muckdogs

The Muckdogs (6-12) came into Friday’s game riding a bit of a resurgence, with four wins in five games, and were looking to continue their hot stretch against the Auburn Doubledays (7-11).

Coming off his first win of the season, 19-year-old Jordan Holloway got the start for Batavia and struggled to find the strike zone all night.

The California native would walk four of the first six batters he faced and before he knew it, he was down 2-0.

“It’s a typical 19-year-old pitcher,” Manager Angel Espada said. “He’s trying to work his way through things and figure out the game of baseball.”

Just like in first inning, walks were Holloway’s downfall in the second.

Edwin Lora walked to lead off the inning. He would then steal second and after the throw sailed into centerfield, Lora would end up at third. An Andrew Stevenson groundout to shortstop scored Lora from third making it 3-0.

Holloway’s night would be over after the fourth inning. While he did strike out six and only allowed two hits, he walked six batters and hit another.

“He’s young and his trying to learn how to pitch and these are learning experiences for him,” Espada said.

Nick White came in relief of Holloway in the fifth and allowed seven hits, two walks and three runs over his three innings of work.

Ryan Hafner and Ayron Adames would pitch the final two innings of the game for the Muckdogs. Both pitchers would combine for five hits, three runs and two walks.

When the dust had settled, Batavia pitchers had combined to walk 10 Auburn batters and hit two.

“It’s just one bad game. We have been playing good baseball for the past nine or 10 games and this is just one game,” Espada said.

The only offense of the day for the Muckdogs came in the sixth inning when Giovanny Alfonzo singled with two outs and then moved to second on a passed ball.

Alfonzo then scored Batavia’s lone run on a high hit ball to center by Stone Garrett that was lost in the lights by the Doubledays' centerfielder.

Auburn was able to score three more runs in the top of the ninth in route to a 13-1 victory.

Batavia dropped to 6-13 while Auburn improved to 8-11.

“You just put it behind you and start from zero tomorrow,” Espada said. 

Photos by Howard Owens.

After a rough start to the season, the Muckdogs pitching staff is starting to find their groove as they pitched the Muckdogs to a 4-1 victory on Wednesday night.

The Muckdogs were home to face off against the Auburn Doubledays after taking 2-of-3 from the West Virginia Black Bears over the weekend.

Justin Jacome started for Batavia and threw three quality innings. He struck out four, walked one and only allowed one hit.

Nestor Bautista would come in relief of Jacome in the fourth. Bautista only allowed four hits over four and two-thirds innings pitched. He struck out three.

“Solid job, they pitched to contact and kept them of balance,” Manager Angel Espada said. “They used their stuff really well."

The Muckdogs would plate one run in each of the first three innings in route to their sixth win of the year. 

Giovanny Alfonzo sparked the offense when he singled in the first and was able to get to second base after an overthrow to first base. Hot hitting Brad Haynal would single, scoring Alfonzo from second, making it 1-0.

Batavia would score again in the second when Eric Fisher would triple to lead off the inning.

Left-fielder Brandon Rawe would then single, scoring Fisher from third.

Haynal was once again involved in the action in third inning.

Stone Garrett worked a two-out walk and then stole second. Haynal would then single to score Garrett, making it 3-0 Muckdogs. Batavia would threaten with runners on first and third but Doubleday pitcher, Taylor Hearn was able to get Fisher to fly out to second.

“It’s starting to come around better as a whole team,” Haynal said. “It’s not just one guy doing it, we got everyone through the lineup moving guys.”

The Muckdogs were able to plate another run in the eighth to make the game 4-0.

Garrett would reach base on an error by the third baseman and be moved to third on a perfectly executed hit-and-run with Dunbar.

Fisher then hit a sacrifice fly to left field, scoring Garrett.

“Our pitching got better, like we knew it was going to get better, and we are getting some timely hitting,” Espada said. “You put those things together and you should be coming on top."

Auburn was able to break up the shutout in the ninth inning when David Kerian crushed a Steve Farnworth pitch for a one-out single. He would then move to second on a wild pick-off attempt.

