Mark Maloney on Kentucky sports

South Atlantic League baseball

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Asheville Tourists

What: Four-game series

When: Saturday through Tuesday (7:05 Saturday, Monday and Tuesday nights; 2:05 Sunday afternoon)

Where: Applebee’s Park

Tickets: Call (859) 422-7867

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Saturday, RH Ross Seaton (8-8, 2.67) vs. RH Dan Houston (5-8, 3.95); Sunday, LH David Duncan (1-3, 4.40) vs. RH Jonnathan Aristil (2-6, 4.70); Monday, RH Kyle Greenwalt (7-10, 3.81) vs. TBA; Tuesday, Jordan Lyles (6-10, 3.44) vs. TBA.

Tourist to watch: LF Scott Robinson (6-foot, 185 pounds, from McDonough, Ga.) leads the Tourists in runs (71), hits (124), doubles (27), stolen bases (37), games (97) and at-abats (391). He’s batting .317 with three homers and 31 RBI. Selected by the Colorado Rockies in the 30th round of the 2006 draft, Robinson played the 2007 season for the Casper Ghosts of the Pioneer League, compiling a .240 average, five homers, 25 RBI and 10 steals over 50 games. Last year, with the Tri-City Dust Devils of the Northwest League, he hit .268 with six homers, 25 RBI and 15 steals over 59 games.

Antonio Noguera

Legend to watch: LHP Antonio Noguera (6-3, 194, from Caracas, Venezuela) joined the Legends last week, promoted from the Tri-City ValleyCats of the New York-Penn League. The southpaw has made a pair of one-inning, shutout relief appearances for the Legends, with combined totals of one hit, one walk and one striketout. In 14 games with the ValleyCats, Noguera compiled a 2-0 record and 3.62 ERA, with eight walks to 21 strikeouts over 27 1/3 innings. Signed by the Houston Astros as a non-drafted free agent in September of 2004, when he was 16, Noguera also pitched for Tri-City last season. There, he was 2-8 with a 7.59 ERA over 15 games, including 13 starts. He walked 21 and struck out 24 over 53 1/3 innings. 

Radio: WLXG AM-1300

Jordan Lyles

Also of note: Jordan Lyles, scheduled to start Tuesday’s game for the Legends, is on Baseball America’s “Prospect Hot Sheet” this week. … Members of the Breathitt County Junior Red Cross Club will attend Saturday’s game. When massive flooding took place in Eastern Kentucky last May, club members voted to use all available funds to help those affected by the floods. That included money for the club’s annual trip to a Legends game, which is a reward to students for their service. Officials from several agencies, including the Legends, Central Bank and

Patrick Urckfitz

Jay Austin

Trust, Aramark and the Bluegrass Chapter of the American Red Cross stepped in to fund Saturday’s trip. … Fans are invited to come early for Tuesday’s game and take part in the Family Fun Fest, just outside the ballpark gates. The Fun Fest, free to the public opens at 4 p.m. More than 20 attractions will be available, including batting and pitching cages, bungee runs, super slides, bounce houses, video arcade, a “rookie

Andy Simunic

zone” and a minor-league museum. Fans also can put their own photos on free souvenir baseball cards or on a Sports Illustrated for Kids magazine cover. … Legends players of the month for July, as selected by the coaching staff, are LH Patrick Urckfitz (Pitcher), CF Jay Austin (Offensive) and IF Andy Simunic (Defensive). Urckfitz was 1-0 with a 0.77 ERA over 10 relief appearnaces. Austin was 31-for-107 (.290) with nine extra-base hits, 10 RBI and eight steals over 26 games. Simunic has a .973 fielding percentage (five errors in 184 chances) over 51 games this season. … Former Legends picking up team Player of the Month honors in the Astros system include: Round Rock Express OF Brian Bogusevic (Offensive); Corpus Christi Hooks IF Jhon Florentino (Defensive); and Lancaster JetHawks RH Leandro Cespedes (Pitcher). … Mike Tauser’s “Farmstros Five” of the week: Gulf Coast League Astros IF Enrique Hernandez; Lyles; Lancaster OF/C Koby Clemens; Corpus Christi OF Drew Locke; and “top performer” Wilton Lopez, RHP for Corpus Christi.

South Atlantic League baseball

Coming up

Lexington Legends vs. Asheville Tourists

What: Three-game series

When: Saturday through Monday (7:05 Saturday and Monday nights; 2:05 Sunday)

Where: McCormick Field, Asheville, N.C.

Probable pitchers (Legends listed first): Saturday, LH Brad Dydalewicz (3-1, 2.05) vs. RH Stephen Dodson (1-0, 2.53); Sunday, RH Robert Bono (5-3, 2.31) vs. RH Juan Nicasio (1-0, 0.55); Monday, RH Kyle Greenwalt (3-6, 3.08) vs. RH Dan Houston (2-4, 4.39).

Jordan Pacheco

Tourist to watch: C Jordan Pacheco (6-foot-1, 195 pounds, from Albuquerque, N.M.) is all over Asheville’s offensive board. He shares the team lead in walks (16), is second in batting average (.328), home runs (5), RBI (28) and OPS (.864), third in hits (65), triples (2), total bases (95), slugging percentage (.480) and on-base percentage (.385), fourth in runs (27) and doubles (11), and fifth in stolen bases (7) over 52 games. Selected by the Colorado Rockies in the ninth round of the 2007 draft, out of the University of New Mexico, split his first season between Casper of the Pioneer League and Tri-City of the Northern League, hitting .286 over 63 games. Last season, at Tri-City, he hit .280 with a homer and 35 RBI over 54 games. Pacheco started this season with a bang, hitting. 403 over 19 games in April. He fell off to .297 over 26 games in May and is hitting .240 in his first seven games of June.

Jay Austin

Legend to watch: CF Jay Austin (5-11, 170, from Atlanta) returned to action in Friday’s doubleheader at Bowling Green. He went on the disabled list (concussion) after colliding with shortstop Jorge De Leon while pursuing a first-inning fly on May 30. Now 18, Austin was selected by the Houston Astros in the second round (56th overall) of last year’s draft, out of North Atlanta High School. According to Baseball America’s pre-season ratings, Austin was the 10th-best prospect, the best athlete and fastest baserunner in the Astros system. After batting .191 in April, he improved to .247 in May. In the eight games prior to being injured, Austin hit safely in seven games, at a .324 clip (11-for-34). Friday, he started the second game of a doubleheader, going 2-for-4 and scoring once in a 6-1 victory. Overall, Austin is hitting .231 with 10 RBI and 22 runs. He leads the Legends with eight stolen bases.

Radio: WLXG AM-1300