Santa arrives at the Dayton mall
2009 Ohio State football
Trotwood-Madison vs. Winton Woods
MIDWEST LEAGUE PLAYOFFS
Dragons' Horst gets standing ovation, butterflies, win
Starter pitches Dragons to 3-1 victory over Lansing; Soto drives in two runs.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Dayton Dragons pitcher Jeremy Horst allowed only three hits over 62/3 scoreless innings, walking two and striking out five Wednesday, Sept. 3. He left the game with a runner at first and two outs; Mace Thurman came out of the bullpen to get the final out of the inning. DAYTON — Everybody in the crowd at Fifth Third Field on Wednesday, Sept. 3, understood starter Jeremy Horst deserved an ovation, and they gave it to him, standing.
It was Horst who won the Dragons' opening playoff game, with Neftali Soto's two-run double the determining blow in a 3-1 Dragons victory over Lansing as the Midwest League playoffs opened. Cincinnati Reds General Manager Walk Jocketty and some of his staff watched.
The best-of-three series continues tonight in Lansing's Oldsmobile Park.
During a season which the Dragons have been very up and very down, the turning point for a final upward cycle came the first week of July, when Horst walked out of the bullpen and Soto flew in from rookie ball.
The Dragons were a moribund team at that point, having gone 14-36 in the 50 games just prior to Soto's addition in the lineup as a third baseman/designated hitter. On July 6, his first game, the Dragons lost, then won 31-of-53 games to the end of the regular season.
Horst began starting just a few days before, and, like Soto, the Dragons lost in his debut start, but went 8-2 in Horst's starts while he was 5-0 with a 1.64 ERA.
"There were other guys here doing well," said Soto, a 19-year-old who hit .326 for the Dragons. "I was just trying to help the team."
As well as Horst was pitching, Lansing's Marc Rzepczynski was matching him, until the sixth. With one out, Dayton's Jake Kahaulelio reached on a throwing error and Zack Cozart singled to left. Soto then drove a ball that center fielder Darin Mastroianni made a dive to catch, but couldn't.
"I thought that center fielder was going to track that thing down," said Dragons manager Donnie Scott. "He has been hitting well, and how about that sacrifice fly by Denis Phipps?"
It was Horst, though, who received the standing "O" when he reached 100 pitches in the seventh and was lifted with two out and a man on.
"I got butterflies," Horst said. "That was awesome. I never had a standing ovation before."
Playoff schedule
Series 1 (best of three)
Game 1: Dragon 3, Lansing 1
Game 2: 7 p.m. today
at Lansing, WING-AM (1410)
Game 3 (if necessary):
7 p.m. Friday at Lansing
