Showing posts tagged “Jason Childers”
Mike Potter ·
24 Sep 2009, 12:02 AM ·
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Todd Redmond pitched 8 1/3 shutout innings while three teammates including former Durham Bull Jon Weber (pictured) homered, leading defending champion Team USA to a 3-0 victory over Puerto Rico in Florence, Italy and a berth in the title game of the IBAF World Cup.
Ike Davis had a solo homer to right in the second inning, while Buck Coats soloed to right in the fifth and Weber added a blast to center in the eighth.
Redmond (3-0) allowed just four hits and struck out four before former Bull Jason Childers came on to close and earn his first save of the tournament.
The USA will face Cuba on Thursday at 2 p.m. (EDT) in Nettuno in a game to be shown live on MLB Network. Team USA will then close out Round Three against The Netherlands on Friday before playing in Sunday’s 10 a.m. (EDT) title game which will also be shown live on MLB Network.
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Buck Coats, Cuba, Ike Davis, Italy, Jason Childers, Jon Weber, The Netherlands, Todd Redmond
Mike Potter ·
21 Sep 2009, 8:01 PM ·
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Trevor Plouffe’s walk-off homer made the difference as Team USA beat Australia 4-3 in the IBAF World Cup in Bologna, Italy, clinching the top seed in Group G for the Final Round.
After the Aussies took a 1-0 lead, Justin Smoak extended his team record with his ninth homer of the tournament to tie the game in the sixth. Former Durham Bull Jon Weber gave the Red, White and Blue the lead with an RBI grounder later in the inning.
Australia scored twice in the seventh, but Plouffe (pictured) tied the score again with an RBI grounder in the bottom of the frame to make it 3-3.
His two out homer to left in the ninth then ended the game.
Cory Luebke had a six-inning quality start in the no-decision. Former Durham Bull Jason Childers then added two innings of scoreless relief, striking out three, before Ehren Wasserman got the win in his first decision of the tournament.
The USA will take on Venezuela today at 2 p.m. (EDT) in Firenze, Italy. Venezuela defeated Team USA in its first game of the tournament, 13-9 in an extra-inning tiebreaker.
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Australia, Cory Luebke, Ehren Wasserman, Italy, Jason Childers, Jon Weber, Justin Smoak, Trevor Plouffe, Venezuela
Mike Potter ·
12 Sep 2009, 12:16 AM ·
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Team USA definitely showed how to bounce back on Friday in baseball’s World Cup.
Todd Redmond (pictured) started off with six perfect innings and got homers from four teammates as the Red, White and Blue walloped host Germany 9-1 in Regensburg. The win came a day after Venezuela had pulled off a 13-9 upset of the USA in 11 innings.
Ike Davis’ homer in the second jump-started the USA offense, which poured three more runs onto Tim Henkenjohann - who had defeated the college-level National Team at the World Baseball Challenge - in the third.
Buck Coats added a two-run homer in the sixth, Justin Smoak another in the seventh and Trevor Plouffe yet another in the eighth.
Redmond got through eight innings, giving up two hits and striking out seven. Former Durham Bull Jason Childers gave up the only German run in the ninth.
Team USA will face China (0-2) today in its final game of pool play. The next round begins Sunday in Italy and The Netherlands.
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Buck Coats, China, Germany, Ike Davis, Italy, Jason Childers, Justin Smoak, The Netherlands, Tim Henkenjohann, Todd Redmond, Trevor Plouffe
Mike Potter ·
10 Sep 2009, 11:01 PM ·
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Maybe it’s not exactly the way the tiebreaker was supposed to work, but Venezuelan slugger Dirmo Chavez certainly made the best of his situation.
The Venezuelans’ leadoff hitter stroked a grand slam off Nate Field in the top of the 11th, giving his team a 13-9 win over the defending champion Team USA in their first game in pool play at the IBAF Baseball World Cup in Regensburg, Germany.
