Mark Teahen reached base six times and drove in a key run as Tommasin Padova took two from last place Padule in yesterday’s Italian Baseball League doubleheader in Sesto Fiorentino (near Florence, Tuscany). Teahen drew four walks and stroked a sacrifice fly in the opener, and had a double and a single in the nightcap.
In a back-and-forth game that saw a run scored in every inning but the ninth, Padova ultimately triumphed when Andrea Sanson redeemed himself for a four-strikeout game with a sacrifice fly to score Carlos Perdomo. Perdomo had a huge game, missing the cycle by a triple and drawing a pair of walks.
The win went to Diego Fabiani, who was tremendous in relief, whiffing four in 3 2/3 without allowing a baserunner. Enrico Crepaldi was also solid, striking out four in three frames, surrendering a run after Simone Bazzarini was yanked after walking the first five batters of the game.
Andrea Berini joined Perdomo with three hits, all singles, while Teahen drew four free passes, scoring twice. The former Royals star was officially 0-for-1.
In the second game of the day, Padua took a 2-0 lead in the second and held the lead for the entire game, surviving a rollercoaster ninth. In the top of the frame, the visitors plated four runs to take a 9-1 advantage, but Padule made things exciting with three runs in the bottom of the frame.
Yunior Novoa earned the well-deserved victory after hurling seven innings of six-hit, three-walk ball, sending six down on strikes and allowing only an unearned run. Carlos Rodriguez was the hard-luck loser for a Padule squad that has been in desperate need of pitching. He went six, striking out seven, but allowing four runs on seven hits and a free pass despite only one score being earned.
Luca Martone stroked three hits and drove in two to lead Padua, but perhaps more importantly, Teahen snapped an 0-for-8 slump with two hits in five trips to the dish. The big league veteran raised his season line to .200/.455/.333 and is tied for the IBL lead in walks with 13. Teahen also played third base for the third straight contest after having spent all but a few innings of his Italian career at first.
Padua, which has won three-of-four and sits 4-6 for the year, will face a tall task next weekend as it travels to Bologna to take on the city’s UnipolSai club. Bologna is top of the IBL table at 8-1 and features former top Pirates’ prospect Rudy Owens. The southpaw leads the IBL with a 5-0 record and 0.31 ERA and is third in BB/9 (1.6). The clubs will duel at 19:30 GMT next Friday and Saturday and we will have a wrap when the box scores become available.
For more on Teahen’s journey to become the ‘Next Italian Baseball Superstar’, check out our other articles and an interview with Teahen here.
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