Led by Manny, the Flashes win first Lp2 World Series Game

Back with the comforts of their home stadium, the Finger Lakes Flashes had the bats going, and used their 12 hit attack to pull the series to 2 games to 1.

Manny Ramirez set the tone with his solo homer in the bottom of the first, and his second homer of the game in the fifth gave the Flashes some breathing room. Alex Rodriguez added three hits, while Jason Giambi and Maicer Izturis contributed 2 hits each.

Carlos Zambrano, starting the biggest game of his Lp2 career, settled down after surrendering the lead in the second, finishing the game with seven strikeouts in his six innings, earning the victory. The Flashes bullpen shutdown the Rollers offense, as Joel Zumaya, Jason Isringhausen and Takashi Saito fired three scoreless innings to preserve the win.

Ybor City Rollers starter Javier Vazquez wasn't as sharp as Zambrano, but he was able to induce double play balls in the second and fifth innings to lessen the damage. Carlos Guillen led the Roller offense with two hits, but his error in fourth led to the winning run, and he was also picked off firstbase to end the top of the fourth.

The two teams will meet again tomorrow night in Yankee Stadium when Bronson Arroyo and Ervin Santana face off.

Musial allows Rollers to "Walk" Away from Pither's Duel up 2-0

Game 2 was dominated by the starters Mike Mussina for the Flashes, and Brandon Webb for the Rollers, but Stan Musial again provided Ybor City with the margin of victory.

Just like Game 1, Grady Sizemore drove in the Finger Lakes Flashes first run in the first inning, this time with a solo homerun to right. The Flashes stretched the lead to 2-0 in the third when Sizemore tripled and was driven home by Wily Mo Pena. Webb settled down from that moment on, scattering just two hits over the rest of his seven innings, finishing the game with seven strikeouts. His offense got him back in the game in the bottom of the third, on RBI hits from Joe Mauer and Miguel Cabrera.

Mussina matched Webb scoreless frame for scoreless frame, exiting after six solid innings, allowing just the two runs on seven hits. Flame throwing righthander Joel Zumaya shut down the Rollers offense for two innings, fanning three, before giving way to Brian Fuentes in the ninth.

Pinch hitter Josh Bard got Ybor going with a one out single, before Fuentes got Josh Willingham to strike out for the second out. Mauer and Musial struck again for the Rollers, as they followed with back-to-back singles off the lefty, the second single driving in Bard for a 3-2 Rollers victory.
In the celebration that followed, Musial had to be helped from the field, the injury did not seem serious and he should be able to start Game 3, when the series travels to Yankee Stadium for a pitching matchup of Carlos Zambrano for the Flashes against Javier Vazquez for the Rollers.

High Powered Offenses Square Off, Rollers use Longball to Take Game 1

The only two teams to score over 1000 runs during the regular season, the Finger Lakes Flashes and Ybor City Rollers, figure to have a lot of high scoring affairs this Lp2 World Series.
The Flashes struck first, as they have all postseason, scoring two runs in the top of the first off of Rollers starter Chris Carpenter. Grady Sizemore's triple drove in Arky Vaughan, and Manny Ramirez's sac fly scored Grady, putting the Flashes up 2-0. The Rollers would respond in the bottom of the inning, as Joe Mauer and Stan Musial hit back-to-back homers to right to tie the game at 2.

Finger Lakes starter Justin Verlander couldn't contain the Rollers bats, even after his team had staked him to a 5-2 lead courtesy of a two-run double by Michael Barrett, his own RBI groundout and a Vaughan RBI single. He promptly walked the bases loaded in the bottom of the inning, before surrendering a sac fly to Mauer and 3-run blast to Musial to put the Rollers in front 6-5.

Mark Teixeira added Ybor's fourth homer of the game in the 8th, and Jon Papelbon was able to finish off the 9-6 win with a scoreless 9th.

The two teams square off again tomorrow, with the Flashes sending Mike Mussina to the mound against Ybor's Brandon Webb.