June 2009
Frymier Goes The Distance In River Bats Victory
Kurtis Frymier (Michigan State) tossed a complete game gem as the St. Cloud River Bats (13-18) defeated the Thunder Bay Border Cats (6-25) 10-2 at Port Arthur Stadium. Frymier (2-2) struck out eight batters and allowed just six hits to earn his second win in three starts.
Blank Helps Express Clinch South Division 1st Half Title
Trent Blank (Baylor) made his first start on the mound for the Express, who have lost a couple of key starting pitchers to injury and summer school. Blank did his job though in his first start of the season to earn the win. Blank pitched seven innings and gave up only two runs without walking a single batter and striking out five as the Express clinched the South Division first half title.
Varce Breaks Green Bay Single Season K Record
Zach Varce tossed 8 scoreless innings against the South Division leading Eau Claire Express but did not receive a decision as the as the game was scoreless until Eau Claire pushed across a run in the 10th inning to win. Varce gave up just five hits and recorded nine strikeouts to increase his league leading strikeout total to 60 on the season – 21 more than second place. He now owns the Green Bay single season record for strikeouts in a season. The previous record was held by Dave Roberts who fanned 59 during the Bullfrogs 2007 inaugural season. Saturday marks Varce's second Pitcher of the Night Award of the season.
Clement Closes Door For Madison
Denny Clement (Texas A&M) received his second win of the year after recording the game’s final eight outs without allowing a run (his ERA remains 0.00) in Madison's come-from-behind 3-2, 12 inning victory over division leading Eau Claire. Clement also struck out five Express batters. Clement has not allowed a run in his 8 2/3 innings pitched and has struck out 14 batters for the Mallards.
Holcomb Goes The Distance To Beat ‘Chucks
The Battle Creek Bombers used a complete game gem from Dan Holcomb (Evansville) as they defeated the Wisconsin Woodchucks by a final score of 5-1. Holcomb went the distance for the Bombers, allowing just one run and six hits while striking out five and walking just one. At one point he retired 9 straight batters. A solo home run in the 9th inning was the lone blemish for Holcomb.
O’Grady Extends Scoreless Innings Streak to 17
Dennis O'Grady (Duke) continued his dominance on the mound as he threw eight strong innings, allowed just three hits, walked only one, and struck out nine in the Lunkers victory over the Thunder Bay Border Cats, 5-0. He lowered his ERA to a league starting pitcher-best 0.29, picked up his second win in a Lunkers uniform, and didn't face more than four Thunder Bay hitters in any inning. O'Grady has now thrown 17 consecutive scoreless innings dating back to his start on June 16 against Duluth.
Griffin Continues Dominance For MoonDogs
Tim Griffin (Rollins) hurled yet another masterpiece as the righthander held St. Cloud to no runs on just three hits over seven innings, to give the MoonDogs a season-high fifth straight victory. Griffin moved to 2-1 on the season and combined with Chris Garrison (Oregon) to hurl the fifth MoonDogs shutout of the year. Griffin's ERA now stands at a paltry 1.10, with 39 strikeouts in 32.2 innings.
Fyffe Goes The Distance To Blank Huskies
Matt Fyffe (Eastern Kentucky) was sensational on the hill for the Alexandria Beetles, blanking the Duluth Huskies 3-0 at Wade Stadium. Fyffe (1-1) surrendered six hits in the complete game shutout, walking two while striking out a season high five. Fyffe didn’t allow a runner past second base all night.
Varce Strikes out Nine in Bullfrogs 2-0 Win
It was Green Bay starter Zach Varce who won the pitcher’s duel on Sunday afternoon, as the Bullfrogs dropped the Waterloo Bucks in a 2-0 win. Varce (Portland) fanned nine Bucks’ batters and surrendered three hits over seven innings on the hill to earn his first win of the season. Varce pushed his league leading strikeout total to 49, which are 17 more than Tim Griffin (Rollins) of Mankato.
Ringenberg Steps Up For Eau Claire
Jon Ringenberg (Baylor), the every day first baseman for the Express, but made his second start on the mound Saturday night in the biggest game of the season so far. Ringenberg was fantastic in earning his first victory of the season as the Express took hold of first place with a 2-1 victory over Madison. Ringenberg gave up a run in the first inning, but did not look back after that. He pitched eight innings, allowing one run, four hits and struck out six Mallards. Honorable Mention: Mankato's John Brebbia (Elon) earned his first save of season by pitching 2.2 innings of near-perfect baseball. Brebbia entered the game in the seventh with the tying and go-ahead runs on third and second. He responded by striking out the next two Duluth hitters as he finished with five strikeouts while allowing just one hit in helping the MoonDogs expand their lead in the North Division.
Morgan K’s 10 Woodchucks
Matt Morgan (Purdue) impressed all 5,474 in attendance at the "Duck Pond" on Friday night by striking out a season-high 10 batters over six innings of work and propelling the Mallards to a 4-1 win over South Division rival, Wisconsin. Morgan (2-0) endured a one hour rain delay prior to the start of the game, but was unfazed. Morgan struck out the side in the top half of the first and third innings. A solo homerun was the only blemish for Morgan on the night.
Self Impressive In Madison Debut
Derek Self, welcome to Madison. Two days after arriving to the Capital City, the soon-to-be sophomore Louisville pitcher didn’t disappoint in his first start, shutting down the Wisconsin Woodchucks to give the Mallards a 4-1 victory Thursday night in Wausau. Self (1-0) only allowed three hits during his six innings of work while striking out three batters and walking just one. He was in control of the game from the very first pitch and didn’t allow a hit until the fifth inning.
