Pit Spitters Drop Series Finale

Battle Creek, MI – June 10, 2024 – The Traverse City Pit Spitters lose game two of the series against the Battle Creek Battle Jacks, 9-7. The Pit Spitters drop to 8-6 on the season.

The Pit Spitters offense got going in the top of the first inning with back-to-back singles from Corey Berry and Brett Denby. Carter Hain cleared the bases with a single to center field to give the Pit Spitters a 2-0 lead. Berry singled, Denby walked, and Brandon Chang walked to open the top of the third inning for the Pit Spitters. Brody Capps was hit by a pitch to bring in Berry to make it 3-0. The Battle Jacks offense woke up in the bottom of the fourth inning as Mason Hamlin and Elijah Henning walked. Sam Decarlo walked to load the bases. Spencer Verburg was hit by a pitch, bringing in Hamlin to make it 4-1. Garrett Smith then drew a walk to score Henning making it 4-2. Josh Schleichardt was hit by a pitch that allowed Decarlo to score to bring the score to 4-2. Sam Griffith hit a sacrifice fly allowing Verburg to tag up and score to tie the game at 4-3. In the bottom of the fifth inning Smith singled followed by a hit by pitch to Schleichardt to put two runners on for the Battle Jacks. Alex Fernandes hit a sacrifice fly to score Smith to give the Battle Jacks a 5-3 lead. Smith led off the bottom of the seventh inning with a single to right field, followed by back-to-back walks from Schleichardt and Griffith to load the bases for the Battle Jacks. Hamlin drew a walk to extend the Battle Jacks lead to 6-3. Hain walked, Vahn Lackey was hit by a pitch, and Alfredo Velazquez walked to load the bases for the Pit Spitters in the top of the eighth inning. Ethan Guerra singled to right field that scored Hain and Lackey to cut the Battle Jacks lead to 6-5. Decarlo was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning followed up by a single by Verburg to open the bottom of the eighth inning for the Battle Jacks. Schleichardt singled scoring Decarlo to extend the Battle Jacks lead to 7-5. Fernandes then singled to center scoring Verburg and Schleichardt to give the Battle Jacks a 9-5 lead. Denby led off the top of the ninth with a double to right field. Capps then doubled to center, scoring Denby to cut the Battle Jacks lead to 9-6. Capps came into score following an error committed by third baseman Decarlo to give us the final score of 9-7.

The Pit Spitters drop to 8-6 on the season, while the Battle Jacks drop to 9-5. The Pit Spitters starting pitcher Jaxon Huffman threw two and a third innings giving up three runs on six walks, a hit, and struck out two. Josh Klug threw a third of an inning giving up a run on two walks. Zak Sullivan threw two and a third innings giving up a run on two hits, striking out one. Mason Hill threw two innings giving up one run on two hits, walking three, and striking out two. Dominic Mauro threw an inning giving up three runs on three hits and one walk.

The Pit Spitters will travel back to Traverse City for a two-game home stand as they welcome the Kokomo Jackrabbits. First pitch is 7:05 p.m. 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/ or by email at 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 31st season, the Northwoods League is the largest organized baseball league in the world with 26 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, 340 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.