Justin Smoak (pictured) led Team USA with a huge night at the plate, going 4-for-6 with a pair of homers, two doubles and five RBI.
One of Smoak’s doubles tied the game in the 10th to force another extra inning.
Tug Hulett also homered for the USA, while Buck Coats tripled and doubled.
Starter Brad Lincoln gave up just one run in five innings, but it was a rough night for former Durham Bulls reliever Jason Childers who gave up five runs.
The Americans’ next game is on Friday at 1 p.m. against the host Germans (1-0) in a contest which has long been sold out. Todd Redmond is scheduled to start for the Red, White and Blue.
Baseball, USA Baseball Brad Lincoln, Buck Coats, Dirmo Chavez, Germany, Jason Childers, Justin Smoak, Nate Field, Todd Redmond, Tug Hulett, World Cup
Mike Potter ·
6 Sep 2009, 3:16 AM ·
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Todd Redmond pitched five perfect innings and his teammates held on as Team USA took a 6-5 exhibition victory over Canada on Saturday at Cary’s Coleman Field.
The teams are preparing for the World Cup, to be held in The Netherlands, Italy and Germany later this month.
Terry Tiffee went 2-for-4 with two RBI to lead the U.S. offense.
The Red, White and Blue took a 3-0 lead off Chris Begg in the first on RBI from Justin Smoak, Tiffee and Pedro Alvarez.
Lucas May added a homer in the second for a 4-0 lead, which went to 6-0 on RBI singles from Tiffee and Josh Kroeger in the third.
Canada rallied for five runs before former Durham Bull Jason Childers (pictured) came on for a shutout ninth and his first save of the series.
The USA will go for a four-game sweep of the series today at 5 p.m. with Cory Luebke on the hill.
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Chris Begg, Cory Luebke, Jason Childers, Josh Kroeger, Justin Smoak, Pedro Alvarez, Terry Tiffee, Todd Redmond
Mike Potter ·
4 Sep 2009, 9:48 PM ·
1 Comment
COLEMAN FIELD/CARY It’s Game 2 of USA Baseball’s friendly series against Canada, as both teams prepare to play in the World Cup in The Netherlands, Italy in Germany later this month.
The clubs are made up entirely of minor-league pros, with the USA team completely of Triple-A and Double-A players while the Canadians are from every level including a couple of former pro pitchers who are currently without contracts.
The series should be competitive, as Team USA won the opener 6-4 on Thursday night after the visitors had taken an early 3-0 lead.
Two of the USA players were with the Durham Bulls just a few days ago. Jon Weber is playing left field and hitting third, while Jason Childers came out of the bullpen for a scoreless inning on Thursday.
It’s a mild night with no threat of rain out in one of the greenest parts of the Triangle. And it’s a happy alcohol-free crowd that will get a chance to watch “The Bad News Bears” after the early game.
Panera Bread has brought sustenance to the press box. Let’s play ball.
Team USA jumps on right-hander and former Giants organization farmhand Brooks McNiven for a three-spot in the first inning of a game the Americans eventually hold on to win 7-4.
Buck Coats (pictured) starts the rally with a one-out double to right. Weber then walks before Pedro Alvarez reaches on a fielder’s-choice ball to third to force Weber. Ike Davis walks before Justin Smoak hits a two-run single to center. Tug Hulett’s single to center makes it 3-0. Continue reading »
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball B.J. Rosenberg, Brad Lincoln, Brett Lawrie, Brooks McNiven, Buck Coats, Canada, Chris Begg, Cole Armstrong, Daniel Descalso, Ike Davis, Jason Castro, Jason Childers, Jon Weber, Justin Smoak, Nate Field, Pedro Alvarez, Rene Tosoni, Shawn Bowman, Tim Smith, Todd Redmond, Trevor Plouffe, Tug Hulett
Adam Sobsey ·
4 Sep 2009, 5:00 AM ·
4 Comments
It has happened twice in the history of major-league baseball. Rennie Stennett of the Pittsburgh Pirates did it in 1975—with someone else’s bat, no less—and Wilbert Robinson did it, too, way back in 1892, when balls were made out of the hides of woolly mammoths and bats from the tusks. Seven hits in a nine-inning game. You probably won’t see this happen again in your lifetime. And you probably aren’t even very old.
