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Teheran, 5-run 1st Help Braves Thump Mets
The Braves carried a six-game losing streak into Citi Field on Wednesday, while the Mets came into the night having lost four straight. Both streaks could not remain intact.
In the end, Julio Teheran’s years-long mastery of the Mets trumped any more recent trends. The Braves starter held New York to two runs in 6 1/3 innings of an 8-2 victory, snapping Atlanta’s funk while sending the Mets to their fifth straight defeat.
All the offense Teheran needed came in the first inning, when the Braves jumped on Mets starter Robert Gsellman for five of the six runs against him, pouncing on a sinker that dipped to a season-low 89 mph. By the fifth, Gsellman was out of the game, still winless after four starts.
“We’ve kind of been waiting for that [offense],” Braves manager Brian Snitker said. “It was just nice to score some runs. It’s in us. We just haven’t quite hit our stride yet.”
April was far kinder to Teheran, who moved to 7-3 with a 1.97 ERA against the Mets since the start of 2013. Over that same stretch, the right-hander is 41-40 with a 3.51 mark versus all other teams. At Citi Field, Teheran has submitted his best recent work, allowing two runs over his last 29 innings. He improved to 4-0 with a 0.72 ERA in his last seven starts overall against New York.
“Whenever you have a lineup you do well against and you see them coming up on the schedule, you’re happy,” Teheran said. “Now I face them again next week at home.”
The Braves finished with 16 hits, while catcher Tyler Flowers matched his career high with four RBIs.
That Teheran stepped to the plate for an at-bat before throwing a pitch speaks to how the game went for both teams. Taking advantage of some early Gsellman wildness, the Braves walked twice, rapped out four hits and scored five times in the first inning. Flowers struck the biggest blow with his three-run double, moments after Gsellman committed a throwing error to load the bases with one out.
“It seems like a lot of times we haven’t been able to come up with that big hit,” Flowers said.
Teheran’s spell over the Mets seemed to weaken in the fourth inning, when a leadoff walk and two singles loaded the bases with no outs. But Neil Walker’s sacrifice fly was all the Mets could muster from that rally; Curtis Granderson popped out and Travis d’Arnaud flied out to end the Mets’ best threat.
“We’ve seen when we’ve gotten him on the ropes, he’s been able to wiggle out of jams, and then nights like tonight when he’s got a big lead early in the game, he knows how to get outs in situations,” Walker said of Teheran. “We have plenty more opportunities against him this year and hopefully we’ll do a better job next time.”
Braves second baseman Brandon Phillips exited in the second inning with a left groin strain, suffered on an unsuccessful stolen base attempt in the first. The team listed him as day to day, and Snitker said he may be available to pinch-hit in Thursday’s series finale.
Right-hander R.A. Dickey (1-2, 3.86 ERA) starts Thursday’s series finale for the Braves, making his first start at Citi Field since the December 2012 trade that sent him from the Mets to the Blue Jays. Noah Syndergaard (1-1, 1.73 ERA), acquired in that trade, will be on the mound for the Mets, with first pitch set for 12:10 p.m. CT.
4/26/17 — Glenn Espy
Birthdays:
Glenn Espy — Pizza Winner!
Ethan Beaty, 13
Barry E. West, 69
April Nettles
Robert McCart, 59
ERPUD will Raise Rates beginning May 1
Elk River Public Utilities District (ERPUD) will begin a rate increase beginning May 1.
The customer charge, is a flat fee that helps pay for the infrastructure costs of delivering gas safely to customers and is not based on usage.
A rate increase implemented last year to bolster Elk River Public Utility District (ERPUD) against a potential budget shortfall in FY2017 proved to be too little to protect the company from flagging sales due to warm temperatures and the loss of two of its biggest customers, according to ERPUD officials.
Since the July 1, 2016 start of the fiscal year, recorded temperatures for the year have been 31 percent warmer than average, with the effect that customers have purchased less gas to heat their homes and businesses.
Residential customers with year-round service will see a $1.50 increase from $9.25 to $10.75.
Residential customers with heat-only service will see a $1.75 increase from $12.25 to $14.
Customers the utility classifies as “small commercial” will see their monthly charge bump from $14.75 to $17.
“Large commercial” customers will see the charge move from $55 to $60.
For “industrial processing” and “interruptible” customers, the charge will bump from $225 to $250. (Tullahoma News)
Take Back Day is April 29
The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration’s National Prescription Drug Take-Back Day (DTB) is set for Saturday, April 29, 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. As part of this major health and safety initiative, the Coffee County Anti-Drug Coalition (CCADC) will host two take-back events, one in Manchester and one in Tullahoma.
