Game 77: Stormers 9-6

Jordan Herr

	Josh Hall 5-2, 4.26 ERA		Joe Gannon 6-1, 2.96 ERA

With the much-needed four-day break behind them, Atlantic League teams are ready to turn their full attention to the second half race. Lancaster, York and Newark are still looking to lock down a playoff spot.

Who’s the favorite?

The knee-jerk reaction is Newark. The Bears are the defending champs, after all, and they came within a game of winning the first half title. But recent trends aren’t positive for this team. Newark is 5-8 with a 6.23 ERA this month. The Bears’ vaunted offense, minus lefty sluggers Val Majewski and Cory Aldridge, looks pedestrian all of a sudden.

The actual favorite is probably York. Even though the Revs have started 2-4 this half, those four losses are by a combined five runs. York is hitting .303 as a team this month and has a 3.94 ERA since the beginning of June . The additions of Shea Hillenbrand and Kennard Jones are having an impact on a once-beleaguered offense. The Revolution also has four ex-big leaguers in its rotation.

What about the Barnstormers? Well, they’re 25-24 since May 23 so you can’t write them off completely. While some were hoping Lancaster would use the four-day break to bolster its lineup, it didn’t happen. The team is counting on Ian Bladergroen’s return to provide a boost until players start filtering out of the Mexican League in about 10 days.

The Barnstormers are essentially hitching their wagon to their pitching staff. Josh Hall needs to continue to be consistent. Eric Ackerman and Nick Renault have to snap out of their recent funks. Shane Youman has to show he can dominate. Jason Scobie has to fill that fifth slot.

Is it possible? Sure. If the 2006 Cardinals can win a World Series, anything is possible. But the Atlantic League is almost always ruled by hitting and position player talent at this stage of the season. So the Barnstormers — who rank last in offense — will need to increase their production. They are considered the underdogs.

Here’s a look at the schedule

Home: 35 games left … Home record: 19-16

Road: 29 games left … Road record: 14-27

Home: 35 games left … Record: 20-15

Road: 29 games left … Road record: 12-29

Home: 36 games left … Home record: 21-13

Road: 28 games left … Road record: 19-23

Although much was made of the Barnstormers’ struggles away from Clipper Magazine Stadium, no team in the Atlantic League has a winning record on the road. Somerset is the closest at 20-20.

Except for Somerset, which is already postseason bound, this division doesn’t have a powerhouse team. York seems to have the most factors in its favor. The Revs have the best lineup of the three would-be contenders, a home-heavy schedule and trends that are encouraging across the board.

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Lineups …

5-1	3-3
George Sandel, SS	Lloyd Turner, 3B
John Ramistella, RF	Mike Woods, LF
Curtis Pride, DH	Danny Gonzalez, SS
Patrick Osborn, 3B	Matt LeCroy, DH
Clint Johnston, 1B	Ian Bladergroen, 1B
Jeremy Owens, CF	Manny Mejia, C
James Shanks, LF	Jutt Hileman, CF
Chris Maples, 2B	Luis Perez, RF
Brandon Ketron, C	Juan Francia, 2B

Scoring summary …

Blue Crabs	200	000	103	6	6	0
Barnstormers	103	201	20x	9	11	3

WP: Josh Hall (6-2)
LP: Joe Gannon (6-2)

FINAL: Barnstormers 9, Blue Crabs 6

Crabs 1st: Owens’ single scores Pride and Osborn.
Southern Maryland leads 2-0.

Stormers 1st: Gonzalez’s single scores Woods.
Southern Maryland leads 2-1.

Stormers 3rd: LeCroy’s single scores Bladergroen. Mejia’s double scores Woods and Gonzalez.
Lancaster leads 4-2.

Stormers 4th: Perez scores on wild pitch. Woods scores on wild pitch.
Lancaster leads 6-2.

Stormers 6th: Woods’ single scores Francia.
Lancaster leads 7-2.

Crabs 7th: Sandel’s double scores Ketron.
Lancaster leads 7-3.

Stormers 7th: Perez’s home run scores Hileman.
Lancaster leads 9-3.

Crabs 9th: Shanks hits solo home run. Ramistella’s home run scores Sandel.
Lancaster leads 9-6.

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Box score:

RECORD: 4-3 (34-43)

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Josh Hall

6.2 IP

3 H

3 R

1 ER

3 BB

6 K

Hall shrugged off an unfortunate first inning. He allowed two unearned runs that came home on an infield single. After that point, the righthander was dominant. He retired 18 of 19 batters during one stretch and the only baserunner reached on an error. Hall is 6-2 with a 4.01 ERA. He’s the staff ace.

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NOTES:

*Mike Woods reached base safely in his first four plate appearances. He scored three runs and has quietly moved into the top three in the league with 60 runs scored.

*Ian Bladergroen returned to the lineup in the No. 5 slot. He went 1-for-3 with a walk and committed two errors.

*Matt LeCroy extended his hitting streak to 10 games with an RBI single in the third inning.

*Luis Perez is off to a nice start with his new team. The RF is 10-for-27 with two homers in seven games. He has better speed than expected and showed some surprising pop when he launched a two-run homer to straightaway left field.

*Von Hayes answered some of the lineup questions: Manny Mejia was the starting catcher instead of Kevin Kotch. Lloyd Turner was inserted into the leadoff spot. Juan Francia, who made a stellar defensive play, got the start at 2B and hit ninth. Ivanon Coffie was on the bench. Eventually, we should see Woods and Gonzalez hitting 1-2.

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BOTTOM LINE:

The Barnstormers solved Joe Gannon’s knuckleball and cruised past the hottest team in the Atlantic League. It wasn’t a flawless effort – the team committed three errors and has seven in the last two games – but it was another win with Hall on the mound. Lancaster has a winning record again.