Quad Cities matches season high with sixth straight win and splits 18-game season series with Peoria

DAVENPORT, Iowa (AUG. 2, 2013) - Quad Cities River Bandits center fielder Teoscar Hernandez hit a game-tying home run and an RBI triple, while designated hitter Dan Gulbransen had the go-ahead hit for a third straight game to help right-hander Chris Devenski earn his first Midwest League victory in a 5-2 win that completed a sweep of the Peoria Chiefs at Modern Woodmen Park Friday night.

Devenski (1-2) threw the game's first pitch in the rain, and Chiefs left fielder C.J. McElroy hit it through the left side of the infield for the first of Peoria's 12 hits. A sacrifice moved McElroy to second base, and second baseman Bruce Caldwell singled to put runners at first and third bases. Chiefs first baseman and former River Bandit Jordan Walton hit a sacrifice fly to center field, and third baseman Breyvic Valera followed with an RBI single to give the visitors a 2-0 lead. Devenski allowed a baserunner in each of the next four innings but kept the Chiefs from adding to the lead. He allowed seven hits and one walk with one strikeout.

Quad Cities (24-15 second half, 62-46 overall) remained scoreless through the first three innings against Chiefs right-hander Silfredo Garcia (3-4), who escaped a bases-loaded jam in the third inning. In the fourth, right-fielder Jordan Scott hit an infield single and scored when catcher Jobduan Morales grounded a double down the first-base line - his first hit since July 21.

In the fifth inning, Hernandez led off with a blast to left-center field for his team-high 10^th home run - and fourth in as many series - to extend his eight-game hitting streak and tie the game, 2-2. Shortstop Carlos Correa hit a one-out double down the third-base line and went to third base on a passed ball. Gulbransen then slapped a single through the left side of a drawn-in infield that scored Correa for a 3-2 score. Each of Correa's three runs in the series gave Quad Cities the lead, and Gulbransen's hit extended a 10-game hitting streak. Morales later added an RBI single to drive in Gulbransen, and the former had his first multi-RBI game in four weeks. All of it came against Garcia, who allowed seven hits and four earned runs with two walks and three strikeouts in five innings.

In the sixth against Chiefs right-hander Joe Scanio, second baseman Austin Elkins singled to center field and scored on Hernandez's team-high eighth triple to right field. Hernandez has 14 hits, including seven for extra bases, in his last 31 at-bats (.452 average).

From the River Bandits bullpen, right-hander Juri Perez worked around a single and hit batter in the sixth. Left-hander Mitchell Lambson allowed three this in the seventh but no runs in two innings of work. Right-hander Juan Minaya allowed a single and another baserunner on an error but finished the ninth inning for his seventh save. The Chiefs left 12 runners on base.

Friday's victory was Quad Cities' 29^th comeback win and also means The Captain's Table at 4801 River Drive in Moline will offer The Captain's Table Victory Discount on Saturday, Aug. 3. Anyone who mentions the River Bandits victory can receive a free appetizer or dessert with the purchase of two lunches or dinners with beverages on Saturday, Aug. 3. The River Bandits start a four-game series in Cedar Rapids at 5:05 p.m. Saturday. Left-hander Joe Bircher (2-1) will face Kernels left-hander Mason Melotakis (9-3) in the opener.

UP NEXT: Modern Woodmen Park is a nominee for the "Best Minor League Ballpark" in the 2013 10Best Readers' Choice Awards, and fans can vote once per day at 10Best.com until the winner is announced Aug. 14. The River Bandits return to Modern Woodmen Park Wednesday, Aug. 7. Single-game tickets are on sale at the River Bandits box office at Modern Woodmen Park, by phone at  563-324-3000 and online at www.riverbandits.com. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $50. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.

ABOUT THE BANDITS: The River Bandits ownership is making one of the biggest improvements to Modern Woodmen Park since the ballpark was first built back in 1931! A new Ferris wheel, standing 112 feet over the playing field, is planned for next spring, along with a carousel and other new games and attractions. This season, the team just unveiled a new 300-foot long dual zip line, a rock climbing wall, a Mediacom Frog Hopper, and a number of new bounce houses . The team also boasts a new major league affiliate, the Houston Astros, and fans can see the first team in Minor League Baseball history with back-to-back No. 1 overall draft picks - 2012 top pick Carlos Correa and 2013 top pick Mark Appel, as well as 2012 first-round draft choice Lance McCullers. With new rides, new attractions, new improvements, a new affiliate and future major league stars, the second half of this season is one every fan will not want to miss!

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RICHMOND, Va. – In a victory for free speech and the right to be free from wrongful arrest, a federal court has rejected the government's bid to dismiss a lawsuit on behalf of a decorated Marine who was arrested by a swarm of FBI, Secret Service agents and local police and forcibly detained in a psychiatric ward for a week because of controversial song lyrics and political views posted on his Facebook page. In allowing the case to move forward, U.S. District Court Judge Henry Hudson ruled that The Rutherford Institute had alleged sufficient facts to indicate that Marine Brandon Raub's involuntary commitment violated his rights under the U.S. Constitution's First and Fourth Amendments.

Institute attorneys filed a civil rights lawsuit in federal court on behalf of Raub, alleging that his seizure and detention were the result of a federal government program code-named "Operation Vigilant Eagle" that involves the systematic surveillance of military veterans who express views critical of the government. The complaint alleges that the attempt to label Raub as "mentally ill" and his subsequent involuntary commitment was a pretext designed to silence speech critical of the government.

Judge Hudson's decision in Raub v. Bowen et. al. is available at www.rutherford.org.

"Brandon Raub's case exposes the seedy underbelly of a governmental system that continues to target military veterans for expressing their discontent over America's rapid transition to a police state," said John W. Whitehead, president of The Rutherford Institute and author of A Government of Wolves: The Emerging American Police State. "While such targeting of veterans and dissidents is problematic enough, for any government official to suggest that they shouldn't be held accountable for violating a citizen's rights on the grounds that they were unaware of the Constitution's prohibitions makes a mockery of our so-called system of representative government. Thankfully, Judge Hudson has recognized this imbalance and ensured that Brandon Raub will get his day in court."

On Aug.16, 2012, Chesterfield police, Secret Service and FBI agents arrived at Brandon Raub's home, asking to speak with him about his Facebook posts. Like many Facebook users, Raub, a Marine who has served tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, uses his Facebook page to post song lyrics and air his political opinions. Without providing any explanation, levying any charges against Raub or reading him his rights, law enforcement officials handcuffed Raub and transported him to police headquarters, then to John Randolph Medical Center, where he was held against his will. In a hearing on Aug. 20, government officials pointed to Raub's Facebook posts as the reason for his incarceration. While Raub stated that the Facebook posts were being read out of context, a Special Justice ordered Raub be held up to 30 more days for psychological evaluation and treatment.

In coming to Raub's aid, Institute attorneys challenged the government's actions as procedurally improper, legally unjustified, and in violation of Raub's First Amendment rights. On Aug. 23, Circuit Court Judge Allan Sharrett ordered Raub's immediate release, stating that the government's case was "so devoid of any factual allegations that it could not be reasonably expected to give rise to a case or controversy." Rutherford Institute attorneys filed suit in May 2013 in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia to acknowledge the harm done to Raub and to rectify the violation of his First, Fourth, Fifth, and Fourteenth Amendment rights. Affiliate attorneys Anthony Troy of Eckert Seamens and William H. Hurd and Stephen C. Piepgrass of Troutman Sanders LLP in Richmond are assisting The Rutherford Institute in bringing the lawsuit.

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