Grills guides Titans to victory over Jackals
Left-hander Evan Grills (Whitby, Ont.) allowed just one run in six innings in his start for the Ottawa Titans on Tuesday to lead them to a 4-1 win over the New Jersey Jackals. Photo: Ottawa Titans
July 5, 2022
Official Ottawa Titans News Release
Ottawa, Ont. - The Ottawa Titans (29-16) used solid pitching from Evan Grills and Grant Larson to take down the New Jersey Jackals by a 4-1 final on Tuesday night.
Following a scoreless first, the Jackals got on the board with a Josh Rehwaldt solo shot. Rehwaldt sent a Grills (Whitby, Ont.) offering over the wall the other way for his league-tying 15th homer of the season.
The Titans loaded the bases with nobody out in the third inning against right-hander Nicholas DeSalvo as Taylor Wright (Vancouver, B.C.) stepped to the dish. Wright tied the ballgame with a sacrifice fly to centre, plating Jacob Talamante to make it a 1-1 affair.
Jake Sanford (Cole Harbour, N.S.) put the home side in front, reaching on a fielder's choice as Jackie Urbaez scored the go-ahead run.
The run support would be all that Grills would need on Tuesday, as the lefty tossed six innings of one-run ball. In the Titans' victory, Grills picked up his first win since June 7 at Trois-Rivières, as he allowed seven hits, walked one and punched out seven in his seventh start of the season.
Back-to-back doubles in the fourth added to the Titans' lead as Jason Dicochea drove in his third run in as many games, making it 3-1.
In the last of the sixth, the Titans put together a two-out rally to scratch across a fourth run. Rodrigo Orozco extended his on-base streak to 11 games with a base-hit up the middle, then stole second as Talamante stepped up. Talamante took a DeSalvo offering up the gut, scoring Orozco to put the game out of reach.
Grant Larson impressed on the hill in the series opener, as he faced the minimum over three innings of work. Larson drops his ERA to 1.86 over 29 innings this season, bouncing back from Saturday's tough loss at New York.
The Titans continue their three-game series against the Jackals on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m. Following a three-game series against New Jersey, the Titans welcome the Empire State Greys for a four-game set, which includes a doubleheader on Friday beginning at 5:30 p.m.