Big Hit Eludes Grizzlies in First Loss to Joliet
Published on July 30, 2025 under Frontier League (FL)
Gateway Grizzlies News Release
SAUGET, ILL. - The Gateway Grizzlies dropped a 7-6 game in 10 innings against the Joliet Slammers on Tuesday night at Arsenal BG Ballpark, rallying back from three runs down late to tie the score, but unable to come up with the big hits they needed throughout the contest to win the series opener.
The two-out struggles on the mound began in the first inning, when Braylin Marine lofted a soft RBI single to center field off Brady Fuller to make it 1-0 Joliet. In the bottom of the second inning, after getting runners at first and second base with no outs, Gateway evened up the score at 1-1 with a two-out RBI double from Marshall Awtry in his first at-bat as a Grizzlie, but a leadoff walk in the following frame led to two runs for the visitors and a 3-1 lead courtesy of a Marine RBI groundout and a run-scoring double by Antonio Valdez.
Claudio Galva followed Fuller by pitching three outstanding innings out of the bullpen, allowing just one batter to reach base for the Slammers, but despite getting runners on base in the fourth, fifth, sixth, and seventh innings (including multiple runners on in the sixth and seventh), they could not come up with the run-scoring hit they needed. In the meantime, Alvery De Los Santos surrendered a two-out, two-strike solo home run to Ian Battipaglia in the top of the seventh to make the score 4-1.
In the eighth, after the Grizzlies got a leadoff double by Mark Shallenberger, but were one out away from stranding him, Cole Brannen broke through the struggles with men on base with a two-run home run to right field, drawing the Grizzlies within 4-3. Alec Whaley then pitched a 1-2-3 ninth inning, setting the stage for the Grizzlies to tie the game in the bottom half.
Gabe Holt led off with a single, and Victor Castillo then hit a fly ball to right-center field that was dropped for an error by Blake Berry, putting the tying and winning runs in scoring position with no outs. Abdiel Diaz hit a sacrifice fly to left field that tied the game at 4-4, but again, Gateway could not come up with the clutch hit in the rest of the frame, sending the game to extras.
In the tenth, Keegan Collett (2-2) walked the first batter he faced, with a passed ball during the at-bat advancing the automatic runner to third base, and after a strikeout, Berry grounded a single into left field that made it 5-4 Joliet. Collett struck out the next batter, and got ahead 0-2 on Chris Davis, but gave up a bloop RBI hit that stayed fair by inches down the left field line, making the score 6-4. Another passed ball completed the inning for a 7-4 Grizzlies deficit entering the bottom of the tenth.
Gateway greeted Ty Rybarczyk rudely in the frame, with Edwin Mateo cranking an RBI double off the wall in left field to score the Grizzlies' automatic runner from second base and make it 7-5 before Brannen singled to right field to move Mateo to third base. Awtry then lifted a sacrifice fly to center field to make it 7-6, and a passed ball moved Brannen into scoring position representing the tying run.
But on a base hit by Holt out of the reach of a diving Marine in shallow left field, Brannen was sent home and was thrown out at the plate for the second out. Holt ended up at second base on the play, giving the Grizzlies one more shot to come up with the big hit they desired with the tying run in scoring position, but Castillo flew out to center field to end the game, dropping the Grizzlies to 0-4 in extra innings at home this season, and allowing the Slammers to earn their first win in nine tries against Gateway in 2025.
The Grizzlies will look to put the loss behind them quickly when they host Joliet in a doubleheader on Wednesday, July 30, beginning at 5:00 p.m. CT. Lukas Veinbergs starts the opener for Gateway against Slammers rookie Ryan Daly, with both teams' starters for game two still to be announced.
Frontier League Stories from July 30, 2025
- RECAP: Otters Fall Despite Three Rookies Earning Professional Firsts - Evansville Otters
- Boomers out Slugged by Mississippi - Schaumburg Boomers
- ValleyCats Launch Two Homers in Seesaw Victory over Boulders - Tri-City ValleyCats
- DeLeo's 5-5, Four-RBI Night Not Enough as Jackals Drop Heartbreaker in Washington - New Jersey Jackals
- Escobar K's Double Digits in 3-0 Shutout Win - Lake Erie Crushers
- Timely Hits, Quality Start Guide Titans to Bounce Back Win - Ottawa Titans
- Boulders Get Cooled off at Tri-City - New York Boulders
- Liquori Walks off Jackals, Czech Sets League Single-Season Grand Slam Record - Washington Wild Things
- Maietta Pitches Bolts to Series Win - Windy City ThunderBolts
- Florence Falls in Barnburner - Florence Y'alls
- Late Collapse Dooms Bird Dawgs in 5-1 Loss - Down East Bird Dawgs
- Mud Monsters Add Forsyth and Holman - Mississippi Mud Monsters
- Mud Monsters Win Important Series Opener - Mississippi Mud Monsters
- Bird Dawgs Power Surge Falls Short in 9-8 Loss - Down East Bird Dawgs
- Big Hit Eludes Grizzlies in First Loss to Joliet - Gateway Grizzlies
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
