WINNIPEG GOLDEYES DAILY CLIPPINGS

THURSDAY, JUNE 20th, 2019

- Dogs Take Bite Out of Goldeyes—Winnipeg Free Press (Devon Shewchuk), 6/20/19 - Dogs’ Day—Winnipeg Sun, 6/20/19 - Dogs Pull Away Late Against Goldeyes—Winnipeg Goldeyes (Steve Schuster), 6/19/19 - June 19th Game Highlights (Video Link)—Winnipeg Goldeyes (Jason Young), 6/19/19 - Dogs Surge Late to Top Goldeyes—Chicago Dogs (Sam Brief), 6/19/19 - Goldeyes Pitcher Lambson Adjusts to Starter’s Routine—Winnipeg Sun, 6/20/19 - Goldeyes’ Field is ‘Sodfather’ Fergie’s Canvas, Mower His Paintbrush—Winnipeg Free Press (Devon Shewchuk), 6/19/19 - Harris Heating Up for Goldeyes—Winnipeg Sun, 6/19/19 - Chicago Dogs Improving in Second AA Season—Winnipeg Sun, 6/18/19

DOGS TAKE BITE OUT OF GOLDEYES DEVON SHEWCHUK – WINNIPEG FREE PRESS – THURSDAY, JUNE 20th The Fish flopped at Shaw Park on Wednesday night, losing 8-3 to the Chicago Dogs.

Some late-inning stumbles by the Goldeyes’ were reminiscent of the Dog’s lack-lustre performance on Tuesday evening in a 10-3 loss to the Goldeyes.

Pitching woes in the eighth inning put a nail in Winnipeg’s coffin Wednesday, with Goldeyes relief pitcher Harrison Cooney starting off the inning by hitting a Chicago batter with his first pitch. Cooney walked the second batter and was pulled from the mound, but the damage was already done.

The Dogs went on to bat in four runs, one of them being from designated hitter Kelly Dugan — his third hit of the night. The RBI was Dugan’s second of the evening and fourth of the series.

The Goldeyes trailed the Dogs 2-1 at the end of the fourth. But with two outs and one runner on base in the top of the seventh, the Dogs doubled their score. Tony Roselli hit a home run, his eighth of the year. The homer matched his total number of home runs over his 60-game season with the Dogs last year. It also put Chicago in a tie for first with the Lincoln Saltdogs, who both lead the league with 30 home runs.

An interesting part of the Dogs’ overall performance included the appearance of former major-leaguer Carlos Zambrano on the mound. Zambrano played for 12 years in the MLB, primarily as a starting pitcher, before his retirement in 2012.

This year, Zambrano came out of retirement to join the Chicago Dogs as a relief pitcher.

On Wednesday night, he pitched for the first time at Shaw Park, entering the game in the bottom of the ninth. Zambrano had a few slip-ups, ending the evening allowing four hits.

With the win, Chicago pulled ahead of Winnipeg in the American Association’s North Division standings. After the Goldeyes’ win on Tuesday night, manager Rick Forney said winning games, especially ones where the team is in the same division, is extremely important.

"There’s a lot of parity in the league this year from what I’ve seen. There’s really not a whole lot of separation from what people would think are the good teams in the league and the teams with losing records," Forney said.

"There’s no do-overs. When you’re playing teams in our division this early in the season, it’s not going to surprise me if we’re not all knotted up, three or four of us teams at the end of the season."

The teams wrap up their three-game set tonight at Shaw Park. The first pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.

DOGS’ DAY WINNIPEG SUN – THURSDAY, JUNE 20th The Winnipeg Goldeyes lost 8-3 to the Chicago Dogs at Shaw Park on Wednesday.

Leading 2-1 in the top of the seventh inning, Tony Rosselli hit a two-out, two-run home run to extend Chicago’s lead.

The Dogs added four runs in the eighth. With the bases loaded and no outs, Kelly Dugan singled home David Olmedo-Barrera. Jordan Dean followed with a bases-loaded walk, and the Dogs made it 7-2 on a Keon Barnum double play. Victor Roache capped the inning with a two-out, RBI double.

The Goldeyes rallied against former major leaguer Carlos Zambrano in the bottom of the ninth, and scratched across a run on an Alex Perez sacrifice fly before Zambrano ultimately recorded the final out.

Willy Garcia extended his hitting streak to nine games for Winnipeg.

