ValleyCats Fall in Extras to the Capitales
June 22, 2023 - Frontier League (FL)
Tri-City ValleyCats News Release
QUÉBEC, CANADA - The Tri-City ValleyCats (20-16) were defeated for the second time this season in extras as the Québec Capitales (18-17) won 6-5 on Thursday at Stade Canac in 10 innings. Tyler Blaum had a walk-off walk to provide the Capitales with the rubber match of the three-game set.
Québec got on the board in the first inning. Marc-Antoine Lebreux greeted Rafi Vazquez with a triple. Kyle Crowl brought in Lebreux with an RBI single to give the Capitales a 1-0 lead.
Québec tacked on two more runs in the second. Sam Abbott led off with a walk, and Bryan Leef advanced him to third with a double. Emile Boies plated two with a single to pull the Capitales ahead, 3-0.
Tri-City responded in the fourth. Zach Biermann and Jakob Goldfarb worked back-to-back two-out walks against Steven Fuentes. Cito Culver trimmed the deficit to 3-1 with an RBI single.
The ValleyCats took its first lead of the game in the fifth. Ian Walters doubled, and Pavin Parks walked before Carson McCusker mashed a three-run tater. His 13th homer of the season put Tri-City on top, 4-3.
Biermann added an insurance run with a solo homer in the sixth to give the ValleyCats a 5-3 advantage. It was Biermann's seventh blast of the year.
Fuentes received a no-decision. He tossed six frames, allowing five runs on nine hits, walking three, and striking out four.
Québec retaliated in the bottom of the sixth. T.J. White walked, and went to second on a wild pitch. Justin Gideon picked up a single, which moved White to third. Coleman Huntley came in for Vazquez, and issued an RBI single to Abbott. Blaum followed with a walk to load the bases. Boies had an RBI walk before Huntley buckled down, striking out Lebreux to keep the game tied, 5-5.
Vazquez was also handed a no-decision. He pitched 5.1 innings, yielding five runs on six hits, walking two, and striking out six.
Both teams had their chances to end the match in nine innings of play. Tri-City had a runner on second on three separate occasions in the eighth. Aaron Altherr laced a single off Tanner Jesson-Dalton, but tried to stretch it into a double, and was thrown out at second on a 9-6 putout. Goldfarb then walked, stole second, but was picked off. Afterward, Biermann walked, advanced to second on a wild pitch, but was left stranded in scoring position.The Capitales had a chance to strike in the bottom of the ninth. Boies hit a one-out double off Reymin Guduan. Lebreux reached on an error from Parks, who on the very next play started a 6-4-3 double play to send the game to extras.
Although McCusker started the tenth with a groundout to send the "ghost runner" in Parks to third, the ValleyCats were retired in order. Meanwhile, in the bottom of the tenth, Brac Warren retired White on a groundout before falling behind in the count 3-0, and intentionally walking Profar. Elijah Brown pinch-ran for Profar. Brown, and the "free runner" on second in Crowl, each moved up ninety feet on a passed ball. Gideon struck out, and Abbott, who has been a hot hitter in this series, was also intentionally walked. Warren's first three pitchers to Blaum were outside of the zone, but he battled back to a 3-2 count. Blaum fouled off the next two pitches before taking ball four to bring in Crowl with a walk-off walk.
Frank Moscatiello (4-1) earned the win. He threw two shutout frames, striking out one.
Warren (0-2) received the loss. He went 0.2 innings, yielding an unearned run on no hits, walking three (two intentionally), and striking out one.
Tri-City begins a three-game series at Joseph L. Bruno Stadium against the Ottawa Titans tomorrow, Friday, June 23. First pitch is scheduled for 6:30 PM.
FINAL (10) | QUÉBEC 6 | TRI-CITY 5
W: Frank Moscatiello (4-1)
L: Brac Warren (0-2)
Time of Game: 2:42
Attendance: 3,321
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