Bandits turn game-ending triple play

Jeremy Pena proved that dramatic endings don't always come via walk-off hits.
The Astros' No. 27 prospect helped turn a game-ending triple play on Wednesday as Class A Quad Cities held on for a 4-1 victory over Peoria at Dozer Park. 

The River Bandits took a three-run lead into the ninth, but Cardinals No. 23 prospectWadye Ynfante and Zach Jackson started the inning with back-to-back singles off Riley Cabral. That brought Edwin Figuera to the plate as the potential tying run.
On the first pitch, Figuera slapped a sinking liner to Pena at shortstop, where the ball hit the ground at his feet. Pena gloved it, flipped to second baseman Trey Dawson, who tagged Ynfante and stepped on second to force Jackson before throwing to first baseman Scott Schreiber to complete the triple play.
Gameday box score
"That's a funny play," Pena said with a chuckle. "He hit a line drive to me and I caught it on a short-hop. It was a smart play on the second baseman, because once I flipped it to him, instead of tagging the bag right away for the forceout at second, he tagged the runner."
Figuera's soft liner came up inches from Pena's glove and he knew he got it on a bounce. Once he heard the call from the umpire, he flipped the ball to second for what he assumed would be an ordinary double play.
"It was a tough play for the umpire to see, so once he called it a dropped ball, I just flipped it to second," he said. "It was a heads-up play by [Dawson] to tag [Ynfante] first."
The shortstop quickly realized the play would be anything but ordinary.
"I was going crazy," Pena said. "As soon as I got the hop and saw the runner going to third, in the middle of the play and kind of confused, I knew we had a shot to get the triple play. I was yelling, 'Tag him! Throw the ball!' But [Dawson] did the right thing and took his time and got the play done.
"That's the first time I've ever been a part of a triple play. For it to come in the bottom of the ninth to win the game, that's pretty cool."
It was the second triple play in the Minor Leagues this season and Quad Cities' first since Aug. 11, 2013 against Wisconsin.
Pena, the son of seven-year big league veteran Geronimo Pena, was selected in the third round of the 2018 Draft and already has proved himself as one of top defenders in the Houston system. The 21-year-old can play second base in addition to short and boasts a 60 grade in both fielding and arm on the 20-80 scouting scale from MLB Pipeline. He played both middle infield positions in his pro debut last summer for Class A Short Season Tri-Valley but was used predominantly at short, where he had a .919 fielding percentage in 32 games. The University of Maine product commited nine errors and turned 13 double plays in 111 chances. 
In 16 games for Quad Cities, he's played mostly shortstop with one start at second base and has yet to commit an error. 

Pena clubbed his first full-season homer, connecting on a solo blast on a 2-1 pitch from Cole Aker in the first. Dawson also slugged his first homer of the season, a leadoff shot in the fifth off Aker.
Nivaldo Rodriguez (2-1) earned the win, allowing an unearned run on six hits with four strikeouts. He did not walk a batter and lowered his ERA to 1.80. Thanks to the triple play, Cabral notched his first professional save. He limited the Chiefs to three hits over four scoreless innings, fanning three without issuing a walk.
Aker (0-2) took the loss, despite recording a career-high nine strikeouts over five innings. He allowed three runs on two hits -- both homers -- and five walks.