STATE COLLEGE — Loft a ball into the sky and the perils of pitching to contact might become visible.
The free-swinging Williamsport Crosscutters enjoyed batting against strike-throwing Trent Stevenson as they parlayed seven straight third-inning hits into a 13-3 victory over the State College Spikes before 5,144 fans Sunday at Medlar Field at Lubrano Park.
The inning demonstrated organizational philosophies. The Philadelphia Phillies permit young players to take aggressive cuts. The Pittsburgh Pirates want younger pitchers to fill the strike zone.
The Phillies’ ways prevailed. Williamsport established a Medlar Field record for consecutive hits in the third. Two innings later, two Spikes errors, including a communication
gaffe between outfielders Rodarrick Jones and Junior Sosa, led to five runs.
“They were putting good swings on the ball and attacking the ball,” Spikes manager Kimera Bartee said. “They were ready to hit the fastball. That’s what you teach.”
For the Spikes (26-42), the game marked another stop on their way to a permanent spot in the Pinckney Division’s cellar. They are seven games behind fifth-place Jamestown with seven games remaining.
The Crosscutters (39-30) are in an opposite position. They moved within a half-game Brooklyn in the race for the New York-Penn League’s lone wildcard spot. The Cyclones haven’t played since Friday because of Hurricane Irene’s remnants.
Williamsport plays four straight games against Mahoning Valley before reuniting with the Spikes. The Scrappers trail Brooklyn (38-28) by two games in the loss column.
The Crosscutters end the season with three games against State College at Bowman Field. If the Spikes perform like they did Sunday, Williamsport could be making its first New York-Penn League postseason appearance since 2005.
The Crosscutters had a season-high 18 hits. They batted around during a six-run third and five-run fifth.
“It was big for us because we are here in the playoff hunt,” said Crosscutters manager Mickey Morandini, whose team lost 12-1 on Saturday. “It was a must-win for us.”
The third inning featured an innocent start. Kenny Miramontes grounded out to third base. Stevenson, a 2009 seventh-round draft pick who has two walks in 302/ 3 innings, continued throwing strikes. The Crosscutters continued swinging.
Francisco Diaz singled to left field. Pate Lavin doubled to left-center. Sosa shielded his eyes in center and couldn’t snag a ball hit by Kyrell Hudson. Aaron Altherr singled to left. Maikel Franco used his ultra-quick hands to single to left. Harold Martinez hit a three-run triple down the right-field line. Sosa shielded his eyes again and Cody Asche dropped a bloop single.
Stevenson struck out Geancarlo Mendez looking for the second out. The knee-high fastball was Steven-son’s final pitch.
“I just need to make better pitches down in the zone and execute pitches more often,” he said.
Jesus Brito continued attacking the Crosscutters during the next two innings. The approach worked until the fifth when second baseman Dan Gamache’s throwing error and contact between Jones and Sosa forced Jones to drop a routine fly ball. Lavin and Franco added doubles during the inning.
Brito didn’t make it through the frame. Joan Montero replaced him after Jones and Sosa’s botched play.
Jones and Sosa didn’t stay around much longer. Bartee altered his outfield to begin the sixth, removing Jones and Sosa, shifting Alex Fuselier from right to left field, and sending Taylor Lewis to center and Carlos Mesa to right.
“They were not picking the ball up and not communicating,” Bartee said. “The visual thing happens. That’s a physical thing, which I’m OK with. The communication thing is a mental thing and that’s something I don’t like.”
Morandini had no difficult decisions to make. All 10 of his position players used forceful swings to collect hits. Lavin, Franco and Asche each had three hits. Lavin and Franco doubled twice.
“We want to be aggressive in the strike zone,” Morandini said. “We don’t want to go outside the strike zone. It’s important if you see a good pitch early to be aggressive on it.”
The teams were meeting for the ninth time this season, so the Crosscutters had a good idea of what to expect: fastballs and strikes.
“Most of the teams in the league pitch like that,” Martinez said. “They throw a lot of strikes. We have to be aggressive and it paid off.”
The Spikes also displayed offensive aggression. They had 10 hits, beginning with Wes Freeman’s leadoff double in the first. Mesa, Freeman, Alex Fuselier and Alex Dickerson had two hits each.
Freeman, who raised his batting average to .304, was promoted to full-season West Virginia after the game.
