Sports

Triple-A Baseball

By VAN ROSE vrose@timesleader.com

MOOSIC -- Jamal Strong, a journeyman outfielder who had two stints with the Seattle Mariners, was signed by New York on Monday to take Kevin Thompson’s spot on the Scranton/Wilkes-Barre roster.

Thompson, who batted .300 in the first three games of the season at Triple-A, was called up to New York after outfielder Hideki Matsui was placed on the 15-day disabled list with a hamstring injury.

Strong, a 28-year-old native of Pasadena, Calif., is entering his eighth year of professional baseball. He’s a .297 hitter at the minor league level, with 12 home runs.

Strong signed with the Yankees after being cut by the Boston Red Sox at the end of spring training. He began the 2006 season at Triple-A Iowa and played in just 14 games before joining Richmond.

Strong appeared in 97 games for the R-Braves, hitting .255, with 14 doubles and 26 RBI.

“He’s a veteran outfielder who should be able to help us,” said Scranton/Wilkes-Barre manager Dave Miley. “He’s a good addition to the team.”

Strong had brief stints with the Mariners in 2003 and 2005.

The highlight of Strong’s major league time occurred on Aug. 20, 2005, when he smacked a pinch-hit 10th inning trouble and later scored the game-winning run against Minnesota.

Strong is a former University of Nebraska standout.

Scranton/Wilkes-Barre capitalized on its hits in the first three games of the season. The Yankees hit just .225, but scored at least five runs in every game -- for a total of 16 runs on 21 hits.

The Yankees collected five extra base hits, including two home runs and a double by first baseman Eric Duncan. SWB garnered 13 walks --an average of 4.33 a game.

Anyone who has a Champions Plan C ticket from the canceled game on April 8 may bring it to the PNC Field box office in advance to exchange it for a ticket to the July 8 game against Ottawa.