Seven-Run Ninth Inning Salvages Series for Pelicans

By Sam Weiderhaft

The seven runs marked a new season-high for the Pelicans for runs in an inning

Going into the ninth inning tied 3-3, the Myrtle Beach Pelicans exploded for seven runs to earn a series tie against the Columbia Fireflies with a 10-6 win on Sunday night, With the victory, the Birds snap a three-game losing streak and move to 21-26 on the season. The Pelicans also won six of seven games played on Sundays this year. The Fireflies drop to 25-19 with the loss.

A pair of late home runs pushed the Pelicans over the edge in the eighth and ninth innings. Matt Mervis (2-4, HR, 2B, 3 RBI) hit a solo homer in the eighth to tie the game at three to follow his two-run double in the third inning. Jacob Wetzel (1-5, HR, 3 RBI) smacked a three-run homer over the right-field wall to give the Pelicans a 6-3 lead in the ninth inning for his third of the year. Yohendrick Pinango (2-4, 2 R) and Fabian Pertuz (2-4, 2B, RBI) also picked up multi-hit performances.

While Myrtle Beach walked a season-high 12 batters, six pitchers limited the Fireflies to six hits for the evening with Bailey Reid (2-3) taking the win after tossing the seventh inning and striking out the side. Jake Reindl earned his first save by retiring the final batter to end the game.

Columbia’s Darryl Collins (3-4, 2 RBI) followed up his walk-off grand slam from last night with a three-hit game including a pair of RBI singles. He also stole his fifth base of the season. Herard Gonzalez (2-3, 2B, 2 RBI) brought home two runs including an RBI double in the ninth.

Nathan Webb (0-1) blew the save and took the loss after sacrificing five earned runs in the ninth inning off two hits. Starter Rylan Kaufman went just under three innings, giving up two earned runs off three hits with three walks and two strikeouts.

The visitors got the scoring started as Myrtle Beach put up a pair of runs to take an early lead in their half of the third. Flemin Bautista worked a one-out walk and moved to second on a fielder’s choice by Pinango where he also reached base to put runners on first and second. Mervis came up and rocked a double to left-center field that scored both runs and gave the Birds a 2-0 lead.

Columbia responded with their first run in the bottom half. Pelicans’ starter Adam Laskey walked the bases loaded with one out and gave up another walk to Kale Emshoff on a 3-2 count to bring home Tyler Tolbert. Laskey walked six for the game, a season-high for a Pelicans pitcher.

Both teams went scoreless until the Fireflies took their first lead of the game in the seventh. Rubendy Jaquez walked to lead-off the inning against Birds’ pitcher Gabriel Jaramillo, and he was replaced by Jeremiah Estrada. With the new arm, Estrada walked the following two batters to load the bases up once again with nobody out. Gonzalez came up next and lifted a sacrifice fly to right field that scored Jaquez to tie the game at two. Tolbert struck out swinging, but Collins picked up his first RBI with a single back up the middle to score Gage Hughes and give the home team the lead.

Matt Mervis led off the eighth inning by smashing a 3-2 pitch from Webb over the batter’s eye in center field to tie the game at three. Reid entered the game out of the bullpen for Myrtle Beach and struck out the side, giving the momentum back to the Pelicans entering the ninth.

The final frame was a wild one for both teams. Ethan Hearn walked to start it off for the Pelicans and was replaced on first base by Jordan Nwogu. Yeison Santana made it two walks in a row and both runners moved into scoring position from a passed ball by Fireflies’ catcher Omar Hernandez. With a 1-2 count, Wetzel lifted a home run to right field to put the Birds back in the lead at 6-3. The scoring wasn’t over, as Pinango walked with one out as Webb’s last batter. Marlin Willis entered the game and walked Mervis to put two runners on. Both runners stole second and third, and Jonathan Sierra hit a ball to first base that got by Matthew Schmidt on an error and scored both runs as Sierra got to third. Pertuz came up two batters later and doubled to left field that scored Sierra and made it a 9-3 lead for Myrtle Beach. The scoring was capped off with Pertuz moving to third on a single from Nwogu and coming home on a wild pitch from Willis. The seven-run inning is the most runs scored by the Pelicans in a single inning this season.

Jose Moreno came out of the bullpen to close things out for the Pelicans in the home half. Hughes singled to lead it off but was thrown out at third after trying to advance on a wild pickoff attempt from Moreno. Schmidt drew a walk to put a runner back on base, and Gonzalez doubled to center field to bring him home. Tolbert lined out to bring Columbia to their final chance. Collins then brought home his second run of the game with a single to make it 10-5. Juan Carlos Negret and Kale Emshoff were both hit by a pitch to load the bases and bring the tying run to the on-deck circle. After a mound visit from Birds’ pitching coach Clayton Mortensen, Hernandez walked on a full count to bring in another run. With the tying run now at the plate, Reindl entered the game and forced Jaquez to ground out to short to end the game.