Around the ABL: August 9-August 15

Francisco
Concepción

August 10: Montgomery 7, Seattle 5. With the Cats leading, 4-0, Sasquatch Tim Duncan hits a solo home run in the fifth, then hits a three-run home run in the seventh. The game remains tied until the 12th when Montgomery's Francisco Concepción hits a three-run homer. Seattle tries to rally in the bottom half of the inning: they score one, but Charles O'Connor gets potential tying run Steve Frend to ground to second for the last out.

August 11: Kansas City 10, Las Vegas 11. The Tornadoes and Jokers trade punches. Jesús Cruz goes 3-for-5 with his 30th double of the year. (Too bad he had 148 at-bats last season, 18 fewer at-bats and he would qualify for Rookie of Year. With a .332 batting average, 26 home runs, and 86 RBIs, he would certainly be a favorite.) Joker Phillip Smith goes 4-for-5, scoring three, and driving in four. With the game tied, 10-10, in the bottom of the ninth and the bases loaded, Ray Stevens singles in the winning run.

August 11: South Carolina 2, Maple 3. In the sixth, hot-hitting Orlando Bustamante singles in two runs for the Bombers. In the bottom of the inning, Maple's Frank Powers hits a home run, and Doug Smith hits a sac fly that drives in Vic Jennings. In the bottom of the ninth, against Bomber closer Bob Robinson, the Marauders load the bases, and Cale Hines hits a deep sac fly to center field.

Juan Sánchez

August 11: Carolina 3, So Cal 4. Jesse Hawkins, Ángel Galindo, and a bevy of relievers hold the offenses to a minimum. Carolina's Greg Beard doubles in a run, and Republican Charles McConnell scores from third when Galindo tries a pickoff at first and throws the ball away. The game goes to the 13th inning in a tie, 1-1, when So Cal's Pedro Pacheco tries to pickoff Martin Bryan and—returning the favor—throws the ball away, allowing Francisco Solano to score. A Bo Hall single scores a second run. But the Republic get the last word. Three singles load the bases for Juan Sánchez, and he hits a walk-off triple!

August 11: Minnesota 6, Montreal 9. The Berserkers take a lead, 5-2, into the eighth, but the Bandits rally. Two hits and a walk load the bases, and Eric Ware hits a grand slam. The inning doesn't stop there. Two more hits brings up Greg Forrest, who hits a three-run homer.

August 12: Boston 7, Mile High 1. With so many promising young pitchers making their debut this year, it's easy to miss 23-year-old Alberto Pantoja (5-7). After posting a 3.06 ERA in 244 innings in Triple-A last year, Pantoja earned a promotion to the big club, and he's rewarded the Cardinals with a 3.41 ERA in 22 starts. Today he completes the game, strikes out five, and allows only one run.

Truman
Madison

August 13: San Diego 6, Nottinghamshire 2. Truman Madison (who both the Democrats and Republicans are recruiting for a 2016 presidential run) goes 4-for-4 with a solo home run and a bases-loaded triple. Ted Mills (4-2) strikes out eight and allows one run over 7 2/3 innings.

Ray Larson

August 13: Georgia 0, San Francisco 2. After going 13-10 with a 3.05 ERA in 2012, Ray Larson has disappointed in 2013: his record is 5-10, and his ERA has jumped over a full point to 4.27. But today the sinkerballer pitches 6 1/3 shutout innings. In the sixth, Haden Boyd singles in a run, and Doctor Watson doubles in Boyd.

August 14: Cabo San Lucas 6, Eureka 7. The Toreros take a lead, 6-5, into the bottom of the ninth, but Clement Milford and Orlando Corranzo leadoff the inning with back-to-back home runs, winning the game for the Hornets.

Gunner Smart

August 14: South Carolina 19, Las Vegas 2. The Bombers bomb the Jokers. Gunner Smart goes 4-for-4 with a double, two home runs, and five RBIs. Action Jackson and Mario Antonio each score four runs. Flipper Martin (2-2) pitches 5 1/2 shutout innings and now has a 2.57 ERA over six major league starts.

Sean Bowman

August 14: Georgia 10, Jersey 0. Pat Everhart (9-14) and Dave Walton shut out the Jesters: Everhart pitches seven innings, striking out five and walking two. Sean Bowman hits a pair of three-run home runs to lead the Ghost Busters to victory.

August 14: Montreal 0, New York 3. Javier Flores (12-7) and four relievers shut out Montreal for the second consecutive game. The game is delayed for an hour in the fifth, but the wet conditions make their biggest impact by contributing to a pair of Raúl Pérez errors. In the second, Pérez tries to pickoff Joe Herman, but the slick ball slips from his hand and into the Montreal dugout: Herman moves to second and comes home on an Ashton Finley single. In the third, Dave Allen doubles, and Bob Fry grounds to first, but Pérez, covering first, can't handle the toss: both runners are safe, and both runners eventually score.

Bodil Larsen

August 14: So Cal 1, Dallas 2. It's the present vs. the future as Rich Bussell matches up against Dave McNuir. Bussell strikes out nine and gives up one run over 7 2/3 innings. McNuir takes a shutout into the eighth: Bodil Larsen singles, is sacrificed to second, and comes home on an Eric Waddell single. Both pitchers have to leave the game, and the game goes to extras. Larsen wins the game in the 14th with a bases loaded sac fly.

Dale Watson

August 15: Minnesota 8, Seattle 5. Bryan Gardner ties the game with his 27th home run of the season: he may only have a .246 batting average, but Gardner's good defense, .344 OBP, and especially his .501 slugging percentage have made him one of the best third basemen in the league this season. Dale Watson triples and hits two home runs—including the winning, three-run homer in the ninth.

Aurelio Ramírez

August 15: Nottinghamshire 0, Carolina 8. Aurelio Ramírez (12-7) is having a strong sophomore season, and tonight he shuts out the Outlaws, striking out seven. George Gilliam, who's been on-an-off the DL all season, goes 3-for-5 with a double and a three-run homer. Crush pitchers continue to be the best in the Clemente League.

August 15: Cabo San Lucas 5, Eureka 6. Division leaders battle for 14 innings. Cabo's Keiran Simmons ties the game, 5-5, with a solo home run in the sixth. The Toreros nearly seize the lead later in the inning when, after a Clarence Sutton single, Max Abrams races home, but a strong throw from Orlando Carranzo nails him at the plate. The bullpens take over, and neither team scores until the 14th. Pedro López walks the bases loaded, Clement Milford hits a sac fly, and the Hornets sweep the two-game series.