Chasers Earn 89th Win With 10-7 Victory Over Bats

September 21, 2024 – International League (IL)
Omaha Storm Chasers News Release

LOUISVILLE, KY. – Four home runs powered the Omaha Storm Chasers to a 10-7 win in the fifth game of this week’s series against the Louisville Bats, giving Omaha a series lead heading into the regular season finale.

In the top of the first inning, Drew Waters continued his dominant series with a solo homer to right field to get the Chasers on the board early for a 1-0 lead.

Starting pitcher Luinder Avila struggled in the first inning of his Triple-A debut, walking a pair before a double, single and sacrifice fly plated three runs for Louisville for a 3-1 score after an inning of play.

The Storm Chasers answered back and tied the game in the top of the second inning. Rodolfo Durán singled into left field, advanced to second on an error and moved to third on a wild pitch, then scored on an RBI single from Ryan Fitzgerald. After Fitzgerald took second base on a wild pitch, Cam Devanney followed with a two-out singled that scored Fitzgerald and tied the score at 3-3.

Omaha took back the lead for good in the third, as Nate Eaton singled, then Nelson Velázquez reached on a fielding error that advanced Eaton to third and Nick Pratto doubled Eaton in for a 4-3 lead.

The Chasers extended the lead to 8-3 with a four-run fifth inning as Pratto doubled, an infield single from Durán scored Pratto for the first run of the frame. Fitzgerald followed with a two-run homer to right field, his second and third RBI of the night, then two batters later Devanney added another homer, a solo shot and his 19th of the season for the five-run lead.

Louisville cut the Omaha lead to three runs as two walks and a double ended Avila’s day. Jonathan Bowlan inherited two runners from the starter and allowed another run to score on a double, but kept the score at 8-5 through the end of the fifth. Avila struck out 3 over 4.1 innings of work, allowing five runs on five hits.

Waters led off the frame with a double, his third hit of the night, becoming just the second player in the Minors to record 3+ hits in four straight games this season, the first for an Omaha player since at least 2005. With one out, Velázquez hit a line drive single into left field that scored Waters for a 9-5 lead in favor of Omaha.

Bowlan finished the night with 1.2 scoreless innings and struck out two, offering a 1-2-3 sixth inning to end his night. Major League rehabber Josh Taylor took the mound in the bottom of the seventh and allowed…