DAVENPORT, Iowa (July 11, 2014) - Kane County Cougars third baseman Jeimer Candelario hit a three-run double in the first inning to spur his team to an 8-0 lead by the sixth inning, and he added his first Midwest League home run for a 9-2 Cougars lead, and the Quad Cities River Bandits' late rally fell short in a 9-5 loss to the visitors in front of 5,525 at Modern Woodmen Park Thursday night.
Candelario came to bat with the bases loaded and one out in the first inning after singles by second baseman Ben Carhart and left fielder Kyle Schwarber and a walk by first baseman Jacob Rogers. On an 0-1 pitch from right-hander Kevin Comer (1-2), Candelario hit a line drive down the left-field line, clearing the bases for a 3-0 Kane County lead.
The Cougars (14-5 second half, 59-30 overall) kept the same lead until the top of the fourth inning, when right fielder Kevin Brown led off hit his second home run in his first three Midwest League games to right field. With two outs, shortstop Carlos Penalver hit an infield single, went to third base on center fielder Jake Hannemann's single, and scored on Carhart's RBI single. Comer lasted four innings and was charged with five runs - five earned - on eight hits and two walks with two strikeouts for Quad Cities (11-9, 46-43).
Cougars starter Juan Paniagua (6-3) allowed a first-inning double by second baseman Dayne Parker, who was picked off second base. River Bandits first baseman Tyler White and designated hitter Ronnie Mitchell each singled to begin the second inning before a strikeout and double play ended without a run scoring. White totaled three hits thursday, while Mitchell had a career-high four. Quad Cities outhit Quad Cities, 15-12, and had at least one hit in every inning but went 4-for-18 with runners in scoring position and left 13 runners on base.
River Bandits right-hander Adrian Houser began the top of the fifth inning with a 5-0 deficit. He pitched one scoreless inning before Kane County extended its lead in the top of the sixth inning. Houser hit catcher Cael Brockmeyer to open the inning and walked Penalver with one out. Hannemann then doubled down the left-field line to score Brockmeyer, and Carhart's two-runs single extended the lead to 8-0.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, River Bandits center fielder James Ramsay hit a leadoff triple, and White drew a two-out walk to chase Paniagua, who went 5 2/3 innings, allowing six hits and three walks while striking out five batters. Paniagua was charged with two earned runs when Mitchell hit a two-run double to left-center field on the first pitch from right-hander Michael Wagner to cut the deficit to 8-2.
Trailing, 9-2, after Candelario's home run in the seventh inning off Houser, the River Bandits made noise against Wagner in the eighth inning. White and Mitchell hit consecutive singles to end Wagner's night after 1 1/3 innings, and left fielder Jose Fernandez singled off right-hander Corbin Hoffner. Catcher Brian Holberton grounded into a fielder's choice, and consecutive walks by third baseman Marc Wik and shortstop Thomas Lindauer made it 9-4. But Hoffner got Ramsay to pop out to third base and Parker to fly to left field to keep it 9-4.
In the ninth inning, Hoffner allowed White's one-out double, Mitchell's single, and Fernandez's RBI single to cut the gap to 9-5. Right-hander Jose Arias entered to walk Holberton and bring the tying run to the plate. But Wik struck out after an eight-pitch battle, and pinch hitter Jon Kemmer grounded out to second base to end the game and leave the bases loaded with River Bandits for a second straight inning.
Quad Cities opens its last scheduled four-game road series of the season at Wisconsin at 7:05 p.m. Friday.
UP NEXT: The River Bandits open a six-game homestand with Eastern Division opponents at 7 p.m. Wednesday on Quad Cities Builders & Remodelers Association and Epic Stone Night and a Pay Your Bill Wednesday presented by U.S. Bank, CBS WHBF and Mix 96. Tickets are available at www.riverbandits.com. To order any of the River Bandits 2014 ticket plans - with new lower prices - call the River Bandits box office at 563-324-3000. Season ticket and mini-plan packages start at just seven games and begin at less than $40. Call a River Bandits account representative today to choose your seats and get the details of our various mini-plan packages.
