Akron Aeros �5, �Altoona Curve �2 (box)

The Curve turned the second double play in their history today, in an early game in Akron. �In the 6th inning, with reliever Derek Hankins on the mound,�Akron's LF Cristo Arnal led off with a single, and former Curve and Indy Indian C Miguel Perez was hit by a pitch. �CF John Drennen lined right to SS Chase d'Arnaud, who made the catch, quickly stepped on second base, and fired to Matt Hague at�first base for the third out. �(The first triple play by the Curve came on May 3, 2001 at home in Altoona, against the Harrisburg Senators. �It was a 2-6-3 play: �C JR House to SS Shaun Skrehot to 1B Chris Peterson.)

Unfortunately, the triple play could not make up for a lack of offense, as the Curve batters managed only 4 hits and 2 runs in the game, ending their 8-game winning streak. �After going down in order over the first two innings, the Curve scored both of their runs in the 3rd inning, with the help of three Akron errors. �C Kris Watts led off with a double. �DH Miles Durham singled into center field, moving Watts to third, and Durham moved up to second base when the Aeros' first baseman missed the catch on the throw in from the outfield for an error. �The second error occurred on d'Arnaud's ball to second base, and it let both Watts and Durham score, as d'Arnaud was safe on first. �2B Josh Harrison also reached base on an error, advancing d'Arnaud to third base, but they did not advance further before the inning ended.

After two more 1-2-3 innings, the Curve put two runners on base in the 6th, on CF Gorkys Hernandez's single, and Hague being hit by a pitch. �They were also both left on base. �Altoona loaded the bases in the 7th on walks to Watts and Durham, and d'Arnaud being hit by a pitch, but two strikeouts ended that threat. �The last Curve hit was by LF�Jose De Los Santos in the 9th, who was also left stranded.

Jared Hughes made the start for the Curve. �He gave up one run in the bottom of the 1st inning, on a lead-off double, a ground out, and a sacrifice fly. �He gave up singles in both the 2nd and 3rd innings, but erased both runners with a double plays, one started by d'Arnaud (6-4-3) and one started by Hague at first base (3-6-1).

Hughes could not get out of a jam in the 4th inning, though. �A walk, a wild pitch, and two singles led off the inning and brought in one run. �Hughes got two outs, but then gave up back-to-back doubles, bringing in three more runs. �Hughes exited having allowed 5 runs on 8 hits and a walk over 3.2 innings. �Derek Hankins finished the 4th inning, then pitched 4 more scoreless innings, scattering 3 hits, 2 walks, and the hit batter.

["Read more" for the Marauders' and the Power games]

I think it is time to pull the plug on Charlie Morton's first half of 2010. Send him to Indy and let him get himself straightened out.

The Indianapolis Indians had a scheduled off day on Wednesday, but the rest of the minor league organization was going strong, beginning with an early game in West Virginia:

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Lexington Legends �5, �West Virginia Power �4 (box)

The Power and the Legends played a late-morning game for the second time in two days. �Today, though, it was the Legends who came out on top, scoring 5 runs on 10 hits, and breaking a 4-4 tie with a run in the top of the 8th. �The Power scored their 4 runs on only 5 hits.

2B Elevys Gonzalez recorded 3 hits in the game, and he put the Power onto the scoreboard in the bottom of the 1st inning, with a 2-run homer following a walk by CF Evan Chambers. Lexington tied the score in the top of the 3rd with two runs on a single and two doubles. �Both Elevys Gonzalez and SS Benji Gonzalez took the lead back again in the bottom of the inning. �Benji walked and advanced to second base on a balk. �Elevys singled, moving Benji to third base. �Both Gonzalezes executed a double steal, with Benji stealing home to break the tie. �Walks to 1B Aaron Baker and C Ramon Cabrera loaded the bases, but the Power could not push another run across.

Power starter Jason Erickson had kept the Legends from scoring in the 4th and 5th innings, but in the 6th, he gave up a solo homer to tie the score. �He walked the next batter after the home run, and was relieved at that point by Gabriel Alvarado. Alvarado gave up back-to-back singles to the first two runners he faced, and the batter Erickson had put on base came around to score, giving the Legends a 4-3 lead.

3B Jesus Brito homered for the second time in two days to lead off the 7th inning and tie the score again, at 4-4. �But in the top of the 8th, with Zach Foster on the mound, two singles and a fielding error by RF David Rubinstein put runners on second and third bases. �An RBI ground out brought the go-ahead run across the plate.

The Power had a chance to tie the score again in the 8th, when Baker walked, then moved to second base on a passed ball. �Cabrera's single brought Baker racing around third base and heading for the plate, but he was thrown out by the Legends' left fielder. �Rubinstein got as far as third base in the 9th inning, on a walk, a stolen base, and a ground out, but that inning ended before he could go any further.

