Gems Outlast Paints in Slugfest to Take Game One of Championship Series!

The Basics
Score: Quincy Gems 18, Chillicothe Paints 12
Records: Quincy Gems (34-26, 3-0), Chillicothe Paints (43-18, 2-1)
Location: QU Stadium - Quincy, Illinois

QUINCY, IL  – The Quincy Gems took game one of the 2023 Prospect League Championship Series with an 18-12 victory over the Chillicothe Paints Thursday night at QU Stadium.

The highest-scoring game in Prospect League Playoffs and Championship Series history goes to the Quincy Gems scoring 18 runs on 13 hits compared to 12 runs on 15 hits for the Paints. 

The scoring got started right away as the Paints jumped out to a 2-0 lead on a Victor Figueroa RBI groundout and an Owen Wilson RBI single in the top of the 1st. 

The Gems were not going to let that lead stand in front of the home faithful in Quincy as the Gems exploded for 8 runs in the bottom of the 1st. Jack Zebig got it started with a solo home run, Lucas Loos grabbed a sacrifice fly to score Jimmy Koza, Tristian Meny scored Kyle Hvidsten on a single, Otto Jones tripled home 3 runs, Zebig drove another with an RBI single, and Koza capped it off with a single to center to give the Gems an 8-2 lead after the 1st inning. 

The Paints didn't stop fighting, though. The Paints scored in the first 4 innings and pushed the game to a 10-8 ballgame in the top of the 4th. The Gems answered right back with a 3-spot in the bottom of the 4th to re-extend their lead, but the Paints again pushed the game to just 2 runs and made it 14-12 with a 4-run top of the 6th.

However, the 6th inning was all the Paints' offense had left in them. The Gems would go on to score 4 unanswered runs across the 6th, 7th, and 8th to just keep it out of the reach of the Paints and give the game its 18-12 final score. 

The Paints rolled out five pitchers who all went less than 3 innings and all gave up at least 1 run. The Gems rolled out six pitchers with the first three getting marked up for runs in less than 3 innings of work, but the final three relievers for the Gems all went scoreless. Tanner Gerdes picked up the win by throwing 2 shut-out, no-hit innings with 5 strikeouts to finish the game.

The series now heads to Chillicothe for game two on Saturday as the Gems lead the best-of-three championship series 1-0. 

Inside The Boxscore 

• Pitching was not a bright spot in the game for either team as the Paints walked 14 batters and the Gems walked 9 batters. The two teams did combine for 18 strikeouts, but 10 of them came in the final 3 innings of the almost 4-hour contest.

• For the Paints, Tim Orr went 2-4 with a grand slam, a run scored, 2 walks, and 5 runs batted in. Cameron Bowen went 3-3 with a walk, 2 runs scored, and 3 runs batted in. 

• For the Gems, Jimmy Koza went 4-5 with a home run, a walk, 2 runs scored, and 3 runs batted in. Otto Jones went 3-5 with a triple, a run scored, and 6 runs batted in.

• The teams combined for 30 runs, 18 hits, 4 home runs, and 1 triple, but neither team recorded a double.

Notes

• The two teams scored the most runs in both a Prospect League playoff game and a Championship Series game.

• The previous record in a championship game was held by Lafayette and Butler in 2017 when they combined for 19 runs in an 11-8 Aviators victory.

• The previous record in the playoffs was held by Quincy and Danville, who combined for 26 runs in 2014 in an 18-8 Gems victory.

• The 18 runs scored by the Gems were the most they scored in a game this season, but they have now scored 13 or more runs in 3 of their last 5 games. 

• The 18 runs given up by the Paints were the most runs they have given up all season. The previous mark was 11, which they have up the 7th game of the season.

Up Next
The two teams now head to Chillicothe, Ohio game two of the Championship Series at VA Memorial Stadium on Saturday at 7:05 PM (EDT). The Gems lead the series 1-0 and with a win on Saturday would clinch their 4th Prospect League Championship. If the Paints win Saturday, the two teams will play again Sunday in Chillicothe in a winner-takes-all game three.