Flintoff & Dunn's NEWS ARCHIVE
MAY 2011

It is intended that this page will maintain a historical record of previous news published on this site. From time to time we will archive old or outdated news on our "WHAT'S NEW" & "AUSSIES IN THE US LEAGUES" pages. It may interest some people to read the developments in chronological order right here.

ARCHIVED NEWS FROM MAY 2011 BEGINS BELOW:

ARCHIVE
MAY 2011

To make things easier for our loyal subscribers we will adopt a new format of
providing news involving AUSTRALIAN Players in yellow text, while 
news about former AMLB IMPORT Players will be in white text.
  31 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON TOUCHED BY ROYALS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson		 Aussie reliever RICH THOMPSON found the going a little tough today as just one of a few pitchers to take some lumps in the Los Angeles Angels high scoring 10-8 win over the Kansas City Royals. On this occasion Rich didn't last too long after his none too effective pitching line of 0.2ip 3h 2er 1bb 0k (2.96ERA) when he took over for the seventh inning in what was a 5-6 ballgame.

Thompson snared two quick outs with Eric Hosmer grounding out to the short stop and Jeff Francouer grounding out to third but things went down hill from there. Billy Butler singled into right centre and he scored on Wilson Betemit's RBI triple to right. Matt Treanor followed with a full count walk and Chris Getz cashed in another run with his RBI single into left field. That was all for him but he would have felt a whole lot better because his team rallied late to win the game.
  30 MAY 2010 - GRANT BALFOUR HOLDS TWICE MORE!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour		 Australia's GRANT BALFOUR took his tally of holds into double digits yesterday with a solid 1.0ip 0h 0er 1bb 0k, helping his Oakland Athletics to trump the Baltimore Orioles 4-2. He began by getting J.J Hardy to fly out to centre field before Mark Reynolds worked a full count walk. 'Balf' faced no more than the minimum by getting pinch hitter Ryan Adams to ground into a double play initiated by the short stop.

He then added his eleventh hold today with 1.0ip 1h 0er 0bb 0k (2.92ERA) to help preserve a 6-2 win for the A's and a series sweep of the visiting Orioles. Balfour again came to the fore to pitch the bottom of the eighth and he was at his economical best to post another no-fuss frame. Much like the previous day he induced a canny double play with Matt Wieters grounding out to the short stop following Vladimir Guerrero's single into right field. Luke Scott fouled out to the third baseman to end the inning after just nine pitches from the big Aussie reliever.
  27 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON & BALFOUR IN OPPOSITION!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson


Grant Balfour		 Australia's established big league relievers GRANT BALFOUR and RICH THOMPSON were in opposing bullpens today and, although Balfour had the worst of the comparative outings, his Oakland Athletics held on to top the Los Angeles Angels 4-3 in a tight one. Thompson pitched an impressive 1.2ip 0h 0er 0bb 2k (4.50ERA) for the defeated 'Halos' while Balfour was rocked with 1.0ip 2h 3er 1bb 2k (3.18ERA) for the A's.

Richard was first to take the mound in the top of the seventh when he relieved Angels' starter Joel Pineiro with two runners aboard and only one out. He responded in perfect fashion to have both Conor Jackson and Josh Willingham called out on strikes to extinguish the threat. He returned to add a 1-2-3 top of the eighth comprising Hideki Matsui lining out to the second baseman, Kurt Suzuki flying out to centre field and Mark Ellis flying out to left field.