Elevys Gonzalez also singled in the 5th inning, but was erased in a double play. �Foster was charged with the loss, his first of the season.

Few things about baseball anger me more than watching a player the Pirates gave away come back to haunt the team. It happened tonight.

Altoona Curve �5, �Akron Aeros �3 (box)

Rudy Owens earned his 4th win of the season, as the Curve won their 7th straight game and moved to 4 games ahead of second-place Richmond in the Eastern League's Western Division.SS Chase d'Arnaud belted 3 hits and four Curve batters had 2 hits each, including a homer by C Hector Gimenez.

After two quiet innings by both teams, LF Alex Presley opened the 3rd inning with an infield single, and Gimenez homered to give the Curve a 2-0 lead. �The Aeros got one run back in the bottom of the inning. �LF John Drennen led off with a triple. �The next batter, 2B Criston Arnal, bounced back to the mound, and in the ensuing run-down, Drennen was tagged out, but he stalled long enough for Arnal to reach second base safely. �A passed ball put Arnal on third base, and a ground out brought him across the plate.

Four singles, by 2B Josh Harrison, DH Matt Hague, RF Miles Durham, and Presley brought in two more Curve runs in the top of the 4th inning. �Akron again came back with one run in the bottom of the frame, on a double, a ground out, and a balk by Owens. �The Curve got that run back in the top of the 5th. �D'Arnaud doubled to begin the inning, and scored on Hague's second single, to give the Curve a 5-2 lead.

Owens gave up just those two runs over 7 innings of work, on 2 hits and a walk, plus the balk and the passed ball by Gimenez. �He also struck out 2 batters. �Ronald Uviedo pitched the 8th inning, and gave up one run on two walks and a single plus an RBI grounder. �Danny Moskos earned his 11th save, retiring the side in the 9th.

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Indianapolis Indians �4, �Gwinnett Braves �2 (box)

CF Brandon Moss's (photo left)�double in the 8th inning made all the difference at Victory Field tonight, as the Indians beat the Braves to close this home stand. �Daniel McCutchen (photo above) made the start for the Tribe, pitching 7 strong innings, but he did not factor into the decision. �Reliever Steven Jackson got the win, his first of the season with the Indians.

McCutchen was reactivated from the Disabled List earlier today, where he had missed one start due to a tired arm. �His arm didn't look at all tired today. �Of his 7 innings, he buzzed through four of them, retiring the side in order (1st, 3rd, 5th, and 6th). �He gave up a lead-off hit to SS Brandon Hicks in the 7th inning, but erased Hicks on a double play, then got another ground out to end that inning.

The Braves caused McCutchen some problems in the 2nd inning. �1B Freddie Freeman led off with a line drive into left field for a double. �After a sacrifice bunt to move Freeman to third base, McCutchen gave up three consecutive singles. �Hicks singled into left field, scoring Freeman. �Hicks tried to steal second base, but was thrown out on a perfect throw by C Luke Carlin. Braves' C Clint Sammons and 2B Luis Bolivar both singled also, but McCutchen got Braves' starter Chris Resop to bounce to first base, ending the inning with Sammons and Bolivar still on base.

(Photo: �Luke Carlin and Daniel McCutchen discuss strategy)

Resop dominated the Indians' batters over the first two innings. �He struck out four batters and got two fly outs. �He allowed only Luke Carlin to reach base, after working the count full, fouling off another pitch, then finally taking ball four.

But Resop's control started slipping in the 3rd inning. �SS Brian Friday led off with a ball along the left field line, and his aggressive base running put him on second base, just ahead of the throw back into the infield. �Daniel McCutchen dropped down a sacrifice bunt to move Friday to third base. �LF Jose Tabata smacked a ball back to the mound, which ricocheted off Resop's glove with a high bounce toward second base. �The bounce was high enough so that by the time 2B Luis Bolivar waited until the ball came down and threw to first, the speedy Tabata had enough time to beat out the throw. �Friday scored easily from third base, and the score was tied at 1-1. �Tabata reached third base on a single into center field by 2B Kevin Melillo, but 1B Brian Myrow bounced into a 3-6-3 (1B Freddie Freeman to SS Brandon Hicks and back to Freeman) to end the inning.

It was just like Sunday. Only it wasn't a walk off. And it didn't happen in extra innings. So, it wasn't just like Sunday except in the outcome. Ryan Doumit's solo homer in the top of the 9th put the Pirates up to stay, 2-1.

West Virginia Power �5, �Lexington Legends �0 (box)

Power starter Kyle McPherson pitched 7 no-hit innings this morning in front of a stadium full of school kids (most of whom probably had no idea about the significance of what they were seeing). �McPherson faced just one batter over the minimum, when Lexington's 1B Kody Hinze reached base on a fielding error by McPherson himself in the 5th inning. �McPherson walked the lead-off batter DH Miguel Arrendell in the third inning, but doubled him off base moments later on a line out.

