Early Lead Holds Strong in Thunder Victory

A four-run first inning set the tone early for the Thunder, who coasted to a 5-1 win over the Portland Sea Dogs on Sunday afternoon at ARM & HAMMER Park.
Mandy Alvarez doubled off Sea Dogs starter Kyle Hart with one out in the first inning, and a string of three consecutive walks forced home the game's first run. Bruce Caldwell followed with a RBI fielder's choice grounder, and after Ben Ruta extended his hitting streak to nine games with a RBI single, a throwing error by Portland third baseman Josh Tobias gave the Thunder a 4-0 lead.
In the bottom of the sixth, Bruce Caldwell hooked a line drive around the left field foul pole for his first home run of the season, accounting for the final Thunder run of the game.
Starting right-hander Alex Vargas struck out four batters and allowed just two hits over 4 1/3 innings in his double-A debut for the Thunder. Stephen Tarpley pitched 2 2/3 innings in relief and yielded a RBI groundout by Jordan Betts in the seventh, but Jordan Foley and Andrew Schwaab each pitched one scoreless inning to seal the series victory.