Balfour didn't have quite so much fun when he nearly allowed a 4-0 lead to evaporate in the bottom of the ninth which started with an Erick Aybar leadoff single into right field. Grant looked to have things back under control with successive swinging strike outs of the dangerous Bobby Abreu and Torii Hunter. Aybar took second base on "defensive indifference" which precipitated an intentional walk to Alberto Callaspo. The move proved to be a false strategy when Mark Trumbo launched the second pitch he saw over left centre for a three run "jack" to narrow the scoreline. The danger wasn't to last much longer when his first pitch to Russell Branyan sailed harmlessly into the glove of the centre fielder to end the game with his team still one run ahead.
  23 MAY 2010 -  BALFOUR BLOWS SAVE v GIANTS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour		 We guess that all baseball streaks, like all other good things, must finally come to an end... and so it was for the streak of scoreless innings recently posted by Aussie fireman GRANT BALFOUR who was tagged for a blown save during his Oakland Athletics 4-5 loss to the San Francisco Giants after eleven innings. Grant pitched a battling 1.0ip 2h 2er 0bb 1k (2.08ERA) to be saddled with his second blown save of the year after hurling the eighth inning for the A's. With his team holding a 4-2 lead starting the eighth, Balfour was quickly under pressure when ageless slugger Miguel Tejada punched a leadoff single up the middle but he then secured the first out when Mike Fontenot flied out to left field. Pinch hitter Nate Schierholtz then battled an eight pitch full count that ended when he cranked a two run homer over right field to tie the contest and to register the blown save. It would not have been much consolation to our guy that he tidied up the inning quickly after by getting Andres Torres to fly out to right field and then having Freddy Sanchez called out on strikes. Unfortunately the major damage had been done via the long ball.

 Former IBLA import DAVID ROSS (MLB All-Stars 2001) continues to contribute offensively whenever he is given a chance as the backup catcher for the Atlanta Braves. Ross batted 1-3 (.306) for the Braves during their latest 1-4 defeat by the Los Angeles Angels.
  21 MAY 2010 -  BALFOUR & HUGHES WAVE OUR FLAG AGAIN!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour		 Australian relief ace GRANT BALFOUR was bringing the smoke again yesterday with another strong scoreless inning of 1.0ip 1h 0er 0bb 1k (1.31ERA) for the Oakland Athletics who were "squeaked" 1-2 by the World Champion San Francisco Giants. Balfour pitched the bottom of the seventh which started with Nate Schierholtz called out on strikes ahead of a Cody Ross single into left field. There was no further action for the Giants when Grant got Mike Fontenot to fly out to left and veteran Miguel Tejada to ground out to the second baseman.

We are hoping that it may be temporary, but it seems that Aussie infielder LUKE HUGHES has recently fallen from favour as far as starting for the Minnesota Twins as a regular infielder. In yesterday's game he was again called from the bench to pinch hit for the Twins' pitcher in the top of the eighth on their way to a tight 7-8 interleague loss to the Arizona Diamondbacks. Luke took his at bat with a runner on first and none out, facing Ian Kennedy with his team 2-6 down in the contest. Unfortunately Hughes was to find out like so many others before him that it is difficult to come into a game just to hit when he struck out swinging on four pitches. Minnesota rallied in the ninth but fell just short of taking the game into extras.

  20 MAY 2010 - HUGHES SCORES; BALFOUR EFFICIENT!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Luke Hughes		 Australia's latest new major league player LUKE HUGHES saw another brief slice of big league action with the Minnesota Twins today as they overwhelmed the Oakland Athletics 11-1. Luke actually scored the last of the 'Twinkies' eleven runs after being asked to pinch hit for Michael Cuddyer in the top of the ninth inning. He joined the fray with none out following Justin Morneau's leadoff single. Unfortunately Hughes grounded back to the pitcher who completed the fielder's choice put out at second base while he swapped places at first base. Hughes then went first-to-third on Danny Valencia's single to right field and he scored on Delmon Young's RBI single to left field. He batted 0-1 (.214) for the day.

