Bullpen Blunders Strong Start From Doughty

The Lynchburg Hillcats dropped game three of their series to the Kannapolis Cannon Ballers by a score of 13-6.

Despite a strong start from Braylon Doughty, the bullpen gave way, combining to surrender 12 of the runs across five innings of work. The five run fifth from Kannapolis buried the Hillcats at a deficit too much to overcome.

The game started with a bang from Luis Merejo and his first home run of the season in the first inning. His blast to left field put the Hillcats in front before Lyle Miller-Green would knot things up in the second inning with a triple.

In the third, Lynchburg would retake the lead after Jeffrey Mercedes scored on a balk. Doughty would finish four innings of work, only allowing the one run on three hits.

From there, Kannapolis would take off, plating five in the fifth, putting the Hillcats down 5-2. Another run would score on a wild pitch in the sixth, as Lynchburg fell further behind.

In the sixth, Garrett Howe would drive home Merejo on a groundout to the second baseman. However, Kannapolis was good for three more in the seventh, capped off on a two-run home run from Javier Mogollon, his first of the season.

In the seventh, Carlos Gutierrez scored on a grounder from Mercedes. Ryan Cesarini would drive home a run in the eighth after being hit by a pitch with the bases loaded before Bennett Thompson was plated on a passed ball, cutting the score to 10-6.

However, that would be as close as Lynchburg would get as Kannapolis would strike for three more in the ninth, shutting down any chance at a Hillcats comeback. Of note, Hillcats outfielder Tommy Hawke entered the game to pitch with one out in the ninth to record the final two outs.

Lynchburg and Kannapolis will battle again on Friday evening at 6:30 p.m. at Bank of the James Stadium. Tickets are available at Lynchburg-hillcats.com.