By Justin Lada
AUBURN, N.Y. — The drive to the playoffs has almost reached its peak, and the Syracuse Salt Cats are still pushing their hopes to the top of the hill. After splitting a double header with the Adirondack Trailblazers on Monday, with a 5-2 win and an 11-8 loss, the Salt Cats will need a little help to reach the playoff mountain.
Maso Cotton (Virginia State University) pitched like he wanted to experience the Salt Cats first playoff appearance in franchise history. The right hander from New Jersey picked up his second win of the season, throwing 5.1 solid innings, allowing two runs on seven hits while walking three and striking out two.
Through the first four innings, Cotton was efficient and left with two runners on in the sixth inning, leaving his lead in the hands of the reliable Kyle Cushman (Onondaga CC). Cushman allowed a walk to load the bases but got the final two outs of the sixth inning.
Bo Watson (St. Bonaventure) closed out the 5-2 win in game one for the Salt Cats for his third save.
Eddie Charles (Oswego State) delivered the big blow in the fifth inning.
Trailing 2-1 thanks to RBI singles by Adirondack’s Kenny May and Dezmon Nunn in the fourth and fifth innings respectively, Charles blasted a two run shot into the scoreboard above the left field wall at Falcon park, giving the Salt Cats a 3-2 edge.
Charles would come up with an RBI single in the sixth inning, putting the Salt Cats fifth run on the board, giving them plenty of cushion for the game one win.
In game two, the Salt Cats came out with their hair or bats on fire. Ten hitters came to the plate, plating six runs.
Dan Fiorito (Manhantanville College) doubled in Andrew Medeiros (Westfield State) who walked to lead off the game. Kevin Bailey (Alvernia University) singled in Fiorito. Tyler Kirwan (UMass-Boston) followed two batters later with an RBI single, and Mike Mascari (Oswego State) and Medeiros singled in a pair of runs to put the Salt Cats ahead big early.
A pair of Trail Blazers errors in the third plated two more Salt Cats runs, giving them an 8-0 lead with nine outs to go.
However, those nine outs were not enough for the pitching staff to stave off the Trailblazers, who are getting amped up for their first playoff appearance in the franchise’s first year of existence after moving from Rome.
John Mildner (UMass-Amherst) had a no hitter through the first three innings of his first start of the summer. He allowed two hits and four straight walks in the fourth, forcing in three Tblazers runs.
Mildner didn’t come out for the fifth, but did leave with a chance to win. Sean Gavin (Colorado State-Pueblo) and Lou Libertore (Malloy College) couldn’t hang on to it. The Salt Cats bullpen had seemingly lost their control and then proceeded to lose their lead.
Gavin faced three batters, walked two and hit one. All three eventually scored in the fifth. Libertore recorded two outs, but walked two and allowed two base hits, having two runs charged to his line, the final one trying the game at 8-8, a two run single at the hands of Eric Baker.
The Salt Cats would turn to Cushman to finish the fifth and try to ride his curveball until they could put up more runs.
Cushman would get them out of the fifth and cruised through the sixth, but ran out of steam by the seventh inning.
The seventh batter Cushman faced in the double header was Evon Previte, who was making his first plate appearance for the Trailblazers, after being a pitcher all season.
Previte took Cushman deep over the scoreboard in left-center field in his first 2012 NYCBL at bat. Alex Simone hit a two run home run later in the inning off Cushman, giving the Tblazers an 11-8 lead.
After Watson finally ended the Adirondack seventh, the Salt Cats loaded the bases with two outs off of Adirondack closer, Geoffrey Soja. They wound up leaving the bags loaded and their playoff hopes in the hands of other teams.
The Salt Cats have a double leader with the Syracuse Jr. Chiefs tomorrow and their main competition, the Sherrill Silversmiths will see the Jr. Chiefs on Wednesday and Thursday. In order to hang on to the fourth and final spot, the Salt Cats must sweep the double header tomorrow and need the Silversmiths to lose out, or win one, which at the moment, creates a tie which is unprecedented with no decision on how that would play out.
The Red Wings with another win tonight, are in good position to take the third spot, and will pick up at least one more win against the for now, inactive Utica Brewers team.
The Salt Cats will send out Joe Riley (St. Lawrence) and (Mike La Londe (Hiram College) in hopes of keeping their playoff chances alive at 4pm and 7pm respectively.
Follow the Salt Cats on twitter for all in-game updates or on Facebook for pictures, stories and more.
Adirondack 0 0 0 1 1 0 0 – 2 6 3
SYR Salt Cats 0 0 1 0 2 2 x – 5 8 1
2B–A.Simone (7), D.Fiorito (5), C.Thompson (6). HR–E.Charles (3).
RBI–D.Nunn (9), K.May (18), E.Charles 3 (20). HP–C.Campbell (4).
SH–E.Braddock (0). SB–D.Nunn (13), K.May (8), J.Anderson (2), A.Mederios
(10), E.Charles (11). CS–D.Nunn (2), K.May (3), N.Carlson (2).
E–C.Matheson (12), C.Campbell (2), J.Anderson (2), C.Thompson (9).
LOB–Adirondack 7, SYR Salt Cats 7.
Adirondack 0 0 0 3 5 0 3 - 11 6 2
SYR Salt Cats 6 0 2 0 0 0 0 - 8 11 1
2B--D.Fiorito (6). HR--E.Previte (1), A.Simone (2). RBI--E.Baker 2 (31),
B.McLaughlin (15), E.Previte (1), M.Robinson (10), D.Cecilia (1), D.Nunn 2
(11), A.Simone 2 (12), A.Mederios 2 (24), D.Fiorito (28), T.Kirwan (4),
J.Napolitano (16), C.Gapski 2 (7). HP--C.Campbell (6), B.Morton (2).
SB--E.Baker (10), D.Nunn 2 (15), A.Simone (2), A.Mederios (11), B.Morton
(14). CS--D.Nunn 2 (4). E--E.Baker (1), D.Cecilia (1), T.Kirwan (5).
LOB--Adirondack 5, SYR Salt Cats 8.
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