Matthew Page then doubled to score Kerian. Farnworth dug deep and ended the threat by striking out Jakson Reetz and Randy Encarnacion to end the game.

Unlike in the beginning of the season, the Muckdogs can count on hitters one through nine instead of just the guys at the top of the lineup.

“It’s hard when only a couple guys are pulling weight,” Haynal said. “Now I think everyone through the lineup is able to do some damage…a lot of people around baseball know hitting is contagious.”

Haynal finished the game 2-for-3 with 2 RBIs. Fisher was also 2-for-3 with a triple, a RBI and a scored run.

Bautista improved his record to 2-1 while Farnworth picked up his third save.

The Muckdogs travel to Auburn today but will be back home on Friday to take on the Doubledays in the series finale.

There will be fireworks following the conclusion of the game.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.   

The Muckdogs were able to win their first series of the year behind 19-year-old Jordan Holloway’s strong start.

The 6-foot-4-inch righty kept the Mahoning Valley Scrappers off balance all night in route to a 7-4 Muckdog victory.

Most of the young players on the Muckdogs are not used to the grind of playing every day. With the unexpected day off on Wednesday because of rain, the Muckdogs look to have gotten some much needed time away because they are playing much better baseball as of late.

“When you aren’t playing as well as we were playing, time off of the field always helps,” Manager Angel Espada said. “Hopefully it helped us, but for some reason they are playing much better."

In the first inning, Holloway was able to work around a one-out walk to Scrappers left-fielder Ka’ai Tom by striking out DH Emmanuel Tapia and getting Nathan Winfrey to fly-out to left.

Holloway was able to work a perfect second inning while only throwing five pitches. The only trouble of the game for Holloway came in the third inning.

Connor Marabell led off the inning with a single and was moved to second by a Silento Sayles groundout to second.

Willi Castro doubled to right, scoring Marabell. Tom doubled, setting up runners at second and third with one out.

Holloway struck out Winfrey, but he was able to advance to first when catcher Blake Anderson couldn’t corral the loose ball in the dirt. Castro scored from third.

Holloway got out of the inning by getting Li-Jen Chu to fly-out to leftfield.

“We are talking about a 19-year-old kid who is learning how to pitch," Espada said. "It’s only his second year in pro ball and he is handling it pretty well. It’s just one day at a time, one start at a time with a young guy like him.”

Just like most of the season so far, the top of the Muckdogs lineup has carried them.

Anfernee Seymour and Stone Garrett combined to go 7-for-8 with four runs scored and three RBIs to lead the way for Batavia.

The scoring for the Muckdogs started in the first inning when Seymour knocked a single. Garrett beat out an infield single to short to set up first and second with one out.

A Korey Dunbar groundout to shortstop moved both runners up 90 feet. Seymour scampered home after a ball got by Chu, making it 1-0.

Batavia plated three more runs in the second all with two outs.

Ninth place hitter Joe Chavez and Seymour worked two-out walks. Giovanny Alfonzo doubled, scoring both Chavez and Seymour.

Garrett laced a ball in the gap for a triple, scoring Alfonzo making the game 4-0.

The Scrappers changed pitchers, bringing in 6-foot-6-inch James Stokes, who struck out Dunbar to end the threat.

Seymour would again be involved in Batavia’s scoring efforts in the fourth.

The speedy shortstop singled and stole second, even though the Scrappers called for a pitchout. He stole third and dashed home after the throw got away from the Scrappers' third baseman.

Seymour alone made the game 5-2. But the Muckdogs were not done.

In the sixth inning, Galvi Moscat singled up the middle, followed by Seymour and Alfonzo both getting hit by a pitch.

The hot hitting Garrett stepped into the plate and squeezed a ball down the first base line scoring two.

“They have been swinging well the whole season,” Espada said about Seymour and Garrett.

LJ Brewster and Steve Farnworth finished the game up for Holloway without allowing a run and only allowing three hits over three innings of combined work.

Garrett finished the day going 4-for-5 with three RBIs and two doubles. Seymour was 3-for-3 with four runs scored.

