Category: Sports

Although he might not have ended what was an odd and hectic day in perfect fashion, Williams Perez took full advantage of a surprise start and benefited from Freddie Freeman’s three-hit game as the Braves snapped an 11-game home losing streak with Wednesday night’s 5-1 win over the Phillies.

Perez, who was perfect until Ryan Howard began the fifth inning with a home run, ended up limiting the Phillies to two hits over eight innings. Not bad, considering he began the day in Rochester, N.Y., and traveled to Atlanta once he learned he’d been recalled from Triple-A Gwinnett to make this start in place of Jhoulys Chacin, who was traded to the Angels on Wednesday afternoon.
“He pitched a hell of a game,” Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said of Perez. “He made a mistake to Howard, but he didn’t give us a lot to hit.”
Freeman began his three-hit game by notching one of the three first-inning singles surrendered by Jerad Eickhoff. The red-hot first baseman chased Eickhoff with a one-out homer in the fifth inning. His contributions enabled the Braves to win for just the second time in 18 tries at Turner Field this year.
“I think we finally played a solid game in all three facets,” Freeman said. “I think it’s probably the first time we’ve played good defense and pitched well. It’s definitely a nice thing tonight to score a run in [each of the first three innings] to give some cushion to Williams, and he definitely took off with that.”
Perez encountered just one three-ball count and needed three or fewer pitches to retire 12 of the 25 batters that he faced. After surrendering Howard’s opposite-field homer on the fifth inning’s first pitch, he retired 10 consecutive batters before Freddy Galvis singled with one out in the eighth. The Braves right-hander ended his 85-pitch outing by getting Darin Ruf to ground into a double play.
“You couldn’t ask for anything more,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “It’s nice to get a pitching performance like this and get a [win], instead of the last couple nights where you had [Mike Foltynewicz and Matt Wisler] providing an almost equal pitching performance and they got losses.”
Nick Markakis made Eickhoff pitch from the stretch after throwing just one pitch by hitting a single. The Braves made contact early and often as Eickhoff threw 27 pitches in the first. Overall, Braves lefties were 7-for-15 against the righty.
Freeman’s fifth-inning homer was his fifth in the past 12 games. The former All-Star first baseman also singled before scoring on A.J. Pierzynski’s third-inning sacrifice fly. Freeman has batted .422 (19-for-45) dating back to April 27.
“It’s nice to finally get some hits and come out on the winning side of things,” Freeman said. “It’s a good feeling. So hopefully I can continue to keep hitting, and hopefully we can continue to keep winning, too.”
Howard’s fifth-inning homer ended Perez’s perfect-game bid and increased his lead for the most homers hit by an opponent at Turner Field. He’s hit 22, and David Wright ranks second with 19.
Aaron Blair will make his fourth career start when this three-game series concludes on Thursday night at 6:10 CT. Blair ranks as baseball’s 52nd-best prospect, according to MLBPipeline.com.

The Iowa Cubs evened the four-game series with a 4-2 win over the Nashville Sounds Wednesday afternoon at Principal Park.

The Cubs used a run in the fourth and a three-spot in the fifth to erase an early deficit.

A pair of doubles got the Sounds their first run of the game as Jake Smolinski started a rally with two bases to lead off the second. After Andrew Lambo walked, Rangel Ravelo stayed hot with a run-scoring double off the left field wall to make it 1-0. Ravelo went 2-for-4 and has seven hits in his last 11 at-bats.

Nashville starter Dillon Overton was dialed in early and breezed through the first three innings. He faced one over the minimum and had five strikeouts going into the fourth.

That’s when Iowa’s offense kicked into gear. Albert Almora started the bottom of the fourth with a lead-off double and moved to third on a groundout. He scored moments later when Miguel Montero lined a base hit to the right side to even the game at 1-1.

More doubles cost Overton in the fifth as the Cubs collected three two-baggers in the inning and scored three times to take a 4-1 lead.

Almora and Willson Conteras had back-to-back one-out doubles to plate runs, and Montero knocked in his second run of the game with another base hit to right field.

