Beloit Sky Carp commit four errors as nine-game winning streak ends with 8-6 loss to Cedar Rapids

All good things must come to an end.

The Beloit Sky Carp’s nine-game winning streak was snapped with the help of a former friend as Jose Salas’ go-ahead double in the eighth helped propel the Cedar Rapids Kernels to an 8-6 win on Wednesday afternoon.

Salas was signed as a free agent out of Venezuela by the Miami Marlins in 2019 and played in Beloit in 2022 before being shipped to the Minnesota Twins in the Luis Arraez trade in January 2023.

With the score knotted at five in the bottom of the eighth, Sky Carp reliever Josh White hit Nate Baez with a pitch and walked Jay Harry. Both runners moved up a base on Misael Urbina’s sacrifice bunt and Salas blasted his second double of the day into left field to score Baez.

White struck out Agustin Ruiz but Payton Eeles laced a hard-hit single up to middle to Johnny Olmstead, who slipped on the outfield grass as he readied to throw to first and allowed both runners to score and make it 8-5.

Tony Bullard doubled with one out in the ninth and scored on Osiris Johnson’s single to center in the next at-bat. Mark Coley followed with a single but Kernels’ reliever Gabriel Yanez coaxed Olmstead into a flyout and Zamora in a pop out to earn the save.

The loss comes after the Sky Carp had won three-straight against Quad Cities, swept the Lansing Lugnuts in five games and won Tuesday’s series opener against the Kernels.

It was an error filled day for the Sky Carp, who committed four miscues that resulted in two unearned runs. One of which came in the second when Jay Harry reached on a fielding error by catcher Cameron Barstad, was replaced on a fielder’s choice by Urbina and scored on Salas’ double.

Kevin Maitian’s RBI single off Beloit Starter Emmett Olson made it 2-0 in the third.

The Sky Carp leapfrogged ahead with a three-run fourth. Zamora doubled off starter Mike Paredes with one out and scored on Carlos Santiago’s single to right. Jarrett Whorff came in and struck out Jorge Caballero, but Barstad doubled to right to tie it up at two and later scored on a wild pitch to up the score to 3-2.

Josh Zamora’s solo blast to center in the top of the sixth, his 13th of the season, gave Beloit a two-run lead.

Olson finished after five innings as he allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits and three walks with four strikeouts.

Kyle Crigger replaced the starter in the sixth, walked Baez and allowed a single to Harry. He got back-to-back strikeouts but Kyle Hess smacked a two-run triple off the fence in right field and scored when the relay throw was off-line to give Cedar Rapids a 5-4 lead.

Johnson’s sacrifice fly in the seventh scored Jake DeLeo and tied it at five.

Santiago, who had a three-run homer on Wednesday, went 3-for-4 while Zamora also contributed three hits as the Sky Carp racked up four doubles and 13 hits one night after recording 14. Salas had two for the Kernels, who finished with seven.

The Sky Carp will continue the six-game series with the Kernels at 6:35 p.m. Thursday.

CEDAR RAPIDS 8, BELOIT 6

Beloit 000 301 101 — 6 13 4

Cedar Rapids 011 003 03X — 8 7 0

Beloit (ab-r-h-rbi) — Coley, cf, 5-0-2-0, Olmstead, ss, 4-0-0-0, Zamora, 2b, 5-2-3-1, Santiago, 1b, 4-1-3-1, Caballero, dh, 4-0-0-0, Barstad, c, 4-1-1-1, DeLeo, lf, 4-1-2-0, Bullard, 3b, 4-1-1-0, Johnson, rf, 3-0-1-2. Totals: 37-6-13-5.

Cedar Rapids (ab-r-h-rbi) — Eeles, 2b, 4-0-1-2, Olivar, dh, 2-0-0-0, Doncon, ss, 4-1-1-0, Maitan, 1b, 5-0-1-1, Baez, c, 2-2-0-0, Harry, 3b, 3-2-1-0, Urbina, rf-lf, 3-1-0-0, Salas, cf, 4-1-2-2, Hess, lf, 3-1-1-2, Ruiz, rf, 1-0-0-0. Totals: 31-8-7-7.

E: Olmstead 2, Barstad, Zamora. PB: Baez. PO: Whorff 2 (Coley at 1st, Olsmtead at 1st). DP: Beloit 1, CR 0. LOB: Beloit 6, CR 8. SB: Eeles 2, Olivar. 2B: Santiago, Zamora, Barstad, Bullard, Salas 2, Doncon. 3B: Hess. HR: Zamora (13). SF: Johnson. SAC: Urbina.

Pitching (ip-h-r-er-bb-k) — B: Olson 5-3-2-1-3-4, Crigger 1-2-3-2-1-3, White L, 1-1, 1 2/3-2-3-3-2-2, Feliz 1/3-0-0-0-0-1. CR: Paredes 3 1/3-3-2-2-0-2, Whorff 1 2/3-3-1-1-0-2, Labas 1 2/3-2-2-1-0-2, Wosinski (W, 1-2, 1 1/3-2-0-0-0-4, Yanez S, 5, 1-3-1-1-0-0.

WP: Whorff. HBP: Olmstead (by Whorff), Baez (by White), Doncon (by Feliz). T: 2:42. Att: 2,748.