Bloom blossoms in Wild Things’ win
Taylor Bloom didn’t get credit for the win as the Wild Things put their league-leading 26th victory of the season in the bank Saturday night but he sure did a good job of filling out the deposit slip.
Bloom, a right-handed starting pitcher, was signed earlier in the day by Washington and made his professional debut in the Wild Things’ 9-6 victory over the Schaumburg Boomers.
The win keeps Washington in first place in the Frontier League’s East Division, one game ahead of Lake Erie.
A rookie out of the University of Maryland, Bloom pitched five strong innings before tiring in the sixth, when Schaumburg rallied to tie the score at 4-4.
Catcher Kyle Pollock capped Washington’s four-run bottom of the sixth with a two-run homer and designated hitter Jordan Edgerton added his first home run for Washington, a solo shot in the seventh.
Bloom worked fast, threw strikes and looked like a welcomed and needed addition to Washington’s starting rotation that has been inconsistent all season. He struck out four and did not issue a walk.
Bloom was working a three-hitter and protecting a 4-1 lead in the sixth on this steamy night. He gave up a leadoff single to Jack Parenty in the sixth then plunked Sean Godfrey with a pitch. With the Wild Things’ bullpen busy, Bloom gave up a three-run, game-tying homer to the Boomers’ Ty Moore, who had four RBI in Schaumburg’s series-opening victory Friday night.
“I thought I was cruising through five innings, then one pitch in the sixth,” Bloom said, his voice trailing off. “Four runs in six innings, that’s not what I want.
“You can get away with mistakes in college. In professional baseball, one mistake can cost you.”
That was all for Bloom, who exited to a nice ovation from the crowd. It was the first game for Bloom since the Terrapins’ college season ended. He had pitched one inning against hitters last month in a workout the Wild Things held for undrafted players.
The crowd cheered again in the bottom of the sixth inning when James Harris’ single drove in Brett Marr, who had doubled, as the Wild Things regained the lead 5-4.
After allowing a single to Carter McEachern, Schaumburg reliever Dylan Stutsman (1-2) almost escaped the inning without further damage but Roman Collins was able to hustle down the line to beat out a potential double-play grounder as Harris scored from third base.
Collins’ hustle proved to be key as Pollock followed with a two-out, two-run homer that gave Washington an 8-4 lead.
Schaumburg closed to within 8-6 in the seventh on a two-run single by Zach Weigel but Edgerton got one of the runs back with a solo homer to left field.
Sam Mersing (2-0), the second of four Washington pitchers, was credited with the win. Zach Strecker pitched the final two innings for his 10th save. Strecker had to work out of a jam in the ninth as the relentless Boomers loaded the bases with one out on an error and two infield singles. Strecker used a single and groundout to end the game.
Extra bases
First baseman Reydel Medina, who was batting .298 with 21 RBI in 41 games, was placed on the suspended list Saturday. The first Cuban-born player in Wild Things history, Medina informed Langbehn that he was leaving the team and returning to his home in Miami, Fla. “It was a personal matter that he had to take care of at home,” Langbehn said. “In no way was he suspended for a violation of team rules. It was something that he needs to work through at home. It was nothing that had surprised us. He had told us about this ahead of time. We wish we had him the entire season. He never caused any issues. The guys liked him. Whether he comes back or not, I don’t know.” … The game was delayed for eight minutes in the second inning because home plate came dislodged from the ground after a single by the Boomers’ Collin Ferguson. … Former major leaguer Jose Canseco played his second game for Normal in the CornBelters’ 2-1 win over Florence. Canseco batted first and struck out on five pitches in his only at-bat. He will play in one more game for Normal, today’s series finale.