After a 10-game road trip where they went 7-3, the St. Paul Saints returned to the friendly confines of CHS Field for the start of a six-game homestand. Their first opponent of the homestand was one of the other charter members of the American Association — the Sioux Falls Canaries.
The Saints took the first game of the series 2-1, dropped the second game 5-3 but rebounded to take the final game 4-1.
The Saints sent Matt Solter to the mound on Friday, and he turned in a gem of a start, lasting six innings, giving up just one run while taking a no-hitter into the sixth inning. The Saints got on the board in the bottom of the first inning when Brady Shoemaker singled.
The Canaries were unable to respond until the seventh inning when they loaded the bases. Maxx Garrett stepped up to the plate and delivered a single to tie the game. Things easily could have gotten much worse for the Saints, but they got lucky when Dan Motl flew out to left field for the second out of the inning. The runners on second and third attempted to advance, but Richard Prigatano was able to throw out the runner at third right before the run crossed the plate, keeping it a 1-1 tie.
The Saints retook the lead in the bottom of the frame when Jayce Boyd hit a ground ball to shortstop, but reached base on a throwing error which allowed Max Murphy to score. The Saints never relinquished the lead and picked up their 14th win of the season.
On Saturday night the Canaries were the beneficiaries of a four-run fifth inning that knocked Saints starter Eddie Medina out of the game, including a three-run home run from Chris Grayson. The Saints were unable to make a full rally against Canaries pitcher Joe Bircher, who has been a thorn in their side for years. The Canaries took the second game, knotting the series at one apiece.
On Sunday afternoon it was another close game, with both pitchers turning in good starts. Sioux Falls’ Dylan Thompson turned in a 6.1 inning performance, allowing two earned runs while recording four strikeouts. Unfortunately he was outdueled by Saints starter Jake Esch, who pitched six innings, giving up just one run and recording three strikeouts.
The Saints picked up their first run of the game in the bottom of the second inning when Dante Bichette Jr. worked a one-out walk, advanced to second on a Prigatano single, stole third and ended up scoring when Kes Carter hit into a fielder’s choice. The second run for the Saints came in the third when JJ Gould jacked a solo home run into the Treasure Island Berm in left field. The Saints added two more runs in the bottom of the eighth, and held on for manager George Tsamis’s 999th career win.
The Saints will remain at CHS Field for the next three days as they host their I-94 rivals the Fargo-Moorhead RedHawks. Monday and Tuesday’s games will start at 7:05 pm while Wednesday’s series finale will be a 1:05 pm start.
Notes
- Before the game, the Saints held a short ceremony to honor the life of St. Paul legend Toni Stone, who is the only woman to play professional baseball in a formerly all-male league. Stone played in the Negro Leagues for the San Francisco Sea Lions, the New Orleans Black Pelicans, the New Orleans Creoles and finally the Indianapolis Clowns. Her contract was sold to the Kansas City Monarchs prior to the 1954 season but retired. She passed away in November of 1996.
- The Saints will honor another legendary black player on Monday when they celebrate the life of Larry Doby, who was the first African-American to play in the American League. Doby played for the Cleveland Indians, who were owned by Bill Veeck, father of Saints owner Mike Veeck. The Saints and RedHawks will both wear special Negro League uniforms, with the Saints wearing the Newark Eagles uniforms while the RedHawks will wear the uniforms of the Homestead Grays.
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