RBI from Merrimack native Gasper helps Silver Knights to 4-3 victory
NASHUA – Any way you can get them.
That’s the Nashua Silver Knights’ motto with regard to getting wins during a brutal 13-game, 13-day stretch. It worked to perfection on Tuesday night in the form of a walkoff 4-3 win over the Brockton Rox delighting what was left of an announced Holman Stadium crowd of 564.
Harry Roberson’s heads-up steal of third with two outs – after Nashua had tied the game 3-3 on Merrimack native Mickey Gasper’s RBI hit – was the key. He was then able to score easily on Yanni Thanopoulos’ infield hit that deflected off the mound into no-man’s land, upping the Knights record to 19-10.
"They weren’t paying attention to me," Roberson said. "I saw the shortstop vacate the area. I know you don’t want to make the last out at third but I was pretty confident."
The play gave reliever Seth Pinkerton (2-0) the victory, the inning set up by pinch-hitter Mike Geannelis’ leadoff walk versus Rox lefty closer Nathan Grant.
"That was big," Silver Knights manager B.J. Neverett said.
"Hey, we’ve played eight days in a row, we got in at 3 a.m. the night before (from 13 innings at Pittsfield). … Any way you can, one game at a time."
And Roberson’s play? "He didn’t have the green light," Neverett said, "but he knew what he was doing."
Nashua grabbed a 1-0 lead when Ryan Sullivan was hit by a pitch leading off the second inning and eventually came around to score on Luke Glancy’s double play ball.
But Brockton scored the next three runs off starter Jeremy Roberts on a pair of RBI singles by Ben Porter in the third and fifth and a line drive homer just over the brick wall in left on a 3-1 Roberts offering in the sixth.
The Knights closed to within 3-2 on Dante Baldelli’s RBI single in the sixth, but Rox reliever Dan Rajowski fanned Glancy and Anthony Meduri with two on to escape further trouble.
The Rox (12-18) fall further behind the top of the division.
"I hit some hard dirt at home," Thanopoulos said.
Hey, no one said it had to be pretty.
NOTES
— In case you missed it, the Silver Knights edged Pittsfield 7-5 in a 13-inning affair on Monday night in Pittsfield, despite leaving a whopping 19 runners on base. Nashua left the bases loaded in the seventh and eighth. Harry Roberson’s two-run single in the top of the 13th did the trick.
— Four Silver Knights were unavailable for Tuesday night’s game. Relief pitchers Jake Nelson and Cam LaFleur couldn’t pitch due to the pitch count/rest rules, and third baseman Chris Sullivan was away for family reasons. But earlier in the day catcher Anthony Fava went to the emergency room with an undisclosed illness. That elevated third catcher Dan Mullins (Daniel Webster) to the immediate backup spot.
— Righty Mike Geannelis (3-1, 5.63 ERA) goes Wednesday against the FCBL West Division leading Worcester Bravehearts (19-8 going into Tuesday) at 7:05 p.m. at Holman. Worcester is managed by former DWC coach and Silver Knights manager J.P. Pyne
— Nashua went into Tuesday with the second most walks allowed, 127. Brockton had allowed the most with 132.
— Tuesday’s game was televised live on the Nashua Education Channel (channel 99). The next live telecast will be Friday, July 15 versus Torrington at Holman at 6:45 p.m.