Stockton Grizzlies - Wolverhampton Wolves
On the 28th of July the Grizzlies traveled over to the Wolverhampton Wolves to play their first league game after the All-star break.
The Grizzlies started out strong with lead off batter Ryan Mushinski singling to get on base, followed by consecutive walks from Ed Bird and League Debutant Chris Leykam to load the bases. It wasn’t long until the Grizzlies were on the board with Fin Jackson hitting a 2 RBI sacrifice fly to bring across both Mushinski and Bird. This lead was not long-lasting though, as Wolves managed to level the game in the bottom half of the inning, although pitcher Lu Choy was able to get out of the inning with a strikeout to leave the score tied at 2 a-piece going into the second
The second inning started with the Grizzlies struggling to find the hits and after a 1-2-3 inning they took to the field. The Wolves were able to get on top in the bottom of the 2nd, thanks in part to back-to-back Home Runs, leaving the Grizzlies down 9-2 heading into the 3rd.
With the Grizzlies down big, patience and getting on base would be key for the next inning. Leading off for the inning, Ryan Mushinski showed his patience and took a walk to start the Grizzlies off strong, before advancing to third thanks to some smart baserunning. Mushinski was then driven home by Bird, which was followed by another walk from Leykam, and when Carlos Nino was hit by a pitch, the bases were once again loaded. Bird was able to come home on a Sacrifice Groundout from Fin Jackson, before walks from Rob Norris and Luke Johnson saw Leykam cross the plate. The Grizzlies were then able to take advantage of the large backstop area, with Nino, Norris and Johnson all crossing on Passed Balls, leaving the score 9-8 entering the bottom half of the inning.
After a good effort from starting pitcher Lu Choy, manager Rob Norris decided to mix it up on the mound and brought on Nino to pitch. Carlos, in his first league pitching appearance, showed the Wolves what he was made of and only allowed one run to cross in the bottom half of the inning, leaving the score at the end of inning three 10-8 to the Wolves.
Two runs behind the Grizzlies had work to do and soon enough they were scoring runs in the top of the fourth inning, with Chris Leykam hitting a Ground Rule Double following a Bird lead-off walk. Carlos Nino then followed with a RBI single to bring Ed Bird home. The Grizzlies were able to wrest control, with a bases-loaded walk scoring Leykam, followed by back-to-back sacrifice groundouts to score Nino and Jackson, followed by Norris scoring and a single from Lu Choy. Ryan Mushinski then hit an RBI ground rule double which brought Lu home, before another big hit from Nino brought Ed Bird and Chris Leykam across the plate. The Grizzlies ended the top of the fourth inning with 10 runs added to the score, leaving the score 18-10 going into the bottom half of the inning
Back to the field, and the Wolves managed to squeeze two runs out of the Grizzlies in their half-inning, bringing the score back to 18-12. With the time limit rule in the league coming into effect it was announced there would be no new inning and the fifth inning would be the last.
With a 6 run advantage going into the final inning, the team knew what they needed to do. Despite this they weren’t able to get any runs on the board which meant that it was up to the team to defend the lead in the field.
The Grizzlies took the field and, after the first batter got on base, the Grizzlies were locked in, only allowing one run to cross the plate in the bottom half of the inning and shutting the rest of the batters down. The game ended with the Grizzlies on top, 18-13
Speaking with manager Rob Norris after the game, he said: “ A real team win, behind early to a really good team. We did what all good teams do and found a way to win”
This brings our record to 5-2 on the season, leaving us in second place in the East Division. The Grizzlies now look ahead to the next game on the 4th of August where they will be hosting the Leicester Blue Sox.
