Maggi makes a move, helps Travs clinch series

Arkansas Travelers Manager Bill Richardson waved goodbye to his shortstop Tuesday after a trade, but he didn't hesitate when trying to fill the hole in his lineup.

Veteran Drew Maggi moved from third base to shortstop 30 minutes before Tuesday's game when Eric Stamets was traded to the Cleveland Indians, and Maggi was there again Wednesday night when he helped the Travs beat the Northwest Arkansas Naturals 12-9 at Dickey-Stephens Park in North Little Rock.

Maggi has played four different positions for the Travs this season but had played at shortstop only once in the past month before Tuesday.

"Is that all it's been?" Maggi said. "I feel like it's been more than a month."

Maggi settled in after he caught Jorge Bonifacio's liner to end the first inning, and although he committed a fielding error that led to two runs in the fourth inning, he helped the Travs survive a rare slugfest in front of an announced crowd of 2,892.

Maggi went 3 for 5 with 2 runs scored and 1 RBI for the Travs, who have won six of their past seven games.

"Once the trade happened I knew I'd be seeing a lot of time there," Maggi said. "I play all over the place so I'm getting pretty used to it, but you want to get that first one out of the way and catch a rhythm."

Richardson said he didn't anticipate Maggi would have any difficulty with another role change. He started the season as a reserve third baseman but turned into their regular shortstop in April when Stamets injured his shoulder and missed five weeks. Even with Stamets' return in late May, Maggi usually found himself somewhere in the lineup, either at second base, third base or left field.

The Travs received shortstop Erick Salcedo from Class A Inland Empire to take Stamets' place on the roster, but Richardson said the shortstop position will continue to include Maggi.

"He's been a great fit for us all year," Richardson said. "He's more than just a super utility guy, he's a baseball player. He brings it every day. The only time he's trouble is when he's on the bench."

Maggi helped spark the Travs' five-run fourth that gave them a 7-4 lead. Brian Hernandez and Cal Towey led off with singles, and Maggi drove in Hernandez with a single that made it 4-3. Then Maggi and Towey scored on an errant throw by Naturals third baseman Hunter Dozier, giving the Travs a 5-4 lead. Wade Hinkle capped the scoring with a two-run single.

Hinkle added a two-run double in the four-run fifth as the Travs scored their most runs since June 12 while clinching a series victory over the heavy-hitting Naturals.

"We do have a lot of respect for those guys because of their prowess at swinging it," Richardson said. "But, again, we try to win every series and every game. I don't want to be cliche, but it's true."

The Naturals dropped the series even though they scored 22 runs and collected 35 hits over 3 games.

Despite the loss of some of their top bats in Balbino Fuenmayor, who was promoted to Class AAA Omaha, and Mike Bianucci, who was suspended for using a banned substance, the Naturals remain one of the best hitting teams in the Texas League. Fuenmayor and Bianucci combined to hit 27 home runs, but the Naturals have been without both since July 3.

Still, they entered Wednesday's game first in hitting (.272) and home runs (101) and third in runs scored (466) and RBI (434). Dozier went 4 for 5 with with a second-inning home run, his 10th of the season and second in as many games for the Naturals, who hit five home runs in the series.

"We try to build a culture that's next man up. You come in here, and you do your job," Naturals Manager Vance Wilson said. "The guys that are coming in, or filling in or are starters, or are guys who have been here, they know how we do things. So, I wasn't that concerned about it."

Sports on 07/30/2015