VALLEYCATS USE DERBY WIN TO SWEEP DOUBLEHEADER WITH WILD THINGS

Thursday night in the Frontier League saw two home run derby finishes, and several high-scoring battles. Catch up on all the excitement you may have missed here:

 

The Florence Y’alls regained a one-game lead in the West Division with a 13-10 win over the Evansville Otters. The Y’alls jumped out to an early lead with four runs in the first and a run in the fourth. A Trevor Craport RBI single, an Axel Johnson RBI double, a Joe Lytle sacrifice fly, and a Jordan Brower single capped the four-run first. Connor Crane hit a solo home run in the fourth. Evansville would storm back in the sixth inning with five runs of their own. Andy DeJesus brought home a run on a sacrifice fly after Miles Gordon scored on an error by the catcher, Elijah MacNamee singled home two more, and Andretty Cordero singled home MacNamee to tie it at five. The Y’alls would drop five in the bottom half as well when Trevor Craport singled home two runs and Axel Johnson hit a three-run home run to take a 10-5 lead. The Otters were not done, as they scored five more runs in the seventh inning to tie the game a second time. Miles Gordon singled home two, J.R. Davis’ sacrifice fly plated another, Riley Krane doubled home one, and MacNamee doubled home Krane to make it 10-10. The Y’alls responded in the bottom of the seventh when Harrison DiNicola plated a run on a sacrifice fly. They would add two insurance runs in the eighth when Jordan Brower hit a two-run double to make it a 13-10 final.

 

Tri-City ValleyCats swept the doubleheader with the Washington Wild Things. The ValleyCats took game one 5-0 after a dominant complete game shutout by pitcher Josh Hiatt. He went the full seven innings and took a no-hit bid into the sixth inning. Tri-City got the scoring started on a single by Carson Maxwell in the second. In the third, Denis Phipps homered before the ValleyCats added a run on a fielder’s choice in the fourth. In the sixth, they added two more on a Chris Kwitzer two-run home run. In game two, the two teams were locked at 1-1 after eight innings and the game was decided in a home run derby. Tri-City got their run in the second inning on a sacrifice fly by Oscar Campos. Washington scored in the fifth after Hector Roa scored on a wild pitch and tied the game at one. The game stayed that way through eight innings, and they headed to a home run derby. In the derby, the ValleyCats came out with a 2-1 victory, giving them the win and moving them into first place in the Atlantic Division.

 

Équipe Québec took the rubber game and won the series over the New York Boulders with a 13-9 win. Québec jumped in front 3-0 in the first with a three-run home run by Connor Panas. New York answered with an RBI double by Zach Kirtley in bottom half to cut it to 3-1 before plating five in the fourth inning. Marcus Mastrobuoni and Phil Caulfield both hit home runs, and Ryan Ramiz added a two-run double later in the inning to make it 6-3. Québec responded with a six-run fifth that featured a three-run home run by Jeffry Parra, a two-run triple by Jonathan Lacroix, and a single by Nathan Etheridge. Parra made it 10-6 with a single in the sixth. The Boulders made it 10-9 with three runs in the seventh. Two runs came on a Ray Hernandez two-run home run, and another came on a sacrifice fly from Jack Sundberg. Québec would respond with three more runs in the eighth on an RBI double by Panas and a two-run single by Lacroix, making it a 13-9 final.

 

In another rubber game, the Windy City ThunderBolts defeated the Southern Illinois Miners 6-3. The Bolts scored four runs in the first inning on a single by Rob Weissheier and a bases-clearing triple by Jack Strunc. Ian Walters launched his first professional home run for the Miners in the second to make it 4-1, and Anthony Brocato followed with a two-run shot later in the inning to make it 4-3. In the third, Weissheier hit a sacrifice fly and in the fourth, Brynn Martinez doubled home a run to make it 6-3 Windy City. Logan Wiley gave up three runs on seven hits and two walks in his six innings of work in the victory, and Neil Abbatiello earned the save by closing out the game with three scoreless innings.

 

In a back-and-forth offensive shootout, the Sussex County Miners outlasted the New Jersey Jackals 15-14. The Jackals started the scoring in the first on singles by Russ Olive and Stanley Espinal. Sussex County answered in the second, with two runs on an Aaron Knapp triple, two runs on a Martin Figueroa single, and a run on a Kaleo Johnson. New Jersey answered right back with an RBI single by Dylan Brammer and a three-run home run by Demetrius Moorer to make it 7-5 Jackals after two. The Miners tied the game after Joey Rose singled home a run and a Chuck Taylor singled him home and took a one-run lead in the fourth with a Cito Culver single. But the Jackals scored four more in the bottom half. Moorer tripled home a run, Justin Wylie drove in a run on a groundout, and Jason Agresti doubled home two more. The Miners scored three runs in both the fifth and sixth innings—highlighted by a three-run home run by Martin Figueroa—to take a 14-11 lead. Stanley Espinal singled home a run in the bottom of the sixth for the Jackals, and they would add a run in each the eighth and ninth innings, but would fall short 15-14.

 

The Joliet Slammers edged out the Schaumburg Boomers in a home run derby after the game was tied 3-3 after ten innings. Schaumburg took the lead in the second with a Nick Oddo sacrifice fly and would add two more in the fourth with singles by Clint Hardy and Alec Craig. In the seventh, Joliet got on the board with an Alonzo Jones RBI single. Two more would come in on a Patrick Causa double in the eighth to tie the game at three and force extra innings. After a scoreless tenth, the teams went to a home run derby, where Joliet’s Brylie Ware won it for the Slammers on his final swing, giving the Slammers a 4-3 derby victory. Joliet starter Cam Cameron gave up three runs on eight hits and four walks in his six innings of work, and Schaumburg’s Jesse Remington tossed five scoreless innings before the bullpen gave up three runs to force extra innings.

 

Thursday night’s game between the Lake Erie Crushers and Gateway Grizzlies at Mercy Health Stadium was postponed. The game will be made up as part of a doubleheader on Tuesday, July 27 starting at 5:05 p.m. ET.

 

All seven of Friday’s scheduled games can be seen at FrontierLeagueTV.com or in the Frontier League app! You can now use the promo code “July2021” through July 26 to receive 50% off the first month of a new monthly subscription!