Miami Palms Blog

After a tough start to the season, the Palms have turned it around and are now above .500 heading into June. The success can be attributed to the team's ability to hit twice as many homers in May as in April, and driving the team average to .294, a historic pace and tops in the league. The high flying offense has led to two sweeps in the last three series, against the Marlins and Twins, with each series taking placeo n the road.

The Palms are heading into their first off day in some time, and they went out with a bang, playing a thirteen inning filler with the Twins. The Twins were up in the top of the 9th by two. Eddie Black led the inning off with a double, but Steve Drysdale and Ryan Henning were retired. With two outs and the team down by two, Troy Tulowitzki kept the inning alive with a single. Coco Crisp walked the bases full, and Martin Prado tied the game with a two run single. After being held scoreless from the 10th through 12th, the Palms came through with 3 runs in the top of the 13th, with Prado hitting the game winning double and Frank Sohn following with two more RBI. 3b Prado 3-7 2b (19) 3bi (23) R K RF Sohn 1-7 2b (8) 2bi (18) K DH Winn 2-7 2b (15) K 1b Dupont 1-7 2Ks C Black 3-6 3 2b (15) 3 R BB 2 K LF Drysdale 2-6 1bi (8) 2b Henning 2-6 2b (6) 1bi (16) R K SS Tulowitzki 2-5 2 R BB CF Crisp 1-5 BB K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Parra 6 ...

The offense continues to torch the opposition, as the Palms came from behind to defeat the Twins. Justin Morneau put the Twins ahead in the 2nd with a three run blast. The Twins hit three triples as they added three more runs to their total. The Palms were undeterred, however. Randy Winn and Eddie Black homered for the second game in a row, with solo blasts in the third and fourth, respectively. The big inning was the 6th, when the Palms tied the game and batted around. The big hit was Troy Tulowitzki's two run double. He drove in the game winning runs with a single the next inning. The Palms bullpen held the Twins scoreless after Javier Vazquez struggled through 4 and a third. RF Sohn 2-5 R 3b Smythe 3-5 1bi (9) DH Winn 2-5 HR (11) 1bi (35) R K 1b Dupont 1-4 R BB K C Black 2-4 HR (10) 2bi (28) 2R SAC LF Sadan 2-5 R 2b Henning 0-4 HBP GIDP SS Tulowitzki 2-5 2b (10) 4bi (15) R 2K CF Crisp 1-3 BB 2K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Vazquez ...

In Atlanta, Martin Prado saw playing time when Chipper Jones was on the DL, and he excelled as a slap hitter. When Jones returned, Prado found himself as the odd man out, still a valuable utility player. Even so, Prado strived for a starting spot and ended up in Miami where he had a shot at being the every day third baseman. After 42 games played, Prado has proved he is no fluke. He moved to the top of the order, and is hitting .335, good for second on the team behind Randy Winn and 9th highest in the American League. He also leads the team in doubles, triples and is second in runs and hits. He clearly has a little bit of work to do with his plate patience, with 32 strikeouts to 14 walks, but h ehas quickly emerged as the lead off hitter, despite the presence of former leadoff men Randy Winn and Coco Crisp on the roster. Prado keyed the Palms win in Minnesota last night with a Grand Slam, his third homer of the season. He has the day off on Saturday, squaring off against Twins starter ...

The 2nd inning was the big one for the Palms. Martin Prado got the big hit with a grand slam, only his third homer of the season. Eddie Black added another homer, a two run blast in the second to make it 6-1. The lead was insurmountable by this point, and the Palms piled on with another blast from Black, and the 10th dinger of the year from the surprising Randy Winn. 3b Prado 2-5 GS (3) 2b (18) 4bi (20) R K RF Sohn 2-5 1bi (16) R DH Winn 1-5 HR (1) 2bi (34) R 2K 1b Dupont 3-5 2b (9) R K C Black 2-5 2HR (9) 3bi (26) 2R LF Sadan 1-4 R BB K 2b Henning 2-4 R GIDP SS Tulowitzki 1-3 2b (9) BB 2R K CF Crisp 0-4 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Munoz W 4-5 7 8 4 4 3 5 0 McLoughlin 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 Player of the Game: Martin Prado 25-26

