Rodriguez Leads Millers in Battle for First Place
LENOX, Mass. -- Brian Rodriguez went 3-for-3 with a home run and a double on Sunday to lead the GB Millers to a 3-2 win over the Berkshire Bandits in the Berkshire Adult Baseball League's 20-and-over division.
Rodriguez hit a one-out single in the bottom of the sixth and scored on Chip Paul's single to break a 2-2 tie as the Millers swept the regular season series from the Bandits, who came into Sunday's game a half-game behind GB for first place with two weekends left in the regular season.
Rodriguez also earned the win on the mound with two innings of relief, striking out four including striking out the side in order in the top of the seventh.
Dick Dumas got the start on the mound for GB and battled Berkshire's Grega through three scoreless innings at War Memorial Field.
The Bandits broke up the pitchers duel with a run in the top of the fourth.
Grega got things started with a two-out single to left.
He went to third on Alexis Cruz-Lay's double to put two men in scoring position.
Ron Zabala followed with a single to right center to make it a 1-0 game for Berkshire.
Dumas got out of the inning with runners at the corners by serving up a ground ball to the right side for the third out.
And his offense rewarded him with two runs in the bottom of the fourth.
First, Spencer Cookson led off by reaching on an error. And then Rodriguez crushed a ball over the fence in left field to give his team a 2-1 lead.
That is where it stood until the top of the sixth.
The Bandits greeted GB reliever Anthony Lupiani with three straight hits to tie the game, 2-2.
Abdiel Cotto led off with a single up the middle and moved up on Victor Ramos' infield single. Grega (3-for-3) then doubled to right-center to drive in Cotto.
That brought Rodriguez to the mound, and he retired the next three hitters he faced to keep it a tie score.
The Millers (10-2) are home next Sunday to face the Pittsfield Knights before finishing the regular season against the Housatonic River Monsters on Aug. 11.
The Berkshire Bandits (9-4) are off until the 11th, when they play the North County Kraken at Hoosac Valley High School.
