Scrappers Lose In Championship Game

The Yankees have won another championship. Not the New York Yankees, but their farm team in Staten Island, which defeated the Mahoning Valley Scrappers 5-2 at Eastwood Field to win the New York-Penn League title in three games. Mahoning Valley couldn't hold a 2-0 lead, but got only four hits and made two errors in losing the series, two games to one.

The Scrappers bunched three of their hits in the second inning to take the lead.

With one out, Ben Carlson reached on an infield single. After Jason Smit flied out, Carlson advanced on a passed ball.

Rafael Vera drove him home with a triple to center field and Chun-Chen, whose dramatic 11th-inning homer had won Game 2, doubled to left to make it 2-0.

The Scrappers' only other hit was a one-out single in the sixth by Jesus Brito, who moved up on a wild pitch but couldn't score.

Mahoning Valley starter Clayton Cook pitched well enough to win. He gave up one run and four hits without a walk over five innings, striking out three.

Vidal Nuno, who went 5-0 as a starter in the regular season, pitched a scoreless sixth, but gave up the tying run in the seventh without getting an out.

Austin Adams came on and got three quick outs to end the seventh, but allowed three runs in the eighth and took the loss.

The Scrappers went 1-4 against Staten Island overall this season. The only win came Tuesday night, 3-2, on Chen's homer. Mahoning Valley won the Pinckney Division with a 49-27 record, then swept Brooklyn in two games in the first round.

The Scrappers made their first playoff appearance since winning the league championship in 2004. That club was managed by Mike Sarbaugh, now leading the Akron Aeros in the Eastern League Finals. Among players on that team were current Cleveland Indians Chris Gimenez, Wyatt Toregas, Tony Sipp, Aaron Laffey and Scott Lewis.