Tag Archives: Brent Clevlen

August 12, 2012 · 5:27 am

Suns Stumble In Late Innings

 

The BayBears scored six times in the final three innings, erasing a 4-0 deficit for a 6-4 win over the Suns at the Baseball Grounds August 11, 2012. Photo Courtesy: Jacksonville Suns

By Steve Kolbe

The Jacksonville Suns let one slip away on Saturday night at the Baseball Grounds.  After the Suns built a 4-0 lead over the BayBears through six innings, Mobile scored six runs in the final three innings for a 6-5 win.  The loss, combined with the Montgomery Biscuits walk-off win in the ninth inning on Saturday, dropped the Suns back into a first place tie with the Biscuits in the South Division.  Three of the BayBears four wins in August have been at the expense of the Suns.
 
The Suns took the lead in the second inning against BayBears starter Chase Anderson.  After singles by Kyle Skipworth and Ben Lasater, Kyle Jensen launched a three-run home run over the left field fence to put Jacksonville up 3-0.  It was the third home run that Anderson has allowed to the Suns in his last two starts.  Jensen has hit four of his 15 home runs this season against Mobile, and he has three three-run homers on the year, all off of BayBears pitching.  The Suns have hit a total of 16 home runs against the BayBears, second-most against any team (23 against Pensacola). 
 
Jacksonville increased the lead in the home half of the fifth when Chris Gutierrez reached second base on a throwing error by shortstop Chris Owings, and scored on a RBI single by Danny Pertusati to make the score 4-0.  Pertusati has 12 hits and a dozen RBI’s against the BayBears this season in the two series that he has played. 
 
Suns starter Brian Flynn was in line for his third straight win when he left the game in the seventh inning with the bases loaded.  Reliever Mike Ojala entered, and pinch hitter Kyle Greene singled to left field to plate the BayBears first run and make the score 4-1.  Ojala then walked Evan Frey to force in a run and the Suns lead was cut in half at 4-2.  Collin Cargill entered the game and struck out Alfredo Marte with the bases loaded to end the threat. 
 
In the eighth, the BayBears would send eight men to the plate for the second straight inning.  Matt Davidson was hit by Cargill to lead off the inning, and Brent Clevlen walked to put runners on first and second.  With one out, David Nick singled to left with Davidson scoring on the play to trim the Suns lead to 4-3.  Edgar Olmos then entered the game from the busy Suns bullpen on the pitching change, and walked Ed Easley to load the bases for a second straight inning.  Evan Frey then delivered with a single to drive in two runs and hand the BayBears their first lead of the night 5-4.
 
The Suns evened the score in the bottom of the eighth against Mobile closer Evan Marshall.  Kyle Skipworth doubled to lead off the inning, and scored when Ben Lasater singled to left to tie the game 5-5.  It was Marshall’s fifth blown save of the season. 
 
Walks continued to trouble the Suns in the ninth, when Olmos put the leadoff hitter Alfredo Marte aboard with a free pass.  Jordan Conley entered the game for the Suns bullpen with one out in the ninth, and hit Brent Clevlen with a pitch to put runners on first and second.  BayBears first baseman Ryan Strieby had entered the game with just two hits in the series, but his single in the ninth on Saturday drove in Marte from second with the game-winning run in the BayBears 6-5 win.  After collecting just two hits in the first six innings of the game, Mobile scored six times on six hits in the final three frames of the night.
 
The Suns lost for just the third time this season when leading after the seventh inning, with all three defeats at the Baseball Grounds.  The Mississippi Braves scored five runs in the ninth for an 8-5 win July 20th, and the Huntsville Stars plated a pair of runs to slip past the Suns 5-4 April 6th.  Jacksonville lost for the first time this season when leading a game by four or more runs.  The Mobile BayBears have a record of 59-60, with 15 of their wins against the Suns (25-percent).
 
Ben Lasater went 4-for-4 with four singles, and he is 10-for-11 in the series.  Kyle Skipworth and Kyle Jensen each collected two hits.  David Nick finished 2-for-5 with a RBI and a run scored for Mobile.  Evan Frey drove in three of the BayBears six runs on the night.  Suns pitchers combined to walk six BayBears batters, with three coming around to score.
 
Neither starter figured in the decision.  Suns lefty Brian Flynn allowed two runs on three hits over his six innings.  BayBears starter Chase Anderson allowed four runs on seven hits in his four and two-thirds innings of work.  Edgar Olmos (0-1) was charged with the game-winning run in the loss.  Evan Marshall (6-2) pitched an inning for the win.  Eury De La Rosa earned his third save of the season after nearly allowing a walk-off home run to Jake Smolinski in the bottom of the ninth, but the ball went foul down the left field line.
 
