BoS: NLCS Game 6

The Urbana Locomotives have trimmed the series lead to 3-2, and will attempt to tie the series in Game 6 to force a Game 7 with the Portland Microbrewers.

Game 6 - Hisashi Iwakuma - POR (9-7, 4.18 ERA) vs Cole Hamels - URB (19-10, 2.76 ERA).

Urbana's Torrealba, one of the unlikeliest heroes.

Not much offense in this one. The Locomotives strike first against Portland, with a sac fly by Tyler Colvin scoring in Alex Rios, during the bottom of the 4th. Rios would collect 3 of Urbana's 8 hits for the night.

Portland's David Ortiz tied the game with an RBI single, as Mike Trout scores. Trout has two hits, and is having a good series, batting .304 -- but has been over-shadowed by the amazing series his teammate Freddie Freeman. Trout's great post-season included 8 RBI in the LDS against Seattle.

Coco Crisp stole second & third in the 7th inning, but got too aggressive stealing home, only to be called out with the tough tag by Yorvit Torrealba -- preventing the go-ahead run.

Everything came down to the bottom of the ninth. A dropped third strike by Portland's catcher A.J. Ellis allows runners on 1st & 3rd, after a lead-off double by Tyler Colvin. Jimmy Rollins would ground the runner to Garrett Jones over to second, Colvin has to hold third, one out. The Brewers' reliever Luis Avilan intentionally walks Justin Maxwell, trying to set up a double-play opportunity. The next batter would be Yorvit Torrealba, who earlier prevented Portland's Coco Crisp from stealing home. Torrealba would hit it deep enough, to have Colvin tag up -- a walk-off sac fly for the Locomotives! We are going to 7 games.

In the league's inaugural season, we have two League Championship Series first, a sweep (South Shore sweeping Boston) and a seven-game series now between Urbana and Portland.

Both starting pitchers Hisashi Iwakuma (POR) and Cole Hamels (URB) pitched good games. Iwakuma allowed 1 ER (2 runs) & 8 hits through 8 innings of work, plus 6 K's. Even though Hamels allowed only 4 hits & a run, he had some control issues with 5 walks.

URBANA 2, PORTLAND 1