Early offense helps Tides cook Pigs

Joey Rickard had three hits, Norfolk plated five first inning runs and Jayson Aquino turned in a strong start as the Tides cruised to a 6-3 win over the Lehigh Valley IronPigs Monday night at Harbor Park. 

The Tides wasted little time in jumping on IronPigs starter Zach Eflin (2-2), as Norfolk plated five runs on five hits while batting around in the first frame. Michael Saunders opened the scoring with a two-run single, while Andrew Susac and Sharlon Schoop later added RBI singles in the inning. The five runs and five hits were the highest single-inning totals for the Tides this season. 
Rickard singled and scored in the first, doubled and scored in the second and singled and stole a base in the fourth frame to help pace Norfolk's 11-hit attack. Rickard has now reached base safely in all 12 games in which he's had a plate appearance this year, and he's hitting .356 with a .464 on-base percentage this season.
The early offense was more than enough for Aquino (1-2), who allowed just two hits and a run over five innings of work. Making his first appearance since April 14th, Aquino walked four and struck out four while throwing 51 of his 86 pitches for strikes. He continued a strong run for Norfolk's starters, who have now gone 2-0 with a 0.96 ERA (2 ER, 18.2 IP) over the first four games of the current homestand. 
Saunders finished with two hits and three RBI in the win, while Engelb Vielma singled, doubled and drew a walk. 
Jhan Mariñez recorded the final two outs of the contest to register his league-leading fourth save of the season. 
With the victory, the Tides have now won five of their past six contests, over which they've outscored their opponents 36-18. Norfolk (9-6) also moved three games above the .500 mark for the first time this season. 
The Tides and IronPigs will continue their three-game set on Tuesday night at Harbor Park, with first pitch set for 6:35. Yefry Ramírez (1-1, 3.77) gets the start for Norfolk and will be opposed by right-hander Tom Eshelman (1-2, 5.29). 
Notes: Andrew Susac's RBI single in the first inning extended his hitting streak to 10 games, one shy of his career-high…Ruben Tejada went 0-for-3 with a walk and a hit by a pitch, snapping his hitting streak at nine games… Andrew Faulkner worked two shutout innings of relief, lowering his ERA to 1.13 through six games this season… Jason Gurka yielded two runs on four hits in the ninth inning, the first earned runs he's allowed this season. 
April 23 video highlights