Balk, Bomb, Ballgame: Dash Take Wild One in Extras

GREENVILLE, SC – A tension-filled top of the tenth delivered Winston-Salem (5-7) their first extra-innings victory of the season. Greenville (4-7) couldn’t complete the comeback after a five-run ninth, as the Dash held on to take game three by an 8-6 final.

On a night when extra innings seemed improbable, that was exactly what the Dash got. After a five-run ninth inning from Greenville, the 5,200 fans at Fluor Field at the West End got free baseball – and newfound energy to go along with it.

The Drive brought in Albert Feliz, an outfielder by trade, to pitch. It was the right-hander's first appearance of the young year.

With Caden Connor on second and Alec Makarewicz in the box to open the tenth, Feliz fired to the plate, but it wasn’t a ball or a strike; instead, it was a balk.

Connor advanced to third.

Feliz re-toed the rubber and fired to the plate.

“Balk.”

Yelled out home plate umpire David Saball with his finger pointed to the plate. The Dash had taken the 6-5 lead on back-to-back balks – the bat had not moved from Makarewicz’s shoulder.

After Makarewicz drew a walk, Jeral Perez jumped on an 0–1 pitch and launched it over the left-field wall to give Winston-Salem an 8–5 cushion.

The long ball would prove to be the game-winner.

The insurance from the longball was the run support that the Dash and closer Connery Peters needed to secure the 8-6 win. Peters picked up his first win of the season.

Winston-Salem had led from the jump. Ryan Galanie’s 3rd homerun of the year gave the Dash the 2-0 lead on the second batter of the game. Galanie then drove in the game's third run with a triple in the second. Then in the sixth, the Dash poured on two more. Samuel Zavala tripled and drove in Cole McConnell, then the next batter, Sam Antonacci, doubled and brought the Dash centerfielder around to score from third.

The Dash were dominant all night, until the Drive found another gear in the ninth inning. Until that point, the Dash had all but closed the book on their second straight victory when Phil Fox took the mound with a five-run lead.

In the home side of the ninth, Greenville pieced together five runs on six hits to tie the game at 5-5. Drive second baseman, Fraymi De Leon, produced the fireworks and snapped a 0-18 stretch with a double that tied the game. Greenville would even load the bases later in the inning, but left all three runners aboard on a Marvin Alcantara ground out.

In the end, Jared Kelley picked up his first win on the heels of the three-run tenth. The Dash will look to make it three in a row Friday, April 18.