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Joliet Slammers

Staley, Slammers Walk off on Evansville

July 26, 2016 - Frontier League (FL)
Joliet Slammers News Release


JOLIET, IL - Joe Staley came through in the biggest moment for the Slammers Tuesday night hitting a two-run walk-off single to cap off the Slammers' comeback over the Evansville Otters. Joliet trailed by four runs going into the sixth inning, but continued to battle with the Otters to steal game one of the series 6-5.

The Joliet Slammers presented by ATI Physical Therapy got off to a strong start to open up their nine-game home stand. The Slammers will play nine games in 10 days at Silver Cross Field and a win like Tuesday's has them heading in the right direction.

Alfredo Rodriguez led off the ninth inning with a double, but was thrown out at third on the next pitch as Jake Gronsky was not able to execute a sacrifice bunt. The play did not faze the Slammers, however, as they loaded the bases with a single from Carter Bell and Marc Flores patience at the plate to draw a walk.

Staley faced seven pitches and a fully count before driving in Gronsky and Bell, who's aggressive base running enabled him to score all the way from second on a groundball in the hole on the right side of the infield.

"It's great," Staley said. "A walk-off win anytime is good. The good thing is the way we battled back. It shows a lot of character in the team."

The Slammers got a rare start from Chris Rice, who is usually used out of the bullpen. The lefty pitched four innings and gave up two runs, one being unearned. Rice kept the Slammers in the game in his four innings of work, but the Otters got to Kevin Simmons in the sixth inning.

Simmons allowed two runs in the top half, but the Slammers rallied with two outs in the bottom half of the inning to inch their way closer to eventually come away with a win.

Joliet struggled to get any offense going up until the sixth inning, but the Slammers have found a way all season for their offense to come alive at anytime, and keep coming.

"We can hit," Staley said. "One through nine, we've got guys that can hit. Once we get it rolling, it kind of keeps going."

Coming into this home stand, the Slammers had just lost back-to-back series to the Southern Illinois Miners and the Florence Freedom.

The Slammers' win Tuesday was key as the second-place Washington Wild Things also came away with a win Tuesday. The Slammers have just a 1.5 game lead on the Wild Things.

Joliet lost the first two games of the series to Florence, but came away with the win in the final game of the series, and it rolled over to Tuesday.

"We hit a little slump," Staley said. "Pitching, we weren't getting quality starts like we normally have been. I think we're going to start rolling again.

Tuesday's Merchants and Manufacturers Player of the Game is Joe Staley for driving in the winning runs in the ninth inning.

About the Joliet Slammers: The Joliet Slammers presented by ATI Physical Therapy play at Silver Cross Field in downtown Joliet, Illinois, and are members of the professional, independent Frontier League. The Frontier League is a 12-team league entering its 24th season of play in 2016. Visit the Slammers online at www.jolietslammers.com or call the ticket office at 815-722-2287 for more information! Don't forget to "Like" the Slammers on Facebook at www.facebook.com/jolietslammers or follow them on Twitter at @jolietslammers!

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Frontier League Stories from July 26, 2016


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