Monthly Archives: July 2010

Hey Smokies Fans!

Last night Matt Spencer hit a game-winning homer in the bottom of the seventh inning to give Tennessee a 5-4 victory.

The Smokies now have a two games to one lead for this series, and Tennessee can take the series tonight at Smokies Park in the fourth game at Smokies Park.

Pitching for the Smokies is right-hander Chris Archer. In five starts with Tennessee, Archer has won four games and hasn’t given up an earned run in over 28 innings for Tennessee. Pitching for West Tenn is Steven Hensley who is 7-8 with a 3.39 ERA.

Here are more notes on tonight’s game against West Tenn:

Another Best Record: With Friday’s 5-4 win over the Diamond Jaxx, the Smokies have reached a new season best record. The Smokies are now 62-41, a full 21 games over the five-hundred mark. This is the first time Tennessee has been so far over .500 this season, with the previous best at 20 games which happened twice earlier in the week. The Smokies are 20-14 in the second half of the season, holding a two game lead in the second half North Division standings.

Here Comes the Masher: Matt Spencer once again lived up to his nickname, the “Morristown Masher” (coined by the Smokies Radio Network’s Mick Gillispie), as he hit the game-winning homer for Tennessee in the bottom of the seventh. Spencer’s solo shot was his eleventh in 2010, putting him in sixth place in the Southern League homer category. This is the first time in his professional career that he has hit more than 10 homers with one team during a season. Spencer’s best homer season was in 2009, when he combined to hit 19 homers while in the Oakland A’s organization. Spencer grew up down the road from Smokies Park in Morristown, where he was a standout at Morristown West High School.

Tops at the Plate: The Smokies lead the Southern League in most major offensive categories in 2010. Tennessee leads the league with a .284 batting average, while West Tenn is second with a mark of .271. With Matt Spencer’s homer on Friday, the Smokies now lead the league in home runs with 88, passing West Tenn’s 87. The Smokies are tops in runs batted in with 495, while West Tenn is second with 463. Tennessee also leads the league in runs, hits, doubles, total bases, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and on-base plus slugging percentage.

Archer Looks to Keep Streak Alive: Tonight’s Smokies starting pitcher Chris Archer has quite a streak on the line as he faces the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for the second time this season. Archer hasn’t allowed an earned run his last 39.1 innings on the mound, stretching back to his time as a member of the Daytona Cubs in the Florida State League. Archer gave up one run against Lakeland in the first inning on June 22, but since then hasn’t given up an earned run. This includes 28.1 innings with Tennessee.

Our coverage begins tonight at 6:00p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show, featuring an interview with Brandon Guyer.

You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Smokies Fans!

Last night the Smokies got back on the winning track with a 9-3 victory over the Diamond Jaxx. The Smokies were led at the plate by Russ Canzler, who hit two homers to put his season total at 14.

With the win, the Smokies are now two games up in the second half North Division standings, and will try to increase that lead in tonight’s third game against West Tenn.

Taking the mound for Tennessee is lefty Jeremy Papelbon. Papelbon is 1-2 with a 5.53 ERA, and this will be his sixth start in 2010. Mauricio Robles will pitch for West Tenn, and he is 6-5 with a 4.17 ERA.

Here are some more notes on tonight’s matchup with the Diamond Jaxx:

Here Comes Canzler: Smokies third baseman Russ Canzler had a powerful night on Thursday, as he hit two homers to help the Smokies win 9-3 over West Tenn. Canzler’s two homers give him 14 this season, putting him in a tie with catcher Robinson Chirinos for third best in the Southern League. Canzler has hit three home runs over the past week, dating back to a homer on July 23 against Mississippi. It is only the third time this season a Smokies batter has had a multi-homer night. Canzler is batting .299 with his 14 homers and 37 runs batted in during the 2010 season.

No Walks From Papelbon: Tonight’s Smokies starting pitcher Jeremy Papelbon has a habit of not walking batters. Since June 3, Papelbon has only allowed two walks in his last 13 appearances. This season, Papelbon has only walked five batters while striking out 39. Papelbon hasn’t walked more than one batter in any appearance this season, and hasn’t walked any batters in his last two starts for the Smokies.

Tops at the Plate: The Smokies lead the Southern League in most major offensive categories in 2010. Tennessee leads the league with a .284 batting average, while West Tenn is second with a mark of .271. With Russ Canzler’s two homers on Thursday, Tennessee and West Tenn are now tied for the league lead in homers with 87. The Smokies are tops in runs batted in with 491, while West Tenn is second with 459. Tennessee also leads the league in runs, hits, doubles, total bases, on-base percentage, slugging percentage, and on-base plus slugging percentage.

