Crabs Drop Gut-Wrenching Extra Inning Battle
Waldorf, MD – Tonight’s series opener between the Blue Crabs and the Long Island Ducks redefined the term “pitcher’s duel”. Both sides duked it out, but when a 0-0 game headed to extras, the Ducks came out on top, 1-0.
A pair of southpaws, Darin Downs for the Ducks, and Kevin McGovern for the Blue Crabs battled it out in the contest.
Downs tossed five innings of no hit baseball while striking out ten Blue Crabs, and McGovern allowed just a trio of hits in seven scoreless innings.
Joe Iorio allowed the first Blue Crabs hit of the contest in the sixth inning as Edwin Garcia singled, and Adam Choplick continued where McGovern left off.
A scoring opportunity presented itself when Jon Griffin singled and moved in to scoring position on a Ducks error in the bottom of the eighth inning with no outs, but the Crabs couldn’t capitalize. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Crabs had runners at first and second with one out, but once again came up empty.
Suddenly, it became the first extra inning game at Regency Furniture Stadium this season, and it occurred with a scoreless contest through nine innings. Per the Atlantic League – MLB rule changes, a runner starts each extra inning at second base, and on just the seventh combined hit of the contest the Ducks came through on a Hector Sanchez single that would be the difference maker in a gut-wrenching Blue Crabs defeat, as the Long Island came out victorious, 1-0.
The Blue Crabs will return home tomorrow, Thursday September 13th for game two of a three game set with the Long Island Ducks, with a 6:35 p.m. first pitch.
Catch all Blue Crabs home games on the Blue Crabs Broadcast Network, live streamed on YouTube (@SOMDBlueCrabs) Facebook (@SOMDBlueCrabs) and Twitter (@BlueCrabs).
About the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs
The Blue Crabs play 140 regular season games in the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball Clubs. The Blue Crabs, in their 12th season of baseball, call Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf, Maryland home. For more information on the Blue Crabs, please call 301-638-9788 or visit http://www.somdbluecrabs.com for more information.
About the Atlantic League of Professional Baseball (ALPB)
With eight teams in the Mid-Atlantic and Texas, the ALPB is a leader in baseball innovation and a player gateway to Major League Baseball. Through its exclusive partnership with MLB, the Atlantic League tests Major League Baseball rules and equipment initiatives. The Atlantic League has sent over 900 players to MLB organizations while drawing more than 40 million fans to its affordable, family-friendly ballparks throughout its 22-year history.
For more information, please visit www.AtlanticLeague.com.
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