GAME CAPSULES - APRIL 2008

Wednesday 4/30/08
PAWSOX TOP WINGS The Pawtucket Red Sox defeated Francisco Liriano and the Red Wings, 4-2, Wednesday afternoon at Frontier Field. Darnell McDonald and Howie Clark drove in runs for Rochester; three Red Wings relievers combined to toss 4 2/3 scoreless innings. The Wings open an eight-day road trip with a game on Thursday night in Toledo; Twins pitcher Kevin Slowey makes a rehab start for Rochester Thursday, and the game will be shown live locally on TWCS cable 26/215. The combination of cold temperatures and wind actually produced light snowflakes in the first inning, but Wings starter Liriano needed just 11 pitches to work through the inning. Liriano struck out leadoff batter Jeff Bailey, covered first to team with Garrett Jones on the second out, and got a fly out to end the Pawtucket half of the first. Liriano (0-1) walked the first two batters he faced in the second, and two fly ball outs later the Red Sox had a 1-0 lead with Chad Spann's sacrifice fly scoring Sandy Madera. Liriano racked up 20 pitches in the second inning. In the third, Pawtucket reached Liriano for a pair of runs, on Jeff Bailey's wind-blown home run that just carried over the fence and into the left field bullpen. Liriano worked his way out of more trouble by striking out Spann with the bases loaded for the final out. In the fourth, Liriano set down the side in order with two ground outs and a fly ball out. Pawtucket knuckleballer Charlie Zink was coming off his International League Pitcher of the Week selection for April 14-20, and was 2-0 with a 1.33 ERA in his last four starts. Zink handcuffed the Wings hitters early on, allowing just a walk through the first three innings. Jason Pridie picked up a single with one out in the fourth for Rochester's first hit. Liriano's afternoon was over in the fifth, when he allowed a walk and a pair of doubles which resulted in another run and a a 4-0 Pawtucket lead. Ricky Barrett took over with the bases loaded and got a pair of outs to end the inning. Liriano's pitching line: 4 1/3 innings, five hits, four earned runs, four walks plus an intentional walk, and one strikeout. The Wings broke through in the sixth, when McDonald's ground ball went under the glove of third baseman Spann for an error with one out and two runners on. Pridie scored to make it a 4-1 game. Clark added an RBI single to pull the Wings to within two runs at 4-2. Zink (3-1) worked six innings, allowing four hits and two walks while striking out two. Barrett pitched 1 2/3 innings, with Mariano Gomez pitching 1 2/3 innings before giving way to Julio DePaula in the eighth. Chris Smith pitched three scoreless relief innings for Pawtucket, picking up his first save.

Tuesday 4/29/08
D-MAC, WINGS RALLY TO WIN Darnell McDonald collected a single, double and triple in his last three at-bats, and the Red Wings rallied from an early deficit to top the Pawtucket Red Sox, 9-3, Tuesday night at Frontier Field. The two teams conclude the series with a 12:05 pm start Wednesday afternoon. In his sixth start, Wings pitcher Brian Duensing had his worst first inning of the season allowing three runs and a walk. Before Tuesday, Duensing had not allowed any walks or earned runs during the first inning. After having a slow start, Duensing struck out all three batters in the second and cruised through the rest of his outing. Duensing was helped out by fine defensive plays from McDonald, with a sliding catch in the third inning; and a double play turn by Howie Clark in the fifth. The Wings couldn't muster much offense against Pawtucket starter Michael Tejera, with just two hits through five innings. With two outs, Chris Basak walked in the bottom of the fifth. Alexi Casilla hit a line drive to right field for a single while Basak hustled to third. Eli Whiteside flied out to right field to end the inning, leaving Casilla and Basak on base. With the score 3-0 after five innings, Jason Pridie hit a one-out single in the Rochester sixth. McDonald hit a double to deep right field, allowing Pridie to score the Wings' first run. Randy Ruiz hit a single to move McDonald to third. Clark's hit to shallow left center advanced Ruiz to second and scored McDonald, cutting the lead to 3-2. In the top of the seventh, Philip Humber came in to pitch for the Red Wings and notched a one-two-three inning, in his first relief appearance of the season and first-ever minor league relief stint. Casilla lead off the bottom of the seventh with a single. Whiteside singled to center field, moving Casilla to third. Denard Span singled to right field which allowed Casilla to score, tying up the game at 3-3. Pridie hit a sacrifice fly to right field, scoring Whiteside with the go ahead run. McDonald got his second hit of the night, and Pawtucket brought in reliever Craig Hansen. Hansen hit the first batter he faced, Ruiz; then Clark hit a sacrifice fly to right field allowing Span to score and boosting the Red Wings' lead to 5-3. Julio DePaula started the eighth inning and gave up a couple of singles; with one out and two on, Tim Lahey relieved DePaula. Lahey caught Sandy Madera looking for the second out, then fanned Chris Carter to strand the tying runs on base. Rochester added another run in the eighth against Hansen, with Pridie drilling a single which scored Basak. It was the first run charged to Hansen this season. The Wings added two more runs charged to Hansen, on a triple by McDonald and a single by Ruiz. Lahey struck out four in 1 2/3 innings to record his second save, and Humber picked up the win to make his record 1-3.

Matt Macri was placed on the DL Tuesday (strained left calf) and is out indefinitely...Double-A New Britain Rock Cats OF Brandon Roberts was placed on the disabled list (hamstring)… INF Toby Gardenhire was promoted from Class-A Ft. Myers… Toby is the son of Minnesota Twins Manager Ron Gardenhire.... Coming into Tuesday night's game., Rock Cats INF Luke Hughes ranks 7th in batting (.367) and leads the Eastern League with 7 home runs, 3rd in EL with 29 hits… OF Dustin Martin ranks 6th in batting (.368)… 1B Brock Peterson ranks 5th in EL with 17 RBI… RHP Yohan Pino ranks 3rd in EL with 1.35 ERA  .

Monday 4/28/08
WINGS CAN'T COMPLETE COMEBACK Despite a grand slam by Darnell McDonald in the seventh inning to bring the Rochester Red Wings within two runs of the Pawtucket Red Sox, the Wings couldn't complete the comeback as they lost, 8-6, Monday night at Frontier Field. In the bottom of the first, after McDonald hit a two-out double, Randy Ruiz followed with a bloop single that dropped into shallow left field. There was a close play at the plate, but McDonald slid in just under that tag, giving the Red Wings an 1-0 advantage. Pawtucket promptly answered in the third inning. Sandy Madera, who made his debut for Pawtucket on Sunday, hit his first Triple-A home run in third inning, a three-run shot, that sailed into the left field concourse. It was also the first home run that starter Kevin Mulvey has allowed at the Triple-A level. The blast made the score, 3-1, Pawtucket. The fourth inning for Pawtucket was more of the same, as they tacked on three more runs. With one out and runners on first and second running on the pitch, Jeff Bailey smoked a Mulvey offering into left field that almost hit runner Jon Van Every, who had to jump to avoid ball. He scored, making the score, 4-1. Two batters later, Mulvey threw a wild pitch that glanced off of catcher Jose Morales' glove and went into the stands, scoring Gil Velazquez. Materas made his presence felt again in the inning as he hit a deep sacrifice RBI to right to score Bailey, to put the score at 6-1. Mulvey ended the inning when he forced Chris Carter to fly out to second. Pawtucket added another run in the fourth inning when Van Every hit a double into right-center field gap. After making Velazquez ground out for the second out, Mulvey was replaced by Casey Daigle. Mulvey (2-2) finished pitching 4 2/3 innings while allowing seven runs on nine hits and striking out four. Pawtucket starting pitcher David Pauley (2-1) went a full five innings and gave up only six hits and one run. The Wings scored their second run in the sixth. After McDonald reached on an error and went to third after a Ruiz double, Howie Clark hit a sacrifice fly to left field to score McDonald. The Red Sox tacked on yet another run in the seventh when Velazquez doubled deep to left-center field, scoring Dusty Brown, which made the score 8-2. With things looking bleak, McDonald instantly put the Red Wings back in the game in the seventh inning. With the bases loaded and one-out, McDonald took the first offering from reliever Edgar Martinez and put it into the left field bullpen, which put the Wings within distance of the Red Sox, 8-6. The closest the Red Wings got to scoring again was in the ninth when they had two runners on and one out. Pawtucket closer Lee Gronkiewicz kept them both from touching home to earn his fifth save of the season.

