonials for a four game series starting Tuesday.




Independent League NEWS:

ATLANTIC LEAGUE ~ During the bottom of the fourth inning in a game between the Lancaster Barnstormers and the Somerset Patriots, Lancaster manager; Butch Hobson; argued over a play at first base with the first base umpire .

A heated Butch Hobson then gestured as if to throw the Umpire out of the game.  Well, that bought Hobson an ejection.  Coach Hobson then repeated the gesture throwing the Umpire out of the game again.  He then removed the first base bag out of the ground and took it with him to the dugout, where he retrieved a Sharpie; signed the bag; and gave it to a young fan in the first row.  The home crowd went wild as the game continued without a first base bag.



Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Worcester Tornadoes Rip Through The Den

From the desk of:  THE BRICK CITY NINE

NEWARK BEARS: Series Against Worcester Tied 1-1.

Game One:  Monday Final - Bears 4;  Tornadoes 3

Newark's DH; Kyle LaMotta; drove in the winning run in the bottom of the ninth inning Monday night in the first game of a four game series against the visiting Worcester Tornadoes.

Anthony Pluta got the win in relief as Coach Raines used four Bears' pitchers to eek out a win.  Aaron Kalb started for Newark and lasted 5.1 innings.  He gave up six hits and all three of Worcester's earned runs.  He walked four and struck out four along the way.

The bullpen took over for Newark and turned in a stellar effort.  Chris Collins was called on first.  He turned in 1.2 innings and gave up one hit.  Second out of the pen was Matt Fitton.  In 1.1 innings, he gave up a walk; one hit; and pounded the catcher's mitt with three strikeouts.  Anthony Pluta closed it out and earned a win as the beneficiary of Kyle LaMotta's game winning hit.

Game Two:  Tuesday Final - Tornadoes 10;  Bears 4

Starting pitcher Alex Smith and the Bears suffered a calamitous first inning against Worcester.  Three errors; two walks; and three hits all led to an quick 5-0 deficit.  Only one Tornado run was earned.  And after only two innings pitched, it was off to the showers for Smith.

Recently signed shortstop; Juan Martinez (Jeff Toth was released); committed two of the Bears' errors while right fielder Danny Santiesteban committed the third Newark miscue of the inning with an errant throw.


Over the third and fourth innings, things just proceeded to get worse for Newark.  Three more runs came across the plate for a 8-0 Worcester lead.  Eric Eden was summoned to pitch in the third inning as Coach Raines made an early call to the bullpen.  And Eric fared little better.  He pitched 4.1 innings and allowed Worcester another five runs on eight hits. 


Last night's winning pitcher; Anthony Pluta; was then called upon to take over in the seventh.  But the Bears were behind 10-3 by then and had committed six errors in the game.  Pluta pitched a scoreless eighth.  Mikey Mehlich was tasked with the ninth inning as the third reliever used by Coach Raines.  He served up a scoreless inning with two strikeouts.


Worcester starting pitcher; Ryan Bicondoa cruised, but ran out of gas in the fifth inning.  After getting the first two outs, he allowed three straight singles before walking Danny Santiesteban with the bases loaded for the Bears' first run of the game.  Over his first four innings however, he struck out nine Newark batters, while allowing only three hits and two walks.


The Tornado bullpen picked up where Bicondoa left off.  Worcesters' relievers struck out another six batters in wrapping up the second game of this four game series; knotting things up at a game apiece.  Danny Santiesteban was ejected after striking out looking for the second out of the ninth inning.


Fifteen hits and six errors; you can't win like that.  And that's the kind of game it was for the Bears; frustrating.


The Brockton Rox defeated the Rockland Boulders tonight, and coupled with the Bears loss, means the two teams are tied again for second place overall in the CanAm League with 15-10 records respectively.



Mike.BTB

Newark Bears ~ Take Rubber Game Against Worcester Tornadoes

From the desk of:  GROWLINGS FROM BROOKLYN


NEWARK BEARS:  Leave Worcester With Second Best Record In CanAm League.


FINAL:
BEARS...........6
Tornadoes......1

Newark wins first series between each other two games to one.



The Worcester Tornadoes won their first shut out of the season Tuesday night against these Bears, and they were looking to do it again in the rubber game of this series.   Worcester starter; Nick Serino; and Bears' starter; Alex Smith traded zeroes through the first sixth innings.


