Wahoos Tie Series With Mississippi
July 17, 2017
Nick Senzel smacked his first walk-off base hit in a Pensacola Blue Wahoos uniform, when he hit a sharp single back up the middle to score Joe Hudson with the winning run.
Senzel, the top prospect in the Cincinnati Reds organization, said he was “lucky” to hit the fourth straight slider he saw from Mississippi Braves reliever Devan Watts that gave Pensacola a, 4-3, victory Sunday in front of 4,123 at Blue Wahoos Stadium.
“I wanted to put a good at-bat together,” Senzel said. “They were all sliders. The best pitch I got to hit was his first one. That’s his go-to pitch. The last one, I put the barrel on it and luckily it went through.”
Pensacola manager Pat Kelly felt comfortable having the Blue Wahoos’ hottest hitter at the plate with the outcome of the game on the line. His 22-year-old third baseman Sunday tied Jackson General’s second baseman Kevin Medrano for the longest hitting streak in the Southern League this season with 16.
“The right guy was up at the right time,” Kelly said. “Watts has good stuff. He had four tough sliders. That last one was up and Senzel got it through that hole.”
The second walk-off this series, after Tyler Goeddel hit one Friday, and fifth this season tied the five-game series, 2-2, with the final game played at 6:35 p.m. Monday.
“This has been a fun series,” Senzel said. “That’s a good club on the other side and they will be ready to play every day and so will we.”
The ninth inning rally started with a sizzling ground ball single to right field by left fielder Josh VanMeter with one out. Hudson followed with a walk and then centerfielder Tyler Goeddel drilled the first pitch into center field to score VanMeter and tie the game, 3-3.
It was the fourth time since Tuesday that Goeddel, who is hitting .249, has come through with a clutch hit. He has two-game winners and two hits that have tied the game against the Chattanooga Lookouts and Mississippi.
Pensacola shortstop Blake Trahan followed Goeddel with a walk to bring up Senzel. The second overall pick in the 2016 draft is hitting .383 (23-60) during his hitting streak with four doubles, two home runs and 12 RBIs.
Mississippi loaded the bases in the seventh inning on Pensacola middle reliever Alex Powers, who threw a wild pitch with two outs that allowed center fielder Connor Lien to score and put the Braves on top, 3-2.
In the eighth inning, Hudson kept Mississippi off the bases when he fired to Blue Wahoos first baseman Gavin LaValley to pick off Braves left fielder Tyler Neslony at first after his base hit. Mississippi second baseman Travis Demeritte reached first on an error by Trahan, Pensacola’s shortstop, but was gunned down by Hudson. This year, Hudson has thrown out 16 of 39 runners, or 41 percent, trying to steal on him this season.
Another big hit in the game came when Pensacola right fielder Gabriel Guerrero hit a two-out, line drive double to the opposite field in right that drove in Trahan and third baseman Senzel to tie the game, 2-2, in the sixth inning. Guerrero hit 3-4 for his 27th multi-hit game and it is the sixth time this season that the 23-year-old Dominican has had three hits total. He leads the ballclub with a .272 batting average.
Kelly said that Mississippi was trying to keep Guerrero from getting a pitch to hit.
“I don’t think you can pitch around Guerrero,” Kelly said, chuckling. “That ball was a foot outside and he hit it to right field.”
Mississippi scored two runs in the fourth to go up, 2-0. Neslony doubled to the wall in right center to drive in third baseman Austin Riley. Demeritte hit a high fly ball to right field that allowed Braves first baseman Joey Meneses tag up from third and score.
In the third start for Rookie Davis in Pensacola, who started the season in the Cincinnati Reds starting rotation, he pitched his most innings (five) and threw his most pitches (85).
Davis stood in the tunnel leading to the Blue Wahoos clubhouse after the game and gave all of his teammates a high-five. A Pensacola starter last season, he is 0-0 with a 4.61 ERA. Davis has pitched 13.2 innings total and allowed 12 hits, seven earned runs, walked six and struck out 11.
The 24-year-old retired 10 of the first 11 Mississippi batters he faced before running into trouble when he gave up two runs on four hits, including three in a row in the fourth inning. Davis, who has filled a void as one of Pensacola’s five starters, retired the side in the fifth inning.
