Y'alls Blow Early Lead, Drop Middle Game to Grizzlies
August 9, 2023 - Frontier League (FL)
Florence Y'alls News Release
SAUGET, IL - The Florence Y'alls, presented by Towne Properties, scored five runs in the first inning and still led by five runs in the fifth but surrendered 12 unanswered runs to Gateway in a 14-7 loss at Grizzlies Ballpark Wednesday night.
Working with a 7-2 lead entering the bottom of the fifth, Y'alls starting pitcher, Carter Spivey, quickly retired the first two batters before quickly running into trouble. The Grizzlies rattled off four consecutive hits and drove in three runs to pull within a pair of runs. A walk to Andrew Penner ended the outing for Spivey, and a call to the bullpen to bring in Ros Thompson led to a three-run home run for Kyle Gaedele to give Gateway an 8-7 lead.
One inning later, the Grizzlies (46-27) went to work again with two outs. Still facing Thompson, the Grizzlies rattled off three more hits in a row highlighted by a two-RBI hit for Willie Estrada to extend the newfound lead to 10-7. Gateway added on three more in the seventh inning on a three-run home run for Jairus Richards and one in the eighth on a Penner RBI double for the seven-run victory.
The Y'alls (31-43) looked to be on their way to a series-tying win with a flurry of runs in the first inning. On the first pitch of the game, Brennan Price hit a home run for the early 1-0 lead. Harrison DiNicola and Ed Johnson added two-run singles for the early 5-0 lead before the Grizzles even came to the plate.
The Grizzlies answered with two runs in the first but the Y'alls came right back with a run of their own with a Ray Zuberer sacrifice fly RBI. In the fifth, Hank Zeisler hit a run-scoring double to again give the Y'alls a five-run lead, 7-2. All of the Y'alls' damage came against Gateway starter Joey Gonzalez, who went five innings and picked up his ninth win despite putting up statistically his worst outing of the season. Spivey gave up seven earned runs in four 2/3 innings for a no-decision as Thompson takes his first professional loss.
Zeisler had two hits for the Y'alls along with DiNicola, Brian Fuentes and Jeremiah Burks. Richards, Estrada, Penner, Gaedele, Eric Rivera, and Cole Brannen all had at least two hits for Gateway. Brannen has five hits this series against his former team, while Richards has 19 hits in 41 at-bats against Florence this year.
Florence tries to salvage the series tomorrow night, Thursday, August 10, before heading home to begin a six-game homestand. Carson LaRue will be on the mound in search of the sweep for Gateway, while Ryan Watson will try to be a stopper for Florence. First pitch is at 6:45 PM CDT/7:45 EDT.
Frontier League Stories from August 9, 2023
- Grizzlies Storm Back to Stun Y'alls - Gateway Grizzlies
- Bolts Electrify Evansville 11-8 - Windy City ThunderBolts
- Y'alls Blow Early Lead, Drop Middle Game to Grizzlies - Florence Y'alls
- Otters' Comeback Fall Short to ThunderBolts - Evansville Otters
- Eight-Run First Inning Propels Titans to Victory - Ottawa Titans
- Offense Explodes for 12 Runs to Provide Warren his First Win as a Starter - Tri-City ValleyCats
- Boomers Drop Fifth Straight - Schaumburg Boomers
- Boulders Tamed by ValleyCats, 12-4 - New York Boulders
- Errors Cost Crushers in 12-4 Loss - Lake Erie Crushers
- Washington Pulls Away to Even Series Against Crushers - Washington Wild Things
- August Events Hosted by New York Boulders - New York Boulders
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.