Sunday 4/27/08
WINGS EVEN RECORD WITH WIN (IronPigsBaseball.com/ RedWingsBaseball.com) Chris Basak’s seventh inning two-run homer broke up a 1-1 game and Eli Whiteside followed with a round-tripper of his own, as the Red Wings beat the Lehigh Valley IronPigs 5-1 Sunday afternoon. The Wings, now back at .500 with a 12-12 record, open a three-game series with the Pawtucket Red Sox Monday night at Frontier Field. Travis Blackley only allowed one run on one hit and struck out five over 5.0 innings.  Darnell McDonald tripled off the IronPigs starter in the third that scored Jason Pridie with Rochester's first run of the game.  Blackley would have escaped with a clean inning had he not thrown a wild pitch on a strikeout of Pridie that would have ended the inning.  The breaking ball got away from Jason Jaramillo and McDonald delivered the extra-base hit to put his club in front 1-0.  Blackley retired the next seven batters he faced but on a routine ground ball to first base, the Australian native pulled pulled his groin heading over to cover first base.  He will see the doctor tomorrow for further evaluation.  The IronPigs tied the game in the sixth on an RBI groundout by Valentino Pascucci.  After swinging the hot bat on their recent road trip, Pascucci went hitless against Rochester over the weekend and struck out five times in seven at-bats against the Red Wings.  Kevin Beirne (0-1) came in for Blackley and gave up back-to-back home runs in the seventh to Basak and Whiteside to make it a 4-1 lead for Rochester.  It was both players' first long ball of the year as the Red Wings received tremendous production from their eight- and nine-hole hitters on Sunday afternoon. Shane Victorino went 2-for-4 with a pair of singles and was not tested in the field in his final rehab appearance since landing on the DL with a strained right calf.  The Philadelphia outfielder has been out of the Phillies’ lineup since 4/12. In two games with the IronPigs, Victorino went 3-for-8 with an outstanding basket catch in Saturday night’s tilt with Rochester.  Heath Totten delivered another fine spot start for the Red Wings, tossing three innings and allowing three hits while striking out three. Ricky Barrett added two scoreless relief innings, with Mariano Gomez picking up his first Triple-A win after pitching two innings. Tim Lahey finished the contest with two innings, and recorded his first save. Pridie went 0-for-5, ending his 14-game hitting streak.

Saturday 4/26/08
WINGS PUMMEL 'PIGS Glen Perkins pitched a complete game two-hitter, and the Red Wings racked up 20 hits off of four different pitchers in a 10-0 beatdown of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs Saturday night. Randy Ruiz, Jose Morales, Jason Pridie and Chris Basak each had three hits, and Howie Clark homered and knocked in four runs for Rochester. Denard Span set the tone for Rochester in the first inning, in his first game back after being sent down from Minnesota. Span walked and stole second against former Red Wing J.D. Durbin, setting in motion a six-hit, five-run first that knocked Durbin out of the contest. Clark's three-run home run was the big hit in the inning. Every Rochester batter had at least one hit, with Pridie pushed his hitting streak to 14 games. Perkins (1-1) started the ninth having allowed just a third inning single to Shane Victorino, playing on a rehab assignment from Philadelphia. Casey Smith led off with a double in the ninth, but Perkins got the next three hitters to finish the job and end the game. Perkins walked just one and struck out seven, lowering his earned run average to 2.89.

Friday 4/25/08
WINGS OUT OF 'MAZONE' Jason Pridie extended his hitting streak to 13 games on his last at-bat as the Lehigh Valley IronPigs defeated the Rochester Red Wings, 6-2, on Friday night at Frontier Field. IronPig starter Brian Mazone (2-3) kept Red Wings hitters off-balance all night. Starting in the third inning, he retired 18 of the last 21 Red Wings batters that he faced, finishing with eight innings pitched, two unearned runs and five strikeouts. Both Mazone and Red Wings starting pitcher Philip Humber had rocky first innings. With no outs and two on, Mike Cervenak stroked a long fly ball that arched toward the foul pole in left, and was ruled a three-run home run for an early 3-0 IronPigs lead. Humber settled down with a strikeout followed by a walk, and an inning-ending double play. The Wings got right back in the game in their half of the first. With two outs, Darnell McDonald reached on an error by second baseman Casey Smith, and McDonald hustled all the way to second base on the play. Garrett Jones drew a walk from Mazone, then Randy Ruiz hit a triple into the right field corner to bring in McDonald and Jones and make it a one-run lead for Lehigh Valley. In the fourth inning, the IronPigs loaded the bases after three consecutive singles. Despite that, Humber managed to get out of the inning nearly unscathed as he only allowed one run on a sacrifice fly to Javon Moran, making the score 4-2. Entering the game, IronPig Andy Tracy had home runs on back-to-back nights. He increased his streak to three as he blasted a two-run home run in the seventh to put the score at 6-2. In the eigthth inning with his 12-game hitting streak on the line, Pridie came up clutch and shot a ball in between the shortstop and third baseman on a 0-1 count. Humber's (0-3) final line was 4 2/3 innings pitched, while allowing eight hits, three earned runs and two strikeouts.

Thursday 4/24/08
DUENSING DEALS, RUIZ ROCKS IN WINGS WIN Brian Duensing pitched seven strong innings, and Randy Ruiz drove in four runs to lead the Red Wings over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs 8-2 Thursday night at Frontier Field. The tough luck IronPigs have now lost nine straight contests, and fell to 0-14 on the road. Duensing opposed Lehigh Valley's Ron Chiavacci, one of the league's top hurlers in 2007 with Toledo's Western Division Champion club. Chiavacci has been the lone bright spot in the IronPigs' rotation, with a 17 1/3 scoreless inning streak that ended when he was roughed up by Syracuse last Saturday. Duensing took the mound with Twins GM Bill Smith and farm director Jim Rantz watching from the stands, on a day when Twins lefty Francisco Liriano was rocked for six runs in less than an inning in Oakland. Duensing shined through the first three innings, allowing just one hit and striking out four. He was helped out by fine defensive plays from first baseman Ruiz and centerfielder Pridie. Jason Pridie didn't waste any time in extending his hitting streak to 12 games. Pridie stroked a one-out Chiavacci pitch to the gap in left-center, for a first inning triple. It was Pridie's fourth three-bagger of the season, tied for tops in the league. Darnell McDonald walked and stole second before Garrett Jones belted a shot to right-centerfield. Javon Moran made a tremendous running catch, turning what would have been a bases-clearing hit for Jones into a run-scoring sacrifice fly and the Wings led 1-0. The Wings added a in the third inning. Jones singled and Clark doubled, with Jones scoring on a sacrifice fly by Ruiz. Jose Morales singled to bring home Clark, with Morales scurrying around to third when left fielder Michael Spidale's throw skipped past catcher Tim Gradoville for a two-base error. The IronPigs finally got to Duensing with two outs in the fourth, when Andy Tracy homered into the right field bullpen to make it a 3-1 game. Duensing recovered from the hit to set down the next eight Lehigh Valley hitters. The Red Wings added their fourth and fifth runs in the fifth inning when with one out, Ruiz smoked a double that hugged the first base line and scored Jones, who had hit a single to lead off the inning. In the next at-bat Morales hit the ball right past Chiavacci to score Ruiz. After Chiavacci induced a double play to end the inning, he was replaced by reliever Vic Darensbourg, who came in for the start of the sixth. Valentino Pascucci floated a ball over Clark with two outs in the seventh to become the first hitter to reach base since Tracy hit the home run. The Red Wings extended their lead to six runs as Ruiz, with Clark on base after a walk, blasted a home run over the left field fence, making the score 7-1. McDonald's RBI single brought home the final Rochester run. Duensing's worksheet: seven innings, three hits, one earned run and five strikeouts. Ricky Barrett tossed a scoreless relief inning, and Carmen Cali allowed a two-out solo home run to Mike Cervenak in the ninth.

