Bunters Are People Too: Viñeros Lay It Down, Walk It Off

May 12, 2023 – Northwest League (NWL) – Tri-City Dust Devils News Release

Viñeros de Tri-City’s Osmy Gregorio in action
(Tri-City Dust Devils)

A walk-off RBI bunt single by 2B Osmy Gregorio of the Viñeros de Tri-City (14-15) ended a wild ballgame and gave the home nine a 7-6 win over the Eugene Emeralds (16-13) Thursday night at Gesa Stadium.

Gregorio’s winning bunt, laid down with two outs in the bottom of the 9th inning on a pitch from Emeralds reliever Hunter Dula (1-1), was one of four bunt singles by the Viñeros in the ballgame, all of which rolled down the third base line. Tri-City 3B Werner Blakely, whose fly ball leading off the 9th was lost in the lights and landed safely for a leadoff single, raced home from third to score the game-winning run, giving his team its first walk-off win of the season.

The game did not start out a small ball exhibition. Eugene put up four runs in the top of the 1st inning, most of which came in on a three-run home run by 1B Victor Bericoto over the left-center field wall.

The visitors’ big lead would not last long. The Viñeros would answer with three runs in similar fashion: a three-run homer by their 1B, Gabe Matthews. Matthews’ mash, his third home run of the season, was a moonshot, flying over the batter’s eye in center field. It scored both Blakely and SS Arol Vera, who had drawn walks to lead off the bottom of the 1st inning and made it a 4-3 game through an inning.

Tri-City would begin to put its bunting skills on display in the bottom of the 2nd inning. RF D’Shawn Knowles led off the frame with a line drive triple to the right-center field gap, putting an early potential tying run 90 feet away. C Gustavo Campero came up with one out and sent a squeeze bunt down the line. Knowles, seeing Emeralds starter Nick Sinacola headed to field it, hesitated halfway down the line but restarted in time to score, tying the game at 4-4.

An eerily similar situation would unfold in the bottom of the 4th. This time, Gregorio led off with a triple, also to right-center field. Campero came up again, this time with two out, and once more laid down a bunt, catching the Eugene infield off-guard and scoring Gregorio to give the Viñeros a 5-4 lead.

Tri-City starter Connor Van Scoyoc, in the meantime, recovered well after his rough 1st inning, throwing four no-hit innings to get through five with the lead. Van Scoyoc walked one and hit a batter, otherwise retiring 12 of the final 14 Emeralds he faced.

The lead held to the 7th…