Need a win in a big way, the Boise Hawks scored their most runs of the season away from Memorial Stadium and needed every one of them, hanging on for an 8-7 victory over Vancouver, Sunday afternoon.

Providing the big spark was Logan Watkins (pictured left), who drove in four runs in the game – including a key two-run double in the fourth inning (audio –
Watkins2B.wma).  The 19-year-old from Kansas also played the final eight innings of the game in leftfield, his first venture into the outfield this season.

Also providing some spark was centerfielder, Brett Jackson, who ended a long Boise home run drought with a two-run shot in the first inning (audio
JacksonHR.wma) and made a couple nice running catches in the field.  Runey Davis went 3-for-5, including a two-run single in the third inning that put the Hawks up, 4-1.

Robert Hernandez was outstanding on the mound, going five innings of two-hit ball to pick up his first win of the year.  Despite control issues from the bullpen, Dionis Nunez gutted through the final five outs for his first save.

AROUND VANCOUVER: One of the neat things around Nat Bailey Stadium, is adjacent to the park.  With the 2010 Winter Olympics coming to Vancouver, many new facilities have been built for the event – including the Vancouver Olympic Centre (pictured right), which will seat when completed 6,500 spectators for Curling events.  In Richmond, where we are staying, is the Olympic, a new venue has been constructed for long track speed skating.

OUR HOTEL: The Accent Inn is located in Richmond, a community just south of Vancouver proper – on the south edge of the Fraser River.  Outside of a McDonalds and a Sports Pub, there are no eateries within six-blocks of the hotel, but within two miles, there are tons of multi-ethnic varieties to choose from – Indian, Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese, German, Dutch, along with local diners.  I have one of the better rooms at this hotel – two TV’s, including a flat screen, and good internet (check out some video of my room).  The hotel staff even brought me a microwave up so I could cook some meals I brought with me on the trip.  (Side Note – for the longtime followers of the Hawks, this is the same hotel that caught fire when the team was in Vancouver back in 2005 – but everything has been renovated).

THE BACON: The Hawks have won seven games this year – six by one run margins (6-2 in one-run games)…Jae-Hoon Ha had to leave today’s game after being hit on the left arm by a fastball, forcing Watkins to move into left field – as the Hawks had just two position players available on the bench (Hak-Ju Lee, who went to SS, and catcher Matt Williams)…the home run by Jackson was the first by the Hawks since June 26 – the span of 14 games…Nunez saw his scoreless inning streak ended at 10.1 innings tonight – the first earned run allowed by the righty since June 24.

YOU BE THE JUDGE: To the left is Vancouver’s mascot, Bob Brown Bear – which I think is one of the cutest mascot’s in the league (right up there with Boomer the Bear in Yakima – sorry Humphrey).  However, Bob is very similar to the A&W bear that is portrayed all over the ballpark (local A&W owners are part-owners of the C’s).  They did have an outstanding promotion this afternoon – $1.00 (Canadian) A&W root beer floats for charity.

A tough night for the Hawks in Vancouver, as the pitching staff was roughed up for 16 hits in a 9-0 loss to the Canadians, before the biggest crowd Boise has played before this season (4,846).  Things seemingly were off to a good start (the pic of me was taken before the game – the swelling from yesterday’s bee sting has gone down in my cheek), as Hak-Ju Lee had a perfect bunt single on the first pitch.  But on a hit-and-run, George Matheus lined a hot-shot to the first baseman, doubling off Lee – which proved to be an omen.

What ensued was another rough night, as Jon Nagel hit his pitch count in the second, Josh Whitlock barely got through the third, and Miguel Sierra barely got through the fifth.  The bright spot on the bump was Ryan Sontag – back at the scene of his first professional outing on the mound, working a 1-2-3 eighth inning.

Talking with Brett Jackson after the game, he was pleased with his at bats, espeically a first inning single – one that was extremely hit hard.  He said he had a great round in the cage today and is hoping for a good outing tomorrow.

Something else that really caught me over the last 24 hours is how much skipper Casey Kopitzke will fight for his men.  A hit was ruled on a routine ground ball to Lee in the infamous 7th inning rally by the Canadians (whose mascot, Bob Brown Bear is pictured to the right) – one that I, Kopitzke (here hitting some infield-outfield with the team today), and the staff felt should have been an error.  Up until the 24th and final hour that the call could be overturned, Boise’s manager was trying to get the call reversed – to no avail, but it was his passion to try and turn a couple earned runs to unearned runs for his pitching staff that earned my respect.

