The Yakima Z's have logged a record of 16-7 for the first four weeks of A to Z League play. They have the best record in the loop and are leading the South Division by five games over second-place Kelso, which is 11-12.
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| Ned Yost has guided the Z's to the best record in the A to Z League after four weeks of play. |
While racking up an impressive record the Z's have actually only out-scored their opponents by seven runs, 108-101. Yost's managing genius is certainly shining through!
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| Mel Ott |
Mel Ott of Moses Lake was named player of the week for week four. Ott batted .407 for the week (11-for-27) and hit three home runs. He scored 11 runs and drove in nine. Ty Cobb of Cashmere hit .478, scored five runs and swiped five bases.
Week 4 Highlights
April 26: Roger Clemens pitched a six-hitter and improved his record to 4-0 with a 5-1 win over Bainbridge Island. Greg Maddux pitched a four-hitter and Johnny Mize drove in four runs as Moses Lake beat Davenport 4-0.
April 27: Mel Ott hit his seventh homer, tripled, and drove in four runs in Ocean Shores' 6-4 win over Aberdeen. Pedro Martinez pitched a one-hitter and fanned 11 as Moses Lake blasted Davenport 10-0. In a battle between outstanding southpaws Forks and Whitey Ford bested Jefferson County and Randy Johnson 3-1. Andy Pafko belted a three-run homer in the bottom of the 14th to give Pasco a 9-6 triumph over Goldendale. Felix Hernandez pitched six scoreless innings and struck out 11 as Hoquiam topped Long Beach 4-1. In another duel between lefties Frank Viola and Vancouver edged Clayton Kershaw and Kelso 2-1. Bret Saberhagen pitched a five-hitter and Ted Simmons drove in four runs as Snoqualmie blanked North Bend 6-0.
April 28: Ott went 4-for-5 in Ocean Shores' ten-inning, 4-3 win over Aberdeen. David Cone pitched a three-hitter and Roberto Clemente drove home three runs as Cashmere topped Bainbridge Island 9-2. Kirby Puckett hit a grand slam to cap Pasco's six-run second inning and the P's held on for a 6-5 victory over Goldendale. Barry Larkin had three hits and scored two runs as Long Beach edged Hoquiam 3-2. Joe Vosmik snapped a tie with a two-run pinch homer in the bottom of the seventh, and Vancouver held on for a 3-2 win over Kelso. Willie Stargell's second homer of the game, in the bottom of the tenth, gave Snoqualmie a 7-6 win over North Bend. Jackie Robinson and Pudge Rodriguez each drove in three runs as Renton topped Tumwater 7-3. Curt Young pitched a three-hitter as Yakima bested Wenatchee 7-2.
April 29: A pinch-hit single in the bottom of the eighth by Sadaharu Oh capped a three-run rally in the bottom of the eighth as Ocean Shores came from behind to beat Aberdeen 5-4. Hisashi Iwakuma and Koji Uehara combined on a two-hitter as Quincy blanked Ephrata 3-0. Iwakuma, who is 3-0 with a 0.54 ERA in four starts, left the game with a sore shoulder in the ninth and may be out for about three weeks. Adam Jones hit a three-run homer in the fourth, and that's all Jefferson County got or needed in a 3-2 win over Forks. Javy Lopez had a homer and three RBI and scored three runs as Long Beach thumped Hoquiam 9-4.
April 30: Lou Brock led off the Bainbridge Island eighth with a pinch-hit homer, triggering a five-run rally as the B's topped Wenatchee 5-3. Mike Napoli slugged a three-run homer in North Bend's 6-4 win over Goldendale. Jimmy Key and Jim Konstanty combined on a two-hitter as Kelso routed Renton 10-1. Tony Oliva had three hits and four RBI as Ocean Shores thumped Yakima 11-3. George Sisler hit three home runs and a single, knocked in six runs and scored three as Snoqualmie romped at Pasco 12-4.
May 1: Clemens improved his record to 5-0, backed by a 14-hit attack as Cashmere routed Aberdeen 14-3. Todd Frazier hit a three-run homer as Forks scored four in the eighth to beat Davenport 7-3. Keith Hernandez slugged a three-run, pinch-hit homer in the bottom of the eighth as Hoquiam edged Ephrata 4-3. Mize and Dave Justice both had four RBI, but Jefferson County out-scored Moses Lake 7-6. Nolan Ryan fanned 12 in eight innings as Renton out-dueled Kelso and Sandy Koufax 2-1. Dolf Luque spun a one-hitter and Long Beach blanked Quincy 3-0. Tumwater racked up 16 hits, including four by Alan Trammell and two triples by starting pitcher Frank Tanana, as the T's pounded Vancouver 12-3.
May 2: Cashmere racked up 14 hits, led by three each from Ty Cobb and Eddie Collins, and Steve Carlton threw a five-hitter as the C's beat Aberdeen 7-2. Ephrata hit five home runs but lost to Hoquiam 7-6. Lefty Grove outdueled Phil Niekro and Goldendale edged North Bend 2-1. Sam Jethroe hit a three-run homer in the third and Charles Johnson also went deep as Jefferson County topped Moses Lake 6-3. Kouji Yamamoto drove in four runs and Carl Yastrzemski chased home three as Yakima thumped Ocean Shores 12-5. Jim Thome hit a three-run homer in the sixth and Tumwater bested Vancouver 3-1.
Injuries
Yutaka Fukumoto of Forks went out with an injury April 26 and will be out for about three weeks. Cliff Floyd was called up to replace him.
Jim Bunning of Bainbridge Island picked up his first win of the season April 27 against Cashmere, but also suffered an ankle injury on a defensive play in the seventh inning and will miss a couple of starts. Vida Blue was called up to fill his spot in the rotation. Blue developed a sore shoulder in his first appearance May 1 and will be out for a couple of weeks. Ray Brown was called up to fill in for Blue.
Robin Yount of Yakima twisted an ankle running out a single April 27 and will be out a couple of weeks. Todd Ziele was called up to fill Yount's roster spot.
Mel Queen was called up to take Iwakuma's spot in the Quincy rotation.
Kevin Brown was the second Bainbridge Island starter to go down with an injury this week when he left an April 29 game. Chief Bender was called up to fill Brown's spot in the rotation for a few weeks.
Forks reliever Roy Face left an April 29 game with a sore elbow and is expected to be out for a couple of weeks. Chuck Finley was called up to take Face's spot on the staff.
Kelso's Ted Kluszewski suffered a severe bruise when hit by a pitch April 30 and will miss about three weeks. Paul Konerko was activated to fill his roster spot. Billy Pierce of Pasco left a game early and will be out for a couple of weeks. Camilo Pascual will take his slot in the rotation.
Moses Lake's Stan Musial suffered a bruised knee when hit by a pitch May 1 and will be on the shelf for about three weeks. Roger Maris got the call to take The Man's roster spot.