Well, relief pitcher Ronnie Morales won’t be playing in York in 2012. Actually, he won’t even be playing in the Atlantic League.

A few weeks ago, York traded Morales to the Lancaster Barnstormers. The deal completed a trade between the clubs last season when York acquired reliever Kris Regas from Lancaster for a player to be named later.

For reasons that aren’t clear, the Morales trade was yet to be made public. Well, it looks like the Grand Prairie Air Hogs, of the independent American Association, let the cat out of the bag.

Listed on the American Association transactions page, Lancaster traded Morales to Grand Prairie for infielder Cesar Nicholas.

Morales, if you remember, set the York Revolution club record with 70 appearances last season, although he was a bit inconsistent throughout the year.

The left-hander went 2-2 with a 3.81 ERA for York in 2011. He ended the year by tossing scoreless ball in 3.2 innings (six appearances), allowing a combined three hits and walking four.

However, he wasn’t used in the playoffs.

The 6-foot-3, 200-pound Austin, Teas native is a former Chicago White Sox prospect who spent each of the last three seasons playing independent ball.

With the departure of Morales, the list of players not returning to York next season has grown to seven. First baseman Chris Nowak will likely be playing in the Mexican League or overseas in Japan. Starting pitcher Lorenzo Barcelo will be playing in the Mexican League. Reliever/starting pitcher Justin Edwards will be playing with the Lincoln Saltdogs, of the independent American Association. Starting pitcher Nick Schumacher signed with Sioux City, also of the American Association. Catcher Octavio Martinez was drafted by the Sugar Land (Tex) Skeeters in the team’s expansion draft last week. And reliever Sean Stidfole recently announced his retirement.

Nicolas: Lancaster appears to have made out pretty well in their deal for Nicolas, though his background might be a bit questionable.

As a Detroit Tigers prospect in 2010, Nicolas was suspended mid-way through the season for 50 games for testing positive for amphetamine, a performance-enhancing drug. At the time, the first/third-baseman was batting .279 with seven homers and 38 RBIs through 70 games at Class AA Erie.

It looks like Nicolas has served out his suspension because he came back to the Tigers in 2011 at Class AAA Toledo. However, he played in just seven games there before being released in early May.

He went on to play the rest of the season with Grand Prairie, where he batted .353 with eight homers and 73 RBIs in 84 games.

This will mark the second time that Nicolas, 29, will play in the Atlantic League. He joined the Blue Crabs late in the season in 2009 and went on to bat .289 with four homers and 10 RBI in the regular season and .414 with two homers and 10 RBI in the Atlantic League playoffs.

Should Lancaster make Nicolas’ signing official, it would give them three position players under contract for 2012, joining outfielders Blake Gailen and Adam Godwin.

Read More

After being stymied through the first seven innings by Pat Ryan, the York Revolution erupted for six runs in the eighth and went on to a 7-3 Atlantic League victory at Bridgeport on Wednesday night.

The Revs are now 8-1 on the season and will go for their third sweep in four series during the finale of the brief two-game set on Thursday morning at Harbor Yard before returning home.

Ryan retired the first 10 batters that he faced and carried a two-hitter into the eighth, leading 1-0. But the Revs tied a club record for most runs in an inning in the eighth or later, storming in front 6-1.

After Mark Ori worked a leadoff walk, Vince Harrison lined a single into right to set the table. Octavio Martinez then dropped down a sacrifice bunt, moving both runners into scoring position. Scott Grimes, at bat in a pinch-hitting role, was then hit by a pitch on Ryan’s 103rd-and-final pitch of the night, loading the bases with one out.

Reliever Antonio Alfonseca was promptly greeted with a game-changing two-run single up the middle by Chris Walker, busting up the shutout and giving the Revs the lead at the same time. Jason Botts later smoked an infield single off Alfonseca’s glove, driving in Grimes with the third run, while Walker scored the fourth run on Alfonseca’s errant throw. James Shanks applied the capper with a two-run double that split the right-center alley.