Holloway pitched six innings while striking out five and walking two in his first win of the season.

The Muckdogs improve to 3-11 on the season and look to continue their moment going into this weekend's games in West Virginia.

Batavia returns to Dwyer Stadium on Wednesday, July 8, against the Auburn Doubledays. 

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

Big plans abound here for the Fourth of July weekend.

The Muckdogs kick things off at 7 p.m. with a game against Mahoning Valley. There will be a fireworks show after the game, and with the Muckdogs on the road tomorrow, that serves as your local Independence Day weekend pyrotechnics.

On the calendar tomorrow morning is the Kiwanis 5K, with a start time of 9 a.m. at Centennial Park. There's also a chance of rain in the morning, potentially the one blemish on the weekend weather.

In the afternoon, GO ART! hosts its annual Picnic in the Park at Centennial Park.

Sunday, it's time once again to ramble on down to Jackson Square (and School Street and Center Street) for the annual Ramble Music and Arts Fest.

After being rained out on Wednesday night, the Batavia Muckdogs and the Mahoning Valley Scrappers met in two, seven-inning games on Thursday.

Cody Poteet, a fourth-round pick out of UCLA, started for the Muckdogs in game one.

Poteet opened strong by retiring the side in the first inning on just nine pitches. While Poteet looked confident, his defense let him down in the second.

Nathan Winfrey led off the inning with a single and would quickly move to second on a failed pickoff attempt to first.

Winfrey scooted to third on a ground out to second by Scrappers' third baseman Austin Fisher.

With two outs, Winfrey scored after the Muckdogs' third baseman threw a David Armendariz ground ball into the dirt trying to throw him out at first.

Poteet regrouped and fanned the next batter to end the inning.

The Muckdogs were able to score three runs in the fourth after some great situational baseball.

Eric Fisher started off the inning by smashing the first pitch he saw right back up the middle. Ryan Cranmer drew a walk, setting up first and second with no outs.

Brandon Rawe executed a perfect sacrifice bunt, moving Fisher to third and Cranmer to second.

Ninth-place hitter and left field Cameron Newell connected on a fly ball deep enough to center to score Fisher from third making it 1-1.

Leadoff hitter Anfernee Seymour ripped a ball just inside first base to score Cranmer.

The lighting-quick shortstop scored from second when Giovanny Alfonzo singled, making it 3-1.

Nestor Bautista replaced Poteet in the fourth and scattered three hits through the final four innings of the game.

Batavia added another run in the fifth when Brad Haynal doubled and then moved to third on a passed ball. He then scored on another passed ball by the Scrappers.

With solid pitching and timely hitting, the Muckdogs avoided the worst start in club history since 1953 by winning the first game of the doubleheader with a final score of 4-1.

The teams headed to the clubhouse to get ready for the next game and all the Muckdogs offense must have stayed in the locker room.

Three Scrappers pitchers were able to hold the Muckdogs to only two hits the whole game.

Jose Zapata got the start for the Scrappers in the second game and allowed only one hit while striking out three over his three innings of work.

Dominic DeMasi took over in relief in the fourth and allowed a mere one hit over three innings of work.

Billy Strode notched the save in the seventh for the Scrappers, working around a two-out error to keep the shutout intact.

Mahoning Valley scored all they needed in the sixth inning.

Silento Saylas started the inning with an infield single and then stole second. He advanced to third on a Willi Castro sacrifice bunt.

Saylas scored on a Fisher double just three pitches later. Winfrey drew a walk and Li-Jen Chu singled home Fisher making it 2-0.

The Scrappers added another insurance run in the seventh making it 3-0.

The Muckdogs got a runner on base in the bottom of the seventh but were unable to string any hits together.

The loss dropped the Muckdogs to 2-11 while the Scrappers improve to 5-8.   

Batavia currently sits in last place in the Pinckney Division and 10 games back of the first-place Williamsport Crosscutters.

The Muckdogs will finish up their short three-game home stand on Friday. The game is the annual Independence Day celebration and like all Friday night games, it will have fireworks following the conclusion of the game.

