Another good week for Lehigh Valley as they went 4-2 and continue their ascent in the International League standings, and now stand at 39-40, in 4th Place of the Northern Division, six games behind division leading Scranton.  ‘Pig hitting leaders include Rich Thompson who is ninth in both triples (3) and steals (15); Andy Tracy is 3rd in runs (48), 2nd in homers (14), 2nd in RBI’s (55) and leading the league in walks (39).  On the mound, Andrew Carpenter is 4th in wins (7), 8th in innings (88.1) and 10th in ERA (2.75); Carlos Carrasco leads the league in IP (92.) and is second in strikeouts (88). Kyle Kendrick is 9th in innings pitched (88.1).

Week in Review-

6/28/09–The ‘Pigs reach the .500 mark for the first time since opening day with a 6-1 victory over Norfolk.  After being victimized by a perfect game through six innings, the Lehigh Valley bats awoke in the seventh inning, just in time to save a very good effort by ‘Pigs starter Rodrigo Lopez (5-4) who went seven strong innings, giving up just a run on seven hits.  He walked one and struck out three.  Down 1-0 in the 7th, the ‘Pigs put up a six spot, with the big hits being a Terry Tiffee RBI single and a two run JJ Furmaniak double.

06/29/09–The ‘Pigs failed in their bid to go over .500 for the first time in team history in a 6-1 loss to Norfolk.  A very costly error by 3B Terry Tiffee, led to a five run fifth inning and took the wind out of the sails of the ‘Pigs.  With two out in the fifth in a 1-0 ballgame, Tiffee booted a ground ball allowing a run to score to make it 2-0.  The next batter hit a grand slam, giving Norfolk a 6-0 lead.  Gustavo Chacin (2-3) started for Lehigh Valley and went five innings, giving up 6 runs (1 earned) on 8 hits.  he didn’t walk a batter and struck out 3.  The lone ‘Pig run came on a Paul Hoover Sac Fly in the 6Th.  Both Rich Thompson and Miguel Cairo had 2 hits for Lehigh Valley who left 9 on base.

06/30/09–The ‘Pigs offense has disappeared, this time in a 3-1 loss to Norfolk.  Kyle Kendrick (4-5), pitched a complete game but took the hard luck loss.  He gave up just 2 runs on six hits, but did commit a costly throwing error that led to one of the Norfolf 8th inning runs.  The only Lehigh Valley run came on a solo homer by Terry Tiffee (2), that tied the game at 1 in the second inning.  The ‘Pigs over the last two games in which they have scored just two runs are 0-9 with RISP.  Lou Marson had two hits for Lehigh Valley.

07/01/09–OFF

07/02/09–Carlos Carrasco (5-7) went six strong innings, giving up just a run on six hits, in a very strong outing, leading Lehigh Valley to a 5-1 victory over visiting Syracuse.  The ‘Pigs got all the runs they needed in a 5 run fourth inning, the key hits being a two run double by Miguel Cairo and a two run single by Lou Marson.  Andy Tracy also had a  big night for Lehigh Valley going 2-3 with a run and an RBI.

‘Pig Prospects–Lou Marson–Another solid week for Marson at 6-16 (.375) with 6 RBI’s.  His offensive numbers have been climbing over the passed several weeks since his return from the DL, and he now stands at .267/.344/.349 with 1 HR and 18 RBI.  He remains right around 20% of runners caught stealing. 

Carlos Carrasco–A two start, two win week for Carrasco who pitched extremely well this week, going 12.1 innings, giving up just 2 runs on 13 hits.  He walked five, struck out 11, and was very sharp, possibly trying to prove something to the Phillies brass.  On the year, he is now 5-7 with a 4.70 ERA.  Most importantly, over the last several outings, he has been pitching MUCH better with runners in scoring position.  Its notable that he gave up only 2 ER, while giving up 13 hits.

Andrew Carpenter–Threw eight sutout innings in his last outing, giving up just five hits, walking one and striking out seven.  He did not allow an extra base hit all night.  He is 7-1 on the year with a 2.75 ERA in his 14 outings.  He gives you consistentcy, throwing 5 innings in each outing this year.The only stat of concern is the .313 avg. lefties have off of him.  Other than that, 26BB 61K in 88.1 IP.  .251 opp avg. (.227 with RISP).  0.78 GO/AO and a WHIP of 1.22,  Carpenter continues to do nothing exceptional, except put up wins and a solid ERA for Lehigh Valley.  He has a bulldog approach that is easy to appreciate.

Kyle Kendrick–Had an excellent outing on Tuesday against Norfolk (see above).  On the year, he is 4-5 with a 3.77 ERA in 16 starts.  He has walked 28 and struck out 44 in 88.1 IP.  The opposition is hitting .254 against him, just .186 with RISP.  Kendrick continues to do nothing to hurt his trade value, but he continues to get overlooked by the Phillies brass when replacements are needed in Philly. 

Notes: Prior to the game last Sunday, the last time the Phils AAA affiliate was .500 was in May of 2007, while the team was located in Ottawa, a span of 318 games.

—Andy Tracy, Mike Cervenak, and Andrew Carpenter were all named to the International League all star team.

—Cedric Bowers now has a 10.1 inning scoreless streak and has  allowed just one earned run in his last 16 appearances.

Transactions:  Once again, Sergio Escalona was called up to the Phillies after Antonio Bastardo was placed on the disabled list with a sore shoulder.Escalona is a combined 0-1 with a 2.90 ERA in 23 appearances (Reading/LV) with 12 saves.

–Lehigh Valley acquired veteran LHP Brian Mazone, from Albuquerque (Dodgers) for future considerations.  Mazone, 32, pitched for Lehigh Valley last year and was their best starter during the first half of the year, earning an all star game apperance.   He is 0-1 with a 8.44 ERA in 13 relief appearances with AAA Albuquerque this year, however with an open rotation spot in Lehigh Valley, he likely will start.

—RHP Rodrigo Lopez was called up to Philadelphia to start on Friday against New York.

–Lehigh Valley is 5 games behind Norfolk for the wildcard spot in the International League playoffs.  They play the first day/night doubleheader in team history tomorrow.  Although it hasnt been announced as of yet, look for Brian Mazone to get his first start of the year for the IronPigs and to be on a 45-50 pitch count.  He has not started a game all year.  Andrew Carpenter will be pitching the nightcap.