MWL1 Quad Cities River Bandits

Bandits' Comeback Falls Short in Peoria

Published on June 28, 2014 under Midwest League (MWL1)
Quad Cities River Bandits News Release


PEORIA, IL - After falling behind the Peoria Chiefs, 5-1, through five innings Saturday night, the Quad Cities River Bandits came back to put the tying and go-ahead runs in scoring position with no outs in the ninth inning, but Chiefs right-hander Zach Loraine retired the next three batters in a 5-4 Chiefs win at Dozer Park.

Peoria (6-2 second half, 43-34 overall) got seven hits, all five runs and all five RBIs from its top three hitters, including three hits apiece from left fielder C.J. McElroy Jr. and first baseman Justin Ringo, who added a home run and three RBIs. Right-hander Blake McKnight (4-6) went six innings to earn his second win in eight days against Quad Cities (4-4, 39-38), which suffered its 15 th one- run loss - tied with Bowling Green, Clinton and Wisconsin for most in the Midwest League this season.

The visitors took a first-inning lead against McKnight, as center fielder James Ramsay hit a leadoff double down the first-base line, reached third base on a sacrifice by second baseman Marc Wik and scored on right fielder Brett Phillips' league-leading eighth sacrifice fly.

River Bandits right-hander Adrian Houser (4-3) held the lead until the bottom of the third inning. Chiefs center fielder Vaughn Bryan led off the third inning with a single, and McElroy bounced a game-tying double over first baseman Chase McDonald but advanced to third base when Phillips bobbled the ball in right field. With the infield in, Ringo grounded an RBI single to right field for a 2-1 Chiefs lead.

Houser then retired six batters in a row before hitting Bryan with a one-out pitch in the fifth inning. A wild pitch moved Bryan to second base, and he scored when McElroy lined a double to left-center field. Ringo followed with his fourth home run of the season to right field to make it 5-1. After the home run, only one of the next 12 Chiefs batters reached base against Houser and right-hander Kevin Comer. Houser allowed five earned runs on eight hits in five innings, while Comer pitched three shutout innings in relief.

Meanwhile, Quad Cities began its comeback in the sixth inning, when Phillips drew a one-out walk, and Mitchell singled to center field. When Phillips stumbled around second base, shortstop Richy Pedroza tried to throw him out, but the ball went into right field, allowing Phillips to score and Mitchell to reach third base. Third baseman Tyler White flew out to end the inning, and McKnight finished with two runs - one earned - on his pitching line. Right-hander Chris Perry pitched a perfect seventh inning before allowing Ramsay's eighth-inning leadoff triple and Wik's RBI groundout.

Loraine began the ninth inning with a 5-3 lead but allowed singles by Mitchell and White to put the tying runs on base. Left fielder Jon Kemmer ripped a double down the first-base line, scoring Mitchell and sending White to third. With no outs, Loraine struck out catcher Brett Booth, got shortstop Thomas Lindauer to ground out to third base, and Ramsay to end the game by grounding out to second base.

The River Bandits and Chiefs play their third doubleheader against each other in 22 days, beginning at 1 p.m. Sunday in Peoria. Quad Cities left-hander Chris Lee (2-5) is scheduled to face Peoria right-hander Luis Perdomo (0-0) in Game 1, while the visitors have Andrew Thurman (4-4) scheduled to face right-hander Kevin Herget (3-3) for the home team in Game 2.

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Midwest League Stories from June 28, 2014


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