Harold Riggins can flat out crush the baseball.
It is not too often you see a ball hit over the rooftop suites beyond the left field fence at the Duck Pond, but that is exactly what Riggins did Thursday in the third inning.
The three-run blast by Riggins gave the Mallards a 5-1 lead and proved to be the eventual game-winner as Madison defeated Waterloo 11-4 to complete the two-game sweep and extend its winning streak to five games.
“He hung a curve ball and right when I looked at it, right when it when up, I just dropped my bat,” Riggins said. “It felt great to give my team a lead like that. It definitely gives the pitchers a chance to relax a bit more.”
Mallards starter Cody Winiarski received more than enough support from his team in the game as he pitched seven strong innings, allowing four runs (two earned) and scattering five hits while striking out six.
The only real threat posed by the Bucks came in the fifth inning when they batted around as Winiarski walked three batters and let in three runs on a pair of hits. He managed to retire the Waterloo hitters in order in the next two innings, however, to finish out his first home start of the season.
“I had a lot of success with my two-seam fastball tonight, I think I broke five or six bats,” Winiarski said. “Anytime your offense can put up double digits, it makes it way easier. It takes off a lot of the pressure that you would otherwise feel in a one- or two-run ballgame.”
Following Riggins’ home run, the Mallards put up another three spot in the third, sparked by a leadoff home run by right fielder Greg Bieker, who crushed the first pitch he saw.
The 8-1 mark at that point in the game forced Bucks starter Scott Williams out of the game. Williams finished with eight runs allowed (six earned) on eight hits in 3.2 innings pitched.
Finally, in the sixth inning, Madison would tack on three more runs, forcing another Bucks pitching change as Jared Wagoner headed to the bench after allowing three runs and three hits in two innings of relief.
In addition to Riggins and Bieker, second baseman Adam McClain had a strong day for the Mallards, finishing 3-for-5 with two RBIs and three runs scored. Through the first four games of their current home stand, the Mallards have averaged nearly eight runs per game on nine hits.
“I don’t know what it is about this place,” manager C.J. Thieleke said. “I think it’s just that our fans do a good job of making that environment special. There’s something different to it than your normal night in this league.”
Much of the damage for Madison on the home stand has come via the long ball. Riggins and Long have each hit two home runs while Joe De Pinto and Bieker have added one apiece. The six home runs have accounted for 12 of the 31 runs scored during the last four games.
“We have guys up and down the lineup that can hit home runs,” Riggins said. “A lot of guys are just trying to think gap to gap and then the home runs just come from that. I don’t think we’re relying to much on it though.”
Thieleke added that while the home runs may be a product of good hitting, his team does need to make sure it doesn’t start looking for the long ball too much.
Winiarski was not the only Mallards pitcher to perform well Thursday as Matt Morgan and Kevin Cahill combined to strike out three batters in two scoreless and hitless innings of relief to close out the game.
The outing was especially impressive for Cahill, who had struggled in a similar role when he allowed two runs and walked three in the ninth inning Wednesday.
“I thought Kevin looked real good,” Thieleke said. “He made a couple adjustments after yesterday. He was missing up in the zone and it was just a mechanical thing, so he made the necessary adjustments and threw the ball well. It was good to see.”
The Mallards continue their home stand Friday as they open a two-game set against the St. Cloud River Bats at the Duck Pond. Brad Allen, who gave up just three runs (two earned) on eight hits for the loss in his first outing, will get second start of the season for Madison.