Live arm Aussie GRANT BALFOUR lowered his already miniscule ERA again yesterday when he pitched a most efficient 1.0ip 0h 0er 0bb 2k (1.37ERA) for the Oakland Athletics during their narrow 3-4 defeat at the hands of the battling Minnesota Twins. Balfour was his typically overpowering self when pitching the top of the eighth inning to strike out Trevor Plouffe swinging, getting Jason Kubel to line out to centre field and then having Justin Morneau called out on strikes. Both of his strike outs in the 1-2-3 inning were achieved with the minimum three pitches each. He did his job to keep the A's in the contest.
  19 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON STRUGGLES & BALFOUR WINS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson








Grant Balfour		 Aussie RICH THOMPSON was only one of the Los Angeles Angels pitchers who found it hard to escape the carnage when his team was pounded 14-0 by the hosting Oakland Athletics yesterday. Thompson pitched a moderate 1.2ip 1h 1er 2bb 2k (2.57ERA) but it wasn't quite as bad as it may have looked given that the Angels had already coughed up 10 of those runs before he took the hill. In fact Rich inherited a horrible bases loaded and one out situation in the bottom of the sixth as the game descended into melt down. He caused some optimism by striking out Cliff Pennington but he then lost his radar to push across another couple of runs with successive walks to Ryan Sweeney and Daric Barton while the bases remained loaded. The last of his inherited runners and one of his own scored when Josh Willingham singled up the middle before he mercifully ended the inning with Hideki Matsui grounding out to the second baseman from the first pitch he saw. With the final score already posted, Thompson returned for some "mop up duty" in the bottom of the seventh and it proved to be a quiet 1-2-3 inning. It started with Kurt Suzuki grounding out to the short stop then David DeJesus grounded out to the second baseman and Andy LaRoche struck out swinging. It concluded a tough day for the Aussie and his bullpen mates who wrapped up one more scoreless frame.

... and the previous day it was better luck for his Aussie opponent:

It is obvious that Australia's GRANT BALFOUR has settled nicely into his new environment with the Oakland Athletics this season as he builds an increasingly impressive record that currently stands at 3-1, 1.45ERA. His latest game brought his third win of the year when he struck out the 'Halos' side in the tenth inning with 1.0ip 1h 0er 0bb 3k to enable the A's to beat the Los Angeles Angels 5-4 in the bottom of the tenth.
Facing the most dangerous part of the Angels lineup in the top of the tenth Balfour fanned both Torii Hunter and Howie Kendrick before Alberto Callaspo broke the sequence with a single up the middle. Grant had the final say when he "whiffed" Mark Trumbo on three pitches to end the inning and to collect the "W".
  16 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON LOSES; HUGHES PINCH RUNS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson



 After a couple of unproductive games with the bat, Australian infielder LUKE HUGHES found himself out of the starting lineup for the Minnesota Twins today but he was used as a pinch runner before taking over at first base during their 3-11 loss to the in-form Toronto Blue Jays today. Luke was inserted to run for Justin Morneau who had walked with one out in the bottom of the eighth. He advanced to second on a wild pitch and then on to third on a ground ball out. He was left there when the third out of the inning came via a strike out. The game has been a bit like that for the Twins lately.

Aussie reliever RICH THOMPSON was in the wrong place at the wrong time today with a wayward effort to take a loss with 0.0ip 1h 1er 2bb 0k when his Los Angeles Angels were shaded 4-5 by the home standing Texas Rangers. Taking over for the bottom of the eighth in a 4-4 ballgame, Richard walked both Adrian Beltre and David Murphy as a disastrous start, then he loaded the bases when Mike Napoli singled into right field. Thompson was immediately lifted for Hisanori Takahashi who cashed in the go-ahead and winning run when Chris Davis singled into right field. The loss dropped his season record to 1-2, 2.33ERA.
  15 MAY 2010 - BALFOUR STRONG; HUGHES COOL!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour





Luke Hughes		 Live arm Aussie GRANT BALFOUR put a nice tidy lid on a 6-2 win for his Oakland Athletics over the Chicago White Sox with his 1.2ip 1h 0er 0bb 0k (1.53ERA) today. Grant took over the bump with one on and one out in the top of the eighth and he quickly banked his first two outs via an inning ending double play to the second baseman from Alexei Ramirez. He then quelled the heart of the 'Chisox' lineup in the top of the ninth after monster slugger Adam Dunn doubled to deep left centre to lead off the inning. Balfour got Paul Konerko to ground out to short, Carlos Quentin to fly out to centre and Alex Rios to fly out to right field.

