And Then There Was One
No matter what type of season it is, a baseball campaign always seems to fly by. Today marks the beginning of the 2010 Appalachian League’s final week.
When you get into the routine of a season, it is easy to dismiss the excitement and the pleasure that comes with the job. A friend asked me a few days ago a question that lingered with me for a while: “It must be cool to be calling a playoff chase in the minors, huh?”
Yes it is. No doubt about it.
For everyone who supports this club, it must be fun, whether you are a long time supporter of Burlington baseball and have not seen a playoff run in a while or you are a friend or family member supporting a young man gunning for his first playoff appearance at the affiliated level.
For me, with this being my first year in the minors as a broadcaster/blogger/writer/etc., it has been such a treat.
Now, without further ado, today’s Bullets.
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BURLINGTON BULLETS:
- There is little doubt that Burlington’s most consistent bat all year long has been Ryan Stovall. The ’09 19th-round selection leads the team with a .315 batting average. Throughout this season, which has taken him to both Burlingtons and Wilmington, Stovall is hitting .284 in 75 games. As Royals skipper Nelson Liriano always talks about, finishing strong is more important than starting fast. Over his last 10 games, Stovall is hitting .381 (16-for-42) with five RBIs and six runs.
- His best evening of the season came last night, posting a 4-for-5 effort with a pair of runs. From a win-loss standpoint, last night’s game may have been Burlington’s most important victory, and Stovall knows it. “We’re trying to make a little, late playoff push,” Stovall said. “Pulaski’s got a good squad…but we took care of business, and it is a very big confidence boost.”
- Just a few other notes on Stovall this year. There is verly little difference in his numbers against lefties (.324, 2 HR, 8 RBI) versus righties (.310, 2 HR, 15 RBI). When Burlington does not have anyone aboard, Stovall likes to get things going, as he is the owner of a .369 batting average with the bases empty. “He’s always a positive guy,” Liriano said. “When the game starts, he is 100 percent focused on the game, and he plays hard every single time. He hustles all the time, runs the bases hard…For us, he brings a lot because he does a lot on the field.”
- Speaking of offense, the Royals stil aren’t crushing the baseball, and that’s the area that needs the mots improvement in the season’s final week according to the second-year manager. “[We need to] continue to swing at better pitches,” Liriano said. “Sometimes, we miss good pitches to hit in fastball counts. If we do that in the last seven days like we’ve been doing in the last three series, we’re going to win a lot of games.”
- The Royals’ pitching staff continues to work wonders, and last night was no different with Jonathan Dooley’s five shutout innings. Throw out Jon Keck’s tough outing Sunday at Pulaski, and the other four starters worked 26 innings and allowed only one run. The rotation starts another go-around today with Crawford Simmons on the bump.
- Former B-Royal Chas Byrne has struggled a little bit during his first week with low-A Burlington. The righty has given up four runs on three hits in two innings of work over the course of a pair of outings, both coming against Beloit.
- Three other former Burlington boys are with the Bees. Reliever Josh Worrell is currently on the seven-day disabled list, but he has only surrendered one run over six innings. Fellow right-handed reliever Ryan Wood, who was only here for a short time, has allowed five runs in four and a third frames. And shortstop Alex McClure is hitting .242 (15-for-62) with six RBIs and ten runs.
- With only seven games left, it is impossible to ignore the standings now. Burlington sits two games behind the Braves for second place. Danville isn’t far from the Royals, as the Braves are at Greeneville for a three-game set this week. Tonight, Ronan Pacheco (3–5, 6.50 ERA), who already lost to the Astros last Friday, will go up against Greeneville’s Euris Quezada (3–2, 5.33 ERA).
- Don’t forget about those Princeton Rays. Michael Johns’ crew is only a half game behind the Royals and two and a half back of the Braves. But the Rays have a tough series at Johnson City, with Eliazer Suero (1–4, 3.10 ERA) going against the Cardinals’ Kevin Siegrist (3–2, 1.78 ERA) in the opener this evening.
Our pre-game coverage gets going at 6:30 with the “Royals Series Report,” as I had a chance to chat with Kingsport skipper and former big league catcher Mike DiFelice. Then, the Pre-Game Show brought to you by Best Western at 6:45, followed by first pitch at 7. Enjoy the broadcast!
- Brian