Who knows about the International League, which has been around for 126 years? But I’d be willing to bet that Desmond Jennings etched his name into its record books and will stay there for a very long time. He came up seven times last night. He hit six singles and a double.
This is one of those records that requires you to be extraordinarily lucky and very, very good. (In Jennings’s case, being very, very fast didn’t hurt, either.) The beauty of it was that Jennings did it without overswinging: he hit three ground-ball singles up the middle; two more grounders that were knocked down by the shortstop, who was helpless to throw out the speedy Jennings; a solid line-drive to left; and then an opposite-field drive into the gap for a ninth-inning double. “I just went up there hacking,” he is reported to have said. Yeah, sure, Desmond.
It’s a very good thing, in retrospect, that the official scorer at Charlotte’s ballpark had reversed a call earlier, when he charged Knights shortstop Justin Fuller with an error on one of Jennings’s infield grounders. According to Bulls broadcaster Neil Solondz, Fuller had no chance to throw out Jennings. (I believe Solondz’s exact words were “You’ve gotta be kidding me” when the scoreboard flashed E.) A couple of batters later, you could dimly hear the scorer announce the error-to-hit change in the background. Had he not done so then, you’d better believe Bulls manager Charlie Montoyo would have been on the phone to the press box, in high dudgeon, immediately after the game. Fortunately for everyone involved, it didn’t come to that.
Oh: guess how many hits the entire Knights team had? Seven.
Oh, also, before I forget—because, believe it or not, there is so much to report tonight that losing track isn’t unthinkable—the Bulls clinched a playoff spot with a resounding 14-3 win over the Bristol Sox Charlotte Knights.
Continue reading »
Baseball, Durham Bulls, Tampa Bay Rays Bulls on the Move, Button Gwinnett, Calvin Medlock, Charlotte Knights, Chicago White Sox, Dale Thayer, Desmond Jennings, Fernando Perez, Gwinnett Braves, Jason Childers, Joe Bateman, Joe Nelson, Jorge Julio, Justin Ruggiano, Louisville Bats, Rashad Eldridge, record, Reid Brignac, Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees, Sean Rodriguez, seven hits in a nine inning game, strikeouts, Team USA, Wade Davis
Mike Potter ·
3 Sep 2009, 11:51 PM ·
1 Comment
USA Baseball’s World Cup team got off to a good start, holding off Canada 6-4 in the first of a four-game exhibition series at Coleman Field in Cary.
Jason Castro led the way with two hits and two runs scored for the Red, White and Blue.
The hosts put up three runs in the second off Nick Bucci, as Tug Hulett smacked a two-run double and Buck Coats a sacrifice fly.
Canada tied it in the third on an RBI infield hit from Rene Tosoni and a two-run double from Shawn Brown, then went up 4-3 on an Adam Loewen single in the fourth.
The Americans responded with two runs in the fifth on a Terry Tiffee grounder and a Josh Kroeger single, and added their last run in the sixth on a double-play ball.
Lucas Harrell was the winning pitcher in relief, while former Durham Bulls Cedrick Bowers and Jason Childers (pictured) each fired a hitless relief inning.
Game 2 is tonight at 6:30, with Brad Lincoln on the hill for Team USA.
Baseball, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Adam Loewen, Brad Lincoln, Buck Coats, Canada, Cedrick Bowers, Jason Castro, Jason Childers, Josh Kroeger, Lucas Harrell, Nick Bucci, Shawn Brown, Terry Tiffee, Tug Hulett
Mike Potter ·
2 Sep 2009, 9:55 PM ·
4 Comments
COLEMAN FIELD/CARY They’re coming together from 16 different major-league organizations, mostly from the Triple-A level and a few from Double-A.
