Showing posts tagged “Zack Cozart”
Mike Potter ·
7 Sep 2009, 5:52 PM ·
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FIVE COUNTY STADIUM/ZEBULON One last trip across Wake County for the Carolina Mudcats’ rainy season finale.
And the team just got hot too late.
David Bell’s club comes into its 139th game on a seven-game winning streak, despite the depletion of the team for much of the second half. Early on in the half there were players who absolutely had to go to Triple-A after making mincemeat of the Southern League, while over the past couple of weeks the Cincinnati Reds have been bolstering their Louisville roster in preparation for the Governors’ Cup Playoffs.
Louisville is at Durham in the first round on Wednesday and Thursday, so if you’re going to be suffering from Mudcats withdrawal it’s a last chance to see a whole lot of Carolina’s best 2009 players this season. SL All-Stars Travis Wood, Todd Frazier and Juan Francisco are playing for the Bats as is Chris Heisey, who was simply the best player in the league this year.
In case you’re interested, I’m scheduled to cover those games for the Louisville Courier-Journal.
The game starts 36 minutes late because of rain. And they’ve shut down the Italian sausage, so I’ll be having chicken on the last getaway day. The Braves win 5-0 to make that long bus ride home seem a little shorter. Everybody is on fast forward today as game time is 2:01.
Mississippi doesn’t take long to get started, as Jon Owings launches Jeremy Horst’s first pitch of the game out of the yard about 20 feet inside the left-field foul pole.
The score stays right there until the seventh, when the visitors strike for two.
Brandon Hicks leads off with a double to right, scoring on Greg Creek’s one-out double to left. Creek then comes home on Travis Jones’ two-out single to right.
Mississippi scores another in the eighth, as Chris Anderson slaps a leadoff double to left, followed by pinch-hitter Stephen Marek’s single to left and a ground ball from Owings to score the run.
The Braves get their last one in the ninth off Josh Beal, as Hicks leads off with a homer to left.
After the game Mudcats slugger Yonder Alonzo (pictured) gets the call to Louisville for his Triple-A debut. That makes for 17 current Bats who played at least part of the season for Carolina. Continue reading »
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats, Durham Bulls Arizona Fall League, Birmingham Barons, Brandon Hicks, Chris Anderson, Chris Heisey, Cincinnati Reds, David Bell, Greg Creek, International League, Jeremy Horst, Jon Owings, Josh Beal, Juan Francisco, Korey Feiner, Logan Ondrusek, Louisville Bats, Mississippi Braves, Peoria Saguaros, Phillippe Valiquette, Sean Watson, Southern League, Stephen Marek, Todd Frazier, Travis Jones, Travis Wood, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
7 Sep 2009, 12:18 AM ·
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The Carolina Mudcats aren’t going to the Southern League playoffs, but they have a chance today to finish the season on fire.
Jerry Gil (pictured), Ruben Medina and Sean Watson put together a three-hit shutout on Sunday night as the Mudcats beat the visiting Mississippi Braves 1-0 to win their seventh straight game. The streak matches the fifth longest in club history.
Carolina got the run in the first when Zack Cozart’s sacrifice fly scored Kris Negron.
Gil (3-4) got through seven innings - his longest stint in Double-A - before Medina came on for the eighth to set up Watson for a perfect ninth inning and his eighth save.
Carolina’s season finale is today at 2 p.m. at Five County Stadium, with southpaw Jeremy Horst (1-3, 6.65) taking the hill against Mississippi.
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Jeremy Horst, Jerry Gil, Kris Negron, Mississippi Braves, Ruben Medina, Sean Watson, Southern League, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
6 Sep 2009, 3:54 AM ·
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A walk-off single from Logan Parker (pictured) completed a late comeback, giving the Carolina Mudcats a 3-2 win over the visiting Mississippi Braves on Saturday night.
The Braves began the scoring with a pair of fifth-inning runs off starter Alexander Smit, on an RBI double from Concepcion Rodriguez followed by an RBI single from Brandon Hicks.
Mississippi starter Jose Ortegano carried a shutout into the eighth before Carson Kainer’s single started a two-run rally. A wild pitch and walk followed, before a one-out RBI single from Kris Negron chased the starter. Shaun Cumberland’s infield hit tied the score.
In the ninth, Zack Cozart singled and took second on an error. Eric Eymann’s single moved Cozart to third to set up Parker’s heroics.
Zach Ward (2-4) was the winning pitcher.
The series continues tonight at 6:15, with Jerry Gil (2-4, 9.57) on the mound for the Mudcats.
