Mittelstaedt's Pair of Home Runs Lead to Comeback Win
August 23, 2015 - American Association (AA)
Wichita Wingnuts News Release
WICHITA, KS - The Wichita Wingnuts fell into an early 4-1 hole in Saturday night's meeting with the Laredo Lemurs at Lawrence-Dumont Stadium. A two-run home run off the bat of T.J. Mittelstaedt closed the deficit to one and another long ball from the third baseman allowed for the final 7-5 margin. The second consecutive victory in the three-game series assured the Wingnuts of winning their fourth straight series.
Wichita (52-33) was able to get on the board in the first inning for a second straight night. Nick Van Stratten opened the contest with a sharp single up the middle, stole second, and was bunted to third by Jayce Ray. David Espinosa grounded a ball directly to the shortstop, preventing the runner from advancing. A broken bat roller to the left side was beat out by Andy LaRoche to give him his 11th RBI in 11 games and the team a 1-0 lead.
Laredo (45-40) was able to jump ahead with three runs in the top of the second off of Eddie Medina. Travis Denker reached first base when Mittelstaedt mishandled a ball at third and then moved to second when the throw snuck past the first baseman. A Denis Phipps walk allowed Kevin Taylor's sacrifice bunt to move to runners into scoring position. Juan Silverio's two-out single gave Laredo a 2-1 lead. Following a base hit from Drew Martinez, J.D. Pulfer drove in a third run with his base knock.
The Lemurs lead grew to 4-1 after three straight singles opened the third inning. The last of the hits, off the bat of Phipps, scored Abel Nieves from second. The scrappy Medina departed after 5.0 innings, having allowed four runs, but just one of them was earned.
The Wingnuts opened the bottom of the fourth with three straight extra-base hits off of Cody Kendall (1-2). LaRoche hooked a double into the left field corner to open the threat. He was on base when Mittelstaedt left the park for the first time, pulling the home team within a run. John Nester also doubled, but was stranded at second when the inning came to a close.
Wichita was able to break through and take the lead in the sixth. LaRoche roped a laser of a line drive off of the wall in left and cruised into second with a leadoff double. Mittelstaedt punched a single to leave runners on the corners with nobody out. A wild pitch allowed LaRoche to touch home plate and tie the score. A Nester infield single and a simultaneous error by the shortstop put two runs in scoring position and chased Kendall from the contest. He allowed six runs, five earned, on seven hits over 6.0 innings.
Luis De La Crus entered from the bullpen and immediately surrendered a sacrifice fly to Harrison Kain which gave the Wingnuts a 5-4 lead. After another error was committed by Pulfer, Leo Vargas smacked a sacrifice fly to center field that increased the cushion to two runs.
The teams traded solo home runs in the eighth inning, keeping the margin at two heading to the final frame. Kevin Taylor knocked his seventh of the season off of Alex Boshers (2-2) who pitched 3.0 innings out of the bullpen to earn the win. Mittelstaedt responded with his 13th of the season, and second of the game, in the bottom half.
Paul Smyth entered to record the final three outs and pick up his fourth save. Mittelstaedt led all hitters by finishing 3-4 with two home runs, three RBI, and three runs scored. LaRoche and Nester also finished with a trio of hits in the game.
Wichita has an opportunity to sweep the series on Sunday afternoon at 1:05 p.m. There will be post-game catch on the field following the action. RHP Jon Link (6-0) will take his perfect record into a battle with RHP Willy Paredes (0-1) of Laredo. For information on season tickets, group outings, and party packages, call the Wingnuts' main office at (316) 264-NUTS, or visit the Wingnuts' official website at www.wichitawingnuts.com.
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