Orioles fans who happen to peruse the Arizona Fall League statistical leaderboards will notice some familiar names. After two weeks of AFL action, Brandon Snyder leads the circuit with 15 RBI, while Josh Bell ranks second with a .464 average. Matt Angle is the league leader in stolen bases (six) and ranks second in runs scored with 11. All three are big reasons why the Phoenix Desert Dogs sit atop the AFL East standings with a 7-4 record.
Monday, Oct. 19
Brandon Erbe got the start and fired two perfect innings, fanning two and throwing 19 of his 29 pitches for strikes. Ryohei Tanaka relieved Erbe and cruised through the third before finding trouble in the fourth. He served up a one-out solo shot to Cincinnati's Chris Heisey , then loaded the bases on two singles and a walk. Tanaka got the second out of the inning on a pop-up before Indians prospect Carlos Rivero laced an RBI single to left, with a second potential run cut down at the plate. Bell had a big day at the dish, going 4-for-5 with an RBI double, a triple and three runs scored. In his lone right-handed at bat of the day, he singled off Braves first-round pick Mike Minor . Snyder went 2-for-5 with a double and a run, but also struck out twice and grounded into a double play. Phoenix picked up its fifth straight win, beating the Peoria Saguaros 6-2.
Tuesday, Oct. 20
Angle went 3-for-5 out of the leadoff spot with a double, a run, an RBI and a stolen base. Brandon Waring , hitting third and playing third base, went 1-for-4 with a double, a run and a walk. He fanned twice to bring his AFL total to seven through 13 at bats. Josh Perrault came on in relief in the seventh and promptly allowed his first AFL run when Heisey followed a Brandon Hicks (Braves) double with an RBI single. He escaped further trouble with help from catcher A.J. Jimenez , who gunned down Heisey on a steal attempt for the second out of the inning. The Peoria Saguaros tallied six runs in the ninth to hand the Desert Dogs their second loss of the season, 11-8.
Wednesday, Oct. 21
Snyder went 4-for-5 with a pair of homers and matched the AFL single-game season-high of seven RBI in the Desert Dogs' 17-4 rout of the Peoria Javelinas. He took Nick Hill (Mariners) deep to center for a two-run shot in the third and blasted a three-run bomb - also to center - off 2007 Seattle first-rounder Phillippe Aumont in the seventh. Snyder also had a two-run single and a double, and even managed a stolen base. Not to be outdone, Bell went 4-for-5 with a three-run bomb his own off Aumont and a double. He went 2-for-2 with a double against Hill, a southpaw. Angle went 2-for-5 with a pair of singles and picked up an RBI on a bases-loaded walk in the fourth.