Wednesday 4/23/08
WINGS WIN ADDS TO IRONPIGS' WOES Randy Ruiz keyed a four-run eighth inning, and the Red Wings rallied to beat the Lehigh Valley IronPigs 5-3 Wednesday night at Frontier Field. The Rochester win dropped Lehigh Valley's record to 2-19, after IronPigs starter J.A. Happ left with a 3-1 lead after seven innings. Rochester's Kevin Mulvey came into the game having allowed just two earned runs and 15 hits in three starts (17 2/3 innings). Lehigh Valley's offense had a league-worst .218 batting average, but quickly racked up three hits and a run against Mulvey in the top of the first. Javon Moran scored on a single from the red-hot Valentino Pascucci (.467 average in his last five games). Mulvey was far from sharp, but worked around a hit and an error in the second inning, and consecutive walks in the third. Mulvey struck out Joey Hammond with two runners on to end the third inning threat. The Wings went quietly in the first two innings against Happ, who was tied for the league lead in both strikeouts and walks before the game. Centerfielder Moran took away an extra-base hit from Darnell McDonald with a fantastic catch in the first inning. Jose Morales led off the Rochester third with a single, and ended up at third base after Alexi Casilla's two-out, ground rule double down the left field line. But Happ got a groundball out from Rochester's hottest hitter, Jason Pridie, to end the scoring threat. The Pigs picked up another run in the fourth inning off Mulvey, on Mike Cervenak's RBI single. A hit batter and fielding error contributed to the unearned run and the 2-0 Lehigh Valley lead. Jon Knott got his first home run of the season in the bottom of the fifth, bringing the Wings to within a run at 2-1. Mulvey lasted until two outs in the sixth, when Julio DePaula came in to get the third out with a runner on base. Mulvey's outing -- 5 2/3 innings, five hits, four walks and five strikeouts -- was his least effective of the young season. Happ worked seven innings, his longest outing of the season; he racked up eight strikeouts and just one walk. Mariano Gomez came out of the bullpen in the seventh, yielding a home run to Andy Tracy for a 3-1 Lehigh Valley lead.. The homer was the first by an IronPigs batter since April 18. In the eighth inning, the Wings put the tying runs on with one out. Veteran reliever Steve Kline came in to face Pridie, and went ahead in the count 1-2 before Pridie snuck a single through the hole between first and second base. The single extended Pridie's hitting streak to 11 games, and brought home pinch-runner Tommy Watkins to make it a 3-2 game. Darnell McDonald hit a chopper up the third base line for an infield hit, scoring Casilla with the tying run. Lehigh Valley closer Matt Childers, who had not allowed a run in his last six outings, gave up a first pitch double to Ruiz that brought in Pridie with the go-ahead run. Matt Macri struck out on a wild pitch, with Garrett Jones scoring an insurance run and Macri reaching first base. Tim Lahey, just up from Class A Ft. Myers, picked up the win by pitching with 1 1/3 perfect innings of relief and two strikeouts. Closer Bobby Korecky struck out Pascucci with a runner on base to end the game and pick up the save. Korecky also made a great defensive play, fielding a bunt attempt by Moran to start the ninth. Korecky slid to his knees to snag the ball, then fired a strike to first to get Moran by a step for the first out.

Monday 4/21/08
RASNER, YANKS BLANK WINGS Darrell Rasner allowed two hits over eight innings, retiring 13 straight Rochester batters at one point, as the first place Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees beat the Red Wings 3-0 Monday night. Rochester starter Glen Perkins (0-1) allowed six hits and one run in five innings. Jason Pridie's fourth inning single boosted his hitting streak to 10 games, and Jose Morales' eighth inning single was the only other Rochester hit. Rasner lowered his ERA to 0.72, and the win lifted his record to 3-0. Jose Veras recorded his fifth save. Ricky Barrett (three strikeouts and one run allowed in two innings) and Heath Totten also pitched for the Red Wings.

Sunday 4/20/08
PRIDIE + D-MAC+ DEFENSE + PEN = WINGS WIN Jason Pridie's three-run homer in the eighth inning capped a big comeback for Rochester, as the Red Wings took a 7-4 win over Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Sunday afternoon. Darnell McDonald had three hits, two walks and an RBI for Rochester, who got several sparkling defensive plays and four scoreless, hittless relief innings after trailing 4-0. Rochester starter Philip Humber issued a pair of first inning walks and a hit batter, but got away with allowing just one run on Jason Lane's sacrifice fly. The Yankees had upped their lead to 4-0 by the fourth inning, and would have had a lot more if not for a pair of great catches by Jon Knott in left field in the third and fourth innings. Pridie made another fielding gem, diving to take away what could have been a bases-clearing hit from Bernie Castro. Right fielder McDonald also helped Humber out, by gunning down Juan Miranda when Miranda tried to turn a single into a double in the third. The Red Wings finally caught up to Yankees starter Steven White in the fifth, when Jose Morales blasted a two-run homer far over the right field wall. Matt Macri scored ahead of Morales, bringing the Wings to within two at 4-2. Howie Clark's RBI single scored Pridie in the sixth to make it a one-run Scranton lead. Humber lasted five innings and threw 91 pitches, allowing five hits and four walks. Casey Daigle took over in the sixth, walked the first two batters he faced, then made a great fielding play, snagging a bunt by Chris Stewart and getting a force out at third base on a very close play -- so close, that Yankees skipper Dave Miley was ejected after a lengthy argument with umpires Chris Conroy and Jason Bradley. Daigle worked out of the inning without allowing a run. McDonald tied the score in the sixth with a two-out single, bringing in Chris Basak. Daigle added another scoreless inning, giving way to Carmen Cali in the seventh inning. Cali (2-0) was perfect in his one inning pitched. With Chris Britton pitching in the eighth, Basak doubled with one out and moved to third on an infield hit by Alexi Casilla. That set the stage for Pridie's home run, an opposite field blast on a 2-0 pitch from Britton. The homer extended Pridie's hitting streak to nine games. Britton (0-2) had not allowed a run in any of his previous outings this year. Bobby Korecky picked up his fourth save by getting a popout, strikeout and groundout to close out the comeback win.

Saturday 4/19/08
YANKEES EDGE WINGS 1-0 (DemocratandChronicle.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - For the sixth straight game, the Rochester Red Wings found themselves in a one-run game. But unlike Friday night's 1-0 thriller against Richmond, the Wings ended up on the losing end, 1-0, Saturday night against the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees in the first game of a three-game series at PNC Field in Moosic, Pa. Rochester managed just three hits and wasted a four-hit performance from left-hander Brian Duensing. After picking up his first win of the season over Syracuse, Duensing pitched 5 2/3 innings, allowed one run and struck out five.The game was the sixth consecutive one-run game played by the Red Wings and ninth overall in 17 games (7-10). Duensing threw 102 pitches, including 62 for strikes, and issued two walks before being pulled in favor of Julio DePaula. Duensing walked Chris Stewart and Jason Lane before leaving with two outs in the sixth inning. DePaula came on in relief and walked Shelley Duncan to load the bases.Cody Ransom then walked on a full count to score Stewart from third for the only run of the game for Scranton/W-B (12-5). The Red Wings had their best scoring opportunity in the fifth inning when Matt Macri singled and Tommy Watkins drew a one-out walk that put runners at first and second.Scranton/W-B starter Dan Giese, who pitched a three-hitter through five innings with four strikeouts, forced Chris Basak to ground into an inning-ending double play. Jason Pridie led off the fourth inning with a single to extend his hitting streak to eight games. He then stole second but was left stranded at third following groundouts by Darnell McDonald and Howie Clark and a strikeout by Randy Ruiz. Ruiz hit a leadoff double in the second inning but was also stranded at third base.

Friday 4/18/08
PRIDIE HIT TOPS BRAVES The Red Wings topped the Richmond Braves 1-0 Friday night at Frontier Field. Jason Pridie's clutch two-out single brought home the only run, and four Rochester pitchers combined to blank the Braves on seven hits. Heath Totten was making his second start out of the bullpen for Rochester. With one out in the first, Brent Lilibrildge doubled on a ball that Jon Knott made a great diving attempt, but just missed making the catch. Totten worked Brandon Jones to a two-strike count, then struck Jones out swinging while Lillibridge attempted a steal of third. Catcher Jose Morales fired a perfect strike to third to nab Lillibridge for the inning-ending strikeout/throw-out double play. The Wings drew Richmond lefty Jo-Jo Reyes, and left-handers have given the Wings trouble this season: the club is hitting just .200 against lefty pitchers so far. Reyes was coming off an eight strikeout, no runs allowed four inning start on Sunday. He retired the Wings in order on three groundballs to short in the first inning. Totten exited after the fourth inning, allowing four hits while striking out five batters. Ricky Barrett replaced him on the mound and pitched a perfect fifth inning. On the other side of the ball, the Red Wings could not touch Reyes who through four allowed only a lone hit. In the fifth, Knott walked to lead off the inning. On a hit and run attempt, Morales drilled a ball to left field which glanced off the glove of Jones, allowing Knott to advance to second and Morales to reach on the error. A walk by Matt Macri loaded the bases with nobody out. The Red Wings squandered the opportunity as Reyes worked out of the jam with two strikeouts and a weak popout to right field. In the sixth, facing new pitcher Matt DeSalvo (1-2) , the Red Wings loaded the bases again with nobody out. An error and a lined shot by Randy Ruiz off DeSalvo's arm loaded the bases for Knott. Knott struck out swinging and Morales grounded into an inning ending double play to strand all three runners once again. In the seventh, with Chris Basak on and two out, Pridie lofted a 2-1 pitch into shallow left field to break the tie and give the Red Wings a 1-0 lead. Richmond threatened to get back in the game in the eighth, putting the first two batters on against Carmen Cali (1-0). Jones flied out to deep left for the first out, with both runners holding. That brought closer Bobby Korecky into the game to face the league's top hitter, Barbaro Canizares - who hit a game-winning homer off Korecky on Wednesday. This time, Korecky struck out Canizares on a 3-2 pitch, and induced an inning-ending flyout from Joe Borchard to strand the runners. Korecky worked around a hit in the ninth, to pick up his third save. Howie Clark made a great defensive play on Wes Timmons to end the game.

