FIVE-RUN FIRST, SOLID PITCHING CONTRIBUTE TO TITANS SWEEP
Ottawa, ON - The Ottawa Titans (37-34) moved three games above .500 for the first time this season, completing a series sweep of the Empire State Greys (13-58) with a 6-2 win on Sunday afternoon.
Making his fourth start of the season, left-hander Chris Burica (win, 6-2) allowed a run on a pair of hits in the opening half-inning. Josh Sears cashed in Jaylen Smith with a double the opposite way to right-centre, seeing the Greys jump out in front 1-0.
The early deficit did not phase the Titans' offence, as they sent nine to the plate against Michael Barker (loss, 3-10), and took a 5-1 lead. Jason Dicochea tied the game with a solo blast for his 13th of the season before a trio of walks were brought home. An E5 off the bat of Austin Davis scored two and Evan Berkey stayed hot with an RBI double.
AJ Wright's opposite-field solo homer to start the fourth would be the last of the run-scoring for the Titans in the series finale. Wright's 12th homer of the season equaled a career-best.
The Greys got a run back, seeing one of their two singles cross the plate on a sacrifice fly in the top of the fifth, cutting the Titans' lead to 6-2.
Burica exited after six and allowed two runs on five hits, walking one, and striking out five. In his last 21 innings, Burica has struck out 26 hitters. A streak that has spanned two starts and four outings.
Nick MacDonald, Augie Gallardo, and Erasmo Pinales secured the victory by combining for three shutout innings in relief.
The Titans end their homestand with a record of 4-1 and sweep their third opponent of the season.
The Ottawa Titans open a three-game series against the Sussex County Miners at 7:05 p.m. on Tuesday night at Skylands Stadium.
JOLIET, IL - The Lake Erie Crushers have dropped 10 games in a row, as they were swept for the third straight series after falling to the Joliet Slammers 6-5. The Crushers (27-45) cannot seem to figure anything out as they made it a close contest with the Slammers (32-40) but have lost all but one of nine contests versus their divisional foe this year.
The Slammers jumped ahead in the bottom of the first inning on a Matthew Warkentin homer to left field. Lake Erie responded in the next half-frame. After a Scout Knotts double to lead things off, he was later brought in by a John Tuccillo sacrifice fly to even the game at one.
A couple of innings later, the momentum shifted back in favor of Joliet, when they scored a quartet of runs. The bases were juiced with one away and Lake Erie called for a pitching change.
It was then a bases-clearing triple followed by a single to break the tie game and give Joliet a big 5-1 advantage. The next two men were recorded outs, but the damage had been done.
The Crushers had an answer in the top of the fifth inning, but it wasn't to the magnitude of the blow they had just endured.
Sam Frontino led off the inning with a walk, then Jiandido Tromp drove him in with an RBI double. Two batters later Todd Isaacs Jr. singled through the left side to score Tromp. That would be all Lake Erie could get, but they were back in the ballgame, down 5-3.
The offense wasn't done, though. In the top of the seventh inning, the Crushers had runners on second and third with two away. Jack Harris was at the dish and nubbed a ground ball to the right side of the infield which he was able to beat out. Also on the play, Jiandido Tromp had good heads-up baserunning and scored from second base on the defensive mishap from the Slammers to tie the game.
The fun did not last for long as in the bottom of the frame Warkentin hit another mammoth shot over the left field wall to give Joliet the lead back at 6-5. It was the second homer for Warkentin of the afternoon, and that would be the difference for the Slammers to come away with the win.
Darrien Ragins (4-4) picked up the loss after blowing the lead in the seventh inning. Jared Liebelt (2-0) earned the win after coming into relief during the seventh frame. David Harrison (Sv. 2) slammed the door in the ninth to complete the Slammers' sweep.
Harris and Zach Racusin had the only multi-hit games of the day for the team. Tromp and Frontino both had multi-run performances for Lake Erie.
The Crushers will head home after concluding their six-game road trip. They have tomorrow off before dueling against the Washington Wild Things, with the first pitch on Tuesday at 7:05 PM ET.
Evansville, Ind. – The Evansville Otters hit three home runs and completed a sweep of the Schaumburg Boomers in a 4-2 win Sunday afternoon at Bosse Field. Josh Broughton, Austin Bost, and Kona Quiggle all hit solo home runs to propel the Otters past the Boomers, while Evansville pitching held Schaumburg to just three hits. Starter Braden Scott mowed down the Boomers to earn his second win of the season. He allowed just three hits with four strikeouts over six innings. Scott worked four in-order innings. He allowed just one baserunner after Schaumburg's two-run second inning. Evansville trailed 2-0 entering the fourth inning. Broughton launched a ball to left, cutting the Schaumburg lead in half on the solo homer. Bost tied the game in the fifth with another solo home run over the left field wall for his second home run in his first week as a professional. Quiggle then put the Otters in front with a towering blast to right to leadoff of the sixth inning. The Otters scored for a fourth straight inning on a Dakota Phillips RBI hit in the seventh to cap the scoring. Kevin Davis and Leoni De La Cruz eached pitched a scoreless inning out of the bullpen. Jake Polancic worked his 11th save of the season to close out the victory in the ninth inning. He leads the Frontier League West in saves. Bryan Rosario stole his 41st base of the season and advanced his on-base streak to 20 games. The Otters earned their fourth sweep of the season and became the first team to sweep the Boomers in a three-game series this year. Evansville will enjoy a Monday off-day before making a quick three game road trip to Chicago to face the Windy City ThunderBolts. First pitch on Tuesday is slated for 6:35 PM CT from Ozinga Field in Crestwood, Illinois. All home and road Otters games this season are televised on FloSports with audio-only coverage available for free on the Evansville Otters YouTube page. The Evansville Otters are the 2006 and 2016 Frontier League champions. The Otters play all home games at historic Bosse Field, located at 23 Don Mattingly Way in Evansville, Ind. Stay up-to-date with the Evansville Otters by visiting evansvilleotters.com, or follow the Otters on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.