Juan Martinez drove in a tack-on run in the ninth with a sac fly to right for the 24-year-old’s first Revolution RBI. His brother Octavio doubled earlier in the inning, the 100th double of his pro career.

Revs starter Corey Thurman allowed just one run in six innings, while walking one and striking out six in a no-decision.

Jason Richardson (2-0) retired all four batters in relief to earn the win. Ronnie Morales also chipped in with two-thirds of an inning of work. R.J. Rodriguez struck out two in the ninth to finish it, despite allowing a pair of runs on three doubles.

The comeback win is the Revs’ fifth in eight victories. In four of those comebacks, they overcame a deficit in the seventh inning or later.

Matt DeSalvo starts Thursday’s morning game opposite Bridgeport lefty Paul Oseguera. First pitch is set for 10:35 a.m. at Harbor Yard.

Read More

York (7-1) at Bridgeport (3-4)

Game 1 at Bridgeport. Wednesday, May 11, 2011. First pitch: 7:05 p.m.

(Y) RHP Corey Thurman (1-0, 3.49 ERA) vs. (B) Pat Ryan (0-1, 7.72 ERA):

Thurman and Ryan have had eerily similar starts so far this year. Both dominated in their first starts on opening day, and struggled in their second starts of the season. So, it’s likely the right-handers will come out with a bit of extra motivation to improve on their most recent performances.

In his first start of the year on opening day against Camden, Thurman got the win by pitching 5 1/3 innings, giving up just two hits and one earned run while striking out two and walking one. In his last start on May 4 against Somerset, Thurman allowed four runs, three earned, on eight hits in five innings of work. Overall, the 32-year-old right-hander is 1-0 in two starts with a 3.49 ERA in 10.1 innings, with seven strikeouts and two walks.

Ryan was impressive as well in his opening day start against Long Island, giving up just one earned run on five hits in six innings. In his second start of the season on May 5 against the Road Warriors, though, Ryan struggled on the mound. He allowed seven earned runs on nine hits before being pulled in the fourth inning. Overall, the 27-year-old right-hander is 0-1 in two starts with a 7.72 ERA in 9.1 innings with 12 strikeouts and three walks.

Game 2 at Bridgeport. Thursday, May 12, 2011. First pitch: 10:35 a.m.

(Y) RHP Matt DeSalvo (0-0, 2.92 ERA) vs. (B) Luis Gonzalez (0-2, 4.91 ERA):

DeSalvo will carry a streak of 7 2/3 scoreless innings into this game. The 30-year-old right-hander tossed 5 1/3 scoreless innings in his second start of the year on May 5 against Somerset, giving up just two hits while striking out six. DeSalvo pitched 2 1/3 scoreless innings in relief on Saturday at Camden, allowing only two hits with a strikeout and a walk. Overall, DeSalvo has a 2.92 ERA in 12.1 innings of work, with eight strikeouts and five walks.

Like DeSalvo, Gonzalez will also be looking for his first win of 2011 when he takes the mound on Thursday. The 28-year-old left-hander is 0-2 in two starts with a 4.91 ERA. In his last start, against Long Island on Saturday, Gonzalez got the loss despite giving up just two earned runs on four hits in five innings of work.

Who’s hot:

—York’s Val Majewski. Through Sunday, the 29-year-old outfielder was first in the Atlantic League in RBIs (12), second in total hits (15), second in runs scored (nine), third in batting average (.469), and seventh in on-base percentage (.514).

—Along with Majewski, York’s Liu Rodriguez and Jason Botts. Through Sunday, Majewski (.469), Rodriguez (.409) and Botts (.355) were among the top ten players leading the Atlantic League in batting average.