First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

The Muckdogs’ game tonight against the Mahoning Valley Scrappers was postponed due to rain.

The teams will play two, seven-inning games tomorrow, Thursday July 2. First pitch for game one will be at 5:05 p.m. with the second game to directly follow the conclusion of game one.

All tickets for tonight’s game (7/1) can be redeemed for any future home game. 

History was made on Tuesday night as three Muckdog pitchers combined to throw the first perfect game in club history and only the fourth all-time in the New York-Penn League.

After his disappointing opening day start, Gabriel Castellanos was ready to right the ship and get Batavia its first win of the season.

The Mahoning Valley Scrappers came into the game hitting .256 as a team, good for sixth in the New York-Penn League.

Castellanos was sharp, confident and had all his pitches going to keep the hard-hitting Scrappers off balance all night.

“I was able to execute all my pitches, it was a team effort,” he said.

Castellanos would need just 35 pitches to get through the first nine batters of the game. Of the first nine batters he faced, Castellanos was able to strikeout six of them, four of which were looking.

In his previous start against the Auburn Doubledays, Castellanos only made it through three and two-thirds innings while allowing five runs on five hits. On Tuesday it was a different story.

After striking out the side in third, Castellanos would strike out two of three batters in the fourth and fifth innings, bringing his game total to 10 strikeouts.

Gabriel Castellanos poses with his game ball after the Muckdogs complete their first perfect game in club history on Tuesday night. Photo taken by Stephen Ognibene. 

“He had all his pitches going. He threw strikes and got ahead of hitters and finished them,” Manager Angel Espada said.

If there was a moment in the game where the perfect game was in doubt, it was definitely in the sixth inning.

D’vone McClure would fly out to center to begin the inning. Nate Winfrey, who has yet to collect a hit this season, was able to work the count to 0-3.

Instead of making Castellanos throw a strike, Winfrey hacked at the 0-3 pitch and flew out to centerfielder Stone Garrett.

Castellanos would strike out Silento Sayles to finish the inning.

Heading into the seventh inning, Castellanos had only thrown 71 pitches, but being it's so early in the season and the fact that it's minor league baseball, many were wondering how long they would let him go.

Castellanos would again work a perfect seventh inning, striking out Mark Mathias and putting his final tally at 12 strikeouts on 86 pitches.

“That’s the minor leagues. We have pitching counts. We have caps on innings,” Espada said.

“He gave us his all and we pushed him to as far as we could.”

Brett Lilek would make his season debut in the eighth by striking out the side. Lilek’s first batter he faced was no walk in the park.

Scrapper DH Anthony Santander, who is hitting .550 this season, led off the eighth inning and seemed out matched by 6’4” lefty. Lilek was able to punch him out on four pitches.

Steve Farnworth came in for the save in the ninth, but it was definitely not a drama-free ninth inning.

McClure would lead off the inning by drilling the second pitch he saw toward the gap between first and second. First baseman Eric Fisher was able to tip it with his glove toward second; Giovanny Alfonzo was able to scamper to pick it up and throw it to Franworth who was covering first.

Farnworth would strike out Winfrey and then finish the game by getting Sayles to ground out to shortstop.

First baseman Eric Fisher (29) stretches to catch a ball in the bottom of the ninth inning while Scrappers left-fielder Silento Sayles (9) runs to first. Photo taken by Stephen Ognibene. 

“It’s not easy to come out of the bullpen and do what they did,” Espada said.

Batavia’s lone run of the game came in the second inning when Korey Dunbar would double, followed by a Taylor Munden double. Dunbar would score from second making it 1-0 and all the runs the Muckdog pitchers would need.

Dunbar would finish the game 2-for-2 with a double and Anfernee Seymour would go 2-for-4 in the win.

Each hitter for the Scrappers ended the game with at least one strikeout. 

“You can’t describe it,” Espada said. “It came at a great moment for this group of kids.”

The Muckdogs celebrate the perfect game and thier first win on Tuesday night. Photo taken by Stephen Ognibene. 

