4/30, Cougars 0, Cedar Rapids 3, Cougars Get No Hit

The Cougars were no hit tonight by the Cedar Rapids Kernels, losing the game 3-0 to even their record at 11-11 for the season. This is the first time since July 9th of 2003 in game 2 of the doubleheader in Clinton that the Cougars were no hit. 7/9/03 G2.

They would leave eight men on base as they did walk five times in the game. The diffrence in the game was the pitching from both sides. Fabio Martinez started for the Kernels and had the first five innings. He walked three and struck out nine. Kyle Hurst then came in and pitched the next two innings, walking two and striking out two. Mike Kenney then came in and pitched the final two innings to record his first save of the season. He struck out three hitters.

Ian Krol started for the Cougars and was really good, he threw six innings, giving up four hits. He did not give up a run and struck out five. Jonathan Joseph then came in and went an inning and a third and gave up three hits and three runs.

The first run of the game came in the seventh inning for the Kernels against Joseph. With one out, Luis Jimenez doubled to right. One out later, Eric Oliver would be hit by a pitch. Casey Haerther then singled to right to score Jimenez. Joseph would get Adam Younger looking to end the inning.

The other two runs the Kernels would score came in the eighth inning. Mike Trout led off with a single to right center. Trout would then steal second base, after the throw from catcher Max Stassi went off of short stop Mike Gilmartin's glove. One out later, Jean Segura struck out. Stassi couldn't get the ball cleanly so he had to throw to first to get the strikeout. He bounced the throw, allowing Segura to reach and Trout to get to third. A wild pitch would move Segura to second, before an interntional walk to Carlos Ramirez loaded the bases with only one out. Josh Lansford then came on in relief. He would get Jimenez to pop out to right for the second out. Oliver then blooped one to the right field line that fell in front of Rashun Dixon. Trout and Segura would score. Ramirez would be out trying to score to end the inning.

Leaving eight men on base didn't help the Cougars cause tonight. Tyreace House was left on after a one out walk, and stolen base in the first. In the second, Connor Crumbliss and House both walked with two outs but would be stranded. In the fourth inning with two outs, Max Stassi reached on an error by the third baseman. Dixon was then hit by a pitch, unfortunalty Franklin Hernandez grounded out to first to end the inning. The fifth inning the Cougars would get a runner to third. With one out, Crumbliss walked then stole second. One out later, Kent Walton reached on an error, allowing Crumbliss to get to third. Leonardo Gil would then strike out to end the inning.

Stassi walked with one out in the sixth, but would be erased on a caught stealing. Mike Gilmartin walked with one out in the seventh but would go no where.

Cedar Rapids had more chances to score, but some nice pitching by Krol got the Cougars out of trouble. In the first inning, Matt Long reached on a single to second. Long would be picked off of first, but would be credited with a stolen base. Gilmartin missed the tag at second. In the fourth inning, Long led off the inning with a double down the right field line, he tried to get a triple and would be out on a relay throw from Crumbliss.

In the fifth inning Krol had to battle out of a big jam. Jimenez led off with a single to left. Randall Grichuk then reached on a fielder's choice, with Jimenez being out at second, he would beat the throw back to first for the double play. Oliver then singled to left. Krol would then be able to get Haerther to ground into the inning ending double play. In the sixth inning with two outs the Kernels would get another runner on base. Long reached on an error by Hernandez at first. Segura would hit into an inning ending force play at second to let Krol off the hook.

The loss breaks the Cougars four game winning streak.
Next Game
5/1 @ Cedar Rapids, 2pm

Notes-Jonathan Joseph was activated from the disabled list today. A.J. Huttenlocker was placed on the disabled list with a sore shoulder.

Trevor Cahil was promoted to Oakland

Tyler Ladendorf and Dusty Napoleon were both sent from Stockton to Sacramento

Josh Horton was activated from the disabled list and sent from Midland to Stockton


This was the first time that there were two no- hitters in the Midwest League on the same night since 7/10/87. Peoria no hit Clinton tonight. Peoria and Cedar Rapids were also the teams that pitched the no-hitters back then.

Sorry no posts the last few days, I forgot my password. If it happends again just go to my website for Cougar news, http://malamut.net

4/22, Cougars 4, Peoria 6

The Cougars would get swept out of Peoria, and extend their four game losing streak tonight, as they lost 6-4. They left seven men on base.

Justin Marks started for the Cougars, he lasted four innings, giving up six hits and five runs. His first and third innings were perfect, the other two were not as good. He walked two and struck out three. Marks also had a wild pitch.

The story of the game though was the Chiefs starter Su-Min Jung, who still has not allowed a earned run in his three wins. He went five innings, giving up three hits, and no runs. He walked two and struck out four, three of those looking.

Kane County got most of their runs again in the ninth inning. They would score three times against Chief reliever Cory Martin. Max Stassi led off the inning with a single to left. Anthony Aliotti and Leonardo Gil both walked, which would load the bases. Juan Nunez would strike out. Nino Leyja grounded out to second, on the play Stassi would score. Connor Crumbliss then singled up the middle to score both Aliotti and Gil. At this point the Cougars were down two, with the tying run up to bat. The Chiefs then brought in their closer, James Leverton. He would strike out Tyreace House looking to end the game.

The Chiefs would lead off the scoring in the game in the second inning off of Marks. Greg Rohan led off the inning with a walk. Richard Jones then singled to right. Jovan Rosa would then doubled to right center to score Rohan. On the play, the relay throw in from Gil would get past Stassi. Marks forgot to back up the catcher. On the error by Gil for the throw home, Jones would score. One out later, Jesus Morelli singled to right to score Rosa. Marks would get out of the inning with a double play.

Rohan also led off the fourth inning, this time with a double to left, he would get to third on a wild pitch. Marks then struck out, Jones and got Rosa to ground out to keep Rohan at third. Alvaro Ramirez then singeld to right to score Rohan. Morelli walked, and Jose Valdez then singled to right center to score Ramirez.

The last run for the Chiefs came in the sixth. Rosa singled to right. Ramirez singled to left, and Morelli singled to center to load the bases. By then A.J. Huttenlocker had come in for his second inning of relief. He would strike out Valdez looking. Huk-Ju Lee then reached on a fielder's choice. On the play, Morelli would be out at second and Rosa would score.

