Well it hasn’t been pretty. In the past six games the Ironpigs have allowed their opponents to score in the first inning. Not only that, the bad guys have scored first in 12 of the 15 games this season. While being able to hover around .500, this certainly needs to change if we expect them to stay around .500.

Tonight seems to be another continuing trend as listening to the radio broadcast we heard that both teams were disagreeing with home plate umpire Gerard Ascani. Both Kevin Frandsen and Ryne Sandberg were ejected for arguing a call and several others were gathering a temper when not given time when asked for.

The Pigs went quickly into the hole in the bottom of the first allowing 2 runs with some scattered hits and a walk. They came back with one run in the 2nd but only scraped out one hit from the 3rd through the 7th. Going into the 8th Rich Thompson whacked a pinch hit double and scored on a throwing error allowing Barfield to get on base.

For the pitchers, starter Brian Bass lasted 4 innings tonight allowing 7 hits and 3 runs. The biggest line number for him is the 5 walks. 52 of his 87 pitches were strikes but the walks allowed him to burn out sooner rather than later and to the bullpen went Ryne Sandberg. In came Brian Gordon fresh off of the disabled list, followed by Mathieson and Stutes.

It did no good though, the Pigs fell 2 to 4 to the Bison. They fall below .500 again and are looking for the bats to come alive. Perhaps tomorrow…

Another note of the recent absence of catcher Erik Kratz, revealed by @Pigsradio on Twitter, that he had a toenail issue and a return will be soon. Sounds a lot like an injured Valendia… an Actual injured Valendia.

OinK!

The Ironpigs will take the field in Buffalo for the first time in 2011 tonight at 6:05pm. You can listen online or on 1320AM or 1230AM in the Lehigh Valley.

Taking the mound for the Pigs is 29 year old Brian Bass. Bass has not received a decision in his first 2 starts and is sporting a 4.50 ERA. He has struck out 8 compared to allowing just 3 walks.

For the Bison, Josh Stinson will try to keep the Ironpig’s current hitting slump going. Stinson, 23, was recently promoted to AAA from the Eastern League. In his one AAA start he went 4 innings allowing 6 hits and 6 runs. Maybe the Pigs have a golden opportunity to come around and rejoin those teams who cross the plate early and often.

The weather in Buffalo is very similiar to what we’ve seen here lately. Low of 42 and rain heading in around 9:00-10:00pm. Hopefully they can get this game in and pull out a win.

OinK!

When the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks take the field this Saturday night they will be facing the Reading Express!

And here you thought there was only one Route 222 Showdown! Gates open at 6:00, Kick off at 7:00!

Come on out and help the Noise Nation Bring the Noise cheering our Steelhawks on to a big win over their single lane highway rival!

From the Steelhawks:

The Lehigh Valley Steelhawks will play their third of three consecutive home contests on Fox Point Programs Field, inside Stabler Arena, when they take on the Atlantic Division leading Reading Express on Saturday evening at 7 p.m. The Steelhawks are coming off a tough loss to the Chicago Slaughter which saw them lose multiple starters early in the contest.

The Express enter the game at 4-3, falling last week 62-19 at the hands of the Green Bay Blizzard. In the last meeting between these two teams, which saw 12 lead changes, the Express were able to prevail do in large part to the explosive running of Elliott White. The Reading athlete found the endzone four times, including a kick return for a score late in the fourth quarter after the Steelhawks had gained a lead. Look for the Steelhawks to key on White as well as attempt to keep scrambling Quarterback Chris Malleo inside the pocket.

The Steelhawks welcome their rival to the Stabler Arena in hopes of getting a little revenge. In their two losses to the Express this year, the final has come down to the final minutes. Last week the Steelhawks fell to the Chicago Slaughter 52-27 and saw another pair of starters fall to injury. Left Guard Al Stokes was lost for the season and Linebacker Matt Cohen’s status is up in the air following a re-aggrevation of a knee injury. Recent additions Will Grindle and Isiejah Allen will help ease the loss as the offense looks to get back on track.

