TRAVERSE CITY — Summertime has arrived in Traverse City.
The calendar may not say summer is here just yet, but temperatures peaked in the 70s at Turtle Creek Stadium on Friday night for the first of a two-game homestand of the 131 Rivalry Series between the Traverse City Pit Spitters and Kalamazoo Growlers.
The Pit Spitters took the weather as a sign of what’s to come.
The red-hot Spitters (4-1) extended their winning streak to four after a 5-1 win over the Growlers (2-3). Beginning the season on a hot note has been a normal occurrence for the Northwoods League ball club.
The Pit Spitters have now started the season 4-1 three times in their six-year stint in the Northwoods League — 2021 and 2023 being the others.
“As a coaching staff, our goal is to feed our guys information the first week, and we give them a lot of information,” Spitters field manager Josh Rebandt said on their early successes. “We also try not to over-coach them and just make sure they can be themselves and play free.”
The Pit Spitters clicked early as right-handed pitchers Jaxon Huffman and 6-foot-2 Collin Bradley started things, combining for zero hits through the first three innings.
Huffman allowed a run in the second inning before the Spitters unleashed the bats in the bottom half.
The two pitchers walked several batters, giving the Growlers opportunities to score more runs; but the Spitters’ infielders maintained their composure and got the outs needed.
Rebandt credited the bullpen for executing what they had set out to do from the first inning.
California native Brandon Chang splashed a two-run RBI triple to left to give the Spitters a 2-1 lead. First baseman Matt Earley — with no outs — sent one to the outfield for an RBI single, and outfielder JT Sokolove put the appropriate cherry on top of a fast start with a two-out RBI double to make it 4-1.
On the mound, right-handed pitcher Seth Gurr took control for five innings after relieving Bradley.
The 6-foot-2 righty pitched three straight clean innings, allowing zero hits until Brodey Acres tacked on a hit in the eighth.
“I’ve got to give it up to our pitching coach. He’s created a relaxing environment for the pitchers,” Gurr said. “No pressure within us, and we just rolled with it. As long as we keep the positive mindset, we can keep this rolling.”
Gurr’s splitter and sinker kept everything in the infield — making it an easy field day. The Canadian-born hurler finished with well over 40 pitches, striking out three with three hits allowed.
The Spitters pitchers combined for three walks, making the Growlers grind out every at-bat.
“(Gurr) made it look effortless. A lot of his innings were under 13 pitches an inning. From a coaching standpoint, that’s the goal if you can keep your pitch count 13 or under. More often than not, they aren’t going to score any runs,” Rebandt said.
The Spitters couldn’t get much production at the plate until the seventh inning as second baseman Corey Berry added to the lead with a deep shot to left field to make it a 5-1 advantage.
Growlers’ left fielder Travis Ilitch made a play for the ball by making a spectacular diving catch, but as he made contact with the ground, the ball fumbled out and allowed the run to score.
The Spitters close out a four-game home stint on Saturday against the Growlers before traveling to Kalamazoo for a the second half of the 131 Rivalry Series. First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. at Turtle Creek Stadium.