Wild Twist of a Finish

Richmond 4, Chillicothe 3

The last time the Chillicothe Paints played a ballclub from Richmond was when both markets were still in the Frontier League. 2005 was the year, and Richmond was bowing out of the FL in that year, so it has been quite a while since the Paints organization has been to Richmond, Indiana. When I returned to Chillicothe for the home debut of the Prospect League Paints, I saw pretty much the same faces. I didn't see too many new faces at all. For diehard Roosters fans back in the day, this debut season in the Prospect League has been wonderful for them to reunite and get reacquainted with the settings of Don McBride Stadium, a ballpark that is still a classic ballpark in its own right.

Andy Smittenkamp and Tom Arnett are two Richmond baseball fans who I've gotten to know over the past year, and I know that they are excited about this new team playing. For those of you wondering, I recognize that I made a mistake in announcing the name of the team in Richmond. River Rats is two words, and not one. You know, sometimes that just happens with me, but it's okay. Some of the things that came along with the River Rats are interesting, such as their jersey style. The name font, the colors, and of course, the name itself make the River Rats' jerseys one of the most interesting looking jerseys in the Prospect League.

The first score of the ballgame came off the bat of River Rats catcher Tyler Bullock, who just happened to flat out demolish the pitch that he saw. Aside from Caleb King, Tyler Bullock looks to be another player who may be busting loose soon and becoming a true offensive threat in the Prospect League. I see that potential in him. I think he may be that kind of guy to do just the job. Now even though I always root for the Paints, whenever I see something that looks impressive from the other team, I can't help but take note of that and actually applaud on rare occasions.

To go into detail about this game, all you could say is that the Paints had this game well in hand, but final inning heroics by the opposing lineup got to the Paints in the end, and three runs crossed the plate to give the River Rats a great come from behind victory. That has happened a lot of times before in the long lasting rivalry between Richmond and Chillicothe, and it looks to be nothing new in the new versions of these teams. The Paints did a good job of pitching for most of this game, but again, the last inning just got to the pitching, and the bullpen wasn't in a good position to get any calls.

Starting pitcher Tony Davey did a pretty good job in this game for the Paints, as he pitched seven innings of work, giving up 7 hits and a walk, but he only gave up one run and struck out five batters. The only run he gave up was, of course, that monsterous shot made by Tyler Bullock. Krist Linster pitched one inning of relief for the Paints and did a good job as well, as he only gave up a walk. Eric Heckaman, on the other hand, was struggling on the mound in the ninth inning. He was wild throughout, and couldn't find that comfort spot to get the three outs that he needed. He gave up three walks and a hit, and along with the help of an error, the River Rats got their three runs to snatch the victory away.

For the offense, Kyle Galbraith started in center field and had a great day, getting three hits. He had two singles and a double. DH Brandon White had a bunt single. Zach Fresntsos came off the bench as a pinch hitter and had a single, a stolen base, and got an RBI off a sacrifice fly. Andy Brouse had an RBI double. Catcher Andrew Marshall had a single. Eian Banks had a single. Kyle Gendron had an RBI double. Ben Allen had two singles.

The Paints had plenty of hits in this game, and the offense got in what looked like to be enough runs, but crazy things just happen once in a while, and those crazy things happened here. You know that saying, "when you get kicked off of a horse, you gotta get back on and ride again."