The Mankato MoonDogs had been in a bit of a slump in their last few games, entering Saturday’s game with a three-game losing streak. But stellar pitching and a few timely hits gave the MoonDogs a much-needed win over the La Crosse Loggers, 3-1.
Daniel Amaral put the MoonDogs on the board right away, leading off the first inning with his league-leading seventh triple of the season, and coming in to score on a Jake Shepski groundout.
Although the MoonDogs were playing with a lead, it seemed as though their defense was trying to give it back for the first half of the game, racking up four errors in the first four innings. But MoonDogs starter Andy Fisher was able to keep the Loggers off the scoreboard until the top of the fourth, allowing one unearned run, which tied the score at one.
The game did not remain tied for very long, however, as Ethan Valdez hit a solo home run for the second straight night, giving his team a 2-1 lead. The MoonDogs added another run in the fifth inning when Brady Pfaadt scored on an Amaral single.
Meanwhile, Fisher did not give the Loggers much of anything to work with, finishing his night with seven innings pitched, giving up no earned runs on five hits, striking out seven. Joey Gerber pitched a quick one-two-three eighth inning for the MoonDogs, before handing the ball off to Naithen Dewsnap for the ninth. Dewsnap allowed a one-out single, but immediately erased the baserunner on a tailor-made double play to second baseman Shepski.
Amaral led the MoonDogs with three hits and a stolen base, while Shepski, Valdez, and Pfaadt added two hits apiece. The win breaks the losing streak for the MoonDogs and brings their record up to 18-11 in the second half. The two teams will face off again tomorrow at Franklin Rogers Park in Mankato at 6:05.
The Mankato MoonDogs are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The 23-year-old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing 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 170 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit [www.mankatomoondogs.com]or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the MoonDogs as your favorite team.
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The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. The 23-year old summer collegiate league is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 20 teams, drawing 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 180 former Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including two-time Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS), two-time World Series Champion Ben Zobrist (CHC) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (BOS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM) and Lucas Duda (NYM). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. For more information, visit www.northwoodsleague.com or download the Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play.