RAPTORS WASTE STRONG START, TWO HOMERS IN WALK-OFF LOSS

GRAND JUNCTION, CO - Home runs by Andy Pages and Marco Hernandez and five hitless innings from new pitcher Juan Morillo weren't enough for the Ogden Raptors to keep their winning ways alive, as they dropped a 4-3 decision in walk-off fashion to the Grand Junction Rockies Friday night.
Pages hit a blast over the wall in left on the first pitch of the ballgame, his 13^th homer of the season, and drove in a run in the second on a sacrifice fly. Those two runs were all the Raptors picked up in the first seven innings despite nine hits (eight in the first five frames).
On the mound, Juan Morillo, recently promoted from the AZL Dodgers, was masterful. He retired the first eight Rockies batters before issuing a walk and didn't allow a single hit through five innings.
In the sixth, however, Morillo hit the leadoff batter with an 0-2 pitch. He retired the next two and got ahead of the Grand Junction cleanup hitter, also 0-2, but hung an offering that was smashed to center for an RBI double, the hosts' first hit of the game. Corey Merrill entered and gave up a game-tying double before getting out of the inning without further damage.
Andrew Shaps, who is being converted to a two-way player, made his first professional appearance on the mound with a 1-2-3 seventh. That set up Hernandez to lead off the eighth with a solo homer to right to put Ogden back in front, 3-2.
In the home half of the eighth, the Rockies used a leadoff walk and bunt single to put the tying run in scoring position. A sacrifice bunt attempt was popped up, but the Raptors failed to double up the runner well off second base. A few pitches later, the runner broke for third on a ball in the dirt. Hernandez threw wide of the bag and into left field, allowing the tying run to score.
With one out in the ninth, the Rockies used two singles and a walk to load the bases. A deep fly ball was hit, bringing in the winning run.
Ogden had chances early in the game to extend their lead. After Pages homered to open the contest, the Raptors put two on with one out before a double play ended the first. In the second they loaded the bases with no out, receiving just the Pages sacrifice fly to pick up a run. The Raptors also put two on in both the fourth and fifth but couldn't come up with a clutch hit.
With two wins in the series, the Raptors will try to win the four-game set Saturday night at 6:40.