By Peter Miller<\/p>\n
MEQUON, Wis.\u2014 Chinooks manager Mikel Moreno knows exactly what he\u2019s going to get from Gray whenever he takes the mound.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cEvery time he starts, we\u2019re in the game,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Gray has left with a lead in three of his four starts this season, including Monday night. The Chinooks starter exited after five scoreless innings with Lakeshore holding a 3-0 lead.<\/span><\/p>\n But, as Gray put it after the game, baseball can be cruel at times.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s a game that can humble you within five minutes,\u201d Gray said after the game. The Chinooks had given up the lead and fell to the Wisconsin Rapids Rafters 5-3.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Contrary to previous losses this season, the Lakeshore pitching staff was effective and certainly did enough to put the offense in a position to win a game.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Relievers Arthur Libeau and Michael Caruso combined for three strikeouts and didn\u2019t allow a hit in the three innings pitched between them.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Moreno said the sixth inning was a turning point in the game. The manager decided to have catcher Dominic Kibler pinch hit for third baseman Collin Senior\u2013 who\u2019s struggled at the plate this season with ten strikeouts and a batting average of .163 in 13 appearances\u2013 in the fifth inning.<\/span><\/p>\n It was an offense-first decision by Moreno that went awry.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Ian Choi plugged into the hot corner and felt the heat immediately. The first batter he faced, Noah Ruiz, laced a ground ball his way. Choi was unable to come up with it cleanly, allowing the Wisconsin Rapids\u2019 third baseman to reach first base to lead off the inning.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cThe ball always finds the guy that you put in,\u201d Moreno said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n After a double down the line which was just out of his reach, Choi opted to trade a run for the first out of the inning on a groundout by Erik Parker.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Rafters opened their account for the game on the play. One batter later, a throwing error by second baseman Tyler Preece allowed two more runs to score, tying the game with three innings left to go.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cWhen the defense can\u2019t back you up, it kinda sucks,\u201d Gray said, describing how it feels as a pitcher to not be picked up defensively when you have momentum on the mound.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n A loss that includes strong pitching always includes uncompetitive offense. Moreno felt the Chinooks should\u2019ve done better against the two Rafters pitchers they saw. He didn\u2019t think his players were competitive enough.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n \u201cOur guys refused to swing,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The \u2018Nooks lineup struck out a total of 12 times. Lakeshore is now fifth in the Northwoods League in that category with 125 punchouts and has the fourth-worst batting average (.222).\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The Chinooks, still sitting in last place of the Great Lakes West, will be back at Moonlight Graham Field on Tuesday night as they continue to search for their first win over Wisconsin Rapids. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m. CT.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Jack Hagen, just added to the roster this afternoon, is expected to make his Chinooks debut as they try to pick up their first win over the Rafters on their fourth attempt. <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By Peter Miller MEQUON, Wis.\u2014 Chinooks manager Mikel Moreno knows exactly what he\u2019s going to get from Gray whenever he […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":18,"featured_media":18067,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-18066","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-team-news"],"yoast_head":"\n