The Cougars scored their first run of the game in the seventh inning off of Chief releiver Ronny Morla. With one out, Anthony Aliotti singled up the middle. He would get to third on two wild pitches. One out later, Juan Nunez reached on a error by the third baseman. On the play the ball went off his glove, Aliotti would score.

That would be all of the scoring in the game but not all of the chances. In the first the Cougars stranded House at second after a single up the middle and a steal of second. In the second Aliotti was stranded at first after a one out single. The fourth inning was frustrating, as both Rashun Dixon and Stassi both walked with one out. Aliotti would then hit into a inning ending double play.

A leadoff single by Gil in the fifth would lead to nothing. In the eighth inning with one out, House reached on a fielder's chocie. He would get to third before being stranded there. The Cougars would walk five times with only the two walks in the ninth coming around to score. The Cougars would strike out ten times, four times to end innings. Five of those strike outs were looking.


Next Game
4/23 @ Clinton 6:30
Ian Krol (0-1, 6.52) vs Jimmy Gilheeney (1-1, 2.93)

4/21, Cougars 2, Peoria 4

Three straight losses for the Cougars, as they would lose to the Peoria Chiefs 4-2 this morning.

Kane County got out to a early 1-0 lead in the second ininng. Max Stassi led off with a walk, he then would get to third on two stright wild pitches. One out later, Leonardo Gil singled to right to score Stassi. The only other run the Cougars would score came in the sixth when Rashun Dixon hit his first homerun of the season. This to left field with one out.

Besides those two innings the Cougars had a couple of other chances in the game. In the fourth inning, Dixon would lead off with a single to center. Two groundouts later, he would get to third. Gil then struck out to end the inning. In the fifth, Mike Gilmartin led off with a single to center. Tyreace House would be out on batters interference, after putting down a bunt. Connor Crumbliss and Kent Walton both struck out to end the inning.

Chiefs start Ken McNutt pitched great, actually the bullpen of Steve Grife and Jordan Lathan also pitched well also. McNutts went five innings, giving up five hits and one run. In the seventh inning the Cougars would get two walks and strand both of them.

The eighth inning would start out with a Myrio Richard single to left. Two outs later, Anthony Aliotti walked. Gil would then strike out to end the threat. In the ninth the Cougars would get two runners on with a walk and a hit by pitch. Richard would strike out to end the game.

Chris Mederos pitched well again for the Cougars. He went into the sixth inning, giving up six hits and two runs. He would have to get out of some trouble though. In the second inning with one out, Justin Bour singled to right, a wild pitch would move him to second. Mario Mercedes then walked. Richard Jones hit into a fielder's choice, on the play Mercedes would be out at second. A wild pitch moved Jones to second, while Bour held on at third. Mederos then would strike out George Matheus to end the inning.

Peoria scored two runs in the sixth inning. Logan Watkins led off with a single to third. Matt Cerda then singled to right. Greg Rohan would then double to left to score Watkins. Bour grounded out to score Cerda. The Cougars would then make a pitching change and bring in Connor Hoehn. He would strike out the next two hitters to get out of the inning.

Hoehn would take the loss in the game as he went two and two thirds innings, giving up one hit and two runs. The game deciding runs came in the seventh inning for the Chiefs. With one out, Jesus Morelli was hit by a pitch. Jose Valdez then walked. One out later, Cerda singled to left to score both Morelli and Valdez. Cerda would get to second on the throw home, and would be out at third to end the inning but the damage was already done.


Next Game
4/22 @ Peoria, 6:30
Justin Marks (0-1, 10.13) vs Su-Min Jung (2-0, 0.00)

4/20, Cougars 7, Peoria 8 (11)

What a messy game tonight turned out to be, the Cougars would get seven runs, ten hits and ten walks and lose. 14 strikeouts and six errors did not help much. Plus the Peoria Chiefs scored eight runs and got 14 hits, in a 8-7 eleven inning game.

Things looked great for the Cougars untill the bottom of the fourth inning when the Chiefs offense would start to get on track. Dan Straily started for the Cougars and lasted into the fifth inning. He would give up seven hits and six runs. Only four of those runs were earned, he walked three and struck out four. Bo Schults and Josh Lansford would give up the other runs.

The offense was lead by Connor Crumbliss who had three hits and two walks. Juan Nunez also had two hits and one walk.

Peoria got the first run in the game in the first inning off of Straily. Hak-Ju Lee led off with a single to left center. Logan Watkins then singled to center. Matt Cerda would reach on a fielder's choice. On the play Crumbliss go thte ball and threw to shortstop Mike Gilmartin for the force out of Watkins. Only problem is Gilmartin droped the ball, which would load the bases. One out later, Justin Bour hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Lee.

The Cougars would break away with five runs in the fourth inning sending eleven men to the plate. With one out, Rashun Dixon singled to shrot. One out later, Leonardo Gil and Gilmartin both walked, which would load the bases. Juan Nunez hit into a fielder choice, on the play the third baseman got beat to the base by Gil, and Dixon scored. Crumbliss would then single to left center to score Gil and Gilmartin. Peoria would then bring in a reliever, Tim Clubb came in for starter Jeff Antigua. Tyreace House greated him with a single up the middle to score Nunez. Myrio Richard then singled to left to score Crumbliss. Max Stassi then walked to reload the bases. Dixon then grounded out to the pitcher to end the inning.

Things were looking very good for the Cougars untill the bottom of the inning when they gave back three of those runs. Bour led off with a walk. Mario Mercedes then singled to right. Bour would make it to third on an error by right fielder Dixon. Mercedes would be out at second trying to advance on the error. Richard Jones then doubled off the left field wall to score Bour. Alvaro Ramirez hit one to left, that left fielder House misplayed allowing Ramirez to get to second Jose Valdez grounded out to second to allow Jones to score and Ramirez to get to third. Lee then tried to use a squeeze play to get Ramirez in from third. He would bunt through the ball and Nunez threw to third. The throw from Nunez went into left field allowing Ramirez to score.