“He’s getting better,” Kelly said. “It still comes down to fastball command. For him to be effective, he’s got to get the ball down.”
Pensacola evened its record at 12-12 in the second half. The South Division first half champions are 52-42 overall. Mississippi fell to 6-17 in the second half and 40-53 overall.
Driver Flips Over Nokomis Road Railroad Tracks
July 16, 2017
There was no driver with an overturned truck found on Nokomis Road Sunday morning.
The driver was apparently eastbound on Nokomis Road when they lost control approaching the railroad tracks near Highway 97. The vehicle left the roadway, overturned into a ditch, went airborne over the railroad tracks and flipped into a ditch before coming to rest in an upright condition.
The accident was reported about 5:30 a.m.; there was no word on the time of the crash.
The accident is under investigation by the Florida Highway Patrol. The Walnut Hill Station of Escambia Fire Rescue and Atmore Ambulance also responded to the scene.
NorthEscambia.com photos, click to enlarge.
Driver Arrested After Pedestrian Killed In Hit And Run Crash
July 16, 2017
A driver was arrested for a fatal hit and run pedestrian crash Saturday night on Highway 29 in Ensley.
The pedestrian was struck by a vehicle about 10:30 p.m. in the 5800 block of Pensacola Boulevard, near the Motel 6. The pedestrian, identified as 52-year old Tina Baker Cain of Linden, AL, walked into the path of a 1994 Chevrolet C1500 driven by 45-year old Charles Otto Bodie of Pensacola.
Cain was thrown about 100 feet from the collision and was pronounced deceased on the scene.
Bodie fled the scene, according to the FHP, with a witness following him to his address. Bodie was charged with leaving the scene of a crash involving death by the Florida Highway Patrol. His bond was set at $100,000.
File photo.
Century Council To Consider A Police ‘Excessive Force Policy’
July 16, 2017
Monday night, the Century Town Council will consider an “excessive force policy” that protects individuals that take part in non-violent civil rights demonstrations.
It’s policy under a 1974 federal law that was amended in 1990 that is required of entities receiving federal housing funds. It requires the adoption of a policy of enforcing state and local laws against physically barring entrance to or exit from a facility or location that is the subject on a nonviolent civil rights demonstration.
The Town’s policy, adopted under the federal standards, will “prohibit the use of excessive force by law enforcement agencies within its jurisdiction against any individuals engaged in nonviolent civil rights demonstrations, to enforce…laws against physically barring entrance to exit from a facility or location which is the subject of such nonviolent civil rights demonstration,” according to a resolution to be considered by the council.
Also Monday night, the council will ensure that there is no conflict of interest such as family relationship between council members and persons to be considered for emergency housing funds, and hear an update on the establishment of a CRA — community redevelopment area — in the town.
The Century Town Council will meet at 7 p.m. Monday in council chambers at the Century Town Hall. The meeting is open to the public.
NorthEscambia.com file photo, click to enlarge.
Escambia Man Charged With Death Of Man Pushed Out Of Business
July 16, 2017
An Escambia County man has been arrested in connection with death of man last December outside a Pensacola bar.
Donny Ray Dearmon, 38, was charged with negligent manslaughter.
Pensacola Police Department Detectives Chris Grantham and Marcus Savage determined Dearmon caused the death of Lester MacDonald, 52, of the 1200 block of Scenic Highway, Pensacola, after he pushed him out the door of a local business late last year, and MacDonald’s head hit the pavement.
The incident occurred just after midnight December 4 at Sir Richards Bar, 2719 E. Cervantes Street, after the two men exchanged words inside the business.
MacDonald died later that day at his residence.
Dearmon remains in the Escambia County Jail with bond set at $250,000.
Portion Of Stefani Road To Close
July 16, 2017
A section of Stefani Road between Nine Mile Road and 9 1/2 Mile Road will close beginning Tuesday, July 25 to Friday, August 4 for utility work. There will be detours in place for traffic to follow. Access to residences will be provided at all times.