Balfour also closed out a narrow 3-4 loss for the A's against the White Sox yesterday with a strong 1.0ip 0h 0er 0bb 2k. In this game he kept Oakland within a run by pitching a scoreless top of the ninth against the same heart of the Chicago lineup. This time he got Adam Dunn called out on strikes, Paul Konerko struck out swinging and Carlos Quentin popped out to the second baseman.

Aussie LUKE HUGHES had a rough day at the plate today, batting 0-5 (.217) for the Minnesota Twins who were beaten 9-3 by the Toronto Blue Jays after eleven innings. Hughes was the starting second baseman for the Twins today and he batted in the #8 hole. His first action came when he was called out on strikes while facing Jo-Jo Reyes in the bottom of the second inning. Then with two on and none out, he flied out to centre field off Reyes in the bottom of the fourth. Reyes got him to fly out again, to right field with one out in the sixth. His most frustrating moment arrived in the seventh when he strode to the plate with the bases loaded in a 2-3 game but he was fanned by Marc Rzepczynski to end the inning. His final at bat came against man mountain Jon Rauch who had Luke fly out to centre field for the second out in the tenth inning.

Hughes also found it tough yesterday when he batted 0-3 after starting at second base and hitting #8 for Minnesota in their 0-2 defeat by the Blue Jays. He began by flying out to right field from the first pitch he saw out of the hand of Ricky Romero with one on and none out in the bottom of the third. Next Romero got Luke to ground out to the short stop when leading off in the sixth. Romero got Hughes again struck out swinging as the leadoff batter in the bottom of the eighth. He wasn't the only Twins' batter to struggle in a game where his team found only four hits in total.

Former IBLA import DAVID ROSS (MLB All-Stars 2001) batted a very useful 1-3 (.333) with a walk and a RBI to help his Atlanta Braves to top the Philadelphia Phillies 5-3.
  13 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON HOLDS WITH ONE PITCH!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson		 Australia's established major league reliever RICHARD THOMPSON needed just one pitch to notch his first hold of the season yesterday when he threw 0.1ip 0h 0er 0bb 0k (1.86ERA) for the Los Angeles Angels in what turned out to be a 4-6 defeat by the visiting Chicago White Sox. For his only task of the game Rich was asked to remove the dangerous Carlos Quentin for the last out in the top of the seventh with one runner on base. His first pitch saw Quentin ground out to the short stop... End of story!
  12 MAY 2010 - LUKE HUGHES "DOUBLE-DOUBLE"!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Luke Hughes





Brad Thomas		 In today's game Aussie infielder LUKE HUGHES raked his second RBI double on successive days with 1-5 (.246) but again it was not enough to prevent his Minnesota Twins from falling 7-9 to the Detroit Tigers. This time Hughes was moved up to hit #2 in the lineup while again starting at second base. In the first inning he was put out after attempting to bunt his way on base from the first pitch he faced from Phil Coke with one out. Facing Coke again in the bottom of the third he grounded out sharply back to the pitcher with one out while successfully moving a runner to third base. Hughes next led off the bottom of the sixth against Coke who had him pop up on the infield to the short stop. Luke may have been happy to see the back of Coke when he had much better luck against hard throwing Tigers' reliever Al Alburquerque in the bottom of the seventh. Following two walks in the inning, and one out, Hughes did his job with runners in scoring position via his RBI double to deep right field that kept his team in the game. Hughes then made the last out in the eighth when he flied out to right field after facing Joaquin Benoit.

