By Alicia Daddario
SYRACUSE, NY — Carlos Guzman (Molloy) stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the ninth with the bases loaded and ripped a two-run single for a 7-6 Syracuse Salt Cats walk off victory over the Syracuse Jr. Chiefs in New York Collegiate Baseball League action at Rockwell Field, Monday.
Not only did the Salt Cats take the victory away from the Jr. Chiefs, they officially clinched a spot in the playoffs as the Geneva Twins helped out with a win.
Guzman was undoubtedly the hero of the game. He was 0-5 going into the ninth. After the win, Guzman was feeling much better about the day,
“I feel good. I was having a rough game up until that point,” Guzman said about a controversial interference call at first base. “Well I guess I just used it to drive me. I was pretty angry about that call, but it feels good to finally just get a hit.”
Second in command to Guzman was the Salt Cats’ shortstop, Anthony Massicci (Canisius). He has had a hot bat as of late and Monday night was no exception. Massicci collected three hits and three RBI, along with scoring the tying run on the Guzman game-winning single. In his last four games, Massicci is 8-for-15, four of those were for extra base hits. He was a monumental piece in the victory against the Jr. Chiefs.
It was a back and forth affair, eventually won by the Salt Cats.
“For the whole season, we’ve been on the back end of those one run games late that we’re up. ” Head coach Mike Martinez said about Monday’s game. “Today, we weren’t up late going into the ninth and we finally got a break and we won one. The guys, I told them, we put in the work, we win the game. These guys are responsible baseball players that put in the work and win.”
Coach Martinez had plenty to say about his All-Star center fielder, and rightfully so. Guzman leads the league hits and batting average, an accomplishment to be proud of. Plus, being able to get one of those hits when his team needed it the most certainly raises his chances of winning the Player of the Year award.
“This is why he (Guzman) is the NYCBL Player of the Year. He hit a ball with two strikes, bases loaded. When it was down and out time and he hit the ball where it’s supposed to be hit as a good baseball player. That’s what NYCBL Players of the Year do.”
Zach Tucker (le Moyne)took the mound for the Salt Cats facing off against Austin Munn (Ave Maria) of the Jr. Chiefs. Tucker gave up six hits for four runs, and struck out three. His control was a little off, as he walked six batters throughout four innings.
The Jr. Chiefs struck first in the top of the second when first baseman Brian Burns (Itahca) and catcher Gabe Levanti (Virginia Tech) got on board with singles. Baldwinsville native Connor Martin (Clarkson) took advantage of runners on base with a two-run double, scoring Burns and Levanti for the 2-0 lead.
The Salt Cats answered back with two runs of their own in the bottom of the third. Right fielder Cristian Fiorito (Concordia) started things off with a one-out infield hit followed by a Colton Montgomery (Georgia Coll & St. U) single to left field. Both Fiorito and Montgomery made their way home thanks to two wild pitches from Munn.
The Jr. Chiefs tacked on another run in the top of the fourth, as Tucker issued four consecutive walks forcing in a run. Great defense by Salt Cat catcher Nolan Schultz (U of R) prevented any further damage. Bases loaded for Connor Mathis (Mt. Union), who grounded into a 3-2-3 double play which ended the inning without allowing another run to score.
In the bottom half of the fourth, the Cats would take the lead for the first time. Bud Morton (Southern) earned a one-out walk. Montgomery was able to reach first base safely on a dropped third strike, putting runners on the corners for third baseman Mike DeCarr (SUNY Cortland). The All-Star infielder hit an RBI single , easily scoring was Morton. Massicci ripped his second double of the game, this time for two RBI as Montgomery and DeCarr crossed the plate.
Salt Cats led 5-3 after four innings.
The Jr. Chiefs scored a run in the fifth on a solo home run by Noel Garcia (Northwood), knocking Tucker out of the game. Kyle Cushman (Onondaga CC) relieved the starter for three strong innings, with one mistake. Cushman gave up a two run homer to Mathis, which gave the Chiefs a 6-5 lead. Connor Nolan (Le Moyne) finished the game for the Cats, earning the win.
Things were looking bleak for the Salt Cats as they went four scoreless innings. They had one more chance to tie or win the game came in the bottom of the ninth. The offensive spark came off the smoking bat of Massicci with his third hit of the night. Up next, Zach Carlino (Mt. Union) battled and cleverly reached base on a bunt single. Ben Sawyer (Alvernia) did his job as he successfully moved the runners up a base to set things up for Schultz.
Instead of pitching to the number nine hitter Schultz, Zach Connelly (univ of Tampa), and the Jr. Chiefs decided to intentionally walk Schultz to face Guzman with the bases loaded. Guzman worked the count to 0-2 before slapping the ball past the third baseman into left field for the 7-6 walk-off win, scoring Massicci and pinch runner Tucker Starkey (Ave Maria).
Guzman described the pitch that gave the Salt Cats a victory, “It was fast ball, up and away. I was just thinking put the bat on the ball. So I was just looking for anything.”
With this timely win, the Syracuse Salt Cats defeated their city rival the Jr. Chiefs and have officially secured a playoff spot in the NYCBL. Tuesday will be the last day of regular season baseball for the Syracuse Salt Cats and with the playoff pressure relieved, will host the Oneonta Outlaws. These two ball clubs will finish a suspended game from earlier in the season and play the scheduled contest at 5 pm.
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