O'Hearn Homer Extends Winning Streak

Ryan O’Hearn felt he had been taking good cuts all night.

Through four at-bats, however, he had nothing to show for it.

The payoff eventually came for the slugger in his final swing. O’Hearn ripped a 2-0 pitch from Iowa’s Ryan Meisinger over the wall in right field to give Omaha a 5-3 walk-off win Tuesday at Werner Park.

The victory was the ninth in a row for the Storm Chasers (17-7), who haven’t dropped a game since a May 21 loss in Des Moines. Iowa (9-14), meanwhile, hasn’t won since and fell for the ninth straight time.

O’Hearn came to the plate with a runner at second and two down. He was sitting on a pitch to drive.

“The guy’s got a good slider. I was looking for a slider the whole time, especially with a base open there,” the first baseman said. “I thought they would either put me on or not throw anything close when it got to 2-0 there. I stuck to the plan, looked for a slider, he hung it and it was a good swing.

“I was feeling sexy up there all night and no hits to show for it. I’m glad I got to get that fifth AB.”

Prior to his final at-bat, O’Hearn had flown out twice to center, got caught looking once and lined a ball to Iowa shortstop Dee Strange-Gordon during a three-run Chasers third with runners on the corners.

“I don’t know what it is,” he said. “I’m Irish. I’m supposed to have some luck, but it just hasn’t worked out that way lately.”

Tuesday’s game was O’Hearn’s third since returning to Omaha from Kansas City, where he’d seen action in 20 games this season but wasn’t playing every day. He knows that won’t be the case with the Chasers.

“It’s nice to get at-bats every day, for sure,” he said. “When I was in K.C. this year, just because of the lineup and the way the roster was, I didn’t get consistent ABs. It’s nice to come down here and get consistent ABs and join a team that’s won I don’t know how many in a row. This is a good Triple-A club – better than any Omaha team that I’ve been on over the years. It’s really fun to play with these guys.”

The Chasers called upon their bullpen again Tuesday after starter Ronald Bolaños exited after the first inning. Scott Blewett, in a rare relief appearance, chewed up four innings and Eddie Butler pitched two. Domingo Tapia handled the eighth inning, then Gabe Speier tossed a scoreless ninth to pick up the win.

Omaha answered a two-run third by the Cubs by scoring three times in the bottom of that inning. Ryan McBroom had a run-scoring single and then scored himself on a bases-loaded walk by Sebastian Rivero.

The Chasers held on to that 3-2 advantage until Trayce Thompson’s solo shot in the sixth tied the score.

Alcides Escobar, who started a highlight-reel double play with a backhanded flip from his glove in the sixth, opened the Omaha ninth with his third single of the night. He was thrown out at second following a sacrifice attempt by Kyle Isbel, who then advanced to second on a balk. An out later, O’Hearn ended it.

“It’s nice to get ABs every day and it’s nice to end today on a good note, especially after four ABs where I felt really comfortable and was taking aggressive, quality swings,” he said. “Nothing was dropping.”