AtL Lancaster Stormers

Ball pulls out Thriller

Published on May 30, 2008 under Atlantic League (AtL)
Lancaster Stormers News Release


Another night. Another close ballgame.

For the second consecutive evening, a home run in extra innings carried the Barnstormers to victory as Jarred Ball led off the 12th with his first Atlantic League round tripper, leading Lancaster to a 9-8 victory over the Newark Bears.

While Ball eventually won the game, it was Jutt Hileman who got the club to that point. The Lancaster center fielder slugged two homers and drove in five runs in the first seven innings. As if that were not good enough, he threw Brian Burgamy out at home plate attempting to score the winning run in the bottom of the ninth.

Hileman's first long ball of the night provided the Barnstormers with a 2-1 lead in the second. Newark, however, found the fences in the fourth inning as Val Majewski and John Pachot slugged one-out two-run homers as Newark built a 5-2 lead.

Lloyd Turner homered to start the fifth, and Lancaster pulled off a rare double steal with Danny Gonzalez and Juan Francia to pull within a run later in the inning.

Newark stretched the lead back to three in the sixth. A perfect hit-and-run single by Randall Simon wheeled Majewski around to third. Pachot brought home a run with a ground ball, and Mike Just plated the seventh run with a double into the left field corner.

An RBI single by Kyle Nichols and Hileman's three-run screaming line drive homer to left vaulted Lancaster back into the lead in the seventh. Pat Cassa and Judd Songster each tossed a scoreless inning to carry the lead into the ninth where near disaster struck.

Just blooped a single down the right field line to start the inning. Burgamy followed with a bunt attempt which he popped into the air. Unable to get to the ball on the fly, first baseman Manny Mejia played a bounce but found both Jose Cabrera and Francia covering first. His throw got between them and skipped out of play. Just was awarded home on the overthrow, a call which led to the ejection of Lancaster manager Von Hayes.

Ramon Castro lined to first for the first out of the inning. Jose Herrera then singled to center, but Hileman came up firing, and Lance Burkhart had an easy tag on Burgamy. Burkhart then saw Herrera running for second, fired through, and the Barnstormers tagged him out in a rundown to escape the threat.

Cabrera (1-0) earned the win with three innings of relief. Eric Ackerman struck out two and pinned the tying run at third in the bottom of the 12th to record the save in his first relief appearance of the year.

NOTES: Lancaster has played 37 innings of baseball the last three nights...The bullpen has been used for 17...The ejection was the first for Hayes in 2008...Danny Gonzalez has seven hits in the last two games and is 25-for-59 (.424) in the last 16...Mejia lost a seven-game hitting streak...Hileman is the third Barnstormer to drive in five runs in a game this season...New third baseman Ivanon Coffie watched the game from the dugout...Yamel Guevara will pitch on Saturday at 6:05 against Pat Stanley.

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Atlantic League Stories from May 30, 2008


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