Around The League On Opening Day

American League

Cincinnati got a three-run HR by Carlos Cairo, highlighting a 6-run 9th inning, to break open a tight pitching duel with Augusta and win 8-1. Gary Ramsay went 7 shutout innings with 10 K's for the Waste Managers; Jaque Butler went 8 strong innings for the Polar Bears before the pen imploded.

DH Jay Houston drove in 4 with a HR and a double, giving D.C. a 5-3 win over Rochester. Jose Zurburan homered for the Phantoms in the loss.

Jackson opened its title defense by topping visiting Nashville 7-4. Johnny Collier twirled 6 innings of 2-hit ball to get the W. The Ramblers showed off their power with HR's from Reed, Foster, Cordero and Post, but they were all solos.

San Diego rode HR's by Alex Calvo and Luis Piedra to a 5-run 6th and a come-from-behind 5-3 victory over Portland. Cesar Mendez went 7 for the win and Andres Padilla pitched 2 soreless for the save. Brant Cooney had a 2-run jack for the Bar and Grillers.

National League

Jimmy Martin won a pitcher's duel, as Trenton topped Ottawa 2-1 in a game marked by controversy over a mangerial move. With a 1-0 lead in the 5th (and 2 out, nobody on), the Ice sent Andrew Page to pinch-hit for starter Jorge Dejesus. At the time, Dejesus was cruising with a 2-hit shutout and had thrown only 44 pitches. Page grounded out to end the non-threat. An inning later Dejesus' replacement, Larry Locke, yielded the tying and winning runs.

Burlington and Indianapolis staged a 10-inning barnburner, with the Lake Monsters prevailing 8-7. Burlington took a 5-4 lead in the 9th on a Ralph Martin pinch-hit sac fly, but the Sluggers tied on a Roosevelt McGowan solo blast. The Monsters surged ahead in the 10th on a Tony Kent double and Jeremi Smart's 2-run single, but the Sluggers countered again. They rallied for 2 in bottom 10 and had runners at 1st and third with 2 out, but the rally fell just short as PH Ronnie Stairs flew out to left.

The Willie Magadan acquisition paid early dividends for Austin. The sure Hall-Of-Famer tagged a walkoff solo HR in the bottom of the ninth as the Chaloupas edged defending AL Champ Charleston, 6-5. Tuck Barkley got the win in relief with a scoreless 9th.

Perhaps inspired by their 1 vote to win the NL West in the recent JBT poll, Tacoma pushed San Jose to the brink before falling in 10, 6-5. The Bees' Jesus Vazquez led off the 10th with a solo HR for the game-winner, and Deion Corbin shut down the TIE Fighters on a 1-2-3 10th for the save.