Every effort will be made to expedite construction efforts to reopen the road by Friday, August 4. If other lane or roadway closures are necessary beyond the anticipated time periods, another notice will be issued.
Molino’s Gindl Has Contract Purchased By The San Francisco Giants
July 16, 2017
The San Francisco Giants have purchased the contract of Caleb Gindl from the Lancaster (PA) Barnstormers.
Gindl, 28, was batting .281 with nine home runs and 47 RBI in 71 games played this season. The Molino native also contributed 15 doubles and two triples. He had slugged four homers, including a game winner at Long Island, and knocked home 10 runs in the last eight games prior to the Atlantic League All-Star break.
The left-handed hitter was spending his second year with Lancaster. He batted .295 with 10 home runs and 72 RBI for the Barnstormers in 2016 and was named to the Atlantic League’s year-end All-Star Team. He was also the MVP of the 2016 Atlantic League All-Star Game, held in Lancaster.
Following the season, Gindl was signed by the Chicago White Sox. He was released by Chicago near the end of spring training
Gindl has prior Major League experience with the Milwaukee Brewers. He batted .242 with five home runs and 14 RBI for Milwaukee in 2013, hitting a walkoff home run against the Miami Marlins.
“Caleb was a very valuable player for us on the field and in the locker room,” said Barnstormers manager Ross Peeples. “We will miss him, but he deserves this opportunity.”
The Lancaster Barnstormers are an American professional baseball team based in Lancaster, PA. They are a member of the Freedom Division of the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball, which is not affiliated with Major League Baseball.
Rabies Alert Issued For Portion Of Escambia County
July 16, 2017
The Florida Department of Health in Escambia County (FDOH-Escambia) has issued a rabies advisory for the Warrington and Navy Point areas of Escambia County. The alert does not currently included the North Escambia area; however, the health department is urging everyone to use basic precautions.
FDOH-Escambia urges residents and visitors to protect themselves from the risk of rabies exposure by avoiding contact with wild and stray animals.
There have been two recent reports of a fox attacking individuals, during the daytime, in both Warrington and Navy Point in Escambia County. The most recent attack, which occurred on July 13, resulted in the fox’s demise after which FDOH-Escambia’s environmental health specialists were able to collect tissue samples from the fox and forward the samples to the state laboratory which has now confirmed the presence of the rabies virus.
Rabies is a viral disease that infects the central nervous system. Without proper treatment, rabies can cause brain infection and death. Rabies is transmitted by a rabid animal by a bite, a scratch, or by contact with mucous membranes such as the eyes, nose, or mouth. A series of “rabies shots” can protect a bite victim from developing the rabies infection, if given soon after the bite occurs.
“Rabies is a fatal infection but is preventable,” notes FDOH-Escambia’s director, Dr. John J. Lanza. “It is important to not feed or pet wild and stray animals, to avoid animals that appear to be acting strangely, and to keep pets vaccinated against rabies. Persons who are bitten by a wild animal or an animal who has not been vaccinated against rabies should seek immediate medical care. Proper medical treatment of an animal bite can be life-saving.”
In Florida, raccoons, foxes, bats, and cats are the animals most frequently diagnosed with rabies. Other animals that are at high risk for rabies include dogs, bobcats, skunks, and otters. Because of their proximity to people, stray and unvaccinated cats and dogs pose a special risk.
- You cannot always tell if an animal has rabies by looking at it. To protect yourself and your loved ones against rabies follow these steps:
- Teach your children not to go near wild and stray animals, and never keep them as pets.
- Vaccinate your dog, cat, ferret, or horse to protect against rabies. Keep vaccinations up-to-date.
- Do not feed your pets outside. The food may attract wild animals.
- Make sure your garbage is securely covered. Open garbage attracts wild and stray animals.
- Spay or neuter your pet to reduce its tendency to roam or fight.
- Do not let your pets roam freely or allow them to interact with wild or stray animals. Keep them in a fenced yard or on a leash at all times.
- Call Escambia County Animal Control, at 850-595-0097, to remove stray animals from your neighborhood.
- Prevent bats from entering living quarters or occupied spaces in homes, churches, schools, and other similar areas, where they might come into contact with people and pets.
