Bats Rally in Ninth for Series Win at Omaha
June 23, 2024 - International League (IL)
Louisville Bats News Release
PAPILLION, Nebraska - The Louisville Bats rallied in the ninth inning for the second night in a row to earn a 4-2 victory in the series finale over the Omaha Storm Chasers on Sunday night at Werner Park.
The victory extends the Bats' winning streak to four games, clinches a series victory for Louisville against the International League's first half champions. The victory also ends the first half of a season for the Bats with a winning record at 38-36, tied for second place in the International League West Division.
Omaha got to work early, scoring in the bottom of the first. John Rave got the inning started with a leadoff walk before John Eaton homered to left to give the Storm Chasers a 2-0 lead.
The Bats did not get a runner on base until Conner Capel's leadoff double off the right field wall in the top of the fourth. They were unable to take advantage of the runner in scoring position as Omaha starter Daniel Lynch sat the next three batters.
Two innings later, Louisville got their first run on the board. Back-to-back singles with one out got the effort started. After the next batter flew out, Edwin Ríos hit an RBI single that cut the Storm Chasers' lead to 2-1.
Bats starter Lyon Richardson's day was over after five innings. He allowed two runs on three hits and two walks while striking out four. Lynch was pulled after 6.2 innings. He struck out eight batters and allowed one run on four hits.
Evan Kravetz, Randy Wynne and Zach Maxwell (W, 2-0) combined for three scoreless innings and held Omaha to just three hits, keeping the deficit at 2-1.
Ríos led off the top of the ninth with a home run, his 11th of the season, to tie the game at 2-2. P.J. Higgins doubled to right to earn his first hit of the night and advanced to third on a single by Michael Trautwein. With runners on the corners and two outs, Hernán Pérez doubled to left to clear the bases and give the Bats a 4-2 lead.
Tony Santillan (S, 14) entered in the bottom of the ninth, striking out the side to finish the win and earn his league-leading 14th save of the season.
Capel went 3-for-3 for the Bats, while Rios was 2-for-4 with the game-tying homer and two RBI while Erik Gonzalez also recorded a pair of hits in the Bats' second straight victory when trailing after eight innings. Previously, Louisville had one win when trailing after eight in the first 74 games of the season.
Louisville (38-36) will enjoy their off-day on Monday before their road trip continues with a six-game series against the Toledo Mud Hens (35-39) to start the second half. The first game is scheduled for Tuesday, June 25 at 7:05 p.m. E.T. Nick Curran and Jim Kelch will be on the call for 1450/96.1 WXVW.
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