Lead Back to Two Games: With yesterday’s victory, the Smokies are now two games ahead in the second half North Division standings. Tennessee has a two game lead over Carolina and Huntsville, while the Lookouts are three and a half games back and the Diamond Jaxx four back into tonight.

Our coverage begins tonight at 7:00p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show, featuring an interview with West Tenn third baseman and 2010 Southern League All-Star Alex Liddi.

You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Smokies Fans!

Last night the Diamond Jaxx won the opener of this five-game series with an 8-5 win. Blake Beavan took the win for West Tenn, while Smokies starter Chris Carpenter took his fifth loss of the season to fall to 7-5.

The Smokies will try to maintain their one game division lead tonight as Craig Muschko gets the start for Tennessee. Muschko is 4-3 this season with a 4.10 ERA. Steve Bray will start for the Diamond Jaxx, and he is 5-6 with a 3.75 ERA in 2010.

Here are some more notes on tonight’s game against West Tenn:

Tough Openers vs. West Tenn: With Wednesday’s 8-5 loss to West Tenn, the Smokies are now 0-3 in opening games against the Diamond Jaxx in 2010. The Smokies have rebounded from slow starts against the Diamond Jaxx by winning the first series at Smokies Park from June 10-14, and earning a split at Pringles Park in the second series of the season from June 28-July 3. In series opening games this season, the Smokies are 12-10.

First Place in SL North: Despite Wednesday’s loss, the Smokies remain atop the second half North Division standings. Tennessee is first in the division with a 18-14 record, one game ahead of the Huntsville Stars who are in second, and two games up on Carolina who is in third. The Lookouts are in fourth place at two and a half games back, while the Diamond Jaxx are in fifth but only three games behind the Smokies. Tennessee won the first half North Division championship by posting a record of 42-27, edging the Diamond Jaxx by three and games.

Multi-Hits: Every Smokies batter who registered a hit in Wednesday’s game had a multi-hit game as well. Blake Lalli, Matt Spencer, Brandon Guyer, and Tony Thomas all had two-hit nights, combining for Tennessee’s eight hits. Guyer had the only multi-RBI game due to his two runs batted in double in the second inning.

Tennessee hitting coach Tom Beyers

Top Hitting Teams in League: The top two offenses in the Southern League combined for 13 runs on 19 hits on Wednesday. The Smokies lead the league in batting average (.283) and RBI (483), while the Diamond Jaxx lead in homers (85). West Tenn is second to the Smokies in average and RBI.

Our coverage begins tonight at 7:00p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show. You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Cubs Owner Tom Ricketts with the Smokies Radio Network's Mick Gillispie

On Monday, July 19, 2010, Tom Ricketts, the board chairman of the Chicago Cubs, sat down with the Smokies media department to discuss his visit to Smokies Park, the Cubs’ organization and insight of being an owner of one of baseball most storied franchises.

By Adam Kline

October 27, 2009 will be a day that the Ricketts family will always remember.  On that Tuesday morning, with the approval of MLB commissioner Bud Selig and other MLB owners, the Ricketts family, with Tom Ricketts as board chairman, officially became the majority owners of the Chicago Cubs and Wrigley Field.  “It was literally a dream come true,” said Ricketts.

Ricketts grew up in Omaha, Nebraska watching the Omaha Royal and also George Brett and the Kansas City Royals.  In 1984, he moved to Chicago to attend the University of Chicago and became attached to the Chicago Cubs watching Cub greats Jody Davis, Bob Dernier and former Smokies’ manager Ryne Sandberg.  “My family and I are Cubs fans,’’ Ricketts states.

When asked if he ever saw himself as the owner of the Chicago Cubs, Ricketts reminisced about the first time he asked himself that question.

“Well its funny, the answer’s typically no.  But I was digging through some old papers in my office about four months ago and came across my essay from business school in 1990.  And that was the year I was living across the street from Wrigley Field.  So the question that was asked in the essay was; what’s your dream job? And I wrote all about being a major league owner,” he says.  At the time, he was living with his older brother, Pete, above the “Sports Corner” Bar at the corner of Sheffield and Addison.  “So it is literally truly a dream come true.”