CHICAGO DOGS 8, WINNIPEG GOLDEYES 3 WINNING PITCHER: CHI: Austin Wright (1-4) LOSING PITCHER: WPG: Parker French (2-1) HOME RUN CHI: Tony Rosselli (8).

THE SKINNY: The Dogs broke open a close game with four runs in the top of the eighth to beat the Goldeyes 8-3 at Shaw Park and even up the three- game series.

PLAYER OF THE GAME: Former second-round pick Kelly Dugan had three hits and drove in two runs. Dugan has four RBIs over the first two games of the series.

PLAY OF THE GAME: Dominic Ficociello made a stellar play on a David Olmedo-Barrera bunt along the third base line in the top of the third.

NEXT UP: The Goldeyes and Dogs conclude their series tonight at 7:05 p.m. Mitchell Lambson takes on former major league left-hander DJ Snelten. The game can be heard on 93.7 FM.

DOGS PULL AWAY LATE AGAINST GOLDEYES STEVE SCHUSTER – WINNIPEG GOLDEYES – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19th WINNIPEG, MB – The Winnipeg Goldeyes (17-12) lost 8-3 to the Chicago Dogs at Shaw Park on Wednesday night.

With the Dogs (17-11) leading 2-1 in the top of the seventh inning, Tony Rosselli hit a two-out, two-run home run. Chicago then scored four runs in the top of the eighth. With the bases loaded and no outs, Kelly Dugan singled home David Olmedo-Barrera. Jordan Dean followed with a bases loaded walk, and the Dogs made it 7-2 on a Keon Barnum groundball double play. Victor Roache capped the inning with a two-out, RBI double.

The Goldeyes rallied against former Major Leaguer Carlos Zambrano in the bottom of the ninth, loading the bases with one out on singles from Wes Darvill, James Harris, and Kevin Garcia. Alex Perez drove in Darvill with a sacrifice fly to left field before Zambrano recorded the game’s final out.

Austin Wright (1-4) started for the Dogs and picked up the win, allowing one unearned run on four hits in five-plus innings. Wright walked one and struck out five.

Parker French (2-1) started for the Goldeyes and took the loss, allowing four earned runs on four hits in seven innings. French walked two, struck out one, and threw just 89 pitches. French retired 11 straight batters from the fourth inning into the seventh.

Chicago took a 2-0 lead in the top of the fourth when Dugan tripled home Trey Vavra. Dean hit a sacrifice fly to centre that scored Dugan.

Winnipeg answered back in the bottom half. With two outs and no one on base, Reggie Abercrombie reached on an error by Vavra at third. Abercrombie then stole second base. It was Abercrombie’s 169th in the American Association, which ties him for third in league history with Zach Penprase. Darvill doubled down the left field line on a full count to score Abercrombie.

Willy Garcia reached on an infield single in the bottom of the sixth, and has hit safely in nine straight games.

The three-game series concludes Thursday night at 7:05 p.m. Mitchell Lambson (3-1, 3.07) faces former Major League left-hander DJ Snelten (3-0, 3.38). Advance tickets are on sale now by visiting www.goldeyes.com/tickets or by visiting the box office at Shaw Park.

For information on 2019 season tickets, 10-game mini packs, and group tickets, call the Goldeyes’ office at (204) 982-BASE, or visit the Goldeyes’ official website at www.goldeyes.com

VIDEO: JUNE 19th GAME HIGHLIGHTS JASON YOUNG – WINNIPEG GOLDEYES – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 20th LINK: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SELTind_UQ8

DOGS SURGE LATE TO TOP GOLDEYES SAM BRIEF – CHICAGO DOGS – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19th WINNIPEG, MB, Canada -- Tony Rosselli launched his eighth home run of the year, and Trey Vavra and Kelly Dugan enjoyed multi-hit games to back up five solid innings of work by starter Austin Wright en route to an 8-3 win over the Winnipeg Goldeyes at Shaw Park on Wednesday night.

Austin Wright (W, 1-4) gave up no earned runs to go with five strikeouts in the outing, and the bullpen held down the fort over the final four frames to secure the win.

New acquisition Wes Torrez, who made three appearances with the Dogs last year, pitched two solid innings of relief in his season debut.

In the fourth inning, Kelly Dugan broke the scoreless tie with a triple to score Vavra, and Jordan Dean notched one of his two RBIs on the day with a sacrifice fly to make it 2-0 Dogs.