The series finale is set for Sunday at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville with the first pitch scheduled for 6:05 p.m.   LHP Jose Alvarez (5-6, 3.48) will start his 21st game of the season for the Suns.  LHP David Holmberg (3-4, 3.68) will take the mound for the BayBears.
 
 
 
 

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August 10, 2012 · 4:15 am

BayBears End Suns Winning Streak

 

The Mobile BayBears defeated the Suns 6-2 at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. The loss ended the Suns nine-game home winning streak. Photo Courtesy: Jacksonville Suns

By Steve Kolbe

The Jacksonville Suns nine-game home winning streak came to an end, with a 6-2 loss to the Mobile BayBears on Thursday night at the Baseball Grounds.   The Suns loss, combined with the Biscuits 6-4 win over the Jackson Generals, dropped Jacksonville into a first place tie with Montgomery in the South Division. 
 
Mobile took the lead in the top of the fourth inning against Suns starter Graham Taylor.  After Alfredo Marte led off with a walk and Matt Davidson singled, Brent Clevlen belted a three-run home run to left field to put the BayBears up 3-0.  It’s the 13th home run that Taylor has surrendered this season.  Since returning to Mobile from Triple-A Reno, Clevlen has reached base in 11 straight games.  The Suns dropped to 15-40 when allowing the first run of the game.
 
After being held without a hit through the first four innings by BayBears starter Mike Bolsinger, the Suns dented the scoreboard in the home half of the fifth.  Alfredo Lopez singled and Graham Taylor walked to put runners on first and second with one out.  Jake Smolinski then launched a 3-0 pitch down the left field line toward the foul pole, with the ball bouncing off the top of the wall mere inches from a game-tying three-run home run.  Lopez scored from second on the play to make the score 3-1, with Taylor going to second base and Smolinski being held to a long single.  Paul Gran then singled to load the bases, and Zack Cox singled up the middle with Taylor scoring from third to cut the lead to 3-2, but Smolinski was thrown out by center fielder Evan Frey on a close play at the plate.
 
Mobile increased the lead in the eighth inning against Suns reliever Arquimedes Caminero.  Matt Davidson walked and Brent Clevlen singled, and both runners advanced to second and third on a wild pitch.  Ryan Strieby then singled with both base runners crossing the plate, and the BayBears led 5-2.  Strieby took second on a throw to the plate, and later scored when Ed Easley hit a ground rule double down the right field line to add to the lead at 6-2.
 
Brent Clevlen went 2-for-4 with three RBI’s and two scored.  Ed Easley also finished with two hits.  Matt Davidson scored twice for the BayBears.  The BayBears scored more than three runs in a game for just the ninth time in their last 32 games.  The Suns had seven hits, all were singles, including Smolinski’s 321 foot single off the wall.  In the first two games of the series, all 12 of the Suns hits have been base hits. 
 
Graham Taylor (7-9) allowed three runs on four hits over six innings and lost for the first time in his last six starts.  Taylor had been touched for just three runs in his previous five starts, and given up just one run in his previous 20 innings before Thursday.  Mike Bolsinger (4-2) surrendered two runs on four hits in his five innings of work for the win.
 
The middle game of the series is Friday at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville, with the Suns and BayBears meeting in a matinee that starts at 1:05 p.m.  In a match up of right handers, Bryan Evans (4-6, 3.94) takes the mound for Jacksonville and Brett Lorin (3-7, 5.10) will start for Mobile.
 

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August 3, 2012 · 3:41 pm

BayBears Shut Down Suns

 

David Holmberg and two relievers combined on the Mobile BayBears (Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks)1-0 win over the Jacksonville Suns at Hank Aaron Stadium August 2, 2012. Photo Courtesy: Mobile BayBears

By Steve Kolbe

After scoring 24 runs in their previous two games, the Jacksonville Suns were shutout in the series finale 1-0 by the BayBears on Thursday night at Hank Aaron Stadium in Mobile.  The Suns have been blanked 10 times this season, three times by Mobile.  Jacksonville suffered a shutout loss for the first time in a month.
 
The BayBears scored the only run of the night in the bottom of the fourth inning against Suns starter Jose Alvarez.  Brent Clevlen led off with a single and went to third on a fly out by Ryan Strieby.  Alfredo Marte then drove in his 61st run of the season with a ground out to short, with Clevlen coasting across the plate.  Marte made his return to the lineup after serving a three game suspension for throwing a punch in a brawl against Mississippi last week.
 
