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| Vermont's Davis Feldman threw five shutout innings in the win. |
Troy Scocca launched a game-tying triple and scored on an errant overthrow, Joe Tietjen and Will Morgan homered, and Vermont rallied for seven runs in the eighth inning to extend their home game winning streak to five with a 9-5 victory over the Sanford Mainers on Tuesday night.
“There was so much energy and I was just feeding off the crowd and the guys,” Scocca said. “This is huge, and I’m looking forward at the end of the season. We just started piling on runs and fortunately we came out with the win tonight.”
After a 2-1 loss earlier in the season to the Mainers where they were held scoreless over the final four innings, Vermont got to the Sanford bullpen. After the Mountaineers relievers squandered an early two-run lead, Vermont answered. Tietjen started the rally with a solo home run, and two batters later Scocca tripled in the gap to drive in two. The relay throw to get him at third skipped out of play and he trotted home with ease.
It was a big at bat for the right fielder, who was recently named the NECBL Player of the Week. Despite that honor, Scocca had been slumping lately — he had just one hit in his last 15 at bats. Vermont manager Joe Brown attributed that pitchers have a lot of respect for him, having hit for the cycle.
“I hate the word pressing, but with the success he was having, people are going to pitch you tough,” Brown said of his at bats. “With that comes a lot of respect, so you need to be smart. I think he started chasing a little bit, like a pitch off the plate early in the count. You have to have faith in your ability and let it come in. It was a good at bat.”
Keegan Meyn singled, moved to second on a passed ball, and then to third on a single from Morgan. His decision to break home and score on a dropped third strike was what Brown describes as the ‘biggest play of the game.’
“Most hitters in the summer on a strikeout would’ve hobbled down and gone, ‘ah, I can’t really go because the catcher might look at me,’” he said. As we were talking, I said, be prepared but read the catcher. He read that and gave us the second run.”
It was an important insurance run, but Vermont wasn’t done yet. Daniel Little dropped in a RBI single to center field, then scored two batters later from third when Trevor Ezell stole second and the throw to get him skipped into center field. The inning finally ended, but the damage was done — seven runs, seven hits, two errors, and 12 batters in total. Just two innings after the Mainers struck for five runs to take the lead, it was an impressive turnaround for the Mountaineers.
“We kind of got in a lull, like oh jeez, starting to feel sorry for ourselves, and I didn’t really like that,” Brown said. “I thought there was some unbelievable at bats late in the game and baserunning won us that game, 100%. Stealing bases, Troy (Scocca) going to third and forcing that throw, and I thought that and clutch hitting won us that game.”
The Mountaineers worked through three different Sanford relievers in the eighth. Ryan O’Connor and Dalton Brown were both charged with two runs apiece, while Blaise Whitman took the loss and gave up three runs without recording an out.
Michael Landestoy hit his first home run of the season, a two-run drive in the sixth off Kevin Kernan to put the Mainers up 3-2. Todd Czinge added a RBI double off of Kernan, who entered with a two-run lead but left after just 15 pitches in line of the loss. Reliever Fitz Stadler gave up a double to Johnny Slater and a triple to Ako Thomas, both bringing in insurance runs.
It spoiled a strong start for Feldman, who left after five shutout innings in line for the win. Feldman struck out two and scattered five hits and a walk in his second good outing in a row for the Mountaineers rotation.
“I had my fastball working and I could work it in and out and I jammed them a couple times,” Feldman said. “I was a little pumped up in the first, but I felt comfortable out there. I think I’ll be pretty consistent from here on forward.”
Sanford starter Cole Whitney struck out four of the first six Mountaineers he faced, but Morgan opened the third with a solo home run to right field. Ezell added a RBI groundout in the fifth for Vermont.
Stadler settled down and retired seven straight to end his night, and Jonathan Stiever needed just 11 pitches to toss a 1-2-3 ninth for Vermont.
“The two innings Fitz threw for us after that big inning were huge to shut them down,” Brown said. “Some people also would’ve thought we’d role Stiever back out to start, but we wanted to strengthen our bullpen with some guys who can really throw. He’ll come around on the back end and start. That was his bullpen, so it worked out.”
Brown feels confident in his pitching entering a grueling 10-game stretch before the All-Star Break. Memories of a slow start are already in the rearview mirror, as Vermont’s won four of their last five and sit just three games out of a playoff spot in the North.
They’ll take on Sanford again tonight, with first pitch coming at 6:30 p.m. on the road.
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