Saints Carry Lead Into Ninth, But Lose On Walk-Off Single 3-2 To Bison

BUFFALO, NY (June 22, 2022) - For the second consecutive night the St. Paul Saints carried a lead late against the top team in the East, the Buffalo Bisons. For the second straight night they couldn’t hold it. The Saints led 2-1 going into the bottom of the ninth, but gave up two runs that included a walk-off single in a 3-2 loss at Sahlen Field.

With the Saints up 2-1 in the ninth, starter Ariel Jurado, who was piggybacking Major League rehabber Josh Winder, went out for his fourth inning. He allowed just three singles in his first three innings and got two double plays to erase two of those base hits. In the ninth, Samad Taylor, Tuesday’s hero for Buffalo with the go-ahead three-run homer in the eighth, led off with a single to left. Jurado then hit Jordan Groshans to put runners at first and second. Cullen Large followed with a game tying single to left as Groshans took second. Jurado departed for Juan Minaya. Tanner Morris sacrificed the runners up to second and third which brought up .188 hitting Nick Podkul. He bounced a grounder back up the middle past the drawn in infield to knock home the winning run. It’s the sixth walk-off loss for the Saints this season.

Winder made his third rehab start for the Saints. He was spectacular save for one batter in the first. The Bisons got on the board first in the bottom of the first from the same guy that hit the big home run on Tuesday night, Taylor. He drilled a solo homer to left, his eighth of the season, second in as many at bats and third in the last two games, putting the Bisons up 1-0.

Following the home run, Winder retired the next nine batters in a row before a one out walk in the fourth to Groshans. With two outs he walked Morris, but a fly out from Podkul ended the inning and the night for Winder. He went 4.0 innings allowing one run on one hit while walking two and striking out three while throwing 53 pitches, 39 for strikes.

The Saints meanwhile were facing the best pitcher in the league, Casey Lawrence. He entered play with the top ERA in the league at 1.77. Lawrence faced the minimum over the first three innings allowing just a leadoff single in the third from Morales, but he was erased on a strikeout, throw out double play.

In the fourth, however, the Saints tied the game getting three consecutive hits off of Lawrence. With one out, Jake Cave singled to right, extending his streak of reaching base safely to 37 consecutive games. Tim Beckham followed by singling off the foot of the pitcher Lawrence, extending his hitting streak to 12 games. Mark Contreras followed with an RBI double to right tying the game at one.

It stayed that way until the seventh when the Saints grabbed the lead as Contreras led off the inning with a single to center. With Contreras at second and one out, Morales hit a fly ball to right that Groshans, playing his first game in the outfield, got twisted around and the ball went over his head for an RBI double giving the Saints a 2-1 lead. But for the second straight game, the Saints failed to hold a lead late.

The same two teams meet in game three of the six-game series on Thursday afternoon at 12:05 p.m. (CT). The Saints send RHP Jordan Balazovic (0-2, 7.89) to the mound against Bisons RHP Jake Elliot (1-0, 6.48). The game can be seen on MiLB.TV and heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.