Groundhogs Take Commanding Lead into Vero Beach August 14, 1998
Punxatawney, PA (AP) - It certainly wasn't an easy series, but Punxatawney squeaked out a 2-1 win
over the Sacramento Knights to pull off a series win and increase their
division lead to 7 games. The Groundhogs rapped out 11 hits but stranded 10
runners, barely scoring enough to win.
Sacramento actually drew first blood in this game, as Troy O'Leary walked,
moved to second on a John Wojcik single, and scored when Alex Arias doubled
him in during the second inning. However, Sean Bergman and the Hogs
relievers did not permit any more Knight offense.
Sacramento starter, rookie Matt Morris, allowed 1 run in third as Roberto
Kelly singled, stole second, and was brought in on a Jose Valentin double.
Then in the 5th inning, Punxatawney catcher Dan Wilson came to the plate,
leading off. He cranked a Morris 2-1 offering over the left field wall for
his 15th homer of the year, a solo shot, to put Punxatawney ahead 2-1.
"This hasn't been a great season for me, but its been getting better
recently," Wilson said. "Morris hung a curve and I just got all of it."
Then the pitching took over. John Hayes relieved for Sacramento in the 7th
while top setup man Bobby Munoz relieved Punxatawney starter Sean Bergman in
the 7th. Neither allowed a run.
Ricky Bottalico entered in the 9th inning, looking for his 15th save. It
was an easy one, as he set the batters down in order including 2 strikeouts.
He is currently 6th in the DL. Bergman got the win to improve his
incredible record to 14-3. He allowed just 4 hits, 1 walk, and 1 run while
striking out 6 over 6 innings. His ERA is down to 3.03. Bobby Munoz only
gave up 1 hit in 2 innings for his 15th hold, lowering his ERA down to 1.69
on the year in 39 relief appearances.
The Springfield Atoms lost their 8th straight as Punxatawney was snagging
their 7th win in their last 10. Punxatawney now holds a 7 game lead as
Springfield slipped under .500.
But tomorrow is the start of a huge series for Punxatawney. They are
already on their way south to Vero Beach where they will face the Beach
Bums, winners of 6 straight, for the first time since last season's LCS.
Tomorrow, Kurt Hardie will go for Vero against Punxatawney's Bobby Thomas in
game one. Albie Lopez will face off against Jon Lieber in game two.
Hardie has had just 6 quality starts, but he has compiled a 6-2 record and
2.73 ERA. Thomas is 7-7 with a 3.24 ERA and 17 quality starts for
Punxatawney. Lopez has been one of the best pitchers in the short history
of the PVBL, and this season is 17-4 with a 2.09 ERA, the clear staff ace of
Vero Beach. He has 30 wins over the last two seasons. Lieber has been
solid for the 2nd year in a row, but because of injury he is only 8-2 so far
with a 2.65 ERA.
"We're expecting pitching duels, and not much hitting," Shapiro said.
"We're just going to try and get enough offense to win. But with a 7 game
lead, we aren't under as much pressure to pull out a bunch of wins against
these guys."
Stats 'n Stuff
While Vero Beach only boasts one regular hitting over .300, they have one of
the best, balanced offenses in the league. Every regular except Tom
Pagnozzi is batting .260 or more, and Jeff King is having another great
season--this time unmarred by injury. He his batting .296 with 31 homers.
Marquis Grissom and Rex Hudler are batting .295 and 288 respectively with a
combined 82 steals. They are hitting .277 as a team, behind only the high
altitude Larimer Knights, with the 3rd best ERA in the DL.
"We have our work cut out for us," said Bobby Thomas, slated to pitch game 1
tomorrow. "This is a great team and they beat us last year when it
mattered. It looks like they'll be back in the playoffs and we have good
shot at getting back to, so these guys are probably just warmups for the
real thing in a few months."
Punxatawney also has a great offense, batting just .007 below Vero, the 3rd
best average in the DL. They also have a low team ERA at 3.60 and have the
2nd most strikeouts and 2nd least walks in the DL.
"Its a battle of titans, I guess," Jose Valentin said. "We really want this
series, but heart alone won't be enough to beat these guys. We're going to
need some real talent too."
