Tick, tock. Tick, tock.
Time is running out on Salt Lake's bid to distance itself from Iowa before a season-ending series in Des Moines.
Halfway through an eight-game stretch in which the Stingers play exclusively at home while the Cubs are on the road, the Central Division pennant race is still a dead heat. Both teams are 77-58 after Salt Lake's 10-5 loss at Omaha and Iowa's 5-2 win at Colorado Springs on Sunday.
"We've got to do something to try and get some breathing room," said Stingers manager Garry Templeton, whose team is 10-10 in Salt Lake since the all-star break. "I think we're looking over our shoulders instead of taking care of business here at home."
And with just eight games remaining in the regular season, time is running short. Despite what happens over the next four days — when Salt Lake closes out its home schedule against Colorado Springs and Iowa visits Omaha — the Stingers must now win at least one game in Des Moines in order to win the division. Should the race end in a tie, the first tiebreaker is head-to-head play and Salt Lake and Iowa have split their first 12 meetings.
In the face of mounting pressure, Templeton is seeking a solution. He's hoping the Stingers relax and realize that they can play — regain their killer instinct. Salt Lake has been in first place all season long.
"We've just got to put it together," said Templeton. "We're too good to be doing what we're doing."
As of late, the Stingers have had trouble combining good pitching and timely hitting. It's been nearly two months since Salt Lake has won three games in a row. The latest shortfall came Sunday when another two-game streak came to an end.
After taking a 3-1 lead in the second inning when Scott Morgan, Jamie Burke and Justin Baughman each drove in runs, the Stingers simply couldn't hold on. Omaha pulled even in the third before building a 9-3 advantage with three runs in both the sixth and eighth frames.
Though Salt Lake eventually cut the deficit to four on RBI doubles by Larry Barnes and Jose Fernandez in the eighth, Omaha answered with a run before game's end to cap all scoring.
The Golden Spikes tagged Salt Lake pitchers Matt Wise, Juan Alvarez, Shad Williams and Will Brunson for 16 hits in the contest. The tally included four doubles and a pair of homers.
"I thought we just made some bad pitches to guys we shouldn't have," said Templeton.
Wilson Delgado inflicted most of the damage by driving in five runs. Aaron Guiel and Jon Nunnally each drove in a pair.
BEE LINES: Sunday's attendance was 7,607 . . . Salt Lake concludes its final homestand of the season with four games against Colorado Springs . . . Stingers RHP Elvin Nina (10-10, 5.32 ERA) and Sky Sox RHP Andy Larkin (4-7, 5.32 ERA) are Monday's scheduled starters . . . By splitting with the Golden Spikes, the Stingers extended their season-long streak of non-losing series at home to 17.
E-MAIL: dirk@desnews.com