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Alexander Smit, Atlanta Braves, Carson Kainer, Cincinnati Reds, Eric Eymann, Jerry Gil, Jose Ortegano, Kris Negron, Logan Parker, Mississippi Braves, Shaun Cumberland, Southern League, Zach Ward, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
5 Sep 2009, 12:42 AM ·
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Eliminated before the stretch drive in the playoff race in the Southern League’s North Division, the Carolina Mudcats continued their late run of victories Friday night.
Zack Cozart (pictured) and Shaun Cumberland hit back-to-back two-run doubles in the seventh inning, leading the Mudcats to an 8-7 comeback victory over the Mississippi Braves that was their fifth straight win.
Jake Long and Yonder Alonzo homered for Carolina.
Ramon Geronimo (4-3) earned a win for the second straight night, while Sean Watson racked up his seventh save.
The series continues tonight at 6:15 PM with lefty Alexander Smit (4-3, 3.23) making the start for the Mudcats.
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Alexander Smit, Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Jake Long, Mississippi Braves, Ramon Geronimo, Sean Watson, Shaun Cumberland, Southern League, Yonder Alonzo, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
3 Sep 2009, 11:32 PM ·
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FIVE COUNTY STADIUM/ZEBULON It’s the opener of the Carolina Mudcats’ final series of the season, a five-game set against the Mississippi Braves that will conclude with an afternoon game on Labor Day.
Frankly it doesn’t mean much except for individual statistics. The Mudcats are in last place in the Southern League’s North Division - although only a game and a half behind the fourth-place Huntsville Stars, who are playoff-bound after edging out Carolina by a single game to win the first half.
Mississippi will finish with a winning half unless the Mudcats really do some butt-kicking over the next five days, but the Braves are solidly in third place in the South and most of them will be headed back to their hometowns after a long bus ride following Monday’s contest.
But both teams have been playing out the string very well, as each comes in with a three-game winning streak.
With the Southern League’s wildly-unbalanced schedule, it’s Mississippi’s only visit to North Carolina this season - only the Tennessee Smokies, Jacksonville Suns and Huntsville visited Zebulon for more than a single five-game series.
That’s too bad for one particular reason, because colorful Mississippi manager Phillip Wellman, who played for the Durham Bulls in the late ’80s and coached there in the early ’90s, is in town just once.
Both rosters are pretty depleted as the Cincinnati Reds try to bolster Louisville and the Atlanta Braves do the same for Gwinnett in an attempt to win the International League’s Governors’ Cup.
The Mudcats will have a quality pitcher on the mound tonight in southpaw Matt Maloney (pictured), who was sent directly down from Cincinnati apparently for just this one outing to keep him fresh.
Fortunately it’s a beautiful night for, well, anything. And the Mudcats end up winning 6-5 with a bottom-of-the-ninth rally.
Let’s grab an Italian sausage - I’m going to be missing those things all winter but it’s not as if I need them - and play ball. Continue reading »
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Atlanta Braves, Brandon Hicks, Cincinnati Reds, Cody Johnson, David Bell, Durham Bulls, Eric Eymann, Gwinnett Braves, Huntsville Stars, International League, Jacksonville Suns, Jason Bour, Jason Heyward, Jose Camarena, Jose Castro, Josh Beal, Kody Kirkland, Kris Negron, Kyle Cofield, Logan Parker, Louisville Bats, Luis Montano, Matt Maloney, Mississippi Braves, Phillip Wellman, Sean Henry, Southern League, Tennessee Smokies, Tim Gustafson, Zach Ward, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
1 Sep 2009, 1:56 AM ·
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It’s too bad for the Carolina Mudcats they didn’t have a doubleheader like this a month ago, when it could have helped them in the pennant race.
Two shutouts in one night.
Alexander Smit (pictured) and Joe Krebs each started shutout wins as the Mudcats beat the homestanding Montgomery Biscuits 1-0 and 5-0 on Monday night.
Smit (4-3) pitched six innings in the Game 1 win while Sean Watson came on for the seventh for his sixth save.
Carolina scored the run in the third, on a Jose Castro single that scored Jake Long.
In the nightcap, the Mudcats scored three runs in the third off Alex Torres (0-1) on a Yonder Alonso single followed by Zack Cozart’s two-run homer and never looked back.
Zach Ward (1-4) picked up the win.
Carolina had two transactions on Monday, as infielder Eric Eymann was sent down from Triple-A Louisville, while infielder Justin Tordi has been sent down to Sarasota.
Carolina plays its final road game of the season tonight at 8:05, with Jeremy Horst (0-3, 9.20) on the hill. The Mudcats return home Thursday night for the opener of a five-game set against the Mississippi Braves.
