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Mahoning Valley sliding, but Freeman reaches record

NILES — The Mahoning Valley Scrappers continued to slide with a 4-1 loss to the State College Spikes in New York-Penn League play on Saturday. The Scrappers have now lost seven-straight games.

Yeffersson Yannuzzi made his third start with the Scrappers (32-27). He took the loss after 4 1/3 innings, allowing four hits, four earned runs, three strikeouts and two walks.

On the State College (28-31) side, first baseman Brady Whalen dominated.

The Spikes scored in first in the top of the third inning. Whalen smacked a 3-1 pitch from Yannuzzi over the left-field wall. That scored Lars Nootbaar as well for a 2-0 lead.

Whalen struck again in the top of the fifth inning with a two-run double that scored Imeldo Diaz and Edwin Figuera to go up 4-0.

The Scrappers offense struggled to produce. With six hits, just like State College, they produced just one run.

That run came in the bottom of the sixth as Mitch Reeves scored Tyler Freeman from third base to score their only run.

“We have to start swinging a little better as a team,” Freeman said. “Everything from top to bottom has stuff we can improve on. When were on a hot streak before, we were all having fun and swinging the bats well. We were pitching very well. Right now, I think we’ve lost that a little bit but all it takes is one game for it to come all back.”

Freeman had his own success. In the bottom of the sixth inning, with two doubles in the game, Freeman hit his third double of the evening — his 26th of the year.

The final double gave him the team record for doubles set by Ryan Mulhern at 25 back in 2003.

“This isn’t going to last all season,” Freeman said. “More importantly, we are trying to get out of this little funk that we are in. It’s a little frustrating losing but that’s what makes us better. Let me say this right, failure happens to succeed. We have to fail to get success.”

Freeman, even with personal success, said he doesn’t really care how well he plays if the team can’t win with it.

“It has been fun,” he said. “What I’ve accomplished so far has been fun. I’ve never really had anything sort of like this. Honestly, I just try to hit every ball that is the strike zone.”

The Scrappers now trail Auburn by 2 1/2 games for the Pinckney Division lead and are one game behind Brooklyn for the NY-PL Wild Card spot.

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