The Schaumburg Boomers scored eight unanswered runs to break through and record a sweep of the Down East Bird Dawgs with a 16-6 victory at Wintrust Field on Thursday night.
Down East turned the tables on the Boomers in the first inning, scoring four early runs against starter Derek Salata. The Boomers had outscored opponents 17-0 in the first at home this year prior to tonight. Salata settled down and gave his team a chance to rally. Schaumburg created plenty of opportunities and slowly chipped away. Alex Calarco tallied a two-run single to start the rally in the second. Kyle Fitzgerald pulled the Boomers within 4-3 by stroking an RBI single in the third. Schaumburg put the tying run on base in four straight innings before breaking through in the sixth on a two-run single from Fitzgerald to take the lead. Down East drew within 8-6, but the Boomers pulled away by scoring eight in the eighth, highlighted by reigning Frontier League MVP Anthony Calarco’s first homer of the year, a grand slam.
Salata worked five innings in a no-decision, striking out seven. Jacob Bell picked up the win in relief. The pitching staff finished with 14 strikeouts in the win, a sixth straight at home to open the year. The offense amassed 17 hits while drawing nine walks. Both Anthony Calarco and Alex Calarco registered four RBIs. Fitzgerald finished with three hits and three RBIs. Christian Fedko also drove home three. Taylor Freeman reached base five times in his second start, posting the first three hits of his pro career.
