By Matt Gustafson
Joliet, IL – The Slammers fell to the Evansville Otters in the final game of this season’s opening series Sunday, losing 12-5.
Evansville scored the game’s initial run in the first inning before tacking on four more in the second. Donivan Williams hit a two-run homer past the left field fence before a double from David Menham gave the Otters (1-3) a 5-0 lead.
Evansville extended its lead to 9-0 in the top of the third on a grand slam by Patrick Lee.
Joliet responded in the bottom of the third by putting three runs on the board. Antonio Valdez scored on a groundout by Giovanni Garbella before Matthew Warkentin hit a two-run opposite field home run to make the score 9-3.
The home run was Warkentin’s second of the year. The first baseman hit 27 home runs last season for the Slammers (2-1), finishing fifth in the Frontier League.
The Otters built their lead back to nine runs by scoring once in the fifth, sixth and seven innings.
Joliet scored its final runs in the bottom of the ninth on a two-run triple by Jake Marti. The final effort was not enough as Leoni De La Cruz handed the Slammers a 12-5 loss, their first of the season.
Andrew Dietz was tagged with the loss for Joliet. Tyler Ras earned the win for Evansville in his Frontier League debut, pitching five innings and allowing three earned runs.
The Slammers kick off their first road trip of the season Tuesday evening when they visit the Lake Erie Crushers. The team will return to Slammers Stadium for their next home series May 21 against the Schaumburg Boomers. All Frontier League games can be live-streamed on Flo Baseball.
For information on season tickets, premium suites or group outings, please visit the Slammers’ official website at www.jolietslammers.com.
