Chuckie Jones' game-changing swing sends Volcanoes home as 3-0 victors

Tom Trebelhorn reached his 1,200th win in his managerial career as a sixth-inning, three-run blast by Chuckie Jones salvaged one game in the series with Vancouver.

By Josh Hauser

August 21, 2012

KEIZER - Things looked bleak once again in the sixth inning for the Salem-Keizer Volcanoes, as two outs had been recorded. However, Chuckie Jones came through in the clutch as - on a full count - he smashed a ball to left field and gave the Volcanoes an insurmountable 3-0 lead over the Canadians in front of a crowd of 2,322 at Volcanoes Stadium on Tuesday evening.

Joan Gregorio got the nod on the mound for Salem-Keizer, and he was very effective in his six-inning outing. Gregorio struck out six while allowing only four hits and one walk in his shutout performance. Salem-Keizer's scores came just in time for Gregorio to be the pitcher on record and be awarded his seventh win of the season for his outstanding efforts in the contest. Bilodeau spun two innings of hitless ball in relief while Mizenko earned his tenth save by pitching the final three outs.

In the sixth frame, Mitch Delfino and Andrew Cain put together back-to-back singles to place runners on first and second for Chuckie Jones. Jones endured one of his trademarked high-pitch count at bats once again and came out on top as he connected for a three-RBI home run. The 3-0 lead compounded by successful Volcanoes' pitching granted Salem-Keizer the win.

The Volcanoes combined for seven hits in the game - two coming from Mitch Delfino who doubled in the fourth and singled in the tenth. But the offensive highlight in the Volcanoes' lineup was Chuckie Jones, who picked up a team-leading three RBIs with his fifth long shot of the season. Vancouver was not far behind with six hits of their own - highlighted by Balbino Fuenmayor with two.

In the process of achieving the victory, Tom Trebelhorn picked up his 1,200th win as a professional baseball manager. His career began in 1975 with Boise and the Oakland A's organization. He saw stints in the major leagues with the Milwaukee Brewers and the Chicago Cubs as he was in the Manager of the Year race in both 1987 and 1988. The last five years, he has landed in Keizer as the manager of the Volcanoes.

Salem-Keizer will embark on their last road trip of the 2012 season with a trip to eastern Washington to face the Spokane Indians in five games from Avista Stadium. The five-game inter-divisional set will span Wednesday through Sunday with a first pitch scheduled for 6:30p.m. on each day. Following the last road swing of the summer, the Volcanoes return home for the last five games of the regular season, as they play host to the Tri-City Dust Devils on Tuesday through Saturday. But before that, the team will need to take care of business in Spokane beginning on Wednesday with a pitching matchup of Joe Biagini (1-4, 4.69) for the Volcanoes opposing C.J. Edwards (1-2, 2.75) for Spokane.