- If your pet is bitten by another animal, immediately seek veterinary assistance for the animal and contact Escambia County Animal Control.
- If you are bitten by a wild animal, or by any animal that is acting strangely, seek medical care as soon as possible so that a physician can evaluate your risk of rabies infection and administer the rabies vaccine if appropriate.
FDOH-Escambia’s Environmental Health division investigates animal bite reports, tests animals for rabies through the state laboratory, and orders animal quarantine as necessary. For more information, or to report an animal bite, contact the FDOH-Escambia Environmental Health office at 850-595-6700 or visit www.EscambiaHealth.com.
Mississippi Beats Pensacola
July 16, 2017
Pensacola Blue Wahoos starter Deck McGuire turned in what is becoming a normal start for him this season.
Mississippi scored one unearned run off McGuire in his seven innings of work and went onto win, 2-0, in front of a sellout crowd of 5,038 at Blue Wahoos Stadium. It was Pensacola’s 13th sellout this season.
So far this series, Pensacola has won once, 2-1, and lost twice to Mississippi, 2-0.
“I was joking with Derrick Lewis, their pitching coach, that the first one to two (runs) wins,” said Blue Wahoos manager Pat Kelly. “It’s worked out that way all three games.”
McGuire threw 23.1 scoreless innings this month and has allowed just four earned runs in his last 45 innings for a 0.80 ERA.
The 6-foot-6 McGuire, a former first round pick in 2010, earned the hard-luck loss and is 8-7 with a 2.61 ERA. He entered the game 2-0 against Mississippi this season, pitching 13 innings, allowing two earned runs and striking out 18.
Good news for Pensacola was Nick Senzel extending his hitting streak to 15 games when the Cincinnati Reds top prospect hustled for a double on a blooper to left center to start the seventh inning.
The 22-year-old, who had one of Pensacola’s three hits in Saturday’s game, is one game shy of tying Jackson General second baseman Kevin Medrano for the longest hitting streak in the Southern League this season.
“He keeps swinging it,” Kelly said. “I wish I had a couple more of him. We might score some more runs.”
The M-Braves scored in the fifth inning to go up, 1-0, when Braves first baseman Jonathan Morales reached first on an error by Pensacola shortstop Blake Trahan. He then scored from first when center fielder Stephen Gaylor ripped a sharp line drive that landed just inside the left field foul line for a double.
The Braves got another run in the eighth on Blue Wahoos reliever Carlos Gonzalez to take a 2-0 lead when center fielder Stephen Gaylor singled to start the inning. He then raced to third just ahead of Pensacola right fielder Aristides Aquino’s throw after Aquino fielded a Tyler Neslony ground ball single. It was his first hit in Double-A after going 0-8 in his first two games in the Southern League. Gaylor finally scored when Mississippi right fielder Keith Curcio grounded out into a double play.
Mississippi looked like it would score in the first inning, too, after back-to-back singles by right fielder Keith Curcio and shortstop Dylan Moore. But McGuire then struck out the next three batters and proceeded to have seven Ks for the game.
Meanwhile, Braves starter Wes Parsons shut down the Pensacola lineup. Normally a reliever, Parsons had a no-hitter for 4.1 innings before Blue Wahoos second baseman Shed Long hit a grounder past the first baseman into right field for a base hit.
In his sixth spot start this season, the 24-year-old Parsons pitched seven scoreless innings, allowed two hits, walked one and struck out a season-high eight batters.
Pensacola dropped to 11-12 in the second half. The South Division first half champions are 51-42 overall. Mississippi improved to 6-16 in the second half and 40-52 overall.
Photo by Barrett McClean Photography/Pensacola Blue Wahoos for NorthEscambia.com, click to enlarge.
Florida Gov’t Weekly Roundup: Looking For A ‘Silver Bullet’
July 16, 2017
For decades, the orange has been as important to Florida’s self-image as sunshine, the beach and perhaps even Disney World.
One of the several college football bowl games held in the state every year is the Orange Bowl — not to be confused with the separate Citrus Bowl. The fruit is center-stage on state license plates. A few years ago, questions about the origin of orange juice in the Capitol cafeteria sparked a minor kerfuffle.
