Truby happy with progress

Half way through his first season as manager of the Williamsport Crosscutters, Chris Truby would be more than happy to have a second half of the season much like the first half.

Through the first half, the Cutters are just a game out of first place behind Mahoning Valley. They sit atop the New York-Penn League wild card standings. And Williamsport has established itself as clearly one of the top teams in the NY-PL.

That's why Truby wouldn't mind seeing another half a season like the one the Cutters just had.

"I've been happy with the effort and I think the guys are getting better," Truby said. "I think it's a matter of finding some consistency. But that's baseball, period. For the level that we're at, I don't think I could be happier with the effort and improvement I've seen from these guys."

Consistency has clearly been the biggest hamper to Williamsport's season thus far. But that's to be expected. Many of the Williamsport players are first-year professionals who are getting used to playing every day.

That consistency is best emphasized by the Cutters' last week of games. Last week they closed out a homestand with a three-game sweep of Hudson Valley. Then, as it embarked on a brief four-game road trip, Williamsport dropped all four, including two games with Mahoning Valley.

"That's why we're here. There's a lot of improvement to be made," Truby said. "All the guys here have what it takes to compete on this level. It's a matter of them being able to bring out their best efforts consistently. That's then hardest part about this game."

The best consistency for the Cutters has been in the pitching staff. The team ERA of 3.06 is a remarkable number that is fourth-best in the NY-PL.

Rookie Matt Way has established himself as the staff ace with a 1.71 ERA. Nick Hernandez, Siulman LeBron, Jonathan Pettibone and Josh Zeid have all shown flashes of brilliance that have given the Cutters a core of starters it can rely on nearly every night for five or six quality innings before a light's out bullpen takes over.

"The pitchers are getting better with their usage of off-speed pitches," Truby said. "And I think overall our guys have gotten better and better in pretty much every facet. With me there's a noticeable difference. But with all of that, it all comes down to learning to be consistent. But that's why it takes so long to get to the big leagues."

HOT HITTING CASTRO: Leandro Castro's solo home run to tie Monday's game in the eighth inning was just a continuation of the hot streak that has the outfielder from the Dominican Republic hitting .336 this year, which is second in the NY-PL to only teammate Sebastian Valle.

Castro, who hit second in the lineup for much of the season, was moved to the three-hole recently as shortstop Jeremy Barnes continues to struggle. Although Castro's home run Monday was just his second of the season, and first since opening night against State College, Castro is fourth in the league with a .513 slugging percentage.

TOUGH SPOT: Korey Noles had the tough task of being a spot starter for Monday's game as the coaching staff tried to give Jonathan Pettibone a break by skipping his turn in the pitching rotation. Truby spoke before the game of hoping to get four, maybe five, innings out of Noles.

Instead, the left-hander pitched six brilliant innings, giving up just one hit and striking out five. Because of his strong start and three good innings of relief from Spencer Arroyo and two more from Austin Hyatt, the Cutters were able to get through the 11-inning affair with just three pitchers, while Jamestown used six.

"He used his change-up great. He had a lot of swings and misses at change-ups," Truby said following the game. "He just pitched, is what he did. When you change speed and throw three pitches for strikes, you've got a great chance to be successful. He was just outstanding."