Thursday
01May
Midland RockHounds Defeat Corpus Christi Hooks 4-3, Jesus Guzman Hits Deciding Run - Texas League
Thursday, May 1, 2008 at 06:57PM
MLN Newswire - www.mlntherawfeed.com - MIDLAND, Texas – Jesus Guzman may not be Hank Aaron or Babe Ruth or Roberto Clemente, but this year in the Texas League and especially against the Hooks he’s better than all three. At least Aaron and Ruth and Clemente occasionally made outs.
Guzman powered an opposite-field home run into the RockHounds’ bullpen down the right field line in the bottom of the seventh to lift Midland to a 4-3 victory over the Hooks in the opener of this four-game series Tuesday night at Citibank Ballpark.
Midland’s third baseman, who played for San Antonio in 2005 and 2006, entered Tuesday’s game with the second best batting average (. 411) in the circuit and a league-leading 29 RBI’s. Last week, he fashioned four multiple-hit games against the Hooks at Whataburger Field.
Tuesday, his two-out single in the first triggered a three-run outburst by the RockHounds. Singles by Tommy Everidge and Myron Leslie got Guzman home to give Midland an early 1-0 lead. Later in the inning, Brian Snyder’s bases-loaded single plated two more to make it 3-0 RockHounds.
The Hooks battled back in the third and fourth innings. Tommy Manzella and Richie Paz produced RBI singles in the third to bring Corpus Christi to within a run at 3-2. Manzella’s line drive single to right-center also extended his league-best hitting streak to 18 games.
In the fourth, two errors by shortstop Cliff Pennington, a double play and a wild pitch allowed Eli Iorg to race home from third to bring the Hooks even at 3-3.
The two clubs remained deadlocked until the seventh. Pennington led off the frame with a sinking line drive to left, but Billy Hart made a diving catch to keep Pennington off the bases. Guzman followed with his game-winning blast on a 1-1 offering from reliever Evan Englebrook (0-1), who allowed just the one run in his two innings of relief.
The Hooks had an opportunity to draw even in the ninth after Chris Johnson opened the inning with a double to the warning track in left. Lou Santangelo’s chopping infield ground ball out moved Johnson to third. Drew Sutton got hit by a pitch, putting runners at first and third with one out.
Manzella batted next and drilled a 1-0 pitch from Andrew Carignan toward right field. But Everidge, Midland’s first baseman, made a stabbing catch of the line drive then turned to touch first to double up Sutton to end the game.
Carignan notched his first save, preserving the win for reliever Patrick Currin (3-0), who kept the Hooks off the board in the sixth and seventh.
Corpus Christi starter Sean Walker settled down after that bumpy first and finished with three runs allowed on eight hits and three walks over six innings.
Guzman’s 2-for-4 night gives him a batting average of .609 against the Hooks this year. He’s 14-for-23 in five games with a double, a triple, three home runs, nine runs and 11 RBI’s. He has at least two hits, one run and one RBI in every game against Corpus Christi.
Guzman powered an opposite-field home run into the RockHounds’ bullpen down the right field line in the bottom of the seventh to lift Midland to a 4-3 victory over the Hooks in the opener of this four-game series Tuesday night at Citibank Ballpark.
Midland’s third baseman, who played for San Antonio in 2005 and 2006, entered Tuesday’s game with the second best batting average (. 411) in the circuit and a league-leading 29 RBI’s. Last week, he fashioned four multiple-hit games against the Hooks at Whataburger Field.
Tuesday, his two-out single in the first triggered a three-run outburst by the RockHounds. Singles by Tommy Everidge and Myron Leslie got Guzman home to give Midland an early 1-0 lead. Later in the inning, Brian Snyder’s bases-loaded single plated two more to make it 3-0 RockHounds.
The Hooks battled back in the third and fourth innings. Tommy Manzella and Richie Paz produced RBI singles in the third to bring Corpus Christi to within a run at 3-2. Manzella’s line drive single to right-center also extended his league-best hitting streak to 18 games.
In the fourth, two errors by shortstop Cliff Pennington, a double play and a wild pitch allowed Eli Iorg to race home from third to bring the Hooks even at 3-3.
The two clubs remained deadlocked until the seventh. Pennington led off the frame with a sinking line drive to left, but Billy Hart made a diving catch to keep Pennington off the bases. Guzman followed with his game-winning blast on a 1-1 offering from reliever Evan Englebrook (0-1), who allowed just the one run in his two innings of relief.
The Hooks had an opportunity to draw even in the ninth after Chris Johnson opened the inning with a double to the warning track in left. Lou Santangelo’s chopping infield ground ball out moved Johnson to third. Drew Sutton got hit by a pitch, putting runners at first and third with one out.
Manzella batted next and drilled a 1-0 pitch from Andrew Carignan toward right field. But Everidge, Midland’s first baseman, made a stabbing catch of the line drive then turned to touch first to double up Sutton to end the game.
Carignan notched his first save, preserving the win for reliever Patrick Currin (3-0), who kept the Hooks off the board in the sixth and seventh.
Corpus Christi starter Sean Walker settled down after that bumpy first and finished with three runs allowed on eight hits and three walks over six innings.
Guzman’s 2-for-4 night gives him a batting average of .609 against the Hooks this year. He’s 14-for-23 in five games with a double, a triple, three home runs, nine runs and 11 RBI’s. He has at least two hits, one run and one RBI in every game against Corpus Christi.
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