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Alex Torres, Alexander Smit, Cincinnati Reds, Eric Eymann, Jake Long, Jeremy Horst, Joe Krebs, Jose Castro, Justin Tordi, Louisville Bats, Mississippi Braves, Montgomery Biscuits, Sarasota Reds, Sean Watson, Southern League, Tampa Bay Rays, Yonder Alonzo, Zach Ward, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
29 Aug 2009, 11:53 PM ·
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The Carolina Mudcats’ road doldrums continued at Montgomery, as the Biscuits rolled to an 8-1 win in Game 2 of their five-game set.
Jason Perry (pictured) hit a three-run homer while Matt Spring added a three-run double for the winners.
Ryan Morse (4-6) was the winning pitcher while Jerry Gil (2-4) took the loss as the Mudcats dropped their third straight.
Carolina got its only run on a bases-loaded walk to Zack Cozart in the third inning. Jose Castro singled twice in the Mudcats’ five-hit attack.
The series continues Sunday at 3:05 p.m., with Camilo Vazquez (5-4, 5.29) going for Carolina against southpaw Brandon Mann (6-8, 4.30).
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Add new tag, Brandon Mann, Camilo Vazquez, Cincinnati Reds, Jason Perry, Jerry Gil, Jose Castro, Matt Spring, Montgomery Biscuits, Ryan Morse, Southern League, Tampa Bay Rays, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
25 Aug 2009, 12:04 AM ·
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FIVE COUNTY STADIUM/ZEBULON It’s Game 3 of the Carolina Mudcats’ five-game homestand against a hot Tennessee Smokies club, and if for nothing more than to lift the mood in the clubhouse the home team needs a victory.
Tennessee has been holding up its end of the deal recently in its three-way battle with in-state rivals West Tenn and Chattanooga, while the Mudcats - who come into the game with a “tragic number” of four with nearly two weeks left in the season - are going to have to get it going to finish fourth in the Southern League’s North Division.
The Mudcats do have one of their marquee players back in Yonder Alonzo (pictured), who is back from Sarasota after going on the disabled list back on June 18 with a broken hamate bone in his right hand.
Tennessee’s Jeremy Papelbon, who pitched on Sunday, is having a good day as he has been named the SL’s pitcher of the week.
It looks like the weather is going to be good for this one, so after watching Smokies skipper Ryne Sandberg sign a long line of autographs let’s get a cheeseburger and play ball.
This one gets ugly early, and ends up with the Smokies winning 16-9. Trust me, Monday’s contest was a good one to miss. Continue reading »
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats, USA Baseball Alexander Smit, Andrew Cashner, Camilo Vazquez, Canada, Chattanooga Lookouts, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, David Bell, Dustin Sasser, Hung-Wen Chen, Jake Kahaulelio, Jeremy Papelbon, Jerry Gil, Jim Adduci, Logan Parker, Phillippe Valiquette, Ryne Sandberg, Southern League, Tennessee Smokies, The Netherlands, Tony Thomas, Ty Wright, Welington Castillo, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, Yonder Alonzo, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
23 Aug 2009, 6:40 PM ·
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FIVE COUNTY STADIUM/ZEBULON It’s Game 2 of the Carolina Mudcats’ five-game homestand against the Tennessee Smokies, and it’s about getting to the point where the home team is playing for pride - and for job assignments heading into next season.
The Mudcats, who lost their chance for the Southern League’s first-half North Division title when they lost on the road to the Smokies on the final day of the half, are guaranteed a losing record in the second half and likely just a few days away from elimination from the race.
They do have that spoiler thing going, and probably wouldn’t mind throwing a monkey wrench into the Smokies’ playoff hopes. That doesn’t happen as Tennessee wins 3-2, taking a one-run victory for the second straight day.
Today is warm and cloudy, but with no threat of rain.
Umpires and managers are wearing light blue - some would say Carolina blue - sweatbands to promote awareness of prostate cancer.
And the Carolina Hurricanes’ “Storm Squad” is in the house.
Let’s consume mass quantities of chicken tenders and play ball.
The Smokies get their first run off Tom Cochran with a two-out rally in the third. Starlin Castro hits a double to right, followed by Blake Lalli’s RBI single to left.
Tennessee’s Jeremy Papelbon (pictured) allows just one baserunner until there are two out in the fifth, when Justin Tordi breaks up the no-hitter with a double to left center. Continue reading »
Baseball, Carolina Hurricanes, Carolina Mudcats Andrew Cashner, Blake Lalli, Chicago Cubs, Cincinnati Reds, David Bell, David Cales, Doug Deeds, Jeremy Papelbon, Jerry Gil, Jonathan Papelbon, Justin Tordi, Kristopher Negron, Marcus Mateo, Ryne Sandberg, Sean Henry, Shaun Cumberland, Southern League, Starlin Castro, Tennessee Smokies, Tom Cochran, Tony Thomas, West Tenn Diamond Jaxx, Zack Cozart
Mike Potter ·
22 Aug 2009, 11:37 PM ·
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FIVE COUNTY STADIUM/ZEBULON The Carolina Mudcats return home for the opener of a five-game series against the Tennessee Smokies that will comprise the entire homestand.
