Pomona, NY (July 18, 2023) – The Gateway Grizzlies held the New York Boulders off the scoreboard in seven of the eight innings in which they came to bat, but surrendered five runs on five hits, including a pair of homers, in the bottom of the third in a 5-1 loss at Clover Stadium on Tuesday night.
Carson LaRue (4-3) held the Boulders off the board in the first two innings, but Joe DeLuca homered to lead off the inning for New York to put the home team ahead 1-0 after Boulders manager T.J. Stanton was ejected for arguing a pitch clock violation. Later in the inning, the Boulders loaded the bases for Pat Kivlehan, whose sacrifice fly made the score 2-0. The next pitch by LaRue was hit over the left-center field wall for a three-run homer by Thomas Walraven, as New York took a commanding 5-0 advantage.
Meanwhile, the Grizzlies’ offense was stifled for seven innings by Garrett Cooper (2-3) and Zach Schneider, held to no runs on two hits in total. They were able to break through in the eighth inning- Jairus Richards and Andrew Penner led off with singles, then went to second and third base on a double-steal. After Peter Zimmermann struck out, then was ejected by home plate umpire Steve Lombardo on his way back to the dugout, D.J. Stewart hit a dribbler in front of the plate that Richards appeared to be safe at home on, but was called out by Lombardo. Clint Freeman then got Gateway on the board with a two-out, RBI single, but the Grizzlies could get no closer in seeing a four-game win streak snapped.
Gateway will look to bounce back in the middle game of the series on Wednesday, July 19, when they take on the Boulders in a game that will begin at 10:00 a.m. CT in the Empire State.
### The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team, located a mere 10 minutes from downtown St. Louis in Sauget, Illinois. The Grizzlies offer baseball fans affordable, family fun at Grizzlies Ballpark with a great view of the St. Louis skyline. They have also won two Frontier League Organization of the Year Awards, three West Division titles, and the 2003 Frontier League Championship. For tickets or general information, please visit gatewaygrizzlies.com or call (618) 337-3000.
The Frontier League debuted in 1993, and is the largest of the Major League Baseball Partner Leagues, featuring teams stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River, and from the Ohio River to the St. Lawrence Seaway. More information and the complete 2023 schedule can be found at frontierleague.com.
(Credit: to Jason Guerette)