Madison, WI – June 30, 2014. The Madison Mallards (16-15) aim to take two games off the La Crosse Loggers (21-12) in a split doubleheader starting today at 12:05 pm. The second game of the doubleheader will be played in La Crosse at 7:05 pm.
The Mallards are six games back of first place in the Northwoods League South Division, eliminated from first half playoff contention, but Mallards starer Sterling Sharp (Eastern Michigan) takes the mound attempting to silence the Loggers in game one, who sit two games back of first place in the South Division with two games left to play.
Sharp has pitched 22.2 innings this year and holds a 3.17 ERA, having given up 11 runs on 20 hits while striking out a team high 24 batters. In his last start, Sharp struck out two and went five innings, letting up no earned runs on five hits in a 7-2 loss against the Wisconsin Woodchucks.
He will square off against Loggers starter Adam Kline, a 6’3”, 175-pound righty out of Columbia University. Kline is 2-1 on the year and holds a 3.66 ERA in 19.2 innings of work. He tossed 5.1 innings in his last game, striking out five while giving up three runs on five hits in a 3-2 loss against the Willmar Stingers.
Scheduled to start game two for the Mallards is AJ Bogucki (North Carolina). Bogucki is 1-0 on the year in two starts and five appearances and holds a 2.51 ERA in 14.1 innings pitched. In his last start, Bogucki pitched 4.2 innings, giving up three runs on eight hits while striking out three in a 13-3 win over the Wisconsin Woodchucks.
Last night, the Mallards fell to the Lakeshore Chinooks by a score of 14-3 after the Chinooks put up 14 runs on 17 hits off five different Mallards pitchers.
Mallards designated hitter Pete Alonso (Florida) hit his sixth home run of the year, a solo jack in the fourth, to put the Mallards on the board, and shortstop Michael Handel (Minnesota) chipped in with a 3-for-3 performance at the plate.
The Chinooks were led by designated hitter Blake Butler (College of Charleston), who went 3-for-5 and finished with 7 RBI.
Chinooks starter Joe Pavlovich (UW-Oshkosh) received the win, tossing five innings and giving up two runs on five hits while striking out four.
The Mallards are off tomorrow and resume play at the “Duck Pond” on Wednesday, June 2nd against the Kalamazoo Growlers. First pitch is slated for 7:05 pm. Wednesday marks the start of the second half of the Northwoods League season.
Wednesday is Alliant Energy South Central Library System Reading Night with a Book Drive. Fans can bring their used books to donate to the SCLS. It is also Oscar Mayer Hot Dog Appreciation Night with wiener dog races.
Mallards single game tickets are on-sale now. To purchase tickets, log on to MallardsBaseball.com, call 608-246- 4277, or stop by the Mallards ticket office.
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The Madison Mallards 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 is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 18 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 115 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), Allen Craig (STL) and Ben Zobrist (TB). All league games are viewable live the Northwoods League YouTube channel. For more information, visit MallardsBaseball.com.