Tomorrow will be a quick turnaround for the club, as the team will leave for the yard around 10 a.m. for the 1 p.m. (Pacific Time) ball game – the first afternoon game of the year for the Hawks.  The saving grace for a lot of the guys is that tomorrow night, they will get to explore Vancouver (including the new bridge over the Fraser River as part of the Airport-to-Downtown Sky Train pictured at the left) – which is better than downtown Richmond, where we are staying.

BACON: The loss for the Hawks was their seventh straight defeat away from Memorial Stadium and the club fell to 1-9 on the road…Jackson has now hit safely in 6-of-7 games with the Hawks, while Jae-Hoon Ha has hit safely in nine of his last ten games…Lee had a scary moment in the 3rd inning, colliding with C’s third-baseman Ryne Jurnigan – but he shook off a knee injury…Vancouver scored in each of the first six innings tonight.

TOMORROW – Former Hawk, Josh Vitters, will play for the USA team in the MLB Futures Game in St. Louis, as part of All-Star Week…he is the youngest player on the USA team.

Despite issues with transportation issues in the crown jewel city of British Columbia, the Boise Hawks were able to meet the Vancouver Canadians in Game 1 of the five-game series at Nat Bailey Stadium (pictured left).  The day did not start well for the Hawks, as the bus got lost on the way to the gym for the team’s workout at a downtown gym (I am usually the navigator, but I was out for my own run, looking for a Subway – which was two miles from the hotel).  The team was also supposed to head for the park at 3 p.m., but traffic woes for our driver (after taking the training staff to the park earlier), or maybe getting lost, forced us to take one bus at 3:45 p.m. – getting to the yard close to 4:20 p.m.

Once there, the Hawks got another quality start by Jeff Antigua in Vancouver (downtown pictured to the right in the distance), retiring 15 of the 16 batters that he faced – striking out a season high six batters.  However, the bullpen’s evil head showed up, as the C’s strung together six hits against Joe Simokaitis and Danny Keefe, scoring five runs in a 5-4 victory tonight.

The high point of the night was a tie between the RBI triple from speedster Jose Valdez in the third inning, and the Great Sushi Race in the fifth – Vancouver’s take on the Sausage Race in Milwaukee, which is right there with our Great Potato Race at Memorial Stadium – you make the call on which is better.

THE BACON: Brett Jackson went 0-for-3 in the loss, ending his hit streak at five games…newcomer Runey Davis went 0-for-2 with two walks and two stolen bases in his Hawks debut…the loss was the first by the Hawks in a one-run game that wasn’t a walk-off loss.

ISSUES: Yellowjackets in the press box were bad…one off my cheek hurt, but 13 were killed during the game…Rob Fai, the Voice of the C’s, said a fumagator was going to rectify the situation tomorrow.

Catching up a bit today…posting the audio of some interviews from the first couple weeks of the season…

Including catcher Matt Williams (
WilliamsInterview.wma), pitcher Mike Perconte (
perconteinterview.wma), and pitcher Tarlandus Mitchell (
MitchellInterview.wma).

Also, here is a couple interviews with Inside the Ivy.com’s Steve Holley, talking about call-ups around the Cubs system (
Holley1.wma) and his trip to New Orleans to watch the Iowa Cubs (
Holley2.wma)

What a wild and crazy day – as the Boise Hawks made their annual pilgrimage to Canada to start a series with the Vancouver Canadians.

The NWL media guide states that it is 604 miles between Boise and Vancouver – but tell that to the players and staff after this trip.

Things went well early, leaving Memorial Stadium around midnight and making it just outside of Seattle around 8 a.m. (video at truck stop in North Bend) – however, traffic in the Puget Sound metro was tough – not as tough, however, as the crossing into Canada.  People have talked about how strict the two countries have gotten in regards to travel between the nations – the lines were outrageous.  However, what should have been 45 minutes to maybe an hour (filling out paperwork for the Canadian Governement), turned into two, three, four hours sitting on a hot stagnant bus, as one member of our travel party did not have proper documentation and had to remain in the States until tomorrow (once his documents arrive by FedEx).

The trip was particularly tough on Brett Jackson, the Cubs first-round pick, who fouled not one, but two balls off his instep last night – and trying to keep ice on it was difficult.

