Unfortunately, West Raleigh rules dictate that all innings must count, even when they're entirely uncharacteristic and really not much fun at all. And that means the Riverdogs earned a regular-season split with an 8-6 decision at Nowell Field.
The red-hot Riverdogs, who have now won three games in a row to climb within shouting distance of the top half of the Minor League, jumped out to a 1-0 lead in the second. The damage could have been much worse, but Drew and Anthony combined on an inning-ending double play (and earned a sticker apiece for their efforts) that got the Mudcats out of a two-on, one-out jam.
The next inning would prove to be the decisive one, however. What made it even more frustrating was that the Mudcats picked up two quick outs at the bottom of the Riverdogs order. But when that order turned over, seven straight Riverdogs batters reached base, and by the time the half-inning was complete, six runs had crossed the plate.
"In the field, we played five defensive innings," Coach Andrew said. "Four of those innings were as good as the best defense we've played this year. We lost focus in one inning, and defensively that was the difference in this game. On a school night, I know it's tough to play five complete innings."
The Riverdog rally seemed to spark the Mudcat offense, as they started at the top of the order in the top of the fourth and responded with five runs. With the top of the order setting the table, the rally included a two-run line drive single from J.J. (the second of his two hits on the day) and an RBI infield single from Big Ben.
But the Mudcats could never muster similar offense, and the seven hits in the fourth inning proved to be over half their total (13) for the game. The Riverdogs twice retired the side in order, and a sixth-inning rally was snuffed out by more solid Riverdog defense. The Mudcats actually out-hit the Riverdogs 13-12, but could never string the line drives together in the right order after the explosion in the fourth.
"Offensively, I think it comes back to that confidence part of the Mudcat Motto," Coach Andrew said. "We've been smoking the ball in pregame. I want us to get out on the field and hit the ball like we do in the cage. It's about confidence."
For the second straight game, Coach Andrew chose to hold over the team sticker, meaning three stickers are up for grabs in Saturday's 1:30 tilt.
"Next game, if you give me all five or six innings, I'm going to give you three stickers," he said.
Monday's Mudcat scoring plays
Fourth inning
The fourth inning was a great example of something Coach Mike pointed out after the game--aggressive baserunning that turned into runs. Hayes led off with a single, then went from first to third on Smiley's (who had a three-hit day) single. Drew singled straight back up the middle to drive in Hayes, then took advantage of a slow throw and took second. Meanwhile, Smiley scampered home to plate the inning's second run. After a groundout, Chris singled back up the middle, with Drew moving to third. Charley singled to center to drive in Drew, and then J.J. hit a two-run laser that scored Drew and Chris. Big Ben continued his hot hitting (four hits in his last five at-bats) with an RBI single to score Charley and complete the scoring.
Score after three and a half innings: Riverdogs 7, Mudcats 5
Sixth inning
Smiley led off by stretching a single into a double on one of those, "Hold on, don't go...great baserunning!" plays. Drew singled up the middle to drive him in, but the rally ended there.
Final score: Riverdogs 8, Mudcats 6
Monday's Web Gems
- The suddenly double-play happy Mudcats got another one, as Drew ended a threat in the second by spearing a liner and then alertly firing to Anthony at second to catch a napping runner.
- LB and Anthony owned the right side of the infield, with both players scooping up several tough plays.
| Monday's line score | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | R | H |
| Mudcats | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 6 | 13 |
| Riverdogs | 0 | 1 | 6 | 0 | 1 | X | 8 | 12 |
No comments:
Post a Comment