THE VIRGINIAN-PILOT
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: Friday, September 8, 1995 TAG: 9509080641
SECTION: SPORTS PAGE: C1 EDITION: FINAL
SOURCE: BY TOM ROBINSON, STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: NORFOLK LENGTH: Medium: 89 lines
Despite the five-run lead Richmond held halfway through Thursday's Game 4 of the International League playoffs, the feeling pervaded damp Harbor Park that the advantage might not be enough.
The Norfolk Tides, a game away from reaching the Governors' Cup finals, rattled the Braves' bullpen all the way through a rain-delayed, three-hour-plus contest.
And viewed by the smallest paid crowd of the season, 3,725, most of which had exited long before the finish, the postseason drama reached a crescendo in the ninth as the Tides wound up with the winning run at the plate in Alex Ochoa.
There, though, Richmond's relief ace Rod Nichols coaxed a full-count forkball past the swinging Ochoa to strand Aaron Ledesma at second and finally nail down a 7-6 victory, one that Richmond has to feel fortunate to have survived.
So for their reward, the Braves get to try to beat Tides' ace Paul Wilson for the second time in five days in tonight's final game. The probable starter for the Braves, though, is not Game 1 winner Brad Woodall but lefthander Mike Potts, who started once in 38 appearances in the regular season.
The Tides had scrapped to within 6-5 when in the eighth Richmond scored its decisive run with two outs on an error by third baseman Edwin Alicea. That run loomed huge after Jay Payton drilled a double with outs in the ninth, then scored when Ledesma hit his second double and his third hit of the game.
But Ochoa, who had two hits, was caught in front of Nichols' tantalizing offering for Nichols' fourth strikeout in his 1 1/3 innings of work.
Rain pushed back the first pitch one hour and 29 minutes, and a mist accompanied the action soon after the start to the fifth inning. The moist ball came into play in the second, when Richmond third baseman Ed Giovanola, trying to start a one-out double play with the bases loaded, nearly pulled second baseman Jose Munoz off the bag with his throw.
Munoz was unable to get Rey Ordonez at first, and Alex scored to give the Tides a 1-0 lead.
Richmond tied it in the fourth when Tides starter Eric Ludwick walked the first two batters he faced, Mike Sharperson bunted to move the runners and Tyler Houston lofted a sacrifice fly.
The heavy damage came the next inning. Ludwick, in just his fourth Triple-A start, was taken deep to right-center by Juan Williams to lead it off. Pablo Martinez followed with a walk and starting pitcher Tom Harrison, trying just to sacrifice, bunted past Ludwick for a single.
Ludwick was pulled in favor of Jim McCready, who got Ed Giovanola on a sacrifice bunt then walked two, including Mike Kelly with the bases loaded for a 3-1 lead. Next up was Sharperson, and he lined a bases-clearing double to the wall in left-center to put Richmond up, 6-1.
The Tides' comeback got going immediately. Harrison couldn't get out of the fifth, hastening his departure by walking three of the first four Tides. A run scored when Martinez, at shortstop, couldn't handle Payton's two-out ground ball.
Nor could Harbor Park handle Alicea's blast in the sixth off Tom Thobe, a two-run shot off the back of the concession stand in leftfield that cut the Braves' lead to 6-4.
Only some slick work by righthander Brent Knackert in the seventh prevented Richmond from rebuilding a big advantage. The Braves loaded the bases against Knackert on two singles and a walk, but Knackert escaped on an infield ground ball, a strikeout of Kevin Grijak and Williams' fly out.
NOTABLE: Before the game, the Tides activated righthanded hitter Trey McCoy from the disabled list and disabled pitcher Juan Acevedo. McCoy, from Virginia Beach, was thought to be out for the duration of the playoffs because of complications from an ulcer. But he has come around enough to be able to pinch-hit. Meanwhile, it was decided that Acevedo, the touted righthander troubled by elbow and rib-cage ills, should be shut down for the season as a precaution. ILLUSTRATION: MARTIN SMITH-RODDEN/Staff
[Color Photo]
Richmond second baseman Jose Munoz tags out Tides outfielder Ricky
Otero in the third inning after Otero overran the base on a steal
attempt.
RICHMOND 7
TIDES 6
BOXSCORE
PLAYOFF GLANCE
[For a copy of the graphic, see microfilm for this date.]
by CNB