But over the next few days, manager Eddie Rodriguez will have the job of molding them into a unit known as Team USA.
Twenty-three players gathered in Cary for media day this afternoon, as they begin getting ready to defend baseball’s World Cup in Germany, The Netherlands and Italy next month with a series of exhibition games against Canada from Thursday through Sunday.
And there are a few familiar faces on the roster.
Outfielder Jon Weber (pictured) and right-handed reliever Jason Childers have been with the Durham Bulls all season, while left-hander Cedrick Bowers, who had been playing for the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, is a former Bull.
Infielder Pedro Alvarez, who was with the Altoona Curve in the Eastern League, is a former member of the college-level USA National Team from 2006 and ‘07 while fellow infielder Justin Smoak, most recently with the Pacific Coast League’s Oklahoma Redhawks, was also with that ‘07 club.
“We’re representing our country first, our national pastime and the professionalism we stand for within the game,” manager Eddie Rodriguez said during a lightly-attended media day event. “I’ve been associated with USA Baseball and I think that had a lot to do with (my selection as manager.) It’s always an honor.
“For us, this level of competition is close to if not the equivalent of the Olympics. There are 22 countries participating and that’s more than were in the last Olympics.” Continue reading »
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats, Durham Bulls, USA Baseball Alexander Smit, Altoona Curve, Canada, Cedrick Bowers, Charlie Montoyo, Eastern League, Eddie Rodriguez, Germany, International League, Italy, Jason Childers, Jon Weber, Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs, Pacific Coast League, Philippe Valiquette, Southern League, The Netherlands, Vanderbilt
Adam Sobsey ·
1 Sep 2009, 5:00 AM ·
1 Comment
DBAP/ DURHAM—The weather changed abruptly yesterday. At game time Sunday we were still in the sweaty languor of late summer, but the heat and sun fell out of the sky overnight. The season that replaced them on Monday wasn’t so much autumnal as alien—as if the primer-gray clouds, the unsettled breeze and the melancholy dampness had been imported from a British Isle, or Soviet-bloc Europe.
And the Bulls’ meteorology changed, too, with the same suddenness. Not only did their seven-game winning-streak come to an ugly end in a sluggish, poorly-played (by both teams) 8-6 loss to Gwinnett, but the date, August 31, marked the beginning of Bull-poaching season. Five players—a full rundown of them below (well, almost full; you’ll see)—left the DBAP for Tampa Bay after last night’s loss. It was less meteorology that hit the Bulls’ clubhouse than a meteor, which decimated the squad. Or, put another way, if September has come to take the sun and heat out of the sky, then its accompanying major-league roster expansion has swiped some of the stars, too.
And that’s not all. Two more Bulls, Jason Childers and Jon Weber, are off to join Team USA for the Baseball World Cup, to be played in Europe later this month. (Why doesn’t the IBAF schedule this tournament two weeks later? Then the minor-league season would be over, and none of the players on Team USA—all of whom are in Double-A and Triple-A—would have to miss the playoffs.) Childers and Weber have been near the front of the Bulls’ charge to the brink of the post-season—the Bulls have a one-game lead in the IL South Division, and a 4.5 game lead in the wild card race with seven left to play—but they won’t be here to help push the team across the threshold.
More’s the pity, because both of those stalwarts had a chance to help the Bulls notch one more victory last night, and both came up short. How that happened, and what happens next to the Bulls, follows.
Continue reading »
Baseball, Durham Bulls, Tampa Bay Rays 10000 Maniacs, Andy Sonnanstine, Baseball World Cup, Bulls on the Move, Charlie Montoyo, Desmond Jennings, Fernando Perez, Gregor Blanco, Gwinnett Braves, Jason Childers, Jeff Bennett, Joe Nelson, Jon Weber, Montgomery Biscuits, MVP, Paul Phillips, Rayner Oliveros, Shawn Riggans, Team USA, Trapper John M.D., Wade Davis, Winston Abreu
