CHARLOTTESVILLE, Va. – The 1-seed Charlottesville Tom Sox (28-17) came into game one with high hopes, but exited with more questions than answers as they fell in a dispiriting 17-6 loss to the Front Royal Cardinals (22-23) Thursday night (July 27).
Charlottesville’s troubles largely came on the mound, where they allowed a team-record 17 runs and 24 hits to a Front Royal team who averaged only 6½ runs per game in the regular season. In none of the previous 22 meetings had they allowed more than nine. The 11-run loss marks the third largest in team history and second largest in the playoffs, trailing only game one of the 2018 finals in which they fell to New Market 16-4.
Two Tom Sox pitchers, Jeremy Goins (Tampa) and Yordani Carmona (St. Thomas U.) each allowed six or more earned runs, while the Tom Sox offense scored six total runs. Every batter in the Cardinals order with a plate appearance collected at least one hit, with each hitter reaching base at least twice. Over half of Front Royal’s runs, including every run driven in during Goins’ tenure, was scored with two outs.
The Tom Sox offense was highlighted by Nathan Fink (Florida Southwestern), who drove in half of the team’s runs; David Wiley (Wofford), who reached in all three of his plate appearances and scored two runs; and Connor Hincks (Notre Dame), who reached in four of his five trips with one of two extra-base hits. ‘Sox batters walked 11 times (tied for the most this season) and were hit by three pitches, but they were only able to convert six of those 14 free passes into runs.
HOW IT HAPPENED
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Goins’ outing started out with hope, allowing a double in the first but sandwiching it in between outs. However, three-straight singles by the middle of Front Royal’s order were able to bring home the first three runs. He once again loaded the bases with two outs in the second but was able to strike out Broedy Poppell in the four-hole to get out of it.
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Goins faced more trouble in the third. After a strikeout and groundout led off the inning, five-straight batters collected hits to make it 7-0 through three.
The hits were much of the same for Charlottesville; many of them soft liners to the outfield which landed in front of the ‘Sox defenders but trickled to the wall. Defensive mistakes also plagued the Tom Sox defense early, as Front Royal’s runners were continuously able to reach scoring position by advancing on throws that were off-line or to the less advantageous base. -
Charlottesville was able to have two runners reach in the third, setting up a possible answer, but Wiley was gunned down trying to stretch a single into a double which ended much of the threat.
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The Charlottesville offense collected their first run of the game in the fourth inning on a Fink double that scored Chris Arroyo (Florida), who had reached base on a hit-by-pitch. They collected their biggest inning of the game in the fifth, as two walks and a bunt single came around to score on a sacrifice fly by Arroyo and a two-run single by Fink.
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Front Royal took away any chance of a ‘Sox comeback in the sixth. After a leadoff walk, Tom Sox Head Coach Lyndon Coleman pulled reliever Luke Calveric (William & Mary) in exchange for Carmona. Carmona proceeded to allow the next five batters to reach base, three by way of hits and two by walks, allowing an inherited runner and four of his own to score. After two outs were recorded on one play when a Cardinal runner left early on a flyout, Drew Camp hit a solo home run to score the sixth run of the inning and make it 13-4 Front Royal.
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Charlottesville was able to scratch one back in both the sixth and seventh innings, but it was much ado about nothing at that point. A single from 2-hole hitter Brice Martinez (Wofford) scored Wiley, who reached on a two-out walk in the sixth; and the Cardinals walked in one Tom Sox run in the seventh.
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Front Royal collected three more off Carmona in the seventh, who looked nothing but lost on the mound. A two-run home run by Jaden Anderson – his third against the ‘Sox in five games – brought in a pair, then a triple by the following batter Brody Black and an RBI single by the nine-hole hitter Sam Barber brought in the third.
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At that point, Coleman had no use in bringing in another arm from the bullpen with a 10-run disadvantage, so he called upon the second baseman Martinez to finish the game on the mound. Martinez allowed the inherited runner in Black to score in the seventh and allowed Black to drive in one more in the eighth on the third Cardinal single of the inning. He did record a 1-2-3 ninth, however – Charlottesville’s only 3-up, 3-down inning of the night.
UP NEXT
The Tom Sox will look to keep their season alive and force a game three, facing the Cardinals at Bing Crosby Stadium in game two of the best-of-three first round series on Friday (July 28). First pitch is set for 7 p.m.
ADDITIONAL NOTES
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The 17 runs allowed surpasses the previous record of 16, which took place twice – once in the aforementioned game against New Market in 2018, and the other in a 17-16 win over Purcellville in June 2019.
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The Tom Sox are 2-2 all-time in the playoffs when they drop game one. Wins came in the 2017 league championship and the 2019 South division championship, while they were swept in both the 2018 championship and 2021 first round.
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The eight earned runs allowed by Carmona are tied for the most allowed by a Tom Sox pitcher.
