Growlers Take Game One
Traverse City, MI – The Traverse City Pit Spitters lose game one of the 131 Rivalry series against the Kalamazoo Growlers, 10-9 in front of 2,900 fans at Turtle Creek Stadium. The Pit Spitters drop to 37-26 on the season and 15-13 in the second half.
The Growlers struck first when Jimmy Nati kicked off the offensive shootout with a double to right field in the top of the second inning. Luke Mitchell walked followed by a Gavin Lewis Jr. walk to load up the bases with one out. Korbin Griffin walked, scoring Nati to give the Growlers a 1-0 lead. Anthony Stephan followed that up with a single to center scoring Mitchell to make it 2-0. The Pit Spitters answered in the bottom of the second, with a Devin Hukill single to left. Michael Tchavdarov doubled to right field scoring Hukill to cut into the Growlers lead 2-1. Ethan Hyme doubled, scoring Tchavdarov to tie it up at 2-2, and Hyme then scored to give the Pit Spitters a 3-2 lead, on a wild pitch thrown by Mason Meeks. Brosius led off the bottom of the third with a walk, which setup Colin Summerhill to hit a two-run home run to extend the Pit Spitters lead to 5-2. Cole Prout followed the home run with a walk, then Hukill singled putting runners on first and second. Camden Traficante dropped a sacrifice bunt to move the runners up a base, setting up Tchavdarov to hit a sacrifice flyout to make it a 6-2 game. Following a Mitchell single in the top of the fourth, Lewis Jr. grounded into a fielder’s choice. Back on offense, the Growlers didn’t waste time, Griffin singled to left scoring Lewis Jr. to cut into the Pit Spitters lead 6-3, and quickly came a Pit Spitters rebuttal Atkinson singled to center to lead off the bottom of the fourth inning. Brosius dropped a sacrifice bunt, which then third baseman Jimmy Nati sailed the throw over the first baseman’s head allowing Atkinson to score to make it a 7-3 game advancing Brosius to third. Summerhill grounded out to shortstop, scoring Brosius to make it 8-3. Nati reached base following an error made by Hukill, he was then hit in on a double hit by Mitchell to cut into the Pit Spitters lead 8-4. Lewis Jr. singled, scoring Mitchell, making it 8-5. Furniss doubled to left field, scoring Lewis Jr. to make it a two-run ballgame, at 8-6. Andrew Mannelly, Brosius, and Summerhill opened the bottom of the sixth inning with a single. Prout hit a sacrifice flyout scoring Mannelly to extend the Pit Spitters lead 9-6. Gabe Springer doubled to open up the top of the seventh inning. Evan Rodriguez singled to right field to put runners on first and second. Mitchell singled, scoring Springer cutting into the Pit Spitters lead 9-7. Lewis Jr. then hit a sacrifice flyout scoring Rodriguez to make it 9-8. Tolley led off the top of the eighth inning with a walk, Springer then reached base on an error committed by Mills, and then Rodriguez was hit by a pitch to load the bases with two outs. Traficante committed an error on a Nati grounder, scoring Tolley and Springer to give the Growlers 10-9 lead. The Pit Spitters put the tying and game winning run on base but were unable to push across the plate, as the Growlers won 10-9.
The Pit Spitters drop to 37-26 on the season and 15-13 in the second half, while the Growlers improve to 41-20 overall and 20-7 in the second half. The Pit Spitters starting pitcher Jake Michel threw two innings, giving up two runs on three hits, and five walks. Quinn Berglin threw three innings of scoreless relief, giving up three hits. Logan Mccleery threw an inning of relief, giving up a run on three hits and two walks. Maddux Hoaglund made his Pit Spitters debut, throwing an inning of relief giving up two runs on three hits. Mitchell Grannan threw two innings of relief, giving up one hit and two walks.
The Pit Spitters will stay at Turtle Creek Stadium for game two of the series against Kalamazoo Growlers. First pitch is 7:05PM. All league games are viewable live via the Northwoods League Website. League games are viewable live at watchnwl.com and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.pitspitters.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Pit Spitters as your favorite team.
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About the Traverse City Pit Spitters: The Traverse City Pit Spitters have been members of the Northwoods League since their inaugural season in 2019. The Pit Spitters have won two Northwoods League Championships and delivered their unique brand of FUN to hundreds of thousands of fans. The Pit Spitters share Managing Partners and principal ownership with the West Michigan Whitecaps, the High A affiliate of the Detroit Tigers, based in Comstock Park, Michigan. The team’s home games are played in Traverse City’s favorite multi-purpose outdoor entertainment venue, Turtle Creek Stadium. For more information visit https://northwoodsleague.com/traverse-city-pit-spitters/ or contact Jacqueline Holm at 231-943-0100 Ext. 214/ email JacquelineH@pitspitters.com.
About the Northwoods League: The Traverse City Pit Spitters 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. Now in its’ 30th season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 24 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 325 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 and on ESPN+. For more information, visit www.pitspitters.com or download the new Northwoods League Mobile App on the Apple App Store or on Google Play and set the Pit Spitters as your favorite team.
