AirHogs win marathon game on error in 12th

Published on July 13, 2011 under American Association (AA)
Grand Prairie AirHogs News Release


GRAND PRAIRIE, Texas -- The ageless baseball axiom says to never make the first or third out of an inning at third base. With the game tied at 6-6 in the bottom of the 12th inning on Tuesday, the Grand Prairie AirHogs' Chris McMurray took off for third after the Fort Worth Cats rightfielder Ryan Patterson caught the second out of the inning. Patterson's throw looked like it had a good chance to beat a sliding McMurray for the final out of the frame, but it bounced and hit the AirHogs catcher in the leg, caroming by third baseman Butch Ballez and pitcher Nick DeBarr backing up. McMurray sprung to his feet and dashed home, as DeBarr was unable to pick the ball up along the bullpen railing, with McMurray sliding in to score the winning run of a 7-6 thriller at QuikTrip Park.

Although most of the crowd of 2,732 had left by the time the four-hour, eight-minute game ended, those that remained witnessed the AirHogs (38-18) finally take advantage of a chance to win the game after leaving runners at third base in the eighth, ninth and 10th innings.

But Griffin Bailey and DeBarr (2-3), who worked a combined six innings between them in relief, kept the AirHogs from scoring again and again. Meanwhile, five Grand Prairie relievers, Bo Schultz, Jon Fulton, Jon Hunton, Jason Moody and Cody Railsback (1-1) worked six shutout innings of their own to send the game to extra innings.

Before McMurray slid in with the winning run, the game had not seen a runner cross home plate since each team had scored in the sixth inning, with Kelley Gulledge's RBI double giving the Cats (25-30) a 6-3 lead before the AirHogs erased their deficit against Tyler Seaman and Tim Haines.

Seaman had worked four shutout innings since allowing three runs in the first, when Danny Figueroa homered to start the game and John Alonso knocked in a pair with a two-out single. But he gave up a one-out hit to Guillermo Martinez and walked David Thomas, and Cats manager Stan Hough summoned Haines from the bullpen. Tyler Henley greeted Haines with a triple down the rightfield line on the first pitch to make it 6-5, and two walks and a fielder's choice later, Haines walked Greg Porter on a 3-2 pitch with two outs to force in the tying run.

Jason Jennings pitched six innings for the AirHogs, but he allowed six runs (five earned), with Gulledge doing most of the damage. Aside from his double in the sixth, the Cats catcher erased the early 3-0 with a grand slam to left in the third, the second hit by Fort Worth in as many games.

But Jennings held the Cats to only two other runs and his bullpen was excellent, and the AirHogs finally came through with the winner.

Notes: Grand Prairie left 17 men on base, including one when the game ended...Figueroa's homer was his first of the year...The AirHogs had been 0-2 in extra-inning games this year, with both defeats coming at home in 11 innings...Grand Prairie has four game-ending runs this year, but none have come on a hit - there have been two sacrifice flies, one steal of home and now the error...Cats pitching walked 12 AirHogs, including two intentionally, while Grand Prairie issued five free passes all night.

The AirHogs and Cats conclude their series on Wednesday, July 13, at 7:05 p.m. at QuikTrip Park. Fans are invited to bring their dogs to the ballpark to help chase the Cats out of town. It is also Senior Citizen Night, with all fans 55+ able to purchase the best seat in the house for $5. Don't miss the renewed commitment to excellence and affordable family entertainment. All games are available with live, free streaming video on ustream.tv. Individual game tickets are on sale and can be purchased by calling 972-504-9383 or by visiting www.airhogsbaseball.com

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