Game 92: Post-Game Notes

— Zach McAllister’s MRI results showed no structural damage.  There is no immediate word on if he’ll miss any more than the seven days that he has to by being placed on the DL.

— Just when the Thunder looked out of it, Jesus Montero dragged them back in.  His rocket of a grand slam in the seventh inning tied the game at four a piece.  It also came with his parents watching in the stands.

“I got a three-two count, and I was looking for a fastball,” Montero said.

“I got it, and hit the home run.  But we won the game, that was the most important part.”

Montero was also behind the plate for an impressive performance as a whole by the Thunder pitching staff, as Kanekoa Texeira, Wilkins Arias, Grant Duff and Jose Valdez combined for 15 strikeouts.

“We had 15 strikeouts today?” Montero asked, “That’s a lot.”

Colleague and Trentonian beat writer Josh Norris pointed out that it wasn’t the most they’d had in a game this season — 18 is apparently the highest (thanks, Josh!) — but still, it was an impressive display none the less.

“That’s real good, I didn’t realize that,” said Thunder manager Tony Franklin of the high strikeout total.

“They did a great job out there, outstanding.”

— Texeira, who’s used to being used for one or two innings tops, has been extended as far as five innings this season.  Franklin recently said that Texeira will remain in the rotation for the foreseeable future, so it seems like Hawaii Five-O will have to continue to adjust to his new role.

“Now, it’s more about remembering what you threw this guy, how you pitched him in the previous at-bat,” Texeira said.

“That’s the toughest thing for me right now, is just remembering what I did to him and trying not to fall into that same routine over and over again, so that’s the toughest part.  Other than that, I’m actually pretty excited that my arm has lasted as long as it has.”

Mike Ashmore, mashmore98 AT gmail.com