Infielder Brian Buscher singled in the sixth inning and now has a six-game hitting streak with one double, two home runs and five RBI. Buscher has hit safely in 13 of his last 14 games...Pridie now has a seven-game hitting streak with two doubles, two triples and six RBI. Pridie has hit safely in eight of his last nine games...Morales showed signs of breaking out his early season slump, picking up a pair of hits...Thursday’s crowd of 6,397 was the fifth largest non-Opening Day April crowd in Frontier Field history. If Rochester can finish with an attendance average of at least 4,600 in their last seven April dates, it would be the 6th highest average attendance for the month of April since Frontier Field opened in 1997..... Friday's one-run win vs. Richmond was just the Red Wings' third one-run win of the season. Prior to Thursday Rochester had lost 12 of the last 16 one-run games. Rochester holds a 3-5 record in one-run games this season, and a 116-112 record in one run games since 2003 (start of Twins affiliation)....It's our first Double-A New Britain Rock Cats Report, available right now in our Press Box section. This week's report spotlights RHP Anthony Swarzak's season so far, plus a look down to Class A Ft. Myers at top Twins farm system performers there...Vote today for this year's Frontier Field Walk of Fame inductees. nominees include former Wings President and community leader Elmer Fairchild, current Wings President Gary Larder, former Wings players Art Frantz, Mike Jones and George Selkirk, and current Rochester Community Baseball board members Anna B. Silver and Dorothy Fox. You'll find a ballot in our Frontier Field section.

Thursday 4/17/08
MULVEY DOMINATES R-BRAVES It was a pitching battle between Rochester Red Wings starter Kevin Mulvey and Richmond Braves starter Francisley Bueno Thursday afternoon as the Wings defeated the Braves, 2-1. Both teams were held scoreless until the third inning when, after Jason Pridie hit a one-out single, Brian Buscher deposited a Bueno offering into the right field bullpen to make the score, 2-0. The R-Braves answered back in the fifth when Jason Anderson singled into center to score Clint Sammons making the score, 2-1. After seven innings of work, Mulvey exited in favor of reliever Mariano Gomez. Along with only allowing six hits, Mulvey (2-1) struck out nine batters, the highest total for any Red Wings pitcher this season. Bueno (0-1) worked the same amount of innings while allowing nine hits and striking out four. Heading into the game, Gomez had 10 straight retired batters dating back to his last relief appearance on April 13. Gomez continued that streak into Thursday's game, setting down the first three R-Braves he faced. The top of the ninth was a little bit more shaky. Designated hitter Barbaro Canizares nearly hit a lead-off triple to the right-centerfield gap. After the ball caromed off of Darnell McDonald's glove, Pridie relayed the ball to Howie Clark who then threw it to Matt Macri for the tag. Gomez, who earned his first save of the season, retired two of the last three batters after Canizares.

Wednesday 4/16/08
CANIZARES HOMER TOPS WINGS Barbaro Canizares hit a tie-breaking solo home run off closer Bobby Korecky in the ninth inning, leading the Richmond Braves to a 5-4 win over the Red Wings Wednesday night at Frontier Field. Jason Pridie had two hits and three RBI for the Wings, who had rallied back from two different two-run deficits in the game. Red Wings starter Glen Perkins retired leadoff hitter Josh Anderson, but the Braves combined two hits and a Rochester error to take a 1-0 lead in the first. Scott Thorman's double and Wes Timmons' single pushed the Braves' lead to 2-0 in the second. Veteran lefty Damian Moss allowed a hit, a walk and two wild pitches but no runs over the first two innings. In the third, Tommy Watkins walked then reached second on a wild pitch. Alexi Casilla got a base hit to left field with Watkins reaching third. Pridie hit a triple to deep center field allowing Watkins and Casilla to score, tying the game at 2-2. The Braves reclaimed the lead in the fourth with a double by Anderson and Brandon Jones' single, making it 4-2. Perkins worked into the fifth inning, when he walked Scott Thorman with one out. Julio DePaula took over for Perkins, and ended up striking out six in his 3 2/3 innings of work . Richmond relievers Jeff Ridgway and Ryan Basner held the Wings in check until the eighth. With one out, Jose Morales was hit on the leg by a Basner pitch, and it took several minutes for Morales to get up and walk to first base. Morales limped to second on a wild pitch, and moved to third on an infield hit from Watkins. That brought up pinch-hitter Randy Ruiz, who drilled a run-scoring hit that plated Morales to make it a 4-3 Richmond lead. The hit brought an end to Basner's night, with Vladimir Nunez taking over on the mound. Nunez promptly hit Casilla with a pitch, loading the bases with one out for Pridie. With a 1-2 count, Pridie lofted a deep fly ball to center that allowed Watkins to score the tying run. Nunez got a groundball out from Darnell McDonald to end the eighth with a tie score. Canizares led off the Richmond ninth and took Korecky over the wall in left on a 2-1 pitch, the first run allowed by Korecky in six games (8 2/3 innings pitched) this season. With three hits Wednesday, Canizares is now batting.438 for the season

Garrett Jones (bruised knee) was out of the lineup, a day after colliding with the outfield wall attempting a catch...LHP Carmen Cali came out of the bullpen to pitch the ninth, then left the field before taking the mound. Cali walked off the field with trainer Tony Leo while suffering flu-like symptoms, and Korecky came in before Cali was announced into the game...Matt Macri, who entered the game as a pinch-runner and stayed in to play third base in the ninth, made the play of the night and maybe the homestand. Macri snagged a hot shot from Timmons with the bases loaded and one out, stepped on third for a force out then fired to first to complete a double play... RHP Anthony Swarzak improved to 2-0, striking out 10 in six innings to help Double-A New Britain beat New Hampshire 4-1 Wednesday afternoon. Swarzak allowed three hits and did not allow a walk. 1B Brock Peterson drove in all four runs for the Rock Cats...On Wednesday the Red Wings and Batavia Muckdogs announced that Frontier Field will host two Muckdogs regular season games Friday, June 20 vs. the Mahoning Valley Scrappers (Cleveland Indians affiliate) and Thursday, July 10 vs. the Lowell Spinners (Boston Red Sox affiliate) with both games starting at 7:05 p.m. The Muckdogs are a Phillies affiliate.Tickets for both games will go on sale Thursday morning at Frontier Field Read the official press release in our Press Box section.

Tuesday 4/15/08
WINGS SPLIT WITH R-BRAVES Howie Clark hit a bases-loaded single in the eighth inning to give the Red Wings a 4-3 win over the Richmond Braves in the first game of a doubleheader that was scheduled for seven innings on Tuesday night. In the nightcap, Richmond's Charlie Morton and Zach Schreiber held off the Wings in a 4-2 R-Braves win. Matt Macri knocked in two Rochester runs, and Darnell McDonald homered for the Wings. Morton, Richmond's rookie game two starter, brought an 0.87 ERA into the game after his first two Triple-A starts. Red Wings relievers Casey Daigle was making a spot start for Rochester. The combination of game two's late starting time (9:21 pm) and temperature (44°) almost insured a quickly played contest; but the game slowed down at Daigle's expense in the second inning. Richmond strung together four singles and a sacrifice fly to go ahead 2-0. By the third inning, Daigle had thrown 48 pitches and gave way to Ricky Barrett. Morton worked around Rochester hits in the first and third, and a second inning walk. In the fourth, Brian Buscher and Clark hit back-to-back singles to put the tying runs on base, but Morton got a flyout from Randy Ruiz. Jose Morales stung a shot to short that Brent Lillibridge couldn't handle for an error; but Macri followed with a first pitch swing that resulted in a flyball to right to end the threat. Barrett pitched one inning, with Heath Totten bailing out Barrett and the Wings in the fourth. Totten came in with two runners on and struck out Lillibridge to end a Richmond threat. The Braves added a run off Totten in the fifth on Scott Thorman's double. Rochester had shot in the sixth. Braves left fielder Brandon Jones made a great catch to take a home run away from Buscher to start the inning, and hits by Clark and Morales put two runners on with two outs. Macri lofted a double to the deepest part of the ballpark in left-center, bringing in Clark and Morales to make it a 4-2 contest. Morton exited in favor of Schreiber, who struck out Chris Basak to end the rally. Carmen Cali pitched one inning of relief, fanning one. With two outs in the seventh, McDonald homered to left and Buscher singled to right. But Schreiber got Clark to line out, ending the game.

