ValleyCats Take Series Thanks to Merced's Walk-Off Homer
Published on June 29, 2023 under Frontier League (FL)
Tri-City ValleyCats News Release
TROY, NY - The Tri-City ValleyCats (24-18) trailed 10-6 heading into the bottom of the eighth, but ultimately defeated the Schaumburg Boomers (25-16) 11-10 thanks to a walk-off two-run jack from Robbie Merced at Joseph L. Bruno on Thursday. Tri-City improved to 8-0 in series at home to begin the 2023 campaign. It was Merced's second homer of the year, and the second walk-off of the season. The last one happened on June 17 when Carson McCusker sent the ValleyCats' faithful in a frenzy with a walk-off long ball against Florence.
Schaumburg opened the scoring for the third consecutive game. Elijah Gill issued a walk to Zach Huffins in the first. Brett Milazzo followed suit with a two-run blast. His second long ball in as many days gave the Boomers a 2-0 lead.
Tri-City responded in the bottom of the first with a big inning. Seven consecutive batters reached base against Aaron Glickstein. Aaron Altherr, Zach Biermann, Cale Jones, Pavin Parks, and Robbie Merced all had five straight RBI knocks. Ian Walters followed suit with a sac fly to bring in Merced to put the ValleyCats on top, 6-2.
Schaumburg chipped away in the second. Blake Berry led off with a walk. Travis Holt singled, and John Fiorenza cashed in with a three-run homer to cut the deficit to 6-5.
Gill received a no-decision. He pitched 4.1 innings, yielding five runs on three hits, walking four, hitting a batter, and striking out two.
Kyle Fitzgerald tied the game 6-6 in the fifth with a solo home run off Brendan Bell.
The Boomers retook the lead in the sixth. Elliot Carney issued a walk to Alec Craig, who then stole second and third. Gaige Howard was issued a free pass, and swiped second. Milazzo picked up a two-run single to pull Schaumburg ahead, 8-6.
The Boomers added an insurance run in the seventh. Berry and Holt singled off Coleman. Afterward, Craig reached on a fielder's choice, which moved Berry to third. Fiorenza laid down an RBI sac bunt to provide Schaumburg with a 9-6 lead.
Glickstein was handed a no-decision. He pitched 6.1 innings, allowing six runs on seven hits, walking four, and striking out one.
Schaumburg tacked on another run in the eighth. Dawson worked a free pass against Greg Veliz. Dawson stole second, and came around on a ground rule double from Fitzgerald to make it a 10-6 affair.
Tri-City showed its resilience in the eighth. Merced and Walters worked back-to-back walks before Jakob Goldfarb came through with a three-run tater to cut the deficit to 10-9. Goldfarb drilled his sixth homer of the year, all occurring in the last nine games. He collected 14 RBI during the six-game homestand.
ValleyCats' manager Pete Incaviglia made a bold decision to pinch-hit for Cale Jones. He inserted Rafi Vazquez, Saturday's starter, into the lineup. Vazquez had a pinch-hit appearance for Goldfarb on May 24 in Windy City on May 24, and went 1-2 with an RBI single and a walk. Tonight, Vazquez had a broken bat bloop singled off Dylan Stutsman. Two batters later, Merced, in just his seventh professional game, had his signature ValleyCats moment, a two-run shot to bring the crowd of 2,657 fans to their feet, and provide Tri-City with an 11-10 victory.
Reymin Guduan (2-2) earned the win. He was the only pitcher for the ValleyCats to have a scoreless outing tonight. He yielded no hits, struck out two, and allowed a walk, which was quickly erased as Goldfarb nabbed Craig trying to swipe second.
Stutsman (1-0) received the loss. He allowed two runs on two hits, and struck out one.
Tri-City begins a three-game weekend road trip in New Jersey against the Jackals, tomorrow, Friday, June 29 at Hinchliffe Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 PM.
FINAL | TRI-CITY 11 | SCHAUMBURG 10
W: Reymin Guduan (2-2)
L: Dylan Stutsman (0-1)
Time of Game: 3:07
Attendance: 2,675
Season Twenty-FUN of ValleyCats baseball and entertainment continues with a three-game road trip at Hinchliffe Stadium against the New Jersey Jackals from June 30 - July 1. Tri-City returns to Joe Bruno on July 4 to open a three-game series against the Empire State Greys. To honor Independence Day, there will be a Fourth of July celebration and postgame fireworks. You can secure your seats today and be a part of the excitement by logging on to tcvalleycats.com or by calling 518-629-CATS (2287).
Frontier League Stories from June 29, 2023
- ValleyCats Take Series Thanks to Merced's Walk-Off Homer - Tri-City ValleyCats
- ThunderBolts Drop Pitchers' Duel in Series Finale - Windy City ThunderBolts
- Big Innings Power Titans to Victory - Ottawa Titans
- Late Lead Lost Again, Washington Drops Rubber Game - Washington Wild Things
- Crushers Out-Duel Jackals to Take Series - Lake Erie Crushers
- Y'alls Drop Series to End Homestand - Florence Y'alls
- Walk-Off Homer Downs Boomers in Finale at Tri-City to Finish Wild Series - Schaumburg Boomers
- Otters, Grizzlies Series Finale Postponed - Evansville Otters
The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.
