By Justin Lada
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Syracuse Salt Cats have been the comeback kids of the New York Collegiate Baseball League of late, but they found themselves trying to climb out of a hole even too big for their bats on Tuesday. After out-slugging the Sherrill Silversmiths last week, the Salt Cats dropped their second straight to the Smitties, losing 12-8 on Tuesday at Le Moyne College.
For the second straight day it was a rocky start for the Salt Cats starting pitcher. Sean Gavin (Colorado State-Pueblo) made his first start of the season, after making five relief appearances. A wild pitch in the first inning after allowing a leadoff infield single to Brad Kaczka put the Salt Cats down 1-0.
Gavin battled back and put up a zero on the board in the second inning, allowing the Salt Cats to tie it up thanks to back-to-back singles from Jimmy Napolitano (Rutgers-Newark) and Ethan Braddock (St. Lawrence).
Things got away from Gavin in the third inning, allowing a line drive three-run bomb to Wes VanBoom with one out, making it 4-1 Smitties. A wild pitch from Gavin allowed Matt Mazzara to score Sherrill’s fifth run.
After four innings the Salt Cats found themselves down 7-1, very similar to their game against the Geneva Red Wings on Monday night.
Solo home runs by Dan Fiorito (Manhantanville College) and Kevin Bailey (Alvernia University), their fifth and first respectively, brought the Salt Cats back to 7-3.
Back-to-back doubles in eighth by Jake Cintolo (Suffolk University) and Bailey plated three more runs, but the Salt Cats bullpen was not untouchable like it was on Monday.
Zach Sutherland (University of Pikeville) came in and had a solid inning and a half before the wheels fell off on his second relief appearance of the season. The lefty was ultimately touched up for four runs in his five innings of work, walking three and striking out a pair.
VanBooom struck again on Sutherland, singled in a pair of Silversmiths in the sixth inning. Byron Campbell also reached Sutherland for a two-run blast in the eighth inning, the last batter he faced.
Lou Libertore (Malloy College) was charged with one run in the ninth, after Bo Watson (Onondaga CC/St. Bonaventure) walked in a run with the bases loaded. Watson was the only Salt Cats reliever who wasn’t charged with an earned run.
Bud Morton (Moorehead State) walked to start the ninth, stole second, reached third on a throwing error when VanBoom attempted to throw him out at second. Morton later scored on a wild pitch, but it was all the Salt Cats could muster in the ninth inning.
The Salt Cats will get two days off before a showdown with their cross-town rivals, the Syracuse Jr. Chiefs at Gillette Field at 5pm.
Mike La Londe (Hiram College) will make his fifth start of the season for the Salt Cats.
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Sherrill 1 0 4 2 0 2 0 2 1 - 12 14 4
SYR Salt Cats 0 1 0 0 0 2 2 2 1 – 8 10 2
2B–M.Weakley (4), M.Mazzara (1), N.Flemister (3), J.Cintolo (5), K.Bailey
(5). HR–B.Campbell (6), W.Van Boom (1), D.Fiorito (5), K.Bailey (1).
RBI–B.Kaczka (16), B.Campbell 3 (27), W.Van Boom 5 (15), D.Fiorito (19),
J.Cintolo (15), K.Bailey 2 (13), T.Kirwan (2). HP–B.Kaczka (3), D.Fiorito
(3). SF–T.Kirwan (2). SB–H.Hibberd (1), T.Hackett 2 (5), A.Mederios 2
(7), B.Morton 3 (12). CS–M.Mazzara (1). E–B.Kaczka 2 (13), W.Van Boom
(5), M.Mazzara (1), E.Charles (3), K.Bailey (2).
LOB–Sherrill 8, SYR Salt Cats 11.
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