Vigilantes Take Advantage of Mistakes in 9-7 Victory

Occasionally, what goes around comes around, and the Vigilantes were only too happy to have it come their way Wednesday.

One night after Vigilante second baseman Willie Mosher’s error paved the way for a four-run first inning for Reno in an eight-run victory, the visiting Chukars’ shortstop returned the favor.

The struggling Vigilantes turned it into a four-run first inning that provided the winning margin in a 9-7 Western Baseball League victory over Reno in front of an announced crowd of 1,662.

The victory was only the Vigilantes’ fourth in 13 games and it ended their losing streak at four games. The Vigilantes (12-15) remained four games behind first-place Sonoma County in the South.

Reno (18-9), which leads the North Division, had won seven in a row.

Vigilante pitcher Mike Smith gave up four hits and one run through five innings before giving up three hits and four runs in the sixth. By then, the Vigilantes had added one run in the third inning and three in the fifth for an 8-1 lead.

“The offense hasn’t been our problem,” Manager Buck Rodgers said.

Smith (9-4), whose 3.00 earned-run average was second in the league, gave up five earned runs. His ERA climbed to 3.63.

He was replaced by left-handed Dion Beck, who gave up a home run to Scott Pfeifer that cut the Vigilantes’ lead to 9-6. Beck struck out the next three batters.

After a leadoff walk in the eighth, Beck was replaced by Kirt Kishita, who eventually struck out Pfeifer--the potential go-ahead run--with the bases loaded to end the inning. Kishita got his 10th save.

“Except for the sixth inning, Smitty was in control and we played defense,” Rodgers said. “And the bullpen got the job done.”

Sean Drinkwater went two for three and had four runs batted in, including two in the all-important first inning. The Vigilantes might have scored more than four, but Corey Parker lined into a double play after Mosher’s walk and Bret Barberie’s single.

Alan Burke’s hit-and-run single was followed by Gary Hagy’s error on Sam Taylor’s grounder to shortstop. Hagy couldn’t hold on, and that let Barberie score and moved Burke to second base.

Drinkwater followed with a mammoth opposite-field blast to the base of the right-field fence, and Taylor’s hustle gave Drinkwater a second RBI and the Vigilantes a 3-0 lead. Chris Briones’ line single to left field scored Drinkwater.

Drinkwater is batting .351 over the last eight games.

“We learned in Grays Harbor that no lead is safe,” said Drinkwater, referring to leads of 8-0 and 7-1 that ended in Vigilante losses during this streak. “I think the team knows it has to play all nine innings.”

Notes

Catcher Carl Nichols was suspended by the Western Baseball League for Wednesday’s game for “misconduct following his ejection” at a game Aug. 9 against Grays Harbor. He was also fined $100.