Tri-State Coal Cats suffer cold start to begin July

By Ben Anderson

    With the first month in the books for the Tri-State Coal Cats, they aimed to turn things around in the month of July to race back to playoff contention. The Coal Cats however, started the month on the wrong paw, as they dropped four of five games to begin the final month of the season. 

    Tri-State started the week originally with a three-game series on the road against the Bluefield Ridge Runners, which was shortened to two games after the opener was cancelled due to weather. In game one, Tri-State suffered a loss in the most heartbreaking way possible, a walk-off.

    The Coal Cats struck early in the first inning, Julio Solier came home on a throwing error following Chandler Murray’s RBI single, which also scored Sal Mineo. Bishop Quarles added to the rally with a single that brought in Murray, giving Tri-State an early 3-0 edge. 

    After Bluefield got on the board in the second from an RBI single by Nathan Nicols,  Tri-State responded in the third with a Cesar Gonzalez RBI single that plated Ryan Maggy to make it 4-1.

    Bluefield started to kick into gear as Ryan Niedzwiedz tripled and scored in the third, and hit a solo home run in the seventh to cut Tri-State’s lead to 5-4. Gonzalez added on to the Coal Cats lead in the top of the frame with a solo shot of his own. 

    Niedzwiedz struck again in the eighth with an RBI single to tie the game, and in the bottom of the ninth, Jackson Thomas delivered the decisive blow with a walk-off single that scored Nichols as the Ridge Runners claimed the 6-5 victory. 

    Coal Cats starter Tucker DeLisle allowed his first earned runs of the season, going four innings and giving up five hits, three runs, four walks and two strikeouts. Jett Hope allowed one run in 2 2/3 innings of relief, while Jack Gibson took the blown save. Carlos Jazmin was tagged with the loss after allowing the game-winning hit in the ninth.

    Bluefield starter Victor Christal struck out six over 3 1/3 innings despite surrendering four earned runs. Nick Falla gave up Gonzalez’s homer but kept the Ridge Runners within striking distance through 3 2/3 innings. Deaton Oak and Chase Blease each tossed a scoreless frame to seal the win, with Blease earning his second victory of the year.

TRI-STATE 301 000 100 – 5 10 1

BLUEFIELD 012 000 111 – 6 12 1

DeLisle, Hope (5) Gibson (7), Jazmin (9), and Gonzalez; Christal, Falla (4), Oak (8), Blease (9), and Hines

Hitting: (TS) Gonzalez 2-5 2 RBI HR, Murray 1-3 RBI, Quarles 1-5 RBI; (B) Niedzwiedz 4-5 3 RBI HR 3B, Nichols 2-5 RBI, Thomas 2-5 RBI, Jones RBI

    Tri-State did not have much better luck in the second game, as they feel 6-3, suffering the two-game sweep against the Ridge Runners. 

    It was a similar story from the previous night for the Coal Cats, who tallied 11 hits on the night but again struggled to turn them into runs. Tri-State left the bases loaded in the first and scored all three of its runs in the fourth inning, unable to capitalize on opportunities throughout the rest of the game.

    Bluefield bolted into energy in the first with a five-run inning. sparked by Chris Daniels’ solo home run to left — his second of the season. Colin Guerra followed with an RBI single to bring in Derek Gonzalez. With the bases loaded, Niedzwiedz drew a walk to plate Eric Maisonet, and a wild pitch from Noah LaFine allowed Jorge Valdez Jr. to score. Levi Jones capped the inning with a single that scored Guerra, giving the Ridge Runners a comfortable 5-0 lead.

    Tri-State responded quickly in the fourth. Jackson Golden’s two-RBI single scored Michael Rodriguez and Sam Winsett, then Solier added an RBI single to bring home Golden, cutting the deficit to 5-3.

    Bluefield added insurance in the seventh on a sacrifice fly from Ethan Guerra that scored Niedzwiedz. That made it 6-3, and the Ridge Runners’ bullpen handled the rest.

    Connor Southwell started for Bluefield, throwing three scoreless innings with three hits and two strikeouts. Bryson Hoff gave up all three Coal Cats runs in the fourth, but Evan O’Neill, Brody Lanham and J.D. Greeley combined to shut the door, throwing five shutout innings with six strikeouts. O’Neill earned the win, Lanham picked up the hold, and Greeley secured his first save of the season.

    For Tri-State, Reynaldo Castro made his first start and struggled, allowing five earned runs on four hits over 2 1/3 innings. LaFine steadied things with 2 2/3 scoreless innings, while Mason Sylvest and Aiden Sites combined for the final three innings, allowing just one run.

TRI-STATE 000 3000 000 – 3 11 1

BLUEFIELD 005 000 10X – 6 8 1

Castro, LaFine (3) Sylvest (6), Sites (8), and Golden; Southwell, Hoff (4), O’Neill (5), Lanham (8), Greeley (9), and Gonzalez

Hitting: (TS) Golden 2-4 2 RBIs, Gonzalez 2-5, Smolinski 1-4 2B; (B) Decker 2-5, Maisonet 2-4, Daniels HR

    Tri-State, after the sweep, returned home to Jack Cook Field for the Independence Day weekend series against the Kingsport Axmen.  Kingsport unleashed fury at the plate in game one, demolishing Tri-State 12-1, giving the Coal Cats their largest deficit loss of the season. \

    Kingsport started the scoring spree in the second inning with a five-run frame. Blake Primrose hit an RBI single to bring home Ben Tyron and later scored on a sacrifice RBi groundout from Alex Kelsey. Mason Swinney was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded, scoring Paul Jones II, and Tyler Matt hit a 2-run RBI single to score Lias McCallum Landis Davilla. 

