Collado's Homer Sinks Chiefs

PEORIA, IL – Maick Collado’s two-run homer in the ninth inning stunned the Chiefs and gave the Lake County Captains a 4-3 win at Dozer Park on Tuesday.

Collado stood at the plate with one out in the top of the ninth against Chiefs reliever Tanner Jacobson. The game’s tying run stood 90-feet away after Jonah Advincula walked, and advanced two bases on a wild pitch and a throwing error. With two strikes on Collado, the switch hitter mashed a 2-2 slider over the right field wall to give his club a 4-3 lead.

The Chiefs pieced together a mini rally in the bottom of the ninth, placing runners at first and second with one out. Lake County reliever Steven Perez forced Brody Moore to ground into a 1-4-3 double play to end the game.

With the loss, the Chiefs saw their playoff hopes take another dip. Peoria now sits four games back of Quad Cities with five games to play. Peoria’s elimination number currently sits at two. With a Chiefs loss and a River Bandits win on Wednesday, the Chiefs would officially be eliminated from playoff contention.

Both clubs were opportunistic offensively in the early going in Tuesday’s series opener. Lake County grabbed a 1-0 lead in the top of the second on an Advincula ground ball single into center. The Chiefs tied the game in the home half of the season on a Brayden Jobert RBI groundout.

The Captains took the lead back in the fourth via a Collado single, one of his three RBIs in the win.

Peoria’s offense went quiet in the middle innings. At one point, Lake County pitching retired 14 of 15 Chiefs batters.

Things changed in the seventh when the Chiefs grabbed their first lead of the night. With a runner on first, Alex Iadisernia doubled off the wall in right to score Sammy Hernadnez, tying the game at 2-2. Then, after a pitching change, Moore executed a safety squeeze on the first pitch he saw to give Peoria its first lead, 3-2.

Jacobson, who ended up taking the loss, retired the lone batter he faced in the eighth to carry the lead into the ninth. Dionys Rodriguez did not allow a run over 1 ⅔ innings on his 24th birthday. Chiefs starter Brycen Mautz finished his 2024 regular season on a high note Tuesday. Mautz scattered just two runs over six innings to earn a quality start.

The series continues Wednesday, as the Chiefs look to keep their season alive against Lake County. First pitch is set for 6:35 p.m.