Traverse City Takes Finale as Pat McAfee Debuts in Pro Baseball for Wild Things
WASHINGTON, Pa. (June 21) – The first-place Washington Wild Things were only able to muster two runs on seven hits as the Traverse City Beach Bums exploded for 13 runs to take the three-game series in a decisive 13-2 victory Thursday.
Despite the outcome of the game, the Wild Things enjoyed one of their larger crowds of the season, 2,347, thanks to a special appearance from former Indianapolis Colts punter and current Barstool Sports personality Pat McAfee. McAfee started in right field and batted ninth in the game for the Wild Things.
Traverse City (15-20) jumped out to an early 3-0 lead just three batters into the game, as shortstop Will Kengor connected for his 5th home run of the season after center fielder Alec Olund doubled and right fielder Isaac Benard walked. Washington (23-13) cut that deficit down to two in the bottom half of the frame when left fielder Roman Collins lifted a sacrifice fly that scored center fielder James Harris.
After the Beach Bums tacked on a run in the top half of the second inning, third baseman Mike Hill connected for a solo home run to right field to bring the score to 4-2. McAfee grounded out to first base in his first plate appearance of the night, connecting on a first-pitch fastball.
Wild Things’ starter Danny Garmendia struggled in the third inning as Traverse City blew the game open and knocked him out of the game. The Beach Bums scored five runs off Garmendia in the inning before the right-hander was relieved by Aaron Burns, who gave up one more run before the end of the inning as the lead was extended to 10-2.
Traverse City continued to pile on in the fourth, tacking on three more runs on home runs from Kengor, his second of the night, and first baseman Steve Lohr.
The rest of the game remained scoreless as both team’s pitching staffs shut down the opposing offense, bringing the game to its final of 13-2.
McAfee finished the night 0-3 with a pair of groundouts and a fielder’s choice on a play in which he advanced to second on an error. The Plum, Pennsylvania native also recorded a putout on the night.
Reinaldo Lopez kept the Frontier League-leading Washington offense in check, tossing seven innings while allowing just two runs on six hits and striking out five batters. Kengor paced the offense for the Beach Bums with four hits, including two home runs, four RBI and three runs scored.
Washington will travel to Schaumburg to take on the Boomers for a three-game series that begins tomorrow at 7:30 EST