Kane County did come back with two more runs in the fifth inning. Chris Affinito led off the inning with a walk. Gil then doubled down the left field line to get Affinito to third. One out later, the Chiefs would make a pitching change. Andres Quezada came in for Tim Clubb. Quezada promtly walked Nunez to load the bases. Crumbliss would then hit one back to the pitcher that he wouldn't be able to field properly. Affinito scored and the bases remained loaded. House then walked to force in Gil. The way the day went for the Cougars, Richard then hit into an inning ending double play.

The misplays continued in the bottom of the inning for the Cougars as the Chiefs would score twice more. Watkins led off the inning with a walk. Nunez would get Watkins picked off of first base, the only problem is the throw went into right field. Watkins moved to second then would get to third one out later on a wild pitch. Greg Rohan singled to right to score Watkins. Bo Schultz then came in for Straily. Bour greated him with a ball that fell on the warning track in right field. Dixon couldn't find the ball. Rohan would only get to third and Bour made second. Mercedes then grounded out to score Rohan.

At that point the score was 7-6 in favor of the Cougars. The Chiefs tied the game up in the seventh. With two outs. Schults struck out looking the first two hitters of the inning. Rohan then walked. Bour singled to left. Mercedes then singled to right to score Rohan.

Josh Lansford came in for the eleventh inning. Jose Valdez led off the inning with a single to second. Lee then tried to bunt him over, he would pop up the bunt to third. Gil then threw to first and got Valdez doubled off. Watkins would walk. Cerda then doubled down the left field line to score Watkins who got the ball out of the glove of Nunez at home plate to win the game for the Chiefs.

The Cougars had plenty of chances thoughout the game. They got two walks in the first inning but a caught stealing and a inning ending strikeout by Max Stassi stranded the one walk still left on. In the second inning a one out walk to Affinito would be erased by a double play. In the third inning the Cougars got two more runners on base. This time with two one out singles. After that a strikeout and a fly out ended it.

The next best chance was in the eleventh for the Cougars. Richard led off with a single to left. Stassi then reached on a fielder's choice, with Richard out at second. Dixon would do the same thing with a fielder's choice. Dixon then grounded out to first.

Hector Garcia pitched great out of the pen tonight. He went three innings, giving up two hits and getting one strike out. In the eighth he had to get out of some self inflicted trouble. Ramirez bunted one back to him, Garcia fielded the ball then fell down and threw it to first. The ball would get away as Ramirez was coming into first. Ramirez made it all the way to third on the error. Two outs later, Ramirez would be caught off of third by Nunez to end the inning. In the tenth inning Garcia again had to get out of trouble. Bour led off with a single to right. He would then be pitch run for by Jesus Morelli. Mercedes put down the sacrifice bunt to move Morelli over. Jones then grounded one to first to move Morelli to third. Ramirez then flew to left to end the inning.

The Chiefs bullpen of Andres Quezada, Corey Martin, Jeff Beliveau and James Leverton did a nice job of holding the Cougars down. They combined to go 6.2 innings, giving up three hits and walking three. They also struck out seven Cougars. They retired 19 of the last 22 Cougars they faced.


Next Game
4/21 @ Peoria, 10:30 am
Chris Mederos (1-1, 0.71) vs Trey McNutt (1-0, 1.00)

4/19, Cedar Rapids 6, Cougars 3

Giving up three runs in the tenth inning to the Cedar Rapids Kernels would lead to a loss for the Kane County Cougars, 6-3. The Cougars droped the third game of the series, and were 5-4 on the nine game homestand.

Rob Gilliam pitched well, he went six innings, giving up three hits and two unearned runs. He walked one and struck out four. The first run of the game came in the first inning for the Kernels off of Gilliam. Mike Trout led off with a single to short. Matt Long then hit a grounder to first. First baseman Franklin Hernandez tried to get the lead runner Trout and threw the ball into right field. On the play Trout made it to third and Long was safe at first. Jean Segura would hit into a double play, on the play Trout would score.

The second run of the game for the Kernels again came on an errant throw by Hernandez. Adam Younger led off the sixth inning with a double to left. Trout would then put down a sacrifice bunt towards the first base side. Hernandez got the ball and tried to throw it to the second baseman Connor Crumbliss who was covering first. The ball would get away, and Younger would be able to score. Gilliam did a nice job to hold the Kernels right there. Long would then put down a bunt to move Trout to second. One out later, Jose Jimenez walked to put runners on first and third with two outs. Luis Jimenez then flew out to center to end the threat.

The great part is after a half inning where they made an error that cost them a run, the Cougars would put up three runs in the next half inning. With one out, Myrio Richard doubled to left, he would then steal third. Both Max Stass and Rashun Dixon walked to load the bases. Chris Affinito would then hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Richard. Hernandez would double to left to score both Stassi and Affinito. Mike Gilmartin and Leonardo Gil both walked which loaded the bases again, this time with two outs. Kernels reliever David Carpenter would strike out Crumbliss to end the inning.

Cedar Rapids came back for another run in the seventh inning off of Ryan Quigley. Randall Grichuk led off the inning with a double to left. Eric Oliver then reached on a fielder's choice, on the play, Grichuk would be out at third. Michael Wing and Adam Younger both walked, which would load the bases. Trout then hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Oliver.

That is the way the game would stay untill the tenth inning. In the tenth, Jose Guzman came on to pitch for the Cougars. With one out, Long singled to right. Segura then singled to right, then stole second. Jose Jimenez walked to load the bases. Luis Jimenez then would hit a triple to center, to clear the bases. Guzman would be able to strand Jimenez at third, after a strike out and a line out.


Next Game
4/20, at Peoria, 6:30
Dan Straily (1-0, 3.38) vs Jeff Antigua (0-0, 3.60)

4/18, Cedar Rapids 3, Cougars 5

The Cougars offense would come alive late in the game to beat the Cedar Rapids Kernels 5-3. They scored one run in the sixth and four in the seventh. The Kernels starter Garrett Richards pitch well and the Cougars really couldn't get anything going while he was in the game.

Richards pitched into the sixth inning, he gave up three hits and one run. His main problem was five walks, he also struck out eight. The Cougars had a couple of chances off of him, in the third inning, Leonardo Gil then singled to short. Connor Crumbliss would single to left. One out later, Kent Walton struck out, and on strike three got in the way of the catcher. This while Crumbliss was trying to steal second, so Crumbliss was called out on batters interference.