The Bears were stymied trying to overcome a one and two run deficit last night and were having trouble again getting on the scoreboard Wednesday.


But with the commencement of the seventh inning, the second game started; i.e. - late innings.  Serino started the seventh but got into quick trouble.  Worcester deferred to their bullpen with Ryan Walfield.  And by the time the seventh inning was over, the Bears were leading 5-0.  The Bears' at-bat was highlighted by an RBI single by Kyle LaMotta; Brandon Watson had an RBI sac fly; Tim Raines Jr.'s two run triple; and a double by Ward scored Raines.


Alex Smith completed the seventh inning for Newark before he too was done for the evening.  He left surrendering only four hits and no runs allowed.  A high, five walks and two strikeouts complete his line.  It was his third win this season.


Chris Rollins would give up a run in one inning of relief and Mikey Mehlich closed out the ninth in a non-save situation.


The win improves the Bears' record to a League second best 13-7, behind Quebec.


After a travel day tomorrow, the Bears start a series against Brockton in Newark.




Mike.BTB

NEWARK BEARS ~ Brick City ROX Brockton

From the desk of:  GROWLINGS FROM BROOKLYN

NEWARK BEARS: Team's First Trip To Brockton Starts Off With Win Over Rox.

Last week against Quebec, I caught a listen of the Brockton Rox web caster in between games of a double header, who had nary a good thing to say about the Bears.  During last night's web cast, it seemed he picked up where I left him off last.

So when 3,012 Brockton fans watched their home town team lose to the Bears by a score of 6-4 last night in the opening game of a three game series, I was pleased.  Payback is a real stitch in the baseballs sometimes.  The Bears might not have even realized their honor was at stake last night. 

But I did.  *wink!

In rehashing what happened to the Rox in his post-game wrap, my new favorite announcer was in a quandary as whether to credit the Bears for hitting three home runs, or rationalize that his starting pitcher was just missing pitches.  He reminded his audience countless times the Bears' Ward, Raines, and Watson, who all homered in this game, all had Major League experience.  ...And his point was?


But to his credit, he called them pesky.  Gee Wally!  Thanks.  However, he did say they'd be a problem for the Rox this season and would give them trouble for sure.  And that's the fairest thing I heard him say about the Bears in two opportunities I had to listen-in on his call.


So, Brockton's starting pitcher; Mike Smith; was just missing pitches.  Riiight.  The Newark Bears place four hitters within the top ten batters in the league.  Tim Raines Jr., who fell below .400 last night is second in the League with a .397 batting average.  Daryle Ward is fourth sporting a .372 average.  Billy Alvino is fifth with a .370 average and Danny Santiesteban is seventh with a .350 average.  Not enough for ya?  At number eleven in the League?  Newark's DH, Brandon Watson is batting .338 also.  So yea...I can see where Mike Smith was just missing pitches last night.


In addition to his fifth home run of the season, Tim Raines Jr. upped his League leading RBI total to twenty.


The Bears' starter; Alex Smith; walked four batters and as such, didn't have as neat a line as Mike Smith did.  But Alex Smith made sure the five runs his offense scored for him held up and in the process earned himself his second win of the season.

BROCKTON ROX

NEWARK BEARS

TONIGHT

(Bears lead series 1-0)

NEWARK BEARS

vs.

Brockton Rox

GAME TWO

From somewhere up in Massachusetts

Mike.BTB

NEWARK BEARS ~ Monday Morning Baseball. See You There!

From the desk of:  Growlings from Brooklyn



NEWARK BEARS:  Brick City Nine Looking To Sweep Five Game Set Today Versus N.Y. Federals.

THE TROLLEY.... IS HEADED TO NEWARK TODAY!!!


Tim Raines Jr. sat out Saturday after getting hit by a pitch in Friday's second game of the series against the N.Y. Federals.  He returned to action to the delight of Newark fans for yesterday's game. 


But with and without Tim, the Newark Bears still went on to win the first four games of this five game set being played in Bears and Eagles Riverfront Stadium.  They'll conclude the series early in this afternoon today with an 11:00am start.


