15-Hit Attack Propels Blaze over Nuts
A night after being shut down by former first rounder Tyler Matzek, the Bakersfield Blaze showed former Reds farmhand (and 2007 California League Pitcher of the Year) Brandon Hynick that they would not be silenced two straight days, pounding out 15 hits en route to an easy 9-4 victory on Sunday afternoon at John Thurman Field.
The first two innings were quiet for both teams, but the game came to life in the 3rd. With two outs in the top half, Hynick (L, 1-2) allowed two singles, a walk and a double, and the Blaze jumped out to a 3-0 lead.
And Bakersfield was far from done. In the 4th, two more singles and two more doubles added an additional three runs, and the Blaze led seemingly comfortably, 6-0.
The Nuts would not roll over. In the bottom of the 4th, Blaze starter Daniel Renken lost his control. Renken issued 4 walks in the inning, and the Nuts turned it into four runs on just one hit, and the Blaze lead was trimmed to 6-4.
The hero of the day, though, would enter at the tail end of that 4th inning. Daniel Wolford (W, 6-3) retired the final two batters in the 4th, then pitched a scoreless 5th and 6th to collect the win, and put a lid on the Modesto attack.
For good measure, the Blaze decided to open up a nice lead late. Against Kurt Yacko, Bakersfield added a single tally in the 7th, and then three straight doubles led to two more in the 8th, and Bakersfield would cruise to the finish on that final margin of 9-4.
In all, Bakersfield pounded out 15 hits, the second highest mark of the season. Billy Hamilton stole his 71st bag to pace baseball, and Hamilton, Bryson Smith and Dominic D'Anna each had 3 hits in the assault.
With the win, Bakersfield moves back to 11 games over 500 at 37-26, tying the season-high mark the team set two nights back. In addition, San Jose's defeat moves the Blaze 3.5 games ahead of its nearest competitor in the North, and drops the team's magic number to win the first half to "4."
The Blaze now head to Stockton for a 4-game, 3-day series with the Ports. The series begins Monday evening at 7:10pm, with Chad Rogers taking on Josh Bowman, then continues with a Tuesday daytime doubleheader.
Tune in LIVE to every game all season long at BakersfieldBlaze.com. Dan Besbris will call the action tomorrow, with the pregame show beginning at 7pm sharp!
The first two innings were quiet for both teams, but the game came to life in the 3rd. With two outs in the top half, Hynick (L, 1-2) allowed two singles, a walk and a double, and the Blaze jumped out to a 3-0 lead.
And Bakersfield was far from done. In the 4th, two more singles and two more doubles added an additional three runs, and the Blaze led seemingly comfortably, 6-0.
The Nuts would not roll over. In the bottom of the 4th, Blaze starter Daniel Renken lost his control. Renken issued 4 walks in the inning, and the Nuts turned it into four runs on just one hit, and the Blaze lead was trimmed to 6-4.
The hero of the day, though, would enter at the tail end of that 4th inning. Daniel Wolford (W, 6-3) retired the final two batters in the 4th, then pitched a scoreless 5th and 6th to collect the win, and put a lid on the Modesto attack.
For good measure, the Blaze decided to open up a nice lead late. Against Kurt Yacko, Bakersfield added a single tally in the 7th, and then three straight doubles led to two more in the 8th, and Bakersfield would cruise to the finish on that final margin of 9-4.
In all, Bakersfield pounded out 15 hits, the second highest mark of the season. Billy Hamilton stole his 71st bag to pace baseball, and Hamilton, Bryson Smith and Dominic D'Anna each had 3 hits in the assault.
With the win, Bakersfield moves back to 11 games over 500 at 37-26, tying the season-high mark the team set two nights back. In addition, San Jose's defeat moves the Blaze 3.5 games ahead of its nearest competitor in the North, and drops the team's magic number to win the first half to "4."
The Blaze now head to Stockton for a 4-game, 3-day series with the Ports. The series begins Monday evening at 7:10pm, with Chad Rogers taking on Josh Bowman, then continues with a Tuesday daytime doubleheader.
Tune in LIVE to every game all season long at BakersfieldBlaze.com. Dan Besbris will call the action tomorrow, with the pregame show beginning at 7pm sharp!