Outlaws start Chapter 2 with road victory against KC
Holding a four-game lead thanks to a sweep against the Boulevards in the opening month of the season, Flagstaff had to travel to Kansas City to see if they could keep those Boulevards from gaining any head-to-head ground.
Elvis Andrus hated being called out in the press for his slump and demotion to the nine-hole. He watched video, took extra batting practice in the cages, and tried to improve his swing by breaking it down to basics. The work paid off as he goes 10-for-18, scoring eight times, to help pace his Outlaws to a series victory.
Game 1: Sale v. Chacin – George Springer and Joe Panik draw walks to start the game and both would score on RBI hits from Paul Goldschmidt and Aaron Judge to give Flagstaff a 2-0 lead.
Kansas City strings some trouble together in the third as Justin Turner and Eric Hosmer each reach with one out. Avisail Garcia watches a wild pitch whiz by his head, plating Turner and then Garica singles in Hosmer to tie it. A Marcell Ozuna double moved Garcia to third and Hernan Perez gives the Boulevards the lead with a sac fly to deep left.
But in the 5th, Flagstaff takes the lead for good as Chacin continues his wildness, walking four in the frame and Khris Davis added a bases-loaded single to score a pair to give Flagstaff a 5-3 lead.
Flagstaff pulls away late with long balls from Davis and Judge and the Outlaws win, 8-3.
W: Sale (5-1)
L: Chacin (2-1)
Sv: None
HRs: FLG – Davis (8), Judge (10); KCB – none.
Game 2: Greinke v. Corbin – Patrick Corbin gives up 10 hits in six innings while Zach Greinke gave up four hits over seven innings, but it was Corbin’s Boulevards with a 2-1 lead when the starters leave this game.
In the top of the ninth, Andrus doubles to lead off the frame to get the home crowd nervous. Joe Kelly relieves Wade Davis and fumbles away Springer’s grounder back to the mound and throws the ball wild to first, allowing Andrus to tie the game and Springer to move to second. Felipe Rivero would come on and work around an intentional pass to Judge to get out of the jam with the game tied.
In the bottom of the tenth, Sam Tuivailala is on and gets the first two outs. Chris Owings squeaks out a single and Turner walks off the home crowd with a huge homer to left field, his second of the game. Kansas City 4, Flagstaff 2.
W: Rivero (1-1)
L: Tuivailala (0-2)
Sv: None
HRs: FLG – none; KCB – Turner (5, 6), Hosmer (7).
Game 3: Wood v. Godley – Flagstaff loads the bases in the top of the first. Travis Shaw hits a grounder that can’t be turned into an inning-ending double play, scoring a run. Davis makes Kansas City pay with a two run single to give Flagstaff a 3-spot.
Turner doubles and scores on Garcia’s sac fly in the bottom of the first to get a run back for KC, but homers from Judge and Davis extend the lead to 5-1 after four.
Shaw would cap the night with a garbage-time grand slam in the ninth and Flagstaff wins a laugher, 10-2.
W: Wood (5-0)
L: Godley (3-3)
Sv: None
HRs: FLG – Judge (11), Davis (9, 10), Shaw (6); KCB – Iannetta (4).
Game 4: Wacha v. Keuchel – An important game for both team sees another 2-2 extra inning affair.
The Outlaws got a homer from Andrus in the fourth, but Chris Iannetta homers for the second straight game to give KC a 2-1 lead after four. In the sixth, Goldschmidt doubles in Andrus to tie the game.
The first three extra innings see each team retire all nine batters. But in the 12th, the wheels finally fall off. A tired and depleted KC bullpen has to lean on Rivero in a second inning of work. Rivero strikes out Panik, but plunks Springer. Andrus follows with a single. Goldy dumps a single into shallow right and Springer tries to score. Garcia throw home is short and skips away from Iannetta, scoring two.
Kirby Yates pitches his second inning of relief in the bottom of the 12th and the inning in nearly as interested. Owings singles to start it off and Turner reaches on a flub from Judge. Pedro Baez comes in to face Hosmer and get a grounder to first, but Goldy can only get an out at second. However, Baez regains his composure and strikes out Garcia and Ozuna to end, giving Flagstaff a series win on a 4-2 extra-inning win.
W: Yates (1-1)
L: Rivero (1-2)
Sv: Baez (1)
HRs: FLG – Andrus (4); KCB – Iannetta (5).