BLUE CRABS LOSE SANCHEZ (.403) TO PIRATES; PENA AND HERNANDEZ ALSO ON THE MOVE

A nice milestone for Independent Baseball was reached over the weekend.

Two players with fairly frequent visits to the major leagues got called up for the first time this season, and they became the 29th and 30th Indy grads to wear an American or National League uniform in 2011, thereby equalling the total for all of last year with more than two months still to be played.

Thirteen of the players have spent time in the Atlantic League.

Catcher Eliezer Alfonzo, who played for the St. Paul (MN) Saints before they moved from the Northern League to the American Association, and left-handed relief specialist Randy Williams both contributed right away, too. Williams, whose Indy time was with Edinburg, TX, then in the United League (and now in the North American), delivered three key outs for the Boston Red Sox in a still tight game at Tampa Bay Saturday. Boston eventually won, 9-5. Alfonzo went 2-for-6 in a pair of one-run Colorado losses against Milwaukee.

WILY MO PENA DESIGNATED FOR ASSIGNMENT

It was tough seeing Arizona designate Wily Mo Pena for assignment after his five home runs in 46 at-bats had helped the Diamondbacks stay in the National League West chase, but the flip side was the 2010 Bridgeport Bluefish DH-1B-OF also struck out 19times and his average was only .196 with seven runs batted in. It seems likely he will end up back at Triple-A Reno.

.403 GAP IN SOUTHERN MARYLAND ORDER

If ever there were big shoes to fill in this year's Atlantic League they belong to Southern Maryland because the Blue Crabs lost shortstop Yunesky Sanchez to Pittsburgh, taking his .403 batting average and 40 RBI in 61 games out of the lineup. Sanchez was dispatched to Class AA Altoona, PA.

CATCHERS STILL IN DEMAND

Michel Hernandez was not out of work long after the 32-year-old catcher was released by Baltimore's Triple-A affiliate in Norfolk, VA. Cleveland quickly signed the former Somerset receiver, and after putting up outstanding numbers in Double-A (Akron, OH) he moved on to Triple-A Columbus, OH. Hernandez hit .455 in eight games for Akron with a .519 on-base percentage. He did not strike out a single time in 22 at-bats. The former major leaguer picked right up at Columbus with a single (1-for-3) and a walk in his first game in the International League.

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