Salmon-slammin': Miners blast Chinooks

CHUGIAK — A.J. Simcox used a single swing to blow the game open, but it was Spencer Mahoney’s key two-out walk that kept Mat-Su’s big inning alive.

Simcox belted a grand slam to spark a Mat-Su Miners five-run second inning and lead the Miners to an 8-1 win over the Chugiak Chinooks at Loretta French Field in Chugiak Wednesday night.

The University of Tennessee product finished with a game-high five RBI en route to leading the Miners to their league-high 19th win of the year. Simcox finished the game 2-for-4 as the Miners (19-11) took a half-game lead at the top of the Alaska Baseball League standings, as of late Wednesday. But it was Mahoney who set Simcox up with the chance to clear the bases.

With two on and two outs, Mahoney fouled a number of pitches off Chugiak starter James Scott before finally taking his free base.

“Spencer’s been giving us really good at-bats all year,” Mat-Su head coach Ben Taylor said. “That’s one of the reasons we moved him into the leadoff spot. He’s got a good eye, and is very disciplined. He really helped us early in the game there.”

Brenden Farney gave the Miners a 1-0 lead early in the second inning. Farney led off the inning with a single and scored on a Michael Thomas single. Walks by John Williams and Mahoney sandwiched the Thomas single as Mat-Su loaded the bases.

With the bases loaded, Simcox smacked a pitch over the left field fence. Simcox said he caught hold of a curve left hanging over the plate, but didn’t necessarily expect to drive the ball that deep.

“Honestly, I don’t ever think a ball’s gone when I hit it, just because I’m not a power hitter,” said Simcox, who had not hit a grand slam since his sophomore year of high school. “I’m a gap-to-gap guy. I go for singles and doubles.”

But Simcox, who leads the ABL with 40 hits this season, had no trouble clearing the Loretta French fence Wednesday.

“I thought that one might have a chance,” he said. “I stayed with it. Coach has been working with me a lot on staying through the ball.”

The Miners finished with a dozen hits in the win, Mat-Su’s eighth in 10 games and sixth victory in a row.

“Hitting’s contagious,” Simcox said. “We’ve been swinging the ball really well lately.”

Simcox, who also drove in a run with a sacrifice fly Wednesday, was one of four Miners to finish with a pair of hits in the victory. Mahoney had two hits and scored two runs. Thomas collected two hits, a run and an RBI. Christin Stewart doubled and singled.

Trevor Bettencourt pitched six innings to earn the win. Bettencourt improved to 3-1 this summer after scattering seven hits, fanning five and walking one.

Mat-Su, now on a week break from league play, held a half-game lead over the Fairbanks-based Alaska Goldpanners (17-10) as of Wednesday night. Alaska faced the fourth-place Peninsula Oilers (15-13) late Thursday.

The Miners begin play in the annual ABL/Major League Baseball Scouts Showcase today against the Chinooks at 1 p.m. at Mulcahy Stadium in Anchorage. Mat-Su meets the Anchorage Glacier Pilots Saturday at 1 p.m. during the second day of the Showcase. The ABL Home Run Derby and All-Star Game are slated for Sunday at 1 and 4 p.m.

The Miners continue league play July 24 in Anchorage against the Pilots. The league title could come down to the final three days of the season when the Miners travel north to face the Panners in a four-game series in Fairbanks. The top two teams in the ABL start the series July 25, continue with a doubleheader on July 26 at play in the regular season finale on July 27.