Wild Walk-Off Win on Wednesday in Extra Innings
July 6, 2022 - International League (IL)
Louisville Bats News Release
LOUISVILLE, KY - The Louisville Bats (31-48) walked-off the St. Paul Saints (39-40) on Wednesday night in the bottom of the tenth inning at Louisville Slugger Field.
Rehabbing Louisville starter Justin Dunn (0-0, 3.18) had a relatively easy first inning with three straight fly-outs to centerfielder TJ Friedl, with the first being a leaping catch at the wall. In the home half of the first inning, Alejo Lopez seemingly wanted to continue the fireworks from Monday night by blasting a 400-foot homerun onto the roof of the Humana Cabana in right field.
Dunn continued with a solid appearance in his 2.2 innings pitched, allowing no hits, two runs, two walks, and notching four strikeouts. However, his two walks and a hit-by-pitch came in the top of the third inning, loading the bases. Dunn's replacement, Pedro Payano, gave up a double to third Saints third-baseman Tim Beckham, allowing two runs that are credited to Dunn.
A high-octane fifth inning saw three doubles that led to three runs for the Bats. Alejo Lopez started the inning off with a ground rule double, followed by the first double in the rehab campaign for Tyler Stephenson. Cristian Santana also doubled, bringing in Stephenson and was later driven home on a base hit by Taylor Motter.
Following the theme, Stuart Fairchild led off the sixth inning with a double. TJ Friedl advanced Fairchild to third on a sacrifice bunt, and Alejo Lopez scored Fairchild on a sacrifice fly to right field.
Louisville's 5-2 lead disappeared in the top of the seventh. Eddy Demurias loaded the bases with two doubles, a fielder's choice, and a walk. The next hitter, Jake Cave, capitalized on the situation and hit a grand slam. Demurias ended the inning with back-to-back strikeouts.
Trailing 6-5 in the bottom of the eighth inning, Stuart Fairchild went deep to left with a home run, tying the game at 6. After both the Bats and the Saints went 1-2-3 in their respective halves of the ninth inning, St. Paul again went 1-2-3 in the tenth inning. In the home half of the tenth, pinch-runner Lorenzo Cedrola advanced to third base on a wild pitch, allowing Stuart Fairchild to send him home on a sacrifice fly.
A community effort with seven pitchers appearing in the game, Fernando Cruz earned the win by pitching two scoreless innings to end the contest. For St. Paul, Ian Hamilton was given his second loss of the season.
The Bats and Saints will continue their series with game three on Thursday night. Right-hander Robert Dugger (1-3, 8.37) will get the ball for Louisville, while righty Jordan Balazovic (0-3, 9.24) gets the start for St. Paul. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. ET.
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