Mill Rats Erase Early 3-0 Deficit, Beat Paints 6-4 In Chillicothe

Mill Rats Erase Early 3-0 Deficit, Beat Paints 6-4 In Chillicothe
Photos Box Score
July 18, 2022

(Photo by Cory Hall, Chillicothe Paints)

Courtesy of the Johnstown Mill Rats

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio – The Johnstown Mill Rats opened their six-game road trip with a 6-4 victory over Ohio River Valley Division leader Chillicothe Paints in Prospect League action on Monday night.

The Paints grabbed a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the first courtesy of a home run by Anthony Steele, but were then held scoreless until the ninth inning.

In between, the Mill Rats scored six times to take the advantage they would never lose. Matt Santarelli drove in Sam Mast with an RBI single in both the second and fourth frames to cut the Paints' lead to 3-2. Pete Capobianco then put Johnstown ahead for good with a three-run triple in the fifth.

Santarelli added an insurance tally for the Mill Rats in the eighth with his third run-scoring hit of the game that put Johnstown in front 6-3. Chillicothe's Ben Gbur hit an RBI single in the bottom of the ninth to set the final.

"We battled through some adversity and got the win," Johnstown manager Tyler Sullivan said. "I'm proud of the way the guys fought back after getting down early. It was a good way to start this tough stretch we have ahead."

Max Beaulieu earned the win on the mound for the Mill Rats after throwing six innings of relief. He allowed one run on seven hits while walking three and striking out five. Beaulieu stranded the tying run at first base in the ninth by getting Cameron Bowen to pop out to end the game.

"Max tossed his best outing of the year," Sullivan said. "He threw a fantastic game of relief to keep us in front. I can't say enough good things about how he helped us get this win."

Santarelli topped four Mill Rats with multiple hits by going 3-for-4 with three RBIs. Mast, Joe Alcorn and Mack Higuchi each recorded two hits, with Mast scoring twice.

Johnstown (19-23, 7-4) visits the Terre Haute Rex to begin a two-game series at 6:35 p.m. Tuesday night.

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Courtesy of the Chillicothe Paints:

CHILLICOTHE, Ohio - The Chillicothe Paints, presented by Adena Health System, were unable to keep up with Johnstown's offense, losing to the Mill Rats 6-4 Monday night at VA Memorial Stadium.

Isaac Danford started on the mound for Chillicothe (5-6, 26-16) and struck out all three batters he faced in the top of the first. The Paints struck in the bottom of the first when two walks were followed by a three-run home run by Anthony Steele, giving Chillicothe an early 3-0 lead.

Johnstown (7-4, 19-23) would get their first hit and run of the game in the bottom of the second, where back-to-back hits by Sam Mast and Matt Santarelli produced a run, cutting the Chillicothe lead to 3-1.

Nick Lallathin entered to pitch for Chillicothe in the top of the fourth after Danford collected eight strikeouts, allowing only one earned run on two hits over three innings. Mast and Santarelli teamed up again to produce a run just like in the second, bringing the Mill Rats to within one at 3-2.

With the bases loaded and two outs in the top of the fifth, Johnstown took a 5-3 lead on a bases-clearing triple by Pete Capobianco, a sinking liner to left that Chillicothe outfielder Nate Dorinsky just missed with a diving effort.

After a few innings of both teams stranding runners, Johnstown would get another run in the top of the eighth on a single up the middle from Santarelli, his third RBI of the game, making the score 6-3.

After five innings of work by Lallathin, Logan Fisher would replace him out of the bullpen, pitching a scoreless top of the ninth. Owen Wilson led off the bottom of the ninth with a single and was brought around to score with two outs on a Ben Gbur single to left field, but it proved t be too little too late for Chillicothe, as they fell 6-4.

The Paints will be back in action tomorrow night in Springfield as they take on the Champion City Kings. First pitch is scheduled at 6:35.