Toledo, OH- The Toledo Mud Hens took on the Omaha Storm Chasers in Toledo and fell 11-8 to open the series.
Spencer Turnbull made a rehab appearance on the mound for the Hens. Turnbull had a rough first inning as his first pitch hit Bubba Thompson on the elbow. Then,
Toledo, OH– The Toledo Mud Hens took on the Omaha Storm Chasers in Toledo and fell 11-8 to open the series.
Spencer Turnbull made a rehab appearance on the mound for the Hens. Turnbull had a rough first inning as his first pitch hit Bubba Thompson on the elbow. Then, two pitches later Edward Olivares roped a two-run home run to give the Storm Chasers a 2-0 lead to begin the game. Turnbull bounced back by ending the inning with back-to-back strikeouts.
Andrew Hoffmann made the start for Omaha. After getting the first out, Hoffman allowed a double to the right-center field gap hit by Justyn-Henry Malloy. Unfortunately for the Mud Hens, Hoffman got the next two outs to retire the side and strand the runner.
Turnbull just didn’t have his feel for the ball early in this game. With one out, the Storm Chasers were able to load up the bases for Bubba Thompson at the top of the lineup. Thompson pounded a dribbler to third base that no one was able to get to score the third run of the game for the Storm Chasers. Edward Olivares stood hot in his Triple-A debut, hitting a 2-RBI double. With one out Nick Loftin grounded out to third base but Thompson was able to score and the Storm Chasers held a 6-0 lead after two.
Turnbull had his first scoreless inning in the third. After allowing a leadoff baserunner Turnbull got a ground out then a 5-4-3 double play to end the inning.
After Turnbull pitched a scoreless frame, the Mud Hens offense came alive. Donny Sands got the inning with a one-out single, then Parker Madows slugged a triple off the center field wall to score the Mud Hens’ first run of the inning. Justyn-Henry Malloy then crushed a two-run home run to put the Mud Hens down three. With two outs in the inning, Tyler Nevin singled to put himself on the base paths. A wild pitch allowed Nevin to advance to second. Wenceel Perez doubled down the right field line to score Nevin and score the fourth run of the inning for the Mud Hens. Andre Lipcius capped off the inning with a single to score Perez and make it a 6-5 Storm Chasers lead.
After Turnbull struggled in the first two innings, He was able to bounce back by pitching three straight scoreless innings to keep the Hens in the game.
In the bottom of the fifth inning, Tyler Nevin roped a double to lead off the inning. That double marked the end of the day Storm Chasers starting pitcher Andrew Hoffman’s *day as *Brett de Geus entered the game from the bullpen. In Brett de Geus’ first at-bat, he caught a line drive right back to him, but after catching the line drive he made a throwing error trying to get a double play at second, allowing Nevin to advance to third. With one out, Andre Lipcius singled to center field to tie the game at 6-6.
Jack O’Loughlin entered the game in the top of the sixth inning to pitch in the tied-ball game. O’Loughlin pitched a scoreless frame to keep the game tied.
Jonathan Heasley entered the game in the bottom of the sixth inning for the Storm Chasers. Heasley kept the Mud Hens offense at bay to take the game into the seventh inning.
In the bottom of the seventh inning with one out, Justyn-Henry Malloy roped a double to put himself in scoring position in the tie ball game. The next batter Tyler Nevin, hit a single through the middle of the infield to score Malloy and give the Hens a 7-6 lead.
In the top of the eighth inning, the Storm Chasers put runners on second and third with two outs. Angelo Castellano slugged a double to score two runs and give the Storm Chasers a 9-7 lead. Bubba Thompson then singled to shortstop but a bad throw allowed Thompson to take second and Castellano to score. With a runner on second Edward Olivares doubled to bring home the fourth run of the inning, Olivares took third on the late through home. A past ball on the next at-bat to Nick Loftin allowed Olivares to take home and cap off a five-run eighth inning for the Storm Chasers.
In the top of the ninth inning, Devin Rave lead off the inning with a double to put himself in scoring position with no outs. O’Lughlin was able to bear down and not allow any extra runs to cross to keep the game an 11-7.
Jackson Kower entered the game in the bottom of the ninth inning for the Storm Chasers. Colt Keith reached second with a one-out double. Then a single by Wenceel Perez scored Keith from second to give the Hens their eighth run of the game. However, that wouldn’t be enough as the Kower would end the inning securing the 11-8 win over the Hens.
Notables:
Justyn-Henry Malloy: 3-4, 2 R, 2 RBI, 1 BB, 2B, HR
Tyler Nevin: 3-5, 2 R, 1 RBI, 2B
Andre Lipcius: 3-5, 2 RBI
Wenceel Perez: 2-5, R, 2 RBI, 2B