Sports – Page 1449 – Welcome to Wyandotte Daily!

Kansas City rallies for series split

The Kansas City T-Bones scored in just one inning Saturday night, but that’s all they needed with a 3-2 victory over Gary SouthShore at the U.S. Steel Yard.

For the fourth consecutive game, the RailCats scored first, this time with a solo home run from Cody Bishop in the fifth inning against Kansas City starting pitcher Andy Noga (2-3). That lone run was the only mistake by Noga, who got his second with of the season after allowing just one run on three hits through 6 dominating innings.

The T-Bones, trailing 1-0 in the seventh inning, had enough of RailCats starting pitcher Morgan Coombs (5-7), by scoring three runs and taking a 3-1 lead. With the bases loaded and one out, T.J. Mittelstaedt tied the game with a sacrifice fly to deep centerfield that scored Bryan Sabatella, who led off the inning with his second of three hits in the game. Two batters later, Danny Richar hit a towering one-hopper over the head of first baseman Craig Maddux, resulting in a two-out, two-RBI triple that scored Vladimir Frias and Robby Kuzdale.

After Gary SouthShore added a run in the eighth against reliever Pat Doyle, Kansas City’s All-Star closer Kris Regas picked up his 15th save of the season with two scoreless innings and four strikeouts.

The T-Bones split the four-game series with Gary, and ended the roadtrip with a 4-3 record after taking two out of three from Lincoln last weekend. With Saturday night’s win, Kansas City (35-37) pulled to within six games of first-place Gary SouthShore (41-31) with 27 games remaining.

The T-Bones returned home Sunday afternoon for a four-game homestand against the St. Paul Saints with Sunday’s first pitch slated at Community America Ballpark.

Box score: http://www.pointstreak.com/baseball/boxscoretext.html?gameid=178073
– Story from T-Bones

Pitching struggles in T-Bones loss

Kansas City spotted Gary SouthShore seven runs through five innings, which was too much of a deficit in an 8-5 loss Friday night at the U.S. Steel Yard in Gary, Ind.

For the third time in this series, the RailCats took a 2-0 lead. Unlike Thursday night, though, when the T-Bones pitchers were able to hold the Gary SouthShore offense at bay long enough for Kansas City to take the lead and go on to win 8-3, the T-Bones’ first two pitchers, Rick Zagone and Jared Messer, gave up nine hits and eight runs through 5 1/3 innings.

Kansas City’s offense finally got to Gary SouthShore starter Stephen Bougher in the top of the sixth inning. Trailing 7-0, T.J. Mittelstaedt tagged Bougher (6-5) for a one-out home run, Mittelstaedt’s 12th of the season. Then, with two outs, Matt Padgett singled, moved to second on a base hit by Ray Sadler, and then scored on a double by Nick Schwaner.

The RailCats, however, answered with an insurance run against reliever Messer in the bottom of the sixth for an 8-2 lead. It was the third run Messer gave up in 2 innings of relief. For the starter Zagone (6-5), who was Kansas City’s most dependable starter early in the season, it was another rough outing. Zagone exited after 3 1/3 innings, allowing five runs and five hits. It was the fourth consecutive start in which he’s allowed at least five runs.

The T-Bones put together a two-out rally in the seventh. With Vladimir Frias and Brian Erie on base with two outs against relief pitcher Chuck Fontana, Danny Richar singled in Frias. Padgett then roped a double that scored Erie and Richar that cut the RailCats lead to 8-5.

Padgett, who was one of the league’s best hitters last season and re-joined the T-Bones earlier this road trip on July 25, had his first three-hit game in a T-Bones uniform since July 30, 2013. He went 3-for-5 Friday with a run scored and two RBIs.

Kansas City started the eighth with back-to-back hits and looked primed for another come-from-behind win, but Frias and Erie both struck out, and Robby Kuzdale ended the comeback bid with a groundout.

The T-Bones (34-37) and RailCats (41-30) will conclude the four-game series Saturday night at 7:10.

Box score: http://www.pointstreak.com/baseball/boxscoretext.html?gameid=178067
– Story from T-Bones

Three inducted into Sporting Legends during last night’s Sporting KC match

by William Crum

At last night’s game between Sporting Kansas City and Philadelphia Union, three were inducted into the Sporting Legends.

Club founder Lamar Hunt, manager Peter Vermes and six-time All-Star Jimmy Conrad received the honor.

Clark Hunt Jr., son of the late Lamar Hunt, said, “My father was a true visionary, he believed in soccer and how it is beneficial to the local community. We need to encourage soccer in our community. I feel we need to move forward.”

“We need to move forward, soccer was started here on the shoulders of Lamar Hunt who visualized what soccer and do for the local community. I’m really excited about what is going on with soccer in the Kansas City area. I’m only 37 years of age; I feel I need to be an ambassador regarding soccer. Who would ever imagine soccer popular in Kansas City in the old days. Now look at it. It is really exciting,” said Jimmy Conrad, former Kansas City Wizards team captain.

In the game against Philadelphia, the first half was scoreless. It wasn’t until the second half that things started to happen. Graham Zusi scored the first goal. It wasn’t until a little bit later that Brian Brown scored a goal for Philadelphia, tying the game.

After the game, the manager for Sporting Kansas City, Peter Vermes, said, “I feel we could have done better; however, Philadelphia Union is a real good team. They’re really disciplined.”

Graham Zusi said after the game, “I was really disappointed; I feel we could have won the game.”

Sporting Kansas City’s next game is in Vancouver, British Columbia, at BC Place on Sunday, Aug. 10.