Morning Rundown: Scottsdale splits doubleheader, A's GM makes statement on Brent Rooker
Morning Rundown: Scottsdale splits doubleheader, A's GM makes statement on Brent Rooker
Valentin Linarez picks up win for Scottsdale, Scottsdale splits the day
Scottsdale splits doubleheader, Linarez picks up win
Recap by John Dreker
The Scottsdale Scorpions and Glendale Desert Dogs resumed Sunday's suspended game on Tuesday night, ahead of their regularly scheduled game for the day. Kristian Curtis started Sunday's game. He struck out three batters in his only inning of work. He allowed a single to the lead-off hitter, though that was only after his third baseman dropped a foul ball.
Curtis was replaced on the mound in the top of the second. Sammy Siani remained in the starting lineup, though he moved from right field to left field when play resumed. Catcher Geovanny Planchart wasn't in the original lineup. He went behind the plate when played resumed on Tuesday. This game was changed to a seven-inning contest.
Planchart flew out to left field to start the bottom of the second inning. Siani grounded to second base for the second out of the second inning. Planchart lined out to first base in the fourth inning. Siani struck out swinging to lead off the fifth inning.
Planchart singled on a line drive in the sixth inning, after Glendale took a 5-1 lead on a grand slam. Siani batted with the bases loaded and no outs in the sixth. He singled on a line drive to the left-center gap to make it a 5-2 game. The Scorpions added another run in the inning, but that was the end of the scoring. They dropped the game 5-3.
Planchart finished the game 1-for-3 with a run scored. He is now hitting .360/.484/.640 through 31 plate appearances (eight games).
Siani went 1-for-3 with an RBI. He's batting .393/.460/.554 in 63 plate appearances over 15 games.
GAME TWO
Game two of the day for Scottsdale included one Pittsburgh Pirates player in the lineup. Kervin Pichardo hit eighth and played shortstop. Valentin Linarez and Brandan Bidois both entered the game out of the bullpen. The game was shortened to seven innings.
Pichardo grounded out to shortstop in the third inning. Linarez pitched the third inning for the Scorpions. He got a line out to right field and a fly ball to left field for the first two outs. The next batter singled on the first pitch he saw. He would be thrown out trying to steal three pitches later. Linarez threw 11 pitches in the inning, with seven going for strikes. He topped out at 93.8 MPH, reaching that mark three times. He worked almost exclusively with his four-seam fastball.
Linarez stayed on for the fourth inning. The first batter reached on an error. He got a pop-out to the catcher for the first out. A stolen base put a runner in scoring position. Linarez got a pop-out to second base for the second out. He hit the next batter with the first pitch. He then walked a man to load the bases. Linarez got out of the inning with a strikeout. He threw 21 pitches in the inning, with 11 going for strikes. He worked the slider in more often during his second inning, though his final six pitches were all four-seamers. The slider sat in the low 80s. Linarez hit 94.2 MPH this inning. He was replaced at the start of the fifth inning.
Linarez has pitched nine innings this fall. He has allowed one run on two hits, seven walks, and ten strikeouts.
Drew Cavanaugh doubled with two outs in the fifth to give Scottsdale their first hit of the game. Pichardo was up next with a chance to break a scoreless game. He singled to make it a 1-0 score. He also stole his first base of the fall. He walked in the seventh, which put two men on base with no outs. It was still a 1-0 score at that point. Sammy Siani came on as a pinch-runner after the Pichardo walk (he ran for Cavanaugh). Both Pirates moved up on a wild pitch and then scored on a single.
Scottsdale took a 6-0 lead into the bottom of the seventh. Siani stayed in the game as the left fielder. Geovanny Planchart came in to catch. Brandan Bidois took the mound. He walked the first batter he faced while throwing all 93-94 MPH fastballs. He struck out the next batter on seven pitches, including two sliders. He hit 95.2 MPH in that at-bat. Bidois improved his velocity on three straight pitches to the following batter, ending the game with a double play on a 96.0 MPH fastball. He threw eight of his 15 pitches for strikes.
Bidois has allowed seven runs over 7.2 innings this fall, with five hits, ten walks, and 13 strikeouts.
Pichardo is now hitting .293/.408/.512 through 49 plate appearances (13 games)
Scottsdale won 6-0, giving them a 10-14 record. The Scorpions will be home today to take on the Peoria Javelinas (6-16) at 8:30 PM EST.
Athletics General Manager David Forst shut down trade rumors regarding one of his best hitters, Brent Rooker. Talking to Jon Heyman during the GM Meetings, Forst said “We’re going to keep [Rooker].”
Rooker, 30, has hit 30 home runs in each of the last two seasons for the Athletics. He was also a favorite of some of the Pirates’ fanbase for them to target in a potential trade this offseason.
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