The Gateway Grizzlies split a doubleheader with the Trois-Rivieres Aigles on Sunday at Grizzlies Ballpark, falling just short by a score of 2-1 in seven innings in the first contest before rebounding with an 8-6 victory over seven innings in the second game.
In the first game, Carson LaRue (4-1) and Osman Gutierrez (4-4) each held the opposing team scoreless for the first three innings before the Aigles broke through with two outs in the fourth, scoring two runs on a walk, two consecutive singles, and an error to go ahead 2-0.
Thanks to Gutierrez, who pitched into the seventh and struck out eight, the Grizzlies trailed from there. They attempted a comeback in the bottom of the seventh, with Peter Zimmermann leading off with a single and Clint Freeman doubling to left-center field before D.J. Stewart brought in Gateway’s first run on a groundout. But Tyler Cornett recorded the final out for the save, stranding the tying run at third base to draw Trois-Rivieres even in the series.
In the second game, a rubber game to decide the series, the Aigles got a three-run, first-inning home run from Dalton Combs to take a 3-0 lead on Zac Ryan (2-1) and the Grizzlies, but Gateway responded with a bang in the bottom half, netting five runs on six consecutive hits to leap ahead 5-3. Zimmermann’s two-run double got the scoring started, followed by Abdiel Diaz’s game-tying RBI single, a go-ahead double by Stewart, and an RBI groundout by Eric Rivera.
Two innings later, the Grizzlies added to their lead with two runs on zero hits, drawing two walks, three hit batters, and two wild pitches in the frame to take a 7-3 lead, which they expanded to 8-3 in the fifth on an RBI single with two outs by Andrew Penner.
Trois-Rivieres nearly came all the way back in the late innings against the Gateway bullpen after Ryan tossed five innings and struck out four to put himself in line for the win. Steve Brown’s RBI double in the sixth made the score 8-4, and the Aigles also scored a pair of runs in the seventh to slice the lead to 8-6 on RBI hits by L.P. Pelletier and Juan Kelly. Trois-Rivieres then loaded the bases with two outs, putting the tying and leading runs on for Rodrigo Orozco, but his fly ball to deep right was caught at the warning track for the final out, securing the win and the series victory for Gateway.
Winners of seven of their last nine games overall and in first place in the Frontier League West Division standings, the Grizzlies will look to keep their momentum at home when they host the Florence Y’alls in a three-game series beginning on Monday, July 3, at Grizzlies Ballpark. Joey Gonzalez will start the series opener against Florence’s Jestin Jones, with first pitch at 7:05 p.m. CT, and fireworks to follow the final out.
Jason Guerette is the Grizzlies' Director of Broadcasting and Media Relations and the "Voice of the Grizzlies." 2023 will be his second season with the organization, handling lead broadcasting duties on the Grizzlies Media Network as well as being in charge of all team press releases and game-day media materials.
2023 will also be Jason's ninth season in the Frontier League after spending 2014-21 in the same role with the Southern Illinois Miners. Overall, he has broadcasted close to 800 games in the league, including playoffs. During the baseball offseason, he serves as a play-by-play broadcaster for Manhattan College and the New Jersey Institute of Technology, with games being seen on ESPN+ among other platforms.
In addition to broadcasting, Jason works as a public address announcer for Seton Hall University women's basketball as well as Columbia University men's and women's basketball. He also spent nine years working "behind the scenes" as a freelance board operator and highlight editor at Westwood One for their coverage of the NFL, NCAA football, and NCAA basketball.
Jason graduated from Seton Hall in 2012 with B.A. in Communication Studies and a minor in Broadcasting & Visual Media.
