Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, July 16, 1993 TAG: 9307160241
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B9 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
"Didn't swing the bats for two days, then didn't take BP today because it rained," Spirits manager Mark Berry said. "I didn't know how we'd do."
Not to worry. The Spirits clubbed 10 hits, including three home runs, in a 9-2 rout of the mind-wandering Salem Buccaneers on Thursday night with 1,198 in attendance at Municipal Field.
"We looked like we were still on vacation," Salem manager Scott Little said.
Some of the gloves were. Maybe a couple of the arms, too. The Bucs had three errors that led to two unearned runs. They also uncorked four wild pitches - three of them in one inning by relief pitcher Kevin Rychel, one bringing in another run - and hit a batter, also Rychel's doing.
The Bucs (11-12) turned out to be more style than substance while falling three games behind the front-running Kinston Indians in the Southern Division. The errors contrasted with three slick double plays. And a feeble five-hit attack was put in as good a light as possible by a where's-that-tape-measure home run by Mike Brown and a I'll-try-to-top-that job by Ramon Espinosa.
Brown's 16th homer, with none on to lead off the second, left the park in right field, crossed the street, soared over a lawn and carried over the roof and into somebody's back yard. Espinosa hit his second Carolina League homer with one out in the third, and that one lofted over the scoreboard and into the warm evening breeze.
That was about it for the Bucs, who left the bases full in the fourth. Right-hander Kevin Jarvis put the controls on them for eight innings, scattering four hits and striking out nine.
"My last three starts, I've gone nine innings, 81/3 and 71/3," he said. "It's one of the things I enjoy doing the most. When you only pitch every fifth day, you want to make the most of it and stay out there as long as you can."
Jarvis had ample support from Bubba Smith, who clobbered his 14th home run in only 172 at bats and ended with three RBI, and clouts from Micah Franklin and former Ferrum College standout Eric Owens. Owens banged his seventh over the fence in deep center.
"I was just looking for a pitch in a zone," he said. "I like low fastballs. I didn't think that went out at first."
\ BUCSHOTS: Six Bucs were elected to the Southern Division squad for the league All-Star Game on July 25 in Winston-Salem. They are catcher Angelo Encarnacion, third baseman Ken Bonifay, designated hitter Mike Brown and pitchers Jeff McCurry, Jason Christiansen and Mariano De los Santos. Since De los Santos was promoted to Class AA Carolina this week, Esteban Loaiza will take his place. Tony Womack, also at Carolina, was selected in absentia.
\ see microfilm for box score
Keywords:
BASEBALL
by CNB