BayBears starter David Holmberg kept the Suns off balance throughout the night, and at one point retired 10 batters in a row.  The BayBears have four shutouts this season, with three of them against the Suns. Trevor Bauer blanked the Suns May 6th, and Chase Anderson turned the trick May 9th as part of the BayBears five-game sweep of the Suns at the Baseball Grounds in the first half.
 
Chris Gutierrez and Shawn Bowman each finished 2-for-4.  Danny Pertusati’s seventh inning double was the only extra-base hit for the Suns.  Jacksonville was 0-for-9 with runners in scoring position, and left 10 men on base during the night.   It was the first game of the series that the Suns were held without a home run.  Jacksonville belted nine homers off of seven different pitchers in the five games.
 
Suns starter Jose Alvarez (4-6) went the distance in the loss.  He allowed just the one run on five hits over eight innings.  It’s the second time this season that Alvarez has tossed eight innings, the last time he earned Pitcher of the Week honors with a 2-0 shutout against Tennessee.  David Holmberg (3-4) scattered five hits and struck out a season-high seven in 6.2 innings of work for the win.  Eury De La Rosa pitched the final two innings to earn his second save of the season.
 
The Suns lost a game in the standings to South-leading Montgomery, falling four games behind the Biscuits.  The stage is now set for a showdown for first place in the South Division with the Biscuits invading Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville for a five-game series starting Friday night.  LHP Graham Taylor (6-8, 4.09) will take the mound for the Suns.  RHP Merrill Kelly (6-1, 3.55) will start his fourth game of the season for the Biscuits. 
 
 

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August 2, 2012 · 6:46 am

Suns Even Series With BayBears

 

Danny Pertusati and Kyle Skipworth each hit a home run in the Suns 9-1 win over the Mobile BayBears at Hank Aaron Stadium August 1, 2012. Photo Courtesy: Jacksonville Suns

By Steve Kolbe

The Jacksonville Suns evened their series with the Mobile BayBears at two wins apiece, with a 9-1 win Wednesday night at Hank Aaron Stadium.   The win, combined with Pensacola dropping both games of a doubleheader to Tennessee, has the Suns tied with the Blue Wahoos for second place in the South Division.
 
The Suns took the lead in the top of the second inning against BayBears starter Chase Anderson.  Kyle Skipworth and Kyle Jensen were both hit by a pitch to put runners on first and second with no outs.  Jensen was hit on the hand and would later leave the game with Donnie Webb taking his place in the outfield.  With one out in the inning, Danny Pertusati hit his second home run in as many nights to put the Suns up 3-0.  The Suns improved to 41-18 when scoring the first run of the game.  Jacksonville has outscored opponents 114-77 in the first two innings this season.
 
The long ball continued to play a roll for the Suns in the fourth inning, when Kyle Skipworth belted his 14th home run of the season to increase the lead to 4-0.  The Suns have hit nine home runs (against seven different pitchers) in the four games of this series, after hitting just four in the first 15 meetings of the year against the BayBears. 
 
Brent Clevlen accounted for the lone BayBears run with a solo home run in the home half of the fourth inning of off Suns starter Brian Flynn. 
 
With reliever Eric Smith on the mound for the BayBears in the eighth, the Suns batted around to double the lead.  Chris Gutierrez led off with a double, Paul Gran singled, and Kyle Skipworth walked to load the bases.  Donnie Webb cashed in with a double to the gap in left-center, driving in both Gutierrez and Gran to pad the lead to 6-1.  Webb is now 2-for-4 this season with the bases loaded.  Ben Lasater followed with a single to drive in two more runs to make the score 8-1.  The Suns added a run in the ninth when Kyle Skipworth hit a flyball to left field, Wladimir Sutil was unable to make the catch, allowing Gran to score from second base for the 9-1 final.
 
Paul Gran went 2-for-5 and scored two runs.  Ben Lasater  finished with two hits and drove in two runs.  Kyle Skipworth reached base four times and scored three runs.  He hit a home run, was hit by a pitch, walked, and reached on an error.
 
The Suns have won five of their last seven games, and 12 of the last 17.  The BayBears had their first sub-.500 month of the season by finishing 10-18 in July.  Mobile has just three wins in the last 14 games, a stretch that includes a season-high seven game losing streak.  In the series, the BayBears are 7-for-34 with runners in scoring position, and have left the bases loaded four times.
 
