Rally in the Ninth Lifts Tigers Over Grizzlies
6/15/08
The Tigers returned to Riverside Park to battle the Searles Grizzlies on Sunday night. It was an exciting ball game as Springfield battled back from two deficits to pull out a win in the bottom of the ninth, 7-6.
Brandon Wilhelmi made the start for the home team on the hill. The Tigers struggles on defense continued into the beginning of the game as Searles scored two unearned runs in the top of the first, on two hits, a walk, and aided by two Springfield errors. The Grizzlies pushed their lead to four in the second. After there was one out, they put together three straight hits to extend their lead.
Wilhelmi started things in the Tiger third with a walk. Matt Baier moved him up to second with a sacrifice bunt. Brady Schwab drew a base on balls. Wilhelmi came in to score when Bob Fink reached on a fielder's choice. Adam Beers reached on an error before Dave Groebner drove in the Tigers' second run with a ground out.
Wilhelmi settled in after the bumpy start. He faced just three batters in four of the next six innings. The Springfield offense was clicking in the sixth. Matt Tews dropped in a one-out single. After the second out was recorded, Chris Sturm got a base hit. Wilhelmi followed with a hit, driving in Tews. Baier dropped in an opposite field single to score Sturm, but Wilhelmi was thrown out at the plate, ending the inning and leaving the score tied at four.
The game remained tied until the top of the ninth when Searles got a lead-off walk. Wilhelmi retired the next two batters, but the third out of the inning was elusive. The Grizzlies put together three straight hits to score two runs and take a 6-4 lead.
Outs would be just as elusive for Searles in the bottom of the inning. Baier started things with a double. Schwab followed up with a double of his own, driving in Baier to make it 6-5. Fink came through with a base hit, moving Schwab to third. With the tying run ninety feet away, Beers hit what looked like a run scoring sacrifice fly to right, but the ball was misplayed by the right fielder allowing both Schwab and Fink to come around to score, giving Springfield a 7-6 victory.
Brandon Wilhelmi remains perfect in games he has started this season, earning his fourth win of the season. Matt Baier and Chris Sturm led the Tiger offense with two hits each.
Next up for the Tigers will be a Wednesday night match up with the Essig Bluejays. It is Youth Night at Riverside Park with lots of activities for all the youth in attendance, including a free hot dog. The Tigers would like to wish Ryan Sturm a quick recovery from his surgery this past week. We'll see everyone at the park on Wednesday night!
Linescore
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | LOB | |
| Searles | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 4 | 10 |
| Springfield | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 10 |
Springfield Box
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | |||
| Wilhelmi, P | 4 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| Baier, 3B | 4 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2B, SAC | |
| Schwab, SS | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 2B | |
| Fink, 1B/RF | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Beers, LF | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | SAC | |
| Groebner, DH | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ||
| C. Moritz, RF/CF | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| Tews, 2B | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| A. Moritz, C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| C. Sturm, CF/1B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | HP | |
| 33 | 7 | 8 | 6 | 5 | 1 | |||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | |||
| Wilhelmi (W, 4-1) | 9 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | ||
Pictures
