2022 IBL Championship Series - Game 3
September 16 - Toronto Maple Leafs at London Majors
Majors win 6-3, lead the series 2-1
 |
| Justin Marra hit his second home run in as many nights, but the Leafs dropped Game 3 on Friday. (image: London Majors YouTube) |
The flags at Labatt Park were rippling in the breeze last night, not from windy conditions but from the three-hour swingfest on the field.
Neither the Toronto Maple Leafs nor the London Majors were shy at the plate during Game 3 of the IBL Championship Series. It was all or nothing as the clubs combined for three home runs and over a dozen swinging strikeouts.
London got the better of the visitors, taking a 6-3 victory.
The Leafs' road warrior Marek Deska started on the mound against Jose Arias and they each gave up a run to start the game.
First baseman Jordan Castaldo and right fielder Marcus Knecht both doubled to put a run on the board, while Deska gave up three singles in the 1st to make it a 1-1 ballgame.
What turned out to be the key blast of the game came in the bottom of the 2nd. Jakob Newton hit a three-run homer off Deska to put the Majors ahead 4-1. The Leafs played catchup the rest of the game.
In the top of the 4th, Knecht drew a leadoff walk and eventually came around to score on an RBI single by second baseman Dan Marra. That made it 4-2 for the Majors.
Deska pitched into the bottom of the 4th, surrendering one more run before Dustin Richardson came in to face one batter and end the inning. The score was 5-2 after four.
Richardson, who has been pitching at less than 100% for most of the season, encountered difficulty while warming up in the 5th and had to leave the game. Sam Greene, the previous evening's starter, pitched a scoreless inning in an emergency situation. The Leafs ended up using four relievers over four plus innings.
In the top of the 7th, catcher Justin Marra hit his second homer in as many nights. His solo shot cut the Majors' lead down to two runs, 5-3.
As they did all night, London responded in the bottom of the inning when Bryon Reichstein hit a solo blast.
It was a tightly-fought contest but the Leafs finally ran out of outs and went down in a 6-3 FINAL.
Toronto 3 8 1
London 6 12 0
W - Arias (3-0, 2.73)
L - Deska (1-1, 7.36)
S - Fernandez (1)
With the win the Majors take a 2-1 series lead. Game 4 will be at Christie Pits on Sunday. Please note that it will be a night game, with first pitch at 7:30 pm.
No comments:
Post a Comment