It looked like the fireworks might have to be moved back a little while Altoona and Bowie played extra innings to determine who would earn the win at Blair County Ballpark on Tuesday night. Curve designated hitter Josh Bonifay changed that when he looped a base hit that was just out of Baysox first baseman Walter Young’s reach and just inside the foul line in short right field. That blooper scored Chris Duffy from second base to give the Curve the 5-4 win in the bottom of the ninth inning.
Duffy had reached base when he was hit by a pitch leading off the inning. The Curve center fielder moved up to second when Bowie reliever Jeff Hundley also hit Nate McLouth with a pitch. Following an unsuccessful attempt by Kevin Nicholson to bunt the runners to second and third, Bonifay fought off an inside pitch from right-handed sidewheeler Andy Mitchell who had come in for Hundley and was able to lift the ball just beyond the 6-5, 305 pound Young’s reach.
“You never see him so it was tough,” said Bonifay explaining the difficulty in facing a delivery like Mitchell’s. “Honestly, I was looking down at the rubber. That’s where I was trying to focus on. The ball was getting up on me pretty quickly, as you could tell by me fouling them off to the right side. Luckily, I got just enough of the piece of wood on it to pop it over Walter’s head. It felt good, but the rest of these guys deserve everything. They put me in that situation. The pitchers battled and held us right there and their guy hit two of our guys to put us in position to win. Luckily I got the little bloop out of everybody’s’ reach.”
“It always feels good to get a win. We have been pressing a little too much on offense, trying to do a little too much. Each guy has been pulling out and trying to hit the long ball instead of playing within ourselves, like making good contact and moving runners-little things to help win ballgames.”
Altoona appeared to break out of their hitting slump at least for one game, taking the lead early only to have Bowie tie up the score and then coming from behind to tie the score after the Baysox took the lead.
In the second inning, Altoona scored twice to take their first lead. Gary Thomas singled and scored when Ray Navarrete ripped a double into the left-center field power alley. Following an infield hit by Curve catcher Chris Snusz moved Navarrete to third, Brandon Chaves’ RBI single scored Navarrete with the second run.
Curve left field Thomas saved at least one Bowie run in the third inning, robbing Gary Cates of a home run by leaping above the short fence in left field to glove the long drive for the second out of the inning.
“Defensively, we were outstanding tonight,” reported Curve manager Tony Beasley. “Chaves made a couple nice plays up the middle. Thomas robbing the home run was just unbelievable. That ball as hit pretty well and I knew it was out. He went back and got a running start and a leaping catch. That ended up probably being the difference in the ballgame. Defense played an important factor in tonight’s win.
Bowie scored once in the third on an RBI single by Val Majewski and twice in the sixth on a two-run homer by Young, a former Pirate farm hand, who was expected to be at Altoona this year, until the Orioles picked him up.
Mike Connolly started the game for Altoona, but was able to go just four innings, when he exceeded his pitch count and was relieved by Brian Agamennone. Connolly allowed one run on five hits, struck out four and walked two. Agamennone tossed two and 1/3 innings before being replaced by Andrew Lorraine. Agamennone gave up three runs on four hits with one strikeout. Lorraine did his job getting the final out of the seventh inning after allowing hits to the first two batters he faced.
Jeff Miller picked up his first win of the year with two hitless innings to finish up the game for the Curve. Miller got Bowie on a foul pop and five groundouts by the only six hitters he faced.
Altoona tied the game in the sixth on a two-run double by Chaves, scoring Thomas and Navarrete, both of whom had walked with one out. Chaves, who started the season 1-21 at the plate, singled, doubled and walked and drove in three runs.
“This team is a bunch of guys who pick me up I’m down and I do the same when they are down,” explained Chaves. “It’s been a tough road, but we got the win tonight, that’s good. I got a good game tonight, hopefully, I can continue that tomorrow and the next game.”
Denny Bautista started on the mound for the Baysox, pitching five and 1/3 innings, giving up three runs on five hits, with four strikeouts and three walks and was followed by former Curve Javier Martinez, Sendy Rleal, Hundley and Mitchell.
The final game of the three-game set is a School kids Special scheduled for 10:35 this morning with Bobby Bradly 0-0, 3,27 ERA) on the mound for Altoona going against Bowie’s Dave Crouthers (0-0, 7.56)..
The Curve will return to Altoona for a seven-game homestand beginning with four contests against Erie on April 20-May 1, followed by three games against Binghamton May 3-5.
