Grizzlies Best Boomers in Series Opener
SCHAUMBURG – The Gateway Grizzlies kept their momentum going on the road, getting six strong innings from Lukas Veinbergs (2-1) on the mound and three multi-run innings at the plate in an 8-1 win over the Schaumburg Boomers at Wintrust Field on Friday night, improving their record to 10-3 on the season.
Things started shakily for Veinbergs, who walked three batters in the bottom of the first inning and gave up the game’s first run on an RBI fielder’s choice by Banks Tolley. But he did not allow any further damage in that inning, and held the Boomers without a hit until the sixth, working around six walks with six strikeouts on a chilly night where neither starting pitcher had their best command.
Down 1-0 in the third inning, it was the free passes that got the Grizzlies bats going, as Schaumburg starter Dylan Kirkeby (1-1) walked two and hit a batter to load the bases for Edwin Mateo, and he extended his hit streak to eight games in a row with an RBI single to tie the game at 1-1. Jose Alvarez then brought in the lead run by hitting into a 4-6-3 double play to make it 2-1 Grizzlies.
Gateway would pull away in the next inning as well, as Mark Shallenberger led off with a double, followed by an infield single from Tyler Young that Boomers second baseman Will Prater threw wide to first for an error, allowing Shallenberger to score to make it 3-1. After Gabe Holt drew one of his four walks on the night and Victor Castillo reached on a bunt single to load the bases, former Boomer Paxton Wallace reached base on another Schaumburg error to make it 4-1. Two batters later, with the bases still loaded, Mateo picked up his second RBI of the game on a fielder’s choice, giving the Grizzlies a 5-1 lead.
The Grizzlies would pile on late insurance in the eighth inning with a five-batter, two-out rally. Wallace and D.J. Stewart began it with singles, and Mateo walked to load the bases for Alvarez, who stroked a two-run single to center field for a 7-1 lead. Cole Brannen then capped the scoring with an RBI single to right field.
Offensively, Wallace led the balanced attack by going 3-for-5 with two runs scored and an RBI against his former club, while Brannen and Shallenberger also enjoyed multi-hit days in the Grizzlies’ 13-hit attack.
Grizzlies Drop Middle Contest in Schaumburg
Gateway cannot get bats going Saturday afternoon
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. – The Gateway Grizzlies struggled offensively on Saturday afternoon in Schaumburg, and despite a late push in the ninth inning, they took a 4-1 loss against the Schaumburg Boomers at Wintrust Field.
Sam Rochard (2-1) started for Gateway, and struggled with his command, walking six batters in his five innings of work. Just like the first game of the series, however, the Grizzlies starter battled and limited the damage to one run, which the Boomer scored in the bottom of the third inning on a sacrifice fly by Bren Spillane. Rochard also struck out three and gave up just three hits to keep Gateway in the contest.
Things went sideways on Donovan Burke in the bottom of the sixth, as a leadoff walk and two bunt singles loaded the bases with no outs. Tony Livermore then bounced one up the middle that Gabe Holt attempted to throw home for the force-out, but the throw was not in time, doubling the Schaumburg lead to 2-0. Later in the inning, a wild pitch and a throwing error by Burke on a pickoff to first base brought in two more Boomers runs and made the score 4-0.
Meanwhile, Gateway’s bats were silenced until the ninth inning by starter Derek Salata (1-2) and reliever Aaron Glickstein, and it was against the latter that the Grizzlies were able to break up the shutout in the ninth. Dale Thomas and Mark Shallenberger chased the veteran with back-to-back singles, and after the Boomers summoned Mitch White from the bullpen, Ross Friedrick lifted the ball into right field that just eluded the glove of a diving Spillane, scoring Thomas from third base to make it a 4-1 game, but with Shallenberger thrown out heading into second base for the second out of the inning.
Jose Alvarez then kept the game alive with another single, bringing the tying run to the plate, but Holt bounced out to second base, ending the game.
Grizzlies Blow Lead Late, Fall in Heartbreaking loss
Gateway surrenders 3-0 lead in eighth inning, lose on throwing error in extras
SCHAUMBURG, ILL. – The Gateway Grizzlies lost back-to-back games for the first time all season long and dropped their first series of 2025 as a result, giving away a 3-0 lead in the eighth inning and losing 5-4 in heartbreaking fashion on a throwing error in the 10th inning by Ross Friedrick on Sunday night at Wintrust Field.
Gateway got on the board first in the second inning thanks to a sacrifice fly by Dale Thomas at 1-0, and would also plate single runs in the fourth inning on a two-out RBI single by Thomas and in the top of the sixth inning when with a runner at third base, Edwin Mateo popped up a ball to pitcher Cole Cook in foul territory, and no one covered home plate, allowing Victor Castillo to scamper home to make the score 3-0.
Meanwhile, Gage Vailes was utterly brilliant on the mound for the Grizzlies, firing a career-high six shutout innings, allowing just three hits and one walk with three strikeouts. But after a scoreless seventh inning from Alec Whaley, things fell apart in the bottom of the eighth.
Leoni De La Cruz walked the bases loaded in the frame, and with one out, Anthony Calarco hit a ground ball that just stayed fair down the first base line, clearing the bases and tying the game at 3-3.
Sam Coonrod was able to toss a scoreless bottom of the ninth to send the game to extra innings, and it looked like Gateway would fail to score their automatic runner from second base, but with two outs, Mateo came up clutch again, rapping an RBI single to right field to extend his hit streak to 10 games in a row and giving the Grizzlies a 4-3 lead.
But it was incredibly short-lived. Matt Hickey (0-1) surrendered an RBI triple to Andrew Sojka on the first pitch of the bottom of the 10th inning, knotting the score at 4-4. After Christian Fedko hit a ground ball to the drawn-in Gabe Holt at second base that was dropped, allowing the batter to reach on an error, Calarco came up again, and on the first pitch hit a ball right to Friedrick next to the first base bag. Friedrick stepped on first base for the first out of the inning, and tried to throw to Tyler Young at second base to turn a double-play and keep Sojka at third base, but the ball got away into shallow left field, allowing Sojka to trot home with the winning run, and sealing the Grizzlies’ first series loss against the Boomers since August of 2023.
