August 18th, 2021 – Divisional Championship – Madison Mallards at Traverse City Pit Spitters
Traverse City, MI – Turtle Creek Stadium
Game – 6:05 PM CDT
Where to Watch: https://bit.ly/3waxfEV

Following a 2-0 sweep of Fond Du Lac in the sub-divisional round, the Madison Mallards are heading to Traverse City, Michigan to face the Pit-Spitters in a one-game Great Lakes Championship matchup.

The Mallards clinched the series in Fond Du Lac on Monday night and earned themselves their first off day since August 3rd for the Major League Dreams Showcase.

The Pit Spitters are coming back home after a hard-fought win in game three in Kokomo against the Jackrabbits. The Pit Spitters won game one at home, fell in game two and then won last night by a final of 9-6, scoring three runs to take the lead in the ninth.

Starting on the mound tonight for the Mallards will be Peyton Winebarger (North Carolina A&T State). Winebarger will be making his first start of the season as he’s pitched 21.2 innings all out of the bullpen, currently owning a 5.82 ERA.

Winebarger last pitched on the final day of the regular season in a game the Mallards had to win to make the playoffs. He pitched 1.2 innings, giving up one earned run.

Starting on the mound for the Pit Spitters will be Joe Horoszko (Wittenberg University). The right-hander will be making his 15th appearance but just his second start of the season, as he currently has a 5.09 ERA in 23 innings pitched.

Horoszko last pitched on Monday in Traverse City’s 9-2 game one win over Kokomo at home. He threw 2.2 scoreless innings, giving up just one hit and striking out two.

The Mallards and Pit Spitters matched up four times in the regular season, as the Mallards won the season series 3-1. They split the series in Madison on June 6th and 7th and then the Mallards swept the set in Traverse City on July 10th and 11th.

Tonight’s game is set to start at 7:05 p.m. local time, 6:05 p.m. CDT. This will be a one-game matchup, so the Mallards must win tonight to become the Great Lakes Divisional champions and keep their season alive. 

Should the Mallards win tonight, the matchup is already set for the Northwoods League title game. The St. Cloud Rox advanced to the championship last night by beating Waterloo and will host the title game at Joe Faber Field on Friday night at 7:05 p.m. CDT.