FL Joliet Slammers

Slammers Drop Second Straight Game to Normal

Published on August 3, 2016 under Frontier League (FL)
Joliet Slammers News Release


Joliet, IL- Wednesday was just not the Slammers' day. The Slammers struggled to score runs and two big innings by the Normal CornBelters were enough to put away the Slammers. The Joliet Slammers presented by ATI Physical Therapy fell to the CornBelters 11-5 on Wednesday, August 3.

The Slammers had won seven games in a row and earned back-to-back sweeps to start the nine-game home stand, but have now lost two games in a row to the Normal CornBelters.

Spencer Medick and the CornBelters' starting pitcher Charlie Gillies were battling for the first three innings, but Normal's offense got to Medick in the fourth and scored four times to ultimately put away the Slammers.

Tuesday night's loss was a fight all the way to the end as Normal scored one run in the ninth to win the game 6-5, but Wednesday was a struggle for Joliet. Spencer Medick gave up five runs in his six innings of work and the Slammers' offense left 11 runners on base.

The Slammers have played eight games in the last nine days, but fatigue is not a part of the recent losses for the Slammers, Melvin Rodriguez said.

"I think we're good," Rodriguez said. "We hit, we just didn't hit with men in scoring position. We had bases loaded two times with no outs, we didn't get the hit, we didn't move the ball, and we didn't get the fly balls like we used to."

"It's a lot of games in the stretch," Rodriguez said. "Pitchers got tired, but we're still good. We have a lot of games left."

The Slammers' offense outhit the CornBelters, but they only left six runners on base.

Sikes Orvis gave the Slammers a bit of a lift in the sixth inning with a two-run single to make it 5-2, but Normal answered with three more runs in the top half of the seventh inning.

The CornBelters also go four runs off home runs as Craig LePre hit a solo home run in the sixth and Nolan Meadows hit a three-run home run in the ninth to give Normal its 11-2 lead.

Zarley Zalewski gave the Slammers something to cheer for in the ninth with a long two-run home run.

Zalewski was Wednesday's Merchants and Manufacturers Player of the Game for hitting his second home run in two games for the Slammers.

It is not common for the Slammers to not drive in runners like they did not do well Wednesday, and the Slammers know they are a good hitting team that can produce runs, Rodriguez said.

Thursday night's game will be the final game of the nine-game home stand. The Slammers are 6-2 on this run. Joliet will not get a break as they will have to head to Southern Illinois to take on the Miners Friday through Sunday. After finishing the series with the Miners, the Slammers will have played 12 games in 13 days.

Although the Slammers lost their seven-game win streak and have lost back-to-back games, including Wednesday's six-run loss, the Slammers have no reason to be worried, Rodriguez said.

"It's baseball," he said. "We're going to win and we're going to lose. We have to pitch better and we have to hit with men in scoring position. We just have to do what we were doing during the seven-game streak. (Normal) is hot too."

Joliet will try to avoid the sweep Thursday at 7:05 p.m.

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Frontier League Stories from August 3, 2016


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