Shox. vs. Salukis

[Play Angry]

So we are playing just one today and nothing Sunday (shortening the series), right?

Edit: the Eagle write-up indicates we will try to play the third game in Sunday.

[1972Shocker]

So we are playing just one today and nothing Sunday (shortening the series), right?

Edit: the Eagle write-up indicates we will try to play the third game in Sunday.

I looked at the weather radar for Carbondale after yesterday's game and looked at their forecast and thought they maybe should have laced 'em again and tried to squeeze in a 2nd game. Would have started around 7:30pm. Of course, team's with the all artificial turf fields can perhaps challenge the elements quite a bit more than if they had a natural grass field.

[Play Angry]

Lewis doesn't have it this afternoon, getting pulled in the bottom of the 2nd trailing 2-1 with the bases and nobody out. Heuer comes on to try and limit the damage.

[Play Angry]

SIU gets 3 in the 2nd, the last of which came on a passed ball called strike. Grrrrr.

Shox trail 5-1 to the 3rd.

[1972Shocker]

Zach Lewis brought his shovel today and did a nice job digging the Shocks and early hole. SIU 5 - Shocks 1 after 2 innings.

[Play Angry]

Ritter with his first home run as a Shocker - 5-2 SIU now. Bohm hit a solo shot in the 1st.

[1972Shocker]

A double by Rader, a sac fly by Bohm and a chopper to 2B produces a run for the shocks in 4th to pull the Shocks to within 5-3. This was promising in that Bohm on a 1-2 count and Dugas on a 2-2 count made productive outs. Not sure that would have happened earlier in the year.

Codi Heuer doing a solid job in relief so far.

[Play Angry]

Heuer has been effective so far - 3 shutout innings in relief (although he didn't help Lewis out any in the 2nd). His season has been mostly a disaster so far, nice to see him finally putting together a good outing when we really need it in long relief.

Vickers walks to lead off the 5th and Mucha sacrifices him to 2nd.

[1972Shocker]

Ritter with his first home run as a Shocker - 5-2 SIU now. Bohm hit a solo shot in the 1st.

Minor correction. That was Ritter's 2nd home run.

[Play Angry]

Codi's control has been pretty phenomenal as he finishes his 4th inning of scoreless relief.

Coming into today, he had walked 11 hitters in 11 innings. He's issued 0 free passes this afternoon.

[1972Shocker]

I thought the Shockers took a poor approach at the plate in the 6th. Trying to pull outside pitches result in weak grounders to 3rd by Troutwine and Rader. Bohm take a strike he could have gone to RF with then swings at a ball in on his hands and hits perhaps the weakest foul pop of the season.

Troutwine probably would have beaten his chopper out if he had run on contact but he got caught kind of spectating before taking off.

[1972Shocker]

Vickers at least tried to go the opposite way. Mucha tried to pull a pitch on the outer half and rolled over a very meek grounder to 2B to end the Shocks threat in the 7th.

[tru2thaduce]

Great work by Heuer.

[1972Shocker]

Great work by Heuer.

Absolutely. Especially considering he had not pitched more than 1 inning in any previous appearance as a Shocker. 6 scoreless, 3 hit, no walk innings is outstanding.

Codi's ERA was 13.09 coming into this game so this outing is totally out of the blue. Hopefully, it proves to be a confidence builder.

Let's hope the Shocks don't let in go for naught.

[1972Shocker]

Need to avoid the double play here with runners on the corner and no outs. SIU's closer with a 0.43 ERA in the game. Troutwine at the plate.