Q & A with Johnny Giavotella

Giavotella continues to work on his defense
at second base (File photo: Lee Warren)

Fans in Kansas City are clamoring for Johnny Giavotella. A quick look at his accomplishments in Omaha this season will tell you why.

The 5’ 8” second baseman’s 49 hits (.398 average) in June were more than any other player in professional baseball – from Class A through the big leagues. And he’s hitting at a better clip in July (31-for-77, a .403 average). He currently leads the Omaha Storm Chasers in hitting (.342), hits (139), doubles (30), total bases (198), OBP (.396), multi-hit games (40) and he’s tied for first in RBIs (65).

The right-handed hitter is hitting both righties (.331) and lefties (.374), and strangely, he is hitting better when he is behind in the count (.374) than when he is ahead (.356). He also has power (9 home runs).

Hurley shuts down the Chasers

Lance Zawadzki drove in the only
run for the Storm Chasers.
(Photo: Dennis Hubbard)

Omaha, Neb. – Round Rock starting pitcher Eric Hurley was just too good. The former 2004 first-round pick and former high school teammate of current Kansas City Royal Billy Butler, shut down the Chasers over seven innings, giving up just one run and improved to 5-0 on the season, in a 3-1 Express victory.

The sixth inning was the key for the Express. With the Chasers leading 1-0, O’Sullivan gave up an RBI double to Express first baseman Brad Nelson and a sacrifice fly to Matt Kata, giving the Express a 2-1 lead and they didn't look back.

Second place Memphis is losing to Oklahoma City 7-0 in the fifth inning as of this writing. If that score holds up, the Chasers will maintain their four game lead over the Redbirds in the PCL American North.

O’Sullivan only gave up two runs on seven hits and one walk, striking out five. And with one exception, he showed good command of his breaking pitches.

“O’Sullivan pitched great,” said interim manager Tommy Gregg. “He left that one changeup up to Nelson (in the sixth inning) that cost him a little bit, but other than that, he pitched a great game.”

Suppan pitching in Omaha because he still loves the game

Jeff Suppan is 9-5 with a 4.60 ERA in 20

appearances (19 starts) for Omaha this season

(File photo: Gage Matthews / Kings of Kauffman)

Jeff Suppan’s performance Friday night at Werner Park is exactly what you would expect from him. He didn’t have his best stuff, but he pitched to contact, tweaked his game plan, gave up a lot of hits, and still found a way to keep the Storm Chasers in the game long enough for their offense to kick in.

Suppan picked up his ninth win of the season, which ties him for second in the PCL, while at no point looking to be in control of the game.

“To me, that’s what pitching is all about,” Suppan said after the game. “Knowing what’s working, knowing what’s not. Changing speeds, trying to work as fast as we can. It’s one of those days where my fastball really wasn’t how I like it to be – down in the zone. Getting on top of the ball, getting underneath it and the cutter a lot, so I was having to change speeds in different ways.

Chasers erupt for five runs in the fifth, go on to win 10-4

Jeff Suppan in action Friday night at Werner Park.
He picked up his ninth win of the season.
(Photo: Lee Warren)

Omaha, Neb. – David Lough led the Omaha Storm Chasers offensive attack Friday night at Werner Park, going 3-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBIs, meanwhile, starting pitcher Jeff Suppan wiggled off the hook on numerous occasions en route to a 10-4 win for Omaha.

The win was Suppan’s ninth of the season. And the Chasers extended their lead in the PCL American North to three games since Memphis lost in Oklahoma City.

After the game, interim manager Tommy Gregg said he was pleased with everyone’s effort because it was a tough day. The team woke up at 3:30 am in Memphis to catch their plane. They endured a delay at one point and had to fly around a storm at another point. Then, later in the day, they found out that some of their gear was delayed.

Mark Nasser talks about Mendoza's no-hitter

Omaha Storm Chasers radio broadcaster Mark Nasser made some time for Omaha Baseball 360 this morning to talk about Luis Mendoza's no-hitter, turned one-hitter, turned no-hitter last night in Memphis. He spoke about why Mendoza has been so effective this season, the controversial play that nearly cost Mendoza the no-hitter and Nasser offered his opinion of the play. Just click the play button below to listen to the interview.

UPDATE from the Storm Chasers on July 19 @ 4:02 pm: The Memphis coaching staff, led by manager Chris Maloney – who, incidentally, was ejected during the 5th inning last night – is protesting the scoring decision and has filed a formal appeal to the Pacific Coast League office. A final decision could be made within the next 24-48 hours.

UPDATE from the PCL on July 20 @ 5:13 pm: The PCL has overturned Medoza's no-hitter. It will go down in the record books as a one-hitter. See the PCL's complete response here.

Zephyrs down the Chasers, Omaha clings to one game lead

Mike Montgomery gave up three
earned runs in 6.0 innings
(File photo: Dennis Hubbard)

Omaha, Neb. – Everything turned on one at bat during the sixth inning on Friday night. New Orleans shortstop Ozzie Martinez blasted a two-run, two-out home run to give New Orleans a 3-2 lead. The Chasers hung in the game until the eighth inning when the Zephyrs sent 10 men to the plate, scoring six runs to take a 9-2 lead. That turned out to be the final score and the Chasers fell to 50-43 on the season.

Omaha scored in the first inning on a solid single to right field by Clint Robinson. He drove in Jarrod Dyson, who had no problem scoring from second base and didn't even draw a throw from right fielder Chris Aguila. Omaha scored again in the second inning when Irving Falu drove in Lorenzo Cain with a sharp single to center field on an 0-1 pitch to give Omaha the 2-0 lead.

Meanwhile, Mike Montgomery looked strong early, retiring the first nine hitters he faced. He changed speeds and located well with the exception of his curve ball, which he was eventually able to command. He cruised through the first five innings, giving up just a single run.

Ely shuts down the Chasers to end Omaha’s winning streak

Suppan pitched seven innings, giving up two
earned runs on five hits and two walks
(Photo: Lee Warren)

Jeff Suppan’s bid for his fourth win in five starts came up short on Sunday, even though he pitched well enough to win – giving up just two earned runs in seven innings of work. But Albuquerque starter John Ely was even more efficient – tossing seven shutout innings while yielding just four hits and two walks in a 2-0 Albuquerque win in front of 9,023 fans, a new Werner Park record. 

The only scoring came in the fifth inning when Albuquerque first baseman Russell Mitchell took a 1-0 offering from Suppan over the left field wall with centerfielder Jamie Hoffmann on base. After the game, hitting coach Tommy Gregg – who is managing the team while Mike Jirschele is away on personal business – spoke about Suppan’s outing and the pitch Mitchell hit out of the park.

“That pitch was down,” Gregg said. “It was over the plate, but it was down and Mitchell did a good job of just getting the barrel to it and hit a line drive out of the park. But it wasn’t a bad pitch. You’ve got to give Mitchell the credit for putting the barrel on it good. That’s the way the game goes.

Tommy Gregg talks hitting as the Storm Chasers offense explodes

The Omaha Storm Chasers have scored 52 runs on 72 hits during their current four-game winning streak. Fittingly, hitting coach Tommy Gregg was Mark Nasser’s guest last night on the pregame show and they talked about the team’s recent offensive explosion.

“It’s not me,” Gregg said. “Let’s get that straight first. I had nothing to do with it. I don’t hold the bats for them. All I’m doing is telling them what we want from them and how we want them to hit the ball ...”

“It helps when you’re in Reno and Colorado Springs where the ball carries well, the infields are hard ... ground balls get through the holes, balls get into the gaps that usually don’t, so it’s nice to see guys taking advantage of the elements.”