Springfield, MO – 1B Luke Voit drilled a go-ahead, three-run home run in the sixth inning to power the 1st-Half North Division Champion Springfield Cardinals to the 9-6 win against the Arkansas Travelers before 3,567 fans at Hammons Field on Tuesday night.
The Travs (10-14, 42-52) swung into an early lead against RHP Daniel Poncedeleon (W, 6-5) in the top of the first inning. After 2B Tim Arakawa reached on a fielding error to open the game, 1B Alex Yarbrough drove a two-run home run to left field, lifting the Travelers into the 2-0 lead.
Springfield (10-15, 51-44) started chipping away right away in the bottom of the first against RHP Victor Alcantara. RF Nick Martini sparked the charge with a leadoff single, before 2B Allen Staton followed with a walk. One out later, 1B Luke Voit pulled an RBI single to left field, bringing in Martini from second base to slice the deficit in half, 2-1.
Poncedeleon worked around a pair of errors in an otherwise clean second, before perfect work in the third and the fourth to keep it only a one-run deficit for Springfield.
The Cardinals then completed the comeback in the bottom of the fourth. With one away, DH Bruce Caldwell worked a walk to reach base. C Luis Cruz followed with a single, before CF Blake Drake placed an RBI base hit through the right side of the infield, bringing in Caldwell from third. Both Cruz and Drake then raced home on a go-ahead, two-run single up the middle from SS Juan Herrera, propelling the Cardinals into the 4-2 lead.
After seven straight batters retired by Poncedeleon, the Travs charged back in front in the top of the fifth inning. LF Caleb Adams led off with a double, the first hit allowed by Poncedeleon since the first-inning homer. After Adams took third on a groundout, Arakawa worked a walk to put runners at the corners. Yarbrough then skied an RBI sacrifice fly to left field, plating Adams bring the Travs within one run. With one on and two down, 3B Andrew Daniel slugged a two-run home run to left field, swinging the Travs in front, 5-4.
The Cardinals, though, responded right away in the bottom of the fifth inning. With two away and the bases empty, Caldwell crushed a double to left-center field to keep the inning alive. C Luis Cruz then came through with a two-out RBI single to left field, with Caldwell diving across the plate just before the throw from LF Caleb Adams, squaring the score at 5-5.
Poncedeleon pitched a perfect top of the sixth, before the Cardinals powered in front in the bottom of the frame against LHP Jose Molina (L, 0-1). With two outs and the bases empty, Staton and DeJong extended the stanza with consecutive singles. Voit then cleared the bases with a three-run blast that sailed over the left field fence for his 14th home run of the year, swinging the Cardinals into the 8-5 lead.
The Travelers chipped down the deficit with an RBI base hit by DH Eric Aguilera in the top of the eighth, but the Cardinals rebounded in the bottom of the eighth. With one down, RHP Josh Roenicke plunked Staton to put a man on. One out later, Voit worked a walk and LF Jonathan Rodriguez was hit by a pitch, loading the bases with two down. Caldwell then worked an RBI walk to force in Staton from third base, extending the Cardinals lead back to three runs, 9-6.
RHP Ronnie Shaban (S, 7), who retired the final three batters in the eighth inning, came back out for the ninth and slammed the door, dealing a perfect final frame to close the 9-6 win for the Cardinals.