Suns lefty Brian Flynn (1-0) allowed one run on three hits over six innings to earn his first win with the Suns.  Two of the three hits he surrendered were infield singles.  Chase Anderson (3-3) gave up four runs on two hits in his five innings of work in the loss.  Anderson, a Southern League All-Star, entered the game with only three home runs allowed in his previous 15 starts, but both of the hits he surrendered to the Suns on Wednesday were home runs.
 
The Suns look to win the series on Thursday with the first pitch scheduled for 8:05 PM from Hank Aaron Stadium.  LHP Jose Alvarez (4-5, 3.95) will take the mound for the Suns.  LHP David Holmberg (2-4, 4.63) will start for the BayBears.

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June 2, 2012 · 5:16 am

BayBears Rally In Ninth For 4-2 Win Over Suns

 

The BayBears increased their lead in the South Division by scoring two times in the ninth inning for a 4-2 win over the Suns June 1, 2012 at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. Photo Courtesy: Mobile BayBears

By Steve Kolbe 

The Mobile BayBears scored two runs in the ninth inning on the way to a 4-2 win over the Suns on Friday night.  After winning five of their first six series of the season, the Suns have lost their last five series.
 
The BayBears took the lead in the second inning against Suns starter Matthew Neil.  Marc Krauss led off the inning with a double when he hit a deep drive toward the wall in left-center field.  Jake Smolinksi went crashing into the outfield fence attempting to make the catch and injured himself on the play.  Smolinski had to leave the game, with Ryan Patterson taking his place in left field.  After a single by Alfredo Marte put runners on the corners with no outs, Brent Clevlen drove in the first run of the game with a sacrifice fly to put Mobile in front 1-0. 
 
The Suns drew even in the second against BayBears starter Tyler Skaggs.  Donnie Webb led off the inning with a single to left, and stole second base.  Chris Gutierrez then doubled to right-center to drive in his 15th run of the season, with Webb scoring to tie the game 1-1. 
 
In the fourth inning Mobile reclaimed the lead.  BayBears cleanup hitter Marc Krauss, behind in the count 0-2, blasted his eighth home run of the season over the center field fence for a 2-1 lead.  Krauss is tied for the league lead with 37 runs batted in.
 
The Suns rebounded again in the home half of the eighth inning when pinch hitter Jeff Dominguez started the rally with a double.  After an infield single by Gutierrez put runners on the corners with no outs, German Duran drove in Dominguez from third with a sacrifice fly and the game was tied again 2-2.
 
Suns reliever Bobby Bramhall ran into trouble in the ninth.  David Nick led off the inning with a bunt single, and Matt Davidson singled behind him.  Marc Krauss then walked to load the bases with no outs.  Alfredo Marte put the BayBears back in front 3-2 with a sacrifice fly to right, with Nick crossing the plate.  Mobile added an insurance run on a sacrifice fly by Rossmel Perez to pad the lead 4-2.
 
For the Suns, Chris Gutierrez finished the night 2-for-4 and drove in a run.  Donnie Webb went 2-for-3 and stole his second base of the season.  For the BayBears, Marc Krauss was 2-for-3 with a double and his ninth home run of the season.  Krauss leads the Southern League with 30 extra base hits.  Three of Mobile’s runs scored on sacrifice flies.
 
Matthew Neil started his third game for the Suns and pitched a season-high seven innings.  He allowed two runs on three hits, including a home run and did not figure in the decision for the third straight time.  Neil struck out four without a walk.  Bobby Bramhall allowed two runs on two hits and walked three batters.  He surrendered the winning run in the ninth.  BayBears starter Tyler Skaggs threw 100 pitches over eight innings to improve his record to 4-3.  He allowed two runs on six hits and has won four of his last five starts.  Matt Gorgen pitched the ninth to earn his sixth save of the season.
 
The Suns begin a five game series against the Blue Wahoos in Pensacola on Saturday night with the first pitch scheduled for 8:30 p.m EST. 

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June 1, 2012 · 6:01 am

Jensen’s Home Run Hits Scoreboard; Suns Top BayBears

Suns right fielder Kyle Jensen smashed a three-run home run that hit the scoreboard at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville May 31, 2012 in 5-3 win over the Mobile BayBears. Photo Courtesy: Jacksonville Suns

By Steve Kolbe

A towering three-run home run by Kyle Jensen helped the Jacksonville Suns to a 5-3 win over the Mobile BayBears on Thursday night at the Baseball Grounds. After losing both games of a double header on Tuesday, the Suns have now won two straight to even the series and more importantly gain ground on the BayBears in the South Division. 

