Game 24 Recap: Mountaineers 16, Mainers 5

Keegan Meyn has been among the league's best hitters for the past two-plus weeks. 

For all the attention Vermont’s group of four All-Stars have generated this season, a fifth player has quietly outplayed them for arguably the past two-plus weeks. That player is left fielder Keegan Meyn, loudly making his case as one of the biggest snubs in the league’s premier event.

Meyn went 3-for-4 with a home run, three runs and five RBIs in a convincing 16-5 rout of visiting Sanford, powering a potent Mountaineers offense to an eighth straight win at home. Over his last 10 games, Meyn is hitting .419 with 11 runs scored and seven RBIs, marks that rank among the league’s best.

For Meyn, who started the summer 4-for-26 (.154), the key to turning around has just been about settling in.

“It’s just getting constant at bats and working with your routine,” he said. “You just have to grind it out. You get off of playing 56 games for your college and have a slow start because you’re tired, but once you get it going you can kick it in. We’re all start to hit and really clicking well together.”

He was one of several key contributors in another big win for Vermont, who’ve rattled off three straight and have a chance to sweep a four-game homestead with a win tonight against visiting Mystic.

“We’re a good baseball team and we’re finding a rhythm and rotation of players,” Vermont manager Joe Brown said. “This is all about their performances right now and a rested pitching staff. You hope you can ride this for a little bit.”

Mikael Mogues went 2-for-5 with three runs and two RBIs, Mike Osinski drove in a run on a two-hit night, and Will Morgan continued to stay hot with a 2-for-3 night, scoring three runs. Morgan, who missed time earlier this season with an injury, has enjoyed this homestead, going 5-for-9 with five runs scored.

Final Vote candidate Jonathan Stiever surrendered four runs in the first two innings, two earned, but settled down to strike out six over six innings. The right-hander gave up five of the six hits he allowed in opening two frames, but settled down to scatter a lone hit over four scoreless.

Reliever Christian Isbell threw three innings of relief, allowing a lone unearned run. Since giving up two earned runs in his first outing of the summer, Isbell has allowed just one in the following 8 1/3, quickly establishing himself as a reliable arm out of the bullpen. He recorded the save and struck out three.

“Stiever hadn’t started in a while because we used him in relief, but he’s fine,” Brown said. “I thought Isbell threw very well for three innings and that was big and really helps us. Now we’re loaded with arms and we’re ready for the rest of the week.”

Sanford went threw six pitchers in the loss, with starter Cole Whitney handed the loss after surrendering six earned runs on four hits in two innings. Three of the six came on one swing of the bat from Meyn, who answered the Mainers three-run first with a bases-loaded double in the bottom of the frame.

After the Mainers took a 4-3 lead off of Stiever in the second, Vermont answered, again. Joe Tietjen singled in a run, Trevor Ezel scored on a passed ball, and Mogues brought in a third with a sacrifice fly.

They got to reliever Blaise Whitman for three more. A throwing error from Whitman scored a run, and Daniel Little picked up two of his three RBIs with a single to right.

Another Sanford error, one of five on the night from the Mainers, brought in Morgan in the fourth. Little added a RBI fielders choice, pushing the lead to seven in the fourth. Morgan added a RBI single off of Joseph Orlando in the fifth, and Meyn went yard for his second home run of the year, bringing in two more. A Mogues double and Osinski single both brought in runs, capping the scoring in the sixth.