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  • Mankato MoonDogs' Chase Simpson dives for a ground ball during their game against the Alexandria Beetles Friday at Franklin Rogers Park. Pat Christman

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July 27, 2012

Losses starting to mount for once-hot MoonDogs

By Denny Weller Special to The Free Press

MANKATO — The second-half woes continued for the Mankato MoonDogs on Friday night at Franklin Rogers Park as Alexandria won 9-1 before the season’s second-best crowd of 1,612.

“We’re playing a little lackadaisical right now,” Moondogs’ shortstop Chris Munoz said. “We have to start having fun again and playing better baseball. It’s a 70-game season so it’s a grind, and you can’t be at your best every day. It has been difficult with guys leaving because you can’t get comfortable.

“You can’t use that as an excuse, you just have to go out there and play as a group. This is the team we’re going to the playoffs with so hopefully we can turn it around on the road trip. We just have to relax, and when we do that I am sure things will turn around.”

Alexandria (23-32, 10-10 in second half) banged out 13 hits off a trio of MoonDogs’ pitchers — Kyle McGrath, Mike Avila and Kevin Corey — and were never threatened. Matt Lowenstein’s RBI single triggered a two-run second inning before the Beetles added two runs in each of the fifth and sixth frames to take a 6-0 edge.

Robert Chase smacked a solo home run in the sixth inning, and Alexandria capped things by tallying three times in the ninth. Lowenstein, Matt Beaty, Chase and Josh Carpenter each collected a pair of hits.

Al Simpson struck out 10 and walked none in allowing six hits through six innings to gain the victory.

Mankato (38-17, 10-10) had a second-inning threat go by the wayside after Craig Massoni and Munoz singled with nobody out. However, Simpson fanned the next three MoonDogs to escape. The ’Dogs’ lone run came in the sixth when Chase Simpson rocketed a double into the right-center field gap and Munoz singled for his team-best 33rd RBI of the season.

“We played well on our last road trip and gutted it out so maybe this is what we need,” MoonDogs’ manager Mike Orchard said of an upcoming nine-day road trip. “We’ve got a lot of new faces, and it usually takes a few games to get everybody together. I like this group of guys because they all want to be here.

“It will turn for us. We lost a lot of good players, but nobody in this league is going to feel sorry for you. We need to get the guys in the right spots, and when we do that we’ll be all right.”

Simpson, Munoz and Kyle Turners ripped two hits each for the MoonDogs, who ended up with eight hits off three pitchers. Alexandria stole nine bases.

Mankato begins its road trek today, starting a five-game series at Thunder Bay.

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