Kalamazoo, MI- The Kalamazoo Growlers defeated the Green Bay Bullfrogs 10-3 Sunday at Homer Stryker Field. Kalamazoo starter Connor Manous got the win, going seven innings with 3 earned runs on eight hits and five strikeouts.
The Growlers struck first in the bottom of the second inning. Jason Sullivan started the inning with a single. He later scored from third base on a wild pitch to make it 1-0 Growlers.
The Bullfrogs would respond in the next half inning. Zach Plunkett hit a solo home run off Manous to tie the game. That was the 48th home run allowed by Growlers' pitchers, most in the Northwoods League.
Kalamazoo would regain the lead in the bottom of the fourth. Jason Sullivan got things started again with a walk, and he advanced to second on a passed ball. Then, Jeff Riedel singled to score Sullivan making it 2-1. Riedel stood on third after a throwing error on his single, and Matt Koehler flied out to center to bring him in, making the score 3-1.
Once again, the Bullfrogs answered the following inning to tie the game. With runners on second and third, Mikey Filia singled to tie the game at three.
The Growlers would pull away in the bottom half of the fifth, scoring five runs. With the bases loaded, Matt Koehler drew a walk, making it 4-3. Then, Ivan Estrella doubled down the third base line to bring in all three runners. Next, new Growlers Anthony Rios singled in another run to make the score 8-3 Growlers.
Kalamazoo would add two more runs on the day, and Zach Vitkuske and Mitch Bigras made appearances out of the bullpen to wrap up the game at 10-3 for the Growlers.
The Growlers will travel to Lakeshore for two games before returning for a home and home double header against Battle Creek on Wednesday.
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The Kalamazoo Growlers 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 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 portal. For more information, visit www.growlersbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Growlers as your favorite team.