Not only did The Voice of the Iron Pigs Matt Provence miss the bus on the way home from Louisville, but the IronPigs may have just done the same on their road to the International League Playoffs by dropping two to the Syracuse Chiefs tonight at Coca-Cola Park.
As a result the Pigs are now 2 off the lead in the IL North and in a tie with Gwinnett for the lone Wild Card Spot with 6 games left to play. The task is clear – win and be in.
The IronPigs returned home through Hurricane Irene with an acceptable 10 game road trip finishing .500. Before tonight’s debacle, the Pigs had won 7 of their last 12 contests but remained just 34-36 since June 16 when they led the IL North by 5 games.
Tonight the IronPigs went 0-8 with RISP and left 12 men on base on top of 4 errors (really 5). Combine all that with 18 strikeouts in 14 innings and the results are clear.
Domonic Brown certainly had a bad night going 0-6 with 4 SO and some abnormal, run resulting field play. It was the first time this fan has heard rousing boos and cat calls directed toward any Pig’s player this year. D. Brown was eventually yanked from game two and Tagg Bozied (IF) replaced him in left. Bottom line is, Domonic has contributed in the past and he will contribute again – unfortunately the young man had a bad night at an inopportune time.
The beautifully sunset evening can certainly not be blamed solely on Brown however. The team was a combined 8 for 50 for a (well below the Mendoza line) average of .160. Two doubles were the hitting highlight reel of the night.
So are the Pigs done?
Are our playoff packs going to be next year’s season ticket credit fodder?
That remains to be seen -“the bus has not left the rest stop“, yet…
I would like to leave you with a few last thoughts for this post…
This game isn’t always about winning or making the playoffs. Sometimes it’s a night of camaraderie with old friends you haven’t seen for awhile. Sometimes it’s about meeting new fans you haven’t met before. Sometimes it’s about yelling into the field microphone “CUUTT on and missed the bus”. Sometimes it’s the fact the “big club” has the best record in Baseball and they owe a huge part of that to the Lehigh Valley IronPigs (especially Ryno), the management, employees and most of all the FANS!
Tomorrow the Pigs will face RIGHT handed pitcher David Phelps S/WB with an ERA of 3.53. We’ll see what transpires…
OINK ON!
DiPro’s Dish
noisenation.mlblogs.com 
Let’s keep in mind that the guys were playing a doubleheader a day after a 700-mile road trip through a hurricane. Y’all know I think nothing of driving 400 miles for a cup of frozen custard or 1,300 miles for a ballgame, but I guarantee you I couldn’t perform at my best if I had to work a double shift a day after a long, scary road trip — especially if I had a basement full of water, a street full of downed branches, or any of a dozen other Irene-related problems to deal with, as I suspect at least some of the players did. If they drop another one, I’ll worry. For now, I’m just impressed that they played as well as they did, given the circumstances.
I will be at tonight’s game, and hopefully get a calendar (tho I will still get a Jan-Dec one from at least one other place, I reckon) Will someone point out Jason if/when I arrive near your current spot in RF?
And as for those crowd mikes, even here you can’t always hear them consistently on radio; time to get a new system for the network?
Hey R.D.,
I’ll be happy to point “meself” out and I’m sure the others will too. Stop by the trough anytime would be a pleasure to meet you! You can buy me a beer – Shocktop with orange – lol
Never in my 4 seasons at CCP have I EVER heard such relentless boos directed at one player. Domonic Brown seemed to be the whipping boy on one bad night at the ballpark at an inopportune time. Yes he had a BAD night offensively and defensively but when your team can’t hit especially against lefties and score runs, you won’t win many ballgames and certainly last night was not the night for the offense to go into the tank. Granted they did have a long bus ride home and driving into a hurricane after having to wait for our “voice” to catch up, poor Matt P, betcha he’s been taken a ribbing all in good fun, after missing the bus. But lately it seems to be the theme for the Pigs. No clutch hitting when they need it or in the case of last no hitting at all. I think Ryno def. wanted to get D. Brown out of that game. He took a beating from the fans verbally. Last night was damaging to our playoff hopes, but I think they still have a shot but it is clear, win and you’re in enough said. Oink on folks!!
No player deserves to get booed. Having said that, I would argue that last night was just the culmination of a lot of bad outfield play by Domonic lately. Frankly, I think he needs a full workup by an opthalmologist, if he hasn’t had one already. If you watch him when a ball’s hit his way, he doesn’t react to the ball at all. He has no idea where the ball’s going – over his head, in front of him — until it’s almost on top of him.
Of course, he could also need a good sports psychologist too, at this point. But the fact is that last night was not just an “off night” for Brown. It’s become a problem. His hitting has suffered too. The Phillies organization needs to figure out what the problem is and figure it out quickly, or their No. 1 prospect is in for a rough time at Coca-Cola Park.
The IronPigs will be facing two righties for SWB for the next 2 games:
Nate Bump vs. Dave Phelps (5-6, 3.53)
Dave Bush vs. DJ Mitchell (11-9, 3.40)
Not sure if the Pigs faced Mitchell, but the Pigs beat Phelps on May 17, scoring 4 runs on him, on 6 hits in 4 INN, in a 7-3 Pigs win.
Heh, you could say that the whole team “missed the bus” with the way they played last night. And, I know it was a rough trip, but they did have Sunday night off–so it’s not like they got off the bus and went straight to the game. Just the culmination, I guess.
My wife wasn’t any too pleased with some of the language that started early in the first game directed mostly at Brown and to a lesser extent, Bozied (when he pinch hit). I guess I don’t like it either, but part of me is happy that there is at least an interest in the game on the field. IronPigs fans have been criticized in the past for not enough attention to the game. It’s good to see the fans in playoff form…. 😉
Brown may indeed need an eye doctor. I seriously doubt that he has retinal disease or cataracts–although that should indeed be ruled out first (see also: Puckett, Kirby.). He may benefit from some binocular vision evaluation and possibly a sports-vision specialist. He won’t get that at Lehigh Valley Center for Sight, the official ophthalmologists of the Lehigh Valley IronPigs. He may get it from an Optometrist who specializes in that type of vision training. I would be happy to recommend somebody if necessary, but I’m sure the Phillies have someone they are already familiar with. Picking up the trajectory of the ball as it leaves the bat and extrapolating it into distance and location is a very difficult visual task–and part of the reason that I sit in section 209 rather than hanging out with the cool kids in right field.
I was a bit shocked by the Brown outbursts but much like yourself the small caveat is that fans finally showed some passion.
Being a corrective lens wearer myself I hadn’t considered a vision issue but both Jim and Doc – you both made excellent points. Let’s just hope he can get it out of his head, shake it off and hit 3 HR tonight provided he plays.
Oh and least you “know” where the cool kids sit – lol
Last night it became obvious to me D Brown does need an eye exam. That said, GO PIGS. OINK