GARY, IN – The Lincoln Saltdogs (58-40) committed an error in the bottom of the tenth inning to allow the Gary SouthShore RailCats (56-43) to score and earn a 2-1 walk-off win in the penultimate game of the season. It was the first time the Saltdogs had been walked-off this season.
Chase Harris started the decisive bottom of the tenth with a single off of Saltdogs pitcher Cameron McVey. Alex Crosby walked in the next at bat to bring up Reggie Wilson. Wilson bounced a grounder to second baseman Juan Martinez who tossed it to the shortstop Christian Ibarra for an out. Ibarra threw the relay to first base wide of the bag allowing Harris to come in and score the winning run.
The game started in the Saltdogs favor. Curt Smith doubled in the fourth inning and Brandon Jacobs singled him in for the first run of the game. It was Smith’s first start since injuring his shoulder on August 29th.
The RailCats tied the game in the next half inning. Frank Martinez singled to start the frame and moved to third base on consecutive groundouts. Cole Fabio came through with the two-out hit to even the score.
Bennett Parry was excellent for the Saltdogs. The southpaw went eight innings and allowed just one run on eight hits. He struck out six batters to compare to just one walk.
The offense failed to back him up, though. The Saltdogs had runners in scoring position in both the ninth and tenth innings but failed to get one home. Jorge De Leon earned the win for Gary SouthShore by shutting down the ‘Dogs in the final two frames.
Curt Smith notched his 999th professional hit with his double. Third baseman robbed him of his 1000th by a leaping grab on a line drive in the eighth inning.
The Saltdogs clinched the Central Division Championship with a win on Friday. Gary SouthShore is one of three teams in contention for the wild card entry to the playoffs.
The regular season finale is on Monday afternoon. First pitch is at 1:10 PM with coverage beginning at 12:40 PM on ESPN 1480 and saltdogs.com.
Playoffs tickets are on sale and can be purchased at https://saltdogs.com/playoffs. For the latest information on the Saltdogs follow the team on Facebook and Twitter/Instagram @saltdogsball.