(March 21, 2026 – Carrollton, TX) When you line up against the league’s best, you want to play your best. Unfortunately for the Spirits (50+) squad, only half of that best showed up on Saturday morning as the Spirits watched the Redbirds literally walk there way to victory with a 17 to 7 mercy-rule win.
Spirits pitching combined for 10 free passes to first. Anyone with baseball knowledge will tell you, “walks are runs.” The two teams battled it out on offense, each finishing with 13 hits per side but the major difference was Spirits pitching putting runners on base for free.
Despite only allowing one hit and 3 earned, Spirits starting pitcher Kevin Simmons gave up 8 walks while earning just a single strikeout in 2 and a third innings of work. That lack of consistency over the dish proved fatal for Stacy Scott as he followed with an inning of work that turned into a round of Redbirds batting practice. The dirty birds ruffled Scott’s feathers with 7 hits that turned into 9 runs across the plate in the fourth inning. Earl German added an inning of work and the Redbirds continued their batting clinic with another 5 hits and 4 runs that were aided by another pair of walks.
Four Spirits hitters finished with 2 hits, including Scott along with Shawn Hunt, Kent Fischer, and Brian Kellner. Hunt added a walk, and both he and Kellner added a run scored, and run batted in to round out the Spirits offense. Each Spirits hitter with the exception of one was able to reach base safely but it wasn’t enough despite a defense that only allowed one miscue on the field.
The team will put this one behind them as they focus on getting back in the win column when they visit the Strangers next Saturday. First pitch is 11:45AM on McInnish Field #11 and fans can click here for schedule details.
Ranger Fire, Inc. Players of the Game
Shawn Hunt (2-2, R, RBI, BB)
Kent Fischer (2-3, R)
Brian Kellner (2-2, R, RBI)