Miners Clinch Playoff Berth with Resounding Win over Bucs
July 27, 2016 - Alaska Baseball League (Alaska)
Mat-Su Miners News Release
PALMER, Alaska - After squandering an early five-run lead, the Mat-Su Miners offense cruised by the Anchorage Bucs with a late offensive push to earn a 20-5 home victory at Hermon Brothers Field.
The win on Wednesday clinches a berth in the Alaska Baseball League playoffs for Mat-Su and gives the team a two-game advantage over the Peninsula Oilers in the league standings.
"Our hitters and our job as offense is to get the next man up," Miners head coach Ben Taylor said. "These guys have bought into that approach, and it's really unselfish. When they play for each other like that, it's really fun to watch."
Leftfielder Michael Donadio provided the first run of the game for the Miners (22-14) with a single to centerfield to score designated hitter Jacob Hughey.
"We plugged Donadio into the four-spot and he's sat there for about three weeks now," Taylor said. "He takes really good at-bats and doesn't expand the zone. He takes his walks and is really good with situations and competes hard with two strikes."
Mat-Su tacked on four runs in the following inning. Catcher Andy Cosgrove tripled into the right field gap to score third baseman A.J. Lee, while centerfielder Brooks Stotler added an RBI single in the next at-bat.
"Cosgrove is competing hard in the eight-hole for us, any offense we get out of him is a bonus," Taylor said.
Miners second baseman Levi Jordan doubled later in the inning to score Stotler, while rightfielder Garrison Schwartz added a sacrifice fly to extend the lead to 5-0.
"We came out for early work before the game today and redefined our approach," Jordan said. "As a hitting group today we did well. We let the ball get deep and used the other side of the field for a lot of hits. Everything was falling tonight, which really helped us out."
Anchorage (18-20) tied the game in the top of the fourth with a five-run offensive explosion. Centerfielder Steven Sensley scored on a balk by Mat-Su pitcher Stephen Kolek, while first baseman Michael Hoard blasted a grand slam over the right field fence to knot the game at 5-5.
First baseman Jake Scudder regained the lead for the Miners with a double in the bottom of the fifth to score Donadio.
"It was nice to see Scudder swing the bat well tonight," Taylor said. "He's been scuffling a little bit, but he's my rock in the middle of the lineup. He's going to be there everyday. I'm really proud of the way he handled himself tonight."
The Miners offense would capitalize on a pitching change in the sixth inning, tallying three hits and four runs against Anchorage reliever Tai Vanderford.
Bucs relief pitcher Tripp Aversa also struggled against the Mat-Su offense, surrendering three runs on three hits. Two runs for the Miners came as the result of back-to-back errors by the Anchorage defense.
The Mat-Su offense would cap off a dominant day at the plate with seven runs against Anchorage reliever Dalton Chapman in the bottom of the eighth inning. He allowed eight hits and three earned runs in 13 batters faced.
"As a lineup, when one guy gets a hit, the next guy competes a little harder to get the next guy up to," Jordan said. "We were moving the lineup along and everyone was getting hits and we were all having a good time."
Mat-Su starting pitcher Stephen Kolek provided seven innings of work on the mound. The right-hander held the Bucs to five runs on seven hits while collecting seven strikeouts.
"He knuckled down when it looked like it might go sideways on him," Taylor said. "He managed his pitch count really well and gave us a great start."
Miners reliever Mick Vorhof added a perfect eighth inning of relief, while closer Jordan Floyd lowered his ERA to 0.45 with a hitless ninth inning.
"This was a good win for us in front of our home fans, just a great night all around," Jordan said.
Mat-Su returns to the diamond on Wednesday with a 6 p.m. home matchup with the Bucs at Hermon Brothers Field.
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Alaska Baseball League Stories from July 27, 2016
- Miners Clinch Playoff Berth with Resounding Win over Bucs - Mat-Su Miners
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