Michigan Battle Cats at Cedar Rapids Kernels
June 1st, 2002
| Michigan |
|
|
2 |
0 |
0 |
|
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
0 |
0 |
1 |
|
|
3 |
7 |
2 |
| Cedar Rapids |
|
|
1 |
0 |
1 |
|
0 |
3 |
2 |
|
5 |
0 |
X |
|
|
12 |
13 |
0 |
E-Mote, Stegall, LOB MIC-10, CR-6, 2B-Mote, Turner, Eylward, 3B-Gorneault, Murphy, HR-Turner (Houlton), McPherson (Houlton), SACF-Checksfield, Mathis, Melgarejo 2
WP-Santana, O'Sullivan, SO-Rodriguez, Hodges, Conrad, Lydic, Obradovich 2, Stegall 3, Lucas, Likely 2, Turner, Kotchman, McPherson, Kimpton, BB-Rodriguez, Conrad, Tremblay, Mote, Obradovich, Stegall, Kotchman, Gorneault, Eylward, Melgarejo
T-2:38, A-4,038
U-Brandon Leopoldus, David Uyl
Battle Creek Enquirer
Battle Cat starter D.J. Houlton suffered his first loss of the season as the Kernels belted the Cats 12-3 to end Michigan's five game winning streak.
Houlton, who entered the game 7-0, took the loss after working five innings and allowing six runs.
Cedar Rapids ripped 13 hits on the game in racing to the easy victory.
Cedar Rapids Gazette
by Jeff Johnson
When you read their individual biographies before the season begam, you saw there were some potentially good players on this team.
Then you watched them lose close game after close game and stagger through a long nine game losing streak in late April and early May.
Yet you somehow always had that feeling good times would be coming. Those godd times are offically here.
The Cedar Rapids Kernels won their season high fifth straight game Saturday night, treating a large house of 3,332 (4,038 paid) at Memorial Stadium to a sweet 12-3 blasting of Michigan. The attendence was the second largest of the season at the new ballpark.
"We've won a few in a row here, and our team has come together," said Kernels third baseman Dallas McPherson. "We've always had that chemistry. But lately we've been able to put it all together the whole game. Defense, pitching and hitting all at the same time."
The Kernels (30-24) took care of South Bend, the team with the worst record in the Midwest League, for the first four wins in this streak. But Saturday's blowout was more legitimate.
It came over an Eastern Divison leading Michigan team that was 32-22 coming in and had won five in a row, Cedar Rapids even spotted Michigan a pair of first inning runs.
But this was simply a night when the Kernels' bats were on not to mention just about everything else.
"We went out and swung the bats. That's about all I can say." said Kernels manager Todd Claus "We swung the bats. You're going to have those games."
Cedar Rapids pounded out 13 hits, six for extra bases. That included a leadoff home run in the first by Justin Turner and a two run shot in the fifth by McPherson, his first long one since May 5.
Turner went 3 for 5, missing only a triple for the cycle. Every starting Kernel scored at least one run and eight of the nine had at least one hit.
"A lot of us played on the same team last season (at Provo) and we dominated. In short season ball," McPherson said, "We had a great spring training. We've got all those names people are talking about."
"(And) we've developed great chemistry, Claus has done a great job holding it all together during our nine game losing streak. We knoew we were better than that. We knoew we could win."
Starting pitcher Ervin Santana (4-4) settled down after a rocky first that included walks to the first two batters and notched his first victory since May 5. Finding his breaking ball after the first. Santana ended up going six innings, allowing four hits and five walks, striking out seven.
Michigan starter D.J. Houlton, who had a 7-0 record and 2.06 earned run average coming in, took the loss.
How They Scored
Top 1st
Mike Rodriguez and Brooks Conrad drew walks from Ervin Santana. Todd Shelf singled to left to load the bases with none out. Steve Checksfield hit a sacrifice fly to score Rodriguez and move Conrad to third. Trevor Mote scored Conrad with an RBI groundout to second.
Bottom 1st
Justin Turner led off with a home run to right center off D.J. Houlton.
Bottom 3rd
Ransel Melgarejo got a leadoff walk, went to third on a hit and run single to right by Turner and scored on a sacrifice fly by Jeff Mathis.
Bottom 5th
Turner doubled to left center and scored on Mathis' RBI single up the middle. McPherson hit a two out, two run homer run to right.
Bottom 6th
Mark Hamilton relieved. Greg Porter reached first on short stop Ryan Stegall's throwing error. Mike Eylward walked. Tommy Murphy reached second, with Porter scoring and Eylward going to third on third baseman Trevor Mote's error. A Melgarejo sacrifice fly to right score Eylward.
Bottom 7th
Casey Kotchman led off with a single and scored on Nick Gorneault's triple to right. Gorneault scored on Porter's run scoring single to right. Eylward doubled down the third base line, sending Porter to third and chasing Hamilton. Murphy greeted reliever Brian Rodaway with a two run triple to center. murphy scored on Melgarejo's sacrifice fly to center.
Top 9th
Mark O'Sullivan pitching for Cedar Rapids. Matt Lucas had leadoff single and scored on a one out RBI groundout by Randy Rojas