IRONPIGS BEAT SCRANTON SATURDAY!!

MOOSIC
Now that Rich Thompson has gotten into the line-up, it might be hard to get him out of it.

The 31-year-old outfielder, making his fourth straight start after riding the bench for the first two weeks, had two hits, knocked in two runs and scored another to spark the IronPigs to a 6-2 win over Scranton before 3,588 at PNC Field.

Thompson, who celebrated his birthday Friday, has hit safely in all four of his starts (7-for-16) with five runs scored and three RBIs. Saturday he doubled home the go-ahead two runs during a three-run fourth that gave the IronPigs (7-9) a 4-2 lead.

He also ran down Jesus Montero's bid for extra bases in the right center field gap leading off the second, saving starter Brian Mazone a run since Chad Huffman followed with a solo home run.

Dewayne Wise added three hits (and a nice running grab of his own in left) and John Mayberry Jr. two, including his second homer, as the IronPigs banged out 13 hits (including at least one by every starter) to back Mazone (2-1) and two relievers.

Mazone, upping his record at this stadium to 8-3 (including 6-1 in 2006 with the Red Barons) in 16 starts, allowed six hits and two runs over six innings, striking out five and walking none.

The IronPigs were 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position over the first three innings and trailed 2-1 when singles by Cody Ransom and Dewayne Wise put runners at the corners with nobody out in the fourth.

Zach McAlister (0-1) got Neil Sellers on a foul-out to first baseman David Winfree but Paul Hoover, the fourth straight hitter to swing at the first pitch, ripped a single to left that chased in Ransom to the game at 2-2. The IronPigs got a break when second baseman Kevin Russo couldn't get the ball out of his glove on a potential inning-ending double play grounder off the bat of Brian Bocock, and Thompson made the Yankees pay for the miscue by slicing a double into the left field corner to chase in both Wise and Bocock.

Mayberry made it 5-2 with a leadoff homer in the fifth off the scoreboard in left center, and singles by Melvin Dorta, Mayberry and Andy Tracy made it 6-2 in the seventh.

Thompson used his speed to produce a first-inning run. After lining a single up the middle on an 0-2 pitch, Thompson stole his first base of the season, moved up a groundout and scored on Maberry's sacrifice fly.

Scranton (8-8) bounced back with solo runs in the first (on Colin Curtis' fourth double in two games) and in the second on Huffman's second homer. But Mazone settled down after that, retiring nine straight Yankee hitters before Greg Golson's one-out single in the fifth.

Kevin Russo added a two-out single to bring the tying run to the plate but Mazone caught Curtis looking to end the inning, then allowed just a two-out single by David Winfree in the sixth before ending his outing with a fielder's choice groundout.

Ehren Wassermann allowed a hit in two scoreless innings and now has thrown 6 2/3 consecutive scoreless innings. He's allowed just one run (earned) and five hits while striking out six and walking none over his last 8 1/3 innings, a span of five appearances.

FROM THE MORNING CALL