Almonte Lifts Yankees Past Spinners in Game One

September 8, 2009 – The Baby Bombers continued their winning ways in the first game of the 2009 NY-Penn League Playoffs defeating the host Lowell Spinners, 3-2.  Another win tomorrow night will mean the Staten Island Yankees would advance to the NY-Penn League Championship series.

Staten Island got off to an early lead plating single runs in the third and fourth innings.  In the third Kelvin Castro started it off with a walk then moved to third on a single by Jimmy Paredes and scored on an RBI ground out by Justin Milo.  Zoilo Almonte tripled with an out in the fourth inning and scored on a single by Kyle Higashioka to make it 2-0 Staten Island.

The Spinners responded by plating two runs in the bottom of the fifth off starter Adam Warren to tie the game up at two.  Warren pitched 4 2/3 innings allowing those 2 runs on 7 hits and a walk while striking out 8 in the game.  He was followed by Griffen Bailey who threw 1 1/3 innings allowing only a hit before Gavin Brooks came in and pitched 2 innings for the win.

The Yankees took the lead for the final time in the top of the ninth when Zoilo Almonte sent the fifth pitch he saw over the right field wall for a homerun and put the Baby Bombers ahead, 3-2.

Ryan Flannery came into the game in the ninth inning to close it out for Staten Island.  The Yankees closer sent down the Spinner batters 1-2-3 earning his first save of the post season.

After the game both teams boarded their buses to head back to Staten Island for the second game of the series.  Sean Black will face Alex Wilson at 7:00pm at the Richmond County Bank Ballpark.

Robert M. Pimpsner

Robert joins Gotham Baseball after spending 7 1/2 years as the owner and senior writer for Baby-Bombers.com providing independent coverage of the Staten Island Yankees and their alumni for thousands of visitors. In July of 2009 he joined Gotham Baseball, bringing his coverage of the Baby Bombers.

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