May 10, 2024 4 min read

Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Wild Things’ second shortstop Carson Clowers lines up the throw over teammate Evan Berkey for the second out of the seventh inning in the home opener May 10 against Schaumburg.

Mark Marietta/Fot the Observer-Reporter
Designated hitter Wagner Lagrange celebrates as he returns to the dugout after his second inning home run in the home opener against Schaumburg on May 10.

Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Designated hitter Wagner Lagrange celebrates as he rounds the bases with his second inning home run in the May 10 game against Schaumburg at Wild Things Park.

Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Wild Things’ starting pitcher Jordan DiValerio takes the toss from Andrew Czech and beats Schaumburg’s Alec Craig to the bag for the second out of the fifth inning in the home opener at Wild Things Park on May 10.

Mark Marietta/For the Observer-Reporter
Wild Things’ Andrew Czech (right) is met at the plate by teammate Tommy Caufield as Czech returns from his two-run homer that put Washington up 3-2 over visiting Schaumburg in the fourth inning of the May 10 home opener.

Losing the first game of the Frontier League season has never been fatal, not with another 95 games looming over the course of the spring and summer.

So the Wild Things’ 6-3 loss to the Schaumburg Boomers in the season opener Friday night was more about what looked good, and what didn’t, for Washington.

The good: Wild Things pitcher Jordan DiValerio had a quality start – six innings and three runs allowed – and didn’t issue a walk in his first start with the Wild Things. Washington hit two home runs on a cool night, which is when the ball usually doesn’t carry at Wild Things Park. And the home teams stole four bases in five attempts.

The bad: There was a lack of hitting overall and the bullpen had one rough inning, a three-run Schaumburg seventh that turned a tie game into a 6-3 lead for the Boomers.

Four Schaumburg pitchers combined on a three-hitter. Relievers Cristian Lopez (1-0), Dylan Stutsman and Jake Joyce struck out nine over four scoreless innings. Joyce pitched the ninth inning, striking out the side, for a save.

Washington’s first two hits of the season left the ballpark. Designated hitter Wagner Lagrange gave the Wild Things a 1-0 with a home run off the scoreboard in the second inning. First baseman Andrew Czech, with first base open, hit a two-run shot into the parking lot behind right field in the fourth inning. It scored Tommy Caufield, who walked and stole second base, and gave Washington a 3-2 lead.

Both home runs came off Schaumburg starter Aaron Glickstein, who gave up three runs over five innings. He walked three and struck out five.

The problem for the Wild Things was the two home runs were their only hits until the eighth inning, when Czech doubled into the right-field corner with two outs.

Schaumburg also hit two home runs. Tyler Depreta-Johnson, the No. 9 hitter in the Boomers’ lineup, smacked a solo homer to left field in the third inning. Right fielder Ryan McCarthy hit a solo homer the opposite way, to left field, that tied the score at 3-3 in the sixth.

In the seventh, Washington went to its bullpen and Schaumburg took the lead without hitting the baseball. Washington brought in reliever Malik Barrington (0-1), who promptly walked the first three batters he faced.

The Wild Things went back to the bullpen, bringing in lefty Frankie Giuliano with the bases loaded. While throwing his first pitch, Giuliano was called for a balk, which scored Aaron Simmons from third base and gave Schaumburg a 4-3 lead.

Gray made it 5-3 with a line-drive RBI single and a third Boomers run in the inning scored on a fielder’s choice groundout.

Extra bases

The Wild Things have an 11-11 record in home openers. They had won their last three. … Schaumburg’s Christian Fedko, the son of former WPXI-TV sportscaster John Fedko, pinch-hit in the eighth inning and grounded out. … Attendance was 2,929.