Renato Nunez blasted a solo homer off Drew Rucinski to start the sixth to pull the Sounds within a pair of runs at 4-2, but that’s as close as they’d get.

A golden opportunity to put at least one run on the board in the eighth was spoiled by Almora. With one out and Smolinski at first, Andrew Lambo hit a fly ball into the right-center gap that Almora tracked down with a spectacular diving catch. He got up and fired to first to complete the double play and end the scoring threat.

Ravelo started the ninth with a base hit but Spencer Patton shut it down from there to earn the save. Rucinski picked up the win and improved to 2-3 and Overton was tagged with the loss to fall to 1-4.

Game three of the four-game series is set for Thursday afternoon at Principal Park. Right-hander Jesse Hahn (0-1, 2.04) starts for the Sounds. The Cubs have not named a starter. First pitch is scheduled for 12:08 p.m.

The 2016 season is the Sounds’ 19th year in the Pacific Coast League and their second as the Oakland Athletics’ top affiliate. Tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

Kaylee Skipper

Trailing 1 to 0 entering the bottom of the 4th inning, the Lady Raiders mounted a 2 out rally to tie the game before beating Franklin County on Tuesday night 3 to 1 in the elimination bracket of the District 8AAA softball tournament in Winchester.

Cleaning up the defense after Monday night’s upset; the Lady Raiders did give up an unearned run on their lone error of the game. Offensively, Coffee County scored the tying run on a Lauren Tomberlin double in the 4th with 2 outs and scored their final 2 runs on a 2 strike single from Tori Bell.

Kaylee Skipper scattered 4 hits from the pitching circle to get the win for Coffee County and advance the Lady Raiders to Wednesday night’’s quarterfinal matchup with Lincoln County. “Kaylee pitched really well tonight as she mixed in her dropball and riseball to keep Franklin County off balance” said Lady Raider head coach Steve Wilder. “Defensively, we made the plays today and when Kaylee has the lead going into the 7th inning, she will close it out” added Wilder after the game.

Tori Bell’s 2 RBI single in the 5th plated her team-leading 20th and 21st RBI for the season and could not have come at a better time for the Lady Raiders. “We had to have her right then and she came through for us with 2 strikes” said Wilder. Haley Hinshaw was 2 for 3 at the plate with a pair of singles and a run scored while Abby Woods twice reached base on an error. For her dominant pitching performance, Skipper earned the Ascend Federal Credit Union player of the game award.

Coffee County will be back in action on Wednesday afternoon when they take on Lincoln County in an elimination game at Franklin County High School. The winner will move on the Thursday’s semifinals with a chance to earn a region berth while the loser’s season is over. Thunder Radio will once again bring you all the action as Lucky Knott will bring you the pregame show at 4:50 with first pitch scheduled for 5 PM.

You can download a copy of Tuesday’s broadcast at: http://www.thunder1320.com/downloads/

CCMS varsity baseball award winners

The Coffee County Middle School baseball team held their end of the season banquet on Tuesday night as they recognized their varsity and junior varsity players for their contributions throughout the season. Head coach Rodney Meeker along with assistant coaches Baxter White, Todd Watkins and Reed Wolfe presided over the festivities and local celebrity and inspirational speaker Nick Trail was the guest speaker.
Varsity award winners were:
Academic Award – Hayden Skipper, Griffin Meeker, Trey Rogers and Braxton White
Long Ball Award – Hayden Skipper and Brandon Jernigan
Most Improved – Jalen Morris and Nick Watkins
Offensive MVP – Hayden Skipper
Defensive MVP – Blanton Brown
King of the Hill – Garrett Davis and Brandon Jernigan
Team MVP – Garrett Davis
Coffee Coaches Show MVP – Hayden Skipper
Most “Christlike” – Hayden Skipper
Red Raider Award(voted on by teammates) – Blanton Brown and Noah Bradshaw

CCMS JV baseball award winners

JV award winners were:
Most Improved – Bryson Clanton & Tristan Grissom
Offensive MVP – Trey Rogers
Defensive MVP – Braxton White
King of the Hill – Griffin Meeker & Braden Brown
JV All-Conference Tournament – Nick Watkins and Tanner Kistler
Most “Christlike” – Nick Watkins
Red Raider Award(voted on by teammates) – Griffin Meeker

Suburban Atlanta resident Adam Morgan extended his hometown team’s woes and helped the Phillies add to their surprising early season success as he completed seven strong innings in Tuesday night’s 3-2 win over the Braves at Turner Field.

