By Jack Ankony, The Chicago Dogs

Ryan Lidge crouched down, bowed his head and gave his helmet a few smacks.

“Whenever I slap my helmet, it’s just ‘Alright, Ryan. It’s time to go. It’s go time,’ and then go execute my plan,” Lidge said.

Lidge dug into the batters box in the seventh inning with two runners on, one out and a 4-1 lead. The Dogs had lost their previous three games to the Gary SouthShore RailCats, which made Sunday’s game, and Lidge’s at-bat, even more important.

“I hit my helmet and it just kind of wakes my brain up,” Lidge said. “Because sometimes in this game you can get a little lethargic, you can get a little mechanical in your head.”

Lidge took the first pitch for a ball, then jumped on a fastball. He sent a fly ball out to the right-center field gap, which found the grass and drove in two runs. Lidge said he had been laying off fastballs for part of the Dogs series versus the RailCats, but the pats to his helmet made him ready for one today.

Lidge said he was able to barrel the ball a good amount, and when he reached second base, he gave a sigh of relief. This double gave the Dogs two important insurance runs and secured a much-needed 6-1 victory over the RailCats.

“I know we scored two big runs right there so that’s honestly why I was pretty fired up. Honestly not for myself, but I wanted to win this game really bad,” Lidge said. “I was happy to come through in that situation.”

After dropping the first three games of the series, there was a gloomy vibe in the Dogs’ clubhouse. Dogs manager Butch Hobson said he felt as if there wasn’t enough energy in the dugout or on the field, which led him to give a motivational speech ahead of Sunday’s game.

Lidge said Hobson told the team that he believed in them and that Hobson challenged the Dogs to come out on Sunday and be different. This message was clearly absorbed by the Dogs, as Sunday’s win was a portrayal of a complete team performance filled with energy.

“I think they relaxed a little bit more today and went out and tried to win instead of trying to keep from losing,” Hobson said.”

For Lidge, a good night’s sleep, a reflection on what went wrong to begin the series and a focus on executing the game plan was key in today’s win. Lidge said the Dogs know they are capable of playing at a high level, so today was a reassurance of what they are capable of.

“Winning this one, having a happy bus trip, a happy bus trip is a happy team and then just a little bit of momentum going into Sioux City on the road,” Lidge said. “Getting a win to go out there is nice and hopefully we can get a nice streak going here.”

Scott Firth made his first start of the season on Sunday for the Dogs, and allowed one run, four hits and struck out three batters in three innings. Jake Dahlberg replaced Firth and dazzled for four innings out of the bullpen, striking out five batters and allowing three hits.

Kevin Marnon remained his usual, dominant self on Sunday, as he and Justin Goossen-Brown each pitched perfect innings to close the game. More than anything, today’s win for the Dogs was a boost in boost in morale and a sign that they are back on track.

“We had a good little meeting yesterday about playing from the heart and I thought they did that today,” Hobson said. “It’s a good win when you go through a stretch like that, especially at home, so I was proud of them.”

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