West Michigan WhiteCaps at Michigan Battle Cats
April 5th, 2002
| West Michigan |
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1 |
1 |
0 |
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0 |
0 |
0 |
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0 |
5 |
0 |
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|
7 |
14 |
2 |
| Michigan |
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0 |
0 |
1 |
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0 |
0 |
0 |
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0 |
0 |
1 |
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2 |
4 |
1 |
E-Francia, Smith, Self, LOB WM-9, MIC-8, 2B-Durham, Yount, Stegall, Mote, 3B-Mattle, Tejeda, SB-Durham, Knoedler, CS-Francia, Knoedler
WP-Badgley, BK-Coenen 2, Pluta, SO-Durham 2, Rabelo 2, Mattle 2, Yount 2, Rodriguez, Lentini, Conrad, Self, Checksfield, Obradovich, BB-Francia, Rabelo, Mattle, Knoedler, Lentini, Conrad, Rojas, Self, Obradovich
U-D.J. Reyburn
T-2:38, A-593
Battle Creek Enquirer
by Howie Magner
Michigan fans, at least the 593 who braves the sub freezing temperatures, got their postgame fireworks show Friday night.
Michigan's offense is still waiting for it's in game one.
For the second consective outing, runs and hits were rare specimens for the Battle Cats. A night after being shut out on a two hitter, Michigan rapped out just four hits in a 7-2 loss to West Michigan at C.O. Brown Stadium.
It took 11 innings for the Cats to score their first run of the season, and after 17 innings, they were stuck on four hits. But nobody's sounding the panic alarm just two games into the schedule. "Im not concerned. It's part of the game," Michigan manager John Massarelli said, "We'll be whacking the ball tomorrow."
The WhiteCaps (2-0) did some whacking in the eighth inning where they used six straight hits to break the game open.
Michigan reliever Brian Rodaway, who looked sharp in the sixth and seventh, saw the wheels fall of one out into the eighth. David Mattle and Juan Tejeda had RBI triples in the rally, then Andy Yount added an RBI double and Don Kelly slapped a run scoring single after Brandon Wood replaced Rodaway.
The resulting 7-1 lead squelched Michigan's hopes for a rally, though the Cats did put another run on the board in the ninth. Ryan Stegall drilled a one out double to the left center gap, went to third on Mote's single and scored on a wild pitch.
Mote, who didn't play in Thursday's season opener finished the night 2 for 4 with a double, giving him a third of Michigan's hits. He figures it's just a matter of time before his teammates find a similar groove.
It's still early. I know guys are going out and trying, and we've had some hard hit balls," said Mote, who crossed the plate with Michigan's first run in the third inning. "We just haven't had many breaks yet and they have."
Michigan (0-2) got one of it's few breaks when Mote led off the third with a double to the left center gap and, after catcher Mark Obradovich drew a walk, WhiteCaps pitcher Matt Coenen was called for a balk with leadoff man Mike Rodriguez at the plate. It was the third balk in the game called by home plate umpire, D.J. Reyburn, a former MIAA ump who graduated from Hope College.
Both runners had to stay put on Rodriguez's subsequent groundout to the pitcher, but Fehlandt Lentini followed with a squibber halfway down the first base line that plated Mote.
Mote's run cut West Michigan's lead to 2-1 and Cats starting pitcher Anthony Pluta kept the Cats in the game. Though Pluta (0-1) took the loss by allowing runs in each of the first two innings, he gave up just two more hits before being replaced by Rodaway at the start of the sixth frame.
But Coenen (1-0) was solid enough as well, working five innings of two hit, three walk baseball, and West Michigan's eighth inning outburst made sure he'd get the victory.