AA  Trenton Thunder Game  4-25

The Trenton Thunder (9-9) lost to the Erie SeaWolves by a 10-4 score.

Pitching:   Andy Pettitte made his first AA start after making 2 starts at A Tampa.  In those 2 games he went 7 innings giving up only 1 run on 4 hits with 5 strikeouts.

1st inning:   Andy gave up a leadoff single to center followed by an infield hit off the 3rd baseman's glove. A groundout to short wasn't hit hard enough to turn a DP and a run scored to give Erie a 1-0 lead.  Pettitte struck out the next 2 batters to end the 1st.

2nd inning:  Pettitte got the side in order. The leadoff hitter flied out to leftfield.  He went to a 3-0 count on the next batter before striking him out. The 3rd out was a groundout to short.  31 pitches for Pettitte over the first 2 innings.

3rd inning:  Andy got the side down in order again.  Flyout to deep center,  groundout to 3rd, and a sinking liner to right that Abe Almonte made a nice catch on.  Pettitte's retired the last 9 men in a row. 46 pitches-31 strikes thru 4 innings.

4th inning:   Pettitte walked the leadoff man.  A single to right put runners on 1st and 3rd with 1 out.  A bloop single scored a run to give Erie a 2-0 lead.  A deep fly out to right for the 2nd out, and a groundout to short ended the inning.

5th inning:  A leadoff single past the 1st baseman, an error by 3rd baseman Addison Maruszak put runners at 2nd and 3rd with nobody out.  An rbi single up the middle scored Erie's 3rd run (unearned).  That left runners at 1st and 3rd with nobody out.  A groundball back to Andy got the runner in 3rd out in a rundown trying to score, for the 1st out. A popout to shallow left caught by the shortstop was the 2nd out.  A groundout to short ended the inning.  Andy received a standing ovation from the big crowd as he left the mound.

6th inning:   A leadoff single to rightfield and that was it for Andy as he reached his pitch limit.  He received a standing ovation from the huge crowd.

Pettitte's line:  5 plus IP,  4 runs (3 ER), 7 hits, 3 K's--1 walk.
81 pitches--59 strikes.   Pettitte took the loss (0-1).

Preston Claiborne relieved Pettitte and gave up a single and walk to load the bases.  An infield out scored a run (charged to Pettitte) to up Erie's lead to 4-0.   Claiborne gave up 3 more runs in the 7th to up the Erie lead to 7-3 before being relieved.
Kelvin Perez got the final out of the 7th.  He gave up 3 runs in the 8th to up the Erie lead to 10-3 before being taken out.
Ryan Flannery relieved Perez with the bases loaded and got the final out of an ugly 8th inning.  He tossed a scoreless 9th.

Offense:  Zach Segovia got the start for Erie.  In the 1st inning Ronnie Mustelier hit a 2-out double.  Cody Johnson followed with a walk, but Melky Mesa fouled out to end the inning.  Segovia retired the next 15 men in a row before Walter Ibarra reached on an error with 2 out in the 6th.  Ronnie Mustelier then walked.  Cody Johnson followed with a 3-run homer (5) to cut the Erie lead to 4-3. Jeff Farnham singled to start the 7th but was stranded.  Ronnie Mustelier tripled in the 8th.  Cody Johnson hit a rbi double to give Trenton a run and cut the Erie lead to 10-4.

Notes:  Over 8,100 fans attended the game. 

SWB  AAA  Yankees Game  4-25

The SWB Yankees (9-9) had a big come from behind win in the 9th inning defeating the 1st place Pawtuckett Red Sox by an 8-6 score.  The win snapped the Red Sox 9 game win streak.

Pitching:  Adam Warren got the start for the Yanks.  He gave up 2 runs in the 1st inning on a single and 2-run homer to give Pawtuckett a 2-0 lead.  He threw a scoreless 2nd.  Warren had a rough 3rd inning, allowing 3 runs. He gave up a solo homer to start the inning, a double and 2-run homer to up the PawSox lead to 5-0.  Warren got the side in down in order in the 4th.  He got into and out of a bases loaded jam in the 5th after giving up 2 singles and a walk.
Warren's line:  5.0 IP,  5 runs,  9 hits (3 HR), 6 K's-1 walk.

Adam Miller made his SWB debut throwing a perfect 6th inning, with 1 K. 

Chase Whitley came on to throw scoreless 7th and 8th innings.   Whitley picked up the win (3-1). 

Kevin Whelan came on to pitch the 9th.  He gave up a leadoff single and 2 walks to load the bases with nobody out.  A rbi sac fly cut the Yankee lead to 8-6. Whelan then came up with 2 big strikeouts to pick up his 5th save.