Saturday Final:
N.Y. Federals....2
NWK Bears.......5


Sunday Final:
N.Y. Federals....3
NWK Bears.......5


After this weekend's action, the Bears now find themselves in third place behind second place Quebec, and the League leading Brockton Rox club.  Leading up to this series with the Feds, the Bears found themselves precipitously close to the League's basement where the Feds currently reside.  From a 2-4 record then, they've gotten healthy playing New York and now sport a 6-4 mark and stand a mere two games out of first place.


Sunday, Newark's Kyle LaMotta took his turn at a big day in the lead-off spot for Newark.  He doubled and homered in the course of his 3 for 4 day; with an RBI and three runs scored. 


Tim Raines Jr. quietly returned Sunday with a 1 for 4 day batting in the third spot this time.  He did however pick up his league leading 12th RBI of the season.  Coach Raines has mostly penciled Jr. into the second slot.  But he's tried batting him clean-up and now took a try at batting him third.  Tim Jr. has been most effective out of the two slot.  ...Just some food for thought there.


Bears' starting pitcher Alex Smith kept things nice and easy for himself and the Bears over his seven innings pitched.  He only allowed the Feds three hits, walked two, and had four strikeouts.  He threw 86 pitches with 52 of them going for strikes.  It was Alex's first win of the season in two starts.


One first deserves another.  Victor Gonzalez pitched the ninth inning recording his first save of the season.

Game five of this series starts in about one and a half hours.  I plan on being there today to root for the Bears and take in some sun; rest; and relaxation a on a weekday off day for me.  Maybe I'll see you there.  TWEET me up.






Mike.BTB

NEWARK BEARS ~ Lose In First Visit To Yogi Berra Stadium

From the desk of:  Growlings from Brooklyn

The Essex County Executive's Cup Challenge

The Inaugural Series is tied 1-1.

Game Three ~ Tomorrow

June 1, 2011

New Jersey Jackals

Newark Bears

NEWARK BEARS:  N.J. Jackals Take Game Two In This New Rivalry Between Neighbors.

FINAL:

Newark  6
New Jersey  7



I listened to a very entertaining game tonight on web-cast as Newark made their first ever trip into their new rival's park; Yogi Berra Stadium; home of the New Jersey Jackals, for game two of the Essex County Series.  Game one was played in, and won by Newark last Sunday.  After an off day yesterday, the newly christened rivalry series made it's debut in Little Falls as part of a home-and-home.

I'm sure the end result of tonight's game wasn't quite what the Bears had in mind.  But like I said, it was an absolute good listen even though it snapped a short two game win streak for Newark.  The Bears record now stands at 2-3 for the young season.

The Bears and Jackals traded first inning runs.  Then Newark broke out with four more in the top of the second inning.  An error, a wild pitch, and three Newark hits, including a Tim Raines Jr. double, had the Jackals down 5-1 early.

New Jersey immediately started chipping away at that lead.  They got a run back in the bottom of the second inning.  After two more New Jersey runs in the third, and another run in the sixth inning, we had a tie game.

Then came the decisive eighth inning.  Newark's Billy Alvino singled to lead off the Bear's eighth.  The Bears regained the lead 6-5, when Tim Raines Jr. stepped in again and tripled home Alvino. 

On a side note, after going hitless on the first two games of the season, Tim Raines Jr. has been a hitter possessed.  He had another four hits tonight (4 for 5) to go along with two RBI.  Tonight's effort raised his batting average to a lofty .429 and climbing.

But the Jackals had something else in mind this evening other than losing a second straight game to the Bears and marveling at Raines.  A double by Jeremy Slayden and a two run home run by Chris White gave New Jersey their first lead of the night in late dramatic fashion.  The Jackals bullpen put the Bears to rest in the top of the ninth by striking out two batters to finish this game off; a game which the Bears seemed in control of for most of the night but still sensed it slipping with every home run New Jersey clubbed out tonight (three to be exact).

Alex Smith started this game for Newark and to his detriment, allowed New Jersey to hang around in those first few innings.  But he pitched five innings and was staked to a 5-4 lead when Newark turned to their bullpen.  Andrew Pluta relieved Smith and had an outing he'd much sooner forget.  In three innings work, he gave up five hits and three runs; and more importantly the lead.  He was tabbed with tonight's loss.  For Alex Smith, a drab no decision.


Newark and New Jersey finish this three game series tomorrow, Wednesday, at Yogi Berra Stadium with an 11:05AM start time.






Mike.BTB