Kane County was able to start to get to Richards in the sixth inning. With one out, Rashun Dixon walked. Max Stassi then singled to left. Anthony Aliotti then followed with a walk to load the bases. The Kernels would then make a pitching change, C.J. Bressoud came in an walked Mike Gilmartin to force in Dixon to tie the game. Tyreace House would pop up to center, and Gil grounded one to first to let the Kernels off the hook.

The big inning for the Cougars came in the seventh inning when they scored four runs. Crumbliss led off with a walk. Walton then singled on a bunt towards first. Myrio Richard would sacrifice then over, on the play the pitcher Bressoud threw the ball into left field trying to get Crumbliss at third. Crumbliss would score, Walton would get to third and Richard went to second. One out later, Stassi blooped a single down the right field line, on a check swing. on the play both Walton and Richard scored. Aliotti then singled to right on a hit and run play to get Stassi to third. Gilmartin woudl then hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Stassi.

Ian Krol started for the Cougars and was that bad, he went four innings, giving up three hits and one run. He walked one and struck out four. In the first inning he would give up his one run. Mike Trout led off the game with a triple to right. On the play Rashun Dixon misplayed the ball to turn it into a triple. Matt Long then hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Trout.

The only other real threat for the Kernels came in the ninth when they would score two other runs against reliever Jose Guzman. Guzman led off his outing by hitting Carlos Ramirez. Luis Jimenez then reached on a fielder's choice, with Guzman being out at second. One out later, Eric Oliver singled to center. Casey Haerther would reach on an error by shortstop Gilmartin. Jimenez scored and Oliver went to second. Kevin Ramos then blooped a single just in front of Richard in center. Ramos took a wide turn at first and would be thrown out to end the game at first.

Connor Hoehn and A.J. Huttenlocker did a nice job out of the pen. Hoehn went three shutout innings, giving up just one walk and getting four strike outs. Huttenlocker then came in for an inning, he walked one.


Next Game
4/19 vs Cedar Rapids
Tyler Skaggs (0-1, 1.80) vs Rob Gilliam (0-1, 8.31)

4/17, Cedar Rapids 14, Cougars 6

Well this was a very ugly game for the Cougars, as almost nothing went right for them. The Cedar Rapids Kernels would beat them 14-6, and it could've been a lot worse. 2 hit by pitches, 1 wild pitch, 1 balk, 9 walks, 15 hits against, along with 2 errors will not win you a ballgame.

Justin Marks started for the cougars and really didnt have much. He lasted into the fourth inning. Giving up six hits and nine runs. Also four walks and four strike outs. Plus he hit two Kernels, and had a wild pitch.

Cedar Rapids started things off in the second inning with four runs. Carlos Ramirez led it off by being hit by a pitch. Luis Jimenez then followed with a single to right. Randell Grichuk doubled down the lefft field line to score both Ramirez and Jimenez. Eric Oliver then took the second pitch he saw out of the park for a two run homer.

The Cougars followed with three runs of their own in the third inning. Leonardo Gil led off with a single down the left field line. Nino Leyja and Connor Crumbliss both walked to load the bases. Kent walton then hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Gil. One out later, Rashun Dixon then tripled to left center to score both Leyja and Crumbliss.

In the fourth inning the Kernels blew the game open with five runs. Randall Grichuk singled to right. Eric Oliver then singled to right. Casey Haerther would pop up a bunt for the first out. Adam younger walked to load the bases. Mike Trout would walk, to force in Grichuk. Matt Long was then hit by a pitch to force in oliver. Jean Segura would then hit a ball off of Marks' glove towards second base for an infield single. On the play Younger and Trout scored. The Cougars then brought in Josh Lansford to pitch. He would give up a single to right center to score Long.

More runs for the Kernels in the sixth as they scored three more times. Segura doubled off of Rashun Dixon's glove, in which Dixon dove and missed. Carlos Ramiez followed with a walk. The Cougars then made another pitching change, as Bo schultz came in for Lansford. Jimenez singled to right to load the bases. Grichuk then reached on an error by Connor Crumbliss, on the play Segura would score and the bases would remain loaded. Eric Oliver then grounded into a double play for the first two outs of the inning, on the play Ramirez scored. Haerther would then single to right to score Jimenez. Schultz would get out of the inning with a ground out.

Three more runs for the Cougars in the seventh. Tyreace House led it off with a single to left center. Gil then singled to center. Leyja would reach on a fielder's choice. On the play it would've been a double play, but on the throw to the shortstop by the second baseman, the shortstop droped the ball and the bases loaded. Crumbliss followed with walk to force in House. walton would then single to left center to score both Gil and Leyja.

The game already seemed like it was put away but the Kernels would score two more runs in the eighth. Ramirez led off the inning with a walk. Jimenez then reached on a fielder's choice with Ramirez being out at second. Grichuk then singled to left. Oliver singled to right to load the bases. Haerther would bloop a single to center to score Jimenez. One out later, Trout singled to third to score Grichuk.

The only time they would not score with a good chance was in the fifth inning when they would load the bases off of Lansford. With one out, Oliver walked. Haerther then doubled off the right field wall. Younger would pop out to second for the second out. Trout walked to load the bases. Lansford would then be able to get Long to strike out looking to get out of trouble.


Next Game
4/18 vs Cedar Rapids, 1pm
Garrett Richards (0-0, 0.82) vs Ian Krol (0-1, 9.53)

4/16, Beloit 6, Cougars 0

The Cougars would be out hit 11-6, and leave ten men on base. They lost 6-0 to the Beloit Snappers. The main reason they lost was the long ball, as they would give up two of them in the game.

Chris Mederos would take the loss, but really pitched well, and if he had gotten some run support he could've gotten a win. He went six and two thirds innings, giving up three hits and one run. He walked one and struck out five. He had a no hitter going into the fourth inning. The hit he gave up was a bloop in which right fielder Rashun Dixon misplayed a ball, then had to try to make a late diving catch.

Mederos would walk a hitter in the first. He also gave up a bloop single in the sixth. The seventh inning the Cougars would give up one run. With two innings, Angel Morales doubled to right center off of Mederos. The Cougars then brought in Ryan Quigley, who would give up a bloop single to left to Wang Wei Lin to score Morales.

