Sunday, July 17 (WEEK 11)
BATS BACK UP TO .500 AFTER 13-2 VICTORY OVER ANGELS
WAUCONDA — The Bats jumped on a struggling Angels team for 11 hits to go along with 13 walks, in a 13-2 victory at Wauconda High School on Sunday afternoon. Nursing only a 5-0 lead after four innings, the Bats took advantage of 11 walks and a hit batsman to score 8 runs over the final three innings. John Eisenmenger pitched a complete game 6-hitter while walking none and striking out 4 to gain the win. The victory evened the Bats record at 5-5 after falling to 1-5 earlier in the season. The Angels fell to 1-6.
Eisenmenger, Jeff McClellan, Pete Choe and Matt Weiss had 2 hits apiece to lead the Bats hitting attack, while 9 different Bats batters had at least 1 RBI, including Rob Matassa, Choe and Weiss with 2 each. On the mound Eisenmenger retired 11 straight batters at one stretch between the first and fifth innings. He allowed only a first-inning bloop single through the first 4 innings before finally surrendering a run in the fifth.
Defensively the Bats played another tight game committing only 1 error and entertaining the fans with a couple of dazzling plays for the highlight reels. In the fifth inning catcher Tom Paul chased a pop foul to the backstop and hauled it in with a diving catch. In the following frame shortstop Greg Kaczmarek turned a high leaping catch in the outfield grass into an inning-ending double play on an Angels base runner who had wandered too far off of first base.
The Bats (5-5) next game will be at 9:30 AM on Sunday, July 24 against the White Soxx (2-6) at Peterson Park in McHenry, Ill.
BATS DROPPINGS
The Bats victory on Sunday was their fourth win in a row, tying their longest winning streak ever, a feat they have accomplished 3 other times, including in 2021 …. Speaking of winning streaks, the Bats have now won their last 7 games played in the month of July, including all 4 last year and 3 this season …. Tony DiBlasi was hit by a pitch for the fourth time this season, marking the sixth season he has had at least 4 HBP, including a team record 5 times in 2006. Known internationally as the “Human Ball Magnet,” Tony has led, or tied for the team lead, in that category in 11 seasons …. In the Déjà Vu All Over Again category, Pete Choe joined the Bats on July 8 and promptly went 2-for-3 with a walk, 2 RBI and a run scored. In his second game with the team on July 17, Pete went 2-for-3 with a walk, 2 RBI and a run scored …. The Bats three longest active consecutive games played streaks belong to Earl Blankenship (77), Tom Paul (45) and John Eisenmenger (29). After that, the next closest active streak is 6 straight games .… The Bats are now hitting .307 as a team with 86 hits in 10 games (8.6 hits per game). Last season the Bats batted .311 as a team in 19 contests while averaging 9.7 hits per game …. After being held scoreless in 26 of their first 38 innings over six games, the Bats have been shut down in only 9 of their last 28 innings (4 games). In their first six games the Bats scored only 3.85 runs per 7 innings, but have improved to 10.78 runs per 7 innings in their last 4 games.
