FL River City Rascals

A Heartbreaker in O'Fallon: Rascals Lose 12-10

Published on July 28, 2014 under Frontier League (FL)
River City Rascals News Release


River City loses an unfortunate three hour and forty minute ballgame as a result of five unearned runs that came across for the Cornbelters in the top of the eighth inning.

Following a series win against the Frontier Greys, the Rascals sent rookie left-hander Tommy Organ to the bump to oppose Normal lefty Matt Packer. This marked the first time River City had faced Normal since the second series of the season, way back in May.

Tommy Organ started off the ballgame with a scoreless top of the first, as he stranded a runner on third to end the inning. Packer would then match his opposing lefty by retiring all three batters while striking out two.

After a scoreless first inning Organ retook the bump in the top of inning number two to once again strand a runner aboard and keep the Cornbelters scoreless. The scoring then began in the bottom of the second as River City catcher Joe Staley hit a lead-off home run to centerfield- his second as a Rascal. The scoring wouldn't stop there however, as rookie Blaise Fernandez belted a two-run homer into the leftfield bleachers- his first as a professional. The two bombs in the second put River City up 3-0 after two in O'Fallon.

The Belters then "belted" their way back into the ballgame, as they pushed two runs across the plate in the top of the third on Mike Schawrtz's two-run bomb to leftfield- thus cutting the deficit to only one for Normal after two and a half. That one-run lead would quickly be widened though, as River City added three more on a two RBI triple by Evan Crawford and an RBI single by Blaise Fernandez- giving the Raskies a four-run lead, their biggest of the ballgame.

Normal then mounted another comeback effort, as they scored a third run in the top of the fourth on an RBI single by Patrick McKenna. Starter Matt Packer was then removed from the contest after pitching three innings, allowing six earned runs on seven hits while striking out five and walking one. Once again however, River City countered the offensive output by Normal by regaining a four-run lead in the bottom of the fourth on a lead-off solo shot by outfielder Brian Hansen- his fifth of the season.

Normal retaliated with a lead-off solo shot of their own in the top of the fifth courtesy of Jhoimar Veras. The Cornbelters then continued the effort by tying the game on a two-out, three-run home run by third-baseman Richard Lucas- making it 7-7 after four and a half at T.R. Hughes Ballpark. The Rascals then once again reinvigorated their loyal fans by retaking the lead in the bottom of the fourth on an RBI single off the bat of designated hitter Evan Crawford- putting the Raskies back on top, 8-7.

Following the fifth, starter Tommy Organ's night came to a conclusion, as Brook pulled him after pitching 5.0 innings, allowing seven runs- all earned- on six hits while striking out two and walking two.

No further runs would score until the bottom of the seventh when River City padded their lead with two insurance runs thanks to a two-out, two-run dinger off the bat of Evan Crawford- making it 10-7 Rascals after seven.

The lead evaporated sadly in the top of the eighth as the Cornbelters scored five unearned runs on a two-out error by Johnny Morales- allowing two to score- and a three-run jack by Mike Schwartz, giving Normal a 12-10 lead after seven and a half.

River City then trailed 12-10 heading into the bottom of the ninth as Eric Anderson came on for Normal out of the pen to try and lock down his first save of 2014. Unfortunately, the Rascals went down 1-2-3 in the ninth and lost game one to the Cornbelters by a score of 12-10.

Come out and support your Rascals tomorrow night in game two of the Cornbelters series with the first pitch scheduled for 7:05pm CT. Tickets can be purchased by visiting www.rivercityrascals.com or by calling (636)-240-BATS.

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Frontier League Stories from July 28, 2014


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