Altmann Delivers Game-Winning Homer, Barth Drills Walk-Off Grand Slam
American Association Daily provides insights, features, and recaps of the action from around the American Association of Professional Baseball League, as well as player and coaching profiles and transactions. In today’s edition, Robert Pannier recaps the six games in the American Association on Wednesday, including the Cleburne Railroaders shutting down the Milwaukee Milkmen, Josh Altmann delivered a game-winning two-run homer for the Chicago Dogs, and the Lake Country DockHounds crush the Sioux City Explorers,
Game Recaps for Wednesday
Barth Walk-Off Grand Slam Completes Canaries Comeback
Jordan Barth delivered a walk-off grand slam with one down in the bottom of the ninth inning to give the Sioux Falls Canaries an 11-8 come from behind victory over the Lincoln Saltdogs. Sioux Falls trailed by four entering the ninth, but scored seven runs in the frame, recording four hits and three walks to earn the victory.
Sioux Falls took the lead in the bottom of the second, scoring four runs thanks to an RBI single by Ozzie Martinez and a bases clearing triple by Marshall Rich. Lincoln responded with two runs in the top of the third and tied the score in the fifth on a single and an error that allowed two runs to score. In the sixth, Nate Samson drilled his first home run of the season, a two-run homer that put Lincoln on top.
The Saltdogs added a run in the eighth and ninth innings, and looked like they had sealed the victory. However, a single and a walk put two on with one down and Welington Dotel delivered an RBI double to make it a three-run game. After Jabari Henry walked to load the bases, Mike Hart singled, scoring two. A walk to Hunter Clanin reloaded the bases for Barth, who turned on a 1-2 offering, drilling it for a grand slam, his first homerun of the year.
Barth finished with two runs scored and four RBI. Rich had two hits and drove in three and Dotel had three hits. Patrick Young earned the victory with one inning of scoreless relief. David Zoz took the loss. Samson led Lincoln with two hits, two runs scored, and three RBI.
Lincoln Saltdogs Recap by Michael Dixon
Sioux Falls Canaries Recap by Tanner Hoops
Smith, Railroaders Sour Milkmen
Riley Smith (1-1) allowed just one run in 6.2 innings, leading the Cleburne Railroaders to a 3-1 victory over the Milwaukee Milkmen. Smith was spectacular, allowing seven hits and three walks while striking out seven. Austin Fairchild tossed 1.1 innings of scoreless relief and Joe Shaw tossed a scoreless ninth to earn his first save of the season.
Cleburne took the lead in the top of the first inning as Delino DeShields led off with a double and scored on a base hit by Brian Klein. Three innings later the Railroaders extended their lead to two thanks to a sacrifice fly by John Figueroa. Milwaukee cut the deficit in half when Roy Morales delivered an RBI double in the bottom of the fifth, but Cleburne restored the two-run advantage in the top of the sixth as Alan Jackson drove home Mark Karaviotis to make it 3-1.
Cleburne was led by Karaviotis, who had three hits and scored a run. Morales and Cam Balego each had two hits for Milwaukee. Christian Young took the loss.
RedHawks Hang on to Down Goldeyes
The Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks jumped out to a five-run lead, then had to hang on to defeat the Winnipeg Goldeyes, 5-4. It was a five run third that put Fargo on top. Dillon Thomas delivered an RBI single to get the scoring going, and Correlle Prime followed with a two-run homer. Four batters later Sam Dexter delivered a two-run double.
That looked to be more than enough to put Winnipeg in the loss, as starter Tyler Grauer was dominant through the first six innings, keeping the Goldeyes off the scoreboard. However, Winnipeg finally got on the board when Hidekel Gonzalez turned on the first pitch he saw in the seventh, drilling his second home run of the season. The first two batters in the eighth reached and Grauer’s evening was over. Reza Aleaziz gave up an RBI single as the Goldeyes pulled within two. In the ninth, Reid Burlingmair gave up an RBI ground out to Andrew Shaps, but was able to retire the final batter to earn his second save of the season.
Thomas and Dexter each finished with two hits and Prime and Dexter had two RBI each. Luis Ramirez took the loss, allowing five runs in 3.0 innings. Dayson Croes, Najee Gaskins, and Tommy McCarthy each had two hits for Winnipeg.