In the opener, the Wings started fast right out of the gates. After a scoreless inning by Red Wings starter Phil Humber, the Red Wings took very little time to get him the lead. Alexi Casilla started with a lead-off double after battling for multiple pitches with Braves starter Jon Rouwenhorst. Jason Pridie followed with a triple to score Casilla and put himself in position for Buscher to score him in the next at-bat with a looping double to right-center field. Buscher scored two batters later when Macri hit a single into left field, making the score 3-0 after the first inning. The Braves scored their first run of the game in the third inning when lead-off hitter Josh Anderson hit an inside-the-park home run to right field. It was the first time an opponent has hit an inside-the-parker since Ottawa Lynx outfielder Brad Wilkerson did it on Aug. 28, 2000 in Ottawa. The Braves' second run came when Lillibridge scored after stealing second and advancing on a fielding error, making the score 3-2. The tying run came in for Richmond in the fourth when J.C. Holt came in on a fielder's choice by Lillibridge. After Holt scored, Mariano Gomez relieved Humber and struck out Brandon Jones. Humber finished with 3 2/3 innings allowing three runs, two earned, on four hits and striking out four. Gomez and Braves reliever Phil Stockman battled until extra innings were needed. Gomez retired all 10 batters he faced and struck out three of them. Stockman's line was nearly identical to Gomez. The only difference was that he struck out one more batter. After Gomez left, Red Wings closer Bobby Korecky came into the game to start pitching the eighth.
Richmond almost took the lead in the top of the eighth. DH Barbaro Canizares hit a lead-off double and was replaced on the basepaths by pinch-runner Reggie Taylor. The next batter, Joe Borchard, hit a single to left and Taylor was rounding third base. Enter Tommy Watkins. Watkins nailed Taylor at the plate to keep the 3-3 tie intact. Despite only having one out after that play, the Braves couldn't get another runner across. In the bottom of the eighth, the Wings loaded the bases after Pridie singled, Buscher walked, and Jones singled. Next at the plate was Clark. Clark worked reliever Matt DeSalvo (1-1) to a 3-1 count and laced a single over Holt's head to scored Pridie for the Wings' first run since the first inning. Korecky (2-0) earned the win, allowing two hits and walking one.

Monday 4/14/08
WINGS BREAK OUT OF SLUMP, TOP CHIEFS Brian Buscher had two hits, two runs scored and two RBI, and Tommy Watkins scored three times to spark the slumping Rochester offense, helping the Red Wings to a 9-4 win over the Syracuse Chiefs Monday night at Frontier Field. Rochester starter Brian Duensing brought a hard-luck 0-2 record into the game, despite a fine 2.31 ERA in his first two starts. Syracuse's Josh Banks saw a lot of the Wings in 2007, and liked what he saw: he posted a 3-2 record and a 2.67 ERA over five starts against the Red Wings last season. Syracuse entered Monday's game with a league best 2.94 staff earned run average. Add in the fact that the clubs had the second- and third-lowest team batting averages in the league, and the game was set up to be a pitcher's duel.Duensing got three fast groundball outs in the first inning; Banks retired the first two Rochester hitters he faced, then allowed a single to Buscher. But Banks struck out Garrett Jones to end the first. The Chiefs reached Duensing for a pair of runs in the second, when Chip Cannon stroked a two-out, two-run single to make it 2-0 Syracuse. The Wings got a run back in the third, after Watkins led off with a single. Jason Pridie delivered an RBI hit to bring the Wings to within a run at 2-1; the run ended a 10-inning scoreless streak for Rochester. Russ Adams clubbed his second home run of the season off Duensing to lead off the Syracuse fourth, a shot that glanced off the foul pole in right field. The Wings put together a rally in the fifth, after Watkins led off with a walk. Chris Basak followed with an infield hit, on a ball that third baseman Sergio santos couldn't come up with. Alexi Casilla flew out, and Jason Pridie worked Banks for a walk to load the bases for Buscher. Banks got ahead of Buscher, who then fouled off four pitches before Banks hit Buscher with a pitch on the back. Watkins came home to make it 3-2 to bring up Jones, fighting an 0-for-18 slump. Jones scorched the first pitch from Banks, and second baseman Pedro Lopez couldn't come up with the ball for an error. Basak scored, Pridie hustled to score from second, and Jones reached second base safely with a slide. When the smoke cleared, the Wings led 4-3. Howie Clark tripled to the gap in right-center on an 0-2 Banks pitch, plating both Buscher and Jones. Matt Macri's double drove in Clark to cap a six-run outburst, resulting in a 7-3 Rochester lead. Duensing worked into the sixth, getting a pair of outs before walking Adams. Julio DePaula entered and quickly retired Santos on the first pitch. The Chiefs picked up a run off DePaula in the seventh, when Chip Cannon scored on a fielder's choice by Wayne Lydon. The Wings quickly recovered on a home run by Buscher into the Wings bullpen to lead off the seventh inning. Carmen Cali came in to pitch for Rochester in the eighth and ran into trouble, loading the bases with one out. Closer Bobby Korecky relieved Cali, and induced an inning-ending double play to escape the jam. A quick ninth earned Korecky his first save of the season.

Sunday 4/13/08
CHIEFS CLIP WINGS The Syracuse Chiefs edged the Rochester Red Wings, 3-2, Sunday afternoon at Frontier Field. Alexi Casilla walked twice, scored a run and had a single for the Wings. The winning run came in the top of the seventh inning when Chiefs first baseman Chip Cannon hit a lead-off double, and scored two batters later when Wayne Lydon hit a sacrifice fly to center. It didn't take long for the teams to get the other four runs. The first inning started a little rough for Wings' starter Heath Totten as Chiefs catcher Curtis Thigpen hit into a fielder's choice, he reached third after Adam Lind hit a double into left. Luna followed by hitting a sharp grounder to second. Casilla threw home to get Thigpen and catcher Eli Whiteside whipped the ball to third but Lind slid under the tag. Lind scored after Robinzon Diaz hit a single into right field. Russ Adams followed with a hit ball that caromed off Casilla's glove that scored Luna, making the score 2-0. Rochester answered right back in the bottom of the inning. After a lead-off walk by Casilla and a single by Jason Pridie that advanced him to third. Casilla scored after a Brian Buscher ground out to second. Garrett Jones hit a sacrifice fly to deep center to score Pridie, tying the score at 2. Mariano Gomez came in for Totten in the fourth inning after Totten allowed one earned run and four hits. He also struck out four and didn't walk any batters. Gomez pitched three scoreless innings and retired the side in two of those innings. He allowed only one hit. After Ricky Barrett (1-1) relieved Gomez, he allowed a lead-off double to Cannon. He came home when, two batters later, Wayne Lydon hit a fly ball to center putting Syracuse up, 3-2. Casey Daigle came in for the top of the ninth and allowed one hit to finish the game. Chiefs starter David Purcey (2-0) came out after throwing seven innings, allowing only two runs and striking out seven Wings. He was relieved by Tracy Thorpe who pitched two scoreless innings to earn his first save. He struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth. NOTES: Double-A New Britain OF Dustin Martin had four more hits Saturday, and leads all of Minor League Baseball with a .619 average (13-for-21) entering play Sunday....Ft. Myers Miracle (Florida State League) RHP Rob Delaney (left) is the Twins Minor League Player of the Week for April 5-11...Delaney, 23, was 0-0, 0.00 (6.0 ip, 0 er), allowing three hits with one walk and three strikeouts, while converting all three of his save opportunities during the week...Delaney was signed by the Twins as a non-drafted free agent, June 19, 2006....An All-Star team of community partners and individuals combined to provide tickets to local Military members and their families for Friday's Opening Day. Click here to see a list of our Opening Day partners...Former Red Wing Doug Deeds, traded to the Cubs organization on Friday, hit a two-run pinch-hit homer in his first at-bat for Double-A Tennessee on Saturday. Deeds' hpmer came in the first game of a doubleheader; in the second game, Deeds drove in two more runs with a single.

