Madison Drops Second Straight in Loss to Battle Jacks
Mallards’ offense struggles in second-half of game with Battle Creek
Madison, WI – The Mallards were unable to hold onto an early lead against Battle Creek on Thursday night in a 10-4 loss at Warner Park. The matchup with the Battle Jacks was the first game of a four-game home stand and first of their four matchups throughout the 2022 season.
Battle Creek was able to get on the board first with two runs in the top of the 3rd inning against Mallards’ starting pitcher Justin Miller. Miller (3.1 IP, 3 H, 2 ER, 2 K, 2 BB) allowed five of thirteen batters faced to reach in his third start of the season. The Mallards’ action took place in response to the Battle Jacks’ two runs in the bottom of the 3rd. After Johnny Long reached on an error by Battle Creek’s right fielder, J.J. Rollon and Max Williams (1-5, RBI in Mallards’ debut) singled to score the first run and cut the lead to one. Next batter Payton Smith launched his second home run of the season to left field to give the Ducks a 4-2 lead after the frame was over. Following that, Madison’s offense dozed off. The Battle Jacks used three arms out of the bullpen after starting Garrett Martin on his 23rd birthday. Caleb Lanoux (W, 3-0), Gavin Knust, and Anthony Tejeda combined to shut out the Mallards through the final 5.2 innings.
The Battle Jacks countered the Mallards four-run 3rd inning with a four-run frame of their own in the top of the 4th against relief pitcher Adrian Montilva (L, 0-1). The first batter that Montilva faced was Joey Grabanski and he took an 0-2 hanger to left center for his second home run of the season. Then, the breakthrough. All nine batters come to the plate to end up giving Battle Creek a four run inning. The Battle Jacks would score one run in the 6th inning and three in the top of the 9th to essentially close the door for their 13th win of the year. If the Mallards were able to keep the Battle Jacks scoreless in the top half of the final inning, things could have gotten interesting. The Ducks put two runners on board before Williams bounces out to end the contest.
The Mallards return to Warner Park in Madison for four straight home games and six of their next seven beginning with the Great Lakes East’s Battle Creek Battle Jacks with first pitch at 6:35 PM in their first matchup of the season. Coverage can be found on the Northwoods League website under the ‘Live Action’ tab.
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The Madison Mallards are a member of the finest developmental league for elite college baseball players, the Northwoods League. The Northwoods League is the proven leader in the development of elite college baseball players. Having completed its’ 28th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 22 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, over 280 Northwoods League players have advanced to Major League Baseball, including three-time All-Star and 2016 Roberto Clemente Award winner Curtis Granderson, three-time Cy Young Award winner and World Series Champion Max Scherzer (NYM), two-time World Series Champions Ben Zobrist and Brandon Crawford (SFG) and World Series Champion Chris Sale (BOS). As well as 2019 Rookie of the Year and 2019/2021 Home Run Derby Champion Pete Alonso (NYM) and 2021 All-Star, MLB Gold Glove winner and 2019 Second Team All-MLB shortstop Marcus Semien (TEX). All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com. For more information, visit www.greenbayrockers.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Rockers as your favorite team.
