NORFOLK, Va. - The Louisville Bats (13-24) avoided tying their season-worst six-game losing streak on Friday night, defeating the Norfolk Tides (20-18) by a 4-2 score in the series opener at Harbor Park. Louisville also snapped its nine-game road losing steak, the longest string of road losses the Bats had
NORFOLK, Va. - The Louisville Bats (13-24) avoided tying their season-worst six-game losing streak on Friday night, defeating the Norfolk Tides (20-18) by a 4-2 score in the series opener at Harbor Park. Louisville also snapped its nine-game road losing steak, the longest string of road losses the Bats had suffered since the 2013 season. The Bats and Tides finished the game despite an hour and three minute rain delay.
Josh VanMeter and Steve Selsky got the party started for Louisville, each blasting solo home runs in the top of the first inning off Norfolk starting pitcher, right-hander and former Bat, Tim Melville (5-1, 3.54). Melville, who was tagged with his first loss on the season, went 4.1 innings and gave up four earned runs on eight hits and two home runs, walking one and striking out four.
Robert Stephenson (3-4, 3.89) was very solid for Louisville in his start tonight, earning the win and going 5.0 innings, giving up two earned runs on seven hits and one home run, walking none and striking out seven on 74 pitches, 54 strikes. The right-hander did not walk a batter for the first time since his July 3, 2017 start against the Indianapolis Indians.
Bats catcher Chadwick Tromp gave Louisville a 3-0 lead in the top of the second on a sacrifice fly following a pair of singles by Gabriel Guerrero and Hernan Iribarren, with Norfolk's Jaycob Brugman collecting an RBI in the bottom of the inning to make it a 3-1 game.
The Bats would score one in the fifth to make it a 4-1 game, with D.J. Stewart homering for Norfolk in the sixth off Stephenson to make it 4-2, the game's final score.
VanMeter, Guerrero and Brandon Dixon all registered multi-hit games for the Bats in the team's first win since May 11. Dixon's batting average on the season is up to .336 (41-for-122), with his double and triple tonight bringing his team-leading extra-base total on the season to 16. He also walked twice, the first time he's reached base four times this season, and also his first multi-walk game of 2018.
Louisville relievers Kyle Crockett, Jimmy Herget, Tanner Rainey and Kevin Quackenbush dominated Norfolk batters, combining for four scoreless innings, with Quackenbush converting his fourth save in four opportunities.
The Bats and Tides are back at it Saturday night at 7:05 p.m. with right-hander José López (0-4, 5.80) starting for Louisville and another former Bat, right-hander Asher Wojciechowski (1-1, 4.50) starting for Norfolk.
