A’s Record 1,500th Franchise Victory
Posted: June 15, 2016
It takes a long time in any sport to reach 1,500 franchise victories. For the Sheboygan A’s, it took 54 seasons. But on Tuesday night, the club did just that, defeating the Manitowoc Bandits twice to reach the milestone.
With wins number 1,499 and 1,500, the A’s improved their 2016 record to 10-1 overall, and currently sit in second place at 4-1 in the Wisconsin State League, and are at the head of the pack with a 5-0 record in the Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League.
In a continuation from last Friday’s game in Manitowoc, where the A’s had a 10-0 lead with one out in the top of the third inning, the team posted two more runs to the eight already accumulated for a 10-run third inning en route to a 16-2 mercy rule victory.
Wyatt Olson led the A’s offense, going 3-4 with two doubles. Nine of the 10 A’s who saw an at-bat during the game recorded a hit, with seven A’s recording multiple hits. Adam Ryan picked up the win for the A’s, as he started the "continuation" portion of the game for Taylor Schwarz. Cole Heili pitched the final inning. Schwarz, Ryan and Heili combined for six strikeouts.
Game two was more of the same for the A’s, who used two runs in the first inning and seven in the fourth inning to take control of the game. The A’s would end the game with another mercy rule victory, scoring one run in the fifth to make the score 10-0.
Eric Schmitz was stellar on the mound, striking out nine and walking one in five innings of work. Schmitz improved his record to 2-0 this season, while sporting a 0.75 ERA.
Olson and catcher Taylor Grimm each had two RBI’s. Nine different A’s crossed the plate, led by Dylan Detert who scored twice in the game.
With win number 1,500 in the books, the A’s will look to continue their hot start to the season tonight when they had back to De Pere for a Wisconsin State League game against the Dodgers. The A’s and Dodgers met on Monday in De Pere, with the A’s coming home with a 6-1 victory. Taylor Schwarz is scheduled to start for Sheboygan. He enters the game with a 1-0 record, having started three games. He has a 1.20 ERA with 10 strikeouts in 15 innings.
Following tonight’s game, the A’s will be on the road Thursday to face the West Allis Nationals in another State League game, then return home Friday night to face the Appleton Legends in a Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League game. It is Fish FRYday night on Friday, with gift certificates to area fish fries being awarded to fans throughout the game who have purchased a game day program.
T-Shirts commemorating the clubs 1,500th win are expected to be available for Friday’s game.
The Sheboygan A's are members of the Wisconsin State League and Northeastern Wisconsin Baseball League. The A's have helped develop more than 43 players that have reached professional baseball, including 2002 World Series Champion Jarrod Washburn (Anaheim Angels). All Sheboygan A's home games are played at Wildwood Baseball Park in Sheboygan. Connect with the A's on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
