Brocato's Big Night Not Enough in Series Opener
WASHINGTON, Pa. (May 26) – The Washington Wild Things were unable to break their losing streak on Friday at Wild Things Park, falling for the sixth-straight game in the series opener against the Tri-City ValleyCats, 6-4.
Washington right fielder Anthony Brocato nearly hit for the cycle on Friday, with two singles, a triple and a home run. He finished 4-for-4 on the night, scoring one run and adding two RBI.
ValleyCats’ starter Rafi Vazquez worked swiftly on the mound early in the game, only allowing three hits and putting up three scoreless frames to start the night. He ended the night with three earned runs and seven hits allowed in six innings pitched.
Tri-City (6-7) struck early in the game when first baseman Trey Hair dropped an RBI double into right field and then a passed ball brought in another, putting the ValleyCats up 2-0 in the top of the first. Tri-City got two more in scoring position with no outs in the third inning but were unable to put a run across.
In the fourth inning, the ValleyCats extended their lead once again with a two-RBI single into the outfield from right fielder Carson McCusker, which put Tri-City ahead 4-0. This also marked three earned runs on the night for Washington starter Spencer Johnston. In the bottom of the fourth, the Wild Things (6-7) finally broke through with an RBI triple from Brocato, but Washington still trailed 4-1 after leaving one runner on third base.
Tri-City immediately tacked on a run of its own in the next frame on the leadoff batter, when designated hitter Aaron Altherr smashed a solo home run, which once again made it a four-run difference at 5-1.
After a stolen base and an error advanced a runner from first to third, Wild Things’ shortstop Nick Gotta hit a sacrifice fly to drive the runner in, cutting the deficit to 5-2 after the fifth. Altherr got another RBI following a single into deep right field in the sixth, which put Tri-City ahead 6-2 and helped it maintain a four-run cushion.
Brocato continued his hot night at the plate by crushing a solo home run for Washington in the following frame, nearing closer to the cycle and making the score 6-3 after six innings. The Wild Things were stifled by the ValleyCats bullpen in the seventh, but left fielder Tristian Peterson answered the call with a solo home run in the bottom half of the eighth, putting Tri-City ahead by only two, 6-4. The Wild Things were unable to keep the momentum in the final frame, getting only a single before falling in a 6-4 defeat.
The second game of the weekend series is next up for the Wild Things, facing off against the Tri-City ValleyCats on Saturday at Wild Things Park. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m.
