Wednesday, Jul. 30, 2008

Dust Devils win home matinee, take series

By Jack Millikin, Herald staff writer

The Tri-City Dust Devils won five of their first six series against Northwest League opponents to begin the 2008 season.

It's a feeling the Dust Devils may have taken for granted then after starting out 16-10.

But after dropping three straight series over the last two weeks, Tri-City again got to feel the rush of a series-clinching victory in a 4-2 win over the Vancouver Canadians on Tuesday at Gesa Stadium.

The Dust Devils (21-21) took three of five games from Vancouver (18-24) and seven of 10 on the season but remained 11 games behind East Division leader Spokane (32-10), which edged Everett 7-6.

"It was nice to take a series from them," said Tri-City catcher Johnny Bowden, who doubled to lead off the sixth inning and scored what would become the winning run on a wild pitch by Benjamin Hornbeck. "We can't control what Spokane does. Until we play them, we've got to play our game."

The Dust Devils will play host to Spokane for a three-game series beginning at 7:15 p.m. Sunday at Gesa Stadium.

Vancouver starter Pedro Figueroa (0-3) took the loss after allowing two runs on two hits and four walks in five innings. He walked three of the first four batters he faced in the first inning to load the bases, then Erik Wetzel and Leonardo Reyes scored on an RBI grounder by Patrick Rose and subsequent error by Canadians shortstop Leonardo Gil to make it 2-0.

Tri-City used a phalanx of pitchers to hold the Canadians scoreless through eight innings before Mike Lissman's two-run homer broke up the shutout in the ninth.

Kenneth Durst, one of the Dust Devils' most consistent performers, started the game and allowed just three hits in four scoreless innings. Durst, a 15th-round draft pick out of West Virginia in 2007, has made the best of his versatile role as a long reliever and spot starter.

"It can be (difficult), but at the end of the day, your role is just to throw strikes," said Durst, who is 3-3 with a 2.84 ERA in nine appearances, including six starts.

J.R. Murphy (1-1) followed Durst with three strong innings, allowing just one hit while striking out three, and Tyler Trice threw a scoreless eighth.

Lissman connected for a two-run blast in the ninth off Michael Marbry, but Tri-City closer Austin Chambliss came in to finally shut the door on the Canadians. Chambliss recorded his league-leading 10th save, retiring all three batters he faced.

"I try not to look at stats," said Chambliss when informed of his league-leading status. "The baseball gods are always watching, and when you pay too much attention to the numbers, they can turn around pretty quickly."

NOTES: The Dust Devils have committed 61 errors through 42 games but were errorless in the field Tuesday for the ninth time this season. ... The Colorado Rockies made a few moves before the game, sending SS Radames Nazario and OF Kane Simmons to Class A Modesto. The Dust Devils will fill the roster spots with two players from rookie-league Casper -- OF James Sims and SS Andy Goff. Sims, the Rockies' 27th-round draft pick in 2007 out of Jackson State, was hitting .302 with 19 RBIs, 22 runs and 10 stolen bases in 32 games with the Ghosts. Goff was drafted by the Rockies in the 50th round in 2004 but did not sign, instead playing four seasons at Wake Forest. He signed a free-agent contract with the Rockies in June and hit .179 with Casper in 13 games. ... Also joining the Dust Devils for a rehabilitation stint is RHP Zach McClellan, who made 12 relief appearances for the Rockies last season, recording a 1-0 record and a 5.79 ERA. McClellan suffered a torn labrum in May of 2007 and underwent surgery in the offseason. ... Vancouver OF J.D. Pruitt, who was hit in the temple with a pitch during a 5-3 Dust Devils win Sunday, was diagnosed with a concussion and has remained with the team. There is no timetable for his return, according to Canadians trainer Travis Tims, but he will miss at least a week.