The Palms played a classic game of one upsmanship against the Indians on Thursday, in which each team matched the other almost inning for inning. The Indians scored 4 in the 2nd, however, when Jhonny Peralta hit a 2 run triple, followed by a homer from Ryan Garko. The Palms answered in the bottom of the inning with a three run blast by Randy Winn, yet they were unable to add the 4th run, and that was the difference in the game. 3b Prado 3-4 BB 2R RF Sohn 2-5 2R GIDP DH Winn 4-5 HR (9) 3bi (32) R 1b Dupont 1-5 K 2b Gonzalez 2 2b (3) 2bi (10) LF Drysdale 0-5 SS Tulowitzki 0-4 K CF Crisp 0-4 C Santos 1-3 2b (5) HBP K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Chastanet L 6-2 4 7 5 5 2 1 1 Schoppe 2 1 0 0 0 0 0 mcLoughlin 2 2 0 0 1 2 0 Gonsales 1 1 1 1 2 0 0 Player of the Game: Ryan Garko 24-26

The Indians jumped out to an early lead, hitting two homers in the second. Ben Francisco hit a two run bomb, and light hitting Jamey Carrol followed suit with a ball barely clearing the fence in left field. Dave Balierough settled down, and the Palms began to chip away at the Indians lead. They got two runs in the 5th, and tied the game in the 7th when Randy Winn hit a solo homer. Breck Smythe hit the game winning shot in the bottom of the 8th, completing the comeback. RF Sohn 2-5 2b (7) R K 3b Smythe 1-5 HR (4) 1bi (8) R 2Ks DH Winn 2-5 HR (8) 2bi (29) R K 1b Dupont 2-4 2b (8) 1bi (37) 2Ks C Black 2-3 2b (12) BB LF Sadan 1-4 K 2b Henning 2-4 SS Tulowitzki 0-3 HBP R CF Crisp 0-3 BB K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Balierough W (5-3) 8 8 3 3 1 6 2 Carlyle S 14 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Player of the Game: Randy Winn 24=25

The Indians sent 10 to the plate in the first inning, scoring 6 runs. It was more than enough for Carl Pavano, who shut the Palms down almost entirely. The Palms managed only 3 hits, and two were off the bat of Randy Winn. The Indians got hits from the first three hitters, and added 8 more throughout the game. After Manny Parra was shelled in the first two innings, the Palms bullpen shut the Indians down. It didn't matter, obviously, as the Palms were unable to come close to putting an offense together. 3b Prado 0-4 3Ks RF Sohn 0-3 BB DH Winn 2-4 1b Dupont 0-4 C Black 1-3 K LF Sadan 0-3 2b Gonzalez 0-3 SS Tulowitzki 0-3 CF Crisp 0-3 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Parra L 1-5 2 1/3 9 7 7 1 2 0 Schoppe 1 2/3 1 0 0 0 0 0 Johnston 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 McLoughlin 2 1 0 0 1 0 0 Gonsales 1 ...

Neither starter perhormed all that admirably in this one, with the Palms putting up 9 runs on Fausto Carmona, while Javier Vazquez gave up seven, earning himself a rather undeserved win. It was 4-4 after the first inning as Mark DeRosa and Billy Dupont hit three run homers for their respective teams. DeRosa contributed again, hitting a solo homer in the 5th, but Dupont also came through later in the game, driving in two runs with a single in the third. Neither bullpen, ironically, allowed a run. 3b Prado 1-3 3b (4) 2BB 3R 2K's RF Sohn 3-5 2bi (15) 2R DH Winn 1-3 1bi (27) R 2BBs K 1b Dupont 3-5 HR (10) 5bi (36) K C Black 2-4 2b (11) 1bi (23) K SAC LF Sadan 0-5 2b Henning 1-3 2b (5) BB K SS Tulowitzki 0-4 2Ks CF Crisp 2-4 2b (9) 2Rs Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Vazquez W (5-2) 5 1/3 10 7 7 4 7 3 McLoughlin 1 2/3 2 0 0 1 0 0 Johnston 1 0 0 0 0...

