Grizzlies Hold Off Crushers in Third Straight Win
Gateway strands bases loaded in bottom of the ninth in series opener
AVON, OH. – The Gateway Grizzlies grabbed an early two-run lead, then a late two-run lead on Friday night against the Lake Erie Crushers, then saw the home team get four straight runners on base in the bottom of the ninth to make it a one-run contest before Keegan Collett struck out Scout Knotts on a full count to preserve a nail-biting, 4-3 victory at Crushers Stadium.
In the top of the first inning, Lake Erie starter Darrien Ragins hit Gabe Holt up high with a pitch, with the Grizzlies all-star second baseman leaving the contest as a precaution. Edwin Mateo ran for him, and the Grizzlies would load the bases on a Victor Castillo walk and Paxton Wallace infield single. Mark Shallenberger then kept his bat hot with an RBI single to center field to make it 1-0.
When Mateo came up in the second inning for his first at-bat, he knocked a hit into right field that had some wicked spin on it, with the ball bouncing away from Jordan Harrison-Dudley and carrying to the wall, allowing Mateo to circle the bases with an inside-the-park home run for a 2-0 Grizzlies lead.
Ben Harris (3-0) kept the Lake Erie bats down for most of his five innings on the mound, but both hits he surrendered came on solo home runs by the same batter, with Knotts tying the score in the bottom of the fourth. Lake Erie threatened later that inning with two outs, loading the bases, but could not score the lead run.
It was Gateway, in fact, that took the lead for good in the top of the sixth inning against Leonardo Rodriguez (2-3), with Shallenberger leading off with a single and Dale Thomas drawing a walk. After a sacrifice bunt by Jose Alvarez, a wild pitch scored Shallenberger and made the score 3-2 Grizzlies. In the next inning, D.J. Stewart burned his former team with a solo home run to right field, expanding the lead to 4-2.
Things got hairy in the ninth against Collett. The right-hander got the first two batters out, and reached two strikes on Dario Gomez as well, but was called for a pitch clock violation with a full count, putting the runner on base. Jarrod Watkins was then hit by a pitch, and Collett walked Alfredo Gonzalez on a close pitch, loading the bases. Collett was then called for another pitch-clock-violation ball four against Vincent Byrd, Jr., forcing in a run and making it a 4-3 contest, but the Grizzlies' reliever bore down with three balls on Knotts and the game on the line, striking him out swinging to end the game and deliver Gateway their third win in a row.
The Grizzlies will look to extend their newfound win streak to four games in the middle game of the series on Saturday, June 28, at Crushers Stadium, with first pitch scheduled for 6:05 p.m. CT.
The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team, located a mere 10 minutes from downtown St. Louis in Sauget, Illinois. The Grizzlies offer baseball fans affordable, family fun at Arsenal BG Ballpark with a great view of the St. Louis skyline. They have also won two Frontier League Organization of the Year Awards, four West Division titles, and the 2003 Frontier League Championship. For tickets or general information, please visit gatewaygrizzlies.com or call (618) 337-3000.
The Frontier League debuted in 1993, and is the largest of the Major League Baseball Partner Leagues, featuring teams stretching from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mississippi River, and from the Ohio River to the St. Lawrence Seaway. More information and the complete 2025 schedule can be found at frontierleague.com.