Blue Crabs drop doubleheader at Somerset
Swept in New Jersey day after rallying for come-from-behind win
During its three games against the Somerset Patriots played during a twoday span on Tuesday and Wednesday, the Southern Maryland Blue Crabs displayed more than a hint of resiliency for a team seeking to escape the cellar of the Atlantic League’s Freedom Division.
Southern Maryland (1128 overall, fourth place in the Freedom Division) has become accustomed to participating in low-scoring games this spring and the Blue Crabs were involved in a pair of them against the Somerset. In the three games versus the Patriots, the Blue Crabs managed to score only five runs and dropped two of the contests at TD Bank Ballpark in Bridgewater, New Jersey.
Somerset (22-17, third place in the Liberty Division) won both games of a day-night doubleheader on Wednesday, 7-2 and 1-0 after Southern Maryland took the series opener on Tuesady with a 2-1 victory.
In the Wednesday nightcap, Southern Maryland starter Michael Kelly (13) limited Somerset to one run, a solo home run by Michael Crouse in the bottom of the third inning,
on only three hits in a superb outing. But the Blue Crabs were unable to score any runs against Patriots starter Brett Oberholzer (3-1) despite collecting six hits against the southpaw and closer Mike Antonini tossed a scoreless seventh for his 13th save. The two games were each seven-inning contests.
First baseman Jon Griffin went 3 for 3 in a losing cause for Southern Maryland and catcher Charlie Valerio went 2 for 3, but the other seven Blue Crabs batters managed a combined sum of only one hit.
Southern Maryland’s closest chance to scoring came in the second inning. Griffin led off with a single and went to third on Valerio’s one-out double, but he would be out at home plate on a ground ball by Edwin Garcia.
Trailing 1-0 into the seventh, Valerio led off with a base hit but was caught stealing second base. Antonini then struck out Garcia and Tony Thomas to end the game.
In the first game of the twin bill that started Wednesday morning, much of the action occurred in the third.
In the top half, the Blue Crabs took a 1-0 lead when Thomas doubled then scored on a single by Kent Blackstone. But Somerset responded with six runs in the bottom half, getting three unearned courtesy of an error by Blackstone at second.
Thomas led off the fifth with a solo homer, but the Blue Crabs could not get any closer of the last two innings and suffered the defeat. The Patriots ended a four-game skid with
their first victory of June.
“We were able to score the first run in the top of the third, but they came right back with six runs on six hits and one mistake that we made,” Southern Maryland manager Stan Cliburn said. “Tony had a good game at the plate, but we gave them a couple of extra runs and we never got them back.”
Tuesday, Southern Maryland rallied with two runs in the top of the eighth and impromptu closer Ryan Chaffee collected the save by starting a double play to end the game in the ninth. The team’s regular closer, Mat Latos, was ejected earlier in the game arguing with the third base umpire from the bullpen.
“We had a nice win on
Tuesday night,” Cliburn said. “I thought that would carry over into our doubleheader on Wednesday. It was a battle of aces, with [Craig] Stem throwing for us and their guy [David Kubiak] both going at it. They got on the board first, but we came back with two in the eighth and then Chaffee closed it. That was supposed to be Latos’ save, but he had already been ejected.”
Somerset gave Kubiak a 1-0 lead in the sixth, but the Blue Crabs took the lead against the Patriots’ ace in the top of the eighth. Blackstone and Rubi Silva reached on bunt singles and later Blackstone scored on a single by Frank Martinez, then Silva scored the goahead run on a sacrifice
fly by Cory Vaughn and Chaffee held the slim lead for his first save of the season.
“I just want to go out there every game at leadoff and get things started,” Blackstone said. “I waited a long time for my chance, but I watched and learned from these guys. I just want to do whatever I can to give us a spark.”
Stem (3-2) got the win with his team taking the lead in the eighth. He went seven innings, allowing just a run on seven hits with six strikeouts. Adam Choplick got the first two outs in the bottom of the eighth and Chaffee came on and got a four-out save.
Kubiak (4-1) gave up both eighth-inning runs and lost his first game of 2019 despite striking out 10 Blue Crabs hitters. His ERA, which was less than 1 before the game started and rose to 1.17 by game’s end, is best in the Atlantic League by nearly a full run through Wednesday’s action.
Southern Maryland was scheduled to complete its series at Somerset on Thursday evening then will return home to Regency Furniture Stadium in Waldorf to host the reigning Atlantic League champion Sugar Land Skeeters (25-15, first place in Freedom Division) with a threegame weekend series starting tonight, then the New Britain Bees (20-17, fourth place Liberty Division) come to town for a five-game, four-day series that begins with a doubleheader on Monday.