Louisville beat Ironpigs Friday Night

ALLENTOWN, Pa.Strange things happened the last two times former Phillies farmhand Matt Maloney started a game at Coca-Cola Park for Louisville.

In 2008, Maloney was credited with the win in a 10-3 victory that saw first baseman Andy Tracy make his pro pitching debut after Stephen Randolph was ejected for hitting Luis Bolivar.

Last year, the left-hander didn't figure in the decision in the IronPigs' 10-9, 10-inning game that featured the first cycle in IronPigs history by Michael Taylor, whose ninth-inning homer sent the game into extra innings.

There was no such dramatics this year, unless you want to include the return of Northampton's Brian Schneider to the Lehigh Valley for his first time as a professional.

Instead, Maloney pitched a strong six innings and former Lehigh Valley Catz star Drew Sutton hit an early three-run homer to lead Louisville to a 5-2 win over the IronPigs before the season's sixth capacity crowd of 10,000.

Schneider, making the first of his three scheduled rehab starts to conclude his recovery from an Achilles strain, went 0-for-2 in five innings. He's scheduled to play seven innings tonight and a complete game Sunday afternoon, and if all goes well will rejoin Phillies Tuesday in New York.

Maloney (4-1), traded to Cincinnati for Kyle Lohse at the 2007 trading deadline, allowed three hits and two runs while walking one and striking out two. Both runs scored in the first when chris Duffy doubled and scored on Melvin Dorta's single. Dorta later scored on John Mayberry Jr.'s sacrifice fly.

But Mayberry's fourth-inning single was the last hit for the IronPigs (16-25) against Maloney and three relievers, who set down the next 16 batters until Rich Thompson drew a one-out walk in the ninth.

Enerio Del Rosario walked Mayberry to bring up Cody Ransom as the tying run with one out but got the IronPigs third baseman to bounce into a game-ending 4-6-3 double play.

Sutton took advantage of a first-inning error by Ransom, following a two-out walk with a long three-run homer into the bullpens off Brian Mazone.

Mazone (3-5) gave up a fourth-inning run on back-to-back doubles, and another in the seventh. He allowed eight hits and two earned runs in 61/3 innings, with two walks and two strikeouts.

Sutton, who helped the Catz win back-to-back titles in 2002 (Mid-Atlantic) and 2003 (ACBL) summer college leagues, hit 6-for-14 (.429) in the series with a homer and six RBIs. A 15th-round pick by Houston out of Baylor in 2003, Sutton was traded to the Reds in the spring of 2009 and played 42 games with Cincinnati last year, hitting .212.

This year he came into Friday's game hitting .246 for Louisville (18-24).

From the Morning Call