The Ricketts Family at Wrigley Field in October 2009

Living right across the street from Wrigley Field, Mr. Ricketts was able attend many Cubs’ games.  “One difference (between watching the game as a fan and an owner) is that I don’t get to watch much of the game.  It’s a lot of talking with folks and listening to what they do and don’t like about the team or the field,” he says.  Tom likes to mingle throughout Wrigley Field during games.  “I walk around most of the game, up at Wrigley Field.  I have a dozen baseballs everyday that I hand out with the date printed on them for little kids.  I’ve signed a lot of baseballs this year, but it’s nice.  We just want to be close to the fans. We’re a family, we want to get that family vibe going at Wrigley and kind of unwind those years of corporate ownership.”

Some people might ask why would the owner of the Chicago Cubs visit Smokies Park?

“Well, one of the things we’re doing is we’re getting out and just seeing the whole system.  You know, I’ve got a lot to learn, I have a lot of people to meet.  We’ve had a very nice day here; spending a couple hours with the coaches, talking with the players and then spending a few hours with the management and the ownership here.  It’s been great, it really a first-class organization.”

As of July 21, the Smokies, along with all of the Cubs’ minor league affiliates are contending for first place in their respective leagues.  “It’s very, very encouraging,” Ricketts reflects.   “Obviously our win-loss record up at the major league team has been disappointing for us this year.  But some of the exciting things we are seeing are the younger players that are coming up.  Obviously some of the guys that were here at the beginning of the season, the Castros, the Cashners and obviously Tyler Colvin who was here last year. We’re very excited.  A couple of guys on the field right now have a chance to be major league players.”

After arriving at Smokies Park, Ricketts and Vice President of Player Personnel, Oneri Fleita, took a tour of the facilities.  “One of the main things that I wanted to see today was the players’ facilities,” says Ricketts.  “We are very happy with what the players have here, as far as their clubhouse, workout facility and playing field.”

Chris Carpenter (7-4, 3.07 ERA) Pitches Tonight for Tennessee

Hey Smokies Fans!

After a refreshing off day, the Smokies will begin a stretch of 20 games in 20 days, all beginning with tonight’s opening game against the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx.

The Smokies and Diamond Jaxx will play a five-game series at Smokies Park for the second time this season. From June 10-14, the Smokies won the series against West Tenn by taking three out of five. Tennessee won the final two games of the series, helping Tennessee build a two and a half game lead over the the Jaxx going into the final five games of the first half.

Tennessee will look to Chris Carpenter to get the Smokies off to the right start in this series. Carpenter is 7-4 with a 3.07 earned run average in 18 starts in 2010. Blake Bleavan will pitch for West Tenn, and he is 1-1 with a 4.91 ERA in 2010.

Here are some more notes on tonight’s opener against West Tenn:

Chris Archer, this week's Southern League Pitcher of the Week.

Archer SL Pitcher of Week: Starter Chris Archer was named Monday by the Southern League as its “Pitcher of the Week,” for the week of July 19-25. Since being called up to Tennessee on June 28, Archer has won in four of his first five starts with the team.  He gave the Smokies a much-needed 4-2 win last Monday vs. Montgomery, striking out six in 5.1 innings of work.  Archer then followed that up with a dominating performance Saturday in Mississippi, allowing only one hit in six innings in Tennessee’s 4-0 Game 2 win over the M-Braves.

Top Record of Season: The Tennessee Smokies bring their best record of the season into tonight’s contest against the Diamond Jaxx. Tennessee is 60-40 overall, a full twenty games over the five-hundred mark. The Smokies are the first team in the league to reach the 60-win plateau. The Smokies are 18-13 in the second half of the season, good for first place in the North Division by two games over the Carolina Mudcats and Huntsville Stars.

Tennessee's "Morristown Masher" Matt Spencer

Expect Lots of Hitting: The Smokies and Diamond Jaxx should provide plenty of offense in this series. The two teams are at the top of the team batting average race, with Tennessee’s .283 average the best in the league in front of West Tenn’s .271. The D-Jaxx are tops in homers with 86, while Tennessee is one behind at 85. The Smokies lead the RBI race in the league with 478, while the D-Jaxx are in second with 450.

Our coverage begins tonight at 7:00p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show, featuring an interview with Smokies manager Bill Dancy.

You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Smokies Fans!

The 2010 First Half North Division Champion Tennessee Smokies return home to Smokies Park this week for a five-game series against the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx.

Tennessee’s 10-5 win on Monday along with Carolina and Huntsville’s losses has put the Smokies second half North Division lead at two games, as the Smokies improve to 18-13 in the second half. The Smokies overall record is now 60-40, the best record Tennessee has had in 2010, a full 20 games over the five hundred mark.

