Chiefs Topple Dragons in Extras Friday

DAYTON, OH - Ramon Mendoza needed just one at-bat to deliver a decisive blow in Friday’s 6-3 win over the Dayton Dragons. Mendoza entered in the bottom of the eighth as a defensive replacement. In his first and only plate appearance, the shortstop laced a double to left field to score a pair of Peoria runs and put the Chiefs in front for good. All told, Peoria scored three runs in the tenth to move to 43-57 on the season.

After a pair of outs on the basepaths in the top of the first, Dayton appeared poised to strike for a big inning in the home half of the first. With runners on the corners and no one out, a sac fly gave Dayton an early 1-0 advantage. Peoria starter Zane Mills would settle in, however, and work out of the frame without any additional trouble.

The Chiefs were stymied early against Dragons starter Joe Boyle. The Dayton right-hander surrendered just three earned runs through the first two months of the season and he returned to that form in the early going.

Mills, meanwhile, settled into a groove of his own. He retired nine straight batters in his own right and kept the game at 1-0 through four.

In the Peoria fifth, the Chiefs broke through. After a one-out walk and a stolen base, Patrick Romeri plated Francisco Hernandez on a ground ball base hit into center. For Romeri, it was his first High-A RBI. On the next pitch, Mack Chambers lifted a two-run homer to right field to give Peoria their first lead, 3-1.

An inning later, Dayton staged an uprising. With two on and one out, Tyler Callihan bounced a ground-rule double over the right field fence to make it a 3-2 game. With runners on second and third and just one out, Mills was lifted in favor of Andre Granillo. The first right-hander dispatched the situation with a strikeout and fly out to keep the Chiefs in front.

Granillo cruised through the seventh inning before trouble again brewed in the eighth. With a pair of singles and a walk, the Dragons loaded the bases with just one out in the inning. Jose Torres then tied the game on a sac fly, 3-3. The next batter, Mat Nelson, popped out to 9short to keep the game tied.

After a scoreless ninth, the teams ventured to extra innings. With Hernandez beginning the inning at second base, Aaron McKeithan singled to place runners on the corners. The next batter, Romeri, was hit by a pitch. The bases loaded situation set the scene for Mendoza’s heroics. Over his last 10 games, Mendoza is hitting .367. With the score 5-3, Todd Lott added an extra insurance run, boosting the lead to 6-3.

The three-run lead was more than enough for Leonardo Taveras. The hard-throwing right-hander punched out the side in the tenth in his first appearance since returning from Double-A Springfield.

Peoria will continue their series Saturday in Dayton. Austin Love will take the ball for the Chiefs. First pitch is set for 7:09 EST/6:09 CST.