6/26/2081 to 6/29/2081
The Tucson Diamondbacks (45-32)
AT
The Denver Broncos (39-38)
Pitching Matchups:
RH Cleveland Lauria (9-5, 4.27 ERA) VS. RH Kenny Pillsbury (6-7, 4.47 ERA)
RH Peter Boughner (12-1, 2.52 ERA) VS. RH Valentine McGurk (1-0, 6.55 ERA)
RH Scott Council (6-2, 3.26 ERA) VS. LH Robert McNett (7-6, 5.43 ERA)
RH Paul Reyes (6-6, 6.46 ERA) VS. RH Christopher Kirk (9-6, 4.79 ERA)
In the showdown against the first place Diamondbacks, things did not get off to a good start.
Kenny Pillsbury quickly put the team in 3-0 hole, giving up a 2 run homer to
Israel Kutz in the first inning, and another run in the second. The Broncos would battle back, however. In the fifth inning,
Asbel Fuentez hit a two run homer. In the seventh inning,
Mark Bakke tied the game up with a solo shot.
In the ninth, it looked like Denver's hearts would be broken. Tucson SS
Jose Morales, not known for his power, hit a solo homer off of Pillsbury to give the Diamondbacks the lead. But in the bottom of the ninth,
Booker Romero came through an RBI single to tie the game up, and
Fuentez delivered a run scoring single of his own to win the game, 5-4.
Pillsbury pitched a complete game. Fuentez finished with 2 hits and 3 RBI.
Russell Thomas extended his hitting streak to 18 games.
******
Valentine McGurk was no match for
Peter Boughner in the second game of the series. Mcgurk lasted only three innings, surrendering 7 runs and 3 home runs, while walking 3.
Boughner, meanwhile, pitched a shutout into the 7th inning, before
Alexis Vazquez broke it up with a solo homer. He finished with a complete game, 8 hitter, as
the Diamondbacks crushed Denver, 15-1.
Russell Thomas extended his hitting streak to 19 games.
After the game,
Larry Waltz was activated from the disabled list, and McGurk was demoted to AAA. Also, OF
Michael Stennis, hitting .220 with 2 homers, was sent down to AAA, while left-handed hitting infielder
Jack Rumfelt, hitting .309 at AAA, was promoted.
******
The Broncos earned at least a split of the four game series against the Diamondbacks by
clubbing them, 11-3. After
Robert McNett gave up a run in the first inning to Tucson, it was all Denver. They scored 2 in the first inning and 1 in the second. In the third,
Tomas Sato hit a solo homer. A seven run fourth inning sealed up the victory, as
Alexis Vazquez hit a two run homer and
Joseph Swayze added a solo shot.
McNett pitched 7 innings and gave up just two runs. Both Sato and Vazquez had 3 hits and 2 RBI.
Russell Thomas collected 3 hits (extending his hitting streak to 20 games) and scored 2 runs.
Lee Chappel doubled twice and scored 2 runs, while
Ellis Bolling delivered 2 hits and 3 RBI.
******
The Broncos concluded the first half of the season by taking 3 of 4 against the Diamondbacks,
winning the final game of the series, 6-3. They trailed 1-0 after the top of the first, but put together a 4 run first inning.
Tomas Sato was injured on the final out of the top of the second. The injury was not serious, though. He may miss a few games coming out of the All Star break but that's about it.
The Diamondbacks inched to within a run with a 2 run third inning. The score remained 4-3 until the bottom of the 7th.
Patrick Chason, who had replaced the injured Sato at second base, delivered a two run single to provide some precious insurance runs, and the Broncos hung on from there.
Christopher Kirk pitched 8 strong innings, while
Asbel Fuentez,
Alexis Vazquez, and
Mark Bakke all picked up two hits. Fuentez also scored 2 runs.
Russell Thomas extended his hitting streak to 21 games.