PHEW! Grizzlies prevail 11-10 in 12 innings against Nuts in seesaw affair

Modesto, CA (Friday, June 3) – After playing the shortest game of the 2022 season yesterday (1 hour, 59 minutes), the Fresno Grizzlies (32-17) and Modesto Nuts (22-27) decided to give the fans some wild and free baseball Friday night from John Thurman Field. The squads battled for 3 hours and 36 minutes, where ultimately, the Grizzlies outlasted the Nuts 11-10 in a 12-inning marathon. Both teams combined to score 21 runs on 26 hits, 12 walks, five errors and one hit-by-pitch. The clubs pooled together five lead changes and were tied three separate times. With the victory and a San Jose extra innings loss, Fresno holds a four-game lead in the division with 17 games left to play in the first half.

The Grizzlies offense tallied 13 hits with five of them going for extra-bases. Four batters secured multi-hit games with Adael Amador leading the charge. The 19-year-old smoked a quartet of hits and scored three times, both season-highs by a Fresno batter. One of Amador’s four hits was a leadoff homer, his fourth instance completing that feat. EJ Andrews Jr. added a trio of hits and RBI, both career-bests for the Fresno State product. Andrews Jr. grounded into a double play in the 12th, which plated the go-ahead and eventual winning run. Hunter Goodman and Juan Guerrero notched two hits and RBI apiece with the latter lacing an early RBI double. Finally, Trevor Boone clobbered the other Grizzlies clout, a solo shot in the eighth. It was Boone’s sixth bomb of the year.

On the other side, the Nuts lineup mustered 13 hits and 10 walks with four batters relishing big evenings. Jonatan Clase went deep twice, a solo tater in the second and a game-tying blast in the seventh. Clase waltzed home three times and stole his 19th base in the defeat. Edwin Arroyo was not retired for Modesto, reaching base five times thanks to four singles and a walk. He recorded two RBI and bumped his batting average to .324. Walking Cabrera provided a pair of hits and RBI against his former MLB organization. Finally, Ben Ramirez whacked three hits and drew one walk. The Nuts recorded runs in the second, third, sixth, seventh, eighth and 10th innings. The sixth frame saw five runs cross the plate.

Fresno starter Brayan Castillo did not factor in the final line after five innings of work. He permitted two runs on six hits while fanning five. The next five Grizzlies relievers would allow at least one run with three of them blowing a save opportunity. Lefty Felix Ramires (1-0) earned the win after two sensational innings. He punched out three and left the tying run stranded at third in the 12th frame. Modesto righty Jordan Jackson also took a no-decision after six innings of six-run ball (three earned). The Nuts used four bullpen arms before Raul Alcantara (0-3, loss) let in the eventual go-ahead and winning run. The clubs are back in action Saturday night from John Thurman Field.

Top Performers: Fresno Grizzlies (Colorado Rockies)

• SS Adael Amador (4-6, HR, RBI, 3 R, SB)

• CF EJ Andrews Jr. (3-5, 2B, 3 RBI, R, SB)

• RF Trevor Boone (1-3, HR, RBI, R, 2 BB, SB)

• LHP Felix Ramires (2.0 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 ER, 1 BB, 3 K, win)

• 1B Hunter Goodman (2-6, 2 RBI, 2 R)

• LF Juan Guerrero (2-6, 2B, 2 RBI, R)

Top Performers: Modesto Nuts (Seattle Mariners)

• CF Jonatan Clase (2-5, 2 HR, 2 RBI, 3 R, BB, SB)

• SS Edwin Arroyo (4-4, 2 RBI, BB)

• RF Walking Cabrera (2-6, 2 RBI, great catch)

On Deck:

Saturday, June 4 @ Modesto Nuts, Fresno RHP Victor Juarez (3-0, 3.12) vs. Modesto RHP Joseph Hernandez (4-1, 2.78), 6:05 pm PT

ON THAT FRES-NOTES:

The 12-frames were tied for the most innings played by the Grizzlies since they became a Rockies affiliate (May 11, 2022 at Visalia) and the 3-hour, 36 minute contest was the second-longest time of game over the past two seasons for Fresno (one minute shorter than May 14, 2021 vs. Visalia).

Both squads’ shortstops Adael Amador and Edwin Arroyo had four hits and finished 8-for-10 on the night.

The 10 walks by Fresno pitching were the most in a game this year.