August 28, 2011 • Iowa.Cubs.com, RedHawks Locke Up a Win over Cubs http://iowa.cubs.milb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20110828&content_id=23849514&vkey=news_t451 &fext=.jsp&sid=t451 • Knoxville News Sentinel, Double plays bail out Smokies against Suns http://www.knoxnews.com/news/2011/aug/27/double-plays-bail-out-smokies-against-suns/ • Daytona Beach News-Journal, Daytona Cubs rally past Jays http://www.news-journalonline.com/sports/baseball/daytona-cubs/2011/08/28/daytona-cubs-rally- past-jays.html • Daytona Beach News-Journal, Daytona Cubs' Cerda treasures 2001 Littile League World Series journey http://www.news-journalonline.com/sports/baseball/daytona-cubs/2011/08/28/daytona-cubs-cerda- treasures-2001-littile-league-world-series-journey.html • Peoria Journal Star, Chiefs hold off Kane County http://www.pjstar.com/sports/chiefs/x1688625281/Chiefs-hold-off-Kane-County • Peoria Journal Star, Capie: Easterling puts horsehide before pigskin http://www.pjstar.com/sports/chiefs/x426955511/Capie-Easterling-puts-horsehide-before-pigskin • Idaho Statesman, Volcanoes shut down Hawks http://www.idahostatesman.com/2011/08/28/1775900/volcanoes-shut-down-hawks.html -- Iowa.Cubs.com RedHawks Locke Up a Win over Cubs By Randy Wehofer Oklahoma City, OK - Drew Locke's solo home run in the top of the eighth inning was the deciding run in the Oklahoma City RedHawks (63-72) 2-1 victory over the Iowa Cubs (62-73) at RedHawks Field tonight. The RedHawks have won three in a row over the Cubs and now lead this series 5-3 with one game left to play. The RedHawks lead 9-6 in the season series. Cubs' starter Austin Bibens-Dirkx worked six strong innings and allowed just one unearned run. In the bottom of the third inning, Anderson Hernandez reached on a two-out single and scored when Bryan LaHair dropped a fly ball off the bat of Brett Wallace in deep left field for an error. With his hit, Hernandez extended his hitting streak to a league-best 25 games. The Cubs tied the game with an unearned run of their own in the sixth inning. With one out, Marwin Gonzalez doubled. With two outs, the RedHawks intentionally walked Bryan LaHair to face D.J. LeMahieu. LeMahieu hit a bouncing ball to shortstop, but Hernandez threw wide of second for an error and Gonzalez raced home with the Cubs only run. Carlton Smith followed Bibens-Dirkx to the mound for the Cubs. He retired the RedHawks in order in the seventh, but gave up the home run to Locke leading off the eighth. Smith (0-2) would be charged with the loss. RedHawks' starter Lucas Harrell (5-2) worked through eight innings and picked up the win. He allowed three hits, walked six (two intentionally), and struck out seven. Jeff Fulchino gave up a leadoff single to Ryan Flaherty in the ninth, but stranded him on base to earn his second save. The Cubs and RedHawks wrap up this series tomorrow afternoon at 4:05 at RedHawks Field. RH Alberto Cabrera (3-4, 6.61) will start for the Cubs against LH Andy Van Hekken (7-6, 3.51) for the RedHawks. The game will be broadcast live on AM 940 with the Safeco On-Deck Circle Pre-Game Show starting at 3:45. -- Knoxville News Sentinel Double plays bail out Smokies against Suns By Adam Greene SEVIERVILLE — The defense had been on target all night, but with their fourth double play, the Tennessee Smokies held on to a 5-4 win over the Jacksonville Suns on Saturday night at Smokies Park. "Both teams really struggled with men on base tonight," Smokies manager Brian Harper said. "We both stranded a lot of runners and we just got that one hit that they didn't." The Smokies finished 3-for-13 with runners in scoring position. Jacksonville was 3-for-11. Tennessee (79-53, 36-26 Southern League second half) and the Suns (66-66, 29-33) meet up for game three of their five-game series today at 5 p.m. The win helps the Smokies keep pace with the SL North-leading Chattanooga Lookouts, who played a doubleheader against the Mobile BayBears on Saturday. The Smokies opened the day trailing the Lookouts by 1½ games. Tennessee pounced on Suns starter Bryan Evans (2-1) immediately, leading off the bottom of the first inning with a walk and two straight base hits, including an RBI from center fielder Jae-Hoon Ha. A sacrifice fly from first baseman Rebel Ridling put the Smokies up 2-0 before the stands were even full. The Smokies' defense was sharp from the beginning, getting the first two outs with a double play in the first and ending the second inning on a double play. A pitching mistake by Tennessee's Eric Jokisch