There may have been no baseball in the nation’s capitol this 4th of July (and that’s a shame), but there was plenty of baseball just a few hours northwest of DC. The Altoona Curve (Double A affiliate of the Pittsburgh Pirates) hosted our Harrisburg Senators in what they call a “PA Turnpike Series.” Altoona is pretty close to where I grew up, so I talked my Dad into minor league ball for the holiday and I escaped DC’s crowds and humidity.
Blair County Ballpark, home of the Curve, is a true gem of a park. Built in 1999, the stadium is a beautiful brick structure that echoes the look of Camden Yards. It’s adjacent to an amusement park, Lakemont, so an old wooden rollercoaster can be seen just beyond right field. The rollercoast ran all night and the seats spelled out “Go Curves!” Also, the club’s ownership group includes both Jerome Bettis and Mario Lemieux.
The stadium was filled with over 8,000 cheering on the two local teams. Before the game, Curve officials commemorated the franchise’s all-time All-Star team. Their first pick was none other than Rob Mackowiak. I accidentally laughed out loud. Rob spent most of 1999 and 2000 playing for the Curve.
A few moments later, the line-ups were announced. Melvin Dorta was the Curve’s lead off hitter. Dorta, you may recall, made his major league debut with the Nationals in 2006. He spent time in Harrisburg from 2004-2007.
Though those random moments of familiarity were surprises, I competely expected to see a dominant performance from RHP Jordan Zimmermann. And I did not leave dissapointed.
Zimmermann gave up a lead off single to Dorta to start the game. Dorta quickly stole second and scored moments later off of another hit. After another stolen base and another RBI hit, the Senators were trailing the Curve 2-0. Jordan settled down after that first inning and delivered six shut out innings. I was continually impressed by his efficiency. I was also pleased that manager Stearns allowed Jordan to take late inning at bats because of his low pitch count. With two outs in the 6th, Zimmerman hit for himself and drove the ball to deep center for a 2 RBI double. Zimmermann’s good swing put the Senators ahead 5-2.
He pitched through the 7th inning giving up ony 2 runs on 5 hits with 2 walks and 4 strike outs. Beltran Perez finished the game with 2 scoreless frames. Upon entering the game, Perez nailed Dorta hard in the thigh with an inside fastball. Dorta fell to the ground for several minutes before walking it off and taking his base.
Five Altoona pitchers would come to the mound for the Curve throughout the game. While starter Bloom only gave up 1 run on 4 hits in 5 innings, his bullpen put the game out of reach. Together, they gave up 11 runs on 13 hits with 4 walks.
Unlike the “major league club,” the Senators’ bats are alive and well. Five different hitters collected doubles and seven different hitters drove in runs. Leonard Davis hit his second home run during the Senators’ 6th innning explosion. Here’s the numbers:
Davis: 3 for 5; Rhinehart: 2 for 4; Baez: 3 for 5; Guzman: 2 for 5 and Bynum: 2 for 4
I think Lenny Harris should stay far away from these guys. The final score was 12-2 with 17 hits for Harrisburg. Bang, Zoom went the fireworks. The future indeed seems bright for Jordan Zimmermann. Here’s some photos. Happy 4th of July!
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July 5th, 2008 at 7:34 am
How cool is it that you got to see Zimmermann pitch? With the way the first half of 2008 has gone, I wonder if he won’t move up to the first or second spot in most of the Nationals’ prospect lists.
July 6th, 2008 at 10:20 am
Mike, it was awesome! It just happened to work out that Zimmermann was pitching for the holiday, which was great. We saw him at Potomac earlier this year and I’m excited to see his career unfold.