    The Axmen continued the attack in the third. Tyron scored on a McCallum sac fly, and Kelsey singled to score Jones II. 

    The Axmen dominated on the mound as much as they did at the plate. Starting pitcher Ronin Vicenti pitched five scoreless innings, only allowing one hit, with seven strikeouts. 

    The Axmen extended its lead again in the sixth with a two-run home run by Matt to extend the lead to 9-0. Tri-State finally erased the shutout in the bottom of the frame as Rodrigues hit a line drive into center field to score Gonzalez. 

    Kaleb Townsend entered the game in relief of Vicenti for the Axmen and finished three innings of relief with one unearned run surrendered. Bryant Yoak took the loss for Tri-State going three innings, allowing seven runs with six earned, on eight hits, and two walks, while striking out five.

    The Axmen tallied on three more runs in the top of the ninth, giving them their fifth double-digit run victory of the season. 

KINGSPORT 052 002 003 – 12 2 2

TRI-STATE 000 001 000 – 1 3 1

Vicenti, Townsend (6), Cespedes (9), and Primrose; Yoak, Gomez (4), Rodriguez (7) E. Jones (8), Golden (9), and Rivera

Hitting: (K) Tyron 3-5 3B, Myatt 2-6 RBI, Davilla 1-4 2 RBI, Bell 1-4 RBI, Jones II 1-4 2B (TS) Gonzalez 2-3 2B, Rodriguez 1-4 RBI

    In game two, Tri-State picked up its first win of the month, with a walk-off in sudden death.

    Kingsport built a 4-0 lead in the top of the first inning, but Tri-State responded, scoring three in the bottom of the third inning. Winsett scored on a wild pitch, Golden scored on a RBI single from Mineo who later scored a force groundout. 

    Tri-State tied the game in the bottom of the fifth with a sac fly by Smolinkski that brought home Golden for the second time in the contest. Kingsport scored the go-ahead run in the sixth with Tyron scoring on a wild pitch. 

    The Coal Cats rallied in the bottom of the ninth, and on their final out. Luke Kosko walked, and Solier subbed in to pitch-run, and tried to steal second. The throw from catcher Jace Roosien was just a split second behind and, miraculously, Solier was in scoring position. Then Winsett hit a ball just past the outstretched arm of Justin Bell, scoring Solier. The inning ended leaving one sudden-death inning to play.

    Tri-State loaded the bases in sudden death, and Kingsport’s Micah Wells hit Quarles in the foot with a pitch and the Coal Cats walked it off 5-4. 

KINGSPORT 400 001 000 – 5 8 1

TRI-STATE 003 010 001 – 5 8 0

Baker, Harrell (5), Downing (8), Wells (9), and Roossien; Oliver, McIntosh (6), Sites (7) Gonzalez (8), and Golden

Hitting: (K) Swinney 2-3 RBI. Myatt 1-4 RBI, Roossien 1-3 RBI, Tyron 1-3 2B; (TS) Mineo 3-5, RBI, Winsett 2-4 RBI, Murray RBI, Smolinski RBI

    With the two teams splitting the first two games, the rubber match was set for a seven-inning Sunday afternoon contest. The Axmen won the rubber match 3-1, with a three-run second inning. 

    Myatt got the scoring started with a ground ball that went through the legs of second baseman Winsett. Ty Denton then scored Tryon with a sacrifice fly, followed by a Derek Pitts single that scored Jones II. 

    The Axmen carried the three-run lead into the bottom half of the second, but it didn’t stay 3-0 for long as Maggy hit a leadoff homer 384 feet over the wall in right-center. Jacob Gholston rebounded after giving up the home run to close the second.

    The true phenomenon of the contest was the pitching, as Keyon Collins started off for Tri-State going four innings, allowing three runs on just two hits and striking out three. Gholston went 4 and 1/3 innings, allowing one run on two hits, with three strikeouts. 

    Kenneth Jackson and Joe Gomez ate the rest of the innings for Tri-State, and McCallum, Payton Armour and Tyler Pickens cleaned up for Kingsport. Armour struck two out in the seventh, with Pickens striking out the final batter of the contest.  

KINGSPORT 030 000 0XX – 3 4 1

TRI-STATE 010 000 0XX – 1 2 2

Gholston, McCallum (5), Armour (7), Pickens (7), and Denton; Collins, Jackson (6), Gomez (7), and Golden

Hitting: (K) Larson 1-3 3B, Pitts 1-3, RBI, Denton RBI; (TS) Maggy 1-2 HR, Rivera 1-2

    Tri-State now sits at last place in the Appalachian League East Division Standings at 8-16. They will hit the road this week as part of a six-game road trip, including two games against the Bristol State Liners, two games against the Pulaski River Turtles, and two games against the Johnson City Doughboys.