But the state’s citrus industry has fallen on hard times in recent years, and this week brought more reminders of it, as a forecast showed crop numbers falling further. Another attempt to pry money out of the state in a dispute over chopping down homeowners’ citrus trees, meanwhile, came up short.
Elsewhere, an attorney for a Death Row inmate tried to get Gov. Rick Scott to postpone what would be the state’s first execution since early 2016. And the state’s new economic-development infrastructure started rumbling to life.
IT’S NOT EASY BEING ORANGE
The state’s orange crop was already at a half-century low before the U.S. Department of Agriculture on Wednesday issued its final forecast of the 2016-17 season for the citrus industry. That estimate showed the crop falling 16 percent from the prior year. Grapefruit production dropped 28 percent.
Agriculture Commissioner and gubernatorial candidate Adam Putnam, who grew up on a farm in Polk County, expressed a need to keep fighting the disease citrus greening, which he equated to being “like a biblical plague” spreading across the state’s groves.
“The future of Florida citrus, and the tens of thousands of jobs it supports, is wholly dependent on the discovery of a silver bullet in the fight against greening,” Putnam said in a prepared statement. “Florida’s brightest minds are making progress toward a solution, but until then, we must continue to support our growers and provide them every tool available to combat this devastating disease.”
The U.S. Department of Agriculture reported Wednesday, in the final forecast for the 2016-2017 season, that Florida growers have harvested enough oranges to fill 68.7 million 90-pound boxes. The figure was up slightly from a June forecast, but down from the 70 million boxes growers were originally predicted to fill this season.
The Florida Department of Citrus went with the silver-lining approach, focusing on the monthly uptick.
“Ending the season on a positive note is a big deal because it shows there is still investment in Florida’s signature crop,” Shannon Shepp, executive director of the Department of Citrus, said in a prepared statement. “It takes quite serious effort to produce every single piece of fruit. Every additional box shows promise for Florida citrus.”
Growers produced 81.6 million boxes of oranges in the 2015-16 season.
While citrus greening has been devastating, the industry has also grappled over the years with the disease citrus canker.
The citrus-canker fight was at the heart of a ruling Thursday from the Florida Supreme Court, which declined to invalidate Gov. Rick Scott’s veto of $37.4 million that lawmakers approved to compensate homeowners whose healthy citrus trees were cut down by the state more than a decade ago.
The ruling pointed to circuit-court cases in Broward and Lee counties aimed at forcing the state to pay judgments in class-action lawsuits won by homeowners. The healthy trees were cut down amid a state effort to combat citrus canker.
In going to the Supreme Court, attorneys for the homeowners argued, in part, that quick legal action was needed because of the July 1 start of the state’s fiscal year. Lawmakers included the money in the state budget for the new fiscal year, but Scott vetoed it.
“The petitioners do not provide any support for an immediate need for this (Supreme) Court to resolve the issue,” said the majority opinion fully shared by Chief Justice Jorge Labarga and justices Barbara Pariente, Charles Canady, Ricky Polston and Alan Lawson. “Nothing about the start of the new fiscal year prevents the respective circuit courts from issuing the relief requested, if those courts determine that relief is commanded by the facts and law.”
In a scathing dissent, Justice R. Fred Lewis called Thursday’s ruling a “sad day for Florida citizens” and pointed to a constitutional obligation for the state to make payments for taking property.
“This is not a game and our citizens should not be toyed with as if a yo-yo, and yet that is exactly what this veto accomplishes,” Lewis wrote. “Now, with the opportunity to stop this 10-year game of yo-yo, this (Supreme) Court abdicates its responsibility when it allows state actors to disregard their constitutional obligation by playing further games of delay and obfuscation. Justice demands that it stop now.”
DEATH AND DELAY
Previewing the pitched legal battle that is likely to surround the state’s first attempt to carry out the death penalty since January 2016, a lawyer for the inmate scheduled to be executed next month essentially accused Attorney General Pam Bondi of hoodwinking him.
