SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Peter Alonso's bases-loaded walk in the bottom of the 11th gave the Scottsdale Scorpions a 2-1 victory Wednesday night in the Arizona Fall League, extending the Glendale Desert Dogs' season-opening losing streak to seven straight.
The AFL uses several experimental rules, one of which places a baserunner on second base to start every extra inning and another which limits games to 11 innings. After Arquimedes Gamboa (Phillies) began the bottom of the 11th by advancing Andres Gimenez (Mets) to third base on a fly ball to right, Glendale left-hander Tyler Erwin intentionally walked C.J. Hinojosa (Giants), then issued free passes to pinch-hitter Austin Listi (Phillies) and Alonso (Mets) on four pitches each to end it.
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"I like the old-fashioned way better," Alonso said of the runner-on-second rule. "There's nothing like an 18-inning grinder game where you and your boys just have to battle through some adversity. I think there's nothing sweeter than that."
Though Alonso didn't get a chance to swing the bat to end the game, he has made the most of his opportunities in the first week of the AFL season. He's batting .385/.484/.692 through seven games and is tied for the league lead in homers (two) while ranking fourth in slugging and RBI (seven).
Alonso also thrived during the regular season, hitting .285/.395/.579 between Double-A and Triple-A while leading the Minors in homers (36) and RBI (119). He took some time off afterward, including a vacation to Cabo, and has continued to rake.
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Though he has played by far more games this year than any in the past, Alonso said his body and mind feel fresh and he's happy to get the opportunity for more action in the AFL.
"I like playing more games," said Alonso, a 2016 second-round pick out of Florida. "Playing every day, it's quick feedback, you can make quick adjustments . . . It's really nice because you can work on some of the things that didn't go right the night before or if you have a lot of good momentum going, it's easy to carry it out day to day."
Even with all of his success at the plate, Alonso said he's continuing to refine his offensive game by trying to improve his pitch selection and plate discipline. And while it's his bat that makes him baseball's best first-base prospect, he's working diligently to silence critics of his defense.
"The light went on in [Triple-A Las] Vegas," Alonso said. "Everything has really clicked and I'm really proud of all the work I've done. Since July through now, I've felt awesome. My improvements have been great and I'm just looking to keep building and stay consistent, keep this rolling so I can prove some people wrong."
Scottdale improved to 4-3, moving into a three-way tie for first place in the East Division. At 0-7, Glendale is two games short of the worst start in Fall League history (0-9 by the 2007 Scorpions) and three shy of the longest losing streak (10 by the 2008 Salt River Rafters).
The two teams managed just five hits apiece, with Desert Dogs center fielder Luis Alexander Basabe (White Sox) the only player to tally two hits. Both lefty starters, Glendale's Chris Lee (Orioles) and Scottsdale's Garrett Williams (Giants), twirled four scoreless innings apiece. Lee, who sat at 92-94 mph with his fastball against the Scorpions, tops the AFL with six scoreless innings in two starts.