Australian major leaguers LUKE HUGHES and BRAD THOMAS found themselves in direct opposition yesterday while Brad's Detroit Tigers pummelled Luke's Minnesota Twins 10-2. Hughes batted at #8 for the Twins while starting at second base and them moving to first base later in the game. He batted 1-3 plus a walk, while Thomas pitched in relief with a handy 2.0ip 1h 1er 1bb 1k (9.00ERA). To start with Hughes, his first at bat was leading off in the bottom of the third when he grounded a Rick Porcello pitch to the short stop. In the bottom of the sixth he worked Porcello for a none out walk after battling eight pitches. The moment of Aussie confrontation came in the bottom of the seventh when Luke took some bragging rights from Thomas after seeing nine of his pitches when he lashed a RBI double into deep left centre field... It was to cost Brad the only hit and the only run he allowed on the day! In the bottom of the ninth Hughes flied out to right field with one out while facing Brayan Villarreal.

Thomas took over a comfortable 6-1 lead for the bottom of the sixth and he held the fort after issuing a leadoff walk to Jason Kubel. He followed by getting Justin Morneau to fly out to left field and then he induced Danny Valencia to ground out into an inning ending double play to the short stop. The fateful bottom of the seventh began simply enough with Michael Cuddyer grounding out to short, but he then hit Rene Tosoni with the second pitch he faced. This set the table for compatriot Luke Hughes to hammer his RBI double. With not too much damage done Thomas then got Drew Butera to pop out to the second baseman and he fanned Denard Span who struck out on five pitches to end the inning.
  10 MAY 2010 - HUGHES 2-3 & BALFOUR HOLDS 9TH!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Luke Hughes
 West Aussie infielder LUKE HUGHES had a productive day for the Minnesota Twins after starting at second base and batting in the #9 hole in their 1-2 loss to the Boston Red Sox after 11 innings. Hughes batted 2-3 (.245) and he had the bat working early with a one out single into centre field off Boston starter Josh Beckett. His second at bat produced a two out single into right centre off Beckett. In the top of the seventh Luke faced reliever Alfredo Acevis who had him ground out to the first baseman to lead off the inning. His next assignment came in extra innings when he battled for a nine pitch walk off Japanese lefty Hideki Okijima with one out in the top of the tenth, only to become the third out at third base on a fielder's choice.

Australian righty GRANT BALFOUR added to his recent string of holds yesterday when he pitched 1.0ip 0h 0er 1bb 0k for his ninth hold of the year for the Oakland Athletics who triumphed 5-2 over the Kansas City Royals. Grant took over the mound for the bottom of the eighth and he needed just ten pitches to keep the A's in front 4-2. He got Alex Gordon to pop out to the third baseman, then he walked Jeff Francouer. 'Balf' made sure that he faced the minimum number of batters by getting Eric Hosmer to ground into an inning ending double play.
  8 MAY 2010 - GRANT BALFOUR EARNS HIS EIGHTH HOLD!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour
Brad Thomas


Rich Thompson		 In today's game Australian LUKE HUGHES got another start at second base while batting #9 for the Minnesota Twins in their 0-4 shutout loss to the Boston Red Sox. Facing 'Bosox' starter Clay Buchholz he struck out swinging to lead off the third inning, then he ended the fifth when Buchholz had him line into a double play to the third baseman. His final at bat came when he led off the top of eighth and hard throwing Daniel Bard had him ground out to the third baseman. It was a quiet day for Luke and the Twins offence.

Aussie fireman GRANT BALFOUR took his holds tally to eight yesterday with a tidy 1.0ip 0h 0er 0bb 1k (1.53ERA) to help his Oakland Athletics to edge the Kansas City Royals 3-2. Balfour had Melky Cabrera called out on strikes, Alex Gordon ground out to first base and Billy Butler foul out to the third baseman. It was another very positive day on the bump for Balfour who is among the most reliable relievers in the game.

