06/19/2007

Record-Eagle/Tyler Sipe
Traverse City's Lance Koenig leaps back to first base during a pick-off move as River City Rascals first baseman Bobby Mosby attempts to tag him out during Monday evening's game at Wuerfel Park.

Beach Bums throw out Rascals, 8-7

TC nails two runners at the plate in ninth

BY DENNIS CHASE

dchase@record-eagle.com

Click here for more photos from this game

Record-Eagle/
Tyler Sipe
Traverse City Beach Bums outfielder Jeff Vincent is hit by a pitch during Monday night's game at Wuerfel Park.

TRAVERSE CITY — The Traverse City Beach Bums entered Monday night's game with River City 7-0 when leading after seven innings.

Make it 8-0.

Designated hitter Curtis Ledbetter belted a two-run home run in the bottom of the seventh and the Beach Bums threw out two River City runners at the plate in the ninth for an 8-7 Frontier League win over the Rascals on a breezy night at Wuerfel Park. Traverse City, which trailed 6-0, won two of the three games in the series to improve to 11-15.

Ledbetter's blast, his third of the season and second in two nights, came off reliever Damien Ursin, who had just entered the game. J.T. Thomas — who was hit by a pitch, stole second and went to third on a wild pitch — scored ahead of Ledbetter. It was Traverse City's fifth come-from-behind win of the season.

Ledbetter hit a slider.

"He left it up in the zone,” Ledbetter said. "I was able to put good wood on it and get it out of the park.”

Ledbetter had faced Ursin in the opener of the series.

"I had an idea of how he was going to attack me,” he said. "I just had a good pitch to hit.”

The Rascals made it exciting in the ninth, though.

River City scored one run off reliever Brett Bostelman and had a runner on third with one out. Angel Colon then hit a grounder to third. Sam Orr fielded the ball and fired to catcher Matt Rademacher, who applied the tag as he was bowled over by River City first baseman Bobby Mosby. Rademacher had to leave the game after the collision. Colon stole second and then tried to score on Brad Hough's single. But Jeff Vincent, who was moved from center to left to start the inning, gunned down Colon at the plate to end the game.

"That's the emotional wins we've been looking for,” Beach Bums manager Jon Cahill said.

"It was amazing job all the way around — from fielding to the ball to making the throw to tagging the runners out,” Ledbetter said. "It was an incredible ninth inning, incredible game. We were talking in the dugout this might the craziest game we've seen.”

River City silenced the crowd early by touching Casoli for six runs in the first two innings.

The righthander encountered some tough luck in the first — an inning he could have worked out of unscathed if not for a miscue. With two on and two out, Colon hit a high pop-up between home and third that could have ended the inning. But no one took charge and it fell for a single, loading the bases. Hough then hit a slow roller down the third base line that Orr charged and then threw wildly past first baseman Brad Vericker. Hough was credited with a single and Orr an error as two runs crossed the plate.

The Rascals didn't need any help from the Beach Bums in the second. After the first three batters reached base, rightfielder Phil Laurent deposited a Casoli pitch into the lawn seating over the rightfield fence for a grand slam home run.

Just like that the Beach Bums faced a 6-0 deficit.

Traverse City got one run back in the second as Zach Kalter doubled and scored on Lance Koenig's single.

The Beach Bums then exploded for five runs in the fourth to tie it. River City starter Adam Bretl, who entered the game with a 14,54 ERA, looked like he might get off the hook after loading the bases with no outs, but Orr ripped a two-out pitch into the left-centerfield alley that cleared the bases. Rademacher followed with an RBI single to make it 6-5. Rademacher advanced to second on a wild pitch and scored on by Thomas.

It stayed 6-6 until Ledbetter's blast in the seventh.

Casoli, who improved to 3-2, settled down after it looked like he might be headed for an early shower. After allowing eight hits in the first three innings, he surrendered just one over the next four.

Jeff Nelson relieved Casoli in the eighth and escaped a jam when he struck out Ryan Czyz with a runner on third. Nelson allowed a single and double in the frame, but was aided by a double play.

Bostelman earned his third save in the ninth.