The Denver Broncos (114-48)
AT
The Nashville Predators (84-78)
Down two games to none against Nashville, the Broncos simply could not afford to lose in Game Three. They needed to start fast and not let up.
Greg Lauritsen struck with a two out RBI double in the second inning.
Marvin Lore delivered an RBI single in the third.
Booker Romero followed with an RBI single of his own to make it 3-0 Denver.
Lauritsen then hit a sacrifice fly to make it 4-0. Nashville got on the board in the fourth inning with a two out RBI single from
Hugh Marzano, but
Booker Romero got the run back with an RBI double in the fifth inning.
Jack Rumfelt led off the sixth inning with a solo homerun to make it 6-1 Broncos. And then everything went straight to hell.
Carlo Romero hit an RBI double with nobody out in the sixth. 6-2.
Daniel Lane hit a 2 run homerun. 6-4. The Broncos managed to escape the sixth with no further damage. It remained 6-4 through the seventh and eighth innings. But with nobody out in the ninth inning,
Robert Perkins slashed a two run triple to tie the game at six.
Lane followed with a sacrifice fly. 7-6. Game over.
The
Predators lead, 3 games to none.
Around the league:
Like the Broncos, Tucson was desperate for a victory after having dropped its first two games to Miami. For their part, the Dolphins were eager to bury the Diamondbacks and push them to the brink of elimination. What followed was one of the best playoff games ever. Tucson's
Peter Boughner and Miami's
Ramon Baston were simply brilliant. The two pitchers matched each other, inning after inning, goose egg after goose egg. Neither team could score. For nine innings, both pitchers held their opponents at bay.
Baston surrendered 6 hits, and struck out 8 batters.
Boughner surrendered 6 hits. In the 10th inning, both pitchers turned the game over to their bullpen. It remained scoreless. Finally, in the bottom of the 11th inning, Tucson's
Joseph Osborn delivered a run-scoring single to win the game, 1-0.
The
Dolphins lead the series, 2 games to 1.
With their series tied at a game apiece, San Diego turned to ace,
Carlos Lozoya. He dominated Pittsburgh's batters, blowing away 12 in a nine-hit complete game. While
Lozoya made the Pirates look foolish,
Manuel Alarcon hit an RBI single in the fifth inning and
Michael Saldana hit a sacrifice fly in the seventh. The Pirates managed one run in the eighth, but that was all in a 2-1 defeat. In addition to his masterful pitching,
Lozoya doubled and scored a run.
The
Padres lead, 2 games to 1.
After getting embarrassed 10-5 by the Sharks in Game Two, the Rhinos decided to return the favor.
Gerald Schuyler hit an RBI single in the third inning.
Anthony Champ hit a 2-run single in the fourth inning. Pitcher
Dennis Philson an RBI triple in the sixth inning.
Gustavo Manrique hit an RBI single in the seventh inning.
Rick Ahn hit an RBI double in the ninth, and
Manrique capped the onslaught with another RBI single. The final: Rochester 7 San Jose 0. For the second time in the series, the Sharks had been shutout.
Segundo Narbaiza in Game One, and now
Philson went the distance on them, allowing only 6 hits.
The
Rhinos lead the series, 2 games to 1.