—Bridgeport’s Adam Greenberg, Andres Perez, Joe Borchard, and Luis Lopez. Each of them are hitting .300 or better at the plate. Perez (.385) and Greenberg (.357) are hitting above .350. Borchard’s five RBIs is tied with Steve Moss for the team lead.

—York relievers Scott Rice and Ronnie Morales. In a combined 9 2/3 innings of relief, the duo has collected nine strikeouts, allowed just three hits, and has yet to give up a run.

Who’s cold:

—Bridgeport’s Luis Rodriguez. In six games, Rodriguez is 5-for-24 at the plate (.208) with three strikeouts.

—Bridgeport relievers Chris Rivera and Jose Rodriguez. Rivera has given up five earned runs and five hits in five innings of work, compiling a 9.00 ERA. Rodriguez has allowed five earned runs on six hits in four innings, compiling a 11.28 ERA.

—York reliever Jeremy Lewis. In his last appearance, against Camden on Saturday, Lewis surrendered three earned runs on six hits in one inning of work. Overall, Lewis is 2-0 in four innings of relief with an 11.25 ERA, having given up five earned runs on six hits.

Read More

The York Revolution had jumped out to a 4-0 start this season, thanks in large part to its hitting.

Through seven innings Thursday night at Sovereign Bank Stadium, however, it appeared York’s pitching would be showcased in the Revs’ attempt to start 5-0.

But after a pair of Revs’ relievers blew a 3-0 lead in the eighth and ninth innings, the game again would come down to a York hitter, this time in the form of imposing 6-foot, 6-inch Jason Botts.

With the score tied at 3-3 in the bottom of the 10th, Botts came to the plate as York’s leadoff batter. And on the second pitch from reliever Travis Minix, Botts swung and made history by nailing it over the left-field wall for a walkoff home run, giving York (5-0) its best start in franchise history.

As soon as he made contact, Revs’ manager Andy Etchebarren knew the ball was gone.

“I’ll tell you one thing, (Botts) smashed it. I knew it was going over the wall when he hit it. He’s a strong fella,” Etchebarren said.

The win marks the fourth game in a row that York has won by a run. The last time the Revs won four one-run games in a row was to start the second half of the 2009 season. Thursday’s victory also marked the second game in a row that York won in walkoff fashion. On Wednesday night, Revs’ catcher Octavio Martinez got a walkoff single in the bottom of the ninth inning to score Botts in an 8-7 come-from-behind victory over Somerset (1-4).

“Maybe that is gonna be our thing for the season, we’ll just play better when we’re behind,” Botts joked. “But we’ll try not to rely on that too much.”

Somerset starter Kris Honel kept York’s bats quiet until the fifth, when Vince Harrison led off with a single and stole a base. After retiring the next two batters, Honel hit Scott Grimes with a pitch and was relieved by Casey Cahill. Liu Rodriguez and Val Majewski followed with RBI singles to put York up 2-0.

The two runs were credited to Honel, who struck out two and surrendered two hits and two walks in 4 2/3 innings.

Majewski added another RBI single in the seventh off of reliever Jeff Kennard to extend the lead to 3-0.

On the mound for York, pitcher Matt DeSalvo (0-0) tossed 51/3 scoreless innings in his second start of the season. He struck out six and walked one while giving up two hits.

Ronnie Morales relieved DeSalvo in the sixth and performed just as well, pitching a full inning while giving a hit and striking out two. Sean Stidfole relieved Morales in the seventh to retire the final batter.

Things went awry for York in the eighth and ninth, though. Reliever Mike DeMark gave up a two-out, RBI triple to Joe Holden, then an RBI double to Fernando Cortez, bringing Somerset within 3-2.

In the ninth, Somerset’s Jason Pressley started things with a single off closer R.J. Rodriguez. Patriots’ outfielder Michael Hernandez followed with an RBI double, tying the game at 3-3 and giving Rodriguez his first blown save of the year.

Rodriguez prevented Somerset from doing even more damage, though, working out of a bases-loaded, one-out jam by fielding a grounder up the middle to get a force out at home, and then striking out Holden to end the inning.