Ryan Henning continued his strong May, hitting two homers as the Palms finished the sweep of the cross town Marlins. Troy Munoz went 7 innings, but didn't have the command he is renowned for, allowing 5 walks after allowing only 8 in his previous 9 starts. The Palms pitching staff navigated it's way out of two bases loaded situations, allowing no runs in those innings 3b Prado 2-4 3b (3) 2b (17) 1bi (16) R SAC RF Sohn 1-5 K LF Sadan 1-4 1bi (24) BB 1b Dupont 1-5 R K 2b Henning 2-4 2HR (8) 3bi (15) 2 R SS Tulowitzki 2-4 K CF Crisp 0-4 2Ks C Santos 1-4 2b (4) R P Munoz 1-3 PH Black 1-1 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Munoz W (3-5) 7 5 1 1 5 6 0 Schoppe 1 2 0 0 1 0 0 Sarfate 1 1 0 0 0 0 0 Player of the game: Ryan Henning 22-24

In a game where 11 runs were scored, 10 of them were scored on home runs. The Palms' Coco Crisp and the Marlins' Hanley Ramirez each had a pair of solo bombs, but the decisive blow was Eddie Black's 3 run shot in the 7th. Sean West, making his first career start, held the Palms in check early, but Miami made a strong push in the late innings against the Marlins' bullpen to pull away. RF Sohn 0-5 K 2b Henning 1-5 R LF Sadan 1-5 R K 1b Dupont 2-4 HR (9) 1bi (31) 2R BB C Black 4-5 HR (7) 2b (10) 4bi (22) R 3b Smythe 1-4 SS Tulowitzki 2-4 CF Crisp 2-4 2HR (3) 2bi (18) 2R K P Chastanet 0-3 K PH Drysdale 0-1 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Chastanet W (6-1) 7 8 4 4 2 5 3 Schoppe 1 1 0 0 0 1 0 Carlyle S 12 1 0 0 0 0 1 0 Player of the Game: Eddie Black 21-24

New acquisition, the young shortstop Troy Tulowitzki is coming around at the plate for the Palms. Hitting a solid .271, he has made the adjustment to playing in Miami, which is decidedly less hitter friendly than Colorado. He hasn't ever been a dominant offensive threat, however he is doing his best in Miami, with 8 doubles and 2 homeruns. His numbers are fairly low, as Tulowitzki, who has had problems with injuries in the past, has played fewer games than any of the opening day starters, with the manager opting to go with Jaspero Gonzalez or Breck Smythe on many occasions.

The Palms played their first interleague game of the season against their crosstown rivals, the Florida Marlins. Dave Balierough enjoyed his time in the NL, pitching a complete game, even getting a hit at the plate. Billy Dupont managed two RBI and Ayoz Sadan hit a 2 run double. Jorge Cantu hit a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth to spoil the shut out. 3b Prado 1-4 2b (16) BB 2R K RF Sohn 1-4 BB R LF Sadan 3-5 2b (5) 2bi (23) 1b Dupont 2-4 2bi (30) SAC K C Black 0-4 SS Tulowitzki 0-3 BB 2b Henning 0-4 CF Crisp 1-3 R 2Ks P Balierough 1-4 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Balierough W 4-3 9 5 1 1 2 8 1 Player of the Game: Dave Balierough 20-24

