Chapman, Louisville beat 'Pigs 4-2 Wednesday Night

When you're struggling offensively the way the IronPigs have been recently -- not to mention playing the extended schedule they've played the last two nights -- the last thing you want to do is face someone with one of the liveliest young arms in the baseball.

That would be Aroldis Chapman, the highly regarded 22-year-old Cuban defector signed by Cincinnati in the offseason.

While Stephen Strasburg has generated most of the buzz in the minor leagues this summer, Chapman isn't far behind. Wednesday night the hard-throwing left-hander added to Lehigh Valley's woes by allowing three hits over 52/3 innings before leaving with a blister in Louisville's 4-2 win before 7,676 at Coca-Cola Park.

''Besides being the hardest-throwing lefty I've faced in my career, he was really effectively wild,'' said outfielder Chris Duffy, a three-year major league veteran. ''He looked like Randy Johnson back in his early days. He throws one over [Dewayne] Wise's head and then paints three fastballs away. It seemed he did that a few times.''

''You've got to feel proud when you hear something like that,'' Chapman said through a translator. ''There's a lot of lefties in the whole of baseball, and hearing someone say me being one of those guys who can throw that hard, it makes me feel really well.''

Chapman rebounded from his worst outing (nine hits, eight runs in 31/3 innings at Rochester) by striking out seven, running his season total to 48 in 402/3 innings. He left after striking out Wise for the second out in the sixth with his blister on the middle finger of his throwing hand.

The Reds outbid Oakland, the Yankees and Boston with a $30.25-million package last fall to sign Chapman six months after defecting during a tournament in Europe.

''They've talked about his arm and he showed it,'' said Dane Sardinha, whose two-run, two-out single in the bottom of the ninth snapped a club-record 23-inning scoreless streak for the IronPigs. ''But right now we're just struggling as a team offensively. We're better than that. Credit to him, he's got a good arm and he pitches well. But I think on another day we should be able to score runs off him.''

With a strapped bullpen after playing 31 innings over the last two nights, the IronPigs needed a strong effort from Joe Savery, and the lefty gave six solid innings, allowing seven hits and three runs (one earned) while throwing 107 pitches.

A throwing error by Luis Maza cost the IronPigs a potential inning-ending double play in the fifth, leading to two unearned runs.

''If we turned the double play we might be playing in a 2-2 tie,'' IronPigs manager Dave Huppert said. ''And that probably cost him another inning of work.''

Ty Taubenheim, who brought a 23.82 ERA with him from three Double-A appearances in Reading, gave the overworked bullpen what it needed -- a night off by throwing the final three innings.

Sardinha said the late rally, which ended when pinch-hitter Rich Thompson flied out to right with the tying runs on base, gives the IronPigs a little push heading into this morning's 10:30 a.m. game.

''A little momentum is better than no momentum,'' Sardinha said.

When today's game ends, the IronPigs will have played 49 innings of baseball since 7 p.m. Monday night.

''Then it's nap time,'' Duffy said.

FROM JEFF SCHULER OF THE MORNING CALL