Brisbane Bandits keep play-off hopes alive after come-from-behind win against Perth
AMERICAN Kevin Padlo’s ninth-inning home run kept the playoff hopes of Brisbane in their own hands by snatching their most daring come-from-behind win of their Australian Baseball League season.
The Bandits ventured from 7-2 behind in the middle of the seventh to inflict a 9-8 win over Perth at Holloway Field to sweep the four-game series.
Less than an hour later, the ABL champions caught a break when Sydney, out of the play-offs picture, also scored late to edge out third-placed Canberra 7-6 and leave Brisbane half a win out of the last qualifying spot.
Brisbane (18-17 win-loss record) can displace Canberra or second-placed Adelaide (20-16) from the three-team playoffs depending on results in the last week of the season, which concludes with the postponed Bandits-Sydney game, to be in Sydney next Monday.
“We battled and we are in a position to try to repeat what we did last year,’’ Bandits head coach David Nilsson said.
“We’ve chased runs all year and done it so much that when we do get behind we don’t give up.
“David Sutherland drove in three runs (with a single in the bottom of the seventh) to give us hope. Then David Rodriguez got his (two run) home run in the eighth and then Kevin Padlo (in the ninth). We need that to win a championship.’’
Sutherland and Rodriguez, who is hitting a mighty .433 in his import stint as Bandits catcher, caught fire when it mattered against Perth reliever Benn Grice and Padlo cleared the fence off Warwick Saupold, who was debited with the loss.
Brisbane’s four wins over Perth (12-24) were all one-run games.
Originally published as Bandits’ bats pillage Perth