Not So Nice Defeat, Saints Drop Finale 9-6 To Storm Chasers

OMAHA, NE (July 25, 2021) - It was all there for the taking. The St. Paul Saints were nine outs away from taking five of six from the division leading Omaha Storm Chasers and getting to within 3.5 games of first place. Unfortunately, it all unraveled in a five run seventh inning as the Saints lost 9-6 on Sunday evening at Werner Park.

With the Saints up 6-3 going into the seventh the tide turned when Angelo Castellano led off the inning by hitting a pop up to the right side of the infield that dropped in between Miranda at first and Drew Maggi at second. Saints reliever Ian Hamilton followed that with three straight walks to force in a run making it 6-4. Nick Vincent came out of the bullpen and struck out Bobby Witt Jr., but Nick Pratto unloaded on an 0-2 pitch for a grand slam putting the Storm Chasers up 8-6.

The Storm Chasers jumped out to a lead in the first when Griffin Jax walked the leadoff hitter, Rudy Martin. He stole second and scored on an RBI double by Pratto to make it 1-0. An RBI single to center by Kyle Isbel made it 2-0.

The Saints got one back in the second when Jimmy Kerrigan hit a ground rule double over the right-center field wall and scored on Keon Broxton’s RBI single to center making it 2-1.

In the third, Jose Miranda tied the game at two when he crushed a solo homer to left, his eighth of the season.

The Saints took the lead in the fifth by putting up three runs and it started with a leadoff walk to Broxton. Drew Stankiewicz ripped a single into left putting runners at first and second. Miranda then hammered an RBI single to left, putting the Saints up 3-2. Left fielder Rudy Martin had trouble playing it allowing Stankiewicz to take third and Miranda to go to second. A sacrifice fly from Rob Refsnyder made it 4-2 and that was followed by an RBI single from Tomás Telis making it 5-2. Miranda finished the evening 3-5 with a home run, two RBI and two runs scored.

Witt Jr. cut into the lead in the bottom of the inning with a solo homer to left-center, his second of the season, making it 5-3.

Jimmy Kerrigan, however, got the run back for the Saints in the sixth when he crushed a solo shot to center, his 10th of the season, putting the Saints back up three at 6-3.

The Saints have Monday off and return to action on Tuesday at CHS Field in game one of a six-game series against the Indianapolis Indians at 7:05 p.m. Both teams are TBA. The game can be seen on the Saints Cable Network, cable access channels in and around the Twin Cities area, and MiLB.TV and heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.