Beloit had a chance to score in the eighth inning with two outs. Brian Dozier singled to left, thenhe would steal both second and third. Derek McCallum would strike out to end the inning.

Quigley had a lot of problems in the ninth. Danny Rams led off the inning with a double off the right field wall. He would be pitch run for by Reggie Williams. Michael Gonzalez then hit his third homer of the series, and his second in two days over the right field deck. Angel Morales singled back to the mound, then mound, then would steal second. Lin singled to short. Josmil Pinto hammered one over the scoreboard in left center for a three run homer.

The Cougars did have runners on base in the game and some opportunities. In the fourth inning the Cougars left the bases loaded. Myrio Richard led off the inning with a single to right. Two outs later, Rashun Dixon singled back to the mound, and Mike Gilmartin walked. Juan Nunez then lined one back to the mound to end the inning. In the fifth inning, Kent Walton hit a double down the left field line. The Snappers then made a pitching change, Richard would ground out to end the inning.

In the eighth inning with two outs, Richard doubles just over the head of the left fielder, then he went to third on a throwing error by the left fielder. The Snappers then made a pitching change. Chris Affinito grounded out to end the inning.

The ninth inning the Cougars would leave the bases loaded. With one out, Dixon reached on an error by the third baseman. Gilmartin then walked, and Nunez blooped one to center to load the bases. Leonardo Gil struck out for the second out. Connor Crumbliss would ground one to first to end the game.

Kane County is now 5-4 on the season, and 1-4 in night games. They lose the series against Beloit.


Tomorrow's Game
vs Cedar Rapids, 5 pm
Tyler Kehrer (0-0, 0.00) vs Justin Marks (0-0, 0.00)

4/15, Beloit 4, Cougars 5

The Cougars came from behind with three runs in the ninth to beat the Beloit Snappers 5-4. The win gives the Cougars a 5-3 record on the year, and a series win in the series against the Snappers.

In the ninth inning Snapper reliever Matt Tone was in his second inning of relief, he had struck out the side in the eighth. All of a sudden he could not find the plate. He would walk both Mike Gilmartin and Tyreace House to lead off the inning. Nino Leyja, tried to put down a sacrifice bunt, but would hit into a fielder's choice, He hit it to close to the mound, and Tone got the ball and threw to third to get Gilmartin for the first out of the inning. Connor Crumbliss then walked, to reload the bases for the Cougars. Beloit then made a pitching change. Kane Holbrooks came in and on his second pitch, Myrio Richard hit a double to the wall in left center. House and Leyja would score. Crumbliss came around third, and the shortstop bobbled the ball, trying to throw it home. Crumbliss would be safe and the Cougars would win.

The Cougars only scored in one more inning of the game, in the sixth inning they scored their other two runs. Crumbliss led off with a walk. Richard then doubled to the wall in center. Kent Walton would hit a sacrifice fly to right to score Crumbliss. Chris Affinito then walked to put runners on first and second with one out. Max Stassi came through with a double to the left center field wall to score Richard. After that the Snappers made a pitching change, and Edgar Ibarra would walk Anthony Allotti, then strike out the next two hitters to get out of the inning.

Beloit started the scoring in the second inning off of Cougar starter Dan Straily. Michael Gonzales hit his second homer of the series, this one over the right field deck. In the sixth inning the Snappers would strike again with another run. With one out, Danny Rams doubled down the left field line, he would get to third on a wild pitch. One out later, Angel Morales doubled off of the left center field wall to score Rams.

The other runs that the Snappers would get one would come in the seventh, off of reliever Connor Hoehn. With two outs, Brian Dozier blooped a single to left. A throwing error on a pick off attempt would put Dozier on third. Derek McCallum then singled down the left field line to drive in Dozier. In the eighth innin the Snappers would score their last run of the game. Steven Liddle led off with a single to center. A strike out later, he would steal second. One more out later, Anderson Hidalgo singled to right center to score Liddle, this would put the Snappers up 4-2.

Snappers starter Miguel Munoz pitched well, he was wild but pitched well. He went into the sixth inning, giving up five hits and two runs. His main problem was he gave up five walks, but he also struck out three. He did get three double plays in the game, two of which would end innings. For the Cougars, Dan Straily started, and also lasted into the sixth inning. He would give up six hits and two runs. he walked one and struck out two. He threw two wild pitches.

Kane County had more chances to score in the game. In the fifth inning, Aliotti led off with a walk. Gilmartin then hit one back to the mound that would turn into a double play. In the seventh inning with two outs, Richard tripled just past the reach of the right fielder. Walton would then strike out to end the inning.

The Cougars gave Beloit a ton of chances in the game. In the third inning with two outs, Dozier and McCallum both singled. Straily would then be able to get Danny Rams to fly to center. In the fourth inning, Liddle led off with a walk, then stole second. Morales and Gonzales both hit liners to center for the first two outs. Hidalgo grounded out to end the inning.


Tomorrow vs Beloit, 6:30
Brad Stallings (0-1, 1.80) vs Chris Mederoa (1-0, 0.00)


Notes-In the fourth inning, the ground out by Hidalgo was after an adventurous foul ball. He poped it up foul near the third base dugout. The ball carried, near the top step. The batboy tried to get out of the way but couldn't get out of the way of the players. The ball would eventually hit him in the helmet, and almost cost the Cougars. The on deck hitter, Reggie Williams gave the kid a high five for helping them.

4/14, Beloit 6, Cougars 5

A sloppy game, in which the Cougars would lose 6-5 to break their four game winning streak. The bad part was the three runs the Beloit Snappers scored in the ninth inning to come from behind to take the first game of the series.

The big inning of the game was the ninth, Hector Garcia had just come in to pitch for the save, the Cougars started the inning off with a 5-3 lead. With one out, Michael Gonzales walked, then was pitch run for by Wang Wei Lin. Reggie Williams then walked. James Beresford, singled to short to load the bases. Garcia then walked Aaron Hicks to force in Gonzales. Brian Dozier singled to left to score Williams to tie the game at 5. The very next pitch, Garcia threw a wild pitch to allow Beresford to score. After that Garcia got two grounders to get out of the inning.

