Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, July 20, 1995 TAG: 9507200075
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: B-3 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: RAY COX STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: LYNCHBURG LENGTH: Medium
The quartet of pitcher Jamey Wright, outfielders Edgard Velasquez and Brian Culp, and infielder Chris Sexton all played solid baseball as the Northern Division prevailed 8-3 in front of an overflow throng of 5,690 at City Stadium in the 49th All-Star game Wednesday night.
Raul Rodarte of the Lynchburg Hillcats hit a pinch three-run homer in the sixth inning to break open the game and earn him the vote of assorted scribes and broadcast types as the game's most valuable player.
He never had to hit against Wright, though. Not many did. The tall right-hander retired all three men he faced in the fourth inning, fanning two and inducing a groundout to second base. That on two days rest.
``When I came, I knew I was either going to pitch one inning or none,'' he said. ``But being picked for this game is an honor and I wanted to show these people what I could do. I wanted to pitch even if my arm was a little sore.''
Wright could have fooled victims Ramon Zapata and Reed Secrist of Lynchburg, and Mike Sweeney of Wilmington.
Velasquez had a nice game, doubling and scoring his team's first run as it took a 1-0 lead. Velasquez stole third base and then hurried home on an errant throw to third by catcher Sweeney.
``The count got to be 3-2 and I thought he'd throw a fastball,'' Velasquez said of left-handed pitcher Tim Byrdak of Wilmington. ``I got it and I hit it.''
That was it for Velasquez, who was lifted in the fifth for defensive replacement Mike Meggers of Winston-Salem. But that didn't diminish Velasquez's enjoyment of his stay in the City of Seven Hills.
``I had a lot of fun,'' the 19-year-old Puerto Rican said. ``This was a good experience for me at my first all-star game.''
Culp got his money's worth, playing the entire game in left field. The Kansan singled, stole second, and was stranded at third base after taking advantage of a wild pitch in the second inning. Later, he scored a run in the ninth after reaching base on a fielder's choice.
Between, he hit into a 6-4-3 double play and struck out.
``I more than made up for a good second inning by playing terrible the rest of the game,'' said Culp, who was being more than a little hard on himself.
``Of the pitchers we saw, a lot of them are going to be in the major leagues soon,'' he said. ``Great pitchers make great pitches and they get you out.''
Sexton played the last three innings at shortstop and went 0-for-2 with a ninth inning RBI.
``The game was secondary even if you do come over here to win,'' he said. ``The main thing for me was getting to know some of the other players around the league on a more personal level.''
Sexton's RBI scored the last run of the night in the ninth.
The Northerners tied the score in the sixth on a run-scoring single off the bat of Harold Williams of Prince William. They then put away the game with seven runs in the next two innings.
The Northerners have won four in a row and lead the series 8-7 since it went to the north-south format in 1981.
NOTES: California League president Joe Gagliardi was in town to pitch a proposal for an All-Star game pitting players from his league against those of the Carolina League. Under the proposal, the Carolina stars would invade California for next year's game at Rancho Cucamonga. Travel expenses would be picked up by the California League in return for a reciprocal deal from the Carolina League when the Californians travel east the next year. ``We've endorsed the idea,'' Carolina League president John Hopkins said. Some details need to be worked out before a deal is struck. An announcement is expected before the end of the current season. ... Lynchburg's Secrist, the former Salem Buccaneer, and his wife Cammy had their first child at 6:56 a.m. Wednesday, a 7-pound, 15-ounce boy named Brogan Reed. Mother and child are doing fine. Reed Secrist went 1-for-3 with a walk, two runs scored, and two RBI in the game despite playing on only about three hours of sleep.
NOTE: Please see microfilm for scores.
by CNB