Winnipeg Goldeyes Recap by Jason Young
RailCats Crush Monarchs
Julio Vivas allowed one unearned run in five innings as the Gary SouthShore RailCats crushed the Kansas City Monarchs, 13-1. Three relievers completed the performance, tossing four scoreless innings of relief and LG Castillo and Francisco Del Valle combined to drive in nine in the contest.
The RailCats jumped out to a decisive lead, scoring four runs in the bottom of the first. Castillo delivered an RBI single and Del Valle followed with a three-run homer, his third of the year. Kansas City scored a run in the top of the third, but an error allowed two more runs to come home for Gary SouthShore in the bottom half of the frame. The RailCats blew this game open in the fifth, plating four more runs. A wild pitch scored the seventh run of the game for the team and Castillo followed with an RBI single. He later added a two run double in the sixth.
Castillo finished 3-5 with two runs scored and five RBI. Del Valle was 2-5 with two runs scored and four runs driven in. Gio Diaz and Jesus Marriaga each scored three runs. Gavin Collins had three hits for Kansas City.
Kansas City Monarchs Recap by Carter Woodiel
Gary SouthShore RailCats Recap by Ryan Zimmerman
Dogs Rally to Down Cougars in 10
The Kane County Cougars rallied from an early three-run deficit to force extra innings, but the Chicago Dogs prevailed in the 10th, beating Kane County, 6-4. This was a scoreless tie after two, but Chicago took the lead in the top of the third thanks to three runs on three hits. Nicholas Heath had an RBI double in the frame and he later scored on a Josh Altmann single.
Kane County cut the deficit to one, scoring two runs in the bottom of the sixth thanks to an RBI ground out by Jonah Davis and a single by Jordan Howard. However, the Cougars scored a run in the top of the seventh, giving Kane County a two-run advantage. That lead did not last long, however, as T.J. Bennett delivered a two-run double in the bottom of the seventh, tying the score at four. That sent the game to extra innings, where Altmann delivered a two-run homer to put his team on top for good.
Brian Schlitter earned the victory and Jonathan Cheshire came on to earn the save. Altmann finished with three hits and three RBI for the Dogs, and Matt Bottcher had two hits, scored two runs, and drove in a run. Bennett led the Cougars, going 3-5 with a run in two RBI. Ryan Richardson took the loss.
DockHounds Crush Explorers
The Lake Country DockHounds scored at least two runs in each of the first five innings on their way to a 14-6 crushing of the Sioux City Explorers. The DockHounds scored three in the first, second, and fifth innings, and added two in the third and fourth frames.
Pat DeMarco and Thomas Jones each hit their first home runs of the season for Lake Country. DeMarco finished with three hits, drove in three, and scored twice. Demetrius Sims scored four runs and Jaxx Groshans had two hits and three RBI. Nick Banks was a perfect 3-3 with two walks and three RBI.
Jesus Valles was hit early and often, giving up six runs in 2.0 innings pitched. Matt Lloyd hit his first home run of the season for the Explorers.
Sioux City Explorers Recap by Dan Vaughan, Jr. and Austin Thomas
Three Stars of the Night
No. 3 – Jordan Barth (Sioux Falls Canaries) 1-4, 2 R, 4 RBI, Grand Slam, BB
No. 2 – Josh Altmann (Chicago Dogs) 3-5, R, HR, 3 RBI
No. 1 – LG Castillo (Gary SouthShore RailCats) 3-5, 2 R, 5 RBI, Double
American Association Daily Notes
The Sioux City Explorers and Milwaukee Milkmen suffered their first losses of the season. The Lake Country DockHounds earned their first win of the year… Gary SouthShore RailCats outfielder LG Castillo set a single game-high with five RBI… The Lincoln Saltdogs became the first team this season to lose when leading after eight innings.
Transactions
Chicago: Activated RHP Aiden McIntyre and LHP Bryan Warzek from the Injured List
Lincoln: Placed INF Will Kengor on the Injured List retroactive to May 10; Activated RHP Carson Lance from the Injured List
By Robert Pannier
