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IL1 Louisville Bats

Tromp Grand Slam Powers Bats to 11-8 Victory

July 31, 2019 - International League (IL1)
Louisville Bats News Release


COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Louisville Bats (45-64) won a thrilling marathon of a ballgame against the Columbus Clippers (61-47) on Wednesday night by an 11-8 score at Huntington Park. The Bats fought back from a four-run deficit to secure their fifth win in their last six games, finishing the month of July with a 15-12 record.

On a beautiful night in Columbus, right-hander Keury Mella (7-10, 4.81) was gunning for his fifth straight quality start for Louisville, making his Huntington Park debut. Mella's outing did not go as planned, allowing five earned runs on six innings while lasting just 3.1 innings, leaving the game with a 5-1 deficit in the bottom of the fourth inning.

Louisville made it a one-run game in the following inning with a three-spot, with Blake Trahan scoring on a wild pitch and Alex Blandino hammering a two-run home run, his fifth of the season, to make it a 5-4 game.

Scoring would halt until the eighth inning, when the Bats took a 6-5 lead. Narciso Crook ripped a triple, his team-leading sixth of the season, which scored Trahan to tie up the ballgame, with Brian O'Grady's RBI double scoring Crook, which gave the Bats a one-run lead. Blandino tried scoring on the play as well, but was thrown out by Columbus shortstop Max Moroff, with Blandino being ejected from the game promptly after slamming his helmet following the umpire's call at the plate.

The Clippers were kept off the scoreboard for four consecutive innings, the fifth through the eighth, thanks to a combined 4.2 scoreless innings from Louisville relievers Jackson Stephens, Joe Mantiply and Jimmy Herget. The resilient Columbus club, however, did not give up in the ninth inning and would tie the game 6-6 off Bats closer Joel Kuhnel, who blew his first save since joining Louisville.

The Bats were up against a tough task headed into the 10th inning, against a Clippers club that had not lost in extra innings all season coming into play tonight. Christian Colon knocked in Chadwick Tromp with a single to give the Bats a 7-6 lead in the top of the 10th, but Columbus would answer right back with a run of its own in the home half, when Ka'ai Tom drew a bases-loaded walk that scored Yu Chang.

Columbus put in reliever James Karinchak into the game in the top of the 11th, making just his seventh career Triple-A appearance. For the Bats, it was just their third time all season playing into the 11th inning. Rob Refsnyder, who went 3-for-6 with a double and homer in his first game back from injury, started the inning at second base due to the league's extra inning rules, with Nick Longhi and Mitch Nay proceeding to draw walks to load the bases for Chadwick Tromp.

The Bats' catcher hit his first career efgrand slam back on Monday at Toledo, with a chance to do the same and play the hero for another night on the road trip. Tromp did the unthinkable, hammering a no-doubter over the left field fence for his second grand slam in his last two games, giving the Bats a commanding 11-7 lead in extras.

Louisville reliever Matt Bowman shut the door in the bottom of the 11th, giving up one unearned run in the 11-8 final. The game lasted four hours and nine minutes, the Bats' longest game of the season and first that exceeded four hours.

On Thursday night, the Bats go for the series sweep in the two-game set against the Clippers, with right-hander Sal Romano (4-7, 4.70) set to make his first start since being optioned by the Reds, with Columbus' starter still to be announced. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m., before Louisville heads home for a three-game weekend series against the Toledo Mud Hens.

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