Patriots Win in Balk-Off Fashion in 14th Inning
Nothing like the good-ole walk-off pitch-clock violation to win a ball game. That is exactly how it came to an end after 11 p.m., Thursday night in Brirdgewater as the…
Trey Sweeney celebrates with teammates following a balk-off win. Photo Somerset Patriots.
Nothing like the good-ole walk-off pitch-clock violation to win a ball game. That is exactly how it came to an end after 11 p.m., Thursday night in Brirdgewater as the New York Yankees Double-A affiliate, Somerset Patriots walked-it-off with a 4-3 win over New Hampshire. The victory coupled with another loss for Portland, pushed the Patriots magic number to clinch the first half title down to one.
The Patriots clinch tonight with either a win or a Portland loss.
The victory last night marked the third walk-off win of the year for Somerset.
While both teams pitched incredibly well, the story of the night had to be Somerset's staff. Five Patriots pitchers combined to limit the Fisher Cats to one earned run over 14 innings with 18 combined strikeouts.
Richard Fitts dazzled at the start, holding New Hampshire to two hits and an unearned run over six innings. He struck out seven.
Reliever Justin Wilson wound up the victor after tossing three innings of one-hit ball in relief.
Trey Sweeney also remained hot with the bat; his game-tying two-run homer in the 11th inning, knotted the game up at three. With the homer, Sweeney has now gone deep in four of his last five games and five times in his last eight games. In 18 games since June 2, Sweeney is hitting .295 with six homers, 14 RBI, and a .958 OPS. The Yankees number five prospect has reached base in 17 of his last 18 games.
