JV Giants Late Inning Comeback Topples Drake

3/19: Having been stymied on offense for most of the game, the JV Giants mounted a two-run sixth inning rally to take a 3-2 victory over a game Drake squad at Moody Field on Tuesday. The Giants record for the season now stands at 6-1 (4-0 in MCAL play).

Mikey Bender got the start on the mound for the Giants and was effective again, going 5 and 2/3 innings and giving up only two runs (one earned) while striking out six.

Meanwhile, the Giants were unable to get much of anything going offensively against Drake lefty starter Emery Huebner. Huebner was featuring a submarine-style delivery and a two-seam fastball that while not much to write home about velocity-wise, had some screwball movement running away from the Giants righty hitters that had them consistently off-balance and making weak contact. Through five and a half innings, Drake was on top 2-1 and things were not looking great for Redwood.

But the Giants would turn things around in the bottom of the sixth. Asher Jacobs led off with a hard ground ball that was too hot to handle for the Drake third baseman. Jacobs advanced to second on a ground out by Thomas Johnson. Charlie Ginsburg followed with a bloop to center that fell in for a hit, but Jacobs, initially fearing the ball would be caught, was unable to advance.

That looked like it might hurt when Ethan Crawford followed with a fly out to center field that would have been deep enough to score Jacobs from third and tie the game had he been there, but as things stood the Giants had runners on first and second with two outs. Bender followed with another hot grounder that ate up Drake’s third baseman and the bases were loaded.

Sam Rice picked a good time for the hardest hit ball of the game for the Giants, as he drilled a line drive single to right to plate Jacobs and Ginsburg and put the Giants ahead 3-2.

Rice, who had relieved Bender in the top of the sixth, remained in to try to close out the game in the top of the seventh. Drake’s second baseman Sam Heimerdinger had other ideas, however, as he lined a one-out double down the left field line.

But Sam McIntosh came to the rescue with the defensive play of the game. With Heimerdinger stealing on the pitch, Rice uncorked a scud that bounced a foot in front of the plate. McIntosh not only blocked the pitch, but fielded it cleanly, popped to his feet quickly and threw a strike to third to nab Heimerdinger and snuff out the Drake rally. Rice ended it shortly thereafter with a strikeout – final score 3-2 Giants.

The Giants have plenty of time to regroup from this nailbiter of a game as they don’t play again until next Tuesday, March 26 against Terra Linda. First pitch 4:30 pm at Moody Field.