The Cougars started out the scoring with a homer by Max Stassi to straight away center, that just carried out towards the batters eye in the second inning. Beloit tied the game in the next half inning with a Gonzalez lead off homer to left field.

The good thing is the Cougars did come back and get the lead back in the next half inning with a run of their own. With two outs, Connor crumbliss walked. Kent Walton then doubled down the left field line to score Crumbliss.

Two more runs for the Snappers in the sixth to take the lead again. Aaron Hicks lead off the inning with a walk. Cougar starter Rob Gilliam then threw a pick off attempt into the bullpen to move Hicks to second. One out later, Derek McCallum then doubled to right to score Hicks. One more out later, Steven Liddle double down the right field line to score McCallum. It could've been worse, Gilliam threw a wild pitch on ball four to Tobias Streich, Liddle tried to score from second and would be out at the plate.

Somehow the Cougars came back in the next half inning with three runs of their own in the sixth inning. Stassi led off the inning with a double down the left field line. He would get to third on a wild pitch. Franklin Hernandez then blooped one over the drawn in infield at third for a single to score Stassi. Hernandez then went to second on an errant pick off attempt. One out later, Nino Leyja walked. The Snappers made a pitching change, Tyreace House singled to right to great the new pitcher. On the play Hernandez scored, and Leyja went to third. Myrio Richard grounded out to second to score Leyja. The Cougars could've gotten more, and Crumbliss walked. Walton struck out to strand runners on first and third.

Connor Crumbliss would have two hits, and two walks in the game. He also stole a base and scored a run. Max Stassi had two hits, including his second homer of the year. He also had a double and scored twice. Josh Lansford pitched two good innings, he gave up two hits and two strike outs.

Next Game
Tomorrow vs Beloit, 6 pm
Miguel Munoz (0-0, 1.80) vs Dan Straily (1-0, 3.60)

The runs that Garcia gave up today were the first runs that the bullpen gave up on this homestand, 18.2 innings.

4/13, Burlington 5, Cougars 6 (11)

Four in a row, and a sweep of the Burlington Bees, with the Cougars 6-5 win today. It took eleven innings and a bases loaded walk but they would prevail, after falling behind by five runs.

The Cougars came back in the ninth with three runs to tie the game at five. With one out, Myrio Richard homered. One out later, Kent Walton would reach on an infield single to third. Chris Affinito then walked. The Cougars pitch ran for him with Tyreace House. Max Stassi would then get a double to left to score both Walton and House to tie the game.

In the eleventh with two outs, Walton walked. Juan Nunez then walked, he came in to catch after Affinito was pitch run for. Stassi then walked which would load the bases. The Bees would then make a pitching change, bring in Sam Runion to replace Scott Kelley. He would walked Rashun Dixon to force in Walton to win the game.

Burlington got out to a really fast start in the game with one run in the first and three in the second off of Cougar starter Ian Krol. Gerard Hall led off the game with a walk, then stole second. Deivy Batista singled to right to get Hall to third. William Myers grounded out to second to get Hall in from third. In the second inning with two outs, Jose Bonilla walked. Allen Caldwell then singled to center. Hall would follow with a double to left to score both Bonilla and Caldwell.

Cougar reliever Ryan Quigley then came in to start the third and had to get out of a jam. With one out, Joey Lewis walked then stole second, He would get to third on a third strike wild pitch, and be stranded there. Quigley gave up a run in the fifth inning. With two outs, Lewis singled to short. Carlo Testa then singled to third. Fernando Cruz would reach on a missed catch error by first baseman Anthony Aliotti to load the bases. A passed by on catcher Chris Affinito would allow Lewis to score.Bo Schultz then came in to replace Quigley and get the final out of the inning.

The comeback would start in the sixth with one run. Connor Crumbliss led off with a single to short. Walton then singled to right. One out later, Stassi hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Crumbliss. On the throw in from the centerfielder, the ball would get away, and allow Walton to get to second. Dixon walked, but Aliotti would line out to end the inning.

Another run for the Cougars in the seventh inning. Mike Gilmartin led it off with a single to left. Leonardo Gil followed by reaching on a fielder's choice, on the play the third baseman would make an error, allowing Gilmartin to be safe at second. Gilmartin then stole third, and Gil would be caught trying to steal second. Myrio Richard followed with a single to short to drive home Gilmartin.


Next Game
Tomorrow vs Beloit, 6:00
Daniel Osterbrock (0-1, 11.57) vs Rob Gilliam (0-1, 16.87)

Jonathan Joseph went on the disabled list, retroactive to the 10th with back spasms. Ryan Quigley came up from extended spring training.

4/12, Burlington 2, Cougars 7

A three game winning streak for the Cougars, as they beat the Burlington Bees 7-2. With six runs in the first three innings, they never looked back.

The most damage came in the first inning for the Cougars as they would score four runs. Connor Crumbliss led off with a doubled to center. One out later, Kent Walton and Chris Affinito both walked which loaded the bases. Max Stassi then came up and blooped a single to center to score both Crumbliss and Walton. Anthony Aliotti would follow with a double to left to score Affinito. A ground out by Rashun Dixon would allow Stassi to score the final run of the inning.

That should've been all that the Cougars really needed. The only problem was that they had three errors and walked five. The biggest problem came in the third inning when the defense let down Cougar starter Justin Marks. Gerard Hall led off by reaching on an error by the third baseman Leonardo Gil. Ryan Stovall then reached on a fielder's choice. Crumbliss got the ball at second and had no play, this led to runners on first and second with nobody out. Two outs later, William Myers walked to load the bases. Rene Oriental then singled to center to score both Hall and Stovall. Myers would get ot third and Oriental to second on a bobble error by centerfielder Myrio Richard. Marks then got Joey Lewis to fly to center to end the inning. At this point it was still a 4-2 game.

Kane County would be able to answer those two runs the Bees had just scored in the bottom of the inning with two of their own. With one out, Stassi reached on an error by the third baseman, in which Stassi would be awarded second. Aliotti then doubled to center to score Stassi. Dixon would follow with a single to center to score Aliotti. Mike Gilmartin singled to right. A wild pitch would move both runners up into scoring position. Bee starter Bryan Paukovits then would be able to strike out Gil to end the inning.

