Kernels see win streak snapped in extra innings

CEDAR RAPIDS – Some four hours and 400-plus pitches later, the Cedar Rapids Kernels had their seven-game win streak snappped.

Kernels pitchers skirted danger most of Tuesday night, though not quite enough as it turned out.

Peoria tied it with a run in the ninth inning and knocked off the Kernels, 5-3, with two in the 11th.

'They should have killed us,” Kernels Manager Jake Mauer said, while perusing a long postgame boxscore.

The Chiefs had baserunners all night but couldn't seem to get a clutch at-bat. That was until the ninth, and it wasn't necessary a clutch at-bat as much as it was a lucky one.

Lefty flamethrower Cam Booser has been lights out for the Kernels, but allowed a one-out infield hit and ensuing walk. Luis Cruz then hit a grounder toward Trey Vavra that took a horrible hop over the first baseman's head for a gift cincle to tie the game and send it to extras.

'That stuff happpens. It's baseball,” Mauer said.

In the 11th, Mercado reached leading off with a single, was bunted to second, went to third on a chopper to losing pitcher Sam Clay and scored on Nick Thompson's two-out single to right. He then scored an insurance run on Collin Radack's double to the fence in left-center.

That was the fifth hit of the game for Radack. Equally unique was Vavra's 0-for-5 with five-strike game.

The kid was the Kernels' leading hitter.

Cedar Rapids put a pair of runners on in the bottom of the 11th, via one-out singles from Jorge Fernandez and T.J. White. But Robby Rowland came on as Peoria's sixth pitcher of the night, struck out pinch-hitter Tyler Kuresa looking and got Pat Kelly on a short fly to end it.

Max Murphy gave the Kernels a 2-1 lead in the fourth with a two-run home run to left-center field against Peoria starting pitcher Austin Gomber. The runs were uneared because Nick Gordon led off the inning reaching base when Gomber couldn't field a throw at the first-base bag from first baseman Alex DeLeon.

Peoria tied things at 2-2, knocking Kernels starting pitcher Mat Batts out of the game in the fifth inning. Batts was uncharacteristically less than sharp, allowing five hits and four walks in four-plus innings.

He came into the game with a 3-1 record and 2.05 earned run average.

'Batts just wasn't the same tonight,” Mauer said. 'His delivery was just different. A lot of arm-side (pitches). was off the plate. He just couldn't get anything going.”

Cedar Rapids went back ahead in the bottom of the sixth thanks once again to Murphy. He doubled into the right-field corner with one out and scored on Zack Larson's ensuing double to left-center.

Murphy has raised his batting average from .179 through April to over .260 with a blazing May that saw him named the Midwest League's Player of the Week last week.

The teams have a short turnaround, with a nooner on tap Wednesday. John Curtiss (2-2, 4.57 ERA) is the scheduled starting pitcher for Cedar Rapids.

It would behoove him to pitch deep into the game considering the Kernels bullpen was taxed heavily here.

'He's going to have to (pitch deep),” Mauer said. 'We're going to use them all. It'll be an open tryout for posiition players pitching.”