Pitching for the Detroit Tigers at the end of their 4-7 defeat by the Toronto Blue Jays, Australia's BRAD THOMAS had a bit of an adventure but he escaped without damage to his ERA with 0.1ip 1h 0er 1bb 1k (10.00ERA). With runners on second ant third bases for the Jays, Thomas was asked to get the final out in the bottom of the eighth and he quickly allowed both of the inherited runners to score when Corey Patterson cracked a two RBI double into centre field to expand the lead in the game to 7-1. Brad then walked Yunel Escobar but he finished the inning when Adam Lind was struck out swinging on five pitches.

Aussie RICH THOMPSON and former ABL team mate VERNON WELLS (Sydney Storm 1999) were again a thorn in the side of the opposing Boston Red Sox when they played their part in a blowout 11-0 win for the Los Angeles Angels at Fenway Park in Boston on Friday. Thompson pitched 1.1ip 1h 0er 1bb 2k (2.08ERA) as his part of the combined shutout after relieving starter Joel Piniero in the bottom of the sixth inning. He began by getting the last out in the sixth with Kevin Youkilis flying out to centre field. Back to lock down the seventh Rich got Adrian Gonzalez called out on strikes ahead of David Ortiz raking a single into left field. Next he won a nine pitch battle to have Jed Lowrie struck out looking, but he put two runners on when he walked J.D Drew on four pitches. There was to be no damage done when he got Jarrod Saltalamacchia to fly out to centre field. Wells batted 1-4 (.186) as he finally seems to be finding some long lost form this season.

  5 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON A HERO FOR HALOS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson


 Vernon Wells

 Aussie reliever RICH THOMPSON and former top ABL import VERNON WELLS (Sydney Storm 1999) were both at the forefront of the action for the Los Angeles Angels during their epic 5-3 win over Boston Red Sox after 13 extra-long innings today. In a game that stretched long into the night at Boston and finished around 2am after a lengthy rain delay Wells opened the scoring in the top of the seventh inning with his booming two-run homer that rebounded off the light tower above Fenway's "Green Monster". He finished the game with a valuable 2-5 (.185) plus the two huge RBIs. Richard Thompson took over after the long rain delay in relief of starter Ervin Santana who was working on a no-hitter after pitching brilliantly. Our man kept the "NO NO" in place by pitching a strong 1.2ip 0h 0er 1bb 2k (2.25ERA) only to see the Red Sox rally late to take the game into extra innings. Thompson nailed three up and three down in the fifth when Jed Lowrie popped out to the third baseman, Mike Cameron struck out looking and Carl Crawford was struck out on a foul tip. Back for the bottom of the sixth he walked Jason Varitek to lead off the inning before getting Jacoby Ellsbury to ground into a force out to the first baseman. He was unable to prevent the speedy Ellsbury from stealing second base but he finished off his work for the day by getting Dustin Pedroia to fly out to right field. It was a game that Boston really should have won in the end, but these guys certainly helped the 'Halos' to end a long run of outs against the 'Bosox'!

VERNON WELLS (Sydney Storm 1999) batted 1-3 for the Angels yesterday and he also walked once but it was not enough to earn a win when his team went down 3-7 to the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park.

RYAN LANGERHANS (IBLA Internationals 2001) batted 1-4 (.188) for the Seattle Mariners to help them to nudge a narrow 4-3 win over the Texas Rangers.
  4 MAY 2011 - BALFOUR WINS N.2; THOMAS GETS ONE OUT!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Grant Balfour		 Australian power pitcher GRANT BALFOUR had to struggle yesterday, but he was rewarded with his second win of the season when closed the tenth inning for the Oakland Athletics who outlasted the Texas Rangers 5-4. Pitching the top of the tenth, 'Balf' started strongly by punching out Michael Young who fanned on three pitches, allowing him to pitch a "careful" five-pitch walk to Adrian Beltre. Grant banked the second out with Nelson Cruz flying out to right field. Successive walks to David Murphy and Chris Davis had the bases juiced for pinch hitting catcher Yorvit Torrealba who battled seven pitches only to be struck out swinging by Balfour to end the inning. His pitching line of 1.0ip 0h 0er 3bb 2k took his season record to a positive 2-1, 2.25ERA in the early going.

