Washington Comes Back to Win Series Opener Against Joliet 8-4
WASHINGTON, PA (June 18) — When Wild Things' starting pitcher Chase Cunningham faced off against Joliet's Scot Hoffman May 29, it resulted in a pitcher’s duel, with Hoffman coming out on top in a 2-1 Slammers win.
Friday's series opener at Wild Things Park had an identical pitching matchup, and both starters were again sharp, but this time, the bullpens decided the game, and a clutch three-run double by third baseman Mike Hill was the difference in an 8-4 Wild Things’ (16-9) win that extended their winning streak to five games. The win also was Washington's 10th come-from-behind victory of the season.
Cunningham cruised early on, as he didn't allow a hit through the first 3.2 innings. The Slammers (10-14) opened the scoring, however, on their first hit of the night when right fielder Travis Bolin hit his fourth home run of the season.
The Wild Things evened things up in the bottom half of the frame. After designated hitter Carter McEachern led off with a double and left fielder Roman Collins moved him to third on a groundout, catcher Kyle Pollock drove McEachern in with a sacrifice fly.
Washington took its first lead of the night in the sixth with one out, as Collins' fourth home run of the campaign made it 2-1, and gave the Wild Things 26 long balls collectively, adding to their Frontier League-leading total. The Wild Things added insurance in their next at bat when second baseman Brett Marr drove in Hill with a two-out single to make it 3-1.
In the top of the eighth, with Cunningham out of the game, the Slammers threatened against reliever Sam Mersing, putting runners at the corners with one out. Manager Gregg Langbehn turned to Davis Adkins, and it looked like the Wild Things might escape without any damage when Adkins fanned third baseman Danny Zardon for the second out of the inning. The next batter, however, was designated hitter and former Wild Thing Justin Garcia, who hit a 3-0 pitch over the right-field wall, a three-run shot, to put the Slammers ahead, 4-3.
In the bottom half of the inning, Washington immediately loaded the bases. With no outs, Hill seized the opportunity, clearing the bags with a double to put Washington ahead 6-4. The Wild Things weren't done scoring, as center fielder James Harris singled home Hill, and McEachern subsequently drove in shortstop Justin Bohn to make it 8-4. Zach Strecker retired the side in order in a non-save situation to close things out.
Cunningham stayed at 1-2 on the season, despite going seven innings and allowing just one earned run on two hits, while walking three and striking out a season-high eight batters. The 2017 Frontier League All Star has thrown at least six innings and allowed two runs or fewer in each of his last four outings.
Despite another strong performance against Washington, Hoffman suffered a no decision, allowing three earned runs on seven hits while striking out five, walking two and hitting a batter over 6.2 innings.
Despite giving up the home run to Garcia, Adkins was the winning pitcher, improving to 3-1, while Kimber took the loss, falling to 0-2.
The second contest of the three-game set is scheduled for tomorrow night at 7:05. Taylor Goshen (1-1) is the scheduled starter for Joliet, while Washington has not yet announced it's starting pitcher.
