Apr
23

Solid Pitching and Defense Lead Spirits (18+) Past Blue Jays

(April 22, 2018 – Plano, TX) A solid combination of great pitching and defense seemed to be the perfect recipe for shutting down the Dallas Blue Jays Sunday afternoon, as the Spirits (18+) squad did just that, winning by a final score of 10 to 1.

Craig Molldrem once again proved to be too much for the Jays offense, as he held the birds to just 3 hits, while walking one, and striking out 7. Molldrem went for 7 full innings before newcomer, Holden Novak came in to finish the job. The Spirits’ offense on the other hand, performed like a fine tuned machine and a team in mid-season form.

The Spirits combined for 11 hits and left a whopping 12 runners on base that could have lead to a much more defeating box score. Novak aided the victory on the offensive side as well, leading the team with 3 hits, including a run scored and an RBI. Duane Aponte was also solid, adding a pair of hits of his own, alongside 3 runs batted in. Molldrem, Mike Werner, Eric Geotz, and JP Seider each added a double as well, with Werner and Goetz also adding an RBI each, respectively.

“The guys were solid for us again today,” mentioned manager, John Showalter following his team’s victory. “I still feel that the Blue Jays are a solid team, despite what this and the previous game’s box score shows. They can hit, but fortunately for us, when they did hit today our defense was ready and in the right place. Their pitching was still good enough to strike out 8 of our hitters, however when we did make contact it appeared it was good enough to get through or find a gap. (Holden) Novak looked great today on both sides, and ‘Molldy’ (Craig Molldrem) was solid as usual.”

The Spirits offense started the game quickly after lead off man, Cliff Brade drew a base-on-balls. Brade reached second on an infield hit from Kyle Redinger and both runners advanced when Jays’ pitcher, Corey Rupert balked. A wild pitch gave Brade home plate and a double by Werner scored Redinger to make it 2 to 0, Spirits. Goetz followed with an RBI double to replace Werner at second, and then later scored on a single by Novak.

The Spirits added two more runs in the top half of the fourth after Goetz drew a walk and then advanced to second on a failed pick-off attempt by Rupert. Goetz advanced to third after John Showalter grounded out, and then scored on a single by Novak. Novak stole second and then scored on a single by Aponte to make it 6 to 0 Spirits.

The Spirits added two more runs in the sixth, one in the seventh and capped off their 10 run afternoon in the ninth after Redinger was walked with bases loaded to score Seider. The Blue Jays managed a run in the game’s final frame after Novak hit Matt Garrabrants with a pitch. Garrabrants stole second and then later scored on single by Rupert. Novak regrouped and was able to get Wes Kirby and Tim Hanan for the game’s final two outs to seal the victory.

The victory pushes the Spirits (18+) record to 3-0 to start off game play in the NTABL Open National League. The ghosts are currently scheduled to take on the Outlaws on Wednesday night at 8:45PM, however a scheduling conflict puts the game in a current TBD status. Please click here to view updated details on whether the game will be played or scheduled for a later date.

Game Box Score

Dallas Spirits (18+) Players of the Game

Duane Aponte (2-4, 3 RBI)

Holden Novak (3-4, R, RBI, SB, 2 IP, 2 H, ER, K)

Eric Goetz (1-4, 2B, BB, 3 R, RBI)