Stars fall victim to the big inning

By Aaron Morse

The Mobile BayBears (28-25) used a three run fourth inning to pull away from the Huntsville Stars (25-30) and prevail 5-2 Friday night.

Stars’ starting pitcher Josh Butler got through the first two innings unscathed, but ran into trouble in the third. With one away, that thorn in the side of the Stars, Collin Cowgill, drew a walk. Evan Frey followed that up with a single to left. Then the top of the order completed their damage with a Kory Casto single to right that drove in Cowgill to make it 1-0 BayBears.

But it was the fourth inning where it fell apart for Butler. Bryan Byrne started things with a double to right. One out later Jacob Elmore singled home Byrne. Ollie Linton was hit by a pitch, putting runners at first and second with only one away. It looked like Butler might get out of the inning with no further damage when catcher Anderson De La Rosa picked off Elmore at second base for the second out of the inning. But pitcher Pat McAnaney singled up the gut, and Cowgill managed an infield single to load the bases with two down. That’s when Evan Frey hit a grounder that just sneaked past Drew Anderson at first and down the right field line for a two-RBI double. The inning would end thanks to a diving catch by Taylor Green on a sharply hit line drive, but the damage was done.

Facing a 4-0 deficit, the Stars did respond right away in the bottom of the fourth. Brett Lawrie singled and Caleb Gindl hit a line shot off the top of the wall in right to put runners at second and third with one away. After Zelous Wheeler was robbed of a base-hit by a leaping Elmore at second base, Anderson doubled home both runners to make the score 4-2.

But that would be all the scoring the Stars could muster against McAnaney (2-4), who went 6.2 innings to pick up the win.

Meanwhile Butler (0-1) was done after four frames and the sixth against reliever Robert Hinton.

Leyson Septimo worked a scoreless ninth for his second save of the year.