Here’s a preview from smokiesbaseball.com on this week’s special features at Smokies Park. Click on any of the blue links to purchase tickets for that date:

Wednesday, July 28 – We’ve teamed up with SunTrust Bank to fight hunger! Bring a non-perishable canned food donation to tonight’s game and receive a ticket voucher good for any remaining 2010 Smokies home game! Your canned food donation will go to help the Sevier County Food Ministries; please drop off your donation at the designated table set up in front of our ticket office.

Thursday, July 29 – Throwback Thursday is taking you all the way back to the ’00s with musical hits and video clips from the last decade. Make it a family night by bringing the kids for our “Kids Eat Free” promotion and post-game “Kids Run the Bases” promotion, courtesy of Shoney’s Family Restaurants.

Thursday night’s are always about the Pilot scratch-off cards and “Pilot Prize Night,” where everyone’s a winner! And three lucky fans will be randomly selected before the game to win big cash in the Citizens National Bank Money Grab!

Friday, July 30 – Get here early Friday as the first 2,000 fans in with paid admission get a 2010 Smokies team photo, thanks to U.S. Cellular and Victor Prince. And stay after the game for another fantastic fireworks show, courtesy of Pepsi, Coors Light, Knoxville News Sentinel, WVLT-TV and WIVK-FM!

Saturday, July 31 – Sensational Saturday here at the ballpark is bringing you “NFL Night,” where we invite you to wear the jersey of your favorite NFL team!

Before the 6:15 game, one lucky fan will be randomly selected to win two tickets on Allegiant Air. And after it, test your arm in our “Post-Game Ball Toss.” Make sure to pick up those tennis balls for the post-game toss on our stadium concourse behind home plate.

Sunday, August 1 – Following tonight’s 5:00 game, stay after the game for our Christian concert featuring NewSong! They will be performing live on the field for a 90-minute set. You don’t wanna miss it!

It’s also another Smokies Kids Club Day, where all Kids Club members receive free field level tickets and the opportunity to run the bases after the game! Parents of Kids Club Members will receive $2 off their tickets at the box office. A special thanks to our Kids Club sponsors, Holiday Inn Express – Sevierville/Kodak.

We’ll post more about tonight’s game as we get closer to game time at the ballpark.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Smokies fans!

Congratulations to Chris Archer, who was named this week’s Southern League Pitcher of the Week.

Here is the official release from Rennie Leon on smokiesbaseball.com:

KODAK, Tenn. – For the fifth time in 2010, the Tennessee Smokies’ pitching staff has been recognized by the Southern League.  Starter Chris Archer was named today by the Southern League as its “Pitcher of the Week,” for the week of July 19-25.  The award is the first for Archer this season and eighth league award overall for the Smokies in 2010.

Since being called up to Tennessee on June 28, Archer has won in four of his first five starts with the team.  He gave the Smokies a much-needed 4-2 win last Monday vs. Montgomery, striking out six in 5.1 innings of work.  Archer then followed that up with a dominating performance Saturday in Mississippi, allowing only one hit in six innings in Tennessee’s 4-0 Game 2 win over the M-Braves.

Archer is quickly making a name for himself with the Smokies, having yet to give up an earned run in 28.1 innings thrown.   The Raleigh, N.C. native was originally selected by the Cleveland Indians in the fifth round of the 2006 MLB First-Year Player Draft.  Archer was then acquired by Chicago in the Mark DeRosa trade in 2009.

Today is an off day for the Smokies, who will host the West Tenn Diamond Jaxx for a five-game series beginning on Wednesday.

Thanks for listening!

Rafael Dolis will start tonight for Tennessee.

Hey Smokies Fans!

Yesterday the Smokies split a doubleheader against the Mississippi Braves, losing 7-6 in game one while claiming a 4-0 win in game two of the twin-bill.

Chris Archer took the win for Tennessee in game two, keeping his ERA at 0.00 as he improves to 4-1 in 2010. The win was also’s Tennessee’s third in the series, giving the Smokies the series victory over the Braves.

The clubs will play the finale of the series tonight at Trustmark Park. Rafael Dolis will make his return to the starting rotation, as he gets the start for Tennessee. Dolis is 1-2 with a 3.86 ERA. Tim Gustafson will pitch for Mississippi, and is 3-1 this year with a 3.20 ERA.