POMONA, NY — The New York Boulders were glad to have Austin Dennis back in the lineup on Sunday.
Dennis, who made his season debut on July 27 after starting the year on the injured list while recovering from offseason surgery, drove in a run and made a spectacular diving catch in center field during a 9-5 series-clinching win over the Trois-Rivieres Aigles at Clover Stadium.
Hitting out of the leadoff spot, Dennis set the tone for the rest of his teammates. The first five Boulders hitters each recorded multiple hits and went a combined 12 for 22 with seven RBI and five runs scored.
The Aigles took an early lead in the top of the first inning, courtesy of Steve Brown's home run to left field, bringing in Dalton Combs. The Boulders responded swiftly in the bottom half of the inning, tying the game on RBI singles by Thomas Walraven and Tucker Nathans.
Joe DeLuca gave the Boulders a lead in the second inning on a towering solo home run onto the concourse level in right field.
Trois-Rivieres attempted to make a comeback in the fourth inning, but Dennis' diving grab in the field prevented further damage, preserving the Boulders' lead. New York tacked on two more runs in the bottom half of the inning on a sacrifice fly by Dennis and an RBI single by Patrick Kivlehan.
Trois-Rivieres scored two runs in the top of the fifth, but failed to re-take the lead after stranding two runners on base. The Boulders continued their offensive onslaught in the sixth inning, with Chris Kwitzer's sharp single to left field, driving in Thomas Walraven. New York added two more runs in the eighth inning to end the offensive eruption.
Nathans and Kivlehan each recorded three hits in the win. Dennis, Walraven, Kwitzer and Giovanni Garbella each had two hits. Kivlehan and Walraven each drove in a pair of runs for New York.
With the series win Sunday, New York (39-30) will look to keep the train rolling into Tuesday's matchup against the second place Tri-City Valleycats (45-27) at 11 a.m. at Clover Stadium.
WASHINGTON, Pa. (August 6) – The Washington Wild Things take the final game of their weekend series against the Gateway Grizzlies by a score of 4-3.
Hayden Shenefield delivered 5.1 innings of three-run ball for the Wild Things, allowing only six hits and striking out three.
The bats were hot early for Washington as they produced runs on a two-run blast by Wes Darvill in the first and then in the third a solo shot by Anthony Brocato. The offense would keep applying the pressure as they tacked on one more in the fourth on a designed double steal bringing Scotty Dubrule home. The Wild Things held an early 4-0 lead.
The Grizzlies produced runs of their own through the middle innings and Shenefield departed in the sixth bringing in Justin Goossen-Brown out of the bullpen.
Goossen-Brown blanked the Grizzlies allowing no runs, no hits and no walks while striking out three through 2.2 innings.
Lukas Young closed things out in this one with a 1-2-3 ninth inning, sealing the series win for The Wild Things.
Washington is on the road for the foreseeable future with a series against the Lake Erie Crushers starting Tuesday. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. The team will not return home until August 15th with them set to play another three-game series against the Gateway Grizzlies.
PATERSON, NJ - The Tri-City ValleyCats (45-27) flexed their muscles on Sunday, but ultimately fell 16-12 to the New Jersey Jackals (45-26) at Hinchliffe Stadium.
New Jersey scored all 16 runs off 'Cats starter Elijah Gill in the first four frames. It was the most runs allowed against an opposing team this season, and the Jackals hit a season-high six homers with three from James Nelson. Alex Torel, Keon Barnum, and Rusber Estrada all went yard as well.
The ValleyCats got on the board in the fourth. Oscar Campos doubled off Jorge Tavarez. Aaron Altherr then singled, and stole second. Ian Walters ripped a two-run single to cut the deficit to 14-2.
Tri-City tacked on five runs in the fifth. Lamar Briggs reached on an error from Ti'Quan Forbes. Juan Kelly singled, and Briggs went to second. Campos singled in a run, and Jakob Goldfarb walked before Altherr cranked the 'Cats third grand slam of the season to cut the deficit to 16-7. It was Altherr's third long ball in the last two days, and his 12th of the year.
Tri-City added a run in the seventh. Campos singled off Yuhi Sako, and Goldfarb was hit by a pitch. Walters walked to load the bases, and Tanner Smith poked an RBI single to make it a 16-8 affair.
The ValleyCats picked up three runs off Lance Lusk in the eighth. Briggs and Campos singled before Jaxon Hallmark brought in a run with a double. Walters collected his second two-run single of the afternoon to trim the deficit to 16-11.
Tri-City acquired its final run in the ninth off Dazon Cole. Briggs was hit by a pitch, and Kelly laced the ValleyCats' third triple of the 2023 campaign to make it a 16-12 contest.
Tavarez (4-0) earned the win. He tossed five frames, giving up seven runs, six earned on seven hits, walking three, and striking out six.
Gill (7-3) received the loss. He pitched four innings, allowing 16 runs on 11 hits, walking seven, and striking out four.
There were a lot of positive takeaways in the loss. Walters and Altherr joined Trey Hair and Robbie Merced as the four Tri-City players this year with two four-plus RBI games. Meanwhile, Campos is the second ValleyCat along with Cito Culver to have multiple four-hit efforts during the 2023 campaign. The bullpen also excelled today. Elliot Carney, Tanner Propst, and Caden O'Brien combined for four scoreless frames in relief.
Tri City has a day off tomorrow before traveling on the road to New York to face the Boulders at Clover Stadium for a three-game series, starting on Tuesday, August 8. First pitch is scheduled for 11 AM.