In the bottom half of the frame, the Goldeyes responded by way of a Wes Darvill double to score Reggie Abercrombie, cutting the lead in half.

Goldeyes starter Parker French (L, 1-2) went seven strong innings for his team but surrendered a two-run shot to Rosselli in the last inning he worked, making it 4-2 in favor of the Dogs.

Winnipeg would respond again in the next half-inning, this time on a groundout off the bat of Kyle Martin to score James Harris.

In the eighth inning, the middle of the Dogs order exploded for four runs, putting the game almost completely out of reach for the Goldeyes. Dugan scored David Olmedo-Barrera with a single, and Dean followed him up with a bases-loaded walk that made it 6-2 Dogs. Keon Barnum grounded into a double play in the next at-bat, pushing across one more run, before Victor Roache drove in Dugan with a double, putting the Dogs ahead 8-2.

In the ninth inning, Winnipeg scratched across a lone run via an Alex Perez sacrifice fly off Carlos Zambrano, but the score would stand 8-3 in favor of Chicago.

D.J. Snelten (3-0) will start the series finale for Chicago on Thursday night. First pitch is set for 7:00 PM.

GOLDEYES PITCHER LAMBSON ADJUSTS TO STARTER’S ROUTINE WINNIPEG SUN – THURSDAY, JUNE 20th Left-hander Mitchell Lambson takes the mound tonight in the Goldeyes’ series-finale against the Chicago Dogs.

The 28-year-old is 3-1 in six starts, and ranks just outside the American Association’s top-10 with a 3.07 ERA.

Lambson is coming off a complete game, six-hit shutout at Gary SouthShore last Thursday. The nine-inning effort helped the Goldeyes win the rubber match of their three-game series with the RailCats.

In nine professional seasons, Lambson owns a 3.41 ERA, but has been starting regularly only since 2018.

“I loved pitching out of the bullpen,” said Lambson. “Getting the chance to start the last two years has been a different experience. Anytime there’s a new challenge in this game, it’s fun to take it on. I absolutely love starting.”

Lambson, who has played for three different triple-A clubs in his career, finished ninth in ERA in the American Association a year ago. However, the native Californian’s durability was perhaps even more impressive than his performance, especially when you consider that he had made only one career start prior to 2018.

The Arizona State alumnus has pitched at least six innings in 17 of his 23 starts in a Goldeyes uniform over the past two seasons, including four nine- inning complete games.

Interestingly, Lambson found that stretching his arm out for longer outings wasn’t as challenging as the restructuring of his daily and weekly routines. The left-hander observed a noticeable difference between the spontaneity of having his number called at any time in the bullpen versus the more rigid nature of working out of the rotation.

“In the bullpen, it’s just: ‘Hey, you’re in the game,’ and all of a sudden, the adrenaline starts going, and you’re in,” Lambson said. “But as a starter, you know when you’re pitching, so learning to manage that was a little bit of a challenge at first.

“Getting used to the (extended) pitch count wasn’t too bad, because in the bullpen guys are throwing all the time day after day,” added Lambson. “Learning how to pitch deep into games wasn’t as hard, but dealing with the routine was a little different.”

Starting pitchers usually throw at least one bullpen or ‘side session’ during the four days off between starts. Side sessions are thrown off a mound at something close to game-level intensity, and serve as an opportunity to make adjustments based on the results of the previous appearance.

Relievers work on the side as well, but have to strike a balance between honing their craft and saving their stamina for a potential game performance later that night.

“That’s definitely helped a lot with my breaking ball,” Lambson said regarding his side sessions. “In the bullpen, you don’t get a chance to develop your third or fourth pitch as much. As a starter, you have to, because you can’t just be a two-pitch pitcher facing the lineup multiple times through.”

A key contributor on the Goldeyes’ 2017 American Association championship team, Lambson is looking forward to helping Winnipeg try to return to the postseason, and is impressed with the calibre of talent the league has maintained since he first arrived.

“All three years that I’ve been here, the talent in this league has been top-notch,” said Lambson. “It’s double-A, triple-A ball in my opinion. There are guys on every team with big-league time, and tons of guys with triple-A time. We’ve got a lot of guys (on the Goldeyes) with triple-A time. It’s really good . It’s kind of a hidden gem a little bit. You don’t know about it until you’re here. Then you see it, and you’re like: ‘Wow, this is really good baseball.’ ”

GOLDEYES’ FIELD IS ‘SODFATHER’ FERGIE’S CANVAS, MOWER HIS PAINTBRUSH DEVON SHEWCHUK – WINNIPEG FREE PRESS – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19th The beautifully manicured field at Shaw Park has always hit a home run with the fans.

