Honkers Win It on Roper Walk-Off Homer
June 10, 2012 - Northwoods League (Northwoods)
Rochester Honkers News Release
(Rochester, MN) - Sometimes all it takes is one pitch to turn things around for a ballclub. A walk-off two ball, two strike homerun off the bat of Reid Roper (Illinois) on Sunday afternoon won it for the Honkers and may just be the spark that they need to get back to playing winning baseball.
With the Honkers trailing the MoonDogs 6-4 in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs and runners on second and third base, Reid Roper smacked a long three-run homer to right field off of Mankato closer Patrick Goelz (Oklahoma City) to send the MoonDogs packing and give the Honkers the 7-6 victory.
The homerun for Roper was his first of the year.
Rochester starter Kevin Johnson (Illinois) struggled in his first outing of the 2012 season giving up four earned runs on nine MoonDogs hits in just 5.0 innings of work. Johnson also allowed three Mankato walks.
Mankato starting pitcher Davis Henderson (Oklahoma City) was shaky in the first inning but was able to settle down over the next five innings and throw shutout baseball. The Spring, TX native worked 6.0 innings and allowed only two runs in the bottom of the first frame, while striking out a total of six Honkers batters.
After loading the bases in the bottom of the eighth inning and coming up empty, the Honkers offense had them packed again in the bottom half of the ninth. Rightfielder Justin Parr singled home one run to make it 6-3 before a balk from Mankato closer Patrick Goelz (Oklahoma City) made it 6-4 in front of the Roper longball.
The Honkers bullpen was solid in the victory keeping the MoonDogs offense in check and giving the Honkers a fighting chance. Rochester native Brandon Zywicki (Central Arizona) and Dunnellon, FL native Reid Love (St. Johns River State) combined to work the final 4.0 innings and allow just one run.
Honkers shortstop Michael Lukkason (Dakota Wesleyan) and centerfielder Dakota Smith (Kansas) each finished 2 for 4.
Registering the win for the Honkers was reliever Reid Love (1-0) and the loss went to Mankato's Patrick Goelz (0-1).
The win for the Honkers kept them from a sweep and gives the team momentum going into the next series.
The Honkers (5-7) will start a three-game series with Waterloo (8-3) on Monday with the first two to be played in Rochester and the final game in Waterloo. First pitch on Monday is scheduled for 7:05 PM. Chris Noble (Pikeville), who is 0-2 in two starts will be on the mound for Rochester.
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Northwoods League Stories from June 10, 2012
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- Late Rally Runs out of Steam - Wisconsin Rapids Rafters
- Chinooks Win Fourth Straight 9-5 over Wisconsin Rapids Saturday - Lakeshore Chinooks
- Honkers Win It on Roper Walk-Off Homer - Rochester Honkers
- Mallards Look to Avoid Sweep against Express - Madison Mallards
- Beetles Avoid Sweep vs Rox - St. Cloud Rox
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