SCHAUMBURG, Ill. — The 2021 Frontier League Champion Schaumburg Boomers struck out 13 hitters but suffered an 8-2 loss to the Joliet Slammers in the opener of a weekend series at Wintrust Field.

Joliet opened a 4-0 lead early, scoring a run in the first and three in the second. Schaumburg pulled within 4-2 by scoring twice in the third. Chase Dawson led off with a walk and scored on a sacrifice fly from Brett Milazzo. Blake Grant-Parks added an RBI single in the inning to score Cris Ruiz. Joliet tacked on an insurance run in the fifth and Brylie Ware put the game out of reach with a two-run homer in the sixth.

Alec Craig reached base five times, posting two hits and drawing three walks to add to his league best total. The Boomers drew seven walks in the game. Shumpei Yoshikawa suffered the loss on the mound, striking out eight in six innings. Juan Pichardo and Nate Thomas both struck out two while Michael Slaten added a strikeout. The Boomers have recorded double-digit strikeouts in 17 of the 35 games this year.

The Boomers (15-20) continue the Metra Series at 6:00 pm tomorrow night. The evening will feature postgame fireworks along with Baseball to End Alz. The Boomers will wear special purple jerseys that will be auctioned to benefit the Alzheimer’s Association as part of Alzheimer’s Awareness Night presented by Lavelle Law. Tickets for the 2022 season are on sale now! Visit boomersbaseball.com.