Outlaws raise banner, win series against Akron
The Akron Ryche returned to the Ozzie League in 2019 and the first series against the Flagstaff Outlaws turns into an absolutely exciting series for both fan bases.
Game 1: Williams v. Wacha – In the home opener of 2019 season, the Flagstaff Outlaws got to celebrate the bittersweet raising of the ’18 Griffin Division Championship banner. While the Outlaw fans celebrated the achievement, those players that lost a 3-1 OLCS lead still had the pain of upset on their face, like they had drank something that spoiled.
Once the pomp and circumstance was over, a pitchers duel breaks out as both starting pitchers are perfect through three innings.
In the fourth, Michael Wacha walks a pair to lose the perfect game, but wiggles off the hook.
Bottom of the fifth, Trevor Williams walks Aaron Judge to end the perfecto, but a double play sees Williams face the minimum after five.
In the 6th, Wacha gives up a single to Josh Bell, giving Akron two on with one out. But he gets Sterling Marte to ground into a 5-4-3 double play. Richards also gives up a hit to the leadoff hitter in the sixth, but another double play keeps the Akron starter at the minimum faced.
Wacha leaves after six, after seeing his pitch count reach 94, and Victor Arano gets the seventh. He retired the first two batters he faces, but Dansby Swanson extends the inning with a single and Kolten Wong’s double scores Swanson. Matt Lucroy added a single, but Wong is held at third. With a pitch count at only 64 pitches, Williams is left in to hit and grounds out.
That decision would come back and haunt Akron as Williams gives up a one-out single to Denard Span followed by a Paul Goldschmidt homer and Flagstaff takes a 2-1 lead after seven.
Akron gets two runners on in the eighth, but Ronald Acuna bounces into a unclutch twin killing. In the ninth, Ryan Pressly starts the inning by plunking Jeimer Candelario. Then he uncorks a wild pitch to move him to second. Swanson grounds out to second base, and Candelario moves within 90 feet of tying the game. Wong gets an intentional pass to try and set up a double play, but Yario Munoz flies out to shallow left. David Dahl comes off the bench for Williams, but strikes out to end the game. Flagstaff 2, Akron 1.
Williams throws a rare complete game loss, scattering four hits and two walks over his eight innings.
W: Arano (1-0)
L: Williams (1-1)
Sv: Pressly (5)
HRs: AKR – none; FLG – Goldschmidt (2).
Game 2: Quintana v. Chirinos – Yonny Chirinos shuts down Akron, allowing just four runners over seven innings of work and the Outlaw bullpen is perfect over the final two frames to give Flagstaff a 3-0 shutout.
Chirinos cruised, ginving up a couple of doubles over the first six innings. I the seventh, a one-out walk is followed by a single to give Akron their best scoring opportunity, but Swanson grounds into a 4-6-3 double play to end the threat.
Jonathan Villar hits a leadoff homer in the second that ends up being the winning run, but later in the inning, a Span RBI single scores Kevin Plawecki who singled after Villar’s shot. In the sixth, the Outlaws got a little more insurance when Eduardo Nunez grounded out, letting George Springer score from third.
Jose Quintana was wild all day, walking six in his 94-pitch 5 1/3 inning effort.
W: Chirinos (1-1)
L: Quintana (1-1)
Sv: Pressly (6)
HRs: AKR – none; FLG – Villar (2).
Game 3: Johnson v. Ray – After two games at home, the Outlaws return to the road and they get the game started by loading the base on a single and two walks from Robbie Ray, but strikeouts by Springer and Villar keep them off the scoreboard. The walks and lack of scoring would be the theme of this game.
In the bottom of the second, Brian Johnson strikes out Robbie Ray to end the inning, but comes off the board holding his ribs. Johnson leaves the field and goes directly back to the training room, ending his day, necessitating a scramble in the bullpen for long relief.
Knowing the pitcher’s spot in the batting order would up soon, Flagstaff elects to throw Darren O’Day in the third inning before moving on to long relief. O’Day is shaky, allowing a hitter to reach on an error by Villar. A balk during a Jedd Gyorko at bat moves Joey Wendle to second. Gyorko capitalized by singling to shallow center, but Springer is able to throw home and nail Wendle at the plate.
When O’Day is due up with one out in the fourth, Flagstaff brings out Jordan Luplow who homers off Ray to give Flagstaff a 1-0 lead.
In the bottom of the fifth, Wendle gets a measure of revenge, knocking an RBI single to score Josh Bell to tie the game up.
From that point, the game becomes a story of missed opportunities. Both teams get runners on and in scoring position, but no one is able to cash in. The game eventually goes into extra innings. Nick Kingham, the last non-closer in the bullpen, pitches three innings, working around a pair of hits and a pair of intentional walks. Akron pushes many of their relievers into multiple inning efforts, but the loss of Josh Hader in the 12th is the toughest break.
In the 13th, Paul Goldschmidt manages to connect with a Jose Castillo fastball for a solo shot to give Flagstaff a go-ahead run. Ryan Pressly had been warming up several times earlier in the game gets up one more time and is able to get the Ryche in order in the bottom of the 13th to give Flagstaff a 2-1 victory.
For the game, Flagstaff racked up 17 men left on base while Akron managed 13. Akron walked 11 Outlaw batters while striking 16, including six and eight respectively by Ray.
W: Kingham (1-0)
L: Castillo (1-1)
Sv: Pressly (7)
HRs: FLG – Luplow (2), Goldschmidt (3); AKR – none.
Game 4: Romero v. Stroman – With a total of five relievers ruled out for the finale, both teams needed their starters to go deep into the game. Stroman was better, going eight innings on 105 pitches, allowing just five hits and two runs, one earned.
Akron, who had been held homerless to this point, finally broke out the long ball, knocking four bombs off of Fernando Romero, accounting for all five Ryche runs. Akron staves off the sweep with the 5-2 decision.
Flagstaff took the early lead in the first inning when Goldschmidt singled in Denard Span who reached on a fielders choice, stole second and reached third with Lucroy throw went into center field. Unfortunately for Flagstaff, Goldy turned his ankle coming out of the box and would leave the game for precautionary reasons.
Marte got the run right back in the bottom of the frame with a solo shot. In the third Jesse Winker put Akron out fromt with a two-run shot.
Batting in Goldy’s spot in the top of the fourth, Nunez hit a solo homer to get Flagstaff within a run, but in the bottom of the fourth, Wendle homers. Then in the fifth, Bell gets in the act with his own solo blast.
W: Stroman (1-0)
L: Romero (1-1)
Sv: Hader (2)
HRs: FLG – Nunez (2); AKR – Marte (4), Winker (2), Wendle (1), Bell (2).