Mobile took the lead in the third against Suns starter Graham Taylor when Wladimir Sutil led off the inning with his seventh double of the season.  After a sacrifice bunt by the pitcher Gaby Hernandez pushed Sutil to third, Alfredo Marte drove him in with a sacrifice fly to put Mobile on top 1-0.  Marte is tied for third in the Southern League with 33 RBI. 

The Suns drew even in the fifth, when Kyle Skipworth was hit by BayBears pitcher Gaby Hernandez to lead off the inning.  Kyle Jensen then hit a ground ball to third baseman Matt Davidson, but instead of starting a double play, the ball rolled under his glove and into left field with Skipworth going all the way to third and Jensen to second.  It was the third error committed by Davidson in the last two games.  Jeff Dominguez stepped in and sent a sacrifice fly to center for his tenth RBI of the season, with Skipworth scoring to tie the game 1-1. 

In the sixth, the Suns broke the game open scoring four runs on four hits against Hernandez.  Chris Gutierrez led off with a walk, and was sacrificed to second by Paul Gran.  Jake Smolinski scratched out an infield single to put runners on the corners with one out.  Shawn Bowman delivered with his 25th RBI of the season, a line drive single to center field with Gutierrez scoring to put the Suns in front 2-1.  Kyle Jensen cleared the bases with a manager’s best friend, the three-run home run.  Jensen turned on a Hernandez pitch and smashed a mammoth blast that hit the scoreboard in left field to make the score 5-1.  Jensen leads the Suns with seven home runs.  

Brent Clevlen hit a solo home run off of Taylor in the seventh to cut the Suns lead to 5-2, and Alfredo Marte hit a solo home run off of Evan Reed in the eighth to edge the BayBears closer but that would be all for the Mobile offense.  Reed struck out the side in the eighth.  The home run by Marte is the first round tripper that Reed has given up this season.  Mobile tied the Jackson Generals for the most home runs in the league with 40.  The Generals are at the Baseball Grounds next week for a five game series. 

Five different players had one hit for the Suns, with Jensen hitting Jacksonville’s second three-run home run in as many days against Mobile.  For the BayBears, Matt Davidson finished 2-for-4 with a single and a double.  Alfredo Marte hit his 11th home run of the season and drove in two of the BayBears three runs.  Marte and Davidson are now tied for the league lead with 11 homers each.  

The BayBears have been held to three runs or fewer in seven straight games and eight of their last 10, but have managed to win six times.  The Suns have scored at least five runs in two straight games for the first time in 13 games. 

After snapping their eight-game losing streak to the BayBears with a 9-0 victory on Wednesday, the Suns have won two straight over Mobile for just second time this season.  Jacksonville is now 5-24 when allowing their opponent to score first, while the BayBears fell to 23-8 when taking the lead. 

Suns starting pitcher Graham Taylor won for the first time in over a month (April 28th vs. Pensacola) and improved his record to 3-4 with two of the wins against Mobile.  He allowed two runs on six hits over his seven innings of work, throwing 77 pitches, 55 for strikes.  Against Mobile this season Taylor has allowed just three earned runs on 11 hits over 20.2 innings pitched. Taylor has allowed two earned runs or fewer in six of his 11 starts.  Evan Reed fanned three batters in the eighth inning.  A.J. Ramos was overpowering in the ninth, striking out the side for his second save of the season.  BayBears starter Gaby Hernandez allowed five runs on five hits, and has now lost his first two starts with the BayBears after signing with the Arizona Diamondbacks two weeks ago.  

The series is up for grabs on Friday at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville with the first pitch scheduled for 7:05p.m.  RHP Matthew Neil (0-0, 8.38) will start his third game for the Suns.  LHP Tyler Skaggs (3-3, 2.72) is set to start his tenth game of the season for Mobile.

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May 30, 2012 · 7:42 am

BayBears Sweep Double Header From Suns

 By Steve Kolbe
 
The Mobile BayBears swept both games of a double header against the Jacksonville Suns on Tuesday at the Baseball Grounds.  The BayBears edged the Suns 3-2 in game one, and claimed game two with a 3-1 win.
 
In the first game of the night, the Suns took an early lead in the first inning against Mobile starter Brett Lorin.  Shortstop Danny Black drew a lead off walk, and German Duran reached on an error by the pitcher to put runners on first and second with no outs.  Duran was reinstated from the 7-day disabled list prior to the game.  With one out, Shawn Bowman drove in his 24th run of the season with a double to right field with Black scoring to give the Suns a 1-0 advantage.  The Suns scored a run in the first inning for the 14th time this season, and lost for just the third time when crossing the plate in the first (11-3).
 
