The Lincoln Saltdogs recovered from throwing away a five-run cushion to defeat Bermudian shortstop Adam Hall and his Winnipeg Goldeyes teammates 7-5 in a fluctuating American Association clash at Haymarket Park.
Winnipeg had staged a remarkable sixth-inning fightback to completely erase a 5-0 deficit, but the hosts hit back immediately to seal the contest and condemn the Goldeyes to their 17th defeat of the campaign.
Lincoln looked to be cruising toward a straightforward victory after dominating the opening five frames. They manufactured the opening run in the very first inning when Cam Phelts crossed the plate on a Jake Hjelle groundout.
The hosts turned the screws with a three-run burst in the third. Jairo Pomares was the catalyst, lining a sharp double to right field to drive in Jacob Morrow and Phelts before later scoring himself courtesy of a throwing error.
When Connor Bagnieski dropped a bloop single into left field to bring Hjelle home in the fifth, Lincoln held a seemingly unassailable 5-0 advantage.
The Goldeyes had struggled for inspiration but suddenly burst to life in a chaotic top of the sixth, scoring all five of their runs in a single turn at the plate.
The comeback began when T.J. Schofield-Sam drew a bases-loaded walk to force home Noah Marcelo. Ray-Patrick Didder then clattered a two-run double off the left-field wall to score Max Murphy and Jiandido Tromp, slashing the deficit to two.
A Roby Enríquez sacrifice fly allowed Schofield-Sam to score before catcher Kevin García wrapped up a phenomenal three-hit night by lacing an RBI single to right, bringing Didder home to draw Winnipeg level at 5-5.
However, the joy was short-lived for the visitors. Lincoln responded instantly in the bottom of the frame, as Hjelle singled to center field to drive in Morrow and restore the lead.
Jack Dragum then provided the definitive blow in the seventh, crushing a solo home run over the left-field wall to secure the insurance run and wrap up the victory for the Saltdogs.
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