Crushers Close Season on High Note
September 2, 2018 - Frontier League (FL) - Lake Erie Crushers News Release
AVON, OHIO. - The Lake Erie Crushers, presented by Mercy, closed out the regular season with their 50th win of the year after a 10-4 win over Washington on Sunday afternoon.
Having been eliminated from playoff contention the Crushers still got off to a fast start with two runs in the first inning against Wild Things starter Levi MaVorhis (2-3). A two-run home run by Joel McKeithan gave them a 2-0 lead. The home run was McKeithan's ninth of the season.
The Crushers added to their lead in the second inning when Aaron Hill doubled home a run and Zach Racusin followed with an RBI single.
The lead grew to 6-0 in the fourth after Hill led off with his fifth home run of the season and McKeithan followed with an RBI double. McKeithan finished 3-4 with three RBIs in the win.
Lake Erie starter Oriel Caicedo only lasted 2.2 innings before leaving with an injury. Branden Maddern (1-0) took over and went 2.1 innings while allowing two unearned runs. Both came in the fifth inning. The Crushers responded with a run in the bottom of the fifth and they led 7-2.
The Wild Things scored twice in the sixth against reliever Octavio Mirabal who allowed four hits but the Crushers still led 7-4.
The Crushers offense put the finishing touches on the game in the sixth against reliever Michael Austin. With the bases loaded, Doug Trimble doubled home two runs. That was followed by an RBI groundout from Dalton Wheat and Lake Erie led 10-4.
Branden Nunn pitched the final two innings to secure the 500th win in franchise history for the Crushers. With the victory, Lake Erie clinched their seventh 50-win season in franchise history. Lake Erie finished the season 50-46 while Washington fell to 54-42. Lake Erie closed the year on a four game winning streak along with a 10-2 record against the Wild Things in 2018.
After the game, Crushers manager Cam Roth reflected on a season that saw Lake Erie endure ups and downs.
"We got two guys signed...I think we're going to have more guys at the end of the season get signed," he said. "You lose three impact players after the all-star break, that's going to hurt. As far as a season outlook I think we did pretty well for losing four impactful players and we had a lot of young guys step up. That's going to be that much more beneficial moving to next year."
The Lake Erie Crushers, the 2009 Frontier League Champions, and 2011 Frontier League Organization of the year, play ball at Sprenger Health Care Stadium, a 5,000 capacity stadium located in Avon, Ohio. The Frontier League is an independent baseball league with 12 teams operating throughout the Midwest. For more information on tickets, promotions and team news, visit the team website at www.LakeErieCrushers.com or call 440-934-3636.
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Frontier League Stories from September 2, 2018
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