Saturday 4/12/08
CHIEFS PITCHING SHUTS DOWN WINGS The Red Wings only managed two hits, both off the bat of Brian Buscher, as they were beat by the Syracuse Chiefs 2-0 on Saturday at Frontier Field. For much of the game, the starting pitchers were locked in a duel. Wings starter Kevin Mulvey (1-1) exited after tossing five innings and allowing one run on four hits. He struck out six batters. Syracuse starter Bill Murphy (1-1) stayed in for six innings and did not allow any runs. To finish off his outing, Murphy sat down 10 straight Red Wings, starting in the the third inning and extending to the sixth when reliever Ryan Gosling came in. The first run of the game didn't come until the fourth inning when Chiefs shortstop Hector Luna got on base with a single. He stole second and scored when third baseman Sergio Santos lined a ball into left. The Chiefs scored another run in the eighth when, with two outs and catcher Curtis Thigpen on second after a double, Syracuse manager Doug Davis pulled designated hitter Matt Watson and put in Robinzon Diaz. Before pinch-hitting, Diaz was 13-for-25 against the Red Wings. After the pinch-hit at-bat, he was 14-for-26 as he scorched a single to centerfield to score Thigpen. The run put the Chiefs up, 2-0. The Red Wings almost started a rally in the bottom of the ninth off reliever Shawn Camp. Buscher earned his second hit of the game and Garrett Jones reached on a Santos error. After Randy Ruiz struck out, Matt Macri hit into a game ending double play. Julio DePaula pitched two scoreless innings after Mulvey exited . He pitched two innings without allowing a hit. Carmen Cali pitched the final two innings and allowed the Chiefs' final run. Camp recorded his second save of the season. NOTES: RHP Heath Totten will start Sunday for the Wings; Francisco Liriano was scheduled to start for the Wings Sunday, before getting called up to the Twins Friday night....RHP Casey Daigle is the leading candidate to start in Tuesday night's doubleheader against Richmond.....An All-Star team of community partners and individuals combined to provide tickets to local Military members and their families for Friday's Opening Day. Click here to see a list of our Opening Day partners...Former Wing Terry Tiffee's .583 batting average entering play Saturday is tied for best in the minors. Tiffee is playing for the Dodgers' Triple-A Las Vegas club in the Pacific Coast League.

Friday 4/11/08
MACRI HOMER HELPS WINGS WIN HOME OPENER Matt Macri's one-out home run in the eighth inning boosted the Red Wings to a 7-5 win over the Syracuse Chiefs, in the 2008 home season opener Friday night at Frontier Field. Friday's paid attendance was 10,136 on a night where the temperature dropped steadily after the gates opened, and a chilling rain came in waves at various times during the contest.Syracuse got the scoring started in the top of the second inning, scoring an unearned run when Alexi Casilla's relay throw to third got away from third basemen Macri allowing Russ Adams to score. The error was one of three committed by the Red Wings in the top of the second inning. Wings starter Glen Perkins was able to escape further damage when Jorge Velandia flew out to left field to end the threat. The Red Wings took the lead in the bottom of the second without recording a hit. Rochester loaded the bases on two walks and a sacrifice fielder's choice bunt off starting pitcher Davis Romero. Romero struck out the next two Red Wings before being pulled in favor of RHP Bubba Nelson. Nelson threw two wild pitches to the first two batters he faced allowing Randy Ruiz and Jon Knott to score. Robinzon Diaz tied the game in the fourth on a solo home run over the left field fence. Syracuse recaptured the lead, 4-2, on Adam Lind's RBI double and Diaz's RBI single in the top of the fifth.Rochester scored yet another run without a hit in the bottom of the fifth. Two walks, a sacrifice fly and an RBI fielder's choice by Garrett Jones brought Casilla home and cut the Syracuse lead to 4-3. With rain coming down harder in the sixth inning, Knott picked up the first Rochester hit with a double to the warning track in center. Jose Morales chopped a slow roller in front of the plate, and Chiefs pitcher John Parrish threw the ball far off the bag at first for a throwing error that moved Knott to third. Syracuse called a mound meeting that brought all the umpires over to inspect the wet pitcher's mound. After an 11-minute delay to work on the mound, Parrish fanned Macri. Knott worked Parrish for a walk to load the bases, then caught Casilla looking for the second out. But Chris Basak stroked a 2-1 pitch to left for a two-run single, putting the Wings ahead 5-4. The Chiefs put their first two runners on in the top of the seventh via a walk and double against Wings pitcher Casey Daigle. Mariano Gomez then came on to strike out Russ Adams. Wings manager Stan Cliburn went back to his bullpen calling on closer Bobby Korecky to get out of the jam. Korecky got Diaz to hit a tapper back to the mound, where he threw out Lind at the plate trying to score from third. Matt Watson followed with a two-out RBI single just under the glove of a diving Casilla, scoring Hector Luna to tie the game at five. With one out in the eighth against reliever Jordan De Jong, Macri pounded an opposite field homer. Pridie followed with a triple to left-center. Pridie scored the final run of the game on a wild pitch by De Jong. Korecky (1-0) pitched two 2/3 innings, allowing just one hit. NOTES: Sgt. Gary Biekirch threw out Friday's first pitch at the Red Wings Home Opener. Sgt. Biekirk was awarded the Medal of Honor during the Vietnam War. While caring for an injured soldier, Biekirk was paralyzed when he was shot near his spine. He continued to help the wounded and return enemy fire until he was evacuated to Valley Forge Medical Center, where he stayed for six months relearning how to walk.Currently, Sgt. Biekirk teaches middle school in Rochester...The Twins placed RHP Kevin Slowey on the DL and called up LHP Francisco Liriano from the Wings...An All-Star team of community partners and individuals combined to provide tickets to local Military members and their families. Click here to see a list of our Opening Day partners.....Rochester hitters walked 10 times, the most in one game since July 20, 1998 - a 20-7 Wings win over Indianapolis....The Red Wings opened their 12th season at Frontier Field Friday night. Rochester has won six of their last seven home openers).. Since 1929, the Red Wings have a 47-33 record for home openers....The Red Wings have now committed an International League most 17 errors in the first eight games. Rochester hasn’t led the International League in errors since 2001 (197)...The last time the Red Wings started a season on an extended eight-game road trip was 1997 when they traveled to Columbus and Toledo. Rochester started that trip with a 2-5 record but went on to finish with an 83-58 regular season record and won the Governors’ Cup Championship ...Outfielder Doug Deeds was traded to the Chicago Cubs late Thursday afternoon. Deeds started this season on the Red Wings disabled list with a strained right hamstring. Deeds goes to the Cubs as the player to be named later in the offseason trade that had outfielder Craig Monroe coming to the Twins... ...Blue Jays closer B.J. Ryan, who was originally scheduled to pitch for the Chiefs here as part of his rehab assignment, gave up the game winning hit to Danny Santiestiban as the Twins' Class A Ft. Myers club beat Dunedin 3-2 Friday night. Ryan walked Edward Ovalle, wild pitched him to second, then committed a balk to move Ovalle to third before Santiestinban's winning hit.

Thursday 4/10/08
OLSON SHUTS DOWN WINGS; HOME OPENER FRIDAY NIGHT (NorfolkTides.com/ RedWingsBaseball.com) - Four Norfolk pitchers combined on a six-hit shutout, leading the Tides to a 3-0 win over the Red Wings Thursday afternoon. Randy Ruiz had a single and triple for the Wings, who return to Rochester to open the 2008 home season Friday night at Frontier Field. Norfolk starter Jon Leicester led the charge, as he allowed four hits and one walk while striking out four in four innings of work. The 29-year-old right-hander was extremely efficient, as 47 of his 58 pitches went for strikes.
Tides reliever Andy Mitchell (2-0) earned the win with two scoreless innings of relief. Mitchell pitched himself into a bit of trouble in the 5th inning after walking the bases loaded with two outs, but he retired Red Wings cleanup batter Garrett Jones on a groundout to avert any damage. Lance Cormier followed Mitchell with two innings of relief, and Norfolk closer Bob McCrory retired Rochester in the 9th inning to pick up his third save of the season. Norfolk's defense turned four double plays in the contest. Mike McCoy got the Tides on the board in the third inning, as he led off the frame with a double to left and scored on a sacrifice fly by Eider Torres. Norfolk added a run in the 5th on an RBI double by Sebastien Boucher, and McCoy scored the final run of the contest in the 7th inning after he stroked a two-out single, stole second, and scored on a single by Tike Redman. NOTES: Minnesota traded OF/1B Doug Deeds to the Chicago Cubs organization Thursday, as the player to be named later in the trade that brought Craig Monroe from the Cubs to the Twins...Garrett Jones hit his second home run of the season Tuesday night (his 60th as a Red Wing). Jones is the first Rochester player to hit 60 home runs during his Red Wings career since John Valle hit 66 home runs from 1980-1984. Jones is just six home runs shy of tying Luke Easter and Valle for 9th all-time (66 home runs) on the Red Wings home run list and 17 away from tying Steve Bilko for 7th all-time (77 home runs).

