Spinners Walk It Off: Lowell Rallies Late to Stun Defending Champion Norwich

The Lowell Spinners (2-5) returned to LeLacheur Park on Thursday night seeking their first home win of the summer, riding high after picking up their first victory of the season on Tuesday afternoon at Worcester. Standing in their way were the Norwich Sea Unicorns (3-4), the defending champions of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League (FCBL).

Caden Smith got the ball for the Spinners, making his second appearance of the summer. His first outing was a strong 4.1 scoreless innings for a pitching staff that entered the night with a league-worst 7.43 ERA. Norwich countered with Sam Hutchinson (UConn), who was looking to bounce back from a rocky debut where he surrendered seven earned runs while recording just a single out.

Norwich Strikes First

Norwich wasted no time, hanging a three-spot in the opening frame. Three straight hits by Brandon O’Neil (CCSU), Michael Fiatarone (Bryant), and Paul Calandrelli (URI) plated the game’s first run, aided by an ill-advised throw from Spinners right fielder Brett McKinnon. Later in the inning, Jackson Powers (St. Anselm) stroked a sharp two-run single to center field to push the Sea Unicorns’ lead to 3-0.

Lowell’s offense was already facing a steep uphill battle. Through five games, the Spinners carried a collective .234 team batting average and sat at the bottom of the league in both on-base percentage (.364) and runs scored (31). The bats would need to wake up quickly to climb out of the early hole.

The Pitching Duel Settles In

Through three innings, Hutchinson remained firmly in control for Norwich, surrendering just two hits and allowing only one Lowell runner into scoring position. Meanwhile, Smith settled down beautifully after his turbulent first inning, hanging zeros in the second, third, and fourth frames.

Smith’s night concluded after five innings of work. His final line read: 5.0 IP, 6 H, 3 ER, 1 BB, 3 SO

It was a highly respectable outing if not for the first-inning damage. Grant Willard came on in relief for the Spinners in the sixth but ran into trouble after issuing a leadoff walk to Fiatarone, who promptly swiped both second and third base. With two outs, Jackson Powers came through again, beating out an infield single to second base to score Fiatarone and extend the Sea Unicorns’ lead to 4-0. At that point, Powers had single-handedly driven in three of Norwich’s four runs.

The Comeback Begins

Hutchinson’s night ended after five stellar frames, finishing with a line of 5.0 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, and 2 SO. He was replaced by Matt Shampine (Yale) to start the sixth.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Spinners’ bats finally came alive. With one out, Brett McKinnon sparked the offense with a clever bunt single down the third-base line. The next batter, Jordan Henriquez, crushed a pitch over the right-field wall for a towering two-run home run—his first of the season and the team’s third overall. Shampine was pulled in favor of Jack Scholz, who managed to put out the fire and escape the inning, keeping Norwich ahead 4-2 through seven.

Ninth-Inning Drama and Walk-Off Chaos

The score remained frozen at 4-2 until the bottom of the ninth, when Norwich turned to closer Jacob Schrage (Post) to shut the door. Schrage issued a lead-off walk to McKinnon, which was immediately followed by a wall-ball double from Henriquez to trim the lead to 4-3 and give Henriquez his third RBI of the night.

Two batters later, Nicholas Limbo dropped a delicate infield bloop single into short right field, driving in Henriquez to tie the game at 4-4.

With the game unraveling, Norwich made another pitching change, bringing in Charlie Cariello (Bates). Cariello found immediate trouble, walking the first batter he faced, Cam Biller, on a dramatic 3-2 pitch clock violation. The controversial call by base umpire Dick Herron sent the Norwich dugout into an uproar, resulting in Sea Unicorns manager Zack Gitschier being tossed from the game.

With the bases loaded, the next Lowell hitter, Esteban Dessureault, calmly watched a ball go by to draw a walk-off base on balls. The Spinners won in dramatic style, 5-4, in front of an ecstatic crowd of 1,055 at LeLacheur Park.

Manager’s Corner: “A Slow Bleed” Turns Into a Gritty Win

After the game, Lowell manager Kevin Graber was a happy man in his office. He admitted the game felt like a bit of a “slow bleed” early on due to the rough first inning. However, he praised his bullpen for executing and picking up massive outs when needed to keep the team within striking distance.

With more players scheduled to arrive over the next few days, Graber noted that some tough roster decisions lie ahead. For now, he loves the direction of this squad:

“They are starting to understand how we want to play the game,” Graber said. “There are still things to work on, like relay throws from the outfield, but they are willing to learn, and that’s a good sign.”

Lowell now rides a two-game winning streak into the weekend homestand. First pitch on Saturday is set for 5:00 PM.