WOODCOCK WALK-OFF HOMER GIVES WARREN 600TH WIN
SAUGET, Ill. — Dustin Woodcock hammered a two-run, walk-off home run deep over the center-field fence to cap off four unanswered runs for the Gateway Grizzlies in a 5-3 win Thursday night over the Schaumburg Boomers at GCS Credit Union Ballpark.
Woodcock's blast was his 11th of the year in only 50 professional games. He trails Luke Lowery by only one big fly for the team lead.
After the Grizzlies (34-53) fell behind 3-1 in the seventh inning, they scratched out a run on a Woodcock RBI single. Shawon Dunston Jr. brought the Grizzlies within one on a solo home run to lead off the eighth on the first pitch from Boomers closer Connor Eller, who had not been scored upon since July 3.
Woodcock's two-run shot came on the first pitch of his two-out at-bat against Eller in the ninth. The rookie outfielder out of SIUE went 3-for-5 with three RBIs.
Schaumburg (43-44) dropped to five games back of Lake Erie in the East Division, meaning the Boomers would need to sweep the Crushers this weekend and get help next week to hold onto their playoff hopes.
Jordan Barrett tossed seven innings and allowed only three runs (two earned) with six strikeouts. Grant Black followed with a scoreless eighth inning and Geoff Bramblett (3-3) fired a perfect ninth inning and earned the win.
Dunston Jr. added a multi-hit game of his own with a single and a pair of runs to go with his solo dinger. Brent Sakurai collected a pair of singles of his own.
Gateway will open a three-game series at home against the River City Rascals with a 7:05 p.m. CDT first pitch Friday.
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ABOUT THE GATEWAY GRIZZLIES: The Gateway Grizzlies are a professional baseball team, located a mere 100-yards from I-255 (10 minutes from downtown St. Louis). The Grizzlies offer baseball fans entertainment, the likes of which are difficult to find - affordable, family, fun in the comfortable GCS Credit Union Ballpark with a great view of the St. Louis skyline. For tickets or general information please visit gatewaygrizzlies.com or call 618.337.3000.
ABOUT THE FRONTIER LEAGUE: The Frontier League is a professional, independent baseball organization. Since its inception, the Frontier League has provided millions of fans to a fun and exciting baseball experience within the American Midwest. Consisting of 10 teams in two divisions and 96 game schedules, the league is recognized for the amount of talented athletes that are picked up by various MLB teams every year.