Birds let lead slip away in loss to Tri-City Red

Gabe MacDonald hit his second home run of the season.

Chester Bird had a two-run lead heading into bottom of the fourth inning but Tri-City scored a run in the bottom of the four, two in the fifth and put together a game-winning six-run rally in the sixth for a 9-3 victory in the semifinals of the Hopkins Summer Classic.

Dan Labosky, who mad missed The Birds' last five games, led off the game with a single and stole second base. One out later, he scored on Jimmy Heck's base hit for the game's first run.

Marcus Barone would shutout Tri-City in the first three innings and, in the top of the fourth, Chester Bird took a 2-0 lead when Gabe MacDonald was hit by a pitch to lead off the inning and Joe Melles followed with a double to the fence in left field. Barone then followed with a fly ball to right field which allowed MacDonald to score.

Max Knutson led off the Tri-City fourth with a single and stole second before scoring his team's first run. In the fifth, he hit a two-run home run to give Red its first lead of the game.

Leading off the sixth inning, MacDonald fouled off three pitches and, on the eighth pitch of the at bat, hit his second home run in as many games to tie the game at 3-3.

Tri-City then exploded for six runs in the bottom of the sixth inning. Back-to-back doubles by Max Wilson and Lars Anderson capped the rally for the victors.

MacDonald led The Birds offensively, reaching base in all three of his at bats with a walk, hit by pitch and home run. He also scored twice.

Chester Bird's game at Edina, scheduled for Tuesday, is being rescheduled, leaving The Birds without a game on the slate until Friday, when they will open the Moose Country Invitational with a 4 p.m. game versus Rosemount at Sibley High School in Inver Grove Heights.