Monarchs Cold Offensively, Swept in Series

Kansas City, KS — It was a defensive battle as the Monarchs had the lead through seven innings, but two runs from Winnipeg in the eighth proved to be costly as Kansas City fell 2-1 in the final game of the series.

Monarchs starter, Geison Urbaez earned his fourth start on the mound and went six innings with six strikeouts. He gave up no runs and had a terrific command on the bump.

With four scoreless frames, KC cracked the scoreboard in the fifth inning when Sahid Valenzuela earned the first knock of the night on a two-out double. The very next batter, Trevor Boone, lined a ball into right field and Valenzuela raced home to score to open up the game. Boone talks about his approach, “That at-bat doesn’t count unless (Geison) Urbaez is doing what he’s doing on the mound and Sahid (Valenzuela) doesn’t hit a double. Just trying to do my duty, get a good pitch, and put a good swing on it.”

Winnipeg found a response in the eighth inning when Adam Hall led off with a walk and then Noah Marcelo brought him home on a blooper to right center field. They took the lead for the first time in the game after Keshawn Lynch walked and then Raphael Pelletier smacked a line drive on the first base line to score Marcelo. It was a devastating blow to Kansas City and they were searching for an answer.

In the final frame, Hudson Head led off with a walk, but Luken Baker grounded into a double play which put the Monarchs in a tough position. They couldn’t put together a two-out rally and dropped their fourth straight contest.

It was the first time the Monarchs have been swept the entire year and now they have a chance to regroup for this weekend. With an off day tomorrow and a weekend series against the last place team in the league (Chicago Dogs), this team will surely respond.