TOLEDO, OHIO – The Omaha Storm Chasers won a fifth straight game against the Toledo Mud Hens 2-1, Sunday at Fifth Third Field. With the win, Omaha (47-20) sits in first place in the 20-team International League with a 5.5 game lead over Syracuse (42-26), giving the team a magic number of one.
In the last game of the series, both teams mustered just four hits and stranded 11 runners combined in the first three scoreless frames before the Mud Hens scored a run in the bottom of the fourth inning. Two hits and a sacrifice fly plated one runner for a 1-0 lead off of Storm Chasers starting pitcher Chandler Champlain. Both teams combined to strand 24 runners, Omaha tying a season-high with 13 and Toledo with 11 on the day.
Omaha answered back in the top of the fifth inning as John Rave led off the inning with a double and set up CJ Alexander to rip his team-leading fourth triple of the year to right field and plate Rave. Devin Mann followed with a single to center field and plated Alexander as the Chasers took their first lead of the day 2-1.
The lead stayed Omaha’s way for the rest of the game as Champlain earned his first Triple-A win, as he allowed just the one run on three hits over 5.2 innings of work. Right-hander Noah Murdock entered for Champlain with two outs and stranded the inherited runner on base, then worked a scoreless seventh inning for his third scoreless outing of the week.
Right-handed pitcher Steven Cruz took over in the bottom of the eighth inning and the Mud Hens threatened again using two hits to put the tying and go-ahead runners in scoring position with one out but Cruz worked out of danger and strand the runners.
Will Klein closed out the game for the Omaha pitching staff as he earned his team-best ninth save of the season with a 1-2-3 ninth inning to secure the team’s 17th one-run win of the year.
Rave, Alexander, Mann and Tyler Gentry each collected two-hit efforts, accounting for 8 of Omaha’s 10 hits in the win.
With an off day Monday, the Storm Chasers wrap up the first half with a six-game set against the Louisville Bats, the Cincinnati Reds Triple-A affiliate. Omaha can clinch a playoff spot as soon as Tuesday, needing just one win to secure the top spot. First pitch Tuesday will be 12:05 p.m. CT on Tuesday, June 18.
