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Columbus (Cleveland) 3 Norfolk 0 (Game 1. Final: 7 innings)
(RHP) Suk-Min Yoon continues his adjustment to stateside baseball. 79 pitches / 49 for strikes over 5 IP which saw him allow just 2 hits and 0 runs. Control was a bit erratic, as he did walk 3, but also K'd 3. Baby steps. (LHP) Troy Patton worked a scoreless 6th where he issued but an intentional walk and nothing else. (RHP) Brad Brach, in the early running for my personal minor leaguer crush of 2014, showed he is human after all by allowing 4 hits a Wild Pitch and 3 ER in his one inning of work.
The offense did nothing of note, garnering 8 hits in the abbreviated game, but failing to plate any runs thanks to an 0-11 performance with RISP, 9 men left on base, and 7 Ks.
Columbus 4 Norfolk 7 (Game 2. Final: 7 innings)
After a brief return to the comforts of being on a major league roster (LHP) T.J. McFarland resumed his role in the Tides' rotation. He didn't particularly seem to care for being there on a chilly, drizzling evening: 5 H, 3 BBs, and 1 HBP over 3.2 IP led to 4 ERs. He did keep the ball down, as he generated 9 groundouts to just 1 fly out. The 'pen worked 3.1 clean innings, allowing just 1 hit while K'ing 3. (LHP) Kelvin de la Cruz was credited with the Win, while (RHP) Preston Guilmet notched his 3rd Save.
Offensive heroics came courtesy of (3B) Cord Phelps bases loaded clearing triple in the 6th. Phelps would then be brought home via an Xavier Paul (RF) sacrifice fly, and the Tides manage to split a soggy doubleheader.
Bowie 1 Richmond (Giants) 3
Opening up a Bowie boxscore is a source of constant delight thanks to (1B) Christian Walker and (CF) Dariel Alvarez. Each put up a 2 for 4 on the day, with Walker swiping his first bag of the season an added bonus. Unfortunately, their offensive output did not translate into actual runs for the Baysox. Only (2B) Garabez Rosa managed to cross the plate after knocking his 7th double in the 2nd inning.
After allowing another 3 ER over 5 IP, (LHP) Jake Petit has now yielded 22 ER over his 24.2 IP this season. That's...less than ideal. But he will probably continue to get starts until (LHP) Eduardo Rodriguez returns from his knee injury inspired D.L. trip. (RHP) Marcel Prado has had a rather stellar start to his season. 2 more innings yesterday. He is sporting a 1.02 ERA and 18 Ks to 8 walks over his 17.2 innings so far.
Carolina (Cleveland) vs. Frederick
Both Game 1 & Game 2 of the double header were rained out.
Delmarva 0 Savannah (Mets) 4
Even Hunter Harvey Day was a bit of a gloomy affair. Two walks and a stolen base to open the game is not an ideal start. Following that up with a one-out HBP to load the bases and another walk to bring in a run is less so. But a cool and composed 4-6-3 GIDP to end the scoring thread and the inning is encouraging. Harvey has demonstrated early on an ability to maintain his composure in the face of adversity. Love it. Harvey would follow up that frustrating 1st inning with 3 straight 1-2-3 innings, including 4 Ks over that span. An error to start the 5th allowed the lead off man to reach, but a swinging K and a ground out to 2B put Harvey in control of the inning. An infield single to 3B followed, but the threat was never serious as Harvey would proceed to induce another swinging K, his 4 such on the night, to end the inning. The 6th saw Harvey allow his first hard contact of the night, an RBI triple which brought in the lead off man, who had singled and stolen 2nd. Harvey's 4th walk of the evening followed, and his day was done. The 'pen did him no favors as (RHP) Williams Louico promptly allowed both inherited runners to score, one via wild pitch and the other via a sac fly. So, while both runs are charged to Harvey's ledger there is a somewhat mitigating factor to keep in mind. Final line for Hunter: 5+ IP, 3 H, 4 BBs, 1 HBP, 4 ER, and 6 Ks. 93 pitches, 56 for strikes, and 6 groundouts to just 1 fly out.
The offense did Harvey no favors, generating just 2 walks and 2 singles while he was in the game. A GIDP and a caught stealing during that span only served to add to the ineptitude. 4 of those 6 innings saw the Sand Gnats' pitcher face the minimum number of batters, so Harvey certainly wasn't being allowed an opportunity to rest between his innings of work. Also something to keep in mind. (RF) Mike Yastrzemski, (3B) Drew Dosch, and (CF) Josh Hart each managed a hit apiece, while (1B) Trey Mancini knocked two singles. He has now managed a hit in 5 straight and is 7 for his last 18 after a mighty struggle to start the season.
Just two games on the docket for today, as Bowie takes on Richmond and Delmarva goes against Savannah again. (RHP) Matt Bischoff gets the start for Bowie, while (LHP) Steven Brault takes the hill for the Shorebirds.