Community members are encouraged to stop by one of these local take-back locations to drop off their unused or expired medications, especially pain relievers and other prescription drugs. Pharmacists and law enforcement officers will be on hand to accept the medications and safely dispose of them, no questions asked.
• First Vision Bank, 2134 Hillsboro Blvd, Manchester, TN
• Walgreens 700 N Jackson St, Tullahoma, TN
“Count It! Lock It! Drop It!™ is an easy way a concerned citizen can instantly help themselves and others,’ said Stacy Lee, the Community Outreach Coordinator for the CCADC. ‘One person can make a difference by counting their meds, locking up what they need to keep, and dropping the unwanted ones. Getting meds accounted for is the best way to prevent harm. With 52 percent of individuals statewide having concerns about a loved one becoming addicted, the more opportunities people have to clean out their medicine cabinets, the less likely it is those pills will fall into the hands like a teenager or someone seeking a high.” 
Marcrom’s Pharmacist and CCADC board member, Richard Randolph said, “I am always willing to be a part of such an important outreach event for our community. As a pharmacist, I enjoy being able to help identify various medications that are being dropped off so we can assign “street values” to the controlled substances we receive. This gives our community good information about what is being removed from the supply chain of potential misuse. It is truly a great service that the Anti-Drug Coalition provides.”
If you can’t make it to the take-back day or you want to dispose of meds before the event, visit http://countitlockitdropit.org/drop-box-finder/ to find a permanent drop box in your community. Coffee County has three permanent drug disposal sites: Tullahoma Police Department, Manchester Police Department and the Coffee County Sheriff’s Department. The CCADC also offers lockboxes and drug testing kits to Coffee County citizens, to help combat the growing drug problem.
Attorney General’s Office says it would Defend an Amended Abortion Bill
The Tennessee attorney general’s office says it would defend an amended abortion bill in court if it becomes law, despite previously calling its key requirements “constitutionally suspect.”
Attorney General Herbert Slatery’s spokesman says “the law to some degree is unsettled” surrounding the legislation, which would ban abortions after 20 weeks if doctors determine the fetus is viable. It wouldn’t apply in medical emergencies or if the mother faced serious risks.
The bill is in a House committee and could receive a Senate floor vote this week.
Previously, Slatery’s opinion said the bill impermissibly criminally punishes doctors using “good faith medical judgment.” Anti-abortion advocates contend an amendment has been added to address that concern.
Bill will allow Students to take American Sign Language for their Foreign Language Requirements
The Tennessee Legislature has passed a measure that allows students to take American Sign Language and get credit for their foreign language requirements.
Sen. Becky Massey, a Republican from Knoxville who sponsored the Senate Bill, said Tennessee passed a law allowing kids to take ASL for credit back in the early ’90s. But Massey said lawmakers never made sure it got implemented. She said the new bill assures that it will.
Massey said there are approximately 500,000 Tennesseans who are deaf or hard of hearing and many use ASL to communicate.
The bill still has to be signed by the governor.
Russell Rosen, an assistant professor at the College of Staten Island of the City University of New York, says more than 40 states have passed similar measures.
Red Raider Baseball Rallies to Stun Tullahoma
2017 CHS Seniors(left to right) Noah Anderson, Jacob Duncan, Garrett Eldridge, Davis Green, Grant Sadler and Cade Giles. [Photo by Demarco Moore – Manchester Times]
The Raiders welcomed Tullahoma to Powers Field on Tuesday night for Senior Night. Red Raider seniors Noah Anderson, Jacob Duncan, Garrett Eldridge, Cade Giles, Davis Green and Grant Sadler were honored before the game. But after 3 innings, it appeared that Tullahoma was gonna do all the celebrating.
The Wildcats started strong as they jumped on Coffee County starter Davis Green in the second inning for 2 unearned runs. After allowing another unearned run in the 3rd, the Raider defense got behind Green as they held Tullahoma to 1 hit in the next 4 innings. Entering the 7th inning, Coffee County had been held to a pair of singles by Garrett Eldridge. Eldridge drew a walk with 1 out and moved to third on Hayden Skipper’s double. After an RBI groundout from Duncan, Davis Green beat out an RBI infield single before his courtesy runner A.J Rollman was driven in by an RBI double from Jacob Langham.
