Cannonballs coming: Tyler Glasnow struggles to throw strikes

-- Gift Ngoepe hit a three-run, ninth inning bomb, his first HR of the year, to lift Indianapolis (17-15) to a 6-3 win over Syracuse.  Tyler Glasnow started the game and lasted five innings despite significant control problems.  He walked five while striking out only one and throwing just 50 of 98 pitches for strikes.  Glasnow got hit hard at times and finished with three runs and six hits allowed.  He caught a break when Willy Garcia ended the second inning by throwing a runner out at the plate.  Fortunately, John Kuchno, Curtis Partch and Jorge Rondon combined for four scoreless innings.  Others:

Adam Frazier:  2-5
Alen Hanson:  1-4
Danny Ortiz:  1-4, HR (3)
Jason Rogers:  0-3, BB
Garcia:  2-3, 2B, BB
Max Moroff, Josh Bell:  Both struck out as pinch hitters

-- Altoona (17-17) edged their favorite opponent, Richmond, by a 3-2 score.  The Curve are now 9-3 against Richmond and 8-14 against the rest of the Eastern League.  Cody Dickson started and showed better than his usual command through three innings.  Beginning with the fourth, though, he repeatedly fell behind 2-0 and 3-0, only to have the hitters help him out.  He managed to allow only three hits and two walks despite throwing 96 pitches, only 54 strikes, over five and two-thirds innings.  He fanned six.  The only run came on a grounder to shortstop Anderson Feliz with runners on second and third, and two out.  Feliz threw to third instead of first, allowing the runner from third to score before the runner from second was tagged out.

Altoona hit a bunch of rockets off the Giants' #12 prospect, lefty Andrew Suarez, who was making his AA debut.  About half of them were caught.  Austin Meadows hit two drives to the outfield that were chased down, leaving him 0-4.  Reese McGuire lined one ball right at the second baseman and finished 0-3.  Stetson Allie scorched a liner to the left fielder that went for a sacrifice fly.  Jose Osuna hit four line drives, but got just a single and a double in four at-bats.  Eric Wood (pictured) solved the problem, though, by launching two long HRs over the wall in left, giving him four HRs on the year.  He went 3-3 overall.  Harold Ramirez doubled off the fence in left and finished 1-4.

McGuire, as usual, looked very good defensively.  Dickson bounced a lot of pitches, but none got by McGuire.  Richmond went 3-4 on stolen bases, but none of the three was McGuire's fault.  Two came on tough pitches to handle and one when the pitcher completely ignored the runner.  On the fourth try, McGuire made a strong throw to cut down a runner at second in a first-and-third, one-out situation.

The bullpen was a mixed bag.  Brett McKinney allowed just two weak hits in an inning and two-thirds.  Jhondaniel Medina threw almost nothing over the plate, but like Dickson he benefited from Richmond's poor hitting and managed a scoreless inning.  Montana DuRapau gave up several hard-hit balls in the ninth, but allowed just one run and got the save.

-- Bradenton turned 14 hits into just three runs in a 4-3 loss to Fort Myers.  The Marauders went 2-14 with runners in scoring position and stranded a dozen.  Fittingly, they failed to get Chase Simpson home with the tying run after he led off the ninth with his second triple of the game.  Simpson also had a double in five at-bats.  Logan Hill went 2-5 with his second HR.  Yeudy Garcia had yet another start where he threw lots of pitches, mostly for strikes, but couldn't put hitters away.  He allowed only four hits and a walk, and one run, while throwing 51 of 78 pitches for strikes, but that got him through only four innings.  Garcia fanned six.  Henry Hirsch gave up three runs in the seventh to lose the game.  Others:

Kevin Kramer:  1-4
Taylor Gushue:  0-5, 3 K (2-for-31 in last eight games)
Tate Scioneaux:  2 IP, H, BB, 3 K

-- West Virginia lost to Lakewood, 6-4.  Starter J.T. Brubaker gave up four runs on seven hits and three walks in four and a third innings.  He struck out six.  The Power had only five hits.  Others:

Cole Tucker:  0-5
Ke'Bryan Hayes:  1-3, 2B, BB
Casey Hughston:  1-4, 3B
Mitchell Tolman:  2-4
Seth McGarry:  IP, H, 2 K