Winnipeg 7, St. Paul 0
LHP Chris Salamida starred in Winnipeg’s dominant 7-0 shutout against the Saints. Salamida earned his second straight shutout, allowing just two hits and striking out four batters in his nine innings on the mound. Salamida’s efforts were complemented on the offensive end by a well-rounded batting performance from 1B Casey Haerther. Haerther had a two-run homer in the fourth and finished 2-for-4 with two total runs. The Goldeyes kept the scoring coming throughout, scoring three more in the ninth, including a solo homer from C Luis Alen.
Kansas City 7, Rockland 5
A tightly contested inter-league game between Rockland and Kansas City remained close after both teams had big innings halfway through, but the T-Bones made the final push and captured a 7-5 victory. The T-Bones were the first to pull away, developing a 4-1 lead in the fourth after DH Jairo Perez hit his second RBI double of the night. The Boulders fought back in the following inning, adding three runs of their own to even the score. They then jumped into the lead when 2B Danny Bomback was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded.
Perez made another key contribution for the T-Bones in the seventh, scoring on a sacrifice fly to tie the score again. An error at second base lead to two more runs for Kansas City, allowing the final lead change that would eventually decide the game. Perez finished 3-for-5 with two RBIs and a run.
Gary SouthShore 7, Wichita 4 (Game 1 – 7 innings)
All of Gary SouthShore’s runs came in the same inning, but their seven scores in the second were enough to hold off the Wingnuts for a 7-4 victory in game one of the doubleheader. All but two of the RailCats’ batters scored in the team’s explosive second inning, combining for a total of six hits in the inning. 3B Brian Kolb and C Craig Maddox started and ended the scoring in the inning with an RBI double each. RF Mike Massaro also contributed with a triple that brought a run home just before he too scored thanks to an error in the infield.
Wichita’s first three innings each featured a run, including a solo home run from 1B CJ Ziegler in the third. But Gary SouthShore’s remarkable second inning proved to be too much in the long run. LHP Chuck Fontana earned the win for the RailCats after providing an important defensive turning point for his team. After the Wingnuts scored in three straight innings, Fontana took the mound and allowed zero hits in his two innings.
Gary SouthShore 4, Wichita 3 (Game 2 – 9 innings)
Gary SouthShore narrowly escaped with a 4-3 win in extra innings to complete their sweep of the Wingnuts in the doubleheader. Despite giving up an early run in the first, the RailCats put themselves in a good position in the opening innings with some help from CF Mike Massaro. Massaro homered in the first to tie things up and then scored again in the third to give Gary SouthShore a 3-1 lead. Wichita 1B CJ Ziegler hit his second home run of the night later in the fifth and brought SS Ryan Khoury home to level the score for the Wingnuts. Khoury scored twice in his 2-for-5 outing. Neither side could break the deadlock until the bottom of the ninth, when a walk-off single from C Ryan Babineau drove in the game-winner for the RailCats.
Fargo-Moorhead 4, Sioux Falls 3 (11 innings)
The Canaries held a shutout through eight innings, but a ninth inning comeback from the RedHawks sent this one to extra innings, where Fargo-Moorhead came out on top 4-3. Sioux Falls DH Tim Pahuta, the league-leader in home runs, held onto his reign with a two-run homer in the seventh that gave the Canaries a 3-0 lead. His RBI single in the fifth created the team’s only other run. The RedHawks came roaring back in the ninth, starting with a solo home run from 3B Ronnie Bourquin. 2B CJ Retherford then evened the score by adding two more runs with a homer of his own.
In the eleventh inning, Bourquin scored the game-winner off of a pass ball. Fargo-Moorhead’s bullpen played an important role in the win, keeping Sioux Falls off the scoreboard after the seventh inning. RHP Taylor Stanton set his team up with a strong showing, striking out five batters and allowing just one run in six innings.
For the Canaries, LHP Adam Champion pitched a shutout through his seven innings on the mound, allowing just four hits. 1B Marcos Rodriguez also had an impressive game, scoring on both of Pahuta’s hits and going 4-for-6 on the night.
Amarillo 9, Grand Prairie 0
The Sox struck a fine balance of prolific scoring and stifling defense in a 9-0 shutout of the AirHogs. Amarillo steadily added runs throughout the game, scoring in five separate innings and tallying 15 total runs. C Chris Grossman, CF Chris Valencia, 1B Kyle Nichols, and LF Cory Patton led the offense, each scoring twice. RF Joe Weik never crossed home plate, but added two RBI doubles.
RHP Brad Wilson earned the win after pitching seven innings without giving up a run to Grand Prairie. RHP Andrew Romo and RHP Cephas Howard each pitched a one-hit inning to complete the shutout for the Sox.
Laredo 7, Sioux City 6 (10 innings)
A three-run homer from 1B John Alonso gave Laredo an early lead, but they needed extra innings to finally capture a 7-6 win against the Explorers. The Lemurs added two more runs in the second to increase their lead to five before Sioux City ever got on the scoreboard. But after a home run from RF Pete Barrows and four runs in the fifth, the X’s stayed competitive and forced an extra inning. CF Stephen Douglas scored the game-winner for the Lemurs after C Brian Peterson was walked with the bases loaded.
After Laredo had allowed a string of runs, RHP Kyle Wilson took the mound and altered his team’s fortunes by allowing just one hit and striking four batters out in 2.2 innings. The four relievers that followed him each played a part in the victory, keeping the X’s scoreless after the fifth. CF Eliezer Mesa and LF Yusuke Inoguchi helped keep Sioux City alive until overtime, both going 3-for-5 with one run in the game.
El Paso 7, Lincoln 6
Steady scoring from both sides kept the Diablos and the Saltdogs in a tight game as the two teams traded leads until El Paso edged out a 7-6 victory in the bottom of the ninth. The two teams evened the score five different times throughout the game before a walk-off single from C Juan Apodaca brought the winning run home. Batters on both sides had productive nights as the two teams combined for 28 total hits. Diablos 1B Sergio Burruel had perhaps the most impressive performance, hitting 3-for-4 with a double and three runs. Additionally, six different batters drove in a run for El Paso.
Despite losing, the Saltdogs put up a strong fight. RF Brian Joynt was 3-for-5 with a double and a run that tied the teams up at 5-5 in the seventh. In the end, defense down the stretch proved important as El Paso allowed just one hit in the final two innings.
Photo courtesy of Winnipeg Goldeyes/Shawn Coates