gave Jacksonville its first run in the third. Suns third baseman Paul Gran began the inning with a fly-ball double into left field. Gran was moved to third with a ground out from shortstop Chris Gutierrez, then scored on a Jokisch wild pitch. Jacksonville tied the game in the sixth with an RBI from right fielder Kyle Jenson. The Suns couldn't add to the lead thanks to the third Tennessee double play of the night. The Smokies pulled back ahead in the bottom of the inning. Right fielder Nelson Perez reached on a single, then went to third on Nate Samson's 16th double of the season. Jacksonville manager Andy Barkett made the call to intentionally walk the next batter, third baseman David Macias, and pitch to reliever Kevin Rhoderick. Instead, Harper brought in team batting leader Ty Wright to pinch hit, and the move paid off. Wright knocked a double off the right-field wall, clearing the bases for three RBIs. "He (Wright) has three big pinch hits lately in big situations," Harper said. "He's got a bad ankle going and he just comes out and swings the bat. That gave us a little breathing room." Rhoderick (7-0) picked up the win, even though he pitched just two-thirds of an inning and faced just one batter. Jacksonville pulled within a run in the eighth with a two-RBI single from pinch-hitter Jim Negrych. Rafael Dolis picked up his 16th save for the Smokies, pitching the final 1 innings, giving up two hits. -- Daytona Beach News-Journal Daytona Cubs rally past Jays By News-Journal services DUNEDIN -- Logan Watkins' two-run homer and Abner Abreu's two-run single keyed a five-run ninth inning as the Daytona Cubs rallied past the Dunedin Blue Jays 7-4 in a Florida State League game Saturday. Down 4-2 in the ninth, Matthew Cerda walked, Elliot Soto singled and Jake Opitz singled to load the bases with one out. Abreu's single scored Cerda and Soto. After a wild pitch advanced Opitz to third and Abreu to second, Matthew Szczur hit a sacrifice fly that scored Opitz. Watkins followed with a two-run homer. -- Daytona Beach News-Journal Daytona Cubs' Cerda treasures 2001 Littile League World Series journey By SEAN KERNAN DAYTONA BEACH -- Daytona Cubs infielder Matt Cerda loves the Little League World Series. And for good reason. It takes him back to his childhood, and fond memories of when baseball was just a game shared by an 11-year-old Little Leaguer, his teammates and his dad. Cerda was a spunky catcher for Oceanside (Calif.) American Little League's All-Stars that represented the West in the 2001 Little League World Series in South Williamsport, Pa. "It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and it was a great experience, probably one of the greatest experiences I've ever had in my life," Cerda said after a recent D-Cubs game. Cerda has been watching some of the Little League World Series on TV this year. He always watches some of the games played in Little League's mecca. "It brings back great memories watching those games," the 5-foot-9, 180-pound Florida State League All- Star infielder said. "I watch and think, 'I played on that field right there.' It's a good feeling. It's a bunch of kids just enjoying baseball. It's really highly competitive, and they do a really good job." Cerda and some of his Daytona teammates might even watch a little of the championship game at noon today on ESPN before the Cubs play the Blue Jays in Dunedin at 5 p.m. The versatile infielder and his father cherish those memories from 10 years ago. Not even the heartbreaking experience of getting knocked out by a team that cheated spoiled the adventure. CHEATING EXPOSED The Rolando Paulino Little League All-Stars out of the Bronx, N.Y., had a star pitcher named Danny Almonte. The left-handed flame thrower had what TV announcer Brent Musburger described as "a million-dollar arm," but there were suspicions that Almonte, who was from the Dominican Republic, was older than the Little League limit of 12 years. "When you were watching (Almonte) play, you could see that he was playing way above his supposed age," Mike Cerda -- Matt's dad and Oceanside's third-base coach -- recalled in a phone interview. "The kid, just the way he conducted himself on the mound. The way he threw the hard stuff, there was no way we could catch up to it, and then he'd come back and throw that slow curveball. He was really tough. He had that long, long arm span. He was throwing 79-80 miles an hour." Almonte's fastball from the 46-foot distance between mound and home plate was like a 100-mph major league heater.