CURVE WIN IN EXTRAS

From the Altoona Curve:

12 Game Road Trip Begins With 12^th Inning Victory

The Curve played their longest game of the season, 12 innings, on Tuesday night

AKRON, OH – Ji-Hwan Bae put the Curve ahead in the top of the 12^th with a seeing eye single through the left side of the infield and Will Gardner stranded the tying run at third base in the bottom half of the inning to secure a 5-4 win for the Curve over the Akron RubberDucks at Canal Park.

Playing their first extra inning game since May 23^rd at Harrisburg, the Curve picked up a key victory to start their longest road trip of the season. After the teams traded runs in the tenth inning to extend the game, both teams put scoreless innings on the board in the 11^th.

In the deciding frame, Altoona placed Cal Mitchell at second base to start the inning and he advanced third after a walk from Daniel Amaral and a fly out to deep right field from Josh Bissonette. After a strikeout, Bae stepped to the plate and bounced a 1-0 offering from Thomas Ponticelli through the left side of the infield to take the lead.

Will Gardner surrendered a sacrifice bunt to start the inning but came back to strike out Marcos Gonzalez and get Jose Fermin to fly out to deep center to strand the tying run at third base.

Altoona’s offense was held out of the hit column through five innings against Adam Scott, but broke through for three runs off the ‘Ducks bullpen in the sixth inning. The Curve used four hits and a hit batsman to start the inning to score a run as Diego Castillo singled home Bissonette and Jack Suwinksi followed him with a run-scoring single of his own. Mason Martinadded a sacrifice fly, to drive in his team-best 57^th run of the season, to take a 3-1 lead.

Akron rallied back with an RBI single from Bryan Lavastida in the sixth inning and a solo homer from Steven Kwan in the eighth inning to draw even before the Curve secured the win in extras.

Osvaldo Bido delivered his best start since late-June with 6.0 innings of two-run ball in the victory. Bido needed just 81 pitches to complete his outing, allowing four hits and two walks. Brad Case and Cam Alldred combined to deliver a scoreless seventh inning on the mound before Kwan homered off Alldred in the eighth. Cristofer Melendez delivered a dominant ninth inning to send the game to extras and allow a game-tying run in the bottom of the tenth.

Catcher Carter Bins recorded two outs with his throwing arm in the 11^th inning, providing key defensive support for Gardner and the Curve. Bins picked the placed runner, Bryan Rocchio, off of second base for the first out of the inning and caught Lavastida stealing to end the inning and send the game to the 12^th.

Bae and Castillo each had two hit days at the plate to lead the offensive attack. Altoona drew three walks in extra innings to secure the victory.

The Curve continue their six-game series with the RubberDucks at 6:35 p.m. on Wednesday night. LHP Omar Cruz (1-2, 3.90) will start for Altoona, with Akron’s starter yet to be announced.