Columbus, OH- The Toledo Mud Hens (17-16) were topped at the Columbus Clippers (17-16) on Sunday, May 3, in the final game of a Triple-A battle of Ohio. Defense was sharp on the diamond, but the Hens were only able to earn four hits against the Clippers pitching staff, resulting in a 6-3 series finale loss.
Ben Malgeri stepped up to the plate first, coming into the day with 7 RBI in the series; he grounded out to the left, followed by another from Zach McKinstry. Gage Workman flew one out to end the inning.
Tanner Rainey started on the mound for the Hens after closing out last night’s matchup, a feat that is almost unheard of in the sport. He walked his first batter faced; then Columbus popped a double to set up the first run of the game, that came in from a groundout. (1-0) Workman acted quick to keep the solo run from becoming more.
A 1-2-3-inning quickly ended it for the Hens in the second. Rainey’s one-inning day came to a close when Eric Silva stepped in from the bullpen. Silva struck one out to retire the opponent.
Neither team tallied a hit in the third. In the fourth, Gage Workman recorded a two-out double, the first hit of the day for Toledo. Tyler Gentry sent a single up the middle to score Workman and tied the game. (1-1) Back-to-back strikeouts from Silva helped the score stay knotted.
Matt Seelinger was the third arm on the mound for the Hens, following Silva’s three-inning no-hitter Triple-A debut. The Clippers jumped ahead in the bottom half of five on an RBI-single. (2-1)
After falling victim to six straight put outs, Toledo stayed behind through seven. Columbus extended its lead to three with an RBI-double in the sixth and solo homer in the seventh. (4-1) Following the given up home run, Drew Sommers struck out three in a row.
Tomás Nido was the first leadoff Mud Hen to reach base at the top of the eighth. Burt got drilled by a pitch, shifting both runners up a base, then again on a wild pitch. Nido and Burt came home from a fielding error, which closed the gap to one. (4-3) A defensive double play ended the late game rally.
Luke Ritter was named pinch-runner for McKinstry in the eighth, he stayed in to play second base and Workman swapped to short stop. Columbus added a final pair of runs in the stanza, re-extending its lead. (3-6) The contest concluded after eight and a half innings of hard-fought baseball.
Toledo returns to Fifth Third Field on Tuesday, May 5, at 6:05p.m., looking to open a new series vs. Memphis with a win.
Notables
G. Workman – 2/4, 1R, 0K
T. Gentry – 1/4, 1RBI, 0K
E. Silva – 3.0IP, 0H, 0R, 0ER, 2BB, 3K