Springfield Downs Stark
6/8/12
Friday night the Tigers returned to Riverside Park to host Stark. A couple Tigers who have been seldom seen in 2012 were also present. Matt Tews returned from his honeymoon for his second appearance of the season. While Brady Schwab took the field for the first time this season in what will possibly be his final game as a Tiger. Mike Salazar's six innings of one hit pitching and Springfield taking advantage of walks and errors led to an 11-1 win for the home team.
Salazar allowed a single to the second batter he faced in the top of the first. The hit along with two walks had Springfield in quite a jam, but a pair of lineouts ended Stark's biggest threat of the night. Salazar issued several walks and hit a batter, but did not allow another hit during his next five innings on the mound.
Springfield has been without Jordan Milbrath for a couple weeks. Milbrath has been pitching for the Waterloo Bucks of the Northwoods League. If, or when, he'll return is not known at this point. Milbrath's absence has been an opportunity for others to step up and Salazar has definitely done so.
A Longhorn error put the Tigers on the board in the home half of the first. Another error in the bottom of the second extended the inning, allowing Zach Bisel to drive in Springfield's third run of the night with a two-out single.
Stark left-hander, Adam Sellner, put up zeros in the third, fourth, and fifth innings. With the score 3-0, Tews started the bottom of the sixth with a solid single. A sacrifice bunt moved Tews around to second. Jacob Menage drew a two-out walk before a wild pitch put runners at second and third. Again, Bisel came through with a clutch base hit, pushing the Tiger lead to five. A Longhorn error extended the inning and allowed Bisel to score.
With the Tigers on top 6-0, manager Steve Helget called on Brady Schwab to eat some innings for the depleted pitching staff. Schwab gave up back-to-back hits to start the top of the seventh. A ground out put Stark on the board, making the tally 6-1.
The Tigers' offense went back to work in the bottom of the seventh. Springfield chased Sellner with one out and the bases loaded. Dusty Mangen came on in relief for the Longhorns. A walk to Bisel, Alex Fink being hit by a pitch, and a Ryan Sturm single put Springfield up by nine runs.
Schwab coaxed three fielder's choices in the top of the eighth to keep the lead at nine. In the bottom of the inning, three walks loaded the bases before an error on an attempted fielder's choice at the plate ended the game by the ten-run rule with the Tigers on top 11-1.
Zach Bisel had a big night at the plate with two hits and four RBIs. Alex Fink and Ryan Sturm both added two knocks and a run batted in. Matt Tews and Marc Salazar rounded out the Tiger attack with one hit each. Tim Seifert led the bats for the Longhorns with a double and a run scored. Mike Salazar earned the win for the home team, evening his record at 1-1 on the season. Salazar worked six innings, allowing just one hit, with three strikeouts, and six walks. Adam Sellner took the loss for Stark, going six and one-third innings, surrendering ten runs, just three of which were earned, on seven hits with five strikeouts.
The win breaks Springfield's seven game losing streak and improves their record to 2-4 in league play and 2-8 overall. The Tigers will look to make it two in a row when they travel to St. James for a 7:30pm contest against the A's on Sunday night. Go Tigers!
Linescore
| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | LOB | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stark | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | x | 1 | 5 | 5 | 11 |
| Springfield | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 1 | x | 11 | 8 | 1 | 13 |
Springfield Box
| AB | R | H | RBI | BB | SO | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bisel, C | 5 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 | |
| Vogel, DH | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| Brandl, DH | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Mi. Salazar, P | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| Schwab, P | - | - | - | - | - | - | |
| A. Fink, SS | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | HP |
| R. Sturm, 3B | 4 | 0 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| Loomis, 2B | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | HP |
| Tews, LF | 3 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| M. Salazar, 1B | 2 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | SAC(2) |
| Mx. Salazar, 1B | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Beyer, CF | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | |
| Frank, PH | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| Menage, RF | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 | |
| Christensen, RF | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | |
| 32 | 11 | 8 | 7 | 10 | 7 | ||
| IP | H | R | ER | BB | SO | ||
| Mi. Salazar (W, 1-1) | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 3 | |
| Schwab | 2 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Pictures
