Morgan makes up for defensive miscue with a pair of key plays to help Chukars grab a win

IDAHO FALLS — In a mere matter of minutes, right fielder Grady Morgan went from goat to hero, as the Chukars held on late to claim victory over the Ogden Raptors Saturday night at Melaleuca Field.

With one out and two Raptors on in the eighth, Morgan watched a fly ball off the bat of Ogden’s Kyler Stancato drop roughly 20 feet from his starting spot in right field. Tyler Wyatt, who had sprinted some 50 yards from center field to make a failed lunging attempt at snagging what ended up being an RBI single to cut Idaho Falls’ advantage to one, was visibly upset with Morgan after the play.

Tibbett worked out of the jam, though, coaxing an inning-ending double play to strand the tying and go-ahead runs on base.

Morgan made up for his gaffe in the bottom of the eighth, slicing a two-run triple into the gap in left-center to push the Chukars’ lead to four. Then he made an impact on defense in the ninth, cutting down the potential tying run at home on a perfect throw from right for the second out of the inning.

After the game, Morgan called the dropped fly ball a “miscommunication” and “a small mental error.”

Manager Troy Percival said the play, which was ruled a hit rather than an error because no fielder touched the ball, was one he would expect Morgan to handle differently when he has “his feet under him.”

“It was just, kind of, bad communication, not really a bad play,” the skipper said.

Morgan spent the first half of the PBL season playing on the Savannah Bananas circuit, before rejoining the Chukars this week.

The slugging outfielder, Percival added, more than made up for the miscue with his play over the next inning. And all is forgiven, as the Chukars (30-22 overall, 3-2 second half) sealed a 12-11 win over the troublesome Raptors (28-24, 2-3).

Both offenses were effective early and often.

Idaho Falls lefty Garrett Van Deventer (ND, 4-3) worked around an Ogden rally in the first, holding the Raptors to one run by stranding a pair. But he could not pull of the same disappearing act in the second, as Ogden tallied three more runs.

Van Deventer never truly settled in, issuing seven free passes — six walks (two intentional) and one hit batsman. But he fought through 5 innings to leave the game with his club up, 6-5.

“He battled through a day when he wasn’t very good,” Percival said. “I thought, he battled and made big pitches when he needed to.”

Newly acquired lefty Jake Dixon (W, 1-0) came on to pitch the sixth, surrendering a pair of runs but striking out three.

Ricky Tibbett (S, 1) went the rest of the way, throwing 45 pitches to record nine outs. And though two of his four runs allowed go into the books as being unearned, another is officially recorded as being earned but should have been prevented.

While their pitchers were battling with a potent Ogden offense, the Chukars bats never let up.

Led by two-hit performances from Morgan, Trevor Rogers and Eddie Pelc, the Chukars scored in five of eight offensive innings, and never let the Raptors hold a lead.

Morgan added a game-high four RBIs, to earn the Player of the Game honors, while Tyler Wyatt smacked a three-run homer (11) in the sixth to turn a 6-6 tie into a 9-6 lead for the home team.

The Chukar offense has been successful all season, leading the league in hits (727), RBIs (509), home runs (102), average (.367), on-base percentage (.455) and slugging percentage (.603). The rotation, though struggling in late June and early July, was solid early on and has shown signs of returning to form of late.

It has been the bullpen that has been a sore spot for the club, according to Percival. That is why Saturday’s win was encouraging. Tibbett and Dixon teamed up to toss the last four innings, maintaining a lead through some defensives lapses.

“That was huge for us, especially the way they kept coming back, and we’re coming back,” Percival said. “Typically, we’d lose those games because our bullpen fails. Our bullpen didn’t fail tonight. … Coming away with a win from playing like that, it’s a good day.”

A former Big Leaguer, and the anchor of an early-2000s Los Angeles Angels bullpen which was among the best in the game, it is particularly frustrating for Percival to see the struggles his bullpen has faced. He called those struggles “gut-wrenching.”

“It just kills me that that’s the weak point of our team,” he said.

A reliever’s job, he explained, is to limit damage when entering a game with traffic already on the base paths, and putting zeroes on the board to either hold a lead or let the offense take one.

While they have done neither of late, the relief corps, Percival believes, is trending upward.

Health has been an issues, but arms are beginning to return — including Tibbett, who, in many ways, was the hero of Saturday’s win — while others, including Dixon, are being added to bolster the unit.

The Chukars can secure a series win against the Raptors with a win on Sunday. First pitch is scheduled for 2 p.m.

PBL second-half standings
1. Yuba-Sutter High Wheelers (5-0)
2. Rocky Mountain Vibes (4-1)
T3. Colorado Springs Sky Sox (3-2)
T3. Idaho Falls Chukars (3-2)
T3. Missoula PaddleHeads (3-2)
T3. Oakland Ballers (3-2)
T7. Boise Hawks (2-3)
T7. Glacier Range Riders (2-3)
T7. Ogden Raptors (2-3)
T7. Great Falls Voyagers (2-3)
11. Billings Mustangs (1-4)
12. Grand Junction Jackalopes (0-5)