ON THE BUS: We watched a bunch of episodes of HBO’s Eastbound and Down, a crude comedy about mullet-toting baseball pitcher Kenny Powers…we watched Quantum of Solace, the latest James Bond movie, which was action-packed, along with Nicholas Cage’s Bangkok Dangerous – which I fell asleep for.

THE BACON: The Hawks headed out of town on a winning note, stopping Eugene, 6-3, winning the series, three games to two…Boise gained two games in the NWL East Division during the homestand, now sitting seven games out of first place…Jackson had an RBI single, part of a two-hit night, and has hit safely in all five games with the Hawks…Jose Valdez had a great all-around game, stealing a base, dropping down a sacrifice bunt, to go along with a key two-run single in the eighth inning…Dionis Nunez continues to put up zeros in relief, extending his scoreless innings streak to 9.1 innings – as he has not allowed a run in four-straight appearances.

ROSTER MOVES: The Cubs made a trio of roster moves over the last 24 hours, as pitcher Mike Perconte has been promoted to Advanced-A Daytona, while outfielder Cliff Andersen has been released. Joining the Hawks here in Vancouver from Mesa is Runey Davis, the Cubs 12th Round pick out of Howard CC in Texas…Davis led his club to the 2009 NJCAA Division I National Championship, hitting .404 with 8 HR and 48 RBI.

Hopefully there were not many fans disappointed that I did not write a blog entry yesterday – as I decided to relax with my wife when I got home last night – knowing what is looming ahead during the next week.

So, we have to catch up on a few things.  Monday saw the Hawks rally from 4-0 down to claim their fifth one-run victory of the season, 5-4 over Eugene.  Kudos to the two-out magic, as RBI doubles from Jae-Hoon Ha and Matt Williams pulled the club within one, with Brett Jackson roping a two-run triple in the seventh to give Boise the lead for good.

What a solid job by Mike Perconte in the closer’s role, getting the final six outs – including a big 6-4-3 double play on slugger Nate Freiman to close out the eight.

Unfortunately, a three-game win streak was not in the cards, as three Eugene pitchers combined on a four-hitter in a 6-0 win.  Frustrating was the word, as the Hawks managed to get just four balls out of the infield through eight innings, with both hits infield singles.

Great performance by Tarlandus Mitchell (left), who pitched three and two-thirds hitless innings in the start – walking four, but fanning three.  Many fans were in dismay that the Texan was coming out with two outs and none on in the fourth – but the Cubs have a strict pitch count limit and Mitchell was at the end of his string.

BACON: The Hawks have failed to hit a home run in ten games at Memorial Stadium this season and have failed to hit a long ball in 11-straight games…if they do not hit one tomorrow, it will be tough in Vancouver – which surrenders the fewest HR’s year in and year out in the NWL…Boise is last in HR’s with two, as Vancouver hit their third HR of the season tonight…Jackson has hit safely in all four games as a Hawk, while Ha saw his seven-game hit streak snapped tonight…as a starter, Mitchell has not allowed an earned run in 6.2 innings, but allowed nine runs in two innings of work out of the bullpen.

NOTES: The team will embark on the 604 mile journey to Vancouver, B.C. beginning around midnight tomorrow – probably getting to the Accent Inn around lunchtime on Thursday…look for interesting pictures on the blog this weekend – especially since Vancouver is hosting the 2010 Winter Olympic Games, with the Olympic Curling Arena located adjacent to Nat Bailey Stadium.

LOOKING AHEAD: I have begun a look at the 20th Anniversary of Memorial Stadium by contacting as many of the former Boise Hawks play-by-play announcers for Hawk Talk interviews.  Today, I spoke with Tom Scott, who was the lead TV announcer for the Hawks in 1993 and handled PA work at Memorial Stadium throughout the 90s, along with Dave Hahn, Voice of the Hawks from 1992-95 – and Voice of the Eugene Emeralds from 1996-98.  Both had great memories that will be passed on to the fans.  Once we return from Vancouver, I will chat with Rob Simpson (1996-00) and Paul Chiofar (2006-07) – along with many others.  It will make for interesting radio on Hawk Talk.

When I got to Memorial Stadium and surveyed the Eugene Emeralds, one thing that really surprised me was how big the San Diego Padres affiliate was – players 6-4, 6-5, 6-6…but the one that surprised me was six-foot, eight-inch, 250 pound Nate Freiman, a behemoth of a first baseman for the Ems.  The former Duke Blue Devil and college teammate of current Hawk Matt Williams, looked more like he should have been playing for Mike Krzyzewski’s basketball team.

