Oilers cruise past Pilots

  • By Staff Report
  • Tuesday, June 19, 2018 12:32am
  • Sports

The visiting Peninsula Oilers defeated the Anchorage Glacier Pilots 10-6 on Monday in Alaska Baseball League play to finish their eight-game road trip in style.

When the Oilers return home to face the Chugiak-Eagle River Chinooks on Wednesday at 7 p.m., they will have the league lead.

Peninsula is now 9-4, 2.5 games clear of the second-place Chinooks. The Pilots fall to 4-7.

The Oilers had their highest run output of the season Monday, getting the biggest boost from a grand slam from Ryan Koch. Koch has homers in back-to-back games, now leads the league with three dingers, and leads the team with 11 RBIs.

The Pilots grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning, but the Oilers came right back to tie it in the top of the second inning.

Grant Wood was hit by a pitch with one out, stole second and scored on a two-out double by John Mackay.

The Oilers then began to pour it on with a four-run outburst in the top of the third inning. Bryce Begell started the inning by walking, then scored on a Paul Kunst single.

Ryan Novis then singled, but the Pilots appeared to have the rally under control when Calvin Farris hit into a double play. Koch kept the inning going by walking, with Kunst scoring on a wild pitch for a 3-1 lead.

Wood then tripled to scored Koch, then Wood scored on a single by Michael Young.

The Oilers then put the game away by striking for five runs in the top of the seventh.

Brandon Moore had a disastrous outing for the Pilots, coming in and walking Tyler Duke, Begell and Kunst to load the bases and earn an early hook.

Anthony Mizrahi then came in and coaxed Ryan Novis into a sac fly, but he then hit Farris to reload the bases. That set up Koch for an opposite field shot that had the visitors up 10-2.

The Pilots scored twice in the eighth inning and twice in the ninth inning to make things a little interesting.

Wood was 2 for 3 for the Oilers, while Mackay was 2 for 4.

The Oilers used five pitchers. Christian Winston got the start and gave up four hits and a run in four innings, then Andrew Lopez came in and yielded two hits and a run in two innings.

Brian Leonhardt then pitched a scoreless inning before Justin Jaime and Bret Ricklefs each gave up two runs in an inning of work.

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