TOMMY CAUFIELD’S 5-RBI NIGHT FUELS WILD THINGS WIN
The Washington Wild Things (14-18) took the win in the middle game of their weekend homestand against the Empire State Greys (8-23). The bats were the difference in this one as the team combined for 14 hits on the night. In the early innings it was a back-and-forth game with each team answering the other at the plate and on the scoreboard. In the third inning, the Wild Things exploded to take a six-run lead. An RBI single by J.C. Santini, an RBI double by Wagner Lagrange, a two-run double by Scotty Dubrule and RBI triples from both Robert Chayka and Tommy Caufield swelled the lead. The Greys would start to get hot as they engineered a three-run fifth inning to cut the Wild Things lead to three runs. Wagner Lagrange and Melvin Novoa hit back-to-back solo shots and Tommy Caufield hit a three run-double in the bottom of the sixth to extend the Wild Things lead and make the score 14-6. The Wild Things continued to hit away at the plate as J.C. Santini hit a two-run double to add even more to the lopsided contest and made the score 16-6 in the eighth. Justin Goossen-Brown and Lukas Young combined for 4.1 innings pitched, allowing one hit and one walk while striking out three. Goossen-Brown earned his first win as a Wild Thing in relief.
New York Boulders fans may have had to sit through a nearly hour-and-a-half rain delay Saturday, but the Boulders made sure the wait was well worth it. New York scored three runs in the bottom of the 10th inning to cap a 10-9 walk-off win against the Lake Erie Crushers. Andy Hammond, a right-handed pitcher on the Boulders' roster, was the hero of the night — despite not throwing a single pitch. Hammond scored the game-tying run in the bottom of the ninth as a pinch-runner, then drove in the game-winning run on a walk-off single one inning later. It is the first time in Boulders history that a pitcher has ever recorded a walk-off hit. Tucker Nathans went 3 for 4 with a run scored, and a total of eight Boulders hit safely in the win. Giovanni Garbella drove in two runs for New York (18-13), one of which came on a solo home run. Thomas Walraven, Jimmy Costin, Gabriel Garcia, Joe DeLuca and Matt McDermott also drove in runs for the Boulders. New York was able to preserve some of its much-needed arms on the mound thanks to an outstanding performance by starting pitcher Garrett Cooper. The right-hander allowed just one earned run over seven innings of work. Cooper struck out six and did not issue a walk. Dylan Smith earned the win after striking out four in two innings of relief. Kemuel Thomas-Rivera and Sean Lawlor each drove in three runs for the Crushers, who fell to 15-17 with the loss. Thomas-Rivera hit a two-run home run in the first inning to give Lake Erie and early lead. Jarrod Watkins added two RBI for the Crushers.
The Schaumburg Boomers claimed the 300th victory in franchise history at Wintrust Field by surviving the Quebec Capitales in an 18-13 slugfest on Saturday night. Quebec led 2-0 and 4-1 before the Boomers sent 12 men to the plate in the bottom of the second and scored seven runs on seven hits, all singles. Quebec came back with six in the top of the third to open a 10-8 lead as both teams were into the bullpen early. Schaumburg took the lead for good behind a five-run outburst in the bottom of the fourth. The Boomers scored in six different innings and accumulated 18 hits. Quebec finished with 14 hits. Blake Grant-Parks amassed three hits and five RBIs in the historic win which also saw Chase Dawson become the franchise's all-time leader in RBIs with a fourth inning RBI single. Zach Huffins posted four hits as nine individuals cracked the hit column and eight scored runs. Blake Berry drove home three. Gaige Howard walked twice and totaled two hits to extend his on-base streak to 31. Howard has reached in every game this season. Antonio Frias picked up the win, working 3.1 innings. The pitching staff overcame a season high nine walks. Kristian Scott recorded the biggest out of the contest, leaving the bases loaded in the top of the sixth. The comeback victory marked the 11th of the year.
The Ottawa Titans (14-18) got a quality start from Brooks Walton (win, 1-0) and cashed in early, on route to a 7-3 victory over the Joliet Slammers (13-19) on Saturday. Facing right-hander Cameron Aufderheide (loss, 1-4) for the second time in the span of a week, the Titans cashed in early and often. Sicnarf Loopstok scored a Jason Dicochea leadoff double in the first to get things started as Jamey Smart later lined a double the opposite way to make it 2-0. An AJ Wright RBI single added to the lead in the fourth, as Loopstok and Smart cashed in three more in the fourth, making it 6-0. Dicochea's second double of the night scored another in the sixth against rookie right-hander Ricky Castro. The run support would be plenty for Brooks Walton, who mowed through the Slammers' lineup over the first three innings. Walton ended up going seven shutout frames, allowing three hits, and striking out a career-high six. Gleyvin Pineda tossed a scoreless eighth, before the Slammers spoiled the shutout bid with a three-run homer from JP Fullerton off Chris Burica in the ninth. In the win, Jamey Smart and Jason Dicochea each recorded two doubles, while Evan Berkey went 3-for-5.