It was the second walk off winner for the A's in a row on Thursday. For the second game in a row, Kurt Suzuki cleared the bases with a triple to knock Manny Parra out of the game. The Palms stormed back with a pair of two run homers from Ryan Henning and Martin Prado in the 7th. The A's scored two more to come climb back in the lead in bottom half of the inning. In the ninth, the Palms manufactured a run, with Prado sacrificing to score Troy Tulowitzki. Unfortunately in the bottom of the 9th, Bobby Crosby led off with a triple, eventually scoring the winning run when Orlando Cabrera hit a slow roller towards losing pitcher Art McLoughlin. 3b Prado 1-4 HR (2) 3bi (15) R SAC RF Sohn 2-5 2b (6) DH Smythe 0-4 1b Dupont 1-4 R C Black 1-4 R 2Ks LF Sadan 1-4 SS Tulowitzki 2-4 1bi (11) R SAC 2b Henning 2-4 HR (6) 2bi (12) R CF Crisp BB R Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Parra 4 2/3 4 4 4 2 2 0 Schoppe ...

The A's and Palms played a tie game much of the way, with the A's getting a three run double from Kurt Suzuki and the Palms getting a three run blast from Randy Winn. The Palms went ahead, breaking the 3-3 tie in the 6th with a solo blast from Ayoz Sadan, Adam Kennedy responded with a solo shot of his own in the bottom half of the inning of Javier Vazquez. Vazquez went 8 innings, and was replaced in the bottom of the 9th by Blake Johnston. With the game tied at 4, Bobby Crosby his Johnston's first pitch over the right field wall for the walk off winner. 3b Prado o-4 K RF Sohn 2-4 R DH Winn 1-4 HR (7) 3bi (26) R GIDP 1b Dupont 0-4 LF Sohn 3-4 HR (6) 1bi (21) R SS Tulowitzki 0-4 2 K 2b Henning 0-4 2 K CF Crisp 1-2 2b (8) BB R K C Santos 0-3 Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Vazquez 8 7 4 4 2 7 1 Johnston L 1-2 0 1 1 1 0 0 1 Player of the Game Bobby Crosby 19-23

The Palms had another game in which they put a lot of runners on base in Oakland last night, but the hitting was more timely than it has been, and the team managed to put a gob of runs on the board. They paired their offensive explosion with a complete game from Troy Munoz to bury the A's. On offense, Ryan Henning snapped out of his slump, hitting 2 homers off rookie josh Outman, and another unlikely slugger, Orlando Tiropes added a three run bomb in the 6th to help the Palms on their way to a laugher in Oakland. 3b Prado 3-6 2 2b (15) R CF Sohn 1-4 2BB K LF Sadan 1-5 GIDP 1b Dupont 1-5 R C Black 1-4 BB R 3Ks SS Tulowitzki 1-5 R K 2b Henning 4-4 2HR (5) 4bi (10) bb 4R DH Santos 3-5 2 2b 1bi (4) R RF Tiropez 2-4 HR (1) 4bi (5) R SAC Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Munoz W 2-5 9 5 2 2 0 8 1 Player of the Game: Ryan Henning 19-22

The Palms were once again fueled by a good offense built on 16 hits, mostly singles, interspersed with a few doubles and one home run, Billy Dupont's first of May. A big 4 run first inning was all that Dallas Chastanet needed as he went 8 strong innings, allowing two runs on a pair of solo blasts. The big hit early was Eddie Black's 2 run double, which capped the first and was almost all that Miami needed to win their 4th of the last 5. 3b Prado 1-6 2b (13) R K 2b Smythe 3-5 2R DH Winn 2-4 2b (14) 1bi (23) R 1b Dupont 3-5 HR (8) 2bi (28) 2R C Black 1-5 2b 2bi (18) LF Sadan 2-4 BB K RF Sohn 1-4 1bi (13) SAC K SS Tulowitzki 2-4 2b (8) BB 2K CF Crisp 1-4 BB GIDP Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Chastanet W 5-1 8 7 2 2 0 1 2 Sarfate 1 2 1 1 0 0 1 Player of the Game: Billy Dupont 18-22

