by Sophie Darting
It took 14 innings, but the Kansas City T-Bones were able to fend off the Winnipeg Goldeyes long enough to win the game, 4-3, at JustBats field at T-Bones Stadium in front of 4,181 fans, including Patrick Mahomes Sr. and his son Patrick Mahomes Jr.
The T-Bones (30-27) attempted to score first in the bottom of the first when Danny Mars hit a single to first base, then advanced to second on an out by Dylan Tice. However, no one brought him home to score.
Later, the Goldeyes (31-26) tried to fight back when Willy Garcia hit a triple, but he got out as he attempted to run home later in the top of the second.
Winnipeg got on the board first in the top of the fifth. Reggie Abercrombie hit a two-run home run off starter Jose Mesa Jr. (0-0), scoring Dominic Ficociello, and making it 2-0.
However, after struggling to put runners on base against Winnipeg starter Joel Seddon (2-3), the T-Bones got the bats going in the bottom of the fifth.
Christian Correa got the inning started with a laser up the middle for a base hit. Mason Davis followed with a double to right field that advanced Correa to third and brought Ramsey Romano to the plate. Romano singled to left, driving in Correa and putting the T-Bones on the board.
Danny Mars and Dylan Tice then drew back-to-back walks, with Tice’s walk bringing Davis home and tying the game at two runs apiece. Shawn O’Malley brought the go-ahead run home with a sacrifice fly to make it a 3-2 T-Bones advantage.
The lead didn’t last long. Winnipeg continued to attack Mesa Jr. when James Harris doubled in the top of the sixth and was brought home on a single by Willy Garcia to tie the game. Garcia’s single also knocked Mesa Jr. out of the game and brought in Evan Korson (0-0).
The score remained knotted at three and would send the game into extra innings until the 14th inning. The T-Bones’ bullpen and above-average defense kept them in the game long enough to give the offense an opportunity to score and win the game.
The bottom of the 14th inning started just before midnight, and the T-Bones needed to score in order to avoid postponing the end of the game until Saturday owing to league curfew.
It started with Mitchell Aker (1-2) walking Daniel Nava, and Christian Correa followed up with a just-fair double to left field to give Kansas City runners on second and third with only one out. After Mason Davis was intentionally walked, and then Ramsey Romano stepped up to the plate. Romano shot a dribbler to the third baseman for an infield hit, and Nava was able to come around and score the winning run.
After throwing two scoreless frames, Robert Calvano (1-2) was awarded the win, and Aker was awarded the loss for the Goldeyes.
The T-Bones and Goldeyes will continue the series with game two at 7:05 p.m. Saturday, July 20. The game will be on the T-Bones Broadcast Network at http://mixlr.com/t-bones-baseball/ with a first pitch of 7:05 p.m. It will be First Responders’ Night with post-game fireworks.
Single game tickets are on sale online or by calling 913-328-5618 or by visiting the Saint Luke’s Box Office between the hours of 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. Monday through Friday. Promotional events are at www.tbonesbaseball.com.
- Story from T-Bones