The Tri-City ValleyCats (17-14) had their five-run lead erased, only to walk-off the Florence Y'alls (17-14) by a score of 6-5 at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium on Saturday. The ValleyCats moved to three games over .500 for the first time this year, and are now on a season-best three-game win streak. Tri-City showed off its defensive prowess early to keep the game tied 0-0. Jaxon Hallmark ranged in the right-center field gap to rob Brian Fuentes of extra bases in the second. Afterward, Florence threatened in the third. Cooper Edwards began the frame with a single off Rafi Vazquez. Marcos Castillo worked a one-out walk. Craig Massey singled, and Edwards dashed for the plate only to be thrown out by Carson McCusker. The Y'alls had back-to-back walks from Ray Zuberer and Brennan Price in the next inning. Harrison DiNicola lined out to short, and Pavin Parks made a heads-up play to fire the ball across the diamond to Zach Biermann to record the double play. Vazquez then struck out Fuentes looking to escape the frame unscathed. The ValleyCats offense came alive in the bottom of the fourth. Aaron Altherr laced a double off Mike Kickham. Biermann walked before Parks drove in Altherr with a double. Jakob Goldfarb brought in Biermann from third with an RBI groundout. Ian Walters, in his ValleyCats debut, picked up an RBI single to put Tri-City on top, 3-0. The ValleyCats extended their lead in the fifth. McCusker walked and Altherr had a single. Goldfarb collected his first three-RBI game of the season after knocking in both baserunners with a double to pull Tri-City ahead, 5-0. Kickham was handed a no-decision. He went 4.2 innings, allowing five runs on eight hits, walking four, and striking out six. Greg Veliz came in for Vazquez in the seventh with runners on second and third with one out. Veliz struck out Cole Brennan and Castillo to get out of the inning. Vazquez received a no-decision. He hurled 6.1 scoreless innings, yielding five hits and four walks, while striking out four on 106 pitches. Veliz ran into some trouble in the eighth. Massey hit a triple and Zuberer followed suit with a two-run blast. Price walked and DiNicola singled to knock Veliz out of the game. Reymin Guduan entered and struck out Fuentes and Jeremiah Burks before giving up a three-run homer to Cooper Edwards to tie the game, 5-5. Guduan pulled a houdini act in the ninth. He issued a single to Massey and a walk to Zuberer to open the frame. Andres Rios laid down a sac bunt. Guduan then buckled down, striking out DiNicola and Fuentes. McCusker rewarded Guduan's effort with a walk-off solo homer off Carter Poiry in the ninth. McCusker's 12th homer of the season sealed the ValleyCats 6-5 victory. Guduan (1-1) earned the win. He tossed two frames, allowing one run on three hits, walking one, and striking out a season-high five batters. He issued his first free pass after 13.0 consecutive innings to start the year without giving up a walk. Poiry (2-2) took the loss. He pitched 1.1 innings, yielding a run on one hit, and struck out three.
Despite a great pitching performance from Garrett Christman, the ThunderBolts were unable to overcome an early deficit as they fell to the New Jersey Jackals 3-2 at Ozinga Field Saturday night. The Jackals (20-11) jumped out to an early lead, driving in two runs in the top of the first on two hits and an error. They tacked on another in the top of the second, thanks to another hit and error, extending the lead to 3-0. The Bolts (11-21) cut the lead in the bottom of the second. Peyton Isaacson and Micah Yonamine singled, Dan Robinson singled to center driving in Isaacson, making it 3-1. Windy City continued to claw at the New Jersey lead in the bottom of the fifth. Paul Coumoulos hit a leadoff triple to right center. Will Riley drove him in on a base hit to cut the Jackals lead to 3-2. That was still the score when the Bolts showed a glimmer of hope in the bottom of the ninth. Bren Spillane hit a one-out pinch-hit single to right. Paul Coumoulos followed with another single. That put the winning run on base but Jackals reliever Lance Lusk shut the door the rest of the ninth to hand the Bolt their third straight loss, receiving his second save of the year. Christman (2-2) surrendered three runs, no earned and struck out five in eight innings pitched but he received his second loss of the year. Jackals right hander Nick Belzer (3-2) gave up two earned runs on nine hits in seven innings of work.
The Gateway Grizzlies grabbed an early lead on Saturday night at Bosse Field, lost it, but then regained the advantage in the sixth inning, holding on from there for a 4-3 victory over the Evansville Otters to bring their five-game losing skid to an end. Things started swimmingly for Gateway against Otters starter Justin Watland (4-2), as Gabe Holt hit his first home run as a Grizzlie to right field for a 1-0 lead in the top of the first inning, and Peter Zimmermann followed two batters later by crushing his team-leading tenth homer of the year to center field for a 2-0 advantage. After Jairus Richards walked and stole second base, D.J. Stewart came up with a big two-out RBI single to make it 3-0 right away. The Otters got two runs back in the bottom half of the first against Carson LaRue (3-0), but the right-hander held the line there with a strikeout to strand the tying run in scoring position, one of eight that LaRue would record in five innings in the contest. The Otters in fact got the tying run in scoring position in each of the first four innings, but could not knot the score until the fifth, when Jeffrey Baez's sacrifice fly made the score 3-3. Undaunted, Holt led off the next half-inning with a single, and Zimmermann singled him to third base before Richards reached on an RBI fielder's choice, making the score 4-3 Gateway. That would remain the score for the rest of the game thanks to yeomen's work by the Grizzlies' bullpen, as Alec Whaley came in following a leadoff hit against LaRue to pitch a scoreless sixth, Trevor Tietztossed a scoreless seventh, and Brian Eichhorn took care of the eighth inning to set up Colton Easterwood, who nailed down his fifth save with a perfect ninth inning, the only 1-2-3 inning of the night by the pitching staff, to secure the win.