The past series in Cleveland saw things begin to come together for the Palms. The team hit double digits in hits all four games, along with some decent pitching to take three of four games from the Indians. The problem was that the offense came from singles and solo home runs. The team neads to start stringing to together their hits better, and getting their home runs after men get on base. Lately, the Palms have found themselves on the losing end when their opponents have hit multi-run homers, despite being able to get upwards of 15 hits. Some of the problem stem from where the home runs are being hit. While he was in the leadoff roll, Randy Winn hit three bombs this month. Martin Prado moved to the lead off spot and hit a homer. At the bottom of the order, Ayoz Sadan has a pair, and Ryan Henning finally hit his first three of the season. When moved down, Winn stopped hitting, and Henning when moved to the center of the order became mired in a 1-20 slump. Billy Dupont, the clean up hi...

The Palms and Indians completed an excellent series Sunday afternoon, with the Palms garnering the win with a homerun to lead off the top of the 9th from Ayoz Sadan. Both starters, Dave Balierough and Dave Huff of the Indians, making his Major League Debut, didn't last long. The teams over the course of the game managed to get 41 baserunners combined but struggled again to convert those hits to runs. Martin Prado was finally able to hit his first home run in a Palms uniform, a solo shot in the 5th inning. 3b Prado 2-6 HR (1) 1bi (12) R SS Gonzalez 4-5 R DH Winn 0-4 BB 1bi (22) 2 Ks 1b Dupont 1-5 R C Black 2-5 R K LF Sadan 2-4 HR (5) 2bi (20) R RF Sohn 3-4 2bi (12) R BB 2b Henning 1-5 CF Crisp 2-5 GIDP Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Balierough 4 7 4 4 5 6 1 Johnston 2 1 0 0 2 0 0 Sarfate BS 1 2 1 1 0 0 0 Gonsales W 2...

In what has been a tight series, the Indians used a big second inning, in which they were able to turn a pair of lead off hits into three runs. The Palms had a tough time turning base runners to runs, as they left 9 men on base, spoiling what was Manny Parra's best outing of the season. 3b Prado 2-5 2 Ks SS Tulowitzki 0-5 DH Winn 2-4 2b (13) C Black 1-2 HR (6) 1bi (16) R BB HBP K LF Sadan 1-4 3b (1) RF Sohn 2-4 2b Henning 1-4 R GIDP CF Crisp 1-4 2b (7) 1bi (16) 1b Tiropez 0-4 2K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Parra L 1-4 7 6 3 3 3 4 0 Gonsales 1 2 0 0 0 0 0 Player of the Game: Kelly Shoppach 16-22

The Indians maintained a lead for much of the game, however in the 7th, with the score 4-2 in favor of the home Indians, The Palms led off the inning with an Eddie Black double, Frank Sohn single and Troy Tulowitzki double, which scored Black. Coco Crisp sacrificed and Sohn scored, and for the second game in a row, Ayoz Sadan drove in the go ahead and eventual game winning run. Ryan Henning continues to slump, now having gone one for his last 20. 3b Prado 0-4 BB K 2b Henning 0-5 K DH Winn 4-5 3b (2) R 1b Dupont 2-5 1bi (26) C Black 2-5 2 2b (8) 2 R 2 K RF Sohn 2-5 1bi (10) R K SS Tulowitzki 2-3 2b (7) 1bi (10) R HBP SAC K CF Crisp 1-4 1bi (15) SAC LF Sadan 2-4 1bi (18) K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Vazquez W 3-2 7 9 4 4 3 8 0 Sarfate 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Carlyle S 10 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 Player of the Game: Eddie Black 16-21

