‘Birds Snap Skid with Win Over ‘Cats

SALISBURY, MD - The Delmarva Shorebirds jumped ahead early and weathered the storm against the Lynchburg Hillcats on Friday night at Arthur W. Perdue Stadium.

The win meant the Shorebirds (40-29) snapped a five-game losing streak, four of which have come against the Hillcats (35-34).

Delmarva opened the scoring in the bottom of the second. Jean Carmona slapped his second triple of the season to lead off the frame and Cristopher Cespedes doubled to score him. Cespedes then came around to score on back-to-back wild pitches to give the home side a 2-0 lead.

The ‘Birds struck again in the fourth. Ryne Ogren walked with one away and moved up to second on a groundout. A wild pitch moved Ogren up to third and Yorkislandy Alvarez walked to put runners on the corners with two down. Mason Janvrin thumped a ball to center to score Ogren and give Delmarva a 3-0 advantage.

In the sixth, the Hillcats swung back. Korey Holland led the inning off with his second triple of the campaign and a Petey Halpin groundout scored him one out later, making it a 3-1 game.

Janvrin’s strong showing continued in the bottom of the sixth. With two outs, Janvrin launched his seventh bomb of the year over the fence to extend the lead, 4-1.

The bats went quiet until the bottom of the eighth when Cespedes singled with two away and advanced to second on a wild pitch. Alvarez dropped a bloop single into right field to score Cespedes and secure a 5-1 lead going into the ninth.

The drama began in the final frame. Leonardo Rodriguez walked Jhonkensy Noel to open the inning, who then advanced to second on a passed ball. Julian Escobedo walked on four pitches, prompting a pitching change. Rickey Ramirez entered the game and walked Gabriel Rodriguez before punching out the side to lock up the victory.

Houston Roth (5-1) started and earned the win for Delmarva. Roth tossed 5.1 innings of one-run ball, allowing three hits and striking out two.

Lenny Torres (1-4) was handed the loss for Lynchburg. Torres worked 3.2 innings, allowing three runs on four hits and walking five Shorebirds.

Ramirez earned his first save with Delmarva after slamming the door in the ninth. Ramirez came in with runners on first and second, walked one and then struck out three to strand the sacks loaded.

Janvrin paved the way for Delmarva offensively, finishing the affair 3-for-3 with a double, home run and two driven in.

Gabriel Rodriguez led the charge for Lynchburg, finishing 2-for-3 and reaching base three times in the losing effort.

The Shorebirds look to ride the momentum of tonight’s win against the Hillcats into their Saturday, July 24 meeting. The expected probables for the game are Griffin McLarty (1-6, 5.08) for Delmarva and Juan Zapata (1-2, 4.76) for Lynchburg. First pitch is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. with pregame coverage beginning at 6:50 p.m. on MiLB.TV and Fox Sports 960 AM with Sam Jellinek and Nick Lewis on the call.

ABOUT THE DELMARVA SHOREBIRDS
The Delmarva Shorebirds were founded in 1996 and have been the Class-A affiliate of the Baltimore Orioles since 1997. The Shorebirds have won two South Atlantic League championships in 1997 and 2000 and were named the MiLB.com Minor League Team of the Year in 2019 after going 90-48 in the regular season. Based in Salisbury, Maryland, the Shorebirds are proud to represent the entire Delmarva Peninsula and have hosted two SAL All-Star Games in 1999 and 2011. The Shorebirds are owned by 7th Inning Stretch, LP, based in Stockton, California headed by Chairman Tom Volpe and President Pat Filippone.