Beating the Odds

Two jinxes were averted at Hadlock Field last night:

1) Despite the severe thunderstorms that rolled through Portland in the afternoon, no rain fell during the ball game
2) Despite me being in attendance, the Sea Dogs pulled out a 12-inning, 9-8 win over the Altoona Curve.

Obviously, co-scorer Nick has a positive influence on the team, though we do seem to get a lot of extra-inning games when we are paired. The game started 1/2 an hour late and lasted about four hours, so I didn't actually arrive home until midnight. I'm paying the dues for BIS and you, the loyal SeaBlog reader!

Chris Durbin batted cleanup and was the offensive hero on the night, going 4-6 with two home runs (including the game-tying shot in the bottom of the 9th), a double and five RBI. He's obviously out of his slump now and is again second on the team (behind Jared Sandberg) with 41 RBI. It was a rough night for the pitching on both sides, but the Sea Dogs bullpen held on over the last four innings and gave the offense time to pull this one out.

Scorer's Notes:

• Starting pitcher Chris Smith was a little better this time out than last, but still not great. He allowed three runs on 8 hits over five innings and left with a three-run lead. Smith got his fastball into the upper 80's more frequently than last time out, which is a good sign.
• Another good sign was Stefan Bailie (resident whipping boy of late) showing signs of getting out of his awful slump. Bailie hit a monster home run over the left field wall his first time up, then eventually scoring the winning run after starting the 12th with a hard-hit line drive to the gap in right center. Bailie also struck out twice and grounded into a bases-loaded DP to end the 9th, but we'd be happy with baby steps, and he took a couple of big boy steps last night.
• Speaking of hard-hit line drives, the Wicket fielded his position flawlessly and made a couple of nice stops on hard hit balls down the line. Apparently Sandberg is better off when he doesn't have time to think.
• Hanley Ramirez is another guy who's been criticized here lately, and he had a good game, too. Ramirez hit the ball harder than I've seen from him lately, including a line drive that went past the pitcher about as fast as any ball I've ever seen hit. He also made several highlight-reel plays in the field. This is the guy we came to see.
• Matt Peterson pitched for Altoona and provided another disappointing outing, allowing six runs on seven hits and five walks over five innings pitched. His ERA is now a lofty 6.59. Peterson's fastball never reached 90, and his off speed stuff just wasn't effective. He's struggling right now. Josh Sharpless, another prospect who I wrote about, pitched two innings and allowed a run while striking out three. I was expecting more heat from him (low-90's is what we got), but he appears to change speeds and keep the hitters off balance. Leadoff man Rajai Davis had just one hit in six at bats.
• Denney Tomori made his AA debut. He gave up a hit on his very first pitch but was perfect for the rest of his two-inning stint. His sidearm delivery looks tough on righties.
• I was early enough to get a set of 2005 Sea Dogs player cards. Some day soon I'll paw through them and make some comments here.