The BayBears gained the edge in the top of the second against Jose Alvarez.  With one out, Alfredo Marte started the rally with a double to center.  Brent Clevlen followed by jumping on the first pitch and doubled to left field, with Marte scoring to tie the game 1-1.  Mobile took the lead 2-1 when Wladimir Sutil hit a two-out single to drive in Clevlen.
 
Jacksonville used another walk to tie the game in the third.  Jake Smolinski was issued a free pass by Brett Lorin on a 3-2 pitch.  A single by Bowman put runners on the corners for the Suns, and Kyle Skipworth delivered with a single with Smolinski racing home to even the score 2-2.  Skipworth has hit safely in five of his last six games.  Smolinski leads the Suns with 26 runs scored.
 
In the top of the seventh, the last inning of the game, Ed Easley led off with a single to left against reliever Kyle Kaminska.  Pinch hitter Yazy Arbelo then drew a one out walk to put runners on first and second.  Mobile center fielder Evan Frey was 0-for-3 on the night, but in the seventh he drove the ball into left-center field where Suns center fielder Donnie Webb tried to make a diving catch but came up short.  Easley scored from second base to give the BayBears a 3-2 lead, and that’s the way the game would end.
 
The Suns went 10-5 in the month of April against opponents from the South Division.  In May, Jacksonville is 4-12 against division foes with seven of the loses against the BayBears.
 
Kyle Skipworth and Shawn Bowman each finished with two hits and drove in a run.  Danny Black and Jake Smolinski both walked and scored.  Seven different players for the BayBears had a hit, with five of them doubles.  Evan Frey drove in the game-winning run with a double in the seventh.     
 
Suns starter Jose Alvarez allowed two runs on fours hits in five innings of work.  Three of his last five starts have been no decisions.  Kyle Kaminska suffered the loss, allowing  a run on three hits and is 4-3 on the season.  BayBears starter Brett Lorin allowed two runs on five hits in four innings and wasn’t around for a decision.  Mobile reliever Kevin Munson allowed just one hit in his two innings to improve to 2-3 on the year.  Matt Gorgen pitched the seveth to earn his fifth save of the season.
 
In game two BayBears starting pitcher Mike Bolsinger stole the show, pitching five and a-third innings of no-hit ball.
 
Mobile took a 1-0 lead in the third against Suns starter Zach Neal, when Evan Frey and David Nick hit back-to-back doubles with Frey scoring the first run of the game.  The BayBears improved to 23-7 when they score the first run. 
 
Suns reliever Wade Korpi took over In the fifth inning, and  Dan Kaczrowski led off with a single.  With two outs, David Nick singled and Matt Davidson drew a walk to load the bases.  Marc Krauss then doubled to right field, with Nick and Davidson crossing the plate to increase the lead to 3-0.
 
Jake Smolinski broke up Bolsinger’s no-hit bid in the sixth inning with an infield single.  Curt Smith followed with a triple to straight-away center, with Smolinski scoring the Suns lone run of game two.   
 
The Suns have lost seven straight home games to the BayBears, and have been outscored 31-6 in those contests.  Mobile now leads Jacksonville by eight games in the standings.  The BayBears and Jackson Generals are tied for the most wins in the league with 31, and the Generals come to Jacksonville next week.   
 
David Nick went 3-for-4 with a RBI and a run scored.  Four of Mobile’s eight hits were doubles.  In the two games of the double header, the BayBears had nine doubles.  Jake Smolinski and Curt Smith were the only two Suns with a hit.  Smolinski scored two of the Suns three runs on the night.
 
Mike Bolsinger (2-1) allowed one run on two hits in six innings.  Evan Marshall pitched a perfect ninth for his 11th save of the season.  Four of his 11 saves this season have come against the Suns at the Baseball Grounds.  Suns starter Zach Neal (3-6) pitched four innings allowing one run on four hits. 
 
Game three of the series is Wednesday afternoon at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville, with the first pitch scheduled for 1:05 p.m.
 

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May 9, 2012 · 4:14 am

BayBears Win Third Straight Over Suns

The Mobile BayBears won for the third staight game at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville to extend their division lead to three games over the Suns. Photo Courtesy: Mobile BayBears

By Steve Kolbe

The Mobile BayBears increased their lead in the South Division over Jacksonville to three games with a 6-1 win on Tuesday night.  Mobile has won the first three games of the series, outscoring the Suns 19-2. 

