Gonzalez comes through in a pinch, Colts walk off with win
Published on July 28, 2008 under United League Baseball (ULB)
San Angelo Colts News Release
SAN ANGELO, Texas - Former Colt Brian Daly looked like he was about to survive a brush with disaster, striking out the Colts' leader in homers and RBIs, Andres Rodriguez, and then the league leader in batting average, Aaron Cone, with the bases loaded and no one out in the bottom of the ninth. But then the smallest man on the Colts, 5-foot-9 Albert Gonzalez, came up the biggest with a bloop single over third as a pinch-hitter, scoring Bryan Frichter and John Anderson to give the Colts a dramatic 12-11 walk-off win in front of 1,416 fans at Foster Field.
The comeback win was made possible by a sudden Harlingen comeback in the top of the ninth. After new Colts closer Luke Massetti (5-4) emerged unscathed from a second and third, one-out jam in the eighth, the Colts scored three times in the bottom of the inning and looked like they were comfortably ahead 10-6. But Amadeo Zazueta doubled to start the ninth, David Cardona and Ryan Fox hit back-to-back home runs, and after one out and a base hit, pinch-hitter Brian Nichols hit the third homer of the inning, a two-run shot to give Harlingen the lead, 11-10.
But Daly (0-5) walked Frichter to start the bottom of the ninth, and allowed a single to John Anderson when a running Frichter forced the shortstop Zazueta to vacate the left side of the infield to cover second and allowed Anderson's grounder to get through. Then Jose Torres walked to load the bases, before the strikeouts of Rodriguez and Cone set up Gonzalez's heroics.
Jason Landreth went deep for the fourth straight day, hitting a grand slam in the fourth to start the scoring off Armando Casas, en route to a 2-for-4, five-RBI day, as the Colts (40-25) clinched the six-game series with their fourth straight win over the WhiteWings (18-49).
Harlingen closed to within a run in the fifth, scoring three times off Billy McKinney. After a sacrifice fly by David Cardona made it 4-1, Ryan Fox hit a two-run double to left-center to make it 4-3, but McKinney retired Joel Gonzalez on a grounder to end the inning. McKinney did not allow any other runs, going six innings, allowing eight hits and one walk while striking out five for a no-decision.
The Colts responded in their half of the fifth, as they extended their lead on the team-leading 13th home run of the year by Rodriguez, a two-run shot to right-center. In fact, in all four innings that the 'Wings scored, the Colts came right back to score runs of their own.
San Angelo got two in the fifth, one in the seventh (after Zazueta hit a two-run homer for Harlingen to make it 6-5), three in the eighth (after an RBI single by Carl Johnson pulled the Wings to within a run, 7-6), and the two in the ninth to answer the WhiteWings.
Notes: Wyn Diggs extended his now 35-game on-base streak, which leads the United League, with a walk in the fourth ...Aaron Cone extended his on-base streak to 22...The Colts have scored in double digits four straight games, a season-high...Landreth now has five homers and 20 RBIs in 11 games with the Colts...The Colts finished their four Sure-Win Mondays 4-0, as Sherwin Williams would have given free tickets to a future game had the Colts lost on a Monday at Foster Field this year.
The Colts conclude their six-game set with Harlingen on Tuesday, July 29, at 7:05 p.m. with a Buyout Night, as WTU sponsors free tickets to everyone at Foster Field. Advertising, ticket, and group information are available by calling the box office at (325) 942-6587. All Colts games are broadcast live on "Cool 100" - KCLL 100.1 FM and online at the Colts' official website, www.sanangelocolts.com, which is updated daily with the latest team news.
United League Baseball Stories from July 28, 2008
- Gonzalez comes through in a pinch, Colts walk off with win - San Angelo Colts
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- Rain ruins Coyotes date with Dillas - Edinburg Roadrunners
- Dillas rained out on Monday - Amarillo Dillas
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- WTU Retail Energy Welcomes Fans with Free Entry into Colts Game - ULB
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