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Gutierrez helps Scrappers halt skid
By STEVE RUMAN
NILES
In his previous start last Sunday against Auburn, Mahoning Valley Scrappers pitcher Jhonneyver Gutierrez was forced from the game in the top of the first inning when he was hit by a line drive on his throwing arm.
On Saturday, Gutierrez rebounded in grand fashion.
Against Batavia, Gutierrez pitched five scoreless innings, giving up just two base hits. The strong showing helped lead the Scrappers to a 6-5 win over the Muckdogs in front of 2,752 fans at Eastwood Field.
Gutierrez surrendered a lead-off double to J.D. Orr to start the game. He also issued a two-out walk in the frame, then retired 12 straight before giving up a two-out single in the fifth.
“Big-time performance, and at a time when we needed it the most,” said Scrappers first baseman Michael Cooper. “That kept us in the game until our offense got things going. We needed that.”
The win snapped a four-game losing streak for the Scrappers (8-7) and moved them within 11/2 games of Batavia, which leads the Pinckney Division of the New York-Penn League.
Muckdogs starter Julio Frias matched Guiterrez through four innings. Frias allowed just one hit and recorded seven strikeouts in the first four frames, but he couldn’t get out of the fifth.
A walk, a single and a two RBI single off the bat of Pedro Alfonseca chased Frias from the game, and gave the Scrappers a 2-0 lead. The Scrappers would tack on two more runs in the inning on a double by Ray Delgado that scored Alfonseca and Brayan Rocchio.
“We were seeing a lot of off-speed stuff, we just had to understand that we had to make adjustments and be patient at the plate,” Cooper said. “When we saw the fast ball, it came in hard and we wanted to hit it hard.”
After the Muckdogs scored a pair of runs in the seventh to cut their deficit to 4-2, Cooper laced a triple down the left-field line in the bottom half of the inning to score two runs, giving the Scrappers a 6-2 advantage.
Two errors gave Batavia life in the ninth. The Muckdogs eventually put the possible game-tying run in scoring position, but Scrappers closer Tim Herrin was able to pick up his league-high fourth save.
“From a momentum standpoint, this was big. Now we need to come back [today] and keep things going in the right direction,” Cooper said.
The Scrappers and Muckdogs conclude their three-game series this afternoon, then the Scrappers will travel to Williamsport for their third road trip of the season.
Scrappers outfielder Billy Wilson said the pro baseball lifestyle has been challenging for a team with little experience beyond high school.
“It’s been a crazy start to the season, it has taken some getting used-to for a lot of us,” Wilson said. “Last year, most of us were in Arizona. It’s all together different there, you’re playing in front of five fans and four of them are parents.
“Here, there is a whole different atmosphere. You have fans heckling you, talking to you during the game, you have a lot of excitement in the stadium. It’s absolutely great, but it’s challenging.”
Wilson said the travel has been a factor.
“That first road trip of the season was different,” Wilson said. “You get off a bus, play a few games, come right back home, do the same. Back and forth. It’s great to play every day, but you have to mentally be ready for that.”