Tigers Fall in the Bottom of the Ninth
5/9/10
The Tigers opened Tomahawk East League play on Sunday with a match-up in Gibbon. An early season tradition of winds and cold was tossed aside on a wonderful Mother's Day afternoon. Springfield built a 3-1 lead, but Gibbon kept battling back, getting a 5-4 walk-off win in the bottom of the ninth.
Matt Baier led-off for the visitors with a walk. A stolen base, along with a couple wild pitches allowed him to come around to score, giving the Tigers a 1-0 lead. With one out in the third, Baier pushed the Springfield lead to 2-0 when he ripped a solo homer.
Jake Miesen made his 2010 mound debut with a solid outing. He faced just one batter over the minimum during the first three innings. He ran into a little trouble in the bottom of the fourth. A leadoff double by Ryan Panning turned into the first Gibbon run after two groundouts. Miesen worked his way out of a bases loaded jam in the home half of the fifth and he left the game with a lead.
Matt Tews and Chris Sturm drew one-out walks in the top of the sixth. Marty Brandl came through with a two-out double to drive in pinch runner Al Wilhelmi and push the Tiger lead back to two runs. Tews took over on the hill in the bottom of the sixth. He retired the first five batters he faced before allowing a two-out base hit in the seventh. Jon DeRock followed by crushing a two-run bomb to tie the game at three.
Springfield went right to work in the top of the eighth when Sturm started things with a double. Miesen gave the Tigers back the lead when he drove in Sturm with a solid single. The Reds evened things again in the bottom of the inning with a base hit and with the help of a Tiger error.
With the game knotted at four, Springfield went down in order in the top of the ninth. In the bottom of the inning, the Reds got a base hit followed by a sacrifice bunt and an intentional walk. After two were out, Sam Van Hon drove a hit to deep center field, giving Gibbon the win, 5-4.
Chris Sturm and Marty Brandl each had two hits to account for 2/3rds of the Springfield total. Matt Baier and Jake Miesen tallied the other two Tiger hits. Matt Tews took the loss, working the final 3 2/3 innings, allowing four runs, three of which were earned. Sam Van Hon earned the win in relief for Gibbon. Springfield has a busy week coming up with exhibition games scheduled for Wednesday and Saturday nights, before continuing league play with a trip to Essig. The Tracy Express are next on the schedule at Riverside Park on Wednesday. Come on down to cheer on the Tigers in their home opener!
Linescore
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | LOB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Springfield | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 9 |
| Gibbon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 9 | 0 | 8 |
Springfield Box
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Baier, C | 3 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | HR, HP |
| Nachreiner, 2B | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | |
| Schwab, SS | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | SAC |
| Salazar, 3B | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | HP(3) |
| Tews, LF/P | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wilhelmi, PR | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| C. Sturm, 1B | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2B |
| Sather, CF | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | |
| Brandl, RF | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2B |
| Miesen, P/LF | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 29 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 6 | 7 | ||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | ||
| Miesen | 5 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 5 | |
| Tews (L, 0-1) | 3 2/3 | 5 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 4 |
Pictures
Game Photos - 31 images
