The Clippers stole the final game of their road series against the Louisville Bats today by a final score of 5-3. With the win, the Clippers also took the series two games to one.Starter Adam Wilk gave his team all they could ask of him for six and two-thirds innings,
The Clippers stole the final game of their road series against the Louisville Bats today by a final score of 5-3. With the win, the Clippers also took the series two games to one.
Starter Adam Wilk gave his team all they could ask of him for six and two-thirds innings, overcoming two early hits in the first that cost him his only two runs.
In that first inning, it looked as though each of the Bats' first two hitters, Mason Williams and Nick Senzel, would be out on fly balls to right, but gusts of wind turned them into hits. Unfortunately for Wilk, groundouts by Sebastian Elizalde and D.J. Peterson would score both runners to make it 2-0.
It wasn't until the fifth inning that the Clippers cracked Louisville starter Jackson Stephens. Yu Chang led off the frame with a double and was pushed to third on a groundout, before being scored by Richie Shaffer on a groundout of his own.
Down 2-1, the Clippers rallied once more in the seventh. Brandon Barnes led off with a double and swiped second base. Two batters failed to advance Barnes, but with two outs, Shaffer laced a double down the left field line to score Barnes from second and tie the game at 2-2.
Wilk continued to deal into the seventh inning and was relieved by Jordan Milbrath for the final out.
In his six and two-thirds innings, Wilk allowed just the two runs on four hits, while walking three and fanning seven.
The Bats came out with a vengeance in the eighth, as they started the inning with a single from Elizalde and a Peterson double off Milbrath. With runners on second and third, Phil Gosselin lifted a fly ball to left, scoring Elizalde and regaining the lead at 3-2.
The Clippers weren't deflated, though, as Mike Papi cranked a solo homerun to right with one out in the ninth off Bats reliever Jimmy Herget to knot the game at 3-3.
Shaffer then walked and Adam Rosales singled to set up another scoring chance, but the Clippers couldn't capitalize and headed to the bottom of the ninth tied.
Louisville couldn't come through in their half of the ninth, so the two teams headed to extra innings.
Greg Allen started the tenth on second base for Columbus, per the new minor league extra innings rule, and proceeded to swipe third. With nobody out, Jon Berti popped a ball up into shallow center and Allen used his speed to scurry home for a 4-3 lead.
Eric Haase followed Berti's sacrifice fly with a triple, giving the Clippers an opportunity to extend their lead. Brandon Barnes capitalized, shooting a double off the top of the left field wall to score Haase and extend the lead to 5-3.
Cole Sulser closed things out for Columbus in the bottom of the tenth, earning the 5-3 win, the 2-1 series win and his first save of the season.
The Clippers will come home tomorrow to face off against the Charlotte Knights in game one of a four game series at Huntington Park. First pitch is scheduled for 6:35 p.m.
