Santos Powers Grizzlies to Series Win
Published on July 27, 2018 under Frontier League (FL)
Gateway Grizzlies News Release
SAUGET, Ill. - The Gateway Grizzlies scored two runs in the seventh inning to take the lead Thursday night, then Trae Santos lined a grand slam over the left-field wall in the eighth inning to put the game away and deliver Gateway an 8-3 win over the Evansville Otters at GCS Credit Union Ballpark.
Santos went 2-for-5 with a double and five RBIs. The grand slam was only Santos' second home run of July, but marked his club-leading 12th big fly of the season.
Gateway (28-37) closed within five games of the first-place River City Rascals in the West Division.
Evansville (30-32) had an early 2-1 lead, the Grizzlies tied the game in the fifth and Evansville went back ahead 3-2 before Gateway's six-run outburst across its final two offensive innings.
Max MacNabb (7-6) earned the win with his fourth straight quality start. He tossed seven innings, allowed three runs (only two earned) and struck out seven without a walk. MacNabb has struck out 84 batters this season - tied for second in the Frontier League and on pace to challenge the Grizzlies' single-season strikeout record: 120, set by Scott Patterson in 2003 and equaled by Patterson in 2004 and Vince Molesky in 2017.
Chris Metrick tossed two scoreless innings out of the Grizzlies bullpen and struck out four Otters to earn his first professional save. The rookie entered in the eighth inning with the Grizzlies ahead 4-3, and thus earned the save despite the 8-3 final score.
Blake Brown equaled his career high with four hits. Paul Russo and Shane Mardirosian added two hits apiece; both Grizzlies also walked and scored multiple runs. The top four hitters in the Grizzlies' lineup combined to go 10-for-17 with two walks, a home run, five RBIs and seven runs scored.
Gateway will start a six-game road trip Friday night at 7:05 p.m. in Normal, Illinois, against the CornBelters. After three games over the weekend at The Corn Crib, the Grizzlies will finish the trip with a Tuesday-Thursday series against the Lake Erie Crushers in Avon, Ohio. Gateway will return home Friday, August 3rd, for a weekend series against the Joliet Slammers.
Frontier League Stories from July 27, 2018
- Rascals Take Opener over Otters - River City Rascals
- Brown Homers Twice, But Grizzlies Lose - Gateway Grizzlies
- Homers Lift Boomers to Comeback Victory - Schaumburg Boomers
- Washington Takes Opener Behind Quick Start - Washington Wild Things
- Slammers Drop Game 1 in Pivotal Series with Schaumburg - Joliet Slammers
- Otters Drop Series Opener to River City - Evansville Otters
- Beach Bums Comeback Falls Just Short - Traverse City Beach Bums
- Crushers win third straight at home in 5-3 victory - Lake Erie Crushers
- ThunderBolts Fall in Opener at Lake Erie - Windy City ThunderBolts
- Washington Signs Infielder Ramsey Romano - Washington Wild Things
- Miners Win Third Straight, Sweep River City - Southern Illinois Miners
- Santos Powers Grizzlies to Series Win - Gateway Grizzlies
- Miners Complete Sweep of Rascals - River City Rascals
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