CRUSHERS TAKE GAME TWO OF SERIES
The Lake Erie Crushers (6-2) used a five-run first inning as a springboard to power past the Florence Y'alls (3-5) 6-3 in Game 2 of a three-game series at Mercy Health Stadium. The Crushers now lead the head-to-head and season series 2-0. The Crushers teed off in the first inning against Florence righthander Bobby Brabrand, who made his first start of the season on Saturday following a stint on the injured list. After a leadoff single and a walk, an error by Florence right fielder Ray Zuberer opened the door for cleanup hitter Jack Harris, who cleared the bases with a three-RBI triple to make it 3-0. The Crushers would eventually bring 11 hitters to the plate and bat around in the first inning. After five runs on four hits and two errors, the Crushers led 5-0 heading to the second inning. The Y'alls scored a run in the ninth but could not mount a rally and fell 6-3. The Crushers' win earned them a series victory and an early advantage in the season head-to-head series. Game 3 between the Y'alls and Crushers is set for Sunday, May 21 at 2:05 ET from Mercy Health Stadium.
The Evansville Otters stayed hot, winning their fifth in a row Saturday night at Bosse Field. Zach Smith threw eight shutout innings to lead the Otters to the 5-0 victory over the Trois-Rivieres Aigles. Smith earned his second win of the season scattering five hits over eight innings with seven strikeouts of the Aigles. The righty from Katy, Texas has pitched 14 innings this year without allowing an earned run. Evansville scored in the first inning for the sixth time this season. Kona Quiggle launched a three run home run 400 feet down the right field line. The blast made it back to back days for Quiggle with a homer. The centerfielder has six hits and six RBIs in his first five games as an Otter. The Otters added insurance runs in the third and sixth. Dakota Phillips led the third off with a double and scored when Troy Viola was hit at the plate with the bases loaded. Ethan Skender capped the scoring in the sixth with a triple that bounced off the Aigles' center fielder's glove, scoring Noah Myers. Hunter Kloke closed the game with a scoreless ninth making it 25.1 straight scoreless innings for the Otters' bullpen.
The Windy City ThunderBolts (3-5) toppled the Schaumburg Boomers (5-4) 7-4 in ten innings Saturday evening at Wintrust Field. Windy City was led throughout the game by multi-hit games from Payton Issacson, Junior Martina, and Carson Matthews. In his fourth season in the Frontier League, right-handed pitcher Taylor Sugg made his first appearance and tossed six innings, allowed five hits and struck out four while walking two batters in his Windy City debut. Third baseman Junior Martina knocked in Bren Spillane for an RBI single in the top of the first, one night after his second home run of the season for a 1-0 Windy City lead. Payton Issacson had his first mult-hit and RBI game of the year, and singled home Jake Boone and Junior Martina in the top of the third inning with two outs tallying a 3-2 Windy City lead into the bottom of the third inning. The Boomers again responded in the bottom of the third. A solo home run from Boomers first baseman Kyle Fitzgerald to right field tied the game at 3-3 after four innings. It was a quiet ball game until the bottom of the eighth inning. Windy City relief pitcher Cal Djuraskovic was in the middle of a runner on first, one out appearance to Boomers shortstop Alec Craig. On an 0-2 pitch, words verbally were exchanged from Alec Craig and ThunderBolts catcher Matt Morgan. Morgan and Craig then got into a heated exchange that saw the benches clear onto the field and briefly delay the ballgame. After the resumption of play, Bolts relief pitcher Daiveyon Whittle struck out Boomers' third baseman Travis Holt. Whittle struck out the side in the bottom of the ninth inning for Windy City's second extra inning contest of the 2023 season against the Boomers. In the top of the tenth frame, Bolts third baseman Junior Martina drove in Bren Spillane for his second hit and RBI of the night, bringing the Bolts a 4-3 lead in the top of the tenth. Following a Micah Yonamine single and Peyton Issacson strike out, Bolts second baseman Carson Matthews delivered an absolute scorcher of a three-run home run to left field.
The Gateway Grizzlies got an outstanding start from right-hander Collin Sullivan on the mound, and hit three home runs on another strong day offensively to beat the Ottawa Titans 12-2 at Grizzlies Ballpark on Saturday night, clinching their third-straight series win by winning the first two games. Sullivan (1-0) got things started by striking out the side in order in the top of the first, a sign of things to come. In the bottom of the first, Gateway strung together five singles to plate four runs, including an RBI hit from D.J. Stewart and a two-out, two-run single by Peter Zimmermann, with a subsequent error on Titans' third baseman Justin Thompson making the score 4-0. In the third inning, Jairus Richards came up with a man on first base and hit his first home run of the season to stretch the lead to 6-0. Then, in the sixth, the Grizzlies would blow the game open- Zimmermann led off with his third home run of the series out to right field for a 7-0 margin, and with the bases loaded later in the inning, Clint Freeman deposited a grand slam out to right field to make the score 11-0. It was Freeman's fourth home run on the year, increasing his Frontier League-leading total to 16 RBIs on the young season. Meanwhile, Sullivan was dominant all night long, retiring the first 11 Titans hitters he faced, and not giving up a hit until the fifth inning while eventually pitching into the seventh in his first start of the year. The right-hander struck out a career-high 11 batters and allowed just one run in the game. Both teams traded single runs offensively in the late innings, with Gateway adding a run-scoring single in the seventh by Abdiel Diaz to complete their fifth double-digit scoring effort in just eight games this year. Freeman's grand slam highlighted a 2-for-4 night with a pair of runs scored, while Zimmermann put up a 3-for-4 ledger with three RBIs.
Jackals versus Miners was rained out and will be made up tomorrow, Sunday the 21st.
Tri City versus Washington was rained out and will also be made up with a double header tomorrow.