Jeremy Lewis (2-0) was credited with a win for York by pitching a perfect 10th. Minix (0-1) tossed scoreless eighth and ninth innings for Somerset before giving up the solo shot to Botts in the 10th.

York will next travel to Camden (1-5) for a three-game set on Friday and Saturday. The clubs will play a doubleheader on Friday.

Game Notes:

–At 5-0, York remains as the only unbeaten Atlantic League team thus far. York is currently two games ahead of Lancaster (3-2) and 2 1/2 games ahead of the Road Warriors (2-2) in the Freedom Division.

–The Somerset Patriots have been a successful franchise in their 14-year tenure, having won five Atlantic League titles. That’s why it’s surprising to know that this year’s 1-4 start is still not the franchise’s worst. That would be held by the 2009 team that started 1-5.

—In four appearances thus far, Morales has given up just one hit and walked one while striking out two in 2 1/3 innings.

—With his two RBIs on Thursday, Majewski now leads the Atlantic League in RBIs (eight). In the last three games, Majewski is batting .571 (8-for-14) with seven RBIs, three runs scored and a homer.

–Etchebarren said the reason reliever Michael Nix has not pitched at all so far this season is because Nix has been battling elbow tenditis since the beginning of spring training. Nix has been throwing in practice and should be OK soon, though, Etchebarren said.

–Infielder Ramon Castro, who played for York all of last year, is yet to arrive in York this season. Revs director of baseball operations Michael Kirk said he is still dealing with paperwork with Castro’s work visa, which needs to be taken care of before Castro can come from his native Venezuela to the United States.

Read More

The York Revolution had just scored four runs in bottom of the ninth inning to tie the score at 7-7 when Octavio Martinez stepped to the plate.

With runners on first and third and two outs, and the momentum on York’s side, it was now up to Martinez to either end the game or let it go into extra innings.

With side-armed pitcher Ben Grezlovski on the mound, Revs’ manager Andy Etchebarren had instructed his players to hit the pitches that were from the waist up.

“Luckily, I got a first pitch pretty much down the middle and it felt high. I said ‘this is it right here. I better let it fly,” Martinez said.

Let it fly he did, smacking the ball to the gap in left-center field for a walk-off RBI single, giving York a dramatic 8-7 come-from-behind victory over Somerset.

The matchup between York and Somerset was the first since the Freedom Division Championship Series in September, when the Revs defeated the Patriots 1-0 in Game 5, taking the series 3-2. York went on to win its first Atlantic League crown.

Although Martinez wasn’t around for last year’s York-Somerset series, he said the victory over the Patriots, who have won five Atlantic League titles in their 14 seasons, still means a lot to him.

“It seems like the whole league has rivalries with them. It’s the one team you really wanna go out there and play well and beat,” he said.

Until the bottom of the ninth inning, though, York hadn’t played well.

In his second start of the season for York, pitcher Corey Thurman (1-0) gave up at least a hit in each of the five innings he tossed. Thurman ended up allowing four runs, three earned, on eight hits. But the damage could have been much worse. Thurman worked out of jams in the first and third innings, and Somerset left a total of six runners stranded against him.

“You keep your mind together and focus on the next pitch, pitch to pitch and out to out. And it’ll work out,” Thurman said. “That’s one of those situations where it validates you focusing on executing pitch to pitch, don’t worry about what just happened.”

Ronnie Morales tossed a scoreless sixth inning and was pulled after retiring the first batter in the seventh inning. But reliever Jason Richardson then came in and walked two batters and gave up an RBI single.

And in the top of the ninth inning, York reliever Jeremy Lewis gave up a two-run home to Michael Hernandez, allowing Somerset (1-3) to extend its lead to 7-3.

