Love's Arm, Whalen's Bat Powers Chiefs Past River Bandits
July 2, 2022 - Midwest League (MWL)
Peoria Chiefs News Release
Davenport, IA - Austin Love logged seven innings of one-run ball while Brady Whalen homered twice in his 2022 High-A debut to lead the Chiefs to an 8-2 win over Quad Cities Saturday.
Love was on his game from the start. The right-hander, who beat the same River Bandits club on June 9, allowed just one base runner through two nearly flawless innings.
With the game scoreless in the third, Brady Whalen reintroduced himself to the High-A level. The 2019 Midwest League All-Star mashed a two-run homer to right for his first hit in a Chiefs uniform this season. For Whalen, it was his seventh blast of the year.
In the bottom of the fourth, a Quad Cities scoring chance went by the wayside. With Luca Tresh standing at third, the Quad Cities catcher streaked for the plate on a ground ball towards first. Peoria first baseman Osvaldo Tovalin gloved the ball and retired Tresh at the plate to keep the River Bandits scoreless.
After an RBI fielder's choice put Peoria up 3-0 in the fifth, Love surrendered his first and only blemish in the bottom of the sixth. The Chiefs starter retired the first two men he faced before a Diego Hernandez double placed a runner in scoring position. The next batter, Herard Gonzalez singled to left to cut the deficit to 3-1. Love retired Morgan McCullough to get out of the frame.
In the seventh, Peoria broke the game open. All nine batters came to the plate in the inning as the Chiefs scored four times. Ramon Mendoza was hit by a pitch to start the frame. A Wade Stauss double then placed runners at second and third with nobody out. Following a fly out, Todd Lott walked to load the bases. With the sacks full, Tyler Reichenborn drew a free pass to make it 4-1. In the process, Reichenborn extended his on-base streak to 26 games, the longest stretch by a Chiefs batter since 2017 when Stephen Trosclair reached in 36-straight contests.
The big blow came from Jacob Buchberger. His two-run single to right plated Stauss and Lott to extend the Peoria lead to 6-1. Then, Osvaldo Tovalin brought in Reichenborn to put a bow on the frame and make it 7-1.
Now with a six-run cushion, Love maneuvered through the bottom of the seventh on the strength of a 4-6-3 double play. The right-hander became the second hurler this season to log a start of seven innings. Love allowed just four hits on the night while striking out five.
Quad Cities scratched a run in the eighth before Whalen got it right back in grand fashion. Whalen connected on his second blast of the game, a lined shot to right, to create the final margin of 8-2. For the Chiefs, it was the second multi-homer game of the week after not logging one this season. For Whalen, it was his first multi-homer outing since June of 2021 when he homered three times in a win over Wisconsin.
Levi Prater got the last three outs of the game to secure the victory for Peoria. Zane Mills will start tomorrow in Sunday's series finale. First pitch is set for 6:00 p.m.
Midwest League Stories from July 2, 2022
- Love's Arm, Whalen's Bat Powers Chiefs Past River Bandits - Peoria Chiefs
- Timber Rattlers Take a Thriller from Kernels - Wisconsin Timber Rattlers
- Kernels Fall to Wisconsin in 11 - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- 'Caps' Bats Silenced in 4-2 Loss - West Michigan Whitecaps
- Gasser Goes 6 Scoreless in Win at West Michigan - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Bandits' Bats Quieted in Saturday Night Loss - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Captains Split Doubleheader, Boone Twirls Game One Complete Game Shutout - Lake County Captains
- Four-Hit Shutout Spins Loons to Victory - Great Lakes Loons
- Sky Carp Can't Solve Cubs - Beloit Sky Carp
- Loons Edge Dragons 1-0 on Saturday Night - Dayton Dragons
- Cross Supplies the Offense, Nuts Split Two - Lansing Lugnuts
- Frank Nigro Transferred to St. Paul, Mullenbach Returns to Cedar Rapids - Cedar Rapids Kernels
- TinCaps Game Information: July 2 at West Michigan - Fort Wayne TinCaps
- Dayton Dragons GameDay Notes for Saturday - Dayton Dragons
- MiLB at Field of Dreams Tickets on Sale to Iowa and Illinois Residents Saturday, July 2 - Quad Cities River Bandits
- Cubs Win Season High 9th Straight, Knock Down Sky Carp 8-5 - South Bend Cubs
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