The Cougars would score once more, in the eighth inning. With one out, Gilmartin reached on an error by the second baseman, then stole second. Gil singled to center, Gilmartin would make third. Crumbliss followed by reaching on a fielder's choice. On the play, Gil would be out at second, and Gilmartin would score.

Both bullpens did great work, for the Bees, Nicholas Wooley pitched four one hit innings. He gave up a lead off double to Walton in the seventh, and a walk to Walton in the fourth. Besides that he struck out four, and held the Cougars in check. Connor Hoehn did some great work for the Cougars. He went three and one third innings, giving up one hit, one walk and striking out five.

Hoehn had to get out of a jam right away. Marks had started the fifth inning, he gave up a leadoff bunt single to Hilton Richardson. Deivy Bautista then reached on a fielder's choice, with Richardson being out at second. Myers would single to left. One out later, Lewis walked, which loaded the bases. That is when Hoehn came in and got Carlo Testa to pop out to short to get out of trouble.


Next Game
Tomorrow vs Burlington at Noon
John Lamb (0-1, 2.25) vs Ian Krol (0-1, 4.91)

4/11, Burlington 1, Cougars 9

Chris Mederos pitched one great game today, as he went six innings, giving up four hits and one unearned run for the win. The Cougars won 10-1 over the Burlington Bees for their second win in a row. The highligh offensivley was a six run seventh inning, with Kent Walton hitting a grand slam.

Mederos didnt give up his first hit untill two outs in the second. he really only got into trouble twice in the game. One time he was able to get out of it in the fourth and in the sixth he gave up a run on a fielder's choice.

In the fourth inning, Wil Myers led off with a single to short, the throw was high. Joey lewis then walked. Carlo Testa bunted the runners over to second and third. Mederos would then be able to get Ryan Stovall looking for the second out. Jose Bonilla then walked to load the bases. Allen Caldwell grounded out to first to allow Mederos to get out of the inning.

Myers led off the sixth inning by reaching on a fielding error by Leonardo Gil at third. He would then steal second, on the strikeout of Lewis. Testa walked and Ryan Stovall then singled to left to load the bases. Jose Bonilla then reached on a fielder's choice, with Stovall being out at second and Myers scoring.

The Cougars got off to a good start in the game and never were behind. In the first, Connor crumbliss led off with a single to right center. Myrio Richard then singled just past the first basemen into right field. Kent walton doubled just over the left fielder, to score crumbliss. Chris Affinito bounced one to the shortstop, who took the bounce off of the face to allow Richard to score.

Six runs for the Cougars in the seventh, Anthony Aliotti led off with a single to left. Rashun Dixon and Mike Gilmartin both walked, which loaded the bases. Leonardo Gil then hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Aliotti. Crumbliss would then ground one in the hole at short, the third baseman got to the ball, and couldn't get it out of his glove ot get the out at second. Crumbliss would be safe on the single after the throw to first was a little late. The Bees then made a pitching change, Mike Lehmann came in for the first reliever Scott Kelley. Richard would walk which reloaded the bases. Kent Walton then hit a grand slam onto the deck in left field.

The other run for the Cougars came in the eighth. With one out, Gil walked, then went to third on a wild pitch. The catcher never could find the ball. Crumbliss would ground out to short to allow Gil to score.


Next Game
vs Burlington at Noon
Bryan Paukovits vs Justin Marks

4/10, Cougars 10, Wisconsin 5

The Cougars put some runs on the board today, and came away with their first win of the season. They would win 10-5 over the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers to win one of the three games in the series.

Cougar starter Dan Straily pitched very well. He gave up one hit through the first three innings. He ran into some trouble in the fourth and fifth innings. In all he pitched five innings giving up five hits and two runs. He walked one and struck out six. The most impressive part was in the fourth inning, he would get out of a bases loaded jam without giving up any runs.

Scooter Gennett lead off the inning with a single to right. One out later, Cameron Garfield singled to left center, Gennett would get to third and Garfield went to second on the throw into third. Chris Dennis walked, which loaded the bases. Straily would then be able to get both Sean Halton and Joe Paciorek to strike out, which would end the inning.

The other big story of the game was the Cougars fourth and fifth innings, in all they score seven of their ten runs in those innings, with five of them being in the fourth. Kent Walton led off with a walk. Then a strange play, a ball in the dirt, Walton was running towards second, he would've been out. The catcher threw to first, and Walton made it into second. Then nobody covered third so Walton went to third. Rashun Dixon followed with a double off the center field wall to score Walton. One out later, Franklin Hernandez walked. Mike Gilmartin would then hit a ball to left. The left fielder lost the ball in the sun, it would drop on the warning track, to load the bases. Leonardo Gil followed by reaching on an error by the short stop. Dixon would score, and the bases remained loaded. Tyreace House reached on a fielder's choice, it would've been a double play but House beat the throw. Hernandez would score. Myrio Richard continued the inning with a double down the left field line to score both Gilmartin and House. Connor Crumbliss would be caught looking to end the inning.

At that point the Cougars were up 5-0. Thye would score twice more in the fifth inning. Walton led off with a bunt single to first. Dixon then singled to right center. One out later, Hernandez reached on a throwing error by Paciorek, Walton would score. One out later, Gil singled down the left field line to score Dixon.

After that the Rattlers offense would come alive and make a game of it with five runs in the next two innings. In the fifth Straily would give up his two runs. Carlos George led off with a single to short. Franklin Romero then tripled to center. Tyreace House just basically droped the ball, but they ruled it a hit. George would score on the play. D'Vantrey Richardson then hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Romero.

Bo Schultz then came in for the sixth inning and would be wild at the start, he would give up three runs in two innings of work. In the sxith Schultz hit Garfield to lead off the inning, then walked Dennis. Halton would ground one to third. Leonardo Gil would try to tag the runner Garfield and miss, which loaded the bases. Paciorek grounded out to third to score Garfield. Geroge hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Dennis. Romero doubled off the center field wall to score Halton.

