After jumping out to a 10-3 fourth-inning lead the Algonquin Bats hung on to defeat the Grays, 11-10, on Sunday at Plote Field in Lake in the Hills, Ill. to claim their first win of the season.

It was an even bigger win on the field for Darryl Eanos who made his first appearance in a Bats game since June 30, 2013 as he continues his comeback efforts from health-related issues.   Eanos batted in the fourth inning and drew an eventual walk after fouling off several pitches.  It was a plate appearance Theo Epstein would have been proud of.  The nine-year Bats veteran also played an inning at second base but had no fielding chances.  (For photos of his appearance click on the Photos tab above.)

The Bats earned their first victory by scoring 3 runs in the first and 6 in the fourth to build up the 7-run cushion.   They racked up 21 hits in the game with four players collecting 3 hits and three others garnering 2 hits apiece.   The 21 hits were the most hits in a game by the Bats since August 23, 2011 when they banged out 23 hits in a 21-14 victory over the Cubs (not the current Cubs team).

Jeff McClellan went 3-for-3 with a walk and a 2-run double to drive in the first 2 runs of the 6-run fourth inning.  Mike Anagnostopoulos, Bill Quoss, and Ron Skrabacz each went 3-for-4.  Quoss had two RBI singles while Skrabacz had a 2-run single in the first and a 2-run double in the fourth to help bolster the Bats offense. 

Dan Kuksa and Ken Kozlik continued their hot hitting with 2 hits each and rookie Matt Weiss picked up his first 2 hits of the season.  Weiss was also robbed of an extra base hit in the sixth inning on a long drive to center field that was somehow hauled in by the Grays center fielder.

Weiss started the game on the mound for the Bats surrendering only 3 runs on 6 hits in the first three innings before tiring in the fourth.  With the Bats holding a 10-3 edge the Grays scored 2 runs on a walk, a hit batter, a groundout and an error as Weiss prepared to face his fifth batter of the inning.  After missing the strike zone with his first two pitches the right-hander gave way to Quoss who inherited the 2-0 count.   The veteran lefty induced the hitter into a soft line drive back to the mound which he caught and threw to third to catch the straying runner for an inning-ending double play.

The Grays added 2 more runs in the fifth to pull within 10-7, but Tony DiBlasi singled in what proved to be the winning run with a two-out bases-loaded single in the sixth to make it 11-7.  The Grays answered that with a run of their own in the sixth and scored twice more in the seventh to reduce the Bats lead to 11-10.  With two outs Quoss caught the Grays sixth batter of the inning looking at strike three with the tying run on second base.

The Bats next game is Sunday, May 17 at 10:00 a.m. against the Angels at Cambridge Lakes in Pingree Grove, Ill.