Chukars Corner

A battle between two offensive clubs turned into a pitching battle as the Chukars squeaked by the Helena Brewers on the road 2-1.

With the win, the Chukars maintain the best record in the Pioneer League at 9-3. The loss drops Helena to 8-6 and one game behind Great Falls for the north division lead.

Three Chukars pitchers dominated, holding Helena four runs under its average of five runs per game. Starter Ivor Hodgson and relievers Cole White and Carlos Arias gave up just five hits. The trio struck out 13 batters and walked just two.

A solo homer by Edgar Trejo in the second inning saved Helena from a shutout loss.

Helena’s pitchers were equally effective. Starter Adrian Rosario struck out seven batters in six innings, and reliever Andre Lamantagne didn’t give up a hit in three innings of work.

The difference was situational hitting and defense.

After being shut out for five innings The Chukars manufactured the tying run in the sixth. A J.D. Alfaro got things going with a leadoff double. Salvador Perez moved Alfaro to third, and Carlo Testa brought him home with a single to right field.

Alfaro said Perez ignored a swing away sign when he laid down the bunt.

“Salvador did that on his own,” Alfaro said. “It was a good time. That shows he has confidence in himself. It shows what he’s capable of.”

Chukars manager Daryll Kennedy said he didn’t mind his No. 3 hitter going off the reservation to play small ball.

“We needed to get the guy to third with less than three outs,” Kennedy said. “I was hoping he’d drive ball to right field and maybe get a double himself. But he took it upon himself to get the job done. That was a big run for us.”

The Chukars benefited from Helena’s charity in the eight when two throwing errors allowed Alfaro to reach and to score the go-ahead run.

All season, the Chukars have come from behind and pick up wins. With both teams pitching well, the Chukars squirmed to victory by making routine plays behind their pitchers while Helena left the door open with errors.

“One thing this team shows is confidence,” Kennedy said. “Even though the offense wasn’t there tonight and runs were at a premium, guys did a good job finding a way to do it, finding a way to win. That’s indicative of what I’ve seen of this team.”

White improved to 2-1 on the season and kept his ERA at 0.00 by striking out four of the seven batters he faced. Arias, who will move out of the starting rotation and into a pseudo closer role, struck out four of six batters, lowered his ERA to 0.79 and picked up his first save.

At two hours and 15 minutes, the pitcher’s duel resulted in the Chukars’ shortest game of the season, a full one hour and 17 minutes faster than the June 30 marathon against Casper.