The BayBears started quickly against Suns pitcher Zach Neal sending nine men to the plate in the first inning.  The first four batters of the game singled to put Mobile in front 2-0.  Brent Clevlen and Marc Krauss each drove in a run.  Before the inning was over Alfredo Marte had driven in a run with a single, and Wladimir Sutil knocked in a run with a double for a 4-0 BayBears lead.  It was the second time this season that the Suns allowed four runs in the first inning. 

In the second inning, David Nick led off with a single and Clevlen drove in his second run of the night with a ground out to make the score 5-0 BayBears.  Zach Neal allowed five runs on seven hits in two innings on the night.  The BayBears are the second team in the Southern League to reach 20 wins. 

The Suns scored their only run of the game in the fourth inning when Kyle Skipworth walked with one out and Kyle Jensen doubled behind him.  Dallas Poulk then drove in his second run of the year with a sacrifice fly to center. 

Mobile added a run in the sixth inning when Sutil tripled to left and came in to score on a Rossmel Perez sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 6-1.  Wladimir Sutil finished the game 3-for-4, drove in a run and also scored.  All three of his hits were for extra bases with two doubles and a triple.  David Nick, Kyle Greene, and Marc Krauss each finished with two hits, and Brent Clevlen drove in two of the six runs for Mobile.  Krauss, who was named the Southern League player of the week, has now hit safely in 17 of his last 19 games. 

Derek Eitel improved his record to 3-2 with the win.  He pitched six innings allowing five hits and one run.  It was the first earned run that a BayBears starting pitcher has allowed in three games in this series.  In the first eight games of the season series against Mobile, the Suns have scored just nine runs against BayBears starting pitchers.  Suns starter Zach Neal pitched two innings, allowing seven hits and five runs to fall to 2-4.   

The BayBears have won nine of their last 12 games and scored at least six runs in six of the wins.  The Suns have lost five of their last six and have been outscored 32-18.   

Game four of the series is Wednesday afternoon with the first pitch scheduled for 1:05PM at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville.  LHP Graham Taylor (2-2, 5.23) will make his seventh start of the season for the Suns.  The BayBears counter with RHP Chase Anderson (1-0, 2.63) as he starts his fifth game of the year.

 

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May 7, 2012 · 7:32 pm

BayBears Pitching Shuts Down The Suns 2-1

BayBears starter Tyler Skaggs won his first game of the season striking out seven over seven innings against the Suns in a 2-1 win at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville. Photo Courtesy: Mobile BayBears

By Steve Kolbe
 
The Mobile BayBears edged the Jacksonville Suns 2-1 on Monday afternoon to increase their lead in the Southern League South Division to two games.
 
Starting pitching has been the story of the series so far for Mobile.  The Suns managed just one hit against Sunday’s starter Trevor Bauer, and on Monday Tyler Skaggs allowed only five.  In 14 innings the two BayBears starters have not allowed an earned run to the Suns.
 
Mobile took a 1-0 lead in the third inning on Monday against Jacksonville starter Bryan Evans.  With two outs, Tyler Skaggs doubled to left and Archie Gilbert drove him in with a double of his own.  Skaggs is one of the better hitting pitchers in the league and is now 4-for-8 at the plate this season.  The BayBears are 17-5 when scoring the game’s first run, while the Suns are 3-14 while they allow the first run.
 
The Suns scored their only run of the game in the fifth inning against Skaggs.  Curt Smith led off the inning when he reached on an error by third baseman Matt Davidson.  After a double by Ryan Patterson gave the Suns runners on second and third with no one out, Skaggs settled down to get Taylor Krick and Chris Gutierrez on ground outs with the runners stuck in scoring position.  Pinch hitter Donnie Webb struck out which should have ended the inning, but Mobile catcher Rossmel Perez couldn’t hang on to the ball.  Instead of throwing the ball to first to record the final out of the inning, Perez threw to third with Smith coming in to score on the strikeout to tie the game 1-1.  The BayBears committed two errors in the inning, increasing their league leading total to 43.  Last season Mobile committed only 98 errors, fewest in the Southern League.
 
In the eighth, Archie Gilbert walked to lead off the inning and later scored on Brent Clevlen’s sacrifice fly to give the BayBears a 2-1 lead and that was the game winning run.
 
Ryan Patterson finished the game 2-for-4 and his double in the fifth inning was the only extra base hit for the Suns on the day.  Jake Smolinski, Paul Gran, Chris Gutierrez, and Kyle Skipworth each had a single in the game.  Jacksonville has a total of nine hits in the first two games of the series.
 
