BRIDGEWATER, N.J. ― Erie SeaWolves manager Gabe Alvarez didn't hesitate to make Austin Bergner the Game 2 starter in the Eastern League Championship Series.
He didn't hesitate to ask closer Tyler Owens to get a rare six-out save.
Alvarez pushed all the right buttons for the second straight year, and for the second straight season the SeaWolves are Eastern League champions.
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“I just want to say how proud I am of you guys. It's not easy to be the best team in the league from start to finish,” Alvarez said while addressing the team with a champagne bottle in his hand. “I'm so proud of you guys. There are guys that aren't here that we said we're going to get them rings like Trei Cruz, Hao-Yu Lee and Jake Holton. This is for them and let's have fun tonight.”
The SeaWolves completed a third straight playoff run to the championship series and captured their second straight championship by holding off Somerset 3-2 on Tuesday in front of 4,675 fans at TD Bank Ballpark.
The win started with the Erie pitching staff as Bergner put together another memorable playoff performance. He tossed six no-hit innings in the division series against Akron before striking out eight in six shutout innings Tuesday.
“It was just like last week. We went over the scouting report and talked about getting as many pitches in the zone as early as we can,” Bergner said. “We wanted to keep hitters off balance.”
Bergner threw 12 innings and struck out 17 in the two starts, becoming the third pitcher in franchise history to throw more than 10 postseason innings. He tied the franchise record for postseason strikeouts.
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“I've caught Austin twice now and both outings have been unbelievable,” said Erie catcher Liam Hicks. “He's got such a good idea of what he wants to do out there and such confidence in everything he throws.”
After Jake Higginbotham allowed a two-run home run that cut the lead to 3-2, Joel Peguero recorded two outs to end the seventh inning before Owens struck out four in two impressive innings. Owens and Hicks came over to the Tigers together in a late-July trade with Texas for Carson Kelly.
Grabbing an early lead
The SeaWolves raced to a 3-0 lead in the first two innings. In the top of the first, Austin Murr walked and went to second on a wild pitch. He scored on Chris Meyers' base hit to center field.
In the top of the second inning, Eliezer Alfonzo and Brady Allen drew walks before a pitch hit Carlos Mendoza to load the bases. Murr drew a walk to bring in one run followed by an RBI single by Myers to make it 3-0.
The SeaWolves pitching did the rest as Somerset didn't have an at-bat with a runner in scoring position. The Patriots' only runs came in the seventh inning, when Anthony Seigler singled and Tyler Hardman crushed a two-run home run to left field.
Exorcising the demons of 2022
Alvarez and the SeaWolves brought the excitement of minor league baseball back to Erie in 2022 by making the playoffs and getting the first playoff series win in franchise history.
The season, however, ended in a nightmare. The 'Wolves beat Somerset 6-5 in Game 1 of the Eastern League Championship Series before losing two games in Somerset. Erie needed just one win but fell 9-2 in Game 2 and was no-hit in a 15-0 loss in Game 3 .
The pain of the loss disappeared in 2023 with the SeaWolves' first Eastern League title , and after beating Somerset in Game 1 on Sunday, Alvarez and his team had a chance to redeem 2022.
“The way it ended in 2022 was tough, but this one feels good regardless,” Alvarez said. “There were some players that were here in 2022, and we talked about it briefly, but I think this is a whole new team and I'm proud of the guys.”
Contact Tom Reisenweber at treisenweber@timesnews.com . Follow him on X @ETNreisenweber .
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Back-to-back! Erie SeaWolves sweep Somerset to win another Eastern League championship
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