Slowing down a PCL division leader
Tough guys don't always win in baseball. Sometimes, the breaks of the game just don't go their way and they fall short of the prize.Omaha Storm Chasers catcher Nick Dini made his own breaks on Saturday night and emerged as a winner, leading his team to a 7-2 victory over
Tough guys don't always win in baseball. Sometimes, the breaks of the game just don't go their way and they fall short of the prize.
Omaha Storm Chasers catcher
As a result, the surprising Storm Chasers improved to 2-1 on their first road trip to San Antonio, with the series finale looming Sunday afternoon at 2:05 p.m. at Wolff Stadium.
The Storm Chasers will get a chance to win the series thanks to Dini, who homered and doubled and produced four RBI in his third game back after spending a week on the injured list with a concussion.
He suffered the injury in the first inning of a May 22 home game against the Iowa Cubs.
"Last week, we had a doubleheader and I was catching game two of a doubleheader," Dini said. "The first batter of the game - I've never seen it before -- three foul balls off my face. Back to back to back. Foul balls off the mask.
"I tried to stay in, but our manager did the right thing and came and got me. I was a little banged up, but I feel good now. I'm healthy and I'm happy to be back."
Dini was was activated Thursday for the first game of the series, when he produced two hits in the Storm Chasers' 3-2 victory.
The Missions bounced back on Friday night behind pitcher
But as the teams met for the third time Saturday night, Dini and his teammates on the Kansas City Royals' Triple-A affiliate got the best of Missions starter
Smith, one of the mainstays on the staff of the American Southern Division leaders, couldn't contain the Storm Chasers in the early innings.
They scored three in the second inning -- all on a homer by Dini that landed on the left field berm -- and then they added three more in the third.
The early 6-0 cushion allowed unheralded 23-year-old Venezuela native
Throwing a two- and four-seam fastball, a curve and an effective changeup, Hernandez pitched six scoreless innings and allowed only three hits.
He entered the game with a 10.58 earned run average against Smith, at 1.27.
"That's the beauty of baseball, that on any given night, one person doesn't have his good stuff and the other guy does," Missions manager Rick Sweet said. "That's the difference in the ball game. I thought Smith did a great job. I thought he battled. He competed. He gave us five good innings."
The Storm Chasers took advantage in touching up the Missions' right-hander for six runs on six hits. Smith (3-2) walked three and struck out four.
Omaha coach Brian Buchanan applauded his hitters for making a difference in their first series of the season against the Missions, who lead the Pacific Coast League with a team ERA of 3.42.
"We're doing all right," Buchanan said. "I mean, runs are tough to come by off these guys. They got the best pitching staff in the league. Tonight, to jump on 'em early (was important). That three-run homer kind of settled us in. In the next inning, we got three, two-out RBI.
"Like I said, scoring runs off these guys isn't easy."
Trailing 7-0 late, the Missions scored a couple of runs in the eighth inning off
But, in the end, it wasn't enough for a team that had won 20 games in May and 14 of 18 over the past two and a half weeks.
Despite the two losses, the Missions remain 13 games over .500 in their first season in Triple-A, and in the first season of a new player development contract with the Brewers.
Brewers farm director Tom Flanagan, making his first in-season visit to San Antonio, said before Game 3 in the Omaha series that he senses a good feeling around the ball club.
"They're playing really well," he told Missions radio broadcaster Stu Paul on Saturday afternoon. "Wilkerson's been on fire. Kind of an electric atmosphere at the Wolff (on Friday). It's my first game here. So, just hearing the fans and how engaged they were, and everything, it was great to experience first-hand."
Flanagan said he's been pleased with the pitching.
"Burch and Wilk have really led the staff, really, from Day 1," he said. "Both have gotten the chance at the big-league level. I'm sure at some point, the way we cycle through guys, they'll get another opportunity to impact the big-league club.
"So, (I'm) excited for both guys. But, the pitching staff, the bullpen, to a man, is bringing some pretty good stuff. Pretty big arms, velocity wise, coming in. I think Rick and (pitching coach) Fred Dabney are really happy with the guys they can choose from down there."
PCL Standings
American Southern Division - San Antonio 35-22, Round Rock 34-22, New Orleans 31-26, Oklahoma City 21-34.
American Northern Division - Iowa 33-24, Omaha 27-30, Memphis 23-34, Nashville 22-34.
Sunday's matchup
2:05 p.m. - San Antonio's