Aussie lefty BRAD THOMAS managed to dispose of the one batter he was asked to handle for the Detroit Tigers during their 3-5 defeat by the New York Yankees for 0.1ip 0h 0er 0bb 0k (10.38ERA). His only task was to pitch to Curtis Granderson who led off in the top of the seventh and he needed just two pitches to get him to fly out to the short stop. He helped keep the game close at 2-3 to do what was asked of him.
  3 MAY 2010 - THOMPSON WINS v RAYS!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Rich Thompson		 Aussie right-hander RICH THOMPSON collected his first win of the season yesterday with an excellent relief performance of 1.0ip 1h 0er 0bb 3k for the Los Angeles Angels to help them notch a narrow 6-5 win over the Tampa Bay Rays. Rich took the hill for the vital bottom of the seventh and he made fairly short work of a dangerous part of the Rays batting order. He struck out B.J Upton swinging, Ben Zobrist looking and Casey Kotchman swinging for the three outs. Only a Matt Joyce single with one out and a stolen base with two out caused him any concern in what was a conclusive scoreless inning. He improved his season record to 1-1, 2.51ERA.

Veteran slugger VERNON WELLS (Sydney Storm 1999) launched his second home run of the year today when he whacked one over Fenway's "Green Monster" for 1-4 (.172) with two RBIs for the Los Angeles Angels who were on their way to a 5-9 defeat by the Boston Red Sox.

Resilient former IBLA import RYAN LANGERHANS (IBLA Internationals 2001) batted 1-4 (.182) for the Seattle Mariners but it was not enough for them to get past the Boston Red Sox in a 2-3 loss yesterday.
  2 MAY 2010 - HUGHES & BALFOUR IN ACTION!
Here is an update of what some Aussies and former AMLB imports have been doing in the US major leagues:

Luke Hughes


Grant Balfour		 Aussie infielder LUKE HUGHES was just one of the Minnesota Twins offence to struggle in their 3-10 loss to the Kansas City Royals today. Hughes batted 0-3 (.234) as the starting second baseman and #7 slot hitter. Leading off in the top of the third inning he grounded out to the shortstop off Kansas starter Luke Hochevar. He then made the second out in the fifth when Hochevar got him to ground out to the third baseman. His third at bat came in the top of the sixth when the same pitcher had him fly out to centre field to make the final out of the inning with a runner in scoring position. Although the game was well out of reach in the top of the ninth, Hughes did his job when he milked a five pitch walk from Royals' reliever Louis Coleman.

Yesterday Luke was cast in the role of a pinch hitter yesterday while his Twins were swamped 2-11 by the strong finishing Royals who scored eight runs in the eighth inning at Kauffman Stadium. His only action came in the top of the ninth just after 'KC' had blown out the game when he pinch hit to lead off the inning facing Jeremy Jeffress. Hughes was called out on strikes after seeing five pitches to leave him with 0-1 for the day.

Australian fireballer GRANT BALFOUR helped his Oakland Athletics to nail down a 7-2 victory over the Texas Rangers today with a tidy 1.0ip 0h 0er 1bb 1k (2.45ERA). Grant took good care of the top of the eighth, even after issuing a leadoff walk to Michael Young and then taking on the meat of the Texas lineup. He responded by getting Adrian Beltre to ground into a fielder's choice to the third baseman, striking out Nellie Cruz and getting Mike Napoli to fly out to right field.

If anyone takes the trouble to contact us with any reasonably substantiated news of interest to AMLB supporters, we will publish this news on this site! Click these to contact Adrian Dunn or Peter Flintoff.