Iowa Cubs

Micah Hoffpauir along with some Iowa Cubs, beat the Portland Beavers, 5-2 to finish off the four game sweep.

Kevin Hart started the game and was both impressive and on a pitch count.  Hart threw 68 pitches in four innings, allowing two hits and one run on a solo home run to Chase Headley.  Hart walked one and struck out six.

Mike Burns got the win since Hart didn't go five innings.  Burns gave up one run, also on a solo home run to Chase Headley, in three innings of relief.  Burns gave up two hits total, walked no one and struck out five.

Neal Cotts threw another scoreless inning of relief, although this one wasn't as impressive as he allowed two hits and struck out one.  Jose Ascanio got his ninth save of the season by striking out the side in the ninth.

Micah Hoffpauir had all five RBIs for the I-Cubs in the game.  He went 2 for 4 with a two-run double and a three-run homer.  Eric Patterson went 2 for 3 with a walk and a stolen base.

Tennessee Smokies

The Smokies kept me from having this done four hours ago by losing to the Huntsville Stars, 3-2 in 13 innings.

James Russell started this game a long time ago and went 5.1 innings, allowing two runs on two solo home runs.  Russell was tagged for five hits and a walk total.  He struck out one Star.

Then the bullpen settled in for a long game.  Michael Cooper threw an inning and a third.  Chris Shaver tossed three innings and Jim Henderson had two, all without allowing a run.  In the 13th inning, Matt Avery gave up an unearned run when second baseman Nate Spears threw away what would have been an inning-ending double play.  (Yes, I know you can't assume the double play, but the runner scored from second on the throwing error.)

Third baseman Kyle Reynolds went 3 for 6 with an RBI.

Daytona Cubs

Does anyone else think it's a good idea to play a game until 10:10 PM on Monday night and then start another game at 10:35 AM the next morning?  Hitters from the Daytona Cubs and the Brevard County Manatees didn't think so, so they took the first eight innings off, and then Brevard County scored three runs in the ninth to defeat the Daytona Cubs, 3-0.

Marco Carillo started and took advantage of the Florida sun (which, come to think of it, would be shining in the batters' eyes, wouldn't it?) and allowed only one hit and one walk in seven innings.  Carillo struck out three.  Billy Petrick allowed one hit in a scoreless eighth, but walked the first batter of the ninth inning before Casey Lambert relieved him.  Petrick got the loss when Lambert allowed that runner and two more to score after the Manatees crawled out of bed.

Right fielder Jim Adduci and third baseman Jonathan Mota went 2 for 4.  Mota had a double and Adduci stole his sixth base of the season.  But really, throw the stats out this morning.

These same two teams play again tomorrow at Brevard County.  Mapquest says it's a one hour, 16 minute drive from Daytona Beach to Viera, Florida.  Did they really need to play a 10:35 am game on getaway day to make it there? (Seriously, I think this was one of those "Bring your class to the game" days.  I can't think of why else they'd have over 4000 fans for a 10:35 game on a Tuesday.)

Peoria Chiefs

Had more sense than the Cubs did and didn't play through the rain.