Roller Coaster Ride: Coasters Walk off with Wild Win
Win: Kenn Kasparek (3-1)
Loss: Tyson Brummett (0-4)
Save: --
Attendance: 3,073
TOG: 3:09 (1:28 delay)
CURVE, Pa. - The Curve, playing as the Altoona Coasters for one night only, downed the New Hampshire Fisher Cats, 5-4, on Tuesday night at Peoples Natural Gas Field on an Adalberto Santos walk-off RBI single in the bottom of the tenth inning. The walk-off win, which is the third of the season for the Curve, extended the club's season-best winning streak to six games.
Justin Howard led off the bottom of the tenth with a hard single down the first base line that bounced off the glove of Clint Robinson. After Howard was replaced by pinch-runner Drew Maggi, Ngoepe singled on a bunt to put two on with no one out. Santos came to the plate two-batters later and ripped a single into center, scoring Maggi from second for the walk-off win.
The wild end of the game, which saw two ties and three lead changes in the last three innings--as well as a 1 hour, 28 minute rain delay--overshadowed starter David Bromberg's second consecutive overpowering showing. Altoona's starter struck out seven Fisher Cats over seven scoreless innings while allowing four hits and walking one. The quality start comes immediately after his twelve-strikeout, six-inning gem against New Britain last Wednesday.
Strong pitching and defense by both teams kept things scoreless for four-and-a-half innings, but the Curve capitalized in the fifth. After Jarek Cunningham flew out to right, Charlie Cutler tore a line drive down the right-field for a triple. On the next at-bat, Carlos Paulino blooped a single over shallow-playing shortstop Kevin Nolan to bring in Cutler for the 1-0 lead.
Both offenses were quiet until a flurry of back-and-forth scoring in the eighth and ninth innings. Fisher Cats centerfielder Kevin Pillar lead off the top of the eighth inning with a single into right. Ryan Schimpf then singled up the right field line, moving Pillar to third. A.J. Jimenez followed up with a line out to center field but Pillar tagged up and scored easily to tie the game after Gregory Polanco made the catch.
The Curve responded almost immediately in the suddenly lively game. After a Howard groundout and a Gift Ngoepe strikeout, Mel Rojas, Jr. singled into center. With one on and two out, Santos provided his first big hit of the night with a two-run homer that cleared the wall in left to put the Coasters back in front, 3-1.
New Hampshire struck back in the ninth inning to take a one-run lead following the heroics by Santos. Nolan singled to center and Curve reliever Jason Townsend then walked Adam Loewen. Brian Van Kirk then smashed a homer of his own over the left-field wall to score three runs and take a 4-3 lead. Altoona reliever Nate Baker struck out two Fisher Cats to close out the top of the inning.
Unfazed, Alex Dickerson led off the bottom of the ninth with a deep double that split the gap in right-center. Cunningham then ripped a deep drive to left that looked like it would clear the wall for a walk-off homer, but it fell just short into Loewen's glove. Dickerson was able to tag up and move to third on the play to put the go-ahead run 90 feet away with less than two outs. Andy Vasquez then hit a hard bouncing single up the middle on a draw-in infield, scoring Dickerson and tying the game at four. A Paulino line-out into a double play sent the game into extra innings.
Santos finished 2-for-5 with a homer and three RBI. Rojas, Jr., Ngoepe, and Cutler all finished with multi-hit games.
The Curve (31-37) will take on the Fisher Cats (33-37) at 7 p.m. on Wednesday at Peoples Natural Gas Field and look to match their best win streak of the 2012 season at seven games. Game two of the series will feature postgame fireworks on Cresson Community Night. The evening is also a 4-Pack Wednesday presented by Wally 103.9. Fans can purchase four tickets, four hot dogs, and four regular 22oz. sodas for $35.
Gates swing open at 6 p.m. while airtime on ESPN Radio 1430, WVAM and the Curve Radio Network is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. For tickets and more information on the current Curve homestand, call 877.99.CURVE, visit AtloonaCurve.com or stop by the ticket windows at Peoples Natural Gas Field.
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