CARY, N.C. – Action continued Saturday at the National Training Complex for the 2022 Prospect Development Pipeline League, as Team Light Blue gutted out a win in game one to remain undefeated while Team Gray picked up its first win of the event in a pitcher’s duel.
TEAM LIGHT BLUE VS. TEAM NAVY
The first game of the day between Team Light Blue and Team Navy was a back-and-forth battle that saw a combined 19 hits.
Team Light Blue picked up where it left off yesterday with a run in the first inning, as Kevin McGonigle led off the game with a double up the right field line and scored on a one-out double to right field by Walker Jenkins.
Brandon Winokur came through for Team Light Blue in the third, tallying his first hit of the event to double his team’s lead. Dean West led off the inning with an infield single, stole second, and scored on Winokur’s RBI single to right field.
In the fourth Kendall George used strong base running to put Team Navy on the board, as he reached on a single up the middle, stole second, and a pair of passed balls allowed him to score.
Team Navy took its first lead of the game in the fifth with two more runs thanks to back-to-back doubles by Tai Peete and Bryce Eldridge to the left side of the diamond.
Team Light Blue responded with a four-run sixth inning on three hits and an error, highlighted by an Eric Bitonti RBI triple and Will Gasparino RBI single, to take its lead back. Team Navy continued to battle back in its half of the inning though when Nazzan Zanetello’s RBI double to center field made it a two-run game.
In the seventh, Team Light Blue added some insurance when Steven Milam and pinch hitter Yahil Melendez strung together back-to-back hits to give their squad a three-run lead. Team Navy attempted to rally back in the bottom half with a pair of runs thanks to an RBI fielder’s choice and Kendall George’s run-scoring single through the left side but came up short.
Team Light Blue remains undefeated at the 2022 PDP League as it improves to 2-0-1 while Team Navy moves to 1-2 on the week.
Notables
- Team Light Blue’s Travis Sykora had a stellar start on the bump, going three innings and allowing just one batter to reach base while striking out five batters.
- Brandon Winokur led Team Light Blue at the plate with a 2-for-3 outing, including a double and a run batted in.
- Eight other players notched a hit for Team Light Blue, highlighted by extra-base hits from Kevin McGonigle and Walker Jenkins.
- Kendall George paced Team Red with a 2-for-4 performance and RBI, while Bryce Eldridge led all players with two RBIs.
TEAM GRAY VS. TEAM RED
The second matchup of the day between Team Gray and Team Red was a pitcher’s duel, with just two earned runs scored in the contest.
In the second inning Team Gray got on the board, as Edward (Tre) Phelps laced a one-out double to left field and then scored on George Wolkow’s RBI double to right field.
Team Gray doubled its lead in the fifth when Antonio Anderson reached on a one-out walk, moved to third on Evan Haeger’s infield single, and scored on a passed ball.
In its half of the fifth Team Red got on the board thanks to Dillon Head’s bases-loaded single through the right side, scoring Dylan Cupp from third. Coleman Mizell looked to knot the score on the play by trying to cross home plate safely but was thrown out to end the inning.
In the final innings Team Red was only able to put one batter one base the rest of the way as Team Gray came away with its first victory of the 2022 PDP League to improve to 1-1-1, while Team Red falls to 1-2 at the event.
Notables
- Gavin Grahovac had a strong day at the plate with a 2-for-2 showing, while five other players tallied a hit in the game.
- Team Gray’s pitching rotation of Aidan Keenan, Landen Maroudis, MJ Seo, Blake Mitchell, and George Wolkow combined to yield just six hits and not allow an earned run.
- Team Red’s Tommy Roldan turned in the squad’s lone multi-hit performance as he went 2-for-3, while four other players recorded a hit.
- On the mound, Team Red’s Duke Ekstrom, Christian Rodriguez, Brayden Sharp, and Brody Shawn combined to fan 10 batters and surrender one earned run.
ON DECK
The teams will return to action on Monday, July 4, in a pair of games at the National Training Complex in Cary, N.C. Team Red and Team Navy will match up at 1 p.m.., while Team Gray and Team Light Blue will face each other at 4 p.m.
ABOUT PDP LEAGUE SCORING
USA Baseball utilizes a modified scoring system for its development programs to achieve load management and mitigate potential injuries due to overuse for its youth athletes. Pitchers are subject to a maximum pitch count of 25 per inning during game play. In the event an inning is rolled because a pitcher has reached their maximum pitch count, runners on base may be contributed to the game score. As a result of this system, the final game score may not match the overall statistics.
