Sep 3, 2022 4 min read

Although his manager called it a “no-pressure game,” Nick Ward was feeling plenty of tension.

Ward, the Wild Things’ all-star shortstop, was back in the starting lineup Saturday night for the first time in 15 games. He had been sidelined since being hit in the hand by a pitch Aug. 17 in a game against Florence and wasn’t sure if his hitting eye and timing would be as good as they were before the injury, when he was a legitimate Frontier League Most Valuable Player candidate.

“Before my first-bat, my nerves were at an all-time high,” Ward admitted. “I was very excited to get back in there. I had more jitters than on opening day.”

There was, however, no need to worry.

Ward went 2-for-4 with a triple, home run and scored twice, and pitcher Sandro Cabrera took care of the rest, pitching into the ninth inning as Washington defeated the Windy City ThunderBolts 5-2 before a crowd of 3,324 at Wild Things Park.

Ward was robbed of a base hit in his initial at-bat when Windy City first baseman Peyton Isaacson dove far to his right to snag what seemed like a sure ground-ball single for Ward. In his next trip to the plate, Ward laced a triple to the wall in left centerfield and scored on a sacrifice fly to the warning track by Anthony Brocato, giving the Wild Things a 2-0 lead.

“I had taken batting practice on the field for two days and in the cage two or three times on top of that,” Ward said. “Today was more about getting at-bats before the playoffs. That was the focus.”

In the fifth inning, Ward hit a two-run homer to right field in the first pitch of the at-bat against Windy City starter Garrett Christman (4-7).

“That felt good,” Ward said.

It was Ward’s 19th home run and pushed Washington’s lead to 4-0. Brocato made it back-to-back home runs as he followed with a homer, his 24th of the season and second since being traded by Florence to Washington.

Cabrera (8-4) made sure that was enough offense for Washington. The lefthander had a shutout through eight innings and he returned to the mound for the ninth, after throwing 116 pitches and looking for the Wild Things’ first complete game of the season.

“Sandro has been on me all year about letting him get a complete game,” Washington manager Tom Vaeth said. “He earned that right so we sent him out for the ninth.”

The shutout bid ended quickly as Brian Klein, the ThunderBolts’ cleanup hitter, hit the first pitch of the ninth inning for a towering moonshot homer, just inside the right-field foul pole.

After walking the next batter, Brian Fuentes, Cabrera exited to a standing ovation. He had allowed only four hits and three walks, striking out a season-high 11. He threw 124 pitches.

“Everybody is a little different, and Sandro he has the old rubber arm,” Vaeth said. “He likes to throw a lot, so we’ve given him a longer leash, let him go deeper into games. It was a no-pressure game, so it allowed us to send him out for the ninth.”

The win extended the Wild Things’ winning streak to five games.

With the West Division title already secured, Washington is still vying for the best record in the league and home-field advantage throughout the playoffs that begin next week. The Wild Things are one game behind East Division champion Quebec, which beat Ottawa 8-1 Saturday. Washington must win the regular-season finale Sunday (5:35 p.m.) and have Ottawa defeat Quebec to gain home-field advantage.