Legion Baseball: Fairfield stuns Roseburg with late rally for 6-5 win
The Roseburg Dr. Stewart’s had a two-run lead with two outs in the ninth inning against the visiting Fairfield Expos in a nonleague game Monday at Bill Gray Legion Stadium at Champion Car Wash Field, but final out proved elusive for the Docs as the Expos rallied for a 6-5 victory.
“They found a way to get it done tonight and we didn’t,” Docs coach Tim Sustaire said.
The loss spoiled a gritty comeback effort for Roseburg (0-4), which rallied from a 2-0 deficit to take a 5-2 lead in the seventh inning.
“Our pitchers gave us everything they had. Enough to win,” Sustaire explained. “In big moments we’ve got to make big plays.”
“We got relaxed at the end there and that can’t happen. It doesn’t matter who we’re playing. We’re kind of tired of saying short-term memory, but that’s what it’s got to be. Because I promise you, Meford isn’t going to feel sorry for us on Wednesday,” Sustaire added.
The Docs will try to move on from the loss and prepare to face the Mustangs for their Area 4 league-opening doubleheader at 2:30 p.m. Wednesday at North Medford’s Jim McAbee Field.
Fairfield (28-5) picked up a 1-0 lead in the first inning off of Docs starter Danner Wertz. Noah Rodda led off the game with a single and Mikey Rivera followed with a double down the left field line.
As Rodda advanced to third base on Rivera’s two-bagger, the umpires ruled there was defensive interference at third base and granted Rodda the extra base.
The Expos loaded the bases on three consecutive singles to begin the third inning. Fairfield tacked on a run in the frame, but the first of three double plays for the Docs’ defense helped minimize the damage.
Wertz was solid on the mound for Roseburg, allowing just two runs on eight hits over seven innings. He struck out a pair and walked just one before giving way to the bullpen in the eighth.
“He did everything we asked him to do,” Sustaire said.
The Stewies backed-up Wertz with a run in the fifth on a groundout by Ty Hellenthal and four more in the seventh. Cal Robbins tied the game with a sacrifice fly and the Docs took a 3-2 lead on a wild pitch.
Another Docs run crossed home on a groundout by Jake Johnson and an error helped Roseburg push the lead to 5-2.
Camden Hartsell took over for Wertz and retired four of the first five batters he faced. A one-out single in the ninth by Fairfield’s Ethan Thompson opened the gates for the Expos’ comeback.
A fielding error put two runners in scoring position for Fairfield and a groundout plated the first of four runs in the frame. Hartsell got a slow-rolling grounder to short that looked like it might end the ballgame, but the throw to first got away and allowed another run to come home.
Rodda and Rivera had back-to-back two-out base hits at the top of the order to give the Expos a 6-5 advantage. Rodda finished the game with three singles and Rivera went 4-for-4 with a double and a walk.
Jack Armstrong finished off a short relief appearance for Fairfield with a 1-2-3 bottom of the ninth that sealed the victory.
Paxton Burke was 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored for Roseburg.
Fairfield continues its multi-state road trip with a game in Kennewick, Wash. on Tuesday and then a stop in Missoula, Mont. on Wednesday for a five-day tournament.
Fairfield;101;000;004;—;6;12;3
Roseburg;000;010;400;—;5;7;2
Kolakoski, West (6), Gonzalez (7), Collins (7), Marcano (8), Armstrong (8) and Hague; Wertz, Hartsell (8) and Hellenthal, Bowers. W — Armstrong. L — Hartsell (0-2). 2B — Rivera (F), Burke (R).