Wednesday 4/9/08
OLSON SHUTS DOWN WINGS (NorfolkTides.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - Garrett Olson allowed just four baserunners over six innings, pitching the Norfolk Tides to a 7-2 win over the Red Wings Wednesday. Brian Buscher homered for the Wings, and Carmen Cali struck out four in two relief innings. Olson (1-0) faced just three batters over the minimum in the contest, yielding three singles and a double without walking a batter. The 24-year-old southpaw struck out seven and did not allow a runner to reach third base as he lowered his ERA on the young season to 0.90. Norfolk's offense gave Olson all the run support he would need early in the contest, as the Tides took advantage of some shaky Rochester fielding to jump out to an early lead. Luis Terrero started the early rally with a two-out single in the first, and the inning was extended one batter later when shortstop Chris Basak could not field a ground ball off the bat of Oscar Salazar. Chris Roberson then reached on an infield single to load the bases, and Mike Costanzo followed with a line drive double just inside the left field line off of Rochester starter Brian Duensing (0-2) to clear the bases and give Norfolk a 3-0 lead. The Tides doubled their lead in the next inning, largely in part to two more Rochester miscues. Sebastien Boucher led off the frame with a bunt single, and advanced to second one batter later when second baseman Tommy Watkins could not field a grounder from Travis Brown. Tike Redman then dropped down a sacrifice bunt, but Duensing's throw pulled first baseman Buscher off the bag, loading the bases with nobody out. Eider Torres then brought home Boucher on an infield single, and Terrero plated Brown one hitter later with a line drive single to left. Norfolk would add another run on a double-play grounder in the frame to extend its lead to 6-0. Rochester got on the board in the top of the 7th, courtesy of a two-run homer by Buscher off of reliever Roberto Novoa. Tides reliever Alberto Castillo ensured the Red Wings would get no closer, however, as the southpaw held Rochester scoreless over the final 2.2 innings. For the second straight night, Terrero led Norfolk's offense with three base hits. The 27-year-old outfielder, who reached base safely in all five plate appearances on Tuesday (going 3-for-3 with two doubles, a triple, and two walks), finished Wednesday's contest 3-for-4 and is now hitting .409 for the season. NOTES: Thanks to a five-run second inning and a season-high 13 hits, the Class A Fort Myers Miracle were able to pick up their second straight win over the Clearwater Threshers by a final score of 9-3 on Wednesday night. Johnny Woodard and Juan Portes led the way offensively for the Miracle, each picking up three hits

Tuesday 4/8/08
TIDES TOP LIRIANO, WINGS (NorfolkTides.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - Luis Terrero went 3-for-3 with three runs driven in, powering the Tides to a 6-5 win over Francisco Liriano and the Rochester Red Wings Tuesday night. Jon Knott had three hits, scored two runs and knocked in two for the Wings. Terrero doubled twice and tripled in the contest, as Norfolk rallied back from a 4-0 deficit for another come-from-behind win. The Tides have trailed at some point in each of their three victories this year. Liriano, who was making his second minor league start this season after undergoing "Tommy John" surgery in 2007, allowed three runs on five hits in 4.0 innings of work. The 24-year-old walked three and struck out three, throwing 88 pitches, 53 of which went for strikes. Rochester had jumped out to a 1-0 lead on a solo homer by Garrett Jones in the second inning, and added three more runs in the 4th off of Tides starter Hayden Penn (1-1). Former Tide Knott drilled a two-out, two-run double in the frame, and Matt Macri drove him home one batter later with a single to put the Red Wings up 4-0. The homer by Jones was the first long ball hit in six games at Harbor Park this season. Norfolk battled back in the bottom of the 4th against Liriano, thanks to a clutch two-out hit by Terrero. Adam Stern started the rally with a one-out double, and Mike McCoy followed by working a walk to put runners on first and second. After a strikeout, Eider Torres continued his hot start to the season with a single to center that brought home Stern for Norfolk's first run of the game. Terrero followed with a line drive double down the left field line, plating both McCoy and Torres to pull the Tides within 4-3. The Tides took the lead one inning later, scoring two runs off of Red Wings reliever Casey Daigle (0-1). Omir Santos drove home Mike Costanzo with a fielders choice grounder, and he eventually came around to score on a throwing error by Daigle that gave the Tides the lead. Norfolk added another run in the 6th on an RBI double by Terrero. Penn allowed four runs on eight hits in 5.2 innings to pick up his first win of the season. He walked one and struck out three in the contest, throwing 90 pitches, 58 of which went for strikes. Penn was replaced by Esteban Yan with the bases loaded and two out in the 6th, but Yan retired Alexi Casilla on a comebacker to the mound to escape the threat and keep Norfolk in the lead. Yan, Ryan Bukvich and Bob McCroy combined to allow one run over the final 3.1 innings, with McCrory working around a one-out walk in the 9th inning to pick up his second save of the season. Norfolk pounded out 11 hits in the contest, and leads the International League with a .302 team average. NOTES: Hall of Famer catcher Carlton Fisk has been confirmed for the May 18 Cooperstown Classic Game between Rochester and Syracuse. Fisk is expected to meet with members of the media prior to the Cooperstown Classic, and then deliver a ceremonial first pitch to begin the day’s events. He will also make a special appearance on both the Syracuse and Rochester radio broadcasts during the game.He will spend the evening at the private reception inside the National Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum. The reception on Sunday evening from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. will give fans the opportunity to share hallowed ground with the Hall of Famer amidst the gallery of plaques. Members of the Syracuse and Rochester teams that play in the afternoon will also be in attendance and available to fans. The Red Wings have a limited number of tickets that include a game ticket and reception ticket; click here for information or call (585) 454-1001, ext. 3031....Monday night’s stolen base by Jones was the Red Wings' seventh stolen base of the season. Rochester is 7-for-7 in stolen bases with Casilla, Jones, and Denard Span each having two. Last season Rochester was 123-for-181 (68%) stealing bases....A season ago, Rochester and Norfolk split the season series 4-4. The Red Wings were 3-1 at Frontier Field and 1-3 at Harbor Park.

Monday 4/7/08
MULVEY MOUND EFFORT LEADS WINGS (NorfolkTides.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - Rochester's Kevin Mulvey struck out five over 5 2/3 shutout innings, pitching the Red Wings past the Tides 4-1 on a cold and blustery Monday night at Harbor Park. The Red Wings game on Tuesday at Norfolk will be televised live on TWCS Channel 26/215. This will be the first of 39 Red Wings games televised on TWCS this season. Rochester’s starting pitcher Tuesday is scheduled to be Francisco Liriano. Mulvey allowed just five hits and one walk in the contest, and the 22-year-old pitched out of jams in both the third and fourth innings to help keep the Tides off the board. He pitched around a one-out triple by second baseman Mike McCoy in the third, and the Tides were held scoreless one inning later despite back-to-back singles to lead off the frame by Mike Costanzo and Oscar Salazar. Norfolk brought the tying run to the plate with two out in the 9th inning, but Rochester closer Bobby Korecky struck out Eider Torres swinging to end the contest and pick up his first save of the season. The Tides left 10 men on base in the contest. Tides starter Jim Johnson (0-1) was the tough-luck loser, as the 24-year-old allowed just one run on two hits in 4.0 innings of work. Johnson, who threw just 54 pitches in the contest, walked one and struck out two. Norfolk plated its run in the 7th inning, as former Wing Chris Heintz doubled and scored on a ground out by McCoy. The Red Wings were led at the plate by Randy Ruiz, who went 2-for-4 with two RBI, while Brian Buscher and Matt Macri both added two hits and an RBI in the win. NOTES: Batting second in the lineup for Minnesota, Denard Span picked up his first big league hit Monday afternoon with a single to left field off Javier Vazquez in the third inning... The Red Wings played errorless ball Monday, after struggling defensively the first three games - committing six errors. Rochester committed eight errors in the first three games in 2007.

