Lincoln rallies late, beats St. Paul
Published on August 22, 2009 under American Association (AA)
Lincoln Saltdogs News Release
LINCOLN, NE - The Lincoln Saltdogs found a way to win again on Saturday, beating St. Paul 3-2 in 11 innings at Haymarket Park. Lincoln improves to 25-15 on the second half of the season, and moves one step closer to clinching a playoff berth.
The Saltdogs plated the winning run in unorthodox fashion in the eleventh inning. With one out, Argelis Nuñez, Rafael Alvarez and Shawn McGill hit three singles in a row to load the bases. St. Paul had survived the ninth and tenth frames by inducing inning-ending double plays, and Saints reliever Kyle Foster (4-3) appeared to do so again when he forced Steve Alexander to hit a grounder to second. St. Paul got the force out at second, but McGill's textbook takeout slide kept shortstop Steve Butler from making the relay to first base, allowing Alexander to reach safely and scoring Nuñez with the winning run.
For the second night in a row, the two teams engaged in a classic pitchers' duel, this time between a pair of true rookies. Lincoln starter Tim Brown allowed just two runs on seven hits in 6.1 innings pitched, making his sixth straight quality start. St. Paul starter Todd Mathison, however, was even better, allowing only one run on five hits in his seven innings of work. The Saints scored a run in the third and another in the fourth for a 2-0 lead, but the Dogs cut the lead in half on Albenis Machado's sacrifice fly.
St. Paul turned to the bullpen in the eighth inning, but with two out and nobody on base, Brandon Jones singled to left. Jake Jadlowski pinch-ran for Jones and stole second on a 2-2 pitch. With the count moved to 3-2, Josh Burrus grounded a single to left field, scoring Jadlowski to tie the game at two.
Nuñez ended the night 2-for-4 with a walk and a run scored, while Jones and Phil Hawke also had two hits apiece for Lincoln. The Saltdogs bullpen combined to toss 4.2 scoreless innings, with Adam Daniels, Matt Petrusek, Forrest Cory and Gregorio Martinez (1-0) working to keep the Saints off the board until the end of the game.
Lincoln goes for the sweep of the three-game series Sunday night at 6:05. Lefty Zac Cline is scheduled to make the start for the Saltdogs.
The current Saltdogs homestand runs through August 23. For more team and ticket information, go to www.saltdogs.com.
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