Parra Becomes Youngest Crushers' Opening Day Starter, Lake Erie Usurped by Late Boomers' Homer
FL Lake Erie Crushers

Parra Becomes Youngest Crushers' Opening Day Starter, Lake Erie Usurped by Late Boomers' Homer

Published on May 8, 2026 under Frontier League (FL)
Lake Erie Crushers News Release


Lake Erie Crushers' Derek Vegas at bat
Lake Erie Crushers' Derek Vegas at bat
(Lake Erie Crushers)

Avon, OH - The Lake Erie Crushers (0-1) succumbed to a late Schaumburg Boomers (1-0) home run, falling on Opening Day by a final score of 5-4 at the first regular season game at ForeFront Field.

Both starting pitchers got into the habit of stranding runners on base early on in the ballgame. Crushers LHP Andres Parra got the help of an early double play to get out of the first inning, then struck out 1B Kyle Fitzgerald to get out of a jam.

It took until the bottom of the 4th for the first runs of the 2026 season to come across home plate, and they came with a flourish. Former New Jersey Jackals All-Star 2B Luis Acevedo introduced himself to the Avon faithful with a three-run home run to put the Crushers on the board against Boomers RHP Buddie Pindel.

Tonight, Andres Parra became the youngest Opening Day starter in Crushers history at just 21 years and 50 days old. His youth would have fooled many considering his final statline: 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K on 78 pitches.

The lethal Schaumburg lineup of yesteryear, largely the same in 2026, was held quiet through six innings, but a lazy fly ball from SS Alec Craig dumped into centerfield for an RBI single to get the Boomers on the board.

In the top of the 8th with the score 3-1 in Lake Erie's favor, the Boomers put men on second and third with two outs against RHP Randy Berigüete. After a brief mound visit, Schaumburg LF Cole Turney put a charge into a ball to left field that caught the windy Avon air and sailed over the fence for a three-run, go-ahead homer.

Then, in the top of the 9th, Boomers RF Kellum Clark added on a huge insurance run with an RBI single to extend the Schaumburg lead to 5-3.

With a great crowd on hand on a wet Opening Day evening, the Crushers didn't go quietly. Lake Erie 1B Jacob Tobias led off the inning with a walk against RHP Tanner Shears. Then, Luis Acevedo struck again with a perfectly placed liner down the line and into the left field corner. As the ball rattled around, Crushers 3B Coach Mark Mason put the windmill on for Tobias, and he scored just ahead of the relay to put the game within a run.

Then, with 3B Pavin Parks at the plate, Shears delivered a breaking ball that eluded C Alex Calarco, allowing Acevedo to move to third base with nobody out in the inning, representing the tying run.

Shears battled back in the count against Parks and got him to chase strike three for the first out. Then, a soft fister off the bat of LF Sebastian Alexander looked to be a promising bloop with the infield drawn in, but 2B Christian Fedko back-tracked just enough to secure out number two.

With the game at the plate, CF Joe Redfield, who was 3-for-4 on the day, socked a deep fly ball to the opposite field, but Turney, the catalyst for the comeback secured the final out to secure a 5-4 final and an Opening Day comeback win for the Schaumburg Boomers

Boomers reliever RHP Kyle Moore (1-0) got the win, RHP Randy Berigüete (0-1) got the loss, and RHP Tanner Shears (1) escaped a rough situation to lock down the Boomers win and the save.

Crushers Top Performers:

Andres Parra: 5 IP, 3 H, 0 R, 3 BB, 5 K

Luis Acevedo: 2-for-4, 2B, HR, 4 RBI, R

Joe Redfield: 3-for-5

Check out the Lake Erie Crushers Statistics

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Images from this story

Lake Erie Crushers' Derek Vegas at bat
Lake Erie Crushers' Derek Vegas at bat
   



Frontier League Stories from May 8, 2026


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