In the seventh inning, Max Stassi would hit his first professional homerun. The other two runs the Cougars scored would come in the eighth. With one out, House singled to shrot. Richard then doubled down the left field line. Crumbliss followed that with a single to right to score both House and Richard.

The Cougars bullepn of Josh Lansford and Jose Guzman both pitched shutout innings. Lansford gave up a two out single in the eighth. Guzman pitched a perfect ninth with two strikeouts.


Tomorrow vs Burlington, 1pm
Matt Mitchell vs Chris Mederos

4/9, G2, Cougars 3, Wisconsin 6

This is a young team, just keep saying that over and over this year, and you may stay sane. Well young mistakes cost them again in the second game of the double header against the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, this time 6-3.

They would be able to attempt a comeback in the seventh and they fought the entire game. That still does not atone for the mistakes they made that got them in the hole in the first place in the begining of the game.

One inning really cost the Cougars, as they would give up dour runs in the third inning that proved to be the differnce in the game. Rob Gilliam started and just ran out of gas in the third,. Ryan Gennett led it off with a single to right, followed by Khris Davis single to second. Chris Dennis then walked to load the bases. Sean Halton hit a sacrifice fly to left to score Gennett. The Rattlers then had a double steal going and, catcher Chris Affinito threw the ball into left. Davis would score and Dennis went to third. Joe Paciorek then walked, and stole second. Austin Stockfish hit a sacrifice fly to center to score Dennis. The Cougars then brought in Connor Hoehn to replace Gilliam. Carlos George greated him with a double down the right field line to score Paciorek.

Things looked bright at the start of the game as the Cougars would get out to a 1-0 lead in the first inning. Connor Crumbliss led off by reaching on a throwing error by the third baseman. Myrio Richard then reached on a fielder's choice with Crumbliss being out at second. One out later, Affinito and Stassi both walked to load the bases. Rattler starter Nick Bucci then walked Mike Gilmartin to force in Richard. Anthony Alioti then grounded out to end the inning.

In the second inning the Cougars would score another run. Rashun Dixon led of by singling to left. One out later, Crumbliss and Richard walked to load the bases. Kent Walton then grounded one back to the mound, Bucci threw home, the catcher threw to first, but the ball went into right field. Crumbliss would score on the error. Affinito then struck out to end the inning.

Wisconsin pulled within one run in the bottom of the inning with two outs, Carlos George reached on a strike out. The ball got away from Affinito and George would be safe at first. Franklin Romero then tripled to the right center field wall to score George. D'Vantrey Richardson then grounded out to end the inning.

The Rattlers final run of the game came in the seventh inning off of Hoehn. Dennis led off with a walk, then stole second. Sean Halton singled to left center to score Dennis.

After the run the Cougars scored in the second inning, their offense would get really quiet until the seventh. Down four runs, they tried to comeback. Dixon led off the inning with a double off the left field wall. One out later, Crumbliss doubled to right center to score Dixon. Richard would then walk. With runners on first and second and one out, Walton would strike out, and Affinito grounded out to end the game.


Next Game
Tomorrow @ Wisconsin, 1 pm
Dan Straily vs Efrain Nieves

4/9 G1, Cougars 2, Wisconsin 3

The way the game and season started it seemed like it could be a long season. Well it still could be, but they came back and tied the game and had a chance to win. The Cougars would lose game one of the opening day double header 3-2 to the Wisconsin Timber Rattlers.

The Rattlers had big leaguer, Jeff Suppan starting on a rehab assignment, he would go into the fifth inning. He gave up seven hits and one run. Walked three and struck out four. The thing is he showed why he is a big leaguer in the fourth by getting out of a big jam.

Chris Affinito led off the inning with a double to right center. Max Stassi then singled to right. Michael Gilmartin would follow with a single to right center to score Affinito to give the Cougars their first run of the year and tie up the game. Anthony Aliotti then walked to load the bases with nobody out. Suppan then got Rashun Dixon on strikes, and would get Leonardo Gil to ground one back to him to start a double play, with Stassi being out at home and Gil at first.

Wisconsin would score first in the game, the first innings wasn't that good for the Cougars. D'Vontrey Richardson led off with a single to short. On the play Gilmartin's throw to first got away and Richardson went to second. After that, Cougar starter Jonathan Joseph threw a wild pitch to get Richardson to third. Joseph then settled down a little and got to strike outs. Cameron Garfield would single up the middle to score Richardson. Garfield would get to second on a wild pitch, then he got to third on a throwing error by Stassi. Joseph then got Chris Dennis to fly out to right to end the inning.

The second inning also wouldn't go that well for the Cougars, but they did not give up any runs. With one out, Joe Paciorek doubled down the right field line, he would get to third on a wild pith. Carlos George then walked and stole second. Joseph again settled down and got Franklin Romero on strikes.

Kane County did get the lead in the sixth with a run. With one out, Aliotti and Dixon both walked, then a double steal. One out later, Connor Crumbliss hit one to first. He would beat the pitcher to first for a hit. Aliotti scored on the play.

Krish Davis led off the sixth with a walk for the Rattlers. One out later, Dennis singled to left to score Davis. Dennis would then get picked off of first by Ian Krol.

The winning run for the Rattlers was in the seventh. Paciorek led off the inning with a single to right. George then bunted him over to second. Romero was then intentionally walked. Richardson would then tap one in front of the plate and be tagged out by Stassi for the second out. Ryan Gennett then grounded one to second, Crumbliss would misplay the ball, Gennett got a single, and Paciorek would score to win the game.

Kane County stranded eight runners on base, they had plenty of chances to win the game. In the first inning off of Suppan with one out, both Myrio Richard and Kent Walton singled to short. Suppan then struck out both Affinito and Stassi. In the third inning, Richard got a one out walk, Walton would then ground into a inning ending double play.

Jonathan Joseph pitched three inning and finished strong, he retired the final five hitters he faced. He would give up three hits and one run. His biggest problem was the three wild pitches he threw. Ian Krol came in after and pitched four innings, He would almost cruise through the first two innings, giving up only a single in the fourth. After that a leadoff walk in the sixth, and the two hits in the seventh were all he gave up. He would give up four hits and two runs. He would walk two, one intentionally, and three strike outs.


Game 2 of the double header
at Wisconsin
Rob Gilliam vs Nick Bucci