10 walks turn into 5 runs in 9-4 Pepsi win

A walk can be just as good as a hit. Just ask any member of Pepsi after Tuesday night’s victory over Miller’s at JayCee Ballpark.
Pepsi walked its way to a 9-4 win with 10 walks. Those walks turned into five runs.
“I think we had good selective at-bats tonight,” said Pepsi head coach Gary Grimaldi. “We were smart enough not to swing at bad pitches. When we did get good pitches, we hit them. It was just good quality at-bats all night.”
Pepsi got it started in the first inning with a single by Blake Vail to score one runner. Vail advanced on a stolen base before Steven Garbrick hit a two-run single to right field.
That was two of Garbrick’s four RBIs on the night. Garbrick himself scored later that inning on a fielder’s choice hit by Austin Kvatz. But that’s just what Grimaldi wanted out of his cleanup hitter.
“He gets RBIs for us,” Grimaldi said. “He’s the oldest kid on the team, and he’s a natural leader. He’s valuable in a lot of ways.”
Both sides of the scoreboard were quiet at a 4-0 Pepsi lead until Miller’s got its bats going in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Miller’s starting pitcher Jesse Newcomb helped his own cause with a single to lead off the inning. One batter later, Newcomb was on second base with one out when Miller’s cleanup man Brandon Baker hit a double to score Newcomb. The next batter was third baseman Spencer Bernhardt who hit a triple to score Baker. Right fielder Taylor Thomas, who kept the score moving with a single to bring home Bernhardt.
Grimaldi then called a time-out to go talk to his pitcher, Nick Vacca.
“Nick had been pitching really well. He was going through their best hitters and they got a few hits in a row,” Grimaldi said. “Sometimes I go out there and we just talk, get his mind off of it. I went out there and told him to just throw strikes. Then he got a pop out and a ground out to get out of the inning.”
After a pitching change on both sides, Pepsi added two more runs and Miller’s added another on a Sam Gilbert double to make the score 6-4 at the end of five innings.
In the sixth inning, walks pulled the game away for Pepsi.
With Alec Collins on first (by a walk) with two outs, the next three batters walked, putting one more run on the board to make it 7-4. Vacca hit a two-run double to stretch the lead to 9-4.

Andrew Nash can be reached at andrew.nash@morningsun.net or by calling 231-2600 ext. 132.

JL Hutchinson baseball
Don Gutteridge League
Tuesday, June 30, 2009
Pepsi    400    023    0 — 9 5 3
Miller’s    000    310    0 — 4 8 2
Nick Vacca, Austin Kvatz (5) and Steven Garbrick. Jesse Newcomb, Sam Gilbert (5) and Brandon Baker. DP — Pepsi 2. LOB — Pepsi 10, Miller’s 6. 2B — Vacca; Gilbert, Baker. 3B — Bernhardt.