Here are some more notes on tonight’s finale in Mississippi:

Third Doubleheader Split: For the third time this season, the Tennessee Smokies split a doubleheader, as yesterday Tennessee and Mississippi both won a game during the twin-bill at Trustmark Park. Yesterday was the fifth doubleheader the Smokies have played in 2010, with splits against Birmingham and Mobile, and winning sweeps over Carolina and Huntsville. The Smokies have a trend of winning the last game in a doubleheader, as the Smokies are 5-0 in Game Two’s of doubleheaders. This included wins over Birmingham and Mobile to earn the splits. In 10 doubleheader games, the 2010 Smokies have a record of 7-3. The Mississippi doubleheader was the first twin-bill of the second half.

Grand Salami for Robinson: Tennessee’s All-Star catcher Robinson Chirinos made things interesting in game one of Sunday’s doubleheader. With Tennessee trailing 6-2 with the bases loaded and two outs, Chirinos blasted his first grand slam of the season to tie the game at six. The homer is Chirinos’ fourteenth in 2010, good for third best in the Southern League behind Jacksonville’s Mike Stanton (21-Stanton is now with the Florida Marlins), and West Tenn’s Carlos Peguero (17). Chirinos is batting .320 with the 14 homers and 50 runs batted in during the 2010 season.

Tennesse's Chris Archer is 4-1 in five starts with the Smokies.

Archer Stays at 0.00: Chris Archer kept his earned run average at a stellar 0.00 on Sunday as he didn’t allow any runs to the Mississippi Braves. Archer pitched five innings while only allowing one hit to earn his fourth victory in five starts with Tennessee to improve to 4-1. Archer hasn’t allowed an earned run since he joined Tennessee, and personally hasn’t given up an earned run since June 22 when he was a member of the Daytona Cubs.

Four of Five Again?: Tonight the Smokies will try and take four out of five against the Braves for the second time in 2010. Tennessee did this in the first series of the year from April 8-12 at Trustmark Park.

Our coverage begins tonight at 7:45 p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show.

You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Robinson Chirinos Blasted a Grand Slam for Tennessee in Game One

PEARL, Miss. – The Tennessee Smokies saw their four-game winning streak come to an end, losing 7-6 to the Mississippi Braves in the first seven inning  game of a doubleheader on Sunday evening at Trustmark Park.

The loss is Tennessee’s first since last Sunday’s game against Montgomery. Mississippi’s win is their first over Tennessee in this five game series.

The Braves built a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the second on a Donnell Linares solo homer. Tennessee retaliated with a pair of runs in the third, thanks to an RBI single for Russ Canzler that allowed Tony Campana to score, and Marwin Gonzalez scored on an error on the play to give Tennessee a 2-1 lead.

Mississippi tied the game in the bottom of the third with Willie Cabrera’s RBI single, before scoring two runs in the fourth to go ahead 4-2. The Braves also tacked on runs in the bottom of the sixth on an error by Tennessee second baseman Nate Samson to put the Braves lead at 6-2.

Tennessee would load the bases with two outs in the top of the seventh, when Robinson Chirinos hit a grand slam for the Smokies to tie the game at six. The blast is Chirinos’ fourteenth this season for Tennessee, and his first grand slam of the season.

The Braves would rally in the bottom of the seventh inning against Smokies reliever Aaron Shafer. Antoan Richardson hit an RBI double to win the game 7-6.

Despite giving up the grand slam to Chirinos, Braves reliever Juan Abreu took the victory for Mississippi to improve to 4-1 in 2010. Shafer took the loss for the Smokies to fall to 1-2.

You can listen to the game here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!

Hey Smokies Fans!

Last night’s game was washed out at Trustmark Park due to rain, so today the Smokies and Braves will play two in Mississippi.

The doubleheader will begin at 5 p.m., and the teams will play two seven inning games. Tennessee’s southpaw Jeremy Papelbon (1-2, 5.26 ERA) will pitch against Mississippi’s Jacob Thompson (6-7, 5.95 ERA) in the first game of the doubleheader. Chris Archer (3-1, 0.00 ERA) will pitch for Tennessee in the second game of the doubleheader against Mississippi’s Randall Delgado (0-0, 0.00 ERA).

Our coverage begins tonight at 4:45 p.m. with the Pilot Oscar-Mayer Pregame Show, featuring an interview with Smokies All-Star catcher Steve Clevenger. There will also be an in-between games show with Roger Hoover and Alex Powell, featuring highlights from the first game of the double-header, as well as some highlights of Andre Dawson’s induction speech from the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, N.Y.

You can listen to the games here online on smokiesbaseball.com or on the Smokies Radio Network’s flagship station,  The Sports Animal.

Thanks for listening!