Morgan scattered three hits while matching the career-high seven-inning total he had also posted in one of his three previous career starts against the Braves. The Phillies notched their third straight win with some assistance from Maikel Franco, who highlighted his three-hit performance with an eighth-inning home run.
Each of the Phillies’ last seven wins have been by one run.
“You need luck,” Phillies manager Pete Mackanin said. “You need to be good. I think we’re good. I’m not saying we’re the best. I’m just saying we’re doing things right.”
Franco’s home run soured the second straight eight-inning performance provided by Matt Wisler, who surrendered a season-high eight hits. Wisler was not as sharp as he was when he limited the Mets to one hit over eight scoreless last week, but he received little offensive assistance from the Braves, who inched closer with a ninth-inning home run from Freddie Freeman before falling to 1-16 at home this year.
“Wisler pitched great,” Braves manager Fredi Gonzalez said. “That’s where we’re at. He pitches eight innings and gives up three [runs]. On most nights, that gives you a [great] chance to win a ballgame.”
The Phillies’ righty escaped a third-inning jam and found himself in another in the fourth with runners at first and third and no out. He traded a run for two outs when he induced Tyler Flowers to hit into a 6-4-3 double play, which tied the game 1-1. Morgan threw 90 pitches in seven strong innings.
Wisler paid the price for the slider Franco hit into the left-field seats, and he surrendered Peter Bourjos’ near wall-clearing double before allowing Cesar Hernandez to hit a 2-2 slider for a two-out RBI single in the fifth. But the Braves’ right-hander remained steady throughout his 104-pitch outing, which began with him retiring nine of the first 11 batters he faced.
“I felt good for the most part,” Wisler said. “I think the biggest thing today was I left a couple sliders up in the zone, and I didn’t finish a couple pitches.”
Ender Inciarte notched the first of his two singles to begin the fourth inning and scored on Flower’s double-play groundout. But the center fielder, who was activated from the disabled list on Saturday, also showed off his powerful arm in the sixth when he caught Freddy Galvis’ fly ball in right-center field and then made an accurate throw to double up Carlos Ruiz, who had strayed too far from first base.
“That was awesome,” Braves left fielder Jeff Francoeur said. “I was actually yelling at [right fielder Nick Markakis] because I didn’t think [Inciarte] knew where he was going. If I ever play against him, I’ll have to remember that one.”
Jhoulys Chacin will take the mound when this three-game series resumes on Wednesday at 6:1- PM CT. Chacin surrendered his first four homers of the season while completing just 4 2/3 innings against the Mets in his most recent start. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast immediately following Coffee County softball.

The Nashville Sounds used two big innings to score a series-opening 8-5 win over the Iowa Cubs at Principal Park Tuesday night.

Trailing 3-0, Nashville exploded for five runs in the fourth inning, and then another three runs in the sixth.

Max Muncy started the scoring for the Sounds with a bang when he launched a solo homer off Iowa starter Stephen Perakslis to start the fourth.

The right-handed Parakslis turned around and retired the next two batters, but then allowed the next four Sounds to reach and ultimately score.

Andrew Lambo and Matt McBride collected back-to-back singles to put runners at the corners for Matt Olson. Mired in a deep slump, Olson lined a double to the wall in center field to score both runners and even the game at 3-3.

It didn’t stay tied for long as Rangel Ravelo blasted a go-ahead, two-run home run off Perakslis to give the Sounds a 5-3 lead.