Offense:  Doug Mathis got the start for the PawSox.  He held the Yankees to just 1 walk by Francisco Cervelli over the first 3 innings.  The Yanks got to Mathis for 3 runs in the 4th.  DeWayne Wise walked,  Steve Pearce singled, and Jack Cust hit a 3-run homer (2) to cut the Pawtucket lead to 5-3.  In the 5th, Colin Curtis singled, stole 2nd base, and scored when Francisco Cervelli hit a rbi single to cut the lead to 5-4.  SWB mounted a serious threat in the 6th when Jack Cust walked and Brandon Laird was hit by a pitch.  Both runners moved up to 2nd and 3rd on a wild pitch, but Ramiro Pena struck out to end the inning. They threatened again in the 8th when DeWayne Wise singled and stole 2nd base, and Brandon Laird was hit by a pitch,  but could not score. In the 9th, Ramiro Pena singled and Kevin Russo and Colin Curtis walked to load the bases with nobody out.  Francisco Cervelli came thru with a huge 2-rbi single to give the Yankees a 6-5 lead.  Steve Pearce followed with a rbi sac fly.  Jack Cust then walked and Brandon Laird hit a rbi single to make it 8-5.

Notes:  Francisco Cervelli went  2-4 with with 3 rbis on 2 singles, walk, and strikeout.  He's batting .173.

Apr 25, 2012 -- 10:28PM, laurenfrances wrote:

A well attended game.  His strikes to ball radio is not bad.  Improvements is just around the corner.  thanks BG.....

Huge crowd.  They said it was the 10th largest in history there.  They had a golden retriever as the bat boy. lol.  Andy was OK, nothing special, but the defense behind him wasn't very good.  He probably could have gotten away with only 2 runs allowed.  He needs at least 2 more starts.

3 games I watched today starting at 10 AM.  My eyes are starting to spin counter clockwise. lol

Andy Pettitte strong in minor league start with Trenton Thunder

Wednesday, April 25, 2012, 9:56 PM

Andy Pettitte's fourth minor league start would best be described as workmanlike, as he threw 81 pitches tonight here at Waterfront Park.

Pettitte, attempting a comeback after retiring and sitting out the 2011 season, had excellent control, but was not overpowering. He allowed seven hits, walked one and struck out three in five-plus innings. Pettitte left with Trenton trailing Erie 3-0, but left a runner on base who ended up scoring. So his line for the night was: five-plus innings, four earned runs. He's scheduled to pitch again in five days at a site to be determined.

"I felt good," Pettitte said. "It's another step in the right direction. I'm a little disappointed in my command tonight. But all in all, it was good. I worked hard, threw a lot of pitches."

With news of Michael Pineda's season-ending shoulder injury reaching the Double-A ballpark in mid-afternoon, there seemed to be added importance to Pettitte's outing. The Yankees have set May 10th as the 39-year old lefthander's projected return date.

"Andy's going in the right direction," said general manager Brian Cashman. "But he's going to need more time. He's got a few more starts to go. Mechanically, he's good. He got his work in, but he's not there yet. Nothing changes for Andy, regardless of what's taken place at the major league level. Andy's got to go through the right motions. At his age, having been away a year, he'll be ready when he's ready. There's no added urgency."

In the first inning, Pettitte allowed a lead off single to Michael Rockett, who drove a 2-1 fastball up the middle. The next batter, Brandon Douglas, hit a groundball off the glove of Trenton third baseman Addison Muruszak. The ball kicked into left field and Rockett raced all the way to third, where he scored on a fielder's choice. Pettitte then struck out the next two batters, finishing the first frame in 16 pitches, 11 strikes.

The second and third innings were more dominant as Pettitte came out pounding the strike zone. He breezed through the second on 15 pitches, nine strikes, and struck out one. In the third, he threw 15 pitches, 11 strikes, and was clearly featuring the normal Pettitte arsenal of cutters, curveballs and two-seam fastballs.

Erie scratched out another run against Pettitte in the fourth as he issued a walk to the leadoff man Niuman Rivera. It was the first base on balls issued by Pettitte in four minor league starts. After getting a flyball out, Pettitte surrendered a hit-and-run single to Rawley Bishop and a broken-bat RBI single to Rob Brantly. He escaped further damage, getting the next two batters on three pitches. He was through four in 61 pitches.

In the fifth, as he neared the end of his 80-85 allotted pitches, Pettitte's defense betrayed him a bit. After he surrendered a leadoff single, Pettitte saw Rockett's groundball skip through the legs of third baseman Addison Maruszak. That error was followed by an RBI single through the middle by Brandon Douglas that Pettitte perhaps should have gloved. Pettitte then pitched out of a first-and-third, none out situation, but finished the inning on 78 pitches.

As he left the mound the crowd in Trenton gave him a standing ovation, anticipating that his night might be finished, but he came out for the sixth and surrendered a leadoff single, and that was it.