Saturday 4/5/08
BRAVES TOP WINGS 8-2 (RBraves.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - The Richmond Braves beat the Red Wings 8-2 Saturday in Richmond.  Brian Buscher connected for an eighth inning home run, the Wings' first of the season. Charlie Morton tossed 4.2 scoreless innings in his Triple-A debut and the Braves piled up 13 hits to win for the second straight day. Richmond jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the first inning.  Josh Anderson scored on an error after reaching on a single.  Brandon Jones doubled a run in and scored on a double play ball.  The Braves tacked on two more runs in the second.  Anderson knocked in a run with a single and Brent Lillibridge chased a run home with a double.  Rochester picked up a run in the sixth on a Garrett Jones sacrifice fly to trim the Braves lead to 5-1.  Richmond answered in the home half with a three run homer by Lillibridge.  Buscher homered in the Rochester eighth to cap the scoring. Damian Moss picked up the win.  Phillip Humber took the loss.  Lillibridge knocked in four runs for the Braves.  Anderson and Sal Fasano had three hits.  Buscher had two hits for the Red Wings. NOTES: The Wings' record is now 1-2, and it's the first time since June 18, 2005 that the club has been below the .500 mark -- a span of 364 games....With Denard Span's callup to the Twins Friday night, it marks the second year in a row Minnesota has promoted a Red Wings player just two games into the season. Last season, Minnesota promoted Alexi Casilla and Josh Rabe after just two games to replace the injured Jeff Cirillo and Rondell White...Francisco Liriano’s wife gave birth Saturday morning at 8:44 AM to a baby boy in Miami, Florida…Kevin Liriano weighed in at 9 lbs. 7 ounces...The Red Wings game on Tuesday at Norfolk will be televised live on TWCS Channel 26/215. This will be the first of 39 Red Wings games televised on TWCS this season. Rochester’s starting pitcher Tuesday is scheduled to be Liriano.

Friday 4/4/08
R-BRAVES HOLD OFF WINGS; SPAN PROMOTED (DemocratandChronicle.com/RedWingsBaseball.com) - Barbaro Canizares finished 2-for-4 with three RBI as the host Richmond Braves edged the Red Wings 4-3 Friday night. Garrett Jones homered for the Wings, who fell short of tying the game with an eighth inning rally. After the game, Minnesota called up OF Denard Span to take the place of Michael Cuddyer; Cuddyer was placed on the DL after he dislocated his right index finger in the Twins' 4-3 win over Kansas City. The Red Wings trailed 4-0 going into the eighth inning. Jones led off the inning with a home run and Rochester then loaded the bases with none out. With one out Howie Clark singled in Randy Ruiz and Span then hit into a fielder's choice to score Jon Knott and cut the lead to 4-3. The Braves scored two runs in the fourth inning to take the lead. Canizares doubled to score Brandon Jones, who also doubled, and Clint Sammons later added an RBI single. Canizares added a two-run single off of reliever Carmen Cali in the eighth inning for the Braves. Braves starter Jorge Campillo allowed five hits in 41/3 innings while striking out four. The Red Wings were held hitless until the third inning when Span hit a two-out single. Span stole second but Alexi Casilla flied out to end the inning. Rochester started the fourth inning with three consecutive singles to load the bases but Knott flied out and Jason Pridie and Matt Macri each struck out to end the inning. Wings starter Brian Duensing (0-1) had a strong performance, allowing just the two runs and six hits in 52/3 innings while striking out three and walking one. Carmen Cali allowed two runs over one inning and Jorge DePaula was perfect in 11/3 innings of relief. NOTES: The Red Wings game on Tuesday at Norfolk will be televised live on TWCS Channel 26/215. This will be the first of 39 Red Wings games televised on TWCS this season. Rochester’s starting pitcher Tuesday is scheduled to be LHP Francisco Liriano.... A season ago, Richmond won the season series 5-3. The Red Wings were 2-2 at Frontier Field
and 1-3 at The Diamond.

Thursday 4/3/08
WINGS RALLY OVER R-BRAVES FOR OPENING DAY WIN Garrett Jones had three hits, scored three times and drove in a pair of runs, as the Red Wings came from behind three different times en route to an 9-5 Opening Day victory Thursday over the Richmond Braves. It was Rochester's fifth straight season with an Opening Day win, and it came at the expense of the defending Governors' Cup champion Braves - who were playing their final opener in Richmond. The game started late due to wet weather in Richmond during the day, and it was 4:27 PM EDT when Denard Span took a called strike from Buddy Carlyle to officially open the 2008 season. Carlyle got three quick outs, then watched his teammates parlay a walk and two singles into a 1-0 Richmond lead against Rochester starter Glen Perkins. The Wings quickly came back to tie the score in the top of the second. Jones doubled into the right field corner to open the frame, and moved to third on a ground ball out by Brian Buscher. Randy Ruiz followed with an RBI single to plate Jones and make it a 1-1 game. Playing through light rain that seemed to affect the pitchers more than the fielders, the Braves regained the lead in the second inning. Perkins hurt his cause with a pair of walks, a throwing error and an balk which brought in Wes Timmons. In the third inning, Jason Pridie led off with a double, moved to third on a passed ball then scored to tie the score again when Carlyle was charged with a balk. Ruiz put the Wings in front in the fourth, clubbing a double to bring in Jones after Jones walked, then stole second base. Perkins' day was over after just three innings, after allowing four hits and two runs (one earned), while walking five and striking out four. Casey Daigle (1 2/3 innings) and Mariano Gomez followed Perkins on the mound for the Wings. Gomez struck out Scott Thorman to end the fifth inning, then gave way to Julio DePaula after walking J.C. Holt to start the sixth. Richmond worked an ineffective DePaula and put together a three-run rally, which included DePaula walking one batter, and hitting another. Heath Totten issued a game-tying, bases loaded walk to Brandon Jones; Barbaro Canizares then knocked in a pair with a hit off Totten, putting the R-Braves up 5-3. Wings reliever Ricky Barrett was sharp, keeping the game close while stifling the Braves over two innings. Barrett (1-0), who allowed one hit and struck out two, got the win for his effort when Rochester made the most of a one-out, eighth inning rally against Damian Moss (0-1). Span started the rally with a single, his second of the day. Alexi Casilla followed with a hit, and both runners advanced on a wild pitch. Jose Morales drew a walk to load the bases, setting up an RBI single by Jones. Thorman's two-run throwing error on a ball hit by Buscher allowed the Wings to go ahead, and Howie Clark added an insurance run with a sacrifice fly that brought Jones home. Rochester pieced together four more hits and took advantage of another Richmond error to add a pair in the ninth, highlighted by Jones' third hit and second RBI of the game. Bobby Korecky, who led the league in saves with 35 while setting a team single season record in 2007, pitched the ninth inning in a non-save situation and faced three batters. Korecky struck out Canizares (three hits, three RBI) and allowed a single to Joe Borchard, then started a game-ending double play on a ball hit by Thorman. NOTES: After allowing the fewest walks in the league (331) in 2007, Rochester pitchers issued eight walks in the 2008 season opener... The Atlanta Braves, owners of the Richmond franchise, are moving the club to the Atlanta suburb of Gwinnett for 2009; Thursday was the start of the 43rd and final Triple-A season for the Braves in Richmond.... The winningest franchise in International League history, Rochester is now 8,841-8,401 since joining the league in 1885, the IL’s second season. Rochester played in the IL from 1885 through 1889 and in 1891 and 1892 before re-joining the league for good in 1895. Rochester’s 10 Governors’ Cup titles represent a league-record as well....14 of the 24 players on the Red Wings' Opening Day roster have appeared in the Major Leagues (9 position players and 5 pitchers). Eight of those players have enjoyed Big League time with the Twins......Rochester hasn’t spent a day under .500 the last two seasons. In fact, the Red Wings haven’t been below .500 since June 18, 2005 when they had a 34-35 record (span of 362 games) ....23 of the 24 players on the Red Wings 2008 Opening Day roster have Triple-A experience. Only Gomez had never played above Double-A before Thursday, and Gomez made his Triple-A debut in the game. In addition, 15 of the 24 players played for the Red Wings last season....The 2008 season is Clark’s fifth season with the Red Wings (1998-2000, 2002 & 2008). Clark joins outfielder Josh Rabe (2003-2007) as the only two players to play five seasons in a Red Wings uniform since catcher Floyd Rayford in 1980-84, 1986 & 1987....

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