Baseball Digest has, consistently, ranked it as one of independent ball's top-five nicest ballparks. But with two acres of field to take care of, maintaining the diamond is a big job. Fortunately, Donald (Fergie) Ferguson is the "Sodfather" behind it all.

"I was always a golf course guy, so I knew my grass," Ferguson says.

The 67-year-old has been the head groundskeeper for the Goldeyes since Shaw Park (formerly CanWest Global Park) opened in 1999. Ferguson has seen a lot of crazy things over the years, but said it's hard to top the ballpark's opening night.

"Our very first ball game, we're laying sod as the team is coming on the field to play the game," he says.

"We had to lay these little pieces of sod down and they made a ‘no bunting’ rule — it was really quite interesting for that one. The sod was legitimately thrown down minutes before the game."

Since then Ferguson has developed a routine, one that he's stuck to for the past 21 years. His morning begins with a weather check, then he makes his way to the field, grabs his list of repairs to complete and then waits for the dew to dry off the grass. After that comes his favourite part of the day.

"I enjoy cutting grass, it’s my quiet time, as I call it. Nobody can drive me crazy when I’m out here cutting grass. Most of the time I won’t even get off the lawnmower if my phone rings, I just have to finish the grass and get it done," he says.

Ferguson cuts the grass once every two days when the team is the road, but daily during home games to keep the field in top playing shape. After each game-day cut, he creates a design using the rollers on his lawnmower.

"Everybody likes to see some kind of design. I like stripes, circles, checkers, diamonds. Sometimes I cut different angles across the field. Once in a while I watch TV and see something new and I want to try it on ours. You just got to try and fit it in here," he says.

"Takes a little bit of planning in your mind to get this thing drawn out in your head, but other than that it works out pretty good."

Depending on the design, Ferguson spends between an hour-and-a-half to more than three on the mower before each home game. Shaw Park visitors can expect to see a new design from him every three days, unless he feels the need to change the team's luck.

"Sometimes I do, sometimes I don’t — depends what happens. I’m very superstitious. So if we’re winning I keep it going, if we don’t I gotta change it," he says.

Goldeyes' longtime bullpen catcher Danny Perron says it's Ferguson's heart and dedication that makes him such an important member of the squad.

"He’s the heart, the bloodline of this organization. He makes everything go smooth. Everything you don’t see that runs perfectly well, that’s because Fergie is a part of it."

Although Ferguson has Shaw Park's field maintenance down to a science by now, there are things that are out of his control.

"This season has been terrible for rain," he says. "Last year wasn’t bad at all, this year we’re making up for it. It makes it a little more interesting, but also a little more difficult."

The Fish have been rained out three times thus far this year, twice on home turf. Whenever there's a threat of rain, Goldeyes staff have to team up, drop everything and roll out a massive tarp to protect the diamond. Goldeyes general manager Andrew Collier is always part of the "tarp party," as he calls it, but says it's the only field-related thing he's had to think of since Ferguson joined the organization in '99.

"I know the grass is going to be in good shape and I know he's going to be here doing his thing, it just makes my life easier because it's one less thing for me to worry about," says Collier. "Especially when there's rain or a threat of rain, we work very well together."

One of Ferguson's fondest memories is preparing intricate field designs in all three all-star games Shaw Park has hosted. It took hours on the mower, but he says it's just all in a day's work.

"I have to make the game happen, that’s all I know. That’s my main concern, I gotta get the game going. I don’t want no excuse that I had anything to do with slowing down the game, the game has to go," he says.

With the season only a quarter of the way through, fans still have plenty of time catch a game and see Ferguson's latest design.

And if you see him at the ballpark, just call him Fergie.

HARRIS HEATING UP FOR GOLDEYES WINNIPEG SUN – WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19th Goldeyes veteran outfielder James Harris is heating up.

Entering play Tuesday, the 2018 Most Valuable Player was 16-for-48 (.333) over his past 13 games with nine RBI during that stretch. Harris’ 17 RBI for the season paced the Goldeyes going into Tuesday’s series-opener against the Chicago Dogs. Unsurprisingly, the former first-round draft pick leads the club with a .333 average with runners in scoring position.

