Mequon, WI – While pitching has primarily been what has held the Lakeshore Chinooks together this season, the past few days have shown the team has some offense in them too. Entering Tuesday, the Lakeshore Chinooks had scored 28 runs in their past two games, and the team hardly showed signs of stopping as they took on the Green Bay Bullfrogs on Tuesday. The Chinooks plated 10 runs in the game, defeating the Bullfrogs 10-5.
The team jumped out ahead in the top of the first, scoring four runs. Zarley Zalewski (Kent State) singled with one out in the inning, and Kyle Fiala (Notre Dame) proceeded to walk. Lucas Raley (Lake Erie College) made Bullfrogs starter Luke Crabb (Dodge City CC) pay by slamming a three-run home run, his fifth of the season. The long ball fun continued the next batter when Doug Kraeger (Richmond) went back-to-back with Raley by hitting a solo homer.
Raley continues to be a key cog for the Chinooks lineup. He has hit safely in 11 of his last 13 games with five homers, three triples and 16 RBIs. As a whole, he is now hitting .316 on the year.
The Chinooks were held scoreless for the next two innings but came out to have a big fourth inning. The first run of five that were scored in the frame came when Jack Benninghoff (Arkansas), making his Chinooks debut, reached on an error and came around to score on a Greg Deichmann (Louisiana State) single. Zalewski then brought in his second and third RBIs of the day by plating Deichmann and Aaron Rzucidlo (Georgia) with a single.
The Chinooks proceeded to load the bases, and when Anthony Massicci (Canisius) drew a walk, Zalewski came around to score. The final run of the frame came when Benninghoff, batting for the second time in the inning, drove in Raley with a base hit. The team later gave themselves a double-digit lead in the top of the seventh, scoring a single run when Deichmann singled and later was plated on a sac fly off the bat of Fiala.
Marshall Kasowski (Houston) made his first start after previously appearing exclusively out of the Chinooks bullpen. It was a successful one, as he threw 5.0 strong innings, not allowing a run. Kasowski gave up just two hits and three walks in his outing while striking out nine batters. In 11.1 innings so far this summer, he has fanned an impressive 24 batters.
Mike Letkewicz (Augustana) relieved Kasowski in the sixth, firing a shutout frame. However, back out in the seventh, he ran into trouble. Letkewicz let up three runs without getting an out before being pulled in favor of Rustin Sveum (Dixie State). Sveum allowed both inherited runners to score, giving Letkewicz five total earned runs, but did not give up an earned run of his own.
Sveum got two outs before manager Eddy Morgan decided to turn to Andrew Shaps (Arizona State). Shaps ensured that an already-disastrous inning did not get totally out of hand, earning the last out and holding the score at 10-5. He stayed on to pitch the final two innings as well, not allowing a run.
The Chinooks will take on Green Bay again on Wednesday. The team then returns home for a rematch of the 2014 Championship Series against the Mankato MoonDogs on Thursday and Friday.
The Lakeshore Chinooks are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. Playing its 21st season of summer collegiate baseball, the Northwoods League draws significantly more fans, in a friendly ballpark experience, than any league of its kind. A valuable training ground for coaches, umpires, and front office staff, more than 120 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (DET) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (WAS, Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information visit www.lakeshorechinooks.com.