Marty McClain, the lawyer, said the situation could make it more difficult for Death Row inmate Mark James Asay to get his case reviewed by the U.S. Supreme Court.
Gov. Rick Scott last week rescheduled Asay’s execution for Aug. 24, more than a year after originally signing a death warrant in the case.
But in a letter, McClain asked Scott to put a temporary hold on the execution of Asay, arguing that Bondi had misrepresented the status of the case when she gave the governor a go-ahead for scheduling the execution.
After McClain filed an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court this spring, Bondi sought a 30-day extension in the case.
McClain said he interpreted Bondi’s request for a postponement, to which he agreed, to mean that the state would not seek a new execution date for Asay until after the U.S. Supreme Court ruled in the appeal this fall.
Without the 30-day extension, the justices could have taken up Asay’s appeal before their summer break, which started on June 28 and lasts until October, McClain argued.
Instead, the court gave Bondi until July 5 to file her response to Asay.
Two days before the deadline, Bondi certified to Scott that Asay was eligible for execution. After Scott signed Asay’s death warrant on July 3, setting the execution date for Aug. 24, Bondi quickly filed an objection to Asay’s appeal in the U.S. court.
Since a death warrant has been issued in Asay’s case, it would take five Supreme Court justices to order a review, instead of the four that would have been necessary to grant a petition in the absence of a pending execution date, McClain wrote to Scott.
“I think that you should have been fully advised of the pending litigation in the U.S. Supreme Court and the Attorney General’s Office request for an extension of time,” McClain, who has represented more than 200 Death Row inmates, wrote to Scott. “That would have allowed you to be more fully informed when deciding to reset Mr. Asay’s execution.”
Asay was convicted in 1988 of the murders of Robert Lee Booker and Robert McDowell in downtown Jacksonville. Asay allegedly shot Booker, who was black, after calling him a racial epithet. He then killed McDowell, who was dressed as a woman, after agreeing to pay him for oral sex. According to court documents, Asay later told a friend that McDowell had previously cheated him out of money in a drug deal.
Bondi’s request for an extension from the federal court followed by her office’s certification of Asay as being what is known as “death-eligible” appeared to be a bait-and-switch, McClain told The News Service of Florida.
“That’s what it feels like,” McClain said.
OPEN FOR JOB GROWTH
The new economic development fund born out of a legislative fight between Scott and House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’ Lakes, has started accepting pitches for $85 million, the governor announced Wednesday.
The state Department of Economic Opportunity and Enterprise Florida are accepting proposals for money in the “Florida Job Growth Grant Fund,” which was created during a June special legislative session after Corcoran blocked funding for more direct business incentives in the spring regular session.
“We are competing against other states and countries for new jobs, and we must aggressively fight to make Florida the best destination for business,” Scott said in a prepared statement.
Rather than providing direct incentives to individual companies that expand or relocate to Florida, money from the new fund must go toward infrastructure projects or job training. The Department of Economic Opportunity and Enterprise Florida will recommend projects to Scott for approval.
“This fund will free up the governor to cut through unnecessary bureaucracy, regulation, and red tape to improve infrastructure and education leading to greater job growth and opportunity for all Floridians,” Corcoran said in a prepared statement Wednesday.
As part of infrastructure proposals, for example, government entities must detail anticipated economic impacts and “how the public infrastructure improvements will connect to a broader economic development vision for the community and benefit current or future businesses.”
Applications for job-training money are required to describe how the proposals support state college and university programs, as well as providing sustainable workforce skills to more than a single employer.
Applicants must also predict the number of jobs that will be created from the job training.
STORY OF THE WEEK: The Supreme Court rejected a legal challenge to Gov. Rick Scott’s veto of funds lawmakers approved to compensate homeowners whose healthy citrus trees were cut down by the state more than a decade ago.
QUOTE OF THE WEEK: “I often feel it’s part of my job to be a cheerleader for participating in our democracy, by registering to vote and voting. Lately, my job has been to sell voters on not leaving the voting rolls.” — Pasco County Supervisor of Elections Brian Corley, on efforts to prevent voters from unregistering in response to a White House commission’s request for voter information.
by Brandon Larrabee, The News Service of Florida