EXL: Technika Brno won’t play in TOP 6
Saturday games cleared up a few questions about who gets into TOP 6 this year. It is now certain that Technika Brno players won’t be a part of it.
Eagles Praha – Sokol Hluboká 11-4
In the second game of the series between Eagles and Hluboká, Prague team managed to control the game from the beginning when they took 2-0 lead. Eagles were then adding runs in each of the following innings and had 11 of them in the seventh inning. Since their starter David Wilson only allowed 3 runs in almost 7 innings, home team was well on their way to get the win. Mikuláš Hanuš then came in to throw the last 7 outs, and while he allowed 1 run, Eagles managed to close the duel and take the second win in the series. It also meant they are really close to ensure their position in TOP 6. On the other hand the loss mean a huge complication for Sokol chances, with only 4 games left to play in the regular season.
Technika Brno – Arrows Ostrava 3-9
After the first game of the series in Ostrava, the game between Technika and Arrows moved to Properity Park Kraví Hora. Home team needed to win to have a mathematical chance to reach TOP 6. However, everything came falling apart in the second inning, when Arrows scored 4 runs. Furthermore, Boris Bokaj held the home batters back as they were unable to score any runs against him. Technika scored against Alexandr Šín who came to close the game for Arrows. Young pitcher allowed 3 runs in 3 innings, but even that wasn’t enough for Technika’s win and so it is now certain they will play in Promotion League. Experienced Jakub Malík added 2 hits for Arrows and is now only missing 1 run to reaching 900 of them in Extraliga.
Třebíč Nuclears – Draci Brno 3-8
Players from Vysočina managed to outplay Draci at their home field on Friday and they wanted to carry on with their performance at home. It was going well for them for the first 5 innings, where they kept 2021 Extraliga runner-ups at 2-2. However, Draci pressed against Lukáš Pacal in the sixth inning and they loaded the bases without an out. Nuclears sent in Adam Veselý, but he was unable to stop the visitor’s offense as Draci scored 6 runs. Gillian Wernet and Viktor Večerka didn’t allow the home team to mount a comeback and brought their team the win. Draci took the second game of the series which is now at 1-1.
Tempo Praha – Hroši Brno 3-8 (10 inn.) and 4-7
Doubleheader at Tempo brought two heart breaking games for the home fans as they had to watch their team lose twice. The first game even went to the extra innings, when the score remained tied at 3-3 after nine innings. Tempo’s downfall started by a solo homerun from Michal Zelenka in the ninth inning which tied the game. Furthermore, Tempo had Marek Minařík on the mound who substituted Jake Rabinowitz in the eight inning. However, Minařík didn’t have a good tenth inning as Hroši scored 5 runs and built up a significant lead. Home team was then unable to respond in the bottom half of the inning and the win went to the visitors.
The second game looked more promising for the home team, as they were 1-0 ahead in the first inning. Furthermore, Michal Zelenka increased their lead to 3-0 with a two run homerun in the third inning. Hroši had a hard time against well pitching Ondřej Vanek. Tempo pitcher was substituted in the fifth inning and visitors didn’t have to wait long to get their first run of the game. The score remained at 3-1 till the ninth inning, where Tempo sent Michal Zelenka on the mound to get them the last 3 outs. Unfortunately for them, this didn’t pan out to be a good decision as Hroši loaded the bases without an out against him. Tempo reacted quickly and sent in Anthony Fell instead. He was welcomed by a Dan Ondroušek‘s double to the left field, giving the visitors the lead. In the end, Hroši added 6 runs in the inning after Petr Čech blasted a two run homerun. Shocked, home team “only” managed a solo homerun from Filip Smola, which wasn’t enough to at least get them to the extra innings. Hroši thus added an important series win and TOP 6 spot seems all but certain right now. If they were to win on Sunday, they will make it definitive.
