The Chinooks(13-19) are coming off a six home run game against the Green Bay Rockers(19-15). It’s safe to say that kind of performance is not easy to replicate and the Chinooks learned that the hard way with a 4-1 loss against the Rockers in their home ballpark, Moonlight Graham Field.
To start the game, Ryan Mullan got out of the first inning throwing zero balls and only faced three batters. The Chinooks, who scored 20 runs in Green Bay against the Rockers on Friday night, looked like they would pick up right where they left. In the bottom of the first inning, both Grant Ross and Cody Kelley singled to right field to put runners on first and second with no outs. The two consecutive singles were followed by two consecutive strikeouts by Joey Spence and Avery Owusu-Asiedu. Yet, it was Adam Cootway who came through with a single to score Ross from second, making the score 1-0 Chinooks.
Mullan and the Chinooks navigated through some trouble in the top of the third inning. After striking out the first batter, Mullan gave up a single and a walk to put runners on first and second with one out. From there, a sac fly advanced Cuyler Zukowski to third. The half-inning came to a close with Rockers second baseman Blake Wilson striking out swinging for the last out.
A cloudy day turned into a rainy day during the top of the fourth inning. To start the frame, Kyle West took four consecutive balls to get on base. West advanced to second on a 5-4 putout and advanced one more base to third on a wild pitch during the next at bat. With JoJo Jackson at the plate, West made his way home after a ground out to tie the game at one a piece.
Rockers reliever Jacob Faulkner replaced Grayson Walker before the bottom of the fifth. The Chinooks were able to run up Walker’s pitch count as he ended with 92 pitches through four innings. Though, the inability to capitalize on the ballooned pitch count hurt the Chinooks.
In comparison, through six innings of work, Mullan remained strong on the mound. In those six innings, Mullan only gave up one hit and allowed one earned run.
However, in the top of the seventh inning, Mullan began to slow down after his dominant start. Carlos Hernandez walked to start the inning and the Rockers followed that up with a single by Jackson. With the game still tied, and runners on first and second with no outs. A sac fly by Jayson Jones advanced Hernandez to third. Hernandez would be driven home with an RBI single by Nainoa Cardinez, breaking the tie to make it a 2-1 Rockers lead. The Rockers continued to attack Mullan, extending their lead to 4-1 with him still on the mound. A two RBI double by Cooper Kelly cleared the two runners on third and second. The hit by Kelly marked the end of the day for Mullan as Colin Dailey replaced him on the mound. After a walk, Dailey closed out the inning with no more damage done. On the day, Mullan finished with 92 pitches thrown, four strikeouts, three walks, and four earned runs in 6.2 innings of work.
Ultimately, the Chinooks were unable to match the scoring by the Rockers. Lakeshore, after scoring a run in the first inning, would go scoreless the next eight innings. Tonight the loss for Lakeshore comes as a result of not taking advantage of early scoring chances and starting pitcher Ryan Mullan, who pitched a great first six innings, losing control in the seventh inning. The Chinooks will look to bounce back against the Wausau Woodchucks at Moonlight Graham Field with first pitch set for 1:05 pm CST.