It’s bordering on time for the end-of-season “death watch” for the Mudcats, as their tragic number for elimination from playoff contention is down to seven with 15 games left in the season. Carolina would just about have to run the table and get help from at least three teams.
The Cincinnati Reds’ organization is acutely aware of the situation, so any Mudcat who deserves promotion to Triple-A is headed for Louisville to help the Bats try to win a Governors’ Cup. Todd Frazier (pictured) is the latest to make the jump, making the number 11 of current Bats players I have covered as a home beat writer at some point.
The Bats really may have about 1/3 of this season’s Southern League post-season all-star team on their roster, since they already had SL home-run leader Juan Francisco, the SL’s best pitcher in Travis Wood and perhaps the SL’s best player in Chris Heisey in the clubhouse. If you think I don’t want Louisville to visit Durham in the playoffs this season, try again.
Anyway, it’s dark and rainy all the way over here from Brier Creek, but the game starts a reasonable 23 minutes late.
Grab an Italian sausage and let’s go.
Tennessee, which eventually wins this one 5-4, takes the early lead with a two-run second inning off Luis Montano. Tyler Colvin leads off with a double to left, moving to third on Ty Wright’s sacrifice bunt to third. Tony Thomas scores Colvin on a two-out double off the wall in left, followed by pitcher Chris Carpenter’s RBI double to right.
Carolina goes ahead with a three-run rally in the fourth.
Jose Castro leads off with a single to left, and after a Shaun Cumberland single to left and a walk to Zack Cozart the bases are literally full of “Cs.” With one out, Logan Parker hits a two-run single to right, and then Carson Kainer puts the home team ahead with another single to right.
Tennessee takes the lead again with a two-out rally in the sixth. Wright doubles to left, followed by Welington Castillo’s RBI single to left. Thomas then smacks an RBI single to left.
The Mudcats tie it in the bottom, as Cozart walks, steals second, advances on Alex Maestri’s wild pitch and scores on Kainer’s one-out sac fly to center.
But Tennessee takes the lead again in the seventh, as Jim Adduci reaches on a fielder’s choice following Jonathan Mota’s single, followed by Starlin Castro’s RBI double to right for the game-winning run.
Here’s what they said …
Mudcats manager David Bell: “Montano was good. In several of his outings he’s struggled for the first couple of innings and then settled down and gotten the job done. It was a good game, but we just didn’t win. There should always be enough motivation to go out and try to win every game, no matter what the standings say.”
Parker: “When you’re in this position (in the standings), you just have to forget about how the team’s doing and motivate yourself every day. We had a great team in the first half and didn’t make the playoffs because we lost the last series to Tennessee. That’s something we need to be thinking about when we play them.”
Cozart: “It’s always important to finish the season strong, even if the team hasn’t been winning. And if you go out and play a good game yourself, that’s going to give the team a better chance to win.”
What does it all mean?
That the tragic number is now five, while Tennessee is a game behind West Tenn for the division lead.
Stars of the game
1. Thomas, with three hits including a double for two RBI.
2. Parker, for two hits and two RBI.
3. Carpenter, for a respectable start and a clutch hit.
Play of the game
Starlin Castro’s game-winning double.
Season series
Tennessee leads 15-11.
Streaks
Carolina: Lost 2.
Tennessee: Won 1.
Transactions
Carolina: Outfielder Todd Frazier promoted to Louisville. Infielder Kristopher Negron promoted to Carolina from Sarasota.
Tennessee: none.
On deck
Tennessee at Carolina, Sunday, 2 p.m.
Jeremy Papelbon (L, 4-5, 3.26) vs. Tom Cochran (L, 4-5, 3.29)
Baseball, Carolina Mudcats Alex Maestri, Carson Kainer, Chicago Cubs, Chris Carpenter, Chris Heisey, Cincinnati Reds, David Bell, International League, Jeremy Papelbon, Jim Adduci, Jonathan Mota, Jose Castro, Juan Francisco, Kristopher Negron, Logan Parker, Louisville Bats, Luis Montano, Sarasota Reds, Shaun Cumberland, Southern League, Starlin Castro, Tennessee Smokies, Todd Frazier, Tom Cochran, Tony Thomas, Travis Wood, Ty Wright, Tyler Colvin, Welington Castillo, Zack Cozart
