The Boulders were able to get some offense going today after their loss last night, striking first in the contest. Shortstop Santiago Rosso started the game with a single, before starting pitcher Tristan Harley retired first baseman Jason Agresti on a called strike three. Left fielder Aaron Simmons followed with a ground-rule double to put runners on the corners, and catcher John Schroeder delivered a two-run double to left field to send both Simmons and Agresti home. Harley then issued a walk to designated hitter Jimmy Keenan and hit third baseman Kyle Ness and right fielder Norris McClure, sending home Schroeder to give the Boulders the early 3-0 lead.
After Harley was able to retire both Rosso and Agresti to start the top of the second, the Boulders offense was able to catch momentum to extend the lead. Simmons delivered his second hit with a single, and Schroeder also got his second hit of the day with a single, which sent Simmons to second. Keenan got his first hit of the day as he also hit a single to center field, which sent Simmons home to extend the Boulders lead to 4-0.
The Boulders continued their hot hitting in the third inning. McClure notched his fifth home run of the season on the fourth pitch at-bat. After second baseman Owen McElfatrick popped out, center fielder Julian Boyd singled and came around to score on Rosso’s double to left. Agresti hit a single to left, and Simmons reached on a fielder’s choice to further push the Boulders lead to 7-0.
The Miners were able to show some life as they got on the scoreboard in the bottom of the third. Catcher Jose Medrano was hit by a pitch to leadoff the inning, and center fielder Edwin Mateo followed with a single to left. After second baseman Hunter D’Amato flew out to advance both runners, shortstop Evan Berkey lifted a sacrifice fly to center, advancing Medrano home to cut New York’s lead to 7-1.
The Miners continued to chip into this Boulders lead in the bottom of the fifth after both offenses went silent. Medrano opened the inning with a single, before D’Amato worked a walk after Mateo flew out. Berkey reached on a fielder’s choice, moving Medrano to third, and left fielder Gabriel Maciel followed with a bloop RBI single to left field, scoring Medrano to trim the Boulders lead to 7-2.
The Boulders responded right back with some runs of their own to push them closer to the win. In the top of the sixth, Simmons drew a leadoff walk, stole second, and advanced to third on Schroeder’s single before Keenan lifted a sacrifice fly to right, bringing Simmons home for his second RBI of the game. Third baseman Kyle Hess followed up with a bloop single, and after McClure reached on a fielder’s choice, McElfatrick delivered an RBI single to bring Schroeder. Boyd added to the fire with an RBI single down the third-base line, bringing home McClure and pushing the lead to 10-2.
The Miners were able to clap right back, scoring some runs of their own in the bottom of the sixth inning. Right fielder Mahki Backstrom drew a leadoff walk and third baseman Dean Ferrara followed with a single to center before a wild pitch from Boulders pitcher Garrett Peters moved both runners into scoring position. Medrano then worked a walk to load the bases, giving Mateo an RBI opportunity. Mateo lined a two-run single to right field to score Ferrara and Backstrom. D’Amato added a sacrifice fly to right later in the inning to bring home Medrano and cut into the Boulders lead, making it 10-5.
The Miners tried to rally a comeback late in the ninth inning. Designated hitter Keenan Taylor opened the frame with a ground-rule double, and after two quick outs, relief pitcher Tyler Vail hit both first baseman Kiko Romero and Medrano with pitches to load the bases. Mateo then delivered on another RBI opportunity after ripping a two-run double to left field that scored Taylor and Romero, while Medrano advanced to third. However, Vail struck out D’Amato and recorded his tenth save in the 10-7 win versus the Miners.
The Miners will look to get back in the win column against the Boulders tomorrow at Skylands Stadium. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. Fans can watch live on the Frontier League Network powered by HTN or listen on Mixlr. Streaming links are available at scminers.com.
Written by Justin Shepard