Madison, WI – July 30, 2016. On the back of four home runs from the offense, the Mallards (11-10, 34-23) bested the Green Bay Bullfrogs (12-9, 27-30) by a score of 11-5. The four home runs are the second-most the Mallards have hit in a single game this season, and extended their league-leading home run total to 45 on the summer.
Similar to Friday’s contest against Green Bay, the Bullfrogs used an early-inning home run to jump on top of Madison. Jonah Davis (California) took Mallards starter Frank German (North Florida) deep for his second home run in as many games. The lead wouldn’t hold for long, with the Mallards able to cut the deficit in half in the home half of the stanza.
On the first pitch of the inning, Zach Jarrett (UNC-Charlotte) launched a pitch from Green Bay hurler Matt Ellenbest (Morehead State) over the wall in left field. The home run was Jarrett’s first of the second half after hitting a team-leading six long balls in the first half of the season. The all-star finished with a 4-for-5 performance after hitting only .183 in July.
“Tonight I was able to take some pressure off of myself and stop getting frustrated,” said a relieved Jarrett. “I stayed simple in my approach, got help from the coaches and just played the game of baseball.”
The Green Bay lead would disappear in the third, with Madison using a three-run frame to take the lead. RBI singles from Nate Palace (Valparaiso), Jarrett and Josh Stowers (Louisville) would do the trick, propelling Madison to an advantage that they would never look back on.
The home runs would keep piling on for the Mallards in the middle innings, with Nelson Maldonado (Florida) going deep for his second consecutive game in the fourth, Bryce Carter (Stanford) launching a three-run dinger to deep right field in the fifth, and Jarrett hitting his second moonshot of the contest in the sixth, with this one bringing home two runs. All in all, Madison exploded for all of their 11 runs in innings two through six, grabbing 14 of their 16 hits in that span as well.
The Bullfrogs would tally three unearned runs in the top of the eighth, pulling the score to 11-5. Chase Hoag (Fresno State) was able to keep Green Bay off the board in the ninth, striking out two batters in the final frame. The win was Madison’s fifth against Green bay this summer.
Frank German earned the win after pitching seven strong innings. The right-hander would show plenty of composure after allowing a second-inning home run, staying focused on the task at hand en route to his longest outing of the summer.
“I didn’t want to let that second inning snowball out of control, especially after my last start,” said German. “I just let the defense work behind and tried to pitch for as long as I could.”
The loss would be charged to Matt Ellenbest, his second of the year. He allowed 11 hits and seven runs in four innings of work.
Nate Palace continued his tear at the plate, hitting his ninth RBI in the last ten contests. Palace is hitting .341 in July, mashing six home runs in that span.
The Mallards will return to the Duck Pond on Sunday, July 31st, to take on the Green Bay Bullfrogs at 4:05 pm. The game will be Stoddard’s Country Grove Market Bratwurst Appreciation Night with Meat Raffle Giveaway. It will also be Madison Public Library Foundation Harry Potter Night. The Mallards will wear Harry Potter themed jerseys to be auctioned off during the game to benefit Pinney Library Capital Campaign. It is also be Faith Night and Madison Children’s Museum Night. Tickets are available for purchase by visiting MallardsBaseball.com, calling the Mallards ticket office at 608-246-4277, or stopping in the ticket office at 2920 N Sherman Ave.
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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 23rd 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 150 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including Cy Young Award winner Max Scherzer (WAS) and MLB All-Stars Chris Sale (CWS), Jordan Zimmermann (DET), Curtis Granderson (NYM), Lucas Duda (NYM) and Ben Zobrist (CHC). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League portal. For more information, visit www.mallardsbaseball.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store and set the Mallards as your favorite team.
