Gents,
The new-look Missouri Jailbirds, having divested themselves of pretty much everything of value for this season, welcomed the last-place Thespians and hoped to keep them there.

Game 1 - Kevin Millwood vs. Brett Myers
A pitching duel for the ages, as Millwood and Myers hooked up in a beauty, matching each other pitch for pitch through seven shutout innings. In the bottom of the 7th, with runners on the corners and two out, Myers was lifted for pinch-hitter Jason Michaels, who flied out to end the threat. In his Cons debut, the rookie threw 7 innings of 4-hit shutout, walking one, hitting one and striking out six.

Jason Isringhausen, in his Cons debut, came on to throw three innings of no-hit shutout, and survived a Chico threat in the ninth. Izzy hit Karim Garcia with a pitch, forcing him out of the game, and pinch-runner Rob Mackowiak immediately stole second and advanced to third as the dog-tired Mike Piazza heaved the ball into centre field. But Izzy left him there, getting the not-so-dangerous Ty Wigginton to fly to left.

Meanwhile, Millwood kept on trucking, going 10 innings of 5-hit shutout. Carlos Delgado finally broke the scoreless tie with a home run to lead off the 12th inning, and Mizzou went 1-2-3 in the bottom of the frame to end it.

Thespians 000 000 000 001 1 6 0
Jailbirds 000 000 000 000 0 5 1

Thespians:
Pitching - Millwood 10, Boehringer (W) 1.1, Williamson (SV) 0.2
Catching - VWilson 11.1, Flaherty 0.2
Home Runs - Delgado (off Worrell, 12th inn., 0 on, 0 out)
Injuries - KGarcia injured 2 days
Limits - Mackowiak (1 ABR), Wigginton (5 ABR)

Jailbirds:
Pitching - Myers 7, Isringhausen 3, Worrell (L) 2
Catching - Piazza 12
Home Runs - None
Injuries - None
Limits - Michaels (1 ABR), EduPerez (1 ABR)

Day game, 90s, Partly Cloudy, Wind Blowing In 10-19 MPH

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Game 2 - Kazuhisa Ishii vs. Elmer Dessens
Dessens' final outing as a Jailbird did not start well, as he coughed up a solo shot to the second man he faced, Shea Hillenbrand. But his teammates got him off the hook in a hurry, as in the bottom of the first, Michael Young led off with a single, Michaels walked behind him, and Mike Piazza then delivered the first of his two two-run triples in as many at-bats to make it 2-0. Piazza scored on a Rusty Greer single, and it was 3-1 Missouri after 1. The 'Birds added four more in the second, on an RBI double by Michaels, the other Piazza triple, and the first of two RBI doubles by Junior Spivey. The Cons had a 7-1 lead after 2 and put it in cruise control for an easy 10-4 win.

Thespians 100 010 110 4 8 0
Jailbirds 341 000 02x 10 16 0

Thespians:
Pitching - Ishii (L) 1, PWalker 1, Fyhrie 4, Eischen 2
Catching - VWilson 8
Home Runs - Hillenbrand (off Dessens, 1st inn., 0 on, 1 out), Delgado (off Stechschulte, 8th inn., 0 on, 0 out)
Injuries - None
Limits - Wigginton (3 ABR), Mackowiak (1 ABR)

Jailbirds:
Pitching - Dessens W (3-2) 5, Hamilton 2, Stechschulte 1, Shuey 1
Catching - Piazza 5, Widger 4
Home Runs - None
Injuries - None
Limits - Michaels (1 ABL), Widger (1 ABL, 1 ABR), EduPerez (1 ABL, 1 ABR)

Day game, 90s, Partly Cloudy, Light Wind

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Game 3 - John Halama vs. Joe Roa
History was made in the series finale, although things got off to an auspicious beginning when Chico starter Halama got the biggest ovation of any player in the pre-game introductions. The Cons' fans, in the face of the reconstruction of their ballclub, rewarded Halama for his co-MVP showing for the Jailbirds in last year's Elvis Cup series.

Roa started strong, getting the Thespians in order in the first, and the Cons threatened in the bottom of the frame. With two on and two out, Milton Bradley singled to left, and Michael Young was sent home, challenging the arm of Jose Cruz, Jr. For the second time in the series, a Missouri runner was thrown out at the plate, and to the second inning we went in a 0-0 game.

With one out in the second, Ty Wigginton hit a grounder to short that was bobbled by Young for an error. He would be the only Thespian batter to reach base in the game. Young made up for the error with a two-out solo shot off Halama in the 7th. It would be the only run of the game.

Joe Roa went on to pitch the first no-hitter in the history of the Missouri Jailbirds, facing one batter over the minimum, walking none, and striking out three.

The closest Roa came to losing the no-no was when his own idiot manager came out to yank him after six innings. However, the Thespians pointed out that it was slightly nuts to take a pitcher out before he had given up a hit, and the Jailbirds' skip then realized that Roa was, in fact, throwing a no-hitter, and decided to leave him in.

Thespians 000 000 000 0 0 1
Jailbirds 000 000 10x 1 8 1

Thespians:
Pitching - Halama (L) 7.2, Boehringer 0.1
Catching - VWilson 8
Home Runs - None
Injuries - None
Limits - Wigginton (3 ABR)

Jailbirds:
Pitching - ROA W (4-2) 9
Catching - Piazza 9
Home Runs - MYoung (off Halama, 7th inn., 0 on, 2 out)
Injuries - None
Limits - Michaels (4 ABL)

50s, Partly Cloudy, Wind Blowing Out 10-19 MPH

Stats to follow