Miners Sweep Grizzlies in Doubleheader
June 24, 2021 - Frontier League (FL)
Southern Illinois Miners News Release
Marion, IL - The Southern Illinois Miners swept a doubleheader from the Gateway Grizzlies on Wednesday night at Rent One Park, taking the first game in a home run derby before getting a complete-game, one-hit shutout from reigning Frontier League Pitcher of the Year Chase Cunningham in game two.
In the first game, the Miners took an early lead in the second inning on a sacrifice fly by John Cable and a two-out, two-run triple by Anthony Brocato, making the score 3-0. The Grizzlies would rally back to tie the game against Zac Westcott in the fourth inning, with Dylan Jones' two-run triple and a stolen base of home plate knotting it up at 3-3.
The Miners would respond with a pair of two-out, RBI singles against Grizzlies starter Jorge Tavarez in the bottom of the fourth by Yeltsin Gudiño and Luke Mangieri to take a 5-3 lead, then expanded it to 6-3 in the fifth on an RBI single by Carson Bartels.
But the Grizzlies again rallied back in the top of the sixth, scoring three runs on RBI hits by Nick Rotola and Chase Vallot, plus an RBI groundout by Jay Prather to make it 6-6. Both sides had chances to break the tie late as the game went to extra innings, then a home run derby, where the Miners would prevail 1-0, with the only long ball of the contest coming off the bat of Nolan Earley.
In the second game, the Miners again jumped in front early, this time by scoring two runs in the bottom of the first inning thanks to back-to-back RBI singles by Ian Walters and Jared Mang. They would add another run in the bottom of the third inning as Gudiño led off the frame with a double, went to third on a wild pitch, and scored on a sacrifice fly by Gianfranco Wawoe for a 3-0 Miners lead.
That would be all Cunningham (1-0) needed, as he held the Grizzlies without a hit until the fifth inning while tying his career-best with 11 strikeouts and retiring 17 of the last 18 batters he faced, including the final nine Grizzlies to come to the plate. He surrendered just two walks as well in pitching his first career shutout in the Frontier League and fourth career complete game.
Now winners of four games in a row and six of their last eight, the Miners will go for a series sweep of Gateway on Thursday night at 7:05 p.m. Kaleb Schmidt will take the ball for Southern Illinois against fellow rookie right-hander Colton Easterwood at Rent One Park.
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