By CODY LOVE
SYRACUSE, N.Y. — The Salt Cats got to close out their regular season home schedule with a celebration.
Chris McGee (Binghamton) led the way at the plate with two RBI singles as the Syracuse Salt Cats clinched the Eastern Division title with a 4-1 victory over the Syracuse Jr. Chiefs in New York Collegiate Baseball League action at Onondaga Community College on Thursday night.
Cortland’s loss to Oneonta before this game concluded made the Salt Cats first-place finish official
The Salt Cats led the division most of the way this season and righted the ship well after briefly dropping in the standings due to a four-game losing streak in late June.
“They earned it. They played hard every single day,” Salt Cats manager Mike Martinez said. “These guys deserve this right now, and I’m happy for them.”
In this game, the Salt Cats got on board first in the bottom of the second.
Matt Mastroianni (SUNY Oneonta) was hit by a pitch and stole second base.
McGee knocked him home with the first of his RBI singles, a line drive to right field.
“I just try to get pitches to hit, help my team win,” McGee said. “That’s all really.”
The Jr. Chiefs manufactured a tying run in the third, with Samuel Ellinwood (Amherst) leading things off with a single.
Justin Healy (Widener) bunted him over to second, then Michael Elfreth (Widener) knocked him in with an RBI single.
But the Salt Cats struck again in the fourth.
Brian Bilello (Concordia) led things off with a single, and he was bunted over to second by Mastroianni.
With Cameron Dias (Rutgers-Newark) at the plate, a wild pitch moved Bilello over to third.
After Dias walked, McGee hit another RBI single to give the Salt Cats the lead for good.
They added two more runs on RBI singles by Tim Hunter (Tyler JC) in the seventh, and Jose “Manny” Colon (Rutgers-Camden) in the eighth.
Charles “Chase” Davis (Northwestern College) started the game for the Salt Cats and recorded the win after a strong outing.
He lasted six innings, allowing one earned run on three hits and two walks, striking out two.
“I was just trying to get ahead of batters,” Davis said. “Luckily I had some good defensive plays behind me and it all worked out.”
James Wynne (Dean), typically a position player for the Jr. Chiefs, got his third start of the season and was charged with the loss.
He pitched well though, allowing three earned runs on seven hits and four walks. He struck out six in six and two thirds innings pitched.
Kyle Kuhr (Siena Heights) relieved Davis for two scoreless innings, allowing one hit, one walk and striking out one.
Kyle Taylor (Gloucester County College) came on for the ninth and got the save, also allowing a hit and recording one strikeout.
Elfreth was 3-for-3 for the Jr. Chiefs.
Dias, Hunter, and McGee all went 2-for-3 for the Salt Cats.
This is the first division title in franchise history for the Salt Cats.
The team has been tight-knit from game one, and the players credit that as part of what helped them accomplish so much in the regular season.
“There’s no better group of guys than these guys,” McGee said. “No better feeling than this.”
“Life’s good right now,” Davis said. “Love the guys.”
Now, they are looking ahead to the playoffs.
“We’re going to go win in the playoffs and try to win the whole thing,” Martinez said.
The Jr. Chiefs’ hold on the fourth and final playoff spot became more vulnerable with this loss.
The fifth-place Geneva Red Wings won against Sherrill and now sit half a game out of fourth with two games in hand.
“We’ve got to dig deep,” Jr. Chiefs manager Matt Colbert said. “Do everything that we can to put ourselves in good position to make the playoffs…it looks like we’re going to need a little help.”
The Jr. Chiefs (23-22) will host the Salt Cats (29-16) in the regular season finale for both teams.
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