Defense & Pitching Rule the Day, BG Blanks Dayton, 1-0
July 6, 2015 - Midwest League (MWL1)
Bowling Green Hot Rods News Release
Bowling Green, Ky. - Behind outstanding defense and gutty pitching, Bowling Green shutout Dayton for the fourth time at home in 2015, slaying the Dragons by a 1-0 score for the second time over a 10-day span in front of 2,351 fans at Bowling Green Ballpark on Monday evening.
With Bowling Green (6-6, 43-39) up 1-0 in the top of the eighth inning, Mike Franco surrendered back-to-back hits to the first two Dayton (6-6, 44-38) batters he faced. Gavin LaValley singled up the middle, and Paul Kronenfeld doubled into the right-field corner. On Kronenfeld's double, LaValley rounded third base and tried to tie the game, but Justin Williams teamed up with second baseman Riley Unroe and catcher Mac James to gun LaValley down on the play for the first out of the inning.
On the relay, however, Kronenfeld took third base with one out. On the next pitch, Garrett Boulware flew out to Bralin Jackson in left field with Kronenfeld tagging from third, but Jackson gathered and fired a one-hop throw to James, who applied the tag at the plate to end the inning, and Dayton's threat, on the second outfield assist of the inning at home.
Franco tossed a perfect top of the ninth inning to earn his third save of the season and clinch the 1-0 win for Bowling Green, marking the Hot Rods' 10th shutout of the season - most in the Midwest League - and fifth at home, four of which have come at Dayton's expense.
Bowling Green snatched the game's only run in the bottom of the second off Dayton starter Wyatt Strahan. Carter Burgess singled up the middle and was followed by Jackson's double in the next at-bat, moving Burgess to third. Grant Kay grounded out to second base for the first out of the frame but brought Burgess home for his fourth RBI over the past five games, giving the Hot Rods a 1-0 lead.
Strahan (5-6) allowed just the one run on eight hits over his 7.0 innings of work, walking only one and punching out five in his second straight one-run loss at BG Ballpark. He was outdueled by Greg Harris on June 26, a 1-0 Hot Rods victory during the second-half opening four-game series.
Bowling Green starter Chris Pike labored all evening, needing 60 pitches to finish 3.0 scoreless innings, but only surrendering a pair of hits - a Boulware leadoff single in the top of the second and Argenis Aldazoro's leadoff double in the top of the third.
After working around a pair of two-out singles in the fourth thanks to two brilliant defensive plays by Kay - a diving snag of LaValley's leadoff line drive and a barehanded collection of Luis Gonzalez's chopper to end the inning - Pike pitched himself into a bases-loaded situation in the top of the fifth. Aldazoro led off with a single, and Pike issued back-to-back two-out walks to Shed Long and LaValley. After the LaValley walk - and 97 total pitches - Pike was pulled for Damion Carroll, who induced a flyout on a 1-1 pitch to Kronenfeld to nullify the Dragons' threat.
Pike finished his 4.2 innings allowing no runs on five hits in a no-decision, while striking out three and walking three - all of which came with two outs.
Carroll (3-2) finished his 2.1 inning performance surrendering just one baserunner, a leadoff walk to Aldazoro in the top of the seventh inning, while striking out two.
Despite combining for 16 hits, the Hot Rods and Dragons went 1-for-18 with men in scoring position - Bowling Green hitting 1-for-9 and Dayton going 0-for-9 - while leaving a total of 17 men on base.
Hunter Lockwood and Jackson both tallied multi-hit games, while Boulware and Aldazoro knocked multiple hits for Dayton.
Bowling Green's brief four-game homestand comes to a close in a 12:05 p.m. CDT Tuesday matinee, when Yonny Chirinos (1-0, 0.50 with Hudson Valley - NYPL) makes his Bowling Green debut against Dragons All-Star righty Tejay Antone (4-6, 2.45) before the teams head to Dayton for the last two games of the split series.
Midwest League Stories from July 6, 2015
- Good Games Come in Nines - Great Lakes Loons
- Fort Wayne Wins Wild One in 12 at South Bend - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Defense & Pitching Rule the Day, BG Blanks Dayton, 1-0 - Bowling Green Hot Rods
- Chiefs Play Long Ball, Beat Bees 7-2 Monday - Peoria Chiefs
- Hot Rods Top Dragons 1-0 in Kentucky - Dayton Dragons
- Peoria Tops Bees in Series Opener - Burlington Bees
- Kernels Beat Beloit 7-5 - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- Gerber Helps 'Caps Sink Lake County - West Michigan Whitecaps
- Nightmare Fifth Dooms Lugnuts, 9-5 - Lansing Lugnuts
- Captains Can't Hold Late Lead - Lake County Captains
- Heredia Named Midwest League Pitcher of the Week - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Rain Postpones River Bandits, LumberKings on Monday - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Clinton and Quad Cities Postponed Monday Evening - Clinton LumberKings
- Dragons Place Armstrong on DL - Dayton Dragons
- Great Snappers Promos for Six Games - Beloit Sky Carp
- Coast to Coast Baseball Tryout at Parkview Field - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- TinCaps Game Notes: July 6 at South Bend (Game 80) - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Dragons Homestand Preview, July 8-13 - Dayton Dragons
- Dragons GameDay Notes for Monday - Dayton Dragons
- Captains Dorssys Paulino Named Midwest League Player of the Week - Lake County Captains
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