“Injuries are a part of the game and we’ve had some devastating ones in the last couple weeks,” stated Steelhawks Head Coach Rich Britt. “Zeke (RB Isaiah Grier), Matty (Cohen), and Irani (DeAraujo) have all lost time of late and we’ve unfortunately lost Al (Stokes) and Sarge (Marcus Sargeant) for the rest of the year. These are some veteran guys and leaders on this team. We need the young guys now to step up and show their leadership out on the field.”
Kickoff is slated for 7:00 p.m. with doors opening at 6:00 p.m. The game is being deemed as RIVALRY NIGHT as it is the first time the home crowd will get to see cross town rival Reading Express inside the Stabler Arena. Fans will be thrilled by a special halftime performance by Funtown Productions. The Precious Metal Dance team will also be hosting a Dance clinic from 9-12 that morning with the group returning later in the evening to perform a pregame routine in front of the Steelhawks faithful. Fans who can’t attend can watch the game live on Service Electric TV 2 Sports. Tickets for the game can be purchased by calling the Steelhawks front office at 610-282-3100, via the Steelhawks Website (www.lvsteelhawks.com), thru ticketmaster, or by visiting the Stabler Arena Box Office at 124 Goodman in Bethlehem. For further information on the Lehigh Valley Steelhawks please contact Executive Vice President Mike Clark at 610-282-3100.Season ticket flex packages, starting as low as $8 per game, are still available but great seats are limited so reserve your seats close to the action and call the team’s front office at 610-282-3100. Don’t miss out on the fun and exciting atmosphere that is Steelhawks Professional Indoor Football!

The Pigs lost again tonight 0 to 3 to the SWB Yankees.

Not much exciting out there. Oh, it was cold too. Good news though, the Pretzel burger has returned to its former location along the third base concourse!

Otherwise, the Pigs hit the road for a 4 game set in Buffalo returning Tuesday for 4 games with the Pawtucket Red Sox and then 4 with Buffalo.

Road Trip Delwyn Young Style.. per Kevin Frandsen's Twitter. @KevinFrandsen

OinK!

First off the Noise Nation would like to congratulate our friend Alexis from the Precious Metals Dance team of the Steel Hawks on her making the Philadelphia Eagles cheerleading squad! Way to go!!!

Noise Nation's own Jimmy T with the newest Eagles Cheerleader Lex!

Next, pitcher Brian Gordon was activated from the DL and is returning to the Ironpigs. Back to Reading goes Brummett and also saw via Jeremy Slayden’s Facebook that he is joining the R-Phils while on their road trip. Looking good Jeremy! Hope to see you in the LV soon!

In tonight’s final game of the 5 game home stand, Shoeless Eddie Bonine will face Yankee Kei Igawa. This will be Igawa’s first start of the season, being used as a reliever in 2 game for 6 innings so far this year. He has allowed 3 hits and no runs in 2011.

The weather for tonight will be clear but cold with an expected low of 35 degrees. It may not get that cold through the game but dress appropriately.

See you there!
OinK!

They lost 0 to 6 to SWB tonight.

At least I won the trivia tonight…

Until tomorrow.

OinK!

RHP Chance Chapman assigned to Reading (AA) from LHV.

RHP Tyson Brummett promoted to LHV from Reading (AA).

Tonight Nate Bump will take the mound to face SWB’s Adam Warren. Warren has a no decision in 2 games started this season and a 5.06 ERA.

For the weather, looks like we might hit some thunderstorms early around 5 but it is expected to clear up past that. Last night turned out to be cold and damp but there was not one minute lost to a rain delay.

Also thanks to frequent reader “KBG”, we have a nice article about Andy Tracy:
http://hardballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/04/19/meet-the-oldest-man-in-minor-league-baseball/

This game was awful. Although the rain never arrived, the temperature displayed at CCP tonight read about 15 degrees warmer than it felt. The Pig’s bats didn’t really help the cause and errors were the deciding factor in a 2 to 5 loss to the SWB Yankees. With the loss the Pigs drop from first to a second place tie with the Yankees, as Pawtucket won today improving to 8 and 5 with a .5 game lead.

