Massive road series punches playoff ticket for Grizzlies

By Ray Popkess

 

The baseball bears entered last week’s series trailing the Schaumburg Boomers in the West Division of the Frontier League by one-and-a-half games. Their pivotal three-game stretch would set the stage for Gateway to clinch their spot in the postseason against the Florence Y’alls this past weekend.

Schaumburg

Game 1 – The lead would switch back and forth like a tennis match in the first five innings. Schaumburg plated two runs in the first on a sacrifice fly and RBI single, only to be answered by Gateway sluggers Gabe Holt and Edwin Mateo in the fourth inning. Holt would line a two-run double over a leaping shortstop, followed by Mateo’s RBI squeeze bunt to make the score 3-2 Grizzlies.

The Boomers would add another run in the fourth and three more in the fifth, only to again be answered by a D.J. Stewart RBI single in the sixth followed by a sacrifice fly from Holt. The Boomers would add their next and final run in the sixth, making the score 7-5 before the Grizzlie comeback.

In the visitor’s half of the seventh, Sawyer Smith and Jose Alvarez both singled to lead off the inning before executing a double-steal. Victor Castillo worked a walk to load the bases, setting the stage for a sinking line drive to left by Stewart that would tie the game. Three batters later, with the bases loaded again, Dale Thomas drew a walk to force in the winning run.

Game 2 – Gateway would spend the first half of this game scoring the necessary runs to win and the second half of the game fending off rallies from the Boomers.

RBI singles in the third inning from Victor Castillo and Jose Alvarez and a sac fly from Abdiel Diaz gave Gateway a modest 3-0 lead. The following inning would yield three doubles for the Grizzlies, adding two more runs to their lead. Rookie Sawyer Smith would add another run in the fifth to make the lead 6-0.

To this point, Schaumburg was sick of going scoreless, so they posted two runs of their own after three-straight two-out singles and back-to-back walks. Gateway wouldn’t let them get away with it, resetting the six-run lead 8-2.

Three-straight RBI hits in the seventh would put pressure on righty Gateway reliever Alec Whaley. He would wiggle out of the seventh with a lead, giving way to set-up man Francis Peguero and closer Keegan Collett. The tandem would shut down the Boomer bats and secure a series victory.

Game 3 – Gateway fell behind early and never recovered in the series finale, succumbing to a 17-5 final score. The loss would keep the team’s playoff magic number at three, heading into the road series with the Florence Y’alls.

Florence

Game 1 – Gateway had a 3-0 lead early thanks to a Stewart double and Holt single. That lead held until the bottom of the third inning, when a leadoff walk turned into a game-tying rally against Zac Treece. With the score tied at 3-3, the veteran would settle into a groove, eventually finishing with a season-high nine strikeouts, and retiring eight batters in a row between the third and fifth innings.

The Grizzlies retook the lead, but it would quickly dissipate in the bottom of the sixth after two solo home runs from Florence.

With the score now tied at five, a crucial fielding error would surrender the lead for good, as the Grizzlies would fall 7-5.

Games 2 & 3 – A doubleheader was just what the doctor ordered for Gateway to cure their roadtrip struggles. Lukas Veinbergs would come one out away from throwing a shortened complete game, but would still match his season-high of six and two-thirds innings pitched while striking out six. A Dale Thomas homerun would put the Grizzlies up 2-0 early, and three-straight singles in the fifth would plate another three runs. Game 2 would end with a 6-3 final.

Florence would be shutout by Grizzlie pitching in the finale of the doubleheader. Jake Burcham struck out seven Florence batters through four innings, while four relievers combined to hold the Y’alls off the scoreboard.

Game 4 – The series finale would not be kind to the Grizzlies, but it didn’t matter all that much since their playoff spot was already solidified. The 4-0 shutout loss would split the series with Florence, queuing up the final week of the regular season in the Frontier League.

While game times have yet to be solidified, tickets for Grizzlie playoff games have gone on sale. ALL tickets for all home Grizzlies playoffs games will be just $5 this year, and can be purchased by contacting the box office at (618) 337-3000, or by going online to GatewayGrizzlies.com.

The Wild Card round will begin on Wednesday, Sept. 3rd, with Game 1 of the best-of-three series hosted by the two qualifying teams that do not win their division (At time of publishing, Gateway trails Schaumburg in the West Division by two games). The division champions will then host Games 2 and 3 (if necessary) on Friday, Sept. 5 and Saturday, Sept. 6, respectively.