The Muckdogs are on the road for their next six games but return to Dwyer for a three-game series against Mahoning Valley starting on July 1 at 7:05 p.m.

Not much has gone right for the Batavia Muckdogs thus far in 2015, but that all changed earlier tonight against the Mahoning Valley Scrappers (3-3).

Three pitchers combined for the first perfect game in club history: 27 up, 27 down.

The perfect game is the first win of the season for Batavia (1-5).

Stay tuned for a full recap of the game.

If the first four games are going to be indicative of the Muckdogs 2015 season, Batavia players and fans are going to be in for a long season.

Coming off a three-game series against Auburn, where Batavia was swept, the Muckdogs were looking forward to welcoming the Mahoning Valley Scrappers, an affiliate of the Cleveland Indians, to Dwyer Stadium on Monday night.

Besides their opening day shutout, the Muckdogs have had little problem scoring runs and that trend continued against the Scrappers.

In the Muckdogs first at-bat leadoff hitter Anfernee Seymour was hit by the first pitch he saw. The speedy shortstop quickly stole second for his third stolen base of the season.

He would then move to third on a past ball and later score on a ground out by Giovanny Alfonzo. Hot hitting Stone Garrett would then blast the first pitch he saw over the outfield fence for his second homerun of the season.

The bats continued to stay hot for the Muckdogs in second when Galvi Moscat would single but move to second on a throwing error by the pitcher.

After a ground out by Taylor Munden, Travis Brewster would work a walk and set up first and third with one out.

Moscat would score after a single by Seymour. Brewster would steal third and quickly score after another past ball making the score 4-1.

Garrett would then hit a SAC fly, scoring Seymour. Alfonzo, who was walked, would also score in the second. Before the Scrappers could even catch their breath the score was 6-1.

If we learned anything from watching these Muckdogs, it is that no lead is ever safe.

In the top of third, Mark Mathias started off the inning with a bloop single. DH Anthony Sanatander would then connect on his second double of the game.

Catcher Li-Jen Chu would follow with a double of his own, scoring both runners and cutting the Batavia lead to 6-3.

The scored remained at 6-3 until the fifth inning. The Scrappers would plate five runs during the frame.

Mathias would start off the inning with a leadoff single. Santander, who already has two homeruns on the young season, would connect on his third homerun as he blasted one over the left field fence that still hasn’t landed yet.

Sicnarf Loopstock, who replaced starting first baseman Emmanuel Tapia in the fifth inning, would work a walk. After a Nathan Lukes' infield single, both runners would move up 90 feet after a past ball.

With runners on third and second and two outs, D’vone McClure would single. Both runners would score making it 7-6.

Ninth-place hitter Ka’ai Tom would rope a double, which would score McClure and increase the Scrappers lead to 8-6.

The Muckdogs would tie the game back up in the sixth when Brewster and Seymour would hit back-to-back singles and move to third and second on yet another past ball.

Alfonzo then hit a high chopper to the shortstop Willi Castro. Brewster would score easily and Seymour would be right behind him. Alfonzo was caught in a rundown between first and second and was tag out but not before the score was tied 8-8.

In the seventh inning what could go wrong, went wrong for the Muckdogs.

Leurys De La Rosa, a right-handed relief pitcher, would have trouble finding the plate and did not get any help from his teammates in the field.

After all the smoke had settled, seven runs had scored. De La Rosa threw 35 pitches in the inning. He walked two, hit one, had a baulk and allowed four hits. There also were three errors made in the field, one by Seymour at shortstop and two by third baseman Munden. 

“It just goes back to keep working hard,” Manager Angel Espada would say about the error-filled play in the field.

“Come out early, take ground balls and just regroup and focus on what you are doing. It just comes down to that,” he said.

Down 15-8, the Muckdogs were able to get the game within reach when Garrett would hit his second homerun of the game and third on the season in the eighth inning.

Before the Garrett home run, Seymour and Alfonzo would each reach base with two-out singles. Garrett would then drive the Ryan Perez pitch over the centerfield wall making it 15-11.