However, for the Hawks – and especially reliever Josh Whitlock, they found out first hand why Freiman wasn’t on the basketball court, as the big man slugged a pair of home runs, including a back-breaking seventh inning grand slam to help Eugene extend the Hawks losing streak to five with a 8-0 loss.

The loss spoiled an outstanding start by Boise left-hander, Jeff Antigua, who took a no-hitter into the fifth inning, allowing just one hit, walking two, and striking out four.  The 19-year-old kept Eugene off-balance all night, working out of jams in both the second and fourth innings – lowering his team-leading ERA to 1.38.

Unfortunately, the Hawks could not get anything going with the bats for the second-straight night, mustering just four singles – and despite having a runner aboard in each of the first three innings, double plays erased the threat.

Kudos go to multiple ways tonight as well – first for Mike Sharp, who has never called a baseball game live before, stepping in for me in the second inning as I battled the stomach flu – great job Sharpie!!! Also kudos to the Boise fans, as nearly 4,000 Hawks faithful braved the near 100-degree heat tonight – the largest crowd of the season (and we could have probably fit more in the stadium – as Everett had 4,300, Salem-Keizer 4,800, and Spokane 7,200).  Finally, what a fireworks show after the game – especially after the clunkers of fireworks shows at Salem-Keizer and Tri-City, the fans definitely got their monies worth.

THE BACON: The Hawks have not scored a run in 20 consecutive innings, failing to push a runner to third base in any of the frames…Boise has not hit a home run in eight-straight games, including no homers at home, and rank last in the NWL with two round-trippers…Hak-Ju Lee committed an error for the third-straight game and leads the league with ten miscues.

NOTES: The Chicago Cubs made a pair of roster moves involving the Hawks today – as Matt Cerda was sent to Mesa for an injury rehab, while Kevin Soto heads to Mesa to play in the Arizona Rookie League…Brett Jackson made his Boise debut tonight, going 1-for-4.

It was getaway day in the Tri-Cities, with the highlight of the day coming at the hotel – when my son (pictured to the left) got a chance to play in the swimming pool.  You know it is a bad night, when the almost two year old puts on a headset during the game and talks about baseball with dad – just trying to get through a 33-minute half inning.

To say the Hawks performance was a disappointment was an understatement – considering they were playing in front of their biggest crowd of the season (a stadium record 3,794 fans at Gesa Stadium), coming off the hard to swallow 6-5 loss last night.

Six Boise pitchers combined to walk ten batters, hit three others, the team recorded a catchers interference call, two passed balls, and a strikeout with the batter not even standing in the batters box.  At one point, Tri-City pitchers had retired 17-straight Hawk batters.

What was even more disappointing was the post-game fireworks show at the stadium.  Brent Miles and his staff is phenomenal – they took care of me and the club really well and get kudos for the monster crowd.  But the 2-minute fireworks show had me wanting more – considering I know how long tomorrow’s show in Boise will be.

The nice thing is, after a four-hour drive home (probably walk in the door around 4:30 a.m.), it will be a new day and the Hawks can strap it on – looking for a win.

THE BACON – Alex Feinberg was the thorn in the side for the Hawks last night, as the Dust Devil second baseman, coming into the game hitting .067, reached base in all five plate appearances, including two hits and four RBI…Larry Suarez continued his control issues, walking five men in two innings of work, with all three runs scoring on a Leonardo Reyes double coming off of walks…Andres Quezada has rebounded from two tough outings, posting 1-2-3 frames in each of his last two appearances…Tri-City is now 9-0 against the NWL East and heads to Salem-Keizer for a showdown with the West Division leaders.

NOTES – It is expected that Cubs first-round pick Brett Jackson will join the Hawks on Saturday and be in the line-up as the starting center fielder…the prognosis on pitcher Su-Min Jung was a bit more optimistic from trainer Dan Golden, as the Korea native felt much better today after having to leave Thursday’s game with a shoulder injury – he will be evaluated Saturday by team doctors in Boise…the shutout loss was the first time the Hawks have been blanked this season.

STAT OF THE DAY – During the eighth inning (around 11 p.m. MT), I asked to see if anyone was listening to the game (especially since it was 12-0) and if they were – to email me.  Guess what, we received 13 emails in the following five minutes.  Hawks fans bleed Red, Gold, and Green.