Cedar Rapids Kernels win in 11 innings on walk-off wild pitch

CEDAR RAPIDS — It's an old-school approach to a new-school game. There's still a place in today's baseball for bunting.

At least that's what Cedar Rapids Kernels Manager Jake Mauer thinks.

'Not a lot of them are brought up with it, which is puzzling,' Mauer said, after his team's walk-off 2-1, 11-inning win Thursday night over Beloit at Veterans Memorial Stadium. 'Maybe it's because I grew up in Minnesota, and we couldn't get outside half the year. You read different articles about the bunt being dead. But it's a weapon for guys who are good at it. Everybody should be able to do it.'

The topic was broached after a pair of scenarios in which even a remotely effective bunt would have won the game earlier for the Kernels.

Nelson Molina was at third base with two outs in the bottom of the 10th, and LaMonte Wade at the plate. The lefty swinger has seen virtually every Midwest League opponent put a severe shift on him, with the shortstop playing behind the second-base bag and the third baseman playing shortstop.

That happened again here, though Wade — who, fairly, has been C.R.'s best hitter so far — swung away and grounded to second.

With A.J. Murray at third base and Zander Wiel on second with one away in the 11th, J.J. Fernandez — a switch hitter batting lefty — came to the plate, with a similar shift employed on him. He also swung away and ended up grounding into a fielder's choice, Murray being thrown out at the plate.

An ensuing wild pitch by Beloit reliever Corey Miller ended up scoring Wiel and making the bunt point moot. Cedar Rapids (22-17) begins a four-game series Friday night against Quad Cities.

'We've talked about it,' Mauer said. 'But we have a hard time bunting, just sacrificing. For some of our guys, it's risk versus reward a little bit. You bunt a brick out there, you're going to be the hero and win the game, without a doubt. We have a couple of guys who should be able to do it. That's something we have to get better at.'

Mauer said bunting is something his club works on all the time.

'We get that machine out there every day and bunt off that machine,' he said. 'But that's definitely something we've got to get better at, you are 100-percent correct. You can't play a shift if you (bunt).'

The Kernels scored the tying run in the seventh, when Luis Arraez singled leading off, went to third on a Sean Miller double into the left-field corner and scored on a Molina sacrifice fly. Reliever Nick Anderson (3-0) picked up the pitching win, throwing two perfect innings.

Michael Theofanopoulos preceded Anderson in the game, striking out four in two scoreless innings. He has not been scored upon in his last nine appearances, spanning 16 2/3 innings.

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