“They are two big pieces of our team and two big pieces of our organization,” Espada said about Seymour and Garrett.

“The tools are there, they just got to keep playing the game,” he said.

The Muckdogs would threaten in the ninth when they would get the bases loaded and the tying run at the plate, but Seymour would ground out to shortstop and the come back would come up short, falling to the Scrappers by the score of 15-11. 

“When you are in this situation you have to have a short memory. You have to come ready to go tomorrow,” Espada said.

Seymour would finish the game 3-for-6 with three singles, four runs scored and a RBI. Garrett had a huge day at the plate where he collected five RBIs on three hits, two of which were homeruns.

Out of the ninth-place spot in the lineup, Brewster was able to go 3-for-4 with a double and two runs scored for the Muckdogs.

Brock Hartson was the winning pitcher for the Scrappers while De La Rosa took the loss.

Nick Fuller pitched two scoreless innings in the eighth and ninth for Batavia. He struck out three while only allowing two hits. He has seven strikeouts on the season.

The Muckdogs will once again try for their first victory of the season on Tuesday against the Scrappers. Game time is scheduled for 7:05 p.m.

During the first couple weeks of a baseball season, it is very rare to see a team clicking on all cylinders. On opening night Friday, the Muckdogs came across just that in the Auburn Doubledays.

In front of a crowd of 2,004 excited and eager fans, the Muckdogs were unable to score and dropped their opening game by the score of 10-0.

From the very first inning, the Doubledays were locked in and jumped on Muckdog starting pitcher Gabriel Castellanos.

“He competed. He just wasn’t able to put any hitters away,” Head Coach Angel Espada said.

Clay Williamson started the scoring in the top of the first inning when he reached on a fielder’s choice and later scored on an RBI single by DH David Kerian.

The Doubledays plated another run in the second after first baseman Diomedes Eusebio singled with two outs and then scored on ninth-place hitter Edwin Lora’s RBI triple.

Auburn’s starting pitcher, Robbie Dickey, was sharp from the beginning.

Dickey would not let a Muckdog past second base until the third inning. In what was Batavia’s best chance at scoring all night, Anfernee Seymour singled and then stole second. The throw to second was miss played and the speedy shortstop moved to third.

Centerfielder Stone Garrett then was walked to set up first and third for the Muckdogs. Unfortunately, they were unable to plate any runs as first baseman Eric Fisher struck out to end the inning.

After the third inning the floodgates opened and the Doubledays broke the game wide open.

Behind leadoff hitter Bryan Mejia’s big night at the plate, Auburn was able to score three runs in the fourth, two runs in the fifth and another three runs in the seventh.

Mejia was 3-4 with two doubles, a single and three RBIs to lead the way for the Doubledays. Lora also started off the season hot with a triple, double and two RBIs.

Getting their only two hits of the game earlier on, it seemed after the score got out of hand the Muckdogs seemed to concede defeat at the plate.

“At this level, with young hitters, once the game gets one-sided you just try to push,” Espada said.

With starting the season off on such a low note offensively, Espada believes it is important they come back out tomorrow and get some runs on the board.

“After this type of game you want to get on the other team and put some pressure and feel some confidence,” he said.

Luis Torres got the win on the mound for Auburn. He pitched five innings of relief for Dickey. Torres keep the Muckdog hitters off balance all night. He had three strikeouts and one walk.

Picking up the loss was Castellanos as he only went three and two-thirds innings. He allowed five hits, four runs and walked two.

Although opening the season with a 10-0 defeat, Espada is still optimistic that this will be a successful 2015 campaign for the Muckdogs.

“Tomorrow’s another day and you just got to regroup. The good part about it is these guys got the jitters out.”

The Muckdogs continue their three-game series against the Doubledays tomorrow at 7:05 p.m.

Photos by Steve Ognibene.

Reliver Juan Guzman.

John Kennedy School's fourth-grade chorus singing at the seventh-inning stretch.

Melanie Case submitted this photo of fireworks after the Muckdogs' opening night game at Dwyer Stadium. I don't think I've ever seen a better photo of fireworks at Dwyer.