The last time we heard from Luke Scott, he sounded somewhat discouraged, after being told that he had been sent to AAA after a subpar spring.
Discouraged he may be, but it's not preventing him from putting wood on the baseball. Scott went 1 for 3 with a homer and 2 walks last night as the AAA Round Rock Express beat the host New Orleans Zephyrs 5 - 4.
The game was the first played in New Orleans since Hurricane Katrina, and the Express were probably an apt opponent, seeing the deep ties between the Crescent and the Bayou cities, and that New Orleans served as the Triple A affiliate for the Astros betwen 1995 and 2004. I'm sure that all fans who took the drive east along I-10 to catch a game at Zephyrs Field--and most who didn't--wish the Zephyrs all the best.
Roberto Giron got the win by pitching three innings of one-run relief after starter Jason Hirsh gave up 3 runs on only 2 hits over 4-1/3. Hirsh threw 86 pitches to get those 13 outs, walked three, hit a batter, and threw a wild pitch.
Longtime Astro farmhand Royce Huffman drove in the winning run with a two-out walk in the ninth.
Here's a story from the New Orleans perspective, and you can get a boxscore off MiLB's site here . I found out too late that the game was available as an internet broadcast, and am finding out this morning that MiLB has adapted the GameDay feature for AAA games this year.
That's cool.
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| House connects. |
Corpus Christi opened up at Whataburger Field, and dropped their decision to the San Antonio Missions, 4 - 3. Juan Gutierrez was the Hooks Opening Night starter, but was not involved in the decision, as Paul Estrada took the loss. JR House, playing catcher and first base, hit a second inning solo home run. John Fagan had two hits including a double and an RBI, and Ben Zobrist hit an RBI double, as well.
A box score of the Corpus Christi can be found here, and Greg Rajan's story for The Caller-Times is here.
The Salem Avalanche also opened at home, and they got 3 runs in the ninth to beat the Potomac Nationals. Lou Santangelo was 2 for 5 with 3 RBI and three strikeouts. Jimmy Barthmaier pitched 5-1/3 innings of one-run, 3-hit ball, but Enyelbert Soto got the win. Here is the Salem box score.
Lexington's home opener vs. Lakewood was postponed.
Bingo.