Winnipeg Goldeyes Daily Clippings Tuesday, August 4
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WINNIPEG GOLDEYES DAILY CLIPPINGS TUESDAY, AUGUST 4th , 2020 - Goldeyes’ Nester Contributes at Plate, Behind Plate—Winnipeg Sun, 8/4/20 - Nester Named Batter of the Week—Winnipeg Goldeyes (Steve Schuster), 8/3/20 - Goldeyes Lost to Saints in Extra Innings—Winnipeg Sun, 8/3/20 - Goldeyes Fall to Saints in Extras—Winnipeg Goldeyes (Steve Schuster), 8/2/20 - Saints Win Pitcher’s Duel, Score Four in 12 th for 5-1 Victory—St. Paul Saints (Sean Aronson), 8/2/20 - Sweeney Named Batter of the Month—Winnipeg Goldeyes (Steve Schuster), 8/1/20 - Goldeyes McGovern Looks For Another Good Outing—Winnipeg Sun, 8/1/20 - AA Success Noticed by Other Leagues—Winnipeg Free Press (Taylor Allen), 7/30/20 - Canadian Crouse: It’s ‘Pretty Special’ to be Playing—Winnipeg Sun, 7/30/20 - Goldeyes Accept Unusual Circumstances of Season—Winnipeg Sun, 7/29/20 - For One Goldeye, Being at Home on Road an Adjustment—Winnipeg sun, 7/28/20 GOLDEYES’ NESTER CONTRIBUTES AT PLATE, BEHIND PLATE WINNIPEG SUN – TUESDAY, AUGUST 4 th Goldeyes catcher John Nester was named American Association batter of the week on Monday. In six games last week (in which the Goldeyes were 4-2), Nester hit .455 with six runs scored, four home runs, and 11 RBI. The veteran backstop had at least one RBI in each of the six games. Over the weekend versus St. Paul, Nester caught 26 innings of baseball in roughly 28 hours. The 31-year-old guided the pitching staff through both games of Saturday’s doubleheader and was behind the plate again Sunday during the Goldeyes’ 12-inning loss. On Thursday at Chicago, Nester even made an emergency appearance on the mound, in which he recorded a strikeout. Nester started for the South Division at the 2019 American Association all-star game in St. Paul and was then voted the league’s Postseason All-Star at catcher as a member of the Cleburne Railroaders. Goldeyes ace Mitchell Lambson was the league’s first pitcher of the week this season, while centre fielder Darnell Sweeney was recently named batter of the month for July. As a receiver, Nester has helped the Goldeyes staff to record a league-best 4.14 ERA through Sunday’s action. “He’s doing a great job and swinging the bat well,” Goldeyes manager Rick Forney said. “He works well with all of our pitchers. We had Friday off and we had a day off Monday, so we had some time to work through some things. Asking your catcher to catch 14 innings (in one day) isn’t something you want to traditionally do all the time, but Saturday it was doable.” SWEENEY PROVIDING PLENTY OF VALUE You would be hard-pressed to find a more versatile player in independent baseball than Sweeney. In addition to his offensive success, the former major leaguer has excelled at several premium positions. Sweeney has played mostly centre field, but has seen action at shortstop, second base, and third base. “He’s playing both ends of the field really well for us,” Forney said on Sweeney’s infield acumen. “He’s picked it up pretty fast. He can play those positions. His hands are good, his feet are good, and he’s got a good throwing arm.” Sweeney has been charged with just two errors in 27 games, while ranking among the American Association leaders in nearly every major offensive category. “He’s really good in the two-hole, because he can do a lot of things for you,” Forney added. “He’s got some pop in the bat, he’s driving in runs, stealing bases, going first to third really well. He’s putting a lot of pressure on the opposition’s pitching and defence. He’s very deserving of that award.” LEAGUE RECORD ON THE HORIZON Goldeyes closer Victor Capellan tied the American Association career saves record after finishing off a 5-2 win over the Saints in the second game of Saturday’s doubleheader. Having already passed former Lincoln Saltdogs closer Chris Thompson for second place on the list, Capellan is now even with former Sioux Falls Canaries all-star Kris Regas. Both have accumulated 70 saves in the American Association. All three have been integral to post-season success. Regas helped the Canaries to their lone championship in franchise history in 2008, and Thompson recorded the final six outs of Lincoln’s one-run, winner-take-all Game Five win over Pensacola in the 2009 Championship Series. Capellan pitched in all 12 of the Goldeyes’ post-season victories during their back-to-back championships in 2016 and 2017. “‘Cappy’ is throwing well,” Forney said. “He’s a lot more comfortable and confident