Toronto Wins Fourth Straight in Wild 14-11 Shootout

By Noam Streiffer

The Toronto Maple Leafs pulled through in a back-and-forth contest with the Guelph Royals on Friday night, winning 14-11 in a classic Christie Pits' slugfest.

It was the first of a three-games-in-three-days stretch for the Leafs and marked their fourth win in a row. The victory sets the tone for the weekend and puts them two games above .500. Coming off a big win, the Leafs have an excellent opportunity to keep climbing the standings.

The starting pitchers didn’t last long in this one. Wilgenis Alvarado got the ball for the Leafs and struggled, pitching just one inning and allowing six runs, including a grand slam.

The Royals countered with Brandon Deans, who walked the first three batters he faced to load the bases. Marcus Knecht stepped up with a golden opportunity and launched one over the left-field fence for a grand slam. Deans exchanged words with Knecht as he rounded third, resulting in an early ejection.

Guelph wouldn’t go away easily. In the top of the second, the Royals capitalized on defensive mistakes by the Leafs, scoring two runs on a wild pitch and an error. David Alvarez followed with a grand slam of his own to put Guelph ahead by two.

The Leafs responded quickly in the bottom half of the inning. Spencer MacInnis and Dan Marra each homered to tie the game at six.

It was Marra’s second homer in as many games. The normally contact-oriented second baseman had this to say about his approach: “Home runs are accidents… if you're putting good swings on balls, eventually one’s going to leave the yard.”

Toronto broke things open in the bottom of the fourth with the third grand slam of the game—this time off the bat of Rando Moreno—to make it 10-6.

Guelph kept battling. In the very next inning, Matthew Ward hit a three-run homer to pull the Royals within one.

In the top of the seventh, Taylor Lepard got himself into trouble for the Leafs, walking in the tying run with the bases loaded. Former MLB pitcher Dustin Richardson came on in relief and shut the door, striking out three in a row with his electric fastball.

Richardson commented after the game: “The pressure’s on the hitters in that situation… I’m calm out there,” showcasing his experience and leadership for this Leafs ballclub.

The Leafs added three insurance runs in the bottom of the seventh. Two came on a Jhon Javier home run, followed by a balk that allowed Spenser Ross to score.

Alex Uher came on to close things out in the top of the ninth. He allowed a run on a fielder’s choice but was able to pitch his way out of the jam, securing the 14-11 win for the Leafs.

Up Next: The Leafs take on the Chatham-Kent Barnstormers on Saturday, June 7th. First pitch is at 7:05 PM.