Chasers Earn 89th Win With 10-7 Victory Over Bats

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IL Omaha Storm Chasers

Chasers Earn 89th Win With 10-7 Victory Over Bats

September 21, 2024 - International League (IL)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release


LOUISVILLE, KY. - Four home runs powered the Omaha Storm Chasers to a 10-7 win in the fifth game of this week's series against the Louisville Bats, giving Omaha a series lead heading into the regular season finale.

In the top of the first inning, Drew Waters continued his dominant series with a solo homer to right field to get the Chasers on the board early for a 1-0 lead.

Starting pitcher Luinder Avila struggled in the first inning of his Triple-A debut, walking a pair before a double, single and sacrifice fly plated three runs for Louisville for a 3-1 score after an inning of play.

The Storm Chasers answered back and tied the game in the top of the second inning. Rodolfo Durán singled into left field, advanced to second on an error and moved to third on a wild pitch, then scored on an RBI single from Ryan Fitzgerald. After Fitzgerald took second base on a wild pitch, Cam Devanney followed with a two-out singled that scored Fitzgerald and tied the score at 3-3.

Omaha took back the lead for good in the third, as Nate Eaton singled, then Nelson Velázquez reached on a fielding error that advanced Eaton to third and Nick Pratto doubled Eaton in for a 4-3 lead.

The Chasers extended the lead to 8-3 with a four-run fifth inning as Pratto doubled, an infield single from Durán scored Pratto for the first run of the frame. Fitzgerald followed with a two-run homer to right field, his second and third RBI of the night, then two batters later Devanney added another homer, a solo shot and his 19th of the season for the five-run lead.

Louisville cut the Omaha lead to three runs as two walks and a double ended Avila's day. Jonathan Bowlan inherited two runners from the starter and allowed another run to score on a double, but kept the score at 8-5 through the end of the fifth. Avila struck out 3 over 4.1 innings of work, allowing five runs on five hits.

Waters led off the frame with a double, his third hit of the night, becoming just the second player in the Minors to record 3+ hits in four straight games this season, the first for an Omaha player since at least 2005. With one out, Velázquez hit a line drive single into left field that scored Waters for a 9-5 lead in favor of Omaha.

Bowlan finished the night with 1.2 scoreless innings and struck out two, offering a 1-2-3 sixth inning to end his night. Major League rehabber Josh Taylor took the mound in the bottom of the seventh and allowed three of four batters to reach on a double, RBI single and walk. Taylor was quickly relieved after getting just one out as Dan Altavilla entered the game and allowed one of two inherited runners to score as the Chasers' lead was trimmed to 9-7.

In the top of the eighth inning, the Chasers added a run of insurance as Durán hit an opposite-field solo homer to right field, his second with Omaha this year, growing the lead to 10-7, which ended as the final score.

Altavilla got the final two outs of the seventh and the first of the eighth inning, allowing a single in the eighth before Austin Cox took the reins with one out in the frame. Cox retired both batters he faced and stranded Altavilla's runner to send the game to the ninth.

With a three-run lead Evan Sisk took the mound in the bottom of the ninth for his league-leading 58th appearance. The left-hander struck out the side on 15 pitches to record his 15th save of the season in Omaha's 10-7 win.

The Storm Chasers conclude the regular season and this week's series against the Bats Sunday September 22 as first pitch is slated for 12:05 p.m. CT and left-handed pitcher Tyson Guerrero takes the mound for Omaha.

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