Skipper came on to pitch in the 8th and retired Tullahoma in order in the 8th and 9th inning setting the stage for a dramatic win for Coffee County. Duncan and Rollman led off the 9th with singles before Duncan stole 3rd on a heads up base running play. Tullahoma chose to walk Langham to bring Anderson to the plate with the winning run 90 feet away. Anderson lifted a fly ball to right field on the 2nd pitch of the at bat to score Duncan and send the Raider faithful into a frenzy. For their contributions throughout the game and the season, the 6 seniors were named the Crazy Daisies co-players of the game.
The Raiders travel to Tullahoma on Wednesday night for game #2 in this rivalry series. First pitch is set for 6 PM at Grider Stadium. Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you all the action beginning with the pregame show at 5:50. Listeners will need to tune in to the broadcast on their Thunder Radio app for their smart phone.
Download the broadcast at: www.WMSRradio.com/downloads
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CHS Soccer Blanks Ooltewah
Chase Harper of CHS soccer
The CHS soccer team welcomed Ooltewah to the Raider Soccer Field for a non-district friendly on Tuesday night. The Raiders, looking for their 6th straight win, got off to a fast start with 3 first half goals to capture a 3 to 0 win.
The Raiders got on the board first when Chase Harper corralled a rebound and popped it in the goal in the 8th minute. Breyer Taylor’s shot had hit the crossbar and deflected back at the feet of Harper. Harper fired another shot which hit the post and deflected out to Miquel Mendoza in the 12th minute. Mendoza put away the rebound to put Coffee County on on top 2 nil. Briggs Haitcock followed that up with an unassisted goal in the 19th minute as he bounced a shot over the keeper to give the Raiders a 3 to nothing lead at the intermission. In the 2nd half, keeper Mason Boals turned away any Ooltewah advance that got past the tenacious Raider defense to preserve the shutout.
After the game, Coffee County learned that with Shelbyville’s win over Tullahoma on Tuesday, the Red Raiders clinched the regular season district title. Coffee County will host all their district tournament games by virtue of earning the top seed. The Raiders return home on Thursday to tangle with Tullahoma for the Coffee Cup Trophy. That rivalry match gets underway at 7:30 PM at Raider Soccer Field.
CHS Softball Sweeps Doubleheader at Columbia
Tori Bell of CHS softball (Photo by John St. Clair, stclair-sports.com)
Trying to shake off the disappointment of a loss to Cascade on Thursday, and a pair of rainouts since then, the Coffee County CHS softball team traveled to Columbia on Tuesday for a district doubleheader. The Lady Raiders had little trouble quieting the Lady Lions as they swept the doubleheader. Coffee County won the first game 9 to 0 before completing the sweep with a 12 to 1 decision in the nightcap.
In game #1, Kaylee Skipper tossed a complete game no-hitter as Coffee County hammered out 15 hits in the 9 to 0 win. Katie Rutledge had 4 hits including a triple and 2 doubles while driving in 4 runs. Tori Bell had a double and a home run as she finished with 2 RBI and Raven Rogers was 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored.
In the 2nd game, the Lady Raiders roared out to a 10 to 0 lead before Columbia got their first hit in the 4th inning. Bell again swung the hot bat as she had a double, a single and 2 RBI. Rogers was 2 for 4 with 3 runs scored and 2 RBI and Ashlynn Morton had 2 singles and an RBI.
Coffee County is back at home on Thursday as they open up play in the Coffee County Classic against Cascade. Thursday night will also be Senior Night. First pitch is set for 6 PM, Thunder Radio will be on hand to bring you the broadcast beginning at 5:50.
CCMS Baseball Blanks Tullahoma in 8 Innings
Braden Brown of CCMS baseball
The Coffee County Middle School baseball opened up the final regular season series of the year on Tuesday in Tullahoma. The Red Raiders squared off against their rivals from Tullahoma at Waggoner Park. In a game that saw no runs scored in the first 7 innings, Coffee Middle exploded for 4 runs in the 8th inning to grab a 4 to 0 rivalry win.
Coffee County had been held to 3 hits in the game entering the top of the 8th inning with the top of the order coming to bat. Kyle Farless led off with a hit and came around to score the first of 4 Raider runs as Tullahoma committed 3 errors and walked a pair of Coffee County batters. Braden Brown retired Tullahoma on 5 pitches in the bottom of the 8th to get the 8 inning, complete game shutout. Farless, Griffin Meeker, Lane Spry and Todd Watkins had the hits for Coffee Middle.
The Red Raiders will conclude their season series, and the regular season, on Wednesday night at home. Coffee County will play host to Tullahoma on 8th Grade Night. First pitch is set for 5 PM.