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8/28/2021

Playoffs  Round 1

The 4th-seeded Rangers kicked off the postseason with a series against the 5th-seeded Wild Boars at Rotary Park. With a few of the team's key weapons unavailable, it took a complete team effort to knock off a tough Boars squad in a DH sweep, 10-7 and 12-4.

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The pitchers did their best to contend with a tough strike zone, allowing 16 walks, but limited the damage with just 11 hits allowed. Meanwhile, the offense clicked with a big inning in both games that took the wind out of the Boars' sails.

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Rookie Noah Schleinitz got the call to start game 1. After striking out the first 2 batters of the game, a walk and a run-scoring single from Jimmy Herold gave the Boars an early 1-0 lead. In the bottom of the second, Mike Seebock stole second allowing Kyle Moyer to steal home to tie the game. The Boars regained the lead in the third as Jonathan Midkiff scored on a wild pitch.  The Boars then ran up Noah's pitch count in the fourth. Matt Yates had an RBI single and Midkiff added a sac fly, while Jason Combs drew a bases loaded walk to increase the Boars lead to 5-1.

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Hunter Kraynak relieved Schleinitz in the 5th, allowed a couple of walks, but left them stranded. In the bottom of the fifth, Matt Yates relieved Brent Cox, and the Rangers offense put together a big rally against the All-Star lefty. Jonmarc Lippincott started things with a bloop single over the shortstop. Chris Jones ran for Lippincott and scored all the way from first on Nick Gilmore's double. After a walk to Rob Pederson, Markus Neff smoked a 2-run double of his own to cut the deficit to 5-4. After a flyout, Kyle Moyer smacked a double to score Neff to tie the game. Moyer then stole third and the throw from the catcher sailed into left field, allowing Moyer to score the go-ahead run. Seebock worked a two-out walk, and Chris Jones singled. Lippincott then blooped another single into shallow left to load the bases. Gilmore then had the big blow with his second double of the inning, clearing the bases. Pederson completed the scoring with a run-scoring double, the 5th double of the inning! 

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Staked to a 10-5 lead, Kraynak tossed a scoreless 6th, but the Boars attempted a late rally in the top of the 7th. Kraynak got Combs to fly out to start the frame. However, Herold singled and Sully Minner walked. A fielder's choice put runners on the corner with 2 outs. Thomas Troy singled home Minner and Colin Minner walked. Mookie Holmes reached on a fielding error to plate Nick Hundley. With the bases loaded, and the winning run at the plate, Kraynak bared down and struck out Midkiff to end the game. 

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With the all-important game one victory in the books, the tough task of completing the sweep would come down to facing Boars rookie ace Nick Stewart. Stewart worked through the Rangers lineup unscathed in the first two innings. Rangers right-hander Brandon Saylor struggled to figure out the umpires strike zone in the bottom of the first inning, allowing 4 walks and a run. But Saylor figured things out after that and kept the Boars' offense off-balance the rest of the way. However, the Rangers still had to get the ball rolling on offense. In the top of the third, Chris Jones led off with a single. Lippincott put down a sacrifice bunt to move Jones into scoring position, anticipating the top of the order to do their job. And that's exactly what transpired as Gilmore roped a single down the left field line, scoring Jones to tie the game at 1-1. Pederson then drilled a run-scoring double to the left-center field gap to give the Rangers a 2-1 lead. 

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The lead was short-lived as the Boars turned a leadoff walk into a run as Herold's sac fly tied the game at two apiece. In the top of the fifth, Gilmore's laced his 5th straight hit. Pederson pounded another RBI double to give the Rangers back the lead. Markus Neff added some insurance with a run-scoring single. 

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Similar to the first game, the Rangers put the game away with a big inning off Boars relievers. Thirteen batters came to the plate in the top of the 6th, producing 7 runs. With one out and runners on 2nd and 3rd, Lippincott laced a 2-run single through a drawn-in infield to increase the lead to 6-2. Gilmore remained red-hot with another single, and Pederson was hit in the foot to load the bases. Neff and Cooper Nolte then roped back-to-back 2-run singles. Moyer added an RBI double, the 9th double on the afternoon for the Rangers, made the score 11-2.

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In the top of the 7th, Eric Becker was hit by a pitch with the bases loaded to make it 12-2. Saylor, allowing just an infield hit up to that point, was able to work around a couple hits in the bottom of the 7th and 2 runs to earn the complete game victory. Saylor finished with 9 punchouts.

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Rangers 10,
Wild Boars 7

Rangers 12,
Wild Boars 4

Offensive highlights: Nick Gilmore 6-for-7, 5 runs, 5 RBIs, 2 doubles, SB; Rob Pederson 3-for-5, 4 runs, 3 RBI, 3 doubles, SB; Markus Neff 5-for-9, 2 runs, 5 RBIs, 2 doubles; Kyle Moyer 4-for-9, 2 runs, 2 RBIs, 2 doubles, 2 SB; Jonmarc Lippincott 3-for-5, 2RBIs, sac.

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Historical Notes: Nick Gilmore's 28 walks+HBP tied for 2nd all-time in Rangers single-season history, 2 off the record. Nick's 39 runs scored ties career high (2018). Rob Pederson's 13 doubles places him 4th all-time in Rangers single-season history, Ian Huss (17 in 2012). Rob's 45 RBIs ties Joe Staten's all-time single season record set in 2012.

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