While our Pigs got run over… I saw something on the news today that was both sad and happy. A piglet was trying to cross the road and was struck by a car in Medford, NJ.

From NBC 10’s website:

A New Jersey animal rescue center is searching for the owner of a female piglet who was hit by a car this morning in Medford.

Joe Joe’s Place Animal Sanctuary says that the driver struck the piglet then drove away. Other drivers passing by took the piglet out of harm’s way and placed her on the side of the road.

Taryn Drayton, an employee at Joe Joe’s, happened to spot the wounded animal as she was driving.

“For somebody just to leave it there, its really heartbreaking,” said Taryn.

Taryn quickly called her co-worker Karin Huckel for help.

They rushed the piglet, who they named Charlotte, to the Creek’s Edge Animal Hospital.

Its there where Charlotte was treated for a broken leg and other injuries.

“She’s very fortunate to be alive,” said Dr. Christopher Keefe, who treated Charlotte’s leg.

“She’s very fortunate that Taryn being a good Samaritan, stopped and picked her up off the side of the road because certainly she could have very easily succumbed to shock.”

It should take Charlotte around six weeks to fully recover. In the meantime she will stay with a vet’s technician, who has a farm, until her owner comes forward or a new owner claims her. Charlotte is less than a year old.

If you would like to donate money for Charlotte’s medical care or if you know her owner, call Joe Joe’s Place at 609.388.5006.

Hoping for a speedy recovery for both our Pigs and this brave little piglet.

The temperature should stay in the mid 50’s this evening but showers could impact the game.

Looking at the radar and hourly forecast it looks like we will have a window between 5:00pm and 8:00pm that potentially could get part of the game in on time.

At 8:00pm the chance of rain jumps to 60% (which isn’t a guarantee) and continues at that percent until declining around 1:00am.

This is one of those that could slam us or could keep folks wondering, “Wasn’t it supposed to rain tonight?”

As always, the gates are probably going to open and the game may or may not be played. I will post on my twitter if the game is called @NoiseNation.

See you at the park!
OinK!

While the Mike’s are certainly great pitchers.. how can the buzz be just about these two of our bullpen’s finest?

Michael Stutes has a 2-1 win/loss record in 6.2 innings over 4 games. ERA of 2.70 with 11 K’s and 4 walks. He is the only Ironpig reliever with a loss. (The loss came on an unearned run)

Mike Zagurski is 1-0 over 3.1 innings in 3 games. His 1.93 ERA is second only to Michael Schwimer’s 1.50 ERA in the bullpen. Zagurski has struck out 7 and walked 1.

Speaking of Michael Schwimer, he has the best ERA of all the relievers at 1.50 and has appeared in 3 games for 6 innings. Walking only 2 he has struck out 4.

Then you have Jason Grilli who has pitched in 4.2 innings over 5 games. With a 1.93 ERA he has struck out 4 walking 3. Grilli has experience and seems to be solid in tight situations this year with the Ironpigs.

Scott Mathieson had a little bit of a control issue last night but in 6.2 innings over 4 games, he showed he is more than just a one inning show. His 2.70 ERA is ok, and 4 of his 6 walks on the season came last night. Hitting the high 90’s consistantly, Scott has struck out 9 so far.

Add in solid performances from Drew Carpenter and Juan Perez and this bullpen is solid.

***

So Romero is heading to the DL. It happens. Who loses on this deal? The Ironpig’s bullpen. All the media attention is on Zagurski and Stutes.. who gets the call?

If I had any clout, my recommendation would be Michael Schwimer. A short stint in the bigs could give this guy a boost in development. He may not be the best bet for the long run, but give him a chance. Second choice is Mathieson. Yes, he had a short try last season and got shelled.. but he’s ready and I don’t know of anyone more deserving.

Who do I think will get the call.. well that’s easy. Looking back at minor league paychecks.. the minimum salary for a minor leaguer more than doubles when he gets a day on the big league roster. Stutes has not yet gotten the call and Zagurski has. My call is Zagurski.

Who do you think will get the call?

Feel free to comment to support your choice.

OinK!

***A few moments after I posted this it was announced that Mike Zagurski got the call! Good luck Mike!