“He’s come up with some big hits with two outs for us,” Goldeyes manager Rick Forney said. “It’s good. Hopefully he can get hot and do some things for us. Obviously, we’re counting on him. As a collective group, we need everybody to chip in. I’m glad he’s turned a corner.”

Like most of the Goldeyes’ hitters this season, Harris has given himself an honest chance nearly every time he has stepped to the plate. The Californian has swung and missed at just 6.4 percent of the 454 pitches that have come his way. That’s nearly half the 2018 Major League average swinging strike rate of 11.6 percent.

Harris has also seen an average of 4.17 pitches per plate appearance, which is best on the club among active players.

RELIEF OPTIONS With Saturday’s doubleheader in Kokomo, Ind., rained out, plus scheduled off days Sunday and Monday, the Goldeyes effectively had three consecutive days of rest leading into their current series with Chicago.

Starting pitchers Parker French and Mitchell Lambson follow Joel Seddon, who made his Goldeyes debut on Tuesday. The extended time off has made starting pitchers Kevin McGovern and Harrison Cooney available in relief this week.

Cooney has already made two relief appearances this season, both of which followed shortened starts. McGovern has come out of the bullpen once during his four years with the club.

MARIN RETURNS Goldeyes shortstop Adrian Marin returned to the lineup on Tuesday. Marin had been sidelined with a hand injury, and last played on June 4 versus Sioux City.

Wes Darvill did an admirable job filling in at shortstop in Marin’s absence, and has committed just two errors in 10 games at the position this year.

Regular first baseman Dominic Ficociello has made only one error in 10 games covering for Darvill at third base.

“Yeah, they’re not out of place over there,” Forney said on Darvill and Ficociello. “They’re going to give you everything they’ve got. They have good feet and good hands, and when you have that, you can play anywhere on the field.”

CHICAGO DOGS IMPROVING IN SECOND AA SEASON WINNIPEG SUN – TUESDAY, JUNE 18th The Winnipeg Goldeyes welcome the Chicago Dogs for a three-game series at Shaw Park this week.

Over the first month of the season, Winnipeg and Chicago—along with the St. Paul Saints—have wrestled up and down the top three positions in the American Association North Division.

After beginning their expansion season 11-27, which included a 13-game losing streak, Chicago finished the 2018 campaign 34-27, and have carried that momentum into 2019.

Chicago’s 30 team home runs are tied for the American Association lead, while the club’s 3.48 ERA ranks second.

The Dogs’ loaded roster has not only performed well, but has a collective track record rivaled by few American Association teams in recent memory.

The pitching staff features three former major leaguers, including longtime Chicago Cubs fan favourite Carlos Zambrano. ‘Big Z,’ as he was affectionately referred to by teammates and fans, amassed 132 wins and a 3.66 ERA during his 12 years in the majors. Zambrano helped the Cubs reach the postseason three times, and also earned a top-five Cy Young Award finish on three occasions.

Zambrano last pitched in the majors in 2012 before spending the 2013 season in the Philadelphia Phillies’ minor league system. After four years away from the game, the 38-year-old made a brief appearance last season in the Mexican League, and signed with the Dogs this past winter.

Zambrano has pitched in relief thus far, and has also taken 16 at-bats. The switch-hitting Zambrano slugged 24 major-league home runs, which ranks tied for seventh all-time among MLB pitchers.

Zambrano is joined by former major league left-handers DJ Snelten and Casey Crosby.

Snelten made four appearances in “The Show” for the San Francisco Giants just last season, and is scheduled to pitch the second game of this week’s series on Wednesday.

Crosby made three starts for the Detroit Tigers in 2012, and previously pitched in the American Association for the Lincoln Saltdogs.

Offensively, the Dogs have been led by a pair of former first-round draft picks. First baseman Keon Barnum was chosen 48th overall by the Chicago White Sox in 2012, and is tied for the American Association lead with eight home runs. Outfielder Victor Roache was the 28th overall pick in that same draft, and enters this series tied for ninth in the league with a .333 batting average.

Rookie outfielder Tony Rosselli hit eight home runs in 60 games for the Dogs last year, and has nearly matched that with seven longballs in just 22 contests.

Former second-rounder Kelly Dugan owns a .799 OPS (on-base plus slugging), and is expected to be a key contributor as a left-handed bat. Dugan’s father, Dennis, is a longtime Hollywood director who has administered numerous films starring comedian Adam Sandler, including the 1996 cult classic Happy Gilmore.