By Brandon Olson
The Provo Angels got off to a slow start in Tuesday night''s matchup against the Helena Brewers, July 20, but squeaked by with some last-minute heroics for a 15-13 win.
The Angels trailed the Brewers 12-6 in the bottom of the eighth inning when third baseman Andrew Toussaint and designated hitter Caleb Maher supplied the Angels with some much-needed power, knocking in six runs and giving the Angels the lead, 15-12.
Toussaint, who went 4-for-4 with three singles, a triple, two walks and four RBI in the game, said his batting practice is finally starting to pay off.
'The last couple games I''ve been feeling real good,' Toussaint said. 'I''ve been seeing the ball real well. I''ve been working on a lot of stuff in batting practice and taking it to the game - just seeing the ball deeper on the outside pitches and attacking it better from my lower half.'
Angels ace reliever Mitch Arnold came into the game in the ninth, getting off to a rough start against the first five batters before striking out the final two batters to earn his seventh save of the season.
'We made it interesting in the ninth,' Angels manager Tom Kotchman said. 'Performance-wise, what you saw with the two last hitters, that''s what Mitch Arnold does. I don''t know who was in his costume before that, but whatever he did with the last two hitters, that''s what he''s been doing all year. The guys just wanted to make my heart beat a little more irregularly than what it is.'
Provo starting pitcher Karl Gelinas had a rough time on the mound as he gave up two home runs in the first and second innings, giving the Brewers a 5-1 lead.
Kotchman brought in Bill Edwards from the bullpen in the third inning to put a stop to the Brewer threat. Edwards, who is normally a reliable reliever for the Angels, gave up six runs on five hits in the fifth inning. 'That was his poorest performance of the year,' Kotchman said. 'He''s been lights out. Everyone''s going to have one. The other night Hedden had one and Greene had one, they''ve been lights out all year. They''ve been excellent, so it happens.'
The Angels gained some ground in the bottom of the fifth with three runs of their own when right fielder J.R. Renz blasted a two-run shot over the left field wall and Chris Walston later hit a sacrifice fly, scoring Maher from third base.
Provo reliever Fransisco Cordova shut down the Brewer offense in the next three innings, allowing just one run on three hits, giving the Angels an opportunity to make the eighth-inning comeback.
With the bases loaded and no outs in the eighth inning, Maher sent a line drive to right-center field for a base-clearing double.
The Brewers brought in outfielder Dallas Bates to stop the Angels'' rally. Six batters and one run later, Toussaint stepped up to the plate with two outs and the bases loaded and sent an outside pitch deep to right field, clearing the bases with a three-run triple.
'I was looking at the batters he pitched to before and he was throwing them a lot of pitches on the outer half, so I just kind of cheated to the outer half,' Toussaint said. 'I went that way and I was able to get that pitch and took a good swing.'