But York stormed back in the bottom of the ninth. Liu Rodriguez was hit by a pitch to lead things off. Van Pope and Scott Grimes followed with singles to load the bases with no outs. Rodriguez scored from third on a wild pitch, and Val Majewski then hit an RBI groundout to bring the Revs to within 7-5.

A walk to Jason Botts loaded the bases again, this time with one out. James Shanks then nailed a two-run single to right field, tying the score at 7-7.

After Vince Harrison grounded out, York had runners on first and third with two outs when Martinez singled to bring home Botts.

The victory marked the third straight game that York (4-0) has won in come-from-behind fashion. With the win, York remains as the only unbeaten team in the Atlantic League. The 4-0 start is also the best first-half start in franchise history. York began the second half of its 2009 season at 4-0.

Game Notes:

–York’s Van Pope entered Wednesday with the lowest batting average of any Revs everyday player (2-for-10, .200). He ended up getting the most hits of any York player on Wednesday, going 3-for-4 with two runs scored.

–Val Majewski accounted for three of York’s run, with an RBI single in the third, a solo homer in the eighth and an RBI groudnout in the ninth.

—With his five innings of work on Wednesday, Thurman has now tossed more than 1,500 innings in the minors.

York Batting Stats from Wednesday’s game:

Grimes, cf: 0-for-4, run scored, walk

Walker, rf: 0-for-4, run scored, RBI, walk

Majewski, lf, 2-for-5, run scored, three RBIs

Botts, 1b: 1-for-3, run scored, two walks, K

Shanks, dh: 1-for-5, two RBIs, two Ks

Harrison, 3b: 1-for-5, two Ks

Rodriguez, 2b: 1-for-2, two runs, one walk, K

Pope, ss: 3-for-4, two runs scored, K

York pitching from Wednesday’s game:

Thurman: 5 IP, 8 H, 4 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 5 K

Morales: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER

Richardson: 0.1 IP, 2 H, 1 R, 1 ER, 1 BB

Cruz: 0.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER

Rice: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB

Lewis (W, 1-0): 1.0 IP, 1 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 1 BB

Read More

The 2010 Atlantic League title is a thing of the past for the York Revolution.

But it appears the momentum from last year’s championship has carried over into 2011.

After winning the season opener on Friday in a commanding 8-2 victory, York followed up on Saturday and Sunday with back-to-back come-from-behind wins.

“It says competitiveness,” Revs’ outfielder James Shanks said Sunday after York’s 6-5 victory over the Camden Riversharks at Sovereign Bank Stadium. “You come out and play to win the game. You hate losing. Sometimes it’s good to lose. But to start off with wins is good, it gets the momentum going.”

Shanks played a big role in York’s victory on Sunday. With York down 3-0 in the bottom of the fourth inning, the right-handed hitter smacked a three-run home run over the left-field wall to tie the score at 3-3. Shanks finished 2-for-4 on the day. Not bad for his first start for York this season.

Shanks, who played for York all of last year, hadn’t started until Sunday because he arrived to spring training late after he was involved in a two-car accident about a week ago. He crashed into the back of a cement truck at a stop light, injuring his arm and causing some soreness in his upper body.

After spending the past week recovering, Shanks said he’s fine now.

“My power is there. But my timing is still off a little,” he said.

The score remained tied until the top of the sixth inning, when Revs reliever Celson Polanco gave up a solo home run to Noah Hall and an RBI single to Andrew Jenkins, giving Camden (0-3) a 5-3 lead.

York drew within 5-4 in the bottom half of that inning when outfielder Val Majewski scored from third on a wild pitch by Camden reliever Mike Koplove.

Koplove had relieved starter Robert Rohrbaugh that inning. Rohrbaugh, a Littlestown High School graduate, tossed 52/3 innings in his first Atlantic League start, giving up six hits and four earned runs — his only major mistake being the three-run homer to Shanks.

Down a run in the bottom of the seventh inning, York had the bases loaded with one out when Majewski stepped to the plate and hit a two-run single off of Koplove to put the Revs ahead, 6-5.

