SYRACUSE, NY — The Syracuse Salt Cats snapped a three-game losing streak with a 12-4 win against the Sherrill Silversmiths, who were in town for a nine inning game at LeMoyne College. The Salt Cats had previously lost two straight to the Geneva Twins on Sunday and suffered a 16-7 loss to the Syracuse Jr. Chiefs earlier in the afternoon.
Even though the game was played at Rockwell Stadium, the Salt Cats were the away team in this match-up. Patrick Boyle (Wooster) got the start against the Jr. Chiefs but only went three innings, giving up five hits, nine runs, walked three and struck out four. Unfortunately the bullpen did not help as Lou Liberatore (Molloy) entered the game in the fourth, allowing four runs on four hits. Landon Holifield (Fort Scott CC) gave up three more runs.
Coach Martinez kept his players motivated and gave them advice on how to mentally approach the second game after a tough loss:
“You know, these guys are college baseball players. They go through it everyday. They’ve been playing everyday since they were eight years old. So we lose one, we gotta come back and win and play and just do the X’s and O’s. If we hit, play defense, and we pitch and we make some plays, we’re good.”
On the bright side, Salt Cat catcher Kyle Feazell (Louisiana College) found his swing as he knocked a 2 run shot out of the park in the bottom of the third. It was not enough for the Salt Cats to win, as they fell to the Jr. Chiefs 16-7. The game was sloppy to say the least, as the Cats committed six errors and the Chiefs had five themselves.
The physical mistakes for the Cats continued a little bit in the second game against the Silversmiths but so did Feazell’s and the rest of the Salt Cat offense. Dan Szathmary (Georgia Coll & St. U.) pitched a great game, getting his second win while only giving up three runs on four hits.
After trailing 2-0 going into the bottom of the first, All-Star center fielder Carlos Guzman (Molloy) started things off with a single. Bud Morton (Southern) followed with a bunt single, that moved Guzman to third. Morton successfully stole second, setting the table for third baseman Mike DeCarr (SUNY Cortland). The All-Star came through with a base hit, driving in the first run of the game for the Salt Cats. Colton Montgomery (Georgia Coll & St. U.) sent a double to the outfield, scoring Morton and DeCarr. Salt Cats led 3-2 after one and would never look back.
Syracuse scored another run in the bottom of the second after Mike Mascari (SUNY Oswego) reached on an error by the first baseman and would eventually be driven in on a RBI single by Morton. Moving on to the third inning, DeCarr earned a walk and attempted to score after a Montgomery double but was called out at the plate. Montgomery crossed home plate on a wild pitch by Silversmith pitcher Edward Zakrzewski. Following the out, another Salt Cat All-Star, Zach Carlino (Mt. Union), walked and right fielder Tucker Starkey (Ave Maria) was hit by a pitch. Anthony Massicci (Canisius) drove in Carlino, giving the Cats a 6-3 lead of Sherrill.
The Salt Cats went scoreless in the fourth but explode for four runs in the bottom of the fifth. Starkey went to first on a walk. Massicci used his speed to beat out a throw and secure an infield single. Mascari singled to the right fielder whose error allowed Starkey to score. Feazell came to the plate with two men on. He rocketed the ball over the fence in center field for a three-run shot. Feazell did not attribute his low batting average to struggling at the plate, rather it is about being able to find the gaps for hits,
“I’ve been struggling trying to get a hit but I haven’t been struggling at the plate. I’ve been hitting the ball hard, I just finally found a hole.”
The second game was much kinder to the Salt Cat bullpen as Sean Pisik (Ursinus), Ray Messner (Ave Maria) and Bo Watson (St. Bonaventure) combined for four innings of work, three hits, one run and six strikeouts. The Salt Cats tacked on two insurance runs in the seventh. Guzman singled to right field for his second hit of the game. Morton and DeCarr also make their way on the base paths due to walks. Guzman and Morton would score the final two runs of the game and the Salt Cats prove to be victorious.
Syracuse will have the day off as it is the 4th of July but will be right back on the baseball diamond Friday, July fifth as they host a doubleheader against the Oneonta Outlaws. Games are at 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. at LeMoyne College.
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