The Legends did get one hit in the game, but only after McPherson was relieved by Ryan Kelly. Arrendell singled with two outs in the 8th to break up the no-hitter. �Kelly struck out 5 of the remaining 6 batters he faced.

And of course, the pitchers needed some run support. �The Power threatened in the 4th inning, when a walk by 1B Aaron Baker, a hit batter (3B Jesus Brito), a stolen base and a balk put runners on second and third, but a strikeout ended that inning. �A walk to RF David Rubinstein and singles by C Ramon Cabrera and Brito loaded the bases in the 6th, but two strikeouts got the Legends out of that jam unscathed.

It was two home runs in the 7th inning that gave the Power their runs. �After back-to-back walks by CF Evan Chambers and 2B Elevys Gonzalez, Baker blasted a 3-run homer over the right field wall. �Rubinstein followed the home run with a double, and after a pitching change, Brito sent a long fly ball over the left field wall for a 2-run homer.

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Read about he Altoona Curve vs Akron Aeros �and the Ft. Meyers Miracle vs. Bradenton Marauders games,�played in the evening.

The Pirates have called up Pittsburgh native Neil Walker. He will join the Pirates in Cincinnati, just a quick drive from Indianapolis.

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Walker has been on fire at the plate from the start of the season. �He has a .321 average with the Indy Indians, with 18 doubles, 2 triples, 6 homers, and 26 RBI. �He has been playing second base (20 games), first base (7 games), left field (14 games), plus one game at third and one game as the DH. �In all of that shuttling around the field, Walker has committed just one error (fielding, at second base). �His 18 doubles lead the team and the International League, and he leads the Indians and is second in the IL with 94 total bases.

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The Pirates have placed 1B Steve Pearce on the Disabled List with an ankle sprain suffered in last night's game, opening up the roster spot for Walker.

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The Indianapolis Indians have placed starting pitcher Donnie Veal on the Disabled List due to tightness in his left elbow and forearm.

Starter Daniel McCutchen has been on the DL with arm fatigue, and he is expected to be reactivated today, to be able to pitch tonight.

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Triple-A starter Donnie Veal has been placed on the minor league disabled list.

Altoona Curve �11, �Akron Aeros �1 (box)

LF Alex Presley missed hitting for the cycle on Monday night in Akron, because he lacked a single. �He probably doesn't mind, though, because what he substituted for the missing single was his second home run of the night, as he went 4-for-5 and set a new Curve record with 8 RBI in the game. �Presley, who is having a break-out year for the Curve, is now leading the Eastern League with a .379 average (number two is hitting "only" .341) and 58 hits. �He's second in the league in total bases with 89, and in OPS with .996.

The Curve jumped out to a big start with 4 runs in the top of the 1st. �CF Gorkys Hernandez singled, moved to second base on a balk, then scored on DH Josh Harrison's single. �A walk to 1B Matt Hague and a single by RF Miles Durham loaded the bases. �Presley cleared the load with a triple, and the Curve were up 4-0. �Hague doubled and 3B Jordy Mercer was hit by a pitch in the 3rd inning, setting up Presley for his first homer of the game, a 3-run blast over the center field wall.

The Curve scored without Presley's help in the 4th inning. on a single by SS Chase d'Arnaud, a double by Hernandez, and an RBI grounder by Harrison, to give the Curve an 8-0 lead. �All 8 runs were charged to Akron starter Scott Barnes -- nice revenge after Barnes pitched 5.1 no-hit innings against the Curve last week, on his way to being named the Eastern League's pitcher of the week.

Presley homered again in the 5th inning, driving in Durham, who had singled again. �After the homer, C Kris Watts singled, d'Arnaud walked, and a fielding error on a ball off the bat of Hernandez let Watts score the Curve's 11th run.

Not to be lost in the offensive outpouring was some excellent pitching by Curve starter Tim Alderson. Alderson won his 3rd game of the season with 7 shut-out innings. �He scattered 4 hits, no walks, and one hit batter over those 7 innings. �There was only one inning, the 5th, when Alderson had to deal with 2 runners on base at once (after 2 singles), and he got out of that inning with a double play.

Diego Moreno made his AA debut with the Curve in the 8th. �He gave up a lead-off single, then got a fly out, and struck out the next two batters to end the inning. �Corey Hamman pitched the 9th for the Curve. �He gave up a double, a single, and an RBI ground out for the only Akron run of the game.

Apparently, 93.7 The Fan reported this morning that Neil Walker has been recalled from Triple-A, and that Steve Pearce would likely be placed on the DL with a sprained ankle. I haven’t seen this reported anywhere else, so take it with a grain of salt for now. it may have just been speculation.