ASU Scores Late To Down Troy 5-4

Friday, May 14

Troy, Ala.

6:00 pm

Troy University

Arkansas State

5/15/2010 2:43:00 AM | Baseball

Troy closer Chase Whitley has gotten big outs when he has needed them all year, but in Friday night's series opener against Arkansas State at Riddle-Pace Field, a bloop single to right in the ninth inning cost him and the Trojans in a 5-4 loss to the Red Wolves.

The loss snapped a 12-game win streak over Arkansas State and dropped the Trojans to 27-22 overall on the year and, more importantly, 12-13 in Sun Belt Conference play. ASU improved its overall mark to match Troy, but improved to 15-10 in league play.

The bloop single to right off the bat of ASU's Todd Baumgartner plated Jason Kimball with what turned out to be the winning run. Kimball reached to open the ninth with a ground single just off the glove of second baseman Shohei Fujita to start the inning.

Whitley (5-3) took the loss for Troy in relief of starter Andrew Dickinson, who allowed just four hits over 6.1 innings of work. Andy Ferguson (4-3) worked into the ninth inning to get the victory for the Red Wolves. Ross Humes came on to get the final two outs to record his first save.

“Andrew had one bad inning again,” Trojans coach Bobby Pierce said. “You have to give credit to Ferguson because he kept us off balance all night. He went to a lot of off-speed pitches in hitting counts and good pitchers can do that. Their club found a way to score off Chase, who did not have his better stuff tonight.”

While Baumgartner's single in the ninth plated the deciding run, it was a pitch he took in the fifth inning that was actually the most important of the game.

With runners on second and third and two out with Troy holding a 2–0 lead, Dickinson worked Baumgartner to a full count before dealing a slider to the outside corner. The Troy dugout erupted in celebration and the fielders headed to the dugout before realizing the pitch was called ball four.

Two pitches later the Red Wolves' only power hitter, Murray Watts, blasted a grand slam over the big wall in right to give ASU a 4-2 lead.

“We thought he struck Baumgartner out,” Pierce said. “It was a big pitch and a big call but you have to play baseball and have to battle back. He made a great first pitch changeup to Watts and, if you are going to go back-to-back, the second pitch has to be as good or better. He threw it right down the middle and Watts did what guys do when you miss in the middle of the plate and, unfortunately for us, the bases were loaded.”

After the Watts grand slam, the Trojans came right back, scoring a pair of runs in the home half of the inning. Chad Watson doubled in T.J. Rivera, who started the inning with a single, moved up on a wild pitch and then scored on a ground out by Adam Bryant.

“I liked the way our team battled,” Pierce said. “I thought we played hard and played with the right intent, but give their team a lot of credit for coming up with a big Friday night win.”

The Trojans got runners on base in each of the last four innings, but were never able to get another run across. That included the ninth inning when Ryan Ditthardt led off with a single, but pinch runner Daniel Peterson was left stranded at third when Rivera flew out to right to end the game.

“We battled back to tie it up, but we never could get anything done after that point,” Pierce said.

Troy got on the board first in the third inning when Bryant delivered a two-out single and then scored on a bloop triple to left off the bat of Steven Felix that ASU leftfielder Ryan Emery appeared to lose in the late-day sun. Felix then scored when Whitley, who walked, got into a run-down between first and second.

Bryant and Felix led the Trojans with two hits each while Giovanni Garcia and Kimball had two hits apiece for the Red Wolves.

The Trojans are now back in familiar territory, down a game in a Sun Belt Conference series after a Friday night loss.

“We've been through this and pulled out the series the last two weekends against Western Kentucky and Louisiana-Monroe,” Pierce said. “There is not anything we really need to explain to these guys about what they need to do, it is just a matter of coming out and getting it done.”