The Palms and Indians met for the first time of the year to begin a 4 game set in Cleveland. Fans at the ballpark certainly got their money's worth on Thursday night. The Palms battered Fausto Carmona early, scoring 3 runs in the second and another in the fourth. Meanwhile, Troy Munoz was dominating the Indians, allowing only 1 run with nince strikeouts. Things fell apart in the 8th, however, as Luis Valbuena led off with a home run and Victor Martinez tied the game with a two run shot. No runs were scored for another 8 innings as both bullpens shut the other team down. In the top of the 16th, The Palms loaded the bases. After Coco Crisp popped out to second, Ayoz Sadan, batting at the bottom of the order, lined a pitch to the outfield, driving in the two game winning runs and perhaps shaking the current slump he finds himself in. Perhaps this will begin to ease the pain of Wednesday's tough loss at home. 3b Prado 1-7 BB GIDP 2K 2b Henning 0-8 2K DH Winn 0-6 BB GIDP 2K 1b Dupon...

Wednesday's loss at home to the Orioles will be a tough one to stomach. The Palms, sporting a jumbled lineup with three regulars sitting and the manager looking to spice things up, jumped out early, getting a grand slam, the first career home run from Steve Drysdale on the way to a 5 run first. Frank Sohn hit a solo homer in the 4th to make the score 6-1. The Palms were done scoring after this, but the Orioles were not. By the 9th inning, with Buddy Carlyle in the game, the Palms were up 6-4. The Orioles scored a run and had two runners on with two outs when Melvin Mora came up. With a 1-0 count, he lined a hanging breaking ball into the visitors bullpen putting the O's up for the first time in the game. The Palms were unable to muster any offense in the bottom of the inning. 3b Prado 2-5 2b (12) R 2b Gonzalez 1-5 K DH Winn 2-4 2-4 R 1b Dupont 2-4 1bi (25) R SS Smythe 1-4 R GIDP RF Drysdale 2-4 GS (1) 4bi (7) R C Black 0-4 2Ks CF Sohn 2-4 HR (4) 1bi (8) R LF Sadan 0-4 Pi...

The entire game hung on a couple of rough innings from Dave Balierough. He allowed two runs in the 2nd and a three run inning in the third, thanks to a three run homer by Gregg Zaun. That was all for Balierough, but the bullpen managed to pitch 6 strong innings without allowing another run. Of course, the offense was again ineffectual, particularly with runners in scoring position, leaving at least 1 runner on base in 8 of the 9 innings. DH Winn 2-5 2b (12) 2Ks 3b Prado 2-5 3b (2) R LF Sadan 1-5 K 1b Dupont 1-5 1bi (24) RF Sohn 1-3 HBP 2b Henning 0-3 BB SS Tulowitzki 1-3 BB K C Santos 2-4 2 Ks CF Crisp 0-4 3Ks Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Balierough L 3-3 3 7 5 5 2 2 1 Schoppe 2 0 0 0 0 2 0 McLoughlin 2 2 0 0 0 0 0 Johnston 2 1 0 0 0 1 0 Player of the Game: Gregg Zaun 14-20

The Palms/Red Sox tilt was Major League Baseball's feature game of the week, and David Ortiz put on a show. Capping a 6 run 4th, Ortiz hit a grand slam to center field. He came back to lead off the 7th with a solo blast, giving him 5 RBI on the day. The Palms were able to drive in 6 with 9 hits off of the tough Josh Beckett, including a three run third inning. Randy Winn drove in two more runs, giving him 21 for the season, 2nd on the team. The Palms finally have a day off on Monday to hopefully turn things around as a team. DH Winn, 2-4 2b (11) 2bi (21) SAC 3b Prado 1-5 2b (11) 1bi (11) LF Sadan 0-4 1b Dupont 2b BB R RF Sohn 0-4 GIDP K 2b Henning 1-4 R SS Tulowitzki 1-3 1bi (9) BB 2R K C Santos 1-3 3b 1bi (3) 2R BB CF Tiropez 1-4 1bi (1) K Pitcher W-L S IP H R ER BB SO HR Parra L 1-3 3 1/3 7 7 7 2 6 1 Gonsales 1 2/3 0 0 0 0 0 0 Schoppe 2 2 1 1 1 ...