Rangers Lose 3^rd Straight

The Dayton Rangers took two on the chin losing a double-dip to the Warren County Shockers 19-6 and to the Astros 14-10.

In game 1, the Rangers jumped out on the board as Brad Clark punched in a 2-run single with two outs to give the team a 2-0 lead in the first. However, the Shockers answered with a three-spot in the bottom of the first with the help of three infield miscues. The Rangers got the lead back in the second as two runs came across on errors, as the Rangers took a 4-3 lead into the third inning. The Shockers took the lead back in the third as Taylor Hause and Thomas Fluty had RBI singles to give the Shockers a 5-4 lead. But James Robinson added an RBI groundout that scored Robert Riley, who doubled to start the fourth, to tie the game at 5-5. Josh Allen had a two-run single for the Shockers and Randy Haines added an RBI single as well to give the Shockers the final lead change of the game. Nine walks and 18 hits allowed did in the Rangers pitching staff on the day as the offense could only muster 9 hits off of Shockers’ starter Jeff Cherry.

Game 2 didn’t start off so well for the Rangers as Phil Crisp singled in a pair of runs in the bottom of the first for a quick 2-0 Astros lead off of starter Jonathan Silverman. Shane Fallen’s RBI single and Jacob Robinson’s sac fly tied the game at 2-2 after two innings. Silverman settled down after a jumpy first inning to strike out 8 batters in the first four frames. This allowed the Rangers to get the lead back in the fourth as Jake Kingsolver singled in Clint Wolf and Jonmarc Lippincott’s grounder plated Kingsolver for a 4-2 advantage. But the Astros third trip around the order proved costly for Silverman as Crisp doubled in two more runs, followed by a Garrett Copas sac fly and a Gregg Foster RBI single, to give the Astros the lead back at 6-4. The Rangers fought back with three runs in the top of the sixth to regain the lead. Lippincott’s grounder to short scored Clint Wolf. Robert Riley’s double scored Brad Clark to tie the game. And Shane’s RBI double pushed across the go-ahead run for a 7-6 lead. The Rangers tried to add a little cushion to their lead in the top of the seventh. Jelani Arnold grounded out to shortstop to score Jared Bradley, and Clint Wolf followed with a run-scoring single to plate James Robinson. The Astros strung together three singles and a pair of walks to tie the game at 9-9 after seven innings. The Rangers took their third lead of the game in the top of the eighth as rookie Robert Riley belted a two-out solo home run to center. But once again, the defense wore down in the end as three fielding errors, two walks, a hits-batsman, and a pair of singles gave the ‘Stros five runs and the win.

Offensive highlights: Shane Fallen 4-for-7, run, 2RBI, double, SB; Robert Riley 4-for-5, 3 doubles, HR, 5 runs, 2RBI; Steve Marshall 4-for-9, 2RBI; 3SB

Historical notes: Brad’s two-run single in the first inning of game one was his 50^th career hit. Clint is 8 RBI shy of 200 career in the league.