For the BayBears, Archie Gilbert finished 2-for-3 and walked twice.  He drove in a run and scored the game-winning run.  Four of the BayBears seven hits in the game were doubles.  The two teams combined to go 3-for-18 with runners in scoring position, and stranded 15 runners on base Monday afternoon.
 
Tyler Skaggs threw 94 pitches to earn his first win of the season striking out seven and walking just one.  He pitched seven innings and scattered five hits and did not allow an earned run.  Evan Marshall pitched the ninth for his fifth save of the season.  Suns starter Bryan Evans pitched five innings, allowing one run on four hits and didn’t figure in the decision.  Josh Schmidt (1-1) pitched the eighth and ninth innings, allowing two hits and one run and lost for the first time this season.
 
The BayBears have won eight of their last 11 games while the Suns have dropped four of their last five.  Game three of the series is Tuesday night at the Baseball Grounds of Jacksonville with the first pitch scheduled for 7:05PM.  Zach Neal (2-3, 3.41) takes the mound for the Suns.  He allowed five runs on seven hits in his last start.  Derek Eitel (2-2, 3.86) will start for the BayBears.
 

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May 7, 2012 · 5:39 am

BayBears Beat Suns To Take First Place

Mobile BayBears starter Trevor Bauer allowed just one hit in seven innings against the Suns to improve to a league-leading 6-1 on the season. Photo Courtesy: Mobile BayBears

By Steve Kolbe

When the night began, the Jacksonville Suns and Mobile BayBears were tied for the top spot in the South Division with identical 17-13 records.  By the end of the night, the BayBears had hit their way to an 11-0 win and handed the Suns their worst loss of the season.  The game was called in the eighth inning due to heavy rain and lightning. 

A day after scoring 11 runs on 11 hits in the series finale in Birmingham, the Suns managed only one hit off of Mobile starter Trevor Bauer.  Jake Smolinski’s leadoff single in the first inning was the only hit surrendered by Bauer in the game. 

Mobile took the lead for good in the fourth inning when Matt Davidson doubled for the first hit against Suns starter Jose Alvarez.  After a Brent Clevlen walk the stage was set for Marc Krauss.  He jumped on the first pitch that he saw from Alvarez and hit a three-run home run into the right field stands to put the BayBears in front 3-0.  Krauss now has five home runs and 22 runs batted in this season.  He has collected 14 hits in his last 11 games.  Mobile improved to 16-5 when scoring the game’s first run, while the Suns dropped to 3-13 when they allow their opponent to strike first. 

In the sixth, Matt Davidson led off the inning with a walk and Clevlen followed with a single to put two on with no outs.  Marc Krauss drove in Davidson with a single, and Clevlen scored on a fielder’s choice to increase the BayBears lead to 5-0. 

Mobile sent 10 men to the plate in the seventh inning against Suns reliever Wade Korpi.  Three straight singles by Archie Gilbert, David Nick, and Matt Davidson started the rally with Gilbert scoring the first run of the inning to push the lead to 6-0.  After scoring two runs earlier in the game, Clevlen drove in Mobile’s seventh run with a sacrifice fly to left and it was 7-0.  Later in the inning, Ed Easley drove in Davidson with a single to center and the lead was 8-0.  The BayBears scored three more runs in the inning when Yazy Arbelo doubled to drive in a pair, and Wladimir Sutel singled to drive in Arbelo to make it 11-0.  The BayBears scored six runs on six hits in the inning.  It was the second time this season that the Suns allowed six runs in an inning, with the last coming in a 10-5 loss at home to Chattagnooga April 11th. 

Trevor Bauer, the Arizona Diamondbacks first round pick in 2011, one-hit the Suns over his seven innings of work to improve his record to 6-1.  He leads the league in wins and is among the leaders in earned run average.  In his two starts against the Suns this season, Bauer has allowed only 5 hits in 14 innings.  Jose Alvarez pitched five and a-third innings allowing five runs on five hits and falls to 1-1 on the season.  Wade Korpi pitched one and a-third innings, giving up six runs on six hits.  Chris Squires also pitched and inning and a-third allowing one hit before the game was stopped.   

Game two of the series is Monday morning at 11:00AM at the Baseball Grounds with the Suns looking to even the series.  Bryan Evans (0-2, 5.26) will take the mound for Jacksonville against Mobile’s Tyler Skaggs (0-2, 3.91).

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