Saints Fall Just Short To Storm Chasers 6-4

ST. PAUL, MN (June 11, 2021) - The St. Paul Saints are facing a team with the second-best record in all of Minor League Baseball in the Omaha Storm Chasers. They went toe-to-toe with them on Friday night at CHS Field, but just couldn’t get over the hump. A home run by Brent Rooker, a hit and an RBI from Luis Arraez was not enough as the Saints lost for the third straight night 6-4.

The Storm Chasers got on the board in the first inning just like they did on Thursday night. The game started with Edward Olivares being hit by a pitch. He stole second and advanced to third on the throwing error by catcher Roberto Peña. An RBI groundout by Kyle Isbel made it 1-0. With two outs, the hottest hitter on the Storm Chasers Ryan O’Hearn stepped to the plate. He drilled his fifth home in the last three games, a solo blast to left, his 10th of the season, giving the Storm Chasers a 2-0 lead.

In the second, the Storm Chasers took a 3-0 lead when Alcides Escobar doubled, moved to third on a passed ball, and scored on a single to right by Angelo Castellano.

The Saints got to within one in the bottom of the inning when the first three hitters reached. Drew Maggi and Sherman Johnson each singled. That was followed by an RBI double from Jimmy Kerrigan to make it 3-1. Two batters later an RBI groundout by Peña made it 3-2.

The Storm Chasers made it 4-2 in the fifth when Olivares reached on an infield single to third and advanced to second on a wild pitch. After reliever Juan Minaya came on in relief, Isbel doubled home Olivares.

The Storm Chasers added to the lead in the sixth on a solo homer by Ryan McBroom, his ninth of the season, to make it 5-2.

The Saints would get the next two runs as Brent Rooker crushed a solo homer to left-center, his ninth of the season, to cut the deficit to 5-3.

In the seventh Daniel Descalso walked to lead off the inning. Peña doubled him to third. Arraez, who finished the night 1-4, drove home Descalso with a groundout to make it 5-4.

That was as close as the Saints would get as the Storm Chasers added an insurance run in the eighth when O’Hearn walked and scored on a double by Meibrys Viloria.

The same two teams meet in game five of the six-game series on 7:05 p.m. on Saturday night. The Saints send LHP Andrew Albers (1-2, 7.11) to the mound against Storm Chasers RHP Jacob Junis (NR). The game can be seen on Bally Sports North Plus and heard on KFAN Plus, 96.7 FM.