Ogden Raptors win playoff classic, beat Vibes 3-1 to advance to Pioneer League title series
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- Ogden’s Brock Gilliam pitches against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden outfielder Josh Broughton makes a leaping catch in a playoff game against Rocky Mountain on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Cam Phelts makes a leaping catch against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Juan Teixeira rounds first in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Logan Williams (33) slaps hands with manager Kash Beauchamp (37) in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Brock Gilliam pitches against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Landen Barns hits the ball against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Reese Alexiades runs to first in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Brock Gilliam pitches against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden second baseman Dakota Conners holds up a line drive he caught in a playoff game against Rocky Mountain on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Juan Teixeira receives a throw at first base in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Brock Gilliam pitches against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Oggie, the Ogden Raptors mascot, slaps hands with a child on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Ogden’s Brock Gilliam pitches against Rocky Mountain in a playoff game Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
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- Odgen’s Juan Teixeira claps after a base hit in a playoff game against Rocky Mountain on Thursday, Sept. 14, 2023, at Lindquist Field in Ogden.
OGDEN — The Pioneer League might have a reputation for a certain type of high-scoring, carousel-around-the-bases baseball, but Thursday’s playoff series decider game at Lindquist Field was high-drama, well-played ball that fed an energized crowd at Lindquist Field.
In a game where every played mattered, the Ogden Raptors made just a couple more timely ones and are advancing to the league championship series, defeating the Rocky Mountain Vibes 3-1 to win the South Division series 2-1.
The Raptors will host Game 1 of the championship series at 6:30 p.m. Saturday against either Billings or Missoula, whose Game 3 was headed to extra innings 6-6 at press time after Missoula tied it in the bottom of the ninth. The winner of the North series will have home-field advantage and host Games 2 and 3 in that series.
Brock Gilliam was sensational on the hill for Ogden, getting plenty of help from his defense, in six innings of one-hit ball. His one through six was a first-inning comebacker that hit off his legs and trickled too far away to make a play. He struck out six and walked one, allowing four total baserunners in his outing.
Josh Broughton made a leaping grab after running down a ball in the left-center gap, Cam Phelts jumped against the right-field wall for a flyout, and Dakota Conners stabbed a grounder with the infield in to keep a runner stranded at third in the sixth inning, among several plays to back Gilliam.
Peyton Long was nearly as good for Rocky Mountain. He kept a scoreless duel going through five innings before the Raptors broke through in the bottom of the sixth.
It was a classic frame of playoff strategy. Feeding off the energy of stranding a runner on third in a scoreless game in the top half of the sixth, Juan Teixeira led off the bottom half with a single through the left side and Jonathan Soto lined a tough-to-handle infield single to second base.
Landen Barns put down a sacrifice bunt to advance the runners — partially because first baseman Jake McMurray momentarily slipped as he arrived at the ball.
Rocky Mountain intentionally walked catcher Logan Williams to load the bases and waited until lefty pinch-hitter Nick Ultsch was announced to pull Long and bring in left-handed Tomas Reyes.
Reyes danced on and around the plate like a classical painter, his strikes well-thrown and his balls tantalizingly close to the zone, while Ultsch fouled off a tough pitch and patiently watched the near-strikes. On a full count, Reyes put one in Ultsch’s side, scoring Teixiera to break the deadlock.
Conners hit a sacrifice fly to right field to score pinch runner Jon Rice, and the Raptors had a 2-0 lead, which turned out to be plenty.
But it wasn’t without drama. Gilliam came back out for the seventh inning and his one-hit bid ended — and a string of clutch pitching began. Dusty Stroup singled off the wall in left and Jacob Barfield bounced a single over the glove of Barns at third.
In came lefty Quinn Waterhouse, who struck out two but walked a batter to load the bases. Walks were rare Thursday night; pitchers issued only four walks and the game completed five innings before seeing the first.
Vibes outfielder Matt Hogan grounded up the middle, where Conners gamely met the ball with his glove — one of several plus plays from Ogden’s second baseman on the night. But Hogan legged out the throw, scoring Stroup for a 2-1 ballgame.
Ogden manager Kash Beauchamp went to the bullpen again, calling on righty Foster Pace. With the go-ahead run in scoring position, Pace got Ethan Lopez to pop out foul to first base, keeping the bases full of Vibes and keeping the lead for the Raptors.
Cam Phelts led off the bottom of the seventh with a walk against Carlos Lomeli to start small-ball engineering. Phelts stole second, tagged to third on a Reese Alexiades flyout to right, and scored when Teixeira poked a single through the 5-6 hole on the left side with two outs.
Pace recorded a strikeout to start the top of the eighth but McMurray got on board for the Vibes on a Rafael Narea error at shortstop. Big RBI man Stroup beat what could’ve been a double play grounder, then Pace struck out a heated Barfield to end the inning. The crowd exploded, Barfield had choice words for the umpire and for fans, and more Vibes baserunners went unconverted.
For the second straight night, Dan Kubiuk slammed the door in the ninth inning. The league’s leading save man struck out two — Ogden pitchers allowed five hits and two walks while striking out 12 — before getting Austin Elder to ground out to Narea to end the game and begin the celebration.
Teixeira was Ogden’s lone multi-hit batter, going 4 for 4 with his run scored and his RBI each equally important. Of Rocky Mountain’s five hits, Stroup had two.