Majewski broke out of a 1-for-8 slump on Sunday, going 4-for-4 at the plate with two runs scored and two RBIs.

York reliever Jason Richardson, who made his 400th appearance as pro, picked up the win by tossing 2/3 of a scoreless inning in the seventh.

Relievers Ronnie Morales and Sean Stidfole combined for a scoreless eighth inning. And closer R.J. Rodriguez picked up his first save of the season with a scoreless ninth.

The win for York (3-0) marked the first season-opening sweep in franchise history. It also keeps the Revs alone in first place atop the Freedom Division.

York will attempt its first 4-0 start in franchise history when it returns to action on Wednesday to host Somerset at Sovereign Bank Stadium.

Game Notes

–Returning the favor: The Revs were swept in Camden to open the 2008 season. York returned the favor by sweeping Camden this weekend.

–Milestone: Shanks is just one home run away from reaching 50 homers in the Atlantic League, and is just three home runs away from reaching 100 for his career.

–Playing injured: Chris Walker played second base for just the fourth time in his pro career on Sunday. He replaced Liu Rodriguez, who was injured the night before when he was plowed over in the basepath by a Camden runner when trying to make a play on a ground ball. Before the game Sunday, Rodriguez said he would not play until Wednesday because he was recovering from the collision – his left leg and neck were sore, he said. Revs manager Andy Etchebarren plugged Rodriguez in at second base in the top of the eighth inning, though, when Camden was down by just a run with a runner on first and one out. The move paid off, as the next Camden batter, Raul Padron grounded into a 4-6-3 double play.

Game Box:

Batting

Camden:

J. Francia, SS: 0-for-5, K

L.Turner, 2B: 1-for-4, run, RBI

M.Lamb, DH: 1-for-4, run, walk

B.Burgamy, 1B: 1-for-4, run, K

N.Hall, LF: 2-for-4, run, 2 RBIs

D.Macias, CF: 2-for-3, run, RBI, walk

A.Jenkins, 3B: 1-for-4, RBI, K

T.Hall, C/PH: 0-for-1

J.Hill, RF: 1-for-4, 2 Ks

York:

S.Grimes, CF: 0-for-3, run, walk

C.Walker, 2B: 0-for-3, run, K

L.Rodriguez, 2B: 0-for-0

V.Majewski, RF: 4-for-4, 2 runs, 2 RBIs

J.Botts, 1B: 2-for-4, run, K

M.Ori, DH: 0-for-4, 2 Ks

J.Shanks, LF: 2-for-4, run, 3 RBIs

V.Harrison, 3B: 0-for-4, K

S.Paniagua, C: 2-for-4, run, 2 Ks

V.Pope, SS: 0-for-3

Pitching:

Camden:

R.Rohrbaugh: 5.2 IP, 6 H, 4 R, 4 ER, 0 BB, 6 K

M.Koplove: L, 0.2 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 2 ER, 2 BB

J.Marshall: 0.2 IP, 1 H, 1 K

E Camacho: 1 IP, 1 H

York:

C.Cody: 5 IP, 6 H, 3 R, 3 ER, 1 BB, 2 K

C. Polanco: 0.1 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 2 ER

S.Rice: 1 IP, 2 H, 2 K

J. Richardson: W (1-0), 0.2 IP, 1 K

R. Morales: 0.1 IP, 1 BB, 1 K

S.Stidfole: 0.2 IP

R.Rodriguez: 1 IP, 1 K, 1 HBP

Other:

Doubles: Y, Majewski, Shanks; C, Hill 2

3B: C, Macias

HR: Y, Shanks; C, Turner, Hall

RBI: Y, Majewski 2, Shanks 3; C, Turner, Hall 2, Macias, Jenkins

Stolen base: Y, Botts; C, Francia, Lamb

Left on base: Y 6; C 7

 

Read More