Amateur Baseball: Aces win pitchers' duel

Jimmy Bohmbach provided all the offense for Red Wing Tuesday with an RBI single in the first inning as the Aces defeated Eau Claire 1-0 at the Red Wing Athletic Field.

Hitting was difficult to come by as both teams received stellar pitching performances.

Red Wing manager Andy Gibart threw six innings, allowing just three hits while striking out four to get the victory. New addition Brady Schroeder threw two scoreless innings of relief for the Aces and Aaron Johnson struck out the side in the ninth inning to get the save.

Gibart kept the Cavaliers from getting comfortable with pinpoint control and changeups down in the strike zone.

“Mixing (speeds) is the key to this game for me,” Gibart said. “As long as you hit spots you’ll be alright.”

Eau Claire’s Ben Kincaid took the tough loss and was nearly unhittable after the opening frame. He allowed just four hits and struck out 10 in six innings.

“We got one run and that was enough tonight,” Gibart said. “I hope the hits will come. We’ll get there.”

Gibart shut down Eau Claire quickly in the top of the first inning and Adam Thygesen got Red Wing going with a leadoff single for the Aces in the bottom of the inning. Kincaid got the next two hitters out but after Thygesen stole second base, Bohmbach roped a changeup into left field to score the game’s only run.

Thygesen was one of the few bright spots on offense for Red Wing, going 3-for-4 with a double and Bohmbach finished 2-for-4. Dave Jenson had the Aces’ only other hit in the eighth inning.

Eau Claire’s only real threat came against Schroeder in the seventh inning with runners on first and second with one out but two fly outs to center field ended the inning. Gibart said he hoped to keep Schroeder out of a pressure situation but the young pitcher had little trouble.

“He knows how to pitch, you can tell,” Gibart said. “He jumped right in there. Getting a right-handed pitcher like him is a huge addition for us.”

The Cavaliers got started again in the ninth inning with a leadoff single but Johnson struck out the next three hitters swinging to end the game.

Early this season, Red Wing’s inability to field the ball allowed teams to come back late in games but it also hid the Aces’ biggest flaw: consistent hitting.

“Our defensive lapses overshadowed our core issue which is hitting,” Gibart said. “We’ve shored up our defense … I think it’s more a mental game right now (at the plate).”

Red Wing will attempt to get bats going again Friday at home against the Rochester Royals.

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