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Y! MyWebDAYTON DRAGONS
Team continues digging itself an early hole
Friday, June 27, 2008
DAYTON — Donnie Scott's first response to a question on how he would stop opponents from scoring on his team in the first inning was to walk into the hallway outside his Fifth Third Field office and holler into the clubhouse.
"Hey, (a reporter) wants you to play better in the first inning," Scott shouted. A few expletives were fired back.
Scott, manager of the Dragons, and his players are a little frustrated over a recent run that has seen the team give up runs in the first inning in nine of 10 games entering Thursday's (June 26) game with South Bend to conclude the current homestand.
In those games in which they have trailed early, the Dragons lost seven. So what was Scott planning to help reverse the first-inning trend?
"I'm going to ask (pitching coach) Doug Bair to have his starter warm up like he was throwing to the first three batters," Scott said.
When Luis Montano warmed up Thursday, a teammate stood next to the plate as if he were a batter. A few minutes later, South Bend scored a run in the first inning.
One-sided
While the Dragons entered Thursday's game with a 1-9 mark against the Silver Hawks, they aren't the only ones having trouble with a particular team. South Bend is 1-11 vs. Lansing this year.
Nice dancing
During a pregame rain delay, the "Green Team," the Dragons' entertainment troupe, performed a line dance in front of the third-base grandstand. South Bend second baseman Taylor Harbin ran over to participate. Not to be outdone, Dayton's Justin Reed joined the group, doing some fancy stepping.
Parker returns
First baseman Logan Parker was back in the lineup after missing Wednesday's game with a migraine. Parker said he still had a bit of a headache Thursday, but could play. He takes medication for the migraine attacks, which come a few times a year.
Homer happy
The Dragons, eighth in the Midwest League with a .248 batting average, are first in home runs with 65, 12 more than Clinton. It's no wonder: The Dragons hit at least one homer in 11 straight games prior to Thursday, including multiple-homer games three times.
The team record of 144 hit in 2001 seems safe, as does Samone Peters' record of 28 that season, although third baseman Brandon Waring has 15 and seems headed for more than 20.
Reds take notes
Phil Castellini couldn't make it, but he sent seven from his management staff on the Reds to watch a Dragons game and speak with Dragons president Bob Murphy and his people earlier this week. Castellini is the Reds chief operating officer.
"We talked about a lot of things," Murphy said, "from customer service to sponsorship sales, entertainment and ticketing."
Murphy knows not everything that works in a 7,000-seat stadium works in a 45,000-seat stadium, but Castellini knows the Dragons have sold out every game since starting in 2000.
Contact this reporter at (937) 225-2157 or mkatz@DaytonDailyNews.com.
