The Gateway Grizzlies were down 6-0 to the Windy City ThunderBolts in the fourth inning on Thursday night, but embarked on what would become their largest comeback of the season to date, going ahead for good with a six-run bottom of the sixth in a 12-7 win at Grizzlies Ballpark to sweep the series.Â
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With the temperature pushing 100 degrees at first pitch, Collin Sullivan ran into trouble early, surrendering three runs in the third inning and three runs in the fourth before departing the game. Nate Garkow (5-1) then came in and held the line for two and two-thirds innings, striking out four in his longest appearance of the season, allowing the Grizzlies’ offense to go to work against ‘Bolts ace Garrett Christman. Â
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The comeback started in the bottom of the fourth, when Kyle Gaedele continued his incredible series after being activated from the coaching staff with an RBI single that made the score 6-1. Jairus Richards then hit a solo homer off Christman in the fifth to cut the deficit to 6-2, and with two outs and no one on base in the sixth, Gateway put together a remarkable rally to take the lead for good. Â
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Andrew Penner started it with a single, and Gaedele followed up with another single before Christman issued back-to-back walks, including one to Willie Estrada with the bases loaded, to make it 6-3. After a pitching change, Abdiel Diaz reached on an infield RBI single to make it 6-4, and Richards then stroked a game-tying two-run hit to left-center field against Sebastian Selway (0-2), tying the score at 6-6. Eric Rivera then tripled to right field out of the reach of a diving Will Riley to score both Richards and Diaz to put the Grizzlies ahead 8-6, capping the incredible frame.Â
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Windy City did not go quietly- the ThunderBolts rallied in the eighth against Matt Valin, scoring one run to make it 8-7, then loading the bases with two outs, but failing to get any closer. In the bottom of the eighth, a two-out error by Micah Yonamine at first base opened the door for four insurance runs to score for the final 12-7 margin.Â
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The Grizzlies will look to keep the momentum going when they play host to the Québec Capitales this weekend in a clash of the first-place teams in the Frontier League’s East and West Divisions. The series begins Friday, July 28, at 6:45 p.m. at Grizzlies Ballpark, with Joey Gonzalez opposing Québec’s Ruben Ramirez as the opening matchup on the mound.
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.