in that ninth-inning role than he was a couple years ago. Just like anybody else, the more you get comfortable in your job, the better you’re going to be, and he’s off to a really good start for us. He’s veteran enough to not panic when the tying run is on base or at the plate.” UP NEXT The Goldeyes open a three-game series against the Chicago Dogs Tuesday night at Newman Outdoor Field in Fargo, N.D., and will serve as the home team. Winnipeg’s Brandon Cumpton is scheduled to face left-hander Jacob Dahlberg. First pitch is at 6 p.m. The game can be heard on 93.7 FM. NESTER NAMED BATTER OF THE WEEK STEVE SCHUSTER – WINNIPEG GOLDEYES – MONDAY, AUGUST 3 rd WINNIPEG, MB – Winnipeg Goldeyes’ catcher John Nester has been named the American Association Batter of the Week for July 27 th -August 2 nd . In six games last week (in which the Goldeyes were 4-2), Nester was 10-for-22 (.455) with six runs scored, four home runs, and 11 RBI. The Huntington, West Virginia native had at least one RBI in each of the six contests, and homered in three straight from July 28 th -30 th . Nester also made an emergency relief pitching appearance on Thursday at Chicago, recording a strikeout. Over the weekend versus St. Paul, the 31-year-old Nester caught 26 innings of baseball in roughly 28 hours, leading Goldeyes’ pitchers in both ends of Saturday’s double header and again during Sunday afternoon’s 12-inning game. Nester is hitting .306 for the season with five home runs and 20 RBI (tied for eighth in the American Association). The Clemson University alumnus leads the league with 18 games played at catcher. The opposition has attempted just five total stolen base attempts on Nester, and his 0.27 stolen base attempts allowed per game is the lowest figure in the American Association. Nester was selected from the Cleburne Railroaders in the ninth round of the American Association Dispersal Draft on June 16 th . Nester started the 2019 American Association All-Star Game for the South Division and was then voted the league’s Postseason All-Star at the position after hitting .277 with 16 home runs and 63 RBI in 85 games. Nester is the third Goldeye to capture American Association honours this season, joining Mitchell Lambson (Pitcher of the Week July 3rd-12th) and Darnell Sweeney (Batter of the Month for July). The Winnipeg Goldeyes open a three-game series against the Chicago Dogs at Newman Outdoor Field on Tuesday. First pitch is scheduled for 6:00 p.m. The Goldeyes will serve as the home team. All the action can be heard locally on 93.7 FM CJNU and worldwide at www.cjnu.ca For information on Goldeyes’ merchandise and 2021 season tickets, visit the Goldeyes’ official website at www.goldeyes.com GOLDEYES LOSE TO SAINTS IN EXTRA INNINGS WINNIPEG SUN – MONDAY, AUGUST 3 rd The Winnipeg Goldeyes lost 5-1 in 12 innings to the St. Paul Saints at Newman Outdoor Field on Sunday afternoon. The Saints broke a 1-1 tie with four runs in the top of the 12th. Singles from Max Murphy and Alonzo Harris set up first and third with one out. After John Silviano was intentionally walked, rookie Troy Alexander lined a single to right that scored Murphy with the go-ahead run. Mikey Reynolds then beat out a potential double play that brought home Harris, and the Saints took a 5-1 when Silviano and Alexander scored on an error. Jameson McGrane pitched a scoreless bottom of the 12th to close out the game for St. Paul. Left-hander Jose Velez picked up the win in relief with two scoreless innings over the 10th and 11th. Kent Hasler took the loss for the Goldeyes. St. Paul took a 1-0 lead in the top of the second. Josh Allen doubled down the left field line with one out and scored two batters later on a two-out single from Harris. John Nester quickly tied the game in the bottom of the second with an opposite field home run to right. Nester has homered four times in his last six games. The game remained 1-1, in large part due to both starting pitchers. Mitchell Lambson allowed just one earned run over seven-plus innings in a no-decision. Lambson threw a season-high 122 pitches. Matthew Solter had a similar line, allowing one earned run over seven frames. Neither starting pitcher issued a walk. Jose Jose and Victor Capellan combined for three scoreless relief innings for Winnipeg. SWEENEY RECOGNIZED Goldeyes’ centre fielder Darnell Sweeney was named the American Association’s Batter of the Month for July over the weekend. Sweeney hit .330 with 23 runs scored, 11 doubles, seven home runs, 22 RBI, and six stolen bases in 25 games.