Henderson Alvarez, working in another MLB rehab start, worked around a one-out single in the fourth to retire the side. He was finished after the fourth and allowed three runs on four hits in a no decision.

Lambo and McBride sparked another rally in the sixth when Lambo singled and McBride doubled off the wall in left-center to score Lambo and boost the lead to 6-3.

Moments later, Ravelo knocked in his third run of the game with a double, and Joey Wendle got in on the act with a run-scoring base hit up the middle.

Pitching with a slim bullpen, the Sounds needed all arms on deck to close it out. Aaron Kurcz worked the fifth and sixth innings and allowed two runs to allow Iowa to pull within 8-5.

Patrick Schuster fired a scoreless seventh, Ryan Brasier did the same in the eighth, and Tucker Healy followed suit in the ninth to earn his first save of the season.

Game two of the four-game series is set for Wednesday afternoon in Iowa. Left-hander Dillon Overton (1-3, 4.68) starts for the Sounds against right-hander Drew Rucinski (1-3, 6.89) for the Cubs. First pitch is scheduled for 12:08 p.m.

The 2016 season is the Sounds’ 19th year in the Pacific Coast League and their second as the Oakland Athletics’ top affiliate. Tickets are available now by calling (615) 690-4487 or by visiting www.nashvillesounds.com.

Cade Giles

Facing Columbia for the 2nd time in 5 days, the Red Raider baseball team had no answers for Lion pitcher Chris Short as they fell 6 to 1 on Monday night in the District 8AAA tournament. A pair of errors in the 2nd inning by Coffee County helped Columbia build a 3 to 0 lead and that was enough offense to eliminate the Raiders in the quarterfinals of the District 8AAA tournament.
Coffee County, which struck out 11 times on Thursday against Short, went down on strikes 9 times on Monday night in the loss. Cade Giles hit an absolute monstrous home run for Coffee County in the top of the 3rd to cut the deficit to 3 to 1, but another pair of Columbia runs put too much pressure on the Red Raider offense. Coffee County was held to 5 hits as Noah Anderson had a double and Nathaniel Tate was 2 for 3 on the night.
After the game, Coach Martin expressed his admiration for this year’s team, including his senior class. “I will miss these seniors and wish that I had them for another year” said Martin. He went on the say that he appreciated their contributions to the rebuilding of the Red Raider program. “From where we started to where we ended the season showed tremendous strides of improvement. WE improved the culture, the work habits and the mental approach to the game; plus we got to feel what winning was like.” The loss ends the season for first year head coach David Martin as Coffee County finished in 4th place in the district.

Tori Bell(Photo by John St Clair – johnstclairphoto.com)

Six Coffee County errors resulted in 4 unearned runs for Shelbyville as the Lady Raider softball team fell 7 to 4 to the Eaglettes on Monday night in the District 8AAA softball tournament. The loss drops Coffee County into the loser’s bracket where they will take on Franklin County on Tuesday night in an elimination game scheduled for 5 PM.
Coffee County, who had not played since April 30th, showed some rust in the contest. “We played like we had been off for 8 days, but that is no excuse” said head coach Steve Wilder. “We need to play well to be good and tonight, we did not play well” added Wilder.
Shelbyville parlayed a pair of Coffee County errors in the first inning into a 2 to 0 lead before Coffee County could record an out. That gave the Eaglettes a lead that they would not relinquish. The top of the Shelbyville order did the majority of the damage against Coffee County. They got 4 hits in 9 official at-bats with a pair of walks, and scored all 7 of Shelbyville’s runs.
Tori Bell had a 2 run home run for the Lady Raiders to highlight the 6 hit attack for Coffee County. Haley Hinshaw and Kasarah Scheller each had a double and Rhianna Roberson had an RBI single. Bell was named the Ascend Federal Credit Union player of the game.
Coffee County will take on Franklin County on Tuesday night